Chapter 42: Phoenix Tail Flower (XII)

Xie Changzhou’s gaze was soft and focused; his eyes were filled with endless affection as he looked at Sui Ning. It was as if his feelings were so overflowing that they were about to spill out.

Sui Ning had never faced his unabashed emotions so directly before, especially not at a time like this.

She was a bit stunned, wondering if Xie Changzhou really liked her.

Her heart was beating like thunder, and her cheeks flushed, but the feeling in her heart told her that she didn’t dislike it.

She even…felt a little happy.

Her hands, which were resting on the armrest, suddenly clenched tightly, her fingertips turning white from the force. She almost couldn’t bring herself to meet Xie Changzhou’s gaze.

She was flustered, trying to avoid his gaze, when Xie Changzhou spoke up. “Ningning, look at me.”

His voice, which had always been warm and gentle in the past, was now especially firm, with a hint of dominance and arrogance.

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“Lkdtdkdt, R esd’v dlle usw vs ydpola xl aktbv dso. R’x psaau qsa pyukdt vblpl vbkdtp vs usw kd pwnb yd kdyrrasrakyvl rzynl. R dlle y qsaxyz alrzu qasx usw. Ebld ol alvwad vs vbl Nkxkvzlpp Fosae Flnv, R bsrl vbyv usw nyd tkhl xl uswa ydpola vbld.”

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“For ten years, a hundred years, or even a thousand years, we still have many years.”

Sui Ning’s heart beat faster, and she was so nervous that her hands were shaking. She was completely unprepared for Xie Changzhou’s confession. She had never thought that one day he would say these things to her.

He was so calm and composed, yet he had confessed his feelings to her.

But she had not undertaken any mission to win his heart. Why did Xie Changzhou fall in love with her? And when did he start liking her?

The system in her mind was already screaming, “[Ah! Host, he’s confessing!]” The mechanical voice was particularly harsh, making Sui Ning feel a bit dizzy. She immediately shut it down.

“Sui Ning, this is not the time. I won’t force you to answer me,” Xie Changzhou said, standing up and sitting beside her. His gaze was still polite and gentle, falling softly on her.

“Let’s talk about our current situation,” he said.

“Jianzun, please go ahead,” Sui Ning immediately regained her composure, trying not to think too much. Her voice was a bit hoarse.

Xie Changzhou still had a smile on his face as he spoke. “I woke up two days before Ningning. This is Yong’an City from five hundred years ago. My identity is the head of the Yougu family, You Ruoming, and you…”

He paused for a moment, and his voice suddenly became soft and affectionate. “You are my wife, Wan Wan.”

Sui Ning’s previously calm heart became chaotic again.

Wow, Xie Changzhou is really breaking the rules!!!!!

Xie Changzhou laughed lightly and then said, “Although I don’t know why, they all now think that we are the real You Ruoming and Wan Wan, and I haven’t seen Tang Tang and Ah Yan.”

Sui Ning’s heart sank, which means they lost contact with Tang Tang and Ah Yan?

She couldn’t help but feel anxious: “What should we do? Let’s hurry and find them. What if something goes wrong?”

Tang Tang only has the cultivation level of Golden Core, and Ah Yan just recently transformed and isn’t very strong. If the two of them are together, it’s fine, but if they’re not…

Sui Ning’s eyes narrowed, and her previous nervousness and shyness disappeared in an instant, replaced by a cold determination.

Xie Changzhou comforted her softly: “Ningning, don’t worry; Ah Yan hasn’t come in; I didn’t detect his presence, and as for Tang Tang… there shouldn’t be any danger.”

His calm eyes looked outside the window: “I can sense that Tang Tang’s presence is very close to us; she should be in the Yougu Family.”

Sui Ning breathed a sigh of relief. Ah Yan is outside; You Changqing is already dead, and no one can hurt him now.

And if Tang Tang is in the Yougu Family, that’s fine too. Their current identity is the lord and lady of the Yougu Family, and it should be easier to find people.

“What did Mo He just said, What happened?” 

Mo He mentioned Jiqiu and Changming Sword Sect; it seems that something happened to You Zhaozhao, the young lady of the Yougu Family.

Xie Changzhou turned to look at her and then slowly said, “Jiqiu loves You Zhaozhao and wanted to do something inappropriate to her, which caused her to be seriously injured. Mo He’s son, Mo Huai’an, who is also the young master of the Mo Ling Family, killed Jiqiu. The Changming Sword Sect came to Yong’an City to seek justice and demanded that You Zhaozhao and Mo Huai’an be handed over.”

Sui Ning’s beautiful face was full of incredulity: “The Changming Sword Sect is demanding the handover of You Zhaozhao and Mo Huai’an?”

Xie Changzhou nodded: “Yes.”

Sui Ning was so angry that she almost laughed, and her tone became heavier: “Ji Qiu is so wicked to Youzhaozhao and even seriously injured her. What’s wrong with Mo Huai’an killing him? How could the Changming Sword Sect, a big sect, be so rude?”

She was so annoyed that her white and tender face turned crimson, her eyebrows furrowed, and she clenched her fists, wishing to go out and drive away the Changming Sword Sect.

Xie Changzhou wanted to laugh and patiently explained to her: “Ji Qiu is the most outstanding disciple of the Changming Sword Sect in this generation. He has not yet reached the age of fifty and has already reached the Nascent soul stage. His future is immeasurable. If he hadn’t died, when he reached the Mahayana stage, he would have taken over as the sect leader.”

So how could the Changming Sword Sect possibly give up, and it is afraid that they will fight with Yong’an City to the end.

Sui Ning sneered: “With such a bad character, sitting in the position of sect leader, I’m afraid he even knows how to burn, kill, and plunder. Giving the Changming Sword Sect to him would be self-destructive.”

“Ningning is right.”

“So, has the Changming Sword Sect already come?”

Xie Changzhou nodded, his face still calm: “He has arrived; it is Ji Qiu’s father, Changming Sword sect’s current leader, Ji Bai.”

The leader of a large clan has come in person. It is probably not going to be easy to handle this.

Sui Ning’s heart sank, and she quickly turned to Xie Changzhou, her face showing some sadness: “What should we do? According to what Mo He said earlier, Ji Bai has already arrived.”

They are now the head and lady of the Yougu clan, the parents of You Zhaozhao. Ji Bai will definitely come to them for justice, but they know nothing about Ji Qiu and are not even familiar with You Zhaozhao and Mo Huai’an.

Sui Ning felt a headache coming on. They had to make sure they didn’t reveal anything, but they didn’t know anything now.

Xie Changzhou smiled lightly and said, “Ningning, don’t worry. What we do is not important.”

“What do you mean?”

Xie Changzhou looked at her, his lustrous eyes full of calmness: “What I mean is, we cannot control our bodies.”

Sui Ning’s eyes widened suddenly. They cannot control their bodies?

Is there something controlling them?

Xie Changzhou nodded: “Yes, since I arrived here two days ago, there have been times when I cannot control my body, such as when it involves clan affairs.”

“Ningning, in the past, our actions had to follow the predetermined history.”

Sui Ning asked, “The person who brought us in does not allow us to change the past.”

Xie Changzhou was silent for a moment and finally shook his head slightly: “It’s possible that he currently does not have the ability to let us change the past.”

If the person who brought them into the past wanted them to unknowingly die here like Qi Niang, then there was no need for all this.

Sui Ning had no power to resist when she was dragged into the crack. It was too easy for him to kill her.

Now that she was still alive and well, it proved that his purpose was not to kill her. If he didn’t want to harm her, then there was only one possibility left.

He was like the emperor Lin Lang, hoping they would help him with something.

Sui Ning suddenly realized and asked, “So he wants us to help him with something, but he doesn’t have the ability right now?”

“Ningning is clever,” someone replied.

But who brought them here?

Sui Ning remembered the pair of vertical pupils she saw before being sucked in, blood-red and eerie, and for the first time felt the threat of death in the eyes that looked at her.

Was that a beast?

Beasts are ancient demons; why would they be brought in instead of killed?

No, that’s not right.

There seemed to be a person beside the beast.

Could it be that person who brought them in?

Sui Ning was shocked and approached Xie Changzhou, saying, “Jianzun, I probably know who that person is. I saw him when I came in…..”

“You ruoming, Wanwan, come out!”

Before Sui Ning could say anything, a sharp voice came, and the closed door collapsed with a blast. Powerful spiritual energy rushed towards the two inside.

Xie Changzhou’s eyebrows tightened, and he activated a barrier to block the attacker’s move in front of the two. His tall figure firmly protected Sui Ning behind him, his prominent brow bone pressing down with anger in his eyes.

A slightly plump figure walked in, tall with a tiger’s back and a bear’s waist, tight-lipped with a gloomy expression on his face and a look of hatred in his eyes as he looked at Xie Changzhou and Sui Ning.

It was Ji Bai, the current master of Changming Sword Sect.

Ji Bai laughed coldly; the momentum of the large Sword in his hand was intimidating, and the silver light reflected on the blade carried a powerful killing intent.

“You ruoming, Wan Wan, hand over You zhaozhao and Mo Huai’an.”

“You must be dreaming! Who do you think you are? Ji Qiu deserved to die!”

A rough and familiar voice came, and a tall and burly figure in black robes stepped forward, standing shoulder to shoulder with Xie Changzhou and firmly protecting Sui Ning behind him.

Mo He turned his head to Sui Ning and said, “Don’t be afraid, little sister. With me and Ruoming here, You zhaozhao and Huai’an won’t be hurt at all.”

When he turned his head to face Ji Bai, who was full of anger, his friendly attitude towards Sui Ning disappeared, and his expression became sarcastic and disdainful.

“Ji Bai, your son Ji Qiu beat You Zhaozhao so badly that she was nearly crippled, and he was about to do something even worse when Huai’an stopped him. If you killed him in a fit of anger, what’s the big deal?”

“At your age, do you have no shame?” Mo He’s face was full of sarcasm, and his eyes towards Ji Bai were disdainful, as if he were just a rat in a gutter.

Ji Bai, as the leader of the Changming Sword sect, had never suffered such an insult before. He glared angrily at Mo He and said,”You people from Yong’an City have harmed my son and yet refuse to provide justice. Are you trying to provoke a conflict between our two factions?”

Mo He was so shameless that he laughed at Ji Bai’s anger and had not yet had the chance to curse him back when a soft and gentle voice came.

“Zhaozhao is my only daughter. She was almost crippled by Ji Qiu, and her innocence was almost lost.” Sui Ning walked out from behind Mo He and Xie Changzhou. Her beautiful face was full of anger, and she took a deep breath to control her breathing.

Once her breathing had stabilized, she raised her chin slightly and said word by word: “Zhaozhao did nothing wrong, and if the Changming Sword sect wants to go to war, then we will fight.”

“Our Yougu and Mo Ling families are fearless. We will see who will lose face at that time, you or us.”

Sui Ning’s face was calm, and her slender figure seemed insignificant in front of Ji Bai, but her momentum still managed to suppress him and make him feel uneasy.

Xie Changzhou looked at Sui Ning with a plain expression, but when he saw her hands tightly gripping her sleeves, he couldn’t help but feel like laughing.

A panicked voice echoed in Xie Changzhou’s mind: “Jianzun, Jianzun, I can’t control my body! I didn’t mean to say those words just now!”

Sui Ning’s emotions remained calm, and her clear eyes coldly looked at Ji Bai. Her tone was flat, but there was a hint of a long-standing dignity, as befitting the wife of a family head.

No one knew that her heart was pounding rapidly and that her hands were shaking slightly in a panic. A powerful force was controlling her, forcing her to say those words, and no matter how hard she resisted, she had no power to fight back against that force.

“Although her consciousness is her own, her body is being controlled, as if two souls are living inside one body, which makes her spine tingle with fear. 

At this moment, everyone’s gaze is on her, and Sui Ning feels uncomfortable all over, her legs even slightly weak, unable to move.

Xie Changzhou’s clear voice came with a gentle reassurance: “Ningning, don’t be afraid. Do you remember what I said? Sometimes we don’t have control over our bodies; you just need to follow the past.”

Hearing his message, Sui Ning’s panicked heart calmed down slightly. “Okay.”

It seems that what she just said happened in the past—the words that the real mistress Wanwan had said.

Her words angered Ji Bai, and his face was full of anger. He gritted his teeth and asked, “Your Yong’an City has no power to fight against our Changming Sword Sect. Are you sure?”

Sui Ning chuckled lightly, still speaking slowly and calmly: “No, you’re wrong. It’s not Yong’an City.”

She paused, her lips curling with a hint of mockery: “Only the Yougu and Moling families. If the Changming Sword Sect wants to start a war, even if both of our great families are wiped out, we will not back down.”

“Then, Lord Ji, you’ll see how outsiders talk about it. Will they say that your Changming Sword Sect is a murderous and warlike group, or will they say…”

Sui Ning’s voice trailed off, her tone provocative, as she said word by word: “Your Changming Sword Sect’s most outstanding disciple is going to defile a virgin, and your entire sect shamelessly bullies the weak with its strength. Sect Leader Ji Bai is not an ignorant waste.”

As her words fell, Ji Bai’s face turned completely dark, and he looked at Suining with eyes that seemed to want to devour her alive. Sui Ning raised her eyebrows calmly and faced him.

Their eyes met, sparks flying.

After a long while, Ji Bai suddenly laughed and said, “Good, it seems that the Yougu and Moling families are determined to oppose the Changming Sword sect. In that case, they should take care of themselves.”

Ji Bai approached her, his tall figure firmly enclosing her and exerting pressure.

He stared at Sui Ning and said one word at a time, “Let’s wait and see.”

Ji Bai turned around with his sword and left. The room was now only left with Mo He, Xie Changzhou, and Sui Ning, and the sudden disappearance of the force that had controlled Sui Ning caused her to sigh in relief.

Mo He’s face still showed resentment. “Ji Bai is still as shameless as ever.”

Sui Ning was indifferent on the surface, but her heart was secretly applauding. Ji Bai’s sinister eyes just now made her feel uneasy. The Mistress of the Yougu family’s psychological resilience was indeed strong. She could face that ferocious face and say those words.

Mo He continued to curse Ji Bai, saying, “There isn’t a single good person in that family. If it weren’t for the sake of Zhaozhao’s reputation, I would have to expose what Ji Qiu did and let others see what kind of person the young master of such a big sect is.”

He looked angry, his face turning slightly red, and Mo He’s face was full of anger, looking a bit like a child throwing a tantrum. Sui Ning and Xie Changzhou looked at each other and found it amusing.

Xie Changzhou turned to Mo He and said softly, “Brother He, Ji Bai is just worried that this matter will be exposed and damage the reputation of the Changming Sword sect. There may be follow-up actions, so Brother He should prepare early.”

Mo He remained silent. He knew that Ji Bai was not afraid of them. The strength of the Changming Sword sect was far superior to that of their two families, and they would not stand a chance if a war broke out. The words just now only confirmed that the Changming Sword sect would not go to war. If they did, Ji Qiu’s matter would inevitably be exposed, damaging the reputation of the Changming Sword sect.

But Ji Bai was not that magnanimous. His decision not to go to war did not mean that the matter had ended. It indicated that he had other plans.

Mo He’s eyes narrowed. “Ming, go find a few elders. I’ll go back to the Moling family and call a few elders. Let’s discuss it together.”

“Okay.” Xie Changzhou nodded.

Xie Changzhou walked slowly towards Suining, with his eyebrows lowered and his voice gentle: “Wanwan, rest well.”

Mo He also said, “Yes, sister, you were so angry that it will hurt your heart. You should rest more. Ruoming and I will take care of things.”

He looked worried and seemed very concerned about Sui Ning.

Sui Ning felt a little guilty and responded hesitantly: “Okay, older brother and husband, take care.”

As soon as she spoke, Sui Ning froze and looked at Xie Changzhou in shock.

His cold, pale face turned red under her gaze; his back was straight, and his expression was somewhat bewildered. When he met Sui Ning’s eyes, it was as if he had been burned, and he quickly looked away.

Mo He laughed heartily: “No trouble at all, sister. Don’t worry about Zhaozhao and Huai’an. Rest well.”

Sui Ning nodded stubbornly: “Okay, I will.”

After watching Xie Changzhou and Mo He leave, Sui Ning’s face turned red, her heart beat like thunder, and her ears burned.

She had just blurted out the words “husband” too quickly, bringing the role into play too quickly. Thinking of the things Xie Changzhou had said to her, Sui Ning’s heartbeat became even more intense.

“System, system, are you there?” She thought in a panic, seeking the system’s help.

The system did not respond, and after calling out several times, Sui Ning’s muddled brain realized that she had locked it in the black box.

She quickly released it.

After being released, the mechanical voice of the system sounded somewhat angry: “[Sui Ning! How dare you lock me up!]”

Sui Ning didn’t have time to appease it and asked in a slightly panicked tone, “System, why is my heartbeat so fast? What’s wrong with me?”

She had never been in love in her twenty years of life. Although she was attractive, she had never accepted anyone’s pursuit. She just wanted to study hard, graduate, find a good job, earn money, buy a house, and support her parents.

But when she faced those pursuers’ confessions, she felt troubled and helpless. But when facing Xie Changzhou…

Her heart would beat faster, her face would turn red, and she would be at a loss.

She would be moved.

Sui Ning clenched her sleeves suddenly, and a tingling sensation arose in her chest, as if something was scratching her heart, light and itchy, particularly irritating.

The system fell silent for a moment before an ear-piercing mechanical sound filled the air.

“[Sui Ning, you like him! That’s what liking someone feels like!]” 

“[Xie Changzhou loves you so much. He took you in, healed your wounds, saved your life, and even gave you a spiritual pearl. Have you ever seen him treat anyone else like that?]” 

“But I…” Sui Ning began, before the system interrupted her, excitedly exclaiming, “[Don’t say anything, Sui Ning! Xie Changzhou is handsome, powerful, intelligent, and has a high status. What qualifications do you have?]” 

“…,” Sui Ning trailed off. 

“[Xie Changzhou is really good to you. Has he ever been cruel to you? Has he not given you everything you wanted? He even hung your sword tassel on his waist and treated it like a treasure, and he’s always polite and gentle.]” 

“Well, actually, that tassel…” Sui Ning started to say, but was interrupted by the system once again. “[Don’t say anything, Sui Ning. Forget about your mission and ask yourself, what do you feel for Xie Changzhou?]” 

What did she feel for him? Sui Ning was momentarily stunned and looked lost. At first, she just wanted to complete her mission and smoothly conquer him. After all, she had treated him as if he were just a fictional character in a book. 

But as she got to know him better, she became more and more sympathetic toward him. He had so many burdens to bear but so little reward. In contrast, Xie Changzhou treated her extremely well, caring for her, protecting her, indulging her, and doing everything he could for her. It was only now that Sui Ning realized that he had an extreme bias toward her. 

Did she like Xie Changzhou? Yes, she did, very much so. How could she not? He was an outstanding person, calm and clear like the wind and moon, and he loved her so much. 

Apart from her parents, no one had ever treated her so well. 

“[Host, I don’t need to point it out, but you already know the answer, right?]” 

The system’s excited voice finally quieted down, and its mechanical voice became slightly soothing. 

Sui Ning clenched her hands, and her eyes trembled slightly, her face growing hotter by the moment. Her smile became more and more pronounced. She liked Xie Changzhou very much, more than she could say. 

“System, I understand now.” 

She raised her face, her eyes and eyebrows full of joy. She wanted to see him, even if it was just for a moment of silence. 

Just as Sui Ning lifted the hem of her skirt and was about to take a step forward, a gust of wind suddenly swept in. The space in front of her was distorted, and time seemed to speed up, showing her a series of strange images. She saw countless faces, smiling or crying, still or moving. 

Finally, she locked eyes with a pair of blood-red vertical pupils. 

Cruel and icy…