She promptly pushed her little slave down and started converting her cultivation to absorb Fire Element Devil Qi, hoping to relieve the constant discomfort in her own stomach. Meanwhile, in the inner room of the Medical Hall, after watching the Snake Demon fall into a deep sleep from the drugs and the formation, Gu Qinglin began her acupuncture while simultaneously teaching her disciple.
This senior disciple had always been her pride and would one day inherit her complete legacy, likely surpassing her master. Despite her young age, she had already learned seventy to eighty percent of Gu Qinglin’s skills and frequently came up with brilliant ideas that even Gu Qinglin admired.
Therefore, whenever Doctor Liu, Liu Ruyi, offered a suggestion, Gu Qinglin would consider it seriously.
While running her hands over the acupoints of Li Yueying’s entire body, Liu Ruyi pondered. The acupoints of demons differed from those of humans and couldn’t be treated in a generalized manner. She suddenly said, “The Moon Shadow Devil Venerable’s injuries are significantly linked to her Inner Devils. If we could resolve even a fraction of her Inner Devils while treating her wounds, the injuries would heal faster.”
“You’re right,” Gu Qinglin said, guiding the needles with Devil Qi. “However, the more severe the Inner Devils, the harder they are to resolve. Moreover, given that the Moon Shadow Devil Venerable has been mad for thousands of years, if we meddle carelessly, I fear even our own minds and intellects could be affected.”
As Devil Cultivators, they had to constantly struggle with their restless desires. Who didn’t have some Inner Devils? The fear was not being able to resist and becoming a puppet to them.
Liu Ruyi said, “Master is right. To resolve Inner Devils, she must ultimately rely on herself. But if we use the Illusion Temptation Art for appropriate guidance and satisfaction, we might still offer her Inner Devils some relief. When the time comes and the Devil Qi within her calms somewhat, the effect should be quite good.”
“Logical,” Gu Qinglin agreed with Liu Ruyi’s proposal. Since the Moon Shadow Devil Venerable’s own power was extremely strong, rashly interfering with her Inner Devils would likely cause a backlash. But using the Illusion Temptation Art to guide her into satisfying herself was a relatively safer method.
Liu Ruyi fetched the tools for the Illusion Temptation Art: an Illusion Mirror and Spirit-Separating Incense.
Gu Qinglin used acupuncture to guide, Liu Ruyi soothed her spirit. Attacking from both sides, the effect was exceptionally good. Slowly, the restlessly slumbering Li Yueying revealed a peaceful expression, and the turbulent Devil Qi within her body calmed considerably.
After nearly half an hour, Gu Qinglin lifted a hand to wipe cold sweat from her forehead. “That’s enough for today.” Treating Li Yueying’s injuries was going to be a long and arduous task.
She pushed open the inner room’s door and called to the cross-legged, cultivating Li Jiangying. “Get up and take your snake away!”
Startled, Li Jiangying scrambled to her feet and followed her into the inner room. She took a look: Li Yueying lay on a jade bed, sleeping soundly. Her mouth was slightly open, and a glistening strand of liquid was slowly trailing down from the corner of her lips.
“Yingying…” She smacked her lips, suddenly flipped over, lifted her tail up, grabbed her own tail, opened her mouth, and bit down on it with an om-nom.
“Yingying.” She gnawed on her tail and mumbled, “Your skin has gotten even thicker.”
Li Jiangying: “…”
She walked over and smacked the sleeping Little Madwoman awake. Dazedly, Li Yueying opened her eyes and instinctively hugged Li Jiangying’s waist. “Yingying!”
Gradually sobering up, she realized Gu Qinglin and Liu Ruyi had caused her to fall unconscious. Extremely displeased, she discreetly glared at them.
“Wake up, get up, no more sleeping!”
While washing her hands, Gu Qinglin said coolly, “The medicinal bath herbs need further preparation. Leave it like this for now. Come back tomorrow.”
They tentatively finalized the subsequent treatment plan. Gu Qinglin pushed open the Medical Hall door. Li Jiangying dragged Li Yueying along and nodded to Cui Yu. “We still need that Yin Wood Water Essence Pill.”
To make it convenient for Li Yueying to receive treatment, Jiang Sujin simply invited them to stay there. This time, Gu Qinglin was generous enough to agree. However, just as they were preparing to take their leave and go rest, Gu Qinglin, who had been staring at a certain person in a black robe, suddenly said:
“Your disguise technique is far superior to that human skin mask. Even I can’t see through it… Wait, if the Snake Demon is the Moon Shadow Devil Venerable, then the wanted posters from Chasing Moon City must have some other story. Then you…” Gu Qinglin’s expression stiffened, and she suddenly couldn’t continue.
She looked at Li Xiangshui. Li Xiangshui lifted her head, revealing dead fish eyes under her hood that silently glared at her.
Gu Qinglin: “I have to prepare the medicinal decoctions for the Moon Shadow Devil Venerable’s treatment tomorrow. Very busy! Goodbye!”
As soon as she finished speaking, she stepped back into the room and slammed the door shut behind her with a bang.
Inside, as Liu Ruyi tidied up the aftermath, she asked Gu Qinglin, “Ah, Master, did you tell them earlier that we would use the Illusion Temptation Art to relieve the Moon Shadow Devil Venerable’s Inner Devils?”
Gu Qinglin admired the blood inside the porcelain bottle with a smirk on her lips and said carelessly, “Forgot. For something so trivial we did on a whim, would they have paid more blood if we told them? As long as she gets better, it’s fine.”
“Oh.” Since her master didn’t mind, Liu Ruyi had to regretfully abandon any thought of asking for money.
Jiang Sujin arranged for the group to rest in a courtyard. Li Yueying clung to Li Jiangying’s arm, alternating between despondency and reminiscence, unusually subdued. With the usually most rambunctious one falling silent, a cold and distant atmosphere suddenly filled the group.
Jiang Sujin took the initiative to break the awkward silence. “Sister Ying Suanli, you can stay in this courtyard up ahead for now… Mm, maybe I shouldn’t call you Sister Ying Suanli anymore.”
Li Jiangying scratched her head, a bit embarrassed, and said, “At this point, there’s nothing to hide from you anymore. My name is Li Jiangying. If you’re willing, just call me Jiangying.”
“That works.” Jiang Sujin suddenly smiled. “Strictly speaking, Jiangying is probably younger than me. You tricked me into calling you ‘sister’ so many times. Consider this even now, I won’t hold it against you, alright?”
The identities of older sister, younger sister, senior, and junior were suddenly flipped. Caught between laughter and tears, Li Jiangying called out, “Sister Sujin.”
Only then was Jiang Sujin satisfied.
But the little madwoman clinging to her arm wasn’t happy. She hugged Li Jiangying’s arm tightly. Though she obediently didn’t protest out loud, as soon as Jiang Sujin settled them into their rooms, she immediately used her tail to shut the door, leaving people like Cui Yu and Li Xiangshui locked outside.
Inside the room, only her and her Yingying remained.
“Actually…” Li Yueying poked her two claws together, fidgeting shyly as she said, “Actually, I’m also older than Yingying. Yingying should call me something too.”
Li Jiangying poured herself a cup of tea and said calmly, “Fine, fine, I’ll satisfy you. Granny Yueying.”
Li Yueying looked so wronged she was about to cry. “It’s not that much older…”
“Do you want me to call you ‘Ancestor’ instead?” Li Jiangying raised an eyebrow.
With an awoo, Li Yueying threw herself onto the bed and began rolling around in utter despair. “Yingying is so mean!”
“Stop!” Watching a perfectly good bed nearly get crushed again with cracks and snaps, Li Jiangying rushed over to stop her. She grabbed a pillow and swatted the black-tailed Snake Demon angrily. “You’re the mean one, always trying to stop me from cultivating!”
Li Yueying hugged the pillow to cover her face, pretending she didn’t exist.
Li Jiangying pounded her through the pillow. “Bastard! What gives you the right?!”
Li Yueying’s voice came out muffled through the pillow. “Yingying will fly away… No! I don’t want Yingying to leave me! Yingying is mine!”
Her voice grew louder and louder, her agitation rising. In the end, she flipped both the pillow and Li Jiangying over. Li Jiangying, no match for her strength, was completely unable to resist being pinned down.
The Snake Demon’s sharp claws pressed down on Li Jiangying’s wrists, carefully using only her palms so as not to injure her in the slightest. Her blood-colored pupils gleamed with a cold, beastly light, filled with possessiveness and a swelling, dark obsession.
Even though she had been brazen in front of the Little Madwoman for a long time, at this moment, Li Jiangying couldn’t help feeling a chill in her heart. She wanted to break free but was held as fast as if by iron chains, unable to move an inch.
“Li Yueying!” Li Jiangying called her name in a low, annoyed voice. “Let go of me!”
“No.” Li Yueying leaned down, her long hair cascading around Li Jiangying’s head like a curtain enclosing the two of them, forcing the woman to see only the person above her.
Li Yueying opened her mouth, her crimson forked tongue flicking out. She murmured, “Yingying… Jiangying… is mine…” As she spoke, her whole body began to tremble slightly. One drop, then two, transparent liquid splattered onto Li Jiangying’s face with plip-plops.
Cold, causing a pang of sourness in her heart.
Li Jiangying closed her eyes for a moment and said irritably, “Stop messing around. Let go of me.”
“I’m not messing around.” Li Yueying’s voice grew low and ominous. Staring at Li Jiangying, she suddenly bent down as if to kiss her.
Shocked, Li Jiangying hurriedly turned her head aside to dodge. “What are you doing?!”
But the person pinning her down uttered cold words. “What am I doing? You climbed into this Venerable One’s bed. Isn’t this what you wanted this Venerable One to do to you? And now you pretend to be a virtuous, chaste woman.”
Li Jiangying: “…”
She stared at her, horrified. “Li Yueying, have you gone mad?!”
