The cat demon defies the heavens and is the emperor’s only beloved disciple!

Outside the Alchemy Pavilion.

Jin Xi was pushed by Luo Ge's energy and staggered all the way until she left the courtyard before she could finally regain her balance.

After he stopped, he turned back to look at the tightly closed door, and the cynical smile on his face had long since disappeared.

Instead, there was a deep sense of regret and worry...

"Excessive!"

He muttered a curse under his breath and slammed his fist against the wall next to him.

He punched a shallow crater into the hard stone wall, sending fragments of rock flying.

"Young Master Jinxi?"

Qingyan, who was standing not far away, quickly ran over.

"Are you...are you okay?"

Jin Xi ignored him and just stared intently at the door.

Was he in too much of a hurry just now?

He just wanted to test her, to see what kind of emotions were hidden beneath her aloof and proud mask.

He just wanted to confirm whether she was truly as devoted to her uncle Yun Che as she appeared.

He just...

Jin Xi closed her eyes.

He knew what kind of image he had in her heart!

A scoundrel, a disrespectful disciple who doesn't understand the importance of respecting his teacher and is an insubordinate and rebellious person.

But he didn't expect her to be so angry!

The way she looked at him was as if she were looking at the most unfamiliar, most disgusting monster.

That look in his eyes hurt him even more than the force of Luo Ge's palm strike.

"Young Master Jinxi, shall we... shall we still go in?"

Qingyan asked cautiously.

"Go in?"

Jin Xi gave a self-deprecating laugh.

"Ha! Didn't you hear? Sect Master Frost Moon has issued a decree that from now on, I am forbidden from stepping into the Alchemy Pavilion."

"Then... then, Young Master Jinxi, where do you want to go?"

Jin Xi turned around, strode forward, and her voice returned to its usual languid and nonchalant tone:

"Where else can we go? Of course, we'll go back to feed my starving magical beast, Lingyao."

"Ah? Oh! Okay! Okay!"

Qingyan quickly followed.

Jin Xi turned around with a puzzled look in her eyes and said sternly:

"You are the sect leader's personal maid, not mine. Don't follow me!"

Qingyan lowered her head, a sinister smile appearing on her face, and said softly:

"The sect leader doesn't allow servants to attend to her personally, and she's extremely cold towards Qingyan!"

As she spoke, she suddenly looked up at Jin Xi and smiled slightly:

"If Young Master Jinxi doesn't mind, this servant can bathe you tonight!"

Jin Xi's eyes sharpened instantly. With a flick of her sleeve, she shouted:

"Shameless!"

Whoosh!

Jinxi leaped up!

The figure darted swiftly across the rooftop of the courtyard, stirring up gusts of breeze.

He didn't stop, nor did he even glance back at the alchemy pavilion whose lights were gradually dimming.

Only when he was far out of Frostmoon's perception range did he suddenly turn and land silently on the edge of a secluded cliff like a night owl.

Below the cliff lies a bottomless valley, where the night wind howls upwards, carrying a biting chill and the pungent smell of vegetation.

Jin Xi leaned against a cold boulder, feeling as if all her strength had been drained away. Her body slid slowly down the rock wall and finally sat on the cold ground.

He didn't move immediately; he just lowered his head, breathing heavily, his chest heaving.

Just now in the alchemy pavilion, he seemed unrestrained and frivolous, but in reality, he was walking on thin ice with every step he took.

He forcefully broke through the restrictions, withstood the aftershocks of the alchemy furnace's backlash, and then crushed the "Heart-Clearing Dew" that had already undergone mutation with brute force!

This series of actions may seem simple, but for him, it exhausted all his spiritual energy and mental strength.

More importantly, the moment he crushed it, he subtly attached a wisp of his divine consciousness to the flying powder.

Perform a purification ritual!

It's a big gamble.

He won the gamble; he saved Shuangyue and successfully left an indelible mark on her heart!

If he loses the bet, he might be immediately corrupted by the rampaging poison, or his cultivation might be destroyed by Frost Moon in her rage.

"Cough...cough..."

Suppressed coughs echoed from the silent cliffside.

Jin Xi raised her hand and looked at her palm in the cool moonlight.

That once fair and slender hand was now charred black on the palm, with the skin and flesh rolled back, and you could even smell a faint burnt smell.

That was from being burned by the evil power contained within the "Heart-Cleansing Dew" when it was crushed.

He seemed completely unconcerned about the injury, casually wiping it away with his other hand, removing the blood and charred flesh to reveal the newly formed, equally bloodless skin beneath.

Slowly open your palm, your five fingers slightly curled.

A faint, almost invisible wisp of purple energy, like a tiny venomous snake, flickered between his fingers.

"really……"

Jin Xi's eyes, which should have been crimson in the night, now shone with an eerie golden hue.

He stared at the wisp of purple energy, his eyes unsettlingly deep.

"It's not a failure in refining..."

"Someone tampered with the medicinal herbs."

The strange power that erupted when the "Clear Heart Dew" was completed was not due to a problem with Shuangyue's alchemy technique, but rather due to one of the main ingredients.

The medicinal properties of the "Nine-Leaf Ice Heart Grass" were subtly altered using an extremely clever method.

This change is extremely subtle, almost fooling the senses of any alchemy master, including Shuangyue.

Only when the elixir is fully formed and its medicinal power is condensed to its extreme will the altered medicinal properties explode like a lit fuse, transforming into a deadly poison capable of eroding one's consciousness.

If he didn't possess those golden eyes that could "see through illusions".

If he hadn't seen similar records in ancient books...

……

He was just testing the waters, using the most direct and brutal methods.

He wanted her to remember him, Jin Xi, as the only person who could save her from danger.

Who tampered with the pills that Shuangyue personally refined for Liu Xiaohan?

Is it aimed at Shuangyue? Or... at Liu Xiaohan?

Or perhaps, killing two birds with one stone?

Jin Xi exerted a slight force with her fingertips, and the wisp of purple energy emitted a faint lament before being instantly crushed into tiny specks of light, which dissipated in the night wind.

He leaned against the cold stone wall and slowly closed his eyes.

The eerie golden eyes disappeared, and the usual slightly cynical crimson gaze returned.

The night wind howled, ruffling his disheveled hair, but it couldn't dispel the thick, impenetrable chill emanating from him.

He did not return to his residence.

He sat quietly on the edge of the cliff.

He is waiting.

Waiting for Shimotsuki's reaction.

Once she figured out the problem with that pill...

She soon realized that the sect she trusted might already be harboring hidden undercurrents.

He could imagine the expression on Shimotsuki's face at that moment.

Was it shock, lingering fear, or a mixture of shame and indignation at his shameless words and actions?

The sect leader, who was once aloof and cold as the moon, was no longer the one who planned and controlled everything.

She would feel confused, bewildered, and develop an unprecedented curiosity and apprehension towards Jin Xi.

This is enough.

This is exactly the effect he wanted.

He wanted her to know that in this world, only he, Jin Xi, could see dangers she couldn't see and could save her from unseen dangers.

As for her kicking him out and calling him shameless?

A self-deprecating smile appeared on Jin Xi's lips.

He doesn't care.

As long as the goal is achieved, shamelessness is acceptable.

He was never a good person.

He slowly raised his injured hand, looking at the wound on his palm that was healing at a visible speed, his eyes icy cold.

"Frost Moon..."

"This show has only just begun."

"Just watch how I stir your heart and soul."

"Only then will you understand whether my shamelessness today is to save you or... harm you."

In the distance, the lights in the Alchemy Pavilion had been completely extinguished.

He knew that from the moment he crushed that pill, things had already changed.

Frostmoon will no longer ignore him as easily as before.

The night is getting darker.

He didn't move, but quietly felt the night breeze and the slight itch as the wound on his palm healed.

The itch felt like some kind of dormant wild beast was awakening.

He tilted his head slightly back and looked at the full moon in the night sky.

The moonlight was cool and clear, like the eyes of a frosty moon.

A meaningful smile slowly curved Jin Xi's lips.