"It's fine, you..."
"Don't go, I understand better than you what a terrifying monster a Shi Yao Shou is," Xi'er interrupted again, her gaze exceptionally serious. "Therefore, I forbid you from going."
"You..."
"What kind of monster is a Shi Yao Shou?" Mu Anxiao interrupted Song Xi, a flicker of curiosity about the creature sparking within her.
Hearing this, Song Xi and Xi'er turned their gazes towards Mu Anxiao. "Any demon that approaches a Shi Yao Shou never comes out alive, unless..." Xi'er said, glancing at Zhao Mei'er, "they are in large groups, but even those groups of demons ended up being eaten."
Zhao Mei'er had never heard of such a thing. Hearing Xi'er's words so abruptly, she was terrified. "What do you mean by that?"
"Shi Yao Shou hunt by scent. You escaped just now, but it must have locked onto you," Xi'er stated calmly.
Zhao Mei'er froze upon hearing Xi'er's detailed explanation.
Mu Anxiao deeply felt the loosening of Zhao Mei'er's grip and asked softly, "What you mean is... anyone who has been there will be locked onto, right?" This was the only interpretation she could gather from Xi'er's words.
Xi'er nodded.
"Then... the wolf demon and I also stayed by that waterfall. Were we also locked onto?" Mu Anxiao said, not forgetting to glance at the wolf demon.
The wolf demon's expression grew heavy.
Xi'er nodded again.
Mu Anxiao saw this and nodded as well, saying, "Alright, I understand. However," she said, pausing to think, "why doesn't Ouyang Ye deal with such a terrifying creature? Could it be that he deliberately placed it here, intending for the Shi Yao Shou to devour any demons who made mistakes?"
"No," Xi'er shook her head.
"No? Then what is it?" Mu Anxiao was curious.
Xi'er sighed softly. "Deep within this Sin Forest is a great prison, a place where sinful demons are confined. Because of the Shi Yao Shou, we are exceptionally cautious every time we pass through here. Master has also killed it before, but shortly after, it revived. It is said to be immortal."
"Immortal? Is that Ouyang Ye's conclusion?" Mu Anxiao asked.
Xi'er nodded. "Yes, that's right. Master instructed us to take a detour," she said, glancing at Song Xi.
Song Xi looked down at Xi'er.
Mu Anxiao, after listening to Xi'er's detailed explanation and then looking at the smoky waterfall, her eyes darkened. "If Jiong Ye truly died, wouldn't that be considered your dereliction of duty?" she said, not forgetting to glance at Zhao Mei'er.
Under the pressure of fear, Zhao Mei'er lowered her head.
Xi'er hadn't thought much of it, but upon hearing Mu Anxiao's words, she suddenly realized the gravity of the situation. "But... Jiong Ye is already dead, even if..."
"It would be best to find his soul. This way, we can also give an account to Ouyang Ye when we return," Mu Anxiao attempted to offer them a solution.
Xi'er hesitated upon hearing this.
Mu Anxiao looked at Xi'er's hesitant expression, then at Song Xi, whom Xi'er was holding, and said calmly, "Your husband and I will go and take a look."
"No, that would be too dangerous," Xi'er said with a serious expression.
Mu Anxiao looked at Xi'er's refusal of her suggestion with a calm demeanor, lowered her head, and smiled. "I truly didn't expect you to be so concerned about your husband's safety. Fine, I'll go by myself then." With that, she tried to break free from Zhao Mei'er and the wolf demon.
Conversely, as Mu Anxiao tried to break free, the wolf demon and Zhao Mei'er tightened their grip on her arms even more intentionally. Seeing this, Mu Anxiao immediately showed a speechless expression.
The wolf demon saw this and said in a low voice, "If you go now, you're seeking death. If you die, how am I supposed to survive here?"
"You've already been locked onto," Mu Anxiao said indifferently.
"I..."
"I am not a demon, so I won't be eaten if I go. But you..." she trailed off, glancing at Zhao Mei'er's face, and continued, "But you are not like me."
"You want to save me." Zhao Mei'er was touched.
"I am saving myself. If, after I cultivate into a demon, I offend Ouyang Ye, and he happens to imprison me here, I will truly become food for the Shi Yao Shou. Rather than wait until then, I might as well use my current identity to eliminate this fellow and save myself future trouble," Mu Anxiao said, glancing at the wolf demon and Zhao Mei'er. "Let go of your hands, or I'll take the two of you with me."
"You can really kill it?" the wolf demon said, feeling uneasy.
"I don't believe it's immortal," Mu Anxiao said, raising her hand. "Let go."
"Then be careful," the wolf demon conceded and released its grip.
Conversely, Zhao Mei'er was still not at ease. "If anything happens to you, the master will surely not let us off." She thought of Ouyang Ye again.
Mu Anxiao looked at Zhao Mei'er's worried expression and sighed. "Jiong Ye's death cannot be unrelated to you."
"You..."
"Even if I don't say it, they will say it. At that time," Mu Anxiao's lips curled into a smile, "Ouyang Ye will still throw you back, to become food for the Shi Yao Shou."
Zhao Mei'er was stunned.
Mu Anxiao looked at the growing look of terror on Zhao Mei'er's face and smiled again. "If you don't want to die, let go of my hand and wait for me here."
"Are you truly confident?" Zhao Mei'er couldn't help but ask in a low voice.
"Confidence..." Mu Anxiao repeated, tilting her head up and continuing, "I don't know either. But I know that if I don't try, I'll never know the outcome. By trying... perhaps things can change. So, let go." She met Zhao Mei'er's eyes.
"Then be careful." Zhao Mei'er still compromised and released her hand.
Mu Anxiao nodded, then looked at Song Xi, who was still being held by Xi'er, and said, "Since your wife doesn't want you to go, then don't. I'll go myself." With that, she began to walk towards them.
Song Xi hurried to say, "Wait."
Hearing this, Mu Anxiao stopped.
Seeing that Mu Anxiao had obeyed, Song Xi turned to Xi'er and said, "Go and stand with them."
"What do you want to do?" Xi'er looked terrified.
Song Xi smiled. "My dear, I told you I wanted to protect you."
"I don't need your protection now. I want you to be safe," Xi'er said, her eyes welling up with tears, her voice choked.
Seeing Xi'er like this, Song Xi smiled again. "My life as your husband is not that fragile. She's right. Even if Jiong Ye died, we must find his soul. Only then can we report to Master. Furthermore, as long as the Shi Yao Shou exists, I will worry about you."
"Husband..."