They Are Archenemies, But They Have A Child - Chapter 90

Chapter 90: Home

The Rat Demon had barely fully reacted when Leng Licí straightened up, walking toward him with a chillingly imposing fox head, as if everything that just happened was merely his hallucination.

He subconsciously looked at the hand’s owner.

!

He released the sack in his hand and slapped himself across the face.

This… isn’t this the God of Plague from the Heavenly Realm?!

Ow, it hurts. I’m not dreaming.

The Rat Demon’s eyes widened, his thoughts racing. The rumors were actually true!

“What are you standing there for? Hand over the items.” Leng Licí stood before the Rat Demon, already having transformed back into his human form.

“Oh, oh, oh.” The Rat Demon hurriedly handed over a large sack to Leng Licí. “Exalted One, I’ve brought all the lost items in the village that look valuable. Please see if what you’re looking for is here.”

Leng Licí took the mouth of the sack and said coldly, “That’s enough. Be gone.”

The Rat Demon looked up, hoping to catch some gossip, but Leng Licí’s glare sent him scurrying. He quickly burrowed into the ground and left.

Leng Licí cast a spell, and the huge cloth sack immediately flew automatically in front of the Crazy Old Man. It opened with a whoosh, and a dazzling array of items spilled out onto the ground.

There were gold bracelets, jade thumb rings, and down to pots, bowls, and rouge.

“Search.” Leng Licí glanced at the Crazy Old Man, raising his chin toward the pile of items.

Yun Qingwu prompted, “Crazy Old Man, do you see what you’re looking for here?”

The Crazy Old Man only glanced at it and shook his head. “My item is a treasure, not this junk.”

“Hey, he’s getting picky.” Liu Yu tossed his melon seeds into a basket and laughed.

Yun Qingwu looked at Leng Licí. “I believe the item should still be related to the lady. Perhaps what he’s looking for is his wife.”

Cuī Yóu’s eyes dimmed. “But Qīngyuè already—”

Leng Licí’s patience ran out. He swiftly grabbed Jì Lín, who was trying to sneak away. With a wave of his right hand, the gold hairpin hidden in Jì Lín’s chest flew into his hand.

Jì Lín struggled to snatch it back. “Little Cí, this is a memento your mother left me, and it’s her final resting place! What are you doing?!”

Leng Licí walked toward the Crazy Old Man, holding the hairpin.

Jì Lín chased after him, still trying to reclaim it, but Leng Licí restrained him directly with demonic power.

Liu Yu patted Jì Lín’s shoulder comfortingly. “Just try it. You won’t lose a piece of flesh. If we don’t find this item, we can’t go back, and our main body might not be able to wait.”

Jì Lín turned his head away, not feeling any better for the words. “What do you know!”

Aside from Jì Lín, everyone’s eyes were focused on the hairpin. Leng Licí offered the hairpin to the Crazy Old Man. “Look, is it this?”

The Crazy Old Man didn’t even look at the hairpin. He walked toward the outside, muttering, “It’s time. I should go look for my treasure.”

Leng Licí gripped the hairpin, his expression dark.

Yun Qingwu also looked disappointed. “It seems it’s not this either.”

Jì Lín, now free, rushed over, snatched the hairpin back, and carefully placed it back in the brocade box. “I told you it couldn’t be the hairpin! Are you satisfied now?”

Jì Lín looked at Leng Licí again. His lips moved as if to say something, but in the end, he said nothing and returned to his room.

“Well, there’s nothing else related to Qīngyuè then,” Liu Yu said, frowning deeply. He thought for a long time but came up with no answer.

The foxes, which had been playing around the group, seemed to sense the sudden drop in air pressure and honestly returned to their den.

Leng Licí stomped silently toward the courtyard gate. Yun Qingwu looked at Liu Yu. “Brother Liu, please watch Little Dāo for me.”

Liu Yu waved his hand, signaling him not to worry.

Yun Qingwu chased after Leng Licí. “It’s alright, we’ll keep looking.”

Leng Licí frowned. “Do you think his wife could be someone else?”

Yun Qingwu replied decisively, “No. Father God is a devoted person. Otherwise, Grandfather God wouldn’t have gone to the lengths of sealing his Earth Soul and Heavenly Soul.”

“You’re certainly confident in him.” Leng Licí sneered.

In his line of sight, by the rocks near the coast, an albatross chick that had fallen out of its nest was struggling to climb back in. Its parents were above it in the nest, searching for their lost child, yet they were oblivious to the nearby chick.

Yun Qingwu looked at the scene and then asked, “A-Cí, do you think my biological parents are like this pair of albatrosses? If the child can’t return to the nest, they can simply pretend they never had this child.”

Leng Licí followed Yun Qingwu’s gaze. He wrapped his tail around Yun Qingwu’s wrist and stated as a matter of fact, “Then you should just treat them as if they are not your parents.”

Leng Licí raised his chin slightly, his eyes showing disdain. “This Lord did exactly that.”

He then recalled something. “I’ve seen these birds before. Even if the chick isn’t recognized by its parents, as long as it can enter a new nest, it gains new parents. Didn’t you say Yún Chuān is very devoted? Perhaps when his memory is restored, nothing will change.”

Leng Licí turned to look at Yun Qingwu, his eyes serious. “If you want him to, Yún Chuān will always be your father.”

Yun Qingwu smiled and said no more.

The waves crashed against the rocks. After falling numerous times, the little albatross finally clambered into the nest, trembling, and ate the food its parents offered.

Yun Qingwu’s eyes flickered.

A gust of sea wind blew by.

Leng Licí’s eyes narrowed. “I smell a disgusting stench.”

Yun Qingwu quickly composed himself and sniffed, but found nothing. “What smell?”

Leng Licí: “You Su Qiān.”

Yun Qingwu frowned. “You Su Qiān? He’s practically a cripple now. Why would he appear here?”

Leng Licí sniffed again carefully. “The smell is gone now.”

The two exchanged a look and decided to return to the small courtyard first.

…

In the small courtyard, Jì Lín was still locked in his room. Cuī Yóu had taken over the job of grooming the foxes and was busy working. Liu Yu and Little Dāo were sitting on the steps, feeding a fox.

Yun Qingwu glanced around the courtyard. “Has the Crazy Old Man returned?”

Liu Yu: “It’s not time yet. When has he ever returned this early from hunting?”

The logic was sound.

But Yun Qingwu still felt uneasy.

Leng Licí turned and walked toward the courtyard gate. “I’ll go out and bring him back.”

Yun Qingwu followed closely. “I’ll go with you.”

They went to the vicinity of the farmland where the Crazy Old Man usually went, but only busy farmers were in the fields, and the Crazy Old Man was nowhere to be seen.

“Sister-in-law Lí? We haven’t seen her.”

The voices of farmers talking came from not far away.

“I saw her with the Crazy Old Man a few hours ago. Did you check the Crazy Old Man’s house?” someone else asked.

Lǐ Dá: “No, I’ll go check right now.”

Yun Qingwu and Leng Licí exchanged a look. Yun Qingwu stepped forward to speak. “Sister-in-law Lí is missing?”

Lǐ Dá looked at the two warily. “Who are you?”

Yun Qingwu explained, “We are guests at the Crazy Old Man’s house. The Crazy Old Man hasn’t returned since he went out today, so we came out to look for him.”

Lǐ Dá’s brow furrowed into a ‘river’ shape. “In that case, my mother isn’t at the Crazy Old Man’s house either. Where could she have gone?”

“Maybe she went to the market and will be back soon. Don’t worry too much,” someone advised.

Lǐ Dá nodded, his expression heavy.

Yun Qingwu glanced at Leng Licí. The two silently agreed to return to the small courtyard and discuss a plan.

…

At the same time, in an underground cave near the sea, the Crazy Old Man was sitting in a full-height iron cage that filled the entire cave, staring blankly. Sister-in-law Lí was cursing and shaking the iron door, trying to open the cage.

“You’re truly a jinx! I shouldn’t have gotten involved in your business! Now look, you’ll die and drag me down with you!”

Sister-in-law Lí angrily kicked the Crazy Old Man’s leg. “What are you staring at? Hurry up and think of a way! What, aren’t you afraid your smelly foxes will starve to death?”

The words were like a miracle cure. They immediately made the Crazy Old Man’s eyes move, and he looked at the iron door.

“Don’t worry. I’ll keep you alive for a while.” You Su Qiān walked into the cave, arms crossed, looking at the two people. His gaze then settled on the Crazy Old Man’s face.

The people of the Heavenly Realm went to such lengths to eliminate this Yún Chuān clone. There must be an unspeakable secret involved. If I can control all four of these men, why wouldn’t I be able to gain greater benefits?

Why should the rules only be set by you, the God Clan?

“If you don’t want to reincarnate immediately, behave yourself.” You Su Qiān warned Sister-in-law Lí, then left the cave.

He had more important things to do.

…

Back in the small courtyard, Leng Licí and Yun Qingwu retracted their spiritual power, their expressions somewhat grim.

“What? Still can’t sense You Su Qiān’s location?” Yang Yuanli asked.

Yun Qingwu shook his head. “He must be deliberately concealing his aura.”

Yang Yuanli frowned. “Then what should we do now?”

If You Su Qiān kills this Fourth Yún Chuān, the Scarlet Flame God Lord will be difficult to fully awaken. This is not what I want.

Leng Licí said coldly, “Search. We’ll turn over every stone to find him.”

Liu Yu pointed to himself and the other two. “Just the few of us?”

Before he could finish, a knock sounded at the courtyard gate. Lǐ Dá’s voice came through. “Brother Yún, Brother Leng, is the Crazy Old Man back?”

Yun Qingwu walked up and opened the door. A large group of villagers was gathered outside, each holding unlit torches, hoes, iron rakes, and other tools.

Yun Qingwu looked at Lǐ Dá. “What is this?”

Lǐ Dá: “My mother hasn’t returned yet. Everyone is preparing to search various parts of the village before it gets completely dark. Would you like to join us?”

Yun Qingwu exchanged a look with Leng Licí. Leng Licí nodded, and Yun Qingwu looked back at Lǐ Dá. “That would be great, of course. We were just preparing to go out and look for him.”

Lǐ Dá handed the extra torches to Yun Qingwu and Leng Licí. “It’s getting dark. This is for you, just in case.”

Yun Qingwu: “Thank you.”

Liu Yu, Cuī Yóu, and Jì Lín were about to head out as well, but Yang Yuanli stopped them. “Since You Su Qiān already knows about the Scarlet Flame God Lord, his target must be these fragments. I suggest they remain in the courtyard to prevent any further complications. I will stay here with them.”

Yun Qingwu had no objection. He looked at Yang Yuanli seriously. “Then I leave them in your care, Junior Brother.”

Yang Yuanli: “But the Lord Prime must remove my spiritual power confinement, or I won’t be able to do much.”

Leng Licí heard this and hesitated. “If I remove the confinement, what if you run away?”

Yang Yuanli scoffed. “Isn’t there the restriction you set up that covers a ten-mile radius?”

Leng Licí pursed his lips and remained silent.

Yun Qingwu agreed. “Alright, I’ll remove it for you.”

Leng Licí frowned at Yun Qingwu. Yun Qingwu calmed him with a look: Patience.

Yang Yuanli regained his spiritual power and said calmly, “You two go. I will protect them.”

Liu Yu and the others knew they shouldn’t cause trouble at this moment and accepted the arrangement.

Once they had walked far enough away, Yun Qingwu explained, “The Father Gods are living people, not objects. Their very existence is a restraint on Junior Brother.”

Leng Licí looked askance at Yun Qingwu. “You expect three ordinary mortals with no spiritual power to guard Yang Yuanli?”

Yun Qingwu: “Ordinary mortals? The wisdom of mortals is sometimes no less than spiritual power.”

Leng Licí sneered and quickened his pace.