The Demon Lord Is Carrying My Child - Chapter 28

By the time they reached West Mountain, ten days had already passed.

West Mountain was unlike that nameless mountain; it was covered everywhere in lush trees and flowers, resembling a hidden paradise forgotten by the world.

Trees grew here wantonly, and animals ran about with abandon.

Being immersed in such scenery, one’s mind and spirit would naturally become relaxed and happy.

It was not without reason that so many experts chose to live here in seclusion.

An impression suddenly surfaced in Ji Shutao’s mind: people in seclusion loved to farm, so wouldn’t everyone have to divide up a piece of land?

Cabbages planted in this spot, peach blossoms in that spot, and medicinal herbs in yet another it was just a pity that these weren’t displayed before people. Otherwise, Ji Shutao would be able to see the grand spectacle in her mind.

It was quite interesting the joy of returning to the rural fields. She hoped that in the future, she could also bring Zhuang Yi here to claim a piece of land, plant some things they liked, and stay far away from the troubles of the secular world.

As Ji Shutao walked while thinking this way, an old man suddenly appeared in front of her.

The old man had white hair and deep wrinkles on his face, but he looked full of spirit; even his eyes, which should have been cloudy, were clear.

The old man spoke first before Ji Shutao could, asking, “May I ask, young lady, are you here to find the Divine Physician Liu?”

Ji Shutao thought to herself, Do I really look that sick?

“Oh? Could it be you aren’t?” The old man stroked his beard twice. “Are you here to have your fortune read?”

Seeing that Ji Shutao still gave no reaction, the old man listed everything available on this mountain matters of marriage, farming, reading ancient texts things unheard of.

Fearing he would say even more ridiculous things, Ji Shutao hurriedly replied, “Old gentleman, I am looking for Divine Physician Liu.”

The old man didn’t feel at all that he had been busy for nothing just now; he clapped his hands happily. “Isn’t this a perfect timing? I am Liu Wushuang.”

Rumor had it that Liu Wushuang was the number one divine physician with an eccentric personality who only treated those he was predestined to meet. She hadn’t heard anyone say he went out of his way to find patients.

Ji Shutao became wary and looked at the old man suspiciously. “How can you prove it?”

“Prove it?” The old man was momentarily dazed, then burst into loud laughter. “You are the first person to ask me for proof.”

The old man looked at Ji Shutao unhurriedly. “The young lady’s complexion is rosy; you shouldn’t be a dying person. You are upright, so I don’t think you are seeking immortality. In that case, are you troubled by something?”

To Ji Shutao, it sounded a lot like fortune-telling.

“You old thing, you’ve stolen skills and brought them to my doorstep! Hurry up and bring the guests up.”

A grumpy voice echoed from the void a female voice that was aged but very loud.

Liu Wushuang covered his ears and smiled apologetically at Ji Shutao. “My wife is noisy. This way, please.”

Zhuang Yi and Qian Feng had been standing behind them. They originally thought this trip would be extremely difficult, but they hadn’t expected it to be so easy even they were allowed to enter.

The three followed Liu Wushuang to a waterfall. That waterfall truly felt like “the flying stream plunges three thousand feet, as if the Silver River has fallen from the ninth heaven.”

The most mysterious part was that when the sunlight hit the churning mist, it actually transformed into a rainbow, making one feel as if they were no longer in the mortal realm.

Experts living in seclusion here had their own barriers. It was useless to force one’s way through; one could only be led in by the expert who personally laid the barrier.

Liu Wushuang flipped his hand, and the scene before them underwent a world-shaking change. The waterfall unraveled layer by layer, revealing a hidden paradise before Ji Shutao and the others.

Several bamboo houses sat within a peach blossom forest, each with its own courtyard. A stream meandered past the front, and green mountains sat at the back. Peach blossoms lined the banks for hundreds of paces, and clearly, while the flowers of the mortal world had already faded in April, the blossoms here were still in full bloom.

The gate of one bamboo house was open. In the courtyard was a stone table with three people sitting around it. As Ji Shutao drew closer, she saw a piece of Xuan paper spread out on top, exactly the size of the stone table. The paper was divided evenly into eight sections, with elegant running script written on each small part: “Treating Illness,” “Fortune Telling,” “Marriage,” “Arrays,” “Cooking,” “Washing Dishes,” “Cooking,” and “Washing Dishes.” There was also a turntable placed on top.

As expected, matters like cooking and washing dishes needed to be decided by drawing lots no matter where one was.

“There, I’ve brought the little girl back. Who’s cooking today?” Liu Wushuang shouted. Seeing that no one paid him any attention, he knew the result hadn’t been spun yet. He sat back in his seat and gestured for Ji Shutao and the others to sit on the veranda.

The other three people were very distinctive: an old grandmother with a hairpin shaped like a compass, a woman dressed in red who looked very enchanting, and a burly man who was constantly fidgeting.

Ji Shutao assumed they corresponded one-to-one with the words on the paper.

Liu Wushuang corresponded to treating illness, the old grandmother should be fortune-telling, the woman was for marriage, and the burly man was naturally for arrays.

In the end, the turntable landed on the burly man for cooking and Liu Wushuang for washing dishes.

Liu Wushuang slapped the table. “How is it that every time it’s me and Qiao Wanbai doing the cooking and washing? Are you guys playing some tricks?”

This turntable game had been played for several years now. Every time, it was either Liu Wushuang washing and Qiao Wanbai cooking, or Qiao Wanbai washing and Liu Wushuang washing.

Anyone could guess there was some trickery involved.

The woman’s eyes were like silk as she stared directly at Liu Wushuang. “Divine Physician Liu, you’re at such an age; don’t be a sore loser.”

The old grandmother was different; she directly pulled the hairpin from her hair and threw it at Liu Wushuang. “Accept your loss.”

Liu Wushuang caught it in a panic. “It’s newly made; don’t break it.”

After re-inserting the hairpin into the grandmother’s hair, Liu Wushuang and Qiao Wanbai resignedly went to the kitchen.

Juan Lan walked up to Zhuang Yi, her hand directly touching Zhuang Yi’s chin, sighing, “A child of the Demon Race… I truly haven’t seen one in many years.”

“So why do you only touch her and not me?” Qian Feng looked at Juan Lan with resentment.

Juan Lan: “…”

Ji Shutao brushed away Juan Lan’s hand. “You can’t touch this one.”

Juan Lan: “…”

Juan Lan: “Is it not allowed to get close to beauties anymore?”

Qian Feng was resentful again: “Am I not a beauty?”

Juan Lan: “…”

She sighed in her heart. People from the outside world were getting harder to deal with nowadays.

“That’s enough, Juan Lan.” Sang Man waved her hand, signaling Ji Shutao and the others to come over.

“What happened to you all?” Sang Man asked very skillfully.

Ji Shutao spoke with a dazed expression: “Memory loss.”

“Memory loss?” Sang Man hesitated for a moment. “Then I’m no good for this; you have to wait for the old thing to see you.”

Sang Man had thought it was just some trivial matter. She usually only fooled those who wanted eternal youth, but these young ladies before her didn’t look like they were seeking immortality.

“Wait for dinner then, though it might be a bit unpalatable.”

After all, Qiao Wanbai’s skills had never been very good, but after so many years of simple food, everyone could make do.

While waiting for the meal, Ji Shutao went to the stream with Zhuang Yi. Ji Shutao put her hand in the water, feeling it slide through her fingers; she squinted her eyes and just lay down like that.

She said to Zhuang Yi, “I want to stay here for a lifetime.”

Zhuang Yi looked into the distance. “Okay.”

She also wanted to stay here for a lifetime.

“When the child is born later, we can bring her to live here. She can pick flowers, play in the water, and climb trees, just like her mother.”

The more Ji Shutao thought about it, the more beautiful it seemed. But she could have originally taken the child to North Star Mountain to play.

Now, that vision was completely shattered.

“Okay.”

But there were still so many things outside that hadn’t been resolved; they couldn’t stay here forever.

Life is full of many regrets.

Qian Feng walked over at some unknown point and splashed water all over Ji Shutao. Not to be outdone, Ji Shutao fought back, and the two splashed around by the stream. Zhuang Yi stood to the side watching; the two had a mutual understanding not to let a single drop of water touch Zhuang Yi.

After dinner, Qiao Wanbai and Juan Lan returned to their own homes. Sang Man was brewing tea in the room. Liu Wushuang asked Ji Shutao to stretch out her hand.

“How did the memory loss happen?”

“I was seriously injured some days ago. When I woke up, I had forgotten several months’ worth of events.”

“Did you take medicine?” Liu Wushuang asked casually. If it was due to serious injury, memory loss wasn’t impossible.

“We speculate she drank some kind of medicine, possibly Human-Faced Stone powder,” Zhuang Yi said.

“Human-Faced Stone powder?” Liu Wushuang frowned.

“It’s just a guess.”

“If it really is the Human-Faced Stone, that will be troublesome. You all will likely have to stay here for a period of time.”

Ji Shutao glanced at Zhuang Yi, who asked, “How long?”

“About a month. This thing is very hard to eradicate. Not only must she take medicine, but she also needs to take medicinal baths. How can such a thing exist in this world,” Liu Wushuang muttered.

A month’s time was neither long nor short. While Ji Shutao recovered her memory, Zhuang Yi could also get a good rest here. She had been exhausted in mind and body lately; it was time for her to recuperate.

Both Ji Shutao and Qian Feng wanted Zhuang Yi to rest well. What Zhuang Yi thought of was that it would be good if Ji Shutao could recover her memory; a month didn’t matter.

“Alright, then we shall trouble you,” Zhuang Yi agreed.

While looking at the moon in the courtyard that night, Sang Man saw that Zhuang Yi and Ji Shutao had a very good relationship and said with deep emotion, “I heard that outside, the Righteous Path and the Demon Race have reached a point of life-and-death struggle, yet you two can still be together so peacefully. It truly isn’t easy.”

Ji Shutao hooked her finger around Zhuang Yi’s. “After all, people shouldn’t associate only because of their identities.”

“Hahahaha, this little girl is indeed transparent,” Sang Man laughed loudly. “I think things are definitely going to get lively next.”

“Why did you all choose to live in seclusion here in the first place?” Ji Shutao asked curiously.

“Because of the troubles of the mortal world, of course. Living here, you can do as you please without so many restrictions. Why wouldn’t we?” Sang Man said leisurely.

“The wind is at your ears, vast clouds are above your head, and a stream flows before your eyes,” Sang Man closed her eyes and spread her arms. “How beautiful it is.”

Strangely, Ji Shutao could actually feel those things through Sang Man’s words.

The wind passed over her head, and large clusters of white clouds made the sky look even bluer. The stream water was clear, and fish and shrimp could be vaguely seen.

Ji Shutao’s hand rested on Zhuang Yi’s. She had such beautiful scenery before her, and the person she liked most was by her side.

Her heart and body felt empty and light, as if she were about to float away.

“Wushuang,” Sang Man turned her head, “Are we playing the turntable game tomorrow?”

“Not playing. We won’t play for the whole month,” Liu Wushuang said petulantly.

“Don’t be angry.” Sang Man tugged at his beard.

They usually played the turntable game once every three to five days. When it landed on one’s corresponding specialty, that person had to go down the mountain to find someone seeking help to bring up.

Juan Lan was for arrays. Her array-breaking skills had reached a realm beyond others, but people usually rarely came seeking to break arrays.

There were more people looking for Qiao Wanbai to play matchmaker, and quite a few seeking fortune-telling, but the most were still those seeking medical treatment.

Liu Wushuang quickly discovered that this game specifically targeted him. He was now practically begging people to let him treat them; the eccentric divine physician was gone forever.

Liu Wushuang sighed; he would treat it as accumulating blessings.

However, for the next month, he truly didn’t intend to see any new patients. Human-Faced Stone powder was very difficult to handle; he had to focus his energy on Ji Shutao. He couldn’t be in two places at once.

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