Chapter 75: Chapter 185 My grandmother is watching me from the grave.
Mu Ruoyi showed a bit of embarrassment on her delicate face. After a moment, she tentatively asked, “Hong Ling, younger sister, do we need to be so clear with each other as a family?”
“So, you mean you can give me the Nine Nether Demonic Cat?” Cheng Hong Ling slightly raised the corners of her mouth.
“Uh…” Mu Ruoyi suddenly became awkward. She had agreed to marry Cheng Hong Ling purely for consideration of benefits. Although their relationship had made significant progress, it had not yet reached the point of being truly inseparable. However, if she refused, it would seem too petty, making the decision truly difficult.
Mu Ruoyi’s beautiful eyes darted around. After a moment, she pretended to be generous and said, “Hong Ling, younger sister, how about this? When we find that Nine Nether Demonic Cat, whoever it’s willing to go with will get it.”
“Okay! But, can you let me hold your male cat first?” Cheng Hong Ling asked with a half-smile. She wasn’t stupid; the other party still had a male cat. She wouldn’t be so confident as to believe her charm was greater than that of the male cat.
“Why… why?” Mu Ruoyi showed a guilty look and a stuttering question.
“It’s nothing, I just think it’s quite cute and I like it. Didn’t you say we’re family? You can’t even fulfill this small request, can you?” Cheng Hong Ling said with feigned disappointment.
“Uh…” Mu Ruoyi was stunned. After a moment, she helplessly shook her head: “Forget it, what do you suggest then?”
“If we can really find it, whoever catches it first gets it, and we can’t interfere with each other,” Cheng Hong Ling proposed.
Mu Ruoyi’s delicate face showed a thoughtful expression. This proposal was indeed fair, relying on each person’s own ability, and it wouldn’t hurt their feelings.
“How about this? I’ll discuss it with Elder Zhao and give you an answer.” Mu Ruoyi gave a perfunctory reply, then called Elder Zhao to her side and asked, “Elder Zhao, what do you think of her suggestion?”
“Not very good!” Zhao Li immediately shook her head.
“Why? Isn’t this quite fair? If we don’t cooperate with her, with our strength, let alone finding the Nine Nether Demonic Cat, it’s a problem whether we can even enter the Yuxiao Sect,” Mu Ruoyi asked doubtfully.
“Cooperation is indeed necessary, but her plan for peaceful competition after finding the Nine Nether Demonic Cat is not very good. Think about it, among our group, who can match her speed? Her Wave Butterfly body technique is already heaven-defying, and with Shui Linglong’s support, I’m afraid no one in the Huashen Realm can surpass her,” Zhao Li pointed out the problem.
“This is due to our insufficient strength, not that her plan is unfair,” Mu Ruoyi immediately retorted.
“It’s not about strength, it’s only about speed. If we talk about strength alone, with so many of us attacking together, plus various Magic Treasures and Talismans, we might not be weaker than her.” Zhao Li corrected her.
“Then what is your suggestion?” Mu Ruoyi asked tentatively.
“Then it depends on who is more important to you, Saintess, her or the Nine Nether Demonic Cat. Do you want fair competition, or to resort to any means? If you choose the former, this plan is indeed good.” Zhao Li threw the question back to Mu Ruoyi.
“Then let’s compete fairly with her! Emotionally, although I agreed to marry her for benefits at first, after this period of getting along, we’ve developed some feelings for each other, and I really can’t bear to be ruthless; logically, her name is still on my grandmother’s tombstone. If we show no regard for her, it would be against righteousness.” Mu Ruoyi quickly made her decision.
“You need to consider carefully! Our valley is already lacking Cat’s Eye Tears. Once we lose, many disciples will sacrifice their lives during missions,” Zhao Li reminded her sternly.
“It’s okay. Even if we really lose, don’t forget that we still have a male cat. She won’t be satisfied with just one female cat. She will definitely bring it to us to breed in the future. When we have more kittens, everyone will prosper together, and we won’t have to worry about the loss of one or two,” Mu Ruoyi reminded her quietly.
“But what if she doesn’t cooperate with Shuiyu Valley? We’re not the only sect with a male cat,” Zhao Li said with some unease.
“Do you forget my relationship with her? If she doesn’t cooperate with us, who will she cooperate with? HuXiao Sect, or some other sect? If she sends the cat away, it would be like a dog eating a meat bun, not only very risky but also offending Shuiyu Valley as her in-laws. My grandmother is watching her from the grave.” Mu Ruoyi raised her eyebrows and continued, “And the most important point, I believe in her character. She knows how to reciprocate favors, otherwise she wouldn’t have shown up to save us today.”
“The Saintess considers things thoroughly! This not only returns a favor but also prevents Shuiyu Valley from suffering losses.” Zhao Li quickly agreed after some thought.
The heavy stone in Mu Ruoyi’s chest finally settled. After all, in her subconscious, she still didn’t want to part ways with Cheng Hong Ling.
“Hong Ling, younger sister, we’ve considered it. Let’s do as you say!” Mu Ruoyi replied, her tone sounding very relaxed and leisurely.
“Okay! Then I wish us a happy cooperation!” Cheng Hong Ling naturally agreed immediately. She didn’t know what trump card the other party had, or if she simply wanted to return the favor. If it was the latter, she would keep it in mind.
Next was cleaning up the battlefield. Because several female disciples had sacrificed themselves, the people of Shuiyu Valley were in low spirits. Cheng Hong Ling, who was naturally talkative, didn’t want to get involved and was busy searching for spoils on Elder Han’s corpse. After a moment, Cheng Hong Ling found a silvery ring on Elder Han’s hand. It turned out to be a spatial container, about the size of a sedan chair, capable of holding quite a few items. One could freely retrieve or put things in it with Spiritual Sense, but the weight of these items would be borne by the wearer.
Cheng Hong Ling observed further and found that the entrance of the ring could also be sealed with Spiritual Sense. Because everyone’s Spiritual Sense fluctuations were different, strangers’ Spiritual Sense would be blocked once touched, unless forcibly broken. Cheng Hong Ling rarely showed a smile. Spatial containers were very precious in the Cultivation World, and she had wanted one for a long time. She never expected to get her wish by chance today.
Cheng Hong Ling did not delay. She immediately broke Elder Han’s seal and claimed the spatial ring for herself. The only regret was that there was nothing valuable inside. Cheng Hong Ling naturally understood why. As the saying goes, don’t show off your wealth. When going out, one wouldn’t wear all their possessions; it was mainly daily necessities. Cheng Hong Ling put the Blue Scale Sword inside, then tried on the spatial ring. Her willow brows soon furrowed because she found her fingers too slender to wear it steadily, even her thumb didn’t fit.
‘Never mind! It’s not like I have to wear it!’ Cheng Hong Ling comforted herself, then carefully put the spatial ring into her embrace. From now on, her journey in the Cultivation World would be much more convenient; she could simply keep the items she needed inside. After the people of Shuiyu Valley cleaned up the battlefield and cremated the sacrificed female disciples, temporarily placing their ashes somewhere, they began to discuss the next steps.
“We are still more than ten Li away from Yuxiao Sect. Every one or two Li ahead is basically blocked by a sect, creating a comprehensive, no-dead-angle blockade, like land, sea, and air. It’s impossible for anyone below the Shentong Realm to sneak in without being noticed. We can only force our way through!” Zhao Li analyzed.
“Forced entry it is! I never intended to be low-key this time!” Cheng Hong Ling chose without hesitation.
“Head-on confrontation? To be frank, although we now have two cultivators in the Huashen Realm, I think the hope of reaching Yuxiao Sect is very slim. Moreover, even if we get there, the HuXiao Sect entrenched there is not something we can provoke. They are led by four elders in the Huashen Realm, with the highest cultivation reaching the sixth level of the Huashen Realm, which is slightly stronger than the late Elder Han. Their deterrence is immense, and people from other sects have not dared to approach within a Li range,” Zhao Li couldn’t help but remind her.
“Actually, it’s not necessarily essential to enter Yuxiao Sect, because no one knows if the Nine Nether Demonic Cat is still inside! We just need to get close enough,” Mu Ruoyi quickly said to comfort her.
“My dictionary has no such word as ‘give up.’ Since we’ve come this far, I must go inside and see.” Unexpectedly, Cheng Hong Ling was unmoved and then asked, “Which sect is ahead? Let’s make them our target today!”
