Discuss

She knew her actions just now were very misleading, but heavens be my witness, she really just wanted to get a little closer to relieve the poison. She had no other intentions!

‘The strange thing is, how could Lu Wu Jiu’s sash be so easy to undo?’

‘Especially with an outsider like her in the room?’

‘She had thought that with his “keep-your-distance” personality, he would sleep wrapped up in three inner and three outer layers.’

Lu Wu Jiu didn’t seem to believe her explanation. When he looked back, his eyes were dark, his emotions difficult to read.

Lian Qiao fiddled with her fingers, at a loss. Suddenly, an idea struck her. “Actually, there was a mosquito just now. A really big mosquito was on you, sucking your blood. I was trying to help you swat it. Why are you reacting so strongly?”

Lu Wu Jiu said blandly, “How big was this mosquito, that you needed to bring a stool over? Were you planning to hit it with the stool?”
Lian Qiao was speechless.

She gritted her teeth and insisted, “It was huge, because… because it was a demon mosquito. Naturally, it was much bigger and much stronger than a normal mosquito!”

As soon as the words left her mouth, the atmosphere clearly fell silent.

“You’re saying, a mosquito can become a demon?” Lu Wu Jiu raised an eyebrow slightly.

Lian Qiao could only bite the bullet and continue to make things up. “Although it’s a bit rare for a mosquito to become a demon, if a praying mantis can, why can’t a mosquito? Have you forgotten? I have the gift of identifying a hundred demons at a glance. I even performed a great service when I was three, catching an undercover great demon!”

Speaking of this past event, Lu Wu Jiu was indeed silent for a moment.

Because this matter was so outrageous that it was still classified as a top-secret incident in the Wu Xiang Sect, not to be spread to outsiders.

Even now, Lian Qiao herself was still shaken when she thought about it.

The reason she always said she was gifted wasn’t just because she had a nine-stage spiritual root, but also because of a little-known talent—the ability to identify a hundred demons at a glance.

This might not sound like much, but in reality, demons were fickle and ever-changing.

If a powerful great demon deliberately disguised itself as a human and concealed its aura, it was very difficult for a cultivator to discover.

There once was such a great demon who not only took human form and infiltrated the Wu Xiang Sect, but even rose to the position of Peak Master, going undiscovered for many years.

Until one time at a banquet, this great demon picked up the then three-year-old Lian Qiao, occasionally poking her two chubby arms to tease her.

Lian Qiao giggled from the teasing and grabbed the great demon’s arm, innocently saying that he had many more arms than she did—a total of six “arms”!

It was said that when these words were uttered, the entire hall fell silent.

At first, everyone just thought Lian Qiao was a child who didn’t know any better and laughed dryly to cover up the awkwardness.

But later, when they saw the “arm” Lian Qiao was holding had revealed its true form, and saw the barbs on it, everyone looked at each other and realized that things were far from simple.

And so, the banquet that day ended with the shocking revelation that “the Peak Master of Bihua Peak is actually a compound-eyed praying mantis great demon,” and then plunged into unprecedented chaos…

Lian Qiao’s talent for identifying a hundred demons at a glance was also discovered because of this.

So, at this moment, when Lian Qiao mentioned that she had identified this mosquito as a demon, Lu Wu Jiu couldn’t directly refute it.

He seemed to be lost in thought. “Demon mosquitoes are indeed rare. But even if this mosquito has become a demon, it is quite peculiar. It can actually go against its nature, ignoring the blood and instead trying to take off clothes?”

Lian Qiao was speechless.

Even if she were a fool, she could tell that Lu Wu Jiu was mocking her!

She became angry from embarrassment. “Who was taking off your clothes? It was an accident. What’s there to see about you anyway?”

Lu Wu Jiu’s tone was flat. “Oh, nothing? Then why were your eyes glued to me just now?”

Lian Qiao crossed her arms. “I was just surprised. I didn’t expect someone who looks so arrogant to be so… plain and ordinary. No different from anyone else.”

She deliberately emphasized the words “plain and ordinary.”

Lu Wu Jiu’s hand, which was tying his sash, paused. “So, you’re very knowledgeable and have seen quite a few people?”

Lian Qiao lifted her chin. “Of course! So, you’re nothing special. Why would I deliberately look at you? I said it was an accident. It’s all this damn poison’s fault…”

She was stubbornly denying it, rambling on about the annoyances of the poison.

Lu Wu Jiu lowered his gaze slightly and saw the faint redness of her earlobes, like a cat’s ears, pricked up nervously, tinged with a light pink.

His originally cold and hard tone suddenly softened a bit.

His tone was flat. “Did I say I didn’t believe you?”

Lian Qiao finally shut up.

Following that, Lu Wu Jiu walked toward the bed. As he turned, he gave her a look. “You can come over now.”

He paused, then added, “Within one step is fine too.”

This one sentence directly pierced through Lian Qiao’s earlier cover-up.

Lian Qiao started to stammer. “Wh-who said I have to be within one step of you tonight?”

“Didn’t you?” Lu Wu Jiu said again, “Then forget it.”

With that, he raised his hand to pull the screen by the bed shut.

Lian Qiao, quick-witted, rushed forward to stop him. “Wait!”

She managed to hold the screen, but her movements were too hasty, and she pressed her hand on top of Lu Wu Jiu’s.

As their hands overlapped, Lu Wu Jiu lowered his gaze slightly.

Lian Qiao quickly withdrew her hand, hiding it behind her back.

‘Ahhh, I’m going to die! I actually touched Lu Wu Jiu’s hand!’

‘And I was the one who initiated it!’

Lian Qiao’s heart was in turmoil, and her expression changed rapidly.

She was just about to think of an explanation when she saw that Lu Wu Jiu had already walked behind the screen, seemingly not having taken what just happened to heart at all.

So Lian Qiao also calmed down. ‘That’s right, it’s just a touch of the hand, what’s the big deal?’

She coughed. “That’s right, for this flare-up, I do need to be within one step of you. But don’t worry, I would never do anything to you.”

Saying this, she thought of a solution. “Why don’t we fight?”

Lu Wu Jiu, who was standing with his hands behind his back, seemingly lost in thought, lifted his eyelids. “…What did you say?”

Lian Qiao was very pleased with herself. “Let’s have a close-quarters spar. I’ll attack, you defend. This way, we can stay within one step of each other without having to look at each other with disgust!”

After saying this, she felt she was a genius for even thinking of such a brilliant idea.

Lu Wu Jiu, however, showed no emotion, his eyes cold.

Lian Qiao took this as his agreement and made a move, using the “White Crane Spreads its Wings” technique.

Unexpectedly, before she could even touch Lu Wu Jiu, he pressed her down onto the pillow.

Lu Wu Jiu propped himself up beside her, his tone not very good. “Can you just be quiet?”

Lian Qiao was bewildered. “Are you tired? You don’t want to fight tonight?”

Lu Wu Jiu didn’t say yes or no, just looked at her quietly for a while.

Lian Qiao felt he was very strange tonight. “Could it be that today’s barrier technique has exhausted you?”

Lu Wu Jiu still didn’t speak.

Lian Qiao pondered again, “Or perhaps, you were drained of your spiritual energy by Miss He?”

Lu Wu Jiu’s tone was displeased. “…Can you speak properly?”

Lian Qiao, however, felt she had hit a sore spot. She smiled. “It was just a small spell. I didn’t expect you to be strong on the outside but weak on the inside, so physically deficient!”

“Physically deficient?” Lu Wu Jiu glanced at her.

“Am I wrong?”

Lian Qiao was overjoyed, mentally calculating whether she could have cast the spell better than Lu Wu Jiu. The more she thought, the more certain she became.

As her imagination ran wild, she didn’t notice Lu Wu Jiu’s gaze on her growing deeper and deeper, nor did she notice that the way he was propped up beside her was a bit intimate.

She certainly didn’t notice that as she laughed with abandon, the hand Lu Wu Jiu was using to hold her down tightened slightly, leaving a red mark on her snowy white wrist.

When she had finished laughing, she realized that Lu Wu Jiu had leaned down at some point, and seemed a little too close to her…

Lian Qiao finally sensed that something was wrong. Her eyes darted around. “Don’t we just need to be within one step of each other? Why are you so close to me?”

Lu Wu Jiu’s thin lips moved slightly. “Are you wearing some kind of scented cream?”

Lian Qiao was puzzled. “No. What scent is there?”

After thinking for a moment, she sniffed and said doubtfully, “Could it be because I bathed? I used the town’s Five-Spice Soup. The smell is quite nice.”

“Oh?” Lu Wu Jiu seemed very interested. “What Five-Spice Soup?”

“There’s angelica, peach bark, arborvitae leaves, Lingling, and one more…” Lian Qiao scratched her head, suddenly unable to remember them all. She simply pulled over a strand of her hair. “Aren’t you the one with the good memory? You should be able to smell it, right?”

“Let’s try.” Lu Wu Jiu’s tone was calm.

Lian Qiao then leaned in slightly. Just as she was about to get closer, her whole body suddenly relaxed. The heat hidden deep within her body was instantly drawn out.

She immediately pushed Lu Wu Jiu away, flipped over and got off the bed, relieved. “The hour is up, I’m fine now!”

Lu Wu Jiu’s expression was not very good.

After stretching her limbs, Lian Qiao suddenly remembered. “Ah, the last ingredient in the Five-Spice Soup is costus root. Do you want to try it? I still have some.”

Lu Wu Jiu pressed his brow. “…No need.”

“Fine, don’t then!”

Lian Qiao snorted. He was so moody, happy one moment and cold-faced the next. It must be because he was annoyed at being so close to her.

She was a fool too, for actually letting him smell her hair. He must hate it!

Looking again, Lu Wu Jiu seemed a bit tired. She pouted. “So tired, huh? You’re so physically deficient, you should really take some supplements.”

“Supplements?” Lu Wu Jiu raised his eyes.

Lian Qiao blinked. “Of course. At your age, you can’t be lacking.”

Lu Wu Jiu raised an eyebrow, surprisingly not refuting her. Instead, the corners of his lips twitched slightly. “Since you’ve said so, then it will naturally be as you wish.”

Lian Qiao was about to ask what his supplementing his body had to do with her when a terrifying thought came to her from his smile.

The first time the Gu acted up, they had to stay within five steps of each other. The second time, it was three steps. This time, it was one step.

Then next time, physical contact would probably be unavoidable…

Her smile froze on her face.