"No!" Bai Qing raised her arm out to protect herself. The raging ball of fire was just seconds away from burning Bai Qing when a mass of dark energy erupted in front of Bai Qing. The ball of fire slammed right into the wall and quickly dispersed. However, the wall of dark energy seemed to wrap itself around the fire like a fireproof blanket. The raging fire was quickly consumed by the dark energy until there was nothing left.
Xiu Xiang had never seen energy that was able to consume her fire before. She felt what little energy she had being drained from her right as her fire was finished being consumed. It seemed to cause a kind of backlash at her body. She felt blood rise from within her. She struggled to keep the blood down as she turned her attention in the direction where the dark energy had come from.
Wei Xing had arrived with an entourage in tow. His eyes fell on Xiu Xiang first. Seeing that she was still standing and looking fine, he turned his attention onto Bai Qing who was still on the ground. A streak of blood still stained her chin. Fighting the urge to walk over to Xiu Xiang, he made his way over to Bai Qing to help her up. When Xiu Xiang had seen this, she couldn't help but look away in anger. This action caused her to just miss the eye contact between Wei Xing and Hua Jian.
"Are you alright? What happened?" Wei Xing asked Bai Qing. His soothing yet soft spoken voice, revealed his deep concern for Bai Qing.
Both Bai Qing and Xiu Xiang turned to look at Wei Xing. One face was filled with shock and awe, while the other had turned black.
Wei Xing had never shown such concern for Bai Qing before. His arm was wrapped gently around Bai Qing's waist while the other reached up to wipe away the blood on Bai Qing's chin. For Bai Qing, who has never seen Wei Xing's kind side before, didn't hesitate to melt into his embrace. Her head fell on Wei Xing's shoulder as she struggled to speak.
"Xiu Xiang tried to kill me," Bai Qing explained.
Wei Xing's eyes flitted towards Xiu Xiang but quickly fell back on Bai Qing.
"Worry not. I'm here now. She can't do anything to you," Wei Xing assured her.
Xiu Xiang eyed the two lovers who embraced each other in front of everyone. In that instant, she heard something inside of her shatter. It seemed that Wei Xing already knew who she was. Even so, he was still this loving toward Bai Qing. She was right about one thing. Wei Xing had long forgotten about her and turned his love onto Bai Qing. She smiled bitterly at the loving couple. What was she thinking? How could she develop feelings for Wei Xing? The two of them were meant to be enemies. She had always known that. Wasn't that the reason why she had avoided Wei Xing's feelings in the past? What was she doing, letting her heart beat for him now?
She suddenly heard Wei Xing's harsh voice addressing her, "What do you think you're doing? You dare to injure one of my people?"
This Wei Xing was far different from the one who was inside the harem. Was he so different when Bai Qing was around? Her eyes couldn't help but land on the pair of strong arms that wrapped protectively around Bai Qing. Was she actually jealous?
She jealous! She admitted it. She wanted nothing more than to rush forward and rip Bai Qing out of his grasp. But she would never act upon it. Who was she to even try? What was she to Wei Xing? She was nothing. What right did she have?
Of course. They had been lovers in the novel. It's only right if the two of them eventually developed feelings for one another...
Since she was unable to separate the two, she could only retort back with anger.
"So? I would dare to go against you. Why wouldn't I dare to hurt your precious lover," Xiu Xiang retorted hatefully.
Tears streamed down Bai Qing's face. It seemed to heighten her beauty and her allure. It made one sympathize greatly for and with her. No matter if Xiu Xiang explained her reasoning for hurting Bai Qing, it seemed that reason would never beat the tears of the heroine of the novel.
"My lord..." Bai Qing whimpered and flinched at Xiu Xiang's voice. She snuggled even closer to Wei Xing as if she was a scared meek kitten. She was far different from before when she daringly tried to destroy the courtyard. "I saw that the barrier on the courtyard had disappeared so I went to inspect it only for Xiu Xiang to suddenly attack me."
Xiu Xiang couldn't believe her ears. The righteous heroine, Bai Qing dared to lie? She had really seen it all now.
"She attacked you simply because of a courtyard? Can a mere courtyard compare to your life?" Wei Xing suddenly raised his hand, dark energy swirling within in palm.
"No!" Xiu Xiang screamed when she realized that Wei Xing was going to destroy the courtyard to appease Bai Qing. Right as Wei Xing's dark energy raged forward, the red barrier from before seemed to burst out from within Xiu Xiang's body, it quickly shielded the courtyard. The dark energy wasn't able to pierce through but it was slowly eating away at barrier. The blood that Xiu Xiang had tamped down finally emerged from within her throat. She spat out a mouthful of blood, more so than Bai Qing did. Her vision blurred and she felt herself falling forward.
"My lord!" Hua Jian, who had been quiet in the background finally spoke up at last. He was about to step forward, when a flash of black appeared in front of Xiu Xiang.
Bai Qing watched with wide eyes as the warmth that wrapped around her suddenly disappeared. Standing before her was Wei Xing who was now showing great concern for Xiu Xiang. His arms were wrapped carefully around Xiu Xiang, supporting her body, keeping her from hitting the ground. It was as if Wei Xing's concern for her was nothing more than a simple daydream.
"My lord...?" Bai Qing uttered out. Her voice seemed to have been lost among the entourage who also showed concern for Xiu Xiang.
If the demons in the Demon Realm were unsure about Xiu Xiang's identity, they were sure now. None of them ever forgotten their lord's name. They had seen her use of fire power. With Bai Qing confirming her name, the demons were sure now that their lord had in fact returned.
Xiu Xiang felt a pair of strong arms wrapped tightly around her. She could hear Wei Xing calling out to her. Was it agony or despair that she had heard from his voice?
Whichever it was, she hoped that Wei Xing felt endless pain. How dare he try to destroy the only thing that her master had protected even after death?
Using Wei Xing's body as support, she managed to stand back on her feet. She glared hatefully at Wei Xing.
"If you destroy this courtyard, I will never forgive you," she hissed.
Seeing how he had gone from worrying over Bai Qing to her filled her with rage. It was one thing to see the man her heart beat for, love another woman. It was another thing to realize that Wei Xing had turned into an unfaithful bastard who can't seem to keep his heart steady for one woman. Just the thought of him touching her, made her feel sick.
"Let go of me!" Xiu Xiang shouted. Her weak, feeble hands pushed against Wei Xing's rock hard chest. She was unable to hold onto her last strand of consciousness as she tumbled into Wei Xing's arms, finally giving into the darkness at last.
When Wei Xing saw that Xiu Xiang had lost consciousness at last, he easily carried her weak body in his arms.
"Let you go? Even if you beg me, I will never let you go, whether in this lifetime or the next," Wei Xing said. He held her tightly against him, wanting her to meld against him yet fearing that if he held on any tighter, she might just crumble.
Earlier, Hua Jian had suggested for him to act lovingly with Bai Qing, the prettiest woman in the palace. It was sure to get Xiu Xiang jealous. He was hesitant with this plan as he knew that Bai Qing carried a torch for him. Still, if it could get Xiu Xiang to admit her feelings for him, he was willing to give it a try. When he saw how hurt Xiu Xiang looked, he almost gave up the plan to make Xiu Xiang jealous, but he felt a tinge of happiness when he realized that the reason why Xiu Xiang felt hurt was due to jealousy.
With Xiu Xiang in his arms, he was completely oblivious to his own surroundings. He was about to leave when he heard a weak voice call out, "My lord, I..."
Wei Xing forced himself to look away from Xiu Xiang. Bai Qing was standing just a couple feet away from him. He seemed to be immune to Bai Qing's tear stained face. He knew he should feel guilty about using Bai Qing but upon realizing that Xiu Xiang had gotten jealous over him, it seemed to override that guilt.
"What is it?" Wei Xing asked impatiently. He had accidentally injured Xiu Xiang and he quickly wanted to return to his room to let her rest.
"What about me...?" Bai Qing asked. Her lips trembled as her hands clamped together in front of her. She looked every bit as lovely as a true fairy.
He gave her a once lookover then turned to Hua Jian.
"Escort Bai Qing back to her room. Then bring back a few pills from her place. Xiu Xiang had lost a lot of energy erecting that barrier," Wei Xing ordered.
He soon left, leaving a dumbfounded Bai Qing standing alone. Many demons felt sorry for Bai Qing. They all knew how long Bai Qing had chased after Wei Xing. After all these years, he has never shown any affections toward her. But no matter how sorry they felt for her, she would never compare to their true lord.
Xiu Xiang awoke days later, feeling energized. The golden shackles on her were gone. Wei Xing must've gotten rid of it in order to help her heal faster. When she saw this, she couldn't help but feel anger bubbling up within her. First, he treated her like trash and didn't care whether she died or not. Then, he dragged her to watch him flirt with women in his harem. Now he even attempted to destroy her master's precious courtyard for Bai Qing?
Was this an act of revenge?
"You're finally awake," she heard a voice say from the doorway. Xiu Xiang looked up in time to see Wei Xing wave his sleeve in a horizontal motion. On her wrists, a pair of golden bracelets appeared. Once again, she felt her energy constricted.
The sly bastard had constricted her energy again and right in front of her too!
"You!" Xiu Xiang seethed with anger. She tossed the covers off her and shot out of bed. "You won't let me die but you won't let me live either! What the hell do you want from me?!"
"You're wrong. I truly want you to live. As long as you're by my side, I will make sure you stay alive," Wei Xing replied calmly.
"You want me to live?" Xiu Xiang snorted at his words then rolled her eyes.
Not wanting to look at him any longer, she turned her attention on the room. She was back in her original room and dressed in only thin inner white robes. Despite her change of clothing, she felt dirty. She was sure she had slept for many days.
As if reading her mind, Wei Xing said, "I was just about to bathe. Join me."
"As if!" Xiu Xiang snarled. Her cheeks flushed red as she glared him down.
Wei Xing raised one perfect brow as he eyed her up and down. She was still baring her teeth at him even though he had removed her claws. He chuckled. Back then, Xiu Xiang had always kept a cool and calm façade in front of him. Seeing her look like a scorned little kitten made her all the more adorable in his eyes.
Before Wei Xing came to check up on her, Hua Jian had been giving him pointers on what to do next. They had risen Xiu Xiang's jealousy, but they didn't realize how important the courtyard was to Xiu Xiang to the point where she had exerted all her energy to protect thus injuring her. Hua Jian reminded Wei Xing that she was probably extremely angry. Now was the time to pull back the reins. It was time to appease her anger by giving her a full explanation and sympathizing with her.
"I'm sorry. I didn't realize how much that courtyard meant to you. I just heard from Hua Jian that the courtyard was specially created by your late master, but you're also in the wrong for hurting Bai Qing over a courtyard," Wei Xing said.
Xiu Xiang sneered at his apology. Her anger had been boiling up for some time now and she was no longer able to hold it back.
"Then it only means that you truly do not understand the significance behind the courtyard," Xiu Xiang spat. There wasn't much within the courtyard but there was sentimental value. It was something Wei Xing and Bai Qing would never understand. "If she hadn't been so greedy to possess something that doesn't belong to her, why would I waste energy on her?"
"Greedy to possess something that doesn't belong to her...?" Wei Xing repeated. He was startled at Xiu Xiang's wording. Could it be...? A small smile appeared on his face. "Are you talking about the courtyard...? Or perhaps you're talking about me?"
Before Xiu Xiang could throw back an insult, Wei Xing stepped forward.
"Could it be that you were jealous of me?" Wei Xing asked. His heart thumped rapidly. This was the chance to confirm whether his plan had truly worked or not.
"Jealous? Me? Ha! Since when did the great Elder Wei turned into such a conceited bastard?" Xiu Xiang shot back.
Wei Xing's smile seemed to grow wider by the second, which bewildered Xiu Xiang. What exactly did she say that made him so happy?
"Even now, in your eyes, you still see me as the same?" Wei Xing asked. His tone seemed to have turned quite gentle like he was reminiscing about the past.
Xiu Xiang's brows knitted tightly together, feeling confused more than she was angry. Did him turning into a demon turned his brain to mush? She can't seem to understand any of his actions anymore.
"What are you getting at?" she asked. The confusion had set in making her quite less conscious of her surroundings. Wei Xing closed the distance between them in a split second. He wrapped his arms tightly around her waist. He smiled down at her and asked back, "What do you think?"
"Let go! Why are you acting like this towards me when you already have Bai Qing?" Xiu Xiang quickly reminded him of his true lover so that he would let her go only it didn't have the impact that it was supposed to. Instead, he pulled her even closer until there was no space between them. She smacked right into his firm chest, nearly injuring her nose if she hadn't turned her head in time.
"You truly are jealous," she heard him commented.
"Shut up! I'm not jealous! I don't feel anything at all!" she growled.
"Really? Then, why won't you help me bathe?" he asked.
"Do I look like your servant?" she snapped.
"Why are you being so difficult? If you truly don't feel anything, there is nothing wrong in helping me bathe. Unless you're truly jealous." He constantly repeated that she was jealousy.
In fact, she had been jealous. Having him repeat it over and over made her want to deny it even more.
"I'm not jealous!" she said harshly through gritted teeth.
"Alright. If you're not jealous then help me bathe," he challenged.