The Arch-Enemy Must Not Become a Wife

Li Fanzhou smiled and nodded, "By the way, I don’t know if I’ve told you before, but I’ve met the Celestial Evil Demon Venerable, and even drank and fought with him."

Chu Xuan was taken aback, not knowing what brought about this sudden topic!

Of course, he maintained a serious demeanor outwardly, just listening intently.

"At the time, my junior brother Wuchenzi was quite close with the Celestial Evil, always believing he wasn’t a bad person."

"But I disagree. I judge people by their actions, not their intentions. Isn’t that how a gentleman should be judged?"

Chu Xuan remained silent, realizing that the Celestial Evil Demon Venerable did have some misdeeds, whether intentional or as a necessary means to survive in the demonic path.

Not to mention, the business of training a righteous Taoist fairy like Pei Shurou isn’t exactly something righteous.

So considering Li Fanzhou’s perspective, Chu Xuan couldn’t say he was wrong.

"I wonder what Grandmaster means by telling me this?" Chu Xuan asked respectfully.

"Oh, nothing much. Just seeing your master so stubborn, it made me reflect and sigh a little," Li Fanzhou said, waving his hand. "Go on."

Chu Xuan nodded and left, hearing the middle-aged scholar who was holding a book, walking and reciting:

"The human heart is perilous, the Dao heart is meek; only precision and unity, uphold the center."

...

Chu Xuan didn’t know if Li Fanzhou was genuinely reflecting or testing him, but either way, he indeed had his doubts, especially after the wedding incident.

His mind occupied with these thoughts, he unknowingly arrived at the ancestral hall, a place always open to him, where he had first met Jiang Yiyi years ago.

Pushing the door open, the room was always lit by eternal lamps and incense, a serene and tranquil place.

At the front, a shrine housed the tablets of the Cyan Lotus Daoist Palace’s ancestors, organized by generation into staggered six rows.

Jiang Yiyi was sitting in front of the shrine, holding a tablet, lost in thought, barely reacting when someone entered.

Chu Xuan gently smiled and sat beside her, asking, "What’s wrong?"

Jiang Yiyi turned her head, resting it on his shoulder, her tone melancholic:

"I don’t know if you can understand this feeling, suddenly looking back on the path and finding that everyone once vivid in memory is completely gone, leaving emptiness inside."

I can, of course, I can, thought Chu Xuan. The last time he was at the Hehuan Sect, he felt exactly this way.

Of course, now he couldn’t say that, so he just softly stroked Yiyi’s head, "I can somewhat understand, I also miss my departed loved ones."

Jiang Yiyi cherished the wooden tablet in her hands, "This is my master’s tablet, he loved me dearly, even though he nagged a lot, way more than Fu Yunzi, he thought of me in everything, worried I would get wronged, or bullied."

"Unfortunately, my master passed early, and the sect was in decline, much like Celestial Derivation Peak now."

"So, like that kid Xu Yuanzhi, I had to take on the sect’s responsibilities early.

"Luckily, most elders were still around at the time, advising me to focus on cultivation, letting them handle any tricky issues, only occasionally needing to put on a show when required."

"Are you wondering why my character seems different from the sect’s records?"

Actually, the Jiang Yiyi in the sect’s history wasn’t much different from now—certainly no bad words, just mentioning her ’childlike heart,’ being amiable, unpretentious, and beloved by disciples.

Isn’t that just like now? Just phrased with some nice-sounding terms like ’sacred nature unchanged.’

The only significant difference was the portrait hanging in the ancestral hall, Chu Xuan instinctively looked to the right.

The portrait showed Jiang Yiyi dressed in a water-blue dress, with a silk sash wrapped around her hand, standing on the cloud peaks, exuding an ethereal air, like an otherworldly fairy.

Her expression was less naïve, more wise from worldly experience.

"Look at me now," Jiang Yiyi put down the tablet, gracefully stood up, and stood next to the portrait.

In that instant, Chu Xuan was stunned!

Their expressions, temperament, and aura matched almost perfectly, Jiang Yiyi’s gaze carrying a slight coolness, making her look like a different person compared to before.

Seeing Chu Xuan’s shocked and puzzled expression, Jiang Yiyi couldn’t help but chuckle, breaking the facade, revealing her true self.

"Did you see?" Jiang Yiyi laughed, holding his hand, "All of that was an act."

"Though everyone praised me as a rare genius in cultivation for centuries, I’m really quite foolish; this is my real personality."

"Just to meet others’ expectations, I made efforts to appear mature, especially in front of outsiders. As a sect leader, I couldn’t appear timid, could I? I had to maintain the demeanor of a cold and aloof fairy."

"Let me tell you, back then, there were even cultivators from other sects secretly in love with me, but they didn’t truly understand what I was like, they only admired my facade."

Jiang Yiyi said, sitting back beside Chu Xuan, "Having a chance to return to the mortal world, to see my beloved disciples and grandchildren, I’m naturally not bothered with maintaining facades, not like in front of outsiders."

"I can’t be bothered to keep it up for outsiders either, let them think what they will."

Chu Xuan recalled when, before the wedding, Yiyi had said, "I’m kind-hearted, not stupid."

It seems true enough now.

With Yiyi’s innocent and pure demeanor, it’s no wonder she progressed smoothly to the ninth realm and even ascended as an immortal; having fewer worries also has its perks.

Just then, Jiang Yiyi remembered something, she turned to Chu Xuan and asked sternly:

"Did you say when I descended to the mortal world, I got struck in the head by lightning?"

Chu Xuan was slightly embarrassed, "Did I? No, right? You must be mistaken, Grandmaster."

"You did! I heard it clearly myself." Yiyi said, climbing onto his lap and playfully pounding him with her little fists.

Chu Xuan laughed, warding her off, "Spare me, Grandmaster~!"

They continued to play and laugh for a while, and Jiang Yiyi’s mood improved considerably.

Fondly, she cuddled up to Chu Xuan, resting in his embrace, chattering about past stories.

This time, her accounts were much more real than the previous embellished versions, giving Chu Xuan deeper insights into Jiang Yiyi as a person.

Only today, he felt he truly reached into her heart...

Chu Xuan gently stroked Yiyi’s long hair, occasionally responding softly.

As she talked, tiredness crept over her, and she fell asleep in his arms, like a little lazy house cat, even drooling slightly.

Sunlight filtered through the window lattice, casting beautiful spots on them, with tiny sparkling dust swirling around in the light~

Chu Xuan’s lips curled into a slight smile, feeling a moment of pure relaxation and beauty—this was the life he had always yearned for.

In front of the tablets of the ancestors, he silently made a wish: Like this is perfect, I hope she can remain carefree like this forever.

...

At the Celestial Sect, under a locust tree, Sect Leader He Musheng was leisurely sipping rice wine and munching on salted crispy peanuts.

Suddenly, his disciple rushed over, calling out, "Master, Master."

He Musheng furrowed his brow, "What now? How old are you and still can’t stay calm?"

The disciple, now appearing as a young Daoist, felt a bit embarrassed, scratching his head, "A really pretty lady came outside, saying she’s looking for Senior Brother Chu Xuan."

He Musheng was taken aback, "How old?"

"Looks a few years younger than me."

"Not an illegitimate daughter, right? How did she find her way here?"

"Maybe she couldn’t find the sect gate," the disciple hesitated.

He Musheng thought for a moment, "Have Ah Yue take her there, I won’t bother myself, too much trouble."

The old Daoist muttered, clearly wishing to continue his carefree life.