I was reborn after cheating on the aloof and powerful man.

Chapter 48 "Rules"

However, three days later, Fei Xi did not descend the mountain as she had hoped.

The day before her departure, Old Miao brought her some medicinal herbs she needed. She sorted through the herbs one by one and found that one essential ingredient was missing.

She was leaving tomorrow, and not one to rely on others, she wanted to prepare some self-defense medicine before setting off. Without further ado, she slung her medicine basket over her shoulder and headed towards the place where Elder Miao lived atop Shuohan Peak.

Snowflakes swirled all day long atop Shuohan Peak. Even though Fei Xi, who lacked internal energy and was physically weaker than ordinary people, wrapped herself up like a ball, she still felt a chill seeping into her bones.

She walked forward step by step against the wind and snow, which was falling unusually heavily today. The snow blurred her vision, and in the vast expanse of snow, her mind was focused on going out tomorrow, so much so that she ignored some unusual sounds in her surroundings.

The wind and snow howled, and a tense atmosphere filled the air. Two figures stood facing each other, one holding a cold sword that gleamed with a chilling light; the other wielding a wild blade, exuding an aura of dominance.

In an instant, the expert wielding the cold sword moved swiftly, his sword like a whirlwind, thrusting straight at the expert wielding the mad blade. The mad blade expert dodged to the side, his mad blade flashing out as he swung, slashing at the cold sword expert with fierce momentum.

The blade moved like a raging storm, the sword as swift as lightning and thunder. The two exchanged blows, their sword shadows and blade flashes intertwined, and for a time, neither could gain the upper hand.

Just as the Mad Saber Master's sword energy surged and he slashed at the Cold Sword Master, a humanoid sphere suddenly entered the battle between the two.

The madman's mind went blank for a moment, thinking a small blue bear had appeared on Shuohan Peak. By the time he realized it was a person, his sword energy was already out of control, and he slashed down at the intruding "ball".

The mountain path was slippery with snow, and Fei Xi lost her footing, sliding forward without her feet touching the ground. Just as her heart was pounding in fear as she lost control of her body, a piercing "Watch out!" startled her so much that she almost fell to the ground.

She didn't fall; a pair of strong hands turned her around and pulled her into their arms to steady her. She felt as if she were being embraced by the moon, until blood slowly seeped through her moon-white clothes, making the cold, pale moon seem like a blood moon.

A muffled groan came from her chest. She looked up and saw a pair of full lips tightly closed, as delicate and red as ripe cherries, even more vibrant than usual. Tiny drops of blood slowly seeped from between the lips, like rouge on a stain. She couldn't help but touch them with her fingers, still bearing traces of blood. The blood quickly stained her fingers, and she felt as if her heart had been stained red along with them.

She couldn't understand why the blood of such a cold person could be so red and so beautiful. As if eager to find the answer, her gaze couldn't help but move upwards, to a pair of eyes that seemed to hold stars above a high, straight nose.

The stars reflected in her eyes, and she tried to see them clearly, but the eyes that met hers only stared at her indifferently, which made Fei Xi even more puzzled.

"Senior Bian, why did you save me?"

"I never break a promise I've made."

He released her from his grasp, and Bian Yuan couldn't help but spit out a mouthful of blood. In the urgency of the situation, he had no choice but to use his physical body to withstand all of Cui Chou's sword energy.

"Where did you come from, you little brat? Even if you didn't know you couldn't come here, couldn't you hear a single sound?"

A harsh, grating voice chattered incessantly in Fei Xi's ears. She didn't recognize the person beside her. She lowered her eyelids and replied softly:

"I don't know. I don't know martial arts, and my hearing isn't that good."

"Look at your clumsy, bear-like appearance, even if you know martial arts, you'll never become a master."

The duel was unexpectedly interrupted, and Cui Chou was not in a good mood.

Upon hearing this, Fei Xi finally looked seriously at the person who had been cursing her.

Neither male nor female!

She cursed inwardly, then turned and helped Senior Bian towards Elder Miao, saying without looking back:

“I know I have no chance of becoming a master, but I also know that if you continue to neglect the area three inches below your right abdomen, you won’t live more than three years.”

Cui Chou raised an eyebrow, his gaze shifting three inches below his right abdomen... His casual expression changed, his eyes darkening as he looked at the person who had already walked away with an unfriendly expression.

At the summit of Shuohan Peak stood several simple wooden huts. An old man sat under the eaves of one of the huts, grinding Scutellaria baicalensis with a medicine grinder. Hearing the noise, he looked up and exclaimed in surprise:

"Girl, what brings you here? Master, what happened to you?!"

"Grandpa Miao, Senior Bian was injured while saving me. Let's go inside first and talk about it."

Upon hearing this, Old Miao dared not delay and quickly opened the door to let the two into the house. Then he turned around and tidied up the things on the ground outside.

Upon entering the house, one finds a living room. The living room lacks tables and chairs, instead filled with triangular wooden racks upon which sit round bamboo baskets, drying various medicinal herbs. In a corner of the living room, tools for processing these herbs are piled up on the floor.

Fei Xi was clearly very familiar with this place. She led the people quickly through the medicine shelves and from the living room to a room that looked like an alchemy room.

The alchemy room seemed to have an underfloor heating system, as it was warm and cozy upon entering. There were many cabinets around the perimeter, but the most striking feature was a five-foot-long and three-foot-wide alchemy furnace in the center of the room. Not far from the furnace was a bamboo couch with a set of embroidered quilts, seemingly intended for a short rest.

Fei Xi helped the person sit on the bamboo couch. She didn't have any medical tools with her, so she could only borrow Miao Lao's things.

Having been at Shuohan Peak for half a month, and having seen through the true nature of Bian Yuan's two maids, she became too lazy to deal with them anymore. Instead, she spent most of her time visiting the dozen or so disabled elderly people on Shuohan Peak, among whom Elder Miao, skilled in medicine, and Elder Li, who had lost an arm, were the kindest to her.

She quickly gathered what she needed, and when she turned around, she saw Senior Bian with a cold face, looking displeased for some reason. But his lips were already pale, which made Fei Xi feel a little worried.

"Senior Bian, please take off your clothes and lie down. I will treat your wounds."

She stepped forward to remove the cloak that was in her way, but as soon as her hand touched the senior's collar, he grabbed it. His deep eyes stared at her, his cold tone carrying a hint of incomprehension and rejection:

“Are you very familiar with Miao Shouyi? Call him in, and you can leave.”

“Grandpa Miao? Hmm, I’ll come over to help out sometimes these days. Senior Bian, don’t talk, take off your coat and lie down. The wound on your back needs to be treated quickly.”

Fei Xi didn't think much of it and tried to break free from the hands that were holding her, so she could quickly take off the other person's coat and check the wound.

Senior Bian tightened his grip, and Fei Xi felt as if her hands were locked in place by iron and stone, unable to move.

"go out!"

His cold words left no room for negotiation, and Senior Bian released her hand after speaking.

Fei Xi didn't understand what it meant and was about to ask for clarification when the curtain was lifted and Old Miao limped in.

"Master, was it the butcher who injured you?"

Bian Yuan remained silent, glancing at the old man at the door. Old Miao immediately stopped talking, stepped forward, and saw that several incense tables beside the bed already had the necessary items for treating the wounds laid out.

"Girl, go and grind some Bletilla striata for me."

Fei Xi, realizing the situation, paused for a moment, then lowered her eyelids. She understood that the other person did not trust her medical skills. She said nothing more, simply hummed in agreement, and walked out.

Old Miao watched Fei leave, knowing that his master was always very particular about "rules". Just as he was wondering whether to take his master indoors for treatment, he turned around and saw that his master, who was always fastidious, had already taken off his crane cloak and was lying on the embroidered quilt with small flowers, closing his eyes.