6 Chapter 6 I didn't mean to hug you

Jing Qianheng had something to hide, and Jiang Zhishui's outburst made him lose his composure.

Seeing his strong reaction, Jiang Zhishui was certain she had guessed correctly. Jing Qianheng was hiding a secret; his visit to the Ziyang Immortal Abode wasn't just for recuperation, but likely had other purposes.

Demons have an instinctive sense for their own kind or for something more powerful and dangerous. If Lin Ye and the others know about Jing Qianheng's situation and become suspicious, then regardless of whether Jing Qianheng really has a problem, he will first undergo a rigorous interrogation. Ziyang Immortal Mansion will never allow a suspicious person to hide in it.

Jiang Zhishui rubbed her hands together, warming herself by the fire, her eyes fixed on the flames, and whispered, "If you don't want me to tell anyone about this, then tell me your secret. I also have something on you, so you don't need to be so nervous."

The "handle" refers to the fact that she secretly practiced forbidden techniques, which ultimately harmed both herself and others.

Jing Qianheng looked at her strangely; he could never understand her.

He suddenly understood. What had been causing her anxiety was that he might one day reveal her practice of forbidden techniques. That was why she had been so impatient and had come to him repeatedly.

She was afraid of being severely punished and expelled from the Purple Sun Immortal Abode.

Saying he would forget about it was all an implication that he wanted to completely bury the matter and never let anyone know.

Jing Qianheng sat down again, stared at her for a moment, and then sneered, "Are you threatening me?"

Jiang Zhishui raised her head slightly, thinking to herself that his smile was truly chilling. She looked at him and said earnestly, "No, I want to help you."

Jing Qianheng clenched his fists, his eyes filled with resentment. He felt he couldn't trust her, and he was furious that she had threatened him.

There's nothing we can do about the mistakes we've made and the path we've taken, but it seems like we can keep going.

If I can't be Jing Qianheng's friend, then becoming his imagined "enemy" is perfectly acceptable.

Jing Qianheng narrowed his eyes and said coldly, "Jiang Zhishui, why are you helping me?"

Jiang Zhishui paused, about to answer, when Jing Qianheng answered his own question directly: "Because...you also need me to keep your secret, right?"

Jiang Zhishui understood his anger very well. In his previous life, he had been disgusted with her to the point that he would avoid her if he saw her on the street.

In this life, she wanted to befriend him because of her own reasons, but he refused her many times. However, she insisted on pursuing him and presumptuously tried to establish a connection with him, which resulted in something that should not have happened.

Jing Qianheng was completely innocent. He only had Senior Sister Liu in his heart, and he was dragged into this mess because of her. Jiang Zhishui dared not think too deeply about how deep his resentment must be.

There's no way to get Jing Qianheng to talk using ordinary methods.

Jiang Zhishui looked at his glaring eyes, which were filled with surging anger. She took a deep breath and forced herself to say, "Yes."

Jing Qianheng slowly lowered his eyes and sneered, "Why don't you just kill me and solve the problem once and for all?"

Jiang Zhishui exclaimed in surprise, "That won't do!"

Jing Qianheng calmly said, "No, that won't work. You don't know my background, so it wouldn't be wise to act rashly. Besides, you don't have the courage to kill anyone. The best way is to make sure I won't betray you."

Jiang Zhishui thought he made sense and nodded unconsciously.

"Then why didn't you consider that I could kill you to save myself?"

Jiang Zhishui paused in her nodding motion. Hmm?

Jing Qianheng stared directly into her eyes, his tone sinister: "For what you did before, I should have killed you long ago."

Jiang Zhishui didn't know the extent to which Jing Qianheng was pretending. If his usual frail and sickly appearance was all an act, then he might actually have the ability to kill her.

No, no, how did she succeed last time?

Just as her thoughts were in disarray, Jing Qianheng coughed a few times, reached into his robes, and froze.

The elixir is lost.

Jiang Zhishui looked at his face and asked, "Are you feeling unwell again?"

Jing Qianheng didn't say anything.

"The medicine is lost?"

Jing Qianheng looked up and glared at her.

"When I said I wanted to help you, it was indeed for my own sake. But I also feel guilty towards you. I will do my best to make up for my mistakes until you are satisfied. If you really find me annoying, I will try not to appear in front of you in the future."

Jiang Zhishui was afraid that he would get so angry that he would vomit blood again, so she quickly said some nice things to coax him.

Upon hearing this, Jing Qianheng's expression softened considerably.

After a long silence, Jing Qianheng suddenly spoke up: "The Imperial Preceptor said that the Xuanqi cultivation method of the Ziyang Immortal Mansion can suppress the dragon spirit within me, but this is only a temporary solution. I need a stronger sealing technique..."

He spoke slowly and deliberately, his voice low. Jiang Zhishui looked at him, but he turned his face away and looked elsewhere.

The Jing family of Jin State is the offspring of the demon dragon Li Mo and a human. Li Mo attempted to revive through a human body and, before his death, transmitted his remaining dragon spirit to his children in batches.

The demonic power contained within the dragon spirit is extremely strong, and Li Mo's descendants cannot fully inherit it.

By the time of Jing Qianheng's generation, only he and Crown Prince Jing Rong had manifested dragon patterns on their bodies. The Prince of Jin and the Queen had been trying to remove the dragon spirit from their bodies. They sent people to search for extraordinary people all over the world, but to no avail.

Imperial Advisor Li Si suggested that the Seventh Prince, Jing Qianheng, become a disciple of the Ziyang Immortal Abode and seek a way to deal with the ancient demon dragon.

Jing Qianheng didn't know why he was telling her all this. But hearing her say, "I will never appear in front of you again..." a pang of pain shot through his heart. He was afraid that she would suddenly disappear again, afraid that he would look forward to her every day only to be disappointed.

It's better for her to feel guilty than to be completely oblivious to him.

He was torn to the extreme; he wanted to stay away from her, he wanted to hate her, but the thought of never seeing her again made him miss her like a madman.

Jiang Zhishui's feelings for him were always fleeting. She would come when she thought of him, and completely forget about him when she didn't need him anymore.

She has her senior brother Lin Ye, and also that... person buried deep in her heart—A Yu.

He couldn't help but think that perhaps she also had someone she couldn't have, and the reason she changed her attitude to provoke him was just to amuse herself with him in her spare time.

Whenever Jing Qianheng thought about these far-fetched things, he always felt that he was ridiculous.

For her, all his emotions were in turmoil. To easily expose his weaknesses would undoubtedly be an act of suicide, but if revealing his secrets could make her care about him even a little more, he couldn't control his foolish behavior.

Jiang Zhishui listened to him speak, resting her chin on her hand, and couldn't help but look up, staring at his calm and indifferent eyes.

In the past, Jing Qianheng was always alone and never associated with anyone. Even though he liked Senior Sister Liu, he kept it to himself and never revealed it, even after leaving Ziyang Immortal Mansion to face the crisis in Jin Kingdom.

He knew it was a hopeless relationship and never dared to hope for it.

This cold and uninteresting person actually revealed his secret to her for the first time. Jiang Zhishui was about to give up, thinking that if she pressed him any further, he might pounce on her and strangle her in a fit of anger.

He has leverage over her, and she knows his secrets; this balance of power may be the best model of cooperation for them at present.

After Jing Qianheng finished speaking, he gently raised his eyes to look at her. The atmosphere was quiet and peaceful for a moment. Jiang Zhishui blinked and said seriously, "I understand. I will help you investigate from now on. You can tell me any requests you have, and I will do my best to help you as long as it is within my power. You... are you willing to tell me all this because of the last thing I said? So your first request is that I never appear in front of you again?"

After he had been coercing and cajoling her for so long, and was so angry that his eyes were red, she coaxed him a little and he suddenly told her everything. Jiang Zhishui couldn't help but suspect that the reason he didn't have to see her again was too tempting.

This was the first time Jing Qianheng had opened his heart to someone, and his chest was pounding with tension. Her words instantly disrupted the rhythm of his heartbeat, and his voice trembled slightly: "What?"

It's fine if we don't meet, but it will be inconvenient to move around in the future.

Jiang Zhishui looked troubled and cautiously tried to negotiate: "Could you please be patient for now, and wait until you are completely free from the shackles of the demon dragon and can live a free and healthy life before I disappear? I promise that I will disappear from your life forever and never appear again."

She knew that it was a bit much to ask him to put up with her constantly hovering around him.

Jing Qianheng's initial enthusiasm instantly cooled down. She had no interest in him at all; she just wanted to quickly resolve her guilt towards him and make up for her mistakes by helping him.

His eyes were filled with resentment as he said defiantly, "Fine, I hope you keep your word."

Jiang Zhishui gave an awkward smile, feeling flustered by his hateful gaze.

The villagers of Changshui Village had their hearts and brains eaten by the vine demon. Their corpses were used as vessels for the vine demon to increase its demonic power, just like soil, providing the vine demon with residual nutrients.

This monster parasitizes human bodies and isn't very powerful. The only troublesome thing is the green vine, which craves new nutrients and will take root in flesh and blood and grow rapidly once it gets the chance.

Staying there to fight them will only lead to being surrounded and annihilated. There are too many of them, and they are good at surprise attacks. Even if the four of them are not bad in combat, they will not be able to deal with so many.

"Chu Xi and I will try to lure those demons away." While being chased, the four of them temporarily hid in a secluded place. Once things calmed down outside, they reunited. Lin Ye pointed to the south and whispered, "The cloud talisman of Taihua Gate just lit up briefly. Go and take a look."

Jiang Zhishui nodded in agreement and turned to leave with Jing Qianheng, but Lin Ye grabbed her and instructed her, "Zhishui, don't act rashly if you encounter anything. If you can't win, run away, understand?"

The two had encountered danger together before, and Lin Ye failed to protect Jiang Zhishui in time, almost causing her to meet with misfortune. He was still shaken by the experience.

Seeing that Liu Chuxi had already left, Jiang Zhishui quickly said, "I know, Senior Brother, Senior Sister Liu has already left."

"Chu Xi..." Lin Ye turned around and saw that Liu Chu Xi had already run some distance away. He quickly chased after her.

Lin Ye and Liu Chuxi used magic to create an array, luring the demons into their trap. The array set up a barrier that could temporarily restrict their movements.

Jiang Zhishui and Jing Qianheng went in opposite directions. Along the way, a few scattered vine demons rushed out to attack them. With Jing Qianheng there, the vine demons didn't attack him, but instead targeted Jiang Zhishui.

The vine demon was impossible to kill; its green vines, intertwined with flesh and blood, kept hooking at Jiang Zhishui. Unable to bear it any longer, she ran to Jing Qianheng, threw herself into his arms, and hugged him tightly.

Two vine spirits extended their sharp thorns and charged straight at her, but stopped just before they reached the back of her head.

Jing Qianheng was held in her arms, his expression blank. The moment the vine demon got close, his eyes suddenly turned cold, and the sharp thorns that the vine demon had extended towards the girl instantly retracted.

Jiang Zhishui closed her eyes tightly, and with a "let's give it a try" attitude, hugged him first.

She gripped Jing Qianheng's clothes tightly with both hands, closed her eyes for a while, and at this moment she probably knew that she had made the right bet: as long as she held onto Jing Qianheng, those vine demons would be wary and would not attack her easily.

She was safe now, but she was a little afraid to open her eyes.

Her grip tightened, and her eyelashes trembled slightly; she was truly caught in a dilemma.

Jing Qianheng let her hug him without saying a word.

Jiang Zhishui gritted her teeth, released her grip, and took five steps back. Then she raised her hands in a gesture of surrender, offering a flimsy excuse: "I didn't mean to, it...it was too scary...I just..."

My senior brother said, if you can't beat someone, run away... (hugs).

Jing Qianheng looked at the girl in front of him, who was gesturing wildly and stammering as she desperately tried to explain herself, her heart pounding.

A year ago, he brought Su You into the Ziyang Immortal Mansion. At that time, he felt a deep sense of desolation. On the eve of leaving the Jin Kingdom, his father had warned him that everything should be done for the sake of the Crown Prince, and that if necessary, he should give his life to ensure the Crown Prince's safety.

Among ancient techniques, there is a cruel and forbidden art called the Dragon Drawing Technique. The Dragon Drawing Technique involves transferring all of one person's life force to another; this technique requires two people who are related by blood.

Only by using spiritual blood as a catalyst can its life force be fully absorbed to the greatest extent.

Life force refers to a person's life, spiritual power, talents, and fortune, including the dragon spirit they are born with.

The person who is hollowed out will become a malevolent spirit that brings only misfortune and disaster; he will lose all his family ties and live a lonely and miserable life.

Jing Qianheng came to Ziyang Immortal Mansion not to recuperate, nor to search for any sealing method, but simply to obey his father and queen's orders to obtain the forbidden technique of the Dragon Guiding Method within this immortal sect.

Among the Jing family royals, only he and the Crown Prince inherited the demonic power of the dragon. The Crown Prince was five years older than him and was healthy from childhood, excelling in both literature and martial arts. Unlike him, he was sickly and had been pronounced dead by the imperial physicians several times. He was a sickly person who was barely clinging to life. If he had to choose between the two, even a blind person would know to choose death.

The emperor, queen, and all the people of Jin chose the crown prince, but the crown prince innocently told him, "Qianheng, a mere demon dragon, I'm not afraid of him. Don't worry, I will definitely find a way to save us."

Everyone was keeping it a secret from the Crown Prince, acting in secret. If the Crown Prince knew that what they were looking for wasn't some kind of sealing technique, he would never have let Jing Qianheng leave.

The Crown Prince has always favored his younger brother Jing Qianheng since childhood, taking him everywhere he goes. When the Crown Prince is sick, he personally takes care of him. From childhood to adulthood, the Crown Prince has always taken care of and planned for Jing Qianheng's affairs.

The prince who inherits the Dragon Spirit is the perfect tool for traitors to covet the throne. As long as the seventh prince, Jing Qianheng, is controlled, another force will be able to contend with the crown prince.

The Queen sent assassins to kill Jing Qianheng several times, but the Crown Prince intercepted them each time, which almost caused the Crown Prince to break with the Queen.

After that, the Queen dared not lay a hand on Jing Qianheng.

She changed tactics and secretly approached Jing Qianheng, pleading with tears streaming down her face: "Heng'er, only if you're willing to do this charade can it succeed. Please save my brother, okay?"