The leading spider spirit stuck out its tongue at her, its sharp voice laced with eerie malice. "Sisters, it's been ages since we made human skin wedding gowns. This skin looks good. Whoever snatches it first gets it!"
The spiders behind her seethed, their fangs bared as they responded, "Sister, there's another man upstairs. After we're done with this one, we'll make them a matching pair of human skin wedding gowns!"
...
"Why waste words with her? Sisters, attack!"
As the words fell, several spider spirits lunged at Ye Ziling.
"Overestimating yourselves." Ye Ziling twisted her wrist, her silver sword cutting through the air with a cold glint. The sharp blade flew towards the dozens of spider spirits.
In an instant, flesh and blood flew everywhere, and a foul stench permeated the room. Ye Ziling frowned in disgust.
"You... who exactly are you?" The remaining few spider spirits stared at her, dumbfounded, retreating in terror.
"Go ask King Yama." Ye Ziling's eyes suddenly turned cold. With a flash of her body, she teleported in front of the spider spirits and brought her palm down viciously. With a "crack," the spider spirits instantly turned into a pool of blood, splashing onto the ground.
She strode like the wind along the red carpet of blood and flesh, her pure white dress unstained by a drop of blood.
Soon, she reached the second floor and swung her sword at the heavily barred door in the center. The door shattered in response, and the smell of alcohol rushed out.
What greeted her eyes were dense clusters of severed limbs and broken arms. Spider legs and feet were scattered haphazardly on the floor. Only the wine on the table remained unstained by blood, indicating it had been deliberately left there.
At this moment, Ling Xi was leisurely seated by the table, lit an incense stick with great interest, and slowly took a sip of wine.
His Adam's apple bobbed as he finished the wine, then calmly poured another cup and placed it on the table. His gaze drifted towards her.
The table was a mess, with wine cups askew and liquor spilled all over the floor. The strong smell of alcohol masked the surrounding scent of blood.
"You're here?" Ling Xi calmly picked up a wine cup, savored it for a moment, and then brought it to his lips, taking a sip with a placid expression as he watched the burning incense.
"It took half a stick of incense."
He spoke indifferently, his gaze fixed on her, a hint of amusement playing on his lips.
Ye Ziling frowned, sensing his slight displeasure. She opened her mouth to explain, "Didn't I come to save you?"
With so many spiders, half a stick of incense was already quite fast.
As soon as she finished speaking, a curtain suddenly lunged at her, enveloping her entire body and pulling her forcefully towards Ling Xi.
A moment later, the scent of cold plum blossoms enveloped her.
Ye Ziling's heart skipped a beat. She grabbed Ling Xi's shoulder to steady herself and let out a slight sigh of relief.
When she regained her senses, she found herself sitting on someone's lap, the posture extremely intimate.
?
How could she be allowed to sit in such a posture? This concerned the dignity of a goddess like herself!
Without a second thought, Ye Ziling tried to get up, but Ling Xi's hands clasped her waist from either side. He let out a threatening chuckle, "Do you want me to tie you up or force-feed you?"
Under duress, she had no choice but to sit back down and sigh with her eyes closed.
This fellow kept his word. There was important business to attend to now; she couldn't be delayed by him any further.
Ling Xi brought a cup of wine to her lips, but she heartlessly dodged it.
"Didn't you say you wouldn't drug me?"
She was sure this wine hadn't been mixed with aphrodisiacs. After the previous ordeal, she had become wary.
Every time Ling Xi offered her wine, Ye Ziling turned her head away to dodge it, only to be forcefully brought back by him.
"Pure wine. Aren't you going to try it?"
"This is how I was served earlier. Don't you, Miss Ye, want to experience it?"
Ling Xi's lips curved upwards, his tone coaxing as he stared at her with a half-smile.
"I don't want to." Ye Ziling refused outright. As she shifted, she suddenly felt something hot press against her, forcing her to remain still on his lap.
She secretly broke out in a cold sweat, thinking that since she was in the wrong first, she could only allow Ling Xi to pour the wine into her mouth.
She began to yield, letting him pour cup after cup.
Seeing that she no longer resisted, Ling Xi grew bolder. He stared at her lips and chuckled carelessly, "Just five cups?"
Earlier, when these women had forced wine on him, he had drunk at least several pots. Five cups from her wouldn't be enough to appease his anger.
Ling Xi poured another cup of wine and brought it to her lips, once again pouring it down her throat without mercy.
Just as he was about to offer more wine, Ye Ziling grabbed his hand, picked up the wine pot herself, and said with a smile, "Burdensome Scholar Ling, I will fine myself three cups as an apology."
After speaking, she downed three more cups.
She tilted her head slightly, her fair neck subtly exposed. The wine trickled down the corner of her lips and onto her collarbone, causing Ling Xi's chest to burn faintly.
"...You lost." Ling Xi's hand still held her waist as he unhurriedly took a pale yellow Ganoderma lucidum from his bag.
His expression was composed, his gaze intensely fixed on her, the fire in his eyes flickering.
Ye Ziling's beautiful eyes widened, her gaze fixed on the Ganoderma lucidum on the table. She asked in shock, "Where did you get that?"
They were still a considerable distance from Bixi Mountain. How could he have obtained it in such a short time?
Ling Xi smirked, looking at the surrounding spider remains, and chuckled. "Naturally, I snatched it."
Ye Ziling followed his gaze and immediately understood.
Bixi Mountain was the habitat of spider spirits, and the Firefly Ganoderma was a spiritual item that these demons and monsters used to replenish their demonic power. They would inevitably carry some on them.
"I've drunk the wine, and I've apologized for my offense. Scholar Ling, can this matter be settled now?" Ye Ziling's eyebrows lifted slightly as she met his gaze, her eyes full of sincerity.
"Wishful thinking." Ling Xi's lips curved upwards, his eyes lighting up as he flatly refused.
"What else do you want..." Ye Ziling was about to argue when a warm palm quietly explored inside her clothes. The warm touch sent a tremor through her entire body.
His eyes were mesmerizing, his smile laced with hidden danger. The pressure of his palm, from shallow to deep, was both a challenge to her boundaries and an inadvertent flirtation.
--
By the time the two of them returned, it was already evening.
"Who won?"
At the dinner table, Luo Yao rested her chin on her hands without touching her chopsticks, looking curiously at the two opposite her.
Ye Ziling remained silent, pretending to eat.
Having lost so miserably, she felt ashamed.
"I'm curious too." Mu Heng also stopped eating and stared at the two of them.
He was eager to know who had better Qinggong, Shao Lin or Jiuling Palace.
"She won." Ling Xi stated calmly, then picked out the bones from a fish and placed the meat into Ye Ziling's bowl.
Ye Ziling looked up and met Ling Xi's burning gaze. She said, "Scholar Ling, don't arbitrarily attribute the credit to me. I was outmatched and accepted my defeat wholeheartedly."
Ye Ziling smiled with relief.
Winning or losing no longer mattered.
If it was for him, so be it. If she had lost to someone else, she would have smashed her head against a wall with a piece of tofu.
Mu Heng was shocked and slammed the table. "What? Palace Master, you usually seem quite capable. How could you lose to someone today? Tell me, were you going easy on them?"