Chapter 72: Were You That Toad from Yesterday?

When Jiang Niannian awoke again, it was already nightfall, and she found herself unknowingly carried into a hot spring pool.

Yin Buqi assumed she was still asleep, holding her carefully as he gently washed her body, his tenderness unsettling in its precision.

He leaned over her, his breath brushing her cheek.

“What time is it?” Jiang Niannian asked, surprised by the hoarseness of her own voice—a result of crying and pleading for so long.

“Niannian, it’s the hour of the rooster (5-7 pm).”

Clad only in his undergarments, his unique scent filled her senses as he continued washing her with extreme care.

Their posture seemed almost perfectly harmonious, as if he’d done this countless times before.

The hour of the rooster?!

She knew she shouldn’t have been swayed by his charms!

No, she really shouldn’t have softened her heart!

“Get out…”

Jiang Niannian huffed, her voice rasping like a thirsty traveler’s in the desert.

“Niannian… I know I was wrong.”

“Too late! Go back; I’ll wash myself.”

Her tone was resolute.

Ridiculous.

If they keep washing like this, things might accidentally get out of control, ahem…

“Niannian…”

His eyes reddened slightly, his voice taking on a lazy edge.

Jiang Niannian’s eyelashes trembled as she pressed her hand against his shoulder to push him away, her gaze averting.

“Yin Buqi! Have you had enough already? You..you go back…”

“Okay, I’ll listen to you.”

Noticing her embarrassment, Yin Buqi didn’t tease her further.

He stepped out of the hot spring and casually draped a robe over his shoulders.

His body was sculpted and powerful, his skin smooth and fair, with dark hair cascading over the robe beneath him.

Water from the spring ran down his dark hair, along his smooth back, trickling down his spine, slipping into the small of his back, and finally streaming down his toned, straight legs onto the stones.

Jiang Niannian swallowed.

Yin Buqi turned back, his lips curled into a light smile, eyelashes fluttering.

“Niannian, the night wind is strong. Don’t bathe too long, or you’ll catch a chill.”

Jiang Niannian nodded.

“Mm.”

It was only after Yin Buqi’s figure disappeared that Jiang Niannian fully relaxed, slumping against the edge of the hot spring.

“To die under the peony flower, it would be worth it to become a ghost for Niannian…”

His deep, alluring voice echoed in her mind, the scene vivid in her memory.

Fuming, Jiang Niannian splashed the water with her hand.

“So annoying! If I can’t control myself next time, I’ll be a dog!”

She slowly leaned back, her face flushed, muttering under her breath, “Just… get out of my head already…”

…

The moonlight was dim, and a cold gust whirled through Qingxin Hall.

Inside, a warm glow filled the room.

Jiang Ziyou was about to blow out the light and go to bed when a sudden wind burst the door open with a loud whoosh.

“What’s going on?” he muttered.

He approached the door, and the scene outside had changed drastically.

The elegant, breezy courtyard was now a wasteland, filled with the stench of rot and blood.

Countless people with their hearts gouged out crawled towards him, blood streaming from their seven orifices, their faces terrifying.

Looking down, Jiang Ziyou saw that the black, putrid mud seemed to be alive, creeping up the jade steps.

“Don’t… trust him…”

A piercing, wailing scream echoed throughout the courtyard.

One person crawled to his feet, screaming hoarsely, “Don’t… trust him!!!”

Jiang Ziyou slammed the door shut, blocking out the horrifying scene.

He stood there, dressed in his white inner garments, a chilling cold seeping into his bones, every instinct warning him that something was behind him.

Turning around, he found a woman standing in the room.

She had a deep sword wound on her neck, her head lolling as if it might fall off at any moment.

Blood-soaked, every word she spoke dripped blood from the corners of her mouth, a terrifying sight.

“Hehehe, Jiang Ziyou, your good master isn’t here,” she said, her voice sickly sweet and chilling.

Jiang Ziyou looked at her for a moment, then asked out of nowhere, “Are you the toad from yesterday?”

The woman: “???”

Jiang Ziyou continued, “Yesterday, I found a dead toad on the ground with a cut on its neck too. That was you, right?”

The sinister smile on the woman’s face cracked slightly.

“Are you sick?”

Jiang Ziyou went on, “I buried you, even placed a small wooden marker. My master says it’s a tragedy to live and die without a name. I didn’t know your name, so I called you Wang Dazhuang.”

Thud!

The woman’s head fell to the ground, rolling to his feet and coming to a stop.

Anyone would have been scared half to death by such a scene.

Jiang Ziyou stared at it for three seconds, then bent down, reattached her head, and said, “I’m going to sleep now. No need to thank me for the trouble.”

The woman: “???”

Is this something a human being can say?! Can you please shut up?

She glared at Jiang Ziyou as he adjusted his bedding, a wicked smile spreading on her face.

“Hehehe, do you know what medicine you’re consuming every day?”

Jiang Ziyou nodded.

“Master said I was weak and sickly before, so this medicine is to strengthen my body.”

“Ha! I knew you’d say that,” she sneered.

“It’s no ordinary medicine; every pill is made from the fresh heart blood of living people. Your master has shed quite a lot of blood, hehehe. The esteemed True Monarch Qinghe, one of the Four Great Immortals, turns out to be such a ruthless killer. Tsk tsk.”

Her sickly-sweet tone was revolting.

“Don’t insult my master!”

Jiang Ziyou snapped, pounding the bed and pointing his Feiying Liuyun Sword at her.

“Hehe, oh, want to kill me? Go ahead, stab here.”

She grasped the blade, aiming it at her chest, her head swaying again.

“I’m already dead, haha. Did you really think your master is as pure as he appears? He’s nothing but a hypocritical beast, constantly preaching about eradicating evil, hehehehe.”

Slash!

The sword pierced her chest, but that area was already a bloody mess.

Jiang Ziyou raged, “Don’t speak nonsense! I won’t let you insult my master.”

“Oh my, finally showing some emotion. Not a wooden doll anymore, hehehe.”

She laughed, her eyes bent in a smile, more blood flowing from her eyes and mouth.

The sword was lodged in her chest, but she felt no pain as she approached Jiang Ziyou.

With a touch, her finger pressed against Jiang Ziyou’s brow.

“Your memories are sealed. Let me help you unlock them and see your master’s true face, hehehehe…”