The Side Character Who Wins by Doing Nothing

Lu Sangjiu stared at Xie Ningyuan in surprise. This seemed to be... the first time she had ever seen him lose control of his emotions.

He was angry, furious that she had acted on her own.

If this were any other time, she thought, she would definitely be angry too.

She would have retorted loudly, ’This is my business! Why can’t I make my own decisions?’

But... he was Xie Ningyuan. She knew he was only like this because he was worried sick about her.

She had never had a Daoist partner before, nor did she know what it was supposed to be like to be with one.

Since getting together with Xie Ningyuan, she had been so busy with countless tasks that their dynamic seemed unchanged from before.

She had a faint feeling that this wasn’t how other Daoist partners were, but she didn’t know what was wrong or how to change it.

But... in this moment, she suddenly understood.

A Daoist partner meant that she was no longer alone. She shouldn’t make all her decisions based on her own thoughts anymore... because her safety was no longer just her own concern.

There would be someone else who worried about her safety even more than she did.

As she thought this, her heart suddenly softened, and... a sense of guilt welled up.

She suddenly took a step forward and hugged Xie Ningyuan tightly.

The man who had been scolding her abruptly fell silent. All his uncontrollable emotions, and... his sense of being wronged, seemed to dissipate in that one embrace.

He pressed his lips together firmly, then finally raised his arms and gently hugged her back.

It was warm, and gentle.

”I’m sorry.”

Lu Sangjiu murmured softly in his arms, ”I didn’t consider your feelings. I’m sorry.”

Xie Ningyuan didn’t speak, only letting out a long sigh. He rested his chin on top of her head and tightened his embrace.

”I’m not blaming you. I just... suddenly feel so useless, unable to be the one you rely on.”

”So much so that when something happens, your first thought isn’t to discuss it with me, but to make all the decisions by yourself.”

Guilt pricked at Lu Sangjiu’s heart. ”You know that’s not what I meant...”

”I know. But it’s what you do subconsciously.”

He said, ”I can understand you, but... I can’t reason with myself.”

Lu Sangjiu looked up at him pitifully. ”Then... then I’ll listen to you now. What do you say we should do?”

Xie Ningyuan looked down at her. ”First, we get the Gu Worm removed.”

”No!” she blurted out, then looked a little awkward. ”I... I’m not going back on my word, it’s just...”

Xie Ningyuan sighed helplessly and ruffled her hair. ”It’s just that you don’t want to give up the opportunity you have right now.”

Lu Sangjiu nodded pitifully. ”Mhm...”

”Then let’s compromise. We’ll go to the Lingjian Sect first and see if their elder has a solution. If it’s possible to remove it, at least we’ll have a fallback plan, and then we can figure out our next steps.”

She thought for a moment and agreed with Xie Ningyuan. They needed to know if she had an escape route before planning anything else.

So she quickly stood on her tiptoes and pecked Xie Ningyuan on the lips. Seeing his slightly stunned expression, she giggled. ”That’s your reward for helping me strategize!”

「Western Demon Realm.」

Cangming stood atop a mountain peak, looking down upon the entire Western Demon Realm.

He could feel her joys and sorrows, her anger and delight, transmitted through the Mother Gu.

After a long moment, he pressed a hand to his heart and murmured to himself, ’Is this... what it feels like when you fall in love with someone?’

Just a moment ago, her emotions had shifted, becoming completely different. It was a... complex, indescribable mix of joy, warmth, guilt, heartache... and more, all tangled together.

Sometimes, she should have been feeling sad, yet he could still sense a warmth emanating from the depths of her heart—a feeling completely alien to him.

He just knew. She must be with that man.

The Mother Gu transmitted all sorts of strange emotions, forcing Cangming to experience everything Lu Sangjiu felt.

But at the same time, his own heart felt as if it were being slowly roasted over a low flame, a fine, dense pain spreading through it.

Her feelings intertwined with his own pain... and somehow, it hurt even more.

”You love him, you love the people of this world, you love all living things, but why... why can’t you love me?”

’If she would just love me a little, I would lay the entire world at her feet... Can that Buddha Son do that?’

After finishing their discussion, Lu Sangjiu and Xie Ningyuan returned to the room.

No one had left; they were all still waiting for them.

Lu Sangjiu didn’t waste words. She looked directly at Gu Jue, clasped her hands in a salute, and said, ”Mr. Gu, please take me to the Lingjian Sect.”

Seeing that Lu Sangjiu had changed her mind, everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Gu Jue immediately nodded. ”Alright. Mr. Xie, we’ll need your help getting there.”

Xie Ningyuan didn’t hesitate. He said to Duan Xingyun and the others, ”I’ll take them there. You all can stay here and wait for us to return.”

A moment later, the three of them arrived before the main gates of the Lingjian Sect.

With Gu Jue present, the group entered the sect without any trouble.

Gu Jue led them to his master. After Sword Bu Gui heard their story, he frowned. ”I need to report this to the Sect Leader first.”

Lu Sangjiu clasped her hands again. ”Senior, I must ask you to conceal parts of this matter from the Sect Leader.”

She said, ”The peace talks are imminent. If they find out that I am the reason Cangming agreed to the talks, I’m afraid they’ll have reservations.”

”So please, Senior, just tell him that Cangming was worried I was deceiving him about the peace talks and planted the Gu in me for that reason. I’m begging you.”

She had explained everything to Sword Bu Gui, partly out of trust in him, and partly because she didn’t want to lie to him.

But if others knew the whole truth, they would surely overthink things, so it was better not to say anything.

Sword Bu Gui hesitated for a moment, then stared at Lu Sangjiu. ”If the Old Ancestor can remove your Gu Worm, then what about Cangming...?”

Lu Sangjiu’s expression turned serious. ”Rest assured, Senior. Since I’ve taken on this matter, I will see it through to the end.”

”Even if it can be removed, I will come up with another way. I will absolutely not let this affect the peace talks.”

Sword Bu Gui fell silent and said nothing.

Beside them, Gu Jue couldn’t help but say, ”Master, I believe Ms. Lu, and I ask you to believe her too.”

Shooting his disciple a look of exasperation, Sword Bu Gui huffed, ”All you know is how to side with outsiders!”

’The girl’s already taken, and he’s still here helping her like a fool.’

’What a foolish disciple!’

However, Sword Bu Gui had interacted with Lu Sangjiu many times and had a general understanding of her character. After some hesitation, he finally agreed.

The Sect Leader was still in a meeting at the Joyful Union Sect, so Sword Bu Gui contacted him with a Communication Talisman. He briefly explained the situation, and the Sect Leader quickly replied, telling him to go and request an audience with the Old Ancestor directly.

After going through the necessary procedures, about half a day had passed before Sword Bu Gui returned to Lu Sangjiu. ”Come with me,” he said. ”I’ll take you to see the Old Ancestor.”