They Are Archenemies, But They Have A Child - Chapter 37

Chapter 37: Secret Base

Meng Ping’s gaze fell on the spot where Meng Huang had disappeared:

“Ah Ze, thank you for stopping Huang’er from continuing to do foolish things.”

“It was Huanyu. Without Huanyu, we wouldn’t have been able to break the array successfully.” Yun Qingwu also looked in that direction.

“You and Little Fire were also very capable!”

Meng Ping took a deep breath and looked back at her other son: “I just ran into Elder Zhou. He told me everything. Thanks to you for leading them to start anew, they also found a way out of their past resentment. So, Ah Ze…”

Meng Ping reached out her hand toward Yun Qingwu’s cheek. Even though she couldn’t touch him, it was as if she gently stroked his face: “Don’t blame yourself anymore. Mother knows you tried your best.”

“You and Little Fire must continue to live well and support each other.” Meng Ping choked up a little at the end.

Who is Little Fire?

Li Qingyang’s chanting thoughts were briefly interrupted. He looked at his Junior Brother with suspicion.

Yun Qingwu sensed the gaze and, remembering the relationship between him and Cold Lici in Meng Ping’s eyes, he stiffened all over, feeling inexplicably guilty.

Meng Ping didn’t notice the subtle shift. She took a deep breath and then teased with a smile: “I just talked to Little Fire, and he promised me.”

Yun Qingwu was stunned. He hadn’t expected his Mother to have seen Cold Lici first. For a moment, he didn’t know whether to feel jealous about this or question the truth of her statement.

That didn’t sound like something that half-fox would agree to.

Under the chanting of the scriptures for the deceased, the scattered starlight formed by the souls gradually faded, finally returning to the night sky.

Meng Ping and Liu Ya’s figures also gradually became transparent. She took one last look at the son who remained, her eyes teary, but the smile on her face was more radiant than ever.

“Ah Ze, goodbye.”

Yun Qingwu also smiled: “Goodbye.”

Mother. Father.

The night settled into complete silence, only the moon hanging high in the sky illuminated the earth with its cold, clear light.

Yun Qingwu composed himself and turned to Li Qingyang, taking Xiao Dao from his arms.

“Thank you, Senior Brother.”

Li Qingyang shook his head, still quite persistent: “Is that fox demon really gone? And who is Little Fire?”

“Yes, I’m certain he’s not here anymore.” Yun Qingwu maintained his composure, showing no hint of a giveaway.

“As for Little Fire, he… he was a pet I raised in the Mind Realm.”

Yun Qingwu nodded, quickly fabricating a half-truth answer, and then briefly recounted the events in the Mind Realm in a few words.

This successfully diverted Li Qingyang’s attention.

“I’ll tell Senior Brother more details later. There are some things I need to ask you about.”

Li Qingyang knew this wasn’t the best place to talk. He nodded: “The barrier is about to break. Let’s leave quickly.”

The demons trapped in the Ze Kingdom were agitated at the moment, but none dared to act rashly, making the scene surprisingly orderly.

Yun Qingwu observed the coexisting god and demons who had spent a month without incident, secretly sighing that his Senior Brother was indeed much more rational than he was. If it were his past self, he probably wouldn’t have been satisfied without a complete massacre.

But after this experience, he understood that his past assignment of all guilt and hatred onto the demons was a subconscious act of avoidance.

He simply needed a target for his frustration.

Good and evil in the world could not be clearly distinguished simply by race.

“Senior Brother, you go to the Heavens first to explain the situation here. I will handle the aftermath.”

Li Qingyang did not object: “Alright, I’ll wait for you in the Heavens.”

As soon as the words fell, the crack in the barrier suddenly collapsed. The gap grew larger and larger, eventually causing the barrier to completely shatter.

The demons, imprisoned for so long, rushed to escape the now-void Ze Kingdom. Li Qingyang said his farewells and departed first.

Dan Mu, who had been worried for a long time, was already eager to leave, but she looked at the child in Yun Qingwu’s arms and hesitated. Remembering the confusion she had experienced before, she didn’t know whether she should ask for the child back.

Yun Qingwu saw through her thoughts and said directly: “Don’t worry, I—”

“Don’t worry! I’m very reassured! I’m leaving now!”

Before Yun Qingwu could finish, Dan Mu immediately interrupted him, then flew away without looking back.

She couldn’t openly confront this god of plague. She wasn’t the Sovereign Lord. She needed to retain some self-awareness. Besides, there were some things she absolutely needed to ask her Sovereign Lord about.

Yes, that’s right.

When all the demons had gone, a red figure quickly tried to sprint upward, intending to seize the opportunity to escape. However, the moment he left the ground, he was forcefully grabbed and pulled back by a hand.

“Let go!”

Cold Lici twisted his fox body, intending to bite in retaliation.

But the moment he opened his mouth, a small, warm, and soft hand embraced his neck.

Xiao Dao: “Ah ya—hoohoo—”

Cold Lici was caught off guard by the embrace. He stared blankly at the sudden attacker.

“This is Xiao Dao. She… has grown,” Yun Qingwu explained timely.

“I see that,” Cold Lici said coolly.

He had heard most of what Li Qingyang said earlier, so he wisely chose to keep his mouth shut, not wanting to ask any further questions.

“You… what’s wrong?” Yun Qingwu changed the topic.

Cold Lici raised his tail, sweeping it toward Xiao Dao, intending for her to let go first. He said stubbornly: “None of your business. Let go!”

Due to his half-demon nature, he would randomly transform into his true form for seven days each year. In previous years, he would go into seclusion during this time. He hadn’t expected to be so unlucky this year, encountering these seven days just after leaving the Mind Realm.

This was a weakness he couldn’t control and couldn’t tell anyone.

Seeing that he wouldn’t say anything, Yun Qingwu stopped pressing, but his grip showed no sign of releasing. He touched his fingers together and formed a spell. The two people and one fox instantly vanished from where they stood.

“Where is this? What are you trying to do?”

Cold Lici vigilantly observed his surroundings.

What met his eyes was a courtyard situated in the mountains, surrounded by abundant spiritual energy.

It was a rare and excellent place for cultivation.

Upon realizing this, his taut body immediately relaxed.

“I’ll take care of you until you return to human form.”

Yun Qingwu released his grip on Cold Lici, allowing him to drop to the ground.

However, the warmth in his hand abruptly disappeared, yet the searing heat remaining in his palm did not fade at all. He subtly put that hand behind his back, curling his fingers to rub it.

Cold Lici shook his body uncomfortably and walked toward the wooden house: “I don’t need you. You take Xiao Dao and leave first.”

“Oh.”

Yun Qingwu replied and followed, feigning contemplation: “You trust me that much? Aren’t you afraid I’ll bring people over and take advantage of the situation?”

The fox walking in front paused. He suddenly turned around, arching his back and raising his tail, glaring at Yun Qingwu: “You are not allowed to go anywhere!”

Yun Qingwu, holding the child, bypassed the bristling fox and entered the house first: “That’s what I thought.”

The house had been unoccupied for a long time, so it was inevitably dusty. Yun Qingwu cast a cleansing spell, and the room was instantly refreshed, spotless.

Even Cold Lici, who wanted to find fault, couldn’t find any real issue.

So, he simply remained silent, heading straight for the bedroom and claiming the only bed in the room first.

Times were different now. He couldn’t meditate and cultivate, so he was completely unwilling to compromise on comfort.

Yun Qingwu followed him into the room, placing the sleepy, blinking child next to Cold Lici: “I’ll go make dinner. You watch Xiao Dao.”

“Why should I?” Cold Lici glanced at Xiao Dao, who was smacking her lips.

“Then you make dinner? I’ll watch the child?” Yun Qingwu said exasperatedly.

The fox curled up, closed his eyes, and lay down. After a moment, a fluffy red tail wrapped around the child’s back, pulling her closer to his body.

Yun Qingwu curved his lips, then turned and headed to the kitchen.

When the bedroom fell silent, Cold Lici’s fox eyes suddenly snapped open.

They were no longer in the Mind Realm. Why did they need to eat?

He absolutely would not eat those mortal things again!

“Dinner is ready. Come and eat.”

The aroma of chicken soup drifted into the room, accompanied by the sweet and sour scent of sweet and sour pork ribs.

Gulp.

The fox angrily glared at the place that made the inappropriate sound. It must be because he ate too much in the Mind Realm that he was so susceptible to temptation.

Habit was indeed a dangerous thing.

He licked his teeth and then reconsidered.

Hmph. If someone is willing to cook, why shouldn’t I eat?

Cold Lici stood up, used his tail to wrap up the child who had woken up, and jumped off the bed.

“Wua? Giggles—” Xiao Dao was wrapped up. With Cold Lici’s movements, going up and down as he walked off the bed, she happily waved her hands and rubbed her small face against the fluffy fox fur.

Cold Lici glanced at her out of the corner of his eye.

Pfft. Doesn’t know why she’s happy all day.

“Here, your child.” He flicked his tail.

The child flew in an arc and landed in Yun Qingwu’s arms. Yun Qingwu placed the child in the prepared wooden basket and said irritably: “Yes, my child alone.”

“Hmph.”

The fox lowered his head to lick the fur on his legs, then leaped onto the table.

His portion of the meal had been separately served in a bowl.

He lowered his head and licked the chicken soup. The familiar taste made him slightly absent-minded, as if they were still in the Mind Realm.

Yun Qingwu settled Xiao Dao and sat down across from him.

Cold Lici looked up at Yun Qingwu: “Why didn’t you hand me over directly? You missed the first chance, and you’re not planning to seize the second one either?”

“I always keep my promises. I said I wouldn’t capture you this time. Moreover…”

Yun Qingwu picked up his chopsticks and took a piece of pork rib for himself: “In the Mind Realm, you saved me once. I’m repaying that debt.”

“I wasn’t saving you. I just couldn’t stand watching you act like a fool,” Cold Lici said coldly, flicking his fox tail.

Yun Qingwu chuckled softly and didn’t reply.

Thinking of the Nanze Kingdom, he also became a little lost in thought.

Cold Lici saw the person opposite him looking dejected, assuming he was still dwelling on Meng Huang’s dying words. He couldn’t help but mock: “Talking about starting over and mending regrets—that high-sounding talk is nothing but hypocrisy.”

Yun Qingwu looked up at Cold Lici, a little confused, but then realized the other party was talking about Meng Huang.

Cold Lici, thinking he had hit the nail on the head, continued: “Selfishness is just selfishness. Why package it as selflessness? Isn’t that ridiculous?”

“I would never be like that. I only live openly for myself.”

Yun Qingwu looked at the demon before him, whose arrogance couldn’t be hidden even in his fox form. These words went against morality and justice, but in his mind, he couldn’t help but recall Cold Lici’s desperate eyes, seeking survival again and again.

He could no longer simply refute this self-serving logic of his.

After a moment, he looked away and simply said: “I know Ah Huang lost his original intention. I won’t dwell on his regrets.”

Cold Lici gave a faint “Mhm” and continued to eat.

Yun Qingwu remembered what his Mother said before she left and asked: “Mother said she went to see you. What did she tell you?”

Cold Lici paused in his eating. Meng Ping’s barely concealed joyful smile surfaced in his mind.

“Xiao Ci, why did you turn into Little Fire again?!”

Meng Ping smiled, wanting to reach out and touch him, but sadly, her hand passed right through his body. She withdrew her hand with some regret and crouched down: “What a shame, I can’t touch you.”

Cold Lici, whose body was taut because of his situation, suddenly relaxed. He turned his body to look at Meng Ping and swept his tail across Meng Ping’s palm.

Meng Ping instantly shed her slightly dejected look and started smiling.

This is how she should be.

Cold Lici thought silently.

“Why did you die for me?” Cold Lici suddenly asked.

This was a question that had baffled him countless days and nights after Meng Ping’s self-sacrifice.

He was neither Meng Huang nor Yun Qingwu. He had no relationship with her whatsoever.