Malicious Intent

Just as Chu Yuan's mind sank into the puppet clone, he heard a series of hurried footsteps.

Yun Qingyao ran over from the other end of the mountain path, panting heavily, her face flushed.

"Senior Brother Yuan..."

She braced herself on her knees, panting heavily.

Chu Yuan leaned against the rock, smiling as he looked at her:

"Junior Sister Yun is back? Why are you in such a hurry?"

Yun Qingyao straightened up and patted her chest:

"It's nothing, it's just... something came up and I was held up."

As she spoke, she suddenly remembered something and blinked:

"Senior Brother Yuan, have you been waiting here all this time?"

Chu Yuan nodded:

"Yes, I said I'd wait for you."

Yun Qingyao was stunned for a moment, her eyes filled with a complicated expression.

This kid... he's actually waiting?

However, this makes it difficult to explain why he was away for so long!

Yun Qingyao thought she would be back soon.

With her cultivation at the Tribulation Transcending stage, even in the Xuan Tian Sect's main camp, unless the Demon Lord intervenes.

Otherwise, no one could keep her here!

But unexpectedly, the black-robed man who captured Li Han and the others had such a powerful formation.

She was actually trapped for several days!

It seems there are truly many hidden talents in this world!

But for now, we still need to find an excuse...

Think about it!

Hey, I've got it!

Yun Qingyao coughed lightly and sat down on a nearby rock:

"Um... I have to tell you, something really bad just happened to me!"

Chu Yuan raised an eyebrow:

"Oh?"

Yun Qingyao leaned closer, lowered her voice, and spoke mysteriously:

"I was just detained by the Demon Lord!"

Chu Yuan almost lost his composure:

"Which demon lord?"

This girl wouldn't be going to...

Yun Qingyao rolled her eyes: "Which other Demon Lord could it be? That one from the Xuantian Sect! The strongest one in the world!"

Chu Yuan nodded, his tone calm:

"Oh, and then?"

Yun Qingyao was taken aback by his reaction.

"What do you mean by 'then what'? Aren't you surprised?"

"Surprised?"

What surprised you?

Chu Yuan pointed to his face:

I was surprised, but it wasn't showing on my face.

Yun Qingyao: "..."

She took a deep breath and decided not to argue with this taciturn man.

"Let me tell you, the Demon Lord is incredibly powerful! He just sat there, didn't say a word, and my legs went weak!"

Chu Yuan forced himself to suppress his laughter.

No, you said to me back then that you would kill me.

Now my legs are weak again.

Yun Qingyao continued:

He glanced at me, and then... and then he let me go.

Chu Yuan raised an eyebrow:

"that's all?"

Yun Qingyao glared:

"What do you mean 'just like that'? That's the Demon Lord! The strongest in the world! For him to even glance at me is such an honor!"

She felt nauseous as soon as she finished speaking.

This is a persona I've created; I can't reveal it!

Chu Yuan nodded:

That makes sense.

Yun Qingyao was driven a little crazy by his attitude.

"Can't you have a normal reaction? Most people would jump up in excitement upon hearing this!"

Chu Yuan thought for a moment:

"I'm rather introverted."

Yun Qingyao: "..."

Chu Yuan looked at her expression and understood perfectly.

He suddenly spoke:

"Junior Sister Yun, what do you think the Demon Lord wants with you?"

Yun Qingyao was taken aback:

"Huh? Didn't I say I'd just take a look?"

Chu Yuan nodded:

"Just one glance?"

"right."

"Didn't you say anything?"

"No... we said a few words."

Chu Yuan raised an eyebrow:

"What did you say?"

Yun Qingyao scratched her head:

"I told you... I told you I'm quite interesting."

Chu Yuan's lips twitched slightly.

He remembered saying, "Your ten disciples seem quite interesting," which was directed at the White Bone Hall group.

Yun Qingyao has dragged herself into this mess.

"Anything else?"

"And... he told me to cultivate diligently."

Yun Qingyao took the blame upon herself as well.

"Is there anything else?"

Yun Qingyao was getting a little annoyed by his questions:

"Why do you have so many questions? Didn't you say you weren't interested in the Demon Lord?"

Chu Yuan remained unfazed:

"I'm not interested, but I'm interested in you."

Yun Qingyao was stunned.

Then her face flushed red.

"What...what did you say?!"

Chu Yuan almost burst out laughing at her reaction.

This girl is a pretty good actress, but she's really thin-skinned.

He waved his hand:

"Just kidding. I'm just curious why someone like the Demon Lord would keep you here alone to talk."

Yun Qingyao finally breathed a sigh of relief and patted her chest:

"You scared me to death! I thought you..."

She paused, then coughed lightly:

"Actually, I don't know why. Maybe they think I have good bone structure?"

Chu Yuan nodded:

"Possibly."

Yun Qingyao glared:

"What do you mean by that? My natural talent is indeed excellent!"

Chu Yuan looked at her, his tone serious:

"Yes, it's really good."

Yun Qingyao felt a little embarrassed after being praised by him.

She turned her face away and muttered to herself:

"Why do you keep changing your tune..."

Chu Yuan didn't reply, but leaned against the rock and looked at the moon in the sky.

Yun Qingyao glanced at him secretly, then suddenly asked:

"Senior Brother Yuan, what kind of person do you think the Demon Lord is?"

Chu Yuan spoke without hesitation:

"He's a really nice person. And incredibly handsome!"

Yun Qingyao was stunned:

"A good person? A demon lord?"

Chu Yuan nodded:

"Yeah, didn't you say he was amazing too?"

Yun Qingyao scratched her head:

I said impressive, not good.

Chu Yuan looked at her:

"Which do you think is more important, being capable or being good?"

Yun Qingyao was stumped by his question.

After thinking for a long time, she finally managed to utter a sentence:

"They're all...they're all pretty important, aren't they?"

Chu Yuan smiled:

"So, which type do you think the Demon Lord is?"

Yun Qingyao scratched her head:

"I don't know either. He just glanced at me and said a few words. How would I know what kind of person he is?"

Chu Yuan nodded:

"Then take your time and watch it."

Yun Qingyao was a little confused by his attitude.

She always felt that this senior brother Yuan spoke strangely, but she couldn't quite put her finger on why.

The two of them sat there, neither of them speaking.

After a while, Yun Qingyao suddenly spoke:

"Senior Brother Yuan, you just said you were interested in me, is that true or not?"

This is the first time in all these years that a man has said such a thing to her...

Chu Yuan turned to look at her.

Yun Qingyao felt a little uncomfortable under his gaze and turned her face away.

"I was just asking casually. If you don't want to answer, that's fine too."

Chu Yuan smiled:

"real."

Yun Qingyao blushed again.

She coughed lightly and stood up:

"Um... it's getting late, let's hurry up and go."

Chu Yuan nodded and stood up as well.

The two walked back side by side.

As she walked, Yun Qingyao suddenly stopped.

Chu Yuan turned to look at her:

"What's wrong?"

Yun Qingyao hesitated for a moment, then asked in a low voice:

"Senior Brother Yuan, do you think the Demon Lord will come looking for me again?"

Chu Yuan raised an eyebrow:

"You want him to come looking for you?"

Yun Qingyao quickly waved her hand:

"No, no! I just... I was just asking casually."

Chu Yuan smiled:

"Don't worry, he'll come looking for you."

Yun Qingyao was taken aback:

How did you know?

Chu Yuan looked at her, his tone serious:

"Because he said you're quite interesting."

Yun Qingyao was stunned for several seconds.

Then she suddenly realized:

"How do you know he said I'm quite interesting? Did I just tell you?"

Chu Yuan nodded:

"Yes, that's what you just said."

Yun Qingyao scratched her head:

Did I say that?

Chu Yuan remained unfazed:

"I said so."

Yun Qingyao thought for a long time but couldn't remember.

But she didn't think much of it and continued walking.

Chu Yuan followed behind, a wide smile playing on his lips.

This girl is really cute.

Although this girl seems to be quite good at acting.

But deep down, she's still just like a little girl.

Could it be a disciple found by the Daoist Master?

But why is his cultivation level so high...?

A girl like that might actually fall for him...

Inside the Yuanji Palace, Chu Yuan leaned back in his chair, his smile utterly malicious.

Youyue peeked out from the shadows, looking puzzled.

"The cult leader?"

Chu Yuan waved his hand:

"It's okay, you go about your business."

Youyue shrank back into the shadows, even more puzzled.

What's wrong with the cult leader?

Why are you laughing like that?

P.S.: Thank you Yu Dao Hua Sheng for the donation, thank you fellow Daoist!

Thank you all for your recommendation votes and monthly tickets!

If you have any character suggestions for what you'd like to see, please comment. If possible, I'll incorporate them into the story.