After Marrying the Disabled Demon Lord as a Substitute, I Ran Away with His Child - Chapter 41

Chapter 41

The Xuan Cloud Sect became famous overnight after the battle in the Milong Secret Realm.

“A single sect slaughtered every high-level monster and spirit beast in the Milong Secret Realm and swept away all its treasures. And you think that’s nothing? Do you know what’s most terrifying? They actually defeated Shennong—that’s a Divine Beast! Even cultivators who have ascended to immortality might not be able to defeat it!”

“Every sect in the cultivation world is now secretly discussing what attitude they should adopt toward the Xuan Cloud Sect. Should the entire cultivation world unite against them, or should we try to stay on their good side?”

“I don’t even dare go to Feixian City anymore; it’s far too close to the Xuan Cloud Sect. I’m afraid I’ll never return. The Xuan Cloud Sect was originally a demonic sect, and now that they’ve shown their true strength in the Milong Secret Realm, if I offend them, won’t I be marked for death?”

“I heard that the wife of the Xuan Cloud Sect Leader shares her pill recipes and alchemy insights at the Black Store. I used to think she was a fool for sharing such precious things, but seeing the strength of the Xuan Cloud Sect now, I understand. Those recipes might be invaluable to us, but to her and the powerful Xuan Cloud Sect, they are probably just ordinary scripts. Even if everyone in the cultivation world learns to refine her pills, it wouldn’t pose any threat to them.”

Of course, these people had no idea of the truth.

Zuo Siqiu was willing to share her recipes and insights purely because she was short on money.

Even now, after a trip to the Milong Secret Realm that left her filthy rich, she hadn’t withdrawn the recipes from the Black Store.

“Who would ever complain about having too much money?” Zuo Siqiu had explained it this way to Yan Jiaojiao.

At this moment, she took everything out of her storage ring and spread it across the courtyard of Xuan Mo’s cave dwelling.

These were the various treasures obtained through the collective efforts of all the Xuan Cloud Sect members who entered the secret realm; Zuo Siqiu naturally wouldn’t keep them all for herself.

She looked up at Xuan Mo beside her. “Venerable One, why don’t you distribute the spoils to everyone?”

After speaking, she looked at Xuan Mo without blinking, her eyes screaming: Venerable One, look at me! I worked so hard in the secret realm, shouldn’t I get a bigger share?

Xuan Mo first let the Demon Physician pick out the medicinal herbs he could use, then allocated some rare herbs to him to be placed directly into the sect’s treasury.

Then, he handed all the basic alchemy materials and materials that could only be used for refining pills to Zuo Siqiu.

The majority of the remaining items went to Yan Jiaojiao, with a small portion going to Zuo Siqiu.

Regarding the portion given to Yan Jiaojiao, Xuan Mo said, “Take these and distribute them.”

He kept nothing for himself.

The items Xuan Mo gave Zuo Siqiu were far more than she expected. She happily gathered the materials and smiled at him. “Thank you, Venerable One.”

Xuan Mo asked, “Are you going into seclusion to refine pills these next few days?”

Zuo Siqiu nodded. “The Black Store has a huge backlog of orders. Even though I’ve already let them read the recipes, so many people still want to buy the pills I make personally.”

“I also need to make more pills for myself to keep in my pouch for emergencies. I can’t win in a fight against others.”

She then glanced at Xuan Mo, her eyes holding a hint of bashfulness and lingering affection. “Venerable One, your pills must be running low too, right?”

Xuan Mo lowered his eyes and nodded slightly, his long eyelashes veiling the tenderness flickering in his gaze.

After nodding, Xuan Mo threw a storage bracelet to Zuo Siqiu.

It was the storage bracelet he wore personally.

Zuo Siqiu was surprised. “Venerable One, why are you throwing this to me?”

Xuan Mo said, “It has already recorded your divine sense. You can access its contents at will.”

Zuo Siqiu’s eyes lit up. “Is it a gift for me?”

Xuan Mo looked at her and smiled faintly. That smile made Zuo Siqiu pout. “Fine, I suppose using the things inside will be charged to my tab again, right?”

But when she scanned it with her divine sense, she was startled.

The space inside Xuan Mo’s storage bracelet was enormous, filled with countless treasures and an unimaginable number of top-grade spirit stones. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say he was as wealthy as an entire sect.

Knowing there was so much inside, even if he truly intended to give it to her, Zuo Siqiu wouldn’t dare accept it.

Xuan Mo’s smile had only been to tease her. Seeing her wide-eyed, “unsophisticated” look, his voice carried a faint trace of amusement. “I gave it to you, so it’s yours.”

Zuo Siqiu couldn’t believe it, firmly suspecting Xuan Mo was just tricking her.

Clutching Xuan Mo’s storage bracelet, she skipped off happily to start her pill-refining seclusion.

Once inside the seclusion room, she went through the contents of her own storage ring again, her smile growing wider.

Zuo Siqiu was a child who hadn’t received much love in her life.

She grew up without a mother, her father was a scumbag, and her relatives were troublesome.

The first time she felt love was from her college roommate, who was also her best friend.

That friend had taught her how to treat someone she loved.

The thought that she was so proactive about refining pills for Xuan Mo today—not out of a sense of debt, but out of her own will caused ripples in her heart.

She realized she might actually like Xuan Mo a little bit.

Although Xuan Mo might not like her back, he hadn’t treated her poorly.

Experiencing romantic feelings for a man for the first time, Zuo Siqiu cupped her face in her hands. Even in this empty seclusion room, she felt wrapped in bashfulness.

Xuan Mo must have some good feelings toward me too, right? Although he always made her debt grow larger, she never felt the lowly, submissive sense of being “indebted” when she was with him.

Because of her past life, Zuo Siqiu was extremely sensitive to that kind of submissive debt.

Her father and those relatives had always made her heart full of that humiliating sense of obligation.

Furthermore, Xuan Mo had never truly harmed her and even allowed her to live comfortably in the Xuan Cloud Sect.

Zuo Siqiu cherished these days; in her past twenty-odd years, days where she truly felt “at ease” were pitifully short.

She shook her head, deciding not to think about these random things anymore. Refining pills was the priority.

She had obtained so many materials; she had to refine them all into pills. Some to stock up, some to sell.

Shortly after Zuo Siqiu entered seclusion, Xuan Mo followed the Demon Physician into the heart of the Xuan Cloud Sect’s spirit vein.

The Demon Physician said to Xuan Mo, “Thanks to the Madam this time, we were able to get this drop of Divine Dragon Blood. We can ignore all the previous prescriptions. With just this drop of Divine Dragon Blood, the Venerable One can stand again, and your physical body can become thousands of times stronger than before.”

“From now on, you will no longer be tormented by your own spirit root.”

“However, this process is extremely long and painful. You must endure it, Venerable One. You must not succumb to qi deviation because of it.”

Even though Xuan Mo was already a demonic cultivator, demonic cultivators could still suffer from qi deviation, and the results were often more horrific than those for other cultivators.

The image of Zuo Siqiu’s soft face and sweet smile flashed through Xuan Mo’s mind. He nodded to the Demon Physician. “Begin.”

The Demon Physician fed the Divine Dragon Blood into Xuan Mo’s mouth and then stepped aside.

Staying there wouldn’t help Xuan Mo; everything depended on Xuan Mo’s own endurance and persistence.

But he couldn’t leave. If Xuan Mo suffered qi deviation, he would need to use his fastest speed and various medicines to control the situation and save Xuan Mo’s life.

…

While Xuan Mo and Zuo Siqiu were in seclusion, Zhu Jiechou finally crawled out of the abandoned Milong Secret Realm.

By now, a faint dark red stained his lower eyelids, and even his lip color had deepened.

He stood up, took a deep breath, and muttered to himself, “Third Junior Sister, since you treat Little Junior Sister this way, don’t blame me for being ruthless.”

He first returned to the Long family. Seeing him return, the Long family members immediately cornered him and questioned, “What exactly happened? Why did you disappear in the secret realm? Didn’t you say you would catch Zuo Siqiu and bring her back to refine into pills?”

Zhu Jiechou licked the tips of his teeth and gave a sinister smile. “The pills Little Junior Sister refines can only guarantee surviving a tribulation, but they cannot guarantee ascension.”

The Long family members instantly forgot their questions. “What do you mean by that? Is there actually a pill that can guarantee ascension?”

Zhu Jiechou laughed softly. “Of course. My master was only one step away from ascension. He is a man who wants to become an immortal; otherwise, why would he be so cruel to his own daughter?”

No one in the Long family could believe what they were hearing. “You mean Bi Mu’s daughter can refine pills that guarantee ascension?”

Zhu Jiechou said, “Not right now. She must dual-cultivate with the Xuan Cloud Sect Leader. Using the Leader’s extreme-grade ice spirit root to transform her body, combined with other medicinal adjustments, she will become a unique pill primer in this world.”

The Long family elders were extremely excited. Surviving a tribulation was important, but ascension was even more so. Their cultivation was very high, only one or two steps away from immortality.

It wasn’t just them; few in the cultivation world dared to attempt ascension lightly. If even a small thing went wrong, they would have their souls dissipated at the final step, falling forever.

No one dared to gamble.

So, when they heard there was a pill that could guarantee ascension, everyone became agitated.

“In that case, we must plan as quickly as possible.”

“This matter must not be known by other clans or sects.”

Only the Head of the Long family remained the most clear-headed. “I wonder what Jiechou Zhenren’s purpose is in telling us this? What do you want the Long family to do for you?”

The Long family elders also realized this news was brought by Zhu Jiechou, and the method of refining the pill would also need to be provided by him.

Perhaps even the pill itself would need to be refined by Zhu Jiechou.

Since he was telling them this now, he must need something from the Long family.

Zhu Jiechou moved his bound wrists and looked at the Long Family Head. His eyes said: Is this how you talk business with me?

The Long Family Head immediately released him and politely invited him to sit.

Zhu Jiechou then said, “First, you cannot touch my Little Junior Sister.”

Long Family Head: “???” But you were the one who originally proposed catching your Little Junior Sister to refine her into pills.

He didn’t want to dig into what happened between Zhu Jiechou and Zuo Siqiu in the Milong Secret Realm, so he nodded. “Fine. Our Long family will act as if we don’t know Zuo Siqiu can be used as a pill primer.”

They even swore a soul oath for this.

Only then did Zhu Jiechou feel relieved and began to state his second requirement. “I need to increase my cultivation as quickly as possible, to reach a level where I am on par with the Xuan Cloud Sect Leader.”

The Long Family Head frowned. “We can provide you with the best resources to increase your cultivation quickly, but as for matching the Xuan Cloud Sect Leader… I’m afraid that might not be possible. You might not know yet, but while the status of that Divine Dragon in the Milong Secret Realm is unknown, it likely didn’t gain much ground against the Xuan Cloud Sect. Do you think those members of the Xuan Cloud Sect have the ability to fight a Divine Dragon?”

Zhu Jiechou was incredulous. “When did Xuan Mo become so powerful?”

The Long Family Head said, “Why do you think the Milong Secret Realm was completely destroyed, and yet we swallow our pride and don’t seek an account from the Xuan Cloud Sect?!”

Speaking of this, the entire Long family was furious.

This time, they hadn’t just lost a “wife and a soldier”; they had lost things far more valuable than that!

But they couldn’t settle the score. They couldn’t bear the consequences of a direct conflict with the Xuan Cloud Sect.

Zhu Jiechou didn’t know what had happened in the secret realm, but if the Xuan Cloud Sect could ruin a secret realm to such an extent, Xuan Mo’s strength was indeed not to be underestimated.

Zhu Jiechou compromised. “Even if I can’t match Xuan Mo, my current cultivation is too low. I simply cannot rescue Little Junior Sister from the Xuan Cloud Sect.”

The Long Family Head deeply regretted not following them into the secret realm.

Not only was the secret realm destroyed, but this Zhu Jiechou had undergone an earth-shaking change after coming out.

So, what exactly happened in the secret realm?

He had no way to investigate, and Zhu Jiechou didn’t intend to elaborate, only telling the Long family to prepare resources immediately for his cultivation.

He also had the Long family find Bi Zhian. “Once I finish my seclusion, I will begin arranging the dual cultivation between Third Junior Sister and the Demon Venerable.”

The Long Family Head immediately agreed.

…

By the time Zuo Siqiu finished her pill-refining seclusion, Xuan Mo still hadn’t emerged from the center of the spirit vein.

Zuo Siqiu learned that Xuan Mo had gone to treat his physical disability. She prayed in her heart that he would return healthy, and then took the pills she had refined down the mountain to the Black Store.

Yan Jiaojiao was busy, so Zuo Siqiu went down to the store alone.

She had walked this path many times and wasn’t particularly afraid.

She held the big rooster while flying through the mountain forest, humming a little tune in high spirits.

Who would have thought that halfway there, her Second Senior Brother would suddenly jump out?

Zhu Jiechou’s sudden appearance caused Zuo Siqiu to panic instantly, falling from mid-air.

Fortunately, she controlled her body immediately and didn’t fall flat on her face.

After landing, Zuo Siqiu clutched the rooster tightly and stared warily at Zhu Jiechou.

She felt that the current Zhu Jiechou was different from the Second Senior Brother from before.

Zhu Jiechou wasn’t bad-looking he was quite handsome but the hostility and wickedness between his brows added a great deal of sinister air to him.

The way he looked at Zuo Siqiu was evil, yet held a trace of tenderness.

Zuo Siqiu couldn’t understand it and was convinced this was like “a weasel paying a New Year’s visit to a chicken”he had no good intentions.

Zhu Jiechou first sized Zuo Siqiu up from top to bottom. Seeing that her body was unharmed, he breathed a sigh of relief. “I was always worried you would be injured in the Milong Secret Realm.”

Zuo Siqiu was full of question marks.

Was this guy possessed by something? Or is he someone who transmigrated into a book like me? Is his mission to romance me? Otherwise, why the 180-degree change in attitude?

She stepped back to maintain her guard. “What exactly do you want with me? Are you trying to kill me? I’m warning you, I have many other pills in my hands.”

Although Zhu Jiechou’s memory was muddled, he still remembered the scenes where Little Junior Sister tied him up with spider-silk pills and brutally tormented him.

However, a flash of guilt crossed his eyes. “I can understand why you tied me up and took revenge. It was all Senior Brother’s fault. Senior Brother shouldn’t have bullied you, shouldn’t have dual-cultivated with you without your consent…”

Before he could finish his sentence, the rooster in Zuo Siqiu’s arms screamed first: “Cluck, cluck, cluck!”

This rooster had already developed intelligence and now completely understood what these words meant.

It first clucked at Zhu Jiechou, calling him shameless, and then turned to cluck at Zuo Siqiu.

The moment I stop watching you for a day, you run off to hook up with another man! How can you give the Venerable One a green hat? They don’t even write stories like this in the books! How are Protector Yan and I supposed to “ship” you guys now?

Zuo Siqiu felt the chicken was being way too noisy and pinched its beak shut. She looked at Zhu Jiechou as if she’d seen a ghost. “Is this some new trick to deceive people?! When did we ever dual-cultivate?! I’m warning you not to talk nonsense. I’ll sue you for slander!”