Chapter 38 Are all women like this?

Meng Ji looked at her quietly, his eyes slightly puzzled, as if he were really asking: When it comes to life and death, why didn't you two stay and fight the enemy together? What were you doing going out?

Yao Jin was speechless for a moment, "I..."

“Kunlun,” Po Jun stepped forward and answered Meng Ji.

He was meticulous in his work. This time, his face was not as casual as Yao Jin's, but rather a mask created by killing a cultivator from Kunlun Mountain and imitating his appearance.

Meng Ji nodded upon hearing this, but his gaze fell on the group of disciples from Kunlun Mountain.

The leading disciple, Xie Shou, realized he had been chosen. He searched his memory and recalled a cultivator who was usually quiet. He immediately nodded, "Yes, Immortal Lord, this person is from our sect, named Ding Wang."

Having gained an identity, Yao Jin breathed a slight sigh of relief, but the next second Xie Shou exclaimed, "However, this woman... I don't think I've ever seen her before."

Yao Jin's heart was instantly gripped again. She needed a legitimate identity. She had to stay here and ensure that Meng Ji would get through this ordeal safely.

Yao Jin subtly kicked Po Jun and whispered, "Quickly say I was brought by you."

Only when a person of legitimate status speaks can her status also be legitimate.

Po Jun couldn't express his thoughts and didn't speak.

Yao Jin then kicked him again, "Speak up."

"What did you say?" Before Po Jun could speak, Meng Ji spoke. He was very articulate and calm, "The eight major sects of Buzhou, Kunlun, Penglai, Taihang, Leize, Fangzhang, Wangwu, and Yingzhou each sent twenty disciples, making a total of sixty-one people including myself. After deducting those who died just now, there should be fifty-seven people left, but now there is one more."

"Fellow Daoist, are you going to say that you are the one who fell behind?"

Meng Ji's words were like a stone thrown into a calm lake, creating a splash—and quite a splash at that.

The group, who had just barely escaped danger, immediately realized what had happened. Xie Shou quickly widened his eyes and started counting the clothes on the ground.

Those monsters don't like to eat clothes. Every time they eat someone, they vomit up a complete piece of clothing, so it's still identifiable.

"One hundred and one, one hundred and two, one hundred and three, one hundred and four..."

It matches up! It matches up perfectly!

After counting the clothes, Xie Shou admired the Immortal Lord's eyesight, but a trace of sadness also rose in his heart. These were the most outstanding cultivators in their Immortal Realm, and now all that was left were these tattered and bloodstained clothes.

These are all human lives...

"It's all that monster's fault!" Xie Shou roared, "It's you! You're a spy!"

The remaining men joined in the shout, "Tell us, what's your purpose in sneaking in?!"

This is the epitome of being condemned by everyone; Meng Ji's observation was spot-on, and his words were incredibly scathing. This was the first time Yao Jin had faced Meng Ji as a stranger, and she was astonished to discover that beneath Meng Ji's gentle exterior lay such sharpness, a sharpness that made her feel somewhat embarrassed.

As Yao Jin, feeling deeply embarrassed, glared angrily at Meng Ji, Meng Ji was also looking at her.

He had an ordinary face and wore nothing special disciple's robes, but at this moment, he was a little annoyed because he had been exposed. His eyes were burning with two flames, like stars that startled a prairie fire.

It was those eyes that made him take another look.

But after only one glance, Meng Ji looked away and stopped looking at her. "Miss, do you have anything to say?"

Even if someone is considered a death row inmate by everyone, he will still question them in this fair and impartial manner.

However, the group did not have Meng Ji's patience. They had only just entered the secret realm when so many of their companions died. The loss of life became an indelible and painful memory for them.

A series of voices rang out, "What else is there to say? She must be a spy."

"I knew it! We had just entered the secret realm when monsters of this level appeared. She must have attracted them."

"Even if it wasn't her, she can't escape responsibility!"

The crowd turned their grief into anger and attacked Yao Jin en masse.

Yao Jin was forced to retreat, and retreat further. The tassels at her waist swayed slightly with her subtle movements—ding-a-ling, ding-a-ling.

That lively sound then caught Meng Ji's eye.

Calling it tassels isn't quite accurate; it's more like a large piece of silver ornament woven into a shawl-like decoration, diagonally wrapped around the waist to cinch the slender waist and add a touch of playfulness to the otherwise plain outfit.

Is this kind of ingenuity unique to women?

Meng Ji's gaze swept over his surroundings, and he pursed his lips very slightly.

Of the group that came out, there were not many women to begin with, and since most of them had died, only Leng Dandan remained.

Leng Dandan was usually pampered and always had many hairpins and jewelry. Even after becoming an elder, she still wore a hairpin on her head for this trip. However, apart from the hairpin, she only had a pair of plain earrings and nothing else.

Meng Ji then searched through his memories for the outfits of the other female disciples of Buzhou Mountain. After a long while, he fell silent.

...

His gaze lingered for so long that it attracted the attention of others, including Leng Dandan.

Although she was just an ordinary woman, Leng Dandan looked at her closely for a while, and a dark look flashed in her eyes after she noticed the decoration on the woman's waist.

But the darkness was quickly suppressed. She stepped forward, raised her hand to the air, and conjured a sword out of thin air. "Who exactly are you?"

“I am his lover.” Yao Jin spoke quickly, and once she got to the point, everything else seemed perfectly natural. “Ding Wang betrayed me. I only came to the secret realm to ask him about his relationship with that woman.”

Yao Jin didn't go into too much detail, mainly because, based on her life experience, she had never encountered anything like this before.

Even when she reads stories about unfaithful men, she skips around, so she can't really say anything about them now.

Just because Yao Jin didn't encounter it doesn't mean others didn't. We're all young people; everyone has their share of unpleasant experiences.

A group of people fell silent, and some even cast reproachful glances their way.

Po Jun, who should be Ding Wang, raised an eyebrow and readily admitted, "Yao, that was all a misunderstanding."

“Your cultivation is inferior to mine; you will get hurt if you come in with me.”

"And I'm not sure if I can get out of the secret realm. I don't want to hold you back."

Ding Wang, who had been silent just moments before, finally spoke, but his words were deeply moving. The group naturally pieced together the whole story, and even their initially accusatory glances turned into understanding.

No one noticed that Meng Ji glanced at the girl again because of Po Jun's words. He pursed his lips slightly and didn't say anything about kicking her out. "Let's rest for a while, and the trial will officially begin on the second day."

Besides treasure hunting, the purpose of this trip was also to readjust the ranking of the eight major sects. Upon hearing this, everyone agreed, but secretly counted the number of people left in their own sect.

It was at this time that Yao Jin received Xie Shou's offer of recruitment. Xie Shou quietly approached her and asked, "I wonder if you, young lady, are interested in joining Kunlun?"

At this point, qualifications don't matter anymore; the more people there are, the more morning dew will be picked.

Kunlun is also a major sect, and since this girl is so devoted to Ding Wang, she shouldn't refuse him.

But Yao Jin didn't follow the usual path. "Kunlun, is there no Buzhouhao?"

Xie Shou: ...

He fell silent, a rare occurrence; he felt like going crazy.

This is a sacred mountain that ordinary cultivators can't even enter, and this girl has already chosen it?

With the sect leader of Buzhou Mountain present, Xie Shou could no longer lie and fabricate stories against his conscience. "Yes, but our Kunlun has a long history, existing since the time of Pangu's creation of the world. Our mountain also has..."

Just as Xie Shou was enthusiastically promoting his own business, Meng Ji approached and asked, "Miss, are you trying to infiltrate my territory?"

Yao Jin had this intention all along, and upon hearing this, she nodded with a slightly reserved air, "I have long heard of the fame of Buzhou Mountain. If I were to join a sect, I would naturally want to join the best one."

This was perfectly reasonable, but Meng Ji looked at her and said, "Didn't you come with your lover? Now that the misunderstanding has been cleared up, wouldn't it be nice to have the opportunity to be with your lover day and night?"

“This,” Yao Jin had no way to refute it.

"Is it because you think that if you join my sect, even if such a situation happens again, even if you are abandoned by your lover, you will have a way out? Is that right?" Meng Ji gently and naturally took over her words.

Yao Jin was completely confused by him, not knowing his intentions, but for the time being, she could only follow his train of thought.

She gave up on herself, pursed her lips, and glared at him reproachfully, "Yes, it's better to rely on yourself than on others. I always need to leave myself a way out."

She resented him, resented his initial aggressiveness.

He blamed her, and he blamed him for forcing him into a corner with no way to deal with it, leaving him no choice but to follow his thoughts.

But Yao Jin was unaware that her appearance was so much like someone else, or rather, so much like herself.

Meng Ji fixed his gaze, then suddenly curled his lips and called out abruptly, "Yao Jin."

People tend to agree to things when they are least expecting them, especially when the other person calls them by their name.

The word "hmm" seemed to linger in Yao Jin's mouth before she quickly swallowed it. Only then did Yao Jin understand Meng Ji's intention.

Daojun was born with a heart that was exquisitely intelligent with seven orifices.

Yao Jin secretly breathed a sigh of relief, but his face remained innocent. "What do you want? Immortal Lord, do you want gold?"

She deliberately misheard and casually touched her body, "Is this the fee required to enter Buzhou Mountain? But I don't have any on me."

As soon as he finished speaking, a bead was extended in front of the two of them.

"I gave it to her on her behalf, and I hope the Immortal Lord will accept it." Po Jun handed the spirit pearl in his hand to Meng Ji.

It was at this moment that Yao Jin realized why he had been exposed.

There was nothing special about the sound; Po Jun had always called her that. But the problem was that if she added just one more word, she would be completely exposed.

Yao Jin immediately lowered her head, her voice filled with sorrow, "What are you doing here? What's the meaning of paying my tuition? I don't care about your money, I'm even angry."

She kept in mind her belief that she should follow Meng Ji, and after saying that, she immediately hid next to Meng Ji.

She knew Meng Ji very well; he would always help anyone who asked for his help.

But Yao Jin watched as her hand was slowly brushed off her sleeve.

In fact, if Meng Ji hadn't been in a daze, Yao Jin wouldn't have even been able to touch the hem of his clothes.

His face turned cold after Yao Jin didn't respond, but this coldness was masked by his habitually upturned lips, making it indistinct. "Miss, it's best not to get involved with strange men when you're out and about."

Yao Jin: "Hmm, Immortal Lord, I don't think that's the point."

She grabbed the bead Po Jun had given her, handed it to him, and said defiantly, "Take me, that's all."

Upon hearing this, Meng Ji's eyelashes trembled violently. He looked at her strangely, his gaze falling on her incredibly natural and snow-white arm. "Are all women like this?"