Unfortunately, Hua Yan was unmoved. “Take these lies and deceive someone else!”
Still feeling it was not enough, she angrily added, “Liar!”
Yu Ye, hearing this, looked slightly stunned and then revealed a bitter smile. “Even if I once hid some things from you, it was out of necessity. At least my feelings for you were true…” He seemed to choke up, “Now that I have fallen to this point, I wonder if you feel any sense of relief. If not, you can stab me with your sword. I won’t resist… as long as it eases your anger…”
Before Hua Yan could respond, several women around them were already moved.
Yu Ye had always had a gentle and refined appearance. Now, as a prisoner, covered in wounds, and looking frail yet full of deep affection, he seemed to be holding on despite extreme sadness, making him even more pitiable.
If Hua Yan didn’t know that he still held great power and had repeatedly sent people to intimidate her, pretending to be here only to act, she might have been fooled too.
However, her frustration lay in the fact that she couldn’t expose him in public!
Just as Yu Ye had snuck in, so had she. If discovered, she would be in the same trouble.
At some point, a crowd had gathered around them.
Hua Yan’s head was throbbing. The spectators were eagerly gossiping about them. She didn’t need to listen to know how they would speculate about their relationship.
Yu Ye, however, didn’t mind at all. He continued to smile.
It wasn’t his usual warm, spring-like smile but one where his face smiled while his eyes seemed to be crying. His eyes slowly reddened with each blink, making him look genuinely heartbroken.
No, she couldn’t worry about what Yu Ye was trying to do now; she had to escape!
Hua Yan turned to push through the crowd.
But Yu Ye’s voice came from behind her, his gentle words sounding like a death sentence. “Is it only if I die that you will forgive me…”
Not at all!
Hua Yan’s headache worsened. Their relationship wasn’t so dramatic as to involve life and death!
If he really liked Shui Se, he should have told her earlier; she wouldn’t have been so angry!
She wasn’t that petty!
“…Don’t go.” Yu Ye said softly. When he spoke, the surroundings fell silent, and only the faint sound of women sobbing could be heard. “I truly have never liked anyone else. Everything I said to you was heartfelt…”
“Why do you believe others but refuse to believe me?”
The key was that she didn’t just listen to Shui Se’s words; she had seen it with her own eyes!
Hua Yan guessed that Yu Ye might not yet know that when he kissed Shui Se, she was right there. There was a hidden hole in the door of the secret passage, allowing her to see and hear everything clearly.
Moreover, based on Shui Se’s words and the atmosphere in that room, their secret meetings were definitely not just once or twice.
If he had candidly admitted that he liked Shui Se and had no feelings for Hua Yan, although she would be upset, she might have found his words somewhat believable.
Now, in Hua Yan’s eyes, Yu Ye was nothing but a “liar” in capital letters.
Unable to hold back, Hua Yan turned and said, “If you say that, she will be heartbroken.”
Yu Ye was stunned for a moment and then laughed softly. “Her?” He chuckled again, “I see. You are pure and upright; it is I who am dirty. In that case…” He casually picked up a long needle from the table, which was originally used to draw blood to detoxify. But now Yu Ye pressed it against his chest and said, “Then I might as well die.”
Saying that, he pushed the needle into his chest.
“…Wait!”
Snapping back to her senses, Hua Yan rushed over to stop Yu Ye’s hand.
The needle had already sunk over an inch, and blood flowed down Yu Ye’s wrist, soaking his pale white robe. The light blue fabric was stained with patches of red, making Yu Ye’s already pale face turn even whiter, like a sheet of paper.
This isn’t necessary!
As she got closer, Yu Ye’s voice reached her ears using inner force, so only Hua Yan could hear.
“Yan’er, you do worry about me after all…”
No, she didn’t! She was just caught off guard!
Hua Yan immediately pulled back.
“Be good, Yan’er, come back with me and be my holy maiden, okay?”
Hua Yan shuddered at the thought of the things he had said to Shui Se. “He won’t let you succeed.”
Yu Ye continued to use his inner voice transmission. “You mean Xie Yingxian? He can’t even protect himself. The deaths of the disciples in the sect battle will all be blamed on him.”
In a flash of realization, Hua Yan’s voice almost changed pitch. “You did it?”
Remembering the corpses she saw during the sect battle, the terrified disciples, and the continuous traps and venomous insects, Hua Yan found the person in front of her becoming a stranger once again.
Yu Ye apologized through the inner voice transmission, but his apology was not for taking lives recklessly. Instead, he said, “I’m sorry, I didn’t expect you to go in too.”
Hua Yan felt as if she was truly getting to know Yu Ye for the first time.
She was somewhat dazed and couldn’t quite regain her composure.
Although the Zhengyi Sect was where she had grown up and she knew the sect was full of villains, she had only ever witnessed internal strife. At least in front of her, there had never been any indiscriminate killing of innocents, so she had always held onto a faint hope that perhaps the sect wasn’t so bad.
From her father, she had read many stories of chivalry and righteousness in the martial world, and she never truly saw herself as a demoness of the demonic sect.
She had never killed anyone or caused anyone’s death, at most occasionally scaring people, so how could she be considered a bad person?
Even when she suspected that the incidents in the exploration site might have been orchestrated by Xie Yingxian, she still vaguely believed it wasn’t possible. Xie Yingxian did not have a penchant for killing and didn’t want to antagonize the righteous path. His style was always one of reciprocity or returning what was given to him. The righteous sects had only captured him, so there was no reason for such a large-scale retaliation.
But now, this person she once knew so well was casually admitting to his misdeeds. And she was right there, witnessing it with her own eyes—those disciples, possibly only in their early teens, just starting their journey in the martial world, were killed by him.
Hua Yan remembered one of the corpses being carried away. That disciple had once shyly smiled at her in the camp the next day. Although he hadn’t managed to say anything before being interrupted by Ming Qi, Hua Yan didn’t even know his name.
A stark, harsh reality struck her.
So it really was the work of the demonic sect.
Their conversation had taken place in an instant, and the physician from Cixin Valley quickly reacted, helping Yu Ye stop the bleeding. However, Yu Ye grasped Hua Yan’s wrist firmly.
Hua Yan was still in a daze.
Suddenly, the surroundings fell silent.
Someone strode over, grabbing Hua Yan’s wrist.
Yu Ye’s gaze slowly shifted to the newcomer. Dressed in black, with black hair, a blue sword tassel, a black long sword on his back, and an expressionless face—these features unmistakably identified one person.
During his absence, this was the romantic entanglement his Yan’er had gotten involved in: the renowned Lu Chengsha of Tingjian Manor.
Lu Chengsha didn’t even glance at Yu Ye.
He only noticed that Hua Yan looked strange. She was in a daze, trembling, her expression confused.
When Hua Yan looked up at Lu Chengsha, her mind was still buzzing.
What should I do, Great Hero Lu? The place where I grew up seems truly evil!
Lu Chengsha reached out and patted her on the head.
“What’s wrong?”
Hua Yan bit her lip and shook her head.
Even Lu Chengsha’s comfort couldn’t ease her current unease.
She was now slowly starting to feel a vague sense of fear. Previously, she thought that even if Lu Chengsha knew her true identity, it wouldn’t matter, as she hadn’t done anything wrong. But now, it seemed that things might not be so simple…
Hua Yan opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but in her panic, she didn’t know how to express it.
Lu Chengsha finally turned to look at the pale-faced man beside them.
“What did you do?” His voice was cold as ice.
On his way over, Lu Chengsha had heard some strange rumors. He generally didn’t listen to what others said, but amidst the noise, he could conclude that Hua Yan had been bullied.
If not for the severe pain in his chest, Yu Ye might have almost found it laughable.
Yu Ye slightly raised his eyebrows and said, “I made a mistake, and I hope she can forgive me.”
Lu Chengsha asked, “What did you do?”
Yu Ye replied, “I lied to her, and now I want to make amends.”
Hua Yan finally interrupted, “Great Hero Lu, don’t listen to him! He’s not a good person!”
Hearing this, Yu Ye gave a bitter smile, which, given his current state, made him even more pitiable. “Yes, I am a bad person. I am dirty and deserve to die. But, Miss Zhou, I have never had any intention of harming you…” He looked at Hua Yan, his gentle eyes filled with deep affection. “I have never liked anyone else. The one I like is you. Miss Zhou, I know you like me too, right? Back then, we…”
Hua Yan quickly cut him off, “He’s lying! Don’t believe him!”
She wanted to scream that Yu Ye was lying, that he wasn’t some demonic sect traitor, but the current leader of the demonic sect! The traps and venomous insects during the sect battle were all his doing!
But she couldn’t out-argue Yu Ye!
Everyone around them looked at Yu Ye with sympathetic eyes, believing his words deeply.
Even if she exposed him, people might not believe her, and if Yu Ye turned the tables on her, she would be in trouble too.
Yu Ye seemed confident in this, continuing to speak fearlessly.
“…Back then, we even secretly pledged ourselves to each other and had a marriage agreement. Young Master Lu, even though Miss Zhou is by your side now, I believe she still has feelings for me.”
Hua Yan was so furious her hair almost stood on end.
“No, I don’t! You shut up!” She didn’t know why she was panicking so much. Grabbing onto Lu Chengsha’s sleeve, she felt even more flustered than before. “…Don’t believe him!”
Yu Ye, however, pressed on, “Miss Zhou, you don’t want to admit it, but what I said, isn’t it true?”
As he spoke, his eyes reddened again.
Lu Chengsha said, “I believe you.”
Hua Yan suddenly looked up at him.
Lu Chengsha patted her head again.
Hua Yan didn’t know what expression to make at that moment. Clinging tightly to Lu Chengsha’s sleeve, she sniffled and said, “He’s really not a good person! He’s very bad! Very, very bad!”
“It’s okay.” Lu Chengsha repeated, “I believe you.”
She looked like she was about to cry from anxiety.
Hua Yan, with Lu Chengsha patting her head, finally began to calm down. She whispered, “I can’t explain everything right now, but he’s really not a good person! Not only did he lie to me, but he’s also killed many people… please believe me.”
Lu Chengsha looked into her eyes and gave a brief nod. The next moment, he drew his sword toward Yu Ye, his voice cold as ice, “You are from the demonic sect, aren’t you?”
In an instant, his killing intent surged out.