Chapter 7: Fateful Encounters
The secret realm seemed deceptively peaceful. The spiritual energy here was even richer than outside, yet Bai Jingxue felt a strange unease, a restless energy coursing through her veins.
Her irritation only intensified as the dog beside her continued its incessant chatter. She whirled around and delivered two swift punches to Lü Qingyan’s head.
“Ow! Hey, that didn’t hurt at all!”
Bai Jingxue stared at her, wondering if, like in their past life, Lü Qingyan was deliberately downplaying the pain to tease her. The sound of her skull cracking had been quite convincing.
She sighed and turned towards a towering tree, its branches disappearing into the dense canopy above. With a powerful leap, she landed gracefully on a high branch.
Even with her enhanced vision, the dense foliage obscured her view. Looking up, she could only see a few eagles circling overhead.
One of the eagles, sensing her presence, swooped down, its talons extended, ready to snatch the small black cat.
In a flash, a white blur intercepted the eagle, sinking its teeth into its neck. With a few violent shakes, Lü Qingyan snapped the eagle’s neck.
Releasing her grip, she watched as the lifeless bird plummeted towards the ground. The moment it landed, a swirling vortex appeared, swallowing the carcass whole.
The forest returned to its tranquil state, its beauty unsettling.
“Jingxue, wasn’t that amazing?” Lü Qingyan barked, her tail spinning like a propeller. Her eyes were wide, her head tilted, her entire being radiating a desperate need for praise.
Bai Jingxue could have handled the eagle herself. It wasn’t a spirit beast, merely a wild animal. What truly astonished her was Lü Qingyan’s ability to teleport.
She wanted to compliment her, but fear of encouraging further entanglement held her back. She settled for a noncommittal “mm-hmm.”
They had been separated from their respective owners, their fates intertwined once more in this unexpected pet duo.
Despite their limited power, Bai Jingxue was determined to save the female lead from her tragic fate. If Luo Nianshang succumbed to her love-struck destiny, it would only torment Bai Jingxue further.
“Yes,” she thought, “this is all for the sake of my own sanity. It has nothing to do with the fact that Luo Nianshang is a decent person.”
She repeated this mantra three times in her mind.
Their entry into the secret realm had been rather chaotic. The crowd, overcome by greed, had surged forward. Luo Nianshang and the Demon Lord had remained unmoved, but the cat and dog hadn’t been so fortunate.
Bai Jingxue walked ahead, her feline grace a stark contrast to Lü Qingyan’s bouncy gait, which resembled a happy dance.
Unable to contain her excitement, Lü Qingyan resumed her chatter. “Jingxue, do you think there’s any way to stop them?”
Silence.
“Jingxue, Jingxue, the female lead is treating you well, right? I’ve been so worried about you.”
Silence.
“It would be so much easier if we could transform back into humans. Then we could actually do something. Oh, and I have a secret. I think the Demon Lord is illiterate.”
Lü Qingyan lowered her voice for that last bit. Bai Jingxue finally stopped and turned, her brow furrowed. She wanted to ask how Lü Qingyan had reached that conclusion, but decided it wasn’t worth the effort.
With a sigh, she shook her head and continued walking, leading the way.
“Venerable One,” the Demon Lord purred, her voice laced with amusement. “What a coincidence that we should end up together.”
They had landed in a desolate wasteland, littered with bones and withered trees. The air was thick with resentment, a palpable energy that clawed at their minds.
Luo Nianshang, however, was protected by her inherent divinity. Like a cold, ethereal moon, she radiated a gentle light that repelled the lingering spirits.
For the Demon Lord, these spirits were nothing more than sustenance, fuel for her cultivation.
When Luo Nianshang didn’t respond, the Demon Lord couldn’t resist prodding her further, her questions deliberately provocative.
Her red lips curved into a sly smile. “You’ve lived for so long, Venerable One,” she said. “Surely, there must have been someone who captured your heart?”
Luo Nianshang’s fists clenched, her expression hardening. She quickened her pace.
The Demon Lord, finding her reaction amusing, kept pace, her voice dripping with mockery. “Don’t tell me you’ve never experienced the joys of love, Venerable One.”
Luo Nianshang remained silent.
The Demon Lord clutched her chest dramatically. “Such a shame,” she sighed. “It’s one of life’s greatest pleasures. You really should try it. If you find the men of the righteous sects too dull, perhaps a demon cultivator could satisfy your needs. If you’re interested, I’d be happy to personally deliver one to your doorstep, bound and ready.”
That was it. Luo Nianshang couldn’t take it anymore. She dared not turn around, afraid of revealing her flustered state. “How absurd!” she snapped.
Despite the Demon Lord’s relentless teasing, Luo Nianshang hadn’t drawn her sword. She simply increased her speed, her footsteps a blur as she tried to shake off her pursuer.
The Demon Lord, watching her hasty retreat, chuckled and followed close behind.
Luo Nianshang’s face was as cold as ice, while the Demon Lord trailed her, her laughter echoing through the desolate landscape.
Luo Nianshang regretted her earlier kindness. She suspected that her gesture of offering the shoes had given the Demon Lord the impression that she was open to such frivolous banter. But the truth was, she was incredibly awkward when it came to matters of the heart.
When she had been young and inexperienced, her fellow disciples had been caught up in a whirlwind of romances. She, however, had been focused on her cultivation.
As time passed, her peers had married and started families. She had continued to cultivate.
Eventually, those she had known passed away, replaced by a new generation of disciples, who, in turn, embarked on their own romantic journeys. And still, she cultivated.
Was romance truly more fulfilling than the pursuit of enlightenment?
What was wrong with these young cultivators? They lacked dedication!
How could they hope to protect the realm and usher in an era of peace if they were so easily distracted by frivolous pursuits?
The Demon Lord, hot on Luo Nianshang’s heels, suddenly doubled over, clutching her stomach. She had inadvertently absorbed a particularly potent, and unpleasant, wisp of resentment.
She had no choice but to abandon her verbal assault on Luo Nianshang. “Ugh, what foul energy,” she muttered. “Disgusting.”
Dark clouds gathered overhead, and a deafening clap of thunder shook the earth. A steady rain began to fall.
The raindrops sizzled as they hit the ground, accompanied by a low, guttural moan that sent chills down their spines.
Lü Qingyan retreated beneath the shelter of a large tree. “I think that might be acid rain,” she whimpered.
Bai Jingxue shook her head. She had touched the rain, and it hadn’t harmed her. Something was lurking beneath the surface.
She wondered if, in gaming terms, this would be considered a boss fight or a mini-boss.
Despite the danger, Bai Jingxue remained calm. She glanced at Lü Qingyan, who was humming cheerfully beside her. “Aren’t you scared?” she asked.
Lü Qingyan grinned, her face radiating pure joy. “Not at all,” she replied. “To think that I’d be lucky enough to find you again in this life. It’s a miracle!”
Coming from anyone else, those words would have sounded insincere, but Bai Jingxue believed her. Lü Qingyan had a way of defying expectations.
Her tail relaxed, and she asked, “How did you die?”
Lü Qingyan’s face fell. “I was on my way to find you,” she said sadly. “A flowerpot fell from a window and hit me on the head.”
Bai Jingxue couldn’t help but feel a pang of guilt. Lü Qingyan had always been the lucky one. She hadn’t expected such a mundane accident to claim her life.
But Lü Qingyan seemed to have no regrets. Her curiosity piqued, she asked, “What about you?”
“Car accident,” Bai Jingxue replied flatly.
To be more precise, she had drowned. She had been driving home from the hospital after collecting her test results when her car swerved off the road and plunged into a reservoir. She had been conscious the entire time, and it was Luo Nianshang who had pulled her from the water.
Swirling vortexes began to appear in the ground, as if something was churning the earth from below. Looking closer, Bai Jingxue saw eyes peering up from the depths.
They stared at the cat and dog perched in the tree, their gaze filled with malice and hunger.
Sensing the danger, Bai Jingxue arched her back, her fur bristling. She hissed at the creatures below.
Even Lü Qingyan, oblivious as she was, felt a surge of unease. She barked furiously at the ground.
She had never been prey before. Instinct took over, and she panicked. But she quickly regained her composure.
“Jingxue, you go first! I’ll hold them off!”
Bai Jingxue shot her a sideways glance. “Did the Demon Lord give you anything for protection?” she asked.
Lü Qingyan blinked, tilting her head in confusion. Then, she lifted her chin, revealing a collar hidden beneath her fur. “Does this count? She put it on me to stop me from running away.”
Bai Jingxue sighed. There was no point in scolding a dog.
The bell Luo Nianshang had given her could be used for defense, but it offered no offensive capabilities.
As Lü Qingyan opened her mouth to speak, Bai Jingxue placed a paw over it, silencing her.
Then, she sniffed the air. Her pupils constricted. She recognized the scent. It was the male lead.
A moment later, his voice reached them, accompanied by the heavy stench of blood and a string of angry curses.
“You manipulated them into creating a diversion,” he snarled. “Did you even consider my well-being?”
The shadowy figure beside him was barely visible now. “Hmph,” it replied coldly. “If you weren’t so incompetent, I wouldn’t have had to intervene.”
The male lead, however, was too consumed by fear to listen. The terror of his impending death clung to him like a shroud, twisting his features into a mask of resentment. “The only one who survived this place in my past life was Luo Nianshang,” he muttered. “I was going to wait until she was weakened after leaving seclusion and drug her then. Now, I’m not even sure I’ll make it out of here alive.”
The demonic cultivator couldn’t take it anymore. “Is that all you ever think about?” he roared.
He had lived, and died, for over ten thousand years. This was the first time he had questioned his judgment.
He had always believed that the body was merely a vessel, that the soul remained untouched. He might have been a villain, but he had never been interested in such base desires. He was starting to regret choosing this particular host.
The male lead bristled at his words. “Lust is a natural human desire!” he retorted. “Are you saying you’re not human?”
The demonic cultivator’s form flickered, his voice laced with chilling amusement. “I’m a ghost,” he replied.
Lü Qingyan, perched in the tree, had to stifle a laugh. The male lead looked pathetic, one arm dangling uselessly at his side, his face crisscrossed with sword wounds.
However, the moment he appeared, the swirling vortexes in the ground began to disappear.
Bai Jingxue watched impassively as the rain, mixed with the male lead’s blood, splattered onto the ground. The crimson hue faded, until the rain was clear once more.
The creatures below hadn’t given up on their prey. This was merely the calm before the storm.
Bai Jingxue settled down, preparing to enjoy the show. If the male lead’s presence drew out the creatures, she would have a chance to observe their attack patterns.
Her tail swished back and forth excitedly. Lü Qingyan, sensing her mood, sighed.
“Oh no,” she thought. “Jingxue’s up to something.”
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