My Heart Is Bright as the Moon - Chapter 3

The male lead was still breathing faintly. Worried he wasn’t dead enough, Shen Jiaojiao stabbed him several more times, then turned to me in frustration.

“Sister, why won’t he die?”

“Well…” I scratched the back of my head. I could hardly tell her it was because he had protagonist armor.

She didn’t dwell on it. Using her sword, she dug a pit nearby, pushed the male lead in, and covered him with earth in one smooth sequence. She even stamped on it twice to pack it down.

Watching felt good in body and soul.

After leaving the forest, we found an inn to rest at. Hearing a tremendous racket outside, I curiously asked the waiter, “What’s all the excitement?”

“Ah, you two must be from out of town.” He smiled as he explained. “It’s Fufeng City’s Wish Festival. Every year on this day, everyone goes out to float lanterns and offer their wishes. Your dreams are sure to come true!”

That interested me.

“Jiaojiao, shall we have a look too?”

The corners of her lips rose.

“Whatever you say, Sister.”

Outside, we found a huge crowd. I was just about to tell her to hold on to my clothes so we wouldn’t get separated when she took my hand.

Her palm was warm and sweaty.

Puzzled, I asked, “Are you hot, Jiaojiao?”

She shook her head frantically.

“N-no. Sister, let’s go over there to float our lanterns. There are so many people here.”

“All right.”

We each bought a lantern. The kindly seller handed us brushes and said with a smile, “Write your wishes inside and pray for your dreams to come true.”

Shen Jiaojiao looked at me.

“Do you believe in it, Sister?”

I took a brush and quickly wrote down my wish.

“We might as well follow the local custom. What if it really comes true?”

Her eyes curved.

“Mm. What’s your wish, then, Sister?”

I showed her my lantern.

“Mine’s simple. I just want you to be safe and well, with nothing in this world troubling you.”

She’d never hurt anyone, yet nothing good ever came of it. On the day the male lead tortured the original “me” to death, she had even slipped over to cover “me” with a piece of clothing.

Such a good person.

While I was lost in thought, she finished writing her own wish. I leaned over to look.

“I hope Sister will stay with Jiaojiao forever.”

I couldn’t help laughing.

“Forever? Aren’t you going to find a cultivation partner? Do you want to spend the rest of your life staring at me?”

Her gaze dimmed.

“Will Sister… have a cultivation partner too?”

I patted the little merperson’s head.

“No. I haven’t even thought about it. As long as you’re doing well, there’s nothing else I want.”

Smiling, she tugged at my arm and rested her head on my shoulder.

“Then it’s a promise. Sister can’t leave me.”

We set our lanterns on the river and watched them drift with the current. I had just turned back to speak to her when I heard her shout.

“Sister, look out!”

A hand reached out and pushed me into the river.

Through the water, I caught a blurred glimpse of the man’s face.

He looked like the man we’d buried.

My last thought before passing out was that we should have chopped him to pieces.

…

Thank heaven, I wasn’t dead.

A fire lit a small patch of the cave. A man had his back to me, turning beast meat over the flames. The smell woke me. I warily leaned back and ventured, “Are you… Tang Zhao?”

“Tang Zhao?” He turned and raised an eyebrow at me. “You know that good-for-nothing little brother of mine?”

Shit.

Now I could see his face properly. He resembled the man we’d buried, but a closer look revealed the differences.

If I wasn’t mistaken, this was the original novel’s archvillain: the demon race’s eldest prince, Tang Xiao.

A villain was a villain. Even his whole demeanor was different. His expression was gloomy as he approached and seized me by the throat, threatening me in a low voice.

“Don’t try anything. You’d better pray that little merperson comes to rescue you.”

Oh, right. He was the scumbag who had slaughtered Shen Jiaojiao’s people. To gain more power, he had used merfolk flesh and blood to form his cultivation core, never expecting one of them to escape. And Jiaojiao’s flesh and blood were irresistibly tempting to him.

Panic set in. If she really came to save me, wouldn’t this thing just catch her and eat her?

I silently prayed that she wouldn’t be stupid enough to come alone, and would go back for help instead.

Before long, a girl in white appeared at the cave entrance. Joy and sorrow surged through me together.

“Jiaojiao…”

Her eyes were cold. Tang Xiao licked his teeth and rushed forward to fight her.

My heart clenched. I was terrified she’d get hurt.

I was wondering whether to sneak up and attack him from behind when an enormous crash rang out. Shen Jiaojiao had kicked Tang Xiao into the ground, smashing out a deep pit.

My eyes trembled in shock.

After all these years.

Once again, I felt the awe-inspiring force of a powerhouse girl.