When the White Moonlight Holds the Script - Chapter 5

A tall, grotesquely humanoid figure with elongated upper limbs, where arms should have been, replaced by two sickles of uneven lengths.

This was a low-level demon.

Zhu Zhihan calmly assessed.

Had it been her previous life, she could have easily obliterated this creature.

But unfortunately, she was now merely a mortal who had yet to cultivate any spiritual energy.

So, she had no choice but to,

Run.

She snatched a potted plant nearby and hurled it at the demon’s face.

Turning on her heel, she dashed through the moon gate.

Behind her, the sound of shattering porcelain echoed, followed by heavy, thudding footsteps.

Night had already fallen.

Suddenly, flames erupted along the horizon. In the distance, screams and cries rose and fell, carrying from the open courtyards to every ear.

More than one demon had infiltrated.

The hunt had begun.

Shing—

The sound of a sharp blade slicing through the air.

Zhu Zhihan rolled to the right, narrowly dodging the sickle once more. But as her stamina waned, her movements failed to keep up with her commands, and a deep gash split open on her wrist.

Beads of blood welled up.

Ignoring the searing pain, she gasped for breath, pushed herself up, and spared a glance at the system.

[Countdown: 4:01:56]

No good.

A mortal’s body was far too fragile; she would be worn down to death. This was definitely not the right solution.

So, what should she do?

The sickle came slashing down again, its metallic edge reflecting the moonlight, casting a gleam across her face.

Her loose strands of hair fluttered in the wind.

Crack!

The blade embedded itself into a pile of stones.

Zhu Zhihan sidestepped just in time, rolling away to create distance. As she had anticipated, the sickle was lodged firmly in the crevice.

Even with its limited intelligence, the demon sensed it was being toyed with by its prey. It threw its head back and roared in fury, the sound piercing her eardrums and causing a slight dizziness.

The crevice didn’t hold the demon for long. Fueled by rage, within moments, the stones began to tremble, on the verge of being shattered by its monstrous strength.

Once the demon broke free, it would tear any living thing in its path to shreds.

Yet, Zhu Zhihan did not turn and run as before.

She watched the demon coldly, pressing her fingertips against her wound.

The blood had not yet dried, staining her pale fingers crimson.

Using the blood, she swiftly drew a series of symbols on her forehead, the back of her hand, and her arm with fluid motions.

Crash!

The stones scattered in all directions.

The towering demon wrenched its sickle free and turned around.

Its hollow eyes scanned the surroundings, its shriveled nostrils sniffing vigorously. “Huh?”

Where was she?

The bloodthirsty maw was right before her, corrosive saliva dripping onto the ground. Yet Zhu Zhihan stood unmoving, her expression serene.

The monster passed right by her, strode through the moon gate, and ran off into the distance.

Concealment Talisman.

A simplified version derived from formations, drawn directly on the body. As the name implied, it was a talisman that concealed one’s presence, making it undetectable to others.

This was the correct solution.

Although the Xuan Yin physique offered little benefit for cultivation, its blood was a rather decent material for formations.

Its most useful trait was this: while formations typically required spiritual energy to activate, using the blood of the Xuan Yin physique eliminated that need. Even a mortal could draw a functional talisman.

Perfect for her current situation.

The advantages of the Concealment Talisman were clear easy to form, suitable for short-term combat. The downside, however, was its short duration.

She needed to find another place to hide.

Zhu Zhihan finally found a suitable, hidden spot behind the rockery and once again used her blood to draw an array this time, it was the real formation. Drawn on stone, it was more stable but required even more blood.

By the time she finished, her face had grown even paler.

She paid it no mind, tearing strips of cloth from her robes to bind the wound.

Outside the rockery, tree branches hung chaotically in the darkness, resembling clawing ghostly shadows.

Curled up in the shadows, she suddenly recalled her previous life.

Back then, it had been the same using this very array to evade her master and the pursuers.

Yet in the end, she had still been defeated by human nature.

“But, how could there be demons here?” she murmured.

In her past life, she hadn’t participated in the Spirit Cleansing trial. She had left directly with Master Danqi and never heard any related news afterward.

This was a pocket realm specially crafted by the Immortal Alliance, its key entrusted to their specialists. Logically, no demon should have been able to infiltrate.

And certainly not so many.

Unless…

Someone within the Immortal Alliance had betrayed them. Demons had infiltrated their ranks.

A century ago, the demon race had suffered a crushing defeat, forced back into the abyss to survive in hiding. The cultivation world had enjoyed a rare century of peace.

This once-every-thirty-years selection was the Immortal Alliance’s chance to recruit new talent the future of their organization.

If this generation of newcomers were slaughtered, it would not only be a significant loss for the Alliance but also a severe blow to their prestige.

Was this a signal, a planned counterattack by the demons?

No wonder, then.

If the demons had succeeded in her previous life, the Immortal Alliance would have surely suppressed the news.

Countless scattered clues and pieces of information began falling into place in her mind.

Just then, hurried footsteps echoed from afar.

Two light, one heavy.

“Damn it, we can’t shake this thing off!” a woman’s voice cried out.

“It’s toying with us,” a young man’s voice followed, trembling with unmistakable fear. “You know how cats play with mice? Letting them run, catching them, letting them run again, until finally.”

“Shut up!”

The footsteps drew closer.

Zhu Zhihan watched as two figures rushed near the rockery where she hid. The young man tripped over a protruding tree root, and the woman, who had been ahead, stopped and turned back to help him up.

In those few moments, a shadow wielding twin sickles emerged behind them.

The woman reacted swiftly, yanking the young man aside.

A second later, and one of them would have lost a limb.

Hidden nearby, concealed by her silencing array, neither human nor demon detected Zhu Zhihan.

She observed the scene with icy calm, almost detached.

If this had been her former self, she would have rushed out without hesitation to save them. But…

The greatest impact her previous life had left wasn’t physical suffering, nor even the loss of her life it was her ability to trust others.

If even those closest to her friends, family could betray her for an outsider’s sake, what about strangers she had only just met?

Zhu Zhihan’s clear, frosty eyes reflected the three figures.

She couldn’t guarantee that those she saved wouldn’t turn around and sacrifice her in return.

Saving others was truly a foolish, thankless endeavor.

Du Peiran never could have imagined that the Spirit Cleansing trial would unfold like this.

He had been soaking comfortably in the spiritual liquid when something pitch-black emerged out of nowhere, wielding a massive scythe and killing two people in an instant.

His legs turned to jelly from fear. Fortunately, his companion, Xiao Chuling a woman with nerves of steel was still there. She grabbed him by the collar and dragged him away as they fled.

This pocket realm was truly vast and labyrinthine.

They dashed past numerous moon gates and forked paths, but the monster seemed to be able to track their scent. No matter how they tried to hide, they couldn’t shake it off!

In the end, the creature caught up to them.

Du Peiran tripped over a tree root, spraining his ankle, and could only hobble along unsteadily.

Tears and sweat streamed down his face from sheer terror. “Heroine! Miss Xiao! Just run! I can’t go on. Leave me here. Use this time to escape quickly.”

Smack!

A slap landed on his face. Xiao Chuling, still gripping the back of his collar, yelled, “If you’ve got the energy to talk, use it to move! Stop whining!”

They narrowly dodged another swing of the scythe, and he was yanked to the ground by Xiao Chuling’s force. Sobbing, he cried, “Th-thank you Miss Xiao, please don’t leave me behind. I don’t want to die.”

He always seemed to be like this mediocre, incompetent. Even when he mustered a sliver of courage, it never lasted long before his true nature was exposed.

Because of his injured foot, they couldn’t run far and were forced into a stalemate with the monster in a small courtyard.

Soon, they were cornered.

Faced with the towering creature, his legs completely gave out. Xiao Chuling wasn’t faring much better either gasping for breath, muscles cramping, sweat dripping from her cheeks to her neck.

His mind went blank.

Is this the end?

But at that moment, he felt something tug at him from behind.

He was dragged backward, and a cold hand clamped over his mouth.

“Shh.”

Collapsing in the shadow of a rockery, he caught sight of a slender figure.

Soon, the figure repeated the maneuver and pulled Xiao Chuling into the hiding spot as well.

He was completely dazed.

The towering monster circled outside a couple of times before stomping away with heavy footsteps.

S-safe? Had someone saved them?

By the faint glimmer of light, he studied the person who had rescued him and Xiao Chuling.

Snow-white hair that stood out even in the darkness, a delicate and elegant profile unmistakable at a single glance.

“You are…” He instinctively used a respectful tone.

Wasn’t this the legendary disciple of the Dao Lord, the one who stood out like a crane among chickens?!

Xiao Chuling recognized her too. “Hey, it’s you! I knew you were different from the others.”

She spoke excitedly, “Do you remember me? This weakling and I talked to you during the day, hehe.”

Du Peiran scratched his cheek sheepishly.

The young woman’s cool voice cut through, “It’s not time to relax yet.”

“I didn’t save you for nothing. You must swear a Heavenly Oath.”

“Heavenly Oath?”

The young woman nodded. “Yes. Swear by your Dao heart. If you break the oath, even if you step onto the path of cultivation in the future, you will be plagued by inner demons at every turn, forever barred from the Great Dao.”

Both of them shuddered. Xiao Chuling was the first to compose herself and said, “That’s only fair. You saved us, so we should agree to any request you make. Tell us.”

“Good. What I want is actually very simple,” the young woman said.

“From now on, you will obey me.”

Although it was a rather unprofitable deal, Zhu Zhihan still saved them.

She couldn’t quite explain why she had acted that way.

Perhaps it was because seeing someone as helpless as her past self made her unable to sit still.

That feeling, she understood it all too well.

Of course, while saving them, she had already prepared a foolproof plan by making them swear a Heavenly Oath.

With the Heavenly Oath in place, they wouldn’t dare betray her.

Xiao Chuling and the other person, having sworn the oath as Zhu Zhihan demanded, still seemed a bit dazed: “Is, that it?”

Zhu Zhihan frowned. “What else?”

Xiao Chuling: “We thought…” that the other party would demand something more excessive, like using them as cannon fodder or something.

Zhu Zhihan said indifferently, “If you’d like to add something more, I don’t mind.”

The two shook their heads vigorously.

Xiao Chuling was the first to laugh.

“Hey, you really are a good person.”

After resting for a while, the two calmed down and briefly recounted their previous experiences.

Honestly, they never expected to be rescued. Ordinary people like them were completely powerless against those monsters and could only flee.

Earlier, Xiao Chuling had tried to form alliances to fight the monsters.

But those chosen prodigies from the major sects, who had agreed so readily, ended up only caring about their own escape and pushed them out instead.

After hearing their story, Zhu Zhihan fell silent.

“You two are quite capable.”

If it were anyone else, the grass on their grave would already be two zhang tall.

Du Peiran said, “It’s all thanks to Sister Xiao. She knows martial arts. If it were just me, I’d really be done for, haha.”

Xiao Chuling felt a bit embarrassed by the praise. “We were also pretty lucky, right?”

As she spoke, she looked at Zhu Zhihan.

Zhu Zhihan felt conflicted: If being pushed out to take the blow was considered good luck, then nothing could be considered bad luck.

Still, at least she hadn’t saved the wrong people.

The three of them rested and gathered their strength for a while.

Just as Zhu Zhihan had anticipated, their peace didn’t last long.

However, contrary to her expectations, it wasn’t a high-level demon capable of seeing through her formation that arrived.

Instead—

A figure drenched in blood came into view, looking somewhat familiar.

Xiao Chuling recognized her: “Isn’t she that one from the Medicine Sect, the…”

Before she could finish, the person glanced in their direction, then seemed to lose all strength and fainted.

A flicker of surprise crossed Zhu Zhihan’s face before it settled into aloof indifference.

Her voice was cold. “Danqi Zhenren.”

“To think we’d meet at a time like this. What a coincidence.”

So coincidental, it hardly seemed like a coincidence at all.

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