Seeing the shattered house number plaque, Wang Sandong’s mouth twitched slightly.
He asked, “A minor matter?”
Zheng Yu nodded with a smile.
“Minor matter.”
Wang Sandong yawned, feeling uncomfortable all over.
The soft chair was nowhere near as comfortable as a bed.
“Where’s your sister?”
“She went out for a walk,” Zheng Yu said with a smile.
Wang Sandong shot Zheng Yu a look.
‘This old guy really isn’t reliable. Taking a walk in the dead of night? That’s crazy.’
Looking at the broken door panel on the ground, he guessed something must have happened and Zheng Xiao had gone to handle it.
‘Huh, never mind her. Go home and sleep.’
Then he suddenly remembered something.
Wang Sandong picked up the sanitary belt he had successfully refined earlier, pointed to the four corners, and said to Zheng Yu, “I almost forgot about this. Brother, make four holes in these four places.”
Zheng Yu said, “Holes? Won’t that damage the internal formation?”
“No.”
“Well… alright then.”
Making holes was a small matter and simple, but Zheng Yu became even more convinced that the Ghost Axe Technique book didn’t exist.
At least, the Ghost Axe Technique didn’t contain the method for refining this storage artifact.
Otherwise, why weren’t the holes pre-drilled during the refining process? Judging by his young brother-in-law’s expression, he had obviously just remembered the need for holes.
The four holes were quickly made.
Wang Sandong picked up the sanitary belt, said goodbye, and left.
As for where Zheng Xiao had gone or if she was in danger, Wang Sandong didn’t care at all.
Not just because they lacked emotional foundation, but also because ‘an ant shouldn’t worry about an elephant’s affairs.’
The Wang Mansion’s carriage moved slowly down the street.
Wang Sandong hid inside the carriage, took out the cloth strips he had prepared earlier, threaded them through the holes of the sanitary belt, and put it on.
Now the worry that had been hanging over him for two days finally completely disappeared. No need to worry about a sudden flood.
“Miss Yuan?”
Suddenly he heard Wang Tong exclaim in surprise.
The carriage curtain was lifted.
Yuan Di’s figure drifted in gracefully, sitting elegantly next to Wang Sandong.
Her movements were so fast that her skirt fluttered, lightly brushing against Wang Sandong’s face.
Wang Sandong subconsciously closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them again, smiling as he looked at Yuan Di.
“Yuanyuan, running out in the middle of the night, are you worried about your young master’s safety?”
“What were you doing with the Zheng siblings in the artifact forging room?”
Yuan Di asked directly, cutting to the chase.
Wang Sandong didn’t answer, instead looking down at Yuan Di’s dress.
“Celestial silk skirt? Want me to send you two?”
Yuan Di stared into Wang Sandong’s eyes, her expression indifferent to the point of coldness—or perhaps just cold.
The hand she held loosely inside her sleeve tightened a little, then quickly relaxed.
Even if she was extremely dissatisfied with Wang Sandong’s attitude, what could she do?
Before she turned into a woman, she couldn’t kill him.
Use Cui San’er’s corpse to humiliate her?
If she did that, the empathy of “Soul Hooking” would probably affect her.
After the third rank, cultivation progress slowed; after the fifth rank, even more.
There was still a long time ahead.
She couldn’t keep guarding against her “Soul Hooking” forever, could she?
Too tiring.
So…
Better to endure.
She’d settle the score later.
Wang Sandong sighed, slowly reached out his hand, placed it on the back of Yuan Di’s hand over her sleeve, and then gently squeezed.
“How could my elder brother know? You are the true love of my life.”
“Heh…”
Yuan Di laughed without warning.
“That’s not right. Is that the kind of true love that’s ready to kill me at any moment?”
Wang Sandong, with a face full of affection, choked for a moment.
Then he remembered that he had tried to kill Yuan Di before and was killed in retaliation.
“Ah, you don’t understand me.”
Wang Sandong first said something pretentious, his mind racing, thinking of how to defend himself.
“You know nothing about my feelings for you.”
Still not remembering, he first accused her, adopting an offensive defense.
“Why did I make a move on you? Haven’t you looked for the reason yourself?”
He downplayed the essence of the matter and threw the question back at her.
“I’m so disappointed in you.”
Finally, he placed himself in the victim’s position, both deeply affectionate and tragic.
Yuan Di’s relaxed hand tightened again.
Those cold eyes widened inadvertently.
She opened her mouth as if to say a lot, but didn’t know where to start.
Finally, she closed her eyes and sat silently.
Wang Sandong also closed his eyes.
Though she seemed like the victor, she was actually full of sorrow.
‘That last time was really impulsive.’
‘Acting like a stone hitting an egg was too childish.’
‘He was only at the third rank of cultivation, yet he dared to ambush a Five Emperor-level expert. If word got out, people would probably laugh their heads off.’
‘Alas, a starved camel is still bigger than a horse.’
‘Even if Yuan Di was injured and her cultivation not at its peak, she was still not someone he could touch at this moment.’
‘Looking back now, if he had been at the fifth rank at the time, he might actually have been able to kill Yuan Di in one blow.’
‘He just had to wait for the right moment.’
‘Unfortunately, because of that impulsive act, the plan to “sow seeds” in Yuan Di’s heart had been ruined.’
‘But a loss might be a blessing in disguise.’
‘If he really managed to stir Yuan Di’s heart and she wanted to offer herself to him…’
Wang Sandong suddenly got goosebumps.
‘Although Yuan Di was handsome, far surpassing many women, she was still a man. The existence of certain things was just awkward to think about.’
‘He might even get “counter-killed.”‘
An image of being “counter-killed” by Yuan Di immediately appeared in his mind.
‘Moreover, because he had A-Gui’s memories, Wang Sandong had “seen” what Yuan Di looked like before she practiced the first version of Return to Heaven.’
‘Speaking of which, after Yuan Di practiced the first version of Return to Heaven, her appearance changed—was it just the appearance that changed?’
‘Was it possible that externally she had become a woman, but the internal organs hadn’t completely changed?’
‘For example, unable to bear children?’
As his thoughts wandered, Wang Sandong’s gaze unconsciously roamed over Yuan Di’s body, finally settling on the deep part of her skirt.
‘What kind of secrets were hidden under that dress?’
Yuan Di casually adjusted her skirt, then pressed it down with her legs.
She swayed her legs twice, then stopped.
“Hmph.”
She snorted, looked aside, and said, “No expectations, no disappointments.”
‘Suddenly she regretted it. She felt she shouldn’t have gotten into the carriage.’
So she stood up directly, used Demonic Qi to force open the carriage curtain, and jumped out.
Wang Sandong lifted the curtain and looked outside, but Yuan Di was already gone.
In the darkness, watching the carriage gradually disappear, and Wang Sandong’s head poking out of the window, Yuan Di gritted her teeth, a fierce look on her face.
‘She swore that after Wang Sandong transformed, she would first give him a good beating, then sacrifice him to the Demon Abyss! Otherwise, her hatred would never be appeased!’
But looking at that face, Yuan Di suddenly felt a suppressed evil thought stirring in her heart.
Since she started demon cultivation, this kind of evil thought had never appeared.
It appeared anyway.
Thinking back to Wang Sandong’s seemingly innocent face, Yuan Di felt a turmoil of emotions.
‘What man doesn’t have some evil thoughts?’
‘The problem is… she didn’t dare to think further.’
Yuan Di raised her hand and fanned her face, trying to cool down.
She should think about something serious.
‘For instance, what were Wang Sandong and the Zheng siblings doing in the artifact forging room?’
‘Zheng’s servants had bought a lot of forging materials, so they were probably forging artifacts.’
‘Forging was not strange.’
‘Zheng Xiao was one of the Nine Surnamed Kings; it was normal for her to occasionally forge some tools for her clansmen.’
‘What was not normal was what Wang Sandong was doing in the forging room?’
‘She couldn’t forge, and she wasn’t able to forge.’
‘Without a Spiritual Root, she couldn’t use most common spells. She could only use some nearly useless spells like the “Corpse Driving Art.”‘
‘Forging was completely out of the question.’
‘So, even though Wang Sandong could cultivate with Return to Heaven, she was still useless.’
‘Right! Useless!’
Yuan Di cursed viciously in her heart, trying to calm her mind through distraction.
‘She had to calm down.’
‘No fluctuations allowed.’
‘And definitely not fall into the vortex of “self-conquest”!’
Yuan Di’s thoughts were clear.
She decided to return to Fengyue Tower temporarily and purify her mind for nine days.
Arriving at Fengyue Tower, the night deepened, but she still couldn’t sleep, her mind in turmoil.
‘This state was very strange.’
‘Was it because she had feelings? Impossible.’
‘Not only did she not like him, she even felt disgust.’
‘So it definitely had nothing to do with “feelings.”‘
‘Was it because of physical desire? No.’
‘If her body needed it, she could just take him.’
‘Satisfying physical needs was the meaning of cultivation.’
‘Why agonize over it?’
‘So why was it like this?’
Yuan Di sat still on the bed, breathing deeply, recalling the bits and pieces of recent events, tracking the subtle changes in her mind.
Finally, as dawn broke, she suddenly opened her eyes.
‘So…’
‘It was because of “Soul Hooking.”‘
‘To be precise, it was the interaction between “Soul Hooking” and “Soul Severing Slash.”‘
‘Every time Soul Hooking tried to affect her, Soul Severing Slash triggered a passive defense.’
‘The prolonged, frequent overreactions had caused her mental state to become chaotic.’
‘It was like a vaccine.’
‘To avoid getting a certain disease, she actively “caught” that disease.’
Realizing this, Yuan Di found it both amusing and frustrating.
And because she had figured it out, she naturally expanded her thinking, becoming more clearly aware.
‘Not only because of the passive overdefense of Soul Severing Slash, but also because of her own natural resistance deep inside.’
‘It was like wanting to vomit when seeing something disgusting, wanting to retreat when seeing something dangerous, or wanting to instinctively bully a pervert who might like men…’
‘This subconscious response echoed the overreaction of Soul Severing Slash and also triggered her psychological defense—fear of being taken advantage of by Wang Sandong.’
‘This fear made her always think of being “bullied” by Wang Sandong.’
‘Therefore, to completely solve the mental problem, she first needed to avoid this fear.’
‘Moreover, that little cucumber of his was only good for show…’
‘No.’
‘This kind of conditioned reflex association also had to stop.’
‘And curiosity was an even bigger problem!’
‘How could she be curious about what it would feel like to be “bullied” by Wang Sandong?!’
‘What was the way to completely eliminate curiosity?’
‘Of course—’
“No, no, no!”
Someone was coming.
Yueniang wiggled her hips over, knocked, and entered.
Seeing Yuan Di with a flushed face, Yueniang was stunned, not understanding, and didn’t dare ask more.
She just respectfully greeted her, calling, “Emperor.”
“What is it?”
Yuan Di asked.
“Xing Luo said she found traces of a Demonic Cultivator,” Yueniang said. “Suspected to be a demon disciple.”
The flush on Yuan Di’s face gradually faded, and her expression returned to calm indifference.
After pondering for a long time, she said, “The demon disciple’s strength is not low. If they deliberately concealed their traces, how could Xing Luo easily find them? Since they deliberately let Xing Luo discover them…”
“What does the Emperor mean?”
“Heh…”
Yuan Di exhaled.
“I’m hungry. Prepare breakfast.”
“Yes.”
Yueniang withdrew from the room.
“Two portions.”
Yuan Di added.
Having Yueniang prepare two portions of breakfast was not because her appetite had increased.
Breakfast was simple.
A bowl of sweet porridge, a plate of pan-fried dumplings, and a dish of pickled cucumber cubes in the middle.
Someone entered.
He was tall and burly, having to lower his head to pass through the door.
Without ceremony, he picked up his chopsticks, grabbed a dumpling, and took a bite, his mouth filling with grease.
“Too greasy.”
Then he picked up a piece of pickled cucumber.
“A bit salty. Sweet, I don’t like it.”
He put down his chopsticks, picked up the sweet porridge, slurped a mouthful, and praised, “This is okay.”
Yuan Di chuckled, ate a dumpling in one bite, chewed twice, and swallowed before saying, “The chef at Fengyue Tower naturally can’t compare to your Emperor’s imperial chef.”
“Heh, I’ll make a few dishes for you to try sometime.”
The newcomer smiled, glanced at Yuan Di’s eating manner, and frowned.
“Dressed like a woman, eating so ungraciously—very inelegant.”
“A chef talking about elegance?”
Yuan Di said, picking up her bowl and drinking porridge.
“What’s wrong with being a chef?”
The newcomer used his huge palm to circle his big belly and laughed.
“Putting down the bowl and cursing the chef is inappropriate. Holding the bowl and cursing the chef is even more inappropriate.”
“Get to the point.”
Yuan Di said coldly.
“Heh, the Demon Emperor wants to pick the fruit. Hand over Wang Sandong.”
The chef sighed. “Your method won’t work.”
“How do you know without trying?”
“What time is it now? If we delay any longer, and the Human Sovereign breaks through to the tenth rank, the revenge against Xia will be even more hopeless.”
The chef was getting a bit impatient.
“My master said there’s no time for you to try.”
“Ten years.”
“Impossible. In ten years, Wang Sandong cannot cultivate to great success.”
“Then twenty years.”
The chef got angry, his face darkening.
“Is this how you bargain? Yuan Di, don’t think my master is giving you face because he’s afraid of you. Not to mention now, even in your prime before, you were just his defeated opponent.”
“Only twenty years.”
Yuan Di insisted.
“Since ancient times, no one has ever broken through the tenth rank. No matter how powerful the Human Sovereign is, giving him another twenty years won’t be enough.”
The chef stared at Yuan Di with a dark face, saying nothing.
Yuan Di smiled slightly, meeting the chef’s tiger-like eyes, and said, “Even if you hand Wang Sandong over to the Demon Emperor, the Demon Emperor has no certainty, right?”
The chef remained silent.
“Or…”
Yuan Di walked to the window table, opened a drawer, took out a small booklet, and casually threw it to the chef.
“Take this. You can find another person without a Spiritual Root to cultivate.”
On the booklet, the words Return to Heaven were clearly written.
The chef frowned, staring at the booklet on the table, and didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.
“Just casually placed in a drawer like that?”
Yuan Di ignored him and continued eating.
The chef picked up the booklet and flipped through it.
“Is it fake? Or tampered with?”
Yuan Di said coldly, “If you don’t want it, get out.”
The chef laughed heartily, put the booklet in his bosom, and said, “Does the Wang family have some secret method? Being able to extract a person’s Spiritual Root and still keep them alive?”
Yuan Di chuckled.
“So the real problem isn’t Return to Heaven, but finding a living person without a Spiritual Root?”
The chef stood up and turned to leave.
He paused at the door and looked back at Yuan Di meaningfully.
“Ten years. For cultivators, it’s just a snap of the fingers. I hope you’re right.”
Then he smiled.
“I’ll go report back.”
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