When the Cannon Fodder Male Supporting Role Picks Up the Script - Chapter 91

Shen Man is already a little annoyed. She has chased him away several times, but the little island master is tactless and refuses to leave. She has no time to comfort a little monster who is only obedient under her spell, so she says impatiently, “Are you leaving or not? I don’t care if you and your brother get separated. If you still won’t go, I’ll drive you out of Penglai for good!”

The Heart Demon sneers. “Just you?”

As he speaks, wisps of black and gray evil energy silently rise behind him, exuding a chilling aura.

Seeing that something is clearly wrong, Shen Man instinctively takes a step back and raises her hand to shake the Dream Falling Bell.

Ring, ring, ring…

The bell rings sharply in the room, but the Heart Demon walks toward Shen Man unhindered.

From the boy’s sinister, bloodthirsty eyes, Shen Man realizes she’s miscalculated. The Hehuan Incense and Dream Falling Bell can’t control him!

She shakes the bell harder and faster, retreating step by step. Looking at the boy’s blood-red eyes, a wave of panic rises in her heart. She glances around nervously, and deep down, she suddenly has the urge to flee.

But instead of seeing a path to retreat, she sees gray-black evil energy surging from the boy’s body. These tendrils of energy block all exits and creep toward her with slow inevitability. A terrifying thought flashes through her mind—she seems to have unsealed a demon, and now she’s about to become his sacrifice!

“No—Help!”

Outside the water mirror, a clear and shrill scream suddenly echoes from the third floor.

Crash! The Water Mirror shatters.

Song Shao and Song Yun both look shocked and speechless. First, they’re stunned that the Shen family’s illegitimate daughter dares to dream of becoming the Lady of Penglai Island. Second, it’s clear that the young island master is truly enraged this time. When they look at him, the usually composed young lord wears an exceptionally cold expression. A golden-red aura of spiritual energy tears open a spatial rift—a flash of red passes through, and the figure disappears into the rift.

The crack in space, glowing with golden light, quickly closes, leaving the two men staring at each other in confusion.

“Let’s go!” Song Yun is the first to react. He pushes the door open and rushes toward the island master’s room on the third floor.

By the time the two Penglai Immortal Palace disciples reach the corridor, everyone in the inn is already drawn out by Shen Man’s scream and crowds the hallway.

Song Shao and Song Yun push through the crowd to reach the third floor. But as they near the stairs, a powerful spiritual pressure descends from above.

No wonder no one dares go up—there’s a battle between cultivators of immense strength!

Still, since this involves their two island masters, Song Shao and the others push forward despite the pressure.

When they finally make it to the third floor, they see Tongye—who should be on the second floor—fighting Yun Zhuoran. Golden light fills the air. Tongye, dressed in white, radiates blazing gold, while Yun Zhuoran, in red, releases chilling golden-red energy. The two forces clash without canceling each other out. Each collision sends shockwaves in all directions, endangering innocent bystanders.

It’s the others who suffer most.

Qin Zheng and her companions, who live on the third floor, haven’t even had time to escape. They huddle in the corridor, relying on their spiritual reserves to endure the overwhelming pressure.

The spiritual force is so intense that without the multiple restrictions placed by the Floating City Lord, the inn would have already collapsed.

Song Shao is dizzy and drenched in sweat from the heat and cold. Each step feels like a mountain weighing him down, making forward movement difficult.

Qin Zheng manages to catch her breath and shouts urgently, “Stop fighting! The inn is going to collapse!”

The spiritual pressure presses down even harder, and the cultivators upstairs and downstairs feel its impact. Now everyone is trapped. If Tongye continues to fight, the protective array of Yuelai Inn may give out—but even more dangerous is the risk to those who are untrained or already injured.

Fortunately, both fighters hear Qin Zheng’s cry. Yun Zhuoran and Tongye stop almost simultaneously, withdrawing their Integration-stage pressure. Tongye holds the pale-faced Shen Man, while Yun Zhuoran grabs the Heart Demon, and the two retreat in opposite directions.

From the moment Yun Zhuoran arrives on the third floor to the end of the fight, only a few short moments pass. But already the room is in complete disarray. The simple furnishings are reduced to splinters under the force of the spiritual pressure, wood shards and debris slowly settling in the air.

As the pressure fades, Qin Zheng, Song Shao, and the others finally breathe a sigh of relief and enter the room. They see Tongye release his grip on Shen Man’s collar, then press his palms together and begin to chant with his eyes closed.

In another corner filled with sawdust and ash, Yun Zhuoran has just placed a seal on the Heart Demon’s forehead. The boy’s evil aura is completely suppressed by the invisible barrier before anyone notices.

When the Heart Demon opens his eyes again, the blood-red glow is gone, replaced by his original dark, clear gaze.

Apart from Shen Man, the other three people who are in the room appear uninjured.

Cultivators from downstairs also come up, wanting to understand what happened. Such a massive commotion—though no one dares to complain openly, many harbor resentment that they have no choice but to swallow.

This is the room of Penglai’s two island masters. The ones who shouldn’t be here are Shen Man and Tongye.

In the crowd, Shen Xi and Shen Lingshu notice Shen Man lying on the ground. Naturally, they push their way through and help her up.

Shen Xi’s face is full of disgust as she silently transfers spiritual energy into her.

Shen Man’s internal injuries are severe. It seems she is hurt by the overwhelming spiritual pressure during Tongye and Yun Zhuoran’s battle. Her visible wounds are mostly fine scratches caused by flying wood splinters.

Suddenly, Shen Man opens her eyes, turns her head, and coughs up a large mouthful of blood, staining her sawdust-covered dress red. Though she’s now awake, she trembles all over under Shen Xi and Shen Lingshu’s cold gazes, curling into a corner and crying out uncontrollably, “Don’t kill me! Little island master, don’t kill me!”

Hearing this, the onlookers turn their puzzled gazes toward the two Penglai Island Masters.

Shen Man seems frightened out of her wits, and her injuries look miserable, inevitably leading to some preconceived and malicious speculation about the two Penglai island masters. But when Shen Xi, who originally comes to seek justice for Shen Man, sees the two island masters, she silently closes her mouth. A look of what seems to be pity slowly surfaces on her face.

The young master of Penglai Island is pale, his beautiful eyes red-rimmed, and he clings helplessly to Yun Zhuoran, his voice hoarse.

“Brother, I’m scared.”

Yun Zhuoran raises a hand and gently pats Weiran’s back, his cold gaze landing on Tongye.

Everyone becomes even more confused—both sides are crying. What exactly is going on?

Shen Man is, after all, a member of the Shen family. Shen Xi speaks up, “If you want to fight, then fight—but why is Shen Man here too? And why is she so badly injured?”

Shen Xi has always been direct.

Shen Lingshu immediately bows to Tongye and the others and adds, “Shen Man is from our Shengjing Shen family. I don’t know why she was implicated, but if this is her fault, then we siblings are here to apologize on behalf of the Shen family to the Buddha’s disciple and the two Island Lords. We ask for your understanding.”

“Yes,” Shen Xi responds quickly and follows Shen Lingshu in bowing. “Please don’t hold it against us, seniors.”

The Buddha’s disciple remains utterly unmoved, standing there as if he hasn’t even seen the Shen siblings. His light-colored eyes are calm and indifferent, fixed steadily on the little Island Lord of Penglai, who is hiding in Yun Zhuoran’s arms pretending to cry.

Only Tongye has seen with his own eyes: when he detects the presence of demonic energy and rushes over as it surges out wildly, he finds a demon in the room—specifically, this very little Island Lord of Penglai—exuding a thick murderous aura and seemingly about to either dismember or devour the unconscious Shen Man. He is just about to strike when Yun Zhuoran arrives and goes to great lengths to conceal the identity of this little demon…

Thinking of this, Tongye looks at Yun Zhuoran with a complicated expression, only to see a hint of blame in the other’s eyes.

Ever since Yun Zhuoran’s identity as the young island master of Penglai is exposed, many anticipate a clash between him and Tongye of Tianqing Sect. But no one expects the confrontation to take place here, at this small Yuelai Inn, and that the girl from the Shengjing Shen family would get caught in the crossfire. This is no longer just a private matter between the two.

Despite Shen Lingshu’s identity and cultivation, he is still a step behind the two. Even as the son of the Shen family patriarch, if he wants to seek justice for his sister, he has to see if the other party is willing to accept it. But no one responds to him. Left with no choice, he looks to Qin Zheng for help.

Qin Zheng sighs and steps forward. “Why is Miss Shen here?”

Shen Man is still curled in the corner, head down, hugging her knees as her body trembles.

Yun Zhuoran glares coldly at Tongye. He knows the Heart Demon isn’t really crying, but Tongye still hasn’t fully recovered from being driven into a frenzied state by his demonic nature. He clings tightly to him, her pale face dazed and unfocused.

Besides the choking scent of sawdust in the air, there’s a lingering trace of sweet fragrance. Yun Zhuoran frowns and raises a hand, releasing spiritual power to sweep an object from the sawdust pile in front of Shen Lingshu and the others. It’s a stick of red incense, half burned.

Even Tongye’s usually calm face shows a trace of surprise at the sight.

Yun Zhuoran says coldly, “Why don’t you ask Miss Shen what this is?”

As the intoxicating scent of the incense reaches him, Tongye’s face darkens.

When Shen Lingshu and Qin Zheng see the half-burned red incense floating in the air, they look puzzled. Fortunately, there’s an elder from Lingshan Sect in the crowd who specializes in medicine. As soon as she smells the scent, her expression turns to disgust.

“This is the Hehuan Sect’s treasure—Hehuan Incense!” Elder Ruoshui clearly dislikes the Hehuan Sect and immediately frowns. “Didn’t the Hehuan Sect disband a hundred years ago, when the four major sects wiped out the demon sects?”

She refers to the great war between good and evil over a century ago. Back then, the demonic sects wreaked havoc in the world, and the immortal sects led a campaign—spearheaded by the four major sects—to eliminate them, including the Hehuan Sect.

Upon hearing this name, Shen Xi’s face changes dramatically. She pulls a golden bell from Shen Man’s trembling hands.

Shen Man raises her head in panic and rushes to snatch it back. “It’s mine… give it back!”

Shen Xi sidesteps her, looks down at the golden bell in her hand, and hands it to Shen Lingshu, her face full of fury. “Brother, this is also something from the Hehuan Sect!”

Shen Lingshu’s gentle expression turns cold in an instant as he looks at Shen Man with sharp eyes. “What are you doing, bringing Hehuan Sect items into the room of the Penglai Island master?”

Shen Man ignores him and only wants to retrieve the Dream Falling Bell her mother left her.

Disgusted by the tainted object in her hand, Shen Xi lets her take it back.

Shen Man carefully tucks the golden bell into her arms and looks at Shen Xi and Shen Lingshu warily. Her previously gentle expression has become dark and sinister.

This makes Shen Xi so angry she flings her sleeve with a heavy snort.

By now, Tongye has pieced things together. His face is dark with anger and his eyes show a hint of shame. He never imagines that the person he just saved is actually the one responsible for the whole mess.

The Shen siblings’ one-sided stance clearly confirms Shen Man’s guilt. With both Hehuan Incense and a spiritual artifact from the Hehuan Sect in her possession, it’s easy for everyone to deduce what Shen Man has been up to.

The only question is—which of the Island Lords has Shen Man set her sights on, to the point that she incurs Penglai’s wrath?

Regardless of which one it is, Shen Lingshu can’t tolerate it. Yun Zhuoran and Yun Weiran—are they people someone like Shen Man can covet?

Shen Lingshu glares at Shen Man in secret, suppresses his anger, and steps forward to bow deeply to the people of Penglai. “The Shen family failed in discipline and has caused the island masters harm. We are deeply ashamed.”

Shen Xi purses her lips in discontent. “Brother, she’s the one who did it! It has nothing to do with us! She should make amends herself! Her mother was a witch of the Hehuan Sect, and the daughter she bore is just as shameless!”

“Enough!” Shen Lingshu cuts her off harshly. “Stop talking nonsense. Go back!”

Shen Xi is already holding back her anger and says aggrievedly, “I didn’t say anything wrong!”

Seeing that everyone is already whispering about the matter with the Hehuan Sect, Shen Lingshu only feels utterly exhausted. He presses his fingers to his forehead and no longer looks at Shen Xi, who is exposing their family’s shortcomings. In any case, after what happens with Shen Man, the Shen family’s reputation is in ruins.

The Shen family in Shengjing has never been particularly prominent. It’s only thanks to Shen Lingshu—being the sole true disciple of the Tiandao Sect’s leader—that their reputation has barely held up over the years, enough to be considered one of the top families in Shengjing. But outside of Shengjing, few know of their affairs—let alone the fact that the concubine-born daughter is actually the child of a demoness of the Hehuan Sect.

Now that the topic is already on the table, Shen Xi simply lets everything out. “Her mother is a witch of the Hehuan Sect! She knew my father already had a Dao companion, yet shamelessly seduced him, which is how she was born, a mere concubine’s child! My mother died of illness that year, all because her mother—the witch—tripped her up just before she passed. I don’t recognize her as my sister!”

As Shen Xi reveals Shen Man’s background, the murmuring among the crowd grows even more animated.

Back then, the Hehuan Sect wasn’t the main instigator of the rebellion. But since their sect leader participates, the entire sect is ultimately disbanded. No one cares whether the female disciples are innocent. Because of the sect leader’s disgraceful actions, many righteous sects still look down on the Hehuan Sect to this day.

As the head of a major immortal sect, Shen Fu harbors a remnant of the Hehuan Sect and even has a child with her. If people talk about it, at most he’ll be criticized for poor personal morals. It might even become a scandal among the commoners. But once Shen Man makes a mistake and her background comes to light, people are bound to become prejudiced.

Shen Xi’s charming face remains calm. She isn’t the one embarrassed—Shen Man is.

At this point, seeing that Shen Xi is still acting righteous, Shen Lingshu takes a deep breath and forces himself to calm down, no matter what others think or how the Shen family’s reputation will suffer…

“Young Island Master,” Shen Lingshu sighs, “this is the fault of the Shen family. I apologize to you on our behalf. Once we leave Floating City, the Shen family will offer Penglai a satisfactory explanation.”

Yun Zhuoran responds coldly, “Then tell me—what do you propose we do today?”

Shen Lingshu is momentarily stunned. Yun Zhuoran has never spoken to him so bluntly before—but that’s Yun Zhuoran. That he would be angered over such a vile act by Shen Man is within Shen Lingshu’s expectations. If Yun Zhuoran had actually accepted Shen Man’s self-recommendation, he would likely have loathed her even more.

Shen Lingshu’s gaze slides toward Shen Man, who is crouching not far away. After a moment of silence, he says tentatively, “Shen Man is a member of the Shen family, and though she makes a mistake, if the Young Island Master is still unsatisfied, I can hand her over to Penglai for the time being. But… before she meets her father, I ask that Penglai spare her life for the Shen family’s sake.”

Yun Zhuoran looks at him more intently. “Can you make that decision?”

“No! I’m not going to Penglai!” As the two speak, Shen Man suddenly jumps up and hides behind a nearby pillar, staring at Shen Lingshu and Shen Xi with panic and hatred in her voice. “I won’t go to Penglai! Don’t even think about sending me there!”

Everyone is left wondering—if she doesn’t want to go to Penglai, why does she go to the rooms of the two Penglai Island Masters in the middle of the night carrying Hehuan incense?

But looking at Shen Man’s disheveled and crazed state, many whisper that perhaps the two Island Masters already act decisively before the Buddhist intervenes—and that she has now lost her mind.

Of course, others—like Shen Xi—suspect Shen Man is merely pretending.

Seeing Shen Man finally speak, Shen Xi grows impatient. “Stop pretending! No one told you to sneak into the Island Masters’ rooms in the middle of the night! You’re not a child—you should be responsible for your own actions! Shen Man, let me tell you this: if you pull stunts like this again, the Shen family won’t stand by you anymore!”

In truth, Yun Zhuoran and Tongye both know that Shen Man’s madness isn’t an act. Her soul has been eroded by a heart demon’s evil spirit. While the effect isn’t catastrophic, it does influence her behavior. Shen Man is now overcome with fear and can no longer control herself—yet she is still aware that her siblings intend to throw her under the bus.

Shen Man glares at the two of them with a twisted expression that makes people uneasy. Her eyes roll, and suddenly she laughs coldly. “Shen Lingshu, forget about being my brother. You’re the disciple of Master Gu, yet you’d sell your own sister to protect your reputation? Don’t forget—we all carry the Shen family’s blood. If I’m dirty, how clean are you? Who would want to stay in this hypocritical family?”

Her smile twists into a grimace. The delicate features on her face contort as she glares fiercely at them. “So what if I’m the daughter of a Hehuan Sect demoness? You think you’re any cleaner? Shen Xi, let me tell you—your father is a hypocrite! A spineless coward! And you, Shen Lingshu, do you even know…” Shen Man suddenly turns to the onlookers. Her voice softens deliberately, but it makes everyone’s skin crawl. “I go to the Penglai Island Masters in the middle of the night… because my father, Shen Fu, arranges it.”

Hearing that, Yun Zhuoran’s cold gaze snaps toward her. The heart demon finally stirs, peeking out from his sleeve. His slightly reddened eyes fall on Shen Man.

Originally, they plan to use her to get what Shen Fu wants from Yun Zhuoran. But once the heart demon goes berserk, dragging Tongye into the mess, Yun Zhuoran abandons the plan. He doesn’t expect Shen Man to confess like this in her madness.

If he had known, it might have been better to just search her soul. Even if she ends up half-insane, it wouldn’t make much difference.

Shen Man can’t hear Yun Zhuoran’s thoughts, but seeing the same red eyes—his and Weiran’s—she is suddenly overwhelmed with fear. Those blood-red pupils have left a deep scar in her memory.

She lets out a low cry, quickly ducks back behind the pillar, and peeks out again, her terrified eyes darting around.

Seeing her like this, Shen Xi hesitates and mutters gloomily, “Crazy woman.”

Shen Lingshu silently shakes his head at her, signaling her to stay out of it. Shen Man’s rampage won’t damage him too much—but it will implicate Shen Xi and the Shen family directly. If not for Shen Xi, he wouldn’t bother stepping in to clean up this mess.

Seeing Shen Xi stick out her tongue and obediently fall silent, Shen Lingshu finally feels a bit of relief.