Chapter 439: Chu Qing

Yao Yao stood in the center of the great hall, her exquisite face utterly calm. Cradling Tun Tun in her arms, she paid no attention to the numerous admiring gazes constantly cast her way.

She lowered her head, gently stroking Tun Tun, a hint of longing for that small cave dwelling in her thoughts. She wondered if "that guy" had returned yet.

A light cough sounded nearby. Ye Ge looked at Yao Yao and smiled, "We really have you to thank this time, Junior Sister Yao Yao. Otherwise, we might not have been able to escape the encirclement by the Holy Palace and Heavenly Ghost Manor's Saint Sons."

Standing beside Ye Ge, a young man with a strikingly handsome face but a bald, lamp-like head glanced at Ye Ge before turning to Yao Yao. His voice was weak as he said, "If she hadn't secretly snatched the treasure and fled while we were confronting the Saint Sons from the Holy Palace and Heavenly Ghost Manor, we wouldn't have been targeted in the first place."

"We could have discussed it properly with them, but instead, it immediately escalated into a fight. Sigh, it's so exhausting to fight tooth and nail. Wouldn't it have been much better if we just sat down, chatted, and divided the treasure?"

He rubbed his bald head, his face contorted in a grimace. "What a hassle," he grumbled.

"If they were willing to share the treasure with you, you wouldn't have sent a distress signal," Ye Ge said with a laugh. "With your personality, you'd never put in extra effort if you could avoid it."

Ye Ge smiled and said, "Junior Sister Yao Yao only temporarily left to secretly set up a Genesis Rune barrier. And didn't we all return safely in the end?"

Chu Qing sympathetically patted Ye Ge's shoulder. "You were almost directly killed! You call that 'smooth'? She clearly used us as bait!"

"Everything comes with risks, doesn't it?" Ye Ge shrugged indifferently.

Chu Qing's eyes filled with even more pity. "Ye Ge, you're done for. I'm telling you, that woman is absolutely a ruthless demoness! You'll never be able to tame her!"

Yao Yao, standing nearby, maintained her calm, unperturbed expression, paying no attention to the two of them. This mission had indeed been quite perilous, as they had faced numerous Saint Sons from the Holy Palace and Heavenly Ghost Manor, and even some ruthless rogue cultivators from the Shengzhou Continent.

To resolve these troubles, Yao Yao had secretly set up a barrier, using Chu Qing and Ye Ge as bait. Only then was she able to repel those aggressive, watchful figures, allowing all three of them to retreat safely.

Of course, the cost was Chu Qing and Ye Ge enduring a fierce battle, with Ye Ge sustaining a considerable injury.

As for this, Yao Yao felt no apology. Her nature was inherently aloof, and if it came to a critical juncture, she wouldn't hesitate to abandon the two and preserve herself.

Furthermore, she could sense that Chu Qing's strength was indeed formidable, but he was too lazy and always reluctant to fight with all his might. Therefore, using him—who preferred to coast—as bait caused Yao Yao no psychological burden.

However, when Chu Qing called her a ruthless demoness, Yao Yao found the assessment quite accurate.

As Chu Qing spoke, he glanced at the unperturbed Yao Yao, muttering to himself, *It's only been half a year since I returned to the sect, how did such a demoness appear in the Cangxuan Sect?*

Not only was her strength astonishing, but her coldness was equally astounding!

She was even colder than Li Qingchan.

While Li Qingchan appeared outwardly cold, she was warm inside. Yet, Yao Yao, despite not exuding overt coldness in her speech, always gave off an impression of indifference, as if viewing all things as mere dust.

That kind of indifference seemed to stem from her very soul and bloodline.

This girl was indeed unbelievably beautiful, but also incredibly cold. Throughout the one or two months they had been on this mission together, Chu Qing had not once seen her smile.

*Perhaps she can't smile?* Chu Qing wondered.

However, just as that thought crossed his mind, he witnessed something remarkable. On Yao Yao's serene, exquisite face, something seemed to awaken. A faint glimmer of light appeared in her otherwise placid eyes.

Her small, red lips seemed to curve slightly, forming a subtle arc.

In that instant, even Chu Qing felt a surge of astonishment.

Slightly stunned, Chu Qing followed Yao Yao's gaze. He then saw a young man emerge from the crowd and wave at her.

Yao Yao's change in expression was clearly due to that young man.

That young figure was, naturally, Zhou Yuan.

Yao Yao watched Zhou Yuan, the calm on her face subtly fading. Ignoring Chu Qing and Ye Ge beside her, she walked directly toward Zhou Yuan, still cradling Tun Tun.

When the two met, Chu Qing noticed that the small, perpetually lazy beast in Yao Yao's arms also leaped onto Zhou Yuan's shoulder, clearly demonstrating great affection.

"Who is he? He actually made that demoness smile?!" Chu Qing exclaimed in shock.

Ye Ge also watched the scene with a somewhat complex expression. "He's the new disciple I told you about, named Zhou Yuan... In less than a year, he's already become a Purple Sash disciple. His speed is even faster than yours was back then."

Chu Qing rubbed his bald head and murmured, "Impressive."

Ye Ge nodded. "Indeed, such talent is exceptional. Given enough time, he might even catch up to you."

Chu Qing corrected him, "I mean, for him to be able to 'tame' that demoness, that's truly impressive!"

There was a genuine note of admiration in his voice because, in his opinion, Yao Yao should have been an untamable sorceress. Yet now, there was someone who could make her seem less indifferent.

Ye Ge paused, then retorted irritably, "You're the head of our Cangxuan Sect's Saint Sons, why are you so biased against her?"

Chu Qing stroked his chin. "Because after all these years, she's the first person to actually use me as bait! I absolutely despise being forced into a fight!"

Ye Ge chuckled helplessly. It seemed Chu Qing still harbored a deep resentment about the incident.

Meanwhile, after Zhou Yuan and Yao Yao met, he also cast his gaze over, exchanging smiles and nods with Ye Ge.

However, what surprised Zhou Yuan somewhat was that Chu Qing, who was equally eye-catching, also smiled at him. He seemed quite easygoing, lacking the arrogance typically displayed by Saint Sons like Kong Sheng and Zhao Zhu.

What further puzzled Zhou Yuan was that there seemed to be a hint of "brother, you're truly impressive" admiration in Chu Qing's smile.

But before he could go up and say hello, Yao Yao turned and walked away first.

"Let's go. Back to the cave dwelling."

So Zhou Yuan, holding Tun Tun, quickly followed after her.

Chu Qing watched their retreating figures, then shrugged at Ye Ge. "Looks like you don't stand much of a chance..."

"Why not just stop fantasizing? They're just pretty faces. Look at me; I feel nothing for even the most beautiful women now. My heart is as still as water," Chu Qing said with a beaming smile.

Ye Ge scoffed, casting a sidelong glance at him. "Do you think I don't know why that is?" he said faintly.

Hearing this, Chu Qing let out an awkward chuckle, guiltily rubbing his bald head.

Ye Ge watched Yao Yao's disappearing figure before withdrawing his gaze, a hint of wistfulness in his tone. "I need to go back and heal. You should return to Cangxuan Peak first. You're always disappearing for years; the Sect Master probably won't give you an easy time."

With that, he waved his hand and turned to leave.

Chu Qing's handsome face soured, and he finally let out a long sigh.

"It really is such a hassle!"