Chapter 0: Ling Cuiyan’s Husband
In an inn within the imperial capital of the Great Liang Dynasty.
“Little Banwei, be good and hurry up for your nap.”
“Master, why do you always want to sleep with Banwei? You’ve been doing this for days, and Banwei is almost dazed from sleeping with you.” Ao Banwei sat on the bed, saying with a distressed expression.
“Can you not say things that could be misinterpreted?” Qin Gou chuckled helplessly, shrugging. “There’s no other way. That sharp-tongued girl always hides in your dreams, and if I just pull you into my dreamscape alone, I can’t see her.”
“But, Master, you’ve been seeing Fairy Sister more and more frequently. Don’t tell me you’ve fallen for her?” Ao Banwei asked suspiciously.
“Nonsense! If you talk like that again, I’ll make your butt bloom,” Qin Gou said sternly, putting on his masterly authority to scold her.
“Really?” To his surprise, Ao Banwei’s eyes lit up. She wasn’t scared at all; instead, she looked delighted, as if her Master truly doted on her, and asked excitedly.
“Ahem, I misspoke. I meant that if you little wench dare to talk nonsense again, this Master will never spank your little butt again!” Qin Gou’s face turned green. This girl didn’t play by the rules at all. He had to do the opposite to deal with her.
“Then Banwei promises not to speak carelessly again.” Ao Banwei finally hit her sore spot. She quickly and honestly lay down on the bed, closed her eyes, and urged herself to fall asleep with her spiritual power.
Qin Gou sat by the bed, bent down, and placed his head near Ao Banwei’s pillow.
The scene in his mind suddenly changed, and Qin Gou and Ao Banwei instantly appeared in a dreamscape with swaying bamboo shadows.
“Big Brother, why are you here again? Don’t tell me you’ve fallen for this young lady?” Ao Ai sat on a large rock, holding her face, and sighed.
Qin Gou glanced at Ao Banwei beside him and chuckled dryly, “You two really are a match made in heaven. I just wanted to chat with you casually, why are you making such a fuss?”
“Is always deliberately making this young lady cry considered a good chat?” Ao Ai turned her face away, saying indignantly.
“Nonsense. Your pride and sorrow are inherently thousands of times more exaggerated than ordinary people’s. Even if I played “The Eight Precepts Carrying His Wife” on a erhu, you’d be moved to tears. How can you blame me for that?” As he spoke, Qin Gou suddenly waved his hand, causing Ao Banwei to sink into a deeper layer of the dreamscape. “But I am indeed here to discuss important matters today. Let Banwei rest well, and let’s talk alone.”
Seeing Ao Banwei’s figure disappear into the air, Ao Ai jumped down from the rock in fright, flusteredly saying, “What business requires you to avoid Little Banwei? Celestial Master of Arc-Moon Mountain, I along with Little Banwei decided to join your sect because of your reputation for being gentle, kind, and upright in Dragon Saint Qingyu’s words. Please don’t give up on yourself! A heavenly beauty as noble as myself would never let a commoner like you succeed!”
“I truly envy you, always being able to shamelessly boast about yourself so wildly, even convincing yourself! When will someone as shy and refined as me reach your lofty state? Besides, you already know I am upright and honorable. What are you worrying about?” Qin Gou said irritably.
“Do you have any idea why this young lady is worried? Reputation is for reference only; the reality is what matters! How many times have you almost made me die of thirst?” Ao Ai bit her red lips, shivering with lingering fear.
Qin Gou couldn’t help but blush, but his tone was persuasive, “Then let’s establish a master-servant contract. It will be convenient for us to better understand and communicate our wills, and to get along harmoniously in the future, avoiding so many unnecessary misunderstandings.”
“Okay, so you’re finally willing to submit to me? It seems my charm these past two days wasn’t wasted on you!” Ao Ai exclaimed, surprised and delighted.
“You got it backward,” Qin Gou rubbed his nose and chuckled dryly.
“Dream on!” Ao Ai’s beautiful eyes widened instantly. “You really are plotting against me! Impossible! I, Ao Ai, would rather die than surrender, and I will never become anyone’s subordinate!”
“Then I’ll go tell Banwei about this. She definitely won’t refuse to form a contract with me, as you two are one anyway.”
“You… Impossible! Do you really think only your words carry weight with Banwei? I would rather die than let her agree. Otherwise, I’ll bully Banwei in the dreamscape every day and infuriate you to death!” Ao Ai, terrified, threatened with a pale face.
“You’re such a difficult wench. In that case, this Seat can only use more straightforward methods to make you comply.”
“Straightforward?”
“Indeed.” A devilish smile bloomed on Qin Gou’s lips. “Didn’t you personally agree to let Banwei give me the Love-betrothal Dragon Pearl back then? You wanted to earn my trust in one go. The Love-betrothal Dragon Pearl is not just a symbol of identity, but it can also make Banwei do something I cannot refuse for me!”
“This is too straightforward!” Ao Ai was completely stunned. “You’re definitely not the Celestial Master of Arc-Moon Mountain. Banwei and I were completely tricked by you impostor!”
“‘Light’ talk is not effective, so I have to ‘clearly’ show it; it’s ‘exactly’ as desired and ‘greatly’ satisfying. It’s called straightforwardness.”
Qin Gou smiled faintly. “Don’t worry, I won’t let you suffer. I guarantee I’ll help you win over the Great Liang Empress, this Little Saint Monarch, within a month. In the end, I’ll do my utmost to help you and Banwei become the true Nine Saint Monarchs. This will be much more enjoyable than you forcing Banwei to be a parasite by my side, cautiously trying to gain a little benefit.”
Ao Ai was dejected like a bruised eggplant for a long time. Gritting her teeth, she said, “Only those who can achieve the unachievable are qualified to conquer Ao Ai! Prove to me that you are that person! You must obtain one of the four proofs I need from the Great Liang Empress—her tears, blood, etc.—today, and I will be convinced!”
“Deal!” Qin Gou smiled slightly and agreed without hesitation, his figure quickly disappearing from the dreamscape.
Ao Ai looked at the spot where Qin Gou had disappeared, pouting with a distressed expression. “Could it be that he detected something? Once this young lady and Banwei truly become Nine Saint Monarchs, I will definitely deal with him severely, making him experience what I felt when I was repeatedly dehydrated. Is that why he’s preemptively preventing this?”
“This man really has some tricks up his sleeve.”
“Unfortunately, what is a mere contract to me, who will occupy the true body of the Nine Saint Monarch in the future? It’s just enduring temporary hardship.” Ao Ai snorted charmingly, her little head filled with vulgar fantasies of bullying Qin Gou with all sorts of clever schemes. The poor child was forced to entertain herself in this way. “The true body of a Saint Monarch is a peerless hybrid of human, demon, and dragon bloodlines, possessing the strengths of all races. Half-human, half-demon, half-dragon, I can switch at will with a single thought. With such a noble bloodline, no one in this world can achieve it! At that time, do you, Qin Gou, with your mere human bloodline, really think you can suppress me with contract power alone? Hahaha, dream on!”
The room door was gently closed. The next second, Qin Gou woke from the dreamscape, unaware that someone had witnessed everything in the room.
Outside, Li Yuanzhen tiptoed away like a thief.
Reaching a deserted spot, the Little Gambler’s face turned red. Covering her mouth, she muttered to herself, “This humble Daoist knew something was up with A’Qin and Banwei whispering together these past two days. So that’s what it was…”
“It seems that in a short while, Little Banwei will start calling A’Qin ‘Daddy’ like Gu Yuan did before.”
“But if it goes on like this, won’t it be my turn next… How dare I! This humble Daoist would rather die than call anyone ‘Daddy,’ it’s too insulting!”
“What are you muttering to yourself hiding over here?” Qin Gou suddenly appeared from behind and patted Li Yuanzhen on the shoulder.
“N-nothing…” Li Yuanzhen was startled and quickly turned around. She subconsciously glanced at Ao Banwei, who was following behind Qin Gou. As expected, everything seemed normal. If this humble Daoist hadn’t been curious and come to observe, I would have remained in the dark.
“It’s good that you’re fine. It’s time to get down to business.” With that, Qin Gou took back the Disguise Veil from Li Yuanzhen and handed it to Ao Banwei to disguise herself. Although residual soul fragments wouldn’t be easily exposed unless they actively contacted each other, all the Little Saint Monarchs looked strikingly similar. If Banwei continued to walk around the Great Liang royal city with this face, she might be mistaken for the Great Liang Empress incognito by many.
“A’Qin, what is this business you’re talking about?”
“Enter the imperial palace and meet the Empress.”
“Just like that? How can we possibly meet a country’s ruler so easily?”
“Of course not.”
…
Outside the Great Liang Imperial Palace.
Li Yuanzhen and Ao Banwei, her appearance altered, stood side by side.
Qin Gou, dressed in purple and smiling, walked forward and directly addressed the cultivator guards at the palace gate. “Excuse me, esteemed Daoist, please inform Her Majesty that we wish to personally see the Great Liang Empress. We have important matters to report.”
The guard was stunned and asked incredulously, “What kind of joke is this? Do you think you can see the Empress just because you want to?” He then sized up Li Yuanzhen and Ao Banwei behind Qin Gou and asked sternly, “What sect do you three women belong to? Do you have an invitation from the Empress? If not, attempting to trespass into the imperial palace is an act of treason, and you will not be shown mercy!”
As soon as his voice fell, nearby guard cultivators gathered, fixing their icy gazes on Qin Gou and his companions, subtly forming a circle around them.
“We do not have an invitation, but if you would just inform her, I believe the Great Liang Empress would be happy to meet us.”
At this moment, Qin Gou, appearing as the Purple Extreme Demon Zhao Xinting, smiled slightly and said, “Just inform the palace, Daoist, and say… that Zhao Xinting, the husband of Ling Cuiyan, the Judgement Saintess of the Mystic Maiden Raksha Palace, is here.”
