Chapter 16: The Unseen Lure

Afterward, Ye Cha did not leave his dwelling. Instead, he remained firmly inside, refusing to see any visitors.

This meant that while Lingtian Sect was embroiled in shock over the scandal between him and the Sect Leader, Ye Cha, the male protagonist of the rumor, remained utterly unaffected, simply lying peacefully on his bed, staring blankly at the rafters.

According to his original plan, he should have gone out, hinting at something unspoken to fuel everyone’s imagination.

This would have intensified the spread of the rumor, making it easier for him to approach Shen Ruotong and enact his plans.

However, considering today was when the Tianluo Profound Poison would act up, he decided it was better to lay low.

Moreover, Li Ge’s incident provided a perfect excuse for him to take a leave of absence openly, without arousing any suspicion.

He often wondered when he would finally be free from the Tianluo Body. He had only ever wished for a peaceful life, but events kept spiraling beyond his control.

Ye Cha could only accept this harsh reality.

‘Sleep now. After tonight, tomorrow will come.’

New challenges still awaited him.

****

“Come closer~ I have what you desire. Do not resist, hasten to my side.”

Whispers, laced with an irresistible allure, seemed to murmur in his ear, compelling him to obey her words.

It was as if deep-sea mermaids, emerging onto ocean reefs under the moonlight, sang their enchanting melodies to passing ships, drawing sailors’ gazes irrevocably to them.

In the next moment, captivated by the song, the sailors would plunge into the depths, sinking into the cold embrace of the sea.

It was only then, as the icy water swallowed them whole, that the sailors, their eyes previously glazed over, would snap back to their senses.

Freed from the mermaid’s song, their vision was met with the deep blue ocean, the shimmering surface above growing ever more distant.

At this very moment, Ye Cha was jolted awake by a cold gust of wind. The instant he opened his eyes, the desolate, barren slopes around him screamed that everything was profoundly out of place.

He had been sleeping soundly in his room, so why, upon waking, had he appeared in this ominous locale?

‘Sleepwalking?’

‘Impossible, I don’t have such a habit.’

As reason and thought slowly returned, Ye Cha’s mind began to clear.

Though his surroundings felt utterly foreign, a memory stirred within him, suggesting he had been here before.

‘What place is this… wait, I remember now!’

‘Isn’t this the place where the demonic enchantress is imprisoned?!’

He recalled that when he first reported to the sect, the senior sister who guided him had specifically warned him never to come here alone, lest he be ensnared by the demonic enchantress.

Ye Cha typically steered clear of anything dangerous unless there was a tempting benefit, so to find himself inexplicably here now was truly peculiar.

‘Or was I ambushed?’

‘Did Li Ge and his unsavory companions plot their revenge?’

The cultivation world harbored countless bizarre techniques. He had heard that Ghost Cultivators possessed an evil Gu technique that could instantly kill or cripple someone with just a single strand of their hair.

It could also drastically alter one’s personality, causing them to lose control of their own body.

As Ye Cha pondered who might have ambushed him, a female voice suddenly echoed from ahead, instantly setting off alarm bells in his mind, and a terrible premonition swiftly descended upon him!

However, even as Ye Cha sensed the impending danger, his feet moved forward uncontrollably.

Despite Ye Cha exerting all his strength to resist, it was utterly futile.

Step by step, he advanced toward the gaping, shadowy maw ahead, which resembled an evil beast’s wide-open mouth, ceaselessly spewing boundless malice until it utterly swallowed Ye Cha whole.