Wen Ran was shocked as she looked at the person in the tree for a while, then shifted her gaze to the man in black standing on the edge of the cliff.
Only then did she notice that the man in black, who had half of his face covered with a black cloth, didn't have the bruise on his eye that she had dealt. Realizing she'd mistaken him for someone else, Wen Ran took several steps back.
If it were Shen Wu, she could still rely on their familiarity to be a little reckless, but she didn't know what kind of Immortal this man in black was, and she feared being reckless would cost her life.
She's always been cautious about her life, especially realizing she was a female supporting character in this world, which made her even more cautious.
The man in black looked steadily at the tall and slender young man, "When did you arrive?"
"I forgot." Shen Wu landed effortlessly, dressed in white; he indeed appeared to be otherworldly and dignified in the night.
But what he said could really irritate someone, "So you didn't notice me? I thought you had sensed me following you from that young lady's boudoir, just too lazy to bother with me."
There was a naive look in Shen Wu's eyes; it was truly an innocent question without a hint of sarcasm.
The man in black's gaze turned cold.
Wen Ran quickly moved behind Shen Wu and tugged at his sleeve, "What were you doing outside someone's boudoir in the middle of the night?"
Shen Wu wisely didn't answer, instead, he asked back, "This person's waist isn't as slender as mine, legs aren't as long, and skin isn't as fair, so why did you call out my name?"
"I..."
"Ranran, you can't even recognize your fiancé; I'm truly disappointed in you."
Wen Ran: "..."
At this late hour, coupled with seeing Qiu Shui's captured state, and given the misleading words he said during the day, it was only natural that in her haste and anger she didn't recognize him immediately!
No, she couldn't let him turn the tables on her with just one sentence like that.
Wen Ran gritted her teeth, "Were you planning to drag someone out to threaten them late at night outside their boudoir?"
"Of course not." Shen Wu's tone was innocent, "Ranran, is that really how little you think of me?"
"Yes."
Shen Wu could only take a sorrowful bite of the Qing Mei.
The man in black observed Shen Wu for quite a while, then finally laughed, "The young Immortal Monarch from the Ascension Immortal Mansion doesn't seem as courteous as the rumors suggest."
Shen Wu didn't speak for a moment.
Wen Ran translated, "Senior brother, he's speaking ill of you."
Shen Wu then asked, "I didn't hit you or curse you, so why speak ill of me?"
The man in black seemed unaccustomed to such childish conversation; he didn't continue Shen Wu's line but decisively said, "Today's matter doesn't concern you, it's wise to act as if you didn't see it and leave quickly."
Shen Wu looked at Wen Ran.
Wen Ran immediately translated, "He means that a cowardly, incompetent person like you shouldn't think of opposing him, and if we don't run, he will attack us."
The man in black's eyelid twitched; it was probably the first time he'd seen someone who could stoke the flames so well.
Shen Wu said slowly, "If I run away, I wouldn't be considered a strong person."
Wen Ran's inquisitive gaze fell on Shen Wu; he seemed to always care whether he was a strong person, just like that time in the cave of the Forbidden Land, when she wanted to take him and run, he had to emphasize he was strong.
The man in black laughed, "What difference does strength make? Before life, it's all merely a vain reputation, what's so important about it?"
"Of course it's important." Shen Wu said while extending his hand towards Wen Ran, "Only a strong person can be liked by women."
This peculiar answer completely broke the dignified image built by his fluttering white robe.
Wen Ran was used to Shen Wu's odd way of thinking, so she wasn't surprised, but the man in black was momentarily speechless.
Still extending his hand, Shen Wu called out discontentedly, "Ranran."
Wen Ran looked at the partially bitten Qing Mei in his hand and belatedly took it.
Shen Wu was finally satisfied, "Keep this safe for me; I'll want to eat it later."
Just by looking at the color of the flesh, one could tell the Qing Mei was not fully ripe and very sour.
Wen Ran was still wondering why he valued this fruit so much, when a gust of wind arose, and Shen Wu had already taken the sword from her hand, his figure shifted, and in a breath, his figure vanished.
Next, the sound of clashing weapons was heard.
The man in black relied on extraordinary reflexes to conjure a long sword the instant that ghostly figure appeared silently, accepting Shen Wu's strike.
Following that strike were rapid and relentless sword moves that left no room to breathe.
The man in black initially stood in place to counter, but then he furrowed his brow because every move from the nimble and versatile Shen Wu was filled with deadly intent, but the man in black couldn't sense any killing aura from Shen Wu. In other words, he couldn't rely on his cultivator instincts to sense the opponent's position through their killing intent.
Moreover, this young man's moves were indeed the orthodox swordsmanship of the Ascension Immortal Mansion, but within each of those sword arts were hidden more unpredictable and treacherous moves, a big disciple from a prestigious sect displayed a few traits of an unrighteous path.
Lost in thought, the man in black didn't notice when he was suddenly cut on the arm by the sword, blood dripping instantly to the ground, and he quickly backed away two steps.
Shen Wu suddenly stopped too, the aura around him very calm.
But this wasn't right.
The man in black furrowed his brows deeper.
Shen Wu laughed lightly, swung his sword, and the blood on it fell to the ground like blooming red plums, he said, "Your blood smells better than the things I've encountered before, I like it."
Every word crafted by that smiling voice exuded an extraordinary joy at the moment.
And was even more dangerous.
The man in black hadn't blinked; the young man's figure moved with the spreading scent of blood and instantly appeared in front of him, it was too late to parry his sword, he'd only managed to dodge by spinning, inadvertently dropping the rope he was holding in his injured hand.
Wen Ran, who had just sneaked to the edge of the cliff to rescue someone, watched the rope slipping down the cliff, and in panic, she pounced forward, trying to grab the rope.
But she underestimated the weight of the person on the other end of the rope, instead of pulling it up, she was pulled along by the rope.
In the night wind, as her figure vanished, an elegant curse slipped from her mouth:
"Damn!"