Saying It Won't Be Believed, So Find an Excuse

Deep within the dense forest, behind a relatively safe cluster of rocks.

The battered remnants of Shrek finally stopped running.

Every face was filled with lingering terror. Dai Mubai carried Zhao Wuji on his back, gasping heavily;

Zhu Zhuqing leaned against a tree, looking dazed;

Ma Hongjun slumped on the ground, his eyes hollow.

The once high-spirited "Monster Team" now looked like drenched chicks scattered by a torrential storm.

Xiao Wu's fate was unknown, Tang San had vanished, Zhao Wuji was badly injured and unconscious, and Ye Liuyun had likely already been torn to pieces by the Demon Spiders.

"Ye Liuyun... he's probably dead, right? There were so many spider Spirit Beasts."

Ma Hongjun swallowed, his voice trembling slightly.

"He's definitely dead."

Oscar sat nearby and glanced at Ning Rongrong, who was still wiping away tears in a panic. The jealousy and bitterness in his heart surged up again.

He moved closer, trying to comfort her in a "rational" tone.

"Rongrong, stop crying. There was nothing else we could do."

"Ye Liuyun may have been strong, but he was too withdrawn and too arrogant. People like him don't fit in with the group. They were a liability in a team to begin with."

"Now that he died saving us, at least his death meant something. Don't be too sad, anyway, he..."

Slap!

A crisp slap cut off Oscar's endless chatter.

Oscar clutched his face and stared at Ning Rongrong in disbelief.

"Rongrong, you..."

"Shut up!"

Ning Rongrong rose to her feet. Her beautiful eyes were red like a rabbit's, yet filled with anger and disgust unlike anything she had ever shown before.

How could he say such things about a classmate who had stayed behind alone to let them escape?

Pointing at Oscar's nose, her voice sharp and trembling, she said something that had been bothering her for a long time.

"Trash!"

After cursing him, Ning Rongrong ignored Oscar entirely, even as his face flushed the color of liver.

She roughly wiped away her tears, held out her hand, and spoke urgently and forcefully.

"Give me a sausage! The kind that restores Soul Power! Hurry!"

Oscar froze. "What do you need it for?"

"I was scared stupid just now. My mind went blank, but now I need to restore my Soul Power and go back!"

Ning Rongrong gritted her teeth, determination flashing through her eyes.

"I'm going to help him! I'm a Support System Spirit Master, and I have the Seven Treasures Glazed Pagoda. If I can boost him, there might still be a chance."

"Are you crazy?"

Dai Mubai could not help shouting.

"That place is full of Spirit Beasts! Many of them are thousand-year Spirit Beasts, and there may even be ten-thousand-year ones! Going back means certain death! Besides, he's probably already..."

"Shut up!"

Ning Rongrong shouted almost hysterically.

She did not know why she was so agitated.

Perhaps it was because he had saved her life.

In any case, Ye Liuyun was all she could think about now.

Ning Rongrong paced anxiously in circles. Then, as though she remembered something, she frantically rummaged through her storage Soul Tool.

"Right! I have a signal flare! I have the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's emergency fireworks!"

"If I launch it, nearby sect disciples will definitely come when they see it! Grandpa Sword might even be nearby!"

Trembling, she pulled out an exquisite signal arrow and was just about to light the fuse.

A hand suddenly pressed down on her wrist.

That hand was slender and strong, yet not rough. Only its fingertips were somewhat cold.

"Let go! Who is it? Stop getting in my way!"

Ning Rongrong was frantic with worry. Without even looking to see who it was, she struggled desperately and cursed through tears.

"Are you sick? Do you know someone could die if you delay even one second? Get lost!"

"Whoever dares stop me from saving someone, I'll have my father kill his whole family! Fuck you..."

The curse had not yet left her mouth.

Ning Rongrong suddenly raised her head, wanting to see which blind idiot it was.

However.

When she clearly saw the owner of that hand, every sound instantly caught in her throat.

Her entire body froze in place as though she had been struck by a paralysis spell.

A young man stood before her.

His upper body was almost bare, his clothes tattered beyond recognition.

They were covered in green and black bloodstains.

Though he looked utterly bedraggled, his deep eyes remained calm as still water.

The entire place fell silent.

Dai Mubai's mouth hung open, his jaw nearly dropping to the ground.

Ma Hongjun rubbed his eyes hard, thinking he had seen a ghost.

Oscar's face went pale as ash, looking as uncomfortable as though he had swallowed a fly.

How was this possible?

There had been hundreds, even thousands, of Demon Spiders! There might even have been a ten-thousand-year Spider King among them!

How had he... returned alive on his own?

Ning Rongrong stared blankly at Ye Liuyun standing so close to her.

She could smell the thick, suffocating stench of blood on him.

That hysterical feeling from moments ago, as though she could destroy the world, was like a fire doused by a basin of ice water, extinguished in an instant.

In its place came a flustered panic at a loss for what to do.

"You... you..."

Ning Rongrong stammered, wanting to say something harsh to hide her earlier loss of composure.

But looking into Ye Liuyun's deep, tranquil eyes, every word caught in her throat.

Thump.

Thump.

Not only did her heartbeat not slow down, it became even faster than when she had faced death.

The violent pounding left her dizzy and parched.

What was going on?

Wasn't the danger already over? Why was her heart still beating so fast?

Had his sudden appearance frightened her?

Yes! That had to be it!

Ning Rongrong desperately made excuses for herself in her heart.

She took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the flutter in her chest. Turning her head away awkwardly, she muttered softly.

"It's good that you're not dead... Saves this young lady the trouble of collecting your corpse."

Around them, Dai Mubai and the others finally recovered from their shock.

Dai Mubai stepped forward. Looking at Ye Liuyun's miserable state, his voice was filled with disbelief.

"What exactly happened? Where are those Demon Spiders? How did you escape?"

"Yeah! That was a beast tide!"

Ma Hongjun's eyes widened as well.

"Did some powerful expert happen to pass by and save you?"

Faced with everyone's questions, Ye Liuyun did not know how to explain it either.

He could hardly say that he had dealt with all the Spirit Beasts.

Even if he dared to say it, no one would dare believe him.

Besides, why would he need to tell these people about that?

So he casually gave the sort of answer one might give a child.

"Mm."

Hearing that a passing expert had saved him.

The heavy, oppressive atmosphere deflated instantly like a punctured balloon.

"I knew it!"

Ma Hongjun smacked his thigh, even wearing the smug expression of someone who had seen through everything long ago.

"So a passing expert stepped in to save you. You're really lucky."

Oscar also let out a long breath, only for it to be replaced by the sour feeling called jealousy.

Ning Rongrong had slapped him just because Ye Liuyun had stayed behind.

He curled his lip and said sarcastically.

"If I'd known, I would've stayed behind to cover the retreat."

"That's enough."

Dai Mubai waved his hand, trying to ease the tension. After all, this was not the time for sarcastic remarks.

"Since everyone got out safely, stop talking nonsense."

"Ye Liuyun, since some senior expert saved you, you were fortunate to survive. Don't be so reckless next time. You won't always have that kind of luck."

After saying that, he stopped looking at Ye Liuyun and turned to the others.

"Everyone is injured, and your Soul Power is badly depleted. Rest where you are and recover."

"Once Teacher Zhao wakes up, we'll figure out how to find Little San and Xiao Wu."

Everyone nodded and found places to sit cross-legged.

Ning Rongrong sat off to the side, hugging her knees.

Listening to Oscar and Ma Hongjun's mockery, she would definitely have chimed in with a few comments in the past.

But now, she only felt that such words were stupid. They were nothing but hindsight. They talked a big game, so why had they not stayed behind to cover the retreat back then?

She wondered whether she had been just as childish before.

She secretly glanced at Ye Liuyun, who sat with his eyes closed, resting.

Subconsciously, she touched her eyebrow. It still seemed to retain the forceful wind from the Crypt Demon Spider's strike.

Then she patted her chest in confusion. Why was her heart still beating so fiercely?