On the other side, as Yang Ning lay on Shi Xuanfei's soft couch, a pair of distinctive, defiant red eyes rose uncontrollably in his blurred consciousness.
[After a fierce battle, the cave fell quiet for the time being. Yang Ning sat leaning against a cold stone, breathing faintly. Nearby, a pitch-black longsword lay half-embedded in the ground, its blade glinting with a dim, icy light.
An Han was crouched in front of him, her face wearing an "annoyed" expression, though her hands were exceptionally careful as she wrapped a clean strip of cloth torn from her clothes around Yang Ning's still-bleeding palm.
"My sword... unless it's me, or... or someone I approve of," she said, then paused, her ears growing warm (though what she was really thinking was "someone I've fallen for," which she was too embarrassed to say aloud).
"No one else can use it. If an ordinary person touches the hilt, sharp, poisonous spikes will immediately spring from the blade and strike back."
Embarrassed, Yang Ning scratched his head with his other hand and explained, "The situation was too dangerous just now. I got carried away in the heat of battle... When I saw the sword lying by my feet, I picked it up without thinking."
An Han's red eyes flickered faintly as she recalled the perilous moment at the cave entrance.
Five mysterious figures with red armbands wrapped around their arms had suddenly appeared. Without a word, they drew their swords and launched a fierce attack. They weren't especially powerful—probably around the Foundation Establishment Realm—but every one of them looked completely crazed, their eyes bloodshot, as if they knew neither pain nor fatigue. Even when badly injured, their movements never slowed.
Two of them had even had an arm severed by her and Yang Ning, yet they still roared and charged at them, swinging their weapons!
It was then, facing an enemy covered in blood, with only one arm left but still rushing toward her with a ferocious expression, that her mind wavered for an instant. That was why the Demon Sword in her hand had been knocked away.
At the critical moment, Yang Ning's shout snapped her back to her senses. She immediately leapt up and kicked the assassin flying.
The two of them fought for a full half-hour before finally taking down all five of the men, who were no different from death-seekers.
An Han carefully finished bandaging Yang Ning's palm, then unconsciously tied a delicate ruyi knot at the end of the strip.
"Who were those people...? Why were they so unafraid of death? And those matching red armbands... Who are you people, really?" In the end, she couldn't help asking.
Yang Ning lowered his head and looked at the pretty ruyi knot on the back of his hand, trying to change the subject. "That's a really nice knot. Where did you learn to tie it?"
An Han gazed at him deeply. "If you don't want to say, then don't. There's no need to change the subject on purpose... I was just a little curious."
Yang Ning smiled and stood up, his tone so light that it was as if the fight had been nothing more than a game. "Just think of it as... a fall outing organized by the academy. No need to dwell on it."
He slowly walked to the side and bent down to pick up his sword, which had fallen to the ground. "All right, you helped me, so naturally I should help you too. I'm a man of my word. Let's go to Black Wind Cliff together. I'll help you gather the Star Sea Flower."
Just then, a faint "creak... creak..." came from the turning hinges, breaking the silence in the bedchamber and interrupting Yang Ning's dream. He slowly woke.
Earlier, he had been about to pull open the door of Shi Xuanfei's bedchamber and leave, but no matter how many times he pulled, it wouldn't budge. Then an invisible yet immense pressure swept over him like a wave. He hadn't had time to react before he was sent flying, his back slamming hard against the door. He then fell to the floor and lost consciousness completely. The last thing he had felt before blacking out was his face seemingly pressed against a soft, cool fabric—Shi Xuanfei's silk stockings.
Now that he was awake, the first thing he felt was a strange warmth slowly spreading from his lower abdomen through his limbs. His whole body felt warm and comfortable—that was a sign that the Nine Revolutions Golden Elixir had begun to release its medicinal power and nourish his body. His eyelids fluttered a few times, then slowly opened.
A hazy red canopy filled his vision. He instinctively twitched his nose; a faint, elegant fragrance seemed to linger on his face. He moved his stiff neck, braced a hand against the soft couch beneath him, and slowly sat up.
"You're awake?"
A voice tinged with amusement came from the side. Yang Ning turned to look and saw that Shi Xuanfei had entered at some point. She had changed out of her gorgeous dress and was now wearing a simple green ruqun that covered her from head to toe. A gentle smile rested on her face, making her seem like an entirely different person from the languid, alluring woman she had been before.
Yang Ning still felt a certain wariness toward Shi Xuanfei. Anyone with half a brain could tell who had been responsible for the powerful shock wave that had knocked him unconscious. But since she was now acting gently and had even spoken first, Yang Ning could only take the opening she offered.
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