The Little Peacock Raises a Snake (GL) Chapter 36

The fox clan’s little princess would have her birthday two months later. That gave Qu Linyan quite a lot of time to prepare.
In the past, clan affairs had always been handled by Qu Muqing. After Qu Muqing left, every move Qu Linyan made was influenced by the elders and Xiangsi. Most of her time had been spent running around with injuries for Qu Muqing’s sake. Rather than a clan leader, she was more like a sharp blade in the flood dragon clan, pointed wherever others wanted her to strike, without many thoughts of her own.
Qu Linyan knew very well that the flood dragon clan did not truly submit to her. If she wanted to protect Fu Xiaoba, she could not continue like this.
Fu Xiaoba was an immortal fairy from the heavenly realm who had descended for a trial. Paper could not wrap fire forever. The heavenly realm would discover it sooner or later. The strength of the flood dragon clan alone was not enough. She also needed the power of the devil realm.
Only, demons and devils had not interfered with each other for thousands of years, and news between them was blocked. She only knew that the red-eyed blood wolf clan now held power in the devil realm. The Devil Lord Chiyuan was a blood wolf devil who had cultivated for over four thousand years. Chiyuan had two sons. His eldest son, Chiqiong, was very close to the Withered Lamp clan. His second son, Chiheng, had the nature of a spoiled young master and was not very useful.
Aside from this, she had never heard of any powerful woman in the devil clan surnamed Shen.
Miss Shen was a green lizard devil. Since she had the ability to hide herself in the devil realm, where experts were everywhere, she must have an unusual identity.
Even so, Qu Linyan still felt uncertain. She thought she at least had to know exactly who Miss Shen was and build steady contact with her.
During these two temporarily peaceful months, she once sent someone to Yuntian City in the devil realm. The messenger was attacked on the road by the Withered Lamp clan, and the letter was not delivered. Luckily, the messenger escaped with his life and brought back news that the red-eyed blood wolf clan and the Withered Lamp clan had fully gone to war.
If she had not sent someone there, Qu Linyan would not have known the devil realm had already begun an internal war.
After learning this news, Qu Linyan was not too surprised. Back in the human world, Miss Shen had been ambushed by the Withered Lamp clan using the Nine-Turn Soul-Destroying Array. No matter what her identity was, once she returned to the devil realm, she would settle accounts with them. The two clans fighting like this proved that Miss Shen had not lied. At the very least, the Devil Lord was willing to damage his eldest son’s interests and go to war with the Withered Lamp clan for her.
Since the devil realm was in chaos, it was not convenient to disturb them for now. Qu Linyan silently pressed the matter of contacting Miss Shen into her heart.
After that, Qu Linyan spent her days in busy work that did not mean much, stealing time to accompany her wife while also healing her wounds.
The flood dragon clan was not large, but since they lived together, there were always small, troublesome matters that needed someone to settle. Things like Zhang San and Li Si fighting over Cuihua, or Wang Wu refusing to return two beast skins he owed Deng Liu’s family. Every family had a hard scripture to recite, and managing it all truly made one’s head ache.
Usually, when she was absent, the elders handled this mess for her. But perhaps because everyone was dissatisfied with her lately, many matters had piled up and were all left for her alone, so she had no choice but to deal with them herself.
In her free time, she stayed with Fu Xiaoba. She not only followed Xiangsi and learned how to make sugar and desserts, but also began taking Fu Xiaoba outside the cave for air.
But Soul-Wounding Valley was still a place everyone in the demon realm avoided. There were only mountain birds and wild beasts there, not the human world. Compared to the human world, it was much too dull.
Recently, Fu Xiaoba often had nightmares. Qu Linyan had called Xiangsi several times to help calm Fu Xiaoba’s dreams, but no matter what, they could not scatter the nightmare that kept repeating.
“Xiangsi, when you entered her dream, what exactly did you see? Why has she been so uneasy lately, with nightmare after nightmare?”
“She is afraid of you. She repeats the same nightmare again and again. In the dream… you killed her.” Xiangsi frowned as she spoke. “Why would she have such a dream? Between you and her… did some misunderstanding happen?”
“I… I do not know.” Qu Linyan’s gaze unconsciously dodged.
In truth, Qu Linyan knew. Fu Xiaoba was afraid.
Fu Xiaoba knew her bloodline could save A-Qing. She had come here while gambling with her life. She had thought she would be happy, but instead she had entered a place where no one accepted her. In such a place, she could not gain any sense of safety. She was only forcing a smile by relying on trust alone.
Qu Linyan knew all of it, but she could not tell Xiangsi. She was afraid that once Xiangsi learned Fu Xiaoba’s identity, Xiangsi would fall into a difficult choice. So Qu Linyan could only keep everything in her heart, with nowhere to speak.
When no one else was around, she gently stroked Fu Xiaoba’s cheek and said softly, “I will take you to Hundred Flowers Valley and go with you to see your brother. After that, we will travel everywhere together. The world is so large. There must be a way to save A-Qing.”
Fu Xiaoba froze. She looked up at Qu Linyan for a long while, then whispered, “What if there is not?”
“Then we keep looking. We look for another thousand years, until the age of heavenly tribulation, until I have no strength left to support myself.”
“After I came back with you, have you truly never thought…” Fu Xiaoba asked, “of sacrificing me?”
Qu Linyan hurriedly covered Fu Xiaoba’s lips. Her eyes reddened, and her tone carried anger. “If you are gone, how am I supposed to live?”
Fu Xiaoba lowered her eyes, not knowing how to answer. She only stared blankly at Qu Linyan.
Qu Linyan gently cupped her cheeks. “You promised me you would walk through this life with me. I believed you. In this lifetime, I have decided on you.”
Fu Xiaoba thought she would probably never forget the words Qu Linyan said to her that day.
“If this world no longer has you, I will not be able to live.”
*
The earth realm was vast, but most of its bright places were occupied by demons.
Hundred Flowers Valley, the demon capital, was one of the rare bright places in the earth realm. Not only that, it rested against mountains and water, spring lasted there all year, and spiritual power was especially rich. Hundreds of flowers bloomed in this land through every day and night, which was how it gained its name.
Qu Linyan had once said Hundred Flowers Valley was the most beautiful place in the dim earth realm, and calling it an immortal land would not be too much. Now that Fu Xiaoba had come here and looked at it, that was truly so.
Fu Xiaoba had not traveled to many places in her life, and she still found everything in the world fresh. From the moment they entered Hundred Flowers Valley, she walked and stopped all along the way. She picked many flowers whose names she did not know, holding them in her hand and waving them left and right, as if showing Qu Linyan the results of her work.
Not far away, among knee-high flowers, there seemed to be a red, fluffy little thing. Fu Xiaoba had liked playing with small animals back in Wuyou Valley, so joy rose in her heart. She pulled Qu Linyan and crept over quietly.
The little thing had been curled into a ball and dozing. It clearly felt someone come close and hurriedly lifted its head to look at them.
“It is a fox! So cute!” Fu Xiaoba was very pleasantly surprised. She had never seen a fox before and immediately wanted to reach out and hug it.
“A red fox…” Qu Linyan quickly grabbed Fu Xiaoba back.
In the demon realm, aside from the demon king’s bloodline, there were no other red foxes. The relationship between the flood dragon clan and the whole demon realm was already delicate. They could not offend the royal bloodline of the current demon clan.
Fu Xiaoba was startled when Qu Linyan pulled her back. The next moment, the little fox lying on the ground rolled its eyes at her, stood, stretched its front legs, and opened a pair of fluffy, fleshy little wings on its back. It flapped them and flew away.
The fox did not fly high. It almost flew close to the ground. Its back looked a little funny, but its speed was very fast, leaving Fu Xiaoba staring with her mouth open.
“It… it flew away?” Fu Xiaoba froze. “I never heard that foxes had wings…”
Qu Linyan said, “The fox and bird clans have a deep relationship. The Fox King’s queen is a thrush bird. When I was in the human world earlier, I once heard some little demons from the bird clan talk about this. It was rather interesting, so I remembered it. They said the Fox King is deeply devoted and loves the queen very much. He does not even care whether the child is male or female. He only wants to have a little thrush with the queen and treasure it in his heart.”
Fu Xiaoba said, “The thrush is also a very weak existence in the bird clan, right? Would it not be better to give birth to foxes?”
“Yes, but even if it is weak, it would be of the same clan as his beloved. That cannot be measured by strength or weakness.” Qu Linyan smiled. “Though it is not very possible, if you and I could have children, I would also want a little peacock. How cute.”
Fu Xiaoba widened her eyes. “Liar. When we were in the human world, you clearly said I was ugly and called me a mountain chicken!”
Qu Linyan quickly said, “I have changed my mind now. Peacocks are the most beautiful birds in the three realms.”
Fu Xiaoba knew Qu Linyan was lying with her eyes open, but she did not argue. She only blinked her bright eyes and said, “Among us peacocks, the males are the pretty ones. Brother is like that. We can have a son. He will surely be very good-looking when he grows up.”
Qu Linyan said, “But we have no way to have children.”
“We have already done that more than once. I cannot get pregnant?” Fu Xiaoba tilted her head and asked.
“Of course not. We are both women.”
“So that is how it is.” Fu Xiaoba’s eyes showed a little disappointment.
Seeing her small disappointed expression, Qu Linyan quickly continued the story to shift her attention. “But the nine-tailed red fox bloodline is too strong. The queen gave birth twice, once to a son and once to a daughter. Both were foxes. Not half a bird feather was seen.”
“Ah, this…”
“Five hundred years ago, the fox clan gained another little princess. This time, she finally had wings, but unfortunately, she was still a fox.” Qu Linyan shook her head as she spoke. “The queen already advised the Fox King to give up, but the Fox King still wants a little thrush.”
Fu Xiaoba found this fun and asked curiously, “And then?”
Qu Linyan smiled. “But the Fox King has long passed the age of heavenly tribulation. Calling him old is not too much. He truly cannot keep trying. So the wish to make a little bird became the Fox King’s lingering regret.”
“That is too tragic. I feel sorry for him!” Fu Xiaoba said it was tragic, but she could not help laughing.
Qu Linyan tapped Fu Xiaoba’s lips with a finger and smiled. “Lower your voice. This is the fox clan’s territory now. It is not good for us to talk like this.”
“Oh, right!” Fu Xiaoba quickly covered her mouth herself, but her eyes were full of happiness as she looked at Qu Linyan.
She liked everything outside Soul-Wounding Valley. She liked walking and looking around with Qu Linyan, listening to different stories.
The three realms were so large. She did not want to stay forever in that place where cold eyes followed her everywhere. After leaving the little spiritual cave in Soul-Wounding Valley, even her heart seemed to open wider.
“Little Black, have you heard any other interesting things?” Fu Xiaoba asked as they walked.
Qu Linyan thought about it. She had spent half her life under the pressure given by her clan. When had she ever seriously tasted the joys and sorrows of the world? Only when Fu Xiaoba wanted to hear stories did she suddenly realize that aside from some old tales she had already told Fu Xiaoba, there were no fresh, interesting things in her mind.
“Not right now. In the future, we will walk and see together. When… when A-Qing comes back, we will help her find someone she can entrust her life to. Then, when she and our brother-in-law have a child, we will tell that child every interesting story we saw and remembered in this life, one by one…”
Hearing this, Fu Xiaoba could not help longing for the future Qu Linyan described.
“Will that day come?”
“It will. It surely will.”
*
After Fu Xiaoba followed Qu Linyan to Hundred Flowers Valley, someone from the fox clan soon brought them to their temporary lodgings.
Since they were in fox territory, they had to know some fox clan rules. The demon realm did not rank honor and lowliness as clearly as the human world and heavenly realm, but basic courtesy could not be lost.
Qu Linyan said the Fox King had three children. The eldest son, Yuxuan, was now over sixteen hundred years old and had cultivated five tails. The second daughter, Yumo, was now over twelve hundred years old and had cultivated three tails. The youngest daughter, Yuyao, was still a young one-tailed fox who had not reached adulthood. In two days, she would turn five hundred.
These three were the little ancestors of the whole fox clan. It was best not to meet them. If they did meet, they absolutely could not offend them.
Fu Xiaoba asked, “The one we saw just now was the Fox King’s youngest daughter?”
“Yes,” Qu Linyan said. “Among the three children, the most favored is this youngest daughter. This time, the fox clan invited every clan in the demon realm to Hundred Flowers Valley because they want to hold a grand coming-of-age ceremony for this little princess loved by thousands.”
It was said the Fox King had also prepared to pass his companion spirit treasure to the little princess. That spirit treasure was said to contain thirty percent of the Fox King’s cultivation. This treatment was very different from what her elder brother and sister had received.
Because she would inherit this treasure, the little princess was already able to take human form. But to follow a more formal process, her magic had been temporarily sealed these past few days, waiting for the day of the coming-of-age ceremony to be unsealed so she could change into a human.
After hearing this, Fu Xiaoba could not help sighing. “That is so complicated. When I changed form back then, I felt a surge of spiritual power in my body, tried to hold it in, and somehow forced out hands and feet… Was that a little too informal?”
Qu Linyan did not know whether to laugh or cry. “Yours was more than informal. The way you used spiritual power was completely wrong. You did not even shed all your feathers.”
Fu Xiaoba scratched her head and gave a silly laugh. She had just wanted to ask Qu Linyan what a companion spirit treasure was when someone knocked lightly on the door outside. It was actually the bird clan leader sincerely inviting Qu Linyan to meet.
When Qu Linyan stood, Fu Xiaoba reached out and caught her sleeve. “They are not looking for you to settle accounts, are they…”
“The matter back then did become quite big. Accounts always have to be settled. But to ease the relationship between the flood dragon clan and the whole demon realm, they should not make things difficult for me. Do not worry. Wait for me to come back.” As Qu Linyan spoke, she touched Fu Xiaoba’s head and left with the little fox demon leading the way.
Qu Linyan was gone for a long time. Fu Xiaoba grew bored in the room, and her stomach was a little hungry. She was too embarrassed to ask the fox demons outside for food, so she rubbed her flat stomach and walked out of the guest room. She wanted to look around and see if there were any fruits she could pick and eat.
Hundred Flowers Valley was very lively these days. Demons of every clan could be seen everywhere.
Demons who lived in the human world for a long time mostly walked around in human shape. Demons who lived for a long time in mountains, wild places, or the earth realm often kept half of their true form even after changing into human shape. Along the way, Fu Xiaoba saw many half-human, half-demon beings. Some had horns, some had ears, some dragged long tails, and some had hands and feet made of leaves and branches.
Before, aside from Fu Zhuochen, there had been no other demons in Wuyou Valley. Fu Zhuochen was a demon raised in the human world and was used to keeping human form. There had been many flood dragons with tails and horns in the flood dragon spiritual cave, but after seeing the same form again and again, there was nothing fresh about it. Now in Hundred Flowers Valley, there truly were all kinds of demons. Fu Xiaoba was like a mountain person entering a city. Everything she saw felt new.
As she walked, the sky darkened.
She had run around for half a day because everything was fresh and had even forgotten she had first come out to find food. Only when her stomach growled did she pat her forehead and begin thinking again about what to eat.
“Maybe I should go back. Little Black might already be back. I can ask her to cook for me.” Fu Xiaoba was talking to herself and was just about to walk back when a large fruit fell from a tree and hit the back of her head.
“Ah…” Fu Xiaoba picked up the fruit, rubbed her head, and turned to look at the place where the fruit had fallen.
A woman in orange sat in the tree behind her. Her feet were bare, and her slender legs swung lightly in the air.
The woman propped her cheek with one hand. Her eyes were almost too beautiful, and they happened to meet Fu Xiaoba’s gaze.
Fu Xiaoba froze for a moment. She shook the fruit in her hand, tilted her head, and asked, “For me?”
The woman curved her brows and smiled. “I heard your stomach growl.”
Fu Xiaoba took a bite. She immediately frowned, stuck out her tongue, and said, “So sour…”
“It is sour, yes. I also think it is sour, but the big bird cannot taste it. She picked it for me on the way here during the day and said this fruit looked sweet, so I should keep it to eat when I was hungry.” As the woman spoke, several more fruits appeared in her hand. She held them out. “Look. There are still so many.”
“Cannot taste it?” Fu Xiaoba was a little confused.
“Yes. She has no sense of taste,” the woman said.
“So that is how it is…” Fu Xiaoba nodded. “Then if you think it is sour, you do not tell her?”
“She picked so many and was so proud. I did not have the heart to pour cold water on her.” The woman’s words carried clear dependence on that big bird.
Fu Xiaoba immediately understood that the big bird she spoke of should be the same as Little Black in Fu Xiaoba’s heart, someone very important to her.
Just then, the woman jumped down from the tree. “Your cultivation does not look high. You probably were not invited here, right? Did you sneak in because you wanted to see the little princess’s coming-of-age ceremony?”
Fu Xiaoba blinked, not knowing how to answer. Seeing her silent, the woman continued asking, “Do you have a place to stay?”
Fu Xiaoba quickly said, “I came with Little Black.”
“Little Black?” The woman thought for a moment, as if she could not remember such a person. But since Fu Xiaoba said so, she did not meddle further. She stepped forward and, like throwing off a bundle, stuffed all the fruits in her hands into Fu Xiaoba’s arms. “Sour or not, they can still fill your stomach. I do not have anything else. Eat these first to ease your hunger.”
“Ah… thank you.”
Fu Xiaoba looked down at the pile of fruits in her arms. For a moment, she did not know whether to eat them or not. She wanted to wait until the woman left and then find a place to throw them away, but when she looked up, she saw the woman’s eyes staring straight at her, full of expectation.
Fu Xiaoba thought for a moment and hurriedly shifted the woman’s attention. “Right, I am a peacock. What about you? What kind of demon are you?”
“I am a fox,” the fox demon said.
“I heard foxes cultivate tails their whole lives. How many tails do you have?” Fu Xiaoba asked.
“One.” The fox demon pursed her lips.
Fu Xiaoba had already felt that this little fox’s spiritual power was thin and that her cultivation was probably not much higher than her own. Seeing her answer like this, Fu Xiaoba immediately patted her shoulder and encouraged her. “It is all right. As long as you work hard, you will have more and more!”
“I do not like cultivation.” The fox demon leaned against the tree and sat hugging her knees.
Fu Xiaoba tilted her head, sat beside her, and said, “What a coincidence. I also do not like cultivation. Cultivating is tiring and boring! There is nothing bad about being a little demon. Anyway, Little Black said she would protect me for this whole life.”
The fox demon looked up at Fu Xiaoba and smiled. “The big bird has said that, and the stinky fox has said it too.”
Fu Xiaoba asked, “Stinky fox?”
The fox demon said, “My brother.”
Fu Xiaoba raised her brows. “I also have an elder brother. It is just… his temper is not very good.”
The fox demon said, “My brother’s temper is not good either.”
As she spoke, she could not help complaining, “He used to hit me all the time. He would hold a fan and hit my head, saying I was stupid. He even tricked me into a brothel, saying there were senior fox spirits inside.”
Fu Xiaoba let out an “ah” and said, “My brother would not do that. But… but Little Black tricked me into going to a brothel once. She even said men and women in the human world all court mates in places like that and told me to learn.”
The fox demon could not help laughing. “What is Little Black to you?”
Fu Xiaoba’s face reddened. She lowered her head. “Little Black… Little Black is the person I like.”
Fu Xiaoba sighed. “Mainly… my brother especially dislikes Little Black, but I like Little Black very much…”
The fox demon said, “What a coincidence. I like the big bird, but my brother also dislikes the big bird.”
Fu Xiaoba said, “He dislikes Little Black because Little Black deceived me at first and approached me with a goal. Also, Little Black is a woman. In other people’s eyes… she and I are laughable.”
The fox demon said, “The big bird was the same. So for a long time, the stinky fox did not like her.”
Hearing this, Fu Xiaoba slapped her thigh and exclaimed, “Could this be fate? Little fox, our experiences are too alike! What happened to you and that big bird later? Tell me more.”
The fox demon froze, then shook her head and smiled. “It is hard to explain in a few words. In short… the stinky fox no longer stops us, and I have been with her for a long time. Little peacock, if you truly like that person called Little Black, then other people’s gazes are not important. What matters is how she treats you.”
Fu Xiaoba nodded and said happily, “Little fox, since we have such fate, can I tell you my story?”
The fox demon nodded. “Of course. Perhaps I can even help you think it through.”
Since childhood, Fu Xiaoba had not had any real friends. During her time in the human world, she had met Miss Shen, but their friendship was shallow. Even when they parted, Fu Xiaoba had never known her name, so many things were naturally not easy to pour out. Now she had met a little fox demon with low cultivation, and the two had similar experiences. This made her feel very close to her, and she wanted to properly speak about the happy and unhappy thoughts in her heart.
Seeing that Fu Xiaoba suddenly wanted to talk, the fox demon did not interrupt. She seriously listened as Fu Xiaoba picked out all kinds of old matters from childhood to now and complained about them. She even listened with great interest and gave a few replies now and then.
And so, one peacock and one fox began chatting under a large tree.
As they chatted, Fu Xiaoba felt hungry. She even took a few bites of the fruits in her arms. While complaining that they were sour, she continued chattering in the fox demon’s ear, boasting for a while about how powerful and amazing Qu Linyan and Fu Zhuochen were, then unable to help saying a few small bad things about both of them.
As she kept saying bad things, Fu Xiaoba suddenly felt the moonlight beside her blocked. She instinctively looked up. With that one glance, she swallowed hard, closed her mouth, and did not dare say another word.
“Mm?” The fox demon saw that this little peacock had been speaking smoothly one moment and suddenly gone silent the next, as if she had done something wrong. She was slowly burying her little head in her knees. Curious, the fox demon lifted her head to look at the person standing beside them and then asked knowingly, “When did you arrive?”
“Just now. I felt this spiritual aura was familiar, so I followed it here.”
The tone of their conversation clearly showed they were old acquaintances.
Fu Xiaoba’s mind went blank. For a long time, she could not understand what was happening.
The next moment, the newcomer bowed to the fox demon and said, “Xiaoba is young. Her words and actions are somewhat rash. I hope the Eldest Princess will not take offense.”
The fox demon said, “It is no matter. The big bird went to discuss matters with that black flood dragon, and I was bored anyway. I happened to meet this little girl running around, so I chatted with her for a while. I did not expect us to get along so well.”
Fu Xiaoba sat there frozen, her whole face saying she had no idea what had just happened.