Chapter 23
After saying those words, Qin Lingxiao led the disciples of Soaring Cloud Pavilion down the mountain first.
Since the appearance of Cui Xiao Xiao disrupted the original trajectory of two hundred years ago and Wei Jie missed the opportunity to be poisoned by the Broken Soul Snake, Wei Jie would not amount to much in this life.
When Qin Lingxiao’s soul traversed back two hundred years and woke up, he found that the Demon Bead in his hand had already disappeared.
He had to hurry back and find that Demon Bead. Besides, he had the opportunity to live again. As long as he grasped it well, his cultivation might even surpass Wei Jie’s from two hundred years ago. It all depended on how he utilized these opportunities.
As for Cui Xiao Xiao, this dead girl repeatedly rejected his goodwill. She was really a stinky stone in the cesspit!
She wouldn’t yield? Fine, she probably didn’t know the power of the Soul Locking Shackles yet. Let her suffer!
He wanted to see if she would beg him to unlock the Soul Locking Shackles the next time they met…
When Cui Xiao Xiao saw him leave as soon as he said it, she shouted, “Hey! How can you leave just like that? At least leave the key behind!”
Unfortunately, Young Pavilion Master Qin left with an ethereal bearing. In the blink of an eye, he was gone without a trace.
The other three major sects saw that the leading Soaring Cloud Pavilion had left, so it was a bit boring for them to stay.
Some of those who wanted to save face left leisurely after throwing some vicious words at the head of the Wei Family.
When those outsiders were gone, Cui Xiao Xiao also planned to sneak away. But as soon as she moved, the shackles connecting her with Wei Jie rattled.
Cui Xiao Xiao remembered that she was under the Gold Consuming Curse and might be able to melt this chain that occasionally flashed silver.
But when she reached out to touch it, the silver chain didn’t budge at all. Moreover, when her hand touched the iron chain, she could feel the flow of energy in the chain, as if it were a living thing. It seemed to be made of no ordinary metal.
When Wei Jie tried to chop it with his sword, there was a clang, and his broken sword actually snapped.
Cui Xiao Xiao’s head ached again.
Damn Qin Lingxiao, he knew this thing was not easy to unlock, yet he shackled her together with the Great Demon King Wei. What was he thinking!
Seeing that it couldn’t be solved for the time being, Wei Jie tugged at Xiao Xiao’s arm and said, “Let’s leave here first.”
But before they could leave, they were stopped by the head of the Wei Family, Wei Jingfeng.
The burly man who looked like a Guardian King first glared fiercely at Wei Jie, then scrutinized Cui Xiao Xiao up and down sternly, and then spoke with dissatisfaction, “I heard just now, you… are Wei Jie’s master?”
Wei Jie intercepted before Xiao Xiao could speak, blocking in front of his second uncle, his face cold, “Today is my father’s memorial day. I just came to pay respects to my father. We’ll leave now and not disturb your peace.”
Wei Jingfeng seemed to be angered by this bastard child of the Wei Family. He widened his eyes and said in a deep voice, “Bastard, is this how you talk to your elders! If it weren’t for your grandmother asking me to save you, you should have been beaten badly by the Four Great Sects…”
Before he could finish his scolding, a trembling call came from the hillside, “Ah Jie, is that you who have come back? Grandmother misses you so much…”
A few sturdy middle-aged women were carrying a soft sedan chair, stepping on the grass and rushing over.
When the soft sedan chair was set down, an old woman who was only four feet tall jumped down from the sedan chair like a jumping bean.
This old woman had a head full of white frost, barely tying her hair in a bun at the back of her head. Her face was full of wrinkles, and her teeth seemed to have all fallen out.
She was short, but she wielded a phoenix-headed gold crutch that was even taller than her. Her movements were so agile that she looked like a dwarf performing on the street, quite ridiculous.
When the Guardian King Wei Jingling saw her, he quickly walked over, bent his tall waist, and respectfully called out to the short old woman, “Mother, I’m here. Why did you come?”
Cui Xiao Xiao watched from the side, dumbfounded – this short woman was actually Wei Jingfeng’s mother? How did she give birth to such a tall son like a Guardian King?
However, Wei Jingfeng called her mother, so this old woman was Wei Jie’s grandmother?
In the story of the Demon King that Cui Xiao Xiao knew before, there seemed to be no part where the Demon King acknowledged his relatives. The Wei Family had always distanced themselves from Wei Jie and never acknowledged that he had the surname “Wei”!
But why did the Wei Family come forward to help today, driving away the pursuers from the Four Great Sects for Wei Jie?
Very quickly, Cui Xiao Xiao learned the answer from the mouth of this old ancestor of the Wei Family.
The grandmother of the Wei Family tearfully asked Wei Jie to squat down, touched his long hair and cheeks, and checked that he was unharmed before she felt at ease. She then turned to Cui Xiao Xiao, who was also squatting beside them, and said, “Young lady, I heard what you said just now. Everyone says that Ah Jie has gone astray and steals things everywhere. I never believed he was that bad, but today it has been proven true. Just as you said, if someone takes his mother’s things without asking, what’s wrong with him taking them back? To be honest, it’s the incompetence of the elders of my Wei Family, allowing this child to be bullied by outsiders!”
Saying this, the old ancestor of the Wei Family seemed to recall her long-deceased eldest son again. With tears in her old eyes, she stroked her grandson Jie’er’s face over and over.
Xiao Xiao, who was locked together with Wei Jie, was also forced to squat down with Wei Jie earlier to listen to the short grandmother’s head-patting lecture.
Upon hearing this, Xiao Xiao suddenly realized.
Just now, when she criticized the Four Great Sects for calling a deer a horse and defended Wei Jie, clearing his name of stealing without reason, that’s when the Wei Family stepped forward to help this renamed bastard child…
Oh no, it was because of her again that the past had changed!
For a moment, Cui Xiao Xiao had a feeling that something was going terribly wrong… How was Wei Jie’s path to demonhood getting more and more deviated? Could it be that she would really end up like Qin Lingxiao said, meeting a bad end for interfering with the heavenly secrets?
And at this moment, the old grandmother carefully looked Cui Xiao Xiao up and down with a smile, and then said, “Since you are locked together with my grandson, come to the Wei residence first and see if there is a way to unlock it.”
When the old grandmother spoke, even the head of the Wei Family had to obey. Although Wei Jingfeng didn’t seem very happy to let Wei Jie up the mountain, he could only stand aside and let the grandmother and grandson reunite.
As the newly appointed master of the prodigal son of the Wei Family, Cui Xiao Xiao also received a proper and polite reception from the Wei Family.
Cui Xiao Xiao knew that the Gold Consuming Curse was still on her body and she still couldn’t touch gold or silver. Now that she was alone, without the help of her fellow disciples, eating was a big problem.
Since she could freeload on the Wei Family’s food, she might as well eat her fill first before anything else.
Wei Jie was unwilling to have any ties with the Wei Family and always had a cold look towards his second uncle.
But he seemed unable to be ruthless towards that dwarf matriarch, and could only please the old lady first and sit in the Wei residence for a while.
When it was time to eat, Wei Jie was a bit surprised by his master’s good appetite. He saw that Xiao Xiao’s small face was buried in a big bowl.
If he remembered correctly, she should have already eaten three bowls.
It seemed that even with one hand forced to be shackled to his, it did not affect this girl’s appetite.
Cui Xiao Xiao had been eating in the wild on this journey. Although she had a few full meals in Fei County, they were just ordinary home-cooked meals.
She had always been cautious and didn’t start eating at first. Only when she saw the Wei Family grandmother eating did she pick up her chopsticks and start.
But to be cautious, she initially picked a lot of dishes for Wei Jie, letting him taste them for poison first.
But in the eyes of others, it was truly a virtuous master and a filial disciple, a harmonious sight.
After feeling at ease, Xiao Xiao could enjoy the delicacies with peace of mind.
The dishes of the Wei Family were made with unknown precious ingredients. The shrimp served were as long as forearms, and the fish were big-bellied and fresh, making Xiao Xiao’s appetite soar. No matter how much she ate, she couldn’t get enough.
The man beside her seemed to be kicking her leg under the table because of her unrefined eating. She felt irritated just looking at Wei Jie. After glaring back at him, she continued to fill her stomach first.
After finishing the third bowl, she slowly leaned back in her chair, thinking: No matter what, she couldn’t become a hunger ghost in this era two hundred years ago!
The dwarf grandmother actually liked Xiao Xiao’s informality. She had someone bring out some fruits after the meal, then squinted her eyes hidden in wrinkles and said with a smile, “My Demon Subduing Wei Family has always inherited the responsibility of guarding the underworld. Because we shuttle between the two realms and traverse between yin and yang, we must adjust our own yin energy. The ingredients we eat are also a bit special. All members of the Wei Family have to eat extremely yin things from a young age to adapt bit by bit. Like the fish and shrimp you ate just now, young lady, they were nurtured in the River of Forgetfulness near Fengdu. Ordinary people would vomit incessantly and even faint after eating a few bites. But you ate so much without any reaction… It seems that your divine powers are truly extraordinary!”
Saying this, the old woman slightly raised her head, and the eyes hidden in wrinkles suddenly burst with a sharp light, “Young lady, I sensed early on that you have a faint demonic aura. I wonder what’s going on?”
When she finished speaking, the kindly smile of an elder on the old woman’s face had long disappeared, and the murderous aura in her eyes made people afraid to look directly at her.
Although she was just a four-foot-tall old woman, at this moment, her aura felt like a Chihuahua transforming into a lioness.
Cui Xiao Xiao smacked her lips and finally understood why Wei Jie had been kicking her leg under the table.
The food of the Wei Family was really not easy to put in one’s mouth!
As soon as the old woman’s words fell, the Wei Family guards around them also drew their swords and held them at Cui Xiao Xiao’s neck.
The Wei Family guarded Qilao Mountain, suppressing thousands of demons and monsters from the underworld. If a demon sneaked in and lifted the seal guarded by the Wei Family, the consequences would be unimaginable.
Although the current head of the Wei Family was Wei Jingfeng, the actual person in charge was this shriveled old matriarch.
She had sensed early on the unusual demonic aura on this girl. That’s why she had someone bring the fish and shrimp nourished by the waters of the River of Forgetfulness to test this girl.
This test indeed revealed something strange! She actually didn’t fear the yin coldness and ate so much in one go!
At such a young age, what a pity for her clever appearance. She had already become a demon! What exactly was the background of this little girl who called herself the Sect Master of Lingshan Talisman Sect?
Wei Jie beside her leisurely drank a cup of wine. When Cui Xiao Xiao glared at him with big eyes, he even infuriatingly raised his cup to her and then drank the fine wine again with a tilt of his neck.
It couldn’t be blamed on him. He had almost kicked her shoes off earlier, but he still couldn’t stop her from feasting.
