MengYao's killing intent directed at BaiXue could be sensed by LongFei. It made LongFei's heart thump wild and uncontrollably in urgency. However, he could not seem to break out of the obsessive thoughts about FengJiao in his mind that held him there.

His face scrunched up in annoyance and agony. His mind was telling him to fly back to tend to FengJiao and give her the cure-all antidote. His heart was telling him that there was something else far more important than FengJiao that he had to attend to right now.

All of a sudden, the softest yet most significant cry of pain in his life reached his ears. It snapped him back to the present and he looked towards the source of it. The sight of a maroon rabbit all curled up into a ball and shivering uncontrollably with a black phoenix nearing dangerously close to her made him see red and lose his mind in a panic. He flew at the fastest speed he could go and the sound was like cutting through wind itself.

MengYao fanned out flames the moment BaiXue was in his range. Within the next moment, LongFei appeared in his line of fire and swung his tail powerfully. The strength of his swing was so strong that the wind generated from it blew MengYao's flames back towards him and knocked MengYao back a short distance away.

LongFei was so enraged that he roared out in anger and spewed out flames that was twice the size of MengYao. Although MengYao surrounded himself with his fire shield while flying desperately out of its range, he could not escape unscathed this time. The biting cold from LongFei's flames was especially strong just as it was big. It weakened and seeped through his shield. He suffered significant burns and collapsed into the sea of trees below him, breaking tons of trees in his wake.

LongFei huffed then turned back to find BaiXue. Although it took him by surprise to no longer find her where he last saw her at, he quickly spotted her again some distance away but in the same state she was in earlier. This time, there was a badly injured nine-tailed fox just in front of her. He immediately inferred that BaiXue was suffering from the nine-tailed fox magic.

He flew down to her side and gently blew out cold air. Being brought up to be the strongest, he was taught the way to use his aura resist and dispel the nine-tailed fox hallucination magic that his ancestors perfected, but this was his first time trying so he was still a little nervous about whether it would work. 

He held his breath while he monitored BaiXue's condition.

BaiXue felt that the pain that was consuming her was suddenly relieved and replaced by a different kind of cold. It was no longer biting but refreshing. So refreshing that it cleared her mind completely and broke the control FenFang had over her senses. Without thinking much about how it happened, BaiXue opened her eyes and went for FenFang's neck. 

Just before she could bite down, she was held back and pulled away like she was a rabid rabbit on the loose. At the same time, black flames covered where she was previously at. MengYao appeared soon after and everyone was finally gathered at the scene. 

MengYao was enraged when he saw how LongFei stood by BaiXue's side protectively. "I thought you cared about FengJiao! Didn't you protect the village with her?" 

"How is that even relevant?" 

"Because the culprit is the person you're protecting now!"

"Impossible."

"How can you be so sure? Were you with her every moment of the day?"

"..." LongFei frowned. He knew that there were indeed times when he was not with her but he was sure that she could not go down the mountain by herself. Even if she did, he believed that he would be sharp enough to notice. 

However, his mind once again became gripped in uncertainty. A sliver of doubt appeared in his mind. What if she actually could go down now that she has a mystical form?

His brows furrowed even more as the doubt in him grew uncontrollably. He instinctively looked at BaiXue, wishing to seek solace, and found a pair of calm and clear grey eyes looking back at him. His heart felt calmed and it thumped steady and strong for her. It helped him fight against the paranoia in him.

BaiXue looked past the fierce and intimidating expression LongFei had on his face right now to see the doubt and struggle in his eyes as she gazed into them, so she knew his state of mind. She concluded that he could no longer help her and decided to focus entirely on how to kill FenFang before she was offered up on a silver platter to MengYao. One more hit is all it takes... It's now or never.

BaiXue subtly contracted the muscles in her hind legs. 

"You... Did you li-"

Boom!!

BaiXue had been about to pounce when the loud sound shocked everyone, especially BaiXue who was the closest to the source of it.

What's he up to now? BaiXue looked at LongFei with wide incredulous eyes.

Currently, LongFei has his face half buried in the ground from the strength that he put into his headbutt. When BaiXue had so nonchalantly broke their eye contact to look elsewhere, complicated feelings arose inside him. He felt abandoned for it seemed that she still did not care if he was there or not. He felt disappointed for it seemed like she did not care if he believed in her or not. He also felt like he let her down for even doubting her. 

Despite how he felt, he could not stop the words from leaving his mouth. 

He already felt guilty for being unable to control his thoughts and mind, he just could not allow even his words and behaviour to further betray BaiXue and lower her opinion of him. Before his mouth spilled out more things that he would regret saying, he resorted to slamming his head into the ground. At this point, he did not care if he looked ridiculous to the others. 

LongFei lifted his head and shook the dirt off his face.

MengYao decided to make his move while LongFei was distracted. He flapped his wings and flames flew towards BaiXue. BaiXue's ears twitched. After using her hearing like she did earlier, it was as if she unlocked a new skill and she could detect sounds really easily. This time, besides the noisy sound of flames, there was a swifter and quieter sound of something thin slicing through the air. 

Just as BaiXue jumped up high to dodge upon detecting something among the flames, LongFei opened his eyes and swished his tail. The same thing from before happened again. Everything was reflected back towards MengYao. MengYao kicked off the ground into the sky to dodge and everything headed towards FenFang instead. 

FenFang had been silently edging away from the trio, hoping to escape their notice. As a result, the flames dispersed just as it singed the tips of her tails. However, before she could feel relieved, she caught sight of MengYao's sharp black feathers that had been hidden among the flames. Her pupils constricted. She shrieked when the feathers pierced into tails, bum, and back. "Noooo!!" 

FenFang quickly shook and removed the feathers off of her body. But it was too late. A gradual burning sensation began from where she was pierced and spread throughout her entire body. FenFang's eyes turned red and watery. She knew the torture that she was about to suffer.

Only when she could feel the hot sensation from head to toe, it gradually increased in intensity. Eventually, the pain consumed her senses that the pain from her previous injuries could not compare to it. She began to roll around on the floor as if attempting to put out a nonexistent flame. Her body slowly began to convulse in pain while she cried out in pain repeatedly. 

Only MengYao and she knew that MengYao's aura that has entered her body was now burning her from the inside and killing her slowly through spontaneous combustion of cells. It would gradually cause organ failure and she would die from that, but her body would continue to break down and become a mess even after that.

LongFei witnessed the pain that FenFang was put through. BaiXue could have been the one. His eyes turned red as his anger continued to rise. 

Dead silence that was only broken by FenFang's cries stretched for what seemed like eternity. MengYao and BaiXue could feel LongFei's increasingly dense killing intent and no one dared to move lest they would trigger him. 

For once, BaiXue truly had no idea what LongFei would do. She believed wholeheartedly that he would somehow fulfill his role as the second male lead, and that would not spell anything good for her. However, his recent and current behaviour completely baffled her. 

"We leave." LongFei finally spoke. 

"..." BaiXue was at a loss for words. It would make sense if he was talking to MengYao because that would mean they would be going to save FengJiao. But she somehow felt that it was directed at her.

Not minding her lack of response as usual, he continued in a slightly gentler tone, "Let's go." Everyone could still hear his concealed and suppressed anger, especially when his killing intent has not subsided in the least.

He curled around BaiXue's body, ready to carry her away, but she jumped out before he could secure his hold on her. 

"I'm not done with what I have to do." BaiXue insisted on staying to accomplish her mission.

"Do you think I don't want to finish off that insolent bird? I'm only leaving because it's not safe for you!" LongFei bit out harshly.

BaiXue frowned and stubbornly stayed in her defensive stance against him, ready to take off if he tried going after her.

"Why do you have to do it?" LongFei asked through gritted teeth. 

BaiXue got a little stumped by his question. Why? "... I... I just..." 

Her body slackened and she blinked blankly. Why have I been trying so hard all these time? I'm already dead. My family's no longer with me.

LongFei patiently waited for her to answer while MengYao did not dare to interfere. He may be hot headed but he knew not to rush to his death. LongFei was currently a ticking time bomb as compared to any moment before this.

BaiXue's image of Desmond suddenly overlapped with the image of the original soul's older brother. The following words slipped out of her mouth in the smallest and most timid voice before she could comprehend it, "My brother... was proud of me." Even though I was nothing till the moment I died. Till now. Tears slowly gathered in her eyes as she processed what she said and thought.

LongFei could see her tears gathering and he felt his heart get clenched in a tight grip. He asked her in a strained voice, "Even if it means you'll die for it...?" 

BaiXue stared into his pained eyes then nodded resolutely.

LongFei's face reflected the conflict and turmoil inside him. He really wanted to give BaiXue what she wanted, he knew that he would be able to protect her, but his gut feeling that things will not end well has not gone away. Every cell in his body was dying to whisk her away and keep her locked up and safe, even more so now that he no longer felt the annoying voice and compulsive thoughts he had about FengJiao. Nothing else seemed to matter anymore but BaiXue. However, he wanted her to be happy.

Another period of silence dragged on while LongFei and BaiXue looked into each other's eyes. One pair held a gaze that was firm with no intention of backing down and the other pair held an intense but complicated gaze resulting from the struggle between two intense desires. 

He finally took a look at FenFang's current condition. One hit is all it takes to end her life. Just one hit. Just a few seconds. But what if that few seconds is all it takes for things to go awry? I can't take the risk. I can't lose her. I can't. 

"Please." BaiXue somehow felt that she was losing this battle so asked him once more.

No, don't ask me this nicely. Please don't. LongFei hung his head low. Finally, he whispered his reply in a mournful voice, "I'll do my best to back you up."

BaiXue smiled slightly to show her gratitude then they both took off in sync before MengYao could understand what was going on.