168.2 - Love from the Male Protagonist’s Harem

After crying, Xia Ge felt ashamed, feeling it unseemly to cry in front of her Senior Sister. She sniffled, wiping her tears, pretending nothing happened, wrapping her Senior Sister’s wound. In the distance, she heard Ye Ze's struggles, and paused to think. Now was no time to explain those tangled matters to Ye Ze… Moreover, given Ye Ze's preceding question… It was he who first asked the imposter if Xia Wuyin had wiped out his family. Even thinking about it left Xia Ge chilled. So… was that why, three years ago, he was so ungrateful? Why didn't he ask her directly at the time? Three years later, after she had seen all there was to see, apathy long settled, he posed the question to an impostor. Did it matter? —Enough. If that's what he wanted to believe, let him. She had always been a bit of a scoundrel anyway. She hadn't done it, so there was nothing to feel guilty about. Rather than wasting time being dragged up by Ye Ze to argue, it was better to pretend she was someone else. After all... Right now, her Senior Sister's injury was the most important thing. She didn't have time to get entangled with Ye Ze over a past that was irrelevant. When he never believed her from the start, what was the point of explaining to him? Getting scorned by someone insignificant a thousand times wouldn't bother her at all. But seeing her Senior Sister lying here, lifeless, because Su Chan had disguised herself as her— Xia Ge felt like she was about to crumble. It was as if her heart was being sliced apart, piece by piece. Instead of wasting time with irrelevant people, she'd rather focus on what was really going on with her Senior Sister now. She wasn't afraid of gossip, nor was she afraid of Ye Ze being fooled by the impostor's lies and coming to cause trouble for her. She was afraid of losing this person who held her dearly. There were so few people she could grow fond of. And she had finally found one. —"I'll take you home." A slight tremor ran through Xia Ge's heart. In truth, she was willing to give her anything. She wouldn't lie anymore, she'd be obedient, she wouldn't hide anymore. Liking was liking, love was love. In this world, only her Senior Sister was the kindest to her. If only her Senior Sister would get better, she could give up everything else. Xia Ge sniffled, checking Gu Peijiu's pulse, and in the next moment, her pupils contracted slightly. The pulse... poison?!! "Senior Sister, you're poisoned?!!" Earlier, too emotional, she hadn't noticed anything unusual. Now, after taking the pulse, she realized that Gu Peijiu was suffering from soul poison! No wonder her Senior Sister was just looking at her without speaking! Soul poison, soul poison! Only a soul purification pill could neutralize it! Xia Ge urgently retrieved the All-Soul Pill she’d made previously. Before administering it, she hesitated, then used her analysis technique to check. [Rebirth Poison: A divine dagger made by the God of Misfortune, specifically for poisoning fractured souls, trapping them in their bodies forever, and when the body perishes, the soul scatters.] The system remarked, "… This… the All-Soul Pill won't work." Xia Ge, stunned, recalled the stab from Su Chan three years ago. —The soul poison on the Dagger of the Afterlife was the world’s most potent, capable of countering poison with poison. A shiver ran through Xia Ge, turning her cold all over. While Xia Ge was enveloped in cold dread, Su Chan stood atop the peak. It wasn’t very high, her black robes flowing, allowing her to overlook everything below, and the people down there could see her too. Someone noticed the figure atop the peak. Someone who had just slain a ghost lifted their eyes by chance, then exclaimed in surprise, "Who is she? What's she doing up there?" "I recognize her; she seems to be… the Chief of Danfeng?" "What's she doing there?" Someone else cautiously ventured a guess, “The Chief of Danfeng... plays the flute? Only... a puppeteer would…” "Don't be ridiculous, how’s that possible!" “…” Su Chan’s lips curled into a faint smile as she took out a bone flute, which shifted instantly to a smooth, jade flute with a single vivid streak of crimson. Had Xia Ge seen it, she’d be both shocked and furious, for that bone flute was modeled strikingly after her own Bahuang Flute! Su Chan lifted the flute to her lips, and an eerie, ancient tune wafted through the air, sombre and strange, chilling to the core. The sudden flute melody captivated many listeners. Su Chan calmly accepted the attention from all directions as the flute echoed on, seemingly endless. Below, Xia Ge administered the All-Soul Pill to Gu Peijiu as she had before—the only remedy against soul poison she possessed—even if it might not work. Gu Peijiu's complexion remained unchanged. Xia Ge donned her mask, pressing her lips tightly together. The system decided to offer her some encouragement: "There's nothing insurmountable, think positively..." Think positively? How could she think positively? Xia Ge couldn't think positively. As they spoke, they suddenly became aware of the flute music emanating from the mountain peak. Strangely familiar, the eerie melody caused her eyes to instinctively fly up to— When she saw a girl identical to her own reflection, playing the Bahuang Flute, just as her bright eyes met Xia Ge's, with a sinister smile tugging at her lips. Xia Ge's pupils contracted sharply. System: "…What’s she planning?" Soon, they figured out what Su Chan was doing. As the flute’s sound spread, a dark, dense cloud approached from afar. Rolling waves, from every corner! At first, people thought it was merely a cloud. But quickly… Someone's voice trembled slightly, "Hey… what… what is that?" "…A cloud… cloud?" "Ghosts!!!" "And puppets!! It’s the flute sound!! The flute is summoning them!!" "Shut up, who knows... maybe they’re here to help us…” Ghostly apparitions and puppet armies rolled over every untainted corner of the sky, turning day into night. Whirling sand and stones, boundless malice engulfed everything, as countless puppets, with stiff steps, emerged from the vast expanse of Devil’s Ridge! "Xia Wuyin is a puppeteer!!!" "She wants us all dead here!!" "Damned murderer!!" “…” The purpose was fulfilled. Cold mountain winds swept through her dark attire. Su Chan smirked, lowering the flute, sensing a heated gaze. She looked down, and amid a crowd of people who wanted nothing more than to tear her to pieces, she found a pair of eyes. Eyes beneath a fox mask, staring back at her, ice-cold and filled with faint hatred. …Xia Wuyin. Xia Wuyin. Interesting. The offspring of Qin Yue, the small priestess of the Demon Sect, Qin Shuang. What kind of existence is it to be called "Xia Wuyin" and lie low among the righteous sects? Killing Gu Peijiu, then letting Xia Wuyin… or rather, Qin Shuang, return home herself. That was her goal. “Xia Xia.” Su Chan murmured with a light chuckle, “Don’t blame me, you’re just a naughty child.” “Bad children who don’t love their home need a little punishment.” If nothing else was done, once Qin Yue became impatient, she’d, as their leader, lose face. Knowing Gu Peijiu was beyond salvation, Su Chan felt exceedingly pleased. And so, the demons and puppets summoned by the flute began their massacre in earnest!! Xia Ge watched Su Chan, who noticed her, flashing her a wicked smile. Chilling behind her mask. A sea of devils blotted out the sky, endless puppets plunged into battle, and at first people remained optimistic, until the first person had their neck snapped by a puppet summoned by Su Chan— "Ahh—" A heart-wrenching scream!! The scream was a spark. Instantly igniting fervor!! Countless curses and denunciations spilled forth, as if this world’s vilest words could be piled atop Xia Wuyin. But quickly, people no longer had the luxury to curse, beset on both sides by demons and puppets, just staying alive became exhausting. System: "Hey hey, this trap you've walked into is massive…" Xia Ge was silent for a long time. She had considered countless possibilities, but never imagined Su Chan would employ such a tactic. "…It’s fine." Xia Ge glanced away, gently touching Gu Peijiu's feverish forehead, whispering, "My identity as a puppeteer was bound to come out eventually." "That's not the point! She's using your identity to do harm!! Aren’t you going to do anything?! Why don't you confront her!!" The system was incredulous at Xia Ge’s indifference, "What, has water seeped into your brain or mushrooms sprouted up there? Why let her tarnish you like this?!" “…” Xia Ge clenched her fists tightly. “What exactly—” “If I go, who will look after Senior Sister?!” Xia Ge shouted, “Am I supposed to leave her here alone to clear my meaningless reputation?! Reputation means jack shit!! Do you think I care about the demon sect or the righteous faction?!” “I don’t care!!” “It doesn’t matter if anyone smears me!! It doesn’t matter if they trample me into the mud and suffocate me!!” Xia Ge’s voice grew raw as she shouted, tears flowing uncontrollably, "I-I can't… I can’t leave my Senior Sister here alone…” “She can’t… She can’t even speak anymore, and I can’t hear her voice…” “What do others matter to me? I only want those who love me to be okay. I’ve saved so many people, I've been Lei Feng so many times, so why can’t I save her… Why am I, why am I so useless!!" = = = Watching the summoned spirits arrive, Su Chan narrowed her long eyes slightly. What's happening… though numerous, the spirits were fewer than anticipated. Had all the spirits of Devil's Ridge not been fully released yet? This amount... is enough to deal with some trash, but if the goal is to have these minions all perish here and then wreak havoc upon the world, it's a bit too few. The spirits from Devil's Ridge... should be more than this. Where did it go wrong?