The Side Character Who Wins by Doing Nothing

Li Yijiang had no time to react before the sword was at his neck.

Feeling the bone-chilling cold from the longsword, he froze and stammered, ”You... Mr. Gu, what are you doing? Let’s talk this out calmly!”

Gu Jue just stared at him coldly. ”To speak such filth and slander a person’s name... For a man to be so petty is truly disgraceful.”

”I’m warning you. Don’t let me hear such words again, and don’t you dare spread this nonsense to anyone else. Otherwise, I will take your life... Understand?”

Li Yijiang was stunned. He never imagined things would develop this way!

He didn’t understand. How could Gu Jue, who had been so thoroughly cuckolded, still protect Lu Sangjiu? Was he some kind of saint?

His scheme to sow discord had failed before it even began. Li Yijiang was seething with frustration.

But with a sword to his neck, did he dare push his luck? He had no choice but to bite the bullet and agree.

”Understood... I understand! Don’t worry, I’ll take this secret to my grave. I’ll never tell another soul!”

Gu Jue clenched his fist, and the Memory Stone in his palm instantly shattered.

”And don’t go looking for trouble with her again. Red Peak may be insignificant in the Seven Emotions Sect, but she is still a disciple of the Seven Emotions Sect. Don’t ruin your own future.”

After warning Li Yijiang, Gu Jue finally retracted his sword and spat out two cold words, ”Get lost.”

Li Yijiang immediately ran off without looking back. It seemed he wouldn’t have the guts to bother Lu Sangjiu again.

Gu Jue, however, didn’t move. He stood there quietly for a long time before he couldn’t help but look down at the fragments of the Memory Stone on the ground, his heart aching with a bitter pang.

’She said it was inconvenient... was it because she was at another man’s home?’

’Was she learning to cook for him, too?’

’So that day, it wasn’t that she forgot to say I could also call her by her name... She just... wasn’t willing.’

Lu Sangjiu had no idea that another wild, colorful stroke had just been added to the unbelievable romantic scandal surrounding her.

At that moment, she had just finished making a dish of shredded pork with green peppers, following a recipe. Hmm... it looked quite good. ’A success, maybe?’

Just as she was about to pick up her chopsticks for a taste, she suddenly felt a slight ripple in the Barrier.

’Xie Ningyuan is back?’

Lu Sangjiu’s eyes lit up. Her mind was fixated on the Demon Essence Stones, and she completely forgot about tasting her food, turning and running outside.

As soon as she ran out of the kitchen, she saw Xie Ningyuan’s figure, just as she’d expected.

Perhaps because Lu Sangjiu had already seen his true appearance, he reverted to his original form the moment he entered the courtyard.

His face was no different from her memory, yet now, he looked like a completely different person.

In her memory, he always wore a simple white monk’s robe, his entire being seeming to radiate a holy light, so pure that one wouldn’t dare defile it.

But now, he was clad in blood-red robes that added a touch of demonic charm. Beneath his careless smile was a coldness and detachment from the world.

The stark contrast left Lu Sangjiu dazed for a moment. She temporarily forgot why she had come out, simply staring blankly as he approached.

”What are you looking at? Stunned by how handsome my true form is?”

Xie Ningyuan’s words snapped Lu Sangjiu back to her senses. She quickly averted her gaze and retorted fiercely, trying to sound tough, ”Don’t worry. No matter how desperate I get, I wouldn’t swoon over a Buddhist Practitioner.”

With that, she held out her hand to him, demanding brazenly, ”Demon Essence Stones!”

Xie Ningyuan chuckled lightly. ”You really don’t stand on ceremony, do you?”

Despite his words, he still took out five top-grade Demon Essence Stones and gave them to her.

”This is all I could get for now. Make do with these for the time being. I’ll take you to find more when I get the chance.”

Five top-grade Demon Essence Stones! Lu Sangjiu’s eyes immediately lit up. This was so much better than she had expected!

After all, whether they were top-grade spiritual stones or Demon Essence Stones, both were incredibly rare items.

At her level of cultivation, if she hadn’t obtained some from the two legacies in the Secret Realm, she probably wouldn’t even know where to look for them.

That’s why her expectations for Xie Ningyuan had been a few hundred high-grade Demon Essence Stones at most. She never imagined he would give her such a huge surprise.

She happily put away the Demon Essence Stones. After removing Xie Ningyuan’s Blood Evil Curse, she wouldn’t have many opportunities to use Demonic Qi, so these stones meant she wouldn’t have to worry about it for a while.

She was just about to thank him when she suddenly noticed that the fluctuations of his aura were off.

”You’re injured again?”

Xie Ningyuan gave a nonchalant ”mhm.” ”When you’re making a forced purchase, you have to show a little force to move the transaction along.”

”I used a bit too much power and got some backlash. It’s nothing serious.”

In reality, the seal that the Poison Master had just repaired for him had almost broken again. Fortunately, he had controlled his power just enough that the seal hadn’t actually been damaged.

The backlash injury wasn’t that severe, so he didn’t pay it much mind.

He said it so casually, but Lu Sangjiu felt a little upset.

No matter who he had ”forcefully purchased” the Demon Essence Stones from, it was obvious that anyone who possessed top-grade ones would be no weakling. The dangers involved definitely couldn’t be summed up in a few sentences.

”...Thank you.”

Xie Ningyuan raised an eyebrow. ”Tsk, you’ve taken so much from me, and you’re only remembering to thank me now?”

”Actually, you don’t have to be so moved. After all... I’m not just doing this for you.”

His words seemed to carry some other meaning, but before Lu Sangjiu could ponder it, Xie Ningyuan spoke again. ”Are you cooking? It smells pretty good.”

”I happen to be hungry. Since you’re thanking me, you can treat me to a meal.”

With that, Xie Ningyuan strode toward the kitchen without waiting for an invitation.

Lu Sangjiu snapped out of it and hurried after him. ”Wait, I’ve only just finished one dish...”

Besides, she hadn’t even tasted it herself. Although she felt it should be fine, she was still a little unsure.

But Xie Ningyuan just waved his hand. ”One dish is enough to tide me over. Don’t be so stingy.”

So, Lu Sangjiu could only watch as Xie Ningyuan picked up his chopsticks and took a bite of her freshly made shredded pork with green peppers.

For some reason, Lu Sangjiu felt a little nervous. ”The taste... is it okay?”

Xie Ningyuan fell silent. He held the food in his mouth for a full three breaths. He seemed to try to chew a couple of times, but after hesitating, he gave up.

In the end, he chose to follow his instincts, lowered his head, and spat the food out. He then quickly rinsed his mouth twice, only then seeming to feel a bit better.

Lu Sangjiu’s expression froze. She already had her answer from his reaction.

’But... how? I followed the recipe exactly. Where did I go wrong?’

Just as she was questioning her life choices, Xie Ningyuan, having finished rinsing his mouth, asked with extreme seriousness, ”Be honest. Did you know I was coming back and deliberately set this trap for me?”

Lu Sangjiu: ”...”

For a rare change, she was a bit embarrassed. She slowly lowered her head and mumbled, ”This is my first time cooking. I probably just haven’t gotten the hang of it yet...”

Xie Ningyuan couldn’t hold back. ”Are you sure this is a problem of ’not getting the hang of it’? Don’t you think this dish you made is...”

He struggled to choose his words carefully, finally settling on a less hurtful term. ”...a little too creative?”