FFSC_08
In the end, Chen Moqing did not take the little furry ball to bathe.
By chance, he glanced at the night outside the window—dawn was less than two hours away—so he decided not to waste any time. Reciting a cleansing spell, a faint light flickered, and both he and Cang Shun were clean again.
He then took out a previously crafted concealment talisman, altered his appearance and physique, returned to the bedside, and resumed cultivation.
Left behind on the table, Cang Shun: "......"
The snow-white little beast began scratching the table again.
Chen Moqing got up and went over, picked up this Demon Emperor, and returned to the bed. This time, instead of tossing the esteemed Demon Emperor onto the cold pillow, he placed him on his lap.
The round, snow-white little beast lay motionless on his legs, tucking its two small paws under its chest.
It felt a bit sleepy.
The energy lost today had not yet recovered.
The little furry ball slowly shifted on Chen Moqing's lap for a moment until a hand with distinct, elegant knuckles gently rested on its head.
With a perfectly measured touch, the beautiful fingers curled slightly, stroking it repeatedly.
Cang Shun narrowed his demon eyes slightly.
Soon, a soft, fluffy little ball nestled on Chen Moqing's lap, dozing off into a furry slumber.
Moonlight draped like a veil, reflecting a pair of eyes as cold as stars sinking into water.
With a casual gesture from Chen Moqing, Xue Qi's storage pouch flew out, and dismembered limbs floated in the air.
His slender fingers came together as he silently recited an incantation.
Faint, translucent spirits drifted up from the dismembered limbs, dazed and unaware, floating aimlessly in the room until they heard that deep, clear male voice, “Go.”
Like the resonant toll of an ancient bell, it shook off the chaos. The remnant souls scattered in all directions, fading into the night.
Their souls would re-enter the cycle of reincarnation, perhaps to be reborn.
Chen Moqing gazed distantly into the night, then lowered his eyes.
The snow-white little beast sprawled openly across his lap, sound asleep, its soft belly exposed, utterly unguarded.
He lowered a finger, gently approaching it.
The snow-white little beast rolled over in its dream, grabbed his finger, and bit down, leaving another tiny set of tooth marks.
Chen Moqing: “......”
Truly, its intentions were unfathomable. Even when they first met, this Demon Emperor had wanted to devour him.
He withdrew his finger, pressed his thumb against the little beast’s head, and stroked its fine, soft fur a few times in reverse.
As the night faded, the young cultivator closed his eyes and focused his spirit, cultivating until dawn approached.
In the guest room the next morning, loud 'meow-meow' echoed.
—A certain Demon Emperor had woken up early and, upon accidentally catching a glimpse of itself in the mirror, felt as if the sky had fallen.
“Meow??”
Its fur!
In the polished mirror, the originally smooth fur on the head of the snow-white little beast was, for some reason, all sticking up in the opposite direction, puffed into a messy bird's nest.
This enraged the Demon Emperor so much that it ran in circles while loudly meowing and stretching out its paws, trying to press down the fur on its head.
Its paws were too short, unable to reach.
Even more infuriating!
"Meow—!!"
After completing the final circulation of his cultivation cycle, Chen Moqing opened his eyes as if nothing had happened and reached out to the little fuming ball of fur, "Come here, I'll help you."
The snow-white little beast quickly burrowed under his palm. The beautiful fingers, carrying a faint fragrance, smoothed its fur, turning it back into a smooth and lovely little ball.
"Meow."
It sat softly on Chen Moqing's arm, looking at him.
This human is actually quite decent.
Chen Moqing accepted the sentiment calmly.
"Fellow Daoist Jiang, last night went smoothly without a hitch. Congratulations."
At the hour of Chen*, Bai Yue brought Ning Lili for a visit. Sensing the aura on Chen Moqing, she felt another wave of admiration.
*t/n; around 7:00 AM to 9:00 AM.
Such a stable early Foundation Establishment stage; it likely wouldn't be long before he broke through to the mid-stage.
"Now, everyone in Qingzhu City knows we have another talisman prodigy who can resonate with ancient runes. They're all saying that prodigy has a Golden Core cultivation stage."
Chen Moqing met her gaze and smiled faintly, everything left unsaid.
Cang Shun looked up: “?”
He raised a paw to press on Chen Moqing’s sleeve, feeling quite displeased as he heard that human speak in a pleasant voice, “Manager Bai, I’d like to propose a transaction with your pavilion.”
Bai Yue quickly glanced at that demon beast and replied solemnly, “Fellow Daoist, please speak!”
Chen Moqing lightly tapped the table with his knuckles. Several transparent talismans floated in the air, not fully formed, just rough outlines with characters flowing within—all were talisman recipes.
These were formulas he had obtained during his travels in the past, quite common in the middle and upper prefectures, untraceable in origin, and unknown even to the Tianshu Sect.
“I am willing to exchange these with your pavilion for auxiliary-type talisman formulas. These formulas are primarily focused on offense. Manager, you may review them first before deciding whether to exchange.”
Bai Yue, “Wait a moment.”
She straightened her posture, adjusted her robe, “Please continue.”
Ning Lili’s eyes widened.
Third-grade talisman formulas! In the Dongzhou Prefecture, it’s rare to see so many third-grade formulas presented at once!
She poked her master, Look at him!
Bai Yue: “......” Truly an unfilial disciple, having taken in such a rebellious apprentice.
Chen Moqing spoke unhurriedly, “Secondly, I am willing to refine talismans for your pavilion, with the profits split fifty-fifty.”
Bai Yue raised a finger and gently shook it, “Fifty-fifty? No.”
“Our Qianxuan Pavilion also has contracted talisman refiners, and their profits are split fifty-fifty. But for Fellow Daoist Jiang, sixty percent would go to you, and Qianxuan Pavilion would take only forty.”
Offering a sixty percent share didn't pain Bai Yue at all. She knew that if this Fellow Daoist Jiang refined talismans, most would be of superior quality, which could drive prices up significantly. And if he ever produced talismans with ninety-nine percent efficacy again, they would be highly sought after at auctions.
Cooperating with a talisman cultivator of such boundless talent—with Qianxuan Pavilion taking just forty percent—was not a loss; in fact, it was a small profit.
Moreover, she had an intuition that perhaps in the future, their Qianxuan Pavilion could rely on this Fellow Daoist Jiang to shine brightly across all the lower prefectures and even the middle prefecture.
The cooperation terms were quickly settled. Chen Moqing finally stated, “What happened today, I hope no fifth person learns of it.”
Ning Lili, “Haha, that sounds like something demonic cultivators who commit murders and hide their identities often say in storybooks.”
Chen Moqing remained silent, and so did Bai Yue.
Ning Lili: “...Haha.”
She drew a finger across her lips, gesturing, 'I won’t tell, I’ll take it to my grave'.
After the guests left, Cang Shun jumped onto Chen Moqing’s shoulder, watching his profile.
[How come I didn’t know you had those talisman formulas?]
Chen Moqing, “Once I’ve seen a talisman formula, I can replicate it.”
As soon as he finished speaking, that casual, deep male voice sounded lightly by his ear again: [You refine a certain talisman for me, and I’ll act on your behalf three times.]
Chen Moqing, “What kind of talisman?”
[Not now.]
Cang Shun fiddled with a few strands of dark hair hanging before his eyes, his tone unhurried.
[I’ll tell you when you reach that level.]
Chen Moqing, “In that case, ten times.”
Cang Shun: “?”
“Seven times.”
“Meow!”
“Six times.”
“Meow!”
“Five times.”
“…Meow!”
“Four times,” Chen Moqing said calmly, “After all this haggling, can’t Your Majestic the Demon Emperor yield to me once?”
Cang Shun: […]
That seems acceptable too.
It’s just one more time anyway.
Thus, His Majestic the Demon Emperor snorted lightly and tacitly agreed.
Chen Moqing raised his palm, “For this cooperation, it is my good fortune.”
Cang Shun silently thought: Sounds nice.
He raised his paw and lightly patted Chen Moqing’s hand, sealing the pact with a gesture.
Chen Moqing grasped the small furry paw, gave it a gentle shake, then summoned the talisman formulas left by Bai Yue and began to review them carefully.
Given his current situation, breaking through to the Golden Core stage would be extremely difficult. To be prudent, he needed to refine a fifth-grade Spirit Attraction Talisman.
Such mid-to-high-grade talismans are virtually extinct in the lower prefectures; one would likely have to go to the middle prefecture to find them. Even just the formulas are particularly expensive, costing at least several hundred thousand spirit stones.
—In the following period, Chen Moqing continued to stay in Qingzhu City, frequently visiting the Qianxuan Pavilion to collect more talisman formulas and also refining several talismans for the pavilion.
Within just half a month, tens of thousands of spirit stones flowed into his account.
Now at the mid Foundation Establishment stage, he found it even easier to conceal his cultivation level, and Bai Yue was unable to detect his true strength from the talismans he refined.
In the sealed room, Cang Shun idly fiddled with an especially lustrous and bright spirit stone, casually lifting his gaze.
Beside him, a talisman was taking shape. The hand painting it was steady and strong, the knuckles tracing a graceful arc.
[How much longer are we going to stay here?]
Chen Moqing remained silent.
Cang Shun rolled over, his tail lazily drooping, hovering just above Chen Moqing’s robe.
[It’s boring here. I don’t like it.]
In his view, this lower prefecture region had neither opportunities nor secret realms; staying here was a complete waste of time.
Chen Moqing still didn’t respond. He merely finished the last stroke, and a third-grade talisman was completed.
Ninety-nine percent efficacy.
“I heard a new restaurant just opened in the city. Their steamed locust flower fish is said to be exceptional. Want to try it?”
Cang Shun flipped over and sat up, jumping onto his lap.
[Eat!]
Chen Moqing tucked the snow-white little beast into his arms and walked out of Qianxuan Pavilion’s secret chamber at a leisurely pace.
The next day, Bai Yue brought an interesting piece of news.
“Yesterday, the Liu family held a grand family banquet to welcome back their eldest young master, Liu Yu.”
“That young master Liu was raised in another region after birth, accompanying his mother as she convalesced. He was only brought back after his mother passed away. However, he encountered bandits on the way, resulting in the death of his elder sister, Liu Piao. The whereabouts of those bandits remain unknown to this day.”
Father and son reunited after a long separation—it should have been a deeply touching scene. Yet, unexpectedly, the Liu family’s second young master, Liu Jue, caused a scene right at the banquet, directly accusing the Liu Yu at the feast of not being the real person but rather his elder sister Liu Piao in disguise. The one truly killed by the bandits, he claimed, was the real Liu Yu.
The guests were in an uproar. During the banquet, Liu Yu argued vehemently, even stripping on the spot to reveal a male body. But Liu Jue insisted he was using talisman arts to disguise himself and directly asked their father, Liu Ao, to use a magic tool that could verify the true identity of cultivators below the Golden Core stage—Liu Ao agreed.
Under the watchful eyes of everyone, Liu Yu was forced to verify his identity with the magic tool, and then—nothing happened.
He was indeed Liu Ao’s eldest son, indeed male-bodied, with no disguise at all.
It is said that Liu Yu tore open his undergarment at the time, tears in his eyes as he looked at his father, directly asking if he needed to dig up his sister’s bones and bring her back to life to prove his innocence.
In the end, Liu Ao, looking full of remorse, helped his eldest son to his feet and promised to hand over control of half the Liu family’s street properties to him.
Once the farce ended, Liu Jue was punished with two weeks of confinement, while Liu Yu took over the properties previously registered under Liu Jue’s name.
After finishing the amusing story, Bai Yue heard Fellow Daoist Jiang, who was feeding strips of dried fish to the little demon beast in his lap, say, “Whether it’s Liu Piao or Liu Yu, what difference does it make?”
“Hah, to Liu Ao, one is a fine jade vessel that can be groomed as the family heir; the other? Just willow catkins drifting in the wind.”
In the afternoon, a visitor arrived—none other than the Liu family’s eldest young master, Liu Yu, who had recently become the center of attention.
As soon as he entered the room, Liu Yu bowed deeply.
“Thank you, Brother Jiang! If not for the third-grade concealment talisman you sent yesterday, I would have been in grave danger!”
Chen Moqing lightly tapped the table with his fingers. Several talismans lit up, completely isolating the inn room, “Sit and speak.”
Cang Shun glanced at his calm, seemingly all-knowing eyes and raised an eyebrow slightly.
Liu Yu lifted his face, revealing a bright smile, “When did Brother Jiang find out?”
Chen Moqing, “The first glance.”
Liu Piao looked down at herself and sighed with a wry smile, shaking her head, “Before, my disguise relied on a second-grade peak magic treasure left by my mother. Plus, my younger brother and I are of the same bloodline and look similar, so even my father couldn’t see through it at first glance, he only had suspicions.”
“Brother Jiang’s second life-saving grace, I will remember it in my heart.”
That third-grade concealment talisman was of peak ninety-nine percent efficacy, capable of completely altering appearance and physique. Unless using a fourth-grade detection-type magic treasure, the disguise would be impossible to see through.
The Dongzhou Prefecture is merely a remote lower prefecture, without Nascent Soul cultivators, let alone fourth-grade magic trasures. The Liu family does have a heirloom treasure, publicly claimed to be a fourth-grade offensive treasure bestowed by an immortal from the upper prefecture, capable of slaying Nascent Souls—of course, after all these years, no one has actually seen that family heirloom.
“I wouldn’t call it a life-saving grace,” Chen Moqing gently grasped Cang Shun’s paw, which was tugging at his sleeve, “You are, after all, of the Liu family’s bloodline.”
Liu Piao smiled faintly, “Liu Ao has seven daughters. The youngest is only fourteen and has already been married off to an outer sect head of the Tingyu Sect. If he knew the one who survived was Liu Piao, what difference would there be between my current self and being dead?”
“Brother Jiang, do you know that just a few decades ago, the Liu family wasn’t in Qingzhu City?”
Chen Moqing raised his hand to pour her a cup of tea. Cang Shun nudged open the small cloth pouch beside him and pulled out a dried fish strip.
Liu Piao picked up the teacup, “Today, Qingzhu City only knows of the Liu family, but not of the Lin family. Back then, the Lin family was Qingzhu City’s foremost talisman-cultivating clan. My mother was the Lin family’s only daughter. She fell in love with the Liu family’s least favored second son and married him, elevating him to the family head position. The Lin family then poured countless rare treasures into him, and within just a few decades, forcibly raised Liu Ao, who had been stuck at Foundation Establishment, to the mid Golden Core stage.”
“Who could have expected that later, the Lin family unintentionally offended a Nascent Soul cultivator and was exterminated, leaving only my mother. Not only did Liu Ao not help, he even took the opportunity to swallow up the Lin family’s remaining resources, allowing the Liu family to leap upward and move into Qingzhu City. It was at this time that my mother learned he also had several outside concubines, one of whom, like my mother, had already given birth to a child.”
“Heartbroken, my mother fell ill and was driven away to another region. On the surface, it was said she was recuperating, but in reality, he never once came to see us. Only after my mother passed away did he remember he still had a son, sending word that he would bring him back.”
“Unfortunately, my brother had bad luck. We were ambushed, the carriage fell off a cliff, he died, and I climbed out.”
The teacup hit the table with a clear sound. Liu Piao stood up and bowed deeply.
“I know this request is presumptuous, but... please, Brother Jiang, help me seize the Liu family’s leadership position! Once it’s done, I will repay you a thousandfold!”
She knew this was a huge gamble, but in the entire Qingzhu City, only one person could help her.
Chen Moqing picked up his own teacup, the greenish tea within swayed slightly, “Aren’t you afraid I might scheme against you?”
Liu Piao smiled, her expression open, “Even if it’s scheming, Brother Jiang has genuinely helped me. Unlike those who claim to be my family, yet behind my back, I don’t know how many times they’ve stabbed me.”
“Moreover—” she paused, her expression turning serious, “I haven’t spent much time with Brother Jiang, but I can see that you are an upright and honorable gentleman.”
Chen Moqing glanced casually—his robe sleeve had already been crumpled into a ball by a certain Demon Emperor. He placed the teacup atop the fluffy head of that snow-white little beast.
Cang Shun: “?”
“You’ve misjudged. I am not a gentleman,” Chen Moqing said calmly, “And, I do not need a thousandfold repayment.”
“—I only wish to borrow one thing from the Liu family.”
...
A cup of clear tea was finished, and the guest had already departed.
Chen Moqing put away the teacup and saw the snow-white little beast on the table lying perfectly still. He gave it a poke.
Cang Shun pressed down on his finger but didn’t look at him, only stared at that pale fingertip.
Why doesn’t he tell me anything?
The thought flashed through his mind. Cang Shun pressed that slender finger beneath his paw and suddenly realized. Ever since coming here, no matter what this human cultivator did or what his purpose was, he had never told him about it.
...They truly had no connection at all; there was no reason for him to be told.
—Though he told himself this, the Demon Emperor still felt a bit sullen.
He didn’t want his help, wouldn’t sell his fur even when short on spirit stones, and wouldn’t tell him anything.
Yet they were together all the same.
The room was unusually quiet. Chen Moqing lowered his gaze to see another little ball of fur sulking on the table.
Because it was angry, it looked even rounder than usual.
Sullenly pressing down on his finger, not letting go—perhaps it had forgotten.
He withdrew his finger.
Suddenly empty beneath his paw, Cang Shun instinctively tightened his grip but caught nothing.
"......"
The snow-white little beast’s perked-up ears drooped slightly.
The next second, the drooping little ball of fur was gently lifted by a pair of hands. A faint fragrance lingered at his nose as he was pressed against a lean chest, with a few strands of dark hair brushing against his snowy fur.
“What’s wrong?” a clear and pleasant voice sounded above his head, “Feeling unwell somewhere?”
Cang Shun lifted his crimson demon eyes to meet those beautiful, ink-dark eyes filled with concern.
“......”
A moment later, the little ball of fur nestled shamelessly and righteously in Chen Moqing’s embrace without another sound.
Chen Moqing: Could it be he’s keeping tabs again?
Never mind, better strike first.
He raised a hand, pressed his thumb against a tuft of fur on the snow-white little beast’s head, and rubbed it against the grain.
Cang Shun: “?”
Suddenly sporting a tuft of frizzed fur on its head, the snow-white little beast widened its round, demonic eyes in disbelief.
So that’s why his head was all messy every morning lately! He thought there was something wrong with his cultivation!
Chen Moqing calmly met the gaze of the Demon Emperor for two seconds, then calmly averted his eyes, tucked him into his arms, and walked away.
Cang Shun: “......”
What is tolerable, what is not! The Demon Emperor let out a roar, and his furry paw landed on the human cultivator's robe sleeve.
In Qingzhu City, a night-long cold rain swept away the lingering summer heat. The undried water stains on the bluestone bricks reflected shadowy figures.
Chen Moqing strolled along the long street, then suddenly halted, lifting his gaze.
Cang Shun glanced at the sky.
In the next moment, golden light suddenly filled the sky, celestial cranes paved the way, and a dazzling golden path cleaved through the city's air. An astonishing aura descended from the heavens, pressing down on every cultivator in Qingzhu City, making it impossible for them to raise their heads.
Some among them looked terrified, even kneeling on the ground, trembling uncontrollably.
—That was the aura of an early Nascent Soul stage!
The Dongzhou Prefecture had never had a Nascent Soul cultivator before!
Cang Shun casually withdrew his gaze, only to see a faint smile curl at the corner of Chen Moqing's lips, his eyes deep and still as an ancient well, untouched by daylight.
Above the deathly silent Qingzhu City, that Nascent Soul cultivator arrived, carrying a longsword on his back and riding a celestial crane.
He was a handsome, youthful-looking white-clad sword cultivator. His wide, blue-white robe fluttered, and amidst the cloud-like garment floated patterns of seven stars encircling a central motif.
In the vast expanse of the Nine Thousand Prefectures, that could only represent one sect—
The Tianshu Sect.
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