Chapter 109

Ningning noticed his gentle demeanor, devoid of any intention to initiate a fight, and relaxed before continuing, “I happened to pass by this place and was drawn by the spectacle of your contest, so I stopped to watch without any intention of snatching tokens.”

Mingjing nodded. “As monks, we carry compassion in our hearts, and I have no intention of fighting either.”

While the statement itself was fine, coming from a big guy who had just knocked out two people with his staff, it seemed somewhat eerie.

Ning Ning glanced at the brahma bell he had sent flying and couldn’t help but feel a pang in her chest as she recalled the scene of the man and woman rising and falling together. Perhaps those two disciples never imagined that the requiem they played didn’t kill Mingjing but instead led to their own departure.

“Moreover, a disciple of your sect once showed me kindness. Even if it’s to repay his kindness, I wouldn’t easily lay hands on the Xuanxu Sect,” Mingjing added.

While Mingjing spoke with a plain tone, as clear as water, Ning Ning’s interest was piqued nonetheless. She took the opportunity to ask, “Kindness?”

“When I left the Fanyin Temple to train outside, I encountered several demon cultivators on the way who tried to rob me.I was no match for them with just one person’s strength,” Mingjing recalled, his clear eyes slightly narrowed as if lost in memory. “Thanks to that Xuanxu Sect disciple’s intervention, who managed to deal with most of the bandits, I was able to escape.”

He smiled faintly. “His name is He Zhizhou, and I heard he’s acquainted with benefactor Ning.”

Listening to his description, Ning Ning involuntarily sketched in her mind the image of a brave and skilled young swordsman. But now, unexpectedly, she had He Zhizhou’s face thrust upon her.

Sorry, but she could only think of a bizarre head caught in a flying boat.

“He Zhizhou?” Ning Ning couldn’t hide her surprise in her tone. “He’s really that skilled?”

“Yes,” Mingjing replied thoughtfully, gazing into the distance with a profound tone.

“Those demon cultivators will beat him 70% of the time and me 30% of the time. If most of the attention hadn’t been on him, I wouldn’t have been able to take advantage of the chaos and escape.”

Ning Ning: …

So, you two were both getting beaten up, and you, this guy, just ran away directly! Is that fair to He Zhizhou, who helped you out?!

It was still miserable for He Zhizhou.

In Ning Ning’s mind, she added this monk, who seemed very serious and reliable, to her list of potential dangers.

“Since neither of us intends to fight, then I’ll take my leave.” Mingjing bowed to her with clasped hands, his voice still gentle. “Take care, benefactor.”

Ning Ning nodded. “Goodbye, Master Mingjing.”

Having no grievances or entanglements with Mingjing, their farewell was particularly brisk. After parting ways, Ning Ning found herself alone again.

Despite the considerable commotion caused by the four music cultivators earlier, no one else seemed to be drawn to the area besides her. Presumably, the woods were sparsely populated, and the other disciples had been dispersed elsewhere.

Ning Ning walked aimlessly forward, surveying the scenery around her.

The forest seemed immersed in the melancholy melodies from before, with the night growing like sea mist, gradually spreading like ink on rice paper, carrying a bone-chilling coldness. From nearby came a few faint birdcalls, devoid of the usual lively chirping but instead hauntingly mournful.

As for what lay ahead, it was an endless expanse of darkness, with the shadows of leaning branches resembling the twisted joints of demons and a pallid head floating in the air, illuminated by fluorescent light—

Wait a moment.

Why would there be a floating human head in the forest?

Ning Ning was startled stiffly until she strained to make out the scene nearby and finally breathed a sigh of relief.

It turns out it wasn’t a floating human head, but Pei Ji in black clothing.

Come to think of it, in the original work, the male lead did indeed first appear in an unknown forest.

His clothes blended seamlessly with the night, yet his skin was strikingly pale, illuminated by the glow of the forest’s wild mushrooms, his entire face resembling a walking lantern, truly radiant in its whiteness.

Pei Ji didn’t expect to encounter her here and seemed momentarily stunned as their eyes met.

“Senior sister!”

Ning Ning, not burdened with as many concerns as him, trotted up to him. “What a coincidence! What are you doing here?”

As they drew closer, she noticed several bloody scratches on his face, as if he had just been in a fight.

“I heard a few bell sounds and followed the spiritual energy here.” Pei Ji scanned her up and down, his voice hoarse. “Are you injured?”

Ning Ning quickly shook her head. “No, no! I didn’t fight with them.”

After a moment’s pause, she took out a box of ointment from her storage bag and handed it to him. “But clearly, you are injured and haven’t taken care of it properly—did you get into a fight with someone?”

“It’s nothing.”

Pei Ji reached out to accept it, offering a brief thanks. Then he heard Ning Ning say, “Since we’ve met, why don’t we stick together? The trial secret realm is extremely dangerous, and it’s better for fellow sect members to look out for each other.”

In the past, facing others, Pei Ji would have undoubtedly declined without hesitation.

He had been accustomed to being alone since childhood, and having someone else around would only make him feel inexplicably annoyed. However, at this moment, he found himself hesitating for some reason. Catching Ning Ning’s direct gaze, his heart inexplicably skipped a beat.

He didn’t like this feeling of uncertainty and lack of control.

Yet, breaking his usual habit, he looked away and nodded gently.

=====

The two of them had walked through Luancheng City for the entire day, and now, as it was getting late, it was the most tired and exhausted time.

Pei Ji’s wilderness survival experience was evidently much richer than Ning Ning’s. After a short while of walking and stopping, he led her to a cave suitable for resting.

The cave was small, like a recess in the mountainside, barely able to accommodate fewer than six people.

Vines grew profusely on the stone walls, giving the jagged rocks a lively emerald hue. Several spirit mushrooms grew in the corners, resembling unique-shaped small lamps, emitting a continuous soft white light.

However, the light was too dim, appearing weak and faint in the black velvet-like night. Threads of faint light mixed with sparse shadows, resembling the surging dark tide in the deep sea. When gently blown by the night wind, they scattered into floating petals, casting the entire cave in a tranquil light gray.

Especially with the silence all around and the narrow confines of the cave, it inevitably gave rise to some inexplicable ambiguity in the quiet and gentle midnight, akin to ripples in soft waves.

The word “ambiguity” was quite annoying.

For the sake of convenience in wilderness living, cultivators often carried one or two beddings in their storage bags. Due to the narrowness of the cave, their distance wasn’t that large, just about the width of a person.

It was Ning Ning’s first time sleeping in the same place as a boy of the same age. After much thought, she felt somewhat embarrassed, feeling uncomfortable whether lying flat or sideways.

But she was still the senior sister, after all. At this moment, she couldn’t show any timidity, so she pretended to be calm, turning her back and speaking in a subdued voice, “I’m going to sleep.”

A clear and clean voice came from behind her: “Mm.”

Gradually, the sounds around them faded like receding tides, leaving only a faint and soft light filling the entire cave.

The summer night carried a lingering heat, like sparks falling on the heart. Pei Ji lay silently on the thin bedding, feeling a bit restless.

Due to his childhood experience of being locked in the cellar by his mother, he harbored a deep aversion and resistance to darkness. As a child, being alone in a narrow, pitch-black space would make him tremble in fear; even as he grew older, he still didn’t like overly dark environments.

Fortunately, there were spirit mushrooms in the cave, which made him feel somewhat relieved.

A few strands of black hair fell on the delicate brows of the young boy. Perhaps it was the unique heat of the summer that made him feel restless. Pei Ji furrowed his brows and, without warning, gently turned his head to the side.