The Little Peacock Raises a Snake (GL) Chapter 41

Dazed and muddled, day after day, endless cold held her in its arms.
By her ear, someone seemed to have been saying something to her all this time.
Wake up…
What must I do before I can see you wake?
At last, the surroundings were no longer cold. But…
The smell of blood. Such a heavy smell of blood.
Someone was crying. At first, the sobs were pressed down and choked back. Then they became hoarse and torn. In the end, the voice was completely lost.
The voice was familiar, yet strange. Perhaps they had been apart too long.
In a haze, the streets were noisy. It seemed to be the human world.
Outside a wealthy household’s estate, she saved a little girl covered in wounds from several men.
The girl was about fourteen or fifteen.
The people who had hurt her cursed as they ran away. Just as Qu Muqing was about to leave, a pair of hands grabbed her sleeve.
Those wounded hands were small and dirty. Their owner lifted her head, looked at Qu Muqing, and made a very soft, very thin plea.
“Please, take me with you…”
“I… take you with me?”
“They will not let me go. I will be caught and sold to a brothel… Sister, your martial arts are so good. Please take me, all right?”
“Why did those people beat you? Why did they say they would sell you to that kind of place?”
“Madam said I stole something. I did not. I really did not…”
The little girl’s hair had been pulled into a mess, and her face was covered with bruises and red marks. Yet the tear-filled eyes looking up at Qu Muqing were clear as spring water and terribly beautiful.
That moment of softheartedness made Qu Muqing take those dirty little hands.
“A-Qing, people… other people’s business is best left alone.”
“Xiangsi, look at her. She is still so young and covered in wounds. If she is caught again, who knows what will happen to her?”
“My name is Qu Muqing. What is yours?”
“I, I am called Quezhi.”
…
The days and nights in the human world were like time stolen from the years. They always passed so quickly.
In the blink of an eye, that wounded little girl from the beginning had grown into a graceful young woman.
“Sister Qu… are you really, really a demon?”
“Quezhi, are you afraid?”
“I… I am not afraid! Sister saved me, gave me freedom, and taught me martial arts… I, I believe you will not hurt good people, and you will not hurt me…”
“Then do you like Sister?”
“I, I…”
The girl stammered for a long time without saying one complete sentence, but her face turned red first.
“If Quezhi does not like Sister, then Sister has no real reason to stay in the human world. I might as well return to the demon realm.”
“I… I like you!”
“Who do you like?”
“I like… Sister…”
…
“Why? Why did this happen?”
“Humans and demons cannot be together. If the two join, demon poison will slowly eat into the human’s organs.”
“I harmed her?”
“If you had not saved her back then, who knows what brothel she would be smiling in now to please others? She would not even have been able to die this cleanly. You do not owe her anything.”
“I harmed her…”
“A-Qing, go back. She will not live past half a year.”
…
“I do not blame Sister. I only hate that I am not a demon and cannot stay with Sister for a long, long time. Sister, Sister, do not cry… In the next life, in the next life, I will become a demon. I will definitely go to that Soul-Wounding Valley to find Sister… Sister, wait for me, all right?”
“Fool. Is that something you can choose?”
“I will definitely go…”
“All right. All right! I will wait for you. I will definitely wait for you!”
A comforted smile rose at the corners of the girl’s mouth, and she gently closed her eyes.
Qu Muqing tightly held that thin, pale hand. Suddenly, an impulse with no reason rose in her heart. She poured out all her spiritual power and grasped the soul leaving Quezhi’s body.
At that moment, she finally smiled again. “I do not want to wait for you!”
“Quezhi, I am willing to go with you and accompany you through reincarnation! Before the Reincarnation Office, when you choose among the six paths, whichever path you enter, I will follow. From now on, life after life, we will never separate again!”
“Sister…”
“A-Qing!”
…
Why? Why did you stop me?
Why did you shatter her three souls and seven spirits?
Why…
I offer you phoenix clan blood for eternal life.
Wake up, A-Qing.
…
The blood-red color was painfully bright. Eyes that had not opened for a long time looked hazily at the familiar yet strange back on the high platform.
The thick smell of blood, the blood mist that seemed ready to drag people into a bottomless abyss, hatred and despair. All of it had turned into dark red blood mist. It spread outward from her body, as if searching for something.
As if mad, she poured every remaining inch of spiritual power into the withered body in her arms. The blood mist also crashed in every direction. The clansmen could not get close and struggled hard to raise one spiritual barrier after another, their eyes full of terror.
This was… burning heart’s blood power to pull and guide a soul back.
But in this vast world, where was even half a wisp of the soul of the person in her arms?
Under the blood sacrifice, no soul remained.
“A-Yan…”
That familiar call woke the last bit of Qu Linyan’s reason.
She released the woman in her arms, braced both hands on the ground, and struggled to stand. Then she turned back and stared foolishly at the pale-faced woman below the platform. In Qu Linyan’s blood-red eyes, there was hatred and pain, but even more than that, there was despair, as if she had fallen into an abyss.
“For a thousand years, to save you, I was willing to give up even my life…” Step by step, she slowly walked forward, her expression terrifying. “But why did you have to take away… something more important to me than my life…”
Qu Muqing stared blankly at her younger sister, who was covered in wounds. She opened her mouth but could not say a word.
“I hate you!”
That hoarse scream pulled every thread of blood mist in the dark spiritual cave, wrapping Qu Muqing layer upon layer.
In the next second, the blood mist seemed to form a pair of bloody hands. They suddenly clamped around Qu Muqing’s throat. Xiangsi wanted to step forward and block it, but the blood mist flung her away, tearing the skin and flesh of both her hands.
Qu Muqing closed her eyes in pain. The pain of almost being unable to breathe made blue veins bulge on her forehead.
A tear of regret silently fell from the corner of her eye. A few seconds later, the pain suddenly disappeared. When she opened her eyes again, all the blood mist had returned to the lonely figure on the high platform.
Qu Linyan turned, staggered a few steps, and finally fell back to sit beside the dried corpse. She tightly held that shriveled hand.
At last, as if deeply exhausted, she closed her eyes and collapsed beside it.
Qu Muqing was silent for a long time. Then her whole body began trembling uncontrollably.
“Why…”
Why did you save me…
*
“As the story goes, Fairy Blue Luan was deceived in the lower world by that black flood dragon demon who barged into the heavenly realm five hundred years ago. She was taken all the way back to Soul-Wounding Valley in the demon realm. More than a thousand years ago, the flood dragon clan’s former leader somehow died in the human world. That black flood dragon was her younger sister. To save her sister, she searched everywhere for a way to bring the dead back to life. Five hundred years ago, she broke into the heavenly realm to seize phoenix heart blood. This time, by chance, she ran into Fairy Blue Luan, who was undergoing her tribulation. That wicked beast immediately formed evil thoughts.”
“Divine Lord Zhiming was anxious to save his wife. After learning the news, he immediately requested an order from the Heavenly Emperor and personally led eight hundred heavenly soldiers to attack the flood dragon clan. He swore to flatten Soul-Wounding Valley, kill those hundreds of wicked beasts, and save Fairy Blue Luan.”
“Unfortunately, the flood dragon clan had already joined the devil realm and gained three thousand devil soldiers to help them. Seeing the situation turn bad and unable to bear losing heavenly soldiers, Divine Lord Zhiming entered the formation alone to take the black flood dragon’s life. Sadly, he fell just short and did not kill her. At that moment, the Nether Soul Lamp suddenly reacted strangely. Divine Lord Zhiming felt pain in his heart and knew Fairy Blue Luan had been killed by the black flood dragon. To quickly cast a spell and protect the fairy’s soul, he had no choice but to withdraw his troops.”
“Speaking of it, the flood dragon clan’s blood sacrifice nearly scattered Fairy Blue Luan’s soul. Luckily, when Fairy Blue Luan descended to the lower world five hundred years ago, Divine Lord Zhiming had already used the Nether Soul Lamp to protect her life soul. Only because of that was her life barely saved. Fortunately, although this tribulation was frightening, there was no lasting danger. Fairy Blue Luan tasted all the bitterness of human love, finally saw through the mortal world, and her cultivation rose greatly. She ascended as an upper god.”
“It is only that her soul… well, it truly cannot be repaired in a short while. But it is fine! Divine Lord Zhiming is very capable. Before long, he will surely restore Fairy Blue Luan to how she was before.”
The Star Lord of Fate flipped through his little fate booklet while telling the story to the groups of young immortal maids who had blocked him, acting cute and begging for gossip. His voice rose and fell with such feeling that it sounded as if he had seen it all with his own eyes. Compared with storytellers in the human world, he was no less vivid.
“Right, Star Lord of Fate, what happened to that good-looking demon who was taken from the human world by the Heavenly Emperor for some unknown crime? I heard before that the Heavenly Emperor was going to cut off his six roots.”
“Oh, that… that demon did not commit any crime. It was a misunderstanding, a misunderstanding.” The Star Lord scratched behind his ear and lied with his eyes open. “He is an old friend from when Divine Lord Zhiming descended for a tribulation two thousand years ago. This time, he was entrusted by Divine Lord Zhiming to protect Fairy Blue Luan in the human world… This, well, his luck was not very good. He was mistaken as the black flood dragon’s accomplice and almost hurt by mistake. Almost… haha. Luckily, it was a misunderstanding. Divine Lord Zhiming explained the situation to the Heavenly Emperor, and he was released. He has already been released.”
“Divine Lord Zhiming is truly thoughtful. He used the Nether Soul Lamp to guard her life soul, asked an old friend to protect her, and even personally descended for one lifetime… What a pity they were not on the same path of reincarnation.” As that young immortal maid spoke, the immortal maids around her all covered their mouths and laughed.
“That old friend of the Divine Lord was also born very good-looking. What a pity, he is a demon…”
“Yes. What a pity.”
The Star Lord smiled and shook his head. He did not chat with these young immortal maids anymore. He turned and strode away.
He had not gone far when he ran into Ciyin, who was carrying a pot of seven-colored lily of the valley. Her whole spirit seemed absent.
The two brushed past each other. The Star Lord thought something was wrong, so he turned back and patted Ciyin’s shoulder, scaring her into trembling all over.
“Oh, little Flower Goddess. Why do you look so worried?”
“Ah?” Ciyin came back to herself and quickly turned to face the Star Lord. She blinked, shook her head, and said, “Nothing. I… I am worried about Susu. Divine Lord Zhiming brought her back long ago, but she still has not woken.”
“Oh!” The Star Lord lowered his head and glanced at the flowers in Ciyin’s hands. He could not help drawing in a breath and asked curiously, “This seven-colored lily of the valley is very precious. Only one plant blooms every thousand years. Is the little Flower Goddess planning to use it as medicine for Fairy Blue Luan?”
“Ah, right!” Ciyin nodded.
The Star Lord said, “But Fairy Blue Luan’s nature is water, while the seven-colored lily of the valley leans toward fire. I fear the two clash, do they not?”
Ciyin was left speechless. She stood frozen in place, not knowing what to do.
Seeing her gaze dodge, the Star Lord understood. He shook his head and said, “Little Flower Goddess, a demon is not worth you treating him like this.”
“I, I… he, he was hurt like this because of Susu.” Ciyin lowered her head as if she had done something wrong. “He is the person closest to Susu in the human world. I am afraid Susu will be very sad if she wakes and sees her brother from the human world lying there half-dead.”
The Star Lord was silent for a moment, then sighed. “Fine. I will pretend I saw nothing.” After saying this, he waved his hand and turned away.
Ciyin lightly bit her lower lip and continued hurrying toward Northern Xuan Palace.
As soon as she reached the entrance of Northern Xuan Palace, Ciyin lifted her skirt with one hand and ran inside. She found Zhiming with practiced ease. “Divine Lord! How is Susu?”
Zhiming said, “In a few more days, her soul should recover completely.”
“Then I will go see that demon.” Ciyin pointed toward the inner room. Without waiting for Zhiming to answer, she quickly ran in.
“…” Zhiming was silent for a few seconds, then turned and walked to the doorway. He saw Ciyin form seals with both hands, dissolve the medicinal power of the seven-colored lily of the valley, and send it bit by bit into Fu Zhuochen’s body.
But her cultivation was not high. This was very difficult for her. Before long, sweat already covered her forehead.
“Let me,” Zhiming said.
“Oh…” Ciyin withdrew her hands and grabbed the edge of her skirt, stepping aside to watch.
After a while, the seven-colored lily of the valley completely withered. Ciyin walked to Zhiming’s side and asked, “How is he?”
“With the seven-colored lily of the valley rebuilding his heart meridian, he should wake within three days. The wounds in his organs will also heal faster.” After Zhiming said this, he saw Ciyin let out a breath of relief and could not help sighing. “I fear the Flower God will scold you if she finds out.”
Ciyin shook her head and waved both hands. “It is all right. I have been scolded plenty since I was little. I only want him to get better faster. At least when Susu wakes up, she will not see her brother from the human world still lying there half-dead.”
“Mm…”
“But Divine Lord once said that when Susu ascended as an upper god, you would marry her.” As Ciyin spoke, her brows curved in a smile. “Will I be able to drink a cup of wedding wine from you two?”
Zhiming was silent for a moment, then turned his back. “There is no hurry with that matter. We will speak after Yun Su wakes.”
Ciyin sensed something strange. She pressed her lips together and said nothing more.
Zhiming said Fu Zhuochen would wake within three days, so Ciyin stayed in Northern Xuan Palace for three days.
On the night of the third day, while she was dozing beside the table, she heard a faint movement. She hurriedly stood and ran to the bedside, delighted. “You finally woke up!”
Fu Zhuochen did not speak. He only opened his eyes, his gaze somewhat empty.
Everything before him was very blurry. He could only see hazy shadows. His ears also seemed filled with water, and he could not hear people clearly.
“Do not worry. That day, you injured your heart meridian and organs, and your qi and blood flowed backward and injured your seven openings. Luckily, your eyes, ears, mouth, and nose were not ruined. If you rest well for a while, you will recover completely.” As Ciyin spoke, she waved a hand before Fu Zhuochen’s eyes. “Can you see a little? Or… can you hear me?”
“I can.” Fu Zhuochen answered softly, his voice hoarse enough to barely sound human.
“That is good.” Ciyin nodded. She stood there dryly for a while. Seeing that Fu Zhuochen did not say a word for ages, she could not help pouting. “You demons all need to eat, right? I will go prepare some thin food for you.”
“Xiaoba… how is she?”
Ciyin could not help stopping. After hesitating a while, she turned back and said, “Susu has already successfully completed her tribulation and ascended. The Divine Lord pleaded with the Heavenly Emperor for you. You are innocent now. Once your wounds heal, you can go back.”
After saying this, she tilted her head and looked at Fu Zhuochen. “Is there anything else you want to ask?”
After a stretch of silence, she turned to leave. Then she heard the person behind her speak again.
“In this life, Xiaoba trusted only two people. One could not protect her, and one broke his promise to her…”
“Truly… she entrusted herself to the wrong people…”
Ciyin did not know why, but when she heard that self-mocking, breath-thin, hoarse voice, her heart felt terribly uncomfortable.
Without turning back, she ran outside and happened to see Zhiming sitting in the courtyard drinking tea. She walked forward softly.
A little uneasy, she asked, “Divine Lord, did we do something wrong?”
Zhiming asked back, “What did we do wrong?”
Ciyin shook her head. “I do not know either. But I suddenly feel… feel that when Susu wakes, she will definitely be very sad… just like that demon.”
Zhiming lifted his eyes and looked toward the distant river of stars. After a long time, he finally said, “We will speak after she wakes.”