The Beautiful Pariah Thought He Could Be Loved - Chapter 31

Chapter 31: Duan Shi Suddenly Grasped His Wrist…

“Where is the evidence?” the person across from him glared.

Dan Yu looked at “Han Wan.” The other party’s skin was porcelain white, and those coral-red lips parted to demand proof. Thick lashes fluttered like butterfly wings, and piercing light-brown eyes glared at him—evidently, she was fuming.

Dan Yu felt like laughing. He Lvqing hadn’t told him who Han Wan really was, but who else could be so closely linked to the Sword Sovereign yet unable to show their face in public? He smiled faintly.

Why did no one ever mention that Xin Qishu of the Blood Glory Palace was such a rare beauty?

The man across from him, actually named Xin Qishu, narrowed his eyes, a cold glint flashing in his pupils.

Dan Yu felt a sense of exhilaration. Could He Lvqing have failed to foresee this situation? What kind of leverage did Xin Qishu hold over He Lvqing to make him compromise so far as to smuggle him out of the dungeon?

Aiding a criminal in fleeing—that charge…

Dan Yu was interested in beauties, interested in the leverage over the “First Man of the Immortal Sects,” and even more interested in fame and merit.

Dan Yu grinned. “I only spent time alone with you yesterday. Once on the spirit boat, once at your room door. Many people saw that.”

“Hmph… what kind of bullshit evidence is that…” Xin Qishu spoke through gritted teeth. It was another situation where he couldn’t afford to make a scene. He realized at this moment the hidden motive behind He Lvqing’s suggestion.

Yes, he was out.

He had become someone else, with a strange name; his past relationships were severed, and his appearance had changed. On the surface, he was independent; he could move and act, and objectively, he could distance himself from He Lvqing.

But psychologically, He Lvqing had drawn closer. Everything had changed except for He Lvqing; He Lvqing had become his only link to the past.

He wasn’t this girl named Han Wan. Fanhua Peak had no such disciple. Human blood didn’t run in his veins. He couldn’t strike out at others. He had a guilty conscience; he had to live in shadows, yielding at every turn. He had to rely entirely on He Lvqing.

He Lvqing controlled his life. Therefore, whether it was Yang Li or this lunatic in front of him, they were all extensions of his relationship with He Lvqing.

“Whether it counts as evidence, we’ll know once we return to Fayu Court for an interrogation by the Elders.”

Someone nearby sensed something was wrong. “But Dan Yu, the Immortal Competition starts in a few days. If you go back to the sect now, you won’t make it back in time. Are you giving up your spot?”

From the chatter, Xin Qishu knew Dan Yu was the top contender among Fayu Court’s participants, the one most favored to take the title. If he left, Fayu Court would lose a major honor.

“The jade pendant bestowed by my Imperial Father is more important.” Dan Yu’s smile was incredibly fake.

Xin Qishu had long lived outside groups with such clear rules; he was unfamiliar with their way of life. But now, he saw a shadow of He Lvqing in Dan Yu—not in strength or talent, but something more hidden… that slightly paranoid ambition.

This Dan Yu didn’t just know his identity; he wanted to expose it. This was He Lvqing’s plan!

Lvqing wanted to kill him!

That was the “fact.” The hesitation he felt previously due to He Lvqing’s attitude vanished completely in this instant.

How can He Lvqing be such a good actor? Is an insignificant person like me worth the Sword Sovereign’s effort?

He wanted to cry and laugh at the same time, but he couldn’t show neither. Dozens of eyes were on him.

The marriage contract was intangible, but now it felt like a wire wrapping around his neck, slowly tightening—the thing Xin Qishu once viewed as a symbol of happiness and love had turned into terminal cancer.

Xin Qishu turned slightly. He had only tied his hair loosely before leaving; now, most of it had escaped the ribbon. He looked disheveled.

He raised his head and spoke, his voice showing no fear or retreat. Without the adornment of makeup, his facial lines looked sharper. His gaze was as keen as a blade, revealing a hint of heroic spirit.

“The sect chose you to win honor for us. By fleeing before the battle, are you worthy of the Elders who sent you?”

Dan Yu opened his mouth to speak, but Xin Qishu cut him off. “You have already stepped onto the path of cultivation, yet you still dwell on worldly possessions! Everything should be for the sake of the sect. I will not go back with you now.”

“Suspecting a fellow disciple without evidence—we’ll go to the Elders after the competition and see who gets punished!”

These words seized the moral high ground. An older female cultivator stepped forward to hold Dan Yu back, saying seriously, “Han Wan is right. Dan Yu, you can’t leave. Everything will be decided when Elder He returns.”

Dan Yu’s face contorted. He wrenched his arm away and squeezed the words out through his teeth: “Is Elder He’s decision necessarily correct? Is he incapable of opening a back door for someone?”

He brushed his sleeves as if dusting them off. “To be honest, before we left, Elder He told me I had a ‘friend’ named Han Wan.”

“Before today, I had never seen this person,” Dan Yu challenged. “Have any of you?”

The person who had vouched for Han Wan yesterday turned coat today; the crowd broke into a clamor.

The commotion was so loud that almost all the guests in the inn poked their heads out to watch.

“Um, excuse me, sorry to interrupt.” A strange voice suddenly rang out from behind the crowd. Xin Qishu turned to see Duan Shi, dressed in white, looking at them with a bright smile.

Under everyone’s gaze, Duan Shi approached and stopped in front of Xin Qishu.

Xin Qishu scrutinized him.

He could feel that He Lvqing had gone somewhere dozens of kilometers away for some reason. If he ran now, He Lvqing wouldn’t be back in time to catch him. He could hide for a while… Besides signing the “Severance of Fate,” was there any other way to dissolve the marriage contract?

Sunlight fell on Duan Shi’s face, blurring his expression.

In a blink, he thought of another path. So what if he finds me… I just have to design it so he can’t bring me back. The Immortal Alliance likely wouldn’t make any major moves soon; no more than twenty people would chase him.

Twenty people—just three bites for an adult spirit beast.

It was a long way to the South Forest; he would have to use his full strength… Behind Xin Qishu was an open window, the light blue sky framed by wood.

A cool breeze stirred Xin Qishu’s hair. Before the crowd, Duan Shi pulled a handkerchief from his robe. “The other day I accidentally entered this lady’s room and mistook this handkerchief for mine. I return it to its owner today and hope for her forgiveness.”

A blue shape was embroidered in the corner of the handkerchief. The stitching was messy; the pattern was unrecognizable.

Since the annihilation of the Blood Glory Palace two months ago, Duan Shi had been living at Fayu Court. He had seen “Han Wan” a few days ago. Where else could he have seen her besides Fayu Court?

Consequently, the conflict Dan Yu tried to spark failed to gain traction. Fearful of Duan Shi, a formidable rival, the Fayu Court disciples didn’t want to air their dirty laundry and retreated to their rooms.

Dan Yu looked at Duan Shi in disbelief, wanting to say something, but was dragged away by the senior sister. Only the two of them remained in the corridor.

Duan Shi held it out. His eyes were still covered by white cloth. “It truly was unintentional.”

His tone sounded sincere, but Xin Qishu felt the man was teasing him.

Xin Qishu looked at him expressionlessly. “I believe you. To thank you for returning my handkerchief, I give this to you.”

He pulled the ugly rabbit from his storage pouch and shoved it into Duan Shi’s hands. “You must accept it.”

Duan Shi had his own ways of “seeing.” He knew at a glance that this rabbit and the handkerchief came from the same person. He asked in earnest, “Is it really okay to give this to me?”

Xin Qishu replied in the same tone, “Is it really okay to give me a break?”

He couldn’t beat Duan Shi; Duan Shi definitely wouldn’t let him escape. Xin Qishu’s words were just bickering.

“Of course. I have no reason to trap you. I don’t want this rabbit, though—it’s too ugly.” Duan Shi’s tone was light. He shoved the rabbit back to Xin Qishu and backed away several steps. “If you really want to repay me for helping you out, why not answer a question for me?”

“What question?”

Duan Shi glanced left and right, his lips thinning into a line. He lowered his voice. “Let’s talk in your room.”

…

“You are a mixed-blood demon, once engaged to the Young Master of the pure-blood demons. Am I wrong?”

Duan Shi stood by the table while Xin Qishu sat in a chair.

“Is that all you wanted to ask?” At the mention, Xin Qishu remembered the pure-blood clan. Were they slaughtered as well?

He hadn’t spoken to He Lvqing about this directly. He Lvqing hadn’t told him the current state of the Demon Abyss.

“No.” Duan Shi leaned in, his tone suddenly profound. “I want to ask you: is it the mixed-bloods or the pure-bloods who can turn into red particles?”

Xin Qishu said, “Pure-bloods.”

“You encountered a pure-blood demon? Where?” Xin Qishu asked. He sensed that his answer confirmed something for Duan Shi.

“…Do you know the Qingrong Flute?”

Xin Qishu nodded.

“I sacrificed my eyes to gain the ability to glimpse the flow of events. I’ve had some success in divination.”

“My fellow disciples and I have been chasing the demon who stole the Qingrong Flute and killed the disciples of the Hutong Sect. We caught up, but just when we were certain we could seize them, they turned into red particles and escaped.”

“…Are you certain you could seize them?” Xin Qishu remembered the massive net that had fallen on the day he and Fei Jia escaped. His hands under the table began to shake uncontrollably.

Duan Shi seemed to know what he was thinking. “Yes. The Demon-Capturing Net is specifically designed for mixed-bloods; once inside its range, there is no escape. This is the second question: How did you get out?”

“I found fragments of an immortal artifact on that mountain, and pieces of the shredded net. How did Fei Jia get you out of that net?”

Xin Qishu looked at him. He Lvqing knew about his dagger—had he not told them?

Duan Shi suddenly grasped his wrist. Pure spiritual energy surged into his veins. Xin Qishu let out a cry of pain. Sweat instantly broke out on his forehead.

The demonic energy that had suddenly appeared in the room was suppressed.

Duan Shi gripped his wrist tightly, pulling him close. Looking into Xin Qishu’s eyes, which had turned a crystalline red, he yelled sternly:

“What are you doing? Change back, quickly!”

“Do you want to die?!”