The Side Character Who Wins by Doing Nothing

Just as they were about to escape, they heard Qin Miao let out a soft snort. ”Such a paltry trick. How dare you embarrass yourself in front of me.”

She barely moved. As she snorted, Lu Sangjiu clearly felt the space around her instantly become sealed!

The Teleportation Talisman... was completely useless!

This was the gap between the Body Integration Realm and the Golden Core Stage—a chasm as wide as the sky.

At that moment, they felt their bodies go rigid, unable to move a muscle. They could only watch helplessly as Qin Miao’s devastating palm strike shot toward them.

’There’s no dodging it!’

Lu Sangjiu clenched her fists. She desperately wanted to break through the restraint and fight back, but the reality was that she couldn’t even lift a finger.

Then, she heard a soft sigh from Xie Ningyuan, who stood beside her.

Her eyes flew wide. She wanted to stop him, but she couldn’t say a word or do a thing.

All she felt was a gentle breeze brush past her before Xie Ningyuan moved to stand in front of everyone.

A golden Buddha Light blazed brilliantly in the dark night, utterly consuming the evil, dark energy of Qin Miao’s attack. Then, without losing any momentum, it continued hurtling toward Qin Miao.

Qin Miao’s calm, confident expression finally changed. Her pupils constricted as she retreated rapidly. Only by unleashing another palm strike did she barely manage to neutralize Xie Ningyuan’s attack.

However, Buddhist Practitioners naturally counter Evil Cultivators and Demon Cultivators. Even though she blocked the attack, Qin Miao was inevitably wounded by the Buddha Light.

She wiped the blood from her lips, her gaze turning frigid as she stared at Xie Ningyuan. ”A Buddhist Practitioner... It seems I underestimated you. I didn’t expect you to be hiding your true strength.”

The news that Xie Ningyuan had broken the seal at the Gold and Silver Gate had been suppressed, so Qin Miao naturally had no way of knowing.

Having been caught completely off guard, her gaze was now filled with deep apprehension as she looked at Xie Ningyuan.

However, she could vaguely sense that Xie Ningyuan wasn’t in good shape. So, instead of fleeing immediately, she hesitated, debating whether she should press the attack.

But just then, Lu Sangjiu, who could finally move again, shouted sharply, ”Ms. Yan Zui has already contacted Elder Hua Jianzhi! Elder Hua will be here any moment. You’re not leaving here alive today!”

Qin Miao frowned slightly, suspecting Lu Sangjiu was bluffing. After all, she had just sealed the surrounding space; normally, a Communication Talisman wouldn’t be able to send a message out.

But Yan Zui was Hua Jianzhi’s disciple, after all. No one could guarantee that she and her master didn’t share some special method of communication.

As she hesitated, she heard Yan Zui say anxiously, ”Fellow Daoist Lu, don’t speak so rashly!”

”Xie Ningyuan, you must hold her off!”

Qin Miao, who had been hesitating, was no longer willing to take the gamble after hearing this.

She snorted coldly. ”Lu Sangjiu, we will meet again!”

”Next time, you won’t be so lucky!”

With that, Qin Miao tore through space, and her figure vanished from the sky.

The moment Qin Miao was gone, the pressure enveloping the group vanished. Yan Zui and the others, who were already injured, either felt their legs go weak and collapsed to the ground or simply crumpled where they stood.

”We finally scared her off...”

Yan Zui was sprawled on the ground, panting heavily. In truth, while she had tried to contact her master, Qin Miao’s interference had prevented the message from getting through.

She knew a little about Xie Ningyuan’s condition, so combined with what Lu Sangjiu said, she had immediately realized he probably couldn’t last much longer.

So she had quickly spoken up to play along with Lu Sangjiu’s bluff, which had finally scared Qin Miao away. ’That was too close!’

Everyone was lost in the feeling of having survived a great disaster, unable to pull themselves together for a long time.

Lu Sangjiu, however, paid no mind to her own condition and immediately went to check on Xie Ningyuan.

She didn’t blame him for acting despite his condition, because she had to admit that if he hadn’t, they would all have died here today.

As one of the saved, she had no right to blame him. Besides, what was done was done, and saying more would be pointless.

She asked calmly, ”Can you hold on? I’ll take you back to the Ten Thousand Buddha Sect right now!”

’The Ten Thousand Buddha Sect saved him once, so they can save him a second time. As long as we’re fast enough, we’ll definitely make it in time!’

She was just about to pull Xie Ningyuan away when he gave a slight tug, stopping her.

”That won’t be necessary.”

Those three words made Lu Sangjiu’s heart clench. Fear and disbelief spread through her.

She whipped her head around, ready to argue, to shout at him, but then she saw a trickle of dark red blood flow from the corner of his lips.

The color of the blood stung her eyes. They welled up, and tears began to fall.

She took a deep breath. Instead of shouting, her voice held a stubborn, almost desperate calm. ”There has to be a way. The Ten Thousand Buddha Sect can save you. Come with me!”

Xie Ningyuan froze for a moment. Seeing her crying silently, yet with such a stubborn expression, a corner of his heart softened, and a warm, stirring emotion gradually filled his chest.

He raised his hand to wipe the tears from her face, but paused mid-air, ultimately just patting her gently on the head.

”What I mean is, there’s no need to go to the Ten Thousand Buddha Sect. I can handle this myself.”

Lu Sangjiu froze, her eyes widening in surprise and confusion. ”...Huh?”

A slight smile touched Xie Ningyuan’s lips. ”Find a safe place. I’m going to confront my Heart Demon.”

!!!

Lu Sangjiu was stunned for a moment before his meaning sank in. Then, she was overcome with joy. ”You mean you can finally overcome your Heart Demon?”

The best, and also most dangerous, way to completely eliminate a Heart Demon was to confront it directly.

If one confronted their Heart Demon and triumphed, the demon would be destroyed completely.

Of course... if one failed, they would be completely Fallen into Demon, with no hope of turning back.

Xie Ningyuan had been burdened by his Heart Demon for many years without ever trying to confront it, because he knew he wouldn’t be able to succeed.

’But for him to say he’s going to confront it now, he must be confident!’

Lu Sangjiu didn’t doubt this for a second. She immediately turned and shouted to the others, ”Quick, let’s get out of here!”

’If we don’t leave now, we’ll be in serious trouble if Qin Miao decides to come back.’

The others understood the urgency of the situation and quickly helped one another gather together.

Lu Sangjiu used a Teleportation Talisman, and in the blink of an eye, the group was transported to a desolate wilderness.

Yan Zui was more familiar with the terrain of Qingyun State. She extended her Divine Sense to get a feel for their surroundings. ”This should be Qingyue Mountain, about a hundred-some li from Yuelin City. The demon beasts here are low-Level, so it’s relatively safe. Let’s rest and recover here!”

By this point, Xie Ningyuan was already struggling to suppress the Demonic Qi within him.

Lu Sangjiu acted decisively. She found a clearing and had him sit down, then set up a Barrier around him to prevent the Demonic Qi from leaking out and attracting unwanted attention.

Xie Ningyuan closed his eyes to meditate and quickly fell still.

Lu Sangjiu knew... ’He’s letting the world of his Heart Demon open up, allowing himself to enter it.’

A flicker of worry crossed her eyes, but she knew there was nothing she could do to help. ’All I can do is trust him.’