They Are Archenemies, But They Have A Child - Chapter 22

Chapter 22: Keeping a Pet vs. Keeping a Partner

As soon as this was said, the curious and appraising glances directed at Leng Licí increased.

“Oh, no wonder it can talk! Perhaps the Great God Bai Ze instructed it to come to His Majesty’s side!”

The crowd began talking amongst themselves.

This shift in attention caused Leng Licí’s killing intent to recede.

Rather than waste effort on these people who had been dead for who knows how many years, he should try to extract useful information.

“Have you met Bai Ze? How are you so sure that your current life is because of him, and not your King?”

“Tsk, how old is our King, A-Huang?” The man standing at the front waved his hand, adding: “We only have about one newborn every hundred years. To show their preciousness, they become candidates for the next King. We can’t see the Great God Bai Ze, but the King can.”

“Why are you asking such questions? Since you are the Great God Bai Ze’s spirit fox, shouldn’t you know these things?” Someone sensed something amiss and questioned him.

Leng Licí let out a cold snort: “When did this Lord say I have a relationship with Bai Ze? This Lord merely believes that your reliance on a so-called god you’ve never met is too foolish.”

“You haven’t experienced it, so why judge others so rashly?” The woman, who had been standing silently aside after Leng Licí interrupted her offering incense, spoke up.

“Hey, Granny Lin is our first King’s wife! Granny Lin, tell this fox about it.”

Granny Lin stepped forward to adjust the slightly misaligned statue, saying gently: “For tens of thousands of years, we have relied on the Great God Bai Ze. To me, he is like a parent who gave me a second life, and there is no need to prove it to outsiders.”

Tens of thousands of years?

Leng Licí narrowed his eyes. That Bai Ze fellow was a few months younger than him.

He was about to ask more questions when the crowd stirred again.

“Hey, isn’t this my son’s Little Flame? Why did it run out by itself?” A middle-aged woman wearing a black wide-sleeved top with a pink right-fastened front opening and a pink pleated skirt rushed in, looking at Leng Licí in surprise.

Before Leng Licí could react, the middle-aged woman suddenly rushed towards him with swift movements. At the same time, the accompanying attendants ran to the other two sides, forming a posture meant for “encirclement and suppression.”

“Quick, catch it!”

Leng Licí slowly flicked his tail. Since he couldn’t get more information here, following them back wasn’t necessarily a bad thing.

“This Lord will—”

He had just spoken two words when a handful of incense ash was slapped all over his head and face.

“…”

“Great God Bai Ze, forgive me, forgive me! I didn’t do it on purpose!” The attendant who knocked over the incense burner pressed his palms together and bowed to the statue.

The middle-aged woman took advantage of Leng Licí’s moment of shock, grabbed him, and put him into a newly purchased cage woven with wooden strips.

Leaving one person to clean up, the rest instantly withdrew from the crowd and returned to the palace.

The cage was not sealed. Every step the person carrying the cage took, a gust of wind blew through it. Leng Licí stared at the incense ash floating from his body towards his eyes. His pair of golden eyes were deep like a dark pool, gathering pinpoints of fire deep inside, wishing to completely incinerate the filth. But his body remained stiff in place, not moving an inch. His fox fur stood on end, thoroughly bristling.

He couldn’t help but turn his head, instinctively wanting to clean it with his tongue, but looking at the white ash close by, he closed his eyes, steeling himself over and over, yet he couldn’t bring himself to lick it.

Hmph. You can’t expect much from Bai Ze’s followers.

Finally, the fox retracted his four legs and fully laid down, deciding to think about something else to distract himself.

The Southern Ze clan’s trust in Bai Ze was almost blind, but such trust could also be a double-edged sword. Since the Southern Ze Kingdom’s final outcome was destruction, perhaps the killing intent set by Meng Huang was the moment of backlash from the Southern Ze clan’s trust.

But why did the Southern Ze Kingdom ultimately meet destruction…

He didn’t know much about that.

Interdependent for generations?

He remembered that the Southern Ze Kingdom was only heard of less than a century before Yun Qingwu’s birth.

Scoff.

The god they worshiped had already changed generations, and they were still oblivious.

Ignorant.

…

Inside the palace.

Yun Qingwu pushed open the door to Leng Licí’s room for the fifth time. It was still empty.

A-Ge followed him in: “Your Majesty, we’ve searched everywhere, but we haven’t seen Little Flame.”

Yun Qingwu frowned and walked out of the room.

Where could it have gone…

Why did it leave suddenly?

“A-Huang, looking for the fox?” Meng Ping raised the cage in her hand proudly. She had seen the servants searching for something when she arrived, pleased with her understanding of her son.

Yun Qingwu immediately saw the familiar fiery red fur in the cage. His eyes instantly brightened. He quickly walked over and held the fox, who was coldly staring at him, in his arms.

“Where did you run off to?”

Leng Licí used all four claws, his furry tail expertly flicking the repulsive face. He tried to kick his legs to get down, but just as he slid a bit, he was constrained back by a greater force.

“Hey, are you still angry?” Yun Qingwu patted the fox’s neck fur soothingly: “I prepared delicious food for you.”

Meng Ping briefly explained how she encountered Leng Licí. She also reached out and stroked the fox’s tail, teasing: “I know you’re keeping a pet, but someone who didn’t know might think you’re courting a partner. The evil concubines who ruined nations in the storybooks are all foxes, so there must be some basis for it.”

Then she sighed: “It’s a shame our Little Flame is a male fox.”

Leng Licí quickly yanked his tail away.

Bad luck.

Yun Qingwu: “…”

He felt a sudden, inexplicable sense of guilt inside, and coughed: “A-Niang, I’m taking Little Flame to eat something.”

Meng Ping smiled and waved her hand: “Go on, go on. I’m going to find your A-Die.”

Leng Licí stared at the meal, which was visually appealing and fragrant, only feeling that the filth on his body was further seeping into his organs through his pores.

He frustratingly got down on the ground and walked silently towards the outside.

Yun Qingwu looked at the dishes on the table in confusion: “It’s not to your liking? But you clearly ate a lot last time.”

“Hey, where are you going?”

Leng Licí walked directly to the pond and looked down at his reflection in the water.

Now without a human form and spiritual power, to take a bath, he could only…

Two or three golden carp swam over curiously, creating ripples in the water.

“…”

Yun Qingwu followed closely, also looking at the fish. He disapproved: “Can looking at fish satisfy your hunger?” Then he rubbed his chin: “Or… do you want to eat fish?”

“This Lord wishes to bathe.”

Leng Licí suddenly turned to the person who had been incessantly chattering and said firmly: “Prepare hot water for this Lord.”

“Oh.” Yun Qingwu smiled: “So, Little Flame, you just think you’re too dirty.”

He bent down, intending to pick up the fox again: “Alright, I’ll boil water for you now.”

Leng Licí turned sideways to dodge, walking a few steps ahead first. With his back to Yun Qingwu, he said coldly: “This Lord can walk by himself.”

Yun Qingwu walked to the kitchen, placing the fetched hot water onto the stove. Now, looking at Little Flame, who was clearly a fox, the hazy thoughts that had been floating around all day settled down.

When the heart is at peace, it’s easy to forget lessons.

He beckoned to the fox waiting nearby: “Come, I’ll help you wash. I’ll make sure you’re sparkling clean!”

“No need. You can leave.” Leng Licí walked to the bathtub but didn’t immediately step in.

“Don’t be shy.” Yun Qingwu reached out, grabbed the fox, placed him in the tub, and reached for the soapberry: “I’ll help you!”

The warm water thoroughly soaked the fox fur, making the touch of his fingertips on Leng Licí’s body feel scalding. This overly intimate sensation caused his irritation to surge rapidly.

“I said, no need!”

He angrily tossed his fur, making Yun Qingwu immediately feel like he was being rained on. He burst out laughing, only believing that Little Flame was playing with him: “Hey, stop, stop, stop! I’ll have to wash myself after washing you.”

Dong—Dong dong—

The sound of the leather drum outside the window grew closer, reminding everyone that it was now the first watch of the night.

Yun Qingwu picked up a cloth to wipe the water from his face: “You—”

He opened his eyes again and looked into the bathtub, his words stopping abruptly.

There was no fox in the water, only a man sitting upright. His dark clothes were completely soaked and clung tightly to his skin. The outline of his muscles was faintly visible. His collar was half-open, and his familiar red hair hung wetly across his chest, adding a slight sheen to his already pale skin.

Bang!

Bang!

Yun Qingwu felt his heart start to lose control again.

“You—”

His other hand was still holding the soapberry, unsure whether to put it down or not.

Leng Licí looked down at his hands. The irritation in his eyes was replaced by delight. Only then did he remember the extra person in the room.

“Get out.”

Yun Qingwu snapped back to his senses, abruptly looked away, and coughed several times to cover his embarrassment. He casually placed the soapberry and cloth aside: “Little Flame, you are truly… changeable.”

When he was finally alone in the room, the delight in Leng Licí’s eyes faded slightly.

It seemed that yesterday’s attempt was not entirely fruitless, but the effect was only evident between the hours of Xū (7-9 PM) and Chén (7-9 AM). But…

He touched the area behind his ear. The location of the half twin-lotus flower had returned to being smooth. Their temporary contract had expired.

He could no longer trespass into Yun Qingwu’s Sea of Consciousness.

Given Yun Qingwu’s current state, it would be difficult to establish a divine consciousness bond again…

As he thought of this, the irritation he had just driven away returned tenfold. Leng Licí angrily waved his hand, and the wooden shelf holding objects beside him shattered with a crash.

“Enjoy it while you can. This might be the last of your human form for a while.”

The soul of the Taotie, finally restored to its sword form, said mockingly with schadenfreude.

“Shut up.”

Leng Licí pulled the sword from his waist and hurled it fiercely.

The bone sword hit the ground with another loud noise.

“I won’t die again, so why bother?” The Taotie’s tone was somewhat irritatingly smug. Then he added deliberately: “There is still a way for you to enter Yun Qingwu’s divine consciousness.”

Leng Licí’s peripheral vision glanced at the bone sword.

“If divine consciousness cannot be cultivated through dual cultivation, isn’t there still the body?” The Taotie said slowly, filled with the excitement of an observer who loves drama.

However, the expected exasperation did not arrive. The Taotie looked up at the bathtub, only to see Leng Licí’s expression calm, his eyes lowered as if contemplating.

To express its sheer astonishment, the bone sword trembled, emitting a ringing sound.

It had only spoken casually to annoy Leng Licí.

“You don’t seriously want to… you wouldn’t be thinking of taking the opportunity for revenge, would you?”

Leng Licí stood up and stepped out of the bathtub, performing a cleansing ritual. His soaking wet clothes and hair instantly dried:

“Well, do you have a better way?”

“Hey, hey, hey! If you’re going, why are you taking me? I have no interest in watching your live chun gong (erotic scenes).”

The bone sword buzzed incessantly, but unfortunately, its protest was useless.