Li Li had dealt with demonic cultivators before, but he could clearly sense that the person in front of him was quite extraordinary.
Demons were more sensitive to danger than humans. At this moment, even though the Bodhi Heart was constantly tempting him to approach, he couldn't overcome his physiological fear. He was about to turn on his heels and flee from this ready-to-wear shop.
However—
"Did you say... your name is Li Li?"
His back collar was roughly grabbed. The young girl who had been hit on and remained silent for a while finally seemed to react, suddenly rushing to his side and refusing to let him go.
Li Li's entire body had gone limp earlier. Right now, despite being the taller party, he was lifted up by Yingshi's raised hand and spun around without any power to fight back.
"Guest, guest... calm down!" The shop assistant stood two meters away, trying to stop them in terror. "We don't do physical fights in the mortal world! It's almost the New Year, let's value harmony!"
"Uh-huh, value harmony." Yingshi took a moment to nod and promise the assistant, then dragged Li Li by the collar toward the outside. "Shuangjian, let's take him outside. Don't fight in someone else's shop!"
Turning her head, she mouthed to Shuangjian, winking seriously: "This is that fox demon!"
Wasn't this a coincidence?
The fox demon they had planned to get rid of actually delivered himself right under their noses!
The book had written that this fox demon loved to create clones and transform in Tiandu City, but the names of his identities always had a subtle similarity. His surname was either Li or Hu, and as for his given name, it was mostly a combination of Li, Li (strength), or Hu (lake)—his cultural level as a demon was still not high enough.
The timing was perfect now. This fox demon grew stronger by killing people and swallowing their hearts. He should have just entered Tiandu City not long ago and was still in the lurking and exploring stage. He shouldn't be a match for her and Shuangjian, otherwise he wouldn't have shown such a terrified and miserable appearance upon realizing they were cultivators.
The time, the place, and the people were right. They really had to nip this vile spawn in the bud!
But a slightly troublesome thing was that this fox demon's true form seemed to be a three-tailed fox. As he killed people and swallowed hearts, he could grow more tails, and each tail could help him fake his death and escape once. Eradicating him wouldn't be easy.
"Two heroes, I was merely blinded by lust and wanted to take advantage verbally. Even if I offended you, it's not a crime worthy of this!" As soon as Li Li was taken out of the ready-to-wear shop, he began to struggle. His wails immediately attracted the attention of the surrounding commoners. Before Yingshi could panicked try to cover his mouth, Shuangjian, who had been a step behind paying the bill in the shop, stepped in front of her and tapped the fox demon twice.
Li Li's face turned pale, his lips trembled, but he couldn't make a sound. Only a pair of eyes widened in horror.
Yingshi wanted to lower their presence, but the posture of the three of them and a pig seemed too conspicuous. Under the alert and curious eyes of the public, she had a sudden whim: "It's not good to make a move outside either. How about we just take him with us, to Fengmo Village? We can tie him to our side! In the original book, didn't this guy make the original male lead work like a horse and humiliate him to the extreme? We can totally borrow this method."
Although this fox demon's heart was already rotten, he hadn't committed murder yet. Judging him in advance might damage her own merit. It would be better to spare his life and let him act as a meat shield when the Demon Lord arrived.
Didn't he admire the Demon Lord's hand very much?
Didn't he rather chop off his own to graft someone else's?
Then let him personally exchange a few moves with his idol.
...Alright, I have to say there was another reason. Although Yingshi was mentally filled with righteous indignation, her soul was essentially a modern person who had never even killed a fish.
So far, she had only fought people in the Tianshan Snow Plains, but elimination there didn't mean death. Calming down a bit, that impulse of righteous law enforcement, wanting to execute someone by hand, cooled down.
If they could let the scourge be eliminated by another scourge without dirtying their own hands, that would be best.
"...Okay, I'll take him."
Shuangjian had no objections to this. He handed Xiangxiang into Yingshi's arms, took over her post, and voluntarily became the non-commissioned officer "escorting" the fox demon.
Going to Fengmo Village required crossing Tiandu City. After exiting from the end, they could use Instant Step, and it would probably take less than an hour to reach Fengmo Village.
"There are still many things we haven't bought, and it's too late to wait until tonight to attend the lantern festival." Yingshi stroked the pig and sighed, shaking her head. "Let's escort him back and lock him up first, then it won't be too late for us to come out and stroll around again."
Li Li was forced to listen to their discussion on the side. Although he couldn't hear many words clearly, it didn't affect his understanding of the overall meaning of the conversation—his identity as a demon seemed to be exposed, and these two people indiscriminately wanted to hijack him as a slave!
Ultimately, he merely hit on someone. On what grounds were they dealing with him like this?
If all else fails, abandoning a tail to save himself and committing suicide to escape was also a way... Li Li thought with an ashen face. Next time he disguised himself more carefully, he would definitely play with this Bodhi Heart until it was smashed to pieces!
Although there was a demon glaring like a tiger watching its prey, how could a demon associate with cultivators? That guy must also be disguising and ambushing. When he threatened to expose that person's true identity, let's see if he dared to intimidate him!
Just then, Li Li looked up and saw a female guest sitting on the open-air second floor of the roadside teahouse with a curtain hanging, surrounded by a group of servants. His eyes immediately lit up, looking excitedly in that direction, trying to struggle again.
Following his gaze, Yingshi immediately saw the woman surrounded in the center, dressed in luxurious clothes and wearing a complicated bun.
At this moment, she held a teacup in one hand, her gaze directed at the street, and for a moment, it met Yingshi's looking over.
...Could this be Princess Jiaping?
She looked very much like how she imagined her when reading the book! Yingshi immediately matched the person in her mind.
And Li Li looked in the direction of Princess Jiaping, confirming that he had caught her eye. These past few days he had worked hard to show his face around the owner of this Seven-Aperture Exquisite Heart, and she had quite a good impression of someone as handsome as him. She would definitely lend a helping hand at this moment!
Sure enough, Li Li saw the guard beside Princess Jiaping walk down from the teahouse after receiving her order, heading straight toward them, and finally stopping in front of them.
The guard respectfully cupped his hands, his voice not loud but clear: "This young master, my princess sees your extraordinary bearing and wishes to get acquainted. May I know your honorable name? The princess specially invites you to move to the City Lord's Mansion for a chat. Would you be willing to honor us with your presence?"
"..." Li Li froze.
He repeatedly checked the angle of the guard's cupped hands and the direction of his toes, still finding it hard to believe that these words were directed at the demonic cultivator beside him!
Did no one care that he was obviously kidnapped?!
Jiaping clearly drank and chatted happily with him yesterday, and her heart almost beat for him. Why did she turn a blind eye to him today?
"..." Yingshi also froze.
Princess Jiaping was also a huge face-judger!
One of her criteria for choosing a husband in the original novel was an absolutely pleasing face, so she fell in love with the male lead at first sight. Unfortunately, by then, she had already been forcefully taken by the fox demon.
Later, although she joined forces with the male lead to kill the fox demon and was sent to the Dao Yi Immortal Alliance, she was just like the other female supporting characters, occasionally appearing to show her face, without any substantial romantic development or interaction.
Now, nothing had happened yet. Princess Jiaping had fatefully spotted Shuangjian in the crowd at a glance and extended an olive branch... Yingshi suddenly felt a bizarre hint of sourness in her heart.
It was very faint, but it could not be called comfortable.
Because the aloof senior sister and Shuangjian had such clashing auras, this was the first time she was witnessing the subtle beginnings of the original book's romantic storyline.
She disliked the original book's indecisive, hot-and-cold treatment of the male lead's romantic storyline the most. Perhaps this was why she felt so sensitive at this moment.
Yingshi subconsciously looked at Shuangjian's expression—well, he did not have one.
Shuangjian glanced indifferently at the guard, simply shook his head, and stepped aside to walk around him.
The guard seemed to look up to ask for instructions, then took a few quick steps to catch up, raising his hand to block Shuangjian's path. Is the young master busy with something? If it is not urgent, why not reconsider? In this city, no matter what you seek, as long as it does not violate morality, the Princess can lend a helping hand...
Seeing that Shuangjian had already furrowed his brows, Yingshi hurriedly sidled over and secretly squeezed his hand hidden beneath his sleeve.
No need, brother guard. Our matters are quite urgent, but we thank the Princess for her kindness, she answered on his behalf.
...Oh, oh, alright. The guard was slightly taken aback. He took a step back, cupped his hands in a salute to her as well, and after seeking permission from the teahouse above, quickly returned.
...
Li Li, whose face had been dark for quite a while, fixed his gaze on the briefly clasped hands of Yingshi and Shuangjian, and then stared intently at Shuangjian's chest.
Previously, he could not see the demon cultivator's heart.
That organ of his was shrouded in layers of black mist, hidden in the deepest depths. Even he, whose hunting instinct was to peer into hearts, could not pry into it.
However, just now, this person's heart had actually pierced through that shroud of black mist, beating very lightly and quickly, flashing a vibrant red—right at the moment his hand was held!
—His heart was moved by the young girl beside him!
Li Li formed a plan in his mind. He relaxed his body and stopped struggling. Only his fox-like eyes darted around, and as they did, he began to sneer inwardly: How rare!
That demon cultivator was hiding by the cultivator's side, but it seemed he was not preparing to deceive or harm her; instead, he was in love with her!
Did he still need to worry about not being able to deal with them?
Matters of love were the easiest to exploit.
Those blinded by love were the most foolish CR.
And a heart thoroughly broken by love was the most delicious of all...
What are you secretly plotting?!
A sudden slap on his back snapped Li Li back to his senses. Wincing in pain, he angrily met Yingshi's probing gaze, gritted his teeth, and turned his head away.
...Do you know that when you are brewing bad ideas, you cannot control your expression at all? Yingshi said in astonishment. Shuangjian, since we have already left the city, let us lift his silencing curse and interrogate this guy about what conspiracy he is hatching.
... Li Li kept his mouth shut and simply closed his eyes, pretending to sleep.
Just wait!
Since these two were so audacious as to try and forcefully abduct him to be their servant, then they could just wait for nightfall when he would release the fox clan's love poison. He would drug their minds, transform into their likenesses to sow discord, and provoke them into killing each other!
The heart of a demon cultivator was probably foul-smelling, but to vent his frustration, he would definitely swallow it in one gulp!
As for that Bodhi heart... once the demon cultivator was dead, he would change his identity, properly get on her good side, and deceive her until he devoured her completely!
