The moment the words fell.
A cold system notification echoed in Xie You Mingyao’s Sea of Consciousness.
[Affinity -140]
[Host’s current affinity: -60%]
Xie You Mingyao’s smile froze mid-expression.
Mo Chenxue also sensed the change on the ranking list. “Ming”‘s affinity had suddenly plummeted from 80% to -60%, and his rank had dropped from first place to second-to-last, just above himself!
This time, it was Mo Chenxue’s turn to curl his lips upward.
It seemed the little girl wasn’t foolish after all—she had figured it out that quickly. Xie You Mingyao had never had good intentions…
Xie You Mingyao stiffened for a moment, then waved his sleeve and summoned a crescent-bladed long saber: “Mo Chenxue, how dare you ruin my plans!”
BOOM!!
The inn’s roof was torn apart by Spiritual Power. A black figure and a white figure tangled together as they flew out, their powerful Spiritual Power rippling through the space like a tsunami. The townspeople below were so frightened they covered their heads and scattered in every direction.
Luo Qingyan looked up. Mo Chenxue and Xie You Mingyao had already exchanged several rounds, and now stood opposed on two high eaves, one holding a sword with white robes fluttering, the other wielding a blade with black robes whipping in the wind. They faced each other across the street from their elevated positions.
Both were at the late Nascent Soul Stage, evenly matched in combat strength.
At that moment, the lurking Demonic Cultivators emerged from different corners, all attacking Mo Chenxue at once.
Luo Qingyan frowned. Mo Chenxue could handle Xie You Mingyao alone, but with over a dozen Golden Core Stage Demonic Cultivators added to the mix, he might not prevail.
The reinforcement disciples from the Ask-Immortal Sect hadn’t arrived yet. If Mo Chenxue were to fall in battle here, the future threat of annihilation would be resolved—but she herself would fall into the Demon Race’s hands, and her fate would be even more unpredictable…
Luo Qingyan didn’t hesitate for even a moment. She flipped her hand and produced a Talisman.
It was the Joke Talisman she had just learned.
She had spent half the night drawing it and only managed to complete this single one.
Luo Qingyan gripped the Talisman tightly, her gaze locked onto Xie You Mingyao.
The gap between their cultivation levels was too vast. Nascent Soul Stage cultivators naturally possessed Spiritual Power that formed a protective barrier. A Talisman thrown by someone at the Qi Condensation Stage couldn’t even get close to Xie You Mingyao, let alone take effect.
But according to the original novel, Xie You Mingyao cultivated a forbidden art of the Demon Race. Though it allowed him to break through realms quickly, it created a fatal weak point on his body—the only place with no defensive capability whatsoever…
And that spot was located at the very center of his right buttock.
As a fatal weak point, this location was actually quite practical. When experts fought, they aimed for vital areas—no one would ever target such a spot.
Luo Qingyan seized the perfect moment. She suddenly activated the Divine Escape Steps, her figure charging into the battle like an afterimage, teleporting behind Xie You Mingyao in the blink of an eye!
Mo Chenxue, Xie You Mingyao, and the Demonic Cultivators all froze in bewilderment.
This was a battle between Nascent Soul and Golden Core cultivators—what was a Qi Condensation Stage girl suddenly charging in for?
But the next second, Luo Qingyan decisively reached out and touched Xie You Mingyao’s butt…
Everyone: “??”
The scene froze for a brief instant.
In that instant, Luo Qingyan had already slapped the Joke Talisman precisely onto Xie You Mingyao’s fatal weak point.
Xie You Mingyao’s mighty frame jolted, and he suddenly burst into thunderous laughter:
“Pfft hahahahahahaha!”
“Hahahahahahahahahaha!”
All the Demonic Cultivators stared in utter shock.
What’s wrong with His Highness?! That girl ran over, groped his butt, and now he’s laughing wildly at the sky in delight?
Even Mo Chenxue’s lips twitched.
How could this be?
Seizing the opportunity, Luo Qingyan had already flown to Mo Chenxue’s side: “Let’s go, now!”
Mo Chenxue understood. He formed a sword seal and took Luo Qingyan with him, flying off on his sword.
Behind them, Xie You Mingyao was laughing himself to death.
“Hahahaha, hahaha hehehehehehe, giggle giggle, hee hee hee hee hee, hhhhhhhhhh…”
He had never produced so many strange and bizarre sounds of laughter in his entire life—as if he had unlocked a new skill.
He laughed until he was out of breath, pointing at the fleeing pair, trying to order his subordinates to chase after them. But he was laughing so violently that he couldn’t speak at all.
The Demonic Cultivators exchanged bewildered glances.
Their master’s condition left them completely baffled, and no one dared to act rashly.
Xie You Mingyao laughed for a full quarter of an hour before finally stopping.
He glared at the direction Luo Qingyan and Mo Chenxue had escaped, the smile on his face vanishing instantly, replaced by a sinister, terrifying expression.
—The cooked duck had actually flown away!
What bothered him even more was: how did Luo Qingyan know where his fatal weak point was?!
That was top secret. No one in the world besides himself could possibly know. He had to capture her and question her thoroughly!
The Grand Protector beside him was frightened by his volatile mood swings and cautiously asked, “Your Highness, what should we do next?”
Xie You Mingyao fell into thought.
Joyful Peak would surely increase its defenses after today, making it difficult to strike again. And the Ask-Immortal Sect’s trial was approaching. He had heard that disciples who failed would be expelled to mine ores—and that little thing would be participating as well…
If she were exiled to the desolate spiritual mines, that would be equivalent to falling right into his hands!
Xie You Mingyao pondered for a moment, then ordered, “At the upcoming Ask-Immortal Sect trial, find a way to prevent Luo Qingyan from passing. I want her to fail the assessment!”
“Yes! This subordinate will prepare it right away!”
…
Luo Qingyan followed Mo Chenxue on his flying sword. She still didn’t know how to fly a sword herself, so she needed the big shot to give her a ride.
Mo Chenxue was full of doubts and couldn’t help asking, “What did you just do? Why did Xie You Mingyao suddenly burst out laughing?”
Luo Qingyan wore a sly grin and whispered to him, “Apparently Xie You Mingyao has a secret quirk—if you touch his butt, he’ll laugh uncontrollably.”
Mo Chenxue: “…”
He found it hard to believe and asked again, “How do you know this?”
Luo Qingyan said, “My late master told me.”
Her master was gone, but he could still shield his disciple from trouble and take the blame for her.
“Late?” Mo Chenxue was taken aback. “Master Uncle… he has already passed away?”
“You didn’t know?” Luo Qingyan asked in return. “You’ve come to Joyful Peak several times, and you never knew about this?”
Mo Chenxue shook his head. “I thought Master Uncle had gone off on a wandering journey.”
He asked another question, “How did Master Uncle pass away?”
Luo Qingyan pressed her lips together.
The cause of her master’s death was too embarrassing—she couldn’t even bring herself to say it.
She didn’t want to tell Mo Chenxue that a Demonic Cultivator he had crippled had sent her master off with a single move…
So she saved face and said, “No particular reason. He just suddenly—gah—dropped dead.”
Mo Chenxue frowned. “A mysterious sudden death?”
“Yes, yes, yes, exactly!” Luo Qingyan immediately nodded in approval. “Just like that!”
This kind of death was much better—it sounded especially impressive when told to others!
Mo Chenxue lowered his gaze.
He didn’t really care about the death of the Joyful Peak master, but the fact that Xie You Mingyao liked having his butt touched sounded utterly bizarre…
However, since the man was already dead, there was no way to verify Luo Qingyan’s words.
Moreover, he had keenly noticed that his own situation seemed quite special—raising favorability was extremely difficult!
Xie You Mingyao could rack up points like crazy through fraud, while he himself had tried all sorts of methods with no visible effect?
So, where exactly was the problem?