Chapter 473: Wasting My Breath on You
Qiao Xixi backed away quickly, her hands forming a seal.
"Wind."
A fierce gale surged toward Yu Ye.
The fury in Yu Ye’s eyes blazed even hotter. He spread his wings and flapped into the air, then suddenly halted and dove straight for Qiao Xixi, his sharp claws extended.
"Wind, whirl."
The gale swirled into the air, once again obstructing Yu Ye.
The powerful force of the wind momentarily kept him from advancing.
"Qiao Xixi, you killed my mother and seized the throne! I, Yu Ye, will take you down with me today, even if it costs me my life!"
Yu Ye let out a sharp cry, and a beat of his wings sent two massive fireballs hurtling toward Qiao Xixi.
"Xixi, look out!"
"ROAR!"
Jin Ling and the others rushed over. Sunxiao’s long tail swept out, coiling around Qiao Xixi and pulling her into his embrace.
Jin Ling bounded forward and let out a furious tiger’s roar at Yu Ye.
Feiyan rushed over and hoisted the fallen Sangze onto his back.
Just as Yun Ji arrived, he saw Yu Ye preparing to strike again. He dove, smashing a wing into Yu Ye. Thrown off balance, Yu Ye crashed heavily to the ground.
Jin Ling seized the opportunity, lunging forward and slamming a paw into his chest.
"You dare hurt Xixi? You’re asking to die!"
"Ngh! PFFT!"
The force of the blow made his vision go black. He sprayed out a mouthful of blood and was left completely immobilized.
Yun Ji landed, his eyes filled with anger. "Yu Ye, what do you think you’re doing?!"
Yu Ye glared hatefully at Yun Ji and sneered, "What am I doing? Why don’t you ask yourselves what you’re doing!"
A beast-soldier came running over in a hurry.
"Priest, there’s trouble with the Beast King."
Yun Ji glanced at the fire in the palace, then turned to Jin Ling and the others. "Get Xixi out of the palace first."
Sunxiao nodded.
Qiao Xixi poked her head out from his massive tail. "Xijing went to the Beast King’s side to find out what’s happening."
Yun Ji nodded. "I’ll let him know you’re safe."
Yun Ji waved his hand, motioning for the soldier to take Yu Ye away.
As he turned to leave, Qiao Xixi poked her head out again.
"Yun Ji."
Yun Ji paused.
"You be careful, too."
Yun Ji felt something in his chest crack, bit by bit.
"Alright."
Sunxiao’s long tail coiled tighter, completely shielding Qiao Xixi from the smoke and flames outside.
With Yun Ji’s Feather Order, Sunxiao and the others left the palace with Qiao Xixi unimpeded.
"Sunxiao, where’s Father? I haven’t seen him."
"He’s still outside the city with the Beast Guards, dealing with those monsters."
"They haven’t found the person who stole the energy from the Dark Origin Stone?"
Sunxiao shook his head. "Not yet, but they should soon."
Sunxiao and his companions brought Qiao Xixi back to the stone house where they had been staying.
Sunxiao carried Qiao Xixi to the bed, and Feiyan settled Sangze into his room.
After closing the courtyard gate, Jin Ling went to the backyard to start a fire and boil some water.
When Jin Ling entered with hot water, Qiao Xixi had all three of them come into the room. She told them what had happened at the palace after they left.
"I suspect what happened at the palace tonight is connected to Aunt Yaoxi."
After Xixi finished speaking, a look of utter surprise appeared on Feiyan’s face, quickly followed by a frown. "She hid it well. I never would have thought she was that kind of person."
Jin Ling’s reaction was much calmer. "An opponent who poses a huge threat, yet has been allowed to live right under your nose for years... such an opponent is by no means weak."
Feiyan looked completely lost. "Jin Ling, you’re talking in circles. I don’t get what you’re saying."
Jin Ling explained with a gentle smile, "If someone posed a major threat to you, would you kill them to eliminate the problem for good, or would you keep them alive just for the sake of humiliating them?"
Feiyan answered without a second thought. "If they were a threat to me, of course I’d kill them immediately."
"Exactly. Yaoxi was an heir to the throne. For the Beast King to let someone like that live, there must have been a reason he couldn’t kill her."
Feiyan scratched his head. "What reason?"
Jin Ling shook his head. "That, you’d have to ask her."
Feiyan frowned. ’Listening to them is exhausting,’ he thought. ’I’d rather just be cuddling with Xixi.’
"Xixi..."
"What Jin Ling means is that Yaoxi is very powerful and not at all innocent. Even when it looked like she was being bullied, she might have just been pretending."
"Oh. Well, why didn’t he just say that? Talking in circles like that is such a waste of energy."
Jin Ling was speechless.
’I shouldn’t have wasted my breath on you.’
Sunxiao’s crimson, serpentine eyes, however, gleamed with a grim coldness.
"The fire in the main palace spread toward the Feather Palace."
Feiyan nodded. "Yeah, it was a huge fire. Someone must have set it deliberately."
Sunxiao shot him a cool glance. "She showed no hesitation."
Yaoxi knew perfectly well that Qiao Xixi and the others were in the Feather Palace, yet she showed no concern for them whatsoever.
Both Qiao Xixi and Jin Ling understood. In the face of Yaoxi’s grand ambitions, they were expendable.
"She must have been plotting this for a long time. She won’t allow herself to fail."
"Alright, Xixi, don’t dwell on it. It’s late. Get some sleep," Jin Ling said. He glanced at Sunxiao, who fell silent.
They could all see that Xixi was upset, perhaps because she had genuinely seen Yaoxi as a kind elder.
Qiao Xixi mumbled an affirmative and lay down on the bed.
Sunxiao stood up. "I’ll go check on Sangze."
Feiyan glanced at Qiao Xixi. As much as he wanted to stay with her, he feared there might be trouble during the night, so he had to stand watch.
"I’ll take the night watch."
After the door closed, Qiao Xixi sat up with a turn and hugged Jin Ling from behind.
Jin Ling started to turn to take her in his arms, but Qiao Xixi stopped him.
"Don’t move. Just let me hold you for a bit."
Jin Ling lowered his gaze and gently squeezed her hands. Feeling the warmth of his palms, Qiao Xixi’s tense nerves finally began to loosen.
"I really thought... Ugh, never mind."
"You’re too kind-hearted, Xixi."
Qiao Xixi rested her chin on his broad shoulder. Tilting her head, she gazed at his chiseled profile, and her mood lifted slightly.
"You’re just placating me. If it were Father, he’d be calling me naive again."
"He wouldn’t. None of us saw this coming at first, so how could it be your fault?"
Qiao Xixi’s voice was low. "You’re right. We’re lucky she didn’t harbor any ill will toward us from the start. Otherwise, we would have been completely defenseless."
"But thankfully, the worst didn’t happen."
"So, can we sleep now? If we don’t, it’ll be dawn soon."
Jin Ling turned, scooping her into his arms with one long arm. He looked down, his brow furrowing in concern when he saw how much thinner her face had become.
Qiao Xixi buried her face in his chest. Listening to the steady, strong beat of his heart, her anxiety slowly began to subside.
She thought she wouldn’t be able to sleep, but her eyelids soon grew heavy.
Once her breathing evened out, Jin Ling gently laid her down on the bed.
He had just pulled the blanket over her when Sunxiao’s low voice came from outside the door.
"Jin Ling."