Chapter 211
Chapter 211
Yan Zhengchu had guarded Xia Ximo’s “body” for more than an hour and was growing extremely anxious.
But in this situation, there was nothing he could do except wait.
He could not resist talking to himself inwardly. “Yan Zhengchu, oh Yan Zhengchu. You have been to the Underworld Administration before. If you could do it then, why not now?
“At worst, the Soul-Reaping Envoy will send you back again. Your allotted life is not over, so the Underworld Administration will not keep you!
“Instead of waiting here, you might as well go see what is happening.”
As he thought this, his fingers unconsciously formed a hand seal.
He was about to draw his soul out of his body when he suddenly remembered his junior brothers on Mount Yunhe.
“No. I cannot act rashly. If something happens to me, there will be no one to look after my junior brothers…”
While he wrestled with himself, Ren Fengjue and Yu Lang were no better off outside the door.
Because no sound had come from the room for so long, neither man dared disturb them. They could only pace beneath the veranda.
“My lord, watching you walk back and forth is making my head spin…”
Yu Lang leaned against the railing, utterly exhausted.
Lord Ren’s constant pacing made his already heavy head feel even more muddled.
Only then did Ren Fengjue force himself to stop, but his heart was clearly still restless.
Yu Lang had known him for years. When had he ever seen Lord Ren like this?
He could not resist teasing quietly, “When feelings run deep, a man loses all restraint.”
Ren Fengjue shot him a swift glance.
Just then, a sound came from inside.
“Miss Xia?”
The instant he heard it, Ren Fengjue pushed the door open without another word and strode inside.
Xia Ximo’s soul had already returned to her body. But the journey to the Underworld Administration and then Wangsha Sea had consumed too much soul power, leaving her temporarily unconscious.
Unaware of what had happened, Ren Fengjue saw only that she lay collapsed on the couch.
His expression froze. In a few quick strides, he rushed to her side, his face full of worry.
“What happened to Miss Xia?”
Yan Zhengchu hurriedly explained, “There is no need to worry, Young Marquis. Miss Xia just helped me enter an array to search for a soul. She expended too much energy and collapsed from exhaustion. A good sleep is all she needs.”
At this, the tension in Ren Fengjue’s heart eased slightly. After taking her pulse and confirming that she was merely asleep, he finally relaxed.
He glanced at Zhong Dingyan beside her. “And Young Master Zhong?”
Yan Zhengchu did not explain much. He merely replied, “Zhong Dingyan’s soul has been recovered, but he will not awaken immediately.”
Then he added, “I will remain here until he wakes. Young Marquis… why not take Miss Xia back to her room to rest?”
That was precisely what Ren Fengjue wanted. He nodded, lifted Xia Ximo into his arms, and carried her outside.
Yu Lang, following behind him, considered this before saying, “Then I should stay and help Daoist Yan.”
“Very well.”
Ren Fengjue carried Xia Ximo out of the room and headed toward the guest courtyard where they were staying.
After the upheaval in the Zhong residence, no one was in charge. Not a single servant could be seen in the guest courtyard.
Thus, after entering the room, Lord Ren laid Xia Ximo on the bed in the dark.
Then he began searching for a candle.
After fumbling around for some time, he finally lit the candlestick, only to discover that Xia Ximo was still wearing her shoes and socks.
He hesitated briefly, then stepped forward, bent down, and carefully removed them for her before drawing the quilt over her.
By the time he finished, his normally handsome face looked like a ripe orange beneath the warm candlelight.
After keeping watch beside the bed for a long time and hearing her breathing gradually steady, Lord Ren quietly withdrew from the room.
He returned to his own room and slept briefly, his dreams chaotic and disjointed.
When he woke again, the sky outside was beginning to brighten.
Concerned about Xia Ximo, Ren Fengjue rose and went straight to the room next door.
Just as he was about to knock, the door opened from within, revealing the unfamiliar face of a man.
“You…”
Lord Ren stared in astonishment.
Why was there a man in Xia Ximo’s room?
The white-robed man also paled upon seeing him and instinctively stepped back. For some unknown reason, there was fear in the man’s eyes.
Ren Fengjue stood stunned for a moment. Once certain he was not seeing things, a storm surged through his heart.
His expression darkened. Without caring about anything else, he reached out to drag the stranger from the room.
Yet the white-robed man was as light as paper. Though he appeared merely to retreat a few steps, a great distance opened between them in an instant.
He did not move like a martial artist, yet there was something indescribably strange about him.
Realizing he had underestimated the stranger, Ren Fengjue asked coldly, “Who are you? Why are you in Miss Xia’s room?”
The white-robed man smiled broadly. “Young Marquis Ren, you may not know me, but I know you.”
At those words, an inexplicable anger flared even hotter in Ren Fengjue’s heart.
He was about to attack again when he caught sight of Xia Ximo slowly sitting up beneath the quilt.
Still hazy with sleep, she frowned when she saw two figures standing by the door.
“Mo…”
Wuyou nearly blurted out “Mogu” but corrected themself just in time. “Momo.”
“…”
The intimate nickname made Ren Fengjue wonder if he had misheard, while jealousy churned even more violently inside him.
Xia Ximo recognized the voice as belonging to Lantern Spirit Wuyou, but she did not know why Wuyou had suddenly taken human form…
And judging by the situation, even Ren Fengjue could see Wuyou.
After a moment’s thought, she knew only the Earth Lord of the Underworld Administration possessed such an ability.
But she had no idea what he hoped to accomplish by doing this.
She rubbed her forehead lightly. The matter was giving her a rare headache. She demanded coldly, “Why did you come out?”
Wuyou cleared their throat and replied quietly, “I am acting under orders.”
By the door, Ren Fengjue’s face shifted between red and pale. For the moment, all his powers of judgment and analysis had deserted him.
He asked Xia Ximo, “Miss Xia, who is he?”
The urgency in his tone was impossible to conceal.
Xia Ximo naturally noticed the turbulence in his emotions and was about to explain…
But Wuyou cut in first. “Momo saved my life…”
Wuyou seemed to have prepared a new identity in advance and deliberately continued, “To repay her, I have decided to follow her.”
Ren Fengjue’s brows drew tightly together. “Follow her?”
Wuyou added, “Wherever Momo goes, I will go…”
“…”
Seeing that Ren Fengjue’s expression had become utterly grim, Xia Ximo suddenly tapped the Soul-Ferrying Lantern beside her. “Get back inside at once. Say one more ridiculous thing, and you will never come out again.”
Wuyou no longer dared spout nonsense. They immediately transformed into a wisp of white mist and returned to the lantern.
The room instantly fell silent.
Seeing Ren Fengjue frozen in shock, Xia Ximo explained, “As you can see, Wuyou is not human.”