On the third floor, amidst rows of bookshelves, a single lamp glowed with golden sandalwood flame.
Shi Chun, turning the pages of the book in his hand, was filled with worry, making him read distractedly. How to safely escape this place remained the persistent problem he grappled with.
The powerful demonic cultivator had escaped; would he be hiding nearby, waiting for him? This was a gamble he couldn't afford to take, nor dared to.
At a slight distance, his right eye's special ability couldn't clearly discern the demonic essence within people's bodies. Coupled with the large number of people around, effective observation was difficult.
Furthermore, Wu Shanshan possessed a demonic eye, and the previous master also had one. Were they the only two in the demonic sect with such an ability? He dared not gamble on that either.
The previous encirclement targeting him was clearly premeditated. Now, who knew how many demonic cultivators had arrived in the vicinity?
Wu Jinliang, after receiving the message, had arrived outside the city to prepare for a rendezvous. The problem was how Shi Chun would get out of the city. With such powerful demonic cultivators stationed there, trying to escape unnoticed by earth-burrowing techniques was practically impossible. He still dared not risk it.
Without earth-burrowing techniques, even disguising himself or sneaking out inside a box would be difficult.
Thus, under the threat of demonic eyes, even exiting the library itself became a problem.
The demonic sect deploying such a formidable lineup against him showed their determination to capture him. How could he not be extremely cautious?
Unfortunately, the city guards were also looking to arrest him, otherwise he might have been able to use them.
He hadn't had the chance to try escaping through the netherworld, and currently, there were no conditions to test that method.
If he could persuade the scholar in green downstairs to take him away, that wouldn't be a bad idea. However, he knew nothing about the man's identity or background, finding no entry point. Such a powerful master was not someone he could casually provoke; he might even be more dangerous than the demonic sect, who at least wouldn't be in a hurry to kill him.
If all else failed, given the involvement of the demonic sect, he could only send a message to Xiang Lan'er, asking the other branch of the demonic sect for rescue.
He was reluctant to use this method because if the other branch became deeply involved, he would lose his initiative.
However, after much thought, this seemed to be the most reliable solution for now.
He considered whether to have personnel from the Mingshan Sect near the Xun Gate go through it to deliver a message, but then worried the messenger might be recognized and put in danger.
Just as he pondered whether to pay someone to deliver a message to Xiang Lan'er, his right eye's special ability caught sight of someone approaching the third-floor staircase entrance. He instantly extinguished the golden sandalwood flame, plunging the area back into darkness, with only the faint light from outside filtering through the windows.
This was why he read so distractedly: he was simultaneously devising an escape plan and using his right eye's ability to observe his surroundings.
Familiar with the environment, he swiftly treaded lightly through the air, disappearing into a small, blind corner at the end of a bookshelf in the dark—a spot occasionally used for storing miscellaneous items.
Through his right eye's ability, he could identify the newcomer. There were only a few people in the library, and only one was a demon cultivator.
The woman in red also produced a golden sandalwood flame for illumination and ascended to the third floor step by step. Holding the flame, she wandered among the rows of bookshelves, occasionally pausing to pull out a book that protruded slightly and flip through it.
She didn't find anything noteworthy.
It wasn't until she had flipped through several more books that she gradually noticed a pattern: the books she pulled out all seemed to be related to the netherworld.
After subsequently pulling out a few more books to examine, her suspicion was confirmed. A degree of confusion was apparent in her brows; she couldn't figure it out, couldn't understand.
After returning the books and ceasing her search among them, she continued to roam the third floor between the bookshelves, holding the golden sandalwood flame and searching through the rows.
He didn't know what she was looking for, but as she searched, Shi Chun began to feel increasingly uneasy.
Nothing else, just that his right eye's ability detected the woman in red walking towards him.
The problem was that she neither walked past nor turned away prematurely. Instead, she turned precisely into the narrow aisle that led directly to the blind corner where he was hiding. Now it was difficult for him to move and evade, and he couldn't show his head; a single glimpse would reveal him.
Shi Chun could only hold his breath behind the corner, secretly wishing, 'Don't come, don't come.' As long as she didn't reach the very end, she wouldn't see him.
Reason told him that late at night, no one would come to this corner. 'Calm down, calm down, it's fine.'
The woman in red, nearing the corner, seemed oblivious to the corner space at the very end. Holding the golden sandalwood flame, she searched the bookshelves up and down, muttering to herself, 'How could I not find it?'
Shi Chun had no idea what she was looking for, but the feeling of being on the verge of discovery was unnerving. He was already pondering how to prevent her from making a sound, or from shouting for help, if he were to be found.
Alerting the family wouldn't be easy; that old stubborn Dong Wenshu was not as amenable as Dong Liangyu.
He no longer dared to think of silencing her permanently; the master downstairs clearly knew Dong Wenshu. Wasn't the situation thrilling enough already?
To his relief, the woman in red, having found nothing, muttered and turned to leave.
Shi Chun quietly waited for her to move away.
Who knew, the woman in red then circled to the front of another row of bookshelves to continue her search. Even through the gaps, she could see his direction, forcing Shi Chun to remain rigidly in the corner, daring not to move.
A moment later, the woman in red, seemingly still unsuccessful, mumbled again and turned away.
Shi Chun sighed in relief once more.
He had thought she would give up and leave this time, but what you hope won't happen often does. The woman in red surprisingly circled back to this aisle and started searching through the narrow passage between the bookshelves again.
Shi Chun's lips moved, silently cursing her ancestors.
It felt unnatural. If not for her low cultivation, which didn't warrant such persistent antics, he would have suspected she was doing it on purpose.
Soon, the flame's light flickered towards the corner again, making him hold his breath.
The woman in red's muttering voice returned: "Second Miss said the person is up here, how could they be gone..."
"..." Shi Chun was dumbfounded. Looking for someone? Not looking for something? Looking for *me*?
He really wanted to ask her, "If you're looking for someone, why are you searching the bookshelves? I thought you were looking for books! Can I just lie horizontally on a bookshelf or something?"
Just as he felt he'd been unnecessarily startled, the muttering voice and light clearly turned and receded again.
It seemed she had gone to another row to search back and forth repeatedly.
Should he still hide? Shi Chun thought about it. Since Dong Liangyu had sent someone to find him, there was no need to hide anymore. He quietly slipped out, discreetly moved to where she would eventually search, and promptly sat down cross-legged.
The result, predictably, was that the woman in red, upon her return, clearly illuminated him.
Shi Chun, opening his eyes, was about to greet her, but the woman in red immediately blurted out, "Hey, who are you? We're closed. Why are you still in the library?"
"..." Shi Chun was instantly rendered speechless. He quickly stood up and reminded her, "I know your Second Miss."
The woman in red, stroking the red flower near her temple, cast a cold sidelong glance. "Don't try that. Our Second Miss doesn't have male friends."
"No," Shi Chun quickly retorted, "Didn't your Second Miss send you to find me?"
The woman in red scornfully replied, "Our Second Miss told me to find Mr. Fu in the library. Who do you think you are? Be honest, are you here to steal something?"
"..." Shi Chun's face contorted into a complex expression. Mr. Fu? So the person Second Miss was muttering about wasn't him after all.
Could it be the person downstairs? No, his right eye's ability had previously shown that he wasn't far from the person downstairs. Judging by the distance, they weren't even two rows of bookshelves apart. Could she really not have seen him even that close? Was the scholar in green reading without a lamp?
But there didn't seem to be any signs of interaction. So what was he doing, jumping out like this and walking right into a trap?
He instantly felt foolish. She had already passed by; he would have been fine if he'd just stayed hidden in the corner for a bit longer. But no, he had to jump out and approach her proactively. It was the first time in his life he'd done something so stupid.
This was no time for regret. He quickly explained, "I am Second Miss's friend."
The woman in red said, "Shouldn't we ask Second Miss? Come on, let's verify this with the Curator."
How could Shi Chun go to see Dong Wenshu? He hastily said, "Just go ask Second Miss; you'll know then."
The woman in red retorted, "If I leave, will you run away? I'm telling you, if you don't come with me now, I'll call someone!"
Shi Chun grimaced. If he wasn't currently afraid to escape from here, he would truly have been moved to kill. Fortunately, help arrived. His right eye's ability showed someone quickly ascending to the library, and from their figure, he recognized it was Dong Liangyu.
He quickly said, "Alright, alright, I'll go with you."
First, he needed to placate her and get her to shut up.
At her gesturing hand, he obediently walked ahead under her supervision.
Dong Liangyu's arrival was actually because she feared Shi Chun would be discovered by the woman in red. And exactly what she feared came true: just as she quickly reached the third-floor staircase with her lamp, she encountered Shi Chun and the woman coming down. Her face instantly showed panic; she inwardly blamed Shi Chun, wondering what was wrong and how he was discovered so quickly.
Shi Chun, leaning against the banister, gestured to the two on the stairs. "Second Miss, tell her, am I a thief? Didn't you allow me to read all night?"
The woman in red asked, "Is that true?"
Dong Liangyu quickly nodded repeatedly. "Sister Jun, he's not a thief. He enjoys reading, so I specially permitted him to stay overnight."
The woman in red slightly raised an eyebrow, sizing up the two. She twirled the red flower near her temple with her fingertips and slowly said, "Second Miss, I feel something is off. When did you get a male friend?"
Just as Dong Liangyu was about to explain, the woman in red beckoned to Shi Chun, who was still on the stairs, neither ascending nor descending. "Second Miss, you've been cooped up in the library for too long and don't know how treacherous people can be. Don't let a scoundrel deceive you. I need to interrogate him first for your sake."
"No need, cough cough..." Dong Liangyu quickly waved her hand, coughing repeatedly in her haste.
The woman in red said, "Then I'll call the Curator over. Otherwise, if anything happens, I can't take responsibility."
Shi Chun quickly said, "Second Miss, let her interrogate me. We haven't done anything wrong anyway."
As he spoke, he winked at Dong Liangyu below, but his steps were leading him upstairs.
Dong Liangyu, looking anxious, bit her lip as she watched the two disappear at the top of the stairs.
Following behind the woman in red, Shi Chun reached the staircase leading to the fourth floor and was somewhat startled. He realized this woman, despite her low cultivation, was quite bold to lead a stranger to a secluded place; she truly wasn't afraid of being silenced.
As he ascended the stairs, he also felt curious. The problem was that just now, Dong Liangyu was, after all, one of the library's owners, yet this woman in red, far from being a mere assistant, was acting as if she were in charge. He immediately tried asking, "Sister Jun, right? Why do I feel like Second Miss is somewhat afraid of you, a library assistant?"
The woman in red, swaying her waist as she climbed the stairs, casually replied, "My maternal uncle is a trusted subordinate of the Demon Empress."
[34 seconds from now] Chapter 1923: Are You Willing to Accept Me as Your Master?
[2 minutes ago] Chapter 2393: Giving Lies, Returning Sincerity
[3 minutes ago] Chapter 351: Full Devil
[7 minutes ago] Chapter 1922: Sacrifice
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