“Hahahahahahaha!” James Walker looked at his own palm, burned black, and suddenly burst into laughter. As he laughed, he covered his mouth, his voice pained and suppressed, as if using all his strength to restrain his emotions.

He bowed his head deeply, and only when the morning star rose into the sky, at the darkest moment before dawn, did James Walker lift his head, pick up the ghost mask, and put it on his face. From behind the mask came a voice full of gritted teeth: “Bai, Li, Qing, Miao.”

This passage sent chills down the readers’ spines. Edward Morgan, as the hidden protagonist of the story, felt an indescribable emotion.

He could accept James Walker dying for him, but could not understand him going mad for his sake.

What kind of pain must one endure to go from extreme calm to utter madness?

When James Walker’s cheek brushed against his robe, it felt as if it brushed against Edward Morgan’s heart. When his gaze shifted from the book to James Walker, Edward Morgan felt that, for the first time, he was truly facing this subordinate, and that what he had done for James Walker hardly deserved such a sincere response. He thought he should treat him a little better.

Grace Cooper no longer planned to drain William Carter dry, and even intended to use a secret technique to help William Carter increase his strength, so the Snowfire Flame was no longer needed for that and could be used to heal James Walker instead.

Having been the Demon Lord of Xuanyuan Sect for so many years, Edward Morgan had quite a stockpile. He rummaged through his sleeve-world, gave Lily Harris some materials, pills, and magical treasures suitable for her current level, and also a Fire Feather Cloak to ward off the cold on the endless ice fields, so the heroine wouldn’t freeze to death.

“This... I can’t accept this, I really can’t!” Lily Harris looked at the pile of items almost forming a small hill, her face flushing as she waved her hands in refusal.

Edward Morgan also included a simple hairpin, which was a storage artifact that could hold all the things he gave her. He didn’t give Lily Harris a chance to refuse, and left with James Walker.

Lily Harris held the hairpin in her hand, gazing at the spot in the sky where Edward Morgan had disappeared. She was dazed for a moment, then stomped her foot and called out, “Senior brother, Miss Cooper!”

She hurriedly put away the treasures, stuffed the storage jade hairpin into her bosom, and slowly flew back toward the sect.

Every disciple of the Shangqing Sect who went down the mountain carried a rescue talisman. If the jade talisman was crushed, nearby sect members would come to help. Lily Harris could have used this method to call for help, but this was a life-saving talisman to be used only in matters of life and death, not to be used lightly. If she really crushed the command talisman and summoned a bunch of fellow disciples for something that wasn’t urgent, her senior brothers and sisters would be displeased. Only after reaching the Nascent Soul stage could one make special communication talismans, and Lily Harris hadn’t reached that level yet, so in the end she could only choose to climb the mountain.

On the other side, Grace Cooper was sleeping on a straw bed, her face flushed, a fragrant shoulder exposed. William Carter, with his collar open at the bedside, stared blankly for a moment, then pulled the rough quilt over Grace Cooper, which woke her up.

Grace Cooper opened her eyes, met William Carter’s gaze, blushed, grabbed her clothes and wrapped herself up, nervously clutching them, and spoke softly, “Mr. Carter, you don’t need to mind. I know you and Miss Harris are deeply in love—this was just an accident. I was injured at the time, and Mr. Carter was only helping me heal.”

Whether it was really for healing, William Carter knew in his heart. He looked at Grace Cooper, regretting how he could have done such a thing, yet also recalling the ecstasy of their union. Looking at the gentle Miss Cooper, there was a trace of tenderness in his eyes.

“I—I’ll help you get a house. This place is too shabby, not fit for living,” William Carter said awkwardly.

Grace Cooper cursed him as a scoundrel in her heart, but outwardly smiled faintly and shook her head. “Is Mr. Carter treating me as someone who sells herself? If I wanted to sell myself for money, why would I have waited until now?”

William Carter was stunned again.

“I am poor and humble, and don’t care how others see me. But you, sir, are as noble as the bright moon—how could you be someone who buys pleasure with money?” Grace Cooper changed her tone, looking at William Carter with concern.

She refused the money not only out of integrity, but also out of care for William Carter. How considerate she was!

“But I... in the end, I was presumptuous toward you.” William Carter reached out to tuck a stray lock of hair behind Grace Cooper’s ear, and accidentally brushed her flushed cheek, his heart trembling again.

Grace Cooper smiled gently. “Isn’t it often said in storybooks that a life-saving grace should be repaid with one’s body? Mr. Carter is a great hero, and I got to be a beauty for you once.”

Her words gradually soothed William Carter’s guilt. He thought of how he had helped Miss Cooper many times; this woman had little ability, so perhaps this was the only way she could repay him. Besides, in that situation, with a soft, fragrant beauty in his arms, and her wholehearted trust in him, what man could resist? She wasn’t a woman of the pleasure quarters; their mutual affection was a romantic tale.

The only problem was, what should he do about Junior Sister Harris?

But things turned out this way only because Junior Sister Harris had been gone for so long and hadn’t returned. If she had come back sooner, he wouldn’t have had to act rashly to save someone!

The more William Carter thought about it, the more he felt he wasn’t at fault—he just didn’t know how to explain it to his beloved Junior Sister.

He did like Lily Harris. The two of them had grown up together; ever since Lily Harris was a little girl of seven or eight, William Carter had looked after her. He had watched Lily Harris grow from a chubby little girl into such a beautiful young woman, and the feelings between them were not something Grace Cooper could come between.