“Junior Sister, don’t misunderstand!” Mo Changxing quickly grabbed Yun Qingxue’s hand as it shot toward his throat and said, “Let me explain!”
Yun Qingxue glared at him, fury burning in her eyes. “Explain? What is there to explain? You hurt A-Dai! You bastard!”
“I didn’t hurt it!” Mo Changxing wore an innocent expression, smiling bitterly. “It’s just that you and this little venomous snake are too mischievous. I just made it sleep for a while. Otherwise, if I let you two keep causing trouble, the important matters at hand would be delayed!”
“If you don’t believe me, look for yourself. The little snake is just asleep.”
Seeing Yun Qingxue’s doubtful expression, Mo Changxing held A-Dai up to her eyes. “If you don’t believe me, touch it. This little snake is definitely still alive and well!”
Yun Qingxue scrutinized him skeptically before slowly reaching out to take A-Dai.
“Hiss~”
The unconscious A-Dai instinctively flicked its tongue.
“A-Dai,” Yun Qingxue called, but the snake showed no response.
“It’ll wake up naturally by dawn!” Afraid of further misunderstanding, Mo Changxing hurriedly explained.
Yun Qingxue’s gaze remained wary as she continued to study him.
A bitter smile tugged at Mo Changxing’s lips. Their first formal meeting, and he had already managed to offend Qingxue…
“If anything happens to A-Dai…” Yun Qingxue said coldly.
“Junior Sister, don’t worry, nothing will happen!” Mo Changxing quickly interrupted before she could finish. He couldn’t help but feel a pang of bitterness—here he was, an outstanding man, yet in Qingxue’s eyes, he was less important than a little venomous snake.
The thought was truly unsettling. That little snake was probably the sacred serpent of the Water Clan, wasn’t it? He wondered how it would taste as snake soup…
Yun Qingxue said nothing more, only shooting Mo Changxing a dark glare before carefully coiling A-Dai around her wrist. She hated this feeling of being controlled at will, hated this sense of powerlessness.
It was… truly, truly detestable.
Once A-Dai was settled, Yun Qingxue turned her cold, emotionless gaze back to Mo Changxing. “It had better be as you say! Otherwise, no matter what your goal is, even if it costs me my life, I won’t let you succeed!”
“Junior Sister, I’m a good person!” Mo Changxing protested with a pained expression, only to receive a frosty glare in return.
This was bad. He had really offended her…
Mo Changxing felt like crying. He had spent so much time planning to rescue her from the Beast Clan, only to ruin their first meeting because of a little snake.
Ah—this little venomous snake had ruined Qingxue’s first impression of him.
Suddenly, he really wanted to try snake soup. Really wanted to get rid of this little troublemaker.
That Dragon King Jinlin was truly thoughtless—who gifts a venomous snake to a girl? He deserved to stay single forever. What a terrible gift-giver!
“Junior Sister, let’s continue our journey,” Mo Changxing said with an ingratiating smile, only to find that Yun Qingxue didn’t even glance at him.
Sighing inwardly, he led the way, trying to make conversation the entire time in an attempt to salvage the situation.
“Junior Sister, look—the stars stretch over the plains, the bright moon hangs high. Such a beautiful night,” Mo Changxing said, grasping for topics.
Yun Qingxue ignored him completely.
“Junior Sister, do you think our current pace is alright?”
No response.
“Junior Sister, what do you usually like? Don’t hold back—just tell me, and I’ll get it for you!”
Still no response.
“Junior Sister, I’ve been talking so much. Could you at least give me some reaction?”
Silence.
Mo Changxing sighed in defeat. “Junior Sister, don’t want to talk? That’s fine for now. From now on, I’ll be your senior brother. If you want anything, just tell me—no need to be polite!”
Finally, Yun Qingxue reacted. She lifted her head to look at him.
Mo Changxing’s heart leaped—she responded!
“Would you give me your life if I asked?” Yun Qingxue asked mockingly, her eyes taunting.
Mo Changxing was momentarily speechless before solemnly replying, “Some deaths are as light as a feather, others as weighty as Mount Tai! I could give my life to you, but… good steel should be used for the blade’s edge. I promise that if you ever face mortal danger, I will step forward without hesitation and protect you with my life!”
Yun Qingxue stared at him with a complicated expression. She had only asked that question to embarrass him, never expecting such a response.
In her past life, even Zhou Dao—whom she had once saved and grown up with—had betrayed her without hesitation for power and wealth, willing to take her life for profit.
If over a decade of affection couldn’t withstand the allure of glory and riches, how could she believe the words of this stranger before her?
“You don’t believe me?”
Mo Changxing frowned, his star-like eyes fixed on Yun Qingxue’s breathtakingly beautiful face. She was stunning—so much so that even the phrase “peerless beauty” fell short. Her looks were inherited from her parents, yet she resembled them only partially.
“I, Mo Changxing, swear upon my life. Every word I just spoke is true. If Junior Sister ever faces mortal peril, I will protect her with my life! If I break this oath, may the heavens strike me down, and my soul scatter to the winds!”
His voice was clear and firm, his starry eyes shining with an emotion Yun Qingxue couldn’t decipher.
But the determination in those radiant eyes was unmistakable. She just didn’t know where it came from—or where it would lead.
“Junior Sister, time reveals a person’s heart, hmm?” Mo Changxing finally said with a smile.
Yun Qingxue lowered her gaze to A-Dai coiled around her wrist. From the moment they set off, she had been observing the snake’s condition.
The little creature seemed to be merely asleep, with no other abnormalities.
The night gradually lightened.
Objects once blurred by darkness slowly regained their outlines.
Not far ahead, a mountain brimming with spiritual energy became increasingly visible as the night faded.
“We’re here!” Mo Changxing’s cheerful voice broke the long silence.
Yun Qingxue looked toward the approaching mountain—its peaks layered like a delicate veil, resembling the coy beauty of a maiden.
Even without much spiritual power, she could clearly sense the immense energy radiating from it.
Though she hadn’t known their destination, she had paid attention to their direction the entire journey.
Southeast.
Mo Changxing had been leading her southeast the whole time.
Now that he claimed this mountain was their destination, could it be…
“Is this Chuxia Mountain?!”
For the first time since A-Dai had been knocked unconscious, Yun Qingxue finally spoke to Mo Changxing voluntarily.
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