Chapter Nineteen: The Temple of Land (Part One)

  Su Qi Ruo found herself falling into Lu Ke's carefully set linguistic trap. If she said she was human, then she would be admitting that she and Lu Ke were both demons; if she said she was a god, then Lu Ke would definitely say "Oh, you're not human." No matter what she said, she wouldn't be able to gain any advantage. Su Qi Ruo glared at Lu Ke with hatred, no wonder he had been so kind in teaching her, it turned out that he had already set up a trap waiting for her to fall into.

  "Hey!" Shi Ruwen jumped in from the balcony, "What are you guys talking about?" Without waiting for Su Qi and Lu Ke to respond, she continued on her own, "I'm really in a great mood today, the sky is so blue!"

  Su Qi's eyes coldly swept over Rui Wen's excited expression, "Did you succeed in seizing the Spiritual Source?"

  "Huh?" Shi Ruwen's previous excitement dissipated, and he seriously sized up Su Qieruo, as if trying to stare a hole through her. "How did you know about the Lingyuan?"

  "Go cook." Lu Ke turned around calmly, but in his heart he was impatiently thinking that as soon as the dead snake appeared, Su Qi's interest in teasing him had disappeared.

  Shi Ruwen rolled his eyes at Lu Ke and said, "Wait for me to finish eating Su Qi, then come back and clean up." "Aye, Qi, let's go out and eat, such good weather shouldn't be wasted, let's go out and take a walk!"

  As soon as She Ruiwen's words fell, Lu Ke suddenly turned his head and stared at him, with a murderous aura like a sharp blade being unsheathed in the depths of his eyes. However, She Ruiwen faced Lu Ke's intimidation without batting an eyelid, the smile on his face not diminishing but instead becoming more intense, carrying a bewitching charm that overturned the masses. In an instant, Su Qi was also drawn into it, and he couldn't help but wish to grow another pair of eyes to gaze at him more closely. If this man would just say one word to me, even if it meant I'd die, it would be worth it...

  What was I thinking? It's just Ruiwen, what do I think is going to kill me? Su Qiruo was startled by her own thoughts, Ruiwen must have used some kind of charm, otherwise how could she possibly have such absurd thoughts.

  "I remembered I have to meet a good sister today, so I'll leave first." Su Qi didn't want to get stuck between the two of them, anyway they had their own discretion and wouldn't ruin their own home. Since that was the case, she might as well go out for some fresh air. Su Qi wandered aimlessly on the streets without a destination or appointment, but in fact, she was worried about Sun Bo. Lu Ke and She Ruiwen wouldn't ask about Sun Bo's name for no reason, and they had disappeared together overnight. Would something happen to Sun Bo? This was what Su Qi worried about most. It was strange that she was so easily provoked by She Ruiwen. Su Qi regretted it while trying to think of a way to get news about Sun Bo, but she didn't think she could calmly face Sun Bo. After all, he was her first love!

  "Qí Ruò, Qí Ruò." The faint sound floated into Su Qí Ruò's ears, making her think she was hallucinating at first. "Qí Ruò, Qí Ruò..." Just as Su Qí Ruò hesitated, the fleeting sound came again, confirming that someone was calling her name, and she slowly went to find the source of the voice.

  "How is that possible!" Su Qi Ruo almost bumped into a tree while following the sound, and she circled around it without finding anyone. "Am I really hallucinating?" Su Qi Ruo leaned against the trunk of the tree in frustration. Just then, a new sprout trembled out from the main trunk of the tree, like a newborn baby stretching its tender green leaves, shaking slightly as it reached towards Su Qi Ruo's cheek. "What is this thing?" Su Qi Ruo cautiously dodged to the side.

  "Su Qiruo!" The tender green leaves shook excitedly, as if beckoning Su Qiruo, and then exaggeratedly waved the new leaves up and down, as if afraid that Su Qiruo wouldn't see them.

  "This..." Su Qi's eyes, which seemed to be at the end of their rope, still managed to see the leaves in front of him spinning around themselves at an exaggerated angle. "You..."

  "Qí Ruò!" Got a response from Su Qí Ruò, the leaves excitedly trembled.

  "Who are you?" Su Qi Ruo felt strange but her curiosity was heavier. In order not to let the people beside her notice her abnormality, Su Qi Ruo leaned back against the tree trunk again, her ears as close as possible to the newly grown leaves.

  "Qí Ruò, is the Soul Binding Curse still effective?"

  "Tree spirit?" Su Qi was surprised that the tree spirit would meet him in such a way. Had it transformed into a tree? No, this tree had been standing on this road for a long time. "Tree spirit, how did you end up like this?"

  "Avoid being discovered by others."

  Su Qi glared at the white-eyed tree leaves, "Wood Spirit, we are not underground workers, this is a harmonious society. However, speaking of Soul Binding Curse, quickly tell me the solution to lift it!" I also don't want that scoundrel Lu Ke following me every day.

  "Why?"

  "Because..." Su Qi Ruo thought for a moment, if she were to release the Soul Binding Curse on Lu Ke, wouldn't she become his captive then?! "Forget it." In order to temporarily preserve her own spiritual energy and even her life, Su Qi Ruo gave up on finding a way to lift the curse. "What do you want from me?"

  "There's something small I need your help with, no one else can do it but you."

  "What's up?" Su Qi Ruo, although having only met Mu Shen twice, spoke as if they were old friends, and their conversation was quite casual.

  "...the Land Temple in Lijia Village, eight miles south of the city..."

  "Damn it!" The sudden change of events made Mù Shén's words stop abruptly. Xī Ruìwén appeared beside Sū Qíruò at some point, and with a swift motion, he yanked the still-speaking leaves off the tree trunk, reducing them to ashes in an instant. "Bastard, must be around here!"

  Shi Ruiwen's gloomy gaze swept around urgently, as if to dig out the original body of Mùshén. "It must be nearby!" Shi Ruiwen's face was stern as he carefully sized up every person in the surrounding area, until he was certain that Mùshén's true form had not appeared. Only then did he withdraw his gaze. But as soon as he thought about the humiliation of being ambushed, Shi Ruiwen's anger flared up again. "Bastard!" Shi Ruiwen vented his anger by smashing into the pagoda tree where Mùshén had transformed earlier. The originally lush and vibrant pagoda tree withered away under the invasion of Shi Ruiwen's demonic energy, its life force disappearing like sand in an hourglass.

  "How did you suddenly appear?" Su Qi was startled by Shu Ruiwen's sudden and fierce attack, but seeing Shu Ruiwen's face twisted in anger, Su Qi decided not to pursue the matter of being frightened anymore.

  "You can't leave my sight." Lu Ke said matter-of-factly.

  "What did you just say?" She Ruiwen didn't chase after Mu Shen, but instead turned to ask Su Qi Ruo, while Lu Ke also looked at her with great interest.

  "Nothing was said." Su Qi shrugged, "Just started and you guys interrupted me."

  "What's that?" Lu Ke didn't like Su Qi Ruo having any secrets from him.

  "The Land Temple of Li Family Village, eight miles south of the city."