Hua Yan woke up shortly after falling asleep. She constantly doubted whether she was dreaming, fearing that she would wake up back in the sect. Fortunately, when she opened her eyes, she saw Lu Chengsha’s serene profile with his eyes closed.
The soreness in her body still reminded her of what had happened, making Hua Yan feel a bit embarrassed and shy, but also oddly satisfied.
Lu Chengsha seemed to be just resting with his eyes closed. Upon hearing the noise, he immediately opened his eyes and asked, “Awake?”
Hua Yan nodded and started to get dressed. Her body recovered quickly; after a short sleep, she had regained most of her strength. However, looking at the disheveled bed, she couldn’t help but recall the intimate moments they had shared. Although she tried to remain calm, she couldn’t, her cheeks flushed. After putting on a few pieces of clothing, she sneaked another glance at Lu Chengsha.
He was sitting beside her, his expression unreadable, his gaze wandering, and his lips slightly pressed together. After the initial glance at her, he didn’t look at her again.
Hua Yan felt like he was also embarrassed.
He hadn’t shown any shyness during their intimate moments.
Softly, Hua Yan said, “You…”
Lu Chengsha immediately responded, “Hmm.”
Both of them lowered their gazes. She couldn’t resist reaching out to hook Lu Chengsha’s long fingers. Despite their intimate activities, touching his skin still made her heart race, as if something was overflowing from her chest.
Lu Chengsha gently entwined her fingers, tightly holding her hand.
Hua Yan secretly scratched his palm, hearing his breath catch and his body stiffen slightly.
She almost wanted to laugh; he hadn’t changed at all.
What could she do? She really liked him.
Hua Yan raised her head, smiling sweetly, “Come, give me a kiss!”
Lu Chengsha couldn’t refuse. He cupped her chin with one hand and gently kissed her lips, the kiss controlled and delicate, merely brushing her lips. Hua Yan felt as if she was soaking in warm water, so comfortable that she almost wanted to sigh.
After the kiss, she hugged his waist, nestling into his broad and warm embrace, breathing in his familiar, faint scent of cedar, even feeling like she could fall asleep again.
At this moment, Lu Chengsha was very generous, allowing her to cling to him without the slightest intention of pushing her away.
However, when her fingers touched Lu Chengsha’s back, Hua Yan still wanted to ask once more, “Does your… back still hurt?”
Lu Chengsha said, “No.” He added, “That injury was from three months ago.”
Hua Yan said, “But I saw that some areas haven’t completely healed… Turn around, let me apply some medicine for you.”
Lu Chengsha wanted to refuse, but under Hua Yan’s earnest gaze, he had no choice but to remove his inner garment and turn around. Hua Yan took out the ointment and carefully applied it to his back with her fingers. She could face corpses without blinking, but the sight of his injuries made her suddenly feel reluctant to look. If it weren’t for Lu Chengsha’s martial arts training, these injuries would have broken an ordinary person’s spine.
It was also evident that he hadn’t taken good care of himself after getting injured.
As Hua Yan finished applying the ointment, she couldn’t resist leaning in and placing a light kiss on his shoulder blade.
Lu Chengsha’s body trembled.
Hua Yan quickly asked, “Sorry, did it hurt?”
Lu Chengsha replied in a muffled voice, “No.”
Hua Yan said, “Hmm?”
She was still puzzled, but then she noticed something in his voice. Realization dawned on her, and she glanced forward, her face turning crimson. “Oh… then I won’t touch you anymore,” she said, inwardly marveling at his stamina.
Are all men like this?
Lu Chengsha quickly put his inner garment back on and then stood up to don his outer robe. He efficiently tied up his long hair.
Hua Yan also finished dressing and turned her back to him. “Can you tie my hair too?” she asked.
Lu Chengsha hesitated for a moment before replying, “Alright.”
He gently gathered her long hair. Although he was swift when tying his own hair, he was clumsier when doing hers. His fingers occasionally brushed against her neck, sending tiny sparks through her. Hua Yan sat obediently, letting him handle her hair, savoring the silent intimacy.
The atmosphere in the room was warm and gentle.
Hua Yan thought to herself that they looked like a newlywed couple—although, in truth, they weren’t far from it.
Before long, Lu Chengsha had finished. He hesitated again before placing a black wooden hairpin into her hair.
Hua Yan rarely wore her hair up so simply. She found a bronze mirror and looked at her reflection. Her features were still the same, but the woman in the mirror looked a bit less glamorous and a bit more lively and spirited. It felt novel to her. She couldn’t help but ask Lu Chengsha, “Does it look good?”
Lu Chengsha nodded vigorously, “Yes.”
Hua Yan’s heart bloomed with joy. She quickly leaned over and kissed Lu Chengsha’s cheek before jumping out of bed.
Lu Chengsha stood there for a moment, a barely noticeable smile tugging at the corner of his lips.
That slight smile was barely noticeable, but Hua Yan caught it instantly. She widened her eyes in surprise and said, “Did you just… smile?”
Lu Chengsha was taken aback.
Hua Yan was certain. “You were definitely smiling! When did you learn to do that?”
This seemed to be the first time she had seen him smile…
Lu Chengsha had no idea. It was just a moment where he couldn’t help himself, and by the time he realized it, he had already made the expression.
They were getting ready to leave, so they needed to clean up the mess on the bed. Hua Yan found a copper basin and threw all the sheets and curtains with their traces into it and burned them. She also tidied up everything else they had used.
Anyway, Yin Xiangsi couldn’t trace it back to them. After cleaning up, Hua Yan grabbed Lu Chengsha, ready to leave.
But just before leaving, she felt a bit reluctant.
Lu Chengsha seemed to feel the same way. The two of them dawdled for a while. Hua Yan touched the hairpin on her head, thought for a moment, and took out a handkerchief she had secretly carried but was too embarrassed to bring out. Hesitantly, she said, “You… here, my embroidery isn’t very good.”
The handkerchief, made of fine fabric, had a little oddly shaped red flower embroidered on it.
Lu Chengsha was stunned. “For me?”
Hua Yan instantly regretted it and wanted to take it back. “How about I make a better one next time!”
But before she could withdraw her hand, Lu Chengsha had already taken it. He stared at it for a while, then carefully and protectively placed it in his chest pocket.
Hua Yan felt a bit anxious. “Isn’t it kind of ugly?”
Lu Chengsha shook his head. “It’s not ugly.”
Hua Yan said, “No lying.”
Lu Chengsha replied seriously, “It’s not ugly.”
—There was no need to be angry and break someone else’s dagger; he now had something of his own.
When they couldn’t find any more excuses to stay, Hua Yan pressed the crabapple blossom mechanism, and with a “click,” the lock was released.
Finally, they stepped out, leaving the intimate moments behind, as if they had walked out of a fleeting dream. The moment they stepped onto solid ground, Hua Yan still felt a bit dazed.
After a while, she looked around at the misty surroundings and remembered that they were still in Migu Town.
The sky was still bright, and it was silent all around. This place was indeed quite remote.
Hua Yan asked, “What are you planning to do?”
Lu Chengsha replied, “Kill someone.” He paused and asked, “Do you know them?”
Hua Yan blinked and said, “Do you mean You Weitian or Yin Xiangsi? I wouldn’t say I know the former; we just helped each other out. As for the latter… are you planning to kill her? She’s not easy to deal with, very experienced, and reportedly very ruthless. You might suffer if you go straight at her.”
Lu Chengsha was silent for a moment.
Suddenly, an idea struck Hua Yan, and she quickly said, “We’re not in league together! I don’t know her! She’s the leader of the Wan Gu Sect, and I… well, we’re both part of the demonic sects, but you could say we’re enemies. I have no objection if you want to kill her! If you really want to deal with her, we can go together…” She added in a low voice, “I am more familiar with her.”
Lu Chengsha didn’t say much, just replied, “Hmm.”
Hua Yan knew her current situation was precarious, dancing on the edge of his tolerance. With Xie Yingxian’s presence and her high status, the Zhengyi Sect’s strong authority ensured she didn’t need to worry about others questioning her. But Lu Chengsha was different.
Thinking this, Hua Yan pulled her bamboo hat lower over her head. She had intended to look for her subordinates left on the roadside but was worried Lu Chengsha might kill them by accident.
She still remembered the location of Yin Xiangsi’s lair. Along the way, they encountered several poison traps set by Yin Xiangsi, all of which Hua Yan easily neutralized. Lu Chengsha even killed a couple of Yin Xiangsi’s minions who were trying to cause trouble.
Additionally, they saw many disciples lying unconscious on the ground.
Hua Yan knew these were the ones Yin Xiangsi had deemed unsuitable. Although she chose young disciples for their vitality, she was very picky. They had to be handsome and skilled in martial arts, clearly indicating her severe illness.
She sneaked a glance at Lu Chengsha, thinking at least she didn’t have to worry about this now.
Yin Xiangsi didn’t like things that had been touched by others, especially men.
Lu Chengsha was hers now!
However, remembering the confrontation between him and Yin Xiangsi, Hua Yan felt a bit worried. She thought for a moment and grabbed Lu Chengsha, saying, “There might be other dangers ahead. Let me give you something for protection.”
Lu Chengsha turned to look and saw Hua Yan pull out the large gu worm, the size of half an egg, that he had seen before, from her sleeve.
It had swollen a lot earlier but now had returned to its original size. Its shell was black, resembling a ladybug, round and plump, with two antennae gently twitching and affectionately rubbing against Hua Yan’s fingers.
Lu Chengsha almost drew his sword to cut it down on the spot.
Hua Yan held down his hand reaching for his sword and said, “Wait! This gu king is very well-behaved. Apart from loving to eat, it has a great temperament. If you keep it with you, you won’t have to worry about other gu insects or similar things. Just feed it some raw meat from pigs, sheep, or chickens now and then.”
Lu Chengsha watched her even stroke the gu worm with her finger, feeling very unreal.
He paused and said, “I don’t need it.”
“No need to be polite. It’s very useful. I wouldn’t give it to just anyone…” Hua Yan mumbled. “And because it has swallowed several sound transmission gu worms, in the future, if you want to contact me, you can use it to send messages. Just talk to it, although if the distance is too far, it might take some time for me to receive it.”
Her gu king was unmatched by ordinary sound transmission gu worms, but the transmission time couldn’t be guaranteed.
Hua Yan spoke nonchalantly, but both knew that separation was inevitable.
Lu Chengsha was still hesitating.
Hua Yan urged the gu king in her hand to crawl into Lu Chengsha’s palm. It seemed reluctant, touching Hua Yan several times with its antennae before moving into Lu Chengsha’s hand.
Lu Chengsha restrained the urge to crush it.
Unaware, Hua Yan said, “I even named it Xiao Hei. Come on, Xiao Hei, greet your new master.”
Xiao Hei seemed to understand her words and lifted its antennae to touch Lu Chengsha’s fingers.
Lu Chengsha: “…”
“Don’t kill it. It will hide and won’t be discovered by others! Oh, it needs a bit of your blood to recognize you as its master…” Hua Yan grabbed Lu Chengsha’s other hand, looking at him for approval.
Lu Chengsha looked down at Xiao Hei, then back at Hua Yan’s sincere eyes. After a while, he sighed, cut his finger, and let a drop of blood fall onto it.
Xiao Hei, satisfied with the blood, crawled into his sleeve.
Lu Chengsha instantly stiffened.
Hua Yan smiled, “Let’s continue.”
They hadn’t walked far when they suddenly heard someone shouting behind them, “Young Hero Lu, are you Young Hero Lu Chengsha? Help!”
Hua Yan’s scalp tingled, but she remembered she was disguised as a man with a bamboo hat and wouldn’t be recognized.
Sure enough, three disciples rushed over, focusing only on grabbing Lu Chengsha, not noticing her.
Listening to their fragmented account, they learned that more than half a day had passed, and more disciples had entered the area. Many had been captured, and others were still missing.
“Is this place haunted?” one disciple said, his face pale. “I feel like this isn’t the demonic sect at all but a haunted house!”
This was the brilliance of Yin Xiangsi.
She rarely showed herself and excelled in these ghostly tricks, spreading fear before striking.
But Lu Chengsha wouldn’t say anything, and Hua Yan didn’t dare to speak, so they let the disciples cry out in fear now and then. Then Hua Yan heard a voice that made her scalp tingle even more.
“Where did you run off to!” Lu Chengzhao couldn’t help but shout angrily, “You left us behind again! Do you know I almost got caught? Thank goodness that person didn’t capture me for some reason.”
Hua Yan lowered her bamboo hat, distanced herself from Lu Chengsha by a considerable distance, and mingled with the other disciples.
Lu Chengsha’s gaze swept over her but he said nothing.
Lu Chengzhao kept complaining, not noticing her.
Hua Yan breathed a sigh of relief.
Lu Chengzhao brought along several disciples from Tingjian Manor, who quickly pushed the other disciples to the periphery, causing Hua Yan to be pushed further away.
A disciple next to her asked, “This junior brother, you’re a junior brother, right? Which sect are you from?”
Hua Yan lowered her voice, using the deep male voice she had temporarily learned from Condensing Sound, “Just a small sect, not worth mentioning.”
Afraid of revealing her true identity, she kept her words brief. However, the disciple seemed intent on chatting.
“Why were you with Young Hero Lu earlier? Did you get separated from your fellow disciples too? This place is really terrifying. I didn’t even want to come here. It’s almost dark, and I still don’t know what to do… Why are you wearing a bamboo hat? Do you have something on your face?”
Hua Yan, annoyed by his chattering, couldn’t help but sneak a glance at Lu Chengsha.
Lu Chengsha, surrounded by everyone, walked alone with his long sword on his back, a striking emblem.
As she was about to look away, Lu Chengsha glanced over. Their eyes met briefly before they both looked away as if they didn’t know each other.
Hua Yan suddenly realized she couldn’t walk openly by Lu Chengsha’s side anymore.
Lu Chengzhao was glaring at Lu Chengsha with a hostile expression. If she got too close, it would be obvious something was wrong.
She couldn’t reveal herself as a woman because it would make her too conspicuous. Even with a disguise, it wouldn’t work. No other woman had ever stayed by Lu Chengsha’s side.
Another unfamiliar woman appearing by his side would raise suspicions immediately.
Hua Yan sniffed.
She even contemplated kidnapping Qin Muyan and taking her place.
“…Junior brother, what’s wrong? Don’t cry.”
Hua Yan mumbled, “I’m not crying.”
The disciple tried to comfort her, “Look, we’re all scared to death, but we’re not crying! Don’t worry, being around Young Hero Lu is probably the safest place to be!”
Of course, she knew this. Unless Yin Xiangsi acted personally, no one else could match Lu Chengsha.
She couldn’t help but think, this disciple was so kind to her because he thought she was a disciple of the righteous sect. How would he react if he knew she was a demonic sect witch?
The increasing number of people and the thick fog slowed their progress significantly, almost to a crawl.
Yin Xiangsi had undoubtedly figured out their location and arranged for more people to harass them. Lu Chengsha dealt with the threats calmly and efficiently, showing no signs of his injuries. The other disciples, however, were in a sorry state.
Hua Yan pretended to struggle, drawing her sword to fend off the poisonous insects like the others.
To ensure her disguise, she hadn’t brought her Spring Flower Sword and was using an ordinary sword with the most common sword techniques.
She overheard other disciples cursing the demonic sect, and she had the urge to carve the name “Wan Gu Sect” on their foreheads.
“Junior brother, your swordsmanship is quite good! Who is your master?” The persistent disciple beside her kept trying to chat.
Hua Yan glanced at Lu Chengsha, who was cleaning his sword, and couldn’t help but say, “Young Hero Lu.”
“Hmm?” The disciple was stunned. “Junior brother, you have quite a sense of humor. When has Young Hero Lu ever taught anyone swordsmanship? Oh, I get it. You must have learned by watching him. Many people do that, but there’s a world of difference between their skills and his.”
Hua Yan felt a mix of happiness and frustration hearing him praise Lu Chengsha.
As darkness fell, some suggested resting for the night to avoid falling into the hands of the demonic sect. Others argued for pushing on to rescue the missing disciples. The two sides argued, but eventually, they decided to rest for a while before moving on.
Hua Yan doubted they would reach the old temple by tomorrow, and even if they did, they wouldn’t be able to enter.
They found an abandoned earthen house. Exhausted and hungry, they rested against the crumbling walls. Some took out their rations and began to eat.
Hua Yan was a bit hungry herself. She had expended a lot of energy earlier and hadn’t eaten. Her snacks and dried meat were with her subordinates.
As she pondered this, she noticed Lu Chengsha looking her way. He blinked, then turned and headed to the back. No one followed, assuming he was going to relieve himself.
Hua Yan got the hint and quietly followed.
Behind a towering tree, she saw Lu Chengsha standing still. She quickly ran over. Lu Chengsha was holding some rations he had taken out. Ignoring the food, Hua Yan rushed over and hugged him tightly.