The black mist drew closer and closer to the girl’s forehead—less than half an inch away.
The girl suddenly snapped her eyes open, her clear pupils brimming with panic.
Lizhu’s lips curved slightly upward as he offered a word of comfort: “It won’t hurt.”
The ball of black mist swelled. Once it was pressed into her skull, she wouldn’t be afraid anymore.
At that moment, the girl abruptly sprang up and threw her arms tightly around him.
Lizhu froze for an instant.
The black mist struck his other hand instead.
“How could it not hurt?” Tears streamed down her face in rapid succession. “You must be in terrible pain.”
Lizhu: ?
“I’m sorry—I didn’t press on your wound, did I?” Shen Qinghe lowered her head to examine the injury at his heart, and her tears fell even harder.
It really wasn’t that Shen Qinghe was prone to crying; it was simply impossible to hold back tears in a situation like this.
Shen Qinghe gently traced her fingers over his wound. “Thank goodness your heart is different from ordinary people’s.”
Lizhu said, “I don’t have a heart.”
After saying this, he quietly watched her, waiting for her to panic and flee like everyone else had.
What kind of being could exist without a heart?
Shen Qinghe, however, simply thought that the Cultivation World was vast and full of wonders. She actually breathed a sigh of relief. “Good thing that’s the case—that gives you another way to stay alive.”
Lizhu was puzzled. “Why would my having more ways to survive be a good thing for you?”
“Of course it is. Hey, why is your arm wounded so badly too?”
The boy’s arm was charred black, the burns nearly having scorched his entire hand to a crisp.
It must have been from his desperate fight against those Demonic Cultivators to protect her.
“Wait a moment, let me find something.”
She took out her Storage Bag and dumped its contents onto the ground.
Lizhu had lost his patience. The black sword in his hand trembled, about to activate on its own without any wind—when a Bright Pearl larger than a grown man’s hand suddenly tumbled to the ground, rolling right up beside the black sword.
The black sword instantly went still.
Lizhu picked it up, brushing off the black ash that clung to it. “What is this?”
Shen Qinghe glanced over briefly and said, “An East Sea Dragon Pearl. My brother gave it to me.”
“I want it.”
“It’s yours.”
Another glittering red gem tumbled out.
This time, before it could hit the ground, the boy caught it in his hand.
“I want this one too.”
He didn’t even bother asking what it was.
Shen Qinghe didn’t look either. “It’s yours.”
Lizhu glanced at her Storage Bag, his eyes darkening.
He then looked toward the back of the girl’s head, and a wisp of black mist gathered in his palm once more.
Shen Qinghe said, “If you like them, once we return to my home, I’ll give them all to you—as long as you behave yourself.”
“Does your home have many more?”
“Of course. The Azure Profound Sect is recognized as having the most treasures in the entire Cultivation World.” Shen Qinghe spoke with considerable pride.
The black mist in his palm dissipated in an instant.
Lizhu said, “Then I’ll go back with you.”
“Great!” Her tone rose, clearly delighted.
Lizhu was in a good mood too. Once he had everything in hand, there would be plenty of time to deal with her.
Shen Qinghe finally found what she was looking for. “Here, take this. Just swallow it.”
She opened a jade box. Inside was a pill only the size of a longan, translucent and emerald green, with exquisite patterns like a fine piece of jade. A faint cyan glow circulated around the pill, emanating a gentle, warm aura.
The Bone-Regenerating Blood-Merging Pill.
If the Purple Cloud Pill of Ten Thousand Longevities was rare in this world, then the Bone-Regenerating Blood-Merging Pill was something every sect would scramble for.
A single pill could bring a Cultivator back from the brink of death, reshaping their bones and blood.
Lizhu’s eyes lit up again. He took it. “I want this!”
Shen Qinghe nodded. “It was meant for you anyway.”
The youth directly put it into his own pocket.
Shen Qinghe was anxious. “Why are you putting it away?”
The youth frowned, looking at her warily. “You don’t want to give it to me?”
“No, you should eat it now. The wounds on your arm and chest can’t be delayed.”
In her previous life, after her brother was ambushed by the male lead, it was precisely because he didn’t take this pill immediately that Demonic Qi invaded his body.
Lizhu’s hands were already blackened from injury—Demonic Qi had definitely invaded his body. It couldn’t be delayed any longer.
Lizhu said, “It will heal on its own.”
He lowered his head. The wound on his chest where flesh and blood had been torn apart, along with the injuries on his arm, repaired itself at a visible speed, eventually returning to its original state.
Shen Qinghe was stunned. “Your recovery ability is this strong?”
Lizhu tightly guarded the pocket in front of him. “You’ve already given it to me. I won’t return it.”
Shen Qinghe said, “I won’t ask for it back. I see your wounds heal well, but if someone finds your weakness, you’ll definitely be hurt even worse. This pill can protect you.”
In her previous life, Young Master Li Zhu had fallen in the Secret Realm, which meant he must have encountered someone who knew his weakness.
Right now, she just wanted to take her brother and him and leave immediately, so they could both avoid the calamity of their previous lives.
Lizhu asked, “You want me to be harder to kill?”
“Of course. I want you to be safe and well.”
Lizhu touched the spot on his chest where he’d been injured.
The wound had long since healed. He had no heart, so he shouldn’t feel anything.
But he truly felt that spot give a single throb.
So unfamiliar.
So strange.
This woman was strange too. He’d never met anyone this foolish—not only was she unafraid of him, she even gave him something to protect his life.
Shen Qinghe said, “Of course, I’m not being nice to you for nothing.”
He knew it.
“Do you want my blood, or my flesh?” Lizhu asked.
Shen Qinghe: “…Probably both.”
Having him cooperate fully in playing along with the act—wasn’t that essentially asking for his flesh and blood?
A flicker of mockery passed through Lizhu’s eyes. Greedy humans, as expected.
Shen Qinghe was about to say something when her expression suddenly changed, and she looked up at the sky.
Before she could react, she was pulled behind the black-robed, white-haired youth.
The youth’s eyes turned pitch black as he stared straight at the streaks of golden light descending, transforming into a group of figures.
The young man at the lead wore a white immortal robe, his bearing extraordinary. When he saw Shen Qinghe and the youth’s clasped hands, his brows furrowed so deeply they could crush a fly.
“So you’re the Demonic Cultivator who deceived my sister?!”
A sword materialized in his hand almost instantly—the Frost-Sliver Sword, radiating a cold, biting gleam—as he thrust it toward Lizhu.
Lizhu’s lips curled up slightly as he slowly raised that pitch-black longsword.
“Wait, don’t fight!”
Shen Qinghe shouted, running between the two. “Brother, he saved my life. You’re not allowed to hurt him.”
Shen Qingci’s handsome face was filled with fury. “You’ve been bewitched by him! White-haired, with ominous Spiritual Power—what good could he possibly be? Uncle Zhong, take her away!”
Uncle Zhong had been worried ever since the young miss was suddenly abducted, and now he only wanted to get her to safety as quickly as possible.
But the moment Uncle Zhong took a single step forward, Shen Qinghe drew a sword and pressed it against her own neck.
“Anyone who dares to touch him—I’ll die right here today!”
The sharp blade cut through the skin of her neck, and blood seeped out.
Shen Qinghe was truly willing to die for that white-haired one!
“Brother, you can risk your own life for Su Wanqing, giving everything to protect her. Well, today I’m the same—for him, I’d rather die!”
“This is different. Wanqing is the finest woman in the world. You—”
Shen Qinghe: “He is the finest man in the world too. I simply love him.”
Lizhu’s body stiffened. He didn’t understand love and romance, but he had once flipped through picture books filled with lingering, heart-wrenching love stories. At the time, he’d only thought the people in them were foolish.
And this woman before him was even more foolish than them, willing to give her life for him?
Somewhere in his hollow chest, something pounded violently again, shaking him so hard it hurt—far more than when his heart had been pierced moments ago.
Shen Qingci only wanted to grind this man who had deceived his sister’s feelings into dust.
Beside him, Uncle Zhong whispered, “Family head, the young miss is caught up in the moment right now. Once we leave the Secret Realm, it won’t be too late to deal with this man.”
Shen Qingci took several deep breaths, sheathed the Frost-Sliver Sword, and softened his tone slightly. “What’s his name?”
Lizhu’s lips curved slightly, about to speak, when Shen Qinghe immediately said, “His name is Qi An.”
“Qi An?” Shen Qingci’s expression grew even more strained. It was a name he’d never even heard of.
Shen Qinghe held her chin high and said, “Qi An is the strongest Cultivator in the world. I will love him for all my life.”
Shen Qingci’s sword leaped again, a sign that he could no longer contain his fury. The elders beside him quickly grabbed him. “Calm down, calm down. We’ll talk about this when we get back.”
Shen Qinghe whispered to Lizhu, “Sorry, I gave you a name. This way, it won’t affect you in the future.”
After all, the name Young Master Li Zhu was far too upright—what if her brother felt reassured and let his guard down?
“Whatever.” Lizhu didn’t mind, then asked, “Why Qi An?”
“Because when I saw you, you were covered in wounds. I hoped you’d be safe at all seven hours of the day.”
Lizhu: What a strange human.
The only one who wished for his safety.
Shen Qingci watched the two of them pulling at each other, even using Secret Voice Transmission. He took a deep breath and swallowed a calming pill.
In the past, even with matters concerning Su Wanqing, no matter how furious he grew, he’d never needed such a thing to suppress his anger.
But today, he truly did.
The first thing he’d do upon returning was eliminate this white-haired bastard!