Chapter 8 "After all, the Immortal Lord is someone I am in this world..."

The Demonic Heart briefly freed her from constraints, allowing her to harbor evil thoughts, but with the Demonic Heart sealed away, the constraints within her body should, in theory, return.

But for the past few days, she couldn't understand why her body was completely unaffected when she was disciplining her aunt and Ma Jianshan.

Is it that the demonic mind was not completely sealed?

Is that really the case?

Had the worries that had troubled her for years been resolved just like that? She could hardly believe it, and she remained uneasy, feeling that things weren't as simple as she had imagined.

Her past experiences taught her that she could not be careless about anything, and that she could not have too high expectations of anyone or anything, because everything she thought, desired, or imagined would be in vain.

But for the next few days, nothing happened to her. The evil thoughts that arose from encountering Ma Jianshan's family did not backfire on her. In addition, she had previously neutralized the Snow Demon's Demon Pill, and her health actually improved day by day.

However, ever since he reprimanded his aunt, Yun Xianqing's condition seemed to be getting worse and worse. His face grew paler day by day. Although he could still calm down and read books every day, and even smile and comfort her when he saw her worried expression, he said, "My body is just recovering a little slowly, but it is being repaired. I can't expect to be full of energy in a few days after such a serious injury, can I?"

But she clearly realized that he was putting on a brave face. She tried to take him to see Elder Fang, but Elder Fang couldn't see anything wrong with him. She then suspected that the Yanxi Pill had lost its effectiveness after being stored for a long time, but Elder Fang categorically denied her guess.

Although rumors circulated that this haunted house was mysterious and haunted by unclean spirits, Meng Chiwan had stayed there for several days without actually discovering anything.

The only unusual thing was Yun Xianqing's increasingly pale complexion, which resembled that of a ghost. Sometimes at night, she would see him sitting in the courtyard, writing and drawing something. When he heard footsteps, he would look up at her. At those times, she would think, "Who in the world is more like a ghost than him?"

Just when she thought the so-called haunted house was just a hoax, an unexpected event occurred one night.

Although nothing unusual had happened in the few days since she moved in, and she hadn't seen any ghosts or monsters, she had been having frequent dreams.

It may have once been an ancient battlefield, with a collapsed banner and patches of blood-red sand, but it doesn't seem to be sand.

Later, there was a strange forest where the corpses of crows hung upside down from the branches, their beady eyes staring straight ahead as if they were looking at her.

Finally, there was a sword mound. Under the dark moonlight, she could see that the sword slots where the swords were stuck were the remains of a corpse. The corpse seemed to sense her and, with its eyes closed, crawled slowly toward her with the swords still attached to its body.

She suddenly woke up just as the corpse was about to touch her ankle.

I've been having this dream for several days now.

At first, she thought it was just her anxiety about being in a new and unfamiliar place, coupled with her injuries, that caused her to have nightmares. But since she had the same dream every night, and was living in a place that everyone called a haunted house, she couldn't help but think more about it.

One night, she woke up from a dream again and saw a thin shadow on the door, which was very conspicuous under the dark moonlight.

Suddenly, she held her breath, her body almost trembling. She took out a talisman from under her pillow and lit the candlestick by the moonlight.

Then a soft knock was heard on the door.

"Young lady, did you have a nightmare?"

A gentle, clear voice broke the silence, like a sharp blade slicing through the night. The familiar sunlight flowed back into her heart, and her breathing became easy again.

Yun Xianqing lived next door to her, and it's likely that he heard her talking in her nightmare and came to check on her.

"Did I wake you, Immortal Lord? I haven't been sleeping well at night lately, but it's nothing serious. Immortal Lord, please go back. The wind is picking up at night, so don't catch a cold." She breathed a sigh of relief, her heart, which had been hanging in suspense, was gently put back into her chest. Her tone was gentle, but there was a hint of weakness in it.

The person outside remained silent for a while, as if considering something, before speaking slowly and deliberately: "Why don't I stay outside with you, young lady, and go back to my room after you've fallen asleep? I sensed some unease in your voice."

But considering Yun Xianqing's health, she still refused.

The shadow receded like the tide. Perhaps afraid of disturbing her, he left no sound.

She turned off the light, lay back down, but still clutched the talisman tightly in her hand, her eyelids trembling rapidly when she closed her eyes.

She didn't know how much time had passed. Her consciousness began to fade.

Outside the window, one could still hear the flapping of wings of some unknown bird.

"Knock knock".

"Knock knock knock".

"Knock knock knock knock".

At first, there were two slow knocks on the door, then three, four... The knocks overlapped, as if they were knocking on the top of her head.

She slowly opened her eyes.

But then they heard the door being blown open by the wind, hitting the wall with a soft, moderate sound.

Then she felt a cool sensation on the side of her neck. It felt like something icy was pressed against her ear.

"You saw it."

"You deserve to die."

"She should live!"

Her eyelids felt as if they had been gently stroked or roughly rubbed, and she closed her eyes tightly.

She wondered where they were taking her.

My eyelids felt like they weighed a ton.

But the next moment.

Then a gentle breeze blew by, washing away the heavy shackles and sweeping away all the darkness.

"Girl, wake up."

Yun Xianqing's voice seemed to pierce through the dark moonlight, through the silently growing branches, and then land on her, quickly reaching her ears.

A few simple words brought her back to reality.

She opened her eyes; there was no one beside her. The door remained closed, but the tide hadn't receded, and the shadow had risen again.

She let out a soft breath and then said, "Immortal Lord, my situation is indeed not good. Why don't we go out and bask in the moonlight?"

The tea had just warmed up when she poured herself a cup, drank it all in one gulp, then put down the teacup and looked up at the somewhat haggard young man in front of her.

The wooden chair had been baking in the moonlight for half the night, acquiring a cool and refreshing feel. The faint chill slowly seeped into her body, causing her to shiver slightly involuntarily.

She hesitated for a few breaths before finally speaking, "Immortal Lord, how is your health?"

I originally wanted to tell him about what had just happened, but seeing how withered and haggard he looked, I couldn't help but ask him questions.

Yun Xianqing noticed the water stains on her lips, which shone brightly in the moonlight like a shimmering stream. She smiled quietly, then put on an indifferent expression: "It's nothing serious, just a bit of a chill. I guess I've always been in poor health. But this mansion is rather unusual."

Hearing his words again, she felt somewhat helpless, but she ultimately didn't say anything. After all, it was his own body, and no matter how anxious others were, it was useless.

So she answered him with the second half of the question: "How is it unusual?"

Yun Xianqing's eyes were dark and cold, blending into the sky. He pursed his lips, and a smile appeared on his face again: "Miss, didn't you see it?"

His face was pale, his eyes were dark, and he was dressed in white.

That familiar feeling of suffocation surged up again, and she held her breath.

Is the person in front of me really Yun Xianqing?

But the next moment, he smiled again, his eyes crinkling as if to soften his sickly appearance.

Seeing her like this, he seemed pleased: "Don't be afraid, girl. Didn't you say I could protect you?"

“I am Yun Xianqing, and nothing else.”

"Immortal Lord... don't scare me." She suddenly smiled, and the silk-like moonlight fell into the courtyard and draped over her body.

She thought to herself, "So handsome. Even in his sickly state, he's still so handsome. A celestial lord is a celestial lord."

"But Immortal Lord, how do you know I saw it?"

"Didn't you call me Immortal Lord? Immortal Lord can see, right? What do you think Immortal Lord can do for you, young lady?" He still had that same smiling face, looking like he was in a good mood. His dark hair was draped over his shoulders, making him look even more gentle.

She poured another cup of tea and placed it in front of him, then rested her chin on her hand, looking at him with clear eyes: "That depends on whether the Immortal Lord is willing to do it for me. If I were dragged to such an unfamiliar place, the first person I would think of would definitely be the Immortal Lord, after all, the Immortal Lord is..."

"The only person I care about in this world right now..."

"Don't worry, young lady. If you are indeed taken to such a place, as long as you remember me, I will stay by your side." He spoke casually, yet each word seemed precious.

The night was slightly hazy. The air seemed to be infused with aged wine. An unfamiliar mansion, an unfamiliar immortal lord. For the first time since her parents' tragic death, Meng Chiwan felt a sense of peace.

Was it for those two "girls" calls she made during her nightmare, or for the tide that pretended to recede and then rose again, or for the deep care hidden beneath his nonchalant tone?

But she knew it was all temporary. He was a variable, a variable she couldn't quite grasp.

The next day, they each went to bed. Then night fell again.

This time, the talisman was gripped even tighter.

The wind blew outside the window all night.

Until two knocks were heard.

She was then helped off the bed. Everything was pitch black before her eyes. A cold hand grasped hers, making her shiver. Then it led her forward.

She was filled with anxiety. Just then, something warm lightly grasped her wrist, the faint warmth making her heart tremble.

The bells hanging on the bed curtains rang a few times, as if someone had been fiddling with them out of boredom.

The sound of the bells gradually brought her back to reality, calming her emotions as she walked forward step by step.

But the warmth in my heart just wouldn't dissipate.

She didn't know where she would be taken. She didn't even know if it was a dream or reality.

A note from the author:

A haunted house is a haunted house, not some other kind of place. [Milk tea emoji]