Shortly after, that spider suddenly went berserk, attacking its companions without explanation. The other spiders, seeing this, hurriedly scurried toward the battlefield on their eight legs.
Shan Qingluo waved her slender hand, slicing a gap directly through the web. Her figure flickered and vanished, her voice reaching Yang Kai's ears: "Don't move. Wait for me to come back!"
Yang Kai naturally wouldn't move recklessly. With a composed expression, he carefully observed the commotion outside.
The spider under his control was now fighting desperately against its companions. A sixth-rank demon beast had already developed considerable reason—not a great deal, but enough to engage in some basic thinking.
The spiders being attacked seemed unable to understand why this companion had suddenly gone mad, just as they couldn't comprehend why it had previously killed so many martial artists from the Cangyun Evil Ground.
After resisting for a moment, through some form of communication unknown to Yang Kai, the spiders suddenly stopped holding back, as though they had determined that this companion had lost its reason and could not be saved.
In mere moments, the sixth-rank demon beast under Yang Kai's control was killed.
Only then did the gathered spiders scatter in all directions.
"Yang Kai!" Miss Qiu suddenly called out.
Yang Kai kept a cold expression and didn't respond.
"Has Sister Shan recovered her strength already?" Miss Qiu asked urgently.
Still no response.
Miss Qiu smiled bitterly and said, "Yang Kai, you're not that petty a man, are you? I admit I offended you many times before. Isn't an apology enough?"
"No need. Miss Qiu's status is far too noble for me to accept." Yang Kai scoffed.
Miss Qiu laughed softly. "Fine, fine, I was wrong. I truly was wrong. I shouldn't have brought people to your Lingxiao Pavilion to cause trouble. Actually, I never really did anything to you—you're so strong that if we'd really fought, it's anyone's guess who would've won. Before all this, I honestly couldn't believe a small sect could produce a disciple like you."
"Save the flattery. It sounds nauseating."
"Heh, we're both people who see through things clearly. Then I won't beat around the bush and bore you." Miss Qiu said with a light laugh. "When Sister Shan comes back, could you ask her to take me and Xiaoman out too? Don't worry—as long as she agrees, my Qiu family will surely reward you generously!"
"Whether she saves you or not is her business. I can't interfere." Yang Kai frowned.
"Surely not. You two seem so close—the Seductress Queen has never been this intimate with any man. If you put in a good word for us, Sister Shan definitely won't just stand by and watch us die." As she spoke, Miss Qiu's voice softened. "Just don't make me and Xiaoman into maidservants, and you can name any other condition you like! I can even promise you a young woman from my Qiu family's branch family as a wife. Hehe... but in front of Sister Shan, I'd suggest you don't bring that up—wouldn't want her getting jealous."
Yang Kai's expression turned impatient. "I already told you—whether she saves you is her decision. I can barely protect myself right now. What's the point of all this nonsense?"
Miss Qiu gave a sorrowful smile, her expression on the verge of tears. "But you're the only one I can pin my hopes on. If you don't lend a hand, Xiaoman and I will probably never escape this calamity." Her voice grew choked with emotion, pitifully delicate. "Can you really bear to watch us die?"
Knowing she was putting on an act to win his sympathy, Yang Kai felt a wave of disgust and no longer wished to engage with her.
He had always had little fondness for women who played games with their schemes.
"Yang Kai, Yang Kai..." Miss Qiu showed no sign of giving up, continuing to call out his name softly, over and over.
Though their conversation was quiet, Luo Xiaoman was nearby. She heard every word clearly.
Seeing Yang Kai so cold and heartless, Luo Xiaoman's face turned ashen, and she called out helplessly, "Sister Qiu, what do we do?"
Miss Qiu let out a long, melancholy sigh, abandoning her efforts to move Yang Kai. She smiled bitterly. "Let's just wait. It's not like we'll actually die here."
Just then, a wisp of fragrant breeze swept over. A figure in brilliant red burst before Yang Kai's eyes, and with a flick of her fingers, the web binding him was cut open.
"Go!" Shan Qingluo looked tense. She grabbed Yang Kai with one hand and leaped upward, flying toward the sky.
Yang Kai followed with a grave expression. Through his Divine Sense, he could detect the Spider Matriarch's distinctive and vigorous life force rapidly awakening—Shan Qingluo's actions had clearly roused it.
"Sister Shan!" Miss Qiu hurriedly called out, gritting her teeth, a trace of hesitation and inner struggle showing on her face.
But she also knew this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. If she let Shan Qingluo leave, she and Luo Xiaoman would truly have no chance of escape.
"Sister Shan, I agree to your previous terms! Please take me and Xiaoman with you!" Miss Qiu shouted firmly.
Shan Qingluo frowned as she looked at her, then raised her slender hand. Two pink ribbons shot through the air, wrapping around Miss Qiu and Luo Xiaoman and spiraling them skyward like lightning.
Seeing that Shan Qingluo hadn't left them behind, both Miss Qiu and Luo Xiaoman felt the joy of being rescued from a desperate situation.
"You have betrayed your own bloodline and dared to ignore my warnings—where do you think you're going!" The Spider Matriarch's furious voice rang out, completely devoid of its former seductive charm. Right now, it was like a madwoman who had been provoked beyond reason.
As it spoke, two strands of white, resilient spider silk shot through the air.
These two strands of silk were absurdly fast, arriving before them in the blink of an eye. Shan Qingluo and Yang Kai's expressions changed simultaneously as they both moved to block.
With a collision of Yuan Qi, the two strands of silk were barely stopped, but the residual force severed one of the ribbons from Shan Qingluo's hand—and the other end of that ribbon was wrapped around Luo Xiaoman.
A scream was heard as terror bloomed in Luo Xiaoman's beautiful eyes, her heart instantly overwhelmed with fright.