Chapter 32
If things were like this, if Cui Xiao Xiao didn’t take in Yu Ling’er, it would simply be forcing the little fox to scatter her cultivation and return to her original form!
There was no other way. If Yu Ling’er wanted to follow, then let her follow!
However, Xiao Xiao said the ugly words upfront. She didn’t take in Yu Ling’er as a disciple or servant. If Yu Ling’er wanted to follow, she could follow. If she didn’t want to follow, she could leave. Xiao Xiao definitely wouldn’t stop her.
As for things like eating, if Yu Ling’er practiced grain abstinence and didn’t eat human food, that would be best. But if she wanted to eat, she had to find a way herself.
There was no other choice. Xiao Xiao felt distressed for her master. His current money was all earned bit by bit through the hard work of taking pulses and selling medicinal plasters.
Originally, having a young man support her and a big boss like Wei Jie who ate and drank extravagantly was already tough enough. If a hundred-year-old fox demon was added, she was afraid that if her master supported so many people at such a young age, he would be too tired to handle it.
When they came down from Mount Tuyun, although there was an extra burden behind them and her arm was still burning with pain, Xiao Xiao felt very lucky. After all, she had originally planned to have her arm severed.
Perhaps it was because she and Wei Jie endured the heavenly lightning together. The tribulation that was originally supposed to sever an arm was divided between the two of them, greatly reduced.
Although her injuries were severe and her arm was still in a splint wrapped in bandages, she breathed a huge sigh of relief.
After all, after this tribulation, the chain connecting her and Wei Jie was finally broken, and the shackle on her wrist was also struck to ashes by the heavenly lightning. It could be considered a blessing in disguise.
Even if one arm was severely injured, it was worth it!
However, Wei Jie obviously had many doubts in his heart. If Cui Xiao Xiao returned to Mount Tuyun to fulfill her promise to the Fox King and block the calamity for the fox tribe, it would be easy to explain.
But she seemed to have known long ago that there was an ancient treasure sword on Mount Tuyun that could block disasters. How could that be explained?
When he asked, Xiao Xiao blinked her eyes, and lies came out of her mouth, “The ancestor of our Talisman Sect was an old acquaintance of the fox tribe of Mount Tuyun and knew the hidden secret of the sword behind the mountain. This sword was left behind by Goddess Nüwa back then. It dared to defy the heavens, so naturally, it could withstand the heavenly punishment.”
Her words, half true and half false, could indeed deceive people. After Wei Jie nodded, he didn’t ask anymore.
After leaving Mount Tuyun, the first thing on Xiao Xiao’s mind was to find a restaurant, order four loudly resounding meat dishes, bury her face in a large bowl, and eat hard!
In the meantime, when Wei Jie wanted to take an extra piece of meat with his chopsticks, he was blocked by his master’s chopsticks and even received a fierce glare from her big eyes.
Wei Jie realized that fighting with his master for meat was the same as fighting for food with a vicious dog. It was not something a smart person should do!
So he also knew his place and didn’t eat anymore. He only occasionally added chicken legs and pig feet to the bowl of Xiao Xiao, whose arm was injured and inconvenient to pick up dishes.
The fox demon Yu Ling’er didn’t qualify to sit at the table. She only sat at the side of an empty table, her slender fingers rubbing her small bundle, looking at them with resentment.
Only when Xiao Xiao filled her stomach was she satisfied yet frustrated, leaning back and apologizing slightly to Tang Youshu, “Master… Mr. Tang, why don’t you eat too? How come you only took a few bites of your bowl of rice?”
Because the Talisman Sect was unconventional and varied from person to person, Xiao Xiao had always called her grand-disciple “Mr. Tang.” After all, she was clear in her heart that this person was her benefactor. If she called her grand-disciple by insulting the teacher and destroying the ancestor, she wouldn’t be able to sleep at night.
As soon as Mr. Tang heard his grand-master care about him, he hurriedly used his chopsticks to shovel the rice into his mouth and swallowed it dry.
After all, he had witnessed his grand-master’s skill in guarding food. She almost stuck chopsticks into his master Wei Jie’s throat, scaring him so much that he didn’t dare to pick up dishes at all.
Xiao Xiao hurriedly put large pieces of fish meat from the plate into Tang Youshu’s bowl.
What a joke, these dishes were all bought with Mr. Tang Youshu’s money. If he couldn’t eat, who could eat?
Yu Ling’er originally didn’t understand why Cui Xiao Xiao didn’t let her eat with them. But seeing Cui Xiao Xiao’s starving appearance, she understood the eating style of the Talisman Sect. It turned out to be such a fierce competition.
She sat for a while and felt hungry, so she quietly got up and went to the back yard of the restaurant.
Not long after, Yu Ling’er walked back with her head lowered.
On Xiao Xiao’s side, she was packing up the leftover dishes when she heard someone shouting in the back yard of the restaurant, “What’s going on? How did two chickens disappear from the yard? Oh no, there’s even a pool of blood here? Damn it, did a weasel come in?”
Xiao Xiao listened for a while, then turned her head to look at Yu Ling’er. As a result, she saw her elegantly licking her tongue, and there were two chicken feathers stuck to the corner of her mouth…
Oh my goodness! Xiao Xiao quickly went over and plucked off her chicken feathers.
Tang Youshu hurriedly went to pay the bill and used the excuse of giving a tip to pay for two more chickens.
After coming out of the restaurant, Xiao Xiao said to the fox girl with a heavy heart, “This is a village and town, with people everywhere. You have to do things according to human rules, right? Stealing and snatching like this will definitely cause trouble sooner or later! Besides, isn’t one chicken enough? Why did you eat two?”
Her tone was still fairly euphemistic, but Yu Ling’er’s eyes were already filled with tears. She only trembled her lips and sobbed, “I didn’t want to… but I was hungry…”
Xiao Xiao, who had been practicing grain abstinence for many days, deeply sympathized with the feeling of hunger.
Although this little demon was forcibly sent by the fox tribe, if she ignored her, this little fox would eventually die under people’s cudgels due to theft.
Xiao Xiao thought that her master back then didn’t despise her for being a swindler and pickpocket on the streets and gladly accepted her as a disciple. Then when it was her turn, how could she ignore Yu Ling’er just because she was a demon?
So she solemnly said to Yu Ling’er, “From now on, if you are hungry, tell me. Don’t steal on your own anymore! If you are sincere in doing good, the Talisman Sect can consider accepting you as a disciple in the future…”
Wei Jie, who was beside them, couldn’t help but laugh when he heard this.
Xiao Xiao asked him what he was laughing at. Wei Jie said lazily with a hooked corner of his mouth, “I’m happy for Master that the Talisman Sect is going to expand again… But I want to ask, since the Talisman Sect accepts the son of a female demon and also accepts a fox demon girl… Are we going to enter the demonic path?”
Nonsense! Sect Master Cui glared, “Our Lingshan Talisman Sect is an upright sect in the human world! How can we be mentioned in the same breath as the demonic path!”
Oh, Wei Jie nodded in realization but just smiled without saying anything!
But when he asked this, Xiao Xiao was very depressed in her heart.
Come to think of it, she was taking big strides on the path where Wei Jie had become a demon in the past.
Think about it, she had the Demon Lord’s Demon Bead in her body, the Demon Lord’s sharp sword “Defying the Heavens” at her waist, and following behind her were the Demon King Wei Jie and his former left and right arms.
The righteous flag of Lingshan Talisman Sect was a bit shaky two hundred years ago. If something went wrong, a new demonic sect leader might be born.
But if she used this excuse to clean up the sect, it wouldn’t be bad either!
Thinking of this, halfway through the walk, she took the opportunity to probe, “Actually, our Talisman Sect is not really righteous… I’ve always had this wish to try entering the demonic path. Perhaps in the future, the Talisman Sect will also take the path of the demonic way… You are a descendant of the Demon Subduing Wei Family. How can you go astray? Otherwise, let’s end our master-disciple relationship here.”
Wei Jie looked down at his master who was talking big about wholeheartedly entering the demonic path, smiling yet not smiling, “Entering the demonic path? Not bad either. I think the so-called righteous path in the human world is not interesting. Children don’t dislike their mothers for being ugly, and dogs don’t dislike their homes for being poor. Please rest assured, Master. Whether you are an immortal or a demon, this disciple will follow you all the way!”
Xiao Xiao was speechless, blocked by his pure heart. In the end, she could only nitpick and angrily said, “Fool! Didn’t you see that I was testing you? How can our Lingshan Talisman Sect walk the evil and deviant path? You have no self-control and are really learning to bite people from a vicious dog! In the future, won’t you be led astray by demons and lose your true heart? I think it’s better to expel you from the sect early!”
After saying that, she was about to drive Wei Jie away.
Before the abandoned disciple Wei Jie could say anything, Tang Youshu beside them hurriedly came to persuade, “Grand-master, Master was just joking with you. You mustn’t take it seriously! If Master is expelled from the sect, then… then won’t disciple and Master become abandoned disciples of Lingshan Talisman Sect together? With such a reputation, how… how can I live…”
Seeing her benefactor Mr. Tang’s eyes moist with sadness, Xiao Xiao was so scared that she hurriedly took out a handkerchief and coaxed in a soft voice, “You are you, and your master is your master. How can you be mentioned in the same breath? Oh my, don’t cry. I… I was also joking with your master…”
Just as she was flustered, that fox girl came to add to the chaos, “I’m hungry. When are we going to eat? I only eat chicken innards and breast meat. One is not enough. Rabbit meat is fine too. I’m not picky…”
This group of people from the Talisman Sect walked slowly and leisurely. After walking for half a day, it was too appetizing.
At this time, Wei Jie, who was almost expelled from the sect and in a bad mood, said coldly, “In my opinion, let’s eat roasted fox tonight. I’ll slaughter the fox and skin it. It’s also a good opportunity for Master to see if disciple’s determination to subdue demons is firm or not.”
Hearing these words, Yu Ling’er cried out in anger, and there were even sharp fox cries mixed in her crying.
Xiao Xiao was helpless. This sect full of chaos was really enough for her, the sect master, to drink a pot of tea!
Xiao Xiao’s words just now obviously hurt Wei Jie’s pride. After scaring Yu Ling’er to tears, he didn’t make a sound and just turned around with a cold face, disappearing without a trace.
Seeing that Wei Jie disappeared in the blink of an eye, Xiao Xiao was stunned for a moment, then touched her arm that had never healed and slowly let out a long breath.
It was best that he left on his own initiative!
As for the remaining tribulations in his bumpy life, he could slowly go through them himself.
She definitely didn’t want to get involved with him again and continue to be his scapegoat!
Tang Youshu also didn’t expect his master to leave as soon as he said it, so he could only ask his grand-master anxiously, “Grand-master, should we go after Master?”
Xiao Xiao comforted her master, then said to Yu Ling’er who was still sobbing, “Alright, he’s gone. You don’t need to be afraid. Aren’t you hungry? The mountains and forests here are dense. You can go catch some pheasants to eat yourself.”
But Yu Ling’er shook her head, “No, I’m afraid…”
Xiao Xiao narrowed her eyes and asked, “Afraid of what?”
Yu Ling’er looked at the setting sun and said in a low voice, “I’m afraid of the dark…”
She was the pearl of the fox tribe. From a young age, the tribesmen would catch prey for her and let her pick the tender ones to eat. And even if she hunted, she generally wouldn’t be alone.
Cui Xiao Xiao actually let her hunt alone at night. What a joke! Did she want to scare her to death?
Xiao Xiao understood. Her experience was still too shallow. She actually didn’t know there were fox demons afraid of the dark!
Weren’t the fox spirits in books always knocking on scholars’ doors in the middle of the night?
Now that she thought about it, the Fox King sent such a delicate and pampered fox demon princess to her, saying that she would be a maid to warm her quilt and fan her pillow. Could it be that she was retaliating against her?
In the past, in similar situations where they were stuck in the middle of nowhere, it was always Wei Jie who went hunting. But now that Wei Jie was gone and the fox demon couldn’t be relied on, and Tang Youshu was weak and powerless, only she, the sect master with an injured arm, could go hunting alone.
Tang Youshu originally wanted to go with her, but Yu Ling’er, who was guarding by the bonfire, kept shouting that she was afraid to be alone, so Xiao Xiao let Tang Youshu stay and went to see if there were any pheasants or wild rabbits to catch.
She had always relied on Soul-Locking Talismans when hunting, placing the talismans on the ground and waiting for the prey to fall into the trap.
Unfortunately, her luck was not good today. She waited for a long time in the dense forest, but the Soul-Locking Talisman only immobilized small lizards and some reptiles passing by.
She didn’t know if that little fox who was afraid of the dark was picky and could eat a lizard to fill her stomach first.
Xiao Xiao herself was actually very hungry, and her arm that had never healed was still aching faintly.
If Wei Jie were here, she would probably be eating roasted meat by the bonfire at this time.
It had to be said that although Wei Jie was the future Demon King, he was more reliable than her senior brothers in daily life.
Along the way, many things that Xiao Xiao had neglected turned out to have been done by him all along.
When Xiao Xiao returned slowly with a lizard in hand, she smelled the aroma of meat.
She suspiciously walked a few steps faster and found that there were actually two roasted chickens and a roasted rabbit on the bonfire.
And Wei Jie, who was supposed to leave in anger, was sitting by the bonfire, sitting at ease, chatting and laughing with Tang Youshu and Yu Ling’er, and occasionally sprinkling salt on the roasted meat.
When he saw Sect Master Cui walking over with a lizard the length of a finger, Wei Jie said with a half-smile, “Did Master change her taste? Why so heavy?”
Xiao Xiao casually threw away the lizard, then slowly sat down and stared at Wei Jie, asking, “Didn’t you leave?”
Wei Jie tore off a rabbit leg and handed it to Xiao Xiao, then said casually, “I just went hunting. Where can I go?”
This kind of returning good for evil was truly the act of a gentleman, making her, the master, seem a bit petty-minded in comparison.
Xiao Xiao slowly gnawed on the rabbit leg, not knowing how to continue putting on a stern face to drive him away. After all, they were no longer bound together. If she still mixed with him, she would simply be throwing herself into the gates of hell.
Just at this moment, Wei Jie sat down beside her and took a handkerchief to wipe his injured master’s mouth.
Xiao Xiao was caught off guard and didn’t dodge. When she raised her head to reprimand him for meddling, she happened to bump into his light purple eyes.
Under the flickering bonfire, his face turned sideways was handsome and charming, and also exuded endless depth. When he wiped her oily mouth, he didn’t seem to feel that he was overstepping at all, only saying with a hint of doting, “Look at you, eating like a child, even getting oil on your nose…”
Xiao Xiao was a bit speechless. She suddenly felt that Wei Jie was full of fatherly aura. What was going on?
At this moment, Wei Jie said again, “By the way, I suddenly remembered that there is a ghost doctor in Luoyi City who can probably treat your arm. It’s not far from here to Luoyi City, and there are only a few days left before his consultation time, so we should make it in time.”
When Xiao Xiao heard him say this, she suddenly thought of Wei Jie’s next tribulation, which seemed to be related to Luoyi City.
According to his original trajectory, he was supposed to go to Luoyi City to treat his severed arm.
The Demon Bead said that even if Wei Jie’s life had slight changes, the sufferings he should have endured could not be lacking.
Even if he didn’t bear it himself, someone had to bear it for him.
But Wei Jie’s injury was not severe. If she parted ways with Wei Jie here, would he go to Luoyi?
Thinking of this, she opened her mouth to probe, “Actually… my injury is not serious… and I also want to let you guys travel around to train for a while. I don’t know where you would go if you were alone.”
Wei Jie raised his eyebrows. He found that his master loved to mention topics like “parting” today.
But since Xiao Xiao asked, he thought for a moment and said, “I would probably go to Beiming to travel. I heard that the Kun whale has appeared there again. Maybe if I’m lucky, I can see the grand sight of the Kun transforming into a Peng bird.”
Xiao Xiao bit her lip. Beiming was far away from here. If he really went there, he wouldn’t be able to return for several years. Wouldn’t his life’s tribulations be messed up?
The thunderous sound of heavenly punishment seemed to still echo in her ears. She knew that she couldn’t part with Wei Jie for the time being. She had to guide Wei Jie to Luoyi and go through the tribulations he should go through.
But everything didn’t have to be thought of so pessimistically. For example, on Mount Tuyun, she and Wei Jie, who were supposed to have their arms severed, didn’t they offset the heavenly punishment by enduring the tribulation together and luckily escaped the fate of severed arms?
Next, she just needed to lead Wei Jie to experience the hardships he suffered in his previous life again, guide him to successfully become a demon, and then she could leave at ease and return to two hundred years later.
Thinking of this, Xiao Xiao perked up again and was no longer cold and harsh to Wei Jie, wanting to expel him from the sect.
In addition to diligently sprinkling some freshly picked wild onions on Wei Jie’s chicken leg to add flavor, she also picked up a handkerchief to wipe his mouth.
Tang Youshu saw that his grand-master and master were on good terms again, and he gratifyingly handed the wine gourd to his master.
At this time, the bonfire was bright, the roasted meat was fragrant, the master was kind, the disciple was filial, and everything was so harmonious.
Yu Ling’er had never tasted roasted chicken meat before. After tasting it, she found that it was actually much tastier than bloody innards!
It seemed that this Talisman Sect that ate and drank all the time indeed had some skills. Following these people, at least her mouth wouldn’t suffer.
But thinking of her sweetheart in Soaring Cloud Pavilion, the little fox fell into lovesickness again. While gnawing on chicken meat, she occasionally let out sorrowful fox cries, causing the roosting birds to fly in disorder…
Since the next destination was clear, the group’s journey became much faster.
Although Wei Jie knew the art of teleportation, he could only quickly advance with Xiao Xiao alone.
As for Yu Ling’er, she was absentminded the whole way and couldn’t be relied on to lead Tang Youshu to walk faster.
So in the next town, Wei Jie simply let Tang Youshu buy a horse cart, so they could walk faster this way.
Yu Ling’er was afraid of horses and sat in the back of the cart. Tang Youshu was responsible for driving the cart, while Wei Jie himself used light body techniques to jump back and forth in front of and behind the horse cart.
Xiao Xiao finally got some peace and quiet, lying alone in the horse cart, flipping through her master’s secret manual.
Thanks to her master’s great habit of writing autobiographies, she could leisurely experience the glorious journey of Ancestor Wei Jie in this era two hundred years ago.
Her master wrote in great detail. After recovering the fox tribe on Mount Tuyun, Wei Jie took Tang Youshu and the fox tribe to the prosperous capital city of Luoyi to visit the ghost doctor.
In Luoyi City, Wei Jie unintentionally ran into his mother, who had been separated from him for many years.
Female demons don’t age for a thousand years. Even though she gave birth to a son more than ten years ago, she still had the charming appearance of a young girl.
This female demon, under the pseudonym Siling, resided in the largest singing and dancing brothel in the city. Every time the moon rose and ghosts and demons walked at night, she would appear on a high platform eight zhang tall, singing enchantingly, bewitching the world, and countless dignitaries and nobles fell for her.
After seeing his mother, Wei Jie learned of his mother’s intention.
Female demons are heartless and regard men as playthings. But Siling unexpectedly fell in love with the head of the Wei family, Wei Jingling. It was this little bit of mortal love that allowed her demon body to give birth to human flesh and blood.
However, back then, in front of her eyes, her beloved was forced to death by the so-called orthodox cultivation sects of the Four Great Sects.
This hatred lingered, and the female demon Siling entered the inner demon, determined to dismantle the Four Great Sects and avenge her beloved.
Unfortunately, she was hiding in Luoyi City, but her whereabouts were discovered by people from the Four Great Sects. So the pavilion master of Soaring Cloud Pavilion gathered everyone to go capture the female demon.
In order to save his mother, Wei Jie killed the sect master of Tianxin Sect, one of the Four Great Sects, and he himself became notorious for revealing demonic arts, hated by cultivation practitioners in the world.
And Wei Jie accepted his mother’s deathbed admonition, taking the destruction of the Four Great Sects as his own responsibility, laying the foundation for the later massacre of the Four Great Sects.
In short, that Luoyi City was a city full of troubles.
Xiao Xiao closed the secret manual and let out another long sigh.
Her sigh had not yet dissipated when the curtain of the horse cart was lifted, and Wei Jie squatted on the edge of the cart, asking Xiao Xiao, “Where are you feeling unwell?”
Xiao Xiao stared blankly at Wei Jie. That face was really handsome and outstanding…
Looking and looking, she sighed again.
The current Wei Jie, although somewhat unruly due to his bumpy life, was still a sunny young man.
But when he entered Luoyi City, he would be drawn into the deep hatred and blood feud of his parents. From then on, the seeds of slaughter would be planted in his heart, and he probably would never see his current heroic and carefree appearance again.
Thinking of this, Xiao Xiao’s heart ached for Wei Jie.
Wei Jie originally heard Xiao Xiao sigh and thought her wound was hurting, so he lifted the curtain to ask. But he didn’t expect that she would just stare at him blankly, and after a while, her eyes actually became moist.
Although he was long accustomed to the capricious temperament of this little master, seeing her big eyes filled with water droplets like this, he couldn’t help but feel pity. He subconsciously said in a gentle voice, “Is it really painful? Bear with it a little longer. We will soon enter Luoyi City…”
As he spoke, he even handed her a large handful of newly picked bayberries and stuffed a round one into her mouth.
Seeing Xiao Xiao’s nose wrinkle from the sourness of the bayberries, Wei Jie couldn’t help but smile, revealing his tiger teeth, “This is Tang Youshu’s prescription. He said you ate too much meat these past few days and should eat more of this to aid digestion and invigorate the spleen…”
It seemed that Wei Jie was well-versed in the ways of the sect and also knew that he couldn’t compete with Tang Youshu for favor, so he pushed the blame for provoking his master to his obedient disciple.
Xiao Xiao heard that it was care from Tang Youshu and finally forced herself to swallow a sour fruit. Then, with her big eyes wrinkled from the sourness and tears, she poked her head out of the horse cart and looked ahead.
Sure enough, there was a tall city wall in front, and the road was increasingly crowded with people, gradually becoming lively.
She had eaten well these past few days, and her originally thin cheeks had become full again. Under the sunlight, her face was rosy, and the fine strands of hair fluttered playfully in the wind…
Xiao Xiao was a pleasant-looking girl. Wei Jie stared at her willow eyebrows and starry eyes for a long time.
When Xiao Xiao turned her gaze, she happened to bump into her disciple’s unrestrained gaze.
