No. 019, the Poor Sap

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Chapter 19

He Xueyi had spent the past few days dealing with her mother, who was deranged, stubborn, and liable to weep as though her heart were being torn apart at any moment. She really hadn't paid attention to what was happening in the sect. Her master wouldn't think to tell her about any major events there, either. And if Wen Que was telling the truth, this was a huge scandal for the sect. No one would have rushed to tell her.

As for the chief disciple Wen Que had mentioned, He Xueyi could think of no one but Lan Yezhou. And the only person engaged to Lan Yezhou was Qiu Jinyou of the Qiu Family, the second disciple of the Heavenly Sun Sect's Endless Peak.

So He Xueyi could think of only one person who might have stabbed Lan Yezhou: Qiu Jinyou. How could Wen Que say all this so casually, as though it had nothing to do with them?

"Is what you said true, Fellow Daoist Wen?"

"Why would I lie to you?" Wen Que planted her hands on her hips and looked at He Xueyi. "Would lying to you earn me spirit stones?"

He Xueyi understood that Wen Que had no reason to lie to her. It was just—

She glanced down at the snow-white fox still crouching on the ground, gazing up as though Ming Xi were the only person it could see. Her pupils quivered. Wen Que was right. She might not have known the little fox's identity when she first saw it, but after being chased all this way by those demon beasts, He Xueyi had long since guessed who it was.

Otherwise, she would never have paid such a heavy price just to save the little snow-white fox.

But now it seemed the fox had eyes and thoughts only for Ming Xi. It had completely forgotten how it had whimpered in her arms earlier. And from what Wen Que and Ming Xi had said, the little snow-white fox—the Demon Prince—had already become entangled with Ming Xi before this. She just didn't know what had gone wrong between them. The fox kept chasing after Ming Xi, while Ming Xi couldn't have cared less. It all felt rather... delicate.

"Thank you for telling me, Fellow Daoist Wen." With that, He Xueyi had more or less made it clear she intended to leave.

Building a connection with the Demon Prince was important, but things had changed within her sect. Now that she knew, she could hardly justify not going back. Besides, the Demon Prince clearly had no interest in her at the moment. Staying would serve no purpose. Leaving now might at least leave everyone with a good impression of her.

"But the young are innocent. The little demon fox is badly hurt. Whatever misunderstanding there is between you, you should talk it through... He looks very pitiful."

Ming Xi raised an eyebrow at He Xueyi, and when she spoke, she sounded every bit the great villain. "Since when was it your place to tell me what to do?"

Wen Que: !!!

Things with He Xueyi had ended on an unpleasant note. Ming Xi had never intended to get along with her anyway. Their identities and personalities made that impossible.

As for the little snow-white fox in front of her, Ming Xi paid him no mind at all.

They had wasted far too much time already. Ming Xi felt her patience had run out, so she grabbed Wen Que again and turned to leave.

Wen Que: ???

When Wen Yan saw Ming Xi about to leave, he knew that if he missed this chance, he would never have another with her. Perhaps even he hadn't noticed the change in his own feelings. In that instant, he simply followed his instincts and pounced.

"Watch out, Junior Sister!"

From Wen Que's angle, she saw it clearly. The little snow-white fox streaked toward them like a bolt of white lightning and was right before them in the blink of an eye.

[I swear, this was absolutely a misunderstanding!]

She was already standing in front of Ming Xi. With her collar still in Ming Xi's grip, her body twisted at an awkward angle—and a faint cloud of pink smoke blew straight into her face.

Ming Xi: !!!

Ming Xi moved even faster. As she hauled Wen Que up, a flash of spiritual light from her hand dispersed the pink smoke drifting toward her eyes. She kicked the little snow-white fox away, held her breath, and swiftly retreated.

She didn't know what the stuff was, but it looked unpleasant. Her instincts told her to get away from it.

What made her even angrier, though, was what Wen Que had done—

"Wen Jiujiu, are you an idiot? What were you, a Qi Refining Stage cultivator, doing rushing out at a time like that? Have you completely misunderstood how strong I am?!"

She was at the Foundation Establishment Late Stage. Since when had she needed help from Wen Que, who was only at the Qi Refining Stage?

And Wen Que had been so clumsy she couldn't even dodge a sneak attack!

"Did you think I couldn't dodge a sneak attack like that? Is that brain of yours just for show? Who knows what the hell that stuff was? And you still dared to charge at it!"

Wen Que wanted to explain that she hadn't done it on purpose and that she knew the smoke was bad news. It was just rotten timing. She had only meant to warn Ming Xi, then protect herself without getting in her way.

But who could have guessed her face would end up right in its path?

Wen Que felt dizzy. Ming Xi's voice grew farther and farther away. She moved her lips, trying to say something, but couldn't make a sound.

Ming Xi couldn't find an answer in Wen Que's thoughts, either. They had plainly become too jumbled to make sense of. She could only watch as Wen Que's eyes rolled back and she fainted. A fierce surge of anger shot straight up through the crown of her head.