Demonic Seed 3

At first, they had given up and thought that they had to deal with all of the mess by themselves. That's why, when the morning of the seventh day a carriage with the Imperial Palace's emblem arrived, they had been so shocked.

Moreover, when they caught sight of the people alighted, their eyes widened in disbelief. "C—Captain! Princess!" At that moment, behind An Zhengnan's back, they seemed to have seen a pair of angel wings with halo shining on top of his head.

One of An Zhengnan's knight personnel shed tears at the thought of his Captain's sacrifice. He was supposed to guard the Royal Palace, but upon hearing their misfortune, he had thrown his job away to help them. He spread his arms open and cried out, "Captain!"

The joyous and touching reunion shattered upon An Zhengnan's scowl. "Get away from me."

Just like that, the halo fell down and the angel wings withered away. Not enough with that, he even snorted. "What? You think I come here to help you?"

The poor knight, Qian Fangyi, sucked his tears back. Illusion, the holy light must have been an illusion! Since when did this lazy, annoying and sarcastic Captain ever did something for someone else? The reality abruptly thrown over his head and he asked sulkily, "Then what are you doing here?"

An Zhengnan choked on his breath. He coughed awkwardly as he glanced at The Princess that was busily looking around with Ling Xiaochen. "Of course, I'm here to escort the Princess."

"Oh?" Qian Fanyi raised one of his eyebrows. "How cruel. Captain's best friend is in a coma right now, but you still care about Princess the most." He clicked his tongue in understanding. "Well, it's true that once a man found a lover—"

"W—What…What are you saying?!" An Zhengnan butted in with glaring eyes. But then, his bright red ears was seen clearly, betraying his fierce look. "Who is my best friend? Who is my lover? Shut your mouth and go run 50 laps around the town!"

Qian Fangyi cried full of grief and regret. "Captain, this is Valley Town, not the Imperial training ground! Have mercy on me!" He shouldn't have teased this man! Blame his blabbermouth, now he had to pay the price! It was weird though, the Captain he knew was someone who would play off dirty jokes coolly, or even threw some even dirtier at them. Qian Fangyi didn't know why he was so sensitive today.

Suddenly, Ouyang Xueqing popped out of nowhere. "What? Do I hear lover? An Zhengnan's?" Her face was full of curiosity whilst she kept throwing him a teasing look. Looking at her face full of mirth with no sense of his feelings whatsoever, An Zhengnan really felt like slapping her ass once in a lifetime! Just once, then he would die with no regret!

He gritted his teeth and spat out each words. "I. Don't. Have. Any. Lovers!"

"Aiyah, don't be mad. Who said you do?" She grinned mischievously. "If you deny it so strongly, it will be more suspicious oh~"

An Zhengnan's teeth was clattering and his body trembled greatly. It took him an ample amount of willpower not to explode. Nevertheless, when he saw Ling Xiaochen's trembling shoulder and her face blushed red from holding back her laughter, An Zhengnan felt really, really irked. This girl, she knew his feelings and yet, she dared to laugh at his misfortunes!

He hurriedly changed the topic and barked out. "Where is Ren Yupei?!"

At that, he was successful to divert their attention, but when he saw Ouyang Xueqing froze and her face crumpled in worry, he felt a tinge of regret. All of this rushing emotions were really driving him insane!

"Right, right! Where's Brother Ren? Is he okay? How is his condition now? No, take me there!" Without waiting for anyone, she strode away in large steps. It clearly showed how anxious she was. "Come on, what are you waiting for?"

The place where Ren Yupei at was an inn which had a cozy and warm atmosphere which is structured from dark brown wood. Ouyang Xueqing didn't have time to appreciate the beauty of the inn for she was biting his lips anxiously.

His room was clean and tidy. Even though it was small which only consisted of one single bed, a pair of table and chair and a simple wooden closet, yet it didn't create a damp or moldy atmosphere, the dark brown wood color gave off the feeling of being home.

As the door opened, Ouyang Xueqing's eyes instantly fell upon the figure laying on the bed. She dashed toward him. "Brother Ren!" Her eyes scanned him anxiously. Both his eyes were shut tightly, his lips pale, and there were drops of sweat damping his hair.

He looked as if he was suffering some kind of torment.

Ouyang Xueqing's eyes reddened. In her eyes, Ren Yupei was the epitome of strength and brilliance. He was strong, resilient, and tenacious. Nothing had ever made him cower. But that undefeatable man was laying weakly with shallow panting, helpless and feeble. She felt a lump stuck on her throat and her heart squeezed painfully.

Her voice was hoarse and she grabbed the man's hand, enveloping his large palm with her small and dainty ones. It felt as cold as ice. "Brother Ren, what's wrong with you?"

It was Qian Fangyi that answered. "We have no idea what had happened to him in Ghost Town and we didn't dare to defy his order. The only thing we can do now is waiting for him to regain consciousness, but it has been three days yet his fever hasn't subsided." He sighed remorsefully.

The only people left in the room was Ouyang Xueqing who sat on his bed side, An Zhengnan that frowned while leaning on the window, Ling Xiaochen who stroked her chin thoughtfully, and Qian Fangyi who is in charge of guiding them. There was a shift of guard guarding outside Ren Yupei's door, but they were pardoned as Ouyang Xueqing came in.

 "Brother Ren…" Ouyang Xueqing choked on her breath as she brushed strands of his damp hair away from his face. His palm on her hand felt cold, but his skin was hot. She really wanted to cry.

"Okay, enough." An Zhengnan grunted and pulled her away by her collar. "Don't get too close, or else you'll be infected."

She pouted with her lips jutted out, looking exactly like a kitty whose neck being lifted by her mother. "Can't he be cured?"

Qian Fangyi shook his head. "We have searched for all physician around, but their diagnosis are all the same. They didn't know what's wrong with him."

"So, this is all because of the ghost qi in Ghost Town, isn't it?"

"Yes, we believe that's the only explanation."

She lowered her gaze and contemplated for a few second before exclaiming. "Let's go!"

The three people in the room was dumbfounded. "Go where?"

"Of course, to the Ghost Town! I will go investigate what happened to Brother Ren and exorcise the ghost qi once and for all."

"W—Wait, wait!" Qian Fangyi hurriedly raised his hand. "Princess, you…you will go?"

"Of course!" She replied as a matter of fact. "If not, who will?"

"No!" An Zhengnan barked. "What can you do?! No, I will not permit it!" He clutched her arm tightly, preventing her from stepping out.

Ling Xiaochen who knew exactly what she was hiding in her sleeves just gave her a slight smile.

Ouyang Xueqing rolled her eyes and tched. She dug into her sleeves and pull out a scroll. Clearing her throat, she began reading. "This Lord gives full permission for the Princess, Ouyang Xueqing, to replace Ren Yupei in his investigation in the Ghost Town. Everyone shall obeyed her order without fail or else This Lord will take it as an offense toward the Imperial Family. This," She waved the scroll, "is Imperial Edict from the Emperor himself. Any objection?"

An Zhengnan gawked. His eyes widened in disbelief. He snatched the scroll away from her hand and scrutinized the seal intensely inch by inch to find that it was indeed The Lord's seal.

It's a real deal, indeed.