Reborn as a Human Cauldron, But I'm the Top - Chapter 54

Chapter 54: Came Back to Life

Shen Yirong gave an awkward smile, “My arms are a bit sore.”

Song Yin’s face, which had been concerned, instantly changed. She flicked her sleeve and left the room.

Shen Yirong was distraught. She stretched out her hand and yelled, “Revered One!”

Shen Yirong was not lying. Her arms really were a bit sore. She didn’t know what caused it.

Perhaps Song Yin had used her arm as a pillow while she was asleep?

With Song Yin gone, the room felt much more comfortable with only her inside.

Thunder rumbled outside again. The half-open window rattled loudly in the wind, and raindrops were blown in.

Memories were clearest when one was alone. Shen Yirong suddenly covered her face, but while she shielded her face, she couldn’t hide her bright red ears.

“Master.”

She was hallucinating again.

Perhaps for the sake of appearances, Song Yin disliked shouting. Occasionally, a few broken moans would escape, but the only words that formed were “Master.”

Shen Yirong couldn’t tell if she had misheard, or if Song Yin had called out incorrectly due to her confused consciousness.

“Master, what are you thinking about? You look like you’re about to catch fire.”

Shen Yirong startled awake, “Nothing.”

Su Yu also understood what was happening. She couldn’t help but laugh, “It seems Master enjoys it very much.”

“Clap!”

Her palms came together with a crisp sound. Su Yu was flattened like a swatted mosquito by Shen Yirong.

Her entire face was impossibly red. With a stern expression like a respectable person, she explained, “What do you take me for?”

Su Yu, who had become a blue paper cutout, inflated back with a “pop.” While adjusting her shape, she said exasperatedly, “It’s normal to have some desires. Tai’an Sect isn’t a nunnery. The number of people who come to Tai’an just to settle love debts could build another sect right here.”

Su Yu suddenly paused. She thought carefully, “It seems there really is such an organization. You even gave them a name.”

Hearing about the Sword Venerable, Shen Yirong was no longer confused or afraid. Instead, she asked with curiosity, “What was it called?”

Su Yu tried hard to recall those strange names, nearly splitting in two from the effort. “Hiss, what was it called?”

“The Debt Collection Alliance? The Wrath of Bad Romance? Love for Sale?”

Why were these names so modern? When she heard the last name, Shen Yirong almost started singing.

She felt a sharp pain in her head and couldn’t help but ask, “What was that last name about?”

The spiritual ring was on Song Yin, so Su Yu couldn’t return to her true form. She had to lie on Shen Yirong’s shoulder as if it were a bed. “Because Tai’an Sect would take on private tasks outside of sect missions for spiritual stones, such as escorting a cultivator to a certain place, or accompanying them in a secret realm. Tai’an disciples, after receiving the spiritual stones, were highly professional, prioritizing the employer’s needs in every aspect, including their psychological needs.”

“It started as a simple transaction, but it would always uncontrollably turn into a business mixed with love, so it was named that.”

“I remember Master, you often said, ‘The biggest taboo in our line of work is falling in love with a client.'”

Shen Yirong’s mouth twitched. She was now certain that the original owner was also a modern person.

The system said that if the mission wasn’t completed, the world would reset to the time of her arrival. Could it be that these missions were phased, and there were other transmigrators completing other missions before she took over?

This previous transmigrator seemed quite interesting.

Shen Yirong was rather envious. She could piece together what kind of person that was from the words of these people, and she also pieced together the life of the Sword Venerable. It sounded quite thrilling.

If the other party’s reward was also switching bodies, could they meet?

Shen Yirong felt they would have a lot to talk about.

Her spiritual energy suddenly became restless. She hadn’t noticed it before. After calming it, Shen Yirong realized she was close to reaching the Nascent Soul stage.

This advancement speed was too fast. Shen Yirong looked at her palm. She performed a Wind Drawing spell as usual.

The gentle wind kindly sent the rain that had blown into the house back outside.

Shen Yirong smiled, but the small sword in her sea of consciousness suddenly lit up, and then Shen Yirong’s eyes slowly widened.

With a whoosh, a gust of violent wind suddenly raged. The window shook weakly twice and then was blown into the sky by the wind. The few cherry trees were also pulled up by the wind and danced wantonly in the air.

Tiles shattered on the ground with a clatter, and some were swept away by the gale. Shen Yirong looked up and saw that the palace roof had been opened up by the wind.

“Stop! Stop!”

The wild wind was at a rebellious age. It didn’t listen to its master at all. Instead, it spun rapidly and took the form of a tornado.

Song Yin, who was walking outside, frowned. She had already left the Fox Palace. Looking back, she saw a sudden tornado, much like the one on Mount Qingjing, appearing abruptly in the Fox Palace.

Song Yin’s eyes darkened.

She extended her spiritual sense to check on Shen Yirong’s condition. Seeing that Shen Yirong was safe and sound, she began to search for Qing Li’s whereabouts again.

The person didn’t hide this time. She was right at the top of Jiang Xue Peak. Qing Li was sleeping under a tree, and the sword spirit of the Jiang Xue Sword was floating beside her, watching.

The sword spirit seemed to feel Song Yin’s prying. She turned her head and met Song Yin’s gaze from a distance, then chuckled softly, “Demon Lord.”

Song Yin withdrew her spiritual sense. She felt that her inner demon was much better. Perhaps she should thank Qing Li.

But that was a separate matter.

Closing her eyes, Song Yin’s body slowly disappeared from where she stood. In an instant, she appeared next to Jiang Xue. However, she didn’t pay attention to Jiang Xue, but rather kicked the sleeping Qing Li.

Qing Li rolled over in her sleep and was immediately flung out. She woke up and quickly clutched the edge of the cliff.

Climbing back up was not difficult for her, but as soon as she moved, she realized that all her vitality was locked down. Song Yin was standing on the cliff edge, looking down at her.

Qing Li didn’t dare to move. She knew the other party was here to settle the score. After a night of thinking, she had calmed down a lot, although she was still afraid when Song Yin stared at her.

She forced a sad smile, “Is Revered One here to take my life?”

Song Yin also smiled, but it was a chilling smile. “You are very clever. I was tricked by you twice.”

If Song Yin wasn’t right in front of her, Qing Li would certainly publicize this fact. But if she became a dead fox, she wouldn’t be able to speak.

Despite her inner extreme distaste, Qing Li forced a smile onto her face. “This is due to the Revered One’s generosity, not holding it against a fox like me.”

Song Yin felt a burst of anger looking at the cheeky fox. Although she could accept the outcome of the matter, she couldn’t swallow being calculated against.

Shen Yirong had planted a curse on the other party, and now that the body had been switched back, Song Yin could use this curse.

After the former Demon King was killed, no new Demon King had appeared in this land. There were too many kings within the Demon Realm; killing one wouldn’t cause any trouble.

Heh, even killing all of them wouldn’t cause any trouble.

The heavy murderous intent caused Qing Li’s tail to curl up. Song Yin’s face slowly shifted in front of her, turning into the face of a white fox demon.

Even though it was raining, Qing Li felt a scorching heat beneath her feet. She heard the crackling of firewood being licked by flames, the continuous swallowing sounds all around her, her Grandmother pleading for her, and the gurgling sound of rolling water.

She even smelled roasting meat.

It turned out her tail was rolling in the pot. She had become food again.

Qing Li began to struggle. Just that motion broke her free from Song Yin’s lock, and she plummeted downwards.

She forgot how strong she was now. She just curled into a ball, protecting her head.

The mountain peak was high, and she couldn’t reach the ground immediately. She cried out aggrievedly, “Sword Venerable…”

She was gently lifted by the mountain wind, slowly descending to the ground.

Jiang Xue lowered her outstretched right hand. Seeing Song Yin looking at her, she only said, “I hope Revered One will spare her for Master’s sake.”

Song Yin looked at the fox demon at the foot of the cliff. She was wearing a black cloak. Her red fox ears were drooped, not moving or running, but tightly hugging her tail, looking utterly terrified.

The Demon Lord was not so kind-hearted. The reason she let go just now was that she was currently very weak and couldn’t trap the other person.

But the other person reacted like this before she even started her methods. Song Yin seriously suspected that this was a deliberate attempt to provoke pity.

Song Yin lowered her eyes, remaining silent, but the anger in her heart had significantly subsided. She gave the fox demon a cold glance. Seeing the fox curled up in a terrified ball, Song Yin suddenly lost the interest to provoke her.

She lifted her foot, ready to leave.

“Revered One, wait.”

Song Yin turned back to look at Jiang Xue. Compared to that fox, Song Yin still disliked this sword spirit with a fake smile more. She sneered, “You clearly hate me so much, why bother forcing a smile?”

Jiang Xue’s smile gradually disappeared. She also looked at Song Yin coldly, but compared to their first meeting, this was already considered friendly.

“Is Revered One taking her back to the Demon Palace? In what capacity? A cultivation vessel?”

“I don’t need to explain to you. She has nothing to do with you.”

Jiang Xue’s voice was also cold, “Regardless, if she is not happy with you, I will find a way to hide her. The Jiang Xue Sword always keeps its word.”

The mountain peak underfoot suddenly vibrated. The scenery within her line of sight began to rise.

The soil and trees on the peak began to fall downwards. After the outer layer fell off, a long sword wrapped in red rust appeared. The rust slowly fell off, revealing a silver-gray sword body.

Where they stood became the bottom of the sword hilt.

The mountain peak was Jiang Xue’s true form. The sword body was ancient and simple. She was the Sword Venerable’s first sword, accompanying the Sword Venerable through countless years before voluntarily sealing the Demon King here.

It was precisely because Song Yin knew this that she became angry.

It was always like this. Humans, demons, and even soulless things like sword spirits—they were all attracted to Shen Yirong.

Heh.

Red light churned in Song Yin’s eyes. She flew up high, looking down at the Jiang Xue Sword. “You can try. I will definitely kill you.”

Under the powerful pressure, the true body of the Jiang Xue Sword slowly began to descend, as if being forcibly pressed into a scabbard.

With a loud rumble, the mountain peak returned to its original height.

Song Yin sneered at the grim-faced Jiang Xue and then turned to walk back.

The rain soaked her clothes. Flying was already difficult. She didn’t have the spare spiritual energy to block the wind and rain. A feeling of weakness surged from the depths of her soul.

Song Yin flew lower and lower, finally landing on a field ridge.

She groaned softly, then slowly adjusted her expression. To outsiders, she was still the arrogant Demon Lord.

The land visited by rain was very slippery. A slight carelessness would result in a shameful slide.

Mud stuck to her shoes, growing heavier and heavier.

Song Yin hadn’t experienced this for a long time. She had felt it when she lost all her family. At that time, following behind Shen Yirong, she was always ambushed by the damp mud, slipping forward. If she wasn’t careful, she would bump into the other person’s back.

There were also times she lost her balance and was about to fall, only to be held up by a gentle breeze.

At that time, she thought, This cold-faced, nameless strange woman is quite gentle.

Lost in thought, she suddenly slipped forward, losing her balance just like in her memory. A gust of wind pulled her back.

Her eyes changed. Her mouth was about to curve upwards, but she saw not Shen Yirong but a fox demon that hadn’t fully transformed yet.

Actually, these red foxes all looked similar, but Song Yin instantly recognized this fox as the one who said goodbye to Shen Yirong yesterday.

Her face grew colder. “What are you doing?”

The little fox, who was originally smiling and wagging her tail, wrinkled her brow in grievance. “Is Revered One unhappy?”

The little fox didn’t understand the soul-switching technique. She held up something in her arms. “I saw Revered One from far away. I specifically asked my mother for some grape wine for Revered One to try. Revered One’s mood will get better after tasting it.”

Song Yin hadn’t seen any good wine, but this grape wine was ordinary wine, worse than the lowest-quality wine in the cultivation world.

She was somewhat disdainful, but the little fox’s eyes were too pure. She paused and accepted the wine.

The little fox happily wagged her tail. “Did Revered One come here for the Fox Clan?”

The wine jar had a rope braided from straw tied around it, with a handle on top. Song Yin carried the wine pot handle with two fingers, a slight, unnoticeable disgust on her face.

She didn’t use magic to ward off the rain. Her hair quickly became soaked, sticking to her fair skin.

The little fox looked at her, then jumped down the slope. There was a banana grove below. She darted up a tree and bit off a leaf.

After nimbly returning to Song Yin’s side, she placed the leaf at Song Yin’s feet, then shook the water off her body.

Seeing that Song Yin ignored her, she stretched out a paw and pushed the banana leaf forward.

Song Yin looked at the emerald green banana leaf, and then at the red fox crouching nearby, looking no different from a dog.

She pursed her lips and put the grape wine into her spatial ring. After conjuring a shield to block the rain above them, she used the banana leaf as a cushion and sat down.

Seeing her sit down, the fox tentatively tried to lie on Song Yin’s lap, but as soon as she moved, she was grabbed by the scruff of her neck.

Looking at Song Yin’s icy cold face, the little fox was confused. She felt that Song Yin today was not very happy. The fox struggled futilely twice, then resigned herself.

“Did the Queen not agree to your request?”

Song Yin: “Hmm?”

“Mother said you wanted to use the Fox Clan as a base to attack the Demon Realm.”

Song Yin frowned. She didn’t understand what these foxes thought about all day. Why attack such a poor place? To watch animal shows?

The little fox only thought she had guessed correctly. She couldn’t help but plead for Qing Li, “Without the Queen, we wouldn’t have such good days. Can Revered One spare her?”

Song Yin’s anger had subsided. She didn’t want to go back and face Shen Yirong now. She felt somewhat uncomfortable.

Song Yin released her hand, and the little fox dropped down. She rubbed against Song Yin’s hand.

Song Yin wiped her hand away disdainfully.

The little fox said very hurtfully, “But you liked this very much yesterday.”

Song Yin paused in wiping her hand. Seeing the fox about to turn away in sadness, she picked the fox up and placed her on her lap, saying gently, “I seem to have forgotten. What else did I like yesterday? Show me again.”

The small demons in the Fox Palace were constantly busy.

Shen Yirong watched them come and go in front of her, feeling guilty. She wanted to help carry the wood, but a small fox politely refused with a raised paw.

The little fox was very serious: “The Queen instructed that you are an honored guest. Please return to your room and rest.”

Her room had been blown away.

Shen Yirong couldn’t help but sigh. Song Yin hadn’t returned since she left this morning.

In this unfamiliar place, Shen Yirong didn’t know anyone. She wandered aimlessly through the palace.

Many trees were planted in the Fox Palace, and fox bones hung from every tree. The bones rattled when the wind blew. Shen Yirong shuddered, but in broad daylight, she wasn’t terribly afraid.

She watched for a while, then continued walking forward.

At the end of the long corridor, there was an open room. Shen Yirong looked inside out of curiosity. A loom was placed there, and further inside were several spirit tablets.

Two white lanterns hanging outside the door swung back and forth. There were also ashes from burned paper money in front of the loom, and many spent white candles.

Although it was a scene that easily triggered certain associations, Shen Yirong couldn’t feel fear. Instead, she felt a sense of familiarity.

As if she had seen it somewhere before.

The threads on the loom had been removed. Shen Yirong stroked it.

Looking to the right, a small table was placed there. Two teacups were on the table. The tea had been neglected for a long time, and the tea leaves at the bottom were fully unfurled, completely blocking the bottom of the cup.

Shen Yirong sat in the seat near the door. A withered bamboo staff was leaning near the spirit tablets.

A quick thought made her realize this was likely the former residence of Qing Li’s Grandmother.

This was the main hall. In the direction Shen Yirong was facing, there was another door leading to the inner chambers.

The window of the inner chamber was tightly closed. Shen Yirong opened the window, and the room instantly brightened.

What greeted her eyes was a red wooden wardrobe. Against the right wall was a small wooden bed of the same material. The bedding was neatly folded. Turning around, a sword was hanging on the wall by the door.

It was a very ordinary sword, but the tassel at the hilt was unusual. The blue tassel had a white jade bead, and the bead had cracks.

A Tai’an sword tassel.

Shen Yirong took down the sword from the wall and drew it. This sword was unsharpened.

A few more voices floated in her mind.

“This sword is for you. A Tai’an sword brings you good luck and fulfillment of your wishes.”

“…The feud between the White and Red clans has lasted too long. I cannot have my wishes fulfilled. Why? I am a demon.”

“Then I am a human, and Elder Sister hasn’t hurt me, has she?”

Shen Yirong clutched her head. These voices always came with a slight sharp pain. Perhaps because this memory was too distant, the voices sounded somewhat distorted.

“Master?”

Su Yu looked worriedly at Shen Yirong. “Did you remember something?”

Shen Yirong shook her head. “Do you know anything?”

Su Yu denied it. “I don’t know. When I followed you, you were already the Sword Venerable. I never saw her.”

“Oh.”

Shen Yirong didn’t think much of it. Overthinking would lead to unnecessary distress. If she developed inner demons, she could take the same medicine as Song Yin and stay in the same hospital room.

They could also exchange notes on their illnesses, seeing what kind of hallucinations and auditory delusions each experienced.

Isn’t that the perfect recipe for a mental breakdown?

Once Shen Yirong’s inner theater opened, it couldn’t be shut down.

“Master, can you help Qing Li?”

Huh?

Shen Yirong genuinely felt like the sun rose from the west. The thing this fellow usually did most was yell “Master, Master” in her ear.

Now, she was actually pleading for someone?

Shen Yirong instantly forgot the previous miserable experience. She grabbed the rapidly flying blue light spot with interest. “What? Did she put some kind of enchantment on you?”

Su Yu sat in Shen Yirong’s palm. “She didn’t put a spell on me. She put a spell on Song Yin.”

Shen Yirong’s smiling face instantly cracked. “Huh?”

Su Yu wanted to gesture, but realized she didn’t have hands in this form, so she anxiously bounced twice. “She put that medicine in!”

Shen Yirong’s face instantly darkened to the color of a cooking pot. “Why would she do that?”

Song Yin hated being calculated against the most. Qing Li doing this brought no benefit and carried the risk of being killed by Song Yin.

Su Yu couldn’t say. After all, Jiang Xue had told her to keep it a secret, so she fell silent.

No matter how Shen Yirong poked her, the hateful sword spirit wouldn’t talk.

She always leaves people hanging mid-sentence.

There was nothing else to see here. Shen Yirong turned to leave, but something under the pillow seemed to be glowing. Shen Yirong beckoned, and the object flew over.

It was a cyan jade token. The character “Rong” was carved onto the token, and it was carved crookedly, completely wasting the good material.

It belonged to the deceased after all. Shen Yirong’s low standards hadn’t reached this level. She stuffed the jade token back. As she turned around, she heard a “whoosh,” and the jade token was hanging on her waist again.

Shen Yirong’s scalp tingled. She didn’t dare to touch it with her hand. She used a spell to send the jade token back again and took off running.

She ran back to the temporary palace like the wind.

The drafty residence dried her cold sweat. She couldn’t help but mutter, “This is insane.”

But when she looked down, she found the jade token still hanging on her waist.

Before Shen Yirong could let out a sharp, panicked scream, Su Yu came to life.

“Master, this was originally yours, and you are a cultivator.”

Su Yu’s latter half of the sentence carried a hint of disdain. Shen Yirong’s pale face slowly turned red. She coughed twice and argued, “I was testing you, seeing if you would protect me when I was in danger.”

Shen Yirong shook her head, “Alas, you have disappointed me greatly.”

Su Yu was confused, “Is that so?”

Shen Yirong only sighed.

Afraid that Su Yu would realize, she quickly asked, “What is this thing used for?”

Su Yu also harbored many secrets. She explained weakly, “If you encounter an unsolvable problem, you can crush this jade token to summon you.”

Why does this feel like a trap?

Shen Yirong struggled for a while. “How many people have this thing?”

“A lot.”

Shen Yirong’s cold sweat ran down her face. “Can you be more specific?”

Su Yu thought for a moment, “Probably more than the cultivation vessels in the Demon Palace.”

Huh?

Shen Yirong had the fortune to look at Qi Wu’s case files, which listed the exact number of cultivation vessels in the palace: 14,632.

Ah?

Su Yu said in a muffled voice, “This is just a rough estimate from when I followed you. You might have even given out more before that.”

Hmm?

She painfully thumped the ground. She had criticized Song Yin for keeping a harem, but now it seemed the original owner was like the “Player” she most looked down upon.

She hoped the people who received the favor were normal. If they were all like You Yuning and Qing Li, this love battlefield would be too terrifying.

It’s best not to be involved in this matter.

But the jade token kept following her, which meant she had to bear this debt.

Unfair! She wants to file a complaint!

Seeing her like this, Su Yu comforted her, “Don’t worry, Master. You’ve been dead for over four hundred years. Those people don’t know you’re back. It’s useless now.”

Shen Yirong finally relaxed upon hearing this.

However, the jade token at her waist felt warm, and she heard a faint “ling ling ling” sound.

Shen Yirong took it off to look. The jade token seemed to have become more lustrous, and the color was deeper. The originally clear color was gradually intensifying to black.

Shen Yirong flipped it over and over. “What does this mean?”

Su Yu wasn’t sure either, but a few small red characters gradually emerged on the back of the jade token.

Shen Yirong leaned closer to read.

Activating, please wait…