Chapter 67: Poisoned

“Kill… me… I’ll do… anything…”

Not long after, the two maids among the bones, unable to bear it any longer, began to speak in broken gasps, pleading desperately to Li Muxian above the pit.

Seeing this, Li Muxian slowly nodded:

“Seems the effect is decent.”

He flicked his finger, halting the activation of the Life-Death Mark on both women.

Instantly, the two maids gasped heavily, as if rescued from drowning.

Cang Yinyue, watching beside them, showed a flicker of surprise on her face.

The method Li Muxian used to torture them was clearly more terrifying than the Interrogation Bureau’s techniques, shattering the prisoners’ psychological defenses so swiftly.

She looked at Li Muxian again; to her, he had somehow become inscrutable.

Whether it was his unbelievable martial cultivation or his constant mastery of strange, astonishing martial arts, they kept shattering her existing understanding.

She truly had no idea how many secrets this man still held.

“Miss Cang, the rest is up to you.”

Li Muxian had no intention of questioning these people himself—he simply handed this tedious task over to Cang Yinyue.

Hearing this, Cang Yinyue’s gaze subtly swept over Zhu Fenglan, her lips parting slightly, yet no words came out.

Li Muxian naturally understood her thoughts; he waved his hand and said:

“All of them are yours to deal with—no matter how deep your grudge. Kill them, flay them, do as you please.”

Cang Yinyue exhaled slowly, gazing deeply at Li Muxian, and said:

“Thank you.”

Then she leapt straight down into the bone-filled pit, heading toward the seven immobilized figures…

Li Muxian withdrew his gaze and shook his head.

At that moment, his eyebrows lifted slightly as he turned toward a spirited woman who had stealthily appeared in the courtyard.

As soon as their eyes met, Shangguan Qingqing and Li Muxian stared at each other in silence.

“I… I didn’t mean to attack you.”

Shangguan Qingqing quickly raised both hands; her once proud, beautiful face now looked timid and cautious.

She gently turned her head, gesturing toward the ruins in one corner of the courtyard, and said:

“I remember there was another girl here, like me, hunting down lecherous bandits. I came back to save her.”

Li Muxian glanced at the ruins and waved his hand, signaling her to do as she wished.

He had already noticed Guan Shanxue, but seeing she was unharmed—merely knocked unconscious by the collapsed house—he had paid her no mind.

Seeing this, Shangguan Qingqing let out a heavy sigh of relief.

She stole a glance at Li Muxian, then hurried into the ruins and dug out Guan Shanxue, covered in dirt and dust.

After checking her body and confirming no serious injuries, she channeled her true qi into Guan Shanxue’s body, slowly bringing her back to consciousness.

Guan Shanxue awoke, pressing her hand to her forehead, feeling dizzy and heavy-headed, her vision blurred with swirling colors and double images.

She lifted her head slightly, scanning the surrounding ruins and the figure of Shangguan Qingqing beside her, still unclear where she was.

But the next instant, when her gaze landed on Li Muxian, her eyes locked—suddenly drawn to some peculiar aura emanating from him.

At the same time, the swirling colors in her vision faded, her dizziness began to lift, yet her gaze remained glued to Li Muxian, unable to look away.

An inexplicable flutter stirred within Guan Shanxue’s heart—seeing this man, she felt sudden joy and warmth, an overwhelming urge to be near him, to hold him in her arms.

And in fact, Guan Shanxue acted on it.

With a dazed, infatuated stare at Li Muxian, she rose from the ground and rushed toward him, arms wide open to embrace him.

But Li Muxian pressed one hand against her forehead, halting her completely.

“Huh? I know I’m admittedly handsome, but why didn’t she ever act this way before? Now she suddenly throws herself at me?”

Li Muxian touched his face, frowning at Guan Shanxue, her face caked in grime like a spotted cat:

“I can’t even bring myself to touch her!”

Hearing this, Shangguan Qingqing’s eyes flickered; she stared at Guan Shanxue, who was now clawing desperately at the air, determined to cling to Li Muxian, and suddenly remembered something:

“I recall—I just heard faintly that the lecher’s mother gave her something called a Thousand Obsessions, Hundred Sorrows Powder. Supposedly, it makes women fall madly in love with any man they see.”

She turned to Li Muxian again and said:

“That’s probably why she’s acting like this.”

Hearing this, Li Muxian raised an eyebrow slightly and narrowed his eyes:

“There’s actually such a strange potion?”

Before he crossed over, while browsing the web, he’d often seen endless pop-up ads, many of them promoting fake love potions.

But those were all scams—tricks to swindle old perverts out of money; no such drug existed in reality that could make someone fall in love out of nowhere.

Yet here, in this world where martial cultivation flourished, such bizarre things actually existed.

Thinking of this, he flicked his finger against Guan Shanxue’s forehead.

Instantly, her internal true qi boiled like water, crimson flushes spreading along her pale neck, her face turning bright red.

The next moment, she bent forward and spat out a jet of black fluid thick with true qi, then rolled her eyes back and fainted.

“The poison’s been purged. She should be fine. I leave her to you.”

Li Muxian pushed Guan Shanxue toward Shangguan Qingqing, who caught her and stared at Li Muxian with eyes full of wonder.

Then she laid Guan Shanxue on the ground, tidied her robes slightly, and formally bowed to Li Muxian with both hands:

“I am Shangguan Qingqing, from Qingzhou, a disciple of the Tianhe Dao Sect. Your righteousness and profound martial skill truly inspire me. May I know your name, so we may become acquainted?”

Hearing this, Li Muxian glanced at Shangguan Qingqing—this girl was spirited and lovely, and she praised him well.

“Li Muxian.”

He returned the bow with a martial handshake.

Shangguan Qingqing’s face lit up, assuming Li Muxian was a humble, approachable young hero.

But Li Muxian’s next words left her stunned.

“Miss Qingqing, you may also call me His Imperial Highness the Eighth Prince. I also have a Jianghu nickname: Little Li Flying Dagger.”

“Of course, if you’d like to call me the Number One Martial Artist in the World, that’s fine too.”

Li Muxian spoke calmly, without a hint of irony.

(End of Chapter)