“Junior Sister?”
Guang Fusha noticed Taohua following behind and asked in surprise,
“Why did you chase after me?”
“I want to go with you, Senior Sister.”
Taohua looked up at her with big eyes, pleading.
Guang Fusha froze for a moment, then rejected her outright.
“No. Go back and stay put.”
Taohua had long guessed she wouldn’t agree. She deliberately showed a pitiful, about-to-cry expression.
“Senior Sister… could it be that you don’t trust me either? Just like Elder Qi, you think I’m some spy planted in the cult?”
“That’s not what I meant.”
Not expecting to cause this misunderstanding, Guang Fusha had no choice but to explain the situation clearly.
“The eldest young master of the Beikun Sect shouldn’t be weak. If we really start fighting later, I’m afraid he might accidentally hurt bystanders. Junior Sister, if you come with me, it’ll be very dangerous.”
Taohua shook her head and grabbed tightly onto Guang Fusha’s arm with both hands.
“I’m not afraid. You’ll definitely protect me. I want to go with you.”
“This…”
Guang Fusha was still thinking of a way to persuade Taohua when another law hall guard came running from not far away.
“Protector!”
The guard’s eyes lit up when he saw Guang Fusha. He immediately dropped to one knee and urged,
“The Hall Master says she can’t stall for much longer. She asks that you set out for Heartbreak Cliff as soon as possible.”
Guang Fusha understood how serious this was. This was no time to keep tangling with Taohua over this.
“I know.”
She nodded to the guard, then turned to Taohua.
“Junior Sister, if you’re coming with me, you must be careful. In a moment you have to stick close to my side, understand?”
“Mhm, mhm, I understand.”
Taohua nodded earnestly, her hands unconsciously clutching the hem of Guang Fusha’s clothes.
She had to see it with her own eyes.
She had to confirm with her own eyes whether the plot had been changed by her butterfly effect!
Time was tight. They couldn’t dawdle any longer.
“Junior Sister, hold on to me.”
Guang Fusha wrapped one hand around Taohua’s slender waist, pulled her close, gathered her qi, and leapt. Her toes tapped lightly off the ground, and in the blink of an eye, the two of them vanished from everyone’s sight.
Taohua: “…”
She’d been so busy worrying about the plot, she’d completely forgotten about the whole “human skyrocket” thing. Ahhhh!
On the other side—
“Well? Is the Protector here yet?”
Yan Hong asked the guard at her side in a low, impatient voice, her face full of annoyance.
Sensing her bad mood, the guard answered tremulously,
“M-my lady, I’ve already sent people to urge her along.”
“Tch!”
Yan Hong was irritated too. She’d been napping comfortably in the Criminal Hall, and then out of nowhere some lunatic showed up. What karmic debt was she paying off to deserve this?
At the edge of Heartbreak Cliff, a young man in white stood tall and straight, utterly unafraid of the gale howling up from the depths, whipping his robes and his tied-up long hair into a frenzy.
His eyes had been fixed the whole time on the road leading to Heartbreak Cliff, waiting in lovesick torment for the appearance of the one he adored, aching to pour out to her a love deeper than the sea and higher than the mountains.
He waited, and waited.
At last, the one he loved appeared.
“Miss Guan!”
Guang Fusha dropped down from the sky. The wind she brought with her blew her black hair apart, revealing that face which turned men’s souls upside down—clear for all to see, flawless and unhidden, like an otherworldly goddess descending into the mortal world.
By contrast, Taohua, whose face had gone pale with fright, was simply… yeah, no comparison.
In a lover’s eyes, his beloved was Xi Shi incarnate. Someone like Taohua—who didn’t even qualify as a “shi” in comparison—naturally didn’t even register in the young master’s eyes. From beginning to end, his gaze chased only after Guang Fusha.
Knowing Taohua was somewhat afraid of heights, Guang Fusha asked with concern once they landed,
“Junior Sister, are you alright?”
“I-I’m fine.”
Taohua’s complexion looked a little awful. She pressed a hand to her chest, feeling as if her heart was about to jump right out.
This feeling was truly… sour and exhilarating.
Once she was sure Taohua was fine, Guang Fusha finally turned her gaze to the white-clad young man, cupped her hands, and smiled.
“If I’m not mistaken, young sir must be the eldest son of the Beikun Sect’s sect master?”
“Y-yes!”
Being able to see his goddess smile was the greatest happiness. The young man in white couldn’t even speak properly.
“M-my name is Mo Tu. I came to your cult today for the sole purpose of seeing you.”
“Oh?”
Guang Fusha let out a soft sound of curiosity.
“I don’t know what business you have with me, young sir?”
“I… I came to propose to you!”
Mo Tu summoned all his courage and bared his heart.
“Miss Guan, I’m serious. I’m not like those men who only covet your beauty. I truly love you. For you, I’m willing to do anything!”
Silence fell over the entire cliff.
A young master from a righteous sect risked his life to sneak into a demonic cult, all just to confess to their Protector—what a joke. People were already imagining that this young master’s head must have been kicked by a donkey when he was little.
After a long, dead silence, Guang Fusha suddenly smiled sweetly. But her eyes were the complete opposite—cold, devoid of any warmth, like the depths of an ice cellar.
The smile on her face was dazzling, so much so that Mo Tu couldn’t look away. He was completely entranced.
“Alright. Since young sir says you’re willing to do anything for me… do you dare jump off Heartbreak Cliff?”
All eyes instantly locked on Guang Fusha. Their expressions varied, but most of them were filled with utter shock.
“Protector!”
Yan Hong frowned slightly, calling out a reminder, unable to understand why Guang Fusha would make such a request of Mo Tu.
Guang Fusha acted as if she hadn’t heard. Her smile grew even sweeter as she took a step closer to him.
“What’s wrong? Don’t you love me very much, young sir? Didn’t you say you’re willing to do anything for me? So why aren’t you jumping?”
Mo Tu swallowed, turned, and glanced back at the cliff behind him.
Below was pitch black, bottomless. Only the howling wind spun and roared within, making a terrifying sound that seemed to swallow the whole of Heartbreak Cliff.
“Go on. Jump. Jump down.”
Guang Fusha stepped closer again. That sweet smile on her face somehow made her seem all the more frightening.
Intimidated by her aura, Mo Tu’s foot shifted unconsciously. The small pebbles beneath his heel rolled off the edge of the cliff and disappeared from sight in an instant.
Steadying himself, Mo Tu took a deep breath and looked at Guang Fusha with infatuated eyes.
“Miss Guan, do you… truly want me to jump?”
“What, you don’t dare?”
A trace of mockery flashed in Guang Fusha’s eyes.
They were all the same.
They said all the right things—that they could abandon their lives and everything else for her. But in the end, it was all just talk.
When danger came, what could be more important than their own lives?
Human nature was always this selfish.
Mo Tu gazed at her blankly, then turned to look down into the wind-torn abyss. His fists clenched tight as he made up his mind.
“So long as I can earn a single smile from you, I’m willing to do anything. Even if it costs me this life… it’s worth it.”
