Lin Tianming returned to his room in a daze and did not speak another word to Zuo Zhu.
Zuo Zhu felt that his tolerance had clearly reached its limit. She pouted and went back to her own room, only to find Huo Fu already sitting there.
Seeing him, she felt a flicker of guilt. She had inadvertently damaged Huo Fu’s image in Lin Tianming’s mind.
But that was hardly her fault. A demon like Huo Fu lived with a young woman like her every night. Who would not imagine things?
Thinking this, Zuo Zhu felt justified. Her own image was already gone, so she might as well embrace the chaos together.
Huo Fu said, “I heard everything you just said to Lin Tianming.”
Zuo Zhu smiled modestly. “No thanks needed. Covering for you is my duty.”
Huo Fu added, “I also heard what you said to that man called Li Fang.”
Zuo Zhu jumped up. “You heard that and didn’t come to save me?”
Huo Fu raised an eyebrow. “Why would I? I thought you would be moved and obediently go with him. After all, you like him, do you not? If you truly wanted to leave with him, I would have let you be together.”
The way he said it made it sound like he would ensure they both perished together.
Zuo Zhu wiped her face and spoke earnestly, “Stop saying that. That was youthful folly. My heart belongs only to you now. I am yours, so there is no way I could be involved with anyone else. I do not know Li Fang, Wang Fang, or Liu Fang at all.”
Huo Fu sighed softly. “Really? You truly do not need me to let them go?”
Zuo Zhu immediately jumped on him, grabbing his arm. “I do not need it at all! How can you not trust me, Erkang? I have no ties to him anymore. You heard everything, did you not? When Li Fang tried to take me, I firmly told him I was already committed to you and would bring you along too.”
Huo Fu’s expression shifted slightly. From the moment Li Fang had grabbed Zuo Zhu, he had noticed, listening to the entire exchange.
Perhaps it was her exceptional acting skills that initially stirred his murderous intent.
He had been disappointed, thinking she would make a good candidate for his plan, but never expected her to be so swayed by a man.
When she mentioned she had already committed herself to a strong man, even a grim demon like Huo Fu almost dropped from the sky.
He had forgotten how duplicitous she could be, sweet words masking sharp intentions.
Zuo Zhu glanced at Huo Fu, noticing his expression softening, and immediately straightened her posture, feeling confident.
“And you were partly to blame! I realized Li Fang was suspicious right away, but he is a man and I am a woman. There were only the two of us, and if I had exposed him, he could have forced me to go. As your important partner and your potential night meal, you just watched me struggle with him without moving. And now you doubt me, question me, do not trust me. You disappointed me too much!”
Huo Fu smirked, his smile not reaching his eyes. “So you want me to apologize?”
Zuo Zhu shrank back, pointing nervously. “N-no need. I have already forgiven you unilaterally. Just pay more attention next time.”
“Come here.”
She looked up to see Huo Fu beckoning, forced a dry laugh, and shuffled over. She admitted her fault decisively. “I was wrong. Do not eat me!”
Huo Fu said nothing, simply wrapped his arms around her waist, and the next moment they vanished from the room.
They reappeared in a desolate wilderness.
Zuo Zhu hugged Huo Fu’s waist, blinking with a mixture of guilt and fear. “Are you going to leave me here?”
Huo Fu pressed her forehead gently and turned her head. “Look there.”
Zuo Zhu followed his gaze and saw Li Fang on a small path not far away, trembling as a dark figure pressed him to the ground.
“G-give me one more chance! I will bring someone back!”
The dark figure’s voice was eerie and terrifying. “I already gave you a chance, but you have disappointed me!”
“No! This time I can bring someone back! Even without Zuo Zhu, there is Liu Minmin! We grew up together. If I go to her, she will come with me!”
Huo Fu must have used some trick. Li Fang and the dark figure did not notice them.
Zuo Zhu recalled her memories of the original story and frowned. “It is one thing to use me as a decoy, but why involve Liu Minmin too?”
Liu Minmin had grown up with Lin Tianming and Li Fang. She was a wealthy young lady who looked down on the original girl, thinking her no different from the opportunists.
Regardless, Li Fang considered her a childhood sister-like figure, and now, for survival, she had no choice but to disregard everything.
Huo Fu observed her. “You are not upset?”
Zuo Zhu smiled awkwardly. “Who cares now that I have my oppa? I have no time to grieve for others.”
Huo Fu asked, “What does oppa mean?”
Zuo Zhu leaned against his arm affectionately. “It means my dear older brother is in love.”
Huo Fu, having never interacted much with women at twenty, responded coldly. “Oh, take your hand off.”
Zuo Zhu slowly released him, inwardly criticizing him. No wonder you do not have a girlfriend in a whole comic. Others get a kiss or an embrace every chapter, while you just hoard all the women for yourself. I am hugging the son I drew myself, what is wrong with that?
While Zuo Zhu ruminated, the other conversation continued.
Li Fang, crawling on the ground, begged and flattered, nearly wetting himself with fear.
The dark figure stepping on him finally spoke. “I will give you a final chance, but you must bring back two people this time. Fail, and I will eat you.”
Li Fang went pale but, for now, was spared.
“I will bring two people!” he shouted, scrambling to his feet and running. His former elegance as one of the four young masters of A City had completely vanished.
Zuo Zhu whispered to Huo Fu. “The so-called four young masters of A City were ranked by wealth and looks. Li Fang was one, but you could beat all of them easily. What kind of taste do those people have?”
Huo Fu listened, silent for a moment. “You really think so?”
Zuo Zhu replied matter-of-factly. “The best of the short ones.”
Huo Fu had expected her to lie for comfort.
Li Fang ran off, and another dark figure appeared.
Its hoarse voice said, “Can he really bring two people back?”
The original dark figure sneered. “One is enough. Their bodies will become our vessels. While Huo Fu seals the village, we will use the humans’ bodies to slip away.”
Li Fang had no idea these two had never intended to spare him. They merely used him to lure more people.
With two living vessels, they could enter the bodies, impersonate the originals, and leave the village undetected.
They were confident Huo Fu would not notice.
“Ha ha, and we owe it all to Huo Fu’s kindness for sparing so many lives, giving us a chance!”
Zuo Zhu glanced at Huo Fu and made a throat-slitting gesture. “Shall we just finish them off?”
Huo Fu replied, “Let’s check on Li Fang first.”
Except for Zhao Siyu, who had been taken by a female water ghost with her fate unknown, only Liu Minmin and Lin Tianming remained. Li Fang could only find them.
Huo Fu teleported with Zuo Zhu to the mountain base. Soon Li Fang came running down.
Zuo Zhu noticed Huo Fu had changed his appearance into an ordinary man.
Li Fang saw them and lit up. “Zuo Zhu, what are you doing here?”
Zuo Zhu’s acting was perfect. She lowered her head timidly. “I heard you escaped from the mountain, so I brought Huo Fu to see if we could leave together.”
Her explanation was plausible, especially as Li Fang was in a state of panic.
He glanced at Huo Fu, puzzled. “Who is he?”
“He is Huo Fu, the man I told you about. We are together now.” Zuo Zhu clung to Huo Fu shyly. “He was also a visitor trapped in this village. We plan to escape together.”
Huo Fu glanced at her briefly, expression calm.
Even under the dark figure’s threat, seeing his former admirer shift so quickly to another man, and even plotting to escape using his ‘method’, caused a flicker of distortion across Li Fang’s face.
“R-really?”
Zuo Zhu looked at him nervously. “Li Fang, you do not mind, right?”
“Of course not,” Li Fang gritted his teeth, forcing a smile. “Since you have decided to leave, I might as well go with you. I have some experience.”
Zuo Zhu looked at Huo Fu, saw he did not object, and sweetly agreed.
Li Fang led the way, a vicious glint crossing his face.
It seemed someone else wanted to pair off as star-crossed lovers, he would make it so.
They walked, Li Fang anxious and eager. Bringing two people along meant he could leave.
Soon, they reached their destination.
Another dark figure appeared, not recognizing Huo Fu, assuming him to be an ordinary human.
“You are quick this time,” the dark figure said excitedly.
Li Fang, thrilled, asked, “I brought two people. Will you take me out of this place?”
“Of course, come here. I will send you out.”
Li Fang rushed forward.
Zuo Zhu, still in character, cried out, “Li Fang, what do you mean by bringing two people?”
Li Fang sneered, “Fools. It means you two will become my decoys, heading to hell as a pair of star-crossed lovers!”
He approached the dark figure, excited to leave.
The figure’s hand touched his neck, and he screamed.
Zuo Zhu instinctively glanced at Huo Fu, whose eyes were cold.
“Ha ha, so foolish. How could I let you go?” The dark figure cruelly twisted Li Fang’s neck.
Even in death, Li Fang could not believe it.
After his body went limp, another dark figure appeared.
“Now it is your turn, little girl.”
“Do not come near me!” Zuo Zhu pushed Huo Fu forward, placing him in front of the figure. “Kill him first, spare me!”
The dark figure laughed. “Birds of a feather, facing disaster. You are cruel, little girl.”
Huo Fu, displeased, grabbed both dark figures. “We are not a couple.”
His plain face gradually reverted to his original form.
The two figures were shocked. “Huo Fu?!”
Huo Fu held them firmly and tore away their black mist. Each shred weakened them further.
“Stop! You will make us vanish!”
“You wanted to trap us in the village forever. If we vanish, your plan fails!”
“Ah, we raised you for years. Is one death not enough? Stop tearing us apart, or we will vanish!”
Zuo Zhu, listening quietly, realized these were the same figures who had bought Huo Fu from the traffickers to abuse him.
No, they could not even be called foster parents. They were monsters.
Clenching her fists, she cheered loudly, “Finish them off! A hundred-legged worm dies but leaves a remnant. Leaving a tiger behind is a threat. We must eradicate the roots to prevent future harm!”
Classic trope from dramas, novels, and comics. The village was sealed to torment them for eternity, but if someone ever released them, they could harm Huo Fu.
Zuo Zhu was fired up, prompting Huo Fu to glance at her. “Which of us is the demon here?”
Zuo Zhu pointed at him. “You are.”