Mo Chuan felt the warmth in his embrace and subconsciously wrapped his arms around the delicate person in his arms.
Through the soft, thin clothes, Mo Chuan felt Mo Fei's breathing and heartbeat. Yet, with a thousand words in his heart, only one escaped his lips: "Fei'er, you've gotten thin."
"Mm, I want to eat the food you cook, brother."
But the woman clearly showed no signs of being moved by this scene. She angrily summoned her long sword and pointed it at Mo Chuan, saying, "What are you? How dare you barge in here and act ambiguously with this demon? State your identity immediately, or I will act on behalf of heaven!"
Silence.
The scene instantly fell into absolute quiet.
Mo Chuan looked at the woman with a gaze like he was watching a fool, wondering why she was at his sister's residence and now threatening him with a small, broken sword.
But as the woman uttered the latter half of her sentence, Mo Chuan's gaze gradually turned cold. He could clearly feel Mo Fei burying herself deeper into his embrace upon hearing the word "demon."
Meng Le looked at the woman blankly. After hearing her speak, he couldn't help but interject, "Junior Sister Qi, why are you..."
Qi Ling's attention had been entirely on Mo Chuan and Mo Fei. So, when she heard Meng Le's voice, her body trembled, and then she saw Meng Le beside Mo Chuan.
"Senior Brother Meng..." Qi Ling's sword dropped like a deflated balloon, as if she had lost something.
Seeing the woman exhibit so many emotional shifts within a short span, Mo Chuan shook his head, directly blocking Mo Fei behind him, and asked, "Fei'er, why were these people looking for you?"
Meng Le also seemed to have noticed something, his gaze shifting between Qi Ling, the female disciple, and Wang Xiao. His once gentle eyes grew colder.
Mo Fei spoke coldly, "They came to cause trouble for me. Mere buffoons."
Upon hearing this, Qi Ling's beautiful face contorted. She raised her long sword again, shouting at Mo Fei, "Demon! Do you think you can be safe by bringing this village bumpkin here! You've made Senior Brother Meng Le dislike me today, I'll have you—"
*Slap.*
A crisp sound echoed in the backyard.
Qi Ling covered her left cheek with a bewildered expression, seemingly not having recovered. After a few seconds of silence, she let out a scream and roared at Mo Chuan in a voice that was almost breaking, "You! How dare you hit my face! Even my grandfather has never hit me! I! I will kill you—"
*Slap.*
Mo Chuan shook his head, retracted his chain (iron "Seven Wolves"), and said coldly, "Calling me a demon this and a demon that, didn't your elders teach you how to speak properly?"
Qi Ling clearly still intended to listen to nothing. She grabbed the female disciple beside her with one hand and pointed at Mo Chuan with the other, saying, "Senior Sister Pang! I want him dead!"
This Senior Sister Pang clearly saw that Mo Chuan was likely not weak. So, she put away her long sword and then said to Mo Chuan, "Sir, I think you can calm down first..."
But before Senior Sister Pang could finish speaking, a powerful voice declared, "Little friend Mo Chuan, tomorrow morning at nine o'clock, Tea Pig will take you to the Forbidden City of Zhu."
Qi Ling, as if grasping at a life-saving straw, shouted, "Master! These two are in cahoots! Please deliver justice for your disciple!"
The speaker clearly paused, and then appeared in the backyard. It was none other than Yi Tianxing.
Senior Sister Pang looked at Qi Ling speechlessly, thinking to herself how this little girl had no perceptiveness. This man was clearly acquainted with the Sect Master, yet you are here crying injustice. Given the Sect Master's upright and impartial nature, he would surely let you two confront each other. But our tool for the job (the formation) hasn't been destroyed yet, and you're rushing to self-destruct?
But Qi Ling clearly couldn't care anymore. She directly pointed her long sword at the Mo siblings, calling Mo Chuan a demon and Mo Fei an accomplice, completely failing to notice the expressions on Yi Tianxing and Mo Chuan's faces.
In the end, Yi Tianxing likely guessed what was happening. He surveyed the surroundings, and then, as if seeing something, his expression darkened further. Finally, he interrupted Qi Ling, saying, "Qi Ling, Pang Ai, you two take Wang Xiao and Du Juan with me; Meng Le, continue to guard the sect." He then turned to the Mo siblings and said, "The nearest empty rooms in the sect are too far from here, and not suitable for Mo Fei's cultivation. This gate cannot be repaired temporarily either, so you two will have to make do for the night."
With that, without giving Qi Ling a chance to say more, he waved his hand and, taking the four people with him, vanished in a sword light.
Seeing Yi Tianxing fly away, Meng Le said with a cunning smile, "Junior Sister Mo, you two rest, I won't disturb you. I'm leaving." He then took out a small wine flask from his embrace, drinking with relish as he walked away.
Mo Chuan sighed helplessly, beckoning Mo Fei to get some ingredients, while he slowly cleaned up the broken stones and wood chips in the backyard.
...
"Hehehe~ Ah ha ha ha—Chicken soup is served!" Mo Chuan placed a small pot of chicken soup on the table and said to Mo Fei, "Alas, all the dishes are here, why aren't you eating yet?"
Mo Fei smiled slightly and immediately picked up her rice bowl, eating ravenously, but she refused to touch the chicken soup.
Mo Chuan thought Mo Fei was too focused on eating, so he ladled a bowl of chicken soup and offered it to her, "Shy shy, this chicken soup has been stewing all afternoon. Hurry and drink it while it's hot."
Mo Fei immediately broke out in a cold sweat. Because half an hour ago, while Mo Chuan wasn't paying attention, she had added the "Sleeping Beauty Tea" that the senior sisters in the sect had praised. This stuff works fast, its effects are short-lived, and it doesn't interfere with the next day's affairs.
"I... Mmmph... I'll eat first. Brother, you don't know, the food here is so bland it's driving birds away. I've missed your cooking so much."
Mo Chuan nodded upon hearing this. He placed the chicken soup in front of Mo Fei, then picked up some dishes and said, "This chicken soup is very precious. You're a girl and your body is weak, so you should drink it first. Look, I've also added goji berries and ginger."
Mo Fei, with a poker face, pushed the chicken soup back to Mo Chuan and said, "Brother, you must be tired from coming to Longjing, and you've been busy all afternoon. You should drink a bowl first. I haven't had enough of this stir-fried pork."
Seeing Mo Fei's concern for him, Mo Chuan felt a warmth in his heart. He nodded, picked up the chicken soup, and said, "Alright, I'll drink it. Ah, drinking soup, what a pleasant thing."
Mo Fei watched Mo Chuan drink the chicken soup, feeling her heart pound in her throat.
*Gulp, gulp, gulp...*
Mo Chuan wiped his mouth and said, "Ah, tsk tsk tsk tsk, neither too salty nor too bland, the taste is truly exquisite. Mo Fei, you should drink some quickly too, drink it while it's hot."
After waiting for more than ten minutes, Mo Chuan started to feel a bit tired. After all, he hadn't slept well for several days, coupled with the extreme mental exertion from the Five Kings of Hell's affairs and the fatigue from the journey. Finally, after saying a word to Mo Fei, he fell asleep on the small couch in the residence.
Mo Fei quietly tidied up the food and then knelt before Mo Chuan, looking at his haggard appearance with a slight stubble and dark circles under his eyes. She tenderly caressed Mo Chuan's cheek.
"Brother... I have the strength to protect you now... Master said that as long as I comprehend the Sword Saint's intent in the Sword Tomb, I have the possibility of becoming a ninth-tier ability user..."
"Brother... Ever since I was young, you've done so much for Fei'er, Fei'er has always remembered... But I always felt that our sibling love was too deep to become lovers..."
"Until that day... when I was in the bedroom and heard Mother's words..."
"I was overjoyed... You can marry Fei'er, and you can be Fei'er's..."