Chapter Nine: Arrival at Gufeng Mountain

The three of them, each harboring their own schemes, spurred their horses onward, finally reaching Mount Guofeng before nightfall. At this hour, the slanting sunlight cast long shadows. Where a village once lay at the mountain's foot, not a single wisp of cooking smoke rose; everything was eerily silent, not even the croak of a frog could be heard.

"It’s so quiet," Xie Yingying muttered, unable to contain herself. The emptiness before her made her inwardly alert. Something was wrong on this mountain. Even though the three of them possessed considerable cultivation, if a riot truly broke out, they might not be able to handle it.

Ning Qingqing halted the carriage and shot Xie Yingying a glance. "What did you expect? This is hardly the bustling marketplace of the mortal realm."

All this way, she’d been subject to Bai Shengyun’s oppressive aura, which only deepened her resentment towards Xie Yingying. She found herself constantly looking for ways to pick faults.

But Xie Yingying was unfazed by the sarcasm. "We’ve come all this way and haven’t seen a single soul. Doesn’t this deserted place strike you as strange?"

She racked her brains, trying to recall any plot involving Mount Guofeng, but her memory was hazy—she could remember almost nothing about this part of the story.

The utter desolation filled her with suspicion. Something about the surroundings felt off, unsettling in a way she couldn’t quite explain.

With this in mind, Xie Yingying quietly listened for any sound from inside the carriage, curious to see how Bai Shengyun—the one who’d lounged like a lord the entire journey—would react.

He had certainly enjoyed himself along the way, making the most of Ning Qingqing’s unwavering devotion. That peerless, pure-hearted lotus of a woman had followed him with all her heart, only to be reduced to a tool, assigned to drive the carriage without rest.

Now, her limbs were stiff from maintaining the same posture for so long, while the man inside remained perfectly composed.

From behind the curtain, Ning Qingqing summoned her courage to ask, "Immortal Lord, should we continue on?"

"Go and investigate the situation on the mountain. Find out where everyone has gone," Bai Shengyun ordered without a trace of politeness, pointing a finger to dispatch her as if she were a servant.

Ning Qingqing’s teeth pressed against her lower lip, but she agreed briskly, "Yes, I’ll go at once."

Xie Yingying could only roll her eyes, feeling Ning Qingqing’s effort was wasted. Yet, pity welled up in her—how unfortunate for Ning Qingqing to have such blind devotion, only to meet Bai Shengyun, a wall as cold and unyielding as stone.

As she watched Ning Qingqing’s figure recede into the distance, a wave of sadness swept over her, and she shook her head in silent lament.

What a shame such devoted affection had to be wasted on Bai Shengyun.

Suddenly, the carriage curtain was flung aside, and Bai Shengyun emerged.

He alighted with unhurried grace, strolling nearby with the air of a man without a care in the world. "The scenery is pleasant enough, but it’s a pity there’s no one around."

The silence was so profound it seemed even the insects were too exhausted to chirp.

Xie Yingying rolled her eyes at his remark. Of course there was no one here—who would wander all over this mountain for no reason? Not unless they were like Bai Shengyun, a fox by nature, wild and untamable.

Hearing footsteps approaching, Xie Yingying instinctively edged away from Bai Shengyun as he disembarked. She pretended to survey the scenery with boredom, though she was really watching him out of the corner of her eye, slowly increasing the distance between them.

After all the trouble he’d brought her, she remembered it all too well. She couldn’t beat him, but she could certainly avoid crossing him—no need to invite further trouble.

Bai Shengyun, noticing her almost trying to vanish into the underbrush, narrowed his eyes. "Where do you think you’re going?"

Xie Yingying froze mid-step, then turned with a forced smile. "I’m just having a look around, maybe I’ll find someone nearby."

"Someone’s already gone. Get over here," Bai Shengyun commanded, beckoning her without the slightest courtesy.

A chill ran down Xie Yingying’s spine. "And who do you think you are, that I should come just because you say so?"

"You clearly need to be taught a lesson. Are you waiting for an eight-man sedan to carry you over?" Bai Shengyun’s eyes narrowed further, his voice tinged with coldness. In an instant, the air around him became as frigid as an icy abyss.

She had been much quieter these past days, but he knew she was unwilling and likely plotting something. As long as she didn’t try to escape, he could afford to show her some leniency—no need to push her so hard that she became desperate enough to fight to the death.

Xie Yingying cursed her luck and grudgingly approached. "I’m here. What do you want this time?"

Bai Shengyun took a chair from his storage artifact, sat down carelessly, and said, "Massage my legs."

For a moment, Xie Yingying was dumbfounded by his brazenness. "I don’t know how."

Never before had she seen someone give orders so shamelessly. She worried that if she did as he asked, she’d use too much force and something would go wrong.

Bai Shengyun looked up lazily, a hint of disdain on his face. "If you can’t even serve someone, what can you do? Flirt and fool around all day?"

"You seem to know already, so why bother asking?" Xie Yingying shot him a cold look, inwardly cursing him in every way she could imagine.

She’d suffered enough on this journey; her anger still hadn’t cooled, and she refused to humble herself further. Besides, there were others more eager for this role, but Bai Shengyun, blind as ever, had sent them off to scout instead. He truly didn’t know how to cherish what he had.

The standoff continued: Xie Yingying unwilling to comply, Bai Shengyun growing impatient.

He snorted, a dangerous smile flickering across his lips. "I’ll ask you one more time—will you, or will you not?"

As he spoke, his fingers twitched, and Xie Yingying’s expression changed at once.

A familiar pain stabbed her abdomen, and her face contorted in fury as she glared at the culprit, wishing she could flay him alive.

"Hurry up," Bai Shengyun urged, watching her suffer with cold indifference.

Helpless, Xie Yingying gritted her teeth and obeyed, dutifully massaging his legs.

As she did so, the pain vanished instantly. She hadn’t suffered much physically, but she cursed Bai Shengyun up and down in her mind, not sparing a single ancestor.

Threatened all the way, and now forced to serve him—nothing had ever felt so humiliating.

When Ning Qingqing returned from her reconnaissance, she walked in on Xie Yingying tending to Bai Shengyun, her hands all over him, and was immediately undone.

Seeing Xie Yingying fawning over Bai Shengyun, Ning Qingqing was once again infuriated by her rival’s actions.

Time and again, Xie Yingying had stolen her chances to ingratiate herself with Bai Shengyun, and now she paraded before him without shame. All of it turned to burning jealousy, seething in the pit of her heart and making her grit her teeth in rage.