They broke through a dense thicket of ferns and entered a small, moonlight-drenched clearing.
And there, Ji'an saw him.
It was impossible to miss him. Even covered in mud, dodging for his life, Gu Zhiwei looked like he had a dedicated lighting crew following him around.
The Original Protagonist.
The White Moonlight and the Saint of Justice are the plot.
He was dressed in robes of pure, snowy white, which was a terrible choice for hiking, Ji'an noted.
His features were delicate and exquisite, giving him an air of fragility that made everyone instantly want to protect him. He held a slender silver sword, but his grip was shaky, his eyes wide with fear and tears.
Opposite him was a Twin-Headed Shadow Viper.
It was a nasty creature, thick as a barrel, with scales that shifted color to blend with the dark. Its two heads hissed in dissonance, dripping venom that dissolved the rocks it touched.
"Stay back!" Gu Zhiwei cried out, throwing a weak talisman that sizzled and died against the snake's scales. "Don't come closer!"
The snake lunged. Gu Zhiwei tripped over a root.
Of course, he did, and fell backward, looking up at the monster with tragic acceptance.
In the original novel, this was The Moment.
Xie Wangchen, wandering the forest alone and injured, would hear the scream. Despite his own pain, his "heroic but tragic" nature would compel him to jump in.
He would take a bite from the snake meant for Gu Zhiwei, saving the protagonist. Gu Zhiwei would cry, thank him, and bandage him up, sparking the obsession in Wangchen's heart, while simultaneously marking Wangchen as a target for Gu Zhiwei's jealous harem.
Lin Ji'an saw Xie Wangchen's muscles tense.
She saw the instinct kick in. Wangchen didn't know this guy. He just saw a weak person about to die.
Wangchen's foot shifted. He gripped his sword. He was about to launch himself into the trajectory of the bite.
'Oh no, you don't,' Ji'an thought. 'Not on my watch. No tragic backstories today!'
Just as Wangchen prepared to leap, a hand grabbed his collar and yanked him back with surprising force.
"Young Master?" Wangchen gasped, stumbling back.
"Hold my fan," Ji'an barked.
She shoved her folding fan into his chest. Before Wangchen could process what was happening, Lin Ji'an launched herself into the air.
She didn't use a sword. She pulled out the Black Iron Spatula.
"Hey! Uglies!" Ji'an shouted.
The Twin-Headed Viper paused, its four eyes swiveling toward the new noise.
Ji'an descended from the tree branch like a bird of prey, if birds of prey carried kitchenware. She channeled her Harmonious Five-Grain Qi. The spatula glowed with a terrifying, red-hot heat.
"Double-Headed Snake Stew... coming right up!"
She slammed the flat of the spatula onto the left head of the viper.
SMACK!
The sound was thunderous. The snake's head was smashed into the mud, dazed.
The right head hissed and lunged at her. Ji'an didn't dodge. She pivoted on her heel, using the momentum of the spatula to spin.
'Scorched Earth Stir-Fry: The Flipping Technique!'
She caught the snake's open jaw with the edge of the spatula and heaved.
The massive beast was lifted off the ground, defying physics, and flipped onto its back.
"Wangchen! Now!" Ji'an yelled, landing gracefully in front of the trembling Gu Zhiwei.
Wangchen snapped out of his shock and didn't hesitate. He saw the opening Ji'an had created. The snake's belly was exposed. The pale, soft scales.
Winter's Sigh flashed through the clearing. A beam of ice-blue light severed the snake's body cleanly in two.
The monster fell with a wet thud. Silence returned to the clearing.
Lin Ji'an stood over the corpse, breathing heavily. She wiped a speck of venom off her sleeve with a look of disgust.
"Gross," she muttered. "And the meat is toxic. Waste of time."
She turned around.
Gu Zhiwei was still sitting on the ground, staring up at her. His eyes were huge, shimmering with tears and awe.
He looked at Ji'an, the dashing "youth" with the messy hair, holding a giant spatula, standing protectively in front of him.
"You..." Gu Zhiwei breathed, his voice trembling. "You saved me."
Ji'an looked down at him. She channeled her inner "Cold CEO."
"You scream too loudly," she said flatly. "You woke us up."
Gu Zhiwei blinked. He wasn't used to being scolded. Usually, people fawned over him. A blush crept up his neck.
"I... I apologize," he stammered, scrambling to stand up. He dusted off his white robes, looking like a fallen angel. "My name is Gu Zhiwei. I... I got separated from my group. I ran out of spiritual energy."
He looked at Ji'an with a disturbingly intense gaze. "May I know my benefactor's name?"
Ji'an felt a headache coming on. 'Great. I stopped the Villain from meeting him, but now the Protagonist is looking at me with 'sparkly eyes'.'
"Lin Ji'an," she said shortly. "And that is my guard, Xie Wangchen."
She pointed to Wangchen, who was currently cutting the beast core out of the snake.
Gu Zhiwei looked at Wangchen. In the original plot, this would be love at first sight. The fated connection.
Gu Zhiwei offered a polite, grateful smile. "Thank you as well, Brother Xie."
Wangchen looked up. He looked at the "Fairytale Prince."
Then, he looked at Ji'an. He saw Gu Zhiwei standing too close to her. He saw the way Gu Zhiwei was looking at Ji'an with admiration.
Wangchen's eyes went cold. He walked over, stepped deliberately between Ji'an and Gu Zhiwei, and sheathed his sword with a sharp click.
"We should go, Young Master," Wangchen said, his voice dripping with ice. "It is late. And we have collected the core."
He didn't even acknowledge Gu Zhiwei properly. To Wangchen, this "Gu Zhiwei" was just a noisy annoyance who had interrupted his cuddle time and was now trying to steal his Master's attention.
Gu Zhiwei looked confused by the cold shoulder, but his attention snapped back to Ji'an.