Shen Qinghe and her companion didn’t stay long in Alchemy City.
Because she discovered that her Jade Thumb Ring was missing, and she had no idea when she’d lost it.
Shen Qinghe was heartbroken.
The Spirit Spring, the bamboo hut, the bamboo grove, and the books she’d just tidied up and placed inside—all gone!
Suddenly, her eyes lit up.
Hadn’t she already bound herself to the Jade Thumb Ring? Could she use her Divine Sense to search for it?
She closed her eyes, concentrating on finding the connection with the Jade Thumb Ring, even turning in circles a few times along the way.
Lizhu was puzzled. “Why are you closing your eyes and spinning in circles?”
“I’m judging whether the direction is right—you wouldn’t understand.” It was just like when she used navigation back home.
She really did sense a faint connection.
Shen Qinghe took a few steps in that direction and bumped into a wall of solid flesh, but she didn’t care.
“My Jade Thumb Ring is over there.”
She pointed, opened her eyes, and her finger happened to land right on the man’s chest.
Which was to say, it was quite springy. Nice feel.
Lizhu’s eyes darkened as he grasped her slightly wandering finger. “In my heart?”
“Pfft.”
Shen Qinghe couldn’t hold it in and burst out laughing. “Haha, that’s such a cheesy line. Sorry, that was just a bit funny. I accidentally pointed at your heart.”
Still, the feel was really nice. He probably wouldn’t notice if she secretly copped a few more feels, right?
Watching her laugh, Lizhu blinked, not understanding why she was laughing, yet finding her smile quite radiant. He followed suit with a faint curve of his lips.
The direction Shen Qinghe pointed was Spirit Medicine Valley.
Following the sensation, they arrived at a remote courtyard in Spirit Medicine Valley.
Shen Qinghe was baffled. “I don’t remember us passing by here during the day. Did someone pick up my things?”
Lizhu said flatly, “Probably stole them.”
“I don’t think so.”
Shen Qinghe puffed out her cheeks.
The courtyard door wasn’t closed. She knocked twice with no response, then reached out and pushed it open directly.
At the same moment, a figure inside rushed toward her violently, eyes blazing with fury.
Startled, Shen Qinghe jumped onto Lizhu. “Ah!”
Lizhu calmly caught her with one arm, and with a flick of his sleeve, the person collapsed to the ground, face pale, muttering to himself, “No… how could this be…”
His expression was manic, his body covered in wounds. Shen Qinghe recognized him and gasped. “Xiao Jingyuan?”
Xiao Jingyuan looked at her in a daze, then his face twisted into a vicious snarl as he lunged at her. “It’s you! You did this on purpose, didn’t you?!”
He charged at Shen Qinghe with murderous intent.
Lizhu raised his foot and kicked him dozens of meters away. A Jade Thumb Ring tumbled out.
“It’s my Jade Thumb Ring!”
Shen Qinghe hurried over, snatched up the Jade Thumb Ring, dusted it off, and tucked it away. Then she glared at Xiao Jingyuan. “So you really did steal my Jade Thumb Ring!”
The original novel’s male lead would actually do something like this!
Though, come to think of it, the original male lead could slaughter an entire sect without batting an eye, so doing something like this seemed pretty normal.
So that’s why he’d bumped into her for no reason back in the great hall.
But the Jade Thumb Ring was already bound to her—could he even use it?
Xiao Jingyuan stared in terror at the Jade Thumb Ring in Shen Qinghe’s hand. “What did you do to it?! Why did I—the moment I went in—”
“You little punk, you still want to pry into my things? If there’s a next time, I’ll break your legs.” Shen Qinghe snorted coldly.
Xiao Jingyuan spat out a mouthful of blood and collapsed, unconscious.
Shen Qinghe looked at Lizhu with confusion. “I didn’t do anything to him, did I? Did he faint from anger?”
Lizhu: “He’s just weak himself.”
Shen Qinghe agreed wholeheartedly.
The male lead, Xiao Jingyuan, was inherently weak. If not for the Heavenly Dao Halo granting him countless opportunities that others could only dream of, he would have been discarded as cannon fodder long ago.
Now was the perfect chance to eliminate him.
If he died, the Azure Profound Sect and her brother would be safe.
A flicker of killing intent passed through Shen Qinghe’s eyes. She gathered all her Spiritual Power into her sword, but just as she was about to strike down, her entire body felt as though something had seized her, forbidding her blade from pointing at him.
Cold sweat dripped down Shen Qinghe’s face.
Could she, as a female cannon fodder, not lay a hand on the male lead?
Or perhaps, given her current identity and position in the plot, she wasn’t supposed to harbor killing intent toward him.
So even if she wanted to eliminate him, the Heavenly Dao wouldn’t allow it.
“What’s wrong?” Lizhu noticed something off about her.
“I’m fine.”
Shen Qinghe took a step back and sheathed her sword. Her face was still pale, and she swallowed a pill to recover slightly.
She temporarily set aside her thoughts of dealing with the male and female leads, and didn’t ask Lizhu to try either.
The white-haired youth knew nothing of the plot and was stubborn by nature. He would definitely refuse to accept it and keep trying to kill the leads, only to end up severely injured from resisting the Heavenly Dao Restriction. That wasn’t something she wanted to see.
For now, aside from seizing the leads’ opportunities and letting her brother see Su Wanqing’s true face, she had no other choice.
But that was enough. She knew the plot and had sufficient foresight.
Lizhu stared at her frail appearance, frowning slightly.
This human was far too fragile. If he weren’t by her side, she might die in an instant. He’d need to keep a closer eye on her.
Just then, a streak of light descended beside Xiao Jingyuan—it was Su Wanqing.
“Jingyuan, wake up.”
Seeing no reaction from Xiao Jingyuan, Su Wanqing glared at her with reddened eyes. “Did you two hurt Jingyuan?”
Shen Qinghe: “He stole my jade thumb ring.”
Su Wanqing’s gaze turned cold. “Nonsense. Jingyuan would never do such a thing. I think your brother spoils you too much, making you increasingly reckless. Today, I’ll teach you a lesson on his behalf.”
She formed hand seals with both hands. Su Wanqing’s cultivation had already reached the Nascent Soul Stage.
As the female lead, unlike the male lead, Su Wanqing possessed exceptional talent—a supreme-grade Ice Spiritual Root. Before she even made a move, Shen Qinghe felt a wave of biting cold wash over her, instinctively making her cling tightly to Lizhu.
“Big shot, save me!”
The Nascent Soul Stage pressure surged forward, but before it could land on Shen Qinghe, it was crushed into nothing by an even greater force in midair.
Uncle He descended from above. “Miss Su, the young lady has spoken the truth. Her jade thumb ring was indeed stolen by Young Master Xiao.”
Su Wanqing sneered. “You’re all in league together, so of course whatever she says goes. You gave me something, and now you just take it back whenever you please.”
Uncle He was left speechless. Shen Qinghe raised her voice. “Dare you deny that you’ve been stringing my brother along, making him give everything for you?”
Su Wanqing said, “It was all his choice. I never forced him.”
“Then what feelings do you have for my brother? Everyone knows that when you accept something from someone, you owe them a debt of gratitude. You’ve received so much from him—surely you must feel something different for him.”
Su Wanqing said coolly, “He and I are merely friends. Nothing more.”
Shen Qinghe spoke into the Transmission Jade. “Brother, you heard that, right? She just wants to take without giving anything back, and won’t take responsibility.”
A flicker of panic passed through Su Wanqing’s eyes. “You secretly contacted him?”
“Xiaohe, don’t make things difficult for her. It was all my choice.” Shen Qingci’s helpless voice came through from the other end.
Shen Qinghe genuinely wanted to smack him with a brick, a wave of powerlessness washing over her.
It seemed she still wasn’t trying hard enough.
She cut off the communication, grabbed Lizhu, and left. “Let’s go.”
Lizhu: “Where to?”
“To snatch you a Magic Treasure.”
Behind them, Uncle He reminded, “Young Miss, Spirit Medicine Valley isn’t safe right now. You’d best return to Azure Profound Sect first.”
Shen Qinghe didn’t even turn her head: “No way!”
Uncle He’s eyelid twitched violently. He wanted to chase after her, but the Sect Master had assigned him to protect Su Wanqing.
He had no idea where Uncle Zhong, who was supposed to be guarding the Young Miss, had gone. He could only send out a few more Sound-Transmission Cranes to search for him.
Soon, one Sound-Transmission Crane flew back—it was from Uncle Zhong. “Azure Profound Sect is in danger. Return at once.”
Uncle He frowned.
With something this major, the Sect Master would have no reason not to contact him directly.
But Uncle Zhong never lied; something serious must indeed be happening.
He glanced at Su Wanqing and the others, hesitated for a moment, then left.
Everything else came second to Azure Profound Sect.