Chapter 14

A cold breeze slipped into the inner hall, and perhaps feeling the chill, she instinctively burrowed deeper into his embrace, wriggling so far in that it seemed as if she wanted to embed herself there. Only after settling in snugly did she stop, smacking her lips in her sleep.

Rong Shang gazed at the arm she had draped over his waist, his expression faltering slightly.

Her palm radiated a searing warmth—so hot it was almost unbearable. It was a sensation he had never known before.

In her sleep, Yu Zhengzheng mumbled softly, “Senior Brother, don’t be shy… eat it… eat it while it’s hot…”

Rong Shang laughed.

The stray wisps of hair across her forehead were fuzzy and soft, strikingly similar to that mangy black dog he once saw. Even the bald patch on the top of her head gave her a peculiar kind of charm.

Indeed, she wasn’t like *that* woman at all.

A faint noise came from outside the hall. Rong Shang slowly stood up, the trace of amusement on his lips turning cold. “Shura, do you know the penalty for trespassing into Lan Hall?”

The Shura King ceased his concealment, walking into the hall with a grin plastered across his face. “I sent word to the King, but it seems it didn’t reach you.”

Rong Shang glanced at the communication bracelet beside the sleeping Yu Zhengzheng, giving a nonchalant “Hmm.”

The Shura King’s gaze fell upon the woman lying on the floor, recognition flashing in his eyes. He still remembered her—she had recently made quite a name for herself in the Ghost Sect.

Not only had she escaped the Ghost King alive, but she had also obtained the Ghost King’s rare silken white robe made of Celestial Moth Silk. Additionally, she was the first cultivator in centuries to possess a wooden spiritual root. It was hard for her not to draw attention.

Her delicate waist, graceful figure, and slender arms would have normally drawn his admiration, but today, there were more pressing matters at hand.

The Shura King tentatively asked, “The thunderstorm last night was fierce. Has the King’s noble body suffered any discomfort?”

Rong Shang lazily lifted his eyelids. “Discomfort? Yes, I nearly died.”

The Shura King froze, clearly unprepared for such a blunt response.

A thousand years ago, Rong Shang had always vanished during thunderstorms. But back then, no one had questioned it.

However, last night, someone had anonymously sent him a message, claiming the Ghost King would lose all his divine power during thunderstorms, rendering him as vulnerable as a mortal for several days afterward. 

The Shura King had rushed across Wuchuan River overnight to confirm this rumor, but by the time he arrived, the storm had ended, and the protective barrier around Lan Hall had been broken through. 

Now, faced with such a candid admission from the Ghost King, the Shura King found it increasingly difficult to determine whether the message was truthful or a trap.

Rong Shang turned around, his expression one of idle carelessness. “I’ll be heading to the human realm for a few days. If the South Sea Dragon Clan comes to stir up trouble at the Ruins Mountain, kill them.”

Cold sweat broke out in the Shura King’s palms. He had received reports from his subordinates that the Ghost King had slain the South Sea Dragon King yesterday, leaving countless dead in his wake. 

If the Ghost King could slaughter dragons, he could just as easily kill him. The Shura King realized how reckless his actions had been. If the anonymous message had been a deliberate test from the Ghost King, he would already be dead.

He lowered his head in submission, all the bravado gone, and murmured a response before hastily leaving with an excuse.

Rong Shang watched the Shura King’s retreating figure, his gaze dropping.

There were still eight dragon spines left to find. If he couldn’t locate that mother and child soon…

No, he *had* to find them.

His lips pressed into a thin line. “Get up.”

No one answered.

Rong Shang kicked her. “Still playing dead?”

Yu Zhengzheng swallowed nervously and cautiously opened her eyes.

It wasn’t that she wanted to keep pretending to sleep, but waking up to the Ghost King’s voice was enough to make her wish for immediate death.

The little boy in her dream had been adorable; the Ghost King in reality was nothing short of a maniac.

Her rare moment of compassion had landed her in this predicament. She didn’t want to die just yet.

Springing to her feet, she grabbed the communication bracelet from the ground. “Let me explain.”

Rong Shang: “Hmm.”

Yu Zhengzheng: “…”

Shouldn’t he have refused to listen outright?

She opened her mouth, but no words came out. How could she possibly explain this? 

What would she say? That she’d brought the communication bracelet, heard him call her *mother*, accidentally entered his dream, saw his tragic childhood, and then, overcome with maternal instincts, decided to sleep beside him?

The thought alone made her scalp prickle.

She scratched her head, then suddenly froze. “My… my hair…”

Rong Shang: “Hmm. It’s bald.”

Yu Zhengzheng’s eyes widened in horror. “Did you do this?!”

Rong Shang: “Hmm. You were talking in your sleep.”

She glared at him. “What does my sleep-talking have to do with you pulling out my hair?!”

Rong Shang: “You said you wanted to be a kappa.”

Yu Zhengzheng: “…”

Before she could completely lose her temper, Rong Shang promptly tossed her—and the coffin-like Shanshui—out of Lan Hall.

Shanshui was still in its coffin form. Fortunately, Xiang Feng had come to retrieve it; otherwise, Yu Zhengzheng wouldn’t have been able to move the massive two-meter-long coffin.

As soon as they returned to Tianhe Courtyard, she bolted into her room, locked the door, and stared at her reflection in a blurry bronze mirror.

Right in the center of her head, a patch of scalp the size of a fingernail gleamed baldly. No amount of hair could cover it, making her look as though she had developed alopecia.

Furious, she kicked the bronze mirror to pieces and let out an ear-piercing screech.

Xiao Yuqing knocked on the door. “Miss Yu, are you all right?”

When she didn’t respond, he grew worried and kicked the door open, only to find her crouched on the floor, tears glistening in her eyes. She held a piece of charcoal in one hand, seemingly doing something with the shattered mirror pieces.

She quickly hid the charcoal and sniffled. “What do you want?”

Xiao Yuqing hesitated. “Protector Xiang is here. He says we should prepare to head to the human realm for the assessment.”

Her lips trembled. “The human realm?”

According to the original story, the assessment took place a month after arriving at the Ghost Sect. Now, only a few days had passed. Why was the plot moving ahead so suddenly?

Seeing that she was unharmed, Xiao Yuqing reminded her, “Protector Xiang is waiting outside. You should hurry.”

Yu Zhengzheng had nothing to pack. After asking him to leave, she took the charcoal and darkened the patch of exposed scalp before pinning her hair up with a wooden hairpin.

Once they descended to the human realm, she could seize the opportunity to escape. The thought of never seeing the Ghost King or her neurotic Senior Brother again filled her with relief.

Under Xiang Feng’s lead, the group descended to the human realm.

Since Yu Zhengzheng couldn’t fly on a sword and had a fear of heights, she had no choice but to cling to Shanshui as it carried her down.

She thought her luck had already hit rock bottom, but the moment they landed in the human realm, she realized things could always get worse.

Shanshui lost its balance upon landing, and the two of them tumbled like a pair of rolling balls. Xiang Feng managed to steady Shanshui in time, but Yu Zhengzheng wasn’t so lucky. She hit the ground hard, stars spinning in her vision, and crashed into a man.

Her hairpin flew out, and the man bent down to pick it up, silently staring at her.

Clutching her head, she hastily apologized. “I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to—”

The man towered over her, his cold gaze narrowing with a mix of disdain, mockery, and casual indifference. “Hmph. Trying to use such tactics to get my attention, are you? Do you think this will work on *Nan Gong Tianba*?”

Yu Zhengzheng blinked in confusion. “Are you insane?”

He sneered, his lips curling into a wicked smirk. “Shift! You wretched woman! Daring to defy me—you’re playing with fire!”

She inhaled sharply, scrambling to her feet. “Just give me back my hairpin.”

He let out a scornful grunt, narrowing his eyes dangerously as he muttered, “Don’t move. If you move again, I can’t guarantee what might happen.”