Master is Also Running Away from Marriage Today (Transmigration) - Chapter 49

When Mu Ling woke up, it was already daylight. The spiritual energy within her flowed unimpeded, and the aphrodisiac poison had been neutralized. Yet, she felt as though she had died and come back to life her entire body ached as if crushed by a boulder, with not a single spot spared from soreness.

Through the parted bed curtains, a faint figure stood outside. Ding Xin bowed her head respectfully and asked, “Is Shifu alright? What kind of poison was it? Is she seriously affected?”

“She’s better now,” Mu Ling heard a slightly hoarse voice reply from behind her. “The poison has mostly been neutralized.”

“Shimei, you really have a way,” Ding Xin sighed in relief before asking again, “Has Shifu woken up yet?”

“She has.” Mu Ling heard the voice behind her continue, its tone as deferential as ever. Yet beneath the covers, a pair of hands leisurely traced circles along her waist. “Shifu, would you like to speak with Shijie.”

Mu Ling clenched her teeth, her senses suddenly sharpening to an unbearable degree. Memories from the previous night flooded her mind belatedly: her shameless self-clinging to Lin Qingge, seducing her; Lin Qingge, who had initially restrained herself before growing increasingly unrestrained; and later, when the poison had faded, Mu Ling sobbing and begging for mercy, only to be met with even harsher treatment.

Recalling those moments, Mu Ling wanted nothing more than to burrow under the covers. How could she possibly face Ding Xin now? She could only mumble vaguely, “I’m much better. I just need a little more rest. You may leave for now. I’ll call for you if I need anything.”

Thankfully, judging by Ding Xin’s demeanor, she had no idea what method Lin Qingge had used to “neutralize” the poison.

“This disciple will take her leave. Shifu, please rest well.” Hearing Mu Ling’s words, Ding Xin finally relaxed completely. Comforted by the thought that her steady and reliable Shimei was taking care of their master, she didn’t linger. Turning, she left the room, even considerately closing the door behind her.

Little did Ding Xin know, the “steady and reliable” Shimei she had in mind was currently embracing their master by the waist, her gaze brimming with amusement as she shamelessly yet adoringly studied every expression on Mu Ling’s face. Her eyes roamed over Lin Qingge’s features as if they could physically touch her…

“Wretched disciple, you—” Mu Ling gritted her teeth, her face burning crimson. Only after Ding Xin closed the door did she finally snap, struggling to break free from Lin Qingge’s embrace. “Let go of me!”

“Wretched disciple?” Lin Qingge’s smile faded, a shadow flickering in her eyes. Yet she obediently released her hold, lowering her head with a bitter chuckle. “Does Shifu not want me again?”

Her tone was so despondent that Mu Ling almost felt like a scoundrel who had taken advantage and then refused to take responsibility.

Watching Mu Ling’s expression freeze, Lin Qingge narrowed her eyes but let out another soft, bitter laugh. “It seems Shifu remembers now.”

Mu Ling didn’t dare move a muscle.

Last night, as the poison began to fade and her consciousness cleared, she had been terrified by the mind-numbing pleasure Lin Qingge had brought her. In her panic, she had cursed Lin Qingge as a “wretched disciple” and, in a fit of confusion, kicked her off the bed.

Lin Qingge, perhaps never expecting Mu Ling to deny everything afterward, had stood there in disheveled sleep robes, staring at the blushing figure who had burrowed under the covers, too ashamed to meet her gaze. Furious, she had laughed coldly. “This disciple overstepped. I dared to defy my master.”

Back then, Lin Qingge’s eyes were pitch black, her tone equally respectful, yet the words she spoke nearly made Mu Ling want to dig a hole and bury herself: “This disciple shouldn’t have pitied Shizun. When Shizun leaned in to pull me, kiss me, and urged me to ‘hurry up,’ I shouldn’t have obeyed Shizun’s words.”

“Shizun is always like this,” Lin Qingge lowered her head, sitting at the foot of the bed, her voice gradually laced with self-mockery, her eyes seemingly tinged with red. “It was my own foolish wishful thinking. I can’t blame Shizun for casting me aside like worthless trash. ”

Mu Ling didn’t know what had come over her at the time. Perhaps it was guilt, unable to bear the sight of the usually proud Lin Qingge looking so dejected and heartbroken. Or perhaps it was because the disheveled Lin Qingge was too beautiful, or maybe the remnants of the aphrodisiac poison hadn’t fully cleared. By the time Mu Ling realized it, she had already leaned close to Lin Qingge’s cheek, wrapping her arms around her slender back.

Mu Ling didn’t dare meet Lin Qingge’s gaze, her eyes fixed only on the exquisite curve of her collarbone as she murmured softly, “Don’t be like this.”

“Shizun, be gentle with me too,” Lin Qingge seized the moment to embrace Mu Ling in return, closing her eyes and trembling as she kissed Mu Ling’s lips. By the time Mu Ling regained her senses, she was already caught in another whirlwind of passion.

Looking back now, Mu Ling knew full well that Lin Qingge had likely employed a deliberate mix of the “pitiful act” and seduction. But such things only worked on willing participants. Mu Ling had been spellbound by her own folly and couldn’t blame Lin Qingge for it.

Taking a deep breath, Mu Ling dared not dwell on why she had kissed Lin Qingge the night before. She forced her thoughts away from those lingering, intimate scenes and turned a serious gaze toward Lin Qingge. “Qingge, we need to talk.”

“Shizun,” Lin Qingge narrowed her eyes slightly, watching Mu Ling’s evasive expression, yet her voice remained considerate. “I understand what you mean. Last night was just an accident.”

Mu Ling hadn’t expected Lin Qingge to say such a thing. She looked up in surprise, only to meet Lin Qingge’s eyes directly.

Mu Ling had never seen such an expression on Lin Qingge’s face before. Careful yet filled with sorrow.

“But this disciple truly adores Shizun,” Lin Qingge let out a bitter laugh, gripping Mu Ling’s hand. “I don’t ask Shizun to feel the same way, but could you at least let me stay by your side? You don’t know how I’ve suffered these past few days searching for you. I just don’t want to leave Shizun.”

Lin Qingge had already figured out Mu Ling’s weakness. She yielded to softness, not force. Now that the two had crossed this line, the more Lin Qingge acted devoted, the less likely Mu Ling would push her away in the days to come.

As for the future…

While her mind conjured countless ways to punish Mu Ling in bed should she ever try to escape again, Lin Qingge’s face wore a faint smile, her voice brimming with unmistakable joy. “Shizun, you don’t know how happy I am right now.”

“Shizun, as long as you let me stay by your side, no matter how you want me to serve you, I’ll cherish every moment.”

Mu Ling closed her eyes, her thoughts drifting back to the previous night. Despite the possessiveness in Lin Qingge’s gaze something that frightened Mu Ling, her actions had been tender and considerate, even carrying a hint of restrained eagerness to please. Mu Ling had to admit, she had indeed been extremely happy.

But this was Lin Qingge!

What virtue or merit did she possess to deserve such affection?

With a single swordstroke that swept across the nine provinces, Lin Qingge, radiant as the clear moon and gentle breeze, had actually made such a humble gesture, uttering those words to herself, completely crushing herself into the dust.

At this moment, Mu Ling wished she could slap herself: having deceived the affections of an innocent female cultivator, and now about to abandon her, leaving the other in a state of anxious uncertainty. If it were anyone else treating Qingge this way, Mu Ling would have long since run them through with her sword.

Yet now, the one bullying Qingge was herself. What right did she have to push Qingge to such a state?

…

Mu Ling bit her lower lip tightly, the words to sever their relationship lingering on the tip of her tongue, yet she couldn’t bring herself to say them.

Lin Qingge watched Mu Ling’s expression, a flicker of amusement swiftly passing through her eyes. She leaned in and once again took the initiative to embrace Mu Ling, kissing the top of her head as she whispered softly, “Master, don’t think about it anymore. Rest well for now. Your disciple won’t force you.”

Tormented by guilt and unwilling to face Lin Qingge, Mu Ling once again played the ostrich, obediently closing her eyes as instructed.

Almost the moment Mu Ling shut her eyes, Lin Qingge gazed at her trembling lashes and finally let the madness and delight in her eyes surface unrestrained. She stared at Mu Ling’s face as if bewitched, her lips curving slightly.

After all, we’re already in this kind of relationship.

How could I bear to force you?

No matter where you flee, I’ll keep a tight watch on you, using every means to make you willingly and gladly bind yourself to my side.

During Mu Ling’s retreat, the campaign against the demon realm was nearing its end.

The Demon King was dead, and the demons’ defeat was a foregone conclusion. Though no one knew why Lin Qingge, the one who had slain the Demon King, was absent from the camp, the other sects were happy to take advantage of the situation, seizing the opportunity to carve up the spoils of the demon territory.

However, Lin Qingge returned just in time for the final assault on the Demon Palace.

No one knew what she had been through, but it was obvious to all that Lin Qingge seemed to be in an exceptionally good mood. Her usually cold, godlike face now carried a hint of mortal warmth.

Apart from a few like Bai Fengqing, no one noticed that Mu Ling had been absent all this time. After all, Mu Ling had always lived in seclusion, often claiming illness…

Bai Fengqing did ask Lin Qingge about Mu Ling’s condition. He couldn’t understand why, but in the past, Lin Qingge had seemed to despise him, her expression colder than usual whenever they met. This time, however, her attitude was surprisingly pleasant, even with a faint smile on her lips. “Thanks to my tireless efforts, Master’s illness has almost completely recovered.”

Bai Fengqing felt something was off, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on it.

Soon, the day to storm the Demon Palace arrived.

Standing atop a high mountain peak, Lin Qingge gazed down at the vast sea of immortal realm cultivators below, her eyes narrowing slightly. After today, the demon realm will lie dormant for decades. And once I take control of the immortal realm, the demons will rise again in full force. When the two sides clash, those dregs will be utterly erased from this world.

Lin Qingge raised her sword, ready to lead the charge into the Demon Palace, when suddenly her eyes widened in shock. A swirling vortex of seven colors appeared on the horizon, slowly drawing nearer.

What is this?

The immortals below mistook it for a divine omen, even gasping in awe. Only Lin Qingge knew, this seven-colored vortex heralded imminent slaughter!

——Ahead of the Demon Palace lay the Slaughter Immortals Array set up by Yan Qi. This was a formation devised by the former Yan Qi to annihilate the entire immortal realm. Once inside, everyone would be affected, losing their sanity and ultimately turning on each other in a frenzy of internal strife.

This time, Lin Qingge had no intention of activating this array.

Very few knew of this array. So who had triggered it?

…

But now, Lin Qingge had no time to investigate the one who had activated the array. Before her, vast stretches of yellow earth were collapsing, and a massive pit appeared in the ground before the Demon Palace. People were falling into it one after another. In their panic, they belatedly realized something was wrong.

At the center of the pit, an array eye was revealed, spinning rapidly and drawing people into it, its area expanding relentlessly.

If the array eye were to spread across the entire ground, then the millions of cultivators in the pit would all perish!

To stop the array eye from expanding would require an immense expenditure of spiritual power and Lin Qingge’s identity as the Demon King would no longer be concealable.

If she simply stood by and watched.

Lin Qingge’s gaze swept over Ding Xin and the disciples of Qingyi Sect before she closed her eyes.

She had lost.

Perhaps from the moment she pledged herself under Mu Ling’s tutelage, everything today had been destined.

This was her, the Demon King’s belated fate and judgment.

In the end, she could never truly be Lin Qingge!

Yan Qi raised her head and let out a sorrowful laugh.

It was a scene many cultivators would never forget for the rest of their lives:

Dark clouds blotted out the sun, eerie winds howled, and sand and stones flew through the air. A bizarre seven-colored vortex appeared on the horizon, and countless people screamed as they were sucked into the array eye at the center of the pit.

Just when it seemed certain death awaited these cultivators, a single figure, clad in snow-white robes, stood before the expanding array eye.

Gritting her teeth, she resisted the array eye with all her might. As time passed, her spiritual power dwindled bit by bit, and it seemed she might perish in the array at any moment.

But suddenly, an overwhelming surge of spiritual energy erupted from Lin Qingge’s body. The crowd gasped in shock, their eyes widening at her increasingly haggard appearance.

“That—that’s demonic energy?!” someone in the crowd cried out in alarm.

Lin Qingge paid no heed to the clamor behind her. Clenching her teeth and shutting her eyes, she finally managed to close the array eye. Her spiritual power was nearly exhausted, and the moment the array eye sealed shut, Lin Qingge spat out a mouthful of blood.