“Don’t worry, child. They call me a lust fiend, but I do not enjoy lust. Moreover, I especially do not enjoy the company of men.”

The Lacquer-Faced Yama said so and smiled with satisfaction.

In his large, cauldron-lid-like hand, Cheon Mubaeck was held captive, dangling.

Cheon Mubaeck’s build was not large, and his lines were rather elegant.

Even so, his muscles were densely and well-knit, so he weighed quite a bit. It was not an easy task to hold him with one hand and perform a lightness art.

The Lacquer-Faced Yama had rushed in at once, pressed Cheon Mubaeck’s acupoints, and succeeded in abducting him.

Even in the midst of that, none of the tracking party had noticed, which was a glimpse of why the Lacquer-Faced Yama had never been caught by a tracking party until now.

“A Heavenly Divine Body. Truly a good body. Hehe. Just wait a little. I will soon prepare the grand ritual.”

A light of greed appeared in the Lacquer-Faced Yama’s eyes as he looked down at Cheon Mubaeck.

It was an intense desire.

It was also full of a terrible determination to obtain what he coveted. No matter how he looked at it, it was a Heavenly Divine Body. The internal energy that was not felt on the outside at all. But the strangely felt immortal energy. Wasn’t it similar to the energy of nature that filled the Sword King Valley?

It was definitely a Heavenly Divine Body.

The Lacquer-Faced Yama, swept up in that excitement, did not see.

He did not realize that Cheon Mubaeck was surprisingly calm.

His deeply sunken gaze did not leave the Lacquer-Faced Yama’s face.

How much time had passed?

The Lacquer-Faced Yama, who had been moving like crazy between the canyons, went down to the very bottom of the increasingly narrow canyon. The further down he went, the narrower it became. And in the end, only a very small hole was visible. It was a hole that seemed just big enough for one person to pass through.

The Lacquer-Faced Yama let out a laugh and said to Cheon Mubaeck.

“Go and wait a little. There’s a pretty-faced girl there, so you won’t be too lonely.”

The Iron-Faced Asura threw Cheon Mubaeck into that hole.

* * *

Thud!

Zhuge Seola, in this place where the only exit was a hole in the ceiling, had long since felt a presence from outside.

But when something suddenly fell from above, she opened her eyes in surprise.

She thought it was the Lacquer-Faced Yama, but a young man had fallen down.

By the time the Lacquer-Faced Yama’s laughter from above grew distant.

The young man lay on the floor for a moment, then got up as if it were no big deal and brushed the dust off his body.

Then he looked around and saw Zhuge Seola, who was staying in one corner.

When their gazes briefly intertwined in the air, Cheon Mubaeck suddenly asked.

“Are you the daughter of the Zhuge Clan?”

“Ye-yes!”

Zhuge Seola’s eyes widened.

“Phew, I finally found you. I couldn’t find you because you were in a place like this.”

The young man let out a slight sigh and muttered so. Zhuge Seola felt something welling up inside her without realizing it.

Although she tried to act composed, had she ever been abducted and left in such a cold place before? And by someone called by the terrible derogatory name of Inhuman Lust Fiend.

She was always worried about being subjected to terrible things, and she was anxious, not knowing when she would die.

In that situation, seeing someone who had come to save her, she felt like she was about to burst into tears.

But she didn’t cry. How unsightly would it be to cry here?

Although they say a woman is beautiful when she cries, Zhuge Seola did not think so.

If she cried now, unable to wash properly while trapped here, it would be like dirty water flowing.

Zhuge Seola held it in and said with a happy face.

“Who are you?”

“Uh, I am called by the moniker Heavenly Dragon Sword Hero.”

Heavenly Dragon Sword Hero!

Zhuge Seola had also heard of his fame. Who didn’t know that moniker that had been shaking the martial world recently?

Hadn’t Zhuge Seola also been quite moved by the Heavenly Dragon Sword Hero’s journey through the martial world? Although she tried not to show it, she had even cheered for his actions inwardly.

And that man had come to save her!

Even his appearance was just as the rumors said. Zhuge Seola shouted with a happy face without realizing it.

“As expected, you are the Heavenly Dragon Sword Hero! You came all this way to save me!”

But the following answer was shocking.

“No, I was captured too.”

“…”

“Geez, my body is stiff from dangling like that.”

Watching Cheon Mubaeck stretching and speaking nonchalantly, Zhuge Seola couldn’t speak for a long time.

After barely piecing together Cheon Mubaeck’s words in her head, she barely asked.

“You… were captured too?”

“That’s right. I was tracking with your brother’s help, but that old man abducted me while I was sleeping.”

“…Ha.”

Zhuge Seola felt something go completely limp.

Various emotions swirled. The heated emotions cooled down completely.

And at the same time, a sense of foreboding passed through her.

Even the great Heavenly Dragon Sword Hero was captured? Was the Inhuman Lust Fiend such a master?

Then can my brother save me?

He will be able to save me.

My father and grandfather are probably moving personally by now.

But what if the Inhuman Lust Fiend does something before that?

At that terrible thought, Zhuge Seola’s head spun.

She frowned. She looked at Cheon Mubaeck, who was looking around as if searching for something, not paying any attention to Zhuge Seola who had been captured.

His skin was cleaner and whiter than hers, and his lines were elegant. For Zhuge Seola, who had imagined a huge man with bulging muscles, it was an unexpected appearance.

Wasn’t he a handsome young man?

Perhaps because his hair was braided long, his lines were so elegant that he looked like a woman from a distance.

Come to think of it.

“Why did he abduct you?”

Zhuge Seola was curious about that. Hadn’t the Inhuman Lust Fiend only abducted women until now?

Wasn’t that why he was given the derogatory name of lust fiend?

But why a man all of a sudden?

As various thoughts flashed through her mind, a sneer escaped Zhuge Seola’s lips without her realizing it.

“Ha! The reason he didn’t touch me was because he was a pederast?”

“What are you talking about?”

“The Inhuman Lust Fiend. He abducted me but hasn’t laid a hand on me until now.”

“How does that lead to the conclusion that he’s a pederast?”

“He realized his sexual preference! How could he leave a woman like me alone like a Buddha, and then suddenly capture a man?”

“…”

Cheon Mubaeck stared at Zhuge Seola in silence.

Her tone was so natural that it felt obvious.

It meant she was that confident in her own beauty.

But Cheon Mubaeck…

“Your face is covered in grime right now, and your hair is greasy, so I can’t empathize with you if you say that.”

Whoosh!

In an instant, Zhuge Seola’s face turned red.

“Wha-what! You don’t have to say it so bluntly, do you?”

“I just stated the facts.”

“Ha! It’s because I couldn’t wash properly. Don’t you know the number one beauty of Hubei?”

“Should I know?”

“No, how can you not know…”

“I’m from Henan, so I don’t know.”

“…”

Zhuge Seola was at a loss for words.

She felt like she was being drawn into something. It felt like talking to a brick wall.

She finally expressed her feelings by turning her head away. Of course, there was no way Cheon Mubaeck would just nod his head at that.

Cheon Mubaeck kept looking around as if searching for something.

Zhuge Seola wanted to ignore Cheon Mubaeck, but how could she?

He was the first person she had met in days, and he was a member of the tracking party that was trying to save her. Moreover, wasn’t he the most famous Heavenly Dragon Sword Hero recently?

She narrowed her fine brows in rising curiosity.

“What are you doing? What are you looking for? Are you looking for an exit? The only exit is that hole up there.”

“…”

“It’s twenty feet high. Even a decent master can’t climb the cliff and get out through that hole. Let alone you or me, who have our internal energy restricted like now… wait a minute.”

Zhuge Seola suddenly felt something strange.

“Why… are you moving freely?”

That was right.

The Lacquer-Faced Yama had a meticulous and cautious personality. It was clear from the way he thoroughly erased all traces so as not to be tracked.

Even though he knew that Zhuge Seola’s internal energy was not strong enough to escape through that hole, he had pressed her acupoints to make her unable to move at all. Not only that. He had also placed a restriction on her internal energy.

But hadn’t Cheon Mubaeck been moving so naturally from the moment he first came?

Cheon Mubaeck shrugged his shoulders and answered the question.

“That’s because I got captured on purpose.”

“What? What do you mean?”

Smart people, when they ask a question, think of the expected answers in advance.

But when an answer that is outside the expected range comes out, they are flustered for a moment.

It was like that now.

“You got captured on purpose?”

“Well, I was at a loss because there was no way to track him anymore. After entering the Sword King Valley, there were no traces at all. I guess it’s because he flew through the canyons with a lightness art… Well, anyway, what could I do? I had no choice but to get captured myself.”

“…!”

Zhuge Seola’s pupils trembled violently.

She understood what Cheon Mubaeck meant.

He got captured on purpose. To find this place.

That meant he had deceived the Lacquer-Faced Yama.

“Did you release your acupoints?”

“That’s easy. I just have to circulate my internal energy properly.”

Zhuge Seola’s expression contorted strangely.

That’s easy?

What about me, who hasn’t been able to move an inch for four days?

Without paying any attention to that question, Cheon Mubaeck kept moving.

Then he suddenly stopped his gaze on Zhuge Seola, who was staring blankly.

Zhuge Seola was flustered by the gaze that was staring at her.

“Wh-why?”

“Did that old man do anything to you?”

“Th-that’s what I’m saying. He just pressed my acupoints like this and left me alone.”

“Really nothing?”

“Wh-why are you like that? Don’t just say strange things like that, and release my acupoints.”

Cheon Mubaeck strode over and plopped down in front of Zhuge Seola. Then he reached out and grabbed Zhuge Seola’s wrist.

“Excuse me for a moment.”

“…!”

Zhuge Seola lowered her head without realizing it.

Had a man from outside her family ever grabbed her hand in her entire life?

Hadn’t she only left the clan a few times because of her grandfather’s terrible love?

She was flustered and wanted to snap at him, but her mouth wouldn’t open at Cheon Mubaeck’s intense yet indifferent gaze. After stammering, she felt that it was quite ridiculous, so Zhuge Seola shut her mouth and stayed still.

Cheon Mubaeck, without caring about her reaction, took Zhuge Seola’s pulse.

“Hmm, Miss Zhuge.”

“Yes?”

“Did you eat anything?”

“…Uh, no.”

“No wonder your energy is weak. You didn’t eat anything at all?”

“Uh, the old man gave me a strange pill, so I swallowed one every day.”

At that, Cheon Mubaeck’s expression brightened for a moment. It was a clean smile that made it seem as if this dark space was brightening. Zhuge Seola also stared blankly for a moment.

“So that’s what it was. It was to turn a person into an ice crystal. Ha. No wonder I couldn’t find you!”

Muttering incomprehensible words, Cheon Mubaeck nodded.

Then he said to Zhuge Seola. It was a very serious voice.

“If you stay like this, you will die.”

“What? What do you mean? How can you say that after cutting out all the context?”

At that, Cheon Mubaeck blinked his large eyes. Zhuge Seola quickly turned her head and avoided his gaze without realizing it. For some reason, she didn’t have the confidence to keep looking.

“Either you freeze to death, or you burn to death completely. It’s one of the two.”

“No, that’s not what I meant by context…”

Zhuge Seola felt like she wanted to scream. How could someone talk about someone dying so easily?

“Well, don’t worry. I told your brother I’d send you back alive.”

It was a calm tone, but it was a voice that gave a strange sense of conviction.

After saying that, Cheon Mubaeck immediately reached out his hand.

In an instant, internal energy swirled around him. Zhuge Seola’s eyes widened. He had even released the restriction on his internal energy.

But it was then.

The presence of the Lacquer-Faced Yama was felt from afar.

Cheon Mubaeck clicked his tongue.

“Let’s just watch the situation for now.”

After saying that, Cheon Mubaeck went to the spot where he had fallen and collapsed as he was.

Just like the posture he had when he fell from above.

“…”

Zhuge Seola stared at him in silence.

‘What on earth.’

Confusion appeared in her eyes.

She wondered what on earth he was doing, but soon the Lacquer-Faced Yama fell from the air.

(End of Chapter)

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep