Reborn as a Human Cauldron, But I'm the Top - Chapter 59

Chapter 59: Hi~ What a Coincidence

Because Song Yin gave her a generous amount of spirit stones, Shen Yirong approached her new job with 100% enthusiasm.

So, at the break of dawn, she went to the Council Hall to find Qi Wu.

Qi Wu was even earlier than her because she hadn’t slept at all.

Having pulled countless all-nighters, she looked up from a pile of jade slips. Seeing it was Shen Yirong, she finally put down her work.

The two chatted over tea.

“Is there really no position for a personal female official?”

Qi Wu sighed, holding her teacup. “Mistress, I apologize, I can’t help. But I suspect you don’t need to do anything, you just need to stay by the Revered One’s side.”

Because Song Yin had been too vague, Shen Yirong came to Qi Wu to ask for work details but found nothing.

Qi Wu finally got a rare moment to rest. Looking at Shen Yirong, who was frowning in thought, a sip of spiritual tea significantly eased her fatigue.

Spring had arrived. The snow on the Council Hall melted, and the snowmelt flowed down the roof’s glazed tiles, dripping continuously onto the ground.

Qi Wu listened to the sound, swirling the teacup in her hand. She suddenly let out a long sigh: “The Revered One’s journey has not been easy. Although she can be strict, she is very tolerant of those she cares about. Please don’t be afraid of her, Mistress.”

Shen Yirong understood, of course. In fact, she had offended Song Yin many times, but there was no physical punishment, only deductions of spirit stones.

Compared to Song Yin’s rewards, those deducted spirit stones were too insignificant.

In the days since her rebirth, the thought that crossed her mind most often was to escape: escape the Demon Palace and escape the cage called the Sword Venerable. But she had failed every time.

She gradually grew accustomed to this life—no intense conflict, just steady progress.

This cultivation world was slightly different from the one she knew. It was very peaceful here.

The four mortal realms and the demon domain had few conflicts. Everyone stayed honestly within their own territories. Only the Demon Palace occasionally went to the Great Peace Sect to seize some items.

As her mind wandered, she thought of Song Yin’s heart demon again. Her impression of Song Yin was stuck in those years in the past.

Why did she develop a heart demon? When she was inside Song Yin’s body, she always heard the sound of rain.

Shen Yirong had too little information. Unable to figure it out, she gave up and slumped on the table.

She looked at Qi Wu and suddenly asked curiously, “What was the reason, Protector Qi, for you joining the Demon Palace?”

Unlike the lazy Shen Yirong, Qi Wu was always sitting up straight. She spoke with a hint of nostalgia: “I used to be a farming official in a small kingdom in the Southern Territory, responsible for a county’s water conservation and agricultural work. At that time, the Southern Territory was very chaotic, with endless natural and man-made disasters. The county I was in suffered a flood.”

Qi Wu’s voice was very calm. “Many corpses floated on the water. Neither humans nor beasts were spared. After the water receded, there was famine and plague. The imperial court at the time was at war with a neighboring country and had no time to spare for us. It was the Revered One who saved me when I was sick with the plague.”

“The Revered One said that I was very capable.”

Shen Yirong looked at Qi Wu’s face, happy despite the dark circles under her eyes. Shen Yirong wiped the sweat from her forehead.

She was indeed capable, overly capable. Such a top-tier workhorse was a rare sight.

Things like 996 or 007 were weak here. Because she was a cultivator, this person didn’t need to sleep or eat at all.

Shen Yirong gave an awkward laugh. “What about the other Protectors?”

“Whose story do you want to hear?”

Shen Yirong thought for a moment. “How about the Fourth Protector?”

Shen Yirong still remembered the time the other person came looking for her and set her courtyard on fire without a word of warning.

She needed to understand such a person better.

Qi Wu sighed helplessly. “Zhuo Tan? She was brought back by the second one from Shenruo Peak.”

Hearing a familiar name, Shen Yirong was startled. “Was she also a sacrifice?”

“Yes. The Sword Venerable killed the demonic cultivators who were causing trouble on Shenruo Peak back then, but the villagers were deeply corrupted. The villagers kept the tradition of sacrificing people. Zhuo Tan was unfortunately chosen as the offering.”

Shen Yirong felt a faint pang of sadness in her heart. She asked, “Did the Second Protector save her?”

Qi Wu shook her head. “No. When she was sent up the mountain as a sacrifice, she fled home that night. Her family tricked her into staying, and while she was asleep, they sent her back again.”

“After escaping a second time, she set fire to the entire village, burning it down completely, and almost killed herself in the process. When the second one met her, her mind was already unstable.”

Shen Yirong suddenly didn’t dare to ask anymore. Is there a bunch of little bitter gourds here?

Shen Yirong scratched her head. “It sounds like everyone has had a pretty miserable time.”

The topic seemed too heavy. Qi Wu quickly changed the subject to liven up the atmosphere by talking about someone else.

Qi Wu smiled, relaxed. “That’s not always the case. The third one is different. She comes from a decent cultivating family. She was sent to the Nine Heavens Sect at a young age and became a Saintess candidate. She later defected from the Nine Heavens Sect simply because she couldn’t stand their rules.”

A rebellious young mistress running away from home?

Qi Wu’s smile was very gentle when she spoke about the Protectors. It seemed they had a good relationship.

She was the same at the Great Peace Sect…

The same? The same what? She couldn’t remember.

It felt very familiar, yet she couldn’t recall anything at all.

While Shen Yirong was contemplating life, Song Yin’s words reached her mind.

“Come to the seclusion cave in the Inner Palace’s back mountain.”

Song Yin’s voice interrupted her thoughts. Shen Yirong got up and left. “Protector Qi, let’s chat again next time.”

Qi Wu smiled at her hurried exit. “I never expected things to develop this way. It truly is surprising.”

Qi Wu lamented the strangeness of fate. After her lament, she turned her head and saw the pile of jade slips, and her head began to ache again.

Shen Yirong flew her sword to the back mountain and found the direction under Suyu‘s guidance.

“Suyu is so amazing.”

“Cough, cough. I’m more familiar with this area because I was confined here before. Hmm? There seem to be a lot more things here. It used to be bare.”

The stone walls inside the cave were inlaid with many night-luminescent pearls. Many orchids were placed along the walls, and seed wind chimes hung from them. That wasn’t all; Shen Yirong also saw two short-eared rabbits hopping around the room.

Seeing one of the rabbits leap, about to ruin an orchid, Shen Yirong quickly caught it.

The little rabbit was quite docile. Shen Yirong touched its ears, then grabbed both rabbits and put them in a cage.

This was outside the cave. Song Yin should be inside.

Shen Yirong called out, “Revered One?”

“Mm.”

She refreshed! Song Yin was behind her!

Shen Yirong’s heart had been trained to be strong by frequent scares. She calmly turned around. “Revered One.”

Song Yin suddenly took her hand and walked towards the inner room. The inner room was much smaller: a round table, a square table, and a bed.

Seeing the bed getting closer, Shen Yirong accidentally let her mind wander a bit.

Her heart began to race. When she came back to her senses, she was already sitting on the bed.

Reason finally returned. Surprisingly, Shen Yirong wasn’t particularly resistant. “Isn’t this inappropriate?”

Song Yin’s ears secretly turned red, but her face maintained that serious, cold expression. “Heh, what are you thinking? Meditation. Cultivation.”

Realizing her misunderstanding, Shen Yirong felt deeply ashamed.

So it was for cultivation. She had thought it was something else.

She didn’t dare to delay. She took off her shoes and sat cross-legged on the bed. As soon as she started, she realized the spiritual energy here was even richer than what her spirit gathering array could produce.

To hell with shyness!

She was only a step away from the Nascent Soul Stage. If not now, when?

Shen Yirong cast aside all distracting thoughts and quieted down. The absorption of spiritual energy went exceptionally smoothly. She used spiritual energy to wash her spiritual channels over and over, pressing the absorbed energy into her dantian.

Her Golden Core was suspended in her dantian. Under the washing of spiritual energy, many cracks appeared on the surface of the Golden Core.

Once the Core shattered and transformed into a Soul, she would cross into the Nascent Soul Stage. Shen Yirong proceeded cautiously with every step.

Just as the cracks on the surface of the Golden Core grew larger, and a piece even broke off, Shen Yirong’s head suddenly throbbed at the crucial moment.

Her eyes were closed, but an expression of pain instantly flashed across her face.

Many things flashed back in her mind, accompanied by various noises.

Sensing that the situation was wrong, she quickly stopped. When she opened her eyes, she was still shaken.

Song Yin was sitting beside her, seemingly in meditation.

Cultivation was a serious matter. Shen Yirong didn’t try again. She decided to wait until Song Yin woke up to ask.

But waiting was boring. She had to find something to do.

On the square table to the right, there was only a memorial stone. Many books were stacked under the table. She wanted to grab one to pass the time, but when she walked over, she found it was sealed with a restriction.

Anything restricted by Song Yin must be extremely important. Perhaps it was even the Demon Palace’s confidential secrets.

Curiosity killed the cat. Shen Yirong wisely refrained from proceeding.

Having nothing to do, she cleaned the cave, then went to the outer room to water the flowers and feed the rabbits. After finishing everything, she went back to the inner room to watch Song Yin.

She watched for a long time and finally saw Song Yin’s eyebrows move.

Song Yin naturally felt Shen Yirong’s gaze. She was already struggling with the heart demon, and with Shen Yirong staring at her, she finally couldn’t stand it. She slowly opened her eyes.

Shen Yirong originally wanted to ask some questions, but seeing Song Yin’s poor complexion, she refrained. “Apologies for disturbing your cultivation.”

Song Yin was about to say, “So you know,” but Shen Yirong’s state looked very poor.

Meditation was indeed dull. Song Yin was used to it, but her amnesiac Master might not be.

Song Yin, who was strict with herself, was usually ruthless with others.

She internally sneered: Heh, if you can’t endure this little bit of boredom, why cultivate at all?

Song Yin, who had only meditated for a little while, got off the bed. She looked at Shen Yirong with a serious expression. “Let’s go.”

Shen Yirong was confused. “Where to?”

“Keep this Revered One company for a stroll.”

Song Yin didn’t wait for Shen Yirong and walked out of the cave. Afraid of losing her, Shen Yirong quickly followed.

Stepping onto Song Yin’s flying sword again, Shen Yirong felt a bit dazed. She could clearly fly her own sword, but seeing Song Yin take off, she somehow ended up on Song Yin’s sword.

But since Song Yin hadn’t said anything, Shen Yirong stopped worrying. However, this “stroll” seemed to be going quite far.

Shen Yirong finally couldn’t hold back. She asked, “Where are we going?”

Song Yin looked straight ahead, her voice completely even. “The Western Territory.”

A stroll that led all the way to someone else’s territory. Truly worthy of the Demon Venerable.

Shen Yirong remembered the pile of spirit stones in her spiritual ring. If they were going to the Western Territory, she wanted to check out the Azure Peak Secret Realm. She wondered if the market inside the secret realm was open.

Shen Yirong couldn’t help but ask a couple more questions. “Is the Revered One going to the Western Territory just for a stroll?”

“To capture someone.”

Shen Yirong reached out and scooped up the clouds at the edge of the sky. “What kind of person requires the Revered One to personally make a move?”

After saying it, she felt like a spy asking for confidential information. Shen Yirong immediately explained, “Revered One, I apologize. I spoke too much.”

Song Yin turned back to look at her. “Don’t keep apologizing. This Revered One does not like it.”

Shen Yirong said very sincerely, “Apologies, I will pay attention to that from now on.”

She was still apologizing.

Song Yin felt that the other party must be saying this deliberately to annoy her.

She gave a cold humph, but joy uncontrollably surged in her heart. Master is actually willing to spend effort annoying her. That’s great.

Song Yin keenly sensed this inappropriate thought. After struggling for a moment, she decided to teach Shen Yirong a lesson.

So she took Shen Yirong to a highly-rated eatery in the Western Territory, planning to use gourmet food to stuff the other party to death.

Song Yin reserved the best private room. From here, one could see the distant mountains. It was a bit late now; the mountains were most beautiful in the morning when shrouded in mist.

She secretly watched Shen Yirong. Seeing the other person looking at the scenery but without much of a smile.

Shen Yirong liked looking at scenery—she did in the modern world, and she did when she disguised herself as the Sword Venerable. Her mood, disturbed by the memory fragments, had improved slightly, but not enough to make her wholeheartedly happy.

Song Yin looked at her and suddenly said, “The Azure Peak Secret Realm is about to open. There will be some items needed for cultivation inside.”

This was exactly what she wanted. Shen Yirong’s mood brightened a few more points.

She politely asked Song Yin, “Does the Revered One need anything?”

Song Yin’s tone was dismissive. “This secret realm only has old items. This Revered One has no need for them.”

What a powerful statement. But it was true. Song Yin didn’t need to consider the cost of anything she wanted.

Shen Yirong wasn’t short on spirit stones now either, but the word “discount” still held great appeal for her.

Soon after, the dishes were all served.

The Western Territory’s cuisine was light-flavored. Shen Yirong tasted a few bites and set the food down, though she did eat a few more bites of a dessert that looked like a cloud.

Song Yin glanced at the dessert.

This was a grand gathering that took place once every ten years. The people walking on the streets were not just Nine Heavens Sect disciples.

There were also quite a few people from the Great Peace Sect and the Medical Immortal Valley.

Shen Yirong’s gaze lingered slightly on the Great Peace Sect people. She hadn’t contacted Sect Master Liu and the others and wondered how they were doing now.

She felt a particularly strong longing for the Great Peace Sect today, but that longing had nothing to do with the memories currently in her mind.

It seemed she missed more than just Sect Master Liu and Mei Xin; there seemed to be many others.

Looking for too long made her feel melancholy. Shen Yirong turned her head to make small talk. “Is the person the Revered One wants to catch hiding here?”

“Mm.”

Song Yin definitely had someone to catch. After discovering that the crucial memory in the mirror was inaccessible, she went to find Shen Shuci again.

But the person had escaped from prison, a first for the Demon Palace.

Not only that, the person had brazenly left the words “Shen Shuci was here” on the dungeon wall.

Song Yin was almost angered into a heart demon relapse, but this fellow was extremely good at running away, leaving no trace behind.

However, she brought Master to the Western Territory simply to cheer her up.

The sounds below suddenly grew noisy. The secret realm had opened, and a group of cultivators surged in, trying to claim a good spot.

Both Shen Yirong and Song Yin wore glamours on their faces and completely concealed their aura.

If they hadn’t, the cultivators in this area would flee instantly because of Song Yin.

The secret realm was bustling. Shen Yirong’s mood brightened further hearing the noise of the crowd.

This cultivators’ flea market was much better than the demon market Shen Yirong had visited. She went from one stall to another.

While shopping, she found everything she picked for herself too expensive. But she bought collars and toys for Bu Hei and Xiao Bai without batting an eye.

Shen Yirong stopped at a stall selling medicinal pills. The owner wore plain linen clothes and had a cyan gourd hanging from her waist, clearly a person from the Medical Immortal Valley.

Even when a customer arrived, she didn’t greet them, a sharp contrast to the bustle of other stalls.

The efficacy of each pill was written beneath the bottle. Shen Yirong immediately spotted the Jade Renewal Pill, which could regrow severed limbs.

She pointed to the pill and asked, “Boss, how many spirit stones for this?”

The aloof owner finally moved. She picked up the pill with her left hand and tossed it to Shen Yirong. “It’s a gift.”

Shen Yirong quickly caught the medicine bottle. Before she could say thank you, she saw the empty right sleeve of the owner.

After thinking for a long time, Shen Yirong still said, “Thank you.”

But from then on, the scene became very strange. Although not every stall owner gave her things for free, encountering five in a row was very odd.

Nine Heavens Sect disciple: “Immortal, this flute is a gift for you.”

Beast Taming Sect disciple: “Ah? This collar is damaged. Take it.”

Medical Immortal Valley disciple: “I see a connection with you. This sword is yours.”

Great Peace Sect disciple: “You are the eleventh customer today. This sword tassel is a gift for you.”

Something is wrong! The previous people were somewhat understandable, but the Great Peace Sect disciples would never make a loss-making trade like this!

And she couldn’t find any joy in bargaining anymore!

Song Yin had been silent all along. She only made a move after seeing Shen Yirong change from happy to unhappy.

The Demon Palace did place spies in various Immortal Sects, but she hadn’t expected to run into so many in this Azure Peak Secret Realm today.

Song Yin’s face turned cold as she scolded telepathically: “Act normally. Sell as you normally would.”

The faces of those who had given gifts and those who were about to give gifts changed drastically.

“Yes, Revered One!”

Shen Yirong finally stopped encountering overly enthusiastic owners. She let out a sigh of relief and happily sorted her spoils.

Song Yin saw her buy many things and stuff them into her spatial bag. After being silent the whole way, she finally couldn’t help but ask, “Some of these things you don’t seem to need.”

Shen Yirong, satisfied with her shopping spree, excitedly introduced her haul. “This Jade Renewal Pill is for Elder Ren. She has a severed arm. Hiss, though this might be fake medicine.”

“This magic robe is for Sister Huang Li. The clothes the Demon Palace gives out to the cauldrons are only those few types. It’s time to change up the style.”

“I remember Protector Li has an interest in wood carving. This piece of wood is quite good.”

“This pillow has a calming and refreshing effect. It’s perfect for Protector Qi.”

“And this, a set of sword manuals. Little Song will probably like it.”

Shen Yirong rattled on, listing every item as carefully selected for someone else. She even considered gifts for the Protectors she barely knew.

Song Yin endured for a long time, but when she heard “Little Song,” her composure broke. “Did you forget something?”

Shen Yirong froze. She thought hard and her eyes suddenly lit up. “I remember! The dog food seems to be running low.”

Shen Yirong excitedly scurried back to the Beast Taming Sect disciple’s stall. After buying the dog food, she trotted back to Song Yin.

Whether it was Shen Yirong’s imagination or not, Song Yin’s face looked very grim.

Did she find the person she wanted to catch?

Shen Yirong vigilantly looked around, but didn’t find any suspicious characters.

Suddenly, her shoulder was tightly gripped by Song Yin. Song Yin, in front of her, sneered. “No, that’s not what you forgot. Think again.”

Shen Yirong was being held in a vice grip. Although her shoulder didn’t hurt, Song Yin’s cold sneer was a bit scary.

What did I forget? She had bought something for everyone! She even bought things for Sect Master Liu and Senior Sister Mei.

Wait. Could it be?

Shen Yirong broke out in a cold sweat. But Song Yin looked down on the items here, didn’t she?

Her peripheral vision fell on a jewelry stall. She immediately saw a hair tie on the stall.

That item suited Song Yin quite well. She immediately said, “I didn’t forget, Revered One. I just hadn’t seen a suitable gift yet.”

The force on her shoulder slowly disappeared.

But Shen Yirong was shocked. It was exactly as she had guessed. Song Yin wanted a gift from her.

She dared not delay. She immediately bought the hair tie and handed it to Song Yin, skipping even her favorite bargaining ritual. “I think this hair tie suits the Revered One very well. Do you like it, Revered One?”

Shen Yirong made her decision so quickly that Song Yin felt it was somewhat perfunctory. She internally snorted.

But on second thought, Master had only ever given her one demon core, and she had lost that one.

She reached out and took it, then removed the hair tie on her head and held it in her mouth. After tying on the new hair tie, she looked at the stunned Shen Yirong and smiled.

She wrapped the old hair tie around her wrist and asked, “Does it look good?”

Shen Yirong recovered. “It looks great. The Revered One looks good no matter what.”

Song Yin’s smile became even gentler. “Hmph, of course.”

Shen Yirong was almost mesmerized by the smile. She suddenly lost interest in shopping, constantly shifting her attention to look at Song Yin’s face as she shopped.

Shen Yirong wandered distractedly, tossing aside all thoughts of past memories.

“Two Immortals, would you like your fortune told?”

Shen Yirong was stopped by someone pulling her sleeve. She looked down and saw a heavily shrouded cultivator sitting on the ground.

A cloth was spread out in front of him, covered with things for divination: a turtle, copper coins, fortune sticks, and more.

Hmm? Why are there cards too?

Shen Yirong was attracted. She squatted down and flipped over the first card. The bottom of the card read “THE FOOL.”

Tarot cards?

How are there Tarot cards in the cultivation world?

Shen Yirong suspected she had transmigrated again. She turned to look. Song Yin was still there.

So, she hadn’t transmigrated. Had she run into a fellow countryman?

Shen Yirong almost blurted out the question, but with Song Yin beside her, she didn’t dare to be too reckless. Otherwise, she would definitely try a secret code.

Shen Yirong, who had been disinterested, instantly became more enthusiastic than the stall owner. She grabbed the cultivator’s hand. “Master, I’ve been a little lost lately. Can you tell me about my future?”

Shen Yirong grabbed exactly where Shen Shuci’s injury was. Although she could normally block pain, she had paid a heavy price to escape the Demon Palace, and that blocking function wasn’t working.

Who is this person? Why are they gripping so tightly?

Following the principle that the customer is supreme, Shen Shuci tried her best to keep her voice from shaking. “Immortal, what would you like to divine? Wealth? Marriage? Health?”

Shen Yirong shook her head. “The moment I saw you, I felt a connection. I want to divine the fate of our future connection.”

Shen Shuci subtly withdrew her hand and silently moved back.

There are so many perverts in the cultivation world. She’s wrapped up like a mummy, yet she still runs into a hooligan.

Why is it so cold?

Shen Shuci looked up and saw that the person next to this pervert was shooting daggers at her.

Jealousy? Interesting.

Shen Shuci felt it was alright to earn some money from these two. However, she didn’t know anything about fortune-telling, Feng Shui, or Tarot and constellations.

She only knew how to use divination to trick the Heavenly Dao’s instructions.

Shen Shuci recited a few spells feigning seriousness, then reached her hand towards the turtle’s shell. “Alright, Immortal, touch the turtle’s back just as I did, and you will learn the fate of your future connection with me.”

Shen Yirong honestly touched it, and her fingertip felt a burning heat.

After retracting her hand, she saw the turtle spinning. She watched in surprise, and then the turtle stopped.

Shen Shuci: “Wait a moment. The turtle will give the answer.”

Shen Yirong was a little nervous. This person seemed to have some genuine skill. The result of the divination might be something like “fellow countryman.”

If they were from the same place, the other party should understand immediately, and Song Yin wouldn’t figure it out.

Golden script slowly began to appear on the turtle’s back.

Shen Yirong suddenly felt uneasy. The script didn’t look like “fellow countryman.”

Under the gaze of three pairs of eyes, the characters finally formed.

“Mother and Daughter”

Who is the mother, and who is the daughter?

Shen Yirong remembered her mother wouldn’t know such trendy things.

Shen Yirong’s intelligence was temporarily offline.

Shen Shuci also thought it was ridiculous. She felt more and more that the Heavenly Dao must be retaliating against her for tricking the divination results.

She awkwardly reached out. “My spiritual energy is insufficient today. Just give me a hard work fee.”

Suddenly, a bag of spirit stones landed next to the turtle.

Song Yin looked at Shen Shuci and smiled. “I think it’s correct. Why don’t you divine my name? If it’s correct, it proves that the previous divination was not wrong.”

Shen Shuci felt uneasy, but she needed spirit stones to be able to run away.

“Alright.”

After a sequence of feigned operations, script began to appear on the turtle’s back again.

Shen Shuci took one look and was almost scared into shutting down.

Song Yin.

Song Yin looked at the suddenly silent Shen Shuci and smiled. “Hi, what a coincidence.”