I put my arm around the strong man's slender waist

Chapter 12

Turning slightly to the side, Gu Shaoting, with red eyes, looked at his little cousin, "Biyun..." His voice was hoarse, and tears fell as soon as he spoke, his emotions sincere and heartfelt.

My little cousin stared blankly, then suddenly hugged Gu Shaoting and burst into tears, softly calling out, "Brother..." It broke my heart to hear that.

Ruan Bicheng relaxed her brow and asked, unable to bear the reproach, "Didn't I tell you to wait at the inn? Why did you get here?"

The little cousin lifted her head from Gu Shaoting's arms, her bright eyes filled with tears. "You haven't contacted me for so many days. I was afraid something had happened to you, so I wanted to go find you, but I was discovered as soon as I infiltrated the Demonic Sect..."

Serves you right! You think you can just walk into the evil cult like that?!

Ruan Bicheng frowned slightly, and then heard her say, "Thanks to Sister Baizhi for saving me."

Sister Baizhi? This name sent a shiver down my spine. I turned around and saw a graceful girl in white emerging from the woods. We stared at each other for a moment, and her face turned pale instantly.

My little cousin ran over and affectionately pulled her over, introducing her with a smile: "She's the one who saved me. Her surname is Bai, and her given name is Zhi. Her parents were also persecuted by the Demonic Sect and were imprisoned there as slaves since she was a child."

Her surname is Bai, and her given name is Zhi. She was captured by the Demonic Sect and enslaved since childhood. What is Lotus Sister up to?

I couldn't help but chuckle cheekily, "Oh my, what a coincidence."

Chapter 15, Part 14

I feel like I've become bad and have a sharp tongue during my time in the Demonic Sect, and I couldn't help but say, "Oh my, what a coincidence."

Lotus Sister's face turned pale instantly, and seeing this actually made me feel a little bit amused... This is not good, really not good.

My little cousin, her soft eyelashes still glistening with tears, looked at me with surprise, then at my sister Lotus, and asked, "You know her? Who is she?"

This "she" was clearly referring to me, and I wondered if I would be killed immediately if I gave my name.

"This young lady..." The leader looked at me hesitantly, "her surname is Su, she saved my life, and I was able to escape danger this time entirely thanks to her."

The Alliance Leader's holy light shone upon me once more, clearly intending to conceal my identity. However, he overlooked the fact that Gu Shaoting, who was eyeing me with predatory intent, was standing beside me.

Before Gu Shaoting could speak, I said, "My surname is Su, and my given name is Xie."

Sure enough, as soon as I finished speaking, my little cousin's eyes sharpened, and she was about to draw her sword. I reacted quickly and hid behind the Alliance Leader, who reliably held down my little cousin's hand that was about to draw her sword.

"Cousin!" The little cousin looked at the alliance leader with shock and anger. "It was this Su Xie who killed my entire Gu family, causing my family to be destroyed and my people to die! Why are you stopping me! I'm going to kill her to avenge my parents!"

"Biyun!" the alliance leader shouted, "Miss Su has saved me three times. Her life-saving grace is heavier than a mountain. I cannot watch you take action." He channeled his inner force and forced her sword back into its sheath with a click.

My little cousin looked at the leader in disbelief, her eyes reddening and brimming with tears, yet she showed no signs of sadness or pitifulness.

The alliance leader sighed and gently coaxed, "Let's leave here first."

"Hmph!" Gu Shaoting snorted coldly beside me, stepped forward and pulled Gu Biyun over, saying in a sarcastic tone, "Alliance Leader, your benevolence and righteousness have truly broadened my horizons. Today, Alliance Leader saved my life, and I have no way to repay you. I will refrain from making a move in front of you for now, and there will be plenty of opportunities in the future." He pulled Gu Biyun and turned to leave, saying, "Biyun, let's go."

These words were quite meaningful; anyone could tell that given the chance, Gu Shaoting would act on behalf of Heaven to destroy me.

As soon as the Gu siblings left, Lotus bowed to the Alliance Leader and said, "I have prepared a carriage outside the forest road. I will take you there." She was poised and graceful.

The leader said, "Thank you for your trouble, Miss," and turned to me, saying, "Now that the Demonic Sect is probably not going back for Miss Su, why don't you come back with us and make further plans?"

With a burning gaze, he added, "I will definitely protect Miss Su."

I hesitated only slightly before readily agreeing, "There's no other way now, and I'll have to trouble the Alliance Leader."

The alliance leader smiled slightly, "No need to be so formal."

I gave a stiff smile. We've only met a few times, Alliance Leader... I then stole a glance at Lotus Sister's face, which was flushed and pale, looking quite festive.

"Please, Alliance Leader." Lotus Sister and the Alliance Leader walked forward side by side, while I deliberately slowed my pace and walked alongside the strong man who had been carrying Leng Baichun tirelessly.

Leng Baichun remained unconscious. I had never seen this valiant man before. Judging from his taciturn and ascetic demeanor, I asked with a forced smile, "May I ask your name, valiant man?"

"Xiao Jiu," the strong man answered me crisply.

"Good name, it suits his carefree aura perfectly," I complimented, then asked, "Judging from Xiao Jiu's demeanor, he doesn't seem like a respectable person..."

His glance was sharp as a knife.

I quickly said, "Brave warrior, don't misunderstand. I didn't mean you don't look like a good person. What I meant was..." Too much talk leads to mistakes, and this is what they call a sharp tongue. I couldn't answer for a moment and said with a wry smile, "I just felt that upright people wouldn't deign to speak to a vixen like me, but just now, Little Nine brave warrior frankly told me his name, so..."

“I am indeed not a righteous person,” Xiao Jiu said coldly. “I am just a friend of Ruan Bicheng, and you saved Ruan Bicheng.”

So...? These two sentences are concise and to the point, but it took me a long time to piece them together and roughly understand their meaning: I saved Ruan Bicheng, so I am also his friend?

Even the way this master speaks is so unpredictable...

I wanted to get closer to Xiao Jiu, so we chatted about this and that along the way. Apart from his expressionless face and his occasional awkward speech, he was a bold and unrestrained man, a true hero.

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Once we emerged from the woods, there were indeed two carriages outside the forest path. The Gu siblings snorted coldly when they saw me. Gu Biyun pointed at me and said, "I don't want to share a carriage with this vixen!"

You think I wanted this?! The thought of being tortured by your two siblings' gazes over and over again in the same carriage makes me uncomfortable.

“Biyun…” the alliance leader began to try to persuade her.

I quickly smiled and said, "Brother Jiu and I can sit in the back car." I turned to Xiao Jiu with a fawning smile, "Brother Jiu doesn't mind, does he?"

Xiao Jiu didn't answer, but simply carried Leng Baichun into the next carriage and coldly said to me, "Get in the carriage."

I happily waved to the leader and scurried into the car.

The carriage rumbled along, with the Alliance Leader, the Gu siblings, and Lotus Sister in front, and us behind.

This is the first time I've left the Demonic Sect since my rebirth, and my feelings are very complicated. The current situation is even more difficult than when I was in the Demonic Sect. Just thinking about the two siblings from the Gu family gives me a headache, not to mention how many righteous people will be eager to skin me alive when I get to the Central Plains.

I couldn't help but sigh from the bottom of my heart. Xiao Jiu, who had been silent all along, glanced at me and suddenly asked, "Why don't you leave?"

I was taken aback, not quite understanding.

He added, "You know perfectly well that many people want your life."

Great heroes usually don't like to explain things clearly at once; they want to appear profound and unfathomable to be considered a true hero. Combining the two sentences, I understood that he was asking me why I wanted to follow the leader of the alliance to the Central Plains.

This was a very difficult question to answer, so I asked him, "Do you want to hear the truth or a lie?"

He looked at me and said, "If you want to hear lies, you don't need to ask me."

"Great!" I smiled and said, "I consider you a friend." I sincerely took out the small celadon medicine bottle from my pocket, put it in his arms, and said, "I'll keep it because I don't want to die yet."

He looked puzzled, but the moment he picked up the small medicine bottle, he looked at me in surprise, "This..."

I couldn't help but laugh. "You don't really think the Alliance Leader would entrust the lives of all of you to me, do you?" Seeing his incredulous expression, I comforted him, "We have to understand the Alliance Leader. After all, I've been infamous for a long time. We always have to be wary of me. Do you think being the Alliance Leader is easy? You have to win over the people and avoid villains. Look, you risked your life to save Gu Shaoting, and he might not even appreciate it."

Xiao Jiu looked at me, who was holding the small medicine bottle and staring at me intently, and suddenly laughed loudly, patting my shoulder and saying, "Interesting! For your honesty, I, Xiao Jiu, will be your friend!"

The hero's straightforwardness is truly something else! I winced as Xiao Jiu slapped me, rubbing my shoulder, and said, "Brother Jiu, you don't need to reconsider. I'm a member of the Demonic Sect… and besides, I have…" I scratched my head, kindly reminding him, "an irreconcilable feud with Gu Shaoting…"

"So what?" Xiao Jiu snorted coldly. "You didn't kill my whole family, so what business is it of mine with the righteous sects of the demonic sect?"

How heroic...

I pressed my advantage, cupping my hands and saying, "Brother Jiu, please accept my bow! If you don't mind, you will be my elder brother from now on." Having more backers means more protection! It would be best if we became sworn brothers, sharing life and death!

Xiao Jiu accepted my bow without hesitation, helped me up and said, "I never expected that I, Xiao Jiu, would gain a sister this time after joining the Demonic Sect. Very good, very good!"

He raised his hand and threw the small medicine bottle out the window. The carriage rumbled and crushed the small celadon bottle.

Empty, that's right. The medicine bottle the Alliance Leader gave me was completely empty! How come I never realized the Alliance Leader was so wicked! Utterly wicked! He secretly poured out the antidote from the bottle and then gave me an empty one, expecting me to be incredibly grateful!

For a fleeting moment, I genuinely believed him. Knowing the truth shattered my heart...

The facts prove that the difference between the evil cult and the righteous sects lies in the difference between beasts and beasts in human clothing.

I thought that once the leader was out of danger, he would give me the antidote, but he showed no intention of doing so. I sat nervously in the carriage, calculating the time it would take for the poison to take effect, watching the sky gradually darken, my fingers began to tremble.

He hasn't forgotten, has he...?

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As dusk settled, the carriage finally came to a stop. The curtain was lifted, and the leader of the alliance stood in the twilight, saying to me, "We'll rest here for a while. Miss Su, would you mind getting out of the carriage...?"

"Of course!" I jumped off the carriage impatiently, grabbing his sleeve and asking, "Does the Alliance Leader want to stay here? Or go further away?"

The leader pursed his thin lips. "Let me accompany you for a walk, young lady."

“Absolutely no problem!” Ignoring the fact that the Gu siblings wanted to live and were looking at me with disdain, I grabbed the leader and ran towards the grove of trees by the roadside.

I stopped under a relatively secluded large tree, turned around abruptly, and said breathlessly, "Alliance Leader, you can't play me like this... I did save you, after all! Even if it was just a favor."

The leader of the alliance smirked shamelessly, picked up a small pill from his fingertip, and looked at me with a smile: "I didn't expect Miss Su to use real poison."

My goodness... Do you think it's easy for me to live in this world full of beasts?!

I smiled and reached out my hand, "I am completely loyal to the Alliance Leader, how could I possibly deceive him!"

He went to get the antidote, but wouldn't let go. A slight smile played on his lips, his eyes deep as he asked, "Really?"

"It's absolutely true!" I swore with absolute certainty, as if I wanted to swear to the heavens, "My sincerity towards the Alliance Leader is as clear as the sun and moon, burning as hot as fire!"

He still wouldn't let go, and I was so anxious I was about to cry. I gritted my teeth and said, "If the Alliance Leader doesn't believe me, I'll swear an oath right now! If I'm not truly loyal to the Alliance Leader, may I be struck down by heaven and earth!"

I lifted my robe to kneel down, but he reached out and supported my waist, his smile deepening. "I believe you." He then placed the pill to my lips.

I didn't have time to think much. Afraid he would pull it back, I grabbed his wrist and swallowed the pill in one gulp. Then I heard him chuckle softly and call my name in the softest of whispers, "Su Xie."

"Huh?" I instinctively looked up, and his eyes were right in front of me. I could almost see myself reflected in his eyes, and my heart skipped a beat.

He lowered his head and gave me a quick, warm, soft kiss on the forehead, fleeting as it was. Before I could react, he pulled me into a tight embrace and, almost sighing, called my name again, "Su Xie..."

My mind went blank for a moment, and I was terrified.

Chapter 16, Part 15

“Su Xie…”

The breath in my ear was like a deep, deep sigh, a low murmur. Su Xie's skin... my mind exploded in an instant.

I really had no experience in this kind of combat, and in a moment of madness, I slapped him across the face. I heard a sharp, resounding slap on the leader's face.

The leader and I were both stunned and frozen in shock, our eyes meeting, completely dumbfounded.

Seeing the leader's face gradually turn cold, I inwardly roared with regret and blurted out, "Mosquito! A huge mosquito..."

The alliance leader was stunned again.

I felt incredibly ashamed and dared not stay any longer. I hurriedly said, "I remembered that Brother Jiu has something to discuss with me... I... I'll take my leave now..."

I practically took off running, not daring to look back, and even after I got into the car, my heart was still pounding like a rabbit.

Leng Baichun had woken up at some point and was leaning against the car window with her eyes closed, resting. Looking at me now, she exclaimed in surprise, her face pale, "Su Xie, what happened to your face?"

"My face?" I reached out and touched it; it was burning hot.

"Why is it as red as a monkey's butt?" Leng Baichun asked me, startling Xiao Jiu, who had been meditating and adjusting her breathing, and she looked over in surprise.