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Ning Ning still felt she didn't deserve the praise, so she told her a few more peerless couplets, like "Smoke locks the willows by the pond" and "I tour West Lake carrying a tin pot. The pot falls into West Lake. How pitiful!" The female demon clicked her tongue in admiration, her eyes widening like copper bells. "The scholars from your hometown truly are extraordinary!"

Ning Ning was even happier than if she'd been praised herself. She nodded repeatedly in agreement. "Of course! Everyone back home is wonderful. They're all super, super amazing!"

With a wealth of first lines to work with, Shi Zhongling returned to the boulder, content. In an instant, she vanished without a trace. Ning Ning lowered her head to inspect the luminous white Heaven Heart Grass, unaware of the strange look in the young woman's eyes beside her.

Yun Duanyue's gaze dimmed, and she instinctively clenched the hem of her skirt.

She had come to the Xiaochong Mountain Secret Realm for one purpose only: to obtain the Heaven Heart Grass. She had finally reached this place after asking every Spirit Beast in the mountains that understood human speech.

She hadn't expected Shi Zhongling's test to be something she was completely unskilled at: composing paired couplets. Nor had she expected someone else to get the Heaven Heart Grass first.

She simply wasn't as capable as the other girl.

But...

The girl in the blue dress bit her lower lip in secret, trying to calm her wildly pounding heart. In a barely audible voice, she began, "Miss, the Heaven Heart Grass—"

Before she could finish, a small, luminous white hand suddenly appeared in front of her.

In the hand being offered to her were two translucent leaves, still beaded with a thin veil of dew...

Leaves of Heaven Heart Grass.

Even Yun Duanyue, who was usually expressionless, couldn't help but have her pupils contract.

Was she... giving her half of the Heaven Heart Grass?

To Yun Duanyue, such a thing was simply unthinkable.

Every cultivator she knew fought tooth and nail over resources, even committing all manner of vile deeds to harm others and steal their opportunities. Heaven Heart Grass was a priceless treasure, and she and the girl before her had only just met. Yet this Sword Cultivator...

Had actually given it to her without the slightest hesitation?

"I heard what you said to that senior."

The unfamiliar young girl's gaze was sincere, her bright almond-shaped eyes like black grapes, pure and untainted. "I hope your loved one will be safe."

So it was because of what she'd said.

But even Shi Zhongling had said she'd heard that sort of excuse countless times and no longer believed it. This girl looked clever. How could she have no doubts at all?

"I heard you never speak to people unless you have to. If you spoke up to ask for it, your situation must be urgent."

Ning Ning saw the confusion in her eyes and grinned. "Even if you were lying, I wouldn't lose anything. I've already got the Heaven Heart Grass, and one or two leaves are enough. If I let suspicion cost your family member their life, that would be truly awful."

Ning Ning held the Heaven Heart Grass out a little closer.

Yun Duanyue fought back the urge to tear up, and her fingertips trembled as she accepted it. Mustering nearly all the courage she had, she whispered, "Thank you."

No one could know how agonizing these past few days had been for her.

Though she was hailed as a once-in-a-century Music Cultivator from Liuming Mountain, Yun Duanyue's childhood had been wretched.

Born a concubine's daughter of a great clan, and afflicted with an illness that made it impossible for her to speak to others, she had been neglected by her father. Her mother treated her as a useless tool. Only her grandmother had treated her like an ordinary person, teaching her to read, play the qin, and do needlework.

Now her grandmother was gravely ill, and only the Heaven Heart Grass could prolong her life. Yun Duanyue had arrived full of hope, but the moment she saw Ning Ning holding the Heaven Heart Grass, all her hopes had been crushed to pieces.

But now, two tiny leaves lay in the palm of her hand.

It felt like a dream.

A rush of warmth welled up in her eyes. Yun Duanyue lowered her head and drew a soft breath. "You saved my life. I'll repay you a hundredfold."

She was about to bow in gratitude when Ning Ning caught her by the shoulders. "No, no! You're making me feel embarrassed... I didn't help you for a reward, anyway."

Yun Duanyue glanced up at her with a swift, fleeting look, her trembling lashes like black butterflies fluttering their wings. Her eyes were red, and a faint blush tinged her cheeks. She said nothing, and silence settled around them.

But it didn't last long before a boy's voice, frantic with fury, suddenly shattered it. "Give me back my sword!"

Then came another, even more brazen shout. "You little devils, taste my Armstrong Rotary Accelerator Jet Cannon! Rat-a-tat, rat-a-tat-tat!"

Those unmistakably familiar voices. Those unmistakably familiar lines.

Ning Ning felt like she was suffocating.

"Sorry, I think those are people I know. I'll go take a look."

After hurriedly explaining herself to Yun Duanyue, she slipped through the gap to the wide-open other side of the boulder, where she came face-to-face with a pair of eyes shot through with bloodshot red.

He Zhizhou's hair was a mess. Holding two unsheathed swords like guns, he was wildly firing them around. Behind him trailed a panting young man Ning Ning vaguely recognized as someone from the Wanjian Sect, named Xu Ye.

She jumped in fright and cautiously called out, "He Zhizhou!"

The picturesque young man froze, then suddenly beamed at her with great warmth. "Second Battalion Commander, you're here! Hurry up and bring out my Italian cannon!"

Ning Ning: ?

"This guy—he's been poisoned!"

Xu Ye, who had been following behind him, stopped to catch his breath. "He and I were teleported into the forest together. Senior Brother He casually picked a white mushroom from under a tree and ate it, and then he suddenly became like this."

After catching his breath, he glared at He Zhizhou and pointed at him. "Give me back my sword!"

"Pointing a gun at me?"

The other man ignored him. Instead, he gave a sinister smile. "I'll bet your gun doesn't have any bullets."

Ning Ning gaped. "Y-Yan Shuangying?"

"That's right!"

He Zhizhou swept his hand grandly, full of swagger. "Li Yunlong, charge with me! Tonight we'll wipe out these little devils and meet up with the Red Army at Jinggang Mountain!"

Help! This poison was way too potent!