Chapter 37 All Living Kings of Hell

Chapter 37: All Are Merciless Devils

Meng Shu's brows furrowed slightly. "What did he do to upset you?"

"He brought it on himself." Ling Qingjue glanced at the fox, his smile cold. "You know how you hurt yourself."

He had said that this talisman was just a little trick.

But this little trick made it way too easy to kill a Jia Zhao.

The fox was half-dead in Xu Linzhou's arms, its soft fur soaked in blood, its claws weakly scratching at Xu Linzhou's chest.

"Whimper..."

Xu Linzhou held him tightly, protesting in a low voice: "He's just a little animal, what harm could he do... Ling Qingjue, you're so strong, can't you even save him?"

Ling Qingjue's long lashes drooped. "No."

"If he dies, he's gone for good!" Xu Linzhou, clueless that the fox in his arms was a textbook case of reaping what he sowed, face red with anger, brows furrowed. "If I'd known you were this cold-blooded, I never would've liked you!"

Was there really such a good thing? Ling Qingjue raised an eyebrow, a smile actually appearing on his usually cold face. "You'd better stick to your word."

Xu Linzhou had been pestering him for a long time. The guy was like a creep, showing up everywhere, even lunging at him when he wasn't looking, trying to grope him.

Honestly, if the rules didn't forbid it, Ling Qingjue would've burned Xu Linzhou to ashes and scattered them long ago.

"Ling Qingjue! You—you're cold-blooded, heartless, and unreasonable—"

Ling Qingjue sneered, "Want me to shut you up again?"

The fox's head drooped in his arms, like it was about to kick the bucket.

Seeing Xu Linzhou was about to cry from anger, Meng Shu knew trouble was brewing and had to steel himself to speak, "Cat..."

Ling Qingjue reached out, flicked him on the forehead out of nowhere, and lowered his head slightly: "If you beg for him, I'll shut you up too."

His tone was flat, like he was just commenting on the nice weather.

But Meng Shu could tell he was pissed.

Meng Shu pressed his lips together, jaw tightening, a rare sharpness flashing in his eyes. "Even if you shut me up, I still have to beg you. He can't die. Death isn't a joke. You can't just not save him because you don't like him."

Ling Qingjue's gaze was icy, slowly sizing him up.

That look was too sharp. Meng Shu felt intimidated but stiffened his neck and met his eyes.

"What if I refuse to save him?" Ling Qingjue was totally unfazed, bending down to meet his eyes, a hint of malice in his voice. "What can you do about it? Huh?"

Meng Shu stepped back. Of course, he couldn't do anything to Ling Qingjue!

He was just an outsider. To Ling Qingjue, he was at most a tenant who could cook.

That status was way too ordinary for Ling Qingjue, totally insignificant.

He lowered his head, embarrassed, as if talking to himself, "I... I can only cook you one less meal and be mad at you for a couple days... You probably don't care anyway."

Ling Qingjue's face darkened. Not cook for him? Meng Shu was actually threatening him with no dinner!

Was Jia Zhao's life worth more than his dinner?

Of course, Jia Zhao didn't know his life wasn't worth a meal. He listened weakly to them talking, figuring Ling Qingjue wasn't going to save him, and for a moment felt like the universe was against him.

As a pending Law Agent, Star Sign Prophet, 6th-tier Adventurer...

Am I really going to die this easily? Jia Zhao wondered.

His pupils dilated, his gaze slowly landing on Meng Shu's dazzling red hair, like a blazing sun lighting up his eyes.

He still had one more trick up his sleeve!

As a native, he had the right to demand the Brave do one thing that didn't break the rules.

This was the affection quest.

With his last bit of strength, he issued the quest to the unlucky tool Brave, then closed his eyes and blacked out completely.

At the same time, a mechanical sound rang in Meng Shu's ears, and a quest panel appeared before his eyes.

"Successfully save character Jia Zhao"

"Quest deadline: Three minutes"

"Reward: Character Jia Zhao's favorability increases by ten points"

"Additional reward: Fox Clan secret technique"

A quest suddenly popped up in front of him. Meng Shu blinked, instantly getting it. He grabbed at it like a lifeline, putting on a pleading smile: "Cat, look, this is a system quest with rewards..."

Ling Qingjue was just looking for an out, and now that he had one, he naturally took it.

He pretended to be disappointed, turning his head away, looking reluctant: "Since it's your quest, I'll help you out, but only reluctantly."

Meng Shu let out a sigh of relief.

"Thanks, Cat!" he said with a grateful smile.

Ling Qingjue pinched the fox's scruff, lifting it and shaking it a couple of times.

It was really unconscious.

Ever since Meng Shu entered the forest, Ling Qingjue had been using Spirit Transmission to observe Meng Shu's actions.

This was only because he was worried the cook wouldn't come home on time to make him dinner! Absolutely no other reason!

Through the Spirit Mirror, Ling Qingjue keenly noticed Jia Zhao crush that water orb, summoning a Cave Spider, trying to kill those two fools.

Since he had left a talisman for Meng Shu before leaving, Ling Qingjue wasn't worried that the Cave Spider could kill Meng Shu, and sat back to watch the show.

Until this fox was forced back into its original form by his talisman, on the verge of death.

The damn fox was pretty heavy.

Ling Qingjue sighed inwardly, his pupils forming a sharp arc. A faint green light, like fireflies, fell into Jia Zhao's body, and the shattered bones quickly healed and grew.

Jia Zhao's breathing steadied, the blood on his body gradually disappeared, and his tail became fluffy again, a furry stick swaying in midair.

Having healed the fox, Ling Qingjue let go in disgust, and the fox fell to the ground like a ragdoll.

Xu Linzhou quickly picked him up from the ground and patted him. "Hey, is he clean now?"

Ling Qingjue said, "I also cast a cleansing spell on him. He was filthy as hell."

Meng Shu's face lit up in a grin. "Is he gonna be okay?"

Ling Qingjue glanced at his face—his smile was so genuine, lively, and vivid.

"Yeah. He's fine. Just coughed up too much blood, so he'll be out for a while."

Meanwhile, Meng Shu's task showed as completed, and his affinity with Jia Zhao was up to ten points.

As for the Fox Clan secret technique, he'd have to learn it directly from Jia Zhao once he woke up.

The group rested on the spot. Ling Qingjue casually conjured a rocking chair and lay down. Meng Shu, ever attentive, crouched beside him, hovering over him: "Why did you come out today? Are you tired? Is the sun burning you? I'll make you some grilled fish tonight to make it up to you, okay?"

Ling Qingjue answered him slowly: "Used up the talisman. Tired. Hurts. Okay."

He rattled off answers to all four questions in one breath.

Xu Linzhou sat on a nearby rock, the fox still unconscious in his arms. He was fascinated by the fox's smooth, glossy fur and couldn't stop petting it.

Ling Qingjue snorted coldly. "A dirty fox has you all whipped."

Meng Shu secretly glanced at his sharp profile, his heart softening. He lowered his voice: "Thanks, Cat. I always thought you hated me, but you were willing to help me today. You're exactly what I thought—a really good cat."

Ling Qingjue muttered, "I'm a bad kitty."

"A good cat," Meng Shu shook his head repeatedly. "I know you must have your reasons. You wouldn't refuse to save him for no reason."

Ling Qingjue looked away. "I just didn't want to save him. No reason."

Meng Shu helplessly curved his eyes. "Being too stubborn's gonna get you in trouble."

"Who can get me into trouble?" Ling Qingjue crossed his arms. "The person who can get me into trouble hasn't been born yet."

On the other side, Xu Linzhou stroked the fox's fur, liking it more and more. He asked out of the blue, "Wouldn't it be great to skin him and make a fox-fur coat?"

Ling Qingjue laughed. "Sure. Let's do it now."

Jia Zhao, who had been pretending to sleep, immediately jumped three meters into the air. What the hell? How'd he run into another heartless bastard?