Love & Redemption
Chapter 150: Volume 4 Hua Meng Sudden Split - 7 Spiritual Beast (5)

Chapter 150: Volume 4 Hua Meng Sudden Split Chapter 7 Spiritual Beast (5)

After regaining consciousness, the proud Tengshe stayed silent, refusing to eat or sleep, and simply curled up under the dining table of the farmer’s house. Clearly unable to cope with this enormous shock, he still couldn’t accept the reality. Him, the mighty Tengshe of Heaven, a Divine Beast accustomed to fire and smoke, had actually become the spiritual beast of a mere mortal girl. Even though she was a formidable War God in her past life, in this life, she is a mere mortal... What’s more, she had committed an offense and was punished to the Lower Realm to endure the suffering of reincarnation. Even if she were to return to Heaven, she wouldn’t be able to resume her role as a General and would definitely be under surveillance, utterly devoid of prospects. Following her, his fate was sealed—utterly devoid of prospects or opportunities. His life was ruined by her hands.

The more he thought about it, the more heartbroken he felt, and the burns on his wings started to hurt even more. The pain—made him really want to cry.

A large porcelain bowl suddenly appeared before him, filled with fragrant food. Xuanji crouched outside and lifted the tablecloth, her distinctive black and white eyes looking at him as she said, "Hey, time to eat. We need to hit the road today."

Tengshe turned his face away with disgust and muttered hoarsely, "I don’t go by ’hey.’"

"Oh, then, Tengshe, please eat. This is the reality, I’m reluctantly willing to take you as my spiritual beast, so stop sulking. What’s done is done. Neither of us has any room for regret."

Her voice was filled with self-pity, as if she was even more distressed than he was, as if she were dissatisfied with accepting such a large spiritual beast as him.

Tengshe felt a surge of anger and retorted sharply, "Who is reluctant?! Following you is what’s truly unbearable for me!"

"Oh, then go die," she said, placing the bowl on the ground before turning away.

"You’re the one who should go die, you wretched girl!" He stuck his head out from under the tablecloth furiously and continued to curse. Unbeknownst to him, she hadn’t gone far and was just squatting outside the tablecloth. Their eyes met as he poked his head out, both staring fiercely at each other.

Xuanji pointed a finger at his nose and chuckled, "You sound like a stray dog barking."

He was furious and ready to retaliate with a heavy punch, but when his fist reached her, his spiritual beast instincts immediately kicked in, turning the act into a gentle patting—essentially like massaging her shoulders! Xuanji moved her neck comfortably and directed, "Uh, a bit to the left... yeah, a little lower... Your skills are not bad. Later on, you can give Si Feng a massage too."

Ahhh, how could this happen!? His pride took another heavy blow as he ducked back under the tablecloth and kicked the bowl away, ignoring Xuanji no matter how she provoked or teased him.

Yu Sifeng sat beside the table, witnessing Xuanji’s childish behavior, always bickering with Tengshe, and couldn’t help but chuckle resignedly, "Don’t always bully him. You should get along with Tengshe and develop some affection."

"Affection?" The thought of getting along chummily with this murderer, patting his head as he behaved as docilely as Little Silver Flower... This scenario caused her to break out in a cold sweat, and she immediately shook her head, "No need. Since he doesn’t want to be my spiritual beast, I don’t want him either. I’ll just find another one that I like later."

Yu Sifeng said, "You’ve already made a contract, and there’s no changing it now."

"So I have to be tied to this monster for life?!" Xuanji was shocked and felt her prospects dimming.

Yu Sifeng sighed softly, leaned in close to her ear, and whispered, "Look at him, not eating or drinking, hiding under the table. Doesn’t he remind you of a little dog that’s just been caught? If you treat him like training a little dog, is he really that hard to get along with?"

This was indeed a secret tip from Yu Sifeng. Xuanji’s eyes brightened, and she bent over to lift the tablecloth. Tengshe immediately bared his teeth at her, showing a ferocious expression, really like a little dog that had been caught, skittish and wilful. She quickly sat up and turned around, eyes gleaming with anticipation as she looked at Yu Sifeng, the previous gloom quickly fading.

He smiled proudly and said, "No matter how formidable he is, he is still a beast. You can’t treat him like a human."

Xuanji nodded repeatedly, thinking to herself that Si Feng always knew the most; following his advice was never wrong. She quickly turned back to continue serving the food, intending to tempt with a feast.

The Tengshe hiding under the table suddenly grumbled, "What gives that little ghost the right to speak of me! Aren’t you a beast too?"

Yu Sifeng quietly lifted the tablecloth and looked down at him. Tengshe had a look of dignity deeply insulted, as if he would rather die, and said fiercely, "You’re not human either, your terrible lying skills might fool that stinky girl, but they don’t fool me! If I were to inform those above in Heaven, they’d skin you alive!"

Yu Sifeng looked at him coldly and simply said, "Then go ahead and tell them, I will not stop you."

Tengshe shouted angrily, "Do you think I’m a gossip? I refuse to tell."

Yu Sifeng laughed softly, "You do not understand the benefits of being human. Your singing was quite open-minded, yet you are so rigid and difficult in this respect."

"You’re the one who is rigid and difficult!" Tengshe got angry again, "I disdain speaking with you! Your mind is the worst!"

He still remembered it was Yu Sifeng who taught Xuanji how to take him as her spiritual beast. He had a bone to pick with him and would hold a grudge for a lifetime! He vowed to find an opportunity to burn him to a crisp next time.

Yu Sifeng smiled and said, "You should know you’re not a fool, and since you’ve already made a contract, there’s no point in throwing a tantrum. Having her as your master does not disgrace you. After all these thousands of years, you haven’t had much of a future; do you still expect one now? The way I see it, those above don’t really take you seriously, do they? You made such a ruckus in the human world, and no one pursued it, which shows how unimportant you are to them."

Hearing his sore spot articulated, Tengshe couldn’t bear being lectured by a youngster and simply closed his eyes, feigning death.

Yu Sifeng pressed on, "You must have some other purpose for coming to the Lower Realm this time, right? What is it?"

Tengshe was startled and opened his eyes, exclaiming, "How did you know that!"

Yu Sifeng smiled faintly, "You mentioned yourself that coming to the human world was a last resort. But since you are a Divine Beast, you should have the ability to restrain your own nature. Causing such a fuss must have been out of spite. Let me guess, you’ve been traveling west—is it to Buzhou Mountain?"

Tengshe exclaimed in shock, "You... you little ghost... can you read minds or something..."

Yu Sifeng innocently shook his head, "I naturally cannot perform Mind Reading Technique. However, when the demons of the Lower Realm attempt to disrupt the Sea Stabilizing Iron Chain, Heaven will not remain indifferent, right? Were you sent here to investigate? To go to the Netherworld to check on that demon?"

Tengshe bit his tongue hard, deciding no matter what he asked, he wouldn’t speak anymore. He least liked such clever people, like the Eastern White Emperor, who could tell what you were thinking before you even spoke. It was truly terrifying.

Seeing that Tengshe remained silent, Yu Sifeng did not press him further but chuckled lowly, "Heaven cannot be contemplated, the Dao cannot be schemed; fate may be delayed, but how can one know the time? You sang this yourself, don’t you understand the meaning? Since you’ve become her spiritual beast, naturally, there’s a reason for it. Why not accept it with an open heart?"

"Bullshit, bullshit! Stinking dog fart! Absolutely revolting!" Tengshe cursed loudly, covering his ears firmly.

Yu Sifeng laughed and put down the tablecloth, sitting up straight. Just then, Xuanji brought over another bowl of food and asked curiously, "What were you telling him?"

"Nothing much... um, just some pet tips. Like how to be a good spiritual beast." He smiled gently, tapped the table with his hand, and stood up, "After he finishes eating, we should prepare to leave. I’ll go pack up."

Xuanji crept under the table and saw Tengshe staring at her defensively. She tried her best to show a friendly smile and said softly, "Time to eat, Tengshe. Be good."

"Good my big ghost head!" He was about to explode again. With a slap of his paw, he was about to overturn the bowl. Xuanji quickly secured it and said, "No matter what, you still have to eat. Even if you’re angry, the fact is irreversible. I’m willing to accept it, so what can’t you let go of?"

He couldn’t stand the tone she used that made it sound like having Tengshe as a spiritual beast was a burden and depressing! His mind buzzed chaotically, turning into a mess, so he could only hug his knees and curl up again, refusing to communicate with her.

After a while, he heard some rustling sounds next to him. He stole a glance and saw her taking out gauze and medicinal ointment from her sleeve, using a jade hairpin to scoop some ointment and bringing it close to his face.

"What are you doing!" His fur stood on end with alarm, and he quickly dodged, not anticipating her lack of gentleness as she grabbed his hair and yanked him over, causing him pain as he cried out, "Let go! It hurts!"

A cool sensation on his face, the hairpin smeared all the ointment on his wound, which was the same one she inflicted with the treasure sword when they made the contract. Tengshe stiffened and stammered, "Don’t think... a little... bit of kindness... will... will... make me submit! I am a Divine Beast! I look down on... on... on... people like you... you... you... little human girls!" He was so embarrassed that he began to stutter.

Xuanji secured the gauze firmly on the wound, then smiled and said, "This is the golden sore medicine from the Shaoyang Sect, it’s very effective. Look, my hand was scalded yesterday, and after applying the medicine, today I can move it."

Both her hands were wrapped in bandages, obviously from grabbing the burning treasure sword yesterday. Additionally, her face was quite a mess; both eyebrows had been singed off, and her hair was half burnt, having been cut off a great deal that morning. Honestly, she looked quite comical. Tengshe held back, trying not to laugh, and said coldly, "Sucking up to me is useless."

Xuanji laughed, "Who’s sucking up to you! It’s not a solution for us to be angry like this, and we’re going to have to get along for a lifetime. Fortunately, my lifetime is very short. A hundred years will fly by in a flash. After that, you’ll be free, won’t you?"

Tengshe glared with his eyes bulging, and said, "Are you truly clueless or just playing dumb? Don’t you know you’re the one from the Lower Realm undergoing trials?! After your tribulations are over, you naturally have to return to the Heavenly Court! And a hundred years... do you have any idea that you practically chained me to death?!"

He roared again, his voice thick with blood and tears. Xuanji was stunned for a moment, then set her rice bowl on the ground and plopped herself down cross-legged, sighing, "I know my previous life was extraordinary, but that’s all in the past. What’s happening right now is what’s most important, isn’t it? A hundred years is still time, and I can’t just for the sake of an elusive future neglect the joy of the present. We can worry about the future when it comes."

Tengshe snorted, still not satisfied, "Why the hell should I waste an entire lifetime for nothing."

Xuanji patted his shoulder and said, "Don’t be sad. There’s always a way to break the contract, right? Even if there isn’t one right away, we can search slowly and surely find a solution. Being my spiritual beast isn’t that bad; we eat together, play together, and talk together—it’s lively. All my close friends aren’t around anymore, and it’s been a long time since I’ve enjoyed that kind of liveliness."

Tengshe’s rigid body gradually relaxed, and while she wasn’t paying attention, he snatched a chicken wing from the bowl and gnawed on it, asking, "What do you mean ’aren’t around’? Are they dead? Everyone dies sooner or later. What’s there not to come to terms with?"

Xuanji shook her head and said, "You’re right in a way, but we are human, and our lives span only a brief hundred years. Therefore, parting through death is an eternal affliction, and even if we meet again in a subsequent life, those are but different memories, not the same. I love them, so I don’t want to part from them."

Tengshe boldly picked up the rice bowl and began to eat, stuffing his mouth so full of food that his words were muffled, "Mmm, that’s easy. With your special status, going to the Netherworld is a piece of cake. If you miss them, just go to hell and look for their souls, as long as they haven’t yet drunk the Forget River Water, their memories from their previous lives are still intact. Look, if you want to go to the Netherworld, it just so happens we’re on the same path; I need to go there too."

Xuanji shook her head, "They’re not dead, but because of... this and that, it’s hard to return to how things were before. I need to find a spiritual beast because I want to save them; I need more strength, I can’t lose to those demons."

"Demons?" Tengshe’s eyes flickered as he asked, "Are they the ones who damaged the Sea Stabilizing Iron Chain?"

Xuanji said excitedly, "You know about it too?! That’s great! Let’s join forces and chase away those bad guys, okay?"

Tengshe wolfed down his meal, polishing off the rice, and then flipped the empty bowl into her hands, arrogantly saying, "No way. I’m not about to demean myself by getting mixed up with you mortals and demons."

What a little dog! Si Feng’s a liar! He’s still a bad egg at heart! Xuanji glared at him, feeling gloomy.

Suddenly, Tengshe said, "However, if you can feed me meals this tasty every day, maybe I’ll consider giving you a little hand."

Xuanji, overjoyed, hugged him tight and cried out, "Great! From now on, I’ll share half of whatever I eat with you!"

"Pah, little girl," Tengshe said with disgust as he poked her face and then fell silent. (To be continued... For further information, please log on to www.qidian.com. More Chapters are available and your support for the author and for licensed reading is appreciated!)