Feng Qishi, enduring the admiration he felt for Mu Anxiao, fixed his gaze upon her, a silent challenge in his eyes. "I've been deceiving you all along. This mission was mine alone. I intended to use you and then deliver you to the authorities. Who knew," he glanced at Ouyang Ye, "that he would know everything? Since that's the case, I have no choice but to meet my end."
"You..."
"Get lost. I disliked you in my previous life, and I still do in this one," Feng Qishi stated firmly.
Get lost?
Mu Anxiao looked at Feng Qishi's resolute expression. Images of Shen Yan expelling her decades ago flashed through her mind. She lowered her eyes, realizing Feng Qishi wasn't truly gone. Yet, observing Ouyang Ye's triumphant smirk, she understood that exposing Feng Qishi now might ruin everything.
Therefore, her only recourse was to play along. Suppressing her heartache, she feigned a heartbroken demeanor. "Fine, I'll get lost," she said, turning to leave.
"Mu Anxiao, you cannot leave yet," Ouyang Ye declared, circling the altar and blocking Mu Anxiao's path. "I have one more gift for you."
"What gift?" Mu Anxiao felt a sense of foreboding.
Ouyang Ye's lips curved into a smile. "The sight of your sorrow pains me. You were hurt by him decades ago, and now he has treated you this way again. Seeing you like this... it affects me as well. Last time, no one stood up for you. This time," his gaze swept over Mu Anxiao's face, "I will." With that, he lunged towards Feng Qishi.
Mu Anxiao gasped, moving to intervene, but a red aura struck Feng Qishi, forcing him back several steps. Just as she stepped forward to check on him, Ouyang Ye blocked her with his other hand. "I will allow him to live until our wedding day," he said, his eyes fixed on Mu Anxiao.
Conversely, Mu Anxiao's gaze was locked on Feng Qishi, who, with unfocused eyes, suddenly knelt. Her lips trembling, she asked, "What did you do to him?" Holding back tears, she turned to Ouyang Ye.
"I merely inflicted him with a potent poison. It will attack his organs through his bloodstream. If nothing unforeseen occurs," Ouyang Ye said with a smile, "your wedding day will also be his burial day."
"Why would you do that to him?" Mu Anxiao asked, her voice devoid of emotion.
Seeing Mu Anxiao's lack of distress, Ouyang Ye didn't press further. "Because he hurt you," he replied, then addressed the soldiers behind Feng Qishi. "Take him and lock him in this tower."
"Yes," they responded in unison, stepping forward to pull Feng Qishi away.
As Mu Anxiao began to move towards Feng Qishi, Ouyang Ye grabbed her arm. "Now that you are my fiancée, you must not look at other men," he said, lifting her chin. "Otherwise, I will become jealous." He forcefully turned Mu Anxiao's face towards him.
Tears streamed down Mu Anxiao's face.
Days passed, and Mu Anxiao never imagined things would unfold this way. Feng Qishi's poisoning was now a certainty. With her mission ongoing, offending Ouyang Ye now would render Feng Qishi's sacrifices in vain. Resigned, she tearfully accepted her fate.
Night descended.
Mu Anxiao sat at a stone table in the courtyard, replaying the entire ordeal of Feng Qishi's injury. Tears flowed uncontrollably. For the first time, she felt a profound sense of helplessness. Clenching her fists, she struck her own head a few times, her sobs intensifying.
Just then, Jiong Ye, having lost a game of chance, nervously approached Mu Anxiao. "Is Zhao Meier truly dead?" he asked. He had heard the news before Mu Anxiao returned and was now using the topic to converse with her.
Hearing this, Mu Anxiao wiped her tears with her sleeve and looked up at Jiong Ye. "Zhao Meier is dead. Do you feel anything?" she asked.
"This..."
"Are you happy?" Mu Anxiao pressed.
Upon hearing her questions, Jiong Ye lowered his gaze. "I always thought I'd be happy when Zhao Meier died, but..." He looked up at the starry sky and continued, "Now that she's really gone, I find myself unable to feel any joy. Instead, there's a strange sense of loss, and her face keeps appearing in my mind. It's so odd." With that, he turned and walked away, tears in his eyes.
Seeing this, Mu Anxiao lowered her head. "Wolf demon, vine spirit, I have something to tell you," she said, glancing towards the water缸.
Upon hearing her words, the vine spirit and the wolf demon, hidden behind the water缸, exchanged a glance, then stood and walked towards her. "Speak," the wolf demon said first.
Mu Anxiao stood up. "Do you have any way to cure a blood poison?" she asked, moving in front of them.
After her brief exchange with Jiong Ye, Mu Anxiao had conceived a plan to save Feng Qishi.
The wolf demon frowned. "This... I know of something, but..." Upon learning from Mu Anxiao that Feng Qishi had been poisoned, he had been contemplating a solution, but hesitated to speak with her. This moment presented an opportunity. "You might need to find the demon-devouring beast."
"Find it..."
"Yes, it has a pearl within its body that contains a spell specifically for refining immortal blood. If you... extract a portion of your own immortal blood, there's a chance to save Feng Qishi. However," the wolf demon continued, his expression hesitant, "if your love is not true, the outcome might be similar to what happened between you and Shen Yan."
"I become mortal?" Mu Anxiao knew this wouldn't happen, but she was curious about the consequence.
The wolf demon shook his head.
Mu Anxiao asked, "Then what is it?"
"Annihilation of the soul," the wolf demon stated concisely.
Mu Anxiao nodded, understanding. "I know," she said, then turned to the vine spirit. "Do you wish to leave?"
"Of course I do, but..."
"You must take this seriously. What if your soul is annihilated...?" the wolf demon asked, genuinely concerned, as he was unsure of the depth of Mu Anxiao and Feng Qishi's true love.
The vine spirit, finding the wolf demon's worry unnecessary, glanced between them and whispered, "If she were to use her blood to save Ouyang Ye, that might be the outcome. But saving Feng Qishi certainly won't lead to that. Stop worrying unnecessarily."
"You..." The wolf demon uttered the word, his eyes darkening. He turned to Mu Anxiao and asked seriously, "Mu Anxiao, this is not a game of present-day romance. You must answer truthfully. Do you... do you truly love him?"