The young man was taken aback and asked, "Why?"

Xie Lian replayed the recent moves in his mind when he had defeated the foul creatures, casually mimicking a few techniques. "You've never tried using a blade, right? Your swordplay is swift and decisive, although it seems somewhat restricted, as if you couldn't fully unleash its potential. If you've never used a blade before, perhaps you should try; I think its power might be greater."

Every time he witnessed a commendable display of skills, Xie Lian couldn't help but engage in a few exchanges, not to criticize but out of genuine interest in discussing tactics. Given his vast combat experience, he often didn't need to think; he could perceive right from wrong at a glance.

Yet, it was hard for him to articulate why it felt that way, and others mostly listened out of respect for his status, rarely pondering if what he said was reasonable. However, this young one listened intently, as if contemplating deeply, occasionally glancing at his sword.

After a few remarks, suddenly in the pitch-black forest, there was a rustling sound, as if something was swiftly crawling past. Xie Lian immediately recalled they were in a perilous situation, and his enthusiasm was ill-timed. He promptly refocused, his expression stern.

"We must thoroughly cleanse this entire mountain of all vile entities."

The young man nodded vigorously, offering his iron sword to Xie Lian, who shook his head and said, "Just protect yourself. Since you didn't leave before, you can't leave now. I'll do my best to protect you, but you must remain vigilant."

At that moment, something darted swiftly through the grass. Xie Lian, with a flick of his hand, sent out a palm strike, hitting it right on target. That thing let out a miserable scream and went still.

Smelling a whiff of blood, Xie Lian was puzzled. If it were one of those foul creatures, they would typically ooze out sticky fluid, not emit such a bloody scent, so he moved forward to investigate.

Pushing aside the grass, he found a decapitated foul creature, turned to pulp by his strike, but the bloody smell did not emanate from it. Instead, it came from something clamped in its mouth—a piece of scalp with long hair attached!

These creatures fed on refuse, and it seemed they had already harmed a living person. As it crawled along, traces of blood were left on the grass. Xie Lian followed the trail, with the young soldier closely following him. The further they went, the denser the bloodstains became, and the stronger the scent of blood grew. Soon, they heard a feeble sobbing.

The young soldier raised his sword to shield Xie Lian, but Xie Lian pulled him behind. Turning past a bush blooming with flowers, they came upon a half-sized cave.

This cave originally served as a temporary shelter for people but now lay littered with bodies. Dozens of foul creatures were happily feasting on the corpses, with a handful circling a young girl. That girl looked pained, her abdomen slit open, intestines spilling onto the ground, but she was still alive. It seemed she had been grooming herself, wearing a bright red flower by her hair. The contrast of the bright red blood with the flower was shockingly cruel.

The creatures were licking her steaming innards, ready to devour them when they heard someone approaching. They turned in unison and charged toward Xie Lian. He did not even blink as he dispatched them all with a single strike and immediately began to inspect the corpses around him. Among the dead were men and women, old and young, all wearing simple clothes, unmistakably citizens of the Eternal Peace Kingdom. Xie Lian was shocked.

He had believed that all the sudden appearances of demons and monsters in the mountain were summoned by the mysterious person in white. That person in white had saved Lang Ying and was likely an accomplice. Yet, why were these foul creatures feasting on the citizens of Eternal Peace? Such beings don't just form alliances with humans without reason. Was this the price Lang Ying was willing to pay? Using the lives of his own followers as currency?!

The girl, in both pain and fear, spat blood and whimpered, "Don't kill me; I haven't done anything wrong. Please don't kill me!"

Xie Lian couldn't help but think of the family he saw die at the base of the city wall the other day. What wrong had they done? Leaning closer, he spoke with utmost gentleness, "Don't be afraid. I am here to save you."

The young soldier, however, pointed his sword at the girl and said, "Your Highness, be cautious; she might be a mountain spirit."

Xie Lian knew this was possible—highly likely even—but after consideration, he decided he couldn't leave her be and proceeded with caution. He took her pulse for a moment, examined her palms and fingerprints, and quickly determined she was a living person who had never practiced. She was defenseless, so he promptly began treating her, taking out a bottle of medicine from his sleeve. He removed the stopper, releasing a faint, pleasantly scented white smoke.

The medicine was effective against various poisonous conditions and worked wonders on wounds. Xie Lian lavishly used the entire bottle on her. "Are you feeling any better?"

The girl's injuries were severe and gruesome. After inhaling the smoke, some color returned to her face, and she weakly nodded. Xie Lian asked, "Are you people from Eternal Peace? How did this happen?"

The girl wept, "Yes, I am. I don't know why. Everything was fine, and then suddenly... my father died, my brother died too..."

Xie Lian gently patted her shoulder, "Who or what killed them?"

The girl sobbed, "The one who killed them was... was... was you!"

As she said the last sentence, her expression twisted malevolently, her eyes gleaming. She threw open her arms and embraced Xie Lian.

The young soldier had remained vigilant and, reacting swiftly, stabbed her in the back with his sword. The girl, already gravely wounded, couldn't possibly survive such an attack. However, she merely chuckled, hugging Xie Lian tightly and refusing to let go, and then died in that embrace. She held on so tightly that the young soldier struggled to pull her corpse away. He frantically asked, "Your Highness, are you alright?"

At first, Xie Lian thought the girl intended to ambush him before dying. Yet, she had no weapons nor did she attempt to bite; she simply embraced him as if that was what she desired, keeping him close until her last breath. He said, bewildered, "I'm fine, I..."

Before he could finish, a sudden wave of dizziness hit him, as if mocking his earlier reassurance.

The young soldier's bright black eyes went wide, "Your Highness?!"

Xie Lian felt like his insides were burning, leaving him speechless, unwilling to speak or listen. He shook his head, waving his hand in silence. At this moment, laughter from a woman rang all around them.

"Yahaha..."

Both were startled to realize there was no third person with them. The laughter came from the flowers!

Xie Lian immediately understood the trap he had walked into—

"The Land of Tenderness"!

Yet, this Land of Tenderness was something far more insidious. The Land of Tenderness was actually a type of flower demon thriving on the essence and blood of men. Their fragrance was anything but pleasant. Xie Lian quickly said, "Cover your mouth and nose, don't inhale the flower scent!"

The young soldier's face was already tightly wrapped in bandages, filtering out most of the scent, so he hadn’t inhaled it. Upon hearing Xie Lian’s warning, he tightened the bandage, realizing Xie Lian had no such protection. He tore off his cleanest sleeve, rubbed and shook it clean before offering it, but Xie Lian declined, saying, "No need, it's too late."

During the treatment, despite being cautious, he hadn't guarded against the fragrance and had been close to the girl. Unbeknownst to him, the flowers by her hair were the Land of Tenderness itself. By the time she died embracing Xie Lian, he had already inhaled several deep breaths of the love fragrance.

Once the fragrance entered a man's body, it made his blood boil, first weakening him, then driving him mad. Right now, he was as weak as though his muscles were being pulled out. Soon enough, he'd become a raging storm. Should that mysterious person in white reappear, Xie Lian knew his chances of handling them would dwindle. His first instinct was to reach for his medicine bottle, only to recall it was all used to save the girl. But she couldn't be saved in the end.

Glancing at the corpse beside him, the girl still wore a faint smile as if genuinely joyful for her achievement in catching him unaware before dying to reunite with her loved ones. Blame could be placed on the bloody scene overshadowing the danger of the vibrant flowers, and the scent of blood masking the peculiar floral fragrance. He never anticipated that a face as young as hers could harbor such venomous malice capable of such grim determination.

Over there, the flower demons buzzed with excitement, murmuring:

"Got him."

"Hooked him."

"It really is the Crown Prince!"

"It's him, alright."

"Such a handsome... My roots, my roots can't help but crawl out of the soil!"

The young soldier swung his sword, slashing the flower bed until it flattened somewhat. But the flower stems were strangely resilient, and after several slashes, the sword dulled a bit. The flower demons teased, "Oh dear, such a feisty young boy! We worked hard to bloom, how will you make it up to us?"

Enraged, the young soldier snapped back, "Die! I'll burn you all!"

The flower demons crossed their leaves coquettishly, "Why so angry? We did nothing to provoke you!"

Xie Lian added, "Don't burn them! These are demons; burning them will release poisonous miasma. Don't pull them either!" The young one halted his attempt to uproot them, to which Xie Lian weakly cautioned, "Their stems are covered in poisonous thorns..."

The flower demons sang delightfully, "Oh, how gentle of you, Crown Prince. Thank you for protecting us. Wait, we're about to bear fruit soon! We'll be sure to love you dearly, hahaha..."

"Not many men practice Celestial Virgin skills. Although losing it means a drop in spiritual power, you'll have to endure, hahaha..."

As the Land of Tenderness cackled and brushed their petals together provocatively, spewing lustful intent unabashedly, the young soldier was left momentarily dumbfounded by phrases like "virgin skills" and "losing one's purity" and "realm levels," understanding only bits and pieces. But he could tell it wasn’t anything good, so amid furious hacking at the flowers, he tried to drown out the teasing words meant for Xie Lian. Meanwhile, Xie Lian clenched his fists so tightly that his knuckles cracked.

So it was like this!

This entire night had been a deliberate trap set for him.

Merely capturing Qi Rong had been calculated, knowing well his pride as the Divine Joy Martial God would compel him to confront it alone, reducing a major issue to a minor one. The gravely wounded girl was cleverly used to deplete his spiritual medicine, ensuring that once ensnared by the flower demons' fragrance, he would be left helpless. Demons and living humans working together to wait for him at this juncture.

In the path he practiced, maintaining one's purity was indeed mandatory. Doctrines stated that gods worshipped by the people must remain transcendental and devoid of human desires. Therefore, failing to preserve his purity would undoubtedly devastate believers and significantly weaken his powers. Although it wouldn't be severe enough to downgrade him from a divinity to a mortal, resulting in a need to train tirelessly for several years to regain his status, now was not the time! There was no room to retreat and dedicate years to arduous cultivation.

The sect he belonged to, with Xie Lian being its most exemplary disciple, adhered to stringent codes. Never once had he violated any rule, always believing his discipline to be as steadfast as iron, untouched by worldly turbulence. Despite having withstood many similar trials flawlessly, no wave had ever stirred his heart's tranquil water.

Nonetheless, he was still young and thin-skinned, and the presence of the small soldier compounded his embarrassment. Listening to the shameless remarks flung our direction by the flower demons, their suggestive malaise interwoven with the fragrant embrace, stirred a faint blush on his face, coupled with anger and indignation at the realization he couldn’t even stand.

Though still managing with great difficulty, once these demon flowers bore fruit, it would spell greater trouble. The best solution would be to return promptly to the capital and allow Feng Xin and Mu Qing to offer protection. However, at this moment, even standing upright caused his legs to wobble. Frustrated beyond measure, he had no choice but to turn to the young soldier and say, "You... come here."