Chapter 17: Enraged

“Senior Brother Shangguan…”
She tried calling out softly.
Shangguan Yuheng looked up to see her standing at the door with a tray in her hands, his brows slightly knitted, his gentle voice tinged with a hint of coldness. “Junior Sister Chu, I believe I’ve mentioned before—no one is permitted to enter the main residence without leave.”
Chu Yuyao forced a couple of awkward laughs, as if oblivious to the chill in his words, and braced herself to step inside. “I happened to make some fish porridge. I thought you hadn’t eaten dinner and might be hungry, so I brought you some.”
“I have long since begun abstaining from food. I have no need for such things.”
Shangguan Yuheng glanced at the tray in her hand, his tone light and distant.
With that, he resumed reading the ancient texts before him.
She rolled her eyes, speechless. He always used his fasting as an excuse, as if it made him so noble.
She placed the fish porridge directly in front of him with a slight clatter. “Fasting doesn’t mean starvation. Just try it—there’s ginger in it, so it won’t taste fishy.”
Shangguan Yuheng’s page-turning paused briefly, his gaze flickering to the steaming porridge.
The rice grains glistened, the fish snowy white; its appearance was truly tempting, enough to rouse anyone’s appetite.
He was quietly surprised that a woman could cook porridge.
His eyes lingered on her with a touch more curiosity, but instead he suddenly asked, “Did you steal spiritual fish from the medicine field?”
Chu Yuyao looked embarrassed—always poking where it hurts. She feigned innocence. “Senior Brother, there were no signs forbidding fishing, were there?”
No sooner had she spoken than a mocking laugh sounded from outside the window.
Ye Cangming, who had somehow appeared at the windowsill, leaned in with the window wide open. His black robes nearly blended with the night, his manner languid and wicked.
“I’ve heard that the rules of Medicine King Valley state: those who tamper with spiritual plants and herbs are stripped of their cultivation and expelled. True, fishing is not forbidden, but spiritual fish are considered equivalent to spiritual herbs. You may not be a disciple of Medicine King Valley, but thievery is thievery. Stripping you of your cultivation isn’t enough—perhaps they should cut off your hands and feet?”
He spoke slowly, his deep eyes sweeping over Chu Yuyao’s face through the window, his tone full of amusement.
She glanced at the window—this damned persistent man, haunting her even here.
A wicked smile curled her lips. “Why does Young Lord Ye appear like a ghost, always turning up unexpectedly? Could it be that being divorced by me has left you sleepless and mad?”
Ye Cangming’s expression darkened instantly. This wretched woman kept testing his limits—did she truly think he would not kill her?
He moved in a flash.
In the blink of an eye, he was inside, standing before Chu Yuyao, his hand suddenly gripping her throat and pinning her against the bookshelf. Ancient texts tumbled to the floor with a crash.
His eyes glinted cold and sinister. “Do you believe I could make you sleep forever, right now?”

Chu Yuyao struggled for breath, her face reddening, yet she still managed a stubborn smile. “I do. Of course I do. If Young Lord Ye wants to kill me, it’s as easy as crushing an ant.”
She herself did not know where her courage came from. She knew this man was terrifying—a heartless demon who killed without blinking—yet she provoked him time and again. Every time she saw this damned man, a nameless anger surged within her, compelling her to taunt him.
Perhaps his words and actions had so provoked her, it stirred a rebelliousness within—she simply wanted to oppose him.
Ye Cangming was a man utterly centered on himself: violent, cold, ruthless, doing as he pleased. He could only be obeyed, never opposed. He was a true demon lord.
Chu Yuyao’s repeated provocations were like dancing on his red line.
Her survival this long was entirely due to the protection of Heaven’s Path Sect and the fact that Medicine King Valley was neutral ground; otherwise, the grass on her grave would be three feet tall.
His fingers tightened slightly, watching Chu Yuyao’s face turn from blue to purple, his palm assessing the fragile neck—so easily breakable, almost laughable. “You know, this look of yours, nearly strangled by me, is much more pleasing than when you cling to me and call me Brother Ming.”
Shangguan Yuheng glanced indifferently at Chu Yuyao’s face, now shifting from blue to purple, his gaze flickering.
Suddenly, his fingertip flicked, a beam of green light striking Ye Cangming’s wrist so subtly it went unnoticed.
Ye Cangming’s wrist went numb; he instinctively loosened his grip.
“Brother Cangming, my books.”
He rose and bent to pick up the fallen volumes, his voice gentle as a spring breeze in March. “For most, it’s no matter, but the ‘Manual of Ten Thousand Poisons’ is unique—a damaged copy must be compensated.”
Ye Cangming frowned, but finally released Chu Yuyao.
She clutched the bookshelf, coughing violently, tears streaming from the effort.
She cursed Ye Cangming’s ancestors up and down in her mind.
Twice in one day he’d strangled her, not to mention all the threats about chopping hands and feet.
She simply could not swallow her anger.
“Cough… Young Lord Ye, do you have rabies? Biting everyone you see? Should Senior Brother Shangguan give you a couple of shots?”
She rubbed her bruised neck. This damned man was ruthless—her neck burned painfully and was surely bruised.
Ye Cangming’s gaze chilled, his elegant fingers rising once more.
Shangguan Yuheng stepped between them in time, his voice mild. “Brother Cangming, Medicine King Valley is not a place for bloodshed.”
His gaze swept over the obvious bruise on Chu Yuyao’s neck. He reached into the cabinet and handed her a box of bruise ointment, his tone calm. “Apply this—it will ease the pain.”
Chu Yuyao paused, surprised as she took the ointment. Could this black-hearted lotus actually care about her?
But, thinking about it, perhaps he simply feared she’d die before he could study the Thousand Severance Powder.

She opened the lid without ceremony, scooped out a generous amount, and applied it to her neck.
The cool sensation instantly soothed the burning pain, and she sighed in relief.
Ye Cangming watched her, his gaze flickering.
This woman was remarkably docile before Shangguan Yuheng.
He sneered, then turned to Shangguan Yuheng, his expression suddenly grave. “Shangguan, have you found any way to awaken my mother?”
Chu Yuyao cast him a sidelong glance, surprised to discover this fiend had a weakness.
She recalled that Ye Cangming’s mother, Meng Wanyin, had long lain asleep within an ice coffin in the forbidden grounds of the Hall of Ten Thousand Demons, said to be stricken by a curse and dormant for over a decade.
Ye Cangming had been ceaselessly seeking a way to break the curse and awaken his mother, but to no avail.
This time, his reason for accompanying Shangguan Yuheng to Medicine King Valley was precisely this.
Shangguan Yuheng swept his gaze over the scattered ancient texts and books on the floor. With a graceful flick of his sleeve, the books assembled themselves and flew neatly back onto the bookshelf.
His movements were elegant and composed, as if the earlier disturbance had never happened.
Turning to Ye Cangming, his voice was gentle. “As for the method to awaken your mother, I am still searching for relevant information. This ancient curse is no trivial matter; caution is vital. I will need some time.”
Ye Cangming frowned, clearly dissatisfied with the answer.
But he knew the matter could not be rushed.
And since Shangguan Yuheng had agreed to help, he would do his utmost—Ye Cangming trusted that much.
Having received no satisfactory answer and unwilling to linger, he soon turned and left.
If he stayed any longer, he feared he might truly strangle that ugly woman.
Chu Yuyao watched his retreating figure disappear through the door and breathed a sigh of relief—the damned man was finally gone.
She turned to Shangguan Yuheng and found him gazing at her, his gentle eyes holding a hint of curiosity.
“Senior Brother Shangguan, is there something dirty on my face?”
She instinctively touched her cheek.