Realizing she had lost control of her emotions—and worse, that she had actually cursed—Bai Mulan quickly clamped a hand over her mouth. Her gaze darted sideways, only to meet Chen Fan's widened eyes, staring at her in shock.
"Pft… Hahaha!" Chen Fan's laughter echoed through the crimson landscape, his amusement completely unrestrained. Bai Mulan knew she had really done it this time. There was no way to cover it up. Her entire face turned red, practically the color of a tomato. The sudden turn of events had completely shattered her usual composure. For a fleeting moment, she felt as if no matter how hard she tried to maintain her persona, fate would always find a way to strip it away, revealing her true self.
"As expected of the Saintess," Chen Fan said between chuckles. "Even in a dire situation, she knows how to lighten the mood for her teammates." Though he managed to regain some control over his expression, his lips still curled into an amused smile. He truly hadn't expected this seemingly cold and expressionless woman to be hiding such an unexpectedly lively side.
"You heard wrong. It must have been an illusion from the enemy," Bai Mulan quickly regained her frosty demeanor, attempting to dismiss the incident.
"Oh? Then how did you know I was talking about you if I'm the only one who got tricked?" Chen Fan asked, his smirk growing.
"That's—That's because they put me under an illusion too, so—" Bai Mulan faltered, realizing there was no way to win this argument. Seeing the playful glint in Chen Fan's eyes, she knew he wouldn't let this go no matter how much she tried to explain. "Hmph." In the end, she simply turned her head away, refusing to acknowledge him.
Chen Fan's smile widened at her reaction, but he decided not to push any further. Their current predicament didn't allow for unnecessary teasing. Scanning their surroundings, he found no immediate threats lurking nearby.
"Was the teleportation unstable, or did they intentionally put us here?" Chen Fan mused aloud, inviting Bai Mulan to share her thoughts.
Although she was still flustered, she knew this wasn't the time to dwell on embarrassment. Taking a deep breath, she calmed herself—but this time, she no longer felt the need to maintain her cold facade.
"Or… is it possible we're trapped in an illusion?" she suggested.
"If the illusion is truly that advanced—so much so that we can't distinguish it from reality—then we wouldn't be able to break free no matter what we do… unless we kill ourselves," Chen Fan reasoned. "Let's not act based on that assumption for now." His gaze swept across the eerie landscape before settling on a cave in the distance. "We should head there."
Bai Mulan followed his line of sight and nodded. Standing around wouldn't accomplish anything.
Without hesitation, they began walking side by side, their senses heightened for any signs of danger.
After a moment of silence, Chen Fan suddenly asked, "By the way, have you ever lived in Lingzhou?"
Bai Mulan immediately caught onto the direction of his question. Deciding there was no harm in being honest, she replied, "Yes. How did you know? Were you stalking me?" she countered playfully, taking the opportunity to get back at him for his earlier teasing.
"Oh. Guilty as charged," Chen Fan admitted shamelessly. "I mean, getting a glimpse of someone as beautiful as the Saintess—even from afar—is a dream come true for many men."
Bai Mulan stared at him, momentarily at a loss for words. She had spent her entire life maintaining the persona of an untouchable goddess, leaving her with little experience in playful banter. She had no idea how to respond to such shameless words.
Chen Fan, however, wasn't done. "Ah… If only I had something that once belonged to the Saintess," he mused dramatically. "Maybe I'd keep it as a family heirloom."
"NO." Bai Mulan anxiously looked at Chen Fan. "You mustn't open it!" The moment she saw his smirk, she realized she had walked right into his trap.
"Oh?" Chen Fan feigned surprise. "What do you mean, Miss Bai? Are you referring to the box? But how do you even know I have it? Unless… you were the one stalking me?" He threw her own words back at her, watching her reaction with amusement.
His earlier mention of Lingzhou and 'belongings' had merely been bait, a way to see if she would react. He had expected her to get suspicious, but he hadn't expected her to confirm that she knew he had the box. Now, his curiosity was piqued.
But before he could say another word, Bai Mulan's expression suddenly changed.
"Hiks…" A faint, trembling sound escaped her lips. Her eyes glistened slightly as she looked at him, a mixture of distress and embarrassment in her gaze. "No… You mustn't open it."
Chen Fan froze.
For the first time, he found himself flustered. He had expected her to get defensive, maybe even irritated, but… this? Why was she on the verge of tears?
"...I'm sorry," he said quickly, feeling an unfamiliar pang of guilt. "I didn't mean it." His teasing demeanor vanished entirely. "I'll return it to you as soon as we leave this place. No, actually—you can take my key and retrieve it yourself. I won't touch it. I'll just wait for you at the sect." He kept reassuring her, making it clear that he wouldn't open the box under any circumstances.
It was his first time making a woman cry, and honestly… he had no idea what to do.
"Then give it to me." Bai Mulan hastily wiped the tears from her eyes, extending her other hand in demand for the key.
Without protest, Chen Fan obediently handed it over, standing there awkwardly. Her sudden outburst had brought their steps to an abrupt halt.
"You mustn't tell anyone about this," Bai Mulan warned, having already regained her composure. But as she recalled her earlier reaction—the sudden burst of emotion, the tears—she felt an overwhelming urge to jump into the nearest abyss. My image… give it back… she wailed internally.
Still, no matter how much she wanted to erase the memory of her own outburst, she knew one thing for certain—no one could ever find out what was inside that box. A fleeting thought crossed her mind about the voice in her head knowing the truth. The mere idea of it made her want to bury herself alive. But after some quick reasoning, she reassured herself. No… he wants to follow the plot, not disrupt it. He wouldn't say a word.
"Alright," Chen Fan nodded, his tone light, though an awkward silence followed.
"Shall we keep moving?" he suggested, trying to ease the lingering embarrassment.
With a brief nod, Bai Mulan resumed walking, her expression neutral once more. However, this time, Chen Fan was unusually quiet. He still remembered the way her voice had trembled, how tears had welled in her eyes. A twinge of guilt sat heavy in his chest.
Eventually, they reached the cave and stepped inside, the darkness swallowing them. Summoning a small flame, Chen Fan walked slightly ahead to illuminate the path. Before long, a faint red glow appeared at the far end of the cave.
Without hesitation, he extinguished the fire and motioned for Bai Mulan to proceed cautiously. As they approached, he peered through the dim light and caught sight of three figures clad in black robes. His pupils shrank as he quickly assessed their cultivation levels—two at peak Golden Core and one at early Nascent Soul.
Immediately, Chen Fan suppressed his aura and signaled for Bai Mulan to do the same. Keeping to the shadows, he whispered his findings to her.
"What do we do now?" Bai Mulan's voice was steadier than before, but he could tell she was tense. She could handle a mid-stage Golden Core opponent at best, but these enemies were completely beyond her reach.
"We turn back," Chen Fan decided without hesitation.
They quietly retreated, their movements careful and measured. If it were just the peak Golden Core cultivators, he might have considered an ambush. He was confident that Annihilation would allow him to take them out in a single strike.
But the problem was the Nascent Soul cultivator.
The power gap was simply too vast. If push came to shove, Chen Fan did have one last resort—a technique of sheer devastation. But the consequences would be dire.
Rule Maker.
A technique that allowed him to manipulate all qi in his surroundings. In its purest form, qi was like a blank canvas, capable of transforming into anything—fire, wind, air, and countless other elements. Rule Maker gave him control over that essence.
For now, however, his mastery was severely limited—he could only manipulate the qi within five centimeters of his fingertips. But if he managed to land a direct touch on the Nascent Soul cultivator's chest, he could forcibly transform all the qi inside his body into explosive energy, causing him to detonate from within.
The problem?
He had to remain completely still to execute it.
Even worse, the technique would drain his entire qi reserve in an instant, leaving him defenseless. And since the resulting explosion would be massive, he would undoubtedly be caught in the blast as well.
This wasn't an option he could take lightly.
Now what? Chen Fan's mind raced as he struggled to come up with a plan.