Chapter 1274: Hitting is Affection, Scolding is Love

“What—what is this?”

He was somewhat startled, quickly backing away and saying cautiously, “Venerable Lianjing, is that you?”

Why does Venerable Lianjing seem as if she's under a spell right now?

After tracing Jiang Fan’s face, Venerable Lianjing instantly snapped out of it. She gasped a few times, her gaze fixed on Jiang Fan, filled with solemnity. “Sage’s Law?”

“You—you truly have a Sage’s Law on you!”

She had thought Jiang Fan was lying to her again. But it turned out to be true this time!

Jiang Fan was stunned. Was Venerable Lianjing just fighting against a Sage’s Engraving? His heart was filled with elation! Sage Tianmu had indeed left him a life-saving engraving!

But why was the engraving a little strange? It actually forced Venerable Lianjing to touch his face. What kind of engraving is this?

Still, he had finally confirmed it was a life-saving law. His anxious heart could finally rest. With the addition of the Luck-Shifting Lock, he now had double protection in front of Venerable Lianjing. He was completely safe and sound!

He let out a long sigh of relief, unable to help but smile. “Venerable Lianjing, it seems you can’t do anything to me.”

“I have a small suggestion.”

“How about you go back to where you came from?”

Venerable Lianjing was so angry her lungs could explode. Was Sage Tianmu blind? Why would he give a scoundrel like him a life-saving engraving?

The more she thought about it, the angrier she got, and she couldn't help but curse, “You little dog thief, I’m going to…”

Just as she cursed, suddenly, the Sage’s Engraving activated again! An invisible law enveloped Venerable Lianjing, making her struggle once more. Her cursing words ceased, and even her tone became exceptionally gentle. She said, “Young Master Jiang, this one is very fond of you.”

After she spoke, the law finally receded.

Jiang Fan stood frozen in place. What kind of outrageous words had he just heard? He quickly backed away, maintaining his distance from Venerable Lianjing, his face full of caution. “Venerable Lianjing, you—you better not mess around!”

Venerable Lianjing regained control of her words and was also so frightened that she hurriedly retreated, moving away from Jiang Fan. Both embarrassed and enraged, she cried, “That wasn’t me!”

“It was the Sage’s Engraving on you that controlled what I said!”

“You—you what kind of engraving do you have?”

“How could this happen?”

First touching Jiang Fan’s face, then uttering such outrageous and shameless words! Jiang Fan was also a little bewildered. What exactly did Sage Tianmu engrave on him? How could it turn Venerable Lianjing into this?

He tentatively said, “Venerable Lianjing, why don’t you try hitting me in different ways?”

“To confirm what the engraving actually is.”

Venerable Lianjing was scared. How could she dare hit Jiang Fan now? Before she could even touch Jiang Fan, she would be controlled by the Sage’s Engraving. But she also wanted to figure out what strange engraving was on Jiang Fan.

With a thought, her domain activated, and a mirror appeared before her, reflecting Jiang Fan. Jiang Fan's figure was not in the mirror. Instead, it reflected a line of words emanating a faint golden glow and imbued with law:

“Blows are a sign of affection, scolding a sign of love.”

Upon seeing these words, Venerable Lianjing finally understood why her actions had been so strange! This engraving was actually specifically aimed at women! Whoever hit Jiang Fan would become intimate with him. Whoever cursed him would love him.

Venerable Lianjing’s face flushed red with shame and anger. “Utterly shameless!”

“To actually have a Sage engrave such disgraceful words for you!”

Jiang Fan was utterly bewildered on the spot; his mind felt a bit overwhelmed at this moment. He had considered countless possibilities for what Sage Tianmu might have engraved for him. But he had never imagined it would be *this* sentence!

Recalling it carefully, he had asked Sage Tianmu what words were engraved at the time. Sage Tianmu had merely smiled mysteriously and said he would like it. Presumably, at that time, he was carrying the Moonbright Pearl with one hand and holding the injured, unconscious Xia Chaoge with the other. Sage Tianmu, perhaps to ensure his future family harmony, had therefore left this phrase within him.

However, Sage Tianmu probably didn't foresee that the engraving’s first effect wouldn’t be on one of his women. Instead, it would be on a female enemy who was chasing him! As for whether he liked it or not… Honestly, he quite liked it. Of course, he would have liked it more if the female enemy wasn’t so old.

“Ahem,” Jiang Fan said awkwardly. “This was engraved by the Sage himself, it has nothing to do with me.”

Venerable Lianjing gritted her teeth in anger. “Don’t try to quibble!”

“If you hadn’t begged him, would a Sage have engraved such a shameless law?”

“You despicable, vulgar, shameless, dead swindler…”

As soon as the words left her mouth, she instantly felt dread. But it was already too late. The Sage’s Engraving activated once more. Venerable Lianjing quickly said, “No…” She tried to cover her mouth, but she still couldn't stop herself from uttering words that made her utterly mortified.

“This one likes Young Master Jiang too much!”

After saying this, Venerable Lianjing covered her face and shrieked hysterically, “Jiang Fan! Go die!!!”

If she were a young maiden, it might have been excusable. But she was already quite old, and yet she was controlled by the Sage’s Engraving to say such shameless words!

Jiang Fan also felt incredibly queasy. He quickly looked around and said, “Stop shouting!”

“Are you afraid others won’t hear your wanton remarks?”

“You may not care about your reputation, but I do!”

Venerable Lianjing quickly shut her mouth, anxiously looking around. If word got out that she, Venerable Lianjing, had flirted with a junior like this, she truly wouldn't be able to explain it. After all, who would believe there was such an absurd Sage’s Engraving as “Blows are a sign of affection, scolding a sign of love”?

Fortunately, this place was desolate. No one would come…

Gurgle!

Suddenly.

A few bubbles emerged from the lake in the oasis below. Jiang Fan and Venerable Lianjing’s expressions froze simultaneously. There was a living being in the lake! Venerable Lianjing quickly shouted, “Who’s eavesdropping! Get out!”

Splash!—

Water churned. A heroic middle-aged man, surrounded by dual auras of ice and fire, with a divine halo behind his head, emerged, looking awkward. In his hand, he was carrying a dying black-robed Venerable, covered in various ethereal demonic liquids.

Who else could these two be? None other than Ice-Fire Demon Lord and Venerable Soul Refining!

Ice-Fire Demon Lord had been pursuing Venerable Soul Refining all the way from Taicang Great Province to Dahang Province. Later, he had entered the forbidden zone. But how was he here?

Ice-Fire Demon Lord also looked a little awkward and cleared his throat. “Jiang Fan, what a coincidence.”

“Let me state upfront, I wasn’t intentionally eavesdropping on your conversation.”

“I was just about to use the provincial-level teleportation array here, and I didn’t expect you two to arrive just now.”

Provincial-level teleportation array? Jiang Fan stared in astonishment at the circular lake. Ice-Fire Demon Lord flicked his finger, and a powerful cold aura froze the lake into ice blocks, which then shattered into glittering fragments. The lakebed was thus revealed. It was clearly a massive teleportation array inscribed with complex runes!

“The teleportation array here leads directly to the West Sea of Taicang Great Province.”

Jiang Fan finally understood. Where did a lake come from in such desolate land? It turned out to be connected to the seabed of the West Sea. Presumably, when someone used the teleportation array in the West Sea, some seawater was also teleported across the boundary, and over time, it formed a lake around the array.

Ice-Fire Demon Lord was currently preparing to return to Taicang Great Province, and Jiang Fan and Venerable Lianjing happened to arrive. And he had overheard their conversation. If anyone else had heard, Jiang Fan wouldn't have cared too much. But Ice-Fire Demon Lord was returning to the Heavenly Secret Pavilion. What if he went back and spread rumors…

Jiang Fan said awkwardly, “Senior Demon Lord, please don’t misunderstand, actually it’s…”

Ice-Fire Demon Lord waved his hand. “No need to explain, I heard everything, I understand.”

Jiang Fan breathed a sigh of relief. After all, he was once a great cultivator who had experienced the Five Heavenly Decays; he could understand the truth just by listening, without seeing it firsthand.

However, what made Jiang Fan’s expression freeze was this: Ice-Fire Demon Lord said with some envy, “I know you’re popular, with so many peerless beauties falling for you.”

“But I didn’t expect you could even charm women in their forties and fifties.”

“That’s truly outrageous.”

Jiang Fan almost spat out a mouthful of old blood. This is your 'I understand everything'?