If one had to find a word for the scene at hand, "caught in the act" fit best.
As far as Ling Wu was concerned, she was now exactly like the fickle young lord from her storybooks—flirting about with someone on the side, and just as things got sweet, caught red-handed by the lawfully wedded.
The lawfully wedded, naturally, being Qingchen.
"Ah-Wu. Come here."
When Master gave an order, she didn't dare disobey. Without so much as a glance at Yizhen, Ling Wu trotted over and stood at Qingchen's side.
Yizhen's expression darkened.
Given a choice between two, and she still wouldn't choose him?
Ling Wu's heart was racing. Now it was truly ruined—how did she manage to will Master back into existence!
The air between the two men crackled. The pressure around them dropped so low that Ling Wu didn't dare take a full breath, nearly suffocating on the spot. When had she ever witnessed a scene like this?
Weren't the three realms all about promoting peace these days? Why were Master and Yizhen squaring off like this? Could they be old acquaintances with some old grudge?
That shouldn't be right. Master was the War God, but he never struck first unless struck. In all these years, she'd never heard of any conflict between him and the demon realm.
And as for Yizhen—sure, she'd only met him twice, but judging by how he roamed about cleaning up troublesome demons, he didn't seem malicious at heart.
She would never admit she was praising him because of all the things he'd bought her.
Unable to make sense of any of it, she reached out and tugged lightly at Qingchen's sleeve, ready to apologize.
But Qingchen stared straight at her, his voice carrying a chill. "Didn't Ah-Wu promise to behave from now on? Not a few days after I leave, she sneaks down to the mortal realm again?"
His eyes narrowed, a curve rising at the corner of his mouth—in the dark of night, it looked a shade ominous. "Or perhaps the only way to make Ah-Wu obedient is to lock her up. Keep her by my side forever."
Ling Wu's mind went blank. What on earth was Master saying? Lock her up—why? She wasn't a criminal! Worst case, she'd never sneak out again, all right!
Her lips moved, but not a single complete sentence came out.
No helping it. She was simply that easy to scare.
Seeing this, Qingchen realized he'd gone too far. He closed his eyes briefly, and when he opened them he was his usual gentle self again. A sigh escaped him. "This is Master's fault."
Ling Wu still didn't dare speak.
Yizhen stood at a distance—Qingchen had sealed him out with a hand seal—so he couldn't hear a word, only judge by their posture.
Ling Wu kept her head lowered the whole time. She looked, frankly, wronged.
So he raised his voice: "Tell me, Immortal Lord Qingchen—how long do you intend to keep her hidden? This anxious of yours, you won't even let her out the door. Don't tell me you think keeping her hidden forever means nothing can go wrong?"
Hidden? Who was hiding whom? Ling Wu looked at Yizhen, then at Qingchen, thoroughly puzzled.
And there was that thing Wenyao said last time—she still had no idea who this Songluo person even was.
Sharing a glance with Master, Ling Wu swung her fire toward Yizhen instead: "Yizhen, watch your mouth when you speak to my Master! Master acts upright and aboveboard. When has he ever hidden anyone away? Don't spout nonsense!"
Hearing her call his name, both Yizhen and Qingchen froze.
The former out of delight—his bond with Ling Wu had taken another step forward. The latter out of displeasure—things were slipping a little out of his control.
"What did Ah-Wu call him?" Qingchen's expression shifted again.
He hadn't known that she and Yizhen were already close enough to use each other's given names.
Ling Wu finally dared answer. She shielded her mouth with one hand and said, very carefully: "Rest assured, Master, this disciple knows her manners. It's just that immortals and demons are different—this disciple isn't under his authority, so there's no need for titles."
"He's the one who told you that, isn't he." Ling Wu might be slow, but he wasn't. One look and you could tell Yizhen had fed her the line. Her head simply wasn't built to turn that corner on its own.
Ling Wu clicked her tongue. Even that, Master guessed?
She lowered her hand and gave a small "mm." Then looked up, baffled. "Is that not allowed, Master?"
It had made perfect sense to her!
"Are you two close?" Qingchen didn't answer—only asked back.
Ling Wu rubbed her nose and said, dryly, "Not... not that close."
Just someone who'd bought her a few things. Surface-level friends, that was all.
"Then use his title."
Ling Wu pouted. Fine. Whatever Master says goes.
"And in future, Ah-Wu is not to go about calling people by their given names. It sounds far more familiar than with your own Master." That came out distinctly sour.
Ling Wu nodded obediently.
"This disciple is only close with Master."
Master and disciple were absorbed in their quiet exchange, and Yizhen had been left hanging for quite a while.
Perhaps Ling Wu's docile look pleased him, because Qingchen's expression softened a fraction.
"Good girl, Ah-Wu."
Then he looked up and sneered at Yizhen: "How I conduct myself is no business of yours to lecture about."
The freeze between Yizhen and Qingchen snapped right back. And the more Ling Wu looked, the stranger it seemed—there was definitely history between these two!
"She remembers nothing right now. So you and I might as well settle it with our own abilities." Yizhen was brimming with confidence.
Given a second chance, he refused to believe he'd lose again.
Some things were simply a matter of time.
Qingchen let out a soft, dismissive laugh, entirely unbothered.
"Then by all means, try."
Ling Wu stood off to the side, utterly lost. The two of them sounded like they were trading challenges—or reciting riddles from heaven. But if it really came down to ability, surely Master had the edge. The title of War God wasn't handed out for free!
Master's glorious battle record couldn't fit in a whole book. Eldest Senior Brother once remarked that as long as Master stood, no one could ever threaten the number one seat in the immortal realm. Every time Ling Wu heard that, her eyes lit up, and she'd pester Ji Xunzhi for more stories of Master slaughtering the demons that plagued the realms.
If only she could see it for herself one day.
"Lord Demon, you really shouldn't go picking fights at random. My Master is very strong!" Ling Wu said earnestly.
She didn't want to see Yizhen hurt—after all, he wasn't a bad person.
Their expressions swapped places on the spot.
Yizhen ground his teeth: "You certainly do listen to your Master."
Qingchen's lips curved in satisfaction. Ling Wu, noncommittal.
Well, of course. She was a Master's-treasure girl!
"Heartless," Yizhen huffed lightly, though he wasn't really angry.
He could see it plainly—Ling Wu was dull-witted at present, believing whatever nonsense she was fed. Getting worked up over her was a losing trade.
Those two words stung Ling Wu, and she shut her mouth again.
Take a man's gifts, endure a man's jibes. Fair was fair.
The three parted on somewhat sour terms, and somehow the demon hunt landed right back on Ling Wu.
All she remembered was Yizhen's parting murmur: "Ah-Wu is right. Immortal Lord Qingchen's strength is extraordinary, and my demonic power is lowly—I can't keep a runaway demon in line. This one in the city I'll leave to the two of you, Master and disciple."
"Catch it and execute it on the spot. No need to spare its life for my sake."
Qingchen's smile didn't reach his eyes. "No demon leaves this lord's hands alive."
Master's words were terrifying. Ling Wu shrank her neck. Thank goodness she was human.
And so Ling Wu accepted the demon-hunting assignment—though with Master there, she hardly needed to lift a finger.
Thus, she stayed in the mortal realm a while longer.
The process was all wrong. The result, entirely right.