Hua Tianxiang stared blankly, her face a mask of bewilderment.
Just after she made her wish, a person fell from the sky.
Could it be that her wish had come true?
Then, as she regained her senses, she let out a sharp scream.
"Ah, you pervert..."
Ji Mo jolted awake, instantly realizing that his nose and mouth were submerged in a large amount of pond water. He coughed violently, struggling to stand up in the water.
Opening his eyes, he was met with a vast expanse of flawless white.
Such skin, such a figure!
Ji Mo's eyes widened, his blood surging, and a nosebleed unceremoniously flowed down.
What was going on?
A dream?
But it was too real; he could even smell the faint fragrance of the maiden.
"Die!"
Hua Tianxiang roared, her spiritual energy surging. Water from the pond erupted into the air, and she kicked Ji Mo in the chest.
Ji Mo was sent flying like a cannonball, crashing through countless trees before landing heavily on the ground.
Hua Tianxiang turned into a blur and rushed to the bank, haphazardly throwing on some clothes. She drew her greatsword and, like a furious lioness, lunged at Ji Mo.
The long sword in her hand shimmered with a glaze-like luster, exuding a biting chill. She mercilessly swung it towards Ji Mo's head.
Her intention was to mince this lecher who dared to peek at her bathing.
Oh my god.
This wasn't a dream; it was real.
Ji Mo's pupils dilated as he watched Hua Tianxiang fly towards him, the sharp long sword in her hand like lightning, cleaving towards his head.
*Bang!*
Dust billowed.
The tip of the sword grazed Ji Mo's scalp and plunged into the earth. The violent force spread outwards, cracking the ground like a spiderweb.
This strike was not a miss.
It was Hua Tianxiang who, at the last moment, had shifted the blade by three inches.
Ji Mo's scalp tingled, his eyelids twitched. He had narrowly escaped decapitation.
Hua Tianxiang stared intently at a golden token by Ji Mo's side, her expression shifting between anger and uncertainty.
This token was the "As If the Emperor Himself Were Present" token that Ying Tianbao had given him.
When Ji Mo fell earlier, the token had coincidentally dropped from his怀.
It was only after seeing the token that Hua Tianxiang had retracted her killing intent.
Hua Tianxiang understood the meaning of the golden token; killing the bearer of this token was equivalent to regicide.
Her Hua family had been loyal and patriotic for generations, and she could not bring herself to commit such an act.
Therefore, despite her immense reluctance, she had no choice but to spare Ji Mo's life.
"Who exactly are you, and where did you get this token?" Hua Tianxiang asked coldly.
Her gaze shifted from the token to Ji Mo, only to find him staring blankly at her, a trickle of blood slowly flowing from his nose.
She then realized her clothes were disheveled, with large patches of white skin peeking through, and that this scoundrel had taken advantage of her again.
"Ah..."
Hua Tianxiang yelped as if her tail had been stepped on. She quickly covered her vital parts, scrambled to pick up her clothes, and hid in the nearby bushes.
Ji Mo had a rough idea of what had happened.
He had been sleeping in a tree, fallen into a pond, and seen a bathing maiden, causing a misunderstanding.
What kind of situation was this? He hadn't done anything, yet he had almost been killed for no reason.
He got up from the ground, brushed off the dirt, and picked up the golden token.
He marveled at how useful the item truly was, saving his life. Otherwise, he would likely have been beheaded.
Hua Tianxiang, fully dressed, emerged from the bushes, her face as dark as water.
"Miss, this is actually a misunderstanding!" Ji Mo said, scratching his head and speaking with forced courage.
"You hid in a tree to spy, and that's a misunderstanding?" Hua Tianxiang was furious.
If it weren't for considering his identity, she would have truly wanted to tear this pervert into eight pieces.
"Aren't there often wild beasts at night? For safety, I had to hide in a tree to sleep, and that's how I fell into the pond," Ji Mo explained.
"Heh, you, a beast... are afraid of wild beasts?" Hua Tianxiang sneered.
The kick she had delivered in her anger earlier was enough to instantly kill a cultivator at the Spirit Emperor realm, yet this person was completely unharmed, clearly a master.
Now he claimed to be afraid of wild beasts and slept in trees. I wouldn't believe him if he said the sky was falling!
Ji Mo's explanation, along with the appearance of his Thousand-Mile Horse from the bushes, proved that he had been in the area all along and had not deliberately spied.
However, Hua Tianxiang remained as cold as ice, her heart filled with resentment.
Even if he had been here all along, why hadn't he spoken up to stop her when he knew she was about to bathe?
Even more fake was the story of a master falling from a tree; did she look like a three-year-old child?
"No wonder my Great Qin is on the verge of collapse; it's because of shameless corrupt officials like you. I truly don't know why His Majesty appointed you as an Imperial Envoy!" Hua Tianxiang said through gritted teeth.
Ji Mo, holding the golden token, was the emperor's representative, also known as an Imperial Envoy.
Ji Mo's forehead was covered in black lines. How had he become a corrupt official?
Furthermore, the impending fall of Great Qin had nothing to do with him.
A bonfire was lit.
The two sat on the ground around the fire, and after a while, the awkward atmosphere finally began to ease.
When Hua Tianxiang learned that Ji Mo was also heading to the front lines, her hatred towards him subsided somewhat.
Regardless of his character, daring to go to the battlefield at such a time was commendable.
"Miss Tianxiang is truly a woman who does not yield to men!" Ji Mo praised sincerely.
A young woman who faced death fearlessly, traveling long distances to the battlefield to protect her homeland, possessed a spirit worthy of admiration.
"You're not bad either; you didn't cower in fear and hide in the rear." Hua Tianxiang grudgingly praised Ji Mo, then asked, "Corrupt official, you came from Wangjing, have you seen that great scholar Ji?"
"Great scholar Ji?" Ji Mo looked confused.
Hua Tianxiang said, "You know, the author of 'Chi Ling,' who persuaded the dissolute to join the army, made gamblers kind, and thwarted Ying Tianci's rebellion. That great scholar, Ji Mo!"
When mentioning Ji Mo, Hua Tianxiang's eyes sparkled.
"Ahem, you must be referring to me!" Ji Mo replied sheepishly.
"Corrupt official, don't try to fool me. How could Ji Mo look like that dog of yours? He must be a handsome, refined, unconventional, world-aware, patriotic, and exceptionally talented great scholar!" Hua Tianxiang said with fervent admiration, using almost every superlative she could think of.
Ji Mo, feeling guilty, honestly replied, "It's all rumors. Apart from being handsome, the rest doesn't apply to him."
"Corrupt official, I won't allow you to tarnish the great scholar Ji. Otherwise, don't blame me for being impolite." Hua Tianxiang clenched her fists and glared at Ji Mo with an unfriendly expression.
Ji Mo covered his forehead and cautiously clarified, "Miss Tianxiang, you might be mistaken. Ji Mo is not some scholar; he's just a farmer. 'Chi Ling' was plagiarized, and he's not that patriotic or concerned about the people..."
Then, he saw Hua Tianxiang's increasingly grim eyes and her fists clenching with a "crackling" sound.
He quickly changed his tune, "Miss Tianxiang, you are absolutely right. Ji Mo is a great handsome guy, loved by everyone, and admired by flowers."
As he said these words, he felt like he was going to vomit.
Who would praise themselves so narcissistically? It was so embarrassing.