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Ning Ning touched her nose and nodded with her head lowered.

It seemed she really wasn't used to lying. Touching her nose was something she only did when she felt guilty.

He Zhizhou seemed a little awkward. As he headed for the cave entrance, he stammered, "Then I'll go look for Xu Ye. You two can take your time chatting."

As soon as he finished, he slipped away. Rong Ci glanced up at Ning Ning, who looked just as flustered, and smiled. "What, the Sword Cultivator who hates me so much has left?"

Ning Ning's ears turned red. She slowly sat down beside him. "That's not your fault. I don't know what's gotten into Xu Ye either. He's been acting strange since noon."

Without He Zhizhou and Xu Ye's voices, the cave seemed exceptionally quiet. Faint, dim light seeped in from outside, catching the tail of the darkness. Even the wind's mournful whine could be heard.

The red-robed Charm Cultivator had features as beautiful as a painting. In the dusk, they were veiled in a hazy crimson glow. Even without saying a word, he could easily steal anyone's heart.

Rong Ci gazed at her quietly for a while, then suddenly spoke. "It's my fault. Once I've recovered a little, I'll leave on my own tomorrow."

He spoke calmly, even with the faintest smile at the corner of his mouth, yet his expression was utterly forlorn.

Charm Cultivators were unwelcome among the righteous sects, and had always been the loneliest and least understood. Ning Ning frowned at his words. After deliberating for a long while, she finally said softly, "Rong Ci, I'm sorry."

The young man said nothing.

But inside, the corners of his mouth curled up slightly.

The fish had taken the bait.

With his cultivation, there was no way the Demonic Bear could have injured him this badly. He had deliberately let himself get hurt so he could get close to the Heaven Heart Grass.

He had sensed the sudden burst of spiritual energy when the Heaven Heart Grass appeared and hurried over. He had happened to see Ning Ning facing off against Zou Wu. Rong Ci didn't have much chance of winning in a one-on-one fight, so if he wanted to steal the Heaven Heart Grass from under her nose, the best way was to play the victim and win her trust.

First, he'd learned from their conversation that Ning Ning was going to search for the Zhuohuo Sunflower. Then he'd deliberately let the Demonic Bear claw him and collapsed in a patch of Zhuohuo Sunflowers, where she found him and brought him back to the cave. All he had to do was act helpless and pitiful, and he could lead this innocent little girl around by the nose.

Now...although he still didn't know where the Heaven Heart Grass was, the Tianhe Stone they'd mentioned was an intriguing treasure in its own right.

"I didn't know before how hostile everyone was toward you. But to me, there's no difference in rank or worth between the different paths of cultivation. You're no different from anyone else."

She spoke haltingly, her voice very soft. "I...I believe you."

Rong Ci's voice softened, as though he were murmuring to himself, tinged with bewilderment and surprise. "You believe me?"

"Actually, just now, I was talking with He Zhizhou about the Tianhe Stone."

Ning Ning gripped the edge of her sleeve, as though it had taken a great deal of resolve to say this. "We found a map showing where the Tianhe Stone is in the cave. He didn't want you to know, but...I believe you don't mean us any harm."

The red-robed young man lowered his eyes. His voice was like the richest wine, seeping with poison without a sound. "The Tianhe Stone?"

"It's a Saint Grade treasure, just like the Heaven Heart Grass."

She smiled without guile, her voice gentle. There was none of the cold distance other people showed Charm Cultivators; she sounded as if she were chatting with an ordinary friend. "I heard it shines once every day, right at Xu Hour. As long as you catch sight of that beam of light, you can find it."

Rong Ci smiled again. "So you're planning to go tonight?"

"Yeah, to Youlan Slope, not far from here."

Ning Ning propped her cheek up with one hand and glanced at the darkening sky. "He Zhizhou didn't want me to tell you, but you're so badly injured. There's no way you could come fight us for the Tianhe Stone. He always overthinks things."

She yawned as she spoke, seeming a little sleepy, then asked him in a hazy voice, "Rong Ci, where are the people from Niguang Island stationed? You all seem so mysterious."

That was right. He really wouldn't try to take it.

The red-robed young man pressed his lips together in a silent smile, still looking obedient and frail. But a trace of malice flickered through his eyes, almost too faint to notice.

He wouldn't make a move...

But the others from Niguang Island, who had been in constant contact with him, weren't nearly so well-behaved.

Youlan Slope.

There weren't many Niguang Island disciples in Xiaochong Mountain to begin with, but to intercept the Tianhe Stone, almost every last one of them had come out.

After nightfall, Youlan Slope was exceptionally quiet and cold. The wild grass and unruly orchids swayed in the wind like white bones rippling with the breeze. Tree shadows blotted out the moonlight, and the darkness was as thick as ink.

It was almost Xu Hour, and everyone was wound tight. Amid the utter silence, the clearest sound of footsteps suddenly rang out.

The young leader in green exchanged a glance with the others. Spiritual energy surged beside her, turning into an invisible but powerful force that shot straight toward the approaching figure.

The person quickly let out an angry roar. But what caught them completely off guard was that the voice didn't belong to a young man or woman. It was the rough voice of a grown man.

The young leader in green realized something was wrong. She suppressed the killing intent around her and looked up.

In the gradually brightening moonlight, she finally saw the figure clearly.

It wasn't Ning Ning, nor was it He Zhizhou.

The furious man had thick brows and large eyes, and a burly build. He was none other than...Zou Wu of the Haoran Sect!

To make sense of what had really happened, they had to turn the clock back to that afternoon.

The moment Rong Ci had finished applying the medicine and fallen asleep.

"Hey, Ning Ning. You really did just let that Charm Cultivator stay?"

He Zhizhou held the Jinyu Furnace and spoke by voice transmission. "Sure, he's good-looking, but we don't know a thing about him. What if that kid's a bad person and is after the Heaven Heart Grass?"

Ning Ning smiled. "Friend, have some confidence. Take out those two words, 'what if.'"

He Zhizhou had eaten poisonous mushrooms, so his mind was already muddled. Hearing her suddenly say something like that, he couldn't help but freeze. "Huh?"

"Have you seen Infernal Affairs and The Bourne Identity?"