Reborn as a Human Cauldron, But I'm the Top - Chapter 52

Chapter 52: Defenses Breach, The Fox’s Assistance

Shen Yirong’s mood shifted from shock to another kind of shock.

No matter how hard she tried to hide it, the astonishment beneath her pupils was undeniable. She hesitated, “Your Excellency, you don’t have to make such a sacrifice.”

Song Yin’s face remained composed, as if she were discussing something mundane like “What did you eat today,” “The farce should end. This is simply what needs to be done to switch back our bodies. This Venerable can endure it.”

That sounded great, but she didn’t know who was blushing so fiercely just now.

But there must always be one person who is not calm between the two, and now that person had become Shen Yirong.

If it were ordinary dual cultivation, she could still use excuses like the body swap to deflect it, but spiritual dual cultivation was different; it had nothing to do with the body.

Shen Yirong had read quite a few books in her past life and only remembered that spiritual dual cultivation was more stimulating than ordinary dual cultivation.

Fine, she wasn’t a good person. That’s the only sentence that left a deep impression on her.

When it came to spiritual dual cultivation, there were always many things blocking her mind, such as the relationship between Master and disciple.

Just as she thought of this, Mei Xin’s voice appeared in her head again.

“It’s fine for Master to like her disciple.”

Shen Yirong was startled. She didn’t expect her Senior Sister, after returning to the Great Peace Sect, could still continuously influence her. Compared to her Senior Sister, a native of the cultivation world, her own modern thoughts were indeed much more twisted.

If the natives didn’t care, why should she care?

Wait, no, no!

Shen Yirong was almost brainwashed. When she woke up, she tried to rescue the increasingly skewed plot, “Your Excellency, I…”

Shen Yirong tried the “pear blossoms bearing rain” look. Normally, when she did this, Song Yin would indulge her, but this time was different.

Because Song Yin immediately closed her eyes, “Nothing you say will work this time.”

She spoke tough words, but Song Yin turned and walked away, initially maintaining her elegance, but finally, her steps quickened, as if a great flood or beast were chasing her.

“Meow~”

The little orange cat meowed.

Under normal circumstances, Shen Yirong would definitely reach out, but now she wasn’t in the mood; she was shutting down emotionally.

She didn’t follow Song Yin back, instead walking towards the Jiangxue Sword. When she arrived, Jiangxue was talking to a small blue light point.

When the conversation was exciting, she covered her mouth with her sleeve, her eyes curving like a crescent moon when she smiled, her aura cold and pure like moonlight.

Only her body was transparent and dissipating.

Jiangxue saw Shen Yirong return, turned, and smiled, “Where is the Demon Venerable Adult?”

Shen Yirong felt a certain familiarity with this Sword Spirit, even a bit of sympathy and pity.

This emotion was inexplicable, but Shen Yirong no longer tried to analyze the reason.

She temporarily set aside her inner distress and, like Qing Li, cared about the other party’s condition, “Fairy, how is your body? Is there a healing method?”

The little blue light point bounced a few times like a rubber ball thrown hard onto the ground, clamoring with dissatisfaction, “Master, what about me? You should care about me too.”

How could Shen Yirong not understand that this was Traceable Rain?

She was a sword spirit of that size, why was she still acting like a child?

Shen Yirong inexplicably felt like a mother.

She was quite helpless, but she held out her hand, and the blue light point jumped around in her palm.

It looks like a glowing flea…

The hypocritical adult masked her true thoughts. She coaxed with a smile, “Then what about your injury?”

Traceable Rain, having received attention, rolled around in Shen Yirong’s palm. She said happily, “Master doesn’t need to worry. The higher your cultivation, the better our injuries will naturally heal.”

Shen Yirong could only smile bitterly, “Then is there a way to heal faster?”

Jiangxue was much more composed than Traceable Rain, “Yes, but that would require a lot of spirit stones.”

Shen Yirong felt she was quite wealthy in spirit stones. She had the private stash given by Sect Master Liu, plus the spirit stones from previous missions. She should have received a monthly allowance too, but it was deducted.

She asked very generously, “How many?”

Jiangxue calculated with her fingers, looking at Shen Yirong with great trust, “Around four million.”

Shen Yirong’s body shook, “Let’s stick to another method then.”

Jiangxue looked at her with an expression that said, I knew it.

That look made Shen Yirong a little embarrassed. She coughed twice and looked at the sky, “The sky, hiss! It’s so blue.”

Jiangxue agreed, “Yes, and the clouds are very white.”

The other party was so considerate that Shen Yirong was almost moved.

She mourned her poverty for a while, then thought of the event tonight that seemed unavoidable.

Shen Yirong’s eyebrows couldn’t help but furrow.

Although she seemed very frivolous, Shen Yirong’s actions were still upright. She was definitely not the type of person who would be seduced by beauty.

Alas, that’s why she was so distressed.

Jiangxue saw her eyebrows tightly knitted and couldn’t help but act as a confidante, “Why is the Immortal Master troubled?”

This kind of thing was hard to say aloud. Shen Yirong’s eyes darted around, stammering.

Jiangxue immediately understood her distress, “Is it about the spiritual dual cultivation?”

Shen Yirong retreated a few steps as if electrocuted. She looked around secretively, then made a “shush” gesture, “Keep your voice down. How can you say such things in public?”

Qing Li, who was burning paper money, froze her hands. She couldn’t help but show disdain, “It’s just dual cultivation. What’s the big deal? You humans love to pretend, even though you secretly want it desperately.”

Who wants it desperately? How dare you speak so carelessly?

Perhaps because Song Yin was absent, Shen Yirong’s deterrent power had drastically decreased. Even this fox demon dared to be presumptuous.

Seeing Shen Yirong’s expression change, Qing Li’s tail drooped. She said weakly, “I wasn’t talking about you.”

Shen Yirong sneered, “So you were talking about Your Excellency?”

Qing Li’s face changed, “I didn’t say anything.”

Seeing that Shen Yirong’s expression was still very unpleasant, Qing Li became increasingly unsure. She quickly finished burning the last piece of paper money in her hand, stood up quickly, and ran to Shen Yirong.

She held out her hand to Shen Yirong. In her rosy palm lay a section of translucent white toe bone.

Qing Li wagged her tail to please, “This is the bone of the former Fox King. The Immortal Master should need it.”

Unlike the pile of fire-scorched bones seen in the outer area, Shen Yirong felt a thick demonic power on this one.

She glanced at Qing Li, truly unable to understand how this person, who could have entered the Great Peace Sect, managed to overthrow and kill the entire White Fox Clan.

However, the gift the other party offered was thoughtful. Shen Yirong did need it to repair the Myriad Manifestations Mirror.

Once the Myriad Manifestations Mirror was repaired, she might be able to see Little Song more conveniently.

Thinking of Little Song, Shen Yirong felt like she was entering a fog again.

On one side was the aloof and dangerous Demon Venerable, and on the other was the upright and innocent Sword Cultivator.

The two were completely unlike each other, but the Demon Venerable was good at acting, having deceived her earlier. The possibility that these two people were one and the same was not non-existent.

Shen Yirong tossed the fox bone into her spiritual ring. She looked at the fox demon in front of her.

The other party was wearing mourning clothes, but the clothes underneath were not the ones she usually wore. Demonic power was flowing through the fabric, subtle, but Shen Yirong saw it clearly.

The demonic power flowed along the collar of her clothing, forming the name “Bai Taoling.”

The characters were faintly glowing.

Shen Yirong stared at the characters for a while. Staring for too long caused a slight sting in her mind, and some images flashed past.

In the images, she was sitting beside someone, supporting her chin. The ‘cha-cha’ sound of the loom covered everything.

The sunlight couldn’t penetrate the small hut in this memory fragment, but it shone on Shen Yirong.

The warm sunlight dispelled the moment of confusion. Shen Yirong whispered the name, “Bai Taoling.”

Qing Li, who had just been acting subservient, was instantly shaken. Seeing Shen Yirong looking at her collar, she asked somewhat excitedly, “What did you say?”

Shen Yirong felt that the fox’s gaze towards her had changed. She looked at the demonic power pattern, pointed to the spot, and said, “There are characters here: Bai Taoling.”

Qing Li’s rose-red eyes instantly deepened, then overflowed with tears.

Shen Yirong was startled. Heaven knows, she hadn’t done anything.

Shen Yirong didn’t move. She just asked, “Why are you crying?”

Qing Li wiped her tears, “I… nothing. This garment was made by my grandmother. She leaves a little mark on every piece of clothing she makes. Only she and people with fate can see it.”

Shen Yirong didn’t expect that she could be one of the “fated people.”

But the name Bai Taoling certainly did not exist in her current memories.

Shen Yirong looked at the white candles still burning below the mountain, recalling that this deceased fox elder had some connection with the original owner.

She thought for a moment and still stepped forward to offer an incense stick.

The incense burned quickly.

Shen Yirong watched the incense about to burn out, while Qing Li watched Shen Yirong’s back from behind.

Jiangxue, who had been silent for a long time, stood beside Qing Li. Qing Li looked up at her and transmitted her voice: Why did you stop me?

“Because she doesn’t want to look back.”

Upon hearing this, Qing Li’s gaze towards Shen Yirong was filled with sadness, but after recognizing the person, she started to complain again: Is the Sword Venerable Adult really going to dual cultivate with that hateful person?

“Yes.”

Qing Li’s attitude towards this matter was originally that of an audience member watching a show, but as she sat by the fire and ate her metaphorical melon, she discovered the person at the heart of the gossip was someone she respected.

So the melon went bad, and her emotional defenses were breached.

She held the two ears sticking out from her mourning hood, looking devastated.

“I don’t accept this!”

Jiangxue looked at the increasingly ferocious-looking fox. She struck mercilessly: It’s useless even if you don’t accept it. You brought this situation about.

Qing Li became even more depressed. She looked pleadingly at Jiangxue: Do you really have no solution?

“How can you ask me for the solution to your own spell?”

Qing Li deflated like a punctured balloon. The entire fox drooped.

She learned this soul-swapping spell in a dream, but the dream didn’t teach her the solution.

She only intended to play a trick, and why would she need a solution if she was just playing a trick? Hence, she never thought about it before.

Qing Li mumbled distractedly, “Stupid fox! Stupid fox! You’ve ruined her!”

Wuwuwu, the Sword Venerable Adult’s chastity!

Qing Li’s expression was fluctuating wildly. She walked in circles, then finally made a determined decision.

Jiangxue saw her look of sacrifice and couldn’t help but call out to her: What are you going to do?

Qing Li’s face was full of resolve: Even if it’s spiritual dual cultivation, the Sword Venerable Adult cannot be at a disadvantage.

Jiangxue watched the fox walk away with the resolve to be beaten to death.

She couldn’t help but shake her head, guessing that the other party was going to pull some kind of harmless little trick.

Shen Yirong finished her memorial and found Qing Li was gone. She couldn’t help but ask Jiangxue, “Where’s the fox?”

Jiangxue looked at Shen Yirong, her expression carrying a deep meaning.

Shen Yirong felt a tingling on her scalp from being stared at, “What’s wrong?”

Jiangxue withdrew her gaze, “Nothing. What do you plan to do after the Immortal Master switches back your body?”

Shen Yirong hadn’t figured it out yet. She still wanted to travel, but once her body was switched back, Song Yin would definitely take her back to the Demon Palace.

She seemed to have no choice.

Jiangxue was different from Traceable Rain; she was astute and good at reading hearts.

Jiangxue naturally knew Shen Yirong’s thoughts and promised, “If you don’t want to go back with her, I can help you too.”

Jiangxue’s calm words carried a surge of confidence that made people subconsciously believe her.

Shen Yirong knew the other party would help because of the Sword Venerable.

Shen Yirong didn’t answer.

Jiangxue didn’t pressure her but offered her a choice, “If you are unwilling, come to me here after the Immortal Master switches back your body.”

Then, Jiangxue’s weak spirit body transformed into tiny light points and merged into the mountain peak.

Traceable Rain circled Shen Yirong a few times, finally landing on Shen Yirong’s shoulder. Her voice was noticeably softer than usual, “Master, let’s go back.”

Shen Yirong smiled and touched the blue light point. It felt a bit like touching a water toy, slippery.

Traceable Rain rubbed against her fingertip. Shen Yirong was amused, “Okay, let’s go back.”

Song Yin, who had left, had already returned to the room. She was meditating on the bed. Under the washing of spiritual energy, her face was completely flushed.

Finally, she opened her eyes, walked to the writing desk, picked up a brush, and after writing, she burned the paper full of censored content clean.

She paced restlessly in the room. Seeing Shen Yirong hadn’t returned for a long time, she suspected the other party had run away with her body.

However, the Demon Venerable had many enemies, and a non-peak body in an inner demon state was prone to problems.

Song Yin hesitated for a while, then took the sword hanging on the wall and left.

After she left, a pair of fox ears suddenly appeared at the window. Qing Li secretly peeked into the room. Seeing no one, she entered the room.

Song Yin hadn’t gone far. Although Qing Li deliberately concealed her demonic aura, Song Yin still smelled it.

Her current cultivation was insufficient, so Song Yin simply released her divine sense to investigate. Under the observation of her divine sense, the fox was stealthily sprinkling something on the bed.

The fox, having done a shady deed, shook her ears, and her eyes sparkled brightly.

She clapped the powder off her hands, transformed into her demon form, and jumped out the window.

Song Yin retracted her divine sense and sneered.

She knew this fox had no good intentions. Fortunately, she was cautious, or she would have been secretly attacked by this fellow.

Once their bodies were switched back, she would definitely have to send this little fox a big gift.

Song Yin originally planned to return and deal with it, but this matter could clearly be postponed. It wasn’t too late to do it after returning.

She was still afraid that Shen Yirong had run away, so she clenched her sword and went to find the person.

Shen Yirong hadn’t run away. She felt that her time of freedom was about to end, so she took advantage of Song Yin’s absence to enjoy the scenery of the Fox Clan territory.

The fox demons here lived no differently from humans. Initially, because of her face, the fox demons dared not approach her, but Shen Yirong was different from Song Yin; she was approachable enough.

Shen Yirong still had some of the paper-wrapped candy Mei Xin gave her, which she shared with the little foxes she encountered on the road.

However, the taste was clearly not very pleasant. After swallowing it with doubt, the little fox’s ears drooped.

Shen Yirong took the opportunity to stroke their heads while they were dazed by the sourness.

Seeing that this person was not as scary as the rumors suggested, the little foxes tried to get closer.

Before the Fox Clan closed its borders, these Red Foxes had low status. After Qing Li became the Fox King, she enclosed the Fox Clan territory, so these little foxes were more or less naive.

Shen Yirong, sitting on the ridge of a field, was surrounded by these foxes. The little foxes asked about the cultivation world.

When Song Yin found the person, she was encircled by a group of furry creatures. For a moment, she was reminded of the past.

Before entering the Immortal Sect, on the roof of a villager’s house, the other party was surrounded by a group of cats.

She was surprised that she felt envious of a cat, of a fox.

If she wanted, she could easily chase away these four-legged creatures.

But Shen Yirong was smiling.

The other party clearly loved furry animals.

Song Yin hid in the shadow behind the tree, like a creature of darkness who couldn’t bear the light, greedily watching Shen Yirong’s smiling face.

Shen Yirong seemed to sense something. She glanced towards the woods, but there was no movement there.

A fox stretched out its paw and tapped the back of her hand, then shyly retracted it, “Demon Venerable Adult, can I come to the Southern Territory to find you in the future?”

Shen Yirong finally put aside her inner paranoia. She picked up the little fox and held it in her arms, saying with regret, “No, you can’t.”

“Crack!”

Song Yin behind the tree directly peeled off the tree bark.

Song Yin was aware of her terrible reputation. She hadn’t expected Shen Yirong, wearing her identity, to still be able to attract people.

She walked out from behind the tree with a cold expression.

Sensing hostility, Shen Yirong put down the fox in her arms.

The little foxes saw Song Yin’s dark face and started whispering.

“The Demon Venerable Adult’s Dao companion is so fierce.”

“Yeah, yeah, how can a cultivation furnace be so fierce?”

“Hey, hey, hey! Doesn’t this prove the Demon Venerable Adult is deeply affectionate? What was that word called again?”

“Pampering!”

“Aiya, Little Four, your human vocabulary is quite rich!”

If they continued talking, it was uncertain whether these little foxes would survive. Shen Yirong quickly said, “Go home, everyone go home.”

If they didn’t go home soon, they’d turn into fox fur coats.

The little foxes ran off, looking back every few steps. One of them, running far away, raised its paw and waved at Shen Yirong, “Demon Venerable Adult, come again sometime! My mother’s grape wine is delicious.”

The real Demon Venerable stood in front of her with a dark face. Shen Yirong, the fake Demon Venerable, could only awkwardly respond to the little fox, “We’ll see.”

The gaze from above was cold and sticky. Shen Yirong felt like she had encountered a ghost in broad daylight. She thought of many ways to appease the ‘ghost,’ but the sticky gaze suddenly disappeared.

A gentle breeze blew. Shen Yirong didn’t dare to look up, only seeing the edges of the other party’s white clothing fluttering with the wind.

She saw their shadows overlap, indistinguishable from each other.

“Let’s go.”

The voice was very flat. The other party didn’t seem angry.

Shen Yirong looked up in surprise, only to see the other party’s back.

The shadows of the leaves danced on her shadow. Time seemed to stretch out at this moment.

Shen Yirong wanted to ask the other party a question, but she was afraid of breaking the silence.

“Why aren’t you speaking?”

Song Yin’s voice was mixed with the wind. Her originally subtle emotions were blurred by the rustling of the leaves, making them hard to distinguish.

Seeing that they were some distance apart, Shen Yirong ran a few steps closer. When she was close, she observed Song Yin’s expression again.

Unfortunately, the other party showed no expression.

Shen Yirong cautiously asked, “Is Your Excellency angry?”

This time Song Yin showed an expression. She frowned slightly, her voice noticeably colder, “In your eyes, am I such a petty person?”

Shen Yirong froze. She carefully looked at Song Yin’s features.

She is angry.

Shen Yirong felt helpless, “No, I just feel that Your Excellency seems to need me very much.”

Song Yin raised an eyebrow. She couldn’t help but retort, “Heh, you are being too…”

Seeing Shen Yirong’s gradually drooping eyes, Song Yin swallowed the words “self-important.”

She turned her head and said nothing more, seemingly acquiescing to Shen Yirong’s words.

After a while, she suddenly spoke, uttering a cryptic sentence.

“I don’t.”

Shen Yirong couldn’t fathom her meaning and simply gave a perfunctory “Mhm.”

Seeing that they were getting closer to the Fox Palace, Shen Yirong’s thoughts began to drift.

Actually, the Demon Palace is quite good. I can play with cats and walk dogs, and chat with Protector Qi and the others every day.

When I need spirit stones, I can just do a random mission. I just need to be careful with Song Yin.

Despite this, Shen Yirong still felt a bit tired, with many worries in her heart.

“What are you thinking about?”

Shen Yirong shook her head and remained silent.

Song Yin looked at her deeply furrowed brow and felt a surge of frustration.

She had been smiling so happily when she was with those foxes just now, but she was always like this when she was with her.

Does she not want to dual cultivate?

Hmph, how insolent.

Suddenly, Song Yin’s heart was filled with sourness, sweetness, bitterness, and astringency. She let out a cold snort.

Shen Yirong didn’t understand why Song Yin was angry again. She looked at Song Yin with confusion, but the other party turned her head away, refusing to let her see.

“After we return to the palace, no one will call you a cultivation furnace anymore.”

Shen Yirong understood, “Is Your Excellency referring to what that fox demon said just now?”

Song Yin skipped her question, “The current you is not worthy of spiritual dual cultivation with this Venerable. Since there is no other solution, you will play the role of this Venerable for the next year.”

No need for spiritual dual cultivation?

Shen Yirong smiled, “Your Excellency, don’t worry.”

Song Yin caught the flash of relief in her eyes, and her temples started throbbing again.

Seeing Shen Yirong so happy, Song Yin held back and held back, finally suppressing her temper.

Shen Yirong suddenly thought of something. She took out the fox bone from her spiritual ring and smiled, “Your Excellency, I’ve got the fox bone. After it’s repaired, can I see Little Song every day?”

Of course not.

Every time the Myriad Manifestations Mirror simulation was interrupted, everything that happened in the mirror before would be reset.

Even if Shen Yirong took the Myriad Manifestations Mirror and projected the Kingdom of Yangyue from four hundred years ago again, the Song Yin and Ling Minzhi projected again would not have the memories of the previous time.

Each projection was independent.

Song Yin laughed hollowly. She wanted to tell her this cruel answer—that the person who helped her break the furnace mark, took her away from Yangyue, made her snacks, and said goodbye to her in a shadow was gone.

A hint of dark vengefulness crept into her heart. Song Yin also wanted this person to feel some pain.

So she met that pair of hopeful eyes.

Song Yin lost the staring contest. She looked away and lied again, “Yes.”

Shen Yirong was very happy, “Then I can meet her every day.”

Song Yin felt a wave of collapse. She felt like she had dug a hole for herself, and kept digging it bigger, and was even excitedly burying herself in it.

She finally couldn’t maintain her serious face, “Do you have to meet her every day? Don’t let hobbies interfere with serious matters.”

Stop playing, really, stop playing.

Shen Yirong failed to read Song Yin’s utter despair. She blinked and explained, “I’ll just see her briefly every day. It won’t take long, will it?”

Song Yin looked up, suddenly wondering what she was doing.

Why was she playing such a childish game of pretend?

Does she have to constantly change her voice and act artificially every day?

Song Yin walked much faster. Shen Yirong followed behind at a distance, watching Song Yin’s back with a thoughtful expression.

Soon, they returned to the Fox Palace. After all the commotion, the sky was already dim.

Song Yin had many things on her mind. She was preoccupied while thinking and habitually sat down on the bed.

Song Yin finally remembered the certain fox, but it was too late.