Chapter 33 Part 2

But how could she willingly abandon her little boat and become a skeleton lost forever in the seabed’s darkness? She instinctively began circulating her mental technique, struggling against the Devil Qi being forced into her body. She would wrestle for control!

Gradually, strand after strand of Devil Qi was sent into the dantian. Cold sweat seeped on Zhu Yue’s forehead. The gazes they locked on each other were both filled with undisguised ferocity.

Li Yueying shrieked, about to seize the opportunity to pounce. From the corner of her eye, Li Jiangying saw her and shouted sternly, “Don’t come over!”

The snake demon froze in place, caught in a dilemma for a moment. She stared in panic and worry at her Jiangying. The mortal in danger was filled with resentment and defiance.

Why must I always be bullied?! Why must I always rely on the power of those who might kill me at any moment?! WHY! WHY! WHY!

In the unseen realm, the contract’s bond began to slowly take shape. Li Jiangying bit her lips until they bled, tiny beads of crimson seeping out. Her furious, wide-open eyes blazed like brilliant flames. She hadn’t yet noticed how utterly extraordinary it was for a mere mortal to withstand the divine sense of a great expert in the Transformation Realm.

Zhu Yue was terrified. Because she discovered the Devil Qi she was sending into Li Jiangying was gradually slipping from her control. This mortal, who should have long been trembling at her feet begging for mercy, seemed to have a primordial beast of unfathomable depth lurking within her body—one that was devouring Zhu Yue’s Devil Qi completely.

Something’s wrong! Zhu Yue finally didn’t dare continue. She wanted to forcibly sever the connection with Li Jiangying. But at that moment, the mortal suddenly reached out and shoved her hard to the ground! A powerful suction, like a vortex formed by a raging sea, erupted from within her body!

In an instant, the balance of power was reversed. The contract bond trembled and began to shift. The mortal, having realized her revelation between life and death, saw her divine sense awaken with a roar like a slumbering beast. She completely opened herself and began actively pursuing along the Devil Qi.

The Devil Qi continuously flooding her body, and the ever-present Fire Element between heaven and earth, allowed the mortal to grasp this sliver of power and use it. She began madly drawing in all the Devil Qi around her—not even sparing the lofty Devil Venerable’s own!

Pitter-patter. Sweat dripped onto Zhu Yue and the ground.

Feeling the Devil Qi within her grow increasingly out of control, surging into Li Jiangying like a breached dam, Zhu Yue’s courage and soul nearly shattered. She no longer had the energy to establish a connection with Li Jiangying. She just wanted to cut off the link as fast as possible.

But could matters in this world ever go exactly as she wished? She grew weaker and weaker, until finally, she was like a mortal herself. She subconsciously held her breath, looking in terror at the person atop her. That woman looked down at her from a high vantage point, filthy and pathetic, yet angry and tenacious.

In this moment, Zhu Yue weakly submitted.

The distorted and collapsing contract bond was reshaped, completely reversing at this moment. In the unseen realm, the contract was formed. Marks were etched into their respective spirits, one as master, one as slave. Plunder and devotion were thus established.

The dark runes vanished. Silence fell within the cavern.

Patter.

Another drop of sweat fell. Li Jiangying came back to her senses and saw Zhu Yue pinned beneath her. She couldn’t help but break into a huge grin. She laughed wildly, as if venting all her frustrations.

It turned out she could be lucky too after all. Today was not an ill-fated day for escape. Her unease and anxiety had driven her to seize that final sliver of hope. Had she been just a little later, and the Demon-Suppressing Grand Array had been fully set, the situation would definitely not have ended up like this.

For a moment, the cavern echoed with her laughter. Gradually, the sound died down. Li Jiangying looked to the side. The snake demon, at some unknown point, had arrived beside them and was staring at her dazedly.

“Why are you crying?” Li Jiangying asked the snake demon with a smile. Still smiling, she raised her hand to wipe the corners of her own eyes. The demon was beside her, looking at her with a gaze of near reverence, yet tinged with subtle fear. The blood-red vertical pupils reflected Li Jiangying’s sweat-drenched, wretched appearance.

The snake demon wept silently, her voice trembling as she called, “Jiangying.”

“I’m here. I’m fine.” Li Jiangying put on a broad smile, her heart swelling with emotion. It was just strange— why was it that the more she wiped, the blurrier her eyes became?

Li Jiangying said this: “I’m incredibly happy. I’m especially delighted. Yueying, don’t cry. You should be happy for me too.”

Happy for her? A hint of confusion surfaced in the depths of her heart. Li Yueying stared at her, dazed, beyond words.

“Yueying.” Li Jiangying stood up and, smiling, spread her arms, taking two steps forward.

The snake demon, who had been rooted in place by a nameless fear, stirred emotionally and rushed forward, her arms opening, to embrace her. She held her tightly, forcefully, as if the person in her arms would leave the moment she loosened her grip.

Pitter-patter, pitter-patter. Cold tears soaked through the fabric, seeping into Li Jiangying’s shoulder. Li Jiangying hugged the little madwoman in her arms back, a strange, soft pang stirring in her heart. Both helpless and amused, she soothed the demon’s head and back. “There, there, I’m fine, aren’t I?”

The little madwoman’s crying had calmed Li Jiangying’s excited mood considerably. She could only focus on coaxing this silly child first.

Li Yueying and Li Jiangying held each other tightly. She harbored an unspeakable fear, her hands resting on Li Jiangying’s back. She touched the area beneath her shoulder blades, afraid her sharp claws would cut her, so she carefully stroked with her fingertips.

Her Jiangying… would she shine as brightly as she had that time? If so… would she fly away?

“Yingying…” Li Yueying cried so hard she was gasping for breath, calling Li Jiangying’s name indistinctly, slurring her words. “Yingying, don’t fly away… don’t go…”

“I’m not going anywhere, I’m not going anywhere. I can’t fly.” Li Jiangying patiently coaxed the child. “Don’t cry anymore, you’re getting ugly.”

Li Yueying sniffled, then suddenly shouted loudly, “Then I’m still prettier than that bad woman!”

Li Jiangying: “Alright, alright, you’re the prettiest.”

After considerable effort calming the little madwoman down, Li Jiangying felt like her head had been brainwashed by the sounds of “Yingying,” sobbing, and wailing. Rubbing her temples, exhausted yet invigorated, she looked toward Zhu Yue, still lying on the ground.

Zhu Yue was staring blankly with lifeless eyes at the ceiling, utterly hopeless. “Counter-killed… Not just counter-killed, but subjugated… turned into the slave of my most hated love rival… All my painstaking cultivation, all to be handed over to someone else… As long as that mortal doesn’t ascend, I, Zhu Yue, am forever barred from the Great Dao. I’ll be enslaved by her for life. And if that mortal accidentally dies, I die too!”

Zhu Yue shivered slightly, agonizing over her dark future.

Li Yueying looked at her with hatred, baring her fangs and claws, ready to pounce and rip her apart. Li Jiangying quickly hugged the snake demon’s slender waist. “Wait, Yueying, don’t kill her yet!”

“She’s so mean!” Li Yueying was extremely wronged and angry. “She dared to hurt Yingying! Unforgivable!”

Li Jiangying turned the little madwoman’s face toward her and chuckled softly. “You’re right, she is very bad. She wanted to hurt you, wanted to hurt me, wanted to make us her dogs for life. I absolutely cannot forgive that either. However, she can’t die yet.”

“Why?” Li Yueying pouted, asking in displeasure.

Since the contract was formed, Li Jiangying had naturally grasped what the contract entailed. Zhu Yue couldn’t harm her and had to obey her orders. Otherwise, Li Jiangying could easily cause her agony on a spiritual level. Furthermore, if Li Jiangying died, Zhu Yue would die too. But if Zhu Yue died, Li Jiangying would only suffer partial backlash.

This backlash was also tied to the contract’s most critical component: Zhu Yue’s cultivation would always be inferior to Li Jiangying’s. The Devil Qi she painstakingly cultivated would continuously flow to Li Jiangying through the contract, unless Li Jiangying actively stopped it. This was precisely why Zhu Yue had spoken of making Li Jiangying a cauldron furnace.

But now, the one turned into a cultivation vessel… was Zhu Yue herself.

Li Jiangying explained the above to the little madwoman, adding, “Zhu Yue is a Devil Venerable. This entire city is hers. Think about it—how wealthy must she be? We’ve struck it rich!”

Whether for the sake of Li Jiangying’s cultivation aid or for Zhu Yue’s status and wealth… this woman, Zhu Yue, couldn’t be casually killed!

But Li Jiangying also knew the little madwoman had been wronged, and she herself truly harbored some fury toward Zhu Yue. Therefore…

Li Jiangying and Li Yueying squatted down beside Zhu Yue, one on each side.

With a cold laugh, Li Jiangying reached out and grabbed the front of Zhu Yue’s collar, forcing her up. “City Lord, I wonder if you’ve ever heard the saying: ‘The clever are often ruined by their own cleverness.’ I think it applies to you perfectly.”

Zhu Yue woodenly rolled her eyes toward Li Jiangying, her voice hoarse. “Are you mocking this Venerable One?”

“Give it a rest. Still ‘this Venerable One’? You know full well who is the master and who is the slave now,” Li Jiangying said without any courtesy. “You brought this upon yourself. Don’t expect me to let you off easy.”

Zhu Yue gave a self-deprecating smile. “What do you want to do?”

“I don’t want to do anything. But right now…” Li Jiangying smirked coldly and suddenly clenched her fist. “I just want to hit you!”

Thud!

Without any shred of chivalrous pity, she slammed her fist into Zhu Yue’s beautiful face. A dark bruise bloomed instantly on Zhu Yue’s eye socket.

Zhu Yue: “…”

Li Yueying puffed out her cheeks in a pout. “I want to too!!!” As soon as she finished speaking, she clenched her fist and—BANG!—punched Zhu Yue flying.

Li Jiangying watched dumbfounded as the woman she had just hauled up by the collar was sent flying backwards. She paused, then stammered, “Ah, ah, ah! Go easy! Don’t kill her!!”

“I didn’t kill her,” Li Yueying defended herself, wronged. Turning toward the distant Zhu Yue, she said fiercely, “Yingying said not to, so I didn’t kill you, bad woman. If you ever dare hurt Yingying again, I’ll eat you!”

Li Jiangying ran over to Zhu Yue. Seeing that she was still conscious, only her face was a bit battered and miserable with blood trickling from the corner of her mouth, she sighed in relief.

It made sense. Though Zhu Yue’s cultivation was now as low as a mortal’s, her body had genuinely been tempered by heavenly lightning to enter the Transformation Realm. She wasn’t as fragile as Li Jiangying imagined.

Li Jiangying stood over her, looking down. “What’s done is done. What, does the Moon-Chasing Devil Venerable lack the grace to admit defeat? I’m not like you. So long as you behave, I won’t humiliate you arbitrarily. How about it?”

She quietly waited for her to come to terms with it. Using the contract’s power to force her obedience was a worse option than leaving some room for reconciliation. It would also prevent a day when she couldn’t bear it and tried a mutual-destruction backstab.

A moment later, Zhu Yue pushed herself off the ground and stood, sneering. “What is there to say now? Where is there room for me to resist you? Why bother with hypocrisy? It’s nauseating!”

Li Jiangying: “You’re truly annoying. Whatever, as long as you know to obey.”

Li Jiangying extended her hand toward her. Perhaps traumatized by the sudden slug earlier, Zhu Yue subconsciously stepped back. She saw Li Jiangying’s palm facing up, three fingers curled in, thumb and forefinger rubbing against the middle finger in the universal sign for money.

Zhu Yue: “What do you mean?”

Li Jiangying: “Cough, cough! Hand over your storage artifact. I want to take inventory.”

Wahahahaha! She, Li Jiangying—a wretched transmigrator who didn’t even know if her name was real or fake, dirt-poor and wandering the whole way—could finally experience the joy of sudden wealth!

Happiness swelled in her heart. Li Jiangying couldn’t help but laugh, her eyes crinkling. She rubbed her fingers impatiently, urging, “Hurry up, hurry up, hurry up.” Let her experience the joy of counting money!

However, not only did Zhu Yue fail to produce a storage artifact, she looked at Li Jiangying as if she were an idiot, her tone filled with shame and anger. “What are you thinking! This Venerable One’s storage ring is a top-grade artifact, carefully selected. No one below the Spirit Transformation Stage could ever hope to open it. You’re a mortal without any cultivation, and thanks to you, I’ve lost mine. You want Devil Stones and artifacts? Dream on!”

Li Jiangying: “…”

Her head suddenly snapped back, and she clutched her head, wailing in despair. “AAAHHH! Why am I always so damn poor!!!”

Li Yueying quickly pounced to hug her Yingying. “Yingying, let’s sell this bad woman, and we’ll have money!”

“Get away, you idiot pauper!”