Chapter 2484: The Most Familiar Stranger

A dignified lady stood in the courtyard, dressed in a snowy-white shirt and a loose red skirt. Her clothes showcased no feminine curves, but if the world were a portrait, her ravishing visage would be what made the painting the most beautiful thing in the world. When contrasted with her clothes, her fair skin looked even fairer. Her beauty was slightly beneath that of the Mermaid Queen, and she was also nowhere as vibrant as the Peacock Princess. However, she was graceful and dignified. She emanated a natural air of inviolability just by standing there.

For a moment, Zu An thought he was looking at Kikyo from Inuyasha.

No wonder the Fiend races’ men all compliment the Saintess’ beauty, but her suitors are nowhere as many as the Peacock Princess. She’s a mortal, but somehow she feels divine.

Yumen Beiqing had been crafting talismans when she sensed Zu An’s entrance and lifted her head.

Zu An felt an uncanny sense of familiarity from her, possibly because he had once met her in the Sealed Land. He said with a smile, “Paying respect to the Saintess."

He felt the joy of reuniting with an acquaintance, though the latter wouldn’t know that they had once met each other.

Little did he expect the Saintess to suddenly shoot to her feet and quickly walk up to him. Zu An could tell that the body beneath those loose clothes was trembling. She seemed to be exerting a great deal of willpower to hold herself back. That made him frown.

What’s with Yumen Beiqing’s reaction?

Both the Ocean races and the Peacock Princess had said that the Saintess was someone who could remain perfectly composed even when in dire straits. It was bizarre for her to display such a blatant breach of etiquette.

Is she nervous or afraid because she’s planning something?

Zu An scanned the surroundings with his divine sense, worried that there could be an ambush, but there was no one else in this courtyard other than the two of them.

This is weird...

As the other party drew closer, Zu An cleared the air with a cough and called out, “Saintess?”

As she looked at him, Yumen Beiqing bit her lower lip. Her eyes glistened with tears, and she looked as if there were countless words she wanted to tell him.

Zu An’s heart quivered at the sight of such pitiful eyes.

Why is she acting as if she's known me for a long time? Does she remember our meeting in the Sealed Land? But that’s supposed to happen in the future!

While he was perplexed, the Saintess suddenly leaped into his chest and embraced him tightly. He was dumbfounded.

He had thought of countless possibilities when the two of them met, but he hadn’t expected the legendary Saintess to leap into his arms.

Could this truly be a scheme to blackmail me? Does the Saintess intend to use her beauty to recruit me as a fighter for the Fiend races?

But the genuine emotions in the Saintess’ eyes and her trembling body didn’t seem to be a lie. This didn’t feel like a honey trap.

The Saintess couldn’t have fallen in love with me at first sight, right?

Zu An quickly snuffed out that notion as soon as it surfaced in his mind. That was impossible.

Who could have known a pair of lips would press against his the next second?

Zu An was bewildered. His body stiffened up.

What in the world is going on?

Feeling the need to get to the bottom of this, he was just about to push the Saintess away when the latter suddenly said, “Big brother Zu, you are finally here to see me.”

Goosebumps rose all over Zu An’s body. The only one who knew his name was the Mermaid Queen. Even the Peacock Princess only knew him as ‘Necropolis’. How had the Saintess learned his name?

Now that he thought about it, the Saintess had also acted as if she'd known him for a long time when they met in the Sealed Land.

Did I, at some point in the future, return even further back in time and become acquainted with her?

While he was completely confused, the Saintess realized something and hurriedly explained with a reddened face, “Big brother Zu, I am Ling’er!”

Zu An was shocked. “Little sister Ling’er?”

He stared at the Saintess in disbelief.

She is Xie Daoyun?

While there was an uncanny sense of familiarity about her, she looked nothing like Xie Daoyun, though it wouldn’t be right to say there were no similarities at all. Her air of serenity and grace did resemble Xie Daoyun’s.

“In the Monster World’s underground city, I came into contact with a mysterious piece of jade and was transported to this world. I thought I would never see you again!” The Saintess dropped her usual strong front and sobbed like a child.

Those words dissipated all of Zu An’s doubts. He tightly hugged her too. “Little sister Ling’er!”

Back when Xie Daoyun first disappeared, he was horrified, though he had an inexplicable feeling that they would meet again soon. He hadn’t expected them to reunite under such circumstances.

The two of them embraced each other tightly. Before long, their lips were locked together as if these acts of intimacy were the only ways they could let the other party know their feelings.

The Saintess placed her hands on Zu An’s shoulders. Her slender fingers were like ivory tusks, and her forehead accessories gleamed under the sunlight, just like her mesmerizing eyes.

...

The Peacock Princess nervously paced to and fro outside the courtyard. She had no idea why the Saintess had requested to meet Zu An in private. The Saintess had always been transparent, choosing to open everything up for discussion. This was the first time she had requested to meet someone in private.

She wasn't worried about Zu An being harmed by the Saintess; the former could protect himself, whereas the latter wasn't one to do something that foolish. What worried her more was the Saintess falling in love with the perfect Zu An.

However, she quickly shrugged off that thought as soon as it surfaced. The Saintess was called as such because she aligned with what the Fiend races imagined a Saintess to be. She was beautiful yet inviolable, and she displayed incredible charisma as she led the Fiend races in the battle for their survival. She treated everyone with warmth, yet she showed no interest in secular love. Everyone in the Fiend races acknowledged her because they knew she wouldn’t be biased toward any of them.

The discussions of the Fiend youths around her showed as much. They were more worried about Zu An doing something disrespectful to the Saintess.

That angered the Peacock Princess.

Big brother isn’t that kind of person!

Most of them quickly realized that their worry was unnecessary. Even if they couldn’t trust Zu An, surely they could trust the Saintess. The discussion thus moved on to speculations about what the two were talking about.

“They are probably discussing a partnership.”

“Regardless of whether his feats are exaggerated or not, it is a fact that he helped the Ocean races defeat the monster army. Securing his help will be greatly beneficial to us.”

Just then, someone meekly asked, “You’re all talking about the Saintess winning him over to our side. Have you considered the possibility of him taking our Saintess away instead? I mean, he is quite good-looking.”

The next moment, silence descended.