Page 23

[Please follow the established plot and humiliate Wen Hemian.]

Oh, oh! Finally, it's this person's turn in the plot!

In the original novel, aside from the male lead, Ning Ning was most deeply impressed by this Senior Wen.

Wen Hemian, born with a Sword Heart, was a teenage prodigy and the youngest elder in the history of the Xuanxu Sword Sect. Unfortunately, during the Great War between Immortals and Demons ten years ago, although he and several other experts destroyed the Demon Lord, he suffered heavy injuries himself. His spiritual bones were shattered, his sea of consciousness collapsed, and his cultivation was completely lost.

After that, he had lived in Qingxu Valley. The disciples all knew a senior lived there and were sensible enough not to disturb him.

Yet, the original owner, having been injured at Zhaixing Pavilion and in a foul mood, acted with the reckless ignorance of a newborn calf and barged right in.

Speaking of Wen Hemian and the original owner, the two actually had quite a history.

From birth, the original owner had displayed astonishing spiritual energy. It just so happened that one day, Wen Hemian passed by the Ning Mansion. Out of an appreciation for talent, he candidly stated that one day, when she grew up, if she had the heart to step onto the path of immortality, she could come to the Xuanxu Sect at any time to take him as her master.

However, by the time the original owner finally grew up, the long-drawn-out Great War between Immortals and Demons had begun. And after that, the genius fell, retreating into Qingxu Valley and never stepping out again.

If nothing had gone wrong, Wen Hemian should have been her master.

Perhaps it was precisely because of this that the original owner was exceptionally cruel to Wen Hemian—

She believed that her master should occupy a high position; such a useless cripple was a joke even to mention.

She never expected that Wen Hemian would encounter a stroke of fortune in the middle-to-late stages of the plot, unexpectedly recovering his strength. When she went back to call him "Master" then...

Ning Ning had felt so much secondhand embarrassment reading it that she almost died of cringe.

Qingxu Valley was a place for immortals to recuperate. The distant peaks were hidden among the flowing clouds. Passing through the narrow, thread-like gorge, one arrived at a lush, verdant valley.

A cool breeze circled, the water remained undisturbed, and the fragrance of flowers and shadows of trees reflected each other from afar. The deep green branches were filled with shattered sunlight. The graceful spring scenery was scattered everywhere by the chirping of orioles and swallows, and petals fell with the wind, rippling into a pool of soft pink.

Ning Ning heard the sound of a zither.

She had studied music theory and was quite gifted in it. She could tell that although the zither music was long, lingering, elegant, and refined, it hid a faint, sorrowful longing, like a thick melancholy that could not be dissolved.

This was her first meeting with Wen Hemian in the book.

Wen Hemian was depressed and unappreciated, playing music in the valley. The original owner had long since held him in contempt. Not only did she speak rudely, but she also directly smashed the ancient zither with a large rock.

There is truly no limit to how one can court death, only more ways to do it.

Everyone she provoked would later become a big shot who couldn't be trifled with. With this kind of luck, she was like someone betting against the lottery, only to end up living in a villa by the sea.

Ning Ning expressionlessly picked up a large rock and walked in the direction from which the zither music came.

She walked slowly, but for some reason, she suddenly stopped without warning.

Ning Ning: ?

Ning Ning tried to put force into her right leg, but it didn't move.

The left side was no better.

Her entire body felt as if it had been drained of all strength, and she stood frozen in place, stunned.

"Wait, wait, wait, what is going on here!"

Ning Ning frantically poked at the system in her mind. That voice, which had been playing dead for ages, finally appeared, albeit reluctantly:

[You have been poisoned by the Soul-Bewitching Flower. This flower gathers in Qingxu Valley. Anyone below the Nascent Soul stage who inhales its fragrance will suffer bodily paralysis for the duration of one incense stick. Once the body slowly adapts, the effect will dissipate on its own.]

Oh, you have got to be kidding me.

If she had to stand here for the duration of an incense stick, wouldn't Wen Hemian just walk away? Why didn't the original host ever run into something like this? Could her luck really be worse than the original host's?

Wasn't it just that the food she wanted in the cafeteria line always ran out right before her turn, that she only ever pulled SSRs when hitting the pity system, and that every time she courted death, she ended up in a miserable state?

Ning Ning's mind was filled with little question marks, which quickly gathered together to form a giant exclamation point.

She was still holding a rock in her hands.

But she no longer had the strength to hold it.

Realizing what was about to happen, Ning Ning chose to smile and keep living.

Once, a perfect opportunity to court death had been placed before her, and she hadn't cherished it. She only regretted it when it was lost. If heaven could give her a chance to do it all over again, Ning Ning would say to that rock:

So, your falling speed isn't five centimeters per second.

The rock fell, landing squarely on her instep.

Her five trembling toes curled together, shivering in unison, finally understanding the true meaning of "gentleness."

A cool breeze blew, and the clouds parted.

And so, when Wen Hemian looked up, he happened to catch sight of a graceful figure in the distance.

A beautiful young girl stood alone beneath a thousand-year-old tree, surrounded by blooming, drifting white flowers.

She stood straight, wandering in the desolate valley floor, letting the breeze brush through her dark hair and the hem of her white dress, stirring up a scene of sparse shadows and faint fragrance. As she stood there silently, she appeared indifferent, lonely, and melancholy.

They looked at each other in silence. Amidst the zither music he was playing, a single tear slid from the girl's eyes.

Wen Hemian couldn't help but be slightly stunned.

This piece of music hid endless sorrow, yet it was not easily revealed. To others who heard it, it was merely carefree and refreshing.

Only she, upon hearing it, had shed a tear.

This, this—there is no greater soulmate than this!

Seeing that he had noticed her, Ning Ning could not care about anything else. She struggled, using every ounce of her strength to move her lips, squeezing out a few crooked words through lip-reading: "Master, save me! Please, come quickly!"

Wen Hemian watched her quietly, trying hard to decipher the shape of her lips.

Past dreams fading... quickly break free?

What a thoughtful and well-mannered little disciple; even her speech was so gentle and soft. She must surely know of his plight and was using this to comfort him.

But how could one easily escape the nightmares of the past?

Wen Hemian shook his head gently at her, answering with the sound of his zither. He increased the pressure in his hands, and the music became even more mournful and plaintive.

Seeing him sit there shaking his head, Ning Ning felt like spitting blood from the depths of her heart, and she began to cry even harder.

This old dog! Not only did he refuse to help her, but he was also playing the zither even more enthusiastically! I beg you, please act like a human being!!!

So what if she hadn't become his disciple back then? So what if her personality was a little spoiled? She was still just a child, wuwuwu!