"What do you mean, what kind of state am I in?" Mu Anxiao retorted.
Ouyang Ye eyed her with disdain. "Your clothes are too..."
"They saved me," Mu Anxiao interrupted deliberately. Glancing to the side, she tutted and said, "You two, come out." Her gaze fixed on Wang Hu, who was blocking them.
At Mu Anxiao's words, Wang Hu moved aside of his own accord.
Following him, the vine spirit and the wolf demon looked nervously at Ouyang Ye, who was watching them alongside Mu Anxiao, and gave shy smiles.
Seeing this, Ouyang Ye narrowed his eyes. "It's you." He remembered the vine spirit and the wolf demon.
"Wolf demon," Ouyang Ye said, then shifted his gaze back to the vine spirit’s face. "You're still alive."
The vine spirit’s eyes flickered. "I... I was pulled off the door. I don't know... I lost consciousness then. When I woke up, I couldn't remember anything. You... it's been a long time." He had completely lost the courage to speak normally with Ouyang Ye.
Ouyang Ye stated calmly, "I didn't expect you to have such a tough life."
"I... I guess so," the vine spirit deflated.
"That door of mine is missing a lock," Ouyang Ye said, holding up two fingers. "You're the perfect candidate."
"What are you doing?" Mu Anxiao's heart clenched, and she grabbed Ouyang Ye’s two fingers.
Ouyang Ye looked down at Mu Anxiao. "Isn't he your enemy? Since..."
"Even if he is my enemy, that's between us. Furthermore," Mu Anxiao interrupted, her expression earnest, "if it weren't for him and the wolf demon, I would be dead."
"You..."
"I can't swim. That woman..." Mu Anxiao trailed off, then snorted, "Never mind. Your relationship with that woman is unusual. No matter how much I say, you'll just dismiss it."
"You're jealous," Ouyang Ye's eyes lit up.
Mu Anxiao snorted lightly. "Who would be jealous of you?" she said, then glanced at Wang Hu and Xiao Yi’s faces. "You sent them to find me."
"Where is your master?" Ouyang Ye deliberately ignored Mu Anxiao and focused on Xiao Yi.
Seeing this, Mu Anxiao curled her lips and decided to stop talking to Ouyang Ye.
Xiao Yi nodded slightly. "Answering my master, master... she's feeling unwell due to the dampness, so she returned first. Therefore, she asked me to... find Mu Anxiao." After speaking, she cautiously glanced at Mu Anxiao's face. Wang Hu, worried that Xiao Yi would take all the credit, quickly said, "Master, we found her together."
"I can see that," Ouyang Ye glanced at Wang Hu, then finally settled his gaze back on Mu Anxiao. "Your clothes are even uglier than the last pair."
"And then?" Mu Anxiao countered, sensing Ouyang Ye's deep disdain for her.
"Then..." Ouyang Ye said, taking a step back and looking at Wang Hu. "Take them to the palace. I'm leaving."
"Do you have to show your disdain for me so obviously?" Mu Anxiao said, without hesitation, grabbing Ouyang Ye's arm. "No, you have to come with me."
"You..."
"I don't care. You brought me here, so you have to take me to your... shabby palace," Mu Anxiao interrupted, deliberately trying to provoke Ouyang Ye.
Ouyang Ye's eyes darkened. "The Golden City in the mortal realm is shabby. My palace is thousands, tens of thousands of times better."
Mu Anxiao 'hmphed'.
Ouyang Ye was confused. "What do you mean?"
"Even if it's good, it's full of normal people. Your place," Mu Anxiao tutted, "has none."
"Mu Anxiao, on my territory, it's best not to cross my lines," Ouyang Ye warned her in a low voice.
Mu Anxiao smiled. "I will cross them. So what... can you kill me?"
"Mu..."
"If you kill me, my soul will drift here forever, and finding me," Mu Anxiao said deliberately, "won't be easy."
Ouyang Ye frowned slightly.
Mu Anxiao smiled. "So, you need to think twice." She released his arm and patted his shoulder.
All along, Xiao Yi knew how deep Ouyang Ye's feelings for Mu Anxiao were. Before meeting Mu Anxiao, she thought... Ouyang Ye and Mu Anxiao's relationship would be extremely close. Who would have thought... seeing them now, she realized those were just her own 'lean' imaginings.
In reality, their relationship didn't seem that good. Not only that, but Mu Anxiao's disrespect towards Ouyang Ye also made Xiao Yi sigh.
Wang Hu felt the same.
The vine spirit, seeing how at ease Mu Anxiao was in front of Ouyang Ye, felt a pang of envy.
Conversely, the wolf demon, seeing how 'good' Ouyang Ye and Mu Anxiao's relationship was, his trust in Mu Anxiao increased.
Ouyang Ye stared at Mu Anxiao for a few seconds and said, "I hate being threatened the most."
Mu Anxiao casually said, "Oh."
Ouyang Ye's expression stiffened. "You... it's best not to push your luck."
"If you want to marry me, you have to adapt to my personality. If you can't, then send me back," Mu Anxiao said coldly.
"What I said to you on the lake, you..."
"I remember. You only use Soul Spirit and them to threaten me," Mu Anxiao interrupted, meeting Ouyang Ye's eyes directly. "The moment I fell into the water, my mind went blank. I thought, if I really drowned here, who would save me? Then... you came."
Ouyang Ye was taken aback.
Mu Anxiao gave a wry smile. "I thought you would save me, but who knew," she said, feigning despair, "you directly took that woman away. Not only that, but you also believed what that woman said. Ouyang Ye, I didn't expect this, but you too would do it for another woman..."
"Mu Anxiao," Ouyang Ye roared.
Mu Anxiao snorted. "Alright, alright, I won't say anymore. Anyway, I'm just this messy, and I'll never be as good as your virtuous helper." She said, taking a step back. "Okay, you can go."
"You..."
"Wang Hu, lead the way," Mu Anxiao interrupted and turned around.
Wang Hu cautiously looked at Ouyang Ye.
The vine spirit and the wolf demon, witnessing Mu Anxiao and Ouyang Ye's unfriendly exchange, became extremely tense.
"Why are you looking at him? Lead..."
"Mu Anxiao, I'll take you back," Ouyang Ye interrupted, stepping forward and taking Mu Anxiao's arm.
Mu Anxiao's body stiffened. She tilted her head up to look at Ouyang Ye, who clearly disdained her. "Aren't you disgusted by me?" she asked, tilting her head up to meet his eyes.
"I wasn't thoughtful enough."
"I can wash myself clean, I don't need anyone's help," Mu Anxiao said pointedly.
Ouyang Ye smiled faintly. "I understand."