After Rebirth, the Love-Struck Cannon Fodder Woke Up - Chapter 7

Chapter 7: Crisis

◎ Entering the Illusion Array Together, Suddenly Under Attack ◎

Du Lianxin was caught off guard and embraced by Feng Ruo again. When she came to her senses, she tried to struggle but couldn’t break free.

At this moment, she clearly felt a slightly chilly gaze fixed on her, making her feel anxious and angry.

She had decided to distance herself from the person who brought her tragedy in the previous life after her rebirth, yet a single appointment had led to this situation.

With her knowledge of Shen Anlan from her past life, she could sense that the other party was angry.

Du Lianxin naturally assumed that Shen Anlan was angry because Feng Ruo was close to her—she was jealous of Feng Ruo.

She continued to struggle, but Feng Ruo leaned her head on her right shoulder and lightly exhaled onto her neck.

Du Lianxin instantly stiffened, and her small face flushed crimson again.

Neither in her past life nor in this one had she ever been treated this way or been so intimately close to anyone.

In her previous life, although she was infatuated with Shen Anlan, she also knew clearly that Shen Anlan disliked her and preferred her to keep her distance, which she always did.

Even when she used forbidden techniques to save her later on, Du Lianxin never overstepped.

She hadn’t expected to be treated like this by Shen Anlan’s destined person in this new life.

She wondered what Shen Anlan felt seeing this scene.

As she thought this, her left arm suddenly felt a sharp pain, followed by an irresistible force that pulled her out of Feng Ruo’s embrace.

Du Lianxin momentarily lost her balance and stumbled forward, falling directly into Shen Anlan’s arms.

A clean, elegant scent of bamboo reached her nose. Yet, in that instant, her mind flashed back to the cold thanks she received after treating Shen Anlan in her past life, and the distant, retreating figure that never looked back.

Her heart twisted in a spasm of pain, and the color drained from Du Lianxin’s face.

She endured the pain, straightened up, and subconsciously took two steps back.

Shen Anlan frowned at her action, just about to say something, when her gaze caught the girl’s pale face. Her heart tightened, and she quickly stepped forward, taking her right hand to check her pulse.

After a quick examination, she found nothing wrong.

Du Lianxin’s complexion remained pale. She didn’t want too much contact with Shen Anlan. After the pain subsided slightly, she pulled her right hand away from Shen Anlan’s grasp.

Shen Anlan fixed her gaze on her. “Junior Sister Du, were you feeling unwell just now? Do you know the cause?”

Du Lianxin collected herself and replied gently, “Thank you for your concern, Senior Sister Shen. It’s just a small issue, nothing serious.”

Her tone was utterly gentle, but combined with her expression and actions, a closer look revealed a sense of distance.

In her past life, due to the difference in their status, Du Lianxin could only address Shen Anlan as “Immortal Shen.” In this life, after becoming a disciple of Fu Peak, she could finally call her “Senior Sister Shen.” But now, her heart was calm.

Her state of mind was different; her former longings were no longer important.

Beside them, Feng Ruo observed their actions, her smile deepening.

“Fellow Daoist Shen, Miss Du seems quite unwilling to be close to you. In my opinion, how about letting Miss Du stay by my side? What do you think, Fellow Daoist?”

Shen Anlan was displeased. She did feel Junior Sister Du’s alienation, but there was no way she would agree to let her stay with the clearly ill-intentioned Feng Ruo.

“This Xuanyou Gourd has enough space. We can sit separately; there’s no need to lean on each other.”

With that, she walked forward a few steps, blocking Feng Ruo’s gaze toward the girl. At the same time, she formed a hand seal and cast a spell.

The next moment, the Xuanyou Gourd, under her control, flew high into the sky, then instantly transformed into a stream of light, speeding toward Donglin Town.

Du Lianxin saw Shen Anlan’s actions and only assumed that the other party disliked Feng Ruo’s attention being focused on her.

She smiled bitterly to herself. If this continued, would Shen Anlan start seeing her as a love rival?

Deeply affected by her past life, she had never considered another possibility.

The Xuanyou Gourd flew extremely fast, approaching Donglin Town in less than half a joss stick (less than a minute).

The secret report received by the Clear River Sect mentioned evil spirits at this location. Previously, Shen Anlan had come alone to investigate but was blocked by the illusion formation and failed to solve the disaster.

Now, they were fully prepared.

She flicked her sleeve, retrieving a jade bottle, and poured out three snow-white pills.

“These are top-grade Tranquil Heart Pills. After consumption, they will ensure you are unaffected by the formation for two hours upon entering the illusion array.”

With a flick of her finger, two pills flew out, landing separately in front of Du Lianxin and Feng Ruo.

Tranquil Heart Pills are sweet, one of the few elixirs that contain no bitterness.

Du Lianxin accepted the pill and swallowed it without hesitation.

Feng Ruo observed for a moment before consuming the elixir.

After taking the Tranquil Heart Pill, Shen Anlan controlled the Xuanyou Gourd to hover over the formation. She waved her sleeve and took out a transparent scroll.

This was a recording artifact commonly used by Clear River Sect cultivators, capable of engraving any text or diagram using divine sense.

Once the divine sense was withdrawn, everything would return to its initial state.

After taking out the scroll, Shen Anlan quickly mapped out the nodes of the illusion formation.

“The formation’s entrance is located in the southeast direction. Fellow Daoist Feng, after entering the formation, head straight west for five li (approx. 2.5 km) to reach the formation’s only defensive node. Junior Sister Du and I will head straight north for three li (approx. 1.5 km) to reach the core of the formation. As long as these two points are destroyed, the illusion array will naturally cease to exist.”

When discussing the mission, Feng Ruo’s playful demeanor vanished, replaced by a seriousness.

“This formation did not form naturally. Fellow Daoist Shen has been here before, so the formation’s creator has likely noticed. These two locations are very likely set up with ambushes.”

Shen Anlan nodded. “I have considered this. Based on the illusion array’s power and the overall situation in Donglin Town, the formation’s creator has at most a Mid-Stage Golden Core cultivation, and is more likely at the Foundation Establishment stage. As long as we are careful, there shouldn’t be any major problems.”

Upon hearing this, Feng Ruo’s lively eyes instantly looked toward Du Lianxin.

“Miss Du, the enemy poses no threat to Fellow Daoist Shen and me, but that is not the case for you. Do you have a protective treasure with you? If not, I have some treasures here that you can choose from.”

Du Lianxin hesitated. Speaking of protective treasures, she did have one: the jade pendant Ye Qiuwan had given her, which was sufficient to withstand attacks below the Nascent Soul stage.

However, the meaning behind that object was too significant. She had never considered using it, keeping it stored in her spatial pouch, intending to find an opportunity to explain the situation to Ye Qiuwan and return the pendant when she returned to the sect.

Besides that, there was the top-grade magic artifact, the Thousand Illusions Bell, recently given to her by her master.

Although this treasure could be used freely, its power was closely related to the user’s cultivation. With her current Qi Condensation Level Seven cultivation, it would be difficult to rely solely on it for defense.

However… the treasures Feng Ruo offered were probably quite valuable, and she couldn’t afford to buy them right now.

Du Lianxin had never considered taking things for free; she disliked owing favors.

Just as she was hesitating, Shen Anlan retrieved a jade hairpin shaped like a pale green lotus flower and carefully placed it in her hair.

Du Lianxin had been wholly focused on thinking about defense when she suddenly noticed the person beside her’s action. Full of surprise, she instinctively reached up, wanting to pull the hairpin out.

However, the next moment, her wrist was grasped by Shen Anlan, and a cool voice immediately reached her ear.

“Wearing this lotus hairpin will automatically defend you upon attack. Do not take it off.”

The grip on her wrist never loosened, suggesting that the girl wouldn’t be let go until she agreed.

Recalling that Shen Anlan still held the grace of saving her life in this lifetime, and that adding one more favor didn’t seem like much, Du Lianxin finally nodded gently.

Seeing her agree, Shen Anlan slowly let go of her hand.

Feng Ruo watched this scene and playfully complained, “Miss Du is so heartless. When I asked you just now, why didn’t you respond?”

Du Lianxin didn’t know how to respond for a moment. “I…”

Shen Anlan spoke up in time. “Junior Sister Du and I are fellow disciples; there’s no need to be overly concerned about favors. However, this is the first time we’ve met Fellow Daoist Feng, so it wouldn’t be right to accept a gift from her without cause.”

Hearing this, Feng Ruo gracefully moved, walking to Du Lianxin’s other side. Ignoring Shen Anlan’s suddenly cold gaze, she took the girl’s left hand, retrieved a pure white jade bracelet with a defensive function, and without regard for the girl’s wishes, slowly placed it on her slender wrist.

“Why say ‘without cause’? It’s all to protect Miss Du’s safety. Isn’t Fellow Daoist Shen doing the same?”

Du Lianxin felt the atmosphere was especially strange at this moment.

Affected by the events of her past life, she had subconsciously assumed Shen Anlan and Feng Ruo were a couple. Now, what was she, caught between the two of them?

A convenient tool to make them misunderstand and be jealous of each other?

Thinking of this, she felt incredibly uncomfortable and exerted all her strength to try and break free from Feng Ruo’s grasp.

Feng Ruo sensed the girl’s resistance and knew that pushing too hard would be counterproductive, so she proactively let go.

Gaining freedom, Du Lianxin immediately wanted to remove the jade bracelet, but Feng Ruo stopped her.

Feng Ruo said faintly, “The gift is only to ensure your safety. If you truly don’t wish to accept it, you can return the bracelet after the formation is broken. For the sake of safety now, please keep it on.”

Beside them, Shen Anlan frowned but did not speak.

Although she could probe the illusion array’s structure and find a way to break it, she couldn’t clearly see everything inside the formation. If Junior Sister Du had an extra layer of defense, her safety would have an extra layer of guarantee.

Du Lianxin also considered this point and stopped resisting, respectfully thanking Feng Ruo.

The three immediately began their action.

Shen Anlan and Du Lianxin set off simultaneously, entering the illusion array from the entrance.

Inside, the fog was dense, almost completely obscuring visibility.

The two headed straight north, traveling three li, gradually approaching the core of the formation.

It was in this instant that the thick fog suddenly began to churn. A jet-black claw tore through the air, targeting Du Lianxin, reaching her in a flash.

Shen Anlan reacted extremely fast, waving her sleeve. A stream of spiritual energy instantly transformed into a sword, deflecting the fierce attack away from her.

The next moment, another change occurred.

The bluestone-paved ground suddenly cracked inch by inch, and dense, withered claws reached out, grappling for Du Lianxin’s ankles.

The lotus hairpin in her hair and the jade bracelet on her wrist lit up simultaneously with a beam of spiritual light.

Accompanied by a series of bang sounds, the withered claws were collectively blocked outside the protective light barrier.

The danger seemed to have been averted. However, the warning sign in Du Lianxin’s heart grew stronger.

In that instant, some unfamiliar images abruptly flashed through her mind.

Immediately following, her actions were faster than her thoughts. She used all her strength to push away Shen Anlan, who was beside her, and rapidly leaped to the other side.

Almost at the same moment, a jet-black blade of light materialized from thin air where the two of them had just been standing, and a powerful aura of destruction instantly swept through the surroundings…