Wanxi Rebirth - Chapter 48

The seal was perfectly intact, showing not the slightest sign of damage.

Before learning about Shuohan Flower’s situation, Yue Tingxi had already resolved to help Qin Suoliu refine it. The water spirit energy wrapped around it was extremely thick, making escape unlikely.

As for now…

She was a monster born from gathering spiritual energy in the mountains, without any blood relatives. The closest elder she had was only Qingyu Shanren.

Yet she had witnessed the pain of small canine demons giving birth, and she understood that it was an excruciating process. She also knew that Yun Ruan and her partner were deeply devoted to each other, making the decision only after decades of consideration.

Therefore, she did not consider Shuohan Flower to be any kind of “child.”

“Yue Tingxi.”

Just as the thought crossed her mind, she heard Qin Suoliu call her full name solemnly, her expression grave.

“When Fengqing is anxious, she often leaves out many details. What you heard was not her true intention. I would never consider something that forcibly occupies a human body to be a ‘child,’ and I would never let it come into the world!”

Sitting upright, her hands covering her lower abdomen, she seemed to be suppressing some strong emotions. After a long pause, she continued:

“To me, a child is a beautiful hope shared with someone you love. Only after my partner and I decide to spend our lives together—whether through a wedding or a grand marriage, living many years together and understanding that life without the other is impossible—would I consider having a child.”

“If it comes to a desperate situation, I would rather harm my own cultivation to remove it than let it become a ‘child’!”

Qin Suoliu found it hard to express her anger to Yue Tingxi.

To escape the Human Transformation Thunder Tribulation, and yet target human women? Fortunately, it was parasitizing her within the secret realm; otherwise, other female cultivators could have suffered!

Even more infuriating, she had finally mustered the courage to attempt something with her favorite monster. Even if their bond could only remain as “dual cultivation allies,” it had still advanced their relationship a step further. She had no regrets.

But this spirit plant was trampling on that hard-won connection!

Although Yue Tingxi was somewhat confused, she was sensitive to Qin Suoliu’s emotions.

Hastily, she grabbed Qin Suoliu’s wrist: “No need to harm your cultivation! Didn’t you just suggest a solution?”

She clearly remembered that after Lan Fengqing explained the fate of the last woman parasitized by Shuohan Flower, Qin Suoliu had already been considering how to prevent such a situation.

At that moment, Yue Tingxi had sensed that her mistress did not recognize this so-called “child,” but did not know her exact thoughts, so she had not brought it up.

“If you think dual cultivation alone isn’t enough, didn’t we also retrieve a spirit beast egg with a huge appetite?” Yue Tingxi suggested. “It should be a young Bifang inside, never satisfied no matter how much fire spirit energy it eats. I just need to tell Shasha that you can feed it fire energy, and it will come to me! Don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone about this!”

Qin Suoliu stared at her in surprise, biting her lip and muttering, “You are the one being violated, so why… why are you comforting me instead…”

Yue Tingxi pondered for a moment, realizing that the “violation” she referred to was dual cultivation and the “child,” and couldn’t help but feel a bit amused.

To her, it wasn’t really a violation.

She had consented to dual cultivation. Although she was still unsure and conflicted, she had insisted on confirming with her mistress first before using it as a shortcut to increase cultivation. Even if her mistress had clearly stated “you don’t wish to,” she had probed further.

As for the “child,” firstly, the plant didn’t deserve to be called a child; secondly, after days of contact, she realized that Lan Fengqing was not good at communication—she had merely rushed to convey information and leave because the proposed solution still needed verification.

After organizing her thoughts, Yue Tingxi honestly shared them with Qin Suoliu.

Seeing her mistress silent after listening, she added: “Calm down. Now that we know it’s worse than a ‘bird stealing another’s nest,’ we can find a solution. We won’t leave it any mercy when refining it. As for dual cultivation…”

She deliberately left a suspenseful pause, catching Qin Suoliu’s attention.

“To be honest, I’m not sure if dual cultivation is good.” Yue Tingxi admitted awkwardly. “I’ve only seen it in the stories between human and monster partners, and it says ‘the effect is extraordinary.’ But when I cultivate with you, I am often driven by instinct and interrupt the practice… I can’t decide whether to think it through first or just keep practicing.”

In truth, the reason went deeper than just effectiveness, which she didn’t yet know how to explain.

The stories often mentioned that “emotion arises without knowing why,” and she had once thought that everything had a source. Now, caught in the misty mountains herself, she finally understood the profound meaning.

Yue Tingxi didn’t realize that the words “driven by instinct” made Qin Suoliu’s heart beat faster.

After careful consideration, Qin Suoliu cautiously answered: “If it were me, I would judge by the harvest.”

“Harvest?”

“I mean whether it brings me a sense of meaning. Feeling happy is a harvest. Cultivation results are also a harvest, but if it concerns someone I cherish in dual cultivation… it may be inappropriate.”

—She never measured emotions by “value” or “benefit.”

“But if you feel it’s improper or uncomfortable, you can follow your heart whether to continue or not.” Seeing Yue Tingxi deep in thought, she added.

…That was indeed hard to say.

Yue Tingxi recalled that those dual cultivation sessions were some of the happiest moments of her snake life. She had never experienced anything like that with anyone else. Perhaps, there was no need to compare.

“Let’s continue for now,” she murmured, giving herself an excuse: “I need to understand exactly what’s going on first.”

Before that, she would “borrow the egg” from Luo Yansha to feed fire spirit energy, tackling Shuohan Flower’s human-transformation potential with a two-pronged approach.

“Miss is willing to feed my spirit beast every day?! How much would that cost?”

Luo Yansha was thrilled to hear that Qin Suoliu would help accelerate the hatching of the Bifang egg. She caressed it repeatedly, eyes full of affection: “Baby, do you know how well you are being fed—”

“No cost at all. We also want to see it hatch soon,” Yue Tingxi interjected. “Secret realm spirit beasts are rare treasures. With a Bifang, you might even get high-paying missions from the steward.”

“That I don’t care about. I just hope the little one will let me touch its feathers every day, and help me if someone dares to bully me in the city,” Luo Yansha said.

“The former is hard to guarantee; the latter is no problem. You’re her old friend and involved in the trouble with the Tongyou Master. The Qin family will back you up.”

Extracting a thread of Shuohan Flower’s fire spirit energy from the seal, Qin Suoliu first tested whether the Bifang egg would accept it.

The little one in the egg seemed to accept anything; the fire spirit energy was absorbed completely.

Yue Tingxi then tried giving it a thread of water spirit energy, but the egg rolled away in protest.

“Next time, we should show it to Qingyu Shanren. It seems to have a good appetite and intelligence,” she joked to Qin Suoliu.

After feeding, the egg’s red speckles seemed more vivid, as if nourished.

Qin Suoliu wanted to feed a bit more, but the egg refused, remaining still.

“It’s cultivating,” Yue Tingxi explained. “Fire spirit energy becomes nourishment. The more and purer it eats while in the egg, the stronger its body will be.”

Catching Qin Suoliu’s gaze, she added: “Anyway… my monster body has always been sturdy.”

After returning the sleeping egg, Yue Tingxi received more affectionate chiding from Luo Yansha: “Is this the well-fed baby? It’s so warm! In winter, holding it while sleeping must be cozy.”

Yue Tingxi couldn’t help smiling: “In summer, don’t hold it too much, or you might get heatstroke.”

“No worries! I have the runes and ice box ready!” Luo Yansha signaled around her.

Yue Tingxi learned that Luo Yansha had a mixed spirit root, partly ice, which sometimes interfered with cultivation. But she didn’t mind. At the Qin Residence, she even learned practical spells from the steward to make use of the ice root.

After leaving her old friend happily hugging the egg, Yue Tingxi thought about her cultivation.

According to her mistress, dual cultivation should continue, but she needed ways to improve efficiency; otherwise, her cultivation would stagnate, and refining Shuohan Flower would take Qin Suoliu even longer.

She decided to check human cultivation texts and headed to the Qin Residence library, asking Grey Moth to notify her mistress.

Inside, the sound of a beautiful zither welcomed her. Under Qin Yinguang’s guidance, Gu Yun had improved greatly despite a hoarse throat.

“Miss Tingxi!” Qin Yinguang greeted warmly. “Which book do you need today?”

Yue Tingxi hesitated, not daring to reveal the truth. “Books that help cultivation,” she lied.

Qin Yinguang led her to books accessible to outsiders.

As she flipped through them, she asked Grey Moth for help. After the third book, Grey Moth suddenly flew straight toward a door protected by isolation spells, locked and marked with mechanisms—it looked like the “restricted library” often mentioned in stories.

She called Grey Moth back, but before it returned, she noticed a flash of purple.

…Qin Suoliu had come.

“What book are you looking for?” Qin Suoliu asked.

Yue Tingxi: …

Indeed, like sisters, even their first sentence was identical.

Accompanied by the zither, she whispered: “For dual cultivation. I need to find out why the results are insufficient.”

Qin Suoliu fell silent for a long while. Finally: “Wait in the chamber. I’ll bring the book to you.”

Inside the Jiazi Ice Wheel, the fully rested and enlightened Qingyu Shanren returned refreshed. She intended to check on little Tingxi but immediately ground her teeth at the scene before her.

“I told you last time, rather than spying on them, just fight with me more. Although my strikes are a bit heavy, seeing your current form, your mind has likely advanced—a cause for celebration!”

Qingyu Shanren ignored her, frowning, and joined Yue Tingxi and Qin Suoliu in reviewing the dual cultivation texts.

“How many times have they practiced while I was in retreat?” she asked.

“Every night!” Shengji Tianping answered honestly. “During the day, they handle other matters, and come here often. Combat skills haven’t lagged either.”

Seeing the monster about to get angry again, she stomped, turning the floor into a white jade-golden practice platform: “Let me see how much you’ve improved!”

“Wait!” Qingyu Shanren frowned. “I won’t disturb their cultivation. I just want to see how much progress Qin Suoliu has made.”

Compared to Yue Tingxi, Qin Suoliu’s advantage was in observing chaotic soul memories.

The monster world’s chaos was not limited to power theft.

She took the essence from the dross, revising during the day and practicing carefully at night, ensuring Yue Tingxi enjoyed the sessions without discomfort.

However, the monsters’ methods were too wild, driven by desire, sometimes triggering Yue Tingxi’s instincts. Although both found it pleasurable, it slowed cultivation.

Thus, human texts were needed for balance.

One human, one monster, they went through all the key points, memorized applicable formulas and spells, and finally selected a practice site.

The sleeping chamber was overprotected, making Yue Tingxi too relaxed and prone to instinct. Qin Suoliu led her to a small private hot spring.

“…Isn’t this water too warm?” Yue Tingxi asked, worried she might fall asleep.

“If that happens, return to the chamber and I’ll wake you,” Qin Suoliu replied. “Servants clean it every morning; we cannot stay too long.”

Yue Tingxi entered the water in a thin crimson robe, which floated gently.

“I wanted to ask—why the crimson robe? You usually wear water-colored clothes.”

Yue Tingxi avoided mentioning the golden space incident. “After I died, I saw the creatures of Xishan massacred by the immortals, the rivers stained crimson. In this life, I want to remember it always.”

Xishan was her home, just as the Qin Residence was to her mistress.

“I’ll probably wear water-colored clothes again once the invaders are gone,” she added softly.

Determined to cultivate, she coiled her dark snake body around Qin Suoliu, displacing the warm water toward the shore.

She had taken a wakefulness pill beforehand to stay alert while circulating the dual cultivation techniques.

Through small ripples, Qin Suoliu held onto her neck, aligning with her snake’s opening for spirit energy exchange.

By the second half of the night, the one who promised to wake her had fallen asleep first, resting against Yue Tingxi peacefully.

Yue Tingxi tried waking her several times, from “Mistress” to “A’ou,” but no response. She checked the Shuohan Flower seal, noticing the familiar warmth on her lower abdomen, then quietly concluded: “Time to go. What hour is it?”

Qin Suoliu had a brief dream: rushing to Yue Tingxi before Lan Chaoyao could propose, confessing twenty years of longing, asking to wed and stay together.

As expected, Yue Tingxi refused and firmly told her she never considered marrying the child saved twenty years ago.

In the dream, she stubbornly stayed outside the cave, watching over Yue Tingxi’s movements, aware of potential suitors.

But she awoke to the familiar warmth on her lower abdomen, unsure of the dream’s outcome.

She didn’t tell Yue Tingxi about this dream, only asking upon waking: “How was it? Did efficiency improve?”

“Yes, but I don’t understand why,” Yue Tingxi said, hugging herself in confusion.

“Then… did it make you happy this time?” Qin Suoliu asked again.

Hearing this, Yue Tingxi didn’t reply, curling on the white fox-fur cushion.

Thanks to the wakefulness pill, she was more aware than ever of her happiness.

Even without a response, Qin Suoliu guessed the answer.

Yue Tingxi got off the bed, lifted the snake monster, and asked: “…What are you doing? Can’t I continue sleeping on the floor?”

Before she could protest further, she and the cushion were both lifted onto the bed.

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