Chapter 61 Pretending Not to Love Him
"What do you mean by pretending to like me, putting on an act for Xiao Sui?" Yan Chongyan approached Ning Qi with a livid face.
Ning Qi looked up. "The literal meaning. Do I need to explain it further?"
"Ding, Devotion Points decreased by 100, Current Score: 2..."
Ning Qi blocked out the noisy system, stood up, and looked directly into Yan Chongyan's light-colored pupils, easily seeing anger and disbelief within them.
"I like Xiao Sui, but I don't want him to continue sacrificing for me. I'm going to pretend I don't love him and make him stay away from me completely. Do you understand now?"
Yan Chongyan stared at her intently, as if she were humiliating him. After a moment, he sneered, "Princess, you want to use me to make him give up? Why should I cooperate with you?"
“Because you’re my fiancé,” Ning Qi said matter-of-factly. “Aren’t you quite comfortable with this role?”
Yan Chongyan clenched his fists tightly. "Aren't you afraid I'll tell Xiao Sui everything you've said?"
As expected of the male lead, he was able to suppress his anger so quickly and begin to scrutinize her.
Ning Qi calmly crossed her arms and said, "Sure, go tell him that your fiancée doesn't love you, that he's the one she loves. Just say it."
Yan Chongyan was so angry that he clenched his jaw muscles. His pride wouldn't allow him to say such a thing; it was more painful than swallowing a fly.
Ning Qi raised her chin, admiring his expression. "So cooperate with me. After all, our engagement can't be canceled for now; we're already in the same boat."
Yan Chongyan had no desire to stay with her any longer and was about to leave when Ning Qi stopped him, saying, "From now on, you'll need to extend the time you spend here."
"Princess, I'm very busy and don't have time to act with you." Yan Chongyan said through gritted teeth, then walked out of the room and slammed the door shut.
The system screamed in Ning Qi's head, "You're slacking off and deliberately failing to complete the task!"
"Don't worry, it's just a provocation." Ning Qi casually reassured it, "I have my own plan. Look how intensely he reacted to my words, which shows he cares about me a lot."
"That's not how you say 'love points'," the system said coldly. "You have very few left. If you drag me down with you, I will definitely report you."
“Okay,” Ning Qi said without any hesitation, since the system would probably be scrapped in the junkyard by then.
Yan Chongyan, standing outside, looked sharply at Xiao Sui and sneered inwardly. He was just a crippled servant. The princess's judgment was really terrible!
The talisman in his arms glowed; it was his master looking for him. He immediately set off for the main peak of Huaguang Sect.
When he arrived, several black-clad monks were coming out and brushed past him; they looked somewhat unfamiliar.
"Master, what brings you here?"
Xie Jingyan stood in front of a large sand table with a worried expression, its surface covered with countless tiny points of light.
He pointed to a particularly dim area above and said, "I just received news that a small sect was wiped out by the demons, with a total of twenty-one people killed."
Yan Chongyan frowned and looked down at the sand table. "This sect isn't too far from us."
"That's exactly the problem." Xie Jingyan nodded. "This is probably just a test. The demons are likely targeting our Huaguang Sect. Chongyan, go with them to investigate. It would be best if you could wipe out these demons completely."
"Understood," Yan Chongyan said, cupping his hands in greeting.
Xie Jingyan sighed again, "At this critical juncture, the princess is adding to the trouble, ordering me to send people into the Demon Cave to find some Netherworld Flower with only five petals for her. It's simply making things difficult for me!"
“Master, the princess’s matter is equally important,” Yan Chongyan said.
"Hmph, she's just willful and capricious, taking pleasure in tormenting people. What's so important about that?" Xie Jingyan said indifferently.
"No, the princess's body..."
Yan Chongyan was about to say something when Xie Jingyan interrupted him, "Chongyan, you seem to care about her a lot now. Have you fallen in love with her?"
“Absolutely impossible,” Yan Chongyan blurted out.
Xie Jingyan smiled and said, "You two are engaged, and it's a good thing that your relationship is getting better and better. What's there to deny?"
"No... I... I went to discuss the departure arrangements with my senior brothers." Yan Chongyan stammered as he left.
Xie Jingyan's smile vanished instantly. He never expected that the once unattainable Immortal Venerable Yan He would mistake a fish eye for a pearl.
——
The moon was bright and the stars were few. A few birds chirped occasionally outside. Ning Qi was wide awake. She sensed the movement beside her and asked coldly, "Xiao Sui, where are you going?"
Xiao Sui stopped what he was doing, but remained silent.
Ning Qi sat up and looked at his pale face in the moonlight. "Going to the Demon Cave again?"
Xiao Sui nodded.
"Do you really have to go?" Ning Qi asked.
"I must go." Xiao Sui's voice was resolute. "The more people we search, the greater the chance of finding them. Please let me go."
Ning Xi thought about it and decided that it was better to guide than to block. He might be obsessed with himself right now, determined to save him. But once he realizes that he's not worth it, he'll eventually give up.
She said, "Since that's the case, I won't stop you. You can go after you've recovered from your injury."
"Thank you, Princess." Xiao Sui immediately said with a happy expression.
Ning Qi grabbed his collar and pressed him back onto the bed. "You're not allowed to go until you're healed, or I won't want you anymore."
Xiao Sui's body went limp, and he lay down comfortably, holding Ning Qi in his arms and gently patting her back. "I know, Princess. It's late, go to sleep."
Ning Qi gradually became sleepy as the gentle movements continued.
Three days later, Xiao Sui continued his journey to the Ten Thousand Demon Cave. Upon entering, he indeed saw several cultivators lingering near the teleportation array.
“There are no Netherworld Flowers here; we need to head north,” he said.
"Oh." The leader looked surprised. "Xiao Sui, what are you doing here?"
"I thought you were selling your ass to princesses every day, hahaha."
Xiao Sui recognized them as his former fellow disciples who had worked under Xie Jingyan. He ignored their mockery and repeated, "There are no Netherworld Flowers here. We need to continue north."
One of them said irritably, "What, now you've become the princess's lackey and want to boss us around?"
Xiao Sui gripped the hilt of his sword tightly; the longsword was already drawn.
"Oh well, never mind." Another person stood between them and said to the first man, "Have you forgotten about Yuanqing County? Brother Wang couldn't even find his body. This guy is a bit strange. Let's not mess with him."
“If you’re afraid of him, then shut up. I’m not afraid of him at all,” the man shouted indignantly.
The team leader came out and said, "Alright, everyone, let's head north."
Xiao Sui walked ahead and soon felt the distance between himself and these people growing further and further, and he could faintly hear their voices.
"Tch... Five-petaled Netherworld Flower... We can just find a six-petaled one and pluck one petal off."
"Hahaha……"
"There's a monster! Everyone be on alert!"
After releasing his spiritual power to sense it, Xiao Sui pursed his lips. They had actually stopped to deal with a level one demon beast.
He had realized that these people were not genuinely looking for the Five-Petaled Netherworld Flower; they were likely acting on Xie Jingyan's orders to deceive him.
Xiao Sui wanted to kill them all, but the search for the flower couldn't be delayed; he had to find the medicinal herbs as soon as possible to save the princess's life.
He searched for a whole day, but unfortunately found nothing, and could only return to Huaguang Sect when it got dark.
“Princess, the people Xie Jingyan sent were just going through the motions. They barely left the vicinity of the teleportation array and didn’t actually search for flowers. Please replace them with trustworthy people.” He rushed back early just to report this matter.
Ning Qi casually flipped through a book by candlelight. "What do you mean? Are you questioning whether the people my father sent weren't doing their job properly?"
"I……"
She stood up. "Xiao Sui, I see clearly how Father treats me. I won't allow you to slander me. Do you think that by saying this, I will value you and think you are the most important person?"
“I didn’t…” Xiao Sui looked up in surprise, “They really didn’t look for them.”
"What evidence do you have?" Ning Qi asked.
Xiao Sui's lips were pale, and his expression was somewhat dejected. "No."
"If you don't have it, don't spout nonsense here!" Ning Qi said sternly. "From now on, I won't tolerate such words anymore, and I won't allow you to question the cultivators sent by my father!"
Xiao Sui opened his mouth, but in the end he just lowered his head and said, "Yes, I understand."
Ning Qi closed the book in her hand and glanced at Xiao Sui's face. She knew that her distrust of him and her indiscriminate scolding of him would soon arouse his resentment.
At the same time, Xie Jingyan was summoned to the palace by the emperor again.
The emperor said, "I heard that Xiaoqi sent people to enter the Cave of Ten Thousand Demons together?"
“Yes, it’s her male lover again,” Xie Jingyan said.
"It's him again," the emperor said with displeasure. "Tell your men not to be so lazy. They need to at least put on a proper show of duty, otherwise how can they deceive Heaven..."
“I know, I will make them perform even better,” Xie Jingyan assured him.
The emperor nodded. "It would be best to eliminate that person as soon as possible."
“That’s exactly what I was thinking too,” Xie Jingyan said.
After returning to Huaguang Sect, he handed a small package to a trusted subordinate, "to find an opportunity to put it on Xiao Sui."
"What is this?" the subordinate asked.
"The fragrance of beasts."
The subordinate glared at him. "Taking it into the Demon Cave will attract countless demonic beasts, and even we will be in danger."
"How could that be? Monsters only attack those who possess the Bewitching Incense; you are actually safer."
His subordinate swallowed hard and accepted the small package.
Unfortunately, Xiao Sui never left the princess's courtyard in the Huaguang Sect, so he had no chance to make a move. He could only enter the Ten Thousand Demon Cave with this thing in his heart and wait for Xiao Sui near the teleportation array.
As soon as Xiao Sui appeared, he smelled a strange odor in the air. Several demonic beasts seemed to be restless not far away, and Xie Jingyan's lackeys were approaching him nearby.
He immediately understood what was going on.
——
"Princess, something terrible has happened! The demons in the Demon Cave have rioted, and many of those sent to find the flowers have died!" Zhizhi ran in, panting.
"Where's Xiao Sui? Is he alright?" Ning Qi suddenly stood up, her vision blurring.
Qianyu quickly helped her up and gave Zhizhi a wink. Zhizhi understood and said, "Don't worry, Young Master Xiao will definitely be alright. I'll contact him again."
Ning Qi immediately called out the system in her mind and asked the same question.
"He's not dead," the system said.
Ning Qi breathed a sigh of relief.
After a stick of incense had burned, Zhizhi contacted Xiao Sui. He sounded fine and told Ningxi that he would be back soon.
Ningxi's eyes were practically glued to the courtyard gate; she even ate her dinner while looking at it.
Finally, just before she went to sleep, there was a commotion at the door. Xiao Sui, dressed in black, appeared. He seemed perfectly normal, but Ning Xi could tell at a glance that he had changed his clothes.
She pulled open his intact outer garment and saw his body wrapped in bandages underneath. "You've suffered so many injuries again! What happened?"
Xiao Sui said casually, "Princess, I'm fine. It's just that someone brought the Bewitching Beast Incense into the Demon Cave."
Qianyu and Zhizhi both exclaimed in surprise.
"What's the difference between this and suicide!"
Ning Qi certainly knew the purpose of that thing. Attracting monsters below level five in densely populated areas could probably cause a beast tide, which was practically tantamount to suicide.
But why would anyone want to die?
She immediately realized, "Someone wants to harm you?"
"No, you're overthinking it," Xiao Sui immediately denied.
This only confirmed Ning Xi's suspicions, and she said anxiously, "From now on, you are not allowed to go in. It's too dangerous! This is an order."
Xiao Sui knelt down with a thud. "Princess, I must go in."
"You! You insist on staying inside... until you're satisfied?" Ning Qi stomped her foot on the spot.
It seems she has to resort to drastic measures to make Xiao Sui give up.
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Author's Note: Xiao Sui is a stubborn little dog [glasses]
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