Mu Anxiao didn't know what Hong'er had gone through. However, from the despair in her eyes, Mu Anxiao could tell... her past must have been tragic. But, these experiences were not an excuse for her to harm others. Looking at her, Mu Anxiao offered no emotional comfort. Instead, she met Hong'er's gaze with indifference, remaining silent.
Seeing Mu Anxiao like this, Hong'er's emotions became even more unstable. "You all have the same expression, all of you..."
"You don't want to die, do you?" Mu Anxiao interrupted softly.
"..." Hong'er fell silent.
At the same time, Feng Qishi and Jia exchanged glances, speaking no words.
Seeing Hong'er quiet down, Mu Anxiao let out a cold snort. "As I thought, you're saying all this just to prove how pitiful you are, just to gain sympathy, and then..." She fixed her gaze on Hong'er's face, "you expect me to spare you, not kill you."
"Don't try to guess my thoughts randomly," Hong'er retorted with a low growl.
"A bet is a bet, and I won," Mu Anxiao said, extending her hand. "Can I have your life now?"
"Do you think I'm the kind of demon who admits defeat when I lose a bet?" Hong'er countered. Her state... truly changed the moment Mu Anxiao said those words.
Seeing this, Feng Qishi finally realized... Hong'er's earlier demeanor was all an act.
Jia saw through Hong'er as well.
"You..."
"I didn't use a weapon earlier, but now I have one, and I can definitely kill you," Hong'er interrupted sharply, conjuring a dagger in her hand.
Just then, Mu Anxiao felt a familiar aura, her brow furrowing slightly. She slowly shifted her gaze to the dagger in Hong'er's hand and said, "This is your weapon." As she spoke, she realized... this dagger might be the very one she had thrown away a year ago.
"That's right, I..."
"Where did you pick this up?" Mu Anxiao interrupted, her eyes fixed on Hong'er's face.
Hong'er then let out a cold snort, "This dagger has been with me..."
"Master."
Hearing this, Mu Anxiao once again shifted her gaze to the dagger.
Subsequently, Hong'er frowned, tightening her grip on the dagger, and spoke to it with her inner voice, "You'd better not cause trouble for me, or I'll throw you into a furnace and condemn you to eternal damnation."
"..." After Hong'er said this, the dagger trembled twice and fell silent.
"This is mine, what are you looking at?" Hong'er said, glaring at Mu Anxiao.
Mu Anxiao came back to her senses, reluctantly moving her gaze away from the dagger and fixing it on Hong'er again. "This dagger clearly has its own aura. Tell me, where did you find it?"
"What do you mean by that? I don't understand."
"Hand it over to me, and I..."
"This is mine, why should I give it to you?" Hong'er interrupted Mu Anxiao's words sharply.
Upon hearing this, Mu Anxiao's gaze shifted back to the dagger. "Dagger, is that you?" Her voice was a little choked.
The dagger remained unmoved.
Seeing Mu Anxiao like this, and glancing at the dagger, which seemed to be trying to break free, Hong'er understood that they truly knew each other. However, over the past year, without this dagger, her cultivation would not have advanced so rapidly, making the dagger extremely important to her.
It was precisely because of this, however, that she realized... her failure half a year ago must have also been closely related to this dagger. She glared at the dagger in her hand.
Seeing the dagger's silence, and then Hong'er's glare at it, Mu Anxiao couldn't help but recall the 'accident' from half a year ago.
That day, she had been thrown into a dark forest. Frightened, she hid behind a tree for an entire night. As dawn approached, she stood up, only to have Hong'er appear before her with a dagger. Just like now, Hong'er had immediately declared her intention to kill her. At that time, her spiritual energy had not yet recovered, and she was terrified. It was then that Hong'er produced the dagger.
However, to her surprise, just as Hong'er was about to strike her, she was suddenly restrained by some unknown force.
At that moment, wanting to survive, she hadn't thought much and had fled.
But now, reflecting on it, she understood... it was the dagger that had saved her.
Therefore, with this realization, she concealed her joy and stated firmly, "That dagger is mine, give it back to me."
Hearing this, Hong'er let out a cold snort, immediately withdrawing her gaze and glaring at Mu Anxiao. "This is mine, don't talk nonsense."
"You..." Mu Anxiao knew she couldn't reason with Hong'er, so she shifted her gaze to the dagger. "Dagger, I know it's you. If you acknowledge me as your master, come back."
The dagger remained unmoved.
Seeing this, Hong'er smiled. "I told you it wasn't yours, and you still didn't believe me." She stared at Mu Anxiao.
Mu Anxiao saw the dagger's lack of movement and, recalling its earlier call, knew... the dagger must have suffered. Therefore, to completely rescue the dagger, she insisted, "Dagger, were you threatened by her? If you were, then pull her forward."
Upon hearing this, Hong'er deliberately tightened her grip on the dagger.
Watching this scene unfold, Feng Qishi and Jia were completely speechless.
Mu Anxiao saw Hong'er's reaction and deliberately continued, "Dagger, I'm sorry, I... I threw you away back then, you..."
"Master, it's not your fault." The dagger couldn't bear to listen anymore and quickly responded.
Hearing this, Jia and Feng Qishi, in unison, looked at the dagger with astonished expressions.
Mu Anxiao, upon hearing this, was overjoyed, tears welling up. "I knew it was you," she said, raising her hand to wipe away her tears. She then looked at Hong'er and said coldly, "Give her back to me."
"So, you were the one who abandoned her," Hong'er said with a strange smile.
"What are you laughing at?" Mu Anxiao asked, puzzled.
Hong'er, with a smile on her face, replied, "I can't give her back to you."
"You..."
"Aren't you curious about why I've become so powerful? Fine, I'll tell you." Hong'er didn't want to accept the reality of the dagger knowing Mu Anxiao, but now... since the dagger had spoken, there was no way she could argue any further, so she had to accept it. "Actually, it's all thanks to her." She raised the dagger.
Mu Anxiao remained unfazed. "Is that so?"
"Therefore," Hong'er said, glancing at the dagger, "all those acts of slaughter were done under her control, and they have nothing to do with me."
"..." Mu Anxiao rolled her eyes at Hong'er, deliberately remaining silent.
Seeing Mu Anxiao's reaction, Hong'er became indignant. "What do you mean by that?"
"Your ability to shift blame truly astounds me," Mu Anxiao said coldly.
"What I mean is..."
"Do you know why your cultivation has been able to improve?" Mu Anxiao interrupted.
Hong'er's expression stiffened. "What exactly are you trying to say?"
"As you said, the reason your cultivation has been able to improve is indeed thanks to her," Mu Anxiao said indifferently.