Chapter 148: You Have Quite the Thick Skin

“Who was running his mouth?”

The moment Ling Yuan said this, everyone instinctively looked toward the Heaven-Swallowing Sparrow. The bird immediately panicked.

“For heaven’s sake, why are you all looking at me? The one bragging was that fellow, not me…”

It was over. He would never be able to clear his name.

“So it was you?”

Seeing everyone’s eyes fixed on the Heaven-Swallowing Sparrow, Ling Yuan’s cold gaze instantly followed theirs. The bird grew uneasy under her stare.

It hurriedly explained, “It wasn’t me! Lingling, listen to me—it really wasn’t me…”

“It was definitely him. I heard him myself…”

Qingcheng, with impeccable timing, gave the bird another push over the edge. Suppressing his laughter, he shamelessly twisted the truth.

The Heaven-Swallowing Sparrow was furious. These people were truly ruthless—each one more treacherous than the last. And to think it had trusted them, believing them to be pure and kindhearted.

“It really wasn’t me, Lingling! You have to believe me. I’m such a pure and kind bird—how could I possibly say something like that? Even if you gave me a hundred lives, I wouldn’t dare attack you…”

The Heaven-Swallowing Sparrow was utterly unable to defend itself. It had never expected Ling Yuan to come out this time. It had assumed some elder of the Peacock Clan would appear, and had planned to put on a show and wash away the humiliation of once being an ugly toad dreaming of eating swan meat.

Who could have known that Ling Yuan herself would come out? The bird was completely thrown off balance.

“Come on. You clearly told me just now that you were going to toy with a few peacocks in a moment…”

Once again, Qingcheng sold out his companion without the slightest hesitation. This time, the Heaven-Swallowing Sparrow truly had no way to defend itself. In its heart, it cursed Qingcheng’s ancestors eighteen generations back dozens of times over.

What a treacherous bastard! I came all this way to help you, and this is how you repay me?

“Do you have anything else to say?”

After hearing Qingcheng’s words, Ling Yuan’s expression became terribly grim, even tinged with disappointment.

“All right, I suppose I can’t explain my way out of this. In that case, I’ll speak plainly…”

Knowing that even a hundred mouths would not be enough to clear its name, the Heaven-Swallowing Sparrow simply admitted defeat.

It continued, “Why are you helping that demon monkey wreak havoc in the East Sea? The girl who was once kindhearted and hated bloodshed—why are you aiding evil now?”

The Heaven-Swallowing Sparrow’s words struck straight at her heart. Ling Yuan’s entire body trembled, and she staggered backward again and again. She did not know how to answer.

“I…I don’t know!”

She truly did not know. She had come here only because the elders of her clan had ordered her to lend support. She had never expected to encounter the Heaven-Swallowing Sparrow.

“You don’t know? Heh… Raise your head and look at that chaotic void above us. An even greater crisis awaits us there. If that line falls, the entire Great Wilderness will be destroyed.

“And yet, at this critical moment when life and death hang in the balance, we still have to take time to deal with you people. Do you know that, in places you cannot see, millions of living beings are silently fighting for this world, even giving their lives for it?

“You care only about the benefits before your eyes while ignoring the safety of all living creatures. I misjudged you…”

The Heaven-Swallowing Sparrow shook its head in disappointment. The moment those words left its mouth, Qingcheng inwardly applauded.

“My heavens! That was incredible! Even I’m fired up now…”

“Good grief, you’ve learned to scheme too? You’re preaching righteousness now? Incredible. No wonder you’re the bird closest to the boss—you really do have a few tricks…”

Had Qingcheng not known the bird so well, he might actually have been fooled. This fellow… it had actually managed to say something like that. What did the battle in the void have to do with it? It had never taken part in it. Every day, it did nothing but eat, sleep, sleep, and eat. How did it have the nerve?

After saying all that, didn’t its face burn with shame?

Then again, its entire body was red already. No wonder it had no shame at all.

“Not bad. That move of yours was quite something.”

Qingcheng praised it. The Heaven-Swallowing Sparrow turned around and gave him an evil grin.

“Likewise. Don’t assume I’m stupid. Most of the time, I’m unbelievably clever. I simply can’t be bothered to compete with you people in schemes…”

The Heaven-Swallowing Sparrow itself was startled by its quick thinking and began congratulating itself smugly.

Sure enough, the moment it finished speaking, Ling Yuan trembled even more deeply and fell into self-doubt.

She murmured, “Could it be that I really did something wrong?”

The people of her clan had mentioned the battle in the void, but… it did not sound nearly as cruel as the Heaven-Swallowing Sparrow had described. Could it be that the elders of her clan had deceived her?

It was not only her. Everyone above was stirred to the point of boiling blood by those few words. Cao He openly praised the performance.

“My heavens, I never thought this fellow would learn to show off too! To spout such shamelessly righteous words with a straight face—I’m almost impressed…”

Of everyone present, Cao He knew the Heaven-Swallowing Sparrow best. How could he not know what sort of bird it was? This fellow… had nothing to do with the war in the void, did it?

And yet, hearing it speak now, one might think it had made a major contribution.

Wasn’t it Ye Qiu who had saved the situation at the last possible moment and held the collapsing world together, barely preserving the peace they enjoyed now?

Yet after listening to the bird, everyone suddenly had the illusion that it was the greatest hero of all.

You really are shameless!

“I am truly disappointed! I thought that, in this dark and chaotic age, you understood the importance of the greater good. I never imagined that you would choose to aid evil for the sake of a trifling personal benefit…”

The Heaven-Swallowing Sparrow added another log to the fire. Ling Yuan’s resolve had already begun to waver. She had never approved of the vicious beasts’ actions in the first place; she had merely come forward on behalf of the Peacock Clan.

She had never expected the truth to be so complicated.

“Listen to me, I…”

Ling Yuan had only just begun to explain when Old Pig below immediately grew anxious and hurriedly shouted, “Princess Ling Yuan, don’t fall for that creature’s trick! He’s lying to you…”

“Damn it!”

Just when success was within reach, Old Pig had suddenly appeared out of nowhere. The Heaven-Swallowing Sparrow knew at once that things were going badly.

Sure enough, after hearing Old Pig’s warning, Ling Yuan’s expression instantly darkened. She stared coldly at the Heaven-Swallowing Sparrow.

“You actually dared to deceive me? You’re finished…”

“Damn it, Little Qingcheng, save me! They’re killing a bird here!”

The Heaven-Swallowing Sparrow panicked and hurriedly hid behind Qingcheng. Unexpectedly, Qingcheng fled even faster than it did, explaining as he ran, “Let me make this clear first—I don’t know him. If you’re angry, take it out on him. Leave me out of it…”

“For heaven’s sake! No loyalty at all!”

“Where do you think you’re running?”

Ling Yuan instantly revealed her true peacock form and charged straight toward the Heaven-Swallowing Sparrow. The battle erupted at once.

Two enormous figures clashed fiercely above the Heavenly Abyss, locked in a bitter struggle.

The Heaven-Swallowing Sparrow did nothing but dodge, never once striking back, while Ling Yuan attacked with ruthless moves, driving it into a panicked retreat.

“Hahaha…”

Qingcheng watched with loud laughter, without the slightest hint of concern.

What was there to worry about? It was merely a quarrel between a couple—a perfectly ordinary occurrence. It would be fine.

Before coming here, Qingcheng had not known that the two of them were acquainted. He certainly had not expected their relationship to run so deep. He had assumed that the Heaven-Swallowing Sparrow’s love was merely one-sided.

This string of farces, however, was not the true subject of the upheaval in the East Sea. After luring Ling Yuan away, the Heaven-Swallowing Sparrow, Qingcheng cast a meaningful glance at Old Pig.

“Heh heh. At last, it’s my turn to take the stage!”