Chapter 174: The Mysterious Person

The night was profoundly quiet. Xie Yingying tossed and turned in bed, finding it hard to fall asleep.

For some reason, she suddenly recalled everything that had happened over the past few days—the Peach Blossom Wonderland, the Snow Chant Sword—all of it felt as though it had been meticulously arranged beforehand. Xie Yingying closed her eyes and sighed. Her eyelids were delicate, and her face was small; even if she buried her entire face in the pillow, no one would be able to see her expression.

"Sigh..." Countless sentiments stirred in her heart, yet she suddenly found herself at a loss for words.

The night deepened gradually. Feeling sleep finally overtaking her, she turned over and closed her eyes.

Moonlight spilled into Xie Yingying's room, casting a sliver of silver across her face and lending the space a tranquil air. Then, her door was pushed open.

In a place devoid of other souls, the sound seemed somewhat abrupt. After all, the door was aged and somewhat disrepairful. A faint fragrance drifted through the air—seemingly the scent of sandalwood. At this moment, Xie Yingying had not yet fully drifted off to sleep; she only felt as though someone had entered her room. She wanted to open her eyes, but found herself unable to do so.

Xie Yingying tightly clutched her quilt. Her usually slender and fair fingers looked faintly pink in this setting, appearing immensely adorable.

Though she naturally possessed a delicate, oval-shaped face, now partially obscured by the moonlight and the quilt, she gave the impression of having a cute, slightly round face. Her skin was so smooth that it tempted one to reach out and touch it.

In truth, Xie Yingying actually felt someone touch her cheek.

The touch was exceptionally light, like a feather brushing across her cheek, tickling her heart with an itch. She blinked her eyes, her speech somewhat muzzy with sleep.

"Who is it..." Before she could finish, Xie Yingying felt her consciousness sink into darkness.

The intruder was completely draped in black, leaving no inch exposed. He wore a mask, likely to avoid recognition; under the moonlight, the mask exuded a bloodthirsty chill—cold and sharp.

He reached out and gently touched Xie Yingying's cheek. His finger brushed against her warm skin, the sensation lingering as if it had not yet faded. The man wanted to touch her again, as if unable to control himself, but suddenly, his hand froze mid-air.

He seemed to have suddenly noticed something, realizing perhaps that he had crossed a boundary. That hand, reflecting a cold whiteness in the air with its slender, pale knuckles, curled slightly and was quickly withdrawn. Under his sleeve, his clenched fist revealed bulging veins.

The moonlight had shifted to the second window, plunging Xie Yingying's features back into darkness, concealing her from view once more.

With only a faint glimmer of light remaining in the room, the man finally walked toward Xie Yingying.

Holding his breath to the utmost, he carefully propped Xie Yingying up.

After pondering for a moment, the man finally ceased his hesitation. Perhaps he had just considered the prospect of sitting directly behind Xie Yingying, which made him feel slightly self-conscious, but now, having resolved himself, he began to channel his spiritual energy.

A faint aura of spiritual energy lingered within the dim room, casting a partial glow upon the lower half of his face beneath the black robe. His chin was exquisitely carved, but anything above it remained obscured in shadow.

The infusion of this spiritual energy was genuinely painful. Although Xie Yingying was asleep, she was not under anesthesia; the tiny nerves along her back felt as though they were torturing her, sending prickling waves of pain straight to her cerebral cortex.

A light film of sweat broke out all over Xie Yingying's body. Separated only by layers of fabric, her body temperature steadily rose. Sensing this and guessing that time was running out, the man abandoned further hesitation and accelerated the flow of his spiritual energy.

This time, the pain pierced deeply into Xie Yingying's senses, stirring an urge within her to awaken. Yet even if she were to regain consciousness, her mind would only be partially awake while her true vision remained blinded by the man; thus, should she wake, she would merely dismiss the ordeal as a dream.

"It hurts!"

Perhaps the pain truly overwhelmed her, prompting Xie Yingying to cry out groggily without caring about the consequences. The man's hand stiffened; he halted his spiritual energy and fell utterly silent.

Beneath his mask, he lowered his gaze. Even he himself did not know what he was thinking, but with dawn approaching and lingering unwise, the man turned and departed.

The moonlight receded as day broke. Waking up in a hazy fog, Xie Yingying felt an abrupt, all-encompassing soreness throughout her body.

Thinking it was merely an illusion at first, she bolted upright.

A startled cry echoed through the room: "Ah Xi, it hurts like hell!" Xie Yingying's newly raised torso collapsed right back onto the bed.

She moved her arm and could practically hear the cracking friction between her bones. Frowning, she tried to recall the previous day. Her body had been perfectly fine, so how was it that after just one night...

She suddenly paused. If she remembered correctly, someone must have come last night. But back then, she was trapped in a state between wakefulness and sleep, and could not guarantee she wasn't dreaming. Besides, apart from a select few individuals, ordinary people simply could not enter her room.

Xie Yingying decided that no one met the criteria to break in. Bai Shengyun, being a man of upright character, was even less likely to enter. Furthermore, she had been too exhausted last night, falling asleep the moment her head hit the pillow; certainly no one had come in. Xie Yingying rubbed her messy hair, intending to clear her mind.

"What's the use of dwelling on this?" Xie Yingying shook her head, already settling on an answer in her heart—she must have accidentally compressed or bumped herself while sleeping!

Having formed her conclusion, Xie Yingying didn't dwell on it further and immediately got up to change clothes upon confirming that the night's event was merely a dream.

The sun outside was somewhat blistering. The moment Xie Yingying pushed open the door, she was greeted not by a refreshing breeze, but by a wave of heat and a stomach that rumbled fiercely from missing breakfast for too long...

Even the cicadas outside had stopped chirping. In such scorching weather, only children would choose to brave the heat to play for a while. Fortunately, Xie Yingying's inner peace was sufficient; accepting such circumstances wasn't too difficult.

Just as she was planning to go look for Bai Shengyun, she spotted him playing a game of Go.

However, he was playing all by himself. Xie Yingying found this a bit strange, yet she also seemed to understand; after all, mighty experts always loved playing against themselves—the legendary battle against one's own self!

She walked over and saw Bai Shengyun placing a white stone. His eyelashes were lowered, the emotions in his eyes unfathomable, and his entire demeanor was distracted. Yet, his breathtaking looks remained undiminished; even while distracted, he was devastatingly handsome!

However, Xie Yingying quickly snapped back to her senses.

No, she must not harbor feelings for Bai Shengyun!

Seeming to sense her presence, Bai Shengyun paused his hand and looked up at her. Their momentary eye contact caused Bai Shengyun to freeze slightly.

Feeling somewhat awkward, Xie Yingying was about to make up an excuse to leave when she heard Bai Shengyun raise an eyebrow and ask, "It comes with the board. Care to join?"

Xie Yingying desperately wanted to decline, but she hadn't played Go in ages, and the sight of the chessboard instantly awakened her hidden craving; to say she didn't want to play would be an outright lie.

Besides, she had searched the evil sect for a long time without finding a single chessboard, and she had been utterly bored out of her mind these past few days.

And so, she instantly cast aside the thoughts she had harbored just days prior. "Fine then... let's play a few rounds."

She walked over, her sleeve brushing against the marble tabletop, took a seat on the stone chair, and accepted the Go stones Bai Shengyun handed over.

The stones had a pleasant heft to them, completely to her liking. She preferred playing with weighted pieces—they could even double as self-defense in sudden emergencies.

Xie Yingying exchanged a couple more remarks with Bai Shengyun.

"Ahem, I'm actually very strong at this, so don't look down on me!" She was merely afraid of losing too miserably, considering she had only participated in tournaments in her past life.

"Too lazy to laugh at you."