Had Her Villainess Image Fallen Apart?

After finishing his lesson, Lu Qingchen went straight to Lingling Cottage.

Ning Xiang was playing fetch with Laifu. She tossed out... the Demon Venerable's Soul-Devouring Whip, Laifu ran over and brought it back, and she threw it again, over and over.

The girl and the beast were having the time of their lives.

Ning Xiang was hardly surprised to see Lu Qingchen.

Her formation could stop other people, but how could it possibly stop Lu Qingchen?

Lu Qingchen first studied the whip in Ning Xiang's hand for a while. Although it looked very much like the Soul-Devouring Whip, that was Mingyuan's bonded magical treasure. How could it possibly leave his side?

So Lu Qingchen gave it no further thought.

"Have you offended anyone lately? Or has anyone suspicious appeared around you?"

Ning Xiang looked at Lu Qingchen in surprise.

Lu Qingchen voiced his suspicions. "I suspect someone has designs on you, and..." He paused. "It's very likely... a male cultivator."

Ning Xiang: ?

Wait, was she actually that flawless in Lu Qingchen's eyes? Had it never even occurred to him to suspect her?

Why did it feel as though her villainess image had fallen apart?

"Rest assured. I will find the true culprit who drugged you and leave him for you to deal with," Lu Qingchen promised Ning Xiang. "Once I see your father..."

Before Lu Qingchen could finish, Wen Maimai's excited voice came from overhead. "Sister Xiangxiang, I'm here to ask you how to refine Jade Marrow Pills. I want to make pills to help my little lion cultivate!"

Indeed, Wen Maimai had brought back the Earth-Fiend Demon Lion she had caught in Thousand Calamities Valley and formed a master-servant contract with him. From then on, the Earth-Fiend Demon Lion was Wen Maimai's spirit beast.

The Earth-Fiend Demon Lion had been unwilling ten thousand times over. He would rather have become Ning Xiang's spirit beast-at least he had lost to her twice. But Ning Xiang wanted nothing to do with him and tossed him to Wen Maimai. Wen Maimai offered to return his demon core if he agreed to become her spirit beast, so the arrogant little tyrant of Maze Forest, who looked down on everyone and considered himself unrivaled, agreed through tears.

And so little Wen Maimai gained the first spirit beast of her life.

Normally, a spirit beast's cultivation would be slightly lower than its master's, but Wen Maimai's spirit beast had a cultivation far above hers.

Thus, over the past few days, Wen Maimai had spent eight, ten, twelve, even fourteen hours a day parading the Earth-Fiend Demon Lion around the sect, reaping plenty of envious praise and applause. Then she would toss out a humblebrag or two. "Oh, it's just a spirit beast. You'll all have one someday too."

"Oh, Uncle-Master Lu, you're here too?"

Wen Maimai landed on her flying magical artifact-a lotus leaf.

"Am I interrupting?"

"Not at all!" Ning Xiang said hastily. "As your senior sister, I'm delighted to see you studying so diligently. I'll write Mother a letter later and give you a proper round of praise!"

With that, Ning Xiang looked apologetically at Lu Qingchen. "Master, I have a guest, so I'm afraid I won't be able to entertain you. Laifu, see our visitor out for me."

Looking at the Fire Hou Beast called Laifu lying on the ground, head tilted as he chewed the whip, Lu Qingchen could not help recalling the thoughts he had heard from Ning Xiang yesterday. His dislike for Laifu grew stronger, and he wished he could pluck out all his fur too.

Laifu stood up with his tongue hanging out to give Lu Qingchen a cheerful send-off. The latter flicked his sleeves and left with a cold expression.

"Woof... awoo..." The baby Fire Hou Beast was unhappy and whined pitifully to Ning Xiang.

Ning Xiang rubbed Laifu's head. "Be good. Don't be upset. I'll catch one of the immortal cranes he keeps for you to eat later!"

Over the next two days, Lu Qingchen was so busy his feet barely touched the ground. Of course, Ning Xiang was deliberately avoiding him too, but no matter how she dodged him, they would have to meet eventually.

They were setting out for the Purple Tenuity Domain.

That hellishly difficult mission had a one-month deadline, and several days had already been wasted. With the journey added in, they would probably have only ten days left by the time they reached the Purple Tenuity Domain. Then they still had to find a way into Demon King Zhu Yu's bedchamber and locate him. Time was extremely tight.

In her previous life, Zhu Yu had captured Ning Xiang and taken her to the royal capital of the Purple Tenuity Domain. Naturally, she knew it was a dragon's pool and a tiger's den, with murderous intent lurking on every side. Over the past few days, she had therefore prepared countless talismans and pills, packed every magical artifact she owned, and even found time to consult the senior brothers and sisters of Vibrant Bell Peak about formations. She could certainly be called thoroughly prepared.

Lu Qingchen and Shaowei would lead this trip to the Demon Domain. Accompanying them were Ning Xiang, Ning Hui, Su Lang, and two disciples of True Lord Shaowei, all cultivators at core formation or above.

Oh, and Jiang Miaomiao, whom Ning Xiang had strongly recommended bringing along.

Seriously, anyone else could stay behind, but the female lead absolutely could not be left out.

The day before their departure, Ning Xiang went to Tide-Sigh Court. First, she expressed her concern and expectations for Yu Tingchao, hoping he would not slack off while she was away and would cultivate diligently. Finally, she said, "I'm requisitioning your Seven-Treasure Ship Pavilion. It's not as though you have any use for it."

The next day, everyone boarded the Seven-Treasure Ship Pavilion. This was Ning Xiang's first time piloting it, and she nearly lost control and crashed the ship.

Shaowei said disdainfully, "Don't leave us half-dead before we even reach the Demon Domain."

Immediately afterward, Shaowei paid the price for his loose tongue.

Ning Xiang, who held a grudge, secretly summoned a wisp of heartfire and burned off Shaowei's beard. Shaowei screeched and hopped about, while his two disciples, long accustomed to such sights, dragged him away between them.

Once the Seven-Treasure Ship Pavilion was flying steadily, Ning Xiang set it to fly automatically and prepared to return to her room to work on her book.

She had just climbed the stairs to the second floor when she sensed something amiss and came back down. Then Ning Xiang caught hold of one, two, three little heads?

"What are you doing here?"

Wen Maimai, Zhou Ruoxue, and Bai Yueguang lined up neatly from shortest to tallest.

"Sister Xiangxiang, we were worried you might run into danger in the Purple Tenuity Domain, so we came especially to protect you!"

Zhou Ruoxue and Bai Yueguang nodded vigorously.

"Cut the nonsense. All of you, get off and go back where you came from! Otherwise, don't blame me for showing no mercy and throwing you all overboard!"

Ning Xiang could not be bothered to bring along three deadweights.

Wen Maimai said theatrically, "Sister Xiangxiang, am I still your favorite Maimai? Why would you rather bring Jiang Miaomiao than me?" Truly, there was not a trace of acting there.

Jiang Miaomiao was the female lead, the Heavenly Dao's own daughter. She had a halo wherever she went. What were little cannon fodder like you tagging along for?

Ning Xiang gave them no quarter. "Three..."

"I'll pay two million spirit stones! Senior Sister Ning, take me to the Purple Tenuity Domain to broaden my horizons!" Zhou Ruoxue decisively offered up a bag of spirit stones.

Ning Xiang said, "Do I look like someone who only cares about profit?"

"Five million."

"Pick any empty room aboard."

Zhou Ruoxue happily ran upstairs.

Bai Yueguang said, "I'll hand over all the spirit stones I earned on Heaven-Question to Senior Sister Ning!"

Hmm...

You probably didn't earn a single coin from that post, "The 10,001st Divorce," did you?

Still, remembering how many spirit stones she had already squeezed out of Bai Yueguang, Ning Xiang reluctantly agreed. After all, taking someone's gifts softened your hand.

In the end, only Wen Maimai remained.

"Sister Xiangxiang, we've known each other for nineteen years. Surely you can let me slip through this little back door?" Wen Maimai played the sentiment card.

"Get off." Ning Xiang gave her no quarter.