A Family of Hopeless Romantics, Except for the Evil Little Junior Brother

It took a lot of effort to coax Di Nü Feng and badmouth Liu Qiushui.

After freeing himself from Di Nü Feng, Li Xuanxiao hurried off to find Liu Qiushui.

Now, he was certain that the one who had fought Liu Qiushui was none other than Di Nü Feng.

A classic case of dog-eat-dog.

There was no so-called righteous faction eliminating the two of them.

So if he wanted to survive between these two…

With that thought, Li Xuanxiao was already standing outside Liu Qiushui’s cave.

Liu Qiushui slightly lifted her gaze, her eyes as clear and captivating as an autumn lake.

As her gaze flowed, it seemed as though thousands of stars flickered within. When her eyes unintentionally swept over Li Xuanxiao’s, that fleeting moment of contact felt as if it contained countless unspoken words.

The next second, a black pill fell into his mouth.

Li Xuanxiao clutched his throat.

“This is a pill I refined. It will greatly boost your cultivation, but at the same time, it’s also a poison.”

Liu Qiushui spoke indifferently.

Li Xuanxiao: ……….

(O_o)??

Again!?

Can’t you Demon Sect people come up with something new?

Is this your go-to move?

Li Xuanxiao started feeling unwell.

Taking two cultivation-boosting pills with side effects in such a short time—it would be strange if he felt fine.

“Feeling unwell is normal. You’ll be fine after digesting it for a while,” Liu Qiushui said. “Don’t blame me. It’s not that I don’t trust you, this is just an insurance policy. Everyone who joins my sect goes through this.

Besides, the pill I gave you is only for those close to me. You saved my life, so from now on, you shall serve by my side.”

By now, Li Xuanxiao was lying on the ground.

He could clearly feel the pills that Liu Qiushui and Di Nü Feng had separately fed him.

At this moment, they were like two lit explosives, detonating inside his body.

The two powerful and mysterious energies clashed like well-trained, fully armed armies, waging a thrilling life-or-death battle on the battlefield that was his body.

They tangled, collided, and tore at each other, each clash sending violent tremors through him.

One energy was scorching like fire, consuming everything in its path.

The other was cold as frost, freezing anything it touched into an ice sculpture.

Neither side yielded, locked in a stalemate, neither able to gain the upper hand.

The energies rampaged through his meridians and acupoints, recklessly disrupting the originally stable flow of his blood and qi.

His internal organs throbbed with pain, and it felt as if his entire skeleton was about to fall apart.

I’m done for…

Li Xuanxiao no longer had the strength to speak.

“Help… help… helphelphelp…”

That’s it!?

Li Xuanxiao opened his eyes.

His small eyes were filled with great confusion.

What’s going on?

He could feel the raging forces inside him quickly settling down.

His cultivation had skyrocketed.

However, the side effects of the pills—

The poison.

The two poisons… canceled each other out!?

Oh?

Li Xuanxiao was utterly delighted. Heaven wasn’t abandoning him after all.

Not only had the two pills significantly boosted his cultivation, they had essentially force-fed him a massive amount of power.

And, as an extra bonus, they had kindly neutralized each other’s side effects.

Even someone with Li Xuanxiao’s temperament couldn’t help but laugh at this moment.

However, the sudden surge of power still required time to be fully absorbed.

It wasn’t like in martial arts novels where an expert transfers a hundred years’ worth of cultivation to the protagonist—

And the protagonist instantly possesses a hundred years’ worth of power.

If that really happened, the protagonist would likely explode and die.

Even breaking through a small cultivation stage like this required time to process.

So, over the next few days—

Li Xuanxiao wandered between Di Nü Feng and Liu Qiushui while gradually absorbing the power within him.

Di Nü Feng was more like a mafia queen—reckless and easy to fool.

Liu Qiushui, despite her love for the color red, was not hot-tempered. On the contrary, she was much calmer.

Thanks to Li Xuanxiao’s meticulous care, the two of them gradually grew more familiar with him.

It became apparent that both of them had, to some extent, let go of their usual arrogance.

This could actually be explained by the suspension bridge effect.

The suspension bridge effect suggests that when someone crosses a suspension bridge in fear, their heart rate increases involuntarily.

If at that moment they happen to encounter another person, they might mistake their accelerated heartbeat, caused by the situation, as attraction toward the other person, thus developing romantic feelings.

Di Nü Feng and Liu Qiushui were usually commanding presences, practically emperors in their own right, always surrounded by followers.

Now, they were severely injured, lying in a cave.

The only person taking care of them was a stranger—a Mount Shushan disciple. Naturally, they would develop some fondness toward him.

This is also why many TV dramas use similar setups for the main characters to fall in love.

After a few peaceful days—

Li Xuanxiao finished his cultivation. Although he hadn’t fully absorbed all the energy, his current state had reached a temporary saturation point.

It was time to begin the next phase of his plan.

“.............”

On this day, Li Xuanxiao was changing Liu Qiushui’s dressing.

He carefully lifted her arm and placed a clean white cloth nearby for use.

Then, he slowly unwrapped the bandages, revealing the still-healing wound beneath.

Liu Qiushui frowned slightly as a sharp pain shot through her when the wound was disturbed.

However, when she saw the young man’s focused and serious expression, the pain in her heart seemed to ease a little.

“The wound is healing faster than I expected,” Li Xuanxiao said.

Liu Qiushui nodded slightly.

"Then get some rest."

Like usual, Li Xuanxiao went out again.

Liu Qiushui had already gotten used to it and spoke without thinking.

"Come back early."

As soon as the words left her mouth, Liu Qiushui felt something was off.

Li Xuanxiao glanced back at her, his expression unchanged, then left the cave.

Half an incense stick’s time later—

A staggering figure walked back from outside the cave dwelling.

"R-run…!! It’s… the people from Tian Sha Hall!"

With those words, Li Xuanxiao collapsed to the ground.

"Tian Sha Hall!!"

Liu Qiushui’s expression changed as she quickly caught him.

Li Xuanxiao had already stopped breathing.

Liu Qiushui froze like a statue, completely motionless for a long while.

The once calm lake of her heart rippled faintly, followed by a subtle tremor.

That boy—

That energetic, lively boy.

Now lay lifeless in her arms, his expression peaceful, as if merely asleep.

His body was gradually turning cold, and the breath of life was slowly slipping away.

Thinking back to the past few days they had spent together—

Though the time had been short, to Liu Qiushui, it felt unique and unlike anything she had ever experienced.

Each day had been so simple, so pure.

Even somewhat dull and monotonous, yet for some reason, this ordinary routine had brought her an unprecedented sense of contentment.

She still remembered their first meeting—

The awkward silence between them, neither willing to be the first to break the quiet.

But as time passed, they grew familiar with each other, gazing together at the beautiful sunset in the distance, sharing their joys and sorrows, laughing and chatting...

Clang!

A sword was unsheathed, radiating battle intent.

Liu Qiushui clenched her silver teeth tightly.

Just then, another figure barged in.