Flirting with the Villain's Mother - Chapter 28

The room emptied, leaving only the terrified Shen Su and the blind Wei Nanyi.

A large pool of bl00d stained the floor, and the golden longsword lay submerged in the crimson puddle, its radiant golden blade now dulled and bloodstained. The sword’s once brilliant luster had been extinguished, and the light in Shen Su’s eyes had faded as well. She could see countless bl00d droplets trembling before her eyes.

Jiang Xu had stabbed himself with such force, and Jiang Ruiping had yanked the sword out with equal violence, splattering Shen Su’s face with Jiang Xu’s bl00d.

Her throat tightened as she lowered her gaze. She saw her delicate, fair hands completely stained crimson, not a trace of pale skin visible. Her eyes burned with a stinging ache, and the air reeked of bl00d—the fading scent of Jiang Xu’s life slipping away.

Intermittent sobs broke through Shen Su’s daze, finally snapping her back to reality. A familiar dull ache rose in her chest.

The weeping came from Wei Nanyi.

Though blind, Wei Nanyi could hear and smell the bl00d. With her sharp intellect, she could easily deduce what had happened.

Her sobs were soft and weak, yet they echoed loudly and painfully in Shen Su’s heart.

Shen Su clutched her chest and let out a bitter laugh.

Though she had long known Jiang Xu was a madman, Shen Su was still shaken by the sheer madness of him forcing her to stab herself with the sword.

From the moment she embarked on the path of cultivation, Shen Su had known she would eventually stain her hands with bl00d. Conflict was inevitable on this path; even someone as virtuous as Wei Nanyi had enemies. How much more so would someone like her, who was far from virtuous? Yet she never imagined the first bl00d to stain her hands would be Jiang Xu’s.

Fear mingled with self-reproach.

Hearing Wei Nanyi’s sobs only deepened her guilt. “Madam, I’m so sorry,” she whispered.

It was Jiang Xu who had controlled her hand to wield the sword and stab herself. The fault lay entirely with him, yet Shen Su still felt remorse, perhaps because Wei Nanyi was crying.

She knew Wei Nanyi must be heartbroken for Jiang Xu.

The White-Haired Rabbit in her palm gently tilted its head, its voice as gentle as ever. “Miss Shen, you mustn’t blame yourself. This was Xu’er’s choice. Did she frighten you?”

Perhaps.

But now, the fear had faded, replaced by shock—shock at the extent of Jiang Xu’s madness.

Wei Nanyi was clearly heartbroken, yet she was still worried about Shen Su being frightened by Jiang Xu. She was so kind, so good, that Shen Su even found herself understanding Jiang Xu’s madness. Jiang Xu must have been deeply concerned; with a mother as gentle and kind as hers, survival would be difficult if her caretaker were also overly compassionate.

Shen Su’s voice still trembled as she spoke, but her resolve grew stronger. She carefully stroked the rabbit’s fur. “Madam, I will take good care of you.”

The White-Haired Rabbit’s fur was stained with bl00d, its soft strands matted together. If not cleaned promptly, the bl00d would clot.

Shen Su finally moved.

She had taken only half a step with the rabbit in her arms when her foot struck the sword Jiang Xu had dropped. This golden sword, sharpened by Jiang Xu’s spiritual power, owed its existence to her spiritual energy. After piercing its master, it had become a useless piece of metal, its golden radiance completely extinguished, leaving only the bloodstains to add color.

Shen Su gazed at the sword for a moment, then silently picked it up.

She tore off a piece of cloth, wiped the blade clean, wrapped it, and stored it in the storage space within her thumb ring before carrying the rabbit outside.

Covered in bl00d, she would attract too much attention if she left Shen Manor in this state. Fallen Moon City still had many cultivators, and drawing their notice would be unwise. With a thought, a sphere of azure water materialized in her palm. A gentle touch dissolved most of the bloodstains. Shen Su quickly conjured another water sphere and placed it over the rabbit’s head. The water droplets enveloped the rabbit’s fur, carrying the bl00d downward until it vanished completely. The fur was left only slightly damp, as if lightly wiped with a wet cloth rather than soaked.

Whatever the golden light Jiang Ruiping had injected into her body was, it seemed to have granted her some control over her demon transformation.

Regardless of its nature, this was undoubtedly a good thing.

Clutching the rabbit, Shen Su left Shen Manor in silence, heading straight for the medical clinic.

The physician was astonished by Shen Su’s request to treat a rabbit, but he quickly regained his composure. Not only did he set the rabbit’s broken leg, but he also retrieved two small wooden boards intended for repairing a table to splint the limb. Seeing that Shen Su appeared to be a young lady from a wealthy family, he even provided her with two bottles of high-quality wound medicine.

Touching the wooden splints, Shen Su secretly used her spiritual power to smooth them further, ensuring there were no splinters that could harm Wei Nanyi. Only then did she pay the physician and leave, cradling the rabbit.

Just as she reached the doorway, she remembered that Wei Nanyi might revert to human form at any moment. She immediately turned back to the gray-haired physician and pleaded earnestly, “Could you give me another set of wound medicine for humans? Someone else at home has been injured.”

The physician beamed and handed Shen Su several more bottles of wound medicine. “Miss, this works for both humans and rabbits.”

Shen Su carefully stored the medicine and carried the rabbit toward home. She had taken only a few steps when she bumped into a girl in a red robe. The girl’s eyes curved into a crescent moon, sparkling like stars in the night sky. “A cultivator buying wound medicine? How unusual.”

The girl didn’t linger to argue with Shen Su; she ran off after her remark. But Shen Su took note of it.

Does Shen Yiwen have any treasures that can suppress cultivation or conceal spiritual energy? she wondered. I’m not strong enough to defend myself yet. If people can tell I’m a cultivator at a glance, I’ll attract trouble too easily.

She made a mental note to search thoroughly when she got home. But before she could even begin, Wei Nanyi spoke up: “Miss Shen, Junior Brother Shen should have a jade pendant that conceals spiritual power. Did you see it in his ring? Your cultivation level is still low, and you possess a great treasure without the protection of a Sect. If you had the pendant to mask your cultivator aura, it would save you a lot of trouble.”

Wei Nanyi had come to the same conclusion.

Shen Su had remained silent the entire journey, not even flinching when the physician set her broken leg. She had assumed Wei Nanyi was still upset about her injuring Jiang Xu. Now that Wei Nanyi had finally spoken to her, Shen Su let out a relieved breath. “I’ll search for it as soon as I get home!”

She paused, then added, “I thought Madam didn’t want to speak to me anymore.”

Wei Nanyi, with her keen intuition, easily guessed that Shen Su had been lost in thought.

She harbored no resentment toward Shen Su for Jiang Xu’s actions; such behavior was simply not in her nature. Instead, she felt a genuine concern for Jiang Xu, though worry alone could do nothing. Returning to Approaching Immortals Mountain was the best course of action for both Jiang Xu and herself at this point.

Heaven only knew how heartbroken Wei Nanyi was to see Jiang Xu become so extreme after following her.

As for the recent incident, it was never Shen Su’s fault.

Wei Nanyi already felt she was burdening Shen Su enough by relying on her. How could she possibly blame her for anything? “Miss Shen,” she said, “I was just wondering if taking me away from Fallen Moon City would be too difficult for you. I remained silent earlier because I was trying to figure out how to ask you.”

Shen Su’s face lit up. “Not at all! Madam, just wait while I pack some gold, silver, and valuables. Then we’ll leave right away!”

Shen Su’s joy and decisiveness resonated clearly in Wei Nanyi’s ears. Even without seeing her, she could sense Shen Su’s vibrant spirit.

“Miss Shen,” Wei Nanyi asked, “aren’t you curious why I want to leave?”

“It wasn’t hard to guess,” Shen Su replied. “Fallen Moon City is too close to Approaching Immortals Mountain.”

Proximity meant danger.

Shen Su knew that once Jiang Xu returned to Approaching Immortals Mountain with Jiang Ruiping, he would seize any opportunity to thoroughly search the surrounding area. Wei Nanyi’s presence here was perilous, and Shen Su herself was in danger. She believed that Jiang An, with his ruthless ambition to grow stronger, would drain her bl00d if he discovered she was a descendant of the Mirror Quilt.

Wei Nanyi feared her request would force Shen Su to abandon her home and live as a fugitive. But Shen Su had never felt a strong attachment to Fallen Moon City, and she had already been planning to leave.

Wei Nanyi, surprised by Shen Su’s insight, could only smile faintly. “Miss Shen is indeed remarkably perceptive.”

Now that Wei Nanyi was willing to speak to her, the pent-up anxiety in Shen Su’s heart vanished, and even the lingering unease in her chest began to dissipate. When they had been captured by the demonic creature, it had been the dead of night. Now, as they emerged from the clinic, the sky was beginning to lighten, and street vendors were already setting up stalls selling pastries.

Cultivators who reached a certain level of cultivation could abstain from food, but Shen Su had only just reached the Qi Condensation Stage, far from that level. Besides, even if she wasn’t hungry, Wei Nanyi must be.

Shen Su bought several vegetarian buns, carefully selecting the whitest and largest one to offer Wei Nanyi.

In her rabbit form, Wei Nanyi was delicate and petite. Shen Su could cradle her in one hand, and she sat securely in her palm, though the splinted leg remained conspicuous.

Wei Nanyi was remarkably resilient to pain. Despite her injury, she hadn’t uttered a single cry of discomfort.

Jiang Xu seemed to have inherited this stoicism from her.

With the rabbit nestled in one hand and the bun in the other, Shen Su took a large bite of the soft, white dough before finally asking, “Madam, why is Senior Jiang so determined to find the Yu Ling Sword?”

In a sect, the Sect Leader held primary authority, followed by the visible Elders. Supreme Elders like Jiang Ruiping, who had long retired into seclusion, typically only emerged during times of existential crisis, serving as the sect’s hidden strength. Yet here she was, openly descending the mountain solely to retrieve a sword—even ordering Jiang Xu’s assassination in her pursuit. Such extremism seemed unwarranted.

However, after interacting with Jiang Ruiping, Shen Su sensed she wasn’t acting purely on impulse.

As Shen Su spoke, Wei Nanyi was struggling with the bun in her paws.

The rabbit form was small, and its soft, white paws were even tinier. Wei Nanyi had to use both paws to hold the large bun Shen Su had carefully selected for her.

The steamed bun was nearly as large as the rabbit’s face. She lifted it to her lips, but after a long struggle, she managed to bite off only a tiny piece of the bun’s pleated tip.

Wei Nanyi was an ordinary person with no spiritual power… well, now she was a rabbit. She was indeed hungry, but her eyes couldn’t see, forcing her to fumble around to find a place to bite.

Shen Su watched helplessly as the little rabbit nearly buried herself in the soft, fluffy bun. She quickly took the large bun back from Wei Nanyi, tore off a small piece, and handed it to her, her face flushing with embarrassment. “Madam, I was careless.”

She had only wanted to give Wei Nanyi the best, but she had forgotten that Wei Nanyi was just a small rabbit.

Wei Nanyi clutched the piece of dough, and after swallowing the warm, white dough, she finally realized how clumsy she had looked while struggling to eat the bun. Her rabbit ears turned pink. “N-no problem,” she stammered.

With her hunger eased, Wei Nanyi finally felt a bit embarrassed about her earlier undignified behavior. Her rabbit ears grew even redder, and even the bun stuffed in her mouth lost its flavor. She quickly changed the subject. “The Yu Ling Sword… the Yu Ling Sword… it seems it was originally Martial Uncle Jiang’s sword.”