Chapter 36 (Part 2)

She had stumbled into a room of men changing clothes. As a lone woman, this was an inherently unreasonable and suspicious act.

Yu Zhengzheng  forced herself to calm down. Without offering any lengthy explanation, she simply said, unhurriedly, “What do you think a lone woman and a group of men together are doing?”

Her words, intentionally or not, had an ambiguous undertone. An Ning blushed deeply, lowered her head, and dared not ask further questions.

Hengwu Immortal Lord smoothed the creases in his sleeve, a faint smile gracing his lips. “The young lady’s hair remains immaculate, while the Ghost King’s robes are half undone. By the looks of it, the young lady was on top.”

Rong Shang’s expression remained indifferent. He conjured an ice spike in his hand and, with a flick, sent it flying toward Hengwu Immortal Lord’s face.

The spike grazed his cheek, leaving a bloody gash. Beads of blood welled up and trickled down, making the wound appear all the more gruesome.

Hengwu Immortal Lord wiped the blood from his face with his fingertip and clicked his tongue twice. “Rare to see the Ghost King flustered. Looks like I hit the mark.”

Rong Shang sneered lightly. “Whether I’m on top or bottom, why don’t I try it out with you?”

Hengwu Immortal Lord: “…”

Their bickering seemed endless, as if they were seasoned in such matters. Yet anyone watching would find it impossible to discern that these two were ancient virgins, untouched by time.

While they squabbled, the women finished changing their clothes.

The priestess entered with a few attendants, opening the door respectfully. “Her Majesty requests the presence of the divine guests in the palace.”

Everyone turned simultaneously to look at Hengwu Immortal Lord. The key to breaking the formation still rested with him.

Hengwu Immortal Lord had no intention of lingering in the illusion. Time moved differently here—one day in the illusion equaled a year in the outside world. Were it not for Rong Shang’s primordial spirit, he would have found a way out long ago.

Unbeknownst to the others, Hengwu Immortal Lord had intentionally left a failsafe while crafting the formation, a contingency in case he ever fell victim to it. If someone outside moved the formation’s core in Shayu Valley, the entire illusion would collapse. There was no need to risk traversing nine layers of illusions.

However, his entry into the formation had been so abrupt that he hadn’t had a chance to instruct his subordinates. With limited means of communication, he could only take things one step at a time and look for a way to contact them.

After wiping the blood from his face, Hengwu Immortal Lord followed the priestess. The others, seeing him leave, quickly followed suit.

They were brought to the third floor of the castle, where the Queen awaited them. Upon seeing her, everyone was momentarily stunned.

The queen of a cannibalistic tribe conjured images of a grotesque, disheveled woman or perhaps a haggard crone. Yet, before them stood a young and strikingly beautiful woman.

Her long black hair cascaded lazily over her shoulders, and her porcelain skin glowed with a luminous sheen. Her delicately arched brows carried an imperceptible frown, and her pearly teeth bit lightly into her rosy lips. With just one glance, she could steal hearts and souls alike.

Even Yu Zhengzheng  found herself momentarily entranced by the queen’s captivating eyes, let alone the men in the group, who were all visibly dazed.

Only Rong Shang and Hengwu Immortal Lord seemed unaffected.

The queen, seemingly accustomed to such reactions, reclined languidly on her throne. Her bare feet rested on the back of a kneeling maidservant.

The priestess approached and, bending down, clasped the queen’s ankle with her hand. She kissed the queen’s toes reverently. “Your Majesty, these are the guests I mentioned.”

The queen lifted her gaze lazily, her eyes scanning the group before settling on Hengwu Immortal Lord. “Hmm, your face is handsome, but it’s injured.”

Her tone was soft, almost sweet, yet carried a subtle menace.

In the queen’s eyes, only the most exceptional men were worthy of her attention. A flawed man could never meet her standards.

Hengwu Immortal Lord, unperturbed, smiled. “Even with an injury, my face remains as striking as ever.”

He wasn’t wrong. Hengwu Immortal Lord and Rong Shang were equally flawless in appearance. Even during his lowest moments, women had flocked to him despite his plight.

A mere scratch couldn’t tarnish his allure.

The queen’s expression softened. She nodded approvingly. “You’re not entirely wrong.”

“Tonight, you will participate in the Warrior’s Tournament. The victor shall become my evening feast.”

The way she emphasized “evening feast” carried a hint of teasing flirtation.

Hearing this, Yu Zhengzheng  couldn’t help but ask, “What about the losers?”

The queen chuckled, pointing to the wild men behind them. “The losers will be their evening feast.”

Sensing her guests’ unease, she quickly added, “But don’t worry too much. There may be more than one winner.”

At last, Yu Zhengzheng  understood. Tonight’s battle would not be a solo affair.

She clicked her tongue inwardly. If the queen saw the Ghost King’s pert backside, she’d likely be smitten.

The queen instructed the priestess to escort the group out and specifically requested they be well-fed and cared for to ensure they wouldn’t falter during the evening’s events.

This time, the priestess didn’t lead them back to their spacious chambers. Instead, she took them to the site of the tournament.

The so-called warriors were actually wild men from the cannibalistic tribe. At the moment, they were replenishing their energy. The tables before them were laden with dishes of fragrant, roasted meat.

The priestess invited them to sit and gestured to the food. “You may eat freely. If you have any requests, let me know, and I will do my best to accommodate.”

After she left, Yu Zhengzheng  cautiously asked, “This meat… it’s not human, is it?”

Hengwu Immortal Lord smiled warmly. “Oh, it is. Human meat, to be precise. You should try it; I’ve heard it tastes a lot like chicken.”

Yu Zhengzheng : “…”

She felt nauseous. She could endure the sight of mutilated corpses, no matter how gruesome, but cooked human flesh? Ugh!

Just as she was thinking, the savage seated across from her reached into the vessel, pulled out a boiled human hand, and began gnawing on it as if it were a chicken claw, chewing noisily.

The nausea that Yu Zhengzheng had just managed to suppress surged back with full force.

Her stomach churned with burning discomfort, and she couldn’t hold it in any longer. She hurried to the base of a tree, bent over, and began retching violently.

Except for Shanshui, who seemed indifferent to the scene, both Yu Jiangjiang and An Ning couldn’t help but run off to vomit as well.

Xiang Feng gestured and communicated with the savages for a long while before finally obtaining several basins of clean water. He dampened a silk handkerchief, approached An Ning, and gently wiped her mouth.

Shanshui watched him from a distance with her pale little face, waiting for a long time, but he never once turned to look at her.

Her eyes dimmed with a hint of disappointment, and she eventually lowered her head slowly.

Hengwu Xianjun took note of her expression, and an inexplicable irritation stirred within him.

Why does Xiang Feng constantly upset her?

Such a good girl, yet Xiang Feng doesn’t cherish her at all. It makes one want to punch him just to vent some anger.

Hengwu Xianjun looked at Shanshui and said, “Would you like to take a walk with me?”

Shanshui was momentarily stunned, as if recalling his limited mobility, and she nodded. “Sure, but I can’t go too far. My master would worry if he couldn’t see me.”

Hengwu Xianjun sneered inwardly. Worry? What nonsense.

Xiang Feng didn’t even glance back; how could he possibly notice her absence?

Although he mocked internally, his expression remained composed. “Alright.”

Shanshui supported his arm as they walked. After just a few steps, she softly warned, “There’s a rock ahead by your right foot. Be careful.”

Hengwu Xianjun smiled wryly. He wasn’t blind, just visually impaired. Yet now she was treating him like he couldn’t see at all.

The priestess hadn’t restricted their movements, knowing full well they couldn’t escape the rainforest. No matter where they fled, they would ultimately be caught.

Meanwhile, the once-bustling table now only had Rong Shang and Xiao Yuqing sitting at it.

Xiao Yuqing found being alone with Rong Shang unnerving, so after a short while, he found an excuse to get up and leave.

Rong Shang’s eyes narrowed slightly, fixating on Xiao Yuqing’s retreating figure.

He didn’t care whether Xiao Yuqing stayed or left, but the direction he was heading clearly pointed toward Yu Zhengzheng.

Heh, Rong Shang scoffed inwardly. This man was obviously going to cozy up to Yu Zhengzheng.

With a faint snort, Rong Shang thought to himself, And what does that have to do with me?

Thinking this, he leisurely turned away, shifting his gaze from Xiao Yuqing entirely.

His expression remained calm and indifferent, as though he genuinely didn’t care.

Someone offered him a bronze wine flask with a friendly gesture. He didn’t refuse, but when the flask was returned, five deep finger marks had mysteriously appeared on its surface.

Yu Zhengzheng was in the midst of her intense retching when a pale, jade-like hand appeared in front of her.

She stared at it blankly for a moment before realizing the hand belonged to Xiao Yuqing.

He held a dampened silk handkerchief in his other hand. “Here, wipe your mouth. It’ll make you feel better.”

After a brief hesitation, Yu Zhengzheng accepted the handkerchief.

She wiped her mouth but still felt something lodged in her throat. Her mouth was sticky and uncomfortable.

It seemed Xiao Yuqing had anticipated this. In his other hand was a large bowl filled with clear water, which he had apparently fetched earlier.

Noticing her hands were unclean, he brought the bowl to her lips himself. “I’ll hold it for you. If this offends you, I hope Miss Yu can forgive me.”

Yu Zhengzheng was slightly taken aback by his attentiveness. His meticulousness extended even to the smallest details, which left her feeling both surprised and touched.

Her previous doubts about him began to waver. Xiao Yuqing and the deranged man from An Ning’s dream couldn’t be more different. He had saved her on several occasions and helped her countless times.

When she was harassed by the King of Asura, it was Xiao Yuqing who stepped forward to protect her.

Later, during the spirit test, he had lent her a spirit bead to help her through.

Wasn’t it too narrow-minded of her to keep testing and doubting Xiao Yuqing?

If Xiao Yuqing wasn’t connected to An Ning, then what would she do? Even if her intentions were to help Shanshui, her methods seemed rather improper.

Yu Zhengzheng reflected on her actions, drank a sip of water directly from his hand, and rinsed her mouth.

She was about to thank him when his hand trembled, and the bowl slipped from his grasp, crashing to the ground.

The water splashed on both of them, but Xiao Yuqing’s sleeves bore most of the muddy stains.

He apologized, looking slightly sheepish. “A bug landed on my hand, and I lost my grip.”

Yu Zhengzheng nodded, understanding. The area was indeed teeming with insects.

She was about to assure him it was fine when she saw him slowly roll up his sleeves, revealing a pair of smooth, alabaster-white forearms.