Chapter 23: “What is this child to you?”

Feng Jin furrowed her brow and glanced at Lei Shuang with a complicated expression.

“What are you doing here?”

Lei Shuang rummaged through a small dish on the table, grabbed a handful of melon seeds, and leisurely began cracking them open. “I came to see just how far the once-famous Tianqing Arrow Devil has fallen.”

Feng Jin pressed down the bow in her hands and said coldly, “You are not welcome here.”

Lei Shuang clicked her tongue. “Not welcome? So what? Do you think, in your current state, you can actually throw me out?”

“…” Feng Jin hung the bow back on the wall and said nothing more.

Lei Shuang crunched loudly on her melon seeds, narrowing her eyes at the sight. She sneered, “You’ve become so meek now, you’re actually letting me mock you?”

Feng Jin simply ignored her completely, closing her eyes to meditate and regulate her breathing.

“Tch, putting on an act.” Finding no fun in it, Lei Shuang tossed the seeds back into the dish. “Who goes through life without ups and downs? You took some injuries, damaged your cultivation base, and now you’ve just given up on yourself like this!”

No matter how much she clamored, Feng Jin remained unmoved.

Only Feng Jin herself knew the real reason.

When one tactic failed, Lei Shuang switched her tone. “I crossed mountains and rivers to come all this way to see you, and this is the attitude I get?”

Only then did Feng Jin open her eyes, but her demeanor did not soften. “I didn’t beg you to come. You brought this on yourself.”

Lei Shuang felt her teeth ache. “You really are impossible.”

Feng Jin had no desire to hear another word from her, so Lei Shuang temporarily set aside her original purpose for coming and changed the subject.

“On my way up the mountain, I met a young lady. She snatched a Bodhi Fruit that should have been mine. I saw her come up the mountain; she must be hiding in your stronghold. Hand her over, and I won’t bother you anymore.”

Feng Jin’s eyes focused. “Snatched something from you?”

Looking across the entire stronghold, she could only think of one person with that kind of nerve.

She recalled the previous night, when she had visited the east wing to ask Ren Qingyue about Yan Zhao’s relationship with Immortal Venerable Yuanqing.

Ren Qingyue’s answer had been, “I am still investigating this matter.”

Feng Jin pondered for a moment, then chose not to admit anything, retorting sarcastically, “If you’re going to make up stories, at least make them believable. Tell me, who else besides the Devil Lord could take something right out of your hands?”

Lei Shuang froze for a second, then raised her voice, “I’m telling the truth!”

Feng Jin rolled her eyes at her.

“Hmph!” Lei Shuang snorted, crossing her arms. “I don’t care! Since you won’t hand her over, I’ll just stay here in your stronghold.”

Feng Jin: “…”

That was absolutely out of the question.

Protector Lei, Lei Shuang, was a prominent figure under the Devil Venerable. Who in the world wouldn’t recognize the Yin-Yang Fish Symbol dangling from her ear?

If her Senior Sister happened to see her associating with this woman…

Creak. The door opened, and a silver-white little fox slipped in through the gap.

In the room, two people and one fox stared at each other.

Feng Jin: “…”

Protector Lei raised her eyebrows and exclaimed cheerfully, “Oh my, where did this Spirit Fox come from? It’s so beautiful! Clearly no ordinary breed. Feng Jin, is it yours?”

Feng Jin’s eyebrow twitched, followed by the corner of her mouth. Her composure was on the verge of cracking.

“No.”

“It’s not?” Lei Shuang was extremely surprised. “Could it be ownerless?”

She examined the little fox carefully but saw no sign of a contract binding it. Delighted, she asked, “Really?”

Then, as if by magic, she produced a small, dark-cyan bead from somewhere and started coaxing it. “Little one, come here. If you come over and let me pet you, I’ll give you this Flood Dragon Pearl.”

The little fox’s eyes suddenly flashed with ferocity. It glared viciously at her, then turned and bolted out of the room.

Before leaving, it even shot Feng Jin a cold glare.

“This is bad!” Feng Jin panicked and rushed out of the room after the little fox.

Creak—

The wooden door swung back and forth from the momentum, flapping gently.

In the room, a bewildered Lei Shuang was left behind.

Sitting at the table, she was completely dumbfounded.

“What just happened?”

·

“Senior Sister!”

Feng Jin chased out of the room only to see the nimble Spirit Fox dart straight back to the east wing after a few leaps.

Yan Zhao pushed open her door and was met head-on by the little fox. She frowned in displeasure. “Where did you run off to just now?”

She had merely dozed off for a moment and the fox wasn’t by her side when she woke up.

It seemed the little creature hadn’t learned its lesson from last time.

The little fox, acting completely out of character, rushed at her frantically, bit the hem of her trousers, and started dragging her towards the door.

Yan Zhao’s steps wobbled from the pulling. She asked, puzzled, “What are you doing?”

It was obvious the fox was in a desperate hurry, wanting Yan Zhao to leave the stronghold immediately.

Feng Jin actually knew a Protector from the Devil Sect, and their relationship was clearly not shallow. This stronghold was a den of thieves.

Unfortunately, Yan Zhao had no idea what the little fox was trying to convey.

Her nose twitched as she caught the smell of cooking smoke rising from the stronghold. A look of realization dawned on her face. “You didn’t eat lunch, so your stomach is growling now, right?”

Little Fox: …No!

Ignoring its struggles, Yan Zhao scooped it up and stuffed it into her arms, striding out of the courtyard. “Perfect timing, I’m hungry too.”

At the courtyard gate, Yan Zhao ran into Feng Jin, and Lei Shuang, who had followed Feng Jin out.

The moment Lei Shuang saw Yan Zhao, her eyes widened dramatically. “You little brat! You really are here!”

She had almost been fooled by Feng Jin!

Yan Zhao’s steps halted abruptly, and she started to retreat. “Yikes! How did you chase me all the way here?!”

She was about to make a run for it, but the other party was prepared. As soon as she moved her feet, the woman teleported right beside her and grabbed her by the collar.

Yan Zhao’s feet left the ground; she flailed uselessly for a moment, to no avail.

“Lei Shuang!” Feng Jin shouted. “Stop!”

·

Half an incense stick later, inside the main tent of the stronghold.

Yan Zhao and Lei Shuang each occupied a table, sitting on opposite sides as guests.

When Ah Ling entered carrying food, she immediately sensed the strange atmosphere in the room.

Mainly because Feng Jin’s expression was extremely unpleasant.

Her brow was furrowed into the character ‘river’ (river), the deep creases capable of squashing a hundred flies.

Ah Ling stole a glance at Lei Shuang and thought to herself: Another weirdo.

The stronghold had seen a constant stream of visitors these past few days, but this person was clearly not like Yan Zhao or Bi Lan. Her conversation with Feng Jin felt familiar; they must be old acquaintances.

Ah Ling lowered her eyes and looked at Feng Jin again.

Two years ago, Feng Jin had descended like a divine savior, rescuing the stronghold’s people from their suffering, then agreed to their pleas to stay and take charge.

But Feng Jin never spoke of her past. Ah Ling knew nothing about where she came from.

Feng Jin was clearly no ordinary person.

What did she do before coming to the stronghold? What kind of life did she lead? Why would she abandon past glory to live a mundane life here?

Questions she had never considered before now surfaced in Ah Ling’s mind.

A strong intuition suddenly arose in her heart.

This uninvited woman might take Feng Jin away.

Just as this thought crossed her mind, Feng Jin spoke. “Ah Ling, you may leave first.”

Ah Ling pursed her lips and replied, “I want to stay here.”

Feng Jin frowned slightly and sighed but didn’t insist.

As long as there was food, Yan Zhao was content and indifferent to everything else.

Just as her hand reached for the bowl, it was forcefully pulled back by the fox.

Yan Zhao pouted; her attempt to slip by had failed.

Despite the delicate situation, the little fox hadn’t forgotten to teach her how to eat with chopsticks.

Unwillingly, Yan Zhao held the chopsticks and poked listlessly at the food on her plate.

At the same time, she warily watched Lei Shuang, afraid she might come over and steal her food since she was eating so slowly.

The ill-intentioned woman across from her had been staring at her for a while now.

From her guest seat, Lei Shuang’s attention was indeed fixed on Yan Zhao.

She observed the girl carefully.

Apart from being pretty, the young lady showed no fluctuation of Spiritual Qi. She was a genuine, solid Mortal.

So how had she gotten close enough to snatch the Bodhi Fruit without being detected?

And how had she managed to eat the Bodhi Fruit raw and still be jumping around, without her body exploding from the energy?

Lei Shuang was utterly baffled.

Feng Jin looked left, then right, feeling a major headache coming on.

Lei Shuang poured herself a cup of wine and took a light sip before asking Feng Jin, “What is this child to you?”

Just as Ah Ling pushed a small bowl in front of Feng Jin, she overheard the question and subconsciously pricked up her ears.

Feng Jin considered for a moment and answered, “A friend.”

Lei Shuang made an “Oh” sound and smiled. “After leaving Fog Devil Ravine, you’ve been living quite smoothly, making quite a few friends.”

The moment the words “Fog Devil Ravine” popped out of Lei Shuang’s mouth, Feng Jin’s temple throbbed violently. She really wanted to sew this woman’s mouth shut.

Yan Zhao kept her head down, eating, while the little fox coldly observed the people at the table.

Especially when Lei Shuang mentioned Fog Devil Ravine, its gaze towards Feng Jin became increasingly sharp. It even stopped swishing its tail, its expression utterly serious.

Feng Jin’s scalp went numb.

She lowered her head to clear her throat and quickly distanced herself. “I’ve retired to the mountains now, far from worldly affairs and conflicts. Naturally, life is smooth.”

Lei Shuang made a disdainful sound. “You sure are good at making excuses.”

Feng Jin offered a fake smile. “I drew a clear line with you people long ago. Different paths, no common ground. Yet you insist on coming here to cause trouble for yourself!”

Lei Shuang grew increasingly displeased the more she listened.

Before coming, she had guessed Feng Jin might still be stuck on that mental hurdle, but she hadn’t expected her to distance herself so thoroughly.

“Have you forgotten where you came from?” Lei Shuang’s tone carried a hint of anger. “Without Her Eminence’s nurturing, would you be where you are today? Would you dare repeat those words in front of Her Eminence?!”

Feng Jin fell silent. She didn’t argue, instead filling a full cup of wine and downing it in one gulp.

“Hmph, I knew you wouldn’t dare!”

Lei Shuang slammed her wine cup down heavily.

The atmosphere in the room grew heavy for a moment.

Only the sounds of Yan Zhao eating could be heard.

Lei Shuang turned her head to glance at Yan Zhao, who was eating and drinking heartily as if no one else was around, and felt annoyed at herself.

She hadn’t come today to argue with Feng Jin. It was just their personalities.

Back when they served under the Devil Lord, they could rarely exchange more than two sentences without arguing. She hadn’t expected it to be the same after all these years without contact.

But even when they argued, they had never truly fallen out.

If not for that incident three hundred years ago…

Thinking of the past, Lei Shuang’s mood soured.

Unexpectedly, she turned her head and met a cold, sharp gaze.

The little fox’s eyes were emerald green, big and bright.

But at this moment, its pretty little face was full of seriousness and hostility toward her.

Lei Shuang had never seen such a spiritually aware little creature, and her heart swelled with intense interest.

The corners of her lips curved up. She picked a single melon seed from a small dish.

She flicked it with her finger.

Whoosh—

The melon seed hit the fox’s head.

The fur on the little fox’s tail bristled.

Lei Shuang felt smug. You fierce little thing, let’s see you glare at me again.

Thump.

Without any warning, a pitted apple core smacked Lei Shuang right on the forehead.

It bounced once before hitting the ground.

Lei Shuang was stunned.

Her opponent, having thrown the apple core, calmly went back to eating watermelon as if nothing had happened.

“You little brat, provoking me?”

The smile vanished from Lei Shuang’s face. She rolled up her sleeves, grabbed a large handful of melon seeds, and prepared to retaliate.

A watermelon rind flew straight at her face.

Soon, fruit peels and cores were flying back and forth between the two sides.

In the middle of the battlefield, Feng Jin covered her face with one hand, palming her forehead.

Ah Ling was dumbstruck.

Little Fox: “…”