"What on earth... are your motives?"
She didn't even realize that her voice trembled slightly as she spoke.
The moment Nan Min reached out to touch her, she shook his hand off. The last bit of trust in her heart had been completely shattered by Zhi Tong's words.
"Come on, you made a deal with that man too, right?"
Yong Shanling was a bit afraid to look into his eyes.
"Yes, we did make a deal. So what?" Han Chu blurted out first. Nan Min, who was standing behind him, still remained silent.
"I guess there aren't many sincere people in this world..." There was deep disappointment in her eyes as she looked at Nan Min and slowly said,
"Right?"
"Let's go do the mission first..." After saying that, Nan Min turned around and walked away. Han Chu glanced at Yong Shanling, a hint of bitterness on his face.
"Why bother? Isn't it better to be a fool? Why do you have to uncover the truth?"
After saying that, Han Chu also left with Nan Min. Watching their retreating backs, she felt a moment of daze. It seemed that this scene was somewhat familiar, painfully familiar.
The voice of Bai Ling echoed in her mind again.
"You've pushed them away again..."
"I didn't. They're just using me."
"You're angry about their exploitation, but you've also seen their sincerity, haven't you? I appeared to prevent you from making the same mistakes again... But, it's so hard for people to change."
"Right?" Bai Ling's bitterness invaded her whole body like blood.
"Can you tell me who that man is? Is... is he Gu Li?"
"You still can't see through this world. You always chase after what's in front of you but often ignore what's beside you. If you would just take another look! Another look! Maybe everything could change..."
Hearing Bai Ling's scolding, she felt a bit uncomfortable. Her mouth was full of bitterness, making her feel sick and want to escape.
"Again, you want to run away, don't you..."
"Why! Why! Why do you always do this? I can compensate him, but don't you think it's too much? I can't sacrifice my whole life for him!"
Yong Shanling shouted hoarsely, her face flushed and a glint of tears in her eyes.
"But he's willing to give his life for you..."
"So... what?"
She was scared, truly scared. She was too afraid to look at herself now. She even found her own appearance disgusting. What had made her like this...
"Touch your heart and think it over carefully." After saying that, the voice in her mind disappeared again.
She slowly slid down against the tree, feeling all the strength drained from her body. There was a pang of pain in her heart. She regretted it so much, regretted the words that had blurted out without thinking.
She hated herself, hated this sudden change in herself that she couldn't understand. She buried her head between her legs. Her tears had already soaked her collar. She recalled the expressions on Han Chu and Nan Min's faces when they left, and her heart ached.
"Was it my mistake..."
"What are you sitting there for?" Xi Chu walked over and saw Yong Shanling sitting alone under the tree with her head down.
"Nothing." She wiped away her tears and stood up, then walked forward with her back to Xi Chu.
Seeing her twitching shoulders, Xi Chu was a bit worried, but he didn't know what had just happened. The two walked forward in silence and saw Wu Yan lying aside.
"You go." She looked at Wu Yan sleeping there indifferently.
After Xi Chu finished removing the mark, the two left that place.
Just as they were about to reach the exit, Xi Chu finally asked,
"Just now... are you okay with Nan Min and the others?"
She looked up stiffly and looked at Xi Chu in confusion. He coughed and pointed at her neck where the blood had dried.
She touched her neck and felt a bit of pain. Only then did she come to her senses. She forced a smile and said, "It's nothing. I'll take care of it later."
"Well, you also have your own motives, right..."
Now it was his turn to be confused. He looked at her, who was half a head shorter than him, in puzzlement.
"I heard from Zhi Tong. What about you? What do you want to exchange me for with the Sect Master? You approached me with a purpose from the beginning, right? The same goes for that sneak attack. You wanted to test how the Sect Master felt about me, right?"
She sneered at the man beside her, as if she had long felt that she was living in a world of lies, being used by others constantly.
"I did have such an idea at first, but I found that you're different..."
"Excuse... Your excuse is exactly the same as Nan Min's. You two colluded, right? And Han Chu, too, right?"
She stopped walking and stood there, looking at Xi Chu's back in front of her.
"What about you? What do you think? Do you really think we're all lying to you?"
Saying this, Xi Chu turned around and met her eyes. She was a bit stunned. Her hanging hands stiffened for a moment. She looked to the side, feeling a bit unsure in her heart.
"Can I... can I trust you?"
The two were lost in thought for a while. Then she spoke up. Thinking of Bai Ling's words just now, she wondered what would happen if she could let go of her previous thoughts and look at things from another perspective.
"Ah! Xiaoling?"
Suddenly, Xiao Xi's voice broke the silence between them. She trotted over and grabbed her arm. Looking at Xi Chu in front of her, there was a hint of dissatisfaction in her eyes.
"You didn't do anything to my Xiaoling again, did you?"
Xi Chu looked at the brainless woman in front of him speechlessly, snorted, and walked away. Seeing that Xi Chu didn't respond to her, her dissatisfaction with him grew even stronger.
"Oh, right! Xiaoling, do you know? It seems that the Sect Master is going to L Country to do something tomorrow. He seems to decide who to take with him based on today's performance in the forest."
"Um..." Mentioning the Sect Master, she felt a bit evasive in her heart and didn't really want to talk about it.
Hearing the footsteps behind her, she looked back slightly. Seeing Nan Min and Han Chu, she felt a bit depressed. She wanted to talk to them but didn't know where to start.
Obviously, the two behind her also saw her. They stopped talking for a moment and walked past her indifferently. Xiao Xi looked at them in confusion and suddenly seemed to remember something.
"Ah! You had a fight with Nan Min, right?"
Xiao Xi's voice was a bit loud. Nan Min in front also paused for a moment and then continued walking. She couldn't help but put her hand on her forehead and looked at the girl in front of her helplessly.
"No, we just had a little disagreement."
"Isn't that still a fight?"
Xiao Xi pouted and looked at her helplessly.