Chapter 80: Do You Think… They Might Kiss?

Jiang Che, now quiet, carefully pondered his relationship with Hu Qiao’er.

He truly shouldn’t define Hu Qiao’er with the word “betrayal.”

After all, Hu Qiao’er wasn’t his to begin with—he shouldn’t be so selfish.

He had been too extreme before.

Come to think of it, the bamboo grove Yun Yan had taken him to was truly a nice place, especially with the Light Sphere in his Sea of Divine Sense.

“You go first…”

“You go ahead…”

The two of them spoke in unison once again.

Perhaps the scene was just too awkward to watch—Wang Hao went off to look for that rabbit from before.

Only the two of them were left standing where they were.

Hu Qiao’er smiled, a lovely smile, simple and sweet like a cherry.

Hu Qiao’er said, “Then I’ll go first.”

Hu Qiao’er understood Jiang Che.

“Ah Che.”

She called softly, and Jiang Che responded.

It had always been like this for the past three years.

“Are you upset? But the reason you’re upset shouldn’t be because I came to find you, right?”

Jiang Che stayed silent.

Hu Qiao’er continued, “Ah Che, you just said you wanted to go back to the village—did you mean you want to go back with me?”

Jiang Che nodded. Once she got his confirmation, Hu Qiao’er was filled with joy.

“Ah Che, I’m so happy. At least I know you want to go back to the village with me, to be with me. But don’t worry, that day will come—just not yet.”

“Even though I know how you feel, I also understand, Ah Che, that you’re willing to come with me because you want to escape from something.”

“You’ve never wanted to talk to me about your past.”

“It must have been something painful, right? Otherwise, why haven’t you smiled in these three years?”

“If we’re going to be together, then we have to smile together!”

“That’s what I think. Since you’re not willing to talk, then let me find out about your past!”

Jiang Che fell silent again.

This time was different—his carefully prepared apology was suddenly useless.

He had thought Hu Qiao’er cultivated for her own sake, and that he shouldn’t be angry at her. But now, listening to her, he realized he was completely in the wrong.

He should apologize, but didn’t know how—there were so many things he should apologize for, he couldn’t even figure out where to start.

Perhaps he should just tell her everything about himself?

Hu Qiao’er stepped forward and took both of Jiang Che’s hands in hers.

“Ah Che, since you aren’t willing to face your past, then let me face it for you, because I want to be with the real you as soon as possible.”

Her gentle grasp was impossible to refuse. Listening to Hu Qiao’er’s words, Jiang Che soon felt something was off and pulled his hands away.

“No! It shouldn’t be you facing it! I’m not running away, I just… I just…”

Jiang Che thought about it—the problem wasn’t him, nor was it Hu Qiao’er. Hu Qiao’er had no reason to do all this, it shouldn’t be her responsibility.

But Hu Qiao’er suddenly threw her arms around him.

She spoke quietly into Jiang Che’s ear.

“Ah Che, there’s no such thing as should or shouldn’t. I’m doing all of this for you.”

“I came here just for you.”

“Seeing how sad you look, I know how much you loved your past life.”

“I want to understand. If I don’t, I can’t be with the real Jiang Che. In this sense, I’m doing it for myself. It’s all worth it.”

The air went still in an instant. Jiang Che stood there dazed, not knowing what to do.

The sensation of body heat was strikingly real; the soft whisper at his ear echoed in his mind, leaving him thunderstruck and unable to move.

At this moment, Wang Hao, who had been hiding far off, finally managed to catch that rabbit and was munching on a melon from afar.

The rabbit in his hands also looked on at the scene, quietly staying put in Wang Hao’s grip.

“My goodness, are kids these days all this precocious?”

Jia Xianren appeared beside Wang Hao without warning, startling him into a shiver.

Seeing Jia Xianren’s sly-looking face, Wang Hao almost blurted out, “What kind of monster are you!”

They had no idea that Jia Xianren had been quietly following them all the way.

Jia Xianren had also obtained a cultivation method in the secret realm, which could allow him to join the Shenxiao Sect as a Servant Disciple.

But what Jia Xianren cared most about was Jiang Che.

After all, he’d already lost more than ten days.

He had no idea if that “Poison Pill” might activate early—he needed to catch Jiang Che and report back as soon as possible.

So he quietly followed Hu Qiao’er and Wang Hao, hoping to meet Jiang Che again.

But this was the Shenxiao Sect, not some wild roadside, where you could just sneak up behind someone and cover their nose and mouth with a cloth.

All he could do was first determine Jiang Che’s whereabouts.

He had just arrived here when he witnessed this scene.

“Hey! Old man, what are you doing following us?”

“Stupid brat! Who are you calling old? The Shenxiao Sect isn’t your house—I’ll go wherever I want!”

The two bickered, but even while quarreling, their eyes were still fixed on Jiang Che’s side.

“You think… they’re going to kiss or something?”

Jia Xianren spoke with uncertainty in his voice.

“No… way…”

……

Shenxiao Sect, Dungeon.

The place was perpetually cold and damp, with the chill seeping from the cracks in the stone mixing with the musty scent of years gone by; the air felt so heavy it seemed like water could be wrung from it.

Dim gems were embedded in the walls, their light barely outlining the rough stone and rusty chains.

The place was designed to torment the prisoners’ minds as much as their bodies.

Two Outer Sect Disciples, usually bored out of their minds, had finally found something to do today.

Their assignment was this very cell.

They were a bit older; when they first entered the sect, they had been lucky to be assigned here, earning a small daily amount of contribution points.

It was peaceful, too, giving them enough time to slack off and cultivate.

The peace was because, in recent years, the Shenxiao Sect had been strict about disciple selection, so there were rarely any who needed to be locked up or punished.

Plus, it was cool in summer and warm in winter here.

The only downside—no idea why—but in this dark room, with two men stuck together for decades, never seeing any lively junior sisters or graceful senior sisters…

After a while, even looking at each other, they began to think the other had rather fine features.

They remembered when they first took over this post, their seniors recommended they cultivate the Heartless Dao as much as possible, just in case the environment got to them.

Thinking back, it did make some sense.

Outside the Dungeon.

Yun Yan walked at a leisurely pace, making his way into the Dungeon.

“I wonder how the interrogation is going?”

Unable to contain his curiosity, Yun Yan finally decided to come.

He strode into the first level of the Dungeon entrance.

He thought the guards would come up immediately to greet him. Looking around, the dim room was empty.

It was a small, square stone chamber, clearly the guards’ resting place. It was surprisingly tidy.

In the center stood a square wooden table with two short stools.

“Ahem, ahem.” Yun Yan cleared his throat.

Soon, the sound of footsteps came from deep down the stone stairs, echoing closer and closer.

In a moment, two male disciples in dark Outer Sect Disciple robes emerged from the stairwell, hurrying over.

The one in front was a bit taller, walking upright with a straight back, looking rather imposing.

The one behind was a bit shorter, habitually hanging his head so low you could barely see his face, his messy bangs covering most of his forehead, making him look shy and somewhat nervous.

They both stopped in front of Yun Yan.

“Sect Master!”