A Prisoner of Love

After all, this was the Xuan Nv Sect, where women were revered and men were lowly; in Mu Qingli’s eyes, Lin Mo likely seemed to be defiling the sect’s female disciples!

This act fundamentally trampled upon the Xuan Nv Sect’s bottom line, challenging its very authority!

Therefore, Lin Mo urgently needed to clarify that he had not intentionally touched a female disciple of the Xuan Nv Sect.

Yet, Mu Qingli’s gaze not only showed no trace of softening, but instead grew sharper and more unfathomable, like a keen blade tempered in ice, pinning Lin Mo’s face with an unyielding intensity.

Thud!

Seeing Mu Qingli’s expression, Lin Mo did not hesitate for a moment, his knees crashing heavily onto the stone slab. Cold sweat instantly beaded on his forehead, and his voice became sharp as he explained to Mu Qingli: “Esteemed Master, please see clearly! This disciple harbors no disrespectful intentions whatsoever! Liu Ruyan is at the ninth layer of Qi Condensation! When she suddenly acted, this disciple’s meager cultivation offered no means of evasion!”

Lin Mo prostrated himself on the ground, not daring to lift his eyes to meet Mu Qingli’s gaze. After waiting a moment and finding her silent, he continued: “Moreover, Grand Elder Qing You was right beside us at the time. If this disciple had reacted too strongly, rashly pushing Liu Ruyan away, I feared it might displease the Elder, giving her a reason to target you, Esteemed Master? Thus, the contact just now was purely accidental! This disciple had no other intentions!”

“These matters are unimportant.” Mu Qingli’s voice was like the drip of a cold spring, each word sending a chilling sensation through Lin Mo to his very bones. Strangely, however, she had skipped over the “defilement” accusation, which Lin Mo feared most.

‘This is unimportant… then what is important?’ Lin Mo felt a little bewildered.

“You and that little girl, you truly only met on the day of the sect entrance test?”

“Absolutely true. This disciple had only just escaped from a certain place and immediately stumbled into the Xuan Nv Sect. Aside from the day of the test, this disciple had no time to get to know other women. Everything just now was an act!” Lin Mo’s reply was decisive and firm.

“So, your joyful conversation with her earlier, and allowing her to feed you, was all acting?”

‘Of course not! Liu Ruyan is innocent and carefree; being with her felt like basking in a spring breeze. That sense of ease and freedom was something I couldn’t possibly fake.’

‘However, these words must never be spoken.’

“That was, of course, all for you, Esteemed Master!” Lin Mo declared passionately, “Grand Elder Qing You watches with covetous intent, her true motives laid bare! Even a disciple who has just arrived at the Xuan Nv Sect can see that she constantly makes things difficult for you, intending to harm you, Esteemed Master. As your disciple, how could I allow her to seize a handle against you?”

Lin Mo raised his head, meeting Mu Qingli’s gaze, offering her his fervent look of ‘utter devotion.’

“Esteemed Master! I harbor no ulterior motives! Liu Ruyan, at the ninth layer of Qi Condensation, acted suddenly, and I, I couldn’t react in time! And, moreover, with Grand Elder Qing You watching from the side, I couldn’t resist too fiercely! I could only reluctantly accept it. But to preserve the overall situation, I had no choice but to let Liu Ruyan feed me.”

Lin Mo’s voice choked, as if he had endured immense humiliation, finally kowtowing heavily. His forehead struck the cold stone ground with a dull thud: “This disciple deeply understands that this action has violated the sect’s taboos. As a man, to touch a sect disciple—even death would not absolve this disciple of fault! But this disciple’s sincerity towards Master is absolute, witnessed by heaven and earth! Should there be a single false word in what I have just said, I am willing to be struck down by heavenly lightning, my soul utterly annihilated! I beg Master… to punish me severely!”

Mu Qingli remained silent.

She simply continued to look down upon the prostrate Lin Mo from her elevated position, just as before. In the depths of her icy eyes, an unknown storm seemed to be brewing.

After a while, Mu Qingli’s clear, cold voice finally broke the silence: “Stay away from her from now on. You are not permitted to approach her again.” Mu Qingli turned, then paused, as if finally remembering something, and added, “You may continue with your work. Come to the main hall tonight; I have some things to discuss with you.”

There was no punishment, nor any other words, but since he hadn’t been injured, he had likely managed to muddle through.

Lin Mo silently let out a breath of relief in his heart. Only after Mu Qingli’s footsteps had faded into the distance did he slowly rise, wiping his forehead. Perhaps due to his improved physical condition, his forehead didn’t ache, but his heart certainly felt a pang of discomfort.

‘After all, all this jumping at shadows isn’t good for the heart. I need to figure out Mu Qingli’s temperament soon, otherwise, constantly startling myself like this will lead to a nervous breakdown sooner or later…’

‘I won’t think about it for now. First, I’ll deal with my livelihood. Sometimes, busyness can make you forget many things.’

Meanwhile, Mu Qingli’s figure, like a gust of wind carrying frost, almost hastily swept towards the main hall of the Sect Master’s residence.

The dilapidated Sect Master’s residence was no longer as still as stagnant water as it had been in the past. Apart from the sounds of Lin Mo’s hammering, there was also… a heartbeat.

Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump!

The sound was muffled and rapid, like a battle drum being pounded, or the frantic thrashing of a beast trapped in a cage. Each beat exploded clearly within her own chest!

This sensation was unsettlingly unfamiliar. Having cultivated the Bright Jade Profound Yin for so long, her heart’s lake had long solidified into profound ice, unmoving through ten thousand years—silent, deep, without a single ripple.

Yet now, beneath that frozen surface, fiery lava seemed to surge, roar, and boil, almost threatening to melt the layer of solid ice completely!

The source of all this turmoil stemmed from that single phrase—

“It’s all for you, Esteemed Master!”

Lin Mo’s voice, filled with indignation and choked emotion, yet utterly decisive, was like the most stubborn demonic melody, searing itself deep into her sea of consciousness! It echoed and reverberated again and again; each tremor was like a stone cast into her heart’s lake, stirring up circles of unquellable ripples that spread outwards, disturbing the profound stillness that had been frozen for far too long.

And the brilliant, seemingly burning gaze of utter sincerity that erupted when his eyelids lifted was even more like a branding iron, searing itself onto her very soul, refusing to fade!

What further alarmed her was the abnormality of her body!

The power of Bright Jade Profound Yin circulated throughout her, meant to keep her body cool, as if covered in ten thousand years of frost, isolating her from all worldly heat. Yet, at this moment, a strange and surging warmth uncontrollably rose from her limbs and bones!

This heat was distinctly different from the peculiar warm current that had settled in her lower dantian when she previously absorbed Lin Mo’s mysterious and pure energy!

It gathered forcefully and unreasonably, finally burning her cheeks fiercely, like a wildfire spreading across the plains!

Those two patches of skin, perpetually pale as ice and snow, were now uncontrollably heating up, warming, and even… subtly revealing a faint blush that she herself had never noticed!

This unfamiliar burning sensation left her more flustered and her mind in utter disarray than any enemy’s spell.

‘However, this must be happiness.’

‘Perhaps it had been so long since she had felt such joy that Mu Qingli could no longer recall what happiness used to feel like.’

‘It was probably just like this today.’

‘Lin Mo, he truly has fallen completely.’

As this thought arose, Mu Qingli seemed to find a reason for the heat on her face and her uncontrolled heartbeat.

‘Yes, I am happy! Happy that Lin Mo has finally become completely—uh, what was that phrase Master used? Oh, a prisoner of love!’

Recalling the moment just now, Lin Mo’s impassioned “It’s all for you, Esteemed Master” was nothing short of a roar born of uncontrollable emotion!

That indignant choke and trembling body were simply Lin Mo’s panic and excitement, fearing that he might be misunderstood or doubted by her!

Hadn’t Master once said? The more one cares for someone, the more one likes someone, the more one constantly explains and finds reasons for something—it is precisely out of fear of being misunderstood or misinterpreted by the person they like.

All those words Lin Mo spoke just now, that flustered appearance, wasn’t it because he was afraid she would misunderstand?

For the first time in a long while, Mu Qingli hummed a certain melody—one her Master had taught her, but which she hadn’t hummed in ages, because it had been so long since she felt this happy.

Someone liked her.

Someone needed her.

Someone acted for her.

Humming the tune, Mu Qingli’s steps became light. She pushed open the main hall doors, picked up a brush that had long been unused, dusted it with spiritual energy, took out a sheet of paper, and began to outline a cultivation plan for Lin Mo.

She could not allow her Lin Mo to be snatched away by that old hag Qing You.

However, she still needed to be wary of that little girl Liu Ruyan; after all, men were easily led astray by others.

‘Might as well write a plan to prevent Lin Mo from being deceived by other women too.’