Flirting with the Villain's Mother - Chapter 41

Remembering the phrase “guiding star,” Shen Su, supporting Wei Nanyi with one arm, pulled out the two jade pendants hanging around her neck with her other hand. “Madam, which of these pendants conceals spiritual Qi?”

The two pendants were nearly identical. Even with Wei Nanyi’s guidance that day, Shen Su couldn’t distinguish which one concealed spiritual Qi, so she had worn both.

Both pendants were crescent-shaped, each with a small, raised bead at the tip. Wei Nanyi reached out and flicked the tip of one pendant, gently rubbing it twice before twisting it twice to the right. As her fingertip moved, the pendant transformed into a miniature sword. Another flick transformed it into a bamboo leaf shape.

Wei Nanyi pointed to the other pendant. “That one conceals spiritual Qi. This one is Full Star Jade, crafted by Junior Brother Shen. It contains a small barrier that can shift into three forms: the crescent moon suppresses cultivation to lower an opponent’s guard, the sword conceals one’s presence, and the bamboo leaf silences all sound within a meter. However, the sword and bamboo leaf forms can only be maintained for brief periods.”

“Junior Brother Shen knew he couldn’t surpass Martial Uncle Jiang in cultivation, formations, or Pill Dao, and that it would be nearly impossible to earn his approval. That’s why he secretly devoted himself to artifact refinement. He once mentioned his idea for crafting this Full Star Jade to me, but I never imagined he’d actually succeed after leaving Approaching Immortals Mountain.”

I never suspected Shen Yiwen knew how to refine artifacts.

And to think he could even compress formations into objects, achieving three functions: suppressing cultivation, muffling sound, and concealing one’s form.

While Spirit Tools and Divine Tools were treasures coveted by all cultivators, the path of an Artifact Refiner was both rare and perilous.

Refiners required vast quantities of high-grade Mystic Iron, Fine Steel, and rare Spirit Stones. Advanced weapons demanded mastery of formations, requiring the sealing of formations within the weapon to achieve their intended purpose. Crafting satisfactory works was exceedingly difficult. Moreover, once a refiner reached a certain level and could forge Spirit Tools, they had to seclude themselves for at least a century, meticulously hammering and refining the materials. During this process, even the slightest lapse in concentration could lead to the Spirit Gu within the tool to tempt the refiner into sacrificing their own body to nourish the artifact. This was why even the Great Sects struggled to cultivate truly exceptional refiners.

Without a doubt, Shen Yiwen was a first-rate genius. But as Jiang Ruiping’s disciple, even proving he wasn’t dull was a distant hope.

Shen Yiwen revered Jiang Ruiping. Even after leaving Approaching Immortals Mountain, he never abandoned his pursuit of artifact refining, as evidenced by the portrait hanging in his room—Xian Zhufu.

He must have yearned for Jiang Ruiping’s approval, both in his cultivation path and in his choice of his beloved wife.

Having inherited so many treasures from Shen Yiwen, Shen Su vowed to show Jiang Ruiping the Full Star Jade when they met again.

Speaking of which, since she didn’t recognize the thumb ring’s contents and Wei Nanyi couldn’t see them, Shen Su had never inventoried its contents. Now that Little Rabbit had transformed into a living person and Wei Nanyi could see, Shen Su realized she needed to finally sort through the ring’s contents to determine what was usable.

First, however, she needed to visit the Divine Temple.

Shen Su carried Wei Nanyi through the dense forest, the trees alternating between thick clusters and sparse patches, the moonlight flickering intermittently.

When the trees grew dense, Shen Su slowed her pace to avoid branches scraping against Wei Nanyi’s delicate and frail body. As the trees thinned, she quickened her steps. This pattern repeated endlessly, yet the Divine Temple remained elusive.

Wei Nanyi called out, “Miss Shen, stop.”

Shen Su gradually came to a halt, her gaze fixed on the seemingly endless path ahead, lined only with trees. She sensed something was amiss. “Madam, have we gotten lost again?”

The feeling was eerily similar to when they were trapped on Goddess Mountain, yet there was a distinct difference. On Goddess Mountain, they had been stranded for over a day without Shen Su feeling any discomfort. Here, however, she had only been lost for a short while, yet her chest already felt stiflingly heavy.

Shen Su circulated her cultivation technique to suppress the discomfort, then retrieved the Jade Marrow and handed it to Wei Nanyi for protection.

Wei Nanyi’s expression turned grave. “This is likely just a simple Bewildering Formation, not difficult to break. Miss Shen, circulate your spiritual power. Don’t rely on your eyes; slowly extend your divine sense and sense for the areas where the spiritual mist within the formation is thinnest.”

“Understood,” Shen Su replied obediently, following her instructions.

As soon as she closed her eyes, a strange voice echoed in her ears: “Save… save… save my child. It’s almost too late.”

Child!

Who’s speaking?!

The eerie voice startled Shen Su, and she snapped her eyes open.

She saw the woman again. Chunks of flesh were peeling from the woman’s face, the ragged edges resembling wounds torn by some wild beast.

Tears brimmed in the woman’s eyes as her parched, pale lips trembled slightly: “Save…”

Suddenly, the woman shuddered twice in the moonlight and vanished without a trace.

Just like before.

This time, Shen Su was certain: the woman was a phantom, like the Fox phantom she had seen in the tomb chamber.

But who was she? Why was she begging for help? Save her child—who was her child? Could it be one of the Little Mountain Bandits?

Shen Su’s gaze darkened.

A soft voice whispered in her ear: “Miss Shen, your fox ears have reappeared.”

Only then did Shen Su realize her fox ears had sprung out again without her noticing.

Ever since Jiang Ruiping had infused her body with spiritual energy, she hadn’t experienced any involuntary demon transformations. Yet now, the woman’s phantom had triggered her ears to manifest.

To be honest, while Shen Su had accepted her half-demon nature, she didn’t particularly like her body’s demon transformation.

During their previous encounter in the tomb chamber, she had resisted it, yet could only passively experience her body melting. If Wei Nanyi hadn’t been there to support her, she might not have accepted her half-demon identity so quickly.

Her newly emerged ears felt slightly itchy. With a hint of annoyance, Shen Su reached up to scratch her fox ears, frowning. “Why can’t I control this again?”

She immediately circulated her spiritual power, attempting to retract the ears. But no matter how hard she tried, the fox ears remained stubbornly fixed atop her head.

Wei Nanyi gazed at Shen Su’s fox ears. They were truly beautiful, their thick, lustrous fur completely unblemished by any other color.

She had encountered many fox demons before, but rarely had she seen fur of such pure, vibrant red. The striking color made Shen Su appear even more vivid and alive.

The ears suited Shen Su perfectly, complementing her naturally lively and spirited nature.

Of course, these ears were originally part of Shen Su’s body.

Wei Nanyi understood Shen Su’s resistance. No one could better empathize with the experience of transforming from a human into a demon. Yet she believed Shen Su was far luckier than herself. As a half-demon from birth, Shen Su could control her demonic body simply by accepting it, without needing to fully transform into an animal.

“Miss Shen, you shouldn’t resist your body’s demon transformation so strongly. Try accepting it first, then learn to control it. And aren’t your ears particularly sensitive? Try listening for sounds within the Bewildering Formation—you might find a way out.”

Wei Nanyi attributed Shen Su’s ability to hear special sounds to her fox ears. But Shen Su had been able to hear Bai Ma’s sobs and faint, distant noises even before her body’s demon transformation, making the fox ears seem unnecessary.

The demon transformation itself was already frustrating, let alone one she couldn’t control.

Shen Su remained still.

Wei Nanyi, clinging to Shen Su’s back with her arms around her neck, raised one hand and sighed softly, gently touching Shen Su’s ear. “Miss Shen, this is part of your body now. You need to accept it. If you keep resisting, it will be difficult for spiritual power to flow through your demonic body, making it even harder to control. Besides, your demonic form is beautiful—you’re a very lovely fox.”

A lovely fox.

Wei Nanyi was complimenting her.

Shen Su had assumed that Wei Nanyi, having been passively transformed into various animals herself, must despise such transformations, even if she didn’t show it. She never expected Wei Nanyi to praise her demonic form.

A sudden tickle at the tips of her ears gradually dispelled Shen Su’s resistance, even bringing a hint of joy to her face.

The fiery red fox ears trembled gently in Wei Nanyi’s palm, their soft fur pressing closer against her skin in a display of endearing compliance.

The fluffy, crimson fur brushed against Wei Nanyi’s palm, its long, soft strands tickling her skin with each gentle sway. The warmth of Shen Su’s body radiated through the fur, creating a pleasant, ticklish sensation.

For a moment, Wei Nanyi forgot to release Shen Su’s ears.

Her reverie was quickly broken by an unusual sensation against her rear.

She felt something warm and soft pressing against her, its presence unmistakable.

Wei Nanyi swiftly turned her gaze downward, only to see a thick, fluffy red tail arched high behind her, its tip brushing against her body with rhythmic, gentle motions.

It seemed to be Shen Su’s tail.

Shen Su no longer resembled a fox demon, but rather a small dog wagging its tail in eager anticipation of praise, its tail standing straight up in delight.

But…

Wei Nanyi’s face flushed crimson. She turned her head, her grip tightening on Shen Su’s ears. “Miss Shen,” she said, her voice strained, “your tail.”

Lost in her joy, Shen Su suddenly jolted awake. She finally felt a tail sprouting behind her. The warmth at its tip made her face flush crimson. The more she tried to retract it, the more wildly it wagged, its fluffy tip brushing against her buttocks and caressing Wei Nanyi’s hips, the very tip occasionally touching Wei Nanyi’s waist.

Wei Nanyi leaned against Shen Su’s shoulder, a soft gasp escaping her lips. “Miss Shen, if you… if you can’t control your tail, would you please put me down?”

Shen Su heard her perfectly.

A low, involuntary moan escaped her lips—restrained yet utterly seductive.

Beautiful as it sounds, I wish I were deaf!

She was actually taking advantage of Wei Nanyi!

Shen Su knew that puppies wag their tails uncontrollably when happy, but she never imagined foxes did the same, let alone a half-demon like herself.