Lin Ci hadn’t spoken yet.
“Yueyue! Wait a moment, there’s definitely a misunderstanding here!”
Ruan Huoying hurriedly stepped in front of Lin Ci, spreading her arms to block Bu Liuguyue’s path. “I don’t believe Li Feiyu is a Magic Sect spy!”
“Xiaoying… move aside.”
Bu Liuguyue was silent for a moment, then spoke slowly and without mercy, “You know the Sect’s stance on spies—better to mistakenly kill than to let one slip away!”
“But…”
Ruan Huoying’s face showed her anxiety as she turned to look at Lin Ci.
At this moment, Lin Ci remained calm. He pinched his chin, pondered for a few seconds, then spoke quietly:
“When did you start suspecting my identity?”
“From the very beginning…”
Bu Liuguyue replied.
“At the Hall of Merit, after Xiaoying revealed my identity, your aura clearly became more tense, and then you quickly fled.”
“Your attitude was very strange. Even then, I suspected you were a Magic Sect spy, and that’s why you feared too much contact with the Chief Disciple.”
Lin Ci nodded slightly at her words. “I see…”
In truth, at that time, he was avoiding Bu Liuguyue personally, not because of the Chief Disciple identity. But now, it was impossible to explain that clearly—unless he immediately revealed the truth:
Actually, I’m your fiancé, so I was avoiding you…
Certainly, he couldn’t do that.
“So, you invited me onto the Flying Boat to confirm your suspicions?” he asked.
Bu Liuguyue nodded slightly. “Exactly. If you really were a spy, it’s better to bring you out of the Sect than let you run rampant inside. Besides, if you were a spy, this approach would make it easier to find your weaknesses.”
“Hm, that’s reasonable.”
“Reasonable, my foot!”
Ruan Huoying punched Lin Ci’s chest lightly, annoyed at his lack of urgency. “Explain yourself properly to Yueyue, or she’ll really kill you!”
“I’m explaining right now…”
Lin Ci pushed Ruan Huoying aside, facing Bu Liuguyue’s drawn Flying Sword directly, and continued, “So… have you found any flaws?”
“First of all, you are not Li Feiyu…”
Bu Liuguyue said, “I am responsible for managing the Great Void Sect’s disciple registry, so I’m certain there is no disciple named Li Feiyu in the Sect. You’re using a false name.”
“And then?”
“Aren’t you going to explain that?”
“No explanation.”
Lin Ci shook his head, the reason the same as before—he still couldn’t reveal his true identity. “I can only say that I have reasons to hide my identity; beyond that… no comment!”
Ruan Huoying heard this and felt her heart tighten sharply.
Li Feiyu is a false name?
Could Yueyue be right? Does he really have something suspicious?
…
Bu Liuguyue hummed in response, neither accepting nor rejecting this explanation, but continued questioning:
“Then can you explain why, after arriving at Gu Ta Town, you didn’t enter the city but stayed outside?”
“That’s simple. I had a feeling tonight might be dangerous,” Lin Ci replied calmly. “So I chose to stay outside the city to be able to react immediately if something happened.”
“May I suspect that you did so to avoid my sight? Staying outside the city makes it easy for you to contact Magic Sect experts, which is why Nascent Soul Realm demons appeared tonight.”
Ruan Huoying’s fear grew with every word.
No wonder Yueyue sent her out in the middle of the night to deliver snacks to Li Feiyu—it was just an excuse to observe whether he behaved abnormally.
And indeed, when she left the city, Li Feiyu was nowhere to be seen…
Lin Ci retorted, “Is it not possible that we were already being watched by Magic Sect spies when we left the Hall of Merit?”
“Of course it is, but the timing of the demonic cultivator’s appearance was too coincidental—just after you escaped. Even if it’s coincidence, the suspicions surrounding you are just too many…”
Bu Liuguyue’s Flying Sword never lowered the entire time.
“Better to err on the side of caution… Even without concrete proof, as Chief Disciple, I have the responsibility to execute suspects and eliminate hidden dangers.”
Lin Ci fell silent again…
Ruan Huoying gritted her teeth. After all, wasn’t there still no evidence?
“If he doesn’t say it, I will. Yueyue… I believe Li Feiyu is not a spy!”
“Before you arrived, he even wanted to stay behind alone to hold off all the Magic Sect cultivators so I could escape! He was willing to trade his life for mine!”
“How could someone like that be a spy?”
Bu Liuguyue glanced at her and asked only one question:
“Did you leave?”
“I…”
Ruan Huoying hesitated, her voice dropping, “No. No one has ever been willing to die for me, so I can’t give up on him either.”
Bu Liuguyue chuckled softly and shook her head:
“Xiaoying… you’re still too trusting of others. You’ve never suspected he might be using your feelings.”
Ruan Huoying was speechless. She bowed her head slightly, images of Li Feiyu flashing through her mind—
His decisiveness in blocking attacks from the Magic Sect cultivators; the trust in fighting alongside her; the warmth of hiding together in the hay; and his resolute choice to stay behind alone to let her escape first…
Could all that be false? Was Li Feiyu deceiving her?
No, it wasn’t!
Lies might fool people, but the eyes won’t.
She still remembered the anxious determination in his gaze when he told her to leave.
Eyes never lie!
With that thought, Ruan Huoying no longer hesitated.
“No… Yueyue, you’re wrong!”
“Li Feiyu may be hiding some things, but I believe he has his reasons. He is not a spy, and I won’t let you kill him!”
Having said this, she stood firmly in front of Lin Ci again, her expression resolute.
Her words carried a subtle threat toward Bu Liuguyue.
But there was no other choice. She knew she had to do this—only then could Li Feiyu be forcibly protected.
The atmosphere grew oppressively silent…
At this moment, Ruan Huoying felt guilty. She swallowed and looked at Yueyue, whom she had just threatened.
She had expected one of two outcomes: either Yueyue would ignore her and insist on executing Li Feiyu, or, out of sisterly ties, be forced to let him go.
But she hadn’t expected this.
She saw a sly gleam flash in Bu Liuguyue’s golden eyes.
And, secretly, Yueyue winked at her…
“?”
Ruan Huoying was completely dumbfounded.
Then, Bu Liuguyue spoke, her voice still cold and emotionless as she addressed Lin Ci:
“You know, Xiaoying can’t protect you.”
“Mm, not her business.”
Lin Ci once again reached out and pushed Ruan Huoying aside.
“?”
For a moment, Ruan Huoying wished Yueyue would just stop talking and make a move already.
After all the help she gave him, not a bit of gratitude?
“Let me put it this way…”
Lin Ci stood straight in the cold wind, adjusted his hat brim, and said with a cold arrogance,
“Assuming I am a Magic Sect spy, and we’re on the same Flying Boat heading beyond the Sect’s territory… why would I need to contact those useless people for help?”
He pointed at Bu Liuguyue.
“To kill you, I alone am enough!”