At some point, Nong Li’s tall figure was already standing just a few steps away. The setting sun cast a long shadow behind her.
Her arms were crossed, and seven fox tails behind her slapped the ground in mild annoyance. Her red eyes first swept over Lin Qiyou, whose cheeks flushed as she quickly let go of Qingmu and sat up straight, then locked firmly onto Qingmu, her gaze a mix of grievance, questioning, and a look that said, “I’ve caught you.”
Qingmu sighed inwardly. As expected, she came.
On the surface, however, he showed no emotion. He even took his time to drink another sip of porridge before finally looking up at Nong Li and speaking with a calm tone, “You’re here? Have you eaten? Want to join us?”
His reaction was clearly not what Nong Li expected. In her imagination, Shizun should at least be a little guilty! Puffing up her cheeks, she swept over like a gust of wind to Qingmu’s side, rudely squeezing in—though Lin Qiyou had already moved aside of her own accord—then squatted down, her huge figure instantly enveloping Qingmu. Ignoring Lin Qiyou’s sudden cold stare, she directly stretched out her arms and wrapped them around Qingmu’s neck from behind, her furry head resting on Qingmu’s slender shoulder. With a sickly-sweet voice, drawn out with obvious showiness and provocation, she called,
“Shi~zun~! I missed you! What were you two talking about just now? Looked like you were having fun?”
As she spoke, she nuzzled Qingmu’s cheek affectionately, her golden fox ears deliberately twitching and brushing across his ear, while her seven big tails swayed in front of Lin Qiyou’s eyes as if in demonstration.
Qingmu was almost choked by her hug, nearly spilling the porridge bowl in his hand. Helpless, he patted Nong Li’s arms around his neck. “Loosen up, you’ll strangle me.” Then he met Lin Qiyou’s icy stare with composure. “Nothing much, just chatting.”
Watching Nong Li clinging to Qingmu like she was glued to him, and thinking of her own reserved and awkward embrace just now, Lin Qiyou felt a nameless rage mixed with an unspeakable bitterness rush to her head. She abruptly stood up, a cold aura bursting around her; even the porridge bowl on the table quickly frosted over.
“A demon is a demon—uncouth and without propriety!” she spat coldly, her gaze like a blade scraping across Nong Li.
Nong Li immediately lifted her head, retorting, “Hmph, that’s still better than someone who says one thing and does another, stabs people, then pretends to be pitiful! What’s wrong with me being close to Shizun? I’m Shizun’s only Tu’er! What are you?”
She put extra emphasis on the words “only Tu’er,” and her tails wagged even harder.
Lin Qiyou was speechless, especially regarding the matter of “stabbing someone”—that was where she was most at fault. Her face alternated between green and white as she clenched her fists, knuckles turning pale. She glared hard at Nong Li, then deeply at the expressionless Qingmu, finally letting out a cold snort and storming off. Her figure turned into a sharp sword light and instantly disappeared into the horizon. No matter how you looked at that retreating back, it was filled with both anger and embarrassment.
Seeing Lin Qiyou chased off, Nong Li hummed smugly like a fox cub that had just won a fight. She finally loosened her grip on Qingmu a bit, but still sat close, picked up his half-finished porridge, and drank it without a care, muttering, “At least she knows her place!”
Qingmu let her be, picking up another bowl for himself, scooping more porridge, and eating slowly on his own. He knew this was only a surface-level victory. Sure enough, after a while, Nong Li started looking uneasy, glancing from time to time in the direction Lin Qiyou had left.
“Shizun…” She tugged at Qingmu’s sleeve, “Uh… I just remembered there’s something I need to deal with in the demon realm, I’ll go back first!”
Qingmu didn’t even look up, just gave a bland “Mm.”
As if pardoned, Nong Li got up at once, her figure flashing away so fast it seemed a hound was chasing her.
Qingmu still sat where he was, sipping the now somewhat cool porridge at a steady pace.
From afar, the roaring clash of Lingli could be faintly heard, and flashes of foxfire and sword qi lit up the distance. Even though it was far away, the violent energies of both parties could still be felt. He didn’t even lift his eyelids.
He knew both of them were holding in anger; without a fight, they wouldn’t be able to move on. But as long as he was here, as long as he was still “weak” here, they would never really go to the point of risking their lives, at most just venting. And this was exactly what he wanted.
He didn’t know how much time had passed when the distant commotion gradually subsided. After a while, Nong Li’s figure reappeared, silently returning to Qingmu’s side.
She’d changed clothes, but her hair was still messy and her breath a little rushed, with a faint, almost invisible sword-qi scratch on her cheek. She cautiously watched Qingmu’s expression; seeing him still quietly drinking porridge as if nothing had happened, she finally let out a breath, then, like a large dog, scooted over and sat beside him again.
“Shizun…” Her voice was muffled, tinged with the exhaustion and grievance after a fight as she started complaining, “Those old stubborn fools are driving me mad! At today’s meeting, they joined forces to pressure me again, saying I’m helping the enemy by showing mercy to Ren Zu prisoners, calling it weakness! They said the demon race should follow the law of the jungle, kill all prisoners or turn them into slaves! They just don’t understand!”
Qingmu listened quietly, occasionally responding with a noncommittal “Mm” to show he was listening. In his heart, he sneered—this was exactly what he hoped for. The fiercer the conflict within the demon realm, the more Nong Li would be held in check.
Nong Li went on and on, getting angrier as she spoke, her fox ears drooping. Suddenly, she fell silent, turned her head, and fixed her golden eyes on Qingmu, filled with guilt and unease.
“Shizun…” Her voice dropped, slightly choking, “I’m sorry…”
Qingmu looked up at her, “Sorry for what?”
“I’m sorry… a hundred years ago… I…” Nong Li’s tears began to well up, “I couldn’t control myself… I hurt you… I clearly swore to protect you… but I…”
Overwhelmed by remorse, she couldn’t finish.
Seeing her like this, Qingmu’s icy calculations were momentarily stirred, but soon hardened again. He sighed, reached out, and ruffled her hair, “It’s all in the past.”
However, perhaps because her guilt and the frustration from fighting Lin Qiyou had gotten to her, Nong Li suddenly lunged, pinning Qingmu down on the cushioned floor! Her large form loomed over him, golden pupils flashing with a complicated mix of regret, dependence, and a fierce possessiveness.
“Shizun… I won’t let anyone hurt you again… not Lin Qiyou, not those demon lords either…” she murmured, lowering her head. Her hot breath washed over Qingmu’s neck, her furry tails coiling around him, as if trying to bind him tightly in her embrace. Her voice was stubborn and dangerous, “You’re mine… only mine…”
Qingmu was stunned by her sudden move and just as he was about to push her away, a cold, bone-chillingly angry voice rang out nearby:
“Oh? Seems I’ve come back at the wrong time? Still, since things are so interesting, why not let me listen too?”
Lin Qiyou had returned and was now standing a few steps away, her face ashen, gaze icy as ancient frost, fixed on Qingmu, who was pinned beneath Nong Li. Although her longsword wasn’t drawn, the sharp intent radiating from her seemed to cut the very air around them!
Qingmu: “……”
Nong Li: “!!!”
The scene was plunged into an eerie silence.
Nong Li was still holding Qingmu down, her furry ears standing alert while her tails reflexively wrapped even tighter around him. She turned to glare at Lin Qiyou, her pupils full of displeasure at being interrupted. “Why are you back again?”
Lin Qiyou ignored her, her gaze cold as if it had substance, boring straight into Qingmu. It seemed to say, “Are you just going to let this demon run wild?” The tear mole under her left eye stood out starkly on her pale face, and her fingers gripped the sword hilt so tightly the knuckles whitened.
Caught between the two, Qingmu felt a faint headache at his temple. Sighing, he raised a hand and patted Nong Li’s arm—not too hard, not too soft. “Get up.”
“Shizun!” Nong Li grumbled in protest, but under Qingmu’s calm yet commanding gaze, she reluctantly released her hold and slowly sat up. Still, she pressed close to Qingmu, her tails possessively circling his waist, baring her teeth in Lin Qiyou’s direction.
Qingmu straightened his wrinkled robe, sat up, and looked at the cold-faced Lin Qiyou, his tone as flat as if discussing the weather, “Forgot something?”
Lin Qiyou was caught off guard by his attitude, her chest heaving. She had indeed come back on an excuse—claiming she’d forgotten to give him a bottle of foundation-strengthening Dan Yao. But now, seeing Nong Li clinging shamelessly to Qingmu and Qingmu’s complete indifference, that excuse felt laughable.
She took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing her anger and an inexplicable sense of sourness, and tossed a small jade bottle onto the low table before Qingmu with a crisp “pa!”
“Your medicine.” Her voice was cold as iron.
Then she turned to leave, as if she couldn’t stand to stay another moment. Yet after taking a step, she stopped.
Qingmu was stunned. Wasn’t the medicine in his own room?
Did she bring out another bottle, just to counter Nong Li?
She didn’t turn around, but her voice carried a barely discernible, perhaps even unknown to herself, hint of hope and tremor: “Don’t you… have anything to say?”
Qingmu gazed at her back in silence for a moment. He could feel Lin Qiyou’s suppressed emotions, and see Nong Li’s undisguised dependence and possessiveness.
But what occupied his mind was the killing intent of Yue Qi in the real world, the bloodied terror of Xiao Ya, and the bizarre reality where “Lin Qiyou does not exist.”
So, he lowered his eyes, picked up the bottle of Dan Yao, and replied in the same even tone as always, “Thank you. Take care on the road.”
“……”
Lin Qiyou’s figure froze completely.
It was as if all the air around had been sucked away, even the insects fell silent. A disappointment and chill sharper than any blade pierced straight through her heart.
She didn’t say another word, didn’t look back, and shot skyward, vanishing in an instant.
Nong Li looked in Lin Qiyou’s direction, humming triumphantly, her tail tip swaying with joy. She turned back, about to nuzzle into Qingmu again, “Shizun, that annoying one finally lef—”
“Give me the Qi Jue, Benji’s Qi Jue.”
Qingmu stretched out his hand. Nong Li suddenly showed a mischievous smile, “Shizun wants it? Then agree to one condition.”
“Alright, what’s the condition?”
Qingmu nodded.
“Shizun, let me see your little chi—Eh? Shizun, you’re really taking it off!”