The Arch-Enemy Must Not Become a Wife

"And you, don’t think you can just go and fight recklessly; even if you risk your life, it won’t help. It will only make all the disciples who admire you in the Daoist Palace sad and cry."

"We just need to do what we can and leave the rest to fate; believe that the gods and buddhas have their own plans."

Jiang Yiyi buried her face in Chu Xuan’s embrace, holding him and crying helplessly, "But, but..."

"There’s no ’but,’ I will protect you, not let anyone harm you or let anything happen to you."

The little junior sister to the side was already stunned, how could she feel that her senior brother’s attitude and tone were a bit strange?

No, no, no, it must be her own wicked thoughts, her senior brother is not that kind of person. This is just normal comforting, she secretly warned herself in her heart.

After Jiang Yiyi’s emotions calmed down a bit, she used her tear-stained little face to rub on Chu Xuan’s clothes.

"I understand, then let’s just rest for a while and next time when Yue’er goes out to train, I’ll go with her."

Chu Xuan finally felt relieved, "Alright, I’ll see if I have time to go with you when the time comes."

He’s definitely not a leisure-seeker these days; the work of recovering his memory has just begun. The trip to the Hehuan Sect proved quite fruitful; next, he needs to consider which place would be best to ’recall memories.’

The former Blood Clothes Sect mountain gate? Or Wuyou Valley?

After all, when attending the Baihua Banquet last time, he came and went in a hurry. Actually, Chu Xuan didn’t get a chance to stroll around inside nor ask Lady Baihua more about the past of the Celestial Evil Demon Venerable.

There’s actually another option... the Palace of Nuwa.

That demon sage might know the Celestial Evil, but as for whether she’s possibly the ’Qing’er’ frequently mentioned in memories, Chu Xuan thinks it’s unlikely.

Even with just a few impressions sketched out from conversations with Ji Mingyu, but this person’s temperament seems not very pleasant? A bit seductive, he even personally described them as ’bad woman’ and ’lunatic.’

This seems quite different from the legendary image of a demon sage? Her reputation is similar to that of the Primordial Monarch Taixu, both being the kind of high and mysterious figures.

Not to mention, Qing’er back then even called Ji Mingyu ’sister,’ albeit with some sarcasm.

You know, the demon sage has long been an existence at the peak of the ninth realm, how could she humble herself before a woman whose cultivation is inferior?

Forget it, Chu Xuan still decided to first go to Wuyou Valley to have a look.

After all, Lady Baihua is considered an old acquaintance, even if she finds out about his secret of being the Celestial Evil, with some favor from the Li-named ancestor and the connection with Ming Yu, she probably won’t reveal it.

Finally, Chu Xuan still needs to find a chance to gather the remaining two types of mixed world monkey essence blood to further enhance his power.

He even wants to explore the truth behind the natural disaster, seeking a way to thoroughly cure it, for keeping Jiang Yiyi safe isn’t just a matter to be talked about.

Afterward, Jiang Yiyi seemed to forget her worries, happily holding both of their hands and sitting together, recounting her ’glorious past’ during her cultivation years.

It’s unclear what’s true and what’s false; it was basically a live-action ’Journey of a Genius Girl in Cultivation’:

Unparalleled talent, entered the Daoist Palace, rapidly advanced, admired by all cultivators, worshipped by tens of thousands, countless admirers both inside and outside the sect; followed by taking charge of the Daoist Palace, overcoming obstacles, building from scratch, developing and strengthening, establishing irreversible achievements for the sect.

Finally came the completion of cultivation, descending heavenly tribulation, successfully passing through, ascending to immortality.

Chu Xuan and Xiao Yue were not completely convinced, at least not entirely believing, but seeing the ancestor speaking enthusiastically, full of spittle and excitement, they still supported with applause and praise, making Jiang Yiyi almost swoon with delight.

The three gathered and chatted for most of the day, until Master Xu Yuanzhi came to supervise the disciples in their cultivation, they dispersed, agreeing to chat next time.

...

Chu Xuan walked alone towards the direction of the back mountain.

Unless it’s a major closed-door cultivation session, he preferred to train on the bluestone in the back mountain.

However, as he was walking along the forest path up the mountain, Chu Xuan suddenly heard the call of a lark in the nearby woods, clear and melodious, like the gentle flow of a stream, or the soft ringing of bells, very pleasant.

In his heart, a sudden surge of inexplicable sadness arose, his eyes filled with tears, one drop after another rolled down his face, falling onto the moss-covered stone steps with a soft plop.

Chu Xuan stood there listening attentively, at this moment he was no longer as confused as in the past, faintly able to guess some reason.

This lark’s call must be related to some woman, though he couldn’t yet recall who she was...

Standing quietly and shedding tears for a while, Chu Xuan then proceeded towards the bluestone at the mountain peak.

No matter who you are, I will remember you.

Though, it might be a little late.

...

East of Cyan Lotus Daoist Palace, in a small market about thousands of miles away, there was a tavern called Qingyang Restaurant.

The owner of this tavern, though a cultivator himself, enjoyed brewing wine; the family-recipe Qingyang Spirit Wine was somewhat renowned, well-regarded among the loose cultivators, although the concentration of spiritual Qi wasn’t high, it was tasty.

Some disciples from various sects, passing by this tavern, would come to buy a few jars to satisfy their palate.

The tavern wasn’t large, with about ten tables inside, most of which were filled with guests.

There was a guest sitting in the innermost corner who attracted most of the attention of the other patrons.

It was a young girl dressed in simple blue clothes, looking very pure and innocent.

She seemed to be about sixteen or seventeen years old, with a delicate and fair oval-shaped face, bright eyes, gentle features, a slender and straight nose, soft and white skin, fine and transparent, almost supple enough to pinch water out.

At this moment, the young girl was carefully holding a bowl of wine, sipping the spirit wine from the bowl in small sips. Although she appeared somewhat nervous, her brows and eyes slightly curved, suggesting she was still enjoying the fine wine.

At nearby tables, several loose cultivators exchanged glances, having noticed this girl for quite a while.

Just then, the upright shopkeeper was called by a waiter to check on the underground wine cellar’s situation, so those cultivators exchanged a glance, got up, and walked over to the young girl’s table and sat down.

The girl’s face immediately showed tension, holding the bowl and softly saying, "I don’t know you, what do you want?"

The leading man, with a bit of a rogue air, spoke in a smiling tone, "Little sister, didn’t expect you to be so pretty and also drinking; how old are you? How about we keep you company for a few drinks?"

The other patrons in the tavern frowned upon hearing this, some found it unbearable.

But before anyone could step in to stop it, the young girl’s eyes suddenly brightened, seemingly breathing a sigh of relief, swallowing back what she originally planned to say, "Please don’t bully me."

"Oh, I see, I thought you were bad people. Of course, you can drink; should I treat you?"

This made other patrons shake their heads silently; just what kind of innocent girl is this? Doesn’t her family follow her around? How can they feel at ease leaving her alone?

The leading man laughed heartily, "What a straightforward girl! But how can we, full-grown men, let you treat us?"

"Come on, I’ll cover this table today, nobody leaves until tipsy!"

With that, he signaled to his companions, two of them returned the favor with knowing smiles and went to the wine cabinet, bringing out several large jars of wine.

This made other patrons even more dissatisfied, though, they hadn’t done anything overly inappropriate yet, so it’s hard to meddle, causing some to sneak away to find the shopkeeper.

...

After a while, the shopkeeper who went down hundreds of meters underground got the message and hurried up to see, then he was dumbstruck.

The other patrons in the tavern were also showing dazed expressions, as the young girl’s table was piled with dozens of empty wine jars; she was still holding a large bowl of wine, sipping contentedly with a gentle gulp, the entire bowl swallowed.

As for those three loose cultivators, they were already knocked out, sprawling on the ground, the leading man even vomited, his mouth frothing.

"Are you alright?" The shopkeeper froze for a moment before approaching to ask.

The young girl looked at him with innocent eyes, "I’m fine."