Chapter 51: A Cat’s Life
Humans possessed both good and evil. But what about the world?
Bai Jingxue couldn’t calm her mind. Cultivation was impossible. She stretched, leaving the chamber, leaving Lü Qingyan, who was sleeping soundly.
She sighed. The dog seemed to be enjoying life a bit too much.
The night was silent. She climbed onto her favorite rooftop, only to find that Luo Nianshang was also awake.
“Meow.”
Luo Nianshang, her sword resting across her lap, her usual posture as a child, a memory now distant and faded, smiled at the cat.
“Can’t sleep either?” she asked.
“Meow.”
Bai Jingxue rubbed against Luo Nianshang’s knee, then settled beside her, yawning.
Although they couldn’t communicate verbally, Luo Nianshang simply needed a non-human companion to listen to her troubles.
Knowing Luo Nianshang’s past had changed Bai Jingxue’s perspective. The seemingly soulless character from the novel had become more complex, more real.
She had so many questions, but all she could produce were meows. She closed her eyes, frustrated.
Luo Nianshang, assuming the cat was simply being affectionate, scooped her up, placing her on her lap.
Bai Jingxue, however, found the Sword Saint’s sword rather cold and uncomfortable. She quickly jumped down.
Luo Nianshang picked her up again, and Bai Jingxue promptly jumped down again.
After several repetitions of this, Luo Nianshang’s voice took on a mournful tone. “You never used to run away from me,” she said.
“Meow.”
“I’m sorry, but I love my butt more than you,” Bai Jingxue thought.
Unfortunately, her true feelings couldn’t be conveyed. She settled down near Luo Nianshang, her paws tucked beneath her.
Her cat eyes, glowing brightly in the darkness, stared at Luo Nianshang, making her laugh.
Her somber mood lifted, and she gazed up at the stars, her hands resting on her sword.
“I never thought Master would want to see you,” she said. “I visited her grave so many times, but there was never any response.”
“Meow.”
“Don’t be jealous of a cat,” Bai Jingxue thought.
Luo Nianshang traced the patterns etched on her sword sheath, her voice laced with sadness. “Both my masters died because of demon cultivators,” she said. “I dedicated myself to my cultivation, hoping to one day eradicate all demon cultivators from the world.”
Bai Jingxue twitched her ears, scratching them with her hind leg, then looked at Luo Nianshang, meowing softly.
Those words, coming from Luo Nianshang, were perfectly normal. She had always emerged from seclusion to slay the Demon Lord. Although this time had been different, in her previous two encounters, she would have beheaded the Demon Lord without hesitation.
Qiu Yingxi was rather lucky. But then again, unlike her predecessors, she was a formidable opponent.
The novel had made that clear.
Bai Jingxue couldn’t help but feel a twinge of envy. Both the female lead and the female antagonist were extraordinary individuals, though their extraordinary abilities had simply been plot devices to further the male lead’s conquests.
Luo Nianshang sheathed her sword, and Bai Jingxue, seizing the opportunity, settled onto her lap. The roof tiles were cold.
Luo Nianshang, distracted by the cat’s warmth, her train of thought broken, patted Bai Jingxue’s head, then remembered what she had wanted to say. “But it became my inner demon,” she said, her voice laced with regret. “My path was flawed. I had to isolate myself, emerging only when the righteous realm faced a crisis.”
Bai Jingxue was stunned. She couldn’t believe that someone so pure and selfless could be consumed by darkness.
Luo Nianshang had witnessed the suffering of countless others, yet her only desire had been to bring light to the world.
But it made sense. Fang Yue Lian had died right before her eyes. Only Fang Xin’s soul had lingered at their shared grave.
Fang Yue Lian’s soul had been severely damaged.
Luo Nianshang’s brow furrowed with worry. “What if I truly fall to demonic influence?” she asked.
If Luo Nianshang succumbed to darkness, this fragile world would be doomed.
Bai Jingxue rubbed against Luo Nianshang’s hand, offering silent comfort. It was all she could do.
Luo Nianshang, her mood lifting, gently lifted Bai Jingxue, her voice filled with gratitude. “It’s good to have you here,” she said. “Someone to listen.”
The Demon Lord, eavesdropping from inside the chamber, nearly exploded with jealousy. She shook Lü Qingyan awake, her voice a frantic whisper. “Your beloved is slipping away!”
Lü Qingyan, groggy, opened her eyes to see Luo Nianshang’s new disciple. After a moment of confusion, she leaped to her feet, barking furiously.
She remembered how she had fallen into the well. She had been caught, but she had only lost consciousness after accidentally consuming that disciple’s culinary abomination.
The Demon Lord quickly covered Lü Qingyan’s mouth, but Luo Nianshang, alerted by the commotion, had already arrived, Bai Jingxue in her arms.
She entered the room to see her disciple struggling to silence the dog. She frowned, then decided it was pointless to try to understand her disciple’s unusual behavior.
Lü Qingyan broke free from the Demon Lord’s grasp, leaping onto Luo Nianshang’s shoulder, then settling comfortably in her arms.
The Demon Lord, watching this exchange, suddenly realized something she had never noticed before. The cat and dog were always clinging to Luo Nianshang, yet she, despite her three disguises, had never managed to get this close.
Jealousy surged through her, but it also sparked a new idea. Perhaps she should create a pet puppet.
Bai Jingxue, seeing the Demon Lord staring at Luo Nianshang, her gaze intense, frowned.
Then she dismissed the thought. This wasn’t a typical romance novel. There wouldn’t be any forbidden love between master and disciple. Luo Nianshang was simply beautiful.
“Jingxue, have you forgotten something?” Lü Qingyan asked.
Forgotten something?
Bai Jingxue looked at her, confused. “Forgotten what?”
Lü Qingyan’s ears drooped, but then she wagged her tail, her voice gentle. “Think back to what you promised me in the secret realm.”
The secret realm?
Bai Jingxue searched her memory. So much had happened there. She couldn’t remember making any promises.
But such a trivial matter couldn’t stump her. She simply wished she hadn’t remembered.
She glanced at the two other occupants of the room, her voice hesitant. “Are you sure you want me to kiss you here?”
Lü Qingyan’s tail wagged furiously. “What’s wrong with here?” she asked. “Don’t overthink it. It’s just us.”
Bai Jingxue’s cheeks burned. She was always easily embarrassed. She turned to negotiate with Lü Qingyan, but she met the dog’s gaze, her eyes wide and pleading.
Her heart melted.
Why was Lü Qingyan always so good at acting cute? It was infuriating.
She mentally berated herself for her weakness, but she couldn’t bring herself to be harsh.
Besides, she was just a cat, and Lü Qingyan was just a dog. No one would care if they kissed.
If she was truly worried, then she simply had to be quick.
She leaned forward, quickly brushing her nose against Lü Qingyan’s cheek, then pretended nothing had happened.
Lü Qingyan touched her cheek, her ears perked up, her tail wagging wildly.
Bai Jingxue, glancing at her, seeing her exaggerated reaction, couldn’t help but snort.
Luo Nianshang stared at them, her voice filled with disbelief. “Did they just kiss?”
The Demon Lord chuckled, then her smile faded, replaced by a wave of sadness.
Those two had already kissed, while she was still struggling to win over her supposed nemesis.
What do you do when your crush is completely oblivious? There seemed to be no solution.
Luo Nianshang, oblivious to her disciple’s sudden change in mood, stared at the cat and dog in her arms, her voice filled with wonder. “A cat and a dog? This…”
This was a lot for her to process. She pondered this for a moment, then realized that both creatures were female.
“It’s fine,” she thought, trying to reassure herself. “It’s probably just a coincidence.”
But what if it wasn’t?
She felt a headache forming. If it wasn’t a coincidence, then she would have to approach the Demon Lord and propose a marriage.
She had no idea how to interact with the Demon Lord. Those dream encounters had been so absurd that she had resorted to simply blocking them out of her mind to maintain her composure.
But if she saw the Demon Lord again, those memories would resurface, no matter how hard she tried to suppress them.
She had lived a life of celibacy for so long. She hadn’t expected to be undone by a dream. But she couldn’t blame the Demon Lord. They had both been victims of that illusion.
But she was still angry. The Demon Lord had deliberately seduced her in those dreams.
One was angry, the other heartbroken. It was a rather comical scene.
Bai Jingxue, oblivious to their emotional turmoil, had closed her eyes, her cheeks burning with embarrassment.
“Don’t overthink it,” Lü Qingyan had said. “It’s just us.”
But while Lü Qingyan’s life might have lacked an audience, Bai Jingxue’s cat life was filled with them.
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