Chapter 36 Part 2

The courtyard was beautiful, yet eerily cold, as if the sunlight outside could not reach within. Le Gui trembled as she called out again. Suddenly, a chill rose behind her, and she could feel the presence of another breath. She gritted her teeth, gripping the dagger in both hands and swinging it backward with all her strength. However, just as her hand lifted, an invisible force stopped her mid-motion.

Le Gui’s heart pounded as she looked up in shock, only to meet a pair of dazzling, mesmerizing eyes. For a moment, her breath caught in her throat.

Before her stood a man she had never seen before. He was strikingly handsome, tall and lean, with a casual lift of his brow and a teasing curve to his lips, as if he carried invisible hooks that could effortlessly ensnare hearts.

“Such a beautiful young lady, yet so rough in your actions,” the man mused as he plucked the dagger from her grasp and casually tossed it to the ground.

The crisp sound of the dagger hitting the floor jolted Le Gui back to her senses. She tensed, warily eyeing him. “Who are you? Why did you capture me?”

The man didn’t answer. Instead, he chuckled, pulling her close by the waist and whispering against her ear, his breath warm, “Who do you think I am? And why do you think I took you?”

Le Gui: “…”

[This man is good-looking, but he doesn’t seem very proper.]

After a brief pause, she warned him in a serious tone, “Do you know whose person I am?”

“Whose?” The man seemed intrigued.

Le Gui studied him for a moment before letting out a soft snort. “I belong to the Demon King Di Jiang. If you don’t want to die, you’d better let me go right now. Otherwise, when he finds me, he’ll tear you to pieces.”

The man raised a brow. “Oh no, I’m so scared.”

Le Gui: “…”

“Why the face?” The man tilted her chin up with a playful smirk. “Was my performance unconvincing?”

[Extremely unconvincing, brother. Even with your looks, you wouldn’t make it past the audition gates in the real world.]

“Fine, I won’t act then.” The man sighed, seemingly disappointed. He narrowed his captivating eyes and asked, “Then do you know who I am?”

“…I recall asking you the exact same question two minutes ago, and you answered with another question just like this,” Le Gui replied flatly.

The man stared at her for a while, then suddenly looked surprised. “You’re not afraid of me?”

“Why should I be afraid of you? You must be one of His Lordship’s friends,” Le Gui guessed, though she remained trapped in his grasp and unable to move. She glanced around. “Where is His Lordship? Where is my Lordship?”

Seeing that she truly didn’t take him seriously, the man chuckled in disbelief. He gripped her chin, forcing her to meet his gaze. Le Gui frowned slightly but had no choice but to look at him.

“Am I beautiful?” he asked.

It was such a shameless question, yet he managed to ask it with an air of effortless charm. Le Gui was momentarily dazed before she coughed lightly. “What does beauty have to do with anything? A friend’s wife is off-limits. Isn’t this a bit inappropriate?”

“So, you do think I’m beautiful,” the man said, seeing right through her. His lips curled as he continued, “Then if I ask you to leave Di Jiang and follow me, would you be willing?”

Le Gui froze. “Huh?”

The man smiled. “Di Jiang is indeed good-looking, but he’s too strange, with an awful temper. If you stay with him, you’ll always be on edge. Even if he possesses endless wealth, your days will be monotonous. Why not be my woman instead? With me, you can indulge in all the luxuries of this secret realm.”

[…This guy is seriously trying to seduce his friend’s woman!]

Although Le Gui often imagined dramatic scenarios in her head, this was the first time she encountered such an A/V-level plot in real life. For a moment, she wasn’t sure how to react.

Just as she opened her mouth to say something, a sharp burst of pure spiritual energy suddenly slashed through the air toward them. Le Gui instinctively shut her eyes. When she opened them again, the man had already released her, and the energy changed course at the last second, attacking him instead.

Within mere moments, the man landed back on the ground, his robes in disarray. Blood dripped from his hand, hidden within his sleeve, forming small crimson pools on the jade-paved bridge beneath him.

“It was just a joke. Did you really have to take it so seriously?” The man sighed.

Le Gui followed his gaze and saw Di Jiang and Ah Hua standing at the entrance of the garden. Her eyes lit up. The moment she realized she could move again, she immediately bolted toward Di Jiang.

“Your Lordship!” She ran straight into his arms and wasted no time in pointing an accusatory finger at the man. “He—he tried to take advantage of me!”

The man protested, “I told you it was just a joke—”

Before he could finish, Di Jiang’s expression turned icy, and an overwhelming pressure crashed down on the man, forcing him to his knees. Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.

[Oh wow, battle-damaged beauty.]

Di Jiang shot Le Gui an unimpressed look. She immediately put on a pitiful expression. “Your Lordship, I was really scared just now.”

The man: “…Yeah, right.”

The atmosphere grew tense. Ah Hua took the initiative to step forward and help the man up before respectfully bowing. “Ah Hua greets Lord Li.”

“It’s been years. You’ve grown taller, Ah Hua,” the man joked.

I am a vengeful spirit turned mirror spirit. My soul was fixed at the moment of my death. How the hell would I grow taller? 

Ah Hua ignored the meaningless pleasantries and instead introduced the two properly. “This is Lord Li of the Eastern Mountains. He has been living in seclusion in this secret realm for ten thousand years. He is Master’s closest friend. And this,” she gestured toward Le Gui, “is Le Gui, the soon-to-be queen whom Master is going to marry.”

In front of outsiders, Ah Hua always gave Le Gui a proper face.

Lord Li wiped the blood from his mouth and clasped his hands in greeting. “Lady Le, a pleasure to meet you.”

Le Gui glanced at his still-bleeding hands, silent for a moment, before returning the greeting with a bow. “Lord Li, well met.”

“It’s getting late. Why don’t we share a meal?” Lord Li offered warmly.

Le Gui hesitated. “Shouldn’t you treat your wounds first?”

“Lady Le, are you worried about me?” Lord Li suddenly looked deeply moved.

Di Jiang’s voice was cold. “Get lost.”

“Understood,” Lord Li responded immediately and hurried away.

Le Gui: “…”

The garden was suddenly left with only the three of them. Ah Hua couldn’t help but chuckle, “I never expected that after all these years, Lord Li is still the same.”

“Is that man really Your Lordship’s friend?” Le Gui looked curious.

Ah Hua nodded, “Yes, they have been friends for tens of thousands of years.”

Di Jiang responded at the same time, “He’s just an acquaintance.”

Le Gui paused for a moment before nodding, “Oh, so he’s just an acquaintance.”

[They’ve known each other for over ten thousand years, and he still hasn’t killed him. That’s got to be a true friend.]

Dijiang: “…”

Ah Hua was about to properly introduce Lord Li when Di Jiang suddenly asked, “Where did he touch you?”

“Hmm?” Le Gui was caught off guard and looked up into his cold and intense gaze.

She hesitated for a moment before instinctively taking Di Jiang’s hand and placing it on her face. “Here… and my waist.”

As she spoke, she buried herself in his arms and rubbed against him.

“Alright, now it’s all rubbed off.” Le Gui grinned.

Di Jiang stared at her for a long moment. The frown on his face finally eased, and he turned to walk away.

Their hands were still clasped together, forcing Le Gui to follow. “Your Lordship, what exactly happened just now? I was at the street corner one moment, then suddenly I was here, and I got separated from Ah Hua.”

“He heard that I brought a woman with me and decided to play some tricks. I only noticed when I saw Ah Hua wandering alone,” Di Jiang answered flatly.

Le Gui was intrigued. “To be able to pull that off right under Your Lordship’s nose, this Lord Li must be quite powerful.”

Di Jiang let out a low chuckle. “His only true skill is stealing people.”

Le Gui fell silent for three seconds. “Your Lordship, when you say ‘stealing people’… you just mean abducting them, right?”

Dijiang: “…”

As they walked further away, neither of them remembered that someone had been left behind in the garden.

The forgotten Ah Hua: “…” One day, I’m going to kill this shameless couple.

Although this Lord Li had seemed unreliable at first glance, there was no denying his immense wealth. His residence alone had six courtyards, each filled with rare gardens and extravagant decorations. Golden ornaments and jade-paved paths were everywhere, a display of extreme luxury.

Le Gui followed Di Jiang through the beautifully landscaped estate. When they finally reached the last courtyard, she was speechless.

It looked exactly like the Cangqiong Palace.

“…Don’t tell me Lord Li specifically prepared this courtyard for Your Lordship?” Le Gui asked tactfully.

Di Jiang responded, “I only stayed here once.”

“Lord Li is certainly thoughtful,” Le Gui chuckled.

In the courtyard, several beautiful maidservants had been waiting. The moment they saw the two approach, they stepped forward in greeting. The leading maid curtsied and said, “Your Lordship, Lady Le Gui, my master has prepared robes and a hot spring for you both. Would you like to bathe and change before dinner?”

Le Gui’s eyes lit up. “Yes, yes!”

A quarter of an hour later, she followed the maids to the back of the courtyard.

The plain-looking courtyard had a hidden entrance. Stepping through the door, she was met with a breathtaking scene. Mist drifted over the landscape, a waterfall cascaded in the distance, birds chirped among the flowers, and a steaming hot spring bubbled nearby.

“Lady Le Gui, here is the dress prepared for you,” one of the maids said while placing the garments beside the spring. “These are floral-scented lotions made from over a dozen kinds of fresh flowers. There are also oils for hair washing and cleansing…”

After introducing the bottles and jars, the maids quietly excused themselves.

Le Gui picked up a small bottle and sniffed it. A soft and pleasant fragrance made her relax. Setting the bottle down, she quickly undressed, stepping into the warm water.

[This is heaven…]

The hot spring water, rich with minerals, surged around her body, seeping into her bones with soothing warmth. Le Gui let out a long sigh of contentment, lazily patting the water’s surface.

From above, the spring had seemed small. But once inside, she realized it was much larger than she had expected. She swam a little, but before long, mist thickened around her, obscuring her vision.

The once-visible waterfall and distant mountains vanished behind the dense white fog.

Sensing that something was wrong, she tried to swim back the way she came. But after moving for a while, she still couldn’t find the edge of the spring.

Panic crept in. She instinctively called out, “Your Lordship! Your Lordship!”

Even though the situation was far from ideal, calling for Di Jiang in moments of danger always felt like the right choice.

“What are you yelling for?”

A cold, firm presence suddenly pressed against her back. Before she could react, strong arms steadied her.

Le Gui exhaled sharply in relief and turned around. “Your Lordship, I couldn’t find—wait, why are you here?”

Her gaze fell on Di Jiang’s bare upper body, and she finally realized the problem.

Di Jiang looked at her with an unreadable expression. “I should be the one asking why you wandered into my private hot spring.”

Le Gui blinked slowly. Only now did she realize she had likely been tricked by that scoundrel again.

As she stared in a daze, Di Jiang snapped his fingers. The mist instantly cleared, revealing the spring exactly as it had looked from the shore.

“Are you still bathing?” Di Jiang asked suddenly.

Le Gui hesitated and met his calm gaze. A slow warmth spread across her face.

“…Mm.”