Chapter 203
Chapter 203: A Look at the Treasure
With a casual sweep of her hand, Murong Xiao Ya dispelled the blazing rays of fire before her, revealing an isolated patch of ground untouched amid the boundless Sea of Fire. But when the flames faded, Li Mu Sheng was nowhere to be seen.
“Burned completely away, is he?” Murong Xiao Ya murmured, her lips curving into a chilling smile. Her expression was cold, devoid of warmth or mercy.
Yet, in the next instant, her face stiffened abruptly. The blood-red flames swirling in her eyes began to flicker wildly, wavering dangerously as if about to vanish altogether.
“Why? How could I attack Your Highness? Impossible… This isn’t me…” Murong Xiao Ya gripped her head tightly, crouching down as agony twisted across her features.
Around her, the murderous aura thickened until it seemed tangible, but at this moment, it began to waver, gradually dispersing.
Just then, from somewhere within the burning courtyard, a sigh echoed softly.
Out of thin air, Li Mu Sheng’s figure appeared, stepping forward to stand before Murong Xiao Ya.
Sensing his presence, Murong Xiao Ya jerked her head up sharply, locking eyes with him. Instantly, the flickering blood-red flames reignited fiercely in her gaze, and her murderous aura surged violently, returning to its previous terrifying peak. The pain on her face disappeared, replaced by surprise and suspicion. Rising slowly to her feet, she said coldly: “You survived?”
Even as she spoke, Murong Xiao Ya unleashed another deadly strike filled with murderous intent. A phantom Vermilion Bird formed swiftly behind her, its blazing wings slicing through the air, aiming straight for Li Mu Sheng’s heart.
The strike was unimaginably swift, leaving only a brief flash of fire that vanished instantly, impossible to track. Yet, it only sliced through Li Mu Sheng’s afterimage.
Murong Xiao Ya stared in disbelief, realizing she had lost sight of him once again.
“You’re still too slow, Lady Murong,” Li Mu Sheng’s calm voice drifted from the spot where his afterimage had dispersed. He reappeared, shaking his head gently as he regarded her.
“How…?” Murong Xiao Ya’s face twisted in shock. Immediately, a frightening aura surged wildly from her, reaching an even greater intensity. Crimson-gold patterns flowed over her palms, swirling into a vortex of fiery light. She raised her hand, aiming directly at Li Mu Sheng’s heart and clenching fiercely through the air.
But suddenly, a slender hand lightly clasped her wrist. Li Mu Sheng’s voice whispered near her ear: “Still too weak, Lady Murong.”
“And if you strike again, I might not restrain myself from killing you.”
His quiet words echoed in Murong Xiao Ya’s ears, and she realized, horrified, that her wrist couldn’t budge. A force as immense as a mountain held her in place, rendering her completely immobile.
At the same time, an indescribable fear rushed through her, shaking even the towering murderous intent inside her, causing it to recede swiftly like a tide.
Gradually, the blood-red flames in her eyes faded away, replaced by disbelief, remorse, and pain. Her voice trembled softly: “How…did I become like this?”
The towering pillars of flame dispersed slowly in mid-air, and the surrounding Sea of Fire engulfing Mei Residence gradually lost its fierce intensity.
Li Mu Sheng silently observed as Murong Xiao Ya returned to the gentle and frail appearance she once had. He shook his head slowly.
In truth, at her initial attack, he had considered killing this young lady before him. But seeing Murong Xiao Ya’s clear struggle, he ultimately couldn’t bring himself to do it.
[Ah, great. If this act was performed by a protagonist from those novels in my past life, readers would surely scold him for being a foolish saint.]
Li Mu Sheng furrowed his brows, silently mocking himself in his heart.
But he couldn’t help it. Lady Murong was someone he knew, and given that she had just suffered a devastating tragedy with her entire family wiped out, her actions weren’t entirely without reason. Moreover, Li Mu Sheng sensed clearly that something unnatural had happened to her.
Though Murong Xiao Ya’s strength had grown immensely, her mind seemed overwhelmed by hatred and killing intent, losing control and gradually turning her into an emotionless killing machine.
“Your Highness…I’m sorry…” Murong Xiao Ya whispered, the crimson-gold patterns fading from her skin and the fiery gold vortices disappearing from her eyes as she lowered her head in shame and agony.
Li Mu Sheng slowly released her slender wrist, examining her thoughtfully before raising an eyebrow and suddenly saying: “No need to apologize. Instead, Lady Murong, why don’t you show me your treasure?”
At his unexpected words, Murong Xiao Ya paused in confusion, slowly lifting her head again. Her scarlet hair fluttered gently in the lingering heat.
“My treasure?” Murong Xiao Ya’s terrifying aura had completely subsided now, leaving only puzzlement on her delicate, pale face.
Li Mu Sheng stroked his chin, then pointed lightly toward her left chest and replied: “Isn’t your treasure right there?”
Murong Xiao Ya lowered her gaze, quickly understanding his meaning. She softly placed a hand over her heart, murmuring quietly: “Indeed, if not for it, I could never have annihilated the Four Great Families and Han Chui Yuan, avenging the Murong Family.”
Speaking these words, a haze briefly clouded her eyes, and the extinguished blood flames showed signs of rekindling. The murderous intent within her stirred again, threatening resurgence.
However, Li Mu Sheng merely glanced at her, sending forth an invisible Qi current that instantly calmed the turmoil inside her.
“Lady Murong, this thing is beyond your control. Better entrust it to me—I will handle it for you,” Li Mu Sheng spoke calmly, narrowing his eyes.
At this moment, Murong Xiao Ya seemed to finally grasp the root of her previous actions. After quietly meeting his gaze, she looked down again, silent for a while before finally nodding in agreement.
“My vengeance is complete now. I no longer need the Vermilion Bird Bone. If Your Highness wishes, please take it.” Murong Xiao Ya turned to face him directly, gently lifting open her robe.
At once, Murong Xiao Ya’s entire form appeared clearly before Li Mu Sheng’s eyes.
Yet Li Mu Sheng only narrowed his eyes slightly, focusing intently on the spot above her heart. A gruesome wound lingered there, encircled by swirling crimson light, as if destined never to heal.