Chapter 40 Part 1

Liuli was utterly shocked.

Long Jingxing had actually been slapped in the face!

Long Jingxing clutched his face, trembling with rage, yet he didn’t dare resist. Instead, he lowered his head further, groveling obsequiously: “Master, I was wrong.”

Liuli was so shocked her image shattered: Ma-ma-ma-ma… Mas-master?!

Tang Shikou patted Liuli’s back soothingly, as if comforting her, and asked with a beaming smile, “Dear sister, do you know who he is?”

Liuli: “…I don’t.”

“He’s an inner sect disciple of the Heavenly Martial Sect, named Long Jingxing. Not long ago, his Spiritual Root shattered, and his sect abandoned him. So, he came into my service.”

Liuli: “…Oh.”

What a miraculous plot development. It was so miraculous that Liuli couldn’t even tell where things had gone wrong.

“So, Sister called me over because… you want something?”

Long Jingxing had already called out Liuli’s name, yet Tang Shikou was still pretending not to hear.

No one knew why Tang Shikou was so keen on this charade of sisterhood. After thinking it over, Liuli concluded—she must simply have too much free time.

“Don’t be impatient, little sister. Didn’t Sister say she wanted to give you a gift?”

“What kind of gift?”

“That depends on how interesting the story our Young Master Long tells is.”

Liuli’s entire body tensed. Mercifully, she didn’t have to lock eyes with Tang Shikou; she only had to glare at Long Jingxing.

Tang Shikou kept stroking Liuli’s back, one stroke at a time, and said, “I’ve heard that the Heavenly Martial Sect Leader has a daughter, named Xue Liuli. I, your sister, am truly very interested in her.”

Long Jingxing understood the cue and chimed in, “Master is astute. This Xue Liuli fell seriously ill last year. When she woke, she had lost all her memories. Her personality is abnormal—brutish and heartless!”

Liuli: “………”

Tang Shikou, with a smile that wasn’t quite a smile, said, “Do tell.”

Long Jingxing then picked out a few of Liuli’s deeds to recount. And how did he portray them? In short, for the first time, Liuli learned that in Long Jingxing’s eyes, she had already become a completely shameless bootlicker and attention whore.

Liuli’s feelings were a bit complicated.

Tang Shikou, intent on tormenting Liuli, asked her, “What does little sister think of this man?”

Liuli, after careful thought, couldn’t help but defend herself: “I think that Xue Liuli is not as shameless as Long Jingxing claims.”

“Oh? Then what kind of person does little sister think she is?”

“First of all,” Liuli puffed out her chest and sucked in her stomach, “Xue Liuli is a beautiful person.”

“…” Tang Shikou was speechless.

“As everyone knows, beautiful people are generally not too evil. I believe Long Jingxing’s words are nothing but slander, pure slander! He’s jealous of Xue Liuli!”

Long Jingxing clenched his fist: “You! You’re talking nonsense! What would I be jealous of you for?!”

Liuli glanced coldly at this Long Jingxing who had completely torn off all pretense. She leaned back, brazenly slumping against Tang Shikou:

“You’re jealous that Xue Liuli is doted on by a great beauty!”

Tang Shikou burst into laughter, shaking like a trembling flower branch.

With her supporting her from behind, Long Jingxing, no matter how angry, didn’t dare act out. The two glared at each other, trying to stab each other to death with their dagger-like stares.

“Alright, time to get serious.” Tang Shikou sat up from the soft couch. Liuli jolted, hastily straightening up and sitting sideways, half her bottom off the low couch, afraid Tang Shikou might suddenly attack. She didn’t even dare sit solidly.

Liuli shed a handful of bitter tears for her own wretchedness.

Tang Shikou suddenly seized Liuli’s wrist. Liuli was startled internally but showed no outward sign. Before such a vast gap in cultivation, Liuli had absolutely no power to resist.

A stream of cold, sinister True Qi rushed into Liuli’s meridians. This chill felt completely different from Feng Xiwu’s—it was True Qi that made no attempt to hide its domineering strength and ferocious aura, a lofty, forceful, and brutally violent energy that charged in unhindered.

If a casual thread of Qi from a Nascent Soul Perfected One was this tyrannical, then how gentle and careful Feng Xiwu must have been with her.

After probing around inside Liuli’s body, Tang Shikou smiled and said, “Good little sister, since your cultivation has hit a bottleneck, why not borrow external force to break through?”

Liuli wanted to secure more time in the pigsty, so she refused without a second thought: “That’s not a good idea. I think it’s more solid to cultivate by myself.”

She had assumed someone like Tang Shikou, who seemed amenable but was truly domineering, would force pills down her throat. There were ancient water-fattened pigs, and now there’d be a pill-fattened Liuli. Internally, Liuli struggled—should she be a bit more obedient to win her trust?

Unexpectedly, Tang Shikou actually nodded in agreement: “Little sister speaks the truth.”

Huh?? She wasn’t going to force-feed her pills??

Tang Shikou smiled amiably. Suddenly, she reached out and grabbed; Long Jingxing flew across the low table in a sorry state, landing on his knees in front of the couch.

Liuli and Long Jingxing were forced cheek-to-cheek, disgusted by the sight of each other: “…”

Tang Shikou flipped her hand, and a curved short knife radiating cold light appeared in her grasp.

Liuli: “!!!”

Tang Shikou reached out, and the razor-sharp blade slid across Long Jingxing’s neck—a spray of blood went pssshh…

Liuli was splashed directly in the face. She sat there dumbfounded, not yet comprehending what had happened: “…”

Long Jingxing: “Ah!”

But the two little quails under Hierarch Tang’s mountain of a hand couldn’t break free at all. They could only listen as Tang Shikou smiled and said: “If little sister wants to rely on herself, Sister should, of course, lend a hand. Does little sister know that her constitution is special, a once-in-a-millennium ‘Heavenly Fragrance Spirit Body’? It’s truly a pity for such a constitution to be sealed.”

Liuli: “AAAAAHHHH!!!”

Tang Shikou hooked her finger at the wound on Long Jingxing’s neck. A strand of Essence Blood was forcibly drawn out and shot straight into Liuli’s mouth.

Liuli was forced to swallow a mouthful of blood tinged with a metallic, coppery taste. Her scream cut off abruptly, and the horror on her face instantly morphed into disgust: “BLEUGH!!!”

But it was already too late. The Essence Blood was swallowed. Long Jingxing was nearly dead from rage. You absorb my Essence Blood and you make that face? Shameless!

Liuli made futile retching sounds, wishing she could cry but having no tears left.

Fuck. In the book, the female lead’s seal was broken after XXOO with the male lead. Tang Shikou probably couldn’t be bothered to watch a live spring show and planned to use Long Jingxing’s blood to break her seal instead. But how did Tang Shikou know that Long Jingxing’s constitution was exactly what was needed to break the seal on Xue Liuli???

And furthermore, this Heavenly Fragrance Spirit Body, besides being incredibly fast and powerful to cultivate on one’s own, had another huge characteristic—it was supremely suited for Dual Cultivation. That is to say, it also made a perfect Cauldron.

So when and where had Tang Shikou taken an interest in her?

At the Ghost Market Auction, when they were auctioning off cauldrons.

And thinking back on Tang Shikou’s strange attitude toward her…

Liuli was horrified. She bolted upright, frantically wiping the blood from her face while screaming, “What are you trying to do?! Whatever you’re planning, I urge you to think twice! I’d rather die than submit!!!”

Long Jingxing was closest to her. His eyes bulged, his expression terrifying: “Qui-et…”

The spots splashed by the blood began to heat up, as if burned by strong acid, carrying a faint pain. At the same time, her qi and blood surged within. It was unclear if this was because the seal was being broken by Long Jingxing’s bloodline.

Tang Shikou probed Liuli’s body again, furrowing her brows slightly, and murmured slowly and puzzled: “Hmm? Is this all the Heavenly Fragrance Spirit Body is? It seems… off.”

What was off?! If it was off, did she plan to try other methods?!

Liuli’s fur bristled: “If you dare let him touch me, I’ll commit suicide right now!!!”

Tang Shikou waved her hand, flinging Long Jingxing aside. She pressed down on Liuli’s shoulders intimately yet dotingly, and with a wave, Liuli was spotlessly clean: “Good little sister, don’t be afraid. How could Sister ever do such a thing?”

While soothing Liuli, she continued to probe, smiling: “Sister was overthinking. Little sister’s cultivation is too weak now. Wait until you break through to the Golden Core stage, and you will surely emerge from your cocoon as a butterfly.”

Liuli understood now. She was waiting for her to reach the Golden Core stage before using her as a Cauldron!

Unable to control herself, Liuli leaned her neck back: “I-I-I advise you to give up on that idea! If you try to use me as a cauldron, I’d rather self-destruct! We’ll all perish together, saving the Heavenly Martial Sect from disgrace!”

Tang Shikou’s red lips parted slightly in feigned surprise: “Oh my, isn’t Shishi my good little sister? How is she connected to the Heavenly Martial Sect again?”

Liuli: “…Is this sister act really that fun?”

Tang Shikou smiled: “It truly is.”

She reached out and slowly stroked Liuli’s cheek. It would have been a gentle and ambiguous gesture, but now, whether due to psychological suggestion or not, Liuli felt a dull ache wherever she was touched.

Tang Shikou spoke with a cheerful smile: “Liuli.”

She pronounced these two words softly and slowly, as if curling her tongue around them before releasing them from her red lips, seeming to imbue them with an inexplicably sensual flavor.

Liuli lamented silently: Beautiful women aren’t necessarily poisonous, but Tang Shikou is absolutely drenched in venom!

Tang Shikou said, “Liuli, my dear sister, don’t you understand your sister’s heart yet?”

Liuli: “…?”

Long Jingxing gritted his teeth: “…”

What heart could you possibly have? You’re clearly up to no good!

“Since little sister is so adorable, your sister’s heart was filled with joy the moment she saw you. In all this time, has Sister ever hurt you? How could Sister ever treat little sister as a cauldron? We two could love each other, become Dao Companions, and roam this world hand in hand. Wouldn’t that be wonderful?”

This speech seemed very reasonable. Tang Shikou sounded utterly sincere and earnest.

Liuli stared at her for a moment, then slowly her eyes reddened: “I never imagined… Sister felt this way. This sister is so touched! It’s just that my cultivation is currently too low, truly unworthy of Sister…”

“It’s alright. Sister can wait.”

“But this little sister is from the Heavenly Martial Sect…”

“Sister doesn’t mind.”

“Th-this… this truly overwhelms this little sister with favor. It’s just that I’m a woman, and between women…”

“Cultivators inherently walk against the heavens. Why bother with such empty conventions?”

Liuli choked up: “Sister’s reasoning is sound.”

She’d never imagined the cultivation world was so open-minded. Liuli wanted to cry.

Liuli cried.

Liuli pulled Tang Shikou’s sleeve up to her eyes, wiped a tear: “Ah—”

She was crying buckets.

Tang Shikou’s gentle smile was on the verge of collapsing.

Liuli’s face was streaming with tears, and Tang Shikou’s sleeve was completely soaked.