The little black snake with the red eyes affectionately lifted its body to coil around Li Jiangying’s wrist: It’s me. Jiangying, Jiangying, you promised to hold me.
Li Jiangying couldn’t help but raise one eyebrow high and said loudly: “Say that again?”
Li Yueying tactfully shut up.
Li Jiangying didn’t waste any more words on her. She let her wrap around her wrist, bent down, and picked up the mask that had fallen to the ground, fixing it onto her face. The mask was of good quality; it hadn’t broken even after Li Yueying’s earlier antics.
Once the mask was on, Li Jiangying’s appearance changed completely, startling the little madwoman.
Li Jiangying was about to say “It’s me, don’t be afraid,” when she heard the little madwoman muttering things like “Jiangying became ugly.” Angered, Li Jiangying raised her hand and flicked the little madwoman’s forehead with her finger. Naturally, the one who felt the pain was Li Jiangying herself.
She said to Cui Yu: “Let’s go, quickly.”
Cui Yu helplessly stroked her beast’s head and said: “We must still trouble Your Highness to restrain her aura.”
As everyone knew, the current Moon Shadow Devil Venerable only listened to Li Jiangying. Therefore, Li Jiangying raised her hand towards the little snake that kept rubbing against her arm and said: “Restrain your aura.”
Li Yueying responded with a confused sound and tried for a while, but the Manticore Horse remained sprawled on the ground, trembling.
“Restrain your aura… restrain your aura…” Li Yueying tried hard.
Seeing that she hadn’t achieved any results after a long time, Li Jiangying focused her gaze on the little snake and observed carefully before saying: “It’s like how you slimmed down your body.”
Finally, Li Yueying successfully restrained her aura. The Manticore Horse stood up and weakly sought its owner’s touch. Li Yueying watched with envy and couldn’t help but rub against Li Jiangying’s arm, acting coquettishly: “I’m not fat. Jiangying, if you don’t believe me, touch me.”
Li Jiangying sneered: “No need to touch. I have eyes.”
And so, with Li Yueying hidden in Li Jiangying’s sleeve, Li Jiangying and Cui Yu rode the Manticore Horse together and set off for Fangping Town.
Though called a town, Fangping Town was already almost as large as a small city in the mortal world and was one of the nearest settlements to the Moon Shadow Devil Palace.
Even though it was the closest, traveling from nightfall, relying on the Demonic Beast’s powerful stamina, they only arrived by the next dusk.
Fangping Town was kept in order by numerous Rogue Devil Cultivators. To prevent conflicts, anyone entering the town had to walk unless they were a big shot.
In a deserted corner, Li Jiangying, her face deathly pale, climbed off the Manticore Horse. Overall, this Demonic Beast ran smoothly and had a broad, comfortable back. The problem was that mortals were simply too fragile. After riding for an entire day, Li Jiangying could barely endure it.
Her stomach churned with nausea, her head spun, and she felt cold. Li Jiangying took the water pouch Cui Yu handed her and drank a few mouthfuls to suppress the urge to vomit. After steadying her breathing, she asked: “It’s so late. Is that doctor still open?”
Cui Yu put away the Manticore Horse, took out two black cloaks, and they each put one on. Only then did she lead Li Jiangying into Fangping Town: “It’s fine. Devil Cultivators mostly do as they please; they don’t need that much rest.”
As Li Jiangying followed her inside, she looked around Fangping Town curiously. This was her first time seeing people and things in the outside world since arriving in this world.
The buildings in Fangping Town were relatively plain. It was probably because the visitors here were all transient Rogue Cultivators. Therefore, providing a place for trading, a brief meal, and lodging was sufficient; they didn’t put much care into other aspects.
There were quite a few people in town, like Li Jiangying and Cui Yu, wearing black cloaks to hide their identities, and quite a few dressed in flamboyant, eye-catching clothes. Seeing this, Li Jiangying felt relieved.
Cui Yu led Li Jiangying through a series of twists and turns into an alleyway. At the very end was an open doorway. Upon entering, they saw the front Medical Hall was closed, and seven or eight people were queuing in the courtyard.
Li Jiangying couldn’t help but sweat: “Seems like business is good.”
Cui Yu smiled sheepishly: “She’s the best Devil Cultivator doctor in this area.”
What else could they do? Wait!
The two sat down against a wall, using the time to rest. However, Li Jiangying was getting a bit hungry. Awkwardly covering her mouth with her hand, Li Jiangying told Cui Yu about her predicament. Cui Yu was stunned for a moment, then quickly took out some food from a Storage Bag.
“I forgot. Jiangying still can’t practice Inedia yet.”
The food just taken from the Storage Bag was still warm. Li Jiangying ate while observing the courtyard. This courtyard looked no different from an ordinary doctor’s home, full of medicinal herbs drying everywhere. After watching for a while, she found it boring and began to focus on eating.
The little snake spirit coiled around her arm wriggled from time to time to assert its presence. At these moments, Li Jiangying needed to stroke her to soothe her, otherwise, she’d twist herself into a Chinese knot and still not settle down.
Halfway through her meal, a person came crashing out from inside the Medical Hall, smashing the door open and flying out backwards. He landed miserably on the ground. Following him closely, a woman in a gray-blue combat outfit stepped out, holding an iron shovel in her hand. She said angrily: “Can’t afford the consultation fee, yet you dare to come freeload a diagnosis from me, old lady? Courting death!”
With that, she charged forward, raised the iron shovel high, let out a yell, and forcefully shoveled it down. The patient sprawled on the ground let out a shrill scream as his right leg, accompanied by splattering blood, was severed and flew away.
Splat. A droplet of blood splashed onto the half-eaten flatbread in Li Jiangying’s hand.
Li Jiangying was silent, then dug out the blood-stained part and continued eating.
That woman in the gray-blue outfit was the owner of this unlicensed medical clinic. Blood splattered onto her face; she wiped it with her hand, only smearing it more. She said viciously: “The debt you owe is paid with your leg. Scram! If you don’t scram, leave your other leg behind too!”
Under this threat, regardless of whether the man on the ground could survive after leaving, he definitely didn’t dare to stay any longer.
The medical woman snorted coldly, turned around, and walked back into the Medical Hall: “Next! Don’t come in and annoy me if you haven’t prepared three hundred Devil Stones!”
After she finished speaking, a small commotion ran through the people queuing in the courtyard. Soon after, two people silently left. Li Jiangying couldn’t help but ask Cui Yu if the Devil Stones they had prepared were enough.
Cui Yu reassured her that three hundred was still available, but she didn’t know if there would be follow-up costs after the diagnosis.
The two waited until late at night. Li Jiangying even took a short nap under Cui Yu’s watch before it was finally their turn.
After entering the Medical Hall, the door was closed. This was to avoid exposing the patient’s condition and prevent opportunistic attacks from those waiting outside.
Compared to Li Jiangying, Cui Yu was clearly more familiar with this medical woman. She directly said: “Senior Liu, this is a junior from my hometown region. She just entered the Devil Path but has encountered some problems in her cultivation. I’d like to trouble you, Senior, to take a look.”
Doctor Liu’s temperament when treating patients wasn’t as irritable as when facing debtors. She looked with mild disinterest at the unfamiliar face revealed when Li Jiangying took off her cloak and asked: “What are the specific symptoms?”
Li Jiangying explained her problems to her in detail. As she listened, Doctor Liu’s brow furrowed more and more tightly. Clearly, for her, the fact that Li Jiangying couldn’t store Devil Qi in her body was a rare case.
“Give me your hand. Calm your mind and heart, don’t resist.”
“Alright.”
However, after instinctively extending her right hand, Li Jiangying hesitated. Her right hand hovered mid-air, momentarily unsure whether to put it down. After all, that little madwoman was still wrapped around her arm.
“What’s wrong?” Doctor Liu urged. “Hurry up, there are still people waiting outside.”
“Alright.”
Li Yueying, known far and wide as the Mad Devil Venerable, sometimes revealed her true form in public. There was no guarantee that someone wouldn’t associate this tiny black snake with the Moon Shadow Devil Venerable upon seeing it. Li Jiangying could only smile slightly and slowly extend her arm, supporting it with her left hand.
She took the opportunity to stroke and push the snake coiled around her arm, coaxing it to move up a little, careful not to be seen.
To Li Jiangying’s relief, Li Yueying was exceptionally sensible today. She quickly understood her intention and slithered up her arm. It was fortunate that the clothes here were loose enough to conceal the snake underneath.
Doctor Liu took Li Jiangying’s hand, casually rolled her sleeve up a bit to expose her wrist, and focused her mind to begin the diagnosis.
And Li Jiangying, who had just been thinking the little madwoman had become sensible, immediately regretted it.
Her smile froze on her face. The hand supporting her right arm slowly pressed against her chest. She gritted her teeth with difficulty, thinking: Li Yueying, just you wait!
Slap. Li Jiangying swatted her left side. Slap. She pressed her right side. Doctor Liu glanced up at her.
Li Jiangying smiled awkwardly, changing the swatting into an imitation of scratching an itch.
Doctor Liu finally couldn’t hold back any longer. She stared at her chest and asked: “You’re itchy?”
“Just a bit itchy. Just a little.”
After a moment of quiet, slap!
Doctor Liu silently looked up at her:
Li Jiangying tried to make an excuse: “Just slightly itchy, don’t mind me, please continue.”
“No, what I meant was, the head came out.”
Li Jiangying slowly lowered her head and met the pair of teary, red-bean-like eyes set on a pitch-black little snake’s head: “Stop hitting me, sob, it’s all red!!”
