Baihe’s heart jumped with worry — incomprehensible and foreign. She only understood the feeling of worrying over one own self and well-being. When had she ever worried about another? Or perhaps it been so long, that she could no longer recall the feeling of caring for another person other than herself.

The world she came from was dark, ugly, and downright gritty. There was no room for weakness or silly, fluffy emotions like love, care, and compassion. Those shits could get you killed faster than a bullet.

Now, faced with this version of a weak, feeble, and sickly bird, how was she supposed to handle this? Put on a motherly air? Act like a caring sister? Play house and doctor? Or, pretend to be a sweet caring friend?

None of those Baihe knew how to do. She had no parents nor siblings. The only doctors she was familiar with were unauthorized ones who worked in the black market and they sure as hell didn’t impart any medical knowledge on how to treat a mystical phoenix beast.

Not to mention she only knew how to use poison to kill enemies — not medicine to save people. You can also forget about playing house like a good little wife, she was more likely to assassinate her husband in his sleep.

And friends? Baihe’s mind briefly drifted off to a far away place — a pit of human corpses. Her eyes clouded with darkness and a brief hue of sadness flashed by those pupils before vanishing quickly. Friends were weaknesses too, a leverage for enemies to use against you.

A bright flare of fire brought Baihe back to the present. She turned her attention to Qian. The sacred flames on his body were out of control — chaotic and unstable. Blazing brightly one moment, then dimming out the next second.

No, not a friend, Baihe concluded. This was a business transaction. He needed her help in releasing the seals so he could return home one day and she needed his help to aid her cultivation so she could survive in this new world.

Finally drawing the line between the two of them, Baihe was at last able to justify her concern and demanded: “If you don’t want me to cook you while you’re weak, then state clearly the exact medicine and treatment you’ll need and where I can get them in this world.”

Her voice sounded so cold that one wouldn’t be able to detect the hint of concern under the chilly tone unless you have full access to her inner thoughts.

Baihe had already figured out whatever ailments the bird was suffering from must be linked to those weird spikes that warrior snow mermaid placed on the icy barrier surface. She waited for Qian’s reply, but before she could hear anything, the energy in both her legs gave out and all the pent up adrenaline left her body in a rush.

She wobbled a few steps before Baihe completely dropped to a dead faint. Right before she lost consciousness, she felt a strong arm wrapped around her waist as she landed on a hard muscular chest.

♦

No later than a minuter after, Eunuch Gong caught up to the corner Baihe took, but no one was there. Stunned, Eunuch Gong looked around the deserted alley carefully in case the girl was trying to hide. He inspected the narrow pathway and the random baskets on the side, but other than a few scurrying rats and garbage lying around, there was not another shadow in sight.

Unwilling to give up, he continued examining every inch of the area including a small dog hole in the wall. Other than the disgusting smell, even with the girl’s slender frame, she shouldn’t be able to crawl through this hole and escape.

In a foul mood, Eunuch Gong tilted his head and saw the wide thickness of the walls enclosing the alley. He pushed off the ground with his feet and leaped on top of the wall. Surveying the area below him and the wide expanse of the city, he finally realized that she could have escaped from up here.

Frustrated, Eunuch Gong could only begrudgingly report back to Emperor Feng. As long as the girl showed up for the second half of the Feng Martial Tournament, they would have plenty of opportunities in the future to deal with a small Early Dao Stage 2 cultivator.

♦

Everywhere hurts. Her head felt heavy and her body felt like it been through a war. Lost in a dreamlike state, Baihe heard a familiar deep voice sounded next to her ear — so real, she could almost feel his breath on her skin.

Her fingers slightly twitched and warmth filled her senses when another bigger hand enclosed over hers. This time, Baihe’s years of training kicked in and her eyes instantly jerked open. By habit, she reached for her gun, only to be greeted with fabrics and robe.

Confused, she tried to look around but a tall frame was hovering over her, domineering with a majestic aura. Baihe looked up; an extremely outstanding and elegant man filled her vision. Long black hair hung loosely down his broad shoulders. His face was like white jade — flawless and exquisite. Seductive vermilion lips hooked up in a smile as those dark sapphire eyes stared back at her with a tinge of amusement.

It dawned on her that she’d been ogling him this whole time and Baihe immediately collected herself, ignoring the heat creeping up her neck. Her brows wrinkled and she said coolly: “What are you doing here?”

After her mind had settled down, she finally recalled what had transpired and that this was no longer her old world. Baihe only remembered trying to lose Eunuch Gong’s tail before she suddenly fainted. Somehow, she ended up back inside her cave. Her cold eyes landed on the man who still hadn’t moved away, sticking a bit too close to her body.

Fenglong flashed her a languid and contented smile. “Is this the attitude you use to repay your savior?”

At the mention of savior, Baihe suddenly remembered the bird and inwardly checked on his condition. Qian was back inside the guqin, huddled tightly together and was fast asleep. Except, something wasn’t right. She could see his body was drenched in layers of sweat and his complexion was terribly pale.

Returning her attention back to the man who was still patiently staring at her with those alluring sapphire eyes, Baihe asked: “Do you know someone who can treat a divine beast? Is there like a vet or hospital around here?”

Baihe did not notice how strange her vocabulary were, but a light flashed by Fenglong’s dark eyes. His looks became more profound as he analyzed the girl carefully.

“A vet or hospital?” Fenglong repeated.

Baihe nodded her head. “Yes, that was the first time someone lifted a hand to save my life. I can’t let that stupid bird die on me so soon when I still need him.”

Suddenly, the atmosphere turned dark and suffocating. The sudden change nearly made Baihe’s head spin but before she could dwell on it, she found herself pinned beneath a hard body.

“First time someone saved you? The phoenix?” Fenglong growled.

She glared at the unreasonable man who was probably bipolar. Hot one second and cold the next. “Today, out there in that arena was the first time someone saved me. Even if he is a stupid, annoying bird, I can’t let him die yet. What’s your problem?”

Baihe was pissed; her knees lifted upward, ready to deliver a devastating blow, but his next words promptly stopped her.

“Woman, your memory is bad. Do you need Benwang to crack open your skull and check for amnesia? Have you forgotten it was I, who saved you from being sliced apart by those lasers when you dared steal from the imperial treasury vault? Instead of repaying me, you even want to harm Benwang?” Fenglong stated, his voice chilly like the coldest winter.