novelzi Chapter 61
Chapter 61
"Miss, miss! Wake up and come see!"
Nie Yinzhi was a light sleeper, and she woke up as soon as she heard Ah Huan's voice. She half-opened her eyes, rubbing the pillow in her arms, which felt nothing like the touch of the demon lord. It was far from satisfying.
She rolled over onto her back, glanced at the little golden sprout, and conveyed her daily routine greeting to Gu Jiang: "Stupid demon lord, don’t think that conjuring a flower will make me forgive you. What do you mean by this? Do you expect me to fall in love with plants and trees from now on? I can’t do that! I want to touch fresh flesh, chest muscles, abs, and more..."
"Anyway, I won’t remain chaste for you!"
She hugged her soft pillow and rolled around on the bed. Ah Huan’s footsteps pattered closer, and she suddenly pulled open the bed curtain, her round eyes wide with excitement. "Miss, get up and come see what’s outside!"
Since returning home, Nie Yinzhi had resumed her pampered young lady lifestyle, even too lazy to extend her spiritual senses. She asked, "What’s going on?"
Ah Huan held a clump of snow in her hands and presented it to her. "Miss, you said yesterday that you hadn’t seen snow this winter. Well, it’s snowing now!"
Cheng Bi quickly pulled Ah Huan back. "Don’t let the snow drip on the miss!"
Nie Yinzhi sat up, slipped on her embroidered shoes, and walked outside. "Snow?" It was already deep spring, and summer was just around the corner. How could it be snowing?
As soon as she stepped outside, a cold breeze hit her face. Snow was falling steadily, blanketing the courtyard in white. The rooftops and trees were covered in thick snow, and the spring flowers shivered under the frost.
Nie Yinzhi looked around in surprise, stepping out from under the eaves and reaching out to catch the falling snowflakes.
She had only mentioned it casually yesterday—that she hadn’t seen snow this winter.
"Miss, at least put on a cloak!" Ah Huan hurriedly opened an umbrella and chased after her, while Cheng Bi went back inside to fetch a cloak.
Nie Yinzhi smiled, her eyes curving. "It’s fine. I’m not afraid of the cold."
The snow crunched under her feet as she walked to a crabapple tree. The blooming branches were weighed down by the snow, and the petals were coated in frost. She reached out and shook the snow off the branches.
Nie Yinzhi looked up, her gaze following the edge of the umbrella. The sky was a vast expanse of white. In an instant, her spiritual senses spread across the entire Yuanzhou City.
The spring snow had forced the residents of Yuanzhou City to don their winter clothes overnight. Children played in the snow, and snowmen of all sizes dotted the front and back of houses, creating a festive atmosphere.
Further out, in the farmlands on the outskirts, the mood was much gloomier. Farmers stood on the ridges, their faces filled with worry. The unseasonable snow would surely freeze many crops to death.
She noticed a spring breeze sweeping through the outskirts, melting the snow. It seemed the demon lord had realized his mistake and was trying to make amends.
Nie Yinzhi covered her face with her hands, then waved her arm. A robe flew from the clothes rack and wrapped around her. Before her maids could react, she had already vanished from under the umbrella, leaving behind a soft murmur, "Silly demon lord, you’re so dumb."
In less than a moment, Nie Yinzhi was hovering above the outskirts. A swan flew from the tip of her sword, its body expanding into a large, snow-white bird. Its pure white flames, tinged with dark red, trailed long feathers as it soared over the farmland. The snow melted rapidly beneath its wings, driving away the cold from the soil.
In folklore, phoenixes were considered auspicious. The farmers rushed out of their homes, clasping their hands in prayer. The oppressive atmosphere in the air was swept away by the swan’s wings.
Nie Yinzhi descended, landing near a small forest. Her spiritual senses spread across the vast farmland, and she felt an unusual breeze heading toward her, carrying a faint trace of demonic energy. She glanced down at herself, regretting not having dressed up before leaving.
Nevertheless, he bravely asked how old Feng Hanying was, when his birthday was, how many people were in his family, and how he had met Nie Yinzhi. He also asked if the sudden snowstorm yesterday was his doing, adding that it wasn’t appropriate.
Her parents, aware that cultivators valued immortal mountains and caves, asked Feng Hanying, as the Demon Lord, how many soldiers he commanded, the size of his cave, whether he owned any immortal mountains or treasures, and what his future plans were. Most importantly, they wanted to know if he could protect their precious daughter.
Feng Hanying had been escorted to the Nie residence as soon as he arrived and was bombarded with questions. He was momentarily stunned.
Feng Hanying had been sealed in the Ten Thousand Demons Cave for ten years. The demon-sealing talismans had eroded his demonic energy and suppressed the cultivation of the demons within. Blood Moon Shadow, bearing the brunt of the seal for a decade, had seen his cultivation stagnate. After escaping the cave, he had finally regained his peak strength.
But even now, he couldn’t gauge Nie Yinzhi’s cultivation level. She was now a step above him, placing her at the pinnacle of the cultivation world. Even if she had reached this level by being nurtured by Gu Jiang as a living cauldron, her combat skills were still formidable enough to prevent anyone from bullying her. Feng Hanying was puzzled. "Is this meal today meant to ask me to protect her?"
Nie Yinzhi's parents exchanged a glance. Didn't Nie Yinzhi say that she and the demon lord were deeply in love? Why did it seem now that this demon lord didn't care much about her? They couldn't let them be together.
Nie Yinzhi felt like scratching the walls in frustration. She hurried into the flower hall and saw her parents' faces pale with fear at the sight of Feng Hanying. "Father! Mother!"
Her parents visibly relaxed upon seeing her.
Feng Hanying, noticing her, sent a telepathic message, his tone dripping with impatience: "What are your parents doing? Do I need to own a few mountain ranges just to have a meal at your house? Is this some kind of 'banquet of treachery' today?"
Nie Yinzhi: "...Shut up." After greeting her parents, she leaned in and whispered helplessly, "It's not him."
The meal ended in an extremely awkward atmosphere. Feng Hanying eventually figured it out on his own. Following Nie Yinzhi, he grabbed a handful of snow and played with it, sighing, "I guess I'll have to conquer a few more immortal mountains for my master, then."
Nie Yinzhi rolled her eyes. "Thanks to you, my parents' impression of Gu Jiang has probably hit rock bottom."
Feng Hanying laughed shamelessly, only to be hit in the face by a pile of snow falling from the tree canopy. The biting cold seeped into his meridians, piercing his dantian with sharp pain. Snowflakes nearly choked him as he coughed violently, his face pale as he finally toned down his arrogance. "Master's wife, I was wrong."
Nie Yinzhi gave him a strange look. Ever since Gu Jiang disappeared, Feng Hanying hadn't called her "master's wife" again, and his attitude toward her had become somewhat dismissive.
"Did you take over Chengyang Temple?" Nie Yinzhi asked. "Is the temple master still alive?"
"If you're thinking of asking that old man from Chengyang Temple for a divination, don't bother. That old fool's cultivation is weak, and his predictions are inaccurate," Feng Hanying said with a dark expression. The mere thought of that old Taoist infuriated him. The man had dared to say that Feng Hanying knew nothing of love, that he couldn't love, and that no one loved him.
The less he had, the more he would demand.
Nie Yinzhi had only been casually considering it. At this point, she didn't need anyone's divinations anymore.
A wisp of wind beside her was him. A flower that bloomed just for her was him. It felt as though everything was him, yet it wasn't him.
This feeling was just like when she had entered Gu Jiang's blood-moon shadow realm. She could sense his presence at all times, yet she couldn't grasp him.
Nie Yinzhi suppressed her thoughts and asked curiously, "Did you kill the temple master?"
"That old man was already on his last legs. Why would I bother killing him? I think he wasted his cultivation meddling in the affairs of mortals," Feng Hanying said with disdain.
"Yuanzhou City doesn't have a decent immortal sect. I plan to go clean up some other territories. Do you want to come with me?"