Zhu Xian: They've all been reborn

Back at the inn in the evening, it was a completely different scene.

Xiao Bai seemed determined to "warm his bed," sneaking into his blankets every night without fail.

Jiang Xiaochuan went from initially resisting desperately, to later being half-heartedly willing, and now... numbly accepting.

"The ground is cold, you'll catch a cold." Xiao Bai always used this reason, and he did so with a straight face.

"I am a cultivator! I am not afraid of the cold!" Jiang Xiaochuan retorted.

"Cultivators are human too, made of flesh and blood." Xiaobai wrapped her arms around his waist, buried her face in the crook of his neck, and said in a muffled, sleepy voice, "Don't make a sound, go to sleep."

Her body was warm and soft, with a faint fragrance.

Holding you is actually... quite comfortable.

Jiang Xiaochuan lay stiffly for a while, listening to her even breathing and smelling her fragrance, his tense body slowly relaxed.

Sometimes, he would unconsciously move closer to that source of warmth.

Xiao Bai seemed to sense this and hugged him even tighter, a slight smile playing on her lips in the darkness.

There are times when they are restless.

For example, Xiaobai might "accidentally" put her cold hands and feet into his clothes, making him shiver.

"Ouch—! Xiaobai! Why are your hands so cold!"

"Are you cold? Let me warm you up." Little White blinked innocently, but rubbed her hands and feet all over him, looking for the warmest spot.

Or, she might kiss him half-asleep in the middle of the night—on his forehead, cheek, or sometimes his lips.

They parted as quickly as they touched, like a feather brushing past.

Jiang Xiaochuan was always startled awake, his heart pounding like a drum, but Xiaobai acted as if nothing had happened, turning over and continuing to sleep, leaving him alone staring into the darkness, his cheeks burning.

When I wake up in the morning, we are often face to face.

Sometimes Xiaobai would curl up in his arms, and sometimes he would hug Xiaobai without him even realizing it.

Then Xiaobai would look at him with that lazy yet teasing gaze until he blushed and jumped off the bed.

"Little Chuan Chuan, you like to hug something when you sleep." Xiao Bai propped her head up, her silver hair flowing down, and smiled like a cat that had just stolen some fish.

"I didn't! You rolled over here on your own!" Jiang Xiaochuan was putting on his clothes with his back to her, in a flurry of activity.

"Yes, yes, it's all my fault." Xiao Bai didn't argue, he just laughed, and that laughter made his ears even redder.

Days passed by like this.

There were no earth-shattering events, only mundane daily routines.

We eat together, take walks together, practice martial arts together, bask in the sun together, and at night... we sleep together.

Strangely enough, Jiang Xiaochuan gradually got used to it.

I've grown accustomed to Biyao's awkward concern and Xiaobai's affection.

Even the initial tension and resistance I felt because of their approach faded considerably, transforming into something more...

An indescribable, gradual adaptation, like a frog being slowly boiled in water, and... a secret comfort.

He dared not think too deeply about what this change meant.

He told himself, "Just think of it as...getting some peace and quiet."

……

East China Sea, Liubo Mountain.

At this moment, the area around Black Crow Reef on the northern slope is filled with a bloody stench even thicker than the sea fog.

More than ten elite disciples from the Longevity Hall, the Ten Thousand Poisons Sect, and the Joyful Union Sect were busy around an ancient formation that was faintly glowing.

From the center of the formation, a deep, thunderous roar, carrying a primordial ferocity, could be faintly heard.

It was the strange beast Kui Niu that they had temporarily trapped using a secret method.

Suddenly, a figure in moonlight appeared on the reef without warning, like a startled swan or a ghost.

The mist seemed to part automatically, revealing her aloof and incomparably beautiful face, yet expressionless.

Two swords hung at her waist, one azure and the other icy blue.

"Who goes there?!" a disciple of the Longevity Hall shouted.

His response was a beam of icy blue sword energy.

Fast, cold, and fierce.

The disciple didn't even see where the sword light came from. He only felt a chill on his neck, and then his vision spun around. The last thing he saw was his headless body slowly falling down.

"Enemy attack—!"

The screams stopped abruptly.

Because the second, the third... countless icy blue sword energies, like a sudden blizzard, instantly swept across the entire Black Crow Reef!

The sword energy was not grand, but it was extremely precise, each strike aimed directly at the vital points, sealing off all escape routes.

Where the sword flashed, blood and flesh flew everywhere, and screams echoed.

Someone unleashed a magical artifact, causing poisonous mist to billow and ghostly shadows to loom.

But the pale figure moved through the sword light and poisonous mist as if it were in an empty place.

Wherever the icy blue sword light went, magical artifacts shattered, poisonous mist dissipated, and ghostly figures vanished.

She didn't even use the azure immortal sword at her waist; with just that ice-blue longsword, she slaughtered the demonic sect disciples on the reef one by one, as easily as harvesting straw.

In less than the time it takes for an incense stick to burn.

Silence returned to the reef.

The only sounds were the roar of waves crashing against the rocks and the overwhelming stench of blood.

More than a dozen corpses lay scattered on the ground, each with a different manner of death, but all killed by a single sword strike, their wounds covered in frost.

Lu Xueqi stood holding her sword, her moon-white Taoist robe spotless, not even a single strand of hair was disheveled.

The tip of the ice-blue longsword pointed diagonally at the ground, its blade shimmering with light, with faint, scattered lightning crackling within, emitting a pleasant, soft hum.

When she killed an elder of the Ten Thousand Poisons Sect, she took a rare piece of "Thunder Marrow Crystal" from him, which has now been integrated into the Snow River Sword.

The lightning attribute on the sword seems to be stronger.

Her gaze swept across the center of the reef.

The formation that had trapped the Kui Niu had dimmed and loosened due to the death of the caster.

In the center of the formation, a colossal beast, resembling a small mountain, a green ox, but with only one leg, and surrounded by electric lightning, could be vaguely seen, emitting an angry yet weak low roar.

Lu Xueqi walked over, flicked her wrist, and gently touched the most critical nodes of the formation with the Snow River Sword.

With a few soft "clicks," the array's light was completely extinguished.

Freed from its restraints, the Kui Niu let out a deafening roar, stomped its single foot, causing the earth to tremble and mountains to shake, its body crackling with lightning, and charged toward its freed "benefactor" (or perhaps a new threat).

Lu Xueqi neither retreated nor dodged, but simply raised her hand, palm facing upward. She did not use her spiritual power, but quietly looked into the huge eyes of the Kui Niu, which were filled with ferocity and confusion.

The Kui Niu charged to within a few feet of her and then suddenly stopped.

It seemed to sense an aura emanating from the woman in moonlight that both instilled instinctive fear and a subtle sense of closeness in it.

It wasn't a suppression of power, but rather a more mysterious majesty and...peace that seemed to originate from the very source of heaven and earth?

It lowered its head, sniffed at her palm with its huge nose, the ferocity in its eyes gradually faded, replaced by doubt, and then slowly turned into docility.

It let out a low, muffled cry, bent its single leg, and slowly lowered its massive, mountain-like body toward Lu Xueqi.

A hint of surprise flashed in Lu Xueqi's eyes, but she quickly understood.

Yes, the Immortal Execution Sword.

This Kui ox is quite intelligent; it sensed it.

She reached out and gently patted the Kui Niu's rough, cold forehead.

"Would you like to come back to Qingyun with me?" she asked, her voice cold.

The Kui Niu raised its head, looked at her, then at the sword at her waist, and lowered itself again, gently rubbing its massive head against her hand.

The meaning is obvious.

"Okay." Lu Xueqi nodded. "Qingyun Mountain will be your new place of refuge."

Without further delay, she moved her mind, and the lightning around the Kui Niu subsided, its body began to shrink, and finally it transformed into a streak of blue light, disappearing into her sleeve.

She must return to the mountain as soon as possible and explain to her senior brother Daoxuan that she can add a guardian beast to Qingyun Mountain.

Before leaving, she glanced at the mess on the ground.

Blood, bones, and shattered magical artifacts.

Her eyes remained completely still, as if she had merely cleaned up a filth.

As he raised the Heavenly Jade Sword, azure sword light shot into the sky, instantly disappearing into the thick sea fog.

Two days later, other righteous cultivators who had heard the news arrived at Liubo Mountain.

All that could be seen on Black Crow Reef were piles of white bones, with lingering demonic energy intertwined with sharp sword intent, sending chills down one's spine.

But neither the demonic sect nor the legendary beast Kui Niu were to be seen.

Only the sea breeze howled, as if telling the story of a brief but brutal cleansing that had taken place here.

When the news reached the Demonic Sect, the Longevity Hall, the Ten Thousand Poisons Sect, and the Joyful Union Sect were not only furious but also terrified.

The sent troops were all highly skilled, yet they were all slaughtered in a short period of time. The enemy didn't even leave any obvious clues about their identities, only the sharp, icy sword energy imbued with lightning attributes...

They all thought of Qingyun Sect without prior arrangement.

A deep sense of apprehension spread through the hearts of several factions.

The Ghost King Sect naturally received the news as well.

When Youji reported to the Ghost King, her tone was calm.

The Ghost King merely gave a faint "hmm," a complex emotion flashing in his eyes before finally turning into a cold laugh.

"Clowns jumping around like that, courting their own destruction." He commented on those factions, then looked at the message his daughter had sent back, saying that she and Jiang Xiaochuan were "all well" in Qingxi Town, and his brows furrowed slightly again. Yao'er, she…