Chapter 21: The World’s Best Sword is Indeed a Good Sword

Such a heavy bite.

The moment Mu Ge plummeted off the cliff, not only she herself, but even the assassins hunting her believed she was doomed for sure.

So when she opened her eyes and saw the woman in white sitting before her, her mind’s immediate reflex was that she, too, had become a lonely, wandering ghost.

Mu Ge’s vision was blurry. She could only make out the general outline and the color of the clothes from the firelight.

She parted her lips, a hoarse sound escaping her throat. “Are you here… to take me?”

Perhaps the soul-reaping White Impermanence.

Cheng Huan was in a daze. Hearing the Female Lead’s voice, she raised her gaze, puzzled. “Take you where?”

The Female Lead couldn’t be talking in her sleep, could she?

Mu Ge: “To Yama’s Palace… to drink Meng Po’s Soup…”

“…” Cheng Huan frowned.

Had the Female Lead damaged her brain when she fell?!

Cheng Huan walked to Mu Ge’s side and took her pulse.

Although there was internal stagnation, her heart meridian was steady and her breath was even. This didn’t look like a rally before death.

Cheng Huan raised a hand and felt Mu Ge’s forehead. It was somewhat hot. It seemed she had a fever.

Cheng Huan prepared to go get some water for Mu Ge to bring her temperature down. Just as she was about to rise, Mu Ge gripped her right hand tightly, forcibly pulling Cheng Huan over.

Cheng Huan hadn’t expected the Female Lead to suddenly yank her. Losing her balance, she stumbled and toppled right over.

Her right hand was held fast by the Female Lead. Her left hand hadn’t had time to brace herself.

Her lips touched something warm. Cheng Huan’s eyes flew wide open, filled with utter disbelief.

Little Hedgehog curled up, embarrassed. [Shame, shame, shame!]

“…” The next second, the Female Lead suddenly opened her mouth and fiercely bit down on Cheng Huan’s lip, with so much force it was as if she wanted to bite Cheng Huan to death.

Cheng Huan winced in pain. She raised a hand and jabbed the Female Lead’s acupoint, liberating her own mouth.

She braced herself up, her right hand still tightly held by the Female Lead.

Cheng Huan sat on the bedside, took a deep breath, exhaled slowly, and cursed under her breath. “Damn!”

Cheng Huan raised a hand to touch her lip. It was as if the sensation of before still lingered.

Both soft and blazing hot.

“Hiss…” Cheng Huan touched the wound. Her fingertips found blood.

The Female Lead’s bite was truly heavy. Trying to bite her to death.

Little Hedgehog: [Host, are you okay?]

Cheng Huan licked the wound, using her saliva as makeshift disinfectant. “I’m fine.”

Little Hedgehog: [Host, were you just kissed forcibly by the Female Lead?]

Cheng Huan frowned. “She’s unconscious and out of it. What the hell kind of forcible kiss is that?”

Little Hedgehog nodded. [So then, Host forcibly kissed the Female Lead. Right?]

“…” The veins on Cheng Huan’s forehead pulsed. She gritted her teeth. “Forcible kiss my ass. It was an accident!”

Little Hedgehog glanced at Cheng Huan’s reddening earlobe and gave a reluctant “Oh.”

It had a feeling this “accident” was no accident.

Cheng Huan looked at the still-unconscious Female Lead, her right hand being held. If she exerted a little force, she could easily break free. But the Female Lead’s face was deathly pale, looking fragile and helpless.

As if Cheng Huan’s right hand was her lifeline.

Cheng Huan sighed and didn’t forcibly pull her hand away.

She could consider it giving the Female Lead some comfort. Besides, the Female Lead’s hand was so soft and smooth. When she thought about it, Cheng Huan was actually quite enjoying it.

Only…

Cheng Huan looked at the Female Lead’s hand. White and tender, soft as if boneless. Her own hand was larger, just big enough to completely envelop the Female Lead’s.

Small, like a ball of cotton.

Just like Lu Qing’an’s…

Little Hedgehog sensed Cheng Huan’s emotions. [Host, are you thinking about the Female Lead from the last Retirement Experience World?]

Cheng Huan pressed her lips together. “No.”

Little Hedgehog: [Host, you’re lying.]

Cheng Huan’s heart trembled. She quibbled, “I am not. Don’t randomly sense my emotions.”

An Assistant System was linked to its Host’s emotions. If the Host didn’t want the Assistant System to detect their emotional shifts…

they could sever the connection themselves, or rely on their own skills to make the Assistant System unable to probe the Host’s emotional changes.

Little Hedgehog had clearly sensed a shift in Cheng Huan’s emotions. Through data matching, it was an emotion called “longing.”

But the moment Cheng Huan denied it, Little Hedgehog no longer felt that sudden surge of “longing.”

[Alright, maybe my perception was wrong.] Little Hedgehog was a newbie, after all. It couldn’t outplay an old hand like Cheng Huan.

Having done missions for so many years, Cheng Huan had long since learned to hide her true emotions. During missions in the past, Cheng Huan had to experience far too many messy emotions and desires. She didn’t like to mix them up, as that could easily cause her true self to fracture.

Cheng Huan grew tired of sitting. She nudged the Female Lead further inside the bed and lay down beside her.

There was no wind tonight. Moonlight streamed in through the gaps of the broken wooden door, falling upon their tightly clasped hands on the stone bed. In that moment, even the moonlight seemed much gentler.

—

Mu Ge was roused awake by a piercing white light. Her brows furrowed deeply, and she slowly opened her eyes. What met her sight was hard rock. The crisp chirping of birds reached her ears. In a daze, Mu Ge thought she was still alive.

She took a deep breath and felt a sharp pain in her chest. Her breathing faltered, and her chest cavity trembled rapidly. A stifled energy surged up her throat, and Mu Ge couldn’t stop herself from coughing.

A bout of coughing, and her whole body ached. Mu Ge was just about to raise her hand to rub her chest when she suddenly saw that her left hand was being tightly held by someone.

Mu Ge stared at the extra hand, confused. Her mind was a mess. Before she could think carefully, she heard a warm, clear inquiry by her ear.

“Awake?”

Mu Ge’s eyes widened as she looked at the woman sitting up beside her.

Not getting a reply, Cheng Huan tilted her head to look at the Female Lead. Seeing her look as if she’d seen a ghost, Cheng Huan couldn’t help but laugh. “What?”

“Did not making it to Yama’s Palace and not getting to drink Meng Po’s Soup hit you that hard?”

Mu Ge parted her lips, her voice hoarse. “You… who are you?”

Cheng Huan: “I’m the victim you landed on, and also your lifesaver.”

After sleeping for a night, Cheng Huan felt her back was about to break. Probably from when the Female Lead landed on her yesterday.

“??” Profound confusion showed in Mu Ge’s eyes. She glanced around. “This place… where is it?”

Cheng Huan shrugged. “My humble abode.”

Mu Ge’s gaze then fell upon their clasped hands.

Cheng Huan volunteered, “I was coerced into this.”

Mu Ge: “…”

She looked closely. She was the one tightly holding onto someone else’s hand and not letting go.

Mu Ge released her grip. “My apologies. It was… presumptuous of me.”

Cheng Huan rubbed her right hand. “It’s fine.”

She got up and stretched lazily, looking at the sun outside. “Not bad, a sunny day after all.”

Mu Ge propped herself up and saw that her right leg had been bandaged. She moved it slightly, and the intense pain immediately made her frown.

“Don’t move around,” Cheng Huan said, seeing her wince. “Your right leg is fractured. I didn’t have any medicine on hand, so I could only use some wood sticks to splint it. You’ll need to see a doctor once you get out of these mountains.”

Mu Ge paused, then nodded. “Many thanks to you, young lady, for saving my life.”

Cheng Huan waved a hand. “It’s nothing.”

From a nearby wooden rack, she fetched a few ripe, red wild fruits and placed them in front of Mu Ge. “My house is bare; I only have wild fruits. You’ll have to make do and fill your stomach a bit.”

“Thank you.” Mu Ge picked up a wild fruit and took a bite. The sweet and sour juice filled her mouth and tongue, greatly relieving the dryness in her throat.

She looked around. The place was a cave. Judging by the arrangement of items, someone lived here regularly.

Presumably, it was the dwelling place of this woman in white before her.

But… why would a delicately beautiful, slender woman live alone in a cave deep in the desolate wilderness?

Though such barren mountains were rarely frequented by people, all sorts of ferocious, bloodthirsty beasts were countless here.

Mu Ge watched the way Cheng Huan sliced the boar meat, and comprehension dawned within her.

This person must be a reclusive master, highly skilled in martial arts, living deep in the mountains.

But wasn’t this woman a bit too young?

Judging merely by looks and figure, she should be around twenty years old. She didn’t look like a master expert over fifty, long weary of the mortal world.

Sensing the Female Lead’s gaze, Cheng Huan spread her hands. “It’s not that I’m selfish and stingy. It’s just that your body’s current condition isn’t suitable for eating heavy, greasy food. Understand?”

The Female Lead kept glancing at her from time to time. She was probably craving the boar meat.

Mu Ge reined in her gaze and said flatly, “I know that.”

“Thank you for your care, Senior.”

Hearing the change in address, Cheng Huan raised an eyebrow. “Why aren’t you calling me ‘young lady’ anymore?”

Mu Ge: “Senior must be someone from the Jianghu, and you have shown me the grace of saving my life. A junior should be more respectful.”

“No need. While I am a few years older than you, titles like ‘Senior’ and ‘Junior’ feel too restrictive. I don’t care for such things. Just call me by my name,” Cheng Huan said. “My surname is Cheng, single name Huan.”

Mu Ge nodded. “Very well.”

“My name is Mu Ge.”

Cheng Huan said offhandedly, “I know.”

Mu Ge’s expression shifted. Her gaze grew wary as she looked at Cheng Huan. “You… know me?”

She moved the hand resting on her thigh to her waist, where her Pear Blossom Blade was kept.

Cheng Huan said without changing her expression, “Your jade pendant has the characters ‘Mu Ge’ carved on it. So I guessed that was your name.”

It was perfectly normal for her to know the Female Lead’s name. After all, Cheng Huan was crystal clear on the Female Lead’s background and even her objective in this world.

Except that Cheng Huan used the “personal jade pendant” as a reason to put the Female Lead at ease.

Even though the pendant had probably been lost somewhere when the Female Lead fell off the cliff…

But that wouldn’t stop the Female Lead from partially believing Cheng Huan because of this reason.

“There’s no need for you to be on guard against me.” Cheng Huan walked over to Mu Ge and pulled the Pear Blossom Blade from her robe, placing it before Mu Ge’s eyes. “You were looking for this, right?”

Her waist had been empty. Mu Ge thought it had been lost during the cliff fall. She hadn’t expected Cheng Huan to have taken it.

“You had injuries that needed bandaging. I found this while dressing your wounds,” Cheng Huan said. “Now, it’s returned to its rightful owner.”

Mu Ge gave Cheng Huan a meaningful look, put the Pear Blossom Blade away, and said, “Thank you.”

“Cheng Huan lives in these mountains all alone?” Her tone was light, like casual chatting.

Cheng Huan nodded. “Alone.”

“Though it might be somewhat presumptuous of me to ask this,” Mu Ge said, looking like she was facing a dilemma, but her expression showed concern, “for a young lady to live alone in such a wild, remote deep mountain… it’s truly dangerous.”

“If you want to ask something, just ask plainly. No need for probing. I have no intention of killing you, nor am I interested in the treasure you guard.”

The Female Lead’s every sentence sounded pure and innocent, but in reality, they were all tests and suspicions.

The Female Lead of this world had a deep, calculating mind, sensitive and paranoid.

Mu Ge started. She looked at Cheng Huan in disbelief. She hadn’t expected Cheng Huan to guess her identity and background, as well as the treasure she guarded.

“You already knew I was Mu Ge from the start?” Mu Ge’s gaze was imposing. “You saved me on purpose!”

“If I saved you on purpose, why would I honestly tell you my intentions? Isn’t that a contradiction?”

Cheng Huan licked her lip and touched the wound, frowning. “Though I live deep in the mountains, I naturally know what’s happening in the outside world.”

“The Holy Elder, Clan Leader of the Fanli Clan who guarded the treasure’s secret, suddenly passed away. Both the Jianghu and the Imperial Court are eyeing the treasure the Holy Elder guarded with greed. With the Holy Elder gone, the world’s greed will stir, and they will certainly move against the treasure guarded by the Fanli Clan.”

“The Holy Elder passed on, passing the position of Clan Leader to his granddaughter, Mu Ge. He also gave the secret of the treasure and the Treasure Map to the new Clan Leader. So…”

Cheng Huan watched as Mu Ge’s eyes reddened, tears stubbornly refusing to fall. “For the sake of the treasure, the Treasure Map was stolen. And the Fanli Clan, in a single night… all its clansmen were slaughtered.”

Mu Ge couldn’t hold back her tears. Her words dripped with blood, her teeth clenched. “They were not human!”

“They didn’t even spare the children!”

“Everyone… is dead…”

That night was one Mu Ge would never forget. The sky-high flames burned away every house and field. The agonized cries and wails of her clansmen were only a catalyst for those cruel, bloodthirsty fiends to swing their blades faster.

Protected by her clan, Mu Ge entered a secret passage to escape. The fiends discovered the passage and began hunting her down. To protect the treasure, Mu Ge had jumped off the cliff, using her life to safeguard everything.

Seeing her so agitated, Cheng Huan raised a hand and struck Mu Ge’s chest with a palm strike.

Her strike was too fast. Mu Ge didn’t react, coughing out a mouthful of blood.

Mu Ge froze, the tears at the corners of her eyes falling silently.

“There we go. With the stagnant blood spat out, your internal injuries will heal faster.” Cheng Huan shrugged.

Mu Ge murmured, “Thank you.”

“I didn’t mean to bring up your painful memories. It’s just that this mouthful of stagnant blood had to be expelled while you were emotionally agitated. It couldn’t be forced out conventionally, or it would damage your heart meridian.”

Mu Ge wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth. “Thank you, truly. Cheng Huan.”

Cheng Huan smiled but said nothing more. Only, the smile tugged at the wound on her lip, tearing it open again, and the pain made her frown.

Seeing the injury on Cheng Huan’s mouth, Mu Ge was puzzled. “How did you get that wound on your mouth?”

The moment this was brought up, Cheng Huan’s chest filled with grievances. She said bluntly, “You bit me.”

Mu Ge froze. “…”

Cheng Huan said with a pitiful, aggrieved look, “It really hurt.”

Mu Ge: “…”

And so, why would I bite you? Did you do something to me?