Chapter 100 — The Dark Serpent
劍問蒼天 · Page 5 of 7
A single simple question had suddenly dragged them all back to reality. Ming Li closed his eyes briefly; when he opened them again, a faint red gleam flickered there, and his gaze had turned sharp. He gave Lin Jinghong one deep look, then at last turned away and would look at him no more. Instead he stepped back, until he stood shoulder to shoulder with Jin Pingyue.
Jin Pingyue smiled faintly. Her eyes were limpid as water, and their glance roved and settled, seeming to spill altogether upon Ming Li. "Are you all right?" she asked softly.
Ming Li gave a snort. "You and I cooperate for now—how about it?"
Jin Pingyue answered at once, "Good. When this is over, we two will talk again."
Ming Li glanced at her and nodded. In but a moment, the two had seen that this scene would not be easily handled, and so had decided at once to join forces.
Ming Li said coolly, "Does the Enchantment Sect not have masters in abundance? Why is it that you alone entered the inner marsh, and let them gain the upper hand?"
Jin Pingyue cast a glance toward Facheng and the others. A faint blush of shyness actually colored her face, making her look all the more pitiable. "Our Enchantment Sect is a small sect," she said softly. "I was afraid that if I brought a few more inside, those people outside would suddenly die for no apparent reason."
She smiled and glanced at Ming Li. "But the Nether King Sect has always harbored dragons and tigers in hiding—why is it that, apart from one gray-furred monkey, there is no one at all at your side, young master?"
Ming Li heard the faint mockery in her words. "We are much the same, you and I," he said coolly. "If I had brought a few more men inside, I fear the forces outside would have been swallowed up by your Enchantment Sect and the Ten Thousand Poisons Sect."
In this great westward expedition of the demon cult's three major factions, on the surface all had joined forces to destroy the Longevity Hall, but in secret they schemed and guarded against one another, so that the three factions checked each other and none dared commit the full strength of its masters—and the righteous cultivators had reaped the advantage.
Standing off at a distance, Zeng Shuyan too was deeply stirred. In the old days on Canglan Mountain, he and Zhang Qingyue had always been on good terms—he might be counted, after Lin Jinghong, Zhang Qingyue's closest friend. But fate makes sport of men, and things had come to such a pass; his heart could not but ache.
He was minded to say a few words to Ming Li—whether they would do any good or not—and try to bring this friend back to the righteous path. But in the turning of an eye, his gaze fell upon Jin Pingyue's face, and his heart suddenly gave a leap. He saw only that the woman's face was like peach blossom, her charm boundless; her bright eyes were limpid as a deep pool, and that glance of hers, turning back, seemed faintly to speak—gazing fixedly at him.
After a few glances, a roar seemed to go off inside his head, as though he were drunk, and all he could think of was drowning himself in that woman's gaze; he could not help but take a step forward.
"Du!"
Suddenly a sharp shout rang out by his ear like the evening drum and morning bell, and Facheng flashed into view before him in his moon-white monk's robe, blocking Jin Pingyue's gaze and turning to face Zeng Shuyan as he loosed the Demon-Subduing Roar.
Zeng Shuyan started violently and only then came back to himself; in an instant cold sweat poured down his whole body, and while he thanked Facheng without end, he cursed inwardly: 'This demon-path witch is truly terrifying!'