Chapter 124

As the scorching fire wind gradually subsided, Pei Ji finally restrained his sword aura and once again distanced himself from Ning Ning.

The residual heat dispersed in the air, like the lingering tide on the beach, quietly seeped into the invisible crevices between every grain of sand, causing a momentary suffocation of all senses in the body.

Ning Ning lowered her voice and said, “Be careful; there’s movement in the cave.”

Just as she said, amidst a tense silence, a very faint rustling sound came from deep within the cave.

The cave where the Fire Phoenix resided was deep and quiet, surrounded by chaotic piles of jagged rocks. The sound came through the passage, initially resembling a low chirping, passing through the eardrums along with the wind blowing on the mountaintop. Gradually, it became sharper and louder, almost causing the rocks at the edge of the cave to tremble in unison.

The bright light from the sky adorned the mouth of the cave, and relying on this light, a dense black shadow slowly emerged from the cave wall.

“It’s the Fire Phoenix!”

Qiao Yan exclaimed, “It must have sensed human presence… Everyone, be careful!”

Ning Ning stared at the cave entrance, subconsciously gripping the hilt of the Xinghen Sword.

They had encountered the Black Bird in the Xiaochongshan before and had some contact with it, which was barely considered safe except for the incident where He Zhizhou was severely beaten by Tian Xianzi afterwards.

However, the Fire Phoenix here was completely different from the Black Bird clan, belonging to the category of untamed beasts without awakened intelligence. It only knew how to plunder and kill recklessly; otherwise, it wouldn’t have caused such havoc in the Western Mountains, seizing the jade pendant passed down by the Fox clan during the battle after Qiao Yan’s father died for its own cultivation.

With a sharp scream like a blade, the shadow finally emerged from the cave.

The Fire Phoenix was entirely red, with a graceful figure more than ten feet tall. Its huge wings opened suddenly after leaving the cave, allowing the full feathers to outline fluid lines, each wing harboring unstoppable power.

What first caught Ning Ning’s attention entirely were its gloomy, murky eye pupils.

Its pupils were also dark red, more like layers of bloodstains than flames, full of suppressed and frenzied emotions, making one shiver instinctively with just one glance.

These were the eyes of a fierce beast when it preyed, devoid of any reason; only pure instinct remained.

The Fire Phoenix’s temper was no smaller than that of the Black Bird. Before scanning everyone present, it let out a roar from deep in its throat—

Surging flames gathered into a fireball, propelled by the gusts from the mountaintop, rushing straight towards everyone like a drawn sword!

The flames of the Fire Phoenix were not ordinary; not only were they fiercely aggressive, but they also carried a large amount of spiritual pressure.

It was Ning Ning’s first direct confrontation with it. If she let her blood boil and blindly drew her sword, she might end up as part of a luxurious barbecue. After a moment of consideration, she decided to leap lightly and observe its strength first.

The fierce wind, carrying waves of fire, seemed to have the momentum of burning down the Western Mountains completely, sweeping over the sky and the earth.

The debris on the mountaintop was assaulted by this gust of wind and was swept up into the air by the howling wind, falling towards everyone like a volley of arrows.

He Zhizhou had been stunned for so long, finally acting as a human shield. He immediately mobilized his spiritual energy, forming a sword aura to protect himself and Liu Ying, bringing her behind a large boulder to hide.

“Thank you… thank you, Brother He.”

Liu Ying spoke laboriously, her complexion pale and her cheeks devoid of blood, looking no different from a thin sheet of paper.

Seeing her trembling lips and cold sweat, He Zhizhou immediately understood that things were not good. Following Liu Ying’s lowered gaze, he saw her shoulder covered in blood.

—The sudden gust of wind caught him off guard, and before he could deploy his sword aura, a sharp, triangular stone pierced directly into Liu Ying’s right shoulder.

The charming maiden’s face turned pale, watching He Zhizhou’s panicked appearance, secretly sneering in her heart.

She had read “The Western Palace” and “Grass Bones” over and over again, long understanding a truth: men were like this; they didn’t know how to cherish when everything was fine, but now that she was injured, he would feel a bit of pity and regret from the bottom of his heart, regretting not cherishing her before.

—Even if he achieved great success and lived a comfortable life, he lost precious love—how tragic and cruel it was!

At this moment, she was the injured female protagonist. Seeing He Zhizhou’s pitiful and admiring gaze, he must have already changed his mind and would from now on protect and cherish her endlessly.

He Zhizhou was oblivious to her thoughts.

He only felt that Miss Liu was wearing white clothes and that the blood seemed like free ketchup, patted on the white paper.

This reminded him of fries and hamburgers far away in his hometown, making him a bit nostalgic and hungry.

“Miss Liu!”

Seeing blood flowing continuously from Liu Ying’s shoulder, He Zhizhou felt a faint pain in his own shoulder. He panicked, pulled out the stone fragment from her arm, and heard a painful groan from the girl beside him.

“Don’t—”

Liu Ying struggled to squeeze out this word from between her teeth. At the moment the word left her mouth, the stone cone had already left her body.

She cursed this idiot repeatedly in her heart but, constrained by the character setting, could only weakly say, “Brother He, if you don’t take it out, perhaps the bleeding can be stopped.”

He Zhizhou felt extremely guilty, holding the stone fragment like a weapon. Hearing her words, he apologized and tried to make amends. “I’m sorry! I was too hasty!”

Liu Ying originally planned to respond to him with a delicate and pitiful “okay.”

However, before the words could leave her mouth, they got stuck in her throat, her voice retreated, and her eyes suddenly bulged outward, almost popping out of their sockets—

Bastard!!!

This idiot, seeing that she was unhappy, actually pushed the stone fragment back in…. PUSHED IT BACK IN!!!!!!

She was in so much pain that she really wanted to say, “You incomplete-cerebellum idiot, how could you be such an idiot.”

But she couldn’t; she was just a naive, innocent, and helpless little white flower. Even if he stabbed her again and again, she could only bite her lip tearfully and ask, “Brother He, what are you doing?”

He Zhizhou felt a bit embarrassed.

He hadn’t been so stupid as to kill his teammate. However, being frightened by the Fire Phoenix earlier and hearing Liu Ying crying incessantly beside him, he acted subconsciously in a panic, pushing the stone cone back in.

But of course, he couldn’t tell her the truth; it would only make him seem like a fool.

After a long silence, although lacking confidence, he still tried to portray a righteous appearance. “Miss Liu, don’t be afraid. The situation is critical now, so we can only resort to such desperate measures to stop the bleeding. Once we’re out of danger, I’ll carefully treat your injury.”

A tear welled up in Liu Ying’s eye.

—Then, please, at least stab in the same spot.

Before, she only had one wound, but now, thanks to He Zhizhou’s action, she gets to buy one, get one free, and it has become two.

If she were to die today, the main culprit would certainly not be the Fire Phoenix, but this teammate is as stupid as a pig.

Liu Ying desperately suppressed the blood in her throat and tearfully asked him, “Brother He, has anyone ever told you?”

He Zhizhou blankly continued, “Uh… that I love you?”

“No, not that.”

She couldn’t help but laugh at this man: “Your brain is really different from normal people’s.”

He Zhizhou finally understood this time.

This person was scolding him.

“Is Miss Liu injured?”

Ning Ning slashed away a cluster of flames with her sword and hurriedly glanced over at the two of them. “How’s the situation? Is it serious?”

This was a genuine concern!

With everything contrasting with He Zhizhou and Xu Ye, Ning Ning’s figure, wielding her sword against the enemy, appeared so beautiful and reliable, making Liu Ying’s nose tingle. “Don’t mind me, I’m fine!”

Only then did Ning Ning give her a faint smile.