Miss Cannon Fodder Wants To Escape Death Flags - Chapter 319
Chapter 319
When she fell into the Ziwei realm, Ning Ning had a dream.
In the dream, everything was blank, with only the faint silhouette of a young man, so blurred that she couldn’t make out his face, only the vague outline of his figure.
Then, as the demon cultivators approached her from the depths of the rift, the person leading them slowly merged with the shadow she had seen in her dream.
Ning Ning didn’t remember ever meeting him, but one thing was certain: this person had left an indelible impression on her subconscious.
—Because now, she dreamed of him again.
Looking around, she saw an endless desert with yellow sand rolling in waves, the demonic energy curling with wisps of white smoke.
She and that person sat side by side on a sand dunes, gazing up at the distant, solitary moon on the horizon.
A gust of wind rushed past, and he turned his head to look at her, his face still indistinct.
Ning Ning heard him say, “Look, this is the moon of… Whenever I see it, I think of…”
The sounds of the wind and countless noises filled her ears, completely obscuring his words, leaving her bewildered and tempted to disrupt the mood by shouting, “The wind’s too strong, I didn’t hear you—what were you saying?”
Before she could speak, she suddenly felt a chill and abruptly opened her eyes.
Previously, she had encountered demon cultivators in the rift, and by now, she should’ve been taken into their lair.
Ning Ning tried to move, but realized her hands were bound by ropes.
Judging by the material, they were the famous Immortal-Binding Ropes, completely sealing her spiritual energy.
What did this group go to so much trouble to capture her for?
She couldn’t figure it out.
As a modern young socialist raised on historical dramas, Ning Ning might not be able to charm countless refined young talents with a verse of “Prelude to Water Melody”, nor was she a master strategist, but she had learned one practical trick:
Keep a small knife hidden in her sleeve for emergencies.
Like now, this contraband metal was a godsend.
Ning Ning sat up awkwardly from the ground, assuming a meditative posture as she glanced around.
She probably needed to take back her earlier comment about this being the “demon clan’s lair.”
Because this place was just too, too shabby.
It didn’t even qualify as a “house”—it was merely a cave formed from gravel, with a few makeshift beds and pieces of furniture scattered around.
While they looked decent in quality, they couldn’t disguise the cave’s impoverished state.
…Where was the glittering golden palace she had imagined? Why did it look more like the set of an 80s rural drama?
Ning Ning felt a bit dazed, and even her hand paused while slicing the ropes.
In the silence, she suddenly heard footsteps outside the door.
The demon cultivators must have returned.
The footsteps drew closer, and she halted her actions and looked up, the first thing she saw was a clean, pale face.
The one leading the group was still the boy who looked identical to the figure in her dream.
This time, a lamp was lit in the cave, and through its flickering yellow light, Ning Ning finally saw his face clearly.
Contrary to the image of an arrogant or ice-cold demon cultivator she had imagined, this young man had an innocent, babyish face.
His dark, rounded eyes were soft as water, without a trace of menace.
Ning Ning: …
Maybe, possibly, probably, he was a black-hearted “white lotus,” appearing harmless while actually ruthless?
The young man noticed her candid stare and was momentarily stunned.
Then, unexpectedly, he blushed, blinked hurriedly, and said with a mix of panic and embarrassment, “You… you’re awake?”
Ning Ning: …
The young man in front of her really should be an adorable yet charming villain, right?
Where’s that promised arrogance, indifference, disdain, and scorn?
Why is it that, when it comes to making a pie chart, you’re so different from other villains?
“Lord.”
A tall, burly man next to him spoke in a low voice, “This is not the attitude one should take toward an enemy.”
Lord.
Ning Ning’s mind exploded.
No way—this shy, delicate, fair-skinned boy was actually the new lord of the demon realm?
She’d heard of the demon clan’s decline, with both the Demon Lord and Demon King defeated in battle, but this… this was “talent shortfall” taken to the extreme!
She began to understand why there was no grand, opulent palace in sight.
“She’s still just a young lady,” the boy said gently, turning to look at her with a touch of guilt.
“Miss Ning Ning, my name is Huo Qiao.”
This wasn’t at all the direction she had expected.
In fact, it was very different.
Ning Ning nodded and gave a small sound of acknowledgment, attempting a normal conversation, “Could I ask why you brought me here?”
Huo Qiao looked down at her, and after a pause, replied in a gentle tone, “It’s to kill you.”
Great, excellent—calmly saying those four words finally gave him a touch of demonic flair.
After hesitating as if choosing his words carefully, he added, “You may hate us if you wish, but we will not let you go. There is no need to waste words pleading.”
He was a peculiar person.
On one hand, he appeared gentle and kind.
She has read so many novels and TV dramas but has never seen such an easy-to-talk to demon lord.
Yet his words left no room for mercy, openly declaring he intended to kill her.
It was as if he stood in opposition to her but regarded her as an equal, showing her enough respect while making it clear, “I will kill you.”
With the young Demon Lord’s straightforward attitude, Ning Ning’s tension subsided somewhat.
She leaned against the wall and asked with curiosity, “Why go to such trouble to kill me?”
She was sharp enough to sense some underlying scheme, so she probed, “Because of Pei Ji?”
Huo Qiao neither confirmed nor denied, saying only, “When we kill you, we won’t go out of our way to make you suffer. There’s no need to be afraid.”
—Just the words “kill you” were terrifying enough, thank you!
“Why waste words with her?” someone sneered.
“With the curse on her, she won’t live much longer anyway. Giving her a quick end is doing her a kindness.”
Ning Ning was confused.
“A curse? What curse?”
“There are many kinds of curses. We can sense only a trace of it, but don’t know the exact type—”
Huo Qiao started to explain, but someone else entered the cave and whispered something into his ear.
Ning Ning couldn’t hear the details, but after listening, the young man smiled slightly, glanced down at her, and said, “I have to go. Qing Heng, stay here to watch her.”
A tall man nodded silently.
