Roaring Dragon-Chapter 123: The Seller of the Jiazi Lotus!

As the blazing yang poison surged through her limbs and meridians, Nangong Ye felt as if she were being incinerated alive. When she saw Xie Jinhuan approach to assist her, she instinctively trusted this so-called "righteous hero" and no longer paid attention to what was happening outside her body.

But just as she was gritting her teeth to suppress the overwhelming venom, she suddenly sensed a surge of icy internal energy rushing toward her.

It felt like a cool breeze inside a hellish inferno—useless in extinguishing the flames, yes, but still enough to soothe the burning pain, instinctively drawing her toward it.

And then—

“Eh, eh, eh?!”

Xie Jinhuan had only waved his hands twice when the black-clad swordswoman sitting in front of him suddenly lunged like a panther pouncing on prey. She grabbed his wrist with her right hand, locked his shoulder with her left, and slammed him to the ground!

Thud—

Then came the aggressive internal energy siphoning. With his palm pressed to hers, Xie Jinhuan felt as if he were covering the intake valve of a high-pressure water pump—his very dantian seemed to swirl into a vortex!

Sensing something was off, he tried to yank his hand back—but couldn’t. He had to halt his cultivation.

But the woman straddling him? Absolutely tyrannical.

Seeing the cold stream vanish after just a few gulps, her hands instantly flared with bluish-white lightning—and she zapped him.

Zzzzt—!

“Ahh—stop, stop, stop—?!”

It felt like he was being electrocuted by a black Pikachu. His body convulsed violently, and he hurriedly resumed channeling energy.

Only then did the black-clad swordswoman stop punishing him and resume drawing in the chill he'd generated.

?!

Xie Jinhuan was shocked—utterly shocked. But once it wore off, he was furious.

After all, he was usually the one robbing others. Since when did others rob him?

Now he’d been groped, beaten, and sucked dry—and couldn’t even stop or fight back. What kind of disgrace was this?

“Muyunhong! You crazy woman... wake the hell up!”

The swordswoman didn’t respond—she just kept calmly draining his life force.

“Hey? You’ve got to be—”

Xie Jinhuan opened his mouth but had nothing to say.

Beside them, Ye Hongshang squatted down, watching the scene with amusement. She consoled him:

“She’s in real pain right now. She needs that. Just be good and serve her well. Maybe you’ll end up with a big wife out of nowhere.”

Xie Jinhuan knew Muyunhong probably didn’t do this on purpose, but he was still pissed.

If I give it to you, you can take it.

But if I don’t, you don’t get to rob me. And you sure as hell don’t get to zap me for it...

If getting beaten means I give in, doesn’t that make me a damn pushover?!

The more he thought about it, the more he fumed—and he stopped his cultivation again.

Instantly, her palms crackled with even stronger lightning—

Zzzzt—!

This time it hit even harder!

“Son of a—!”

Xie Jinhuan gritted his teeth, practically choking on rage. He resumed channeling energy under duress but glared at her with hatred. Then his eyes drifted to her taut rear in those drenched black pants...

With a flick, he grabbed the sheath of his mace and—

Smack—!

The sheath struck her backside like a ruler, sending a ripple through the soaked fabric and kicking up a faint mist from all the sweat.

“You crazy hag, think I won’t hit you back? Go on, zap me again if you dare!”

But the black-clad swordswoman didn’t even twitch.

...?

Xie Jinhuan saw that even hitting her backside didn’t work. He gave up, lying on the floor like a disgraced hero, eyes dull as if he'd lost all hope.

Whoosh whoosh~

The storage room was dead silent, save for the flow of energy.

Time passed. On top of him, the woman’s body gradually cooled.

Xie Jinhuan’s own qi sea had nearly been drained dry. He called out again:

“Hey? Muyunhong? Hey hey hey?!”

“...Huff...”

Nangong Ye had finally suppressed the raging yang poison. Her lashes quivered as her consciousness returned.

Hearing the voice by her ear, she was briefly confused. Then, feeling the muscular body beneath her, her expression froze—and her breath caught in her throat.

What... what’s going on?

Why am I lying on top of him?!

...

Xie Jinhuan had been shouting angrily, but when the woman atop him suddenly fell silent, he thought she’d dropped dead.

“Lady Mu? Miss Mu?!”

Swish—

Before he finished the sentence, the black-clad swordswoman sprang up with thunderous force, snatched up her sword, and stood tall in a single motion!

Xie Jinhuan looked up and saw Muyunhong with her sword slung behind her, standing with the calm arrogance of a sword immortal atop a mountain. Her beautiful phoenix eyes radiated serenity and composure.

“You alright?”

Her voice was cool and ethereal, tinged with concern for a subordinate.

?

Xie Jinhuan stared at her, dumbfounded.

Am I alright?

Lady, you forced yourself on me, drained me half to death, and now you act like you’re the one who saved me?!

How did you manage to reverse the roles so cleanly? And with zero shame?

Did you train your poise and posture from age three or something?!

Xie Jinhuan sat up and glared at the glistening, imperious ice block standing before him.

“I was fine—until you beat the hell out of me. What happened? Your brain get cooked?”

Nangong Ye stood in her black robe, sword behind her back, maintaining a flawless elder’s demeanor.

But a flicker of embarrassment in her eyes cracked her icy aura ever so slightly.

Despite Xie Jinhuan’s biting sarcasm, Nangong Ye didn’t flinch. She kept her tone neutral:

“Thanks. It was an emergency. Neither of us had a choice. Don’t take it to heart. The road to immortality is long. We’ll meet again someday. I’ll take my leave now...”

“Eh?”

Xie Jinhuan saw her turn to leave and immediately sprang up, blocking her path with outstretched arms:

“You’re just gonna leave like that?!”

Nangong Ye had to run. She was the dignified head of Zihui Mountain. She’d just pinned a young hero and taken advantage of him. If word got out, she’d never show her face among the elders again.

She hadn’t planned to reveal her identity yet. But now? She couldn’t, even if she wanted to.

Seeing Xie Jinhuan blocking her, Nangong Ye paused and said calmly:

“You’re after some fortuitous encounter?”

“What fortuitous encounter?!”

Xie Jinhuan raised both hands. “I was just slaying demons. Why the hell are you here? Also, wasn’t someone trying to kill you just now? Where are they? You’re just gonna walk off without a word? How am I supposed to keep investigating?”

Nangong Ye blinked her sharp eyes, replying evenly:

“I was out wandering nearby when I ran into a powerful demon bandit. All I saw were shadows—couldn’t make out who it was.”

“So you didn’t even see their face, and still got beat like that?”

Xie Jinhuan’s tone dripped with scorn. Tsk tsk tsk...

?!

Nangong Ye took a breath, causing her chest to rise like an inflated hot water bottle—but she kept her composure:

“I was poisoned. My movements were limited. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have escaped. I’ll help °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° look for clues and let you know if I find anything. Farewell.”

“Wait a second!”

Xie Jinhuan stepped sideways to block her again, examining the stunning woman before him.

“What’s the rush, huh? Eh?”

Before he could finish, the swordswoman dipped and swerved beneath his arm, leapt out of the room in one smooth motion, and vanished like a streak of lightning.

Whoosh~

Xie Jinhuan tried to grab her but missed. He rushed to the doorway and shouted:

“Just leaving like that?! Where’s the fortuitous encounter you promised me? Heartless, aren’t you? Muyunhong?!”

No reply. No trace.

“Hey?!”

Xie Jinhuan searched the yard, jumped up the wall, and found no sign of her. He muttered:

“She’s probably above third-grade.”

Ye Hongshang stood nearby, twirling her red parasol, and mused:

“Definitely stronger. Maybe even first-grade. And considering the strange poison she’s carrying, I bet she’s the seller of the Jiazi Lotus!”

“What?”

Xie Jinhuan jerked around.

“You mean she tricked me into revealing the antidote method—then ran off without showing her face?!”

Ye Hongshang shrugged teasingly:

“You were the one flirting. Can’t call it deception. She was secretly tailing you, probably to see if you had any Returning Yang Grass.”

Everything clicked.

Xie Jinhuan crossed his arms. Something definitely felt off.

He didn’t have any Returning Yang Grass. His only trick was to bluff with a “secret technique” offered by a ghostly informant.

Now, Muyunhong had stolen his antidote method, drained his inner energy—and never gave him anything in return!

He worked his ass off... just to smack her butt once?

Xie Jinhuan, who’d spent his life “harvesting fellow cultivators,” had now been harvested by one. How could he let that go?

He had to find Muyunhong and use the full force of his silver tongue to scam the Jiazi Lotus back.

He only hoped that address—Fengyi River, Suyun Studio—was real.

If she vanished, he’d have no choice but to post hundreds of "Wanted Notices" detailing the exact humiliating position and events suffered by a righteous young hero... and paste them all over the capital and Jingzhao Prefecture.

Hopefully it wouldn’t come to that...

With those dark thoughts swirling, Xie Jinhuan took off along the rooftops.

But he hadn’t gone far before spotting flames around the Ye Shirong residence. Troops swarmed the street. Looked like the entire yamen had mobilized.

As the only participant in the case, he couldn’t just run off.

With a sigh, Xie Jinhuan turned toward the mansion.

Best close out the case first... then go settle things with that black-hearted woman.