Chapter 126

Chapter 126: Who gave her that handkerchief?!

Feng He Yun cried out in delight: “Shen Sang Ruo?!” He was so excited he almost tossed Lu Shi Qing off his back.

He shook Lu Shi Qing hard and urged him: “Third Junior Brother, wake up, we ran into Shen Sang Ruo!”

He nearly shook Lu Shi Qing’s brains into mush. Even so, Lu Shi Qing forced his eyelids open, only to look at Shen Sang Ruo.

Shen Sang Ruo paused, [speechless].

After a beat, her gaze fell on Lu Shi Qing’s face, which had turned a strange purple. She raised a brow: [How did he make himself look like this?]

Sensing her look, Feng He Yun hurried to explain: “Third Junior Brother failed at his Gu refinement and the Gu insects bit back.”

“At this point he has only one breath left. Master told me to carry him to Wuqing Stockade to beg the Old Shaman to save him.”

A hint of pity flashed in Shen Sang Ruo’s eyes, [what a pity, he still has one breath left].

She was curious why he suffered a Gu backlash at all. Her gut told her it must be tied to the day Lu Shi Qing blocked her path. Mockery slowly filled her eyes.

Lu Shi Qing had been watching her and naturally caught every flicker of her expression. His gaze darkened, his feelings unreadable.

She smoothed her face. [They’re also here to find the Old Shaman?] The Old Shaman saw very few people. That made them rivals. She quietly pinched the mulberry leaf handkerchief in her hand.

Feng He Yun noticed nothing. He was still thrilled to see her. When she showed no reaction to Lu Shi Qing’s backlash, he only muttered in his heart, [serves him right for treating her badly before].

Then he brought the talk back to her and asked bluntly: “So why are you here? You sure were carefree, leaving just like that.”

He stiffened his face, awkward and stubborn, and admitted: “Do you know we all really miss you?”

He rarely swallowed his pride to speak so directly, but this time he went all in for Shen Sang Ruo. He said, trying to sound casual: “Hearing me say this should please you, right? I admit it. We can’t get by without you. You really are important to us.”

“So stop being mad. From now on we’ll treat you like before and won’t let you suffer any wrongs.”

“Go back and apologize to Sect Master Shen. You two have years of father and daughter ties. He won’t be so heartless as to abandon you.”

“I’m also doing my best to persuade Junior Sister. When the time comes, she’ll plead for you too.”

“How have you been since leaving the Flying Cloud Sect? Probably not great, right?”

“Come back. Come back to the Flying Cloud Sect.” He thought to himself: [first get her back to the Flying Cloud Sect, then find a way to return her to Thunder-Scale Peak].

Feng He Yun thought his words would move Shen Sang Ruo. After all, he had just said she was important to them. Wasn’t that what she wanted, their attention and approval? He believed she never truly wanted to leave the Flying Cloud Sect. Now that he had compromised, surely everyone could be happy.

Shen Sang Ruo only felt he was still dreaming. [When will they understand I truly cut ties with them?] She was already the Young Sect Master of the Ninghua Sect, yet they still imagined she could return to the Flying Cloud Sect.

There were so many problems with what Feng He Yun said that she hardly knew where to start. She let out a cold laugh and answered: “I have nothing to do with you anymore, so why should I explain my purpose here to two strangers?”

“Being ‘cared about’ by you is no gift. Sorry, I don’t need things that are useless.”

“To disappoint you, I’ve been doing very well since leaving the Flying Cloud Sect, better than the past ten-plus years.”

“And I have already joined a new sect. I will never go back to the Flying Cloud Sect.”

She had not even finished when Feng He Yun shouted: “How could you join a new sect?”

In his mind, she couldn’t be doing well. She had left the Flying Cloud Sect. She must just be too proud to admit she was in trouble.

“We’ve already humbled ourselves this much and you’re still not satisfied? Do you have to toy with us like this? That joke is not funny,” he grumbled, sullen and upset.

He believed leaving the Flying Cloud Sect was the furthest she could go. If she joined a new sect, how could she ever come back? Then everything she’d done before would be meaningless. Also, what sect would dare accept a disciple cast out by the Flying Cloud Sect? He didn’t think at all before deciding she was lying.

Lu Shi Qing had already seen this icy side of her and secretly mocked Feng He Yun for being foolish and naive. [If I weren’t worried about the Ninghua Sect clashing with the Flying Cloud Sect too early, I would have slapped the Ninghua Sect token right on his forehead to wake up that old Thunder-Scale Peak stubbornness.]

“We met at the right time, so let’s escort Third Junior Brother to the Old Shaman together,” Feng He Yun said, trying a new angle. “We won’t talk about returning to the Flying Cloud Sect for now, but you can’t just watch him die, right? Even if he treated you badly before, he’s still your former Senior Brother.”

Shen Sang Ruo curled her lip. [Forget saving him. If I don’t add fuel to the fire, that already counts as mercy.] Of course, she was not merciful, and she would not let them steal her chance to see the Old Shaman.

Feng He Yun wiped the rain from his face, and his eyes fell on the handkerchief in Shen Sang Ruo’s hand.

“This is perfect. Lend it to me to wipe the rain,” he said, reaching for the mulberry leaf handkerchief.

Even though Shen Sang Ruo dodged in time, his wet fingers still dampened a patch of the cloth.

She looked at the wet mark with disgust, then carefully dried it with spiritual power. Anger quietly climbed into her heart.

Still clueless, Feng He Yun even complained: “Hey, why dodge? You wouldn’t even give me a handkerchief? Guess our feelings really faded…”

Shen Sang Ruo lifted her eyes. Killing intent filled them, the same look Feng He Yun had seen on her when she stared at Bai Mu Mu that day. He fell silent at once as a chill ran down his back.

Feeling embarrassed for being startled by a look, he put on the air of a former big Senior Brother and snapped: “It’s just a handkerchief. It’s not important. Why get so tense?”

“What, are all our years as Senior Brother and sister worth less than a rag?”

Lu Shi Qing’s brows knit. The old Shen Sang Ruo only treasured things they gave her. He stared at the handkerchief. The little mulberry leaves embroidered on it were fine and neat. It was easy to tell the giver prepared it with care.

His calm finally tore apart. The more his emotions surged, the more the Gu insects gnawed at him. He panted hard. Pain shot across his body as his face twisted with madness.

He forced out a roar with everything he had: “Who gave you that handkerchief?!”