Everyone is Secretly in Love with Me

Chapter 61: Damn it.

A massive storm was stirred up in the Central Continent's cultivation world.

To be precise, ever since the members of the Four Great Sects were ambushed by the Demon Clan in the mortal realm, the entire cultivation world had been thrown into chaos.

The Demon Realm paid a hefty price, resulting in the death and injury of their accompanying Grand Elders. Only less than forty percent of their disciples managed to escape, and even the elite disciples suffered heavy casualties.

The leaders of the Four Great Sects immediately rushed to the battlefield to search for surviving disciples as soon as they received the news from Elder Xuan Ying. However, by the time they arrived, the main force of the Demon Clan had already withdrawn, leaving behind a scene of devastation.

This assault by the Demon Clan could be considered completely unexpected by the righteous cultivators.

What level of treasures were True Immortal's Blood and Stygian River Water? They could influence the balance of an entire realm! If used skillfully on the frontlines, they could even potentially sway the tide of battle! Yet, at a time when the righteous and demonic paths had not yet fully engaged, the Demon Realm used such treasures on disciples who had not yet fully matured.

An elite disciple might take thousands of years to become combat-ready. This was an arduous and unappreciated task for the Demon Clan, who were always prepared for war at any moment—an uncharacteristic decision by the usually shrewd Demon Sovereign. Although, in the long run, the Four Great Sects did suffer a severe blow and incurred injuries, putting their "future" at risk.

With the loss of so many elite disciples in the mortal realm, including Lin Zhizhi, the youngest son of the Lin family and Daoist Xuan's most prized disciple, who had managed to climb the Seven Heavenly Steps, disappearing without a trace, the situation had become dire. No matter how Daoist Tianlu calculated, he couldn't track his whereabouts.

Thinking of this, Daoist Tianlu felt a headache.

If Daoist Xuan were to find out about this upon his return, who knew what kind of turmoil it would cause... Just thinking of facing Daoist Xuan's cold eyes made Daoist Tianlu's resolute Dao heart almost crumble.

Apart from Lin Zhizhi, there was also the Phoenix's only offspring in the mortal realm, which underwent Nirvana in that battle—yet even though Elder Xuan Ying had kept it protected, no one knew what went wrong.

Because it was a dead egg.

That beautiful, round egg lay lifeless in Elder Xuan Ying's hands, devoid of any signs of life.

Phoenix's countenance turned ashen as he held the egg.

Creatures like the Phoenix were notoriously difficult to reproduce, and they had a strong connection with their offspring. After leaving behind the hindrance of the Stygian River Water, Phoenix first sensed the disappearance of the strand of divine sense he had entrusted within Phoenix Qing's forehead—it was the first to arrive and see Elder Xuan Ying.

At that moment, Phoenix's emotions disrupted the spiritual energy of the world, causing a disturbance in his miniature world. Elder Xuan Ying had barely escaped the clutches of the Demon Clan but almost became a victim of Phoenix's icy wrath.

Phoenix occupied a special position within the Sword Sect. Beings favored by the world's spiritual energy, like the Phoenix, were always sought after by major sects. Strictly speaking, Phoenix Qing's knowledge came from his father, and he wasn't truly a disciple of the Sword Sect. Even his recent journey was intended to spend more time with his beloved, which was why he had gone together.

At present, Daoist Tianlu had no choice but to bear Phoenix's silent reprimand. Suffering through the scorching pain of the Phoenix's true fire, he exchanged a cold snort from Phoenix and took back the dead egg—coincidentally disrupting the enchantment on the main peak.

Subsequently, apart from slaughtering a large number of Demon Clan members, Phoenix Qing spent most of his time in the Illusory Realm with his wife, searching for various rare spiritual herbs, hoping to revive the life within the Phoenix Egg.

Phoenix Qing speculated that it was the Stygian River Water, which obstructed all signs of life, that had caused a mishap in the rebirth process of the Phoenix's true spirit, leading to the disappearance of the soul within the Phoenix Egg.

Outside the Illusory Realm, the Four Great Sects were in turmoil, organizing a counterattack against the Demon Clan and dealing with the aftermath.

As for Su Yu's demonic possession, it was flawlessly concealed under the guise of "missing after the surprise attack" during this turmoil.

Of course, Lin Zhizhi, currently a mere mortal, remained ignorant of these developments. He couldn't even open his Qiankun Ring, and the system had fallen into slumber, leaving him to guide Ya Xuan through daily life.

Neither of them had any knowledge of the appearance of the stranger from last night in the small wooden house. Even when Lin Zhizhi woke up, he felt he had slept well, uninterrupted by the lingering pain from his wounds.

The youth on the bed stretched lazily, revealing the firm abdomen wrapped in white bandages. His physique was excellent, a blend of strength and aesthetic muscle tone that tempted one to reach out and touch, savoring the moment.

Ya Xuan had already risen early, his slightly panting breath indicating a morning training session. He spread various herbs on the table. Seeing Lin Zhizhi awake, he brought the bowl of herbs and new bandages to the bedside. "Let me change your dressing."

Lin Zhizhi blinked and consented.

—Because the young master of the Lin family's previous attempts at changing his own bandages had been clumsy and inexperienced, causing him pain for days on end. A few days ago, in a bid to please his master, Ya Xuan had voluntarily offered to take on the responsibility of changing Lin Zhizhi's bandages. After some inner turmoil, Lin Zhizhi reluctantly agreed—but he truly felt it wasn't his fault! The efficacy of the medicines in the mortal realm was just abysmal! In the past, consuming two pills would have immediately healed his injuries, but now, after more than ten days, even slightly forceful movements caused the wounds to split open. This truly made him deeply appreciate the benefits of the cultivation world...

#No comparison, no harm#

#Advantages of cultivation: Less likely to starve, can fly, and wounds heal quickly!#

Ya Xuan pursed his lips, and his steady hand began to unwrap the bandages on Lin Zhizhi's abdomen, revealing a horrifying wound—a glimpse into the perilous situation he had faced. The youth's hands were steady as he applied the crushed herbs onto the wound, although there was a moment of hesitation.

He was accustomed to directly treating his own injuries without fearing pain or hardship. However, when facing the person before him, he always felt some concern—this person didn't seem like someone who could handle pain and discomfort.

In Ya Xuan's eyes, Lin Zhizhi resembled more of a wealthy young master who had come out to play. Yes, to use a somewhat vulgar analogy, he was like a "divine being descending to the mortal realm," appearing as if he was pampered from birth.

It should be noted that most of the time, this person gave him a distinct sense of distance, a natural aloofness that was surprisingly not repulsive to Ya Xuan.

Only in certain special moments, such as mealtime (…) or moments like now, when he was just waking up and having his bandages changed, did Ya Xuan feel something akin to "this guy is a real person, not just a figment of my imagination."

He carefully applied medicine to the other person while trying to shift the topic, "Shall we go to the cultivation market later? Carry the demon beast from yesterday?"

Lin Zhizhi absentmindedly nodded and turned his gaze outside the window.

After the events of yesterday, those kids hadn't come back to insult Ya Xuan again. The quietness now felt somewhat unfamiliar to Lin Zhizhi.

"The cultivation market... How do we find it?" Ya Xuan asked.

In response to this question of common knowledge, Lin Zhizhi frowned in annoyance and considered giving this guy a brief lesson in the basics of the cultivation world. However, after pondering for a moment, he truly didn't know how to search for a cultivation market in this unfamiliar territory as an ordinary human. He couldn't possibly travel thousands of miles with Ya Xuan on foot; he had mistakenly assumed he could, based on his identity as a cultivator.

As a cultivator, Lin Zhizhi had grown accustomed to flying on his sword, guided by spiritual energy. However, until now, he had been unable to restore even a trace of spiritual energy to open his Qiankun Ring.

"... " Lin Zhizhi fell silent for a moment and then sighed with a troubled expression. "In the current situation, finding a cultivation market is too difficult. Forget it, you might as well eat it; it'll benefit you."

Ya Xuan found this quite cute and couldn't help but chuckle. "I'll leave it for you to eat. Maybe it will help your wound heal faster."

The black-haired youth sitting upright shook his head.

As he wrapped the bandages around the other person's abdomen, his fingers unavoidably brushed over the skin. The sensation there wasn't just soft, it felt like elastic velvet. Yet, as he watched the wound disappear beneath the bandage, he felt an urge, an impulse to tear it open with his bare hands, allowing fresh blood to flow throughout this body, and then...

And then what?

Ya Xuan didn't know what had come over him. The sudden surge of bloodlust had arisen like the craving for food in a normal person. He hurriedly lowered his head, shook off those distracting thoughts, took a deep breath, and focused on properly securing the wound. Unable to contain his curiosity, he asked, "Master, what are your plans going forward?"

Lin Zhizhi was in the midst of contemplating various methods to gather spiritual energy when he glanced at the young man tidying up the bed and answered, "I'll see when the wound is fully healed before deciding."

He was actually feeling quite restless.

Staying in an ordinary village all day initially felt novel, but over time, Ya Xuan had already learned the basic sword techniques and was concerned about Phoenix Qing in the Central Continent. Lin Zhizhi was itching to awaken the system and call out the Sword Spirit, leaping back to the Luo Xian Sword Sect in an instant.

Wait... Awaken the system? Lin Zhizhi vaguely remembered that when the system was collecting information about the Immortal Sword, it had mentioned that it would awaken after accumulating extremely high favorability points—whatever those were. If he truly accepted him as a disciple, forming a deep master-disciple relationship, perhaps the system would wake up. Even if Ya Xuan couldn't cultivate, the Lin family could ensure his wealth and prosperity...

No... that would be disrespectful.

Lin Zhizhi looked at the obedient (?) Ya Xuan, who was preparing breakfast, and decisively rejected that terrifying idea that had briefly crossed his mind.

If this young man could cultivate, he wasn't someone ordinary. With his temperament, he was more suited for unrestricted flying—besides, considering his current level of cultivation, taking on a disciple would still be a bit of a stretch.

Emotions were emotions; they weren't something to be exchanged.

Thinking like this, Lin Zhizhi got up to help Ya Xuan start a fire and prepare breakfast. After resolving their meal, the two of them left the house. Ya Xuan disassembled the most valuable parts of the spiritual beast and carried them with him. They headed to the back mountain together for a post-meal stroll.

—Lin Zhizhi took Ya Xuan for a walk, while Ya Xuan practiced swordplay.

They returned together in the evening.

Before entering the village, they saw several individuals in Daoist robes blocking the village entrance. Even more conspicuous was a giant compass beside those people.