Chapter 31 Mission Host, please shield the villain from harm when the time is right...

Yes, after all, those who defy fate will pay a price. If the one who defies fate is incompetent, and the Heavenly Dao detects an increased danger of the world line collapsing, it will directly destroy that world line, and the mission participant will be eliminated.

[Just now, the villain's favorability towards you has almost dropped to -100%, currently at -85%.]

Xu Qingning lowered her eyelashes and said in a cold voice:

So, your Heavenly Dao measures whether a worldline has collapsed by assessing the degree of attraction one person has for another?

That makes sense.

[...] The system sensed Xu Qingning's sarcasm and, without replying, only said, "Next, please listen to the mission regarding the 'Zou Li Attacks Zhou' incident, and in the following mission, bring the favorability rating back to -75%:"

Please shield the villain from harm when the opportunity arises.

Xu Qingning: "…………"

His face was icy cold as he raised his eyes indifferently.

System: [Host, this task must be completed. This incident may also result in the death or serious injury of the villain.]

Xu Qingning's gaze suddenly froze, and she pursed her lips tightly.

His gaze shifted to Zhou Fuling outside the window, and lingered there for a long time.

[What danger? How could Zou Li possibly harm her?]

[This requires the host to explore on their own.]

[...]

Xu Qingning slowly closed her eyes.

Bang!

The system was stunned by the sudden loud noise.

A surge of spiritual energy rose from Xu Qingning's palm.

A talisman that he had hidden beforehand fell into his palm.

The green snake hissed.

Xu Qingning broke free from the snake and kicked the talisman with his boot.

A beam of light, like a sharp arrow, struck the immortal books on the bookshelf.

After a series of rattling sounds, a magical artifact rolled into Xu Qingning's hand.

The system examined it closely: "Is this a magical artifact for storing spiritual energy??"

Xu Qingning did not reply.

This is a divine artifact that can break through restrictions, but it can also injure the user... One must calm down and stop.

Xu Qingning lowered his head, holding his magic weapon in his hand, and the Binding Immortal Rope on his body vibrated incessantly.

He vomited blood.

...

Zhou Fuling lay sprawled on the snow, her face covered in dust. The snow was very cold.

Zou Li sharpened his sword, and the cold whistling of the blade sent chills down one's spine.

In the snow, the cultivators stood beside Zou Li, all aware of what was about to happen, and dared not look Zhou Fuling in the eye.

As a second-rank official, it's far too undignified for me to duel with someone of no rank...

Everyone lowered their heads, thinking desolately.

Zou Li: "Zhou Fuling, you are pretty, but not exceptionally beautiful. It's strange that Xu Qingning cherishes you so much!"

Zhou Fuling: "Get out of here!"

Zou Li: "I'm really curious, what will Xu Qingning feel after you die?!"

Snow was blowing all around.

Zhou Fuling was forced to kneel on the ground, staring directly into Zou Li's eyes.

"You've indiscriminately slaughtered Tianji Sect disciples. Aren't you afraid that Tianji Sect will go to war with Zhongzhou?!"

Mr. Qing: "Miss Zhou, don't lie to us. Aren't the others all hiding under the Great Boundary? What are we afraid of?"

Zhou Fuling plunged her hand into the cold snow and lowered her eyes.

Previously, she couldn't understand why these people insisted on coming in when they couldn't see the main gate.

After hearing these few words, I finally understood the reason.

Her gaze swept over Mr. Qing.

A golden book was thrown in front of her.

Zou Li raised his thumb, grinned, and pressed his own spiritual seal onto the paper, then said, "Let her sign it!"

The golden book was inscribed with the oath of duel:

[We hereby swear an oath to fight to the death. The victor lives, the loser perishes. Heaven and earth bear witness, yin and yang are our witnesses; once this oath is sworn, we will fight to the death without regret!]

Zhou Fuling pursed her lips.

She had seen the oath written in that golden book.

She had made the same vow during her last duel with Ning Tingyue, but the content of the vow was slightly different.

Last time, Ning Tingyue's oath for the duel read, "I swear to settle this with a decisive victory."

It was also mentioned that the winner would receive the loser's magical artifact as a reward.

But now, the former has been changed to "determining the winner by life and death".

This is a life-or-death duel!

Zhou Fuling didn't care about Zou Li's life or death, and she wanted to kill all the scum who bothered her, but her current situation required her to be cautious.

—No, if we kill him and frame Dongzhou, won't the immortal sects be in even more chaos?

Zhou Fuling's hand suddenly froze.

But for some reason, Xu Qingning's reddened, hateful eyes flashed before her eyes, and she snorted coldly in her heart.

"What's this?"

Zhou Fuling looked up, her fingers twitching as if she were terrified.

Zou Li gave him a wink. Yuan Zhong forced a smile and explained:

"This is a life-or-death order. Miss Zhou, you must duel with the young master today."

These words silenced the surroundings even more.

As Zhou Fuling's face turned pale, a sense of sorrow quietly arose in many people's hearts.

Where is the duel?

It was clearly the young master who cruelly murdered this young girl.

...Whether in the celestial realm or the mortal realm, she was still a child.

But due to the imposing presence of the Dragon Pool, everyone remained silent.

Zou Li quickly squatted down, and Zhou Fuling's wrist was twisted with such force that it could almost crush an ordinary person's hand. She pressed her handprint down, and a humiliating red appeared on her face.

The vow was fulfilled, and a great golden light shone forth.

In the middle of the snow.

Silence reigned.

Zou Li and Zhou Fuling drew their swords and said slowly:

"This sword is called the 'Evil-Slaying Sword,' but it was given to me by my mother."

He smiled and said, "To die by this sword, you've died a worthy death."

Zheng—

Zou Li gracefully twirled his sword.

The adjutant, Yuan Zhong, looked around in desolation.

He'd seen this move before.

The patriarch of the family in Fancheng who offended Zou Li was torn to pieces during the duel, his cries for help turning from initial pride to a desperate plea for help with urine and snot streaming down his face.

He eventually died a painful death.

At that moment, Zhou Fuling cried out in alarm, and the sound of clothes being torn to shreds came from behind.

Zou Li shouted loudly.

Yuan Zhong turned his head away, not daring to look.

Suddenly, a loud "bang" was heard!

It looked like someone had fallen awkwardly to the ground.

Ye Wei was puzzled. What was going on?

Ah, did the young master change his mind and kick the dying, resisting girl? She's a shameless person; that kick probably shattered her internal organs.

Pitiful!

However, he heard gasps of surprise all around him:

"ah!"

"Young Master!!"

"Young Master, how did you fall?!"

...

All of this is truly unbelievable.

Zou Li fell to the ground and shook his head.

What happened?

Zhou Fuling is so weak; she is a person of no character. He was certain of it.

But just now—

He barely touched the hem of Zhou Fuling's clothes.

For some reason, my vision blurred and I fell flat on my face!

— "Buzz".

Zou Li's face was pressed against the cold snow, his mind buzzing with anger.

Several people on the periphery gasped in surprise, because indeed, very few had clearly seen what had happened.

All I saw was the young master trying to look cool, but he failed.

Like a drunkard, just as he was about to strike Zhou Fuling, he crashed into a tree with a thud.

How embarrassing!

...Is this the young master's new way of toying with people? Yuan Zhong was dumbfounded.

Mr. Qing's cold gaze swept over Zhou Fuling, his face somewhat pale.

He snorted coldly and gave Zou Li a hint:

"Xu Qingning."

"What? What? Xu Qingning is here?"

Zou Li looked around, his eyes filled with panic.

No, it's you!

He glared at Zhou Fuling, "You still have Xu Qingning's spiritual power hidden in you!"

Those of high rank can imbue those of lower rank with spiritual energy.

Zhou Fuling pursed her lips: "I didn't hide anything!"

That sounds like he's just being stubborn and refusing to admit it.

How would you describe Zou Li's feelings?

Extreme rise and fall.

At first, he thought he had bumped into some powerful evil spirit when he fell. But now, seeing Zhou Fuling's expression and hearing Mr. Qing's advice, he burst out laughing!

Hahahaha!

Zou Li breathed a sigh of relief.

Since it is Xu Qingning's spiritual power, it will eventually be exhausted.

This week, Fuling is once again a person of low character.

Xu Qingning's first-grade spiritual power was attached to Zhou Fuling, which was somewhat troublesome for him to break through, but it was also a double-edged sword for Zhou Fuling.

Zhou Fuling, being of low character, simply cannot control this spiritual power.

Zou Li's loud laughter was deafening.

He drew his sword, the longsword soaring proudly, its roar shattering the heavens!

Suddenly, a patch of snow-covered light appeared!

A snow-white figure blocked Zhou Fuling's path.

Amidst the snow-white sword light, Zou Li let out a miserable scream!

He was knocked ten feet away and fell into the snow like a drunkard!

"Young Master!!"

"Who...who is this?"

Zhou Fuling: "..."

Xu Qingning, with her long hair flowing like a waterfall and her clothes as white as snow, stood in front of her, holding a sword.

His pair of obsidian phoenix eyes were cold and frosty, and he stubbornly gritted his teeth.

The description is quite disheveled.

He was bound by the Immortal Binding Rope, and the jade was already gone.

But precisely because of this, he felt bloodshot all over his body and was drenched in cold sweat, presumably having paid a price.

Zhou Fuling's alarm blared. Shocked shouts echoed from all around.

Mr. Qing: "Xu Qingning?!"

Zou Li looked up in disbelief.

[Congratulations, host, you have completed the task "Block the Sword" in the "Zou Li Attacks Zhou" plot.]

Xu Qingning could barely hear these sounds.

The pain burned through the meridians, and almost every sound was like a drumbeat, hanging on the eardrums, bringing tinnitus with the swelling.

He couldn't hear anything.

"Senior brother!" Zhou Fuling grabbed his arm.

Her eyes were full of surprise and worry.

However, she lowered her voice, her tone cold:

"What are you doing? You didn't need to come at all. Tell me."

Her hand gripped Xu Qingning's spiritual veins like an iron hoop.

“…” Xu Qingning sneered.

“Not everyone is like you.” He lowered his eyes.

"What?"

Xu Qingning remained silent.

He glanced at Zhou Fuling and grabbed her wrist.

The Everlasting Sword remained embedded in the snow, and the two retreated swiftly.

A mechanism unfolded from the snow-white mountainside.

“Zhou Fuling and Xu Qingning are trying to escape!” Yuan Zhong shouted.

Xu and Zhou had already jumped down from the barrier.

In an instant, they rolled underground, and the barrier separated them from Zou Li and the others.

Mr. Qing was the first to react: "They're cheating! Chase after them! Xu Qingning looks very weak, we must catch up!"

“………………” Xu Qingning closed her eyes.

A bunch of idiots.

It's beyond saving.

A sudden earthquake shook the ground.

Bang!

Zhou Fuling's back slammed against the cold floor tiles.

What came into her view were grottoes, barriers, and candlelight.

This is the underground cave where Tianjimen used to hide.

However, she didn't have time to look any further.

Xu Qingning carried her down, but failed to adjust their position properly, and the two of them fell onto the floor tiles together.

Xu Qingning was thrown to the ground, her face pale. She tried to get up while holding "Changming", but the pain made it hard for her to breathe.

puff--

He spat out a mouthful of blood, and his sword fell to the ground with a thud, unable to stay in his grip.

Zhou Fuling also suddenly looked up.

He met Xu Qingning's narrow-minded and pained gaze.

She saw it again.

He looked so pained.

Zhou Fuling, however, stared intently at his sword.

She stepped on him as he tried to pick it up.

Xu Qingning closed her eyes in pain.

Just as I expected.

[Villain's favorability +5%]

Xu Qingning opened her eyes in disbelief.

Zhou Fuling's gaze was inscrutable. She met his eyes, then turned her head away.

His complexion was difficult to discern due to its flickering light.

She seemed to be pondering something.

Currently, the villain Zhou Fuling's favorability towards the host is:

-75%

There will be no mandatory tasks for the time being.

However, the host must manage the favorability level themselves; it must not fall below -100%, otherwise, there is a risk of being eliminated or having a different host.

Xu Qingning held her breath and stared intently at Zhou Fuling, her eyes wide open.

He opened his lips as if to ask something, but didn't.

But his sudden change in gaze made Zhou Fuling feel very uncomfortable, as if there was something between them.

Zhou Fuling lowered her eyes and said coldly:

"bundle."

The demonic aura crept through his fingers, and the Everlasting Sword was pushed away completely. Xu Qingning tried to snatch the sword back, but failed.

He was seriously injured from forcibly breaking through the restriction, and his physical strength and spiritual power were already insufficient.

With his vital point struck, he could only sit down in a disheveled state.

Zhou Fuling used the Immortal Binding Rope to restrain Xu Qingning once again.

Xu Qingning, however, continued to stare at her face, then spat out a mouthful of blood.

Zhou Fuling: "..."

Xu Qingning closed his eyes.

Embarrassing.

He also tried to suppress the pain in his heart.

That kind of pain, mixed with bewilderment, overwhelmed him when he heard about the change in Zhou Fuling's favorability rating.

This caused Xu Qingning even more pain.

"Why did you block the sword?" she asked.

Xu Qingning should not start anew.