Suddenly, a branch from a towering ancient tree stretched out, swatting away a streak of sword light that was about to strike its trunk.
“Enough.”
“Do you intend to destroy this entire world?”
The ancient tree could not speak in a human tongue; it used a form of telepathic communication.
Su Liumeng stared blankly ahead.
‘Did this ancient tree achieve sentience?’
She looked around and realized she had already reached the depths of the forest. The Small Secret Realm where the Su Family resided was not home to only human activity. Primeval forests actually occupied the majority of the area.
If someone were to ask exactly what was inside these forests, likely no one could give a clear answer. For example, no one could have known about this 10,000-year-old tree before her, which had developed intelligence and even attained a certain level of cultivation while hiding deep within the woods.
With her emotions slightly disrupted by the ancient tree, Su Liumeng finally regained her composure. She held her sword, stood before the tree, and cupped her hands in a respectful salute. “My apologies.”
“It is no matter,” the ancient tree replied, though it was very much lying as it tried to soothe its trembling trunk.
***
Su Family, Tianxin Hall.
The little girl returned to the dining area.
Si Xinyan was still staring blankly at the food on the table. It wasn’t until she caught the scent of the unique children’s body wash on her daughter that a spark of light returned to her dull, lifeless eyes.
“I’ve already made things clear to Su Liumeng,” Xi Zhiruo said, tugging on her mother’s arm. “She looked fairly calm at the time.”
“I could tell she was forcibly suppressing her emotions.”
I grew anxious and squeezed my daughter’s small hand. ‘Where is she now? Can you sense her exact location?’
I didn’t want anything to happen to Su Liumeng.
Xi Zhiruo expanded her Divine Sense, and the entire small world fell within her sight. She saw the mess in the primeval forest. She even saw a little orange cat scurrying away in a panic.
The young girl fell silent. She didn’t know how to explain to her mommy what Su Liumeng was currently doing.
“She…”
“She is…”
My tone grew urgent. “What is she doing out there? She isn’t doing anything foolish, is she?”
Xi Zhiruo finally organized her thoughts. Given their cooperative relationship, she had enough of a conscience to use a “positive” term.
“She’s out there making some improvements.”
My eyes went blank for a moment. “Improvements?”
“Is that meant literally?”
The tips of Xi Zhiruo’s little canine teeth peeked out. Her expression was somewhat excited as she said, “That’s right! She’s doing the very thing Zhizhi is most interested in!”
A hint of the little girl’s Great Demon King nature was exposed. Neither Xi Zhiruo nor Su Liumeng could be considered particularly righteous people. It could almost be said that Si Xinyan was the anchor behind both of them. Once they were free of her restraint, it wouldn’t be surprising if the two of them committed any sort of anti-human acts.
I fell silent for a moment. My fingers squeezed the bun in my hand, which had long since gone cold, accidentally breaking the skin.
Xi Zhiruo’s excitement was instantly doused. Her tone became tentative. “Is Mama unhappy?” She was afraid she had done something wrong again.
I lowered my head and said nothing. I opened my mouth and took a bite of the bun. The cold meat filling was not delicious at all.
Xi Zhiruo walked over to my side, pressed her legs together, and climbed up my lap until she was kneeling on my knees. Her little hands tugged at the collar of my clothes. “Mama, you can’t eat cold buns.”
“I forgot,” I said, forcing a gentle smile for my daughter.
“Eat this instead.” Like a magic trick, Xi Zhiruo produced a plump, steaming meat bun out of thin air.
At that exact moment, the master chef in the Su Family’s public kitchen stared at the freshly opened steamer. Noticing that one meat bun was suddenly missing, he let out a loud shout, “A ghost! A ghost is stealing food!”
Xi Zhiruo’s use of her Domain had already reached perfection. If other powerful cultivators knew that she was modifying the rules of a Domain just to steal a bun, those old fogies would surely be blowing their mustaches and glaring in indignation.
I looked at the bun the little girl was handing over in an attempt to please me. “Where did you get this bun?” I was a bit dazed.
Xi Zhiruo giggled sheepishly. “I just picked it up on the way back.”
“Picked it up?” I rolled my eyes.
Who could just pick up a steaming hot bun? She might as well have said she had “auto-loot” enabled.
“You aren’t allowed to steal things from others, do you hear me?” I pinched my daughter’s cheek and lectured her seriously.
This was simply lawless. If I didn’t teach her principles for just one or two days, her true nature would start to leak out.
With her face pinched and being wobbled back and forth, Xi Zhiruo’s speech became muffled. “Moo… Zhizhi was wrong.”
“I’ll never steal anyone’s buns again.”
“Also, you aren’t allowed to lie!!” I released my punishing hand. “You said it yourself, and Mama will remember it for you. If you ever fail to do it in the future, don’t blame me for spanking you.”
I had decided to harden my heart and educate her properly. I could no longer continue to be a purely merciful mother as I had been before. Occasionally, I had to be strict. After all, time waited for no one, and nobody knew how much longer I could live.
Sensing the drop in my mood, Xi Zhiruo pursed her lips softly. Right now, she only wanted to be a perfectly well-behaved baby. She couldn’t make Mama angry anymore.
***
Su Liumeng stood above Tianxin Hall, her emotions still not fully collected. She couldn’t go back yet. A truly mature person would not bring negative emotions home.
Inside, Xi Zhiruo was being fed by her mother. She sensed Su Liumeng’s location, but her beautiful eyelashes only fluttered a few times; she did not alert Si Xinyan. There was no need to mention such trivial matters and worry her.
The maids had just replaced the food on the table with fresh dishes. Among them was a roasted corn that I had taken a liking to recently. I held the scalding corn. Even through a layer of gauze, it was so hot that I had to roll it between my palms a few times.
“Is it a bit hot?” Zhizhi asked, tilting her little head.
“Mm, it’s alright.” I had already gripped one end of the corn.
Zhizhi looked on with intense longing. “Zhizhi wants to eat roasted corn too.”
I let out a soft laugh. “Don’t be impatient. I’ll peel some for you in a moment.”
Truthfully, I was a bit hungry myself. Under Zhizhi’s watchful eyes, I held the entire corn and prepared to take a bite along the rows. However, it was hard to eat comfortably while someone was staring so intently.
I stopped my movements helplessly, facing the little one’s pitiful gaze. “Fine, let’s feed our little princess first.”
Xi Zhiruo swung her little legs, her eyes crinkling with a happy smile. “Mommy eat first.”
What little girl wouldn’t enjoy being pampered? But she was the most sensible baby.
I kissed her cheek. “There’s no rush. I can eat whenever.”
I took a chopstick and scraped quite a few corn kernels into Xi Zhiruo’s personal pink bowl. “Here, eat up.”
“Thank you, Mommy!” Xi Zhiruo happily picked up the bowl.
The taste of roasted corn was different from boiled corn. The roasted version was chewier and didn’t have as much water. It had an aroma that truly whetted the appetite. Compared to boiled corn, I preferred the flavor of roasted corn. It was as if the presence of an open flame made it feel more grounded.
The little one had clearly inherited my tastes entirely. As she ate the corn kernels, she couldn’t help but hum a little tune.