A Two-Way Journey

Jiang Chen was startled.

He had thought the simulator had been cracked by the Thousand-Faced Fox's illusion arts.

But upon further thought, he knew that was impossible.

The Butterfly Effect footage captured by the simulator was originally derived from the plot involving the relevant characters after reality merged with his chosen simulated ending.

Moreover, those plots were all connected to him to some extent.

It was not that the Thousand-Faced Fox had discovered the system. Rather, the system had captured the moment when she tried to deduce his deductions.

In other words, Jiang Chen's current time was not simultaneous with the moment the Thousand-Faced Fox spoke in the Butterfly Effect!

If it had been simultaneous, Chen Gongxing would not have arrived at the Liyue Branch so quickly.

Every time a simulation was completed, Butterfly Effect footage immediately appeared. It was a sort of summary preview.

It could show something that had just happened, or something likely to happen in the near future.

From the Thousand-Faced Fox's perspective, using a mirror to display her true appearance was equivalent to leaving an anchor in the space-time of her deductions, making it easier for Jiang Chen to deduce her.

They were meeting each other halfway.

Still, it had to be said that the fox demon's true form was truly beautiful. Her youthful face blended innocence and sensuality, while her bones seemed to exude an irresistible charm.

Thinking of this, Jiang Chen replayed the recording of the third simulation from the first main storyline...

Knock, knock.

A sudden knock came from outside the door.

Only then did Jiang Chen abruptly realize that, unlike watching simulated scenarios, viewing Butterfly Effect footage consumed time. The real world had continued moving.

The current timeline was the first ending. Jiang Chen had returned from the Azure Mist Sect, chatted briefly with the old shopkeeper, then gone back to the cultivation room. After spending most of the day cultivating, he had advanced to Qi Refining Sixth Layer.

This had most likely caught the old shopkeeper's attention.

"Young Master Cao, are you in? Grandpa sent me to bring you wine."

It was the Snake-Demon Widow again.

Jiang Chen always felt that there was something off about the way this young widow looked at him, though perhaps it was merely one of life's four great delusions: She likes me.

"Come in."

Carrying wine and tea snacks, the Snake-Demon Widow entered with a slight bow. She seemed somewhat more radiant today.

"I did not expect that, after staying here for only two days, you would advance three layers in a row. Grandpa specifically asked me to bring warm wine to celebrate your advancement, Young Master. It will also help stabilize your dantian."

Jiang Chen slowly opened his eyes.

The loose black clothing she had worn the other day had been replaced by a fitted black brocade robe that accentuated her alluring figure. She had also put on more refined makeup, and with the faint smile on her face, she no longer looked as sorrowful as before.

"Then why did he not come himself?"

The Snake-Demon Widow smiled coyly.

"Grandpa is receiving new guests. Shall I call him over to drink with you, Young Master?"

"Forget it."

Since she was merely a little demon at the Qi Refining stage and could not cause much trouble, Jiang Chen allowed her to drink with him. There was nothing wrong with celebrating for once.

Still, the tallest tree in the forest was the first to be battered by the wind. His small accomplishment would not earn a second glance in the sect, but it stood out in a small inn.

After today, he needed to leave the Spirit Spring Inn and find another sect to stay with.

The little widow knelt beside Jiang Chen, laid out the wine and tea snacks, poured him a cup, then poured one for herself.

"A toast to you, Young Master!"

Jiang Chen took a look. This wine was richer and finer than the last batch, and it was safe and clean, without any demonic or devilish aura.

So he accepted the cup with one hand and drained it in a single gulp.

Warm, gentle spiritual power slowly seeped into his spiritual veins, nourishing his dantian... It truly was good wine.

After several rounds of drinks, Jiang Chen felt utterly refreshed. He showed no signs of drunkenness, only a light sheen of sweat.

The Snake-Demon Widow said in surprise:

"Oh, Young Master, you are sweating. That is a sign that you have fully absorbed the wine's medicinal power. You need to use the spirit spring to dispel the internal heat. Please rise, Young Master. I will help you into the spirit spring."

Jiang Chen was rather helpless. Even if he dual cultivated with a little demon at the Qi Refining stage like her, it would not improve his cultivation. There was no need for him to do anything unnecessary, especially with a widow.

The Snake-Demon Widow raised a faint mist from the spring, undressed him, and helped him into the pool.

Jiang Chen's expression suddenly changed. He seized her wrist with one hand and asked coldly:

"Does your grandfather know that you are a snake demon?"

The Snake-Demon Widow froze. Staring at Jiang Chen, her eyes reddened. She quickly lowered her head and began to sob.

"I understand... You are certainly no ordinary person, Young Master. I have overstepped."

Jiang Chen released her soft, smooth wrist.

"What do you mean by that?"

The Snake-Demon Widow lowered her head in silence. Only after a long while did she speak.

"Back then, when I took human form, I was trapped in a Binding-Spirit Fishing Net and sold as a demon slave. Grandpa bought me and married me off to my husband as a concubine."

"My husband was already over sixty at the time. His talent was inferior to Grandpa's, and he had still failed to reach Qi Refining by that age. Seeing that his lifespan was nearly at its end, Father bought me so that dual cultivation could help him cultivate Qi."

"Unfortunately, my husband was old and frail. He could not bear even my meager demonic power, and it instead accelerated his aging."

"Later, Father spent all the family's wealth to buy a Merfolk Woman as another concubine for my husband, hoping to use Merfolk Pearls to achieve Qi Refining. Who would have expected that the Merfolk Woman was naturally optimistic and simply refused to cry no matter what?"

"My husband became desperate and pressed her too hard. In the end, he was killed by the Merfolk Woman, resulting in that tragedy."

Jiang Chen was moved.

How difficult was it for mortals to achieve Qi Refining!

Yet humans insisted on defying the heavens, foolishly hoping to achieve Qi Refining through dual cultivation with demon slaves...

The old shopkeeper's son being killed in his sixties was hardly a tragedy. The snake woman and the Merfolk Woman were the true tragedies.

After killing the shopkeeper's son in desperation, that Merfolk Woman could not possibly have survived.

It was like those visitors in his previous life who provoked zoo tigers and got eaten. Once a tiger had eaten a human, how could it be allowed to live?

"So you wanted to help me cultivate, so that I could help redeem your freedom?"

Jiang Chen guessed.

The Snake-Demon Widow wiped away her tears and shook her head.

"It is not about redeeming my freedom. Grandpa and my husband both treated me very well."

"Originally, seeing that your talent was unremarkable, Young Master, that your cultivation was only Qi Refining, Third Layer, and that you had not been tainted by demonic aura, Grandpa wanted me to get closer to you."

"He hoped I could marry you as a concubine, so that I would not be left alone in the future."

"But now, you have advanced three layers in merely two days. With such talent, you are clearly no ordinary person."

"I know my status is lowly, and I dare not hope for more. I am willing to help you cultivate. I only ask that, if you have the chance someday, you bring me back to my homeland, Shipo Forest."

Jiang Chen frowned.

Well, old shopkeeper, I treated you as a friend despite our age difference, yet you wanted to become my father-in-law?

Shipo Forest was an oasis two thousand li north of Xiyang City, a habitat for many low-level members of Demonkind. One had to cross more than two thousand li of desert to reach it.

If an ordinary little demon wanted to return to Shipo Forest, even if she was not captured again along the way, she would be swallowed by Sandworms beneath the ground or snatched away by bald eagles in the sky. It was certain death.

"Is it not better for you to stay here? If you return to Shipo Forest, your cultivation will only lead you back into hell."

The Snake-Demon Widow said:

"Raising a demon requires many resources. Grandpa will not allow me to sell myself for money, so I can only serve tea and water. I am of no other use. Sometimes, ill-intentioned guests even harass me, causing Grandpa needless trouble."

Jiang Chen was puzzled.

"The spiritual energy concentration in the inn's cultivation rooms is only suitable for Qi Refining cultivators. Could there really be stronger experts your grandfather cannot handle here?"

The Snake-Demon Widow's face filled with alarm as she pointed outside.

"There is one such expert outside right now. Not only does that person often harass me, but they have also run up several hundred spirit stones in unpaid debts."

The moment Jiang Chen heard the word "expert," he began considering how he should run away.

"Why not report it to the authorities?"

The Snake-Demon Widow shifted uneasily and lowered her voice.

"That person is a high official, while I am only a little demon without household registration..."

I am only a minor Qi Refining cultivator. I am not much stronger than you. How could I possibly punish evil and uphold justice?

"You should leave. I cannot help you."

As he spoke, the door was kicked open with a bang.

Someone staggered inside and immediately spotted Jiang Chen bathing in the pool.

"Where did this lecher come from? Not only are you drinking my wine, you even dare to flirt with my beauty?"

Jiang Chen turned to look.

Good grief, are you not a woman too?

And she was a stunning beauty in masculine green robes, far lovelier than the Snake-Demon Widow.