“I…” Yun Qingxue lowered her head.
Faced with Feng Zihuang’s sudden confession, her heart was filled with both joy and bashfulness.
Feng Zihuang gazed at her intently and continued, “I’ve liked you for a long time… What about you? Do you like me?”
“I…” Yun Qingxue bit her lip and let out a faint, almost inaudible sound, “Mm.”
Hearing her response, Feng Zihuang immediately broke into a delighted smile and childishly pulled her into his embrace.
Just then, the waterfall suddenly changed. A surge of water struck Feng Zihuang without warning as he held Yun Qingxue.
“Your Majesty, be careful!” Liuying, perched on a tree, sensed the anomaly and instinctively lunged toward Feng Zihuang.
Feng Zihuang also detected the danger at once. Holding Yun Qingxue, he swiftly dodged the water curtain.
“Feng Zihuang, you bastard! Let go of Xuexue!” Jinlin burst out from the shadows like lightning, reaching out to pull Yun Qingxue from Feng Zihuang’s arms.
Feng Zihuang sidestepped and, with a flick of his hand, sent a fiery wing toward Jinlin.
Jinlin’s eyes burned red, but he didn’t evade. Instead, he recklessly charged forward.
“Jinlin!”
Seeing this, Yun Qingxue’s heart clenched in fear. She cried out, “Jinlin, dodge it!”
But Jinlin seemed not to hear. His hands had already transformed into dragon claws, and he lunged directly at Feng Zihuang, ignoring the fiery wing.
Suddenly, just before the flames touched Jinlin’s skin, Feng Zihuang withdrew his attack.
Jinlin’s dragon claws now struck unimpeded toward Feng Zihuang.
“Jinlin, stop!” Yun Qingxue’s heart leaped into her throat. Instinctively, she summoned two vines from the air and flung them at Jinlin without hesitation.
Jinlin’s fierce assault was abruptly halted as the vines tightly bound his arms.
He froze in disbelief, his eyes hollow and bewildered as they locked onto Yun Qingxue.
“Flower King! My master has done so much for you. Is this how you repay his kindness?” Shui Liu, who had followed Jinlin, immediately lashed out in anger at the sight.
Only then did Yun Qingxue realize that, in her panic, she had actually attacked Jinlin!
She quickly retracted the vines and looked at Jinlin apologetically. “I… I’m sorry, Jinlin!”
“Hey! What kind of nonsense are you spouting? If your master hadn’t suddenly appeared like a mad dog and attacked, Qingxue wouldn’t have had to act in self-defense!” Liuying glared at Shui Liu and snapped back.
When Feng Zihuang had abruptly withdrawn his spell, and Jinlin nearly injured him, Liuying had been terrified to the point of her heart nearly stopping!
“Who are you calling a mad dog?” Shui Liu’s entire body radiated a dark, murderous aura as he fixed his hostile gaze on Liuying.
Liuying was startled by his intensity but refused to back down. “I… I was just—”
“Silence!” Feng Zihuang suddenly barked coldly. “Liuying, the Dragon King is of noble status. How dare you insult him so casually? Based on your words alone, if the Dragon King were to kill you on the spot, I would have nothing to say!”
Liuying shrank back, swallowing her words.
“Apologize to the Dragon King!” Feng Zihuang commanded.
“Your Majesty!” Liuying frowned in grievance and muttered, “They were the ones who attacked you out of nowhere. I was just angry and spoke out of turn. Why should I apologize?”
“Whoosh!” A flame shot from Feng Zihuang’s hand, striking Liuying’s shoulder and instantly burning her skin.
“If you refuse to apologize, you need not follow me anymore!” Feng Zihuang said coldly.
“I’m sorry!” Liuying bit her lip and finally bowed respectfully to Jinlin.
Jinlin didn’t even glance at her.
His eyes remained fixed solely on Yun Qingxue, who was still held in Feng Zihuang’s arms.
“Jinlin… I’m sorry…” Yun Qingxue apologized again.
“Flower King! At this point, we don’t want your apologies. We just want to know what’s going on between you and the Phoenix King!” Shui Liu stood beside Jinlin and spoke on his behalf.
“We…” Yun Qingxue glanced up at Feng Zihuang, her face flushing with shyness.
Feng Zihuang also looked down at her tenderly before speaking to Jinlin on her behalf. “Dragon King, the Flower King and I are in love…”
“Shut up!” Jinlin suddenly interrupted, tearing his gaze from Yun Qingxue to glare icily at Feng Zihuang. “I don’t want to hear you speak! I want Xuexue to tell me the truth herself!”
“Xuexue, say it!” Jinlin struggled to suppress the turmoil in his heart, forcing himself to remain calm as he looked at Yun Qingxue.
Seeing his expression, Yun Qingxue was suddenly overwhelmed with deep guilt.
Her voice wavered slightly as she said, “What Zihuang said is true… I… I like him.”
The last glimmer of light in Jinlin’s eyes finally faded as Yun Qingxue’s words settled in.
He turned away in a daze and fled like a man escaping, vanishing swiftly into the distance.
“Your Majesty!” Shui Liu shot Yun Qingxue a venomous glare before chasing after Jinlin.
The howling wind roared in Jinlin’s ears. He had imagined the day when Xuexue might fall for someone else, and he had told himself that silently guarding her would be enough.
But when that day arrived, he realized he couldn’t be as composed as he’d thought.
He ran aimlessly through the night until the first light of dawn crept over the horizon. Only then did he slow to a stop.
“Your Majesty!” Shui Liu, having exerted tremendous effort, finally caught up with Jinlin.
Seeing Jinlin’s devastated state, he couldn’t help but say, “A fickle woman like her isn’t worth your heartache, Your Majesty!”
“Shut your mouth!” Jinlin whirled around and seized Shui Liu by the throat. “Who gave you the right to speak of Xuexue like that?”
“Your Majesty…” Shui Liu gasped in pain. “Return to the Water Clan… Forget the Flower King. She… doesn’t deserve you…”
Jinlin abruptly released him, as if suddenly resolving something. “I’m not leaving!” he declared firmly.
“But she’s in love with someone else! Your Majesty, you are the noble and peerless King of the Water Clan. Any woman would be honored to marry you! Why must you cling to her?
Just say the word, and the finest maidens of the East Sea would line up to—”
“I want no one else!” Jinlin cut him off coldly. “I said I’m not leaving! Who knows if Feng Zihuang’s scheming heart is even sincere toward Xuexue?
I will stay in Luoyun Mountain and see what game he’s playing!
If he dares to use Xuexue for his own ends, I’ll tear him to pieces!” With a flick of his sleeve, Jinlin took to the skies once more, flying straight back toward Luoyun Mountain.
“Tch!” Shui Liu clenched his fists and, in frustration, smashed a nearby tree to splinters.
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