Yin Yang Soul Searcher

Xiao Wumian clenched his fists, veins bulging on his forehead: "Tell me who said that, and I'll go kill him!"

Her sapphire-blue eyes darted around. "It was the Grand Preceptor of the Great Xia Dynasty who said it. Go and take revenge on him."

"He's talking nonsense!" Xiao Wumian cursed, "If he hadn't ambushed me and damaged my foundation, greatly reducing my strength, I would have flown to the capital to kill him right now!"

"The title of the greatest Onmyoji in the world is mine!"

"He plotted against you?" Jinxiu blinked, somewhat curious. "Is there more to this story?"

"Of course there's more to the story!" Xiao Wumian said angrily, "Back then, I fought him head-on in a fair and square duel, and I almost made him kneel down and call me 'father'!"

"But he was too despicable! When we were both nearly exhausted, he ambushed me with a large number of men nearby. This severely damaged my strength and weakened my foundation."

"But even under those circumstances, I fought tooth and nail to kill his deputy, resulting in a draw, and finally escaped their encirclement!"

"Come on, tell me, with my strength back then, did I deserve the title of the world's number one Yin-Yang Master?" Xiao Wumian stretched his neck so long that it almost touched the koi's face.

The koi blinked its big eyes, secretly swallowed as it looked at the handsome face before it saw him, then, like a little fangirl, it clasped its hands to its chest and nodded frantically: "Master Xiao is so amazing, he certainly deserves to be called the number one Yin-Yang Master in the world."

A smile appeared on Xiao Wumian's handsome face, and then he nodded in satisfaction: "It's good that you understand."

Seeing the look of enjoyment on his face, Jinli casually took his arm and said sweetly, "Master Xiao, there is one more small matter I would like to ask you to resolve."

Xiao Wumian felt the softness on his body and struggled symbolically for a moment, but did not resist much. Then he pretended to frown and said, "Ask away, but I may not tell you."

"I heard that Lord Xiao has been the National Preceptor of Beichen for so many years, yet he is still single and has no children. Is that true?" Jinli casually tossed her big waves and revealed a beautiful smile.

"This question is a bit too private..." Xiao Wumian smelled the fragrance emanating from Jinli's hair and awkwardly tried to pull his arm away, but Jinli held it tightly between her legs.

Unable to find a solution, Xiao Wumian could only sigh and say, "Why are you asking these questions?"

"My lord should understand what I mean." Jinli pressed her body even closer, and her warm breath tickled Xiao Wumian's ears.

Xiao Wumian inwardly cried out his sins, and could only put one hand on his chest and say with a serious face, "Amitabha. Miss, please have some self-respect. Although I am handsome and charming, we are ultimately of different races, human and demon! I advise you to give up this idea as soon as possible."

"So what?" the koi scoffed. "Who says humans and demons can't be together?"

"In our Inner Demon Sea, there are many mermaid girls who have married fishermen along the coast. They have lived happily together for many years, with fulfilling families and children..."

"Besides, you said you're handsome, charming, and incredibly attractive, so why can't I be with you?"

"Stop joking, I'm only in my early fifties..."

"I don't mind that you're young." Koi nodded very seriously.

Ah, this? Is that how it's interpreted? This time, Xiao Wumian was stumped... so she had to change her excuse: "Miss, I already have a family, and besides, my son is already as tall as me."

"I don't believe it! I've never heard of you having any children in Beichen." Jinli wrinkled her nose. "If you want to refuse me, at least come up with a better reason."

"Besides, what makes me unworthy of you? In terms of physique, appearance, and age, I'm not even fifty in our tribe! And I have strength that's on par with yours!"

"This isn't a question of whether they're worthy or not," Xiao Wumian said with a hint of helplessness. "Why don't you find someone of your kind in your own sea?"

"They're not as handsome as you, and I think you're very charming," Koi blinked and said naturally.

"This is really inappropriate!" Xiao Wumian pulled his arm away with immense willpower...

"Hmph!" Koi stood with her hands on her hips, looking displeased. "If you refuse me, our Inner Demon Sea will refuse to cooperate with your Beichen!"

"Why are you acting like a little kid!" Xiao Wumian was speechless.

"I'm just a child in my clan," the koi carp said with a sly smile. "If you refuse me, I'll hand over the auspicious beast's corpse to the Great Demon King and say that you killed Peng Li and stole the beast's body. Then we'll join forces to attack your Beichen!"

"I'll also tell the Grand Preceptor of Great Xia that Beichen intends to attack Great Xia. Then Beichen will be surrounded by enemies on three sides. Let's see what you do then!"

"Stop, stop, stop! I give up!" Xiao Wumian raised her hand to interrupt Jinli's unreasonable tantrum: "What exactly do you want me to do?"

"I want you to marry me!" Jinli happily hugged Xiao Wumian's arm.

"Do you think this is possible?" Xiao Wumian said helplessly, "If I marry you, the Great Xia and the Great Demon Kingdom will know that our two families have joined forces. If they find out about our alliance, they will definitely send people to attack the Inner Demon Sea and Beichen. With our combined strength, we can't stop them from joining forces."

"What you said makes a lot of sense." Koi tilted its head and thought for a moment.

Xiao Wumian smiled, "As long as you understand, that's fine: So, marrying you is impossible. We can be friends, and I'll come to see you every now and then."

Xiao Wumian vowed that he would never return to the Inner Demon Sea after he left. How could he, the second-in-command of Beichen, such a handsome and dashing man, possibly marry a sea monster? It would be a laughing stock if word got out.

If you need anything in the future, please contact my subordinates!

"Who knows if you'll come back after you go back?" Jinxiu wrinkled her delicate nose, seeing through Xiao Wumian's lie at a glance.

"I, Xiao, always keep my word," Xiao Wumian said solemnly.

The koi shook its head, causing large waves to ripple. After thinking for a moment, it said, "How about this, you swear a solemn oath in front of it, and I'll believe you."

Then, Koi took out a fish scale from his sleeve. It was covered in black mist and looked very sinister!

"No way! Are you crazy?! You dare carry this around with you?" Upon seeing the fish scales, Xiao Wumian's expression changed drastically, and he frantically tried to pry open his arms...

Xiao Wumian could guess the origin of the fish scale just by looking at the black aura on it. It was the scale from Jinli's father, and it was tainted with the curse of heaven. Anyone tainted by it would be plagued by misfortune, and even stagnation in cultivation would be the least of their misfortunes! They might even get struck by lightning one day!

Back then, her father's strength was almost equal to that of the Great Demon King. Later, due to being afflicted by the Heavenly Curse, his strength was greatly diminished, which is why he was killed by the Great Xia Emperor. Otherwise, based on his strength in life, even two emperors might not have been his match!

The koi fish gripped his arm tightly, quite satisfied with Xiao Wumian's performance: "Looks like I don't need to explain anymore, you should understand the power of this thing!"

"My father died at the hands of the Great Xia Emperor and vanished into thin air, leaving behind only this one relic, which I have kept until today. It can finally be put to use."

"Since it's your father's last possession, you should keep something this important safe. Keep it at home as an offering, why take it out!" Xiao Wumian said, somewhat frightened, "What have I done to deserve such a sacrifice from you!"

"My father tried countless methods to remove the misfortune from his body, but he never succeeded," the koi said, holding the fish scale as if lost in memories. "Until after my father died, I studied this scale for many years and finally discovered that the misfortune on it resonated with the will of Heaven. Making a solemn oath to him would have unexpected effects!"

"As long as you swear an oath to it today, I will believe that Beichen is truly allied with us. Only then can I cultivate with peace of mind and watch over and help you."

"And after you make the oath, you will not only receive help and goodwill from all the demon cultivators in the Inner Demon Sea, but you will also get me!" Koi blinked her sapphire-like eyes twice, looking at Xiao Wumian with affection.

Surprisingly, this seemingly silly carp is actually quite wary. I've been tricked.

Either swear a solemn oath to become her most steadfast ally, and everyone will be happy. This demonstrates that you are genuinely committed to the alliance.

If you don't swear an oath, it means you're likely lying to her, which will make her wary and cause a rift in the alliance, or even prevent the alliance from forming at all.

Xiao Wumian quickly weighed the pros and cons in his mind. If he went back on his word now, the koi would probably turn on him and summon the blue whale to join him in attacking him. Although he wasn't afraid of fighting two against one, he would definitely be severely injured, and it would take him three to five years to recover his current strength.

But if he really had to swear to marry her... Thinking of this, Xiao Wumian glanced at Jinli without changing his expression. The old maid's figure and appearance were indeed excellent, barely matching his handsome and dashing appearance... It's just that this matter between a human and a demon... really put him in a difficult position!

Koi, standing to the side, shook his arm playfully, as if pouting, "Say something! You won't swear, are you lying to me?!"

"How could I possibly lie to you!?" After weighing the options in his mind, Xiao Wumian made a decisive decision and said with a righteous expression.

"However, if I make a vow, will this misfortune still haunt me? If so, I'd rather our alliance be null and void. My cultivation foundation has already been damaged, and I can't take that risk again."

"Of course not." The koi shook its head, placing its scales in front of the two, and explained, "As long as you swear an oath to it, I will preserve it carefully. If you ever break your oath, I will destroy it, and the bad luck will transfer to you!"

Xiao Wumian nodded; if that were the case, he could accept it.

However, Xiao Wumian then felt something was amiss: "This isn't right. You have a way to restrain me; you can make me suffer anytime you want! But I don't have a way to restrain you. This isn't fair!"

"Of course not!" Jinxiu swayed his big, wavy hair. "If you don't break your vow, even if I destroy it, you won't be plagued by bad luck."

"If you don't trust me, I can give you the scales. That way, even if you break your vow, you won't be plagued by bad luck." With that, the koi blinked its big eyes and handed the scales to Xiao Wumian, showing its sincerity.

"Then what's the point of you doing this?" Xiao Wumian was a little confused. What kind of things were going on in the minds of demons?

"However, after I give it to you, you need to take me to your Beichen. We will cultivate together and supervise each other..."

"Nonsense!" Before the koi could finish speaking, Xiao Wumian raised his hand to interrupt it: "You can keep the scales yourself."