Congratulations, you two are locked in!
A dharma cultivator can churn rivers and overturn seas, and a sword cultivator can split open a mountain with a single strike. Such feats are hardly rare in the cultivation world.
Especially during the conflicts between the righteous path and the demonic path, whenever a powerful great cultivator arrives on the scene, their first move is often a violent "nuclear-level opening strike" that levels everything in its path, and such spectacles can be seen every few days.
But for a cultivator under twenty years of age who has not yet formed their Golden Core to unleash such a sword strike, that is nothing short of shocking.
Even with a top-tier spirit sword like Solitary Light Sword in hand, even with Jiang Xuesheng channeling extra spiritual power to assist her, to split apart a mountain range that stretches for a hundred zhang with one sword, the sword cultivator herself must be completely free of all distractions, condense every sliver of her spiritual sense into a single point, and without the slightest hesitation, misgiving, or doubt the moment she draws her sword. Her state of mind has to be as clear and unclouded as a newborn child's, yet as resolute and unyielding as steel that has been hammered a thousand times.
Such a realm, let alone for flighty, impulsive young people, even Golden Core cultivators who have achieved a fair level of cultivation, may not be able to reach it easily.
But for Shu Fu, doing this is as natural as breathing.
She has always been this way, and she always will be.
She fears no death, refuses to submit to fate, and bows to no one. With only a sword in her hand, her very being is an unbreakable, unstoppable sharp blade.
Right as both the righteous and demonic factions were reeling in shock from the might of that single sword, Shu Fu herself did not stand still like a fool.
Using the deafening battle cries as cover, she had Jiang Xuesheng draw an invisibility talisman for her. Hidden from all senses, she followed the tunnel back into Demon Lord Ninglu's "palace".
Earlier in the stone chamber, Jiang Xuesheng had casually broken the formation core, so this return trip went very smoothly. The only issue was Mink Gu, who was yowling at the top of his non-existent lungs the whole time: "What are you doing! We finally found a way out, why are you going back? I'm telling you, little girl, have you lost your mind..."
"..."
Jiang Xuesheng shot him a cold, icy glance, and the little mink immediately went dead silent, shrinking back and burying his face in Ye Shusheng's chest, not daring to say another word.
The second Shu Fu stepped back into Demon Lord Ninglu's lair, she did not pause for even a moment, and headed straight for the grand hall.
Caught completely off guard, Ninglu and her group had no time to deal with the huge number of "concubines" locked up in the caves, and the entire scene descended into total chaos, like a pressure cooker that had just exploded.
Some of the male favorites had chosen to stay by Ninglu of their own free will, so they were now panicking, either fleeing in a frenzy or picking up arms to join the demon cultivators and fight the Wei Cheng forces.
But there were others, like Ye Shusheng, who had been forced to become Ninglu's "concubines" against their will, and had been waiting for a chance to escape. The second they saw the demon palace fall into chaos, they immediately rose up in rebellion and clashed with the demon maids guarding them.
Take Consort Zhuang, who had transformed from a white whale, and Concubine Xue, who was originally a cloud leopard. One was a cool, elegant handsome man in spotless white robes with white hair to match, and the other was a sharp, capable, tanned hunk with a narrow waist and long legs. Out in the wider cultivation world, both of them would be powerful great demons in their own right, but they had fallen for some trap and ended up in Ninglu's captivity, stripped of their freedom ever since.
Led by these two, a group of men all trapped under restrictive spells were fighting back fiercely, trying to break out of the underground palace in one go. Attacked from both inside and out, the demon maids no longer looked calm and collected. They dropped all pretense of civility, yelling and cursing viciously as they surrounded the rebels with their weapons drawn.
Shu Fu could not help but think to herself: I feel like I'm watching a men's rights movement in a matriarchal society. What a surreal, absurd sight.
Then, without a moment's hesitation, she swung her sword and pierced the throat of the demon maid closest to her.
"You are... a human?"
Splattered blood dripped onto the white whale's face, but he did not even bother to wipe it off. He blinked in total disbelief and said, "A human woman... why are you helping us?"
Because you're all really handsome, big brother.
Shu Fu very much wanted to tease him with that line, but she knew there was more important business at hand. She straightened her face, cleared her throat, and said in all seriousness, "Let me ask you, if you saw a tyrant seizing women by force, locking them up in a place where they would never see the light of day, and abusing and trampling on them as he pleased, would you step in to save them?"
"That..."
The white whale hesitated for a second, but the cloud leopard beside him cut in quickly, speaking in a blunt, straightforward manner, "Probably not. I'd just make sure I'm safe, and why stick my nose into other males' household affairs? If it's even people from a different race, I'd stay far, far away."
His words were rather crude and cold, but Shu Fu did not get angry at all. She just gave him a knowing smile and said, "You're right, most people would think that way."
"But I think that's wrong. That's why I'm here to save you."
As she spoke, she flicked her wrist, and the light of her sword swept across the area, breaking every last one of the restrictive spells on their bodies.
"Don't worry, I'm not asking for anything in return."
Shu Fu turned to face the attacking demon cultivators as she spoke, not even looking back at them as she added, "Think of this as me doing you all a favor. If you ever see human beings, or female cultivators, in trouble in the future, if it's within your power to help, I hope you'll reach out and save them."
"..."
Her words were said so casually, but to these proud, self-important great demons, they carried the weight of someone who was pleading for the welfare of every living being in the world.
They exchanged several wary, stunned glances with each other, before the white whale was the first to react. He cupped his hands in a formal greeting to Shu Fu and said, "I am Zhuang Yu, originally from the East Sea. Little girl, I will remember this favor of yours. I will surely repay you one day."
With him taking the lead, the other demon cultivators did not want to lose face either. They all patted their chests and swore that they would repay the kindness, and some even plucked feathers off their bodies or pulled scales off their skin to hand over to Shu Fu as tokens of their oath.
Looks like randomly plucking out feathers at the drop of a hat is totally normal among male demons. Liu Ruyi, who treasures her feathers like they're her life, is the weird one here.
Shu Fu had no problem making more good connections, so she accepted every single token the demon cultivators handed her without hesitation, tucking them all neatly into her storage bag. But she did notice that every time she put another feather or scale away, Jiang Xuesheng's gaze grew colder and colder. By the end, the air around him was frozen solid, and he looked like he urgently needed an icebreaker to thaw his mood.
She was quick to read the situation, and even in the middle of the fierce battle, she reached over to tug at the cuff of his sleeve, whispering quietly, "Sir, these are just little souvenirs. Don't take them to heart. The mermaid scales you and Third Senior Brother gave me are the only irreplaceable treasures to me."
Jiang Xuesheng: "Is that so."
But for the record, the part that said "and Third Senior Brother" was completely unnecessary.
"Whoa, no way."
Mink Gu poked his head out from Ye Shusheng's clothes, gawking and muttering to himself, "From the looks of it, she's planning to turn Demon Lord Ninglu's entire harem into her own harem!"
"Brother Mink, don't talk nonsense."
Ye Shusheng said with a serious, earnest look on his face. "Shu Fu has a perfectly upright character, I can vouch for her. She would never have such a thought. With her character and grace, it's only natural that others would be drawn to her."
The little mink thought to himself, I already know that. That little girl is so cool and charismatic, I'd even love to be part of her harem myself. But it looks like her master would swallow me whole if I tried, so it's much safer to hide in your chest.
This mink isn't fussy. As long as it's a reliable, golden thigh to cling to, this mink will latch on to anyone.
Meanwhile, right at that moment—
While Shu Fu was busy running her harem liberation campaign on one side, Demon Lord Ninglu had been surrounded by Liu Ruyi and the rest of the Wei Cheng group. She was handling the situation with ease, showing no signs of defeat, but she could not break through the encirclement any time soon. What's more, if all of her forces were wiped out here, what would even be the point of her escaping alone?
Ninglu, after all, was a Nascent Soul old monster who had seen countless bloody battles. Trapped in a tight encirclement, she did not even change her expression. Between exchanging blows, she even tossed a coquettish glance at Liu Ruyi. "Well if it isn't Perfected Chenbi? I've admired your grace and beauty for so long, young lady. Some day when the flowers are blooming and the moon is bright, would there be a chance for us to..."
Liu Ruyi's gaze was even more alluring than hers, and her smile was sweeter still. "No, I don't think there will ever be a chance. Demon Lord Ninglu, there's a whole generation gap between us. I really don't have the weird hobby of flirting with a great-aunt like you."
"Besides, even with all that heavy makeup you caked on, all that careful primping, all the nips and tucks you've had on your eyes and nose, you still aren't even one-tenth as pretty as me. Why on earth would I lower my own status to mess around with you?"
Ninglu: "...You're asking for it!!!"
As the saying goes, when the roof leaks, it rains even harder. Not only had Ninglu failed to charm her target, only to get roasted mercilessly in return, but she heard chaotic footsteps coming from behind her. Several of her stationed maids came scrambling over in a panic, and right on their heels were all the handsome male favorites she had carefully collected, rushing out of the cave along with Shu Fu!
Even as calm as Ninglu usually was, she could not help but fly into a rage at this sight. "What in the world is going on?!"
"Hey, it's nothing major." Shu Fu looked up at her from below, grinning so wide she showed all eight of her teeth, and gave her a thumbs up. "I saw you had so many handsome men here, and I was worried you wouldn't be able to keep up with all of them sleeping alone. So I decided to help you share the load. No need to thank me."
Ninglu: "..."
No need to thank my ass! Such a shameless little brat at such a young age, she really is the disaster that Jiang Tan raised!
Ninglu had always been the type to crave new things and get tired of the old, falling for anyone new she saw, playing with them until she got bored then tossing them aside. She never treasured her harem all that much to begin with, but that did not mean she could tolerate Shu Fu driving right through the walls of her private harem like a bulldozer.
Worse yet, Shu Fu's little stunt did not just affect those wronged "consorts" who had already been enduring humiliation. All the weaker male cultivators who had volunteered to serve her, overwhelmed by Shu Fu's imposing aura and convinced that Ninglu was doomed, scattered in all directions to save their own skins.
That meant in barely a quarter of an hour, Shu Fu had single-handedly dispersed Ninglu's entire vibrant, colorful harem, leaving her a proper, bona fide "lonely widow" with no one left by her side.
To top it all off, Shu Fu herself did not even care one bit. Her attitude was absolutely awful, her arrogance was through the roof, she had an endless supply of silly meme-like expressions, and she looked for all the world like she wanted to jump up and dance right on top of Ninglu's head.
Enough was enough. Ninglu immediately summoned her treasured spirit beast, a great big bird covered in turquoise blue feathers, leaped onto its back, and dove straight down toward Shu Fu, who was guarding the cave entrance to cut off their retreat.
Shu Fu's eyes sharpened. She did not dodge, did not flinch, and held her sword up to meet the attack. Just a second before that, she had just seen the last little squirrel escaping out of the demon lair.
"Eh?" Jiang Xuesheng suddenly spoke up. "That's a biyi bird, a winged lovebird. What a rare creature. I haven't seen one in years, not since I was at the Nine Blossom Sect."
"A what bird?" Shu Fu asked casually as she got her sword ready for battle. "You scared me. I saw this huge Smurf-looking thing, and thought it was the legendary Azure Phoenix."
"Biyi birds, or paired wing birds," Jiang Xuesheng explained, "the males are always bright red, the females are always turquoise. Once they choose their partner, they stay with them for the rest of their lives and never take another mate. That's why if one of them dies in an accident, or gets captured by someone, the remaining one can't reproduce. They're already a critically endangered exotic beast now."
While Jiang Xuesheng gave Shu Fu this little lesson on cultivation world lore, he raised his hand and summoned his guqin, placing it across his lap. A few crisp, ringing notes from the strings deflected Ninglu's offensive.
Shu Fu was just about to make her move when Ninglu's blue bird suddenly froze mid-air. It craned its neck and let out a long, loud cry, its eyes glued to a wisp of floating cloud in the distance, no matter how hard Ninglu tried to steer it away.
From deep within that cloud, an equally loud, clear call echoed from far away.
Then a striking, eye-catching red figure burst out of the clouds, shooting downward like an arrow released from a bow. Its movements were exactly like the blue bird's, and it was clearly a fully crimson male biyi bird!
"..." Shu Fu froze mid-step, her sword slowly drooping in her hand. She stared blankly and said, "Sir, you said you 'only saw biyi birds at the Nine Blossom Sect'—does that mean..."
"That's right." Jiang Xuesheng had also stopped plucking the guqin strings. There was a note of pity in his voice, and a look of indescribable sympathy in his eyes. "Master Huaigu of the Tianquan Peak carefully raised a male one. I always thought the female died ages ago. It turns out all those years ago, he didn't just send her gold, silver, and jewelry. He sent her rare exotic beasts too."
He sighed and put a hand to his forehead. "If I had known that was what he did, he might as well have sent her to me."
Shu Fu: "..."
This man really is not human. Listen to the words coming out of his mouth.
...
The cultivator on the male bird's back was none other than Master Huaigu himself. He had barely managed to save his immortal abode from a raging fire, then gave Fang Wanqing a severe scolding and punishment. Full of pent-up frustration, he took Sect Master Qiu's advice to go join the Central Plains Flower Festival, hoping to take his mind off his bad mood.
The biyi bird could travel a thousand li a day, but halfway through their flight, they saw flames shooting up from a mountain peak below, with a taint of demonic energy that made him feel sick to his stomach. Master Huaigu hated demonic cultivators more than anything. He immediately steered his bird over to see which demon cultivator had their house burned down, ready to go add more fuel to the fire to vent his own anger.
And that was how his male bird, and the female bird he had given to Ninglu—Miss Fang Bailu—ran face to face right in the middle of the battlefield.
"Chirp! Chirp chirp!"
Biyi birds are extra sensitive to their one and only chosen partner. Now that they had been reunited after so long apart, it was like dry kindling meeting a wildfire, or parched earth getting doused with rain. They could not wait to throw themselves at each other for a passionate, romantic bird kiss.
If they had not moved, nothing would have happened. But the second they lunged for each other, they dragged the completely unsuspecting Demon Lord Ninglu and Master Huaigu right into each other, almost causing a horrific mid-air collision.
"..."
"..."
At that moment, the two of them who were also "reunited after a long separation" were inches apart. No hands were held, no teary eyes met, but the sight was so awkward that every single bystander was left speechless.
Master Huaigu: "You—you evil demon girl, what are you doing rushing up to me?! I am wholeheartedly devoted to the Dao, I will never be bewitched by your alluring flesh and skin! Get away from me this instant!!"
Demon Lord Ninglu: "...Who the hell are you?"
