When the Tsundere Rival Turns Into a Cat - Chapter 31

Xuan Yu still wanted to act, but she couldn’t withstand the effects of the drug any longer. She reverted to her original form and collapsed unconscious. The others around her were no exception, and from the room being searched, a few dull thuds could be heard—clearly, they had also succumbed.

Li Xingcan stared wide-eyed at the scene. Jiang Qingyue beside her was also growing drowsy. She reached out to catch her, watching as Jiang Qingyue transformed back into a cat in her arms.

“Ding Pei! What did you do to them?”

“As expected, it has no effect on humans,” Ding Pei glanced at the unaffected Li Xingcan, unhurriedly taking out a bottle of sedative from a drawer. “But you alone can’t hinder anything. I don’t want to take lives. Take this yourself, sleep for a while, and when you wake up, everything will be over.”

Li Xingcan took a step back, eyeing Ding Pei warily. “What exactly are you trying to do?”

“The demon race possesses something that can revive Yu’er. I’m going to retrieve it. As long as everyone cooperates, I have no intention of harming any human or demon.”

As he spoke, Ding Pei advanced toward Li Xingcan. “Li Xingcan, you come from a prestigious background, with extraordinary talent and boundless prospects ahead. Don’t throw your life away here for matters that don’t concern you. Just fall unconscious like the others and sleep it off.”

Li Xingcan retreated step by step, her peripheral vision catching the flowerpot on the nearby vine rack. She grabbed its edge. “Don’t come any closer, or I’ll smash it.”

“How would that threat affect me? If it means bringing Yu’er back to life, smashing it won’t matter.”

Ding Pei continued forward without pause.

Li Xingcan let go of the pot and instead reached for the two delicate, fragile leaves. “True, smashing it won’t help. But take one more step, and I’ll crush these leaves. I’ve heard plants can feel pain—does your Yu’er feel it too?”

Ding Pei’s expression darkened instantly, and he halted. He glared coldly at Li Xingcan. “How vicious.”

Li Xingcan: “…”

“Open your damn eyes and see who’s really vicious here! I’m just trying to protect myself, okay? Enough talk—hand over the antidote!”

“There is no antidote. They’ll wake up naturally when the time comes.”

Ding Pei didn’t advance further. Instead, he turned back and stood beside the unconscious demons in their true forms.

Ignoring Li Xingcan, he began rummaging through the demons’ belongings before heading back into the searched room for unknown reasons.

Uneasy, Li Xingcan glanced at the door. Holding the flowerpot, she inched toward it and tried to open it, only to find it had been locked at some point and wouldn’t budge.

She couldn’t just wave her hand like Xuan Yu to open it, so she had to think of another way.

Before she could make progress, Ding Pei emerged from the room, holding something in his hand.

Li Xingcan quickly gathered the unconscious animals, including Xuan Yu, shielding them behind her. “Ding Pei, what else are you planning? I’ve already called the police. You can’t win.”

“Talking to you is pointless.” Ding Pei paid no heed to her words, instead focusing on arranging a few items on the floor into what resembled a formation.

Completely dismissed, Li Xingcan was about to speak when the door behind her suddenly swung open, startling her.

Turning her head, she saw Zheng Wenbai, who had also been released, standing at the doorway. He merely glanced at Li Xingcan before ignoring her completely and walking past.

“Teacher, are you ready?” Zheng Wenbai asked Ding Pei.

Li Xingcan eyed the nearly assembled items, ready to recklessly destroy them first, when she felt a slight scratch in her palm.

Looking down, she saw Jiang Qingyue struggling to lift her gaze, seemingly wanting to say something.

Noticing the two who treated her as invisible, Li Xingcan crouched down and brought her ear closer to Jiang Qingyue.

“Send a message to the clan leader…” Jiang Qingyue whispered faintly into Li Xingcan’s ear, pressing an iron token into her palm.

“I don’t have any spiritual power left,” Li Xingcan whispered back. She recognized this—the communication device required a demon’s spiritual energy to activate, which she couldn’t provide.

“I’ll power it. You just need to speak.”

As Jiang Qingyue spoke, her claw-tip touched the device, emitting a faint glow.

Understanding now, Li Xingcan glanced at the two still fiddling with the formation and loudly demanded, “You two scheming scoundrels! How much longer until Aunt Xuan and the others wake up? What exactly are you trying to do?”

Ding Pei and Zheng Wenbai didn’t even glance her way—to them, Li Xingcan posed no threat.

This suited Li Xingcan perfectly. She observed the items in their hands and realized they were nearly done setting up. Ding Pei held an iron token capable of opening the demon realm’s gate.

Her eyes flickered with an idea. “Ding Pei, Zheng Wenbai, neither of you are demons. How do you plan to open the demon realm’s gate? And even if you do, what then? Just two ordinary humans—one an old man at that—think you can take on all the demons in their realm? After dragging so many people into this and still failing to get whatever can resurrect your precious Yu’er, it must be a treasure guarded by the demon clan. Do you really think you can just snatch it? Stop deluding yourselves! Don’t think this jumbled mess of a formation will work. You’re just wishful thinking—”

Jiang Qingyue listened, lifting her eyelids slightly to glance at Li Xingcan. This girl really had a way with words. But at least she’d laid out the entire situation clearly—hopefully, the demon clan would be prepared.

Before Li Xingcan could continue, Ding Pei had clearly had enough. He glanced at Zheng Wenbai. “Shut her up.”

Zheng Wenbai nodded and started toward her.

Li Xingcan, backed against the door, pushed hard, only to find it automatically locked after Zheng Wenbai entered.

Trapped, she tightened her hold on Jiang Qingyue, surrounded by unconscious small animals. “Zheng Wenbai! Don’t come any closer! Think carefully—that old fool Ding Pei doesn’t have long to live anyway. You’re still young, why throw your life away for him? Turn back now, and I swear nothing will happen to you. My family’s loaded—name your price, and I’ll make it happen!”

She’d hoped these words might sway Zheng Wenbai slightly, but instead, they only angered him further.

“Li Xingcan! Are you trying to insult me with money? Do you think everyone in this world would bow down for your filthy cash?! Can money accomplish everything? Can money bring the dead back to life?!”

Zheng Wenbai glared at Li Xingcan angrily, his face flushed with agitation as he shouted his accusations.

“That’s not…” Li Xingcan was utterly bewildered. “What does that Jade girl have to do with you? You weren’t even born when she died!”

“You don’t understand. You understand nothing.” Zheng Wenbai sneered and shook his head, pulling out that same white powder from before and striding quickly toward Li Xingcan.

“Run to the right.”

Jiang Qingyue’s voice sounded from Li Xingcan’s arms. Without time to think, Li Xingcan could only abandon the other unconscious animals and sprint to the right. In the next instant, a demon realm gate materialized out of thin air in front of him. Before Zheng Wenbai could react, Li Xingcan had already dashed inside.

As Zheng Wenbai and Ding Pei stood stunned, trying to chase after him and enter the gate, Jiang Qingyue swiftly activated the token, shutting it closed in an instant.

On the vast grassland, Li Xingcan—still clutching the flowerpot and Jiang Qingyue—finally let out a sigh of relief. Meanwhile, Jiang Qingyue leapt out of his arms and shook her head. “Let’s go. No idea if the clan leader and the others have prepared yet.”

“You weren’t affected much?” Li Xingcan asked, surprised.

Jiang Qingyue shifted back to human form. “The drug Ding Pei used likely operates through spiritual energy as a medium. My demon bloodline is already thin, and my spiritual energy is practically nonexistent—I probably exhausted what little I had just now. Aside from a bit of dizziness, I’m fine.”

Li Xingcan blinked and hurried after her. If that was the case, Jiang Qingyue really was better suited to staying in the human world. But the words of persuasion died on his lips—he knew she was already torn, and he couldn’t ask her to leave her mother’s side.

They had only taken a few steps when movement came from behind them. Turning, they saw another demon realm gate appear, and through it—Ding Pei and Zheng Wenbai.

Before they could react in shock, the two men stepped through the gate, carrying that strange contraption they had assembled.

Once inside, they immediately noticed Li Xingcan and Jiang Qingyue but merely glanced at them dismissively before ignoring them. Instead, they poured several bottles of odd substances into the center of the assembled formation. The liquid spread outward along the engraved grooves, and then the two men stepped onto it.

Li Xingcan and Jiang Qingyue instantly realized this was likely some kind of teleportation device. Acting faster than thought, they both rushed toward the formation.

A blinding white light flared up. Jiang Qingyue, quicker on her feet, leapt onto it first and yanked Li Xingcan forward, pulling him onto the formation just as the light surged skyward.

Ding Pei frowned at the two who had followed. “Bold of you. You actually dared to follow? Do you even know that white light could’ve sliced Li Xingcan in half instantly?”

Li Xingcan patted his chest, looking around with belated fear. “You couldn’t have mentioned that earlier?!”

Ding Pei: “…Truly, ignorance is bliss.”

Zheng Wenbai folded his arms and studied the two intruders. “You can’t stop anything. This is just childish behavior.”

“You don’t know sh1t,” Li Xingcan shot back defiantly, glancing at the surrounding white light. “Is your teleportation formation always this slow?”

“Who told you this was a teleportation array?” Ding Pei looked at Li Xingcan with confusion.

“Then what is it?” Li Xingcan was genuinely puzzled this time.

“It’s an altar,” Jiang Qingyue answered Li Xingcan’s question. She lowered her gaze to the patterns beneath their feet—some of them were written in demonic script, which she could decipher. Though obscure, she roughly understood their meaning.

Ding Pei nodded. “Now that there are two more of you, the chances of a successful sacrifice have increased. I should thank you.”

Li Xingcan’s eyes widened, his anger flaring at these words. “You despicable old man!”

“It’s not like I forced you to come here.”

As they spoke, the endless white glow above them, which had previously seemed boundless, began to take on a faint green hue, growing increasingly vivid.

Ding Pei’s face lit up with delight, while Zheng Wenbai’s eyes gleamed with anticipation, as if awaiting something.