Chapter 143: Snow Demon (Part 2)

When they first arrived, although it was snowing, it wasn’t cold. Now, however, the wind and snow press in, the chill penetrating to the bone, forcing one to bend down and brace against it.

The swirling snowflakes hinder visibility, and soon frost has formed on their eyebrows and hair.

In the sky, golden lily-of-the-valley flowers bloom, their bells turned downward like inverted chimes, forming a protective barrier that separates the group from the wind and snow.

Xu Qianyu turned around and saw Xu Qianqian’s cheeks flushed, with veins bulging on her neck.

She was clearly exerting herself to maintain the barrier. He helped by injecting spiritual energy into her and casually reminded her:

“This is a protective artifact. If you give it to someone else, you’ll be left defenseless.”

All the cultivators present were above the Golden Core stage and had their own means of protection. Not to mention that the two Hidden Dragon disciples hadn’t even exerted their strength yet, so it was unnecessary for Xu Qianqian to strain herself.

Xu Qianqian pretended not to hear. She continued to make hand seals to control the lily of the valley flowers while searching through the mustard seed golden bead for more magic weapon.

She had had enough of the frustration, powerlessness, and feeling of being ignored. The attack by the snow demon ignited her fighting spirit. She had to prove herself to show that she was useful, not a burden.

Xu Qianqian reached into the mustard seed gold bead and took something out. Xu Qianyu saw that the inner space was filled with numerous elixirs, all contained in triangular bottles made of white soil, arranged slanting together. Between the bottles, a purple butterfly perched, flapping its wings slowly.

Luo Shui? Xu Qianyu found it strange and reached out to catch it.

Xu Qianqian quickly grabbed her hand, pulled it away, and sealed the mustard seed gold bead cautiously.

The golden pill she had formed was the so-called “low-grade golden pill,” which was forced out by the elixir and couldn’t be compared to the high-grade golden pill formed through cultivation.

This made her feel quite inferior. She was afraid Xu Qianyu would see the bottles and think about this, thus looking down on her even more.

Xu Qianyu pointed at the mustard seed gold and hesitated, “The butterfly, did you see it?”

Xu Qianqian turned around and stared intently at her.

She was looking for the features of her father in Xu Qianyu’s eyes, lips, and haughty expression.

She realized that Xu Qianyu resembled her father even more than she did in her frail state.

Not mentioning the butterfly would have been fine, but that purple butterfly made her quickly associate it with every dream related to the Shui family, which made her feel disgusted.

“Are you feeling unwell?” Xu Qianyu asked, seeing her pale face.

“No need to worry, junior sister.” Xu Qianqian withdrew her hand from hers.

Xu Qianyu sensed the coldness from Xu Qianqian, and a hint of anger rose in her. They had been on good terms the last time they met. Xu Qianqian, though weak, was sensible and clear-headed.

Had she done something on this journey to upset Xu Qianqian?

In the gap between the lily of the valley flowers, a coldness penetrated to the bone. The situation was critical, and Hua Zimei from the Qianlong Immortal Sect couldn’t just watch. She drew her sword, and a blue spiritual monkey leapt out, battling with an invisible shadow in the wind and snow.

As the snowstorm subsided, she split her focus to keep an eye on the male cultivator beside her.

“Ade, protect me.”

“Ade?” She turned her eyes and saw the male cultivator standing stiffly, like a wooden figure, leaning on his sword sheath, dissatisfied. “What’s wrong with you?”

At this glance, Hua Zimei suddenly realized that his face and lips had turned as white as an ice sculpture, with dark, empty eyes and a mocking smile.

This wasn’t Ade.

Hua Zimei was startled and drew her sword to strike. The figure tilted its head, smiled, and melted away, quickly sinking into the ground, leaving behind only his clothes and crown.

This event made Hua Zimei, who had been calm and composed, change her expression. The snow demon had been watching behind her, and she didn’t even know! She crouched down to pick up the clothes and crown, still unaware of when the snow demon had replaced Ade.

“Hua Jie, I’m here.” A voice came from afar. Turning around, Ade emerged from the trees, holding a boy by the hand. The boy’s face was frozen red, his clothes were soaked through, and he was trembling uncontrollably.

Ade handed him to an old man. “Old sir, your grandson, he was buried under the snow by the snow demon. I smelled his scent, and luckily, he’s still alive.”

The old man, who had been wiping tears, was overjoyed to see his grandson return safely and held him tightly in his arms.
Yun Chu said, “The priority now is to get them out of here. We can fight all we want, but human bodies can’t withstand too much strain.”

Tu Zhuang said, “Penglai, Qianlong, they’re useless. Let me have a look.”

She closed her eyes and formed a hand seal. A round eyeball detached from her body and burrowed into the snow.

Xu Qianyu tried to stop her, sweating nervously. During their journey through the demon domain, she had seen Tu Zhuang use the eyeball to spy on the upper decks of ships, but diving straight into the snow demon’s territory was a dangerous move.

Moments later, Tu Zhuang opened her eyes, and the group quickly gathered around.

Tu Zhuang said, “The snow demon has three demon cores, and its intelligence is about that of a four or five-year-old child.”

Seeing Xu Qianqian’s confusion, Hua Zimei explained, “A demon core is like a human heart.
Each demon only has one core, and we count demons based on the number of cores they have. If there are multiple cores, it means the demon is made up of several beings. We may have already killed two, but there are still three left, and we need to take them down one by one.”

“As for intelligence, the most troublesome demons are those that develop human-like awareness. Fortunately, the snow demon’s intelligence is about that of a four- or five-year-old child, which makes it easier to deal with.”

So it exhibited the characteristics of a human child, transforming and playing tricks for fun.

Blood tears streamed down from Tu Zhuang’s eyes, and Xu Qianyu hurried to support her.

“It’s nothing serious,” Tu Zhuang said, “Just normal backlash.”

Though Tu Zhuang acted tough, it was clear that this attempt had left her weakened.

“Don’t interfere, let me do it,” Xu Qianyu said, removing her riding gear and wrapping it around Tu Zhuang. Behind her, the banner of Li Huo expanded rapidly, blazing red like glass, and soon enveloped the area.

The snow on the ground quickly melted where Li Huo touched, the demon cores were crushed, and the sound of shattering screams echoed as they retreated underground.

Hua Zimei thought, “What an impressive ability.”

The snow-covered land shattered, revealing the original city beneath.

The sunset bathed the city walls and yellow dirt roads, with scattered shop signs and merchants traveling under the banners, unaware of the chaos the snow demon had caused and oblivious to the events that had just unfolded.

“Old sir, did this place used to look like this?”

The old man nodded, but his expression darkened. “There used to be a snow mountain over there.”

“…”
Behind the city walls, a crystal-clear snow mountain glowed a pale blue and purple in the sunset, blending into the sky. It looked dreamlike but terrifying.

The remaining snow demons were still playing hide-and-seek with them.

Hua Zimei sighed, “Looks like we’ll have to spend the night here.”

The group escorted the old man to the main road, then headed towards the snow mountain.

By the time they reached the foot of the mountain, the sky was dark, and they set up camp at the roadside.

Tu Zhuang wrapped herself in Xu Qianyu’s riding gear. Whether it was the warmth of the gear or Xu Qianyu’s body heat, the clothes remained warm long after being taken off, with a sweet, fragrant snow-like scent that made one reluctant to let go.

The others were talking and laughing, leaving Xu Qianqian no choice but to lean against the other side with Lu You.

Everyone either meditated or rested against a tree. Tu Zhuang, extremely weak and exhausted, happened to be approached by Lu You, who quietly tried to talk to her.

She asked her how to break the puppet thread.

Tu Zhuang was quite impatient with these disciples from other sects who lacked common sense: “The puppet thread is a spell, not something that can be casually cut. If you want to ask how to break the curse, that’s a secret technique of Tianshan Mountain. I don’t know you well enough, so why should I help you?”

Lu You’s face showed disappointment.

“What do you need to break? You don’t even have a puppet on you,” Tu Zhuang eyed her suspiciously. “The essence of puppet magic is substitution for death—using the puppet to die in place of yourself. If you don’t want your puppet, you can just die yourself. Without you, the puppet thread will naturally break.”

Lu You, upon hearing this, moved aside, her face turning pale. She even forgot to thank her.

How could she have a puppet to die in her place?

On the contrary, it was the Elder Taishang who had used the puppet thread to bind her to Xu Qianqian. Now she finally understood the deeper meaning. They wanted her to be Xu Qianqian’s substitute for death!

Lu You looked at the sleeping Xu Qianqian with a gaze full of hatred.

A wild rabbit darted into the bushes and stopped at Lu You’s feet, turning into a young man in a black robe.

“How dare you appear?” Lu You was frightened. Looking around, she was relieved to see that the cultivators were all deep in sleep, unaware of his presence.

The surroundings were very quiet; only the flickering tongues of the bonfire could be heard. Xie Yuzhen casually poked at the firewood before walking past Lu You, squatting down beside Xu Qianyu.

Xu Qianyu was asleep against the tree, her eyelashes casting scattered shadows on her cheek like curled flower tendrils. She wore only a thin robe, with one wrist exposed from her sleeve, her hand nervously twisting the fabric of her skirt.

When she was young, the young lady’s eyes were large and beautiful, and her face was as white as snow. When she glared at people, she looked like a fierce, precious cat. Now she had grown much more, with a beauty so dazzling it was hard to look away.

Isn’t it cold? The young man’s gaze traveled from her neck slowly down to her wrist. How pitiful that she gave her clothes to someone else and had nothing left to wear.

Xie Yuzhen took off his cloak, which was swirling with black energy, and draped it over her.

You’re crazy! Lu You silently warned. With so many cultivators around, if someone notices, isn’t this seeking death?

She watched Xie Yuzhen’s expression as he tended to Xu Qianyu, biting her lip, a wave of sourness rising in her chest.

Once, all of this had belonged to her. When did he start liking Xu Qianyu? It was all so inexplicable.

Xie Yuzhen finally turned back, walking toward her.

“What about the promise you made to me?” Lu You looked at him and said, “I’ve already used the system to influence the distribution of spiritual energy and brought the person you wanted to Wufu Cliff. Aren’t you supposed to fulfill your promise now and help me break the puppet thread?”

Xie Yuzhen squatted down to look at her. Lu You’s features were even more stunning than in her previous life. That cold, innocent look now had a subtle bitterness between her brows, transforming her demeanor—more alive, more like a real person.

Xie Yuzhen’s eyes naturally exuded affection. As he gazed at her, Lu You began to choke back tears.

“Why are you crying? Didn’t I say I’d help you?” Xie Yuzhen smiled and extended his hand. Two clusters of flames appeared on his palm. He let go, and the flames rose into the air, shifting and playing like fire spirits dancing in space.

This was a trick Xie Yuzhen often performed when he was an illusionist. In her past life, he had performed this trick behind a firework rack in the crowd when he saved her rabbit and later often used it to cheer her up. Who would have thought he still remembered?

Xie Yuzhen pinched the flames from his right hand, handing them to Lu You with a smile: “Take it.”

“Xie Yuzhen, Xie Yuzhen…” Lu You didn’t understand his intentions, but as she watched him disappear, a void filled her heart.

The flames in her hand quickly burned out.

Lu You had a feeling that she would never see Xie Yuzhen again.