Chapter 548: Heart-Stirring

If she remembered correctly, Third Senior Sister of Shura Hall was a white kitsune, and her name was Liu Yansheng. (TL: There’s your answer, TitanSlayer.)

“What’s the relationship between Liu Yansheng and Liu Yanhong?” Ye Wenxin couldn’t help but ask. The drowsiness that had crept over her moments before was nearly dispelled.

“They’re cousins. You didn’t know that before?” Wen Susu replied, sounding a little shocked. “A few are cousins, but only Liu Yansheng is a direct blood relative. However, she fled home many years ago and later joined Shura Hall. The fox king came here to see Liu Yansheng, but he won’t get that chance now.”

The story circled back to where it began. Hearing about such a messy tale among the kitsune clan made Ye Wenxin even more reluctant to get involved. She responded with an “oh” and prepared to go back to sleep. Wen Susu, however, continued recounting the rest of the story beside her.

The black kitsune, Luo Mo, had the most tragic story among the three kitsune. When she couldn’t assume human form, her clan cast her out. After that, she met Wen Susu and, to this day, stayed by her side.

“I know destiny, so of course, I know how to help Luo Mo transform. But this help has a price. Heavenly wrath struck me and tore me to pieces. As for Luo Mo, she must teach and guide those at the academy until they come to realize their deaths. Only then can they reincarnate as humans.”

Wen Susu omitted the most important and terrifying details, but Ye Wenxin could roughly piece together the truth. They had used Yin energy absorbed from live sacrifices to help the kitsune achieve her transformation.

However, this transformation and Wen Susu’s actions drew divine wrath upon them. The heavens intended to destroy the Heavenly Book, yet she narrowly escaped destruction. Still, with her pages missing, Wen Susu was no longer as flawless as before.

It was another horrid story, but that didn’t shake Ye Wenxin. She had no opinions about it either. Wen Susu sighed softly and sat on the edge of Ye Wenxin’s bed. “I’ve seen the future very clearly. You and Luo Mo will end up together. So I was quite surprised when I saw you.”

Wen Susu still felt wistful remembering their first meeting on that fateful night. She would never have dreamed Ye Wenxin would appear so soon when she wasn’t supposed to come to Liu City for many more years. It completely defied her foresight.

Perhaps, fate had already taken a drastic turn before she began interacting with Ye Wenxin. Wen Susu tried to reassure herself with this thought. However, the fact that she could no longer glimpse Ye Wenxin’s future left her vaguely uneasy.

“Oh, is that so,” Ye Wenxin replied dismissively, still uninterested. She turned over, intent on sleeping. Wen Susu hit her once in annoyance.

“I’ve told you so much, and you’re not going to give me any reaction?” Wen Susu was genuinely upset and a bit disheartened. She knew Ye Wenxin was clever. Ye Wenxin took advantage of the loophole in Wen Susu’s abilities. She could perceive memories but not actual thoughts.

“Haven’t I already asked you plenty of questions? And stop reading my memories. Even if you do, you still won’t guess what I’m thinking,” Ye Wenxin warned again, her expression tinged with exasperation.

After all, she’d already experienced what having nowhere to hide was like with Long Qingyue. An incomplete Heavenly Book like Wen Susu had no destructive power against her, much less breaking past the defenses in her heart. Furthermore, the one Ye Wenxin needed to win over was still only Wen Susu.

“You…” Angry, Wen Susu floated out the window in a huff. Ye Wenxin watched her drift away and promptly resumed her pretense of sleep.

The kitsune and red kitsune arrived early in the morning. From the look on the two’s faces, it seemed they were in rivalry mode again. Blissfully unaware of the tension and what had transpired in Ye Wenxin’s room last night, the bear demon chatted cheerfully with the kitsune.

The kitsune and red kitsune yawned, their faces covered with fresh scratches. No one dared to ask what had happened between them, and breakfast proceeded in tense silence.

Ye Wenxin wandered around, occasionally pouring tea and serving food to guests. Neither of the demons showed any signs of leaving until another demon called the red kitsune away. Finally, the atmosphere eased a bit.

The bear demon, however, continued chatting with the kitsune. He seemed to have endless things to say while the kitsune listened half-heartedly. Sometimes, she would sneak glances at Ye Wenxin, watching her every move.

Ye Wenxin kept herself busy until Auntie Panda appeared. She was surrounded by a few young demons who seemed to be the children of some guests. As the young ones played and laughed, Auntie Panda beamed. She was holding a kettle to pour hot water for the remaining guests.

The flame stone under the steaming kettle radiated heat, palpable at close range. Ye Wenxin instinctively avoided it. Mindful of Ye Wenxin’s more fragile human form, Auntie Panda tried to keep a safe distance. However, the rambunctious little demons drew dangerously close. In the commotion, the pot shifted unsteadily. Auntie Panda yelped as it burned her hand, making her spill the hot water.

The little demons laughed as they dodged out of the way. The boiling water splashed straight toward Ye Wenxin. The distance was so close that no ordinary human would have been able to dodge in time.

Ye Wenxin quickly channeled her qi to protect herself, but a dark figure flashed in front of her. The water splashed across her protector’s back. The boiling heat thanks to the flame stone scorched some of the skin.

It was the kitsune. The pain was enough to make her grimace despite being a demon. Ye Wenxin looked stunned. She hadn’t expected the kitsune to shield her. A moment later, the bear demon finally realized what happened and rushed over to check on the kitsune.

“Men and women shouldn’t touch each other casually. Xiaowen, let’s go to a room. You’ll help me check.” After refusing the bear demon’s attempt to examine her injuries, the kitsune gestured for Ye Wenxin to follow her.

Ye Wenxin nodded and followed the kitsune. Once they entered a room, the kitsune casually removed her outer robe, exposing her back. Her skin was blistered and red from the burn, but beneath that were countless other crisscrossing new wounds.

Ye Wenxin couldn’t tell if the kitsune was fighting to succeed the throne or for survival. As she inwardly sighed, the kitsune smoothly pulled out a wound ointment.

An ordinary ointment would do little for a burn like this. Ye Wenxin surreptitiously switched it out with a more effective medicine from her bag of holding and began applying it on the kitsune.

“*Hiss…*” The kitsune winced, gritting her teeth against the pain. She clutched the blanket tightly, suppressing any sounds that might escape.