Evil Spirit - chapter 3

Chapter 3

The rain was growing heavier, the threads of rain no longer gentle, transforming into fierce water drops that fell in torrents.

Just like the person before her.

Li Jiaojiao stared fixedly at Duan Qinglian, not daring to move or speak.

She had already experienced the ways of the male supporting character in this trashy novel, and she couldn’t be sure that if she made a careless move, this ancestor wouldn’t just slit her throat right then and there.

Unlike Li Jiaojiao, Duan Qinglian remained tall and elegant in the rain. The heavy downpour had soaked his clothes through, and she could even see the Sword Line he was toying with through the fabric of his sleeves.

Li Jiaojiao only felt a chill at her neck-just now, Duan Qinglian had used that very Sword Line to strangle the necks of those guards.

Oh heavens! Could it be that he was so taken with killing, he even wanted to finish her off?

Li Jiaojiao instinctively shielded her neck, her mind frantically racing for ways to save herself.

Duan Qinglian smiled. This little cat was so naïve-did she really think that by protecting her neck she wouldn’t die?

He let the Sword Line unwind from his fingertips, leaned down and picked up the knife that had fallen onto the deck. His movements were slow, so much so that even the sound of the blade scraping across the deck was dull and drawn out, making Li Jiaojiao’s back run cold.

“B-brother, wait…”

She was so nervous that her tongue tied itself in knots the moment she spoke.

“I don’t really use knives.” Duan Qinglian seemed not to hear her, tilting his head slightly, a deep smile on his face. “So, in a moment, could you tell me just how much it hurts when a blade sinks into flesh?”

???

Li Jiaojiao was stunned.

How could he say such inhuman things with such an innocent expression?

She kept being forced back, until her body pressed against the edge of the boat and she could retreat no further.

Li Jiaojiao glanced at the lake behind her, still swirling faintly with blood. At worst, she could jump-drowning would be better than being killed by this madman.

But at this moment, the dragging sound of the blade abruptly stopped.

Duan Qinglian’s lowered eyes lifted, his tone holding a hint of regret. “What a pity, I was interrupted.”

No sooner had he spoken than Li Jiaojiao saw a flash of cold light stab toward Duan Qinglian from behind. Duan Qinglian turned aside and parried the attack, knife and sword clashing with a shrill, chilling metallic ring that echoed over the lake.

The two locked eyes for a moment, then the owner of the sword was the first to withdraw her weapon, landing nimbly on the deck with a smooth turn.

Only then did Li Jiaojiao get a clear look at the newcomer.

It was a woman, dressed in red with bracers at her wrists, full of heroic spirit. Her features resembled Shen Yunshu’s by seven parts, but she looked nothing like Li Jiaojiao and the other frail heiresses-instead, she radiated a cool aloofness.

Li Jiaojiao felt a surge of hope-The heroine! I’m saved!

“Save, save me!”

Before Li Jiaojiao could even speak, Shen Yunshu, who had been lying trembling on the deck in fear, suddenly shouted out, abandoning all ladylike decorum as she scrambled away on all fours.

Shen Yunlan drew her sword and shielded her behind, her sharp gaze fixed on the soaked white figure before her. “Who are you? Why did you harm my sister?”

Duan Qinglian turned slightly, his black hair drenched in the rain, sticking to his pale skin and accentuating his gentle features. In that moment, he seemed to return to his pure and harmless appearance.

“How is it me who harmed her? She clearly deceived me first.”

Shen Yunlan frowned, seeming unimpressed by Duan Qinglian’s gentle and innocent act. As she turned to question Shen Yunshu, she kept a wary eye on him.

“Yunshu, what did you do?”

Shen Yunshu was stunned, keeping her head down and saying nothing for a long while.

“Second Miss promised me that if I accompanied her boating today, she would grant my request.” Duan Qinglian spoke, still gently, but when his gaze fell on Shen Yunshu, she shrank her neck and began to tremble again.

“But I clearly came, and yet Second Miss then said she would only agree if I married into her family.”

“I don’t like being lied to.”

His red, soft lips curled up, the smile in his eyes growing deeper as he spoke, not a hint of anger in his tone. If one didn’t know that he was riddled with madness inside, they’d think he was a very gentle and good-tempered, handsome young man.

Duan Qinglian’s words made Shen Yunlan’s brow furrow even deeper. “What exactly do you want?”

The Shen Family had overseen the Yin-Yang Department for generations, capturing demons and ghosts for the imperial court, and storing many forbidden and evil objects. Her instincts told her that this man was not simple, and the thing he wanted was surely not simple either.

“Rebirth Wood.”

When she heard these two words, Shen Yunlan’s pupils shrank abruptly, and she looked in disbelief at her sister, who was now cowering behind her.

She knew her sister was spoiled, but never imagined she would dare promise Rebirth Wood to someone.

Rebirth Wood, as its name suggests, can only exist in the underworld where no living things reside. By a stroke of fate, their grandfather had obtained it. If it is burned, those who inhale its fragrance can see their past and present lives-and there is a high chance of falling into evil.
But the Yin-Yang Department only keeps this one piece, and even Shen Yunlan’s grandfather, the head of the department, cannot destroy it. It is truly the most sinister of Evil Spirits.

“Crooked ways and evil paths,” Shen Yunlan turned back coldly.

She could never hand over this item.

Moreover, although the man before her was smiling, he made her deeply uncomfortable; she couldn’t even sense any human aura from him.

“Is that so?”

A tense, sword-drawn atmosphere was about to erupt.

Li Jiaojiao was suffocated by the invisible pressure between the two, her legs weak as she shuffled a few steps toward the center of the boat, timidly saying to Shen Yunlan, “Yunlan Sister, don’t forget me…”

In the original novel, Li Jiaojiao had admired the male lead since childhood and naturally hated Shen Yunlan, the female lead. Before Li Jiaojiao transmigrated, she had used countless means against Shen Yunlan, both openly and secretly.

It was already rare for her not to spit at Shen Yunlan, let alone call her ‘Yunlan Sister.’

But what’s a character setting compared to one’s life! The System never said she couldn’t go OOC anyway!

“Young Princess?” Shen Yunlan turned her head and saw Li Jiaojiao.

Her expression was first startled, then her bold brows furrowed even deeper.

Indeed, she suddenly had another burden to carry.

“Come here quickly.”

Upon hearing this, Li Jiaojiao immediately dashed toward Shen Yunlan, but after only a couple of steps, a cold silver Sword Line wrapped around her neck.

Her body instantly stiffened, mechanically turning her head to see a pair of beautiful, pale fingers holding the other end of the Sword Line.

“Take one more step and this Sword Line will cut into your throat.”

The voice was still maddeningly innocent.

Li Jiaojiao cursed inwardly, but pleaded aloud, “Don’t… don’t pull so tight, I’m innocent…”

Duan Qinglian smiled, his fingers winding the Sword Line in circles. She had no choice but to follow the Sword Line, retreating step by step until she bumped into his cold chest.

His hand, as cold as his body, caressed her face. “Trade the Rebirth Wood for her, how about it?”

Shen Yunlan was stunned for a moment, then her face turned cold as she deftly removed the sword case from her back with one hand.

With a ‘swish,’ the sword case opened, revealing six gleaming swords neatly arranged inside, plus the one in her hand-seven in total.

“Seven Souls Sword,” Duan Qinglian murmured softly.

Shen Yunlan raised her eyes, meeting Duan Qinglian’s ethereal gaze directly. “Since you recognize the Seven Souls Sword, you should know it is used to slay Evil Demons and purge Evil Spirits.”

She bit down hard on the words ‘Evil Spirit.’ She guessed that the man before her was not a demon, nor did he have demonic aura-there was only one possibility left.

Suddenly, he laughed quietly, his tone softer than at any point since his appearance. “Yes, I am an Evil Spirit. Go ahead, bring it on.”

Just as she thought.

Shen Yunlan’s eyes sharpened instantly. She pressed her fingers together, forming a cross to cast a spell. The swords in the case trembled, striking the case in preparation.

“Jingle-”

Suddenly, the Golden Thread Bell wrapped around Shen Yunlan’s wrist rang out, its heart shaking inside and producing a crisp bell sound.

Shen Yunlan brushed the bell to silence it, and the glow of her spell faded from between her fingers. She turned to look at the sky behind her, where a mass of dark clouds was drifting in the direction the boat was leaving.

Not good! Those dark clouds were heading straight for the Noble Ladies.

But with the young Princess held hostage by an Evil Spirit and her own sister hiding behind her, she was caught in a dilemma.

She had come out this time to track the Evil Demons. The Capital, long undisturbed by such evil, had recently seen several Noble Ladies go missing, enraging the Emperor.

Now, with her grandfather gone from the Capital to the Luo River, its peace depended solely on her. She had been tracking this group of Evil Demons for some time; if she failed again, the reputation of the entire Yin-Yang Department would be ruined.

“I can negotiate with you further about the Rebirth Wood, just don’t harm them.”

After a moment’s thought, Shen Yunlan could only compromise.

“Sister, no! Don’t! I don’t want to stay with him!”

Just as Shen Yunlan turned to go rescue them, Shen Yunshu clung tightly to her waist, trembling all over after just one glance at Duan Qinglian.

Her admiration from earlier had turned to pure terror.

The culprit seemed completely unaware of how frightening his actions were, tilting his head, his bright red lips curling into a harmless smile at Shen Yunshu.

This made Shen Yunshu tremble even harder.

Li Jiaojiao couldn’t stand it anymore. “Can you stop scaring her?”

He looked gentle, his tone utterly innocent. “She said she liked it when I smiled at her all the time.”

Li Jiaojiao: …