Chapter 65: Chapter 65: I Knew It Wasn’t That Simple
The plains were wide open, and the commotion from the duel was so loud that Lu Sangjiu’s group couldn’t possibly miss it.
Having already guessed they would run into Ye Zhiyao within a day or two, Lu Sangjiu recognized her and Qin Yu from afar.
She really wanted to look the other way, but she figured Gu Jue would insist on meddling. To avoid breaking character, she didn’t suggest they take a detour.
But... she never expected that upon seeing the commotion ahead, it would be Gu Jue who spoke up. "Let’s take a detour."
Lu Sangjiu: ???
’What happened to the righteous, kind, and passionate hero? Aren’t you going to save your leading lady?’
She didn’t get it, but she was pleasantly surprised.
The others had no intention of getting involved either, and they immediately prepared to go around.
But just then, Ye Zhiyao’s joyous voice suddenly rang out. "Senior Brother Gu! I’m so glad I ran into you! Please, lend me a hand!"
Lu Sangjiu: "..."
’I knew it,’ she thought. ’How could the power of the plot possibly let them just leave?’
’This first meeting between the male and female leads, while not exactly the moment they fall in love, is a critical step in developing their romance. If they miss this, how is the story supposed to go on?’
Hearing Ye Zhiyao’s voice, the group halted their steps, and everyone turned in unison to look at Gu Jue.
Liu Xi said tartly, "I didn’t realize Senior Brother had picked up another junior sister on the road."
Gu Jue glanced at Ye Zhiyao from afar. Neither she nor Qin Yu was wearing the robes of the Seven Emotions Sect, so he couldn’t identify their sect. It also seemed he’d forgotten his brief encounter with her at the entrance to the Secret Realm.
His expression was slightly blank. Then, he frowned and said, "...She’s just calling for a ’Senior Brother Gu.’ That doesn’t necessarily mean she’s calling for me."
As he spoke, he pointed to another group of people not far off. "Maybe someone over there is named Gu. It has nothing to do with us. Let’s go."
Lu Sangjiu: "..."
The corner of Lu Sangjiu’s mouth twitched as she watched Gu Jue’s completely serious explanation.
She felt a mix of schadenfreude and speechlessness at Gu Jue’s completely clueless-guy act.
She couldn’t help but sigh internally once more. ’Ye Zhiyao really must have fallen for Gu Jue’s looks!’
’Otherwise, with an attitude like this, it would be truly bizarre for her to still fall for him.’
However, aside from Lu Sangjiu, everyone else actually found Gu Jue’s explanation quite reasonable. Liu Xi even nodded gleefully. "I knew Senior Brother wouldn’t go finding other junior sisters behind my back! Let’s get out of here, quickly!"
And so, Ye Zhiyao discovered that after she called out, not only did Gu Jue’s group not approach, they actually started walking away faster.
Ye Zhiyao: "..."
The men attacking her and Qin Yu had thought she had backup, but when they saw the nearby Cultivators had no intention of intervening, they began to mock her.
"Still trying to call for help? Heh, looks like no one gives a damn about you. Just give up and die!"
A flicker of humiliation crossed Ye Zhiyao’s face at their taunts, but the situation was too dire for her to dwell on it. She had no choice but to call out again.
"Senior Brother Gu Jue! It’s me, Ye Zhiyao from the Seven Emotions Sect! We met the other day!"
"These scoundrels ambushed us with ill intent! Please, Senior Brother Gu Jue, you have to help!"
Well... this time she’d called him out by his full name and even announced her sect. There was no way Gu Jue could pretend not to notice now.
He stopped in his tracks and turned to look at Lu Sangjiu first.
Lu Sangjiu put on a blank, innocent expression. "Oh... is that Senior Sister Ye? I didn’t even recognize her."
’Mhm... given my kind persona, how could I possibly see a fellow sect member in peril and not help? Obviously, it’s because I didn’t recognize her!’
’After all, Ye Zhiyao was only calling for Gu Jue. It’s perfectly normal that I wouldn’t have recognized her, right?’
Gu Jue didn’t doubt her, and Chi Yan, of course, doubted her even less.
As for Liu Xi, her attention was focused entirely on something else.
"Hmph. Her own sect sister is right there, but she doesn’t ask *her* for help. She’s certainly being chummy calling out to *my* Senior Brother. How shameless!"
Liu Xi was impartially hostile toward any woman who tried to get close to Gu Jue.
Lu Sangjiu had managed to avoid her wrath entirely because, while she might be a "green tea," she was an equal-opportunity one, never showing any special intimacy toward Gu Jue.
Even when Gu Jue had later promised to protect her, he had done so via voice transmission, so Liu Xi was unaware.
Now, Ye Zhiyao had earned Liu Xi’s displeasure with her very first words. She’d probably already been added to Liu Xi’s little black book.
Ye Zhiyao didn’t know this, and even if she had, she likely wouldn’t have cared.
Seeing Gu Jue and his group finally stop, her heart leaped with joy.
But just as she was about to speak again, her distraction cost her. An enemy Spell struck her in the chest, sending her flying backward.
However, she didn’t crash to the ground as she expected. Instead, she was caught by Gu Jue, who had rushed forward to help.
Lu Sangjiu watched as Gu Jue, holding Ye Zhiyao by the waist, locked eyes with her as they slowly descended into a sea of flowers.
The scene was incredibly picturesque. With their eyes locked like that, Lu Sangjiu felt she could almost hear their racing heartbeats.
’...Judging by appearances alone, they’re actually a pretty good ship.’
However, no sooner had Lu Sangjiu thought this than the man who’d been attacking Ye Zhiyao caught up. Without a word, he swung an axe at the pair.
Ye Zhiyao was likely still lost in the heart-fluttering moment and didn’t react at all.
Gu Jue, however, reacted instantly. To dodge the attack, he gave a hard push and... threw Ye Zhiyao.
"AH!" Ye Zhiyao shrieked as she tumbled into the sea of flowers.
The pain scattered the romantic haze in her mind, and she finally remembered she was still in danger.
Liu Xi, who had just been fuming, couldn’t help but gloat. "Serves her right!"
But words were one thing; now that Gu Jue had joined the fight, the rest of them weren’t just going to stand by and watch. They all jumped into the fray.
Lu Sangjiu joined in as well, but with both the male and female leads present, she couldn’t be bothered to exert herself. She just slacked off on the sidelines, looking busy.
"Lu Sangjiu, take this seriously!"
She was happily slacking away when she was caught off guard by someone shouting her full name.
She didn’t even have to look to know it was Qin Yu.
They had become enemies back on Luoya Mountain. Now, seeing himself getting beaten into a sorry state while Lu Sangjiu was clearly not trying her best, Qin Yu was naturally indignant.
Lu Sangjiu, however, completely ignored him. She even deliberately left an opening, giving her opponent a chance to launch a sneak attack on Qin Yu, making his situation even more pathetic.
But no matter how much Lu Sangjiu slacked, with Gu Jue and his two companions joining the fight, the enemies were still quickly wiped out.
The moment the last enemy fell, Qin Yu didn’t even take a second to catch his breath before angrily striding up to Lu Sangjiu. "You did that on purpose, didn’t you? Are you trying to get me killed?"
The commotion drew everyone’s attention, and all eyes turned toward the two of them.
Ye Zhiyao, who had been about to thank Gu Jue, didn’t get the chance. She had to swallow her words for now and walk over toward Qin Yu with the others.
In response to Qin Yu’s accusation, Lu Sangjiu silently rolled her eyes. ’Duh,’ she thought. ’Are you only just figuring out that I want you dead?’
On the outside, however, she put on an innocent, aggrieved expression. "Ah... Senior Brother Qin, why would you say such a thing? I was clearly fighting alongside everyone to save you!"
