Chapter 18: The Puppet Show

As expected, Ling Yunchu got to eat the pastries she loved. One had to admit, this person had been gone for ten years, yet she still remembered her preferences. Everything ordered to the table was her favorite, along with a few small dishes.

Back then, although she had had a place to live, her spirit stones had mostly gone toward cultivation. Only leftover pocket change ever bought her food.

Shang Wanqiu propped her chin on one hand, a smile on her lips as she gazed tenderly at the young girl buried in her meal across the table. Her heart melted into water.

Ten years of separation. The pain and bitterness of being driven away by the one who held her heart had haunted her mind all this time, never forgotten for a single moment.

Only by growing strong enough could she win back the girl she loved.

That was what she had engraved in her mind for ten long years.

Back then, when Luo Yu had struck her down into the Cold Pool, she had thought she was finished. In the end, the jade pendant her parents had left behind saved her life, and by pure fortune, she obtained an ancestral inheritance lying beneath the pool.

Yet the depths of that water were saturated with devil qi, and the ancestor was none other than the fallen Devil Lord.

Shang Wanqiu had wanted to live. She had wanted to claw her way out of that cold, dark pool.

She had also wanted to see her girl again, to ask her…

Why had she been so heartless?

With no other choice, she had inhaled the devil qi and accepted the inheritance. It took her several years to consolidate it deep within the Cold Pool before she could finally climb out.

And once she did, she heard of her girl’s blazing reputation.

The Azure Jade Dao Lord, the foremost genius of the age, chased after and revered by all.

Before she crawled out of that frigid darkness, Shang Wanqiu had thought that hearing that name would fill her with resentment.

Hating her for giving her light and hope, only to snatch them away without mercy.

But that wasn’t it at all. What surged up in her heart back then…

Was a bittersweet, tingling joy.

Her girl had simply become too extraordinary.

Shang Wanqiu had hesitated, not daring to go see her right away.

She hadn’t known how to face Ling Yunchu.

Carrying devil qi in her body, she was now one of the Devil Path, belonging to a world entirely apart from the promising Azure Jade Dao Lord.

And yet…

Shang Wanqiu couldn’t accept it.

She loved Ling Yunchu, loved her down to the bone, with a near-mad, by-any-means desperation to have her.

In her hand she held a Gu insect, one she had raised for nearly ten years, a treasure she had guarded with the utmost care.

The Love Gu.

The Love Gu came in mother and child forms. The Child Gu would be planted on the target, while the Mother Gu was kept on her own body.

Afterward, whoever bore the Child Gu would fall in love with the Mother Gu’s bearer.

It suited Shang Wanqiu perfectly.

It was the reunion gift she had prepared for her A-Yun.

However quickly Ling Yunchu ate, she sat perfectly straight, her posture elegant. She ignored the scorching gaze of the woman across from her, her beautiful eyes fixed only on the delicate pastries on her plate.

The pastries, shaped like peach blossoms, were pink and lovely. Ling Yunchu picked one up with her chopsticks and held it up for a look. A hint of satisfaction flickered through her calm eyes before she bit down, leaving only half of the peach blossom cake.

The sweet, refreshing flavor filled her mouth, and her eyes curved pleasantly.

“Slow down, there’s plenty more.” Shang Wanqiu took in her expression, the corners of her lips lifting as she set down her teacup and nudged the pastries closer to her.

Rumor had it that the Azure Jade Dao Lord was cold and proud, keeping everyone at arm’s length. Despite her celestial beauty, no one dared approach her.

But then, why did the person Shang Wanqiu saw look like nothing more than an adorable big cat?

Wearing an icy shell, yet fond of sweets and so easily satisfied.

When she was happy, she was just like a cat, tail practically wagging while stubbornly maintaining her composed sitting posture.

Absolutely adorable.

Thinking this, Shang Wanqiu couldn’t help but laugh softly, her heart softening even further.

She liked her so much.

Truly, truly liked her so much.

She wanted so badly to carry this snowy-white cat home, hide her away in her Devil Palace, and form a Contract Union with her forever.

A thread of darkness slid through her pupils, and Shang Wanqiu pressed those dangerous thoughts down once more.

No hurry.

She was in no hurry.

“A-are you the Azure Jade Dao Lord?” A delighted female voice suddenly rang out.

Shang Wanqiu’s brow twitched, and the expression in her eyes darkened.

She lifted her gaze. It was a woman also dressed in a red skirt, a long ink-black whip hanging at her waist.

The woman was voluptuous and strikingly pretty, her beauty vivid and bold. Though they wore the same red skirts, her temperament was entirely different from Shang Wanqiu’s.

At this moment, she stood there with wide eyes, staring at Ling Yunchu in delighted awe.

Ling Yunchu’s eyes held nothing but pastries, all kinds of fragrant, tempting little treats.

Where would she find the time to spare her a glance?

The woman waited a while and received no answer.

Waited for absolutely nothing.

The atmosphere turned awkward.

Her face stiffened. Then, gritting her teeth, her expression shifted, and she said, on the verge of tears, “Ever since I saw you, Dao Lord, at the Devil-Hunting Hall, I haven’t been able to focus on my cultivation…”

She stole a glance at the white-robed woman with the exquisite face and transcendent aura, a flicker of adoration crossing her eyes.

“…And I keep feeling… tightness in my chest and dizziness, and your figure keeps appearing in my mind…” The radiant girl lowered her lashes, her cheeks flushing pink, every word dripping with a maiden’s coquettish shyness.

Crack.

Shang Wanqiu crushed the cup in her hand without a flicker of expression, killing intent rising in her eyes.

The person across from her finally set down her chopsticks and glanced up at the woman.

“Are you sick?” Ling Yunchu asked coolly, giving her a once-over.

There was no mockery in her tone, only genuine puzzlement.

Everyone in the hall had been watching this scene, and at those words they couldn’t hold back their laughter.

Not daring to offend Ling Yunchu, they all covered their mouths, shoulders shaking.

Even Shang Wanqiu, dripping with killing intent, froze for a moment. She blinked, looking at the earnest, serious-faced young girl.

The woman hadn’t expected such a question. Her face went from green to white, but she forced herself to continue. “Yes, I am sick. I’m sick for you, Dao Lord.”

Ling Yunchu had already turned her attention back to the pear blossom pastry and the plum blossom cake on her plate, one white and one red, both sweet and tempting, and she couldn’t decide which to pick.

Just as she was hesitating, she heard that line and couldn’t help glancing at the woman in surprise, catching sight of the brimming tears in her eyes. Her brow furrowed slightly.

“You’re sick. What does that have to do with me?”

Ling Yunchu finally took a proper look at her, but her brow only knit tighter, and she said with evident displeasure,

“Are you trying to run a scam on me?”

She stated it as a plain fact.

The crowd: …

The woman’s eyes reddened. She shot Ling Yunchu a fierce glare, pulled a sachet from her robe, and flung it at her before covering her face and rushing out of the restaurant.

Everyone inside was dumbstruck. Who could have imagined a love confession would end like this?

It seemed this Azure Jade Dao Lord truly lived up to her reputation: devoted solely to the Dao, a cultivation fanatic.

The crowd clucked their tongues.

Having been pelted with a sachet for no reason, Ling Yunchu’s lips pressed down slightly. Having her rare meal interrupted left her rather annoyed.

Picking up the sachet between her fingers, she frowned at it for a moment before it was taken from her hand.

Raising her eyes, she found Shang Wanqiu gazing at her with a tender smile.

“Eat up, there’s plenty more.” she coaxed softly.

Those words worked like a charm. Ling Yunchu couldn’t be bothered to dwell on what had just happened.

Shang Wanqiu watched her, watched her lower her eyes again and study the pastries on her plate with such care. The smile lingered on her lips, yet a dark, devouring color flickered through her eyes.

She wanted to swallow this person whole, to merge with her flesh and blood.

Shang Wanqiu lowered her gaze to the shattered cup before her. With a flick of her fingers inside her sleeve, the sachet crumbled to ash in an instant.

She regretted it.

She was anxious.

Her girl was far too popular. She was jealous.

Shang Wanqiu raised her eyes and studied Ling Yunchu’s lovely features carefully, the greed in her heart growing heavier and heavier.

Ling Yunchu was hers.

Those beautiful eyes needed only to see her and no one else.

Where was Shang Wanqiu’s Gu hidden?

Right at the tip of her heart. That most precious Love Gu had been nurtured with her own Heart Blood.

Now, sensing her emotions, it stirred restlessly.

The Child Gu coiled at her chest, turning round and round without pause.

Shang Wanqiu pinched her fingertips, her brow arching as she circulated the devil qi through her body, suppressing that surge of desire.

Tsk.

Yunchu’s gaze dimmed.

The scent of a Gu insect.

She let out a soft, inward sigh of amusement. Her girl has been away ten years, and she’s brought me quite a few surprises.

Yunchu slowly and methodically finished the last pastry, then raised her eyes to give her thanks, preparing to leave.

She had almost figured out how to end this little show.

“Thank you. Farewell.” Ling Yunchu drained her cup of tea and cast a cool glance at the puddle of broken porcelain across the table.

Shang Wanqiu was taken aback, then asked with a smile, “Where are you headed, Dao Lord?”

“Fan City.” Ling Yunchu kept it brief, maintaining a healthy wariness toward this woman whose face felt so familiar.

Shang Wanqiu narrowed her eyes. How could she possibly let the cat she’d finally lured in with pastries slip away?

She didn’t trust Ling Yunchu to roam about on her own, not before she planted the Child Gu.

The girl was far too good at attracting admirers.

Thinking this, Shang Wanqiu lowered her eyes and said quietly, “I… I don’t know where to go. Might I travel with you to Fan City?”

A faint trace of loss and gloom crossed her face as she looked up at Ling Yunchu with a hint of hope.

Ling Yunchu was unmoved, calmly appraising her. “You wish to travel with me?”

“Yes. I heard the Devil-Slaying Assembly is being held there, and I… I’d like to do my part…” Shang Wanqiu said carefully, her beautiful cat-like eyes brimming with expectation.

Those eyes…

Felt so familiar…

Ling Yunchu studied her a few moments longer. Looking at the woman’s soft, delicate appearance, she touched the hilt of the sword at her waist and finally nodded.

“Let’s go.” She rose, tilting her head slightly toward the woman still seated in place.

“What’s your name?” Ling Yunchu asked lowly, as if the question had only just occurred to her.

Suddenly, a hand reached from behind and caught her left hand.

Ling Yunchu instinctively flung it off, but the hand clung like glue, refusing to let go.

She turned her head and saw the woman smiling shyly at her.

“My name is… Yunqiu.”

Ling Yunchu’s brow twitched, and she narrowed her eyes at her.

Under that gaze, Shang Wanqiu pressed her lips together, then continued with a light laugh, “Why don’t you call me… Qiuqiu, Dao Lord?”

“…Qiuqiu?” Ling Yunchu lowered her eyes, looked at the hand holding hers, and suddenly curled her lips into a smile, her meaning unreadable.

Raising her hand, she brushed that grip away and said with a soft laugh, “I once had a puppet.”

“Her name was Qiuqiu as well.” Tilting her head, she studied Shang Wanqiu’s features carefully, her brow pressing down.

“Oh, really?” Shang Wanqiu squeezed the hand that had been so firmly shaken off, murmuring softly.

“Is… is that puppet still around?” She fixed her eyes on Ling Yunchu, asking in a low voice.

“No.”

“She was nothing more than a plaything to me, for a certain stretch of time.”

“When the time passed and her purpose was gone, I threw her away.” Ling Yunchu answered so casually, the smile on her lips faint, her face showing…

Not a shred of attachment.

Her fingers clenched abruptly.

Clenched until they ached.

The corners of the red-skirted woman’s lips twitched, and at last, her eyes curved.

And so she too smiled with utter calm. “Ah, I see.”

“Things without purpose, throw them away when you’re done.”

Something tore open along its cracks once more, revealing a bloodied, twisted face beneath.

“Throw them away when you’re done.” she repeated, her voice soft and sweet, her beautiful eyes curving.

And in the center of her pupils, there was suddenly nothing at all.