Bu Wei

Ning Buwei placed the teacup on the stone table, making a soft sound.

The shell sat upright beside him, tugging at his sleeve under the table.

Ning Buwei’s eyebrows twitched slightly, then his hand was pulled under the table. The warm, soft fingertips brushed across his palm, and that strange tickling sensation almost made the great demon snap his wrist.

The shell wrote two characters on his palm: Child.

Then, seemingly angry, it pinched Ning Buwei’s palm once. As for why it was angry – the force was a bit “strong”.

It was probably upset that he let “someone else” hold the child instead of itself.

Ning Buwei, with a wooden expression, withdrew his hand into his sleeve. His palm was faintly aching.

Chu Jun saw their private actions clearly. Feeling his eyes hurt, he expressionlessly looked away and said calmly, “Does the child have a name?”

“A single character, Xiu,” Ning Buwei said.

“Li Xiu?” Chu Jun looked down at the child in his arms.

Ning Xiu, looking pretty with a head full of question marks, said, “Ah?”

Who was Li Xiu?

His heartless father, without warning, had changed his name. He said seriously, “Yes, Li Xiu.”

“What are your plans for the future, fellow cultivator?” Chu Jun poured him a cup of tea, deliberately pushing the cup towards Ning Buwei’s hand to prevent his not-so-bright clone from serving tea again.

With the tea at hand, Ning Buwei politely picked it up and took another sip.

“To be honest, I’m just an ordinary wandering cultivator, drifting around the seventeen states without a fixed abode—” Ning Buwei hinted blatantly, “The child would only suffer if he stayed with me.”

Besides, changing diapers every day left no time for fighting. Even if he finally got a chance to fight, he’d have to carry a child, which would damage his image as the path of ruthlessness great demon.

Chu Jun immediately understood what he meant.

What the other party said wasn’t wrong. The child, barely three months old, had already been on the brink of death several times. It was truly fortunate that he was still alive.

“If that’s the case, then leave the child with me,” Chu Jun said calmly. “You can come to Yijian Peak to see him anytime.”

This was exactly what Ning Buwei had in mind when he came to see him. Chu Jun’s words matched his intentions perfectly, so he continued to probe back and forth with the other party a few more times.

This person had a steady personality and spoke eloquently. Except for his excessively beautiful face, everything else about him seemed passably good.

This cultivator named Chu Shan was over two hundred years old, at the Golden Core stage. His master had perished, and he had no Dao companion, no fellow sect brothers, and no disciples. He lived alone on Yijian Peak, with a monthly salary of three hundred high-grade spirit stones, enough to raise a child.

Most importantly, he had helped repair Ning Buwei’s dantian and meridians twice without asking for anything in return. Even when entering his sea of consciousness, he had shown no ill intent. This showed his good nature and upright character. Moreover, when Ning Xiu had entered his sea of consciousness right after birth, he must have noticed the child’s exceptional innate Golden Core physique, yet he never mentioned it, showing his indifference to fame and fortune.

After causing chaos for so many years, Ning Buwei had developed some ability to judge people. This person fully deserved the description of “beautiful and kind-hearted”.

Although he had always sneered at righteous and kind cultivators, when it came to entrusting his son to someone else, he realized that such cultivators were more reassuring.

“These are the things he’ll need,” Ning Buwei placed a storage ring on the stone table.

Chu Jun took it and asked, “Is there anything I need to pay attention to?”

“He likes to eat duomu fruits lately. One small spoon at a time is enough, or three spoons if juiced. If he eats too much, he won’t sleep at night. He won’t eat rice porridge if it’s too thick or too thin. Don’t feed him when it’s cold, or he’ll get diarrhea. If he does, use spiritual energy to warm his acupoints. I usually bathe him every two days. The water can’t be too cold. He likes the longer of the two floating woods for bathing… He likes the little outfit with ducks on it. There’s a hole in it, don’t throw it away. Last time I threw it away, he cried for three days…” Ning Buwei paused, then continued.

“He’s very afraid of the dark. Remember to make a small glowing bell for him to hold when he sleeps at night, but not too bright, or he can’t sleep.”

“If he cries, he’s either hungry or needs changing. If he’s uncomfortable, he’ll whimper,”

“Before sleep, just hold and comfort him, and he’ll sleep. But you need to put more cotton quilts on this stone bed. Although he’s at the Golden Core stage, he doesn’t know how to use spiritual energy and still gets cold…”

“He’s very well-behaved, but you should talk to him often. He might be a bit clingy, but it’ll get better as he grows up. Don’t ignore him.”

Ning Buwei frowned as he spoke, “Although you can use cleaning spells on the diapers, it’s best to change them often. When he cries, remember to comfort him quickly, or he’ll cry until his voice goes hoarse.”

At this point, he could already imagine this beautiful person disliking his son for wetting the bed, refusing to change his diapers, then leaving his son alone on the cold stone bed, ignoring him even as he cried until his face turned purple.

This beauty looked like he had never done any manual labor. He probably only ate celestial flowers and drank spiritual spring water. Ning Buwei had a hard time imagining what he would look like squatting in front of a stove cooking porridge.

Ning Buwei suddenly felt increasingly uneasy as he thought about it.

“Alright,” Chu Jun noted down each point.

Ning Buwei raised his eyelids and glanced at him.

Skin like congealed cream, eyebrows like ink paintings, a pair of cold, captivating phoenix eyes – both his bone structure and appearance could be called exquisite. If he were a woman, who knows how many cultivators would flock to him.

Fortunately, he was a male cultivator.

But he still wasn’t entirely at ease, so he asked a somewhat intrusive question, “Does Fellow Cultivator Chu have any female…or male cultivator he’s fond of?”

Chu Jun’s hand, which was holding the storage ring, paused slightly. His gaze towards Ning Buwei carried a hint of coldness.

Ning Buwei wasn’t intimidated at all. He smiled slightly and said, “Fellow Cultivator has a heavenly appearance, surely you have many suitors. If you already have someone in mind, they might misunderstand if you suddenly have a child.”

He didn’t want his son to end up with a stepmother or stepfather who might be attracted by this beauty. He wasn’t even completely at ease with the child’s own father, let alone a stepfather with no blood relation.

A delicate female cultivator might be fine, but if it were a strong male stepfather – this beauty didn’t look like he could fight well – wouldn’t that stepfather be able to bully the beauty with a single punch, and then throw his son into the icy snow to freeze—

As Ning Buwei thought of this, his face darkened, and his fists clenched.

Chu Jun didn’t know why the other party suddenly looked at him with pity. He said stiffly, “No, there isn’t.”

Anyone who dared to have designs on him must not value their life.

Ning Buwei felt that with his face, saying “no” wasn’t very credible. However, he had only meant to remind him, so he left it at that. After discussing a few more trivial matters, he stood up to leave.

“Then I’ll trouble Fellow Cultivator to take care of this child,” Ning Buwei took out a small porcelain bottle from his sleeve and placed it in Ning Xiu’s arms along with the fluffy little yellow dog. “This bottle of Jade Spirit Pills is a small token of my gratitude.”

Chu Jun looked at the porcelain bottle, feeling it was strangely familiar. He raised his head to look at the shell beside Ning Buwei.

Although the soul in the shell couldn’t be retrieved for now, he could sense the shell’s emotions.

For instance, right now his shell was very depressed, even a bit angry.

Chu Jun took the porcelain bottle, which was originally his, without changing his expression. He found that the bottle, which he had originally filled, was now half empty. His eyebrows twitched slightly, “Thank you.”

Ning Buwei maintained his gentle persona, “It’s only right. Farewell.”

With that, he turned and left. The shell followed closely, but as it passed by Chu Jun, it accidentally stumbled. Chu Jun reached out to steady it, as if unintentionally.

A concealment talisman had been placed on this shell, which explained why this soul fragment was trapped inside and couldn’t return. He didn’t know what tricks the other party had used to make this soul so attentive and considerate.

The concealment talisman was of high quality, even he couldn’t undo it quickly. Moreover, this cultivator called Li Chengfeng had left a mark in his sea of consciousness, conveniently allowing this shell to stay by his side to investigate.

Chu Jun silently placed a talisman on the shell before letting it leave.

Ning Buwei only realized after walking a few steps that the shell hadn’t followed. When he turned his head, he saw the shell “angrily” catching up to him, grabbing his wrist to pull him back.

Ning Buwei dropped his earlier polite mask and said impatiently, “What are you going back for?”

The shell took his hand and wrote on it: Child.

Ning Buwei raised an eyebrow and said, “He belongs to someone else now.”

The shell froze for a moment, then wrote: Dog.

Ning Buwei said, “Given away with the child.”

The shell visibly deflated, writing with more force: Medicine.

Ning Buwei coughed lightly and said righteously, “Once I’ve given something, it’s mine to give. I saw he was handsome, so I gave it to him. Is there a problem?”

The shell stood there, shocked.

For a moment, Ning Buwei felt like a scoundrel casually toying with the shell’s feelings, but he quickly suppressed this absurd thought and warned, “Even if you’re Wanli, don’t meddle in my affairs.”

Although Chu Jun couldn’t control the shell’s behavior, he clearly saw and heard Ning Buwei’s arrogant face and domineering words through the shell. He also personally experienced the shell’s emotional transitions from anxiety to sadness and bewilderment to shock.

The Venerable, experiencing so many emotions for the first time: ……

But, who was Wanli?

Ning Xiu, held in his arms, turned his little head and made an “Ah” sound at him.

Remembering Ning Buwei’s earlier instructions, Chu Jun seriously responded, “Hm?”

“Ah?” Ning Xiu tilted his head, his eyes full of confusion.

Where’s Father?

The martial uncle, unable to understand what his son was saying, fell silent. He could only reach out to pinch the child’s little face, indicating he was listening.

“Ah~ Ah ah~” Ning Xiu looked around again. There were only cold stones everywhere, no father, no brothers or sisters, and no steaming porridge. Although the Bai Bai mother was here, father was gone.

Father~ Father~ I want Father~

Chu Jun held him and said in a cool voice, “From now on, I’m your father.”

Ning Xiu only heard the word “father”. His little mouth puckered, tears welling up in his eyes as he whimpered in a milky voice, “Ah~”

Where’s my Father?

Seeing his pitiful almost-crying face, Chu Jun said, “Are you missing your other father?”

“Wah!” Ning Xiu, as a big three-month-old baby, wanted to be strong, but he couldn’t. He just wanted his father.

The Bai Bai mother was nice, but he had always been inseparable from his father, never having been apart for so long. The little one instantly became a teary mess.

Chu Jun had held newborn babies before. Other people’s babies cried like kittens, but his son cried like a little tiger, earth-shattering.

The cries echoed through the empty cave dwelling.

So he took out the storage ring Ning Buwei had left, and the martial uncle, who hadn’t touched worldly affairs for nearly a thousand years, began trying to cook rice porridge for his son.

The next second, the martial uncle stood frozen with a small bag of rice porridge.

He needed a pot, a stove, a spoon, and firewood. Chu Jun looked around. The vast cave dwelling had nothing but stone tables and beds.

So the martial uncle began rummaging through his own storage ring and spirit bags while comforting his wailing son.

A small bundle of redwood, an ancient divine sword, a seven-holed pagoda picked up in a secret realm, a mechanical puppet he had refined… who knows how many years’ worth of pills and talismans… an alchemy furnace bought from Medicine King Valley, a short red string from who knows where…

He had never felt so flustered even when fighting with Tribulation stage old monsters. His ears were filled with his son’s wailing cries. The Venerable, who practiced the Way of Purity, felt like he was undergoing a tribulation.

Then with a wave of his long sleeve, two identical avatars appeared in the cave dwelling.

If Ning Buwei were here, he would certainly notice that although these three bodies had different shapes and clothes, they had one thing in common – none of their faces had been molded.

Learning from his previous lesson, Chu Jun quickly molded simple facial features on the two avatars’ faces. Then, dividing his divine consciousness into three, he began bustling about the cave dwelling.

The black-clothed avatar began fashioning a pot from spiritual iron found in the spirit bag. The red-clothed avatar left the cave to find firewood. His true body patiently comforted the child, while his peripheral vision caught sight of a red string on the stone table. He picked up the string while holding Ning Xiu.

It was just an ordinary red string, about as long as an adult man’s wrist, probably a bracelet.

But strangely, he couldn’t remember where it came from or why he had put it in his storage ring.

He had lived for over a thousand years. Even though he didn’t particularly like collecting things, he had accumulated quite a bit, and it was impossible to remember every detail. After pondering for a while without recalling, he let it go.

“Ah~” Ning Xiu, tired from crying, hiccupped and sniffled while reaching out to grab the red string. “Ah!”

Father’s blood~

Father~

“You like it?” Seeing his son clutching the red string and refusing to let go, Chu Jun wrapped it three times around his little wrist.

“Ah~” Ning Xiu opened his eyes wide, looking at the red string on his hand, instinctively wanting to chew on it.

Chu Jun lowered his gaze to examine the red string, feeling it was still missing something. He began to pick through the treasures scattered on the bed while holding Ning Xiu.

“This one?” Chu Jun held up a ten-thousand-year spirit jade for his son to choose.

“Ah~” Ning Xiu blinked, pushing it away disdainfully.

Green, don’t like~

Chu Jun casually tossed the spirit jade aside and picked up a piece of dark gold he had dug from the core of the Dark Realm. “This one?”

“Ya~” Ning Xiu turned his head away.

Ugly~

Chu Jun put down the dark gold and picked up a piece of silver radiating rich spiritual energy. “Your father pried this off the gate of the Floating Sky Realm. It’s the most beautiful piece.”

“Yiya~” Ning Xiu tilted his head, hearing the words “beautiful”. He looked carefully at the shiny silver and hugged it to his chest.

Pretty~

Chu Jun felt one piece of silver wasn’t enough. Standing by the bed with his son, the father and son picked out three more silver bells he had found in the Xuantian Secret Realm. Finally, his son hugged the small bundle of redwood and wouldn’t let go.

The frost-like cold person smiled, as if ice and snow suddenly melted. “You like this wood too?”

After saying this, Chu Jun paused. Too?

“Ah!” Ning Xiu curved his eyes at him.

Father likes it! I like it too!

Chu Jun sat on the edge of the bed with him, taking out a knife as thin as a cicada’s wing. He slowly infused it with spiritual energy and began to carve the wood for his son.

Ning Xiu widened his eyes curiously in his arms, focusing intently, temporarily forgetting about his father.

Although called redwood, its color was extremely dark, almost brownish, not clashing with the red string. After about half an hour, Chu Jun had carved a delicate longevity lock with spiritual energy, hanging the three small bells on the lock after shrinking them.

Then he carved a thin bead from the redwood, which fit perfectly at the end of the red string.

Now on Ning Xiu’s little wrist was a red string with a small longevity lock, a smooth wooden bead fastening the red string together. With a gentle shake, it made a soft, pleasant tinkling sound.

“Ya.” Ning Xiu shook his little hand, and the silver bells tinkled.

The child shook once, and the bells chimed once.

“Yiya.” Ning Xiu raised his little hand to show Chu Jun, “Ah~”

Chu Jun smiled gently, “I’m glad you like it.”

As the rice porridge was cooking, the two avatars began making a cradle bed for the child using spiritual wood. Chu Jun held his son, showing him small spirit beasts in a water mirror. “Which one do you like? Father will bring it for you.”

“Ah~” Ning Xiu pointed to the little puppy in his arms.

I already have one~

“This is a spirit beast?” Chu Jun picked up the puppy by the scruff of its neck, bringing it to eye level. “Can you talk?”

Da Huang: “…Woof.”

While the cave dwelling was bustling with activity, over at the Sangyun Inn, Ning Buwei was idly turning a few pieces of the Suzaku knife, bored.

The shell seemed to have been hit hard, sitting quietly and silently in the corner.

Jiang Yizheng and Feng Zizhang were hunched over the table, filling out the registration forms they had brought back.

“My birthday is next month, should I fill in twenty-three or twenty-four for my age?” Feng Zizhang asked, chewing on his brush.

“Go with twenty-four, older seems more steady,” Jiang Yizheng suggested.

“Makes sense.” Feng Zizhang looked at the accommodation arrangements column on the form, then turned to ask Ning Buwei, “Senior, it says here that menial workers can bring one family member.”

Ning Buwei twirled the knife pieces, scoffing lightly. “If you have a family member, bring them.”

Feng Zizhang squeezed his brush, clearing his throat, “Senior, why didn’t you stay in the wife’s cave dwelling with Xiao Shan?”

“He’s not my wife,” Ning Buwei said, piecing the knife fragments together.

Though many cultivators might want to snatch him away to be their wife.

Jiang Yizheng asked considerately, “Senior, is Xiao Shan’s mother good-looking?”

“Not bad,” Ning Buwei clicked his tongue, recalling the other’s stunning beauty.

Feng Zizhang and Jiang Yizheng exchanged a glance. Jiang Yizheng mouthed to him: There’s hope.

Feng Zizhang shook his head: Impossible.

“I’ve finished filling mine!” Jiang Yizheng picked up her form and shook it, where it clearly stated — Father: Li Chengfeng.

Feng Zizhang: “!!”

Sister, couldn’t you have asked him first!

“Senior, Xiao Jiang, she… she was quick to fill it out,” Feng Zizhang tried to cover for her. “Please don’t mind.”

Ning Buwei responded calmly, “It’s fine.”

Jiang Yizheng’s eyes brightened, “Father?”

Ning Buwei: “…Shut up.”

Jiang Yizheng: “Oh.”

Ning Buwei pieced together five fragments of the Suzaku knife, realizing at least three pieces were still missing. He looked up towards the corner, “Come here.”

The shell, which had been sulking alone for a while, hesitated for a moment before walking over to him.

“Take off your clothes,” Ning Buwei said, examining his chest.

Jiang Yizheng, who had been writing at the table, suddenly perked up her ears.

“Senior, we’ve finished filling out the forms. Xiao Jiang is hungry, I’ll take her out to eat!” Feng Zizhang grabbed Jiang Yizheng and headed for the door.

Jiang Yizheng turned back to protest, “I’m not hungry—”

Feng Zizhang covered her mouth, frowning seriously and speaking firmly, “No, you are hungry.”

With that, he pushed Jiang Yizheng out the door, making sure to close it tightly behind them.

Ning Buwei, who only wanted to strengthen the concealment talisman: “……”

Yet the shell grasped his wrist, writing on his palm: It’s improper.

Ning Buwei wanted to carve him into human jerky with the Suzaku knife fragments. He said impatiently, “When I tell you to take it off, just do it. Why waste words?”

He was as arrogant as could be.

In the cave dwelling, Chu Jun, who was preparing to put his son to sleep, felt a surge of anger and humiliation. He was quite startled and used the talisman to connect with his shell. He saw his avatar with clothes half removed, while the “polite and gentle” Li fellow from earlier had his hand on the shell’s chest.

Connected to the shell through the talisman, although he couldn’t control it, all of the shell’s sights, thoughts, and feelings were transmitted to his true self without missing a single detail.

At this moment, Chu Jun saw Ning Buwei’s handsome face looking slightly impatient. His own clothes were disheveled, and the other’s slightly cool fingers brushed over his chest, even pressing lightly. An extremely strange tingling sensation instantly swept through his entire body, leaving him frozen in place.

The martial uncle, who was usually unmoved by anything, darkened his face, “Presumptuous!”