After Transmigrating as a Wealthy Woman: Donβt You Dare Touch My Baby! [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 88
In the world of cultivation, time has no meaning. One blink, and fifteen days had quietly slipped away.
Zhong Ying remained in the Foundation EstablishmentΒ stage, though with a rare distinction: she had established foundations in both the Celestial and Demonic paths. While taking on a Golden Core cultivator was still out of reach, achieving dual-path Foundation Establishment in just one month was a feat few could imagine.
She owed a debt of gratitude to the two golden spirit stones provided by the little phoenix. Not only did they stabilize the conflicting energies of her dual paths, but they also propelled her strength forward.
Regrettably, no matter how she pressured the little bird, the phoenix insisted she had no more stones. Zhong Ying knew this was a lie; her perception told her the little creature was still hiding quite a few.
Sometimes, while meditating, Zhong Ying would feel a pair of beady black eyes glaring at her with pure fury. But the bird only stared; she never actually disrupted the cultivation.
Eventually, Zhong Ying could no longer ignore the staring. She stood up and walked toward the pillar the phoenix was hiding behind. Squatting down, she asked, “How much longer are you going to watch me?”
Zhu Xingtong: Chirp chirp chirp!Β (Until youβre willing to take me to the Changtian Sect!)
Zhu Xingtong was baffled. Do these cultivators have no concept of time? Itβs been half a month! Why hasn’t this ‘Demon Venerable’ gone to find her rival yet? Where is the destined showdown?! I miss my cub!
“Spirit Stones,” Zhong Ying said, scooping the bird up by the scruff while supporting her round belly. “You have them, don’t you? Golden ones.”
Zhu Xingtong shook her bird head frantically. None! Not a single one left!
Zhong Ying suddenly smiled. “Are you hungry?”
The sudden question caught Zhu Xingtong off guard. What?
“Iβve read ancient texts. It’s said that phoenixes love to eat something called Spirit-Spirit Grass.”
Zhu Xingtong: ?
Iβm not a common phoenix! Do you think you can tempt me with food? Absolutely not!
Besides, she knew Spirit-Spirit Grass. It grew in the Eternal Realm. It had no medicinal value for humans, but it was the favorite food of the Phoenix Clan and essential for a chickβs growth. However, it only existed in the upper realms; it was impossible to find a single blade of it in the lower world.
Zhu Xingtong looked suspicious. This “Demon Venerable” didn’t seem like the type to talk nonsense. Had she managed to pluck a stalk before falling from the Eternal Realm? But her body had been destroyedβhow could she bring grass with her?
Zhong Ying quietly opened her palm. Inside lay a fresh stalk of Spirit-Spirit Grass. It was a blue plant that emitted a glow like the setting sun.
The little birdβs eyes went wide. Holy crap, it really is Spirit-Spirit Grass! How does she have that?!
Zhong Ying smiled. “Want a bite?”
The chubby bird waddled back several steps, shaking her head vigorously. She told herself she didn’t want it, but the instinct was too strong. Her mouth began to water uncontrollably.
Curse it! Sheβs got me!
“Five Golden Spirit Stones for this,” the “Demon Venerable” tempted greedily.
You monster!Β Five stones? She could technically afford it, but she didn’t want to give them up. Those were for her cub!
“Deal?” The womanβs voice was soft, like the whisper of a devil.
The little phoenix struggled with herself, then slowly scratched two words into the dirt: “TWO STONES”
Two! Sheβd give two!
Zhong Yingβs smile faded. She coldly tucked the grass away. Buying that stalk from the System Shop hadn’t been cheap; for only two stones, it wasn’t worth the trade.
She turned to leave, but felt a tiny tug on her pant leg. She looked down to see the phoenix with teary eyes. She wanted it!
The bird painfully scratched a “3” on the ground. Three stonesβno more!
Zhong Ying shook her head. “Four and a half.”
Zhu Xingtong: !!!
Where is your honor?! Who haggles for half a stone?!Β “Chirp chirp chirp!!” (Human, you have no sincerity!)
Zhong Ying laughed and held the grass out again. “A trade is about mutual consent. Four stones. If you agree, we swap.”
Zhu Xingtong looked at the grass. It smelled divine. It was practically screaming: Eat me! Come eat me!
With a heavy heart, the phoenix spit out four stones, her beady eyes glaring at Zhong Ying as if she wanted to drill holes in her. Zhong Ying satisfied herself with the stones and gestured toward the grass. “Help yourself.”
“Chirp chirp chirp!!”
The phoenix wasn’t finished. She grabbed Zhong Yingβs hem and pointed toward the small kitchen. Zhong Ying was stunned. “You want me to cook it for you?”
The phoenix nodded. Though she was a bird, her soul was human. She wanted her food cooked!
“Don’t phoenixes belong to the fire element? Just breathe on it and roast it yourself,” Zhong Ying said meaningfully. She realized that in fifteen days, she hadn’t seen the bird produce a single spark.
The bird froze. Her wings flapped awkwardly.
“Don’t tell me… you can’t breathe fire?”
Zhu Xingtong: …This ‘Demon Venerable’ is too smart.
Zhong Ying didn’t press further. She picked up the bird and headed for the kitchen. “It’s fine. If you can’t breathe fire, I’ll boil it for you.”
The phoenix looked up at her, suddenly touched.
Zhong Ying lifted the lid of the pot. “Cooking fee is half a stone per bowl. You can pay me next time.”
Zhu Xingtong: ??? Have you never seen money in your life?! You absolute psycho!
But alas, Zhong Ying was poor.
Later, the two sat in the courtyard. Zhong Ying chewed on Spirit Stones (which tasted like wax but made her glow with breakthrough light), while the phoenix hung over the edge of a bowl as big as she was, sipping Spirit-Spirit Grass soup.
Actually, the “Demon Venerable” was a decent cook. Just a littleΒ worse than her cub. Just a tiny bit!
As Zhong Ying watched the bird eat, she felt a strange warmth. It reminded her of her own “Little Bao.” Zhu Xingtong ate with the same gusto. Sheβs probably back in the original world by now,Β Zhong Ying thought, her gaze softening.
The phoenix looked up, suspicious. Why are you staring at me?
“Iβm going into seclusion for two days,” Zhong Ying said. If all went well, her Demonic physique would reach the Golden Core stage in forty-eight hours.
“Chirp.”
Fine by me,Β Zhu Xingtong thought. She intended to practice too; she was aiming to spit out threeΒ stones at once!
After the meal, they went their separate ways. Sitting in the cotton-ball nest Zhong Ying had made for her, Zhu Xingtong tried for hours but only produced one stone. She realized that the quality of Spirit Stones had dropped because the energy in the lower realms wasn’t as dense as the Eternal Realm.
However, she felt the Spirit-Spirit Grass digesting. She had a feeling that after she fully processed it, she would grow. Perhaps sheβd finally be able to fly!
As the author, Zhu Xingtong knew this phoenix was a “walking gold mine” but also incredibly fragile and prone to dying early in the original plot. She sighed. Step one: Don’t die.
She had thought the “Demon Venerable” was going to kill her, but so far, sheβd only been scammed for stones. But what if a stronger person appeared? Could this woman protect her? I need to learn to fly and find my cub. My cub will protect me!
Just then, there were two knocks at the courtyard door. Zhu Xingtong poked her head out of her nest. Who is it? No one has visited in half a month.
“Disciple, it is I.” A woman entered, wearing elegant Hehuan Sect robes.
Is she the master of this ‘Demon King’?
“Master? Why have you emerged from seclusion?” Zhong Ying appeared, her expression returning to its usual coldness.
“The fires at the Tianqing Plains have burned for half a month, revealing a hidden Secret Realm. The news has spread throughout the cultivation world. All sects are heading there, and I intend to go as well. Will you join me?” Elder Chilian checked Zhong Yingβs cultivation. Seeing she was still in Foundation Establishment, she felt relieved and planned to take her for experience.
In truth, Chilian had heard the Changtian Sect would be there. She wanted to show off the disciple she had “stolen” from Immortal Venerable Beimeng.
Zhong Ying didn’t hesitate. “Wait for me, Master.”
“I brought you new robes. Wear something grand. Youβre the disciple of Chilian; don’t embarrass me,” the Elder said, tossing a bundle to her.
“Thank you, Master.”
The little phoenix froze in her nest, her mind full of question marks.
The woman outside… sheΒ was Demon Venerable Chilian?
Then who was this “Demon King” who had been scamming her for Spirit Stones for the last two weeks?! Where did she get the Spirit-Spirit Grass?
If sheβs not the Demon Venerable, have I been wasting my time here?!
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE
