Chapter 281 - 280: Ugly Monster

Pei Yin’s eyes scanned her from head to toe in disgust. "You’re hideous."

Si Yan looked as if she’d been struck by lightning.

She stared at Pei Yin in disbelief. "You... you called me ugly?"

Among the Feather Clan, her Awakening Level wasn’t high, and she didn’t stand out among the dazzling crowd of High-level Awakened.

But based on her looks, she was by no means ugly.

Si Yan’s mouth fell slightly open, and she let out a laugh born of pure fury. "Ha. If I’m ugly, then there’s no one attractive left in the world."

She straightened her back. "I can’t be bothered to waste my breath on someone like you. I didn’t come here for you. You can have your shouting matches with whoever you want, I don’t care. But you have no right to interfere in my affairs."

’He’s just an outsider, a half-breed who even killed his own father.’

’If he hadn’t gotten lucky and Awakened, he would’ve been crushed to death in some gutter long ago.’

’What’s he so proud of?’

’I heard that if Pei Yin hadn’t been so remarkably handsome, the Pei Family might have just strangled him at birth.’

’Forget the Pei Clan; even my Feather Clan wouldn’t tolerate such an inferior bloodline.’

’He cruelly murdered so many Awakened from the Pei Clan and committed such a huge crime, yet the Alliance still protects him.’

Si Yan scornfully averted her gaze and turned to look at Ling Yanzhi.

She had more important things to discuss.

A smile touched Si Yan’s lips as she reached out to grab Ling Yanzhi’s arm. "Brother Ayan, listen, my cousin Ah Xu promised he’d help me undo—"

A black-and-red whirlwind sent her tumbling, and a serpent’s head lunged from the gust of wind to bite her outstretched hand.

Her words were cut short as she staggered and doubled over.

Clutching her hand, Si Yan cried out, her eyes red-rimmed as she looked up, sobbing.

She was incredulous. "I’ve been chasing after you for so many years. Do you really feel nothing at all? Don’t you know how tired I am?"

Er... Jian Yu’s expression was one of extreme secondhand embarrassment.

Ling Yanzhi’s brow furrowed. "Scramble your brains back into place before you talk to me. We’re not close."

’Where did this moron crawl out from?’

Pei Yin chimed in with a laugh. "Oh, that’s right! I remember you told her she had to call you ’Chief’ whenever she saw you~"

Xi Yu gave Si Yan a long, hard look.

His voice was hauntingly quiet. "Ayan may have forgotten, but I haven’t. This woman gets jealous at the drop of a hat. Anything we give Ah Xu, she wants. She was always trailing at our heels."

Si Yan angrily shouted her denial. "I did not! You’re lying!"

She turned her head, her fingers tightening around her Jade Flute. "Brother Ayan, he’s spouting nonsense! I wasn’t jealous of the things you all gave him. I followed you because I truly like you."

"Tsk, tsk, tsk." Pei Yin draped an arm over Ling Yanzhi’s shoulders.

He looked at Ling Yanzhi, his tone flippant. "See, this is because you’re not as good-looking as I am. If you were as handsome as me, she wouldn’t even think she was worthy of you."

Pei Yin’s hand dropped, and his fingers reached over to pinch Jian Yu’s cheek.

Jian Yu looked up, her eyes glancing from side to side.

’As for who was more handsome, she couldn’t say. They were all ridiculously good-looking.’

’Their faces were as smooth as shelled eggs, their skin was pale and practically glowed, and they all had long legs and narrow waists. So attractive.’

Jian Yu gave up on trying to rank them.

Her gaze lingered for a few extra seconds on the red beauty mark on the bridge of Pei Yin’s nose.

’He looked much thinner than when she’d last seen him before leaving school. His flamboyant good looks were now tinged with a sharp, bright handsomeness.’

’Huh? Where did Sheng Yue go?’

Jian Yu’s eyes searched around.

Pei Yin noticed her wide, searching eyes, and the corners of his lips tilted upward.

He bent down and swept Jian Yu into his arms. "From this angle, aren’t I the most handsome? I’m telling you, sweetie, no one has ever dared to pursue me. The moment they see me, they feel so hopelessly inferior they can’t even stand it, because they know they’re not worthy of me."

Gu Qi nodded in profound agreement.

His presence was so faint that no one had noticed him.

Jian Yu stared at Pei Yin’s handsome face, now so close to hers, and found herself unable to say anything dishonest.

Pei Yin pursed his lips, his eyes full of expectation, his tone tinged with a hint of uncertainty. "Am I not handsome?"

Jian Yu nodded obediently. "You are."

Pei Yin was satisfied.

He shot Si Yan a critical look. "Good thing you’re not into me. Being liked by you would not only make me question if my charm was fading, it would also make my stomach turn."

Si Yan’s face instantly flushed crimson, whether from humiliation or pure rage, it was hard to tell.

Her fingers clenched so tightly she felt like she might cough up blood, but she didn’t dare provoke him any further.

’A madman. A half-breed who’d dare to dismember and sadistically murder his own kin.’

Si Yan cursed him under her breath a few times to vent her frustration.

Catching sight of Jian Yu out of the corner of her eye, Si Yan gritted her teeth in humiliation.

Her expression was contemptuous, her tone condescending. "You don’t actually believe they’d fall for a woman like you, do you?"

Jian Yu wrapped her arms around Pei Yin’s neck.

Her eyes widened. "I’m so smart, pretty, sweet, and clever. Why wouldn’t they fall for me?"

Pei Yin was absolutely smitten.

He lowered his head and gave her a hard kiss, proving with his actions that he had indeed fallen for her.

Jian Yu pursed her lips, shooting him a bashful, reproachful glance.

Pei Yin held her tighter. "I missed you."

Jian Yu touched his face. "You’ve gotten thinner."

Pei Yin: "I lost weight missing you."

"..."

Si Yan was incensed.

When Pei Yin had lifted her into his arms, a flame of indignant resentment had flared up inside her.

This resentment wasn’t because she wanted Pei Yin’s affection—she wouldn’t deign to have a good relationship with someone of such a lowly bloodline.

She was simply furious that if he could be so good to Jian Yu, why had he been so uniquely awful to her for over a decade?

The anger went to Si Yan’s head.

A sarcastic retort escaped her lips. "Someone like you, from some backwater planet... If you hadn’t chanced upon an Awakening, you’d be nothing but a plaything for others. What makes you worthy to stand beside them?"

Si Yan tilted her chin up. "Poverty will be seeped into her very bones for her entire life. Have you even calculated how many resources she’s leeched off you all this time? A woman like her will never be satisfied. Xi Yu, you—"

Si Yan’s gaze froze.

Xi Yu was staring blankly at the back of Jian Yu’s head, completely lost in a daze.

His fingers were still hooked onto Jian Yu’s clothes, refusing to let go.

"You..."

Si Yan felt the breath catch in her throat, her expression turning ugly.

She had never seen Xi Yu look so foolishly dazed.

The same dark, cold, and oppressive aura still clung to him, yet Si Yan felt as if she were looking at some infatuated, love-sick fool.

Si Yan couldn’t help but recall her first meeting with Xi Yu.

Back then, her father had just become a Priest and had located Xi Yu through the guidance of the Holy Pearl.

Her father had said Xi Yu would become the strongest Awakener in the interstellar future, and he had urged her to get in touch with Xi Yu through her cousin and build a good relationship with him.

Si Yan had taken his advice, but she never expected someone so handsome to be a complete psycho.

She had finally managed to get a moment alone with him, only to find him squatting impassively in a corner, just to scare her.

That very night, Si Yan had a nightmare. She dreamed that Xi Yu’s fingers were dripping with slime as he stared at her like a tiger stalking its prey, exuding a damp, ghoulish aura that reeked of the intent to flay a person alive and tear them bone from bone.

The fact that Si Yan developed a crush on Ling Yanzhi had a lot to do with Xi Yu terrifying her.

That day, Xi Yu had stood up, his shadow falling over her, and it looked as if he was about to attack her.

But Ling Yanzhi had appeared just in time, stepping in front of her. He led Xi Yu away, even cursing at him for her sake: "You’re a jinx."

"Why are you looking at me?" Xi Yu’s voice was chillingly cool as he spoke.

Jian Yu thought it was endearingly dorky.

Si Yan did not.

She snapped out of her memories, her expression stiff.

Xi Yu didn’t dwell on it, his gaze sticking like glue to Jian Yu’s small, expressionless face.

’Soft cheeks, cold eyes, long lashes, pink lips... So cute.’

Si Yan was filled with envy and jealousy.

She wished Ling Yanzhi would look at her with that same gaze—one filled with longing, yet also with a hint of petulance and grievance.