“Huff… huff…”
A beast-like growl carried on the wind as the flame on Yuan Ji’s shoulder suddenly flared with terrifying heat, repelling the crimson mist before her. A thick, metallic stench rapidly filled the air—rotten and nauseating.
“Hsss!”
The mist, stung by the blinding light, recoiled into the darkness, dragging itself away. Yet it lingered at the edges, peering back at her as if puzzled—why had another person capable of harming it appeared today?
For a moment, the space around Yuan Ji was eerily empty. But as she took a step forward, the crimson mist retreated in tandem, maintaining a cautious distance.
Then—
The abyssal darkness surged. The mist, which had been observing from the shadows, lunged forward again, attempting to swallow Yuan Ji whole.
“Huff… huff…” The growls grew louder.
“Yuan Ji! Watch out!”
A-Tong, her system, yelped and shielded her. The sudden shift in danger had even this emotionless, logic-bound program trembling with something akin to fear—an anomaly beyond its control.
Yuan Ji frowned at the warning, casting a complicated glance toward the thing lurking in the dark.
That earlier attack had been terrifying, yet… it carried no intent to kill. Instead, it almost felt like it was trying to tell her something.
She turned her head slightly, eyeing A-Tong, who was now pressed tightly against her shoulder, looking pitifully small.
“A-Tong.”
The system was busy internally reassuring itself—I am data. I should not feel fear. But the tremors deep within its code left it disoriented.
So… scary.
“Yuan Ji.” A-Tong paused, its massive data streams rapidly reconnecting to stabilize itself. “Don’t be afraid! I—I’ll protect you!”
It steeled itself, expression hardening as it scoured tens of thousands of data lines for a solution.
Not this one… Not that one either… Where is it?!
The crimson mist grew fiercer, and Yuan Ji’s expression darkened. The static buzzing in her ears drowned out the chaos around them, leaving the system even more agitated.
Yet Yuan Ji said nothing. She simply stared at the mist, silent and unreadable.
Just as A-Tong was about to offer more reassurance, she sighed.
“Who would’ve thought such a pretty person would be so… unhygienic.” Her words were light, but they struck like a blade.
A-Tong blinked, confused.
Even the mist froze—before exploding in fury.
“ROAR!”
A wave of blood-reeking air rushed toward them. Yuan Ji’s dark hair whipped back in an elegant arc as a faint glow flickered around her—a transparent barrier materialized, shielding her from the suffocating stench.
“Thanks.” She tilted her chin slightly toward a shadowed corner.
Without that barrier, she might’ve lost her mind from the assault on her senses.
“No need.” A voice, laced with amusement, answered from the darkness.
A slash of cyan light split the mist apart, and Qi Yan stepped forward.
Clad in silver robes that shimmered like shattered jade, he cut through the haze like a blade through the night. Radiant. Unmissable.
No one knew how long he’d been here, but though his posture remained poised, a trace of exhaustion lingered in his eyes.
“This place is cursed,” he said coolly, flicking away a tendril of mist that dared creep too close to Yuan Ji. “Countless trapped souls, bound here forever—no reincarnation, only servitude. Their resentment is… overwhelming.”
Yuan Ji understood now. That was the stench of hatred.
…Still, his scent was far more pleasant.
She openly studied him, her gaze so direct it made the tips of his ears warm.
“What is it?” His voice caught slightly, roughened with something unreadable. “Are you hurt?”
Does he carry white jade cakes with him everywhere? She hadn’t taken him for someone with a sweet tooth.
The thought amused her, and a glint of laughter flickered in her eyes.
“They can’t hurt me.” Her tone brimmed with confidence. She turned back toward the lurking presence and raised a hand—a streak of violet light shot forth.
“Yuan Ji!” A-Tong yelped. “What did you just throw?!”
Where the violet light passed, the crimson mist scattered like startled birds. For a moment, the air itself seemed to carry faint, furious curses.
Qi Yan, sharp-eyed as ever, recognized the object instantly. His lips twitched.
“ROAR! ROAR!”
Run! This girl is deadly!
Yuan Ji, satisfied with the newly cleared path, casually tossed the flame from her shoulder into the fray.
In an instant—
Lightning intertwined with fire, carving a way forward faster than thought.
“Thunder Serpent.”
Yuan Ji dusted off her fingertips, utterly unbothered.
“Works like a charm.”
A-Tong: “……?”
WHEN DID YOU EVEN CATCH THAT?!
