Transmigrated Into The Arms Of The Heroine Of A Sadistic Novel - Chapter 71

When her true nature was exposed in front of the younger generation by her close friend, Mei Linghan remained perfectly calm. She took a sip of tea and, without even turning her head, asked,

“Don’t you also crawl into a cat’s nest sometimes?”

Xuan Qing’s voice drifted closer as he returned to view and sat at the main seat.

“If it’s a cat’s nest made by Xianchen herself, why shouldn’t I crawl in?”

Lin Yanyu quickly seized the moment:

“If my sister knew how much you liked the gift she made for you, she’d be thrilled!”

Xuan Qing smiled gently at her, but when he turned to Qin Changxin, his expression turned cold.

“How did you trick Lin’er into forming a contract with you?” he demanded sternly.

Lin Yanyu hurried to explain:

“Mother! Don’t blame Changxin. It was with her help that I restored my soul. I wanted to go to the human realm to capture Xiao Xianyi, so I forced her to accept me as her demon guard. I even threatened that if she refused to be my master, she’d have to let me serve her in bed…”

“Nonsense!” Xuan Qing snapped. But as she processed what her daughter said, her expression froze in shock.
“Your soul… has been restored?”

“Yes! I don’t know what Changxin did, but it’s whole again. Even Elder Song Yan from Ningzhou confirmed it. She even took away the Soul-Locking Incense from my body!”

Xuan Qing immediately stood, placing her hand on Lin Yanyu’s head and closing her eyes to sense carefully. A moment later, she turned to Mei Linghan, visibly emotional.

“Ah Han, Lin’er’s soul has truly returned! She no longer needs the Soul-Locking Incense to survive!”

Mei Linghan was also astonished but regained composure quickly.

“Then do you still mean to hold this exorcist girl accountable?”

“If Lin’er truly asked to be her guard willingly, what else can I say?” Xuan Qing ruffled her daughter’s hair fondly and sat back down, laughing through tears.
“Don’t forget, before I became ruler of the demon realm, I too pestered A-Ning endlessly to take me to the human world as her guard. Perhaps fate repeats itself in strange ways.”

“Don’t say that.” Mei Linghan frowned at the mention of that tragic ending. “Now that we know who’s behind everything, we should join forces with the humans to destroy him. The two young ones are clear-headed enough.”

Qin Changxin was surprised. She had expected to have to argue her case, but Xuan Qing had forgiven her so easily.

“Mother, we couldn’t find Xiao Xianyi,” Lin Yanyu said, “but we fought two of the puppets under his control.”

After hearing about what happened on Que Ling Island, Xuan Qing slammed her hand on the table, seething.

“That wretch dared to target Xiaowei! When he was dying in the human world, it was she who saved him!”

“He’s a blood leopard,” Mei Linghan said coolly. “It’s no surprise he preys on anyone. Lin’er, that Yang Hengyu you mentioned does she have a mother named Yang Huaisheng?”

“Yes.” Lin Yanyu nodded. “Oh, and Ye Yaozhi was bewitched. When she came with me to the human realm, she ran off to Yang Hengyu and became her demon guard. I don’t understand why.”

Lin Yanyu of course now suspected who had bewitched Ye Yaozhi but lacked proof.

Xuan Qing explained calmly,

“Years ago, Yang Huaisheng was deceived by fellow exorcists into entering a forbidden area of the demon realm. Dying, she was rescued by Ye Yaozhi and her mother. Her mother begged me to spare that woman a human who had slaughtered countless of our kind and even offered her own life in exchange. I refused. Later, I executed Ye Yaozhi’s mother for treason.”

“Yet, out of respect for Yang Huaisheng’s friendship with A-Ning, I allowed Ye Yaozhi to care for her until she could walk again. It must have been then that Huaisheng placed the spell on her. Now that the spell is broken by Huaisheng’s daughter, their debt is settled.”

“Yang Hengyu is surely wanted by every exorcist clan now,” Mei Linghan said. “Who knows what ambition drives her to take Xiao Xianyi’s spirit bead and willingly become his puppet?”

“Her mother died horribly in the demon realm,” Qin Changxin added quietly. “Soon after Huaisheng’s death, my father, Qin Jianren, married my mother. Within half a year, I was born.”

The hall fell silent.

“Qin Jianren truly lived up to his name,” Xuan Qing said after a long pause. “He learned how to make hallucinogenic incense from Yang Huaisheng. Your mother must have had a powerful family behind her, or she would never have survived to give birth to you. If only he were a demon, I’d strip him of his power myself!”

“Don’t say that in front of the child,” Mei Linghan scolded, though she didn’t disagree.

“Fine, I’ll stop,” Xuan Qing sighed. “As for Yang Hengyu whatever her reasons, she sided with evil and must face justice. As for Ye Yaozhi… if she truly repents and did no great wrong while under the spell, her life can be spared.”

Finishing her tea, she turned to her daughter.

“It’s late. Lin’er, take Miss Qin to rest. I have matters to discuss with your Aunt Mei.”

“All right.” Lin Yanyu took Qin Changxin’s hand and hurried out.

Back in the demon realm, surrounded again by kindness she hadn’t expected, Qin Changxin’s emotions were tangled.

In the quiet of the Young Mistress’s residence, she finally relaxed onto a soft, neatly made bed.

“Even though we traveled by teleportation and didn’t tire ourselves, you’ve only just recovered. Rest early,” Lin Yanyu said, drawing the curtains. “By the way, your birthday is in a few days. Would you like to celebrate it here in the demon realm?”

Qin Changxin blinked. Having been unconscious for seven days, she’d forgotten entirely. She hesitated.

“Wouldn’t that trouble you?”

“Of course not!” Lin Yanyu smiled. “Though demons don’t have as many customs as humans maybe just a feast of roast meat and some fireworks for a coming of age ceremony.”

“Perfect. I don’t like stiff ceremonies anyway.” Qin Changxin laughed, then suddenly caught Lin Yanyu by the neck and kissed her.

Unprepared and off balance, the cat-eared girl tumbled right into her arms, instinctively wrapping her hands around the smaller girl.

“Good girl you’re getting bolder,” Qin Changxin teased, nipping lightly at the furry cat ear above her head.

The ticklish touch made Lin Yanyu squirm and burrow deeper into her arms until both of them rolled across the bed, leaving the neat bedding a mess.

“It’s settled then,” Qin Changxin said at last, holding Lin Yanyu close under the blanket. “I’ll celebrate my birthday here. You must light the fireworks for me.”

“Mother and Aunt Mei will help too,” Lin Yanyu murmured, cuddling closer. “We’ll make it a night you’ll never forget.”

Late that night, in the Demon Lord’s council hall

Feng Mingchi greeted the two women and summoned a strange, stringless zither. The instrument gleamed white as snow, radiating an immense aura.

“Brother, what kind of artifact is this?” Xuan Qing asked cautiously.

“The Nongfei Zither,” Feng Mingchi replied, setting it before them. “My lady, please play it.”

Xuan Qing frowned but obeyed. Though there were no strings, she mimed the gestures Feng Funing had once taught her.

At once, a wisp of white mist rose from the instrument and slowly condensed into human form.

“A-Ning!” Xuan Qing cried, eyes wide, lunging forward but her hands passed through the figure of mist.

The faint image of Feng Funing looked down, lifted a translucent hand as if to touch her, then sadly drew it back.

Even Mei Linghan was stunned.

“That’s Feng Funing’s soul! But she sacrificed herself we saw her spirit disperse completely! How could it still exist?”

“That’s not something you need to worry about,” Feng Mingchi said calmly. “I’ve studied spirit arts all my life. Soul gathering is one of them.”

“Forcibly gathering a dispersed soul requires countless living sacrifices,” Mei Linghan warned. “What price did you pay? Don’t betray her wishes just to revive her!”

“The Nongfei Zither, like the Huixing Sword, isn’t of this world,” he explained. “By chance I obtained it and bargained with its spirit. It helped me collect Lin’er’s scattered soul and has nurtured it for over ten years. She’s nearly whole again she only needs a body.”

“And the price,” he added, “I’ll pay to the zither’s spirit myself. No innocents will be harmed. Lin’er’s been beside me all these years how could I act recklessly? Only… her soul’s been scattered too long. Even if revived, she won’t be able to speak.”

When Xuan Qing finally calmed, Feng Mingchi straightened and said solemnly,

“I followed the two young ones here to revive Lin’er. The human world forbids any resurrection art it’s punishable by death. So I couldn’t obtain a human vessel for her soul…”

Before he could finish, Xuan Qing seized one of her own tails.

“If it’s a vessel you need,” she declared, “then take my tail!”