Marked Sucker [Revised]

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Chapter 5

Without Luo Mingxi to back him up, Wen Yan could only let the elders take him away. He did not even get a chance to struggle. Who knew how many lines he had bottled up? His face was livid as they packed him up and tossed him out.

Yes, rather than being escorted away, he had been packed up and tossed out of Endless Peak. He looked unruffled on the surface, but the whole affair was humiliating. He could not understand why Luo Mingxi, who had been so gentle and attentive to him just moments ago, had taken the opposite side. Why would she no longer look at him with those tender eyes?

Though his heart was full of resentment toward Luo Mingxi, Wen Yan had enjoyed her care and regard these past days. He liked the feeling of being watched by her, and he had planned to wait until she was utterly devoted to him before setting his revenge in motion.

But now that Luo Mingxi had kicked him aside without a trace of reluctance, Wen Yan felt something was wrong. Gritting his teeth, he thought, I'm the one who gets to throw Luo Mingxi away. How can she cast me off like this without even an explanation?

I haven't even had a chance to start my revenge!

The Demon Race elders were protective of their own, but they knew the most important thing now was to take him home. Everything else could wait. Even if their young highness's plight really did have something to do with the Heavenly Sun Sect, they could always come knocking for a fight again.

Wen Que, on the other hand, eagerly handed over the Echo Stone before they left.

"Safe travels! Don't expect us to see you out!"

She was afraid that as soon as they turned around, they would be dazzled by the plot armor and forget how Wen Yan had put on an act at the Heavenly Sun Sect.

What really happened doesn't matter anymore. As long as Junior Sister's brain hasn't been eaten, I'm satisfied. I don't ask for much.

Luo Mingxi badly wanted to tell Wen Que, "Thanks a lot." Unfortunately, Wen Que could not hear what she was thinking. Luo Mingxi glared at her, only for Wen Que to look back with an innocent face, as though Luo Mingxi were the one being unreasonable.

The Demon Race elders came and went in a rush. They had arrived in such force that a fight had seemed imminent, yet they left looking as though they were fleeing in defeat. The rest of the sect did not quite know what to make of it. But when they looked at Luo Mingxi, who was at the center of it all, and recalled the Endless Peak junior sister's past exploits, someone coming to pick a fight suddenly did not seem so strange.

What looked stranger was Endless Peak's third disciple, the one rumored to have been struck by lightning. In this weather, she was wearing a fluffy hat.

Sensing everyone's glances drifting toward her, Wen Que touched the top of her head with lingering dread. Her hat was still there. She silently breathed a sigh of relief.

That sneaky little look made Qiu Jinyou struggle even harder to hold back her laughter.

"Second Senior Sister, stop laughing! I saw you!" Wen Que sidled up to Qiu Jinyou and pitifully tugged at her sleeve.

On Endless Peak, their master was nowhere to be seen year-round, and their eldest senior brother was so absorbed in cultivation that he was scarcely seen either. Their junior brother was an adorable little airhead, while their junior sister was a flirt who spent every day surrounded by beauties of every sort. Only Second Senior Sister was gentle, kind, and dependable.

"All right. Ming Xi was only worried about you. You haven't recovered yet, so why don't you go back and get some rest? Chunhe should be back around now. Take your medicine when she arrives, then get to bed early. You'll be better before you know it. Be good!"

Qiu Jinyou rubbed the top of Wen Que's head, feeling only the softness of her hat. Remembering Wen Que's smooth, bare scalp, she could not help smiling even more broadly.

Aaah, that smile on Second Senior Sister's face! It would look even prettier if she weren't laughing at me! Waaaah! My poor hair!

Qiu Jinyou: Pfft!

Wen Que said tearfully, "Second Senior Sister, you should smile more if you like smiling. You look so pretty when you do!"

I've got grievances, but nowhere to voice them.

Luo Mingxi: Hahahahaha, we heard every word!

Qiu Jinyou should have gone down the mountain to visit home two days ago. But Wen Que's accident had left her too worried to go, so she stayed on Endless Peak to look after her, delaying the trip.

Now that Wen Que was out of danger, and the trouble-prone junior sister would probably keep to herself for a while, Qiu Jinyou packed her things and prepared to leave. Then she turned around and ran into Wen Que wandering outside.

For some reason, a bad feeling instantly filled her heart.

Wen Que came over cheerfully. "Second Senior Sister, where are you off to so early?"

"Home, for a visit."

Qiu Jinyou's family was a minor aristocratic clan affiliated with the Heavenly Sun Sect. Their ancestral grounds lay not far below the sect, and she often went home to visit her parents and offer pointers to the family's younger members.

But she did not usually go home this often.

Didn't Second Senior Sister go home just last month? Doesn't she normally visit once every three to five months?

Remembering the purpose of this trip, Qiu Jinyou blushed across her fair, gentle face.

Seeing Qiu Jinyou's flushed cheeks and shy gaze, Wen Que suddenly understood. She asked cautiously:

"Second Senior Sister, are you going back to see my future brother-in-law?"

"What nonsense! He's not your brother-in-law yet!"

The Qiu Family and Lan Family had been close for generations. Qiu Jinyou and Lan Yezhou had been engaged since childhood. Qiu Jinyou had entered the Heavenly Sun Sect's Endless Peak, while Lan Yezhou had cultivated at the Heavenly Martial Sect since he was young.

Wen Que counted on her fingers and recalled details Qiu Jinyou had mentioned before. Wasn't her wedding to Lan Yezhou supposed to be coming up soon?

Oh my god, is Second Senior Sister going down the mountain this time to discuss the wedding details with the Lan Family? It's happening so soon!

Wen Que's inner voice burst out again. Qiu Jinyou froze, then realized Wen Que must have figured it out. The blush spread farther across her face, and she looked like a delicate flower in bloom, brimming with life and tender charm.

But...

That single but made Qiu Jinyou flinch. She remembered how Wen Que had revealed, bit by bit, the sinister intentions of the young Demon Race man around their junior sister. Was it her turn for a but now?

The blush slowly drained from Qiu Jinyou's face.

But if I remember right, that bastard Lan Yezhou cultivates the Heartless Sword at the Heavenly Martial Sect?!

Aaah, Second Senior Sister, don't go! If you go down the mountain this time, you won't come back! That damned fiancé of yours is going to stab you to death on your wedding night—to use Slay-Wife Dao-Proving to attain the Dao! Aaah!

Qiu Jinyou stumbled. What?!

She stared at Wen Que in shock.

Wen Que looked back innocently. "Second Senior Sister, what's wrong?"

She had not noticed the change in Qiu Jinyou's expression. Her mind was racing as she tried to work out how to help Qiu Jinyou avoid this idiotic plot.

Their junior sister, the flirt, had brought a good deal of her trouble on herself. But Second Senior Sister's rotten fate was nothing but an outrage inflicted on someone utterly innocent.

Who had decided that cultivating some technique meant a person had to use Slay-Wife Dao-Proving to break through?

Qiu Jinyou and Lan Yezhou had grown up together. Lan Yezhou had personally agreed to their engagement back then. All these years, Qiu Jinyou had truly regarded him as her future cultivation partner. Whenever she came across something good, she made sure he got a share, and she even thought of his needs first when it came to cultivation resources. In her eyes, he was more talented than she was and could go further along the path of cultivation.

And how had Lan Yezhou repaid her?

On their wedding night, he repaid Second Senior Sister with a sword straight through the heart!

Qiu Jinyou did not believe it.

She wanted to believe none of it. But remembering what had happened to Luo Mingxi, she could only stare at Wen Que, her pupils trembling, and suddenly ask, "Jiujiu, would you like to come home with me for a visit? I'll ask my mother to make your favorite dishes."

Wen Que's face fell.

Does she think she can buy me off with one meal?

It'll take at least two!

"Sure, sure! Are we leaving now, Second Senior Sister?"

Yes! I get a front-row seat to the drama again! Heh. If that rotten scumbag dares lay a hand on my Second Senior Sister, I'll run him straight through first!

Qiu Jinyou: "..."

There's no need for that.

Qiu Jinyou felt that she had probably believed Wen Que the moment she invited her along. She simply wanted to struggle against it a little. After all, Lan Yezhou was the cultivation partner she had been promised to for years, the man she had earnestly decided to spend her life with. She could not bring herself to doubt him because of a few words from Wen Que.

Or perhaps—she pressed a hand to her chest—she just wanted one last chance to hold out hope.

What if Wen Que is wrong?

Besides, with Wen Que beside her, she could hear any firsthand news as it came. She only wanted some peace of mind.

In all her years on Endless Peak, Wen Que had accompanied Qiu Jinyou to the Qiu Family several times. Somehow, everyone in the family had come away with the impression that she loved playing, laughing, and eating—but not cultivating