195: Chapter 195 What do you want to do!

Ling Xiaotang sat kneeling by her side, her hands nervously twisting the hem of her clothes. She stole glances at Nangong Zili's expression and then at Ye Changge as he walked toward them, her small face filled with apprehension.

Ye Changge walked up to them, but before he could speak—

Nangong Zili's tightly closed eyes suddenly snapped open.

Those peach blossom eyes were as charming and moving as ever, but now they held an undisguised resentment as they fell coldly upon Ye Changge.

She sized him up, her red lips parting slightly. Though her voice was weak, every word was clear, as if tempered with ice shards:

“What do you want to do!”

Ye Changge's footsteps paused.

This tone, this attitude...

He smiled bitterly in his heart, though he wasn't surprised.

The "treatment" from earlier, while meant to save her life, was indeed... not very decent. For a proud Core Formation True Person like Nangong Zili, it would be strange if she weren't furious.

Especially—

Ye Changge's gaze subconsciously swept toward her lower body before quickly shifting away.

While she was meditating just now, Nangong Zili was clearly still enduring considerable pain.

The slight furrow of her brow, the small habit of biting her lower lip, and even her occasionally erratic breathing while regulating her Qi... all indicated she was not feeling well at the moment.

In fact, Nangong Zili was indeed full of resentment right now.

Every time she circulated her spiritual power during meditation, a burning pain would radiate from her lower body,

as if she had been ruthlessly crushed by something. Though the pain wasn't unbearable, it was like a maggot in her bones, impossible to shake off.

Not to mention that lingering sense of soreness and swelling throughout her entire body.

Her waist was sore, her legs were weak, and her arms lacked strength; even lifting a finger felt like a struggle.

It was as if her entire being had been taken apart and put back together, with every inch of flesh and bone screaming in exhaustion.

Nangong Zili had lived for many years, but she had never been in such a pathetic state.

While regulating her Qi, she had cursed Ye Changge countless times in her heart—

This bastard, this god-damned bastard!

Treating an illness is one thing, but was there any need for such tossing and turning?

She was a Core Formation Cultivator, after all. She had seen how the sisters in her sect looked after Dual Cultivation, but which one of them was... was tossed around to the point of death like this?

If this "treatment" continued daily, her life might be saved, but her physical frame would fall apart first!

Seeing Ye Changge walk over now, the anger in her heart flared up even more. Though her stunning face remained expressionless, the resentment in her peach blossom eyes was almost tangible.

“Revered Master!”

Seeing things were taking a bad turn, Ling Xiaotang quickly reached out to hold Nangong Zili's arm, saying softly, “Revered Master, don't be angry... Senior is here to help us...”

Nangong Zili gave a cold snort but did not push Ling Xiaotang's hand away.

She naturally knew her current situation.

Weak, heavily injured, hunted by the Righteous Path, with nowhere to go... without the bastard in front of her, she and her disciple would likely have died in the wilderness long ago.

But knowing it was one thing; the resentment in her heart wasn't something that could be dispelled just like that.

Looking at Nangong Zili's defiant posture—clearly weak to the point of death yet insisting on being stubborn—Ye Changge felt a sudden, inexplicable impulse—

He wanted to pin her down again and see more expressions on that cold and elegant face.

The thought flashed by, and Ye Changge immediately suppressed it, silently cursing himself.

He took a deep breath and spoke to her.

“I promised Xiao Tang I would help heal your injuries.”

Nangong Zili narrowed her beautiful eyes, looking at him coldly without speaking.

Meeting her gaze, Ye Changge continued: “But—”

He paused, his tone becoming serious:

“To prevent the Immortal Master from attacking me once her injuries are healed, I must ask you to swear a Heart Demon Oath.”

“A Heart Demon Oath?”

Nangong Zili was stunned for a moment before she let out a cold laugh, as if she had heard the world's biggest joke:

“You bastard, who asked you to heal me!”

She spoke these words quickly and sharply, aggravating her internal injuries,

causing her to cough twice as an unnatural flush appeared on her pale face.

But she still forced herself to glare at Ye Changge, the resentment in her eyes almost overflowing.

Who asked him to save her?

Who cared about being saved by him?

If it weren't for this bastard using that method...

Nangong Zili grit her teeth, feeling a nameless fire rush to her head.

She was a dignified Core Formation True Person, the Spider Gu Envoy of the Five Gu Sect. When had she ever suffered such humiliation?

Not only had her body been defiled by a Foundation Establishment Stage junior, but now she was being forced by him to swear a Heart Demon Oath?

This was simply... simply going too far!

“Revered Master!”

Seeing the two of them about to argue again after only a few words, Ling Xiaotang's eyes turned red with anxiety. She hugged Nangong Zili's arm tightly, her voice sobbing:

“Revered Master, please don't be angry... Senior really has no ill intentions...”

As she spoke, tears fell again, drop by drop, onto Nangong Zili's sleeve.

Looking at her disciple's pitiful appearance, most of the anger in Nangong Zili's heart instantly vanished.

This child... she had been kind-hearted since she was little and couldn't bear to see others suffer.

Seeing her in trouble, she must have been so worried that she sought help from this bastard.

She took a deep breath and slowly exhaled, trying to calm herself down.

Their current situation was indeed not good.

Her injuries were unhealed, less than ten percent of her spiritual power remained, and she was being hunted across the world by the Qishui Sword Sect.

If she didn't have this bastard's help with healing, given her current state, let alone recovering, it was questionable whether she could even make it out of this region alive.

Moreover...

Nangong Zili's gaze fell on Ling Xiaotang's tear-stained face, and her heart softened.

This child and that bastard were Dao Companions.

If she truly fought to the death with him, wouldn't her silly disciple be the one to suffer most in the end?

Fine.

Nangong Zili sighed in her heart.

She glared at Ye Changge. That look still carried resentment, but it was much softer than before.

“Hmph.”

She snorted coldly, exhaling two breaths of cold air as her face remained frosty, as if trying to expel the frustration in her heart.

Then, she closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and began to swear:

“I, Nangong Zili, swear by my Heart Demon—”

Though her voice was weak, every word was clear, echoing within the Immortal Cave:

“From this day forward, I shall not take action to harm Ye Changge or his kin. If I violate this oath, may the Heart Demon devour my soul, my cultivation stagnate forever, and may I die a miserable death.”

As her voice fell, a faint spiritual light flashed at the center of her brow before sinking into her body.

That was the sign of the Heart Demon Oath being established. From now on, if she broke her word, the Heart Demon would immediately lash back, and the consequences would be unimaginable.

Seeing this, Ye Changge felt a slight sense of relief.

The Heart Demon Oath carried immense binding power in the Cultivation World, especially for Cultivators at or above Core Formation; the Heart Demon was the greatest obstacle when breaking through a Bottleneck.

If the oath was violated, under the backlash of the Heart Demon, one's cultivation would stagnate at best, or result in Qi Deviation at worst.