Page 6

Shen Ji: ?

What kind of wiring did his little junior sister's brain have...?

Ning Shuang raised her sleeve and swept the fleeing gu worm into the porcelain bottle in her hand. "Miss Ziling, where did you get this gu worm?" she asked coldly.

"I... I came across it by chance."

"A Youth-Preserving Pill you came across by chance, a devil gu you came across by chance. What wonderful coincidences." Elder Ning sneered. "What connection do you have to the Devil Realm?"

Ziling knew things had gone terribly wrong, but she could not understand where she had given herself away!

How had these people known she would act tonight, and even laid a trap to wait for her?

Pressed with question after question, Ziling could only pin her hopes on Shen Ji. As long as she offered a few words of explanation, he would defend her as he had before.

"I have nothing to do with the Devil Realm. I swear I'm not of the Devil Race. Shen Ji, believe me..."

[I might have wanted to plant a gu in you, but I'm really a good person?]

[Does she cultivate her skin when she practices, too? How did she make it so thick?]

Hearing Qiaoqiao's snark, Second Senior Sister could not help laughing.

Shen Ji, however, could not laugh.

He realized he had been wrong-outrageously wrong.

Having seen her sneak into his room and plant a gu in him with his own eyes, Shen Ji's heart was practically dripping blood.

For this woman, he had actually been willing to violate the sect rules and defy Elder Ning. He had even wanted to give her his Spirit Root and keep someone with such sinister intentions on Ethereal Peak.

If his little junior sister had not warned him, he would have nearly made a terrible mistake!

He looked at Ziling, his eyes as lifeless as dead ashes. "You want me to believe you? Are you still worthy of saying that word?"

Ziling's face instantly went white. Shen Ji was actually no longer falling for it!

Without his protection, she had no desire to fight Elder Ning here. This was the Flowing Cloud Immortal Sect's territory, after all, and she could not expose her identity as the young master of a devil sect.

Seizing her chance, she leaped up to flee.

A sharp streak of Sword Qi blocked her escape. She turned back in shock. Shen Ji had actually drawn his sword against her!

"Shen Ji, you-"

She was nearly furious enough to die. How dared Shen Ji!

Just then, the devil-sealing stone lit up. Second Senior Sister activated the formation, and spiritual threads crisscrossed, gathering into an enormous character for "seal" that completely imprisoned her inside the room!

Spiritual threads wound around Ziling's body, and her concealed Devil Qi erupted beyond her control. Her features began to change, her brows and eyes lengthening, several devil markings curling around the corners of her eyes. Her lips turned blood-red, her formerly innocent air vanished without a trace, and Devil Qi spilled out in all directions.

Seeing her turn into a devil woman with his own eyes, Shen Ji lost every last trace of color in his face.

As the formation unfolded, a faint scent of sandalwood drifted through the air. The fragrance was exceedingly sinister, burrowing straight into her brain. Waves of dizziness and pressure filled Ziling's head, making her so sick she wanted to vomit.

It was Mind-Clearing Incense!

This stuff was the bane of Devil Cultivators!

After laying a formation, these people had actually lit Mind-Clearing Incense to deal with her, too. Wasn't that utterly unscrupulous? Whose idea had this been?!

Grinding her teeth, Ziling used all her strength to break free of the formation's restraints.

Elder Ning said, "You devil sect vermin are outrageously bold, daring to sneak onto Ethereal Peak to wreak havoc!"

She raised her voice. "Shen Ji, kill her!"

She wanted to use this to let Shen Ji sever his heart demon and free himself completely from the devil woman's bewitchment.

Shen Ji held his sword, its edge gleaming coldly, its killing intent chilling.

Ziling realized he truly intended to kill her.

Over the past few days, she had grown used to his gentle treatment and willingness to grant her every request. For a moment, Ziling could not accept the contrast, and an unpleasant feeling filled her heart.

"Wait! I really was the one who saved you back then. Shen Ji, you can't repay kindness with enmity like this! Aren't you a righteous cultivator? How can you kill your own savior!"

Hesitation appeared on Shen Ji's face, and for a moment, he could not bring himself to strike.

Even if she was a devil woman, she really had shown him kindness...

"As long as you let me go, all debts and grudges between us will be settled. Neither of us will owe the other anything." Ziling put on a pleading expression. "Shen Ji, help me one last time."

[Eldest Senior Brother's hand is actually shaking. He really is hesitating!]

[He isn't really going to let her off, is he? Surely not?]

[Why doesn't he think about what he might do if he fell under the gu's control? Once his reputation, his cultivation, and everything he has are ruined, it'll be too late for regrets!]

These words spoke straight to Elder Ning's heart. She glanced at Qiaoqiao and saw anxiety written all over her face. She could not help reflecting on how thoughtful Qiaoqiao was, considering so much for her senior brother's sake.

She had never thought so before, but now it seemed Qiaoqiao truly was a good junior sister.

Shen Ji: Little Junior Sister has a very good point, but...

[Still, Eldest Senior Brother is so pitiful. He doesn't even know that the mortal girl who saved him back then was eaten by the Purple Baleful Intent Devil Woman long ago. The devil woman devoured her soul, inherited her memories, and disguised herself as her to win Eldest Senior Brother's trust...]

Shen Ji: ?!

Was that true?!

[If he doesn't believe it, he can ask her the name of the city where they met back then. In memories devoured by a devil woman, some names of people and places become blurred.]

Yes, that was a good idea!

Elder Ning, who had been sweating on Shen Ji's behalf, brightened. Who would have thought that, lazy as Qiaoqiao usually was, her mind would be so sharp at a crucial moment?

Shen Ji asked the question.

The devil woman's expression turned evasive. In that mortal girl's blurred memories, she only remembered buying a basket of steamed buns for a beggar by the roadside. How could she remember where it had happened?

How had Shen Ji suddenly grown a functioning brain?!

She stammered, unable to answer. What was there left for Shen Ji not to understand? The girl who had helped him and shown him kindness back then had died long ago, killed by this very devil woman. Yet he had mistaken his enemy for his benefactor and racked his brains trying to repay her!

How laughable everything he had done was!

He abruptly raised his hand, pressing his sword against Ziling's throat. "Devil woman, you still want to deny it? What was the name of the girl you killed back then?"

Ziling had never expected him to work out even that she had killed the mortal girl. She nearly vomited blood.