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Ran Qingmo had arrived. Half the veil covering her face had been torn away. In the breeze sweeping over the mountaintop, it fluttered just enough to reveal the flawless beauty beneath.
One glance felt like ten thousand years. When Xu Yuan finally came back to himself, he slowly rose to his feet, his brows drawing tighter and tighter. That faint coolness still lingered in her eyes, just like the first time he had seen her. But the rest of her was a mess, and it was obvious even at a glance.
Her right arm, the one holding the sword, hung limp at her side. A huge section of her black robe had been shredded. The fabric over her left shoulder was almost completely gone, exposing skin so delicate it looked as though a touch might bruise it. Strands of blood seeped from the wound on her arm, winding down like little crimson snakes to her fingertips before dripping steadily to the ground.
Xu Yuan lowered his eyes and glanced at the enormous snake head beneath Ran Qingmo’s feet.
The severed head was as tall as a three or four story building. At the crown of it grew seven lotus blooms. Six of them had already opened, vivid and lifelike.
After a brief pause, Xu Yuan’s pupils suddenly tightened. He recognized the giant python before him.
A Seven Life Python.
That kind of serpent could shed its skin and start over seven times. On the seventh rebirth, it could truly take human form, and from then on its cultivation speed would be no different from a human’s.
A born king among snake demons. If it was this creature, then it was not hard to understand why that Flame Spirit Python had been so desperate to kill him.
But…why did she die? How could she die here? Xu Yuan stared at the giant dead eyes of the Seven Life Python, now already clouded with lifelessness, and an absurd, unruly feeling slowly spread through his chest.
This giant python was supposed to be one of the future heroines. After completing her seventh molt and taking human form, she was meant to head for the Great Flame Empire, turn into a perfectly legal giant-bear loli, take the alias Ji Qingyue, and meet the story’s protagonist in Stillwater.
And yet at this point in time, Ran Qingmo had just casually killed her? The gears of the plot he had once known so well had already begun to shift ever so quietly because of his arrival.
While Xu Yuan was still lost in thought, Ran Qingmo standing atop the snake’s head moved her sword hand. She gave a casual downward slash, and a streak of blood-red light flashed through the air.
Xu Yuan looked up just in time to see a deep gash split open across the crown of the snake’s head, right where the seven lotus flowers grew. Then a small crimson lotus was pulled from the wound and suspended in midair. The instant it appeared, a thick and overwhelming stench of blood swept across the entire mountaintop.
It was a Snakeheart Lotus. More precisely, it was a six-cycle Snakeheart Lotus, a treasure worth a fortune and one of the highest-grade alchemical ingredients in Azure Point. It could be used to refine either the Golden Scale Pill or the Bloodspirit Rebirth Pill.
The Golden Scale Pill could be used to break through a cultivation bottleneck. The Bloodspirit Rebirth Pill, meanwhile, could calm the soul and fuse it fully with the body, which was exactly what Xu Yuan needed right now if he wanted his body and soul to become one without leaving behind any flaw.
But at this moment, Xu Yuan had no mind for any of that. Back when he had played Azure Point, he had liked Ji Qingyue quite a bit. She was lively, clever, and one of those little paper wives people instinctively wanted to protect. But compared to the death of a paper wife, what worried him more now was whether the chain reaction caused by her death would throw the entire world’s storyline off course.
The Myriad Ascents Mountain Range stretched for tens of thousands of miles, forming the southwestern border of the Great Flame Empire. Beyond it to the west lay a forbidden land called the Ancient Abyss, where dozens of demon clans, large and small, had joined together into a loose demon kingdom.
Ji Qingyue came from there. Now that the noble princess of the serpent race had been beheaded by Ran Qingmo in a single stroke, would the Demon Emperor of that demon kingdom be forced by pressure from the serpent clan to make moves that diverged from the original plot?
Xu Yuan had no idea. But very soon, he realized there was no point worrying that far ahead. Because he might not even live long enough to see it.
After carving out Ji Qingyue’s Snakeheart Lotus, Ran Qingmo standing atop the severed snake head suddenly went limp. Her body slid along the curved surface of the massive python skull and rolled toward the ground.
The instant Xu Yuan snapped out of his thoughts, he hurried forward and caught her soft body in his arms.
“Miss Ran Miss Ran” Frowning, he called to her twice in a low voice. His hand gripped her shoulder and gave her a gentle shake, trying to wake her, but those clear, elegant eyes remained tightly shut. After that fierce battle with Ji Qingyue, this cool and quiet woman had clearly reached the end of her strength.
Gradually, Xu Yuan noticed that the faint breathing of the woman in his arms was becoming quicker and quicker. The pale skin revealed beneath her torn veil was flushing red. Her chest rose and fell rapidly beneath the black robe, and her body temperature was climbing at a speed visible to the naked eye.
Looking at the changes in Ran Qingmo’s condition, a flood of possibilities flashed through Xu Yuan’s mind, but in the end he only let out a long breath. As far as he remembered, the Seven Life Python did not carry the sort of aphrodisiac poison people loved to see in cheap plotlines.
So whatever state Ran Qingmo was in, it had to be caused by something else. Maybe she was circulating qi to heal herself. Maybe it was the onset of some kind of toxin.
But whichever it was, all Xu Yuan could do now was watch. He had picked up some basic first aid knowledge in his previous life, but that was obviously useless when it came to the superhumans of this world.
Waiting in silence for someone else to decide your fate was not a pleasant feeling. If Ran Qingmo died, or if Ji Qingyue’s subordinates, or the Third Young Master’s father’s men, arrived while Ran Qingmo was busy healing, then death was the only ending waiting for him.
But waiting was all he could do. Xu Yuan carried her over to a large tree at the top of the mountain and let her rest against it in a seated position. Then he quietly sat down beside her and kept watch.
ᯓ➤
Time passed second by second.
At some point, the newly risen sun had already climbed high into the sky, yet the flush on Ran Qingmo’s face still had not faded.
So, Xu Yuan could only continue waiting.
After an unknown amount of time, a bleak gust of cold wind swept through, and Ran Qingmo’s calm voice drifted from beside him.
“The cave dwelling you mentioned. Where is it?” She was awake, though weakness still seeped through her voice.
Hearing her speak, Xu Yuan immediately turned to look at her condition and answered,
“Below Suspended Heaven Cliff.”
After a pause, he asked, “How are you feeling?”
Hearing that answer, or perhaps hearing his, Ran Qingmo did not reply. She simply closed her eyes again, slowly. After a long moment, she kept her eyes closed and said softly, “Xu Changtian’s father’s men are almost here.”
“What did you say?” Xu Yuan’s eyes widened.. Her voice was light, almost frail, and yet the words hit his mind like an explosion.
“Xu Changtian’s father’s men are almost here.” Ran Qingmo repeated herself with her eyes still shut, her tone as flat as ever.
“How long?” Xu Yuan’s heartbeat began to speed up bit by bit as he slowly rose to his feet.
Ran Qingmo answered quietly, “Less than 15 minutes.”
Xu Yuan’s mind jolted. He took a deep breath and asked again, “What shape is your body in right now?”
Leaning against the roots of the tree, Ran Qingmo opened her eyes and glanced at him. Instead of answering, she asked, “You seem very uneasy. Why? I won’t tell anyone about you.”
Xu Yuan swept his gaze across the mist surrounding the mountaintop, forcing down the panic starting to shake him, and said in a low voice, “You do know possession can be detected, right?”
Ran Qingmo stared at him, clearly confused. From the look of it, she knew only that possession came with rejection symptoms. She had no idea there were methods to detect it even after those symptoms had passed.
Xu Yuan did not bother explaining the world’s mechanics to her. He only sped up and asked again, “Can your body still fly?”
Ran Qingmo fell silent for a moment, then shook her head. “My injuries are severe.”
Xu Yuan lifted a hand and rubbed hard at his brow. “Then how can you tell someone’s coming?”
Ran Qingmo answered as if it were obvious. “Physical injuries don’t affect the soul all that much.”
Xu Yuan said nothing more. His mind was already racing through every possible response. What was he supposed to do? Stay here and wait for the Chancellor’s men to arrive, then start acting?
At this point in the timeline, those men still did not know Ran Qingmo had abducted the Third Young Master. He could pin everything on Ji Qingyue. Say Ji Qingyue had kidnapped him, and Ran Qingmo had saved him. Ji Qingyue was dead now anyway. No witness, no contradiction.
But the problem was that in Azure Point, Xu Changtian had only ever been mentioned in passing as a useless rich brat who excelled at eating, drinking, whoring, and gambling. There had never been any detailed description of his habits or mannerisms. If anyone noticed something off, then he was dead.
What do I do? What do I do?! Countless tangled thoughts flashed through his mind.
A moment later, Xu Yuan suddenly let out a long breath, like a man accepting his fate. He gave up. Turning his head, he looked at Ran Qingmo sitting against the tree.
“Can you walk?”
Ran Qingmo did not understand the sudden question.
“Can you walk?” Xu Yuan repeated, his voice calm.
After a brief silence, Ran Qingmo shook her head.
Without another word, Xu Yuan bent down, picked up the Snakeheart Lotus from the ground, stuffed it into his robe, then slid one arm beneath her knees and the other behind her back. Under her slightly startled gaze, he lifted her straight into a bridal carry.
Ran Qingmo’s body felt boneless, light as air. Even this young master with kidneys already halfway ruined could carry her with ease.
The air fell silent for a moment.
Ran Qingmo did not struggle. Even forced into his arms just like that, she only looked at him quietly.
Ran Qingmo was looking at Xu Yuan. Xu Yuan was not looking at Ran Qingmo.
Holding her in his arms, Xu Yuan walked toward the edge of Suspended Heaven Cliff and asked softly, “Miss Ran, do you want to die?”
Ran Qingmo did not understand the question, but she did not want to die, so she shook her head.
Xu Yuan caught the motion from the corner of his eye and smiled faintly. “Good. Because if we stay here and let the Chancellor’s men drag us back, the only difference is whether we die sooner or later.”
By the time he finished speaking, Xu Yuan was already standing at the edge of Suspended Heaven Cliff with Ran Qingmo in his arms.
The cold wind tugged at his robes. Just one step ahead lay a bottomless abyss.
Ran Qingmo pondered slightly, as if realizing what Xu Yuan meant to do. A trace of confusion entered her voice.
“You want to jump down with me in your arms?”
“Scared?” Xu Yuan said with a smile.
Ran Qingmo turned her eyes toward the churning celestial mist below and looked at him the way one might look at an idiot. “But this is Suspended Heaven Cliff.”
Xu Yuan met her gaze for a moment, then chuckled. “Even if we jump and get smashed to death, that still beats being dragged back to the manor and tortured to death by the Chancellor’s people, doesn’t it?”
Ran Qingmo thought about it seriously, then said, “Oh. Then jump.”
Xu Yuan did not move immediately. He only looked at Ran Qingmo and said with a smile, “Miss Ran, how about we make a bet?”
Ran Qingmo did not understand why this man was being so fussy at a moment like this, but with that same cool, distant look in her eyes, she nodded. “Go on.”
“If we survive, you’ll owe me a favor. You have to help me do one thing.” Xu Yuan said.
“But we won’t survive.” Ran Qingmo glanced once more at the abyss below.
“I mean if we do somehow survive,” Xu Yuan said with a light laugh.
Ran Qingmo fell silent for a moment, then slowly asked, “Why would I owe you a favor if we survive?”
Xu Yuan was speechless. With death hanging over his head, he had already shed quite a few of his usual reservations. “If we survive, then it’ll definitely be because the cave dwelling I mentioned saved us. I’d say your life is worth one favor, wouldn’t you?”
Ran Qingmo considered that for a moment and decided it made sense. She nodded. “All right. If we survive, I’ll owe you a favor.”
“Remember what you just said.” The words had barely fallen when Xu Yuan stepped forward without the slightest hesitation.
The cold wind at the mountaintop tore away the veil covering Ran Qingmo’s face and sent it drifting into the air.
At that moment, everything in the world seemed to fall silent. They plunged through the clouds.
Xu Yuan’s five senses seemed to fade little by little. All he could feel was the shriek of the wind tearing past his ears and the warm, soft body of the woman in his arms.
After who knew how long in the sea of mist, he lowered his eyes and glanced at her. She had already closed them, quietly waiting for death. Then it suddenly came back to him.
Ran Qingmo’s Luck stat is 93.
