The teahouse bustled with customers, none of whom noticed Shen Tanqi in the corner or the peregrine falcon with faint demonic aura perched on the windowsill.
Shen Tanqi narrowed his eyes and whispered, “Haven’t you already allied with Xie Chi?”
Since he had returned to the demon clan, why would the falcon come to him with information? Shen Tanqi couldn’t easily determine if the news was true or false.
The falcon, with its dark eyes, stared silently at him and spoke from its belly, “You have a master-servant contract with me. If you die, I won’t survive either.”
So that was it.
Shen Tanqi extended his wrist and looking at the golden pattern on his fair skin, understanding. “In that case, can I command you not to do anything for Xie Chi anymore?”
The falcon pondered for a moment and replied calmly, “Of course you can. You can summon me back to your side, treat me like you treat your two sons, but you won’t know anything about what Xie Chi does in the future.”
Shen Tanqi raised an eyebrow, leaned closer to the windowsill, startling the small falcon, causing it to retreat to a branch outside.
“Well, that’s intriguing,” Shen Tanqi chuckled, saying, “It’ll be quite a task for you. Tell me, where is Xie Chi now? I want to go and have Yu Ce deal with him.”
The falcon stared at him for a while, momentarily distracted by the smile similar to Huo Yening’s on his face, and muttered softly, “Do you really want to know?”
“Of course,” the finger in the sleeve curled slightly, and Shen Tanqi’s voice turned colder, “He has tied me up so many times, and now it’s my turn to tie him up.”
At this, the falcon cautioned in a low voice, “I advise you not to act recklessly. Xie Chi broke through the tribulation period by possessing and accumulating so much demonic energy that he could become a Quasi-Golden Immortal in a single step. With Yu Ce’s current strength, he might not necessarily win. The reason he hasn’t come directly to seek revenge on Yu Ce is because he hasn’t fully controlled that body yet.”
“Don’t act rashly now; it’ll only scare him off. Don’t startle the snake in the grass. Let me find the right moment when Xie Chi lets his guard down. Then, we can work together from within and without to strike and kill him.”
“For daemons to break through, they must undergo tribulation. If Yu Ce attempts to undergo tribulation with his daemon body, it may attract even more terrifying heavenly thunder, possibly turning him to ashes.”
Shen Tanqi pursed his lips and said, “You don’t need to worry about that. Just tell me where Xie Chi is.” He held the top-grade Stretch Legs and Widen Eyes Pill in his palm, confident it could help Yu Ce safely undergo tribulation.
“What about the grand sect competition?” The falcon suddenly asked. “I heard today afternoon is the final round of your grand sect competition. If you engage with Xie Chi now, you’ll have to hand over the victory to someone else. Are you willing?”
Willing?
Of course not.
Shen Tanqi lowered his eyes, propped his chin, and watched the thick snow outside reflecting shimmering light under the sunlight. He sighed softly, “There’s no way around it. In life, you always have to give up something. You can’t have everything.”
At his words, the falcon sneered lightly, “You’re just like Huo Yening, both fools.”
Shen Tanqi retorted, “…You can insult him, but not me.”
“Xie Chi is about to lead a large demon army to attack Rongyun Sect. All your sect elders are gathered in Yudong City, which is a perfect opportunity for the demons to strike.”
Hearing this, Shen Tanqi stood up straight, shocked. “Really?”
Doesn’t that mean Rongyun Sect is facing imminent danger? How can they continue to wait in Yudong City!
Seeing his agitation, the falcon remained calm as ever, “Don’t worry. I heard from Xie Chi himself that Rongyun still has a fully accomplished Golden Immortal as the sect leader, not to mention the Mountain-Protecting Array jointly empowered by the sect leader and Yu Ce. It’ll take them at least three days to break through the array.”
Otherwise, he wouldn’t have taken the opportunity to fly back to Yudong to find Shen Tanqi.
Upon hearing this, Shen Tanqi felt slightly reassured. “So the sect leader is that formidable…”
“But you mustn’t let your guard down. Xie Chi is extremely cunning. His first step to becoming the Demon Lord is to kill Yu Ce as a sacrifice.” The falcon’s eyes deepened, as if he had already seen through Xie Chi’s intentions.
Shen Tanqi murmured softly, “I know he hates Yu Ce, and I hate Xie Chi just as much.”
Pausing for a moment, he added, “By the way, didn’t Huo Yening ask you to find a way to ascend to the position of Demon Lord? Is it difficult? Do you need our help?”
Having Jing Wei ascend to the position of Demon Lord would be much better than letting that bastard Xie Chi take the throne.
The falcon seemed to chuckle lightly, “Praying mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind. Once I kill Xie Chi and bring back his head to the demon clan, won’t I become the Demon Lord?”
This little bird classmate… really has a strong villainous vibe.
Shen Tanqi found himself thinking inexplicably.
Fortunately, before Huo Yening died, he transferred the master-servant contract of Jing Wei to him. Otherwise, dealing with the corrupted Jing Wei would have been quite difficult.
Huo Yening had paved the way for them before his death.
Shen Tanqi missed him a bit, his eyes slightly warm. He lowered his head and murmured softly, “Thank you, Jing Wei. You are a good kid.”
As his words fell, the bird almost fell off the branch, and the falcon’s voice remained calm, but it seemed less cold than before.
“Don’t flatter me, I’m just following your orders because you are my master.”
Shen Tanqi: …
Is this how you talk to your master? The master feels a bit aggrieved.
Seeing him purse his lips and remain silent, the falcon cleared his throat uneasily and said, “By the way, Xie Chi has sent demons to ambush around you. Be careful, they can disguise themselves.”
Disguise.
Shen Tanqi immediately thought of that detestable demon who always wore Fang Wenxun’s face—Yan Ning.
But hadn’t Yan Ning already been killed by Yu Ce? Could there be a Yan Ning 2.0?
This was crucial information, or they might really fall into Xie Chi’s trap.
Shen Tanqi sincerely thanked him again, “Thank you for passing on this message. It must be dangerous for you among the demon clan. Take care of yourself. If anything happens, run away directly and come find me.”
Upon hearing this, the falcon hesitated for a moment and fell into a prolonged silence, not uttering another word.
Those words sounded just like something that person would say.
If only that person were still alive…
Forget it. Dealing with him alive would only mean more trouble.
Better dead.
Dead means peace.
Only the dead don’t stir up trouble.
The falcon said nothing more, turned and flew away, without even a farewell to Shen Tanqi.
Shen Tanqi watched him fly off, stunned, and after a long while, sighed softly.
Jing Wei must miss Huo Yening very much, just like him.
But Huo Yening can never come back again.
But if one day, Jing Wei saw Shen Tanwu, maybe…
His heart stirred slightly. Huo Yening and Shen Tanwu had similar personalities. Maybe his older brother could heal the little bird.
It wouldn’t hurt to try. He must tell his brother when he gets back!
The snow on the training platform in Yudong City had been swept clean, as pristine as new.
Shen Tanqi searched aimlessly among the crowd for Yu Ce’s figure, but he spotted Fang Wenxun waving at him from the crowd first.
In an instant, Shen Tanqi remembered Jing Wei’s warning about the ‘disguising demons.’ He felt goosebumps rise all over his body and turned to run, only to bump into someone behind him.
His shoulder was gently grasped, and a familiar voice chuckled, “What’s the rush?”
Shen Tanqi looked up and saw Yu Ce, immediately relieved. He grabbed Yu Ce’s collar and whispered, “Quick, check if Senior Brother Fang is a demon in disguise!”
That face of Fang Wenxun had really given him a psychological shadow.
After a moment, Yu Ce carefully examined the bewildered Fang Wenxun nearby and said softly, “Hmm… no demonic aura, no spiritual energy either. It’s indeed Senior Brother Fang.”
A weight lifted off Shen Tanqi’s heart. He sighed, patting his chest, muttering to himself, “That’s a relief. The trials are about to start. Where are Goldfish and Taro Ball?”
Yu Ce patted his back, smoothing out his breath, and said, “They played in the snow all morning and got too tired. I sent them back to the inn to rest.”
Upon hearing this, Shen Tanqi nodded. Suddenly, he looked Yu Ce up and down, tentatively asking, “What are the names of our sons?”
Yu Ce paused for a moment. “Dandan, Erdan, Sandan.”
It seems Yu Ce was genuine as well. Shen Tanqi completely relaxed, wiping away the cold sweat that had formed on his forehead. “When I went to the Qianyu Teahouse with the Qingliu Sect Elder, I met Jing Wei. He came to deliver a message, saying that there are demons disguised among us. We must be very careful.”
He thought for a moment, deciding not to tell Yu Ce about Xie Chi attacking the Rongyun Sect yet. Otherwise, Yu Ce would definitely refuse to participate in the trial and stubbornly rush back to Rongyun Sect, potentially alerting Xie Chi and causing him to flee again.
Yu Ce nodded, “Alright, I’ll be alert for any abnormalities.”
Shen Tanqi still had great confidence in Yu Ce’s abilities, but his heart still felt uneasy, as if the overcast sky was casting a shadow over his mood. He couldn’t shake the feeling that something was going to happen.
Hopefully, everything will go smoothly.
At the disciples’ inn in Yudong City, the two little ones were sound asleep.
They had exhausted themselves playing snowball fights today and had a big meal at the inn. After eating their fill, they fell asleep as soon as their heads hit the pillows. Taro Ball’s little leg was draped over Goldfish’s small arm, while Goldfish’s head rested in Taro Ball’s embrace, the two of them cuddled up together.
Goldfish dreamed of a grand fireworks display and a beautiful little house. Inside the house, his father was holding his daddy’s hand, both of them smiling sweetly, wearing red clothes.
In the dream, Goldfish looked down and realized he was also wearing a red outfit with a pretty little flower pinned to his chest.
He heard someone nearby saying they would pour wine for father and not let him sleep until he finished drinking it.
What did wine taste like? Was it sweet?
Hmm, Dandan wanted to taste it.
Beside him, Taro Ball was dreaming of Sandan. He and his older brother were playing while holding Sandan. Suddenly, Sandan broke the eggshell with his head and popped out, saying, “Brother, I’m going to turn evil!”
Taro Ball immediately widened his eyes and urgently said, “No! You can’t! You can’t turn evil. You have to be a good kid. Good kids can’t turn evil!”
Sandan blinked and said, “But… I have a lot of demonic energy on me. I can’t control it—”
Hearing his younger brother’s words, he shivered and his little body trembled slightly, feeling as if there really was demonic energy around him.
However, what Taro Ball didn’t know was that beside them, there were indeed two black-clothed demons standing at the head of the bed, looking at the sleeping kids, exchanging a glance with each other.
“Damn it, Xie Chi said to kidnap the child, but he didn’t say which one. They both look the same, how can we tell?” one demon muttered in a low voice.
The other demon impatiently took a deep breath and said, “Who cares, let’s just grab one together.”
“No way,” the first demon firmly argued, “Have you forgotten what Xie Chi said? One of them is at the Nascent Soul stage. If we kidnap the wrong one, halfway through, we’ll both end up dead at the hands of the brat!”
“…Then what do you suggest? Neither of us can see through the Nascent Soul stage with our cultivation.”
As they spoke, Goldfish seemed to be sleeping uncomfortably, clicking his little mouth and nuzzling into Taro Ball’s arms, like an affectionate puppy.
The two demons immediately fell silent, not daring to even breathe loudly.
Taro Ball was nudged by Goldfish. He wasn’t awake, but in his dream, he saw Sandan suddenly grow up and run to him like a puppy, calling him ‘big brother’ in a childish voice. He felt so happy because he finally had a little brother and wasn’t the youngest child at home anymore!
Of course, it would be even better if his brother didn’t turn evil.
The little one smiled happily, hugging Goldfish tightly and whispering softly, “Good boy, big brother will give you candy, be good…”
The two demons exchanged glances and said, “The Nascent Soul stage is the younger brother, we need to grab the older brother.”
“Yes, this little brat, let’s take him!”
Hello, everyone ヾ(＾∇＾). I hope you enjoyed the story! If you’re feeling generous, please buy me a coffee, share/comment on my translated works! Check out the link below for early chapters. (๑>ᴗ<๑)
