In a stone chamber of the Ancient Tomb Sect, the atmosphere was tense enough to freeze the air.
Li Mochou spread her arms wide, shielding Lu Zhanyuan behind her like a mother hen protecting her chicks. Her gaze was resolute, showing not the slightest intention of backing down.
Lin Shiying held a long sword, its blade gleaming with a cold light in the dim stone chamber. Pointing it at Li Mochou, she spoke in an icy voice tinged with anger:
"Mochou, move aside and let me kill this scoundrel!"
"No, Master! He is my man. If you want to kill him, you'll have to kill me first!"
Looking at her master, Li Mochou held her head high with an unyielding gaze and shook her head without hesitation.
"Mochou, at first glance this brat is no good!"
Lin Shiying frowned, disgust flashing in her eyes. "All men in this world are fickle and heartless. Mochou, stop being so obsessed and delusional!"
Raising her voice a notch, Lin Shiying made the long sword in her hand tremble slightly as if to display her determination. "If you don't step aside, I will kill you along with him!"
"I won't move! If you want to kill Brother Lu, you have to kill me first!"
Li Mochou's voice grew sharp as well. She leaned her body slightly forward, as though blocking everything for Lu Zhanyuan.
"Fine! Since you want it this way, don't blame your master for showing no mercy!"
Seeing Lin Shiying actually lunge forward with her sword, Lu Zhanyuan did not hesitate to step up and pull Li Mochou into a tight embrace, then quickly spun around to shield her with his own body.
"Thud!"
The sound of the long sword piercing flesh was jarringly harsh in the stone chamber.
Watching the long sword sink into Lu Zhanyuan's back, Lin Shiying lost her focus for a split second, a look of panic flashing across her face. She had originally only intended to scare Li Mochou; she never expected Lu Zhanyuan to rush forward so recklessly.
Seeing this, Li Mochou was frantic with worry. She desperately broke free from Lu Zhanyuan's arms and turned to support his arm. Her eyes widened, tears swirling in her sockets as she cried out in a trembling voice:
"Brother Lu!"
Gazing at the sword embedded in Lu Zhanyuan's back, her tears burst forth like a broken embankment. "Brother Lu, how are you?!"
"Mochou, I... I'm fine!"
Enduring the pain, Lu Zhanyuan squeezed out a smile to comfort Li Mochou. "Mochou, it's just a flesh wound. You don't need to worry!"
Turning to look at the somewhat dazed Lin Shiying, Li Mochou felt a surge of anger and heartache. She said in a deeply wounded tone: "Master, are you finally satisfied now?!"
"Mochou..."
Recovering her senses, Lin Shiying wanted to explain. Her lips parted, but nothing came out.
"Senior Sister, stop blaming Master for a moment! Look at Brother-in-law's injury first! If you don't treat it, he's really going to bleed to death!" Xiao Longnü called out anxiously from the side.
"Right, right! Brother Lu, come, I'll take you to get treated!"
Hurriedly stepping forward to support Lu Zhanyuan, Li Mochou moved with a mixture of tenderness and panic, leading him to a stone bed to tend to his wounds.
Gazing at the injury on Lu Zhanyuan's back, she shed tears of distress and continuously reproached herself in her heart:
"It's all because I wanted to return to the Ancient Tomb Sect that Brother Lu got hurt! If we hadn't come back, none of this would have happened!"
Standing nearby and seeing Li Mochou standing there in a daze, Xiao Longnü hurriedly stepped forward and handed her a porcelain bottle. "Senior Sister, this is healing medicine. Quickly apply it to Brother-in-law."
Though Lu Zhanyuan's wound looked like it had bled a lot, it actually hadn't penetrated very deep and wasn't nearly as serious as it appeared.
First, Lin Shiying hadn't used much force with that sword strike, as she had no intention of harming Li Mochou. Second, thanks to the system's modification, Lu Zhanyuan possessed the Transparent Sacred Body, making his muscle density far superior to that of an ordinary person.
As Li Mochou tended to the wound, she asked anxiously, "Brother Lu, how do you feel? Is it a bit better?"
"Mochou, it's nothing. Just a flesh wound!" Looking at the woman beside him, Lu Zhanyuan forced a relaxed smile to set her mind at ease.
At that moment, Lin Shiying walked in. Seeing that Li Mochou had finished bandaging Lu Zhanyuan's wound, she said to her:
"Mochou, come outside with me for a moment. I want to have a word with you!"
Watching Lin Shiying walk out, Li Mochou chose not to follow, remaining by Lu Zhanyuan's side to keep watch over him.
Looking at her, Lu Zhanyuan thought for a moment and advised, "Mochou, you should go talk to your master first!"
"No, Brother Lu, I'm not going. I'll stay right here and guard you!"
With tears glistening in her eyes and a resolute gaze, Li Mochou stared fixedly at Lu Zhanyuan as he lay on the bed.
"Mochou, it really is just a flesh wound. I'm fine, you don't need to worry!" Lu Zhanyuan continued to comfort her. "Be a good girl, listen to me and go talk with your master. Who knows, maybe she has agreed to officiate our wedding!" He tried to persuade her.
Yet Li Mochou's attitude remained steadfast. "No, I won't go. I don't need her approval anymore!"
Gazing at Lu Zhanyuan, a look of eager anticipation filled her eyes. "Brother Lu, once your injuries heal, let's go down the mountain and get married!"
"Mochou, have you forgotten what I taught you before? A bride must obey her husband!" Lu Zhanyuan teased gently. "I don't want your relationship with your master to sour completely. Go on, go have a chat with her." He urged earnestly.
Seeing that Lu Zhanyuan truly seemed to be in no serious condition, Li Mochou hesitated for a moment before finally nodding.
"Then... then I'll go take a look. But Brother Lu, I'll be right back!"
"Mhm!"
"Go ahead!"
"Junior Sister, you stay here and look after your Brother-in-law. If anything happens, come and tell me!" Li Mochou instructed Xiao Longnü before turning to walk toward the door.
"All right, Senior Sister, you can rest easy!"
Seeing Xiao Longnü patting her chest with a solemn expression, Lu Zhanyuan couldn't help but find it slightly amusing.
"Long'er, I heard your Senior Sister say you like sugar figurines. This is a gift I specially brought for you!"
Retrieving a sugar figurine from his spatial ring, Lu Zhanyuan handed it right in front of Xiao Longnü.
"Wow!"
"A sugar figurine!"
Her eyes shining brightly at the item in Lu Zhanyuan's hand, Xiao Longnü happily reached out and took it. "Thank you, Brother-in-law!"
"Long'er, I have a pinwheel for you, too!" Lu Zhanyuan produced a pinwheel and held it in his hand.
"Wow!"
"Brother-in-law, can you do magic tricks?"
Beaming with delighted surprise, Xiao Longnü watched as the pinwheel suddenly appeared in his hand. "You can even conjure a pinwheel out of thin air!"
"That's right. What else would you like, Long'er? Brother-in-law will conjure it for you next time, how about that?"
"Okay, okay!" Xiao Longnü clapped her little hands happily.
***
In another stone chamber, Lin Shiying looked quietly at Li Mochou as she walked in. "Mochou, I know you harbor resentment toward me in your heart, but those are the rules set down long ago by Founder Granny. There is nothing I can do to change them."
"Master, since Founder Granny could set the rules, why can't you, as the current head of the Ancient Tomb Sect, establish new ones?"
"Mochou, you don't understand—"
"Right... Master, I don't understand... because I have never experienced such things."
"However, I have already heard about the affair between Founder Granny and Wang Chongyang from Brother Lu!"
"Could it be that just because Founder Granny suffered once, all of us in the Ancient Tomb Sect are doomed to grow old and die alone in this tomb?"
"Junior Sister is still so young; is her entire life destined to be spent as a living corpse in this ancient tomb?"
Looking at Lin Shiying with a measure of agitation, Li Mochou raised her voice in a questioning challenge. "You all are just too selfish!"
Hearing Li Mochou's questioning and reproaches, Lin Shiying found herself momentarily at a loss for words.
"Enough... enough..."
"Let's drop the matter of the sect rules for now!"
"Mochou, the man you found has just broken your vow. From today onward, you are free."
"Free?"
Muttering the two words softly to herself, Li Mochou replied, "Master, the truth is, I have always been a free person."
"In the past, this ancient tomb locked away my body, but it never locked away my heart!"
"Now, this ancient tomb can neither lock away my heart nor trap my body any longer."
Watching the untamed and rebellious Li Mochou before her, Lin Shiying inexplicably felt a pang of sorrow.
"Mochou, once your beloved's wounds heal, go down the mountain with him."
"Forgive your master for not being able to officiate your wedding. I wish you happiness in advance!"
With those final words, Lin Shiying cast one last look at Li Mochou and walked out.
"Master, I'm sorry. This disciple has been unfilial!"
With her eye sockets turning slightly red as she watched Lin Shiying's retreating figure, Li Mochou's lips moved softly.