Dao Companion Crippled, Coveters Move

Chapter 438 424: Jiu: It's All Huang Wanshi's Fault for Being Too Lustful

"Hmph. That spineless cuckold is so irritating. If he won't stand up for himself, he can't blame others for treating him like a dog."

The beautiful young woman raised a slender finger, casually tucking a lock of dark hair behind her ear. She might have looked like a gentle, mature woman, but the words from her red lips were pure venom.

"So? Are you still going to hold my hand now that we're inside?"

"...Ahem. I'm just staying in character. This is how Huang Wanshi acts."

Though her little trick had been exposed, Jiu stubbornly held her ground, trying to look perfectly justified—

But the deep blush that had already spread from her ears to her neck, blooming on her snow-white skin, gave her away.

But Jiu would never admit it.

She was only protecting Pei Yuhang for the Holy Daughter.

'That's right, it's all Huang Wanshi's fault,' she thought. 'Her lustfulness is affecting me! Otherwise, why would I try to steal something that belongs to the Holy Daughter?'

Jiu's fingertips brushed almost imperceptibly against Pei Yuhang's palm, as if still coveting the warmth of his skin, but in the end, she reluctantly let go of the large hand that could envelop her own.

She got up and went to the table, where the flask of warm wine brought by Huang Wanshi was still sitting.

The one who brought the wine was now cold, yet the wine itself was still warm.

"Palace Master Pei, come and have a drink with me~"

Jiu mimicked Huang Wanshi's saccharine, seductive tone and beckoned to Pei Yuhang with a crooked finger.

Pei Yuhang looked at Jiu, who wore Huang Wanshi's face, and a chill crept up his spine.

"It's just the two of us in this room. You should change back to your own appearance. Even looking at a mask would be easier on the eyes than the face you're wearing now."

"Hmph, Sword Immortal Pei is so aloof. Not interested in a little role-playing game? You certainly seemed to enjoy playing the big bad wolf and the little bunny with Fairy Ye."

As Jiu teased him, the delicate makeup on her face peeled away like a fading oil painting, revealing a mask branded with a Red Lotus Pattern.

"How do you know about Liyuan and me!"

Pei Yuhang's expression changed drastically.

But Jiu just gave a delicate snort and turned her head away, ignoring him.

Pei Yuhang watched her tall, slender back, momentarily lost in a daze.

The more time he spent with Jiu, the more familiar and casual their interactions became. But just recently...

He couldn't shake a profound sense of familiarity from her.

It felt as if they had done this all before, a long time ago—bickering, joking, just living.

'Could it be her...'

A flicker of uncertainty crossed Pei Yuhang's eyes, but he instinctively rejected the idea.

'Impossible.'

'Is Shang Miaoyan insane? If it's really her, why would Shang Miaoyan have allowed her to set foot in the Dao Sect, let alone get close enough to monitor me?'

'Is Shang Miaoyan really so confident that someone who betrayed her once would never do it again?'

'Then again, with Shang Miaoyan's arrogant personality, it wasn't out of the question.'

At that moment, Pei Yuhang watched Jiu's back as she faced the round moon outside the window, drinking fine wine by herself.

His heart was in turmoil.

...

...

Several days passed.

The Dao Sect's Spirit Wheel pressed on at full speed, heedless of the Spirit Stone consumption. They were still halfway from the Celestial Secret Pavilion.

Aside from the incessant, gloomy plum rains that fell day and night, everything seemed to be the same as always.

No one discovered the truth that the caravan's leader, Elder Huang, had been replaced.

However, many Pill Boys noticed that Elder Huang had become quite friendly with the famous Sword Immortal Pei. Someone had even seen the two of them walking side-by-side.

Some even discovered that as soon as night fell, Elder Huang would leave her room and head for Sword Immortal Pei's...

This inevitably gave rise to some rumors, but everyone knew what was going on and didn't dare to comment.

'Two powerful people, both spoken for, just hooking up for a bit. Who are we lowly folk to run our mouths?!'

But while the people on the ship didn't dare speak recklessly about Sword Immortal Pei and Elder Huang, they showed no such restraint when it came to a certain spineless man.

Inside the communal cabin of the Spirit Wheel Stewards.

Due to several straight days of rain, the air was thick with moisture, and large damp patches stained the wooden ceiling.

A group of burly men in coarse linen clothes surrounded a middle-aged man in fine silks who was hunched over, their expressions menacing.

"Fellow Daoist Xiao Ming, didn't you say you're Elder Huang's Dao Companion? How come you can't even get through the door to her chambers~"

"Yeah, you're so high and mighty. Why are you sleeping in the communal bunks with us stewards every day?"

Pang Xiaoming looked deeply embarrassed as he listened to their taunts.

The surrounding stewards, however, were finally feeling a sense of satisfaction.

From the very first day, this guy had lorded his status as Elder Huang's Dao Companion over them, acting like their master and ordering them around.

At first, the group of stewards didn't dare say much, intimidated by Pang Xiaoming's status.

But recently, they had confirmed that Pang Xiaoming's relationship with Elder Huang was in name only, and that Elder Huang had found a new lover in Sword Immortal Pei.

Now, they were finally ready to settle the score with Pang Xiaoming!

"Fellow Daoist Xiao Ming, you borrowed ten Spirit Stones from me for wine money the other day. It's time to pay up."

"And my twenty Spirit Stones for gambling."

"Mine too."

Several stewards surrounded Pang Xiaoming, their faces grim.

Pang Xiaoming waved his hand dismissively, though his voice lacked confidence. "Ahem, my Dao Companion is Elder Huang of the Dan Yun Pavilion."

"A single Elixir she casually refines is worth thousands of Spirit Stones. Do you really think I'm short on your petty change?"

"Then why did you have to borrow Spirit Stones from us in the first place?"

Pang Xiaoming's expression froze.

'Because his Dao Companion only ever took money from him; when would she ever give him any?'

'Ever since Huang Wanshi became successful, she'd stopped caring about the Spirit Stones he had, but she never offered him any of hers. And Pang Xiaoming, of course, was too proud to ask his Dao Companion for money.'

"Hahaha... Why are you all so obsessed with a few Spirit Stones? It's so dehumanizing, isn't it?"

"Later I'll ask my wife for a couple of Elixirs, and you'll all make a huge profit."

Pang Xiaoming was mortified, but he maintained a calm facade, using his Dao Companion as both a backer and a shield.

But the stewards weren't buying it this time. They took a step forward, backing Pang Xiaoming into a corner.

One of the stewards rolled up his sleeves, his face hostile.

"Pang Xiaoming, the only reason we're still calling you 'Fellow Daoist' is out of respect for Elder Huang! Now pay up!"

"Brother Zhang, let's stop wasting our breath on him. This deadbeat still thinks he's Elder Huang's Dao Companion? He's just a damn cuckold!"

Hearing this, Pang Xiaoming's eyes shot wide open, instantly filling with bloodshot veins:

"What did you say?!"

The steward sneered and cursed, "I said you're a damn cuckold!"

"Your own Dao Companion dresses up all seductively every day to crawl into another man's bed, and you just sit there and do nothing. If you're not a cuckold, what are you? You really think they're in there playing chess?!"

"Besides, a toad like you can't even compare to half of Sword Immortal Pei's little finger. How could you whet a woman's appetite? Elder Huang is a Fairy, after all. How could she possibly be interested in you..."

Before the steward could finish, Brother Zhang clamped a hand over his mouth.

"Careful, loose lips sink ships... loose lips sink ships..."

Although the stewards dared to pressure Pang Xiaoming, they wouldn't dare say another word about the relationship between Sword Immortal Pei and Elder Huang.

Amid the clamor, all Pang Xiaoming heard was a ringing in his ears.

His clenched fists went limp.

'What these stewards were saying... did they think he didn't know?'

'That rainy night, when he had personally watched "Huang Wanshi" smiling as she clung to the arm of that White-clothed Sword Immortal, shutting the door and leaving him outside...'

'He knew exactly what was going to happen next!'

'But so what? As long as he pretended not to know, everything would be just like it always was...'

'Why? Why did you have to expose the truth?!'

'I just wanted to be a turtle hiding in its shell! Why are you all forcing me to stick my head out?!'

GURGLE...

No one noticed.

On the damp patch of the ceiling soaked through by the plum rains, a few small drops of water seemed to come to life, coalescing together.

Then, as if finally unable to resist the pull of gravity, they fell straight down, landing on Pang Xiaoming's head.

In that instant, Pang Xiaoming, who was on the verge of a mental breakdown, rolled his eyes back, his face twisting into a horrifying expression.