Blind Box

Yan Jue stared intently at Qi Xianqing’s fair hand, wanting to know exactly what was in this Demon Lord’s Hundred Treasure Pouch.

Qi Xianqing quickly took something out of it.

A garlic-shaped jade bottle. Blood-red ghost-faced serpents were carved all over it, the sinister creatures seeming to lunge and coil outward as if they glowed faintly red.

Qi Xianqing frowned slightly and shook the bottle. Water could be heard sloshing inside.

She opened the stopper and sniffed it.

Yan Jue paused. “This is...”

“It’s Yin Spirit Water,” Qi Xianqing said.

“Yin Spirit Water is a demonic liquid used specifically to strengthen the soul. It can also nourish wandering spirits. Generally, only demonic cultivators use this sort of thing.

“If it’s used on oneself, then the purpose is usually...”

Yan Jue finished for her: “Body possession.”

The room fell briefly silent.

Body possession was extremely common in the Demonic Cult.

It meant a soul leaving its own body to forcibly take over another one.

The original soul of the possessed body would then be violently driven out. In mild cases, it became a lonely wandering ghost; in severe cases, it was scattered to the winds.

It was a bloody and brutal act.

“Mm,” Qi Xianqing said.

“After a cultivator drinks Yin Spirit Water, the soul outside the body becomes stronger than before, making it more likely to successfully seize someone else’s body.”

After the two of them were silent for a while, Qi Xianqing reached into the Hundred Treasure Pouch again and took out something else.

A bronze mirror, no different in appearance from an ordinary one.

Yan Jue stared at the mirror and fell silent.

If she remembered correctly, this should be...

Qi Xianqing frowned slightly. “This is called a Heart-Guard Mirror. If you hang it over your chest, it can reflect most spells and divine arts in the world.”

Just as she expected.

This was a magical artifact the male lead had used in the original novel.

Of course, it had been given to him by the Demon Lord.

This Heart-Guard Mirror had once helped the male lead block a fatal strike from a demonic beast in a certain secret realm.

Yan Jue took the Heart-Guard Mirror and examined it carefully.

Being able to defend against spells was ordinary enough, but reflecting the opponent’s spell back exactly as it was—that was rather impressive.

Yan Jue set it on the table. “Senior Sister, draw again.”

Qi Xianqing’s gaze shifted. Then she suddenly pushed the pouch over. “Junior Sister, you draw the next treasure.”

Yan Jue: “Sure. One person, one turn.”

Yan Jue was a little excited. Wasn’t this just like opening blind boxes?

Qi Xianqing looked at her eager expression and couldn’t help the curve of her lips.

Yan Jue then reached into the pouch. Feeling something, she hooked her fingers lightly and drew it out.

She paused.

It was actually three nails.

The three nails were a little dark and gave off a faint purple sheen. Their tips were incomparably sharp; they did not look like ordinary objects.

Qi Xianqing thought for a moment. “These are Bone-Penetrating Nails. They carry a dark attribute of their own; once they touch someone’s body, they can automatically pierce through bone and make the struck person suffer unbearable pain.”

Qi Xianqing really was a walking encyclopedia.

The thick kind, even thicker than Duan Luxi.

It was already dusk; the light in the room was fading.

Yan Jue rested her chin on her hand and examined the Bone-Penetrating Nails.

This was also a magical artifact the male lead had used in the original novel; it had once killed a fifth-realm demonic beast.

Artifacts that gave off a sinister feeling at a touch like these would still have to be taken to the Refining Hall for inspection afterward, because these Bone-Penetrating Nails seemed to carry strands of blood qi, and that cave had been so bizarre that even if they were taken in, no one dared use them carelessly.

On the fourth draw, it was Qi Xianqing’s turn.

She infused a sliver of divine sense into the Hundred Treasure Pouch, then reached in and took something out.

A seal made of emerald-green jade. Qi Xianqing turned it over; beneath the seal was carved the character for “gu.”

Qi Xianqing thought for a moment. “The Ten Thousand Gu Seal. This is also property of the Demonic Cult.”

Yan Jue had also seen the Ten Thousand Gu Seal used by the male lead in the original novel.

As long as the user infused divine sense into the seal and pressed it onto a cultivator, that cultivator would be tormented by gu poison.

There were many kinds of gu poison; for example, the charm poison Yan Jue had suffered a few days ago was one of the most vicious.

She just didn’t know what kind of gu was sealed inside this imprint.

The fifth time, it was Yan Jue’s turn to draw.

A parasol.

Yan Jue’s pupils constricted slightly.

Qi Xianqing took the umbrella and slowly opened it.

From the shaft to the canopy tip, it was a pale blue oil-paper umbrella. Once opened, the grain of the bamboo and wood beneath was clearly visible. Yan Jue’s eyes widened slightly, because she saw Qi Xianqing open the umbrella, then vanish right before her eyes.

Qi Xianqing closed it again and mused, “This umbrella actually has the ability to conceal the user.”

Qi Xianqing was a little surprised.

She had studied the Hundred Artifact Manual thoroughly, yet she had never seen this kind of umbrella-shaped artifact recorded in it...

And from how it felt in her hand, its grade was probably not low; there was no reason it shouldn’t have been recorded in the manual.

There were simply too few artifacts in this world capable of invisibility. Even an Heaven-rank Concealing Qi Pill could only temporarily hide a person’s aura for a short while; once faced with a powerful expert with strong divine sense, it would have little effect.

Yet this umbrella, once opened, could actually make a person vanish.

Yan Jue stared at it, knowing there had to be more to it.

This umbrella was called the Cloudvoid Umbrella; it was one of the male lead’s five great artifacts later on. It could hide a person’s tracks and even completely conceal their presence; it was a Heaven-rank artifact that could deceive the heavens and cross the sea.

On the sixth draw, when Qi Xianqing reached in, it seemed she had grabbed something. She frowned.

A strong smell of blood rushed to her nose. Qi Xianqing put the thing back, and when she pulled her hand out again, it was already covered in blood.

Yan Jue blinked. “What is this?”

Qi Xianqing glanced into the pouch; a blood-red object was faintly visible inside. “It’s the heart of a sage. The Seven-Aperture Exquisite Heart.”

“This is a valuable material demonic cultivators use for alchemy.”

The cultivation methods of demonic cultivators were created by those seeking quick success. Because of that, demonic cultivators rarely improved through proper refinement in ordinary times; they could replace cultivation with killing, which was why Qi Xianqing disliked demonic cultivators so much.

The sun slipped down behind the mountain; the sky gradually turned a deep violet. The two of them took turns drawing things from the treasure pouch in the room.

The seventh was actually a puppet of bizarre shape.

This was also one of the sinister artifacts Yan Jue had seen in the original novel.

The eighth time.

Qi Xianqing drew a fiery red fruit from the Hundred Treasure Pouch. It had been frozen in thousand-year-old ice, yet it still gave off a faint glow.

Qi Xianqing: “It’s actually a Spirit Candle Fruit. It’s a rare fire-attribute spiritual fruit; only the Spirit Candle Trees in the Northern Frontier’s Kunlun Mountains produce it.”

“This kind of fruit withers immediately after it’s picked; it has to be preserved with special methods.”

Yan Jue frowned. “Does it have any special effect on cultivation?”

Qi Xianqing: “It’s equivalent to a health supplement. It won’t help cultivation much at first, but over a long time, it can bring about a qualitative improvement.”

But there was only one Spirit Candle Fruit, so it was obviously not very useful.

Yan Jue’s eyes rolled. “I want this Spirit Candle Fruit.”

Qi Xianqing gave it to her.

The ninth time, Yan Jue drew a gourd of pills from the pouch.

Yan Jue: “There are actually this many pills.”

She poured them all out; pale blue pills rolled all over the table.

Qi Xianqing frowned slightly. “They’re all Spirit-Nurturing Pills.”

Yan Jue was startled. “Aren’t Spirit-Nurturing Pills used to cultivate spiritual beasts...?”

How strange.

The Demon Lord had been seriously injured in the cave, yet the pills he carried weren’t Spirit-Condensing Pills or True Essence Pills, which would help restore his vitality; instead, they were a whole pile of Spirit-Nurturing Pills.

Yan Jue suddenly thought of something and looked at the beast egg under the bed.

She had long since discovered that the Demon Lord in the cave had been incubating that egg. Could these Spirit-Nurturing Pills have been specially prepared by the Demon Lord for that beast egg?

But what exactly was that beast egg, and why had the Demon Lord gone to such lengths to hatch it?

Qi Xianqing pressed her lips together. “Do you know who lived in that cave?”

She had vaguely felt that Yan Jue had known all along who lived in that strange mountain cave.

Yan Jue said softly, “That cave was occupied by a demonic cultivator of extremely high status.”

What Yan Jue said was also what Qi Xianqing had guessed.

As for how Yan Jue knew about that cave, Qi Xianqing didn’t ask, and that made Yan Jue relax a little.

After that, they could no longer draw anything out.

Qi Xianqing and Yan Jue divided the artifacts between them; Yan Jue kept the Cloudvoid Umbrella and the Spirit Candle Fruit, while Qi Xianqing sent the suspicious artifacts to the Refining Hall for inspection.

Then both their gazes fell on the beast egg in the corner of the room.

When the two of them entered the cave, this beast egg had been pinned beneath the Demon Lord’s corpse.

When they moved the corpse away, the body was already beyond recognition, probably because although the Demon Lord had already departed, he had still been nourishing this egg with his own blood essence.

Qi Xianqing inspected it; it was just an ordinary beast egg.

It wasn’t some sinister object.

Qi Xianqing: “Do you know how to hatch it?”

“Perhaps once all these doubts are left until this spirit beast egg hatches, they’ll be resolved.”

Yan Jue was stumped this time; she had never learned how to hatch a spirit beast egg.

Qi Xianqing came to the egg and extended her right hand, infusing a trace of true qi into it.

Inside the cracks of the pitch-black egg, a brilliant glow suddenly spread.

Qi Xianqing: “Infuse true qi into this egg every day; it won’t be long before it hatches.”

-

After Qi Xianqing left with the suspicious artifacts, Yan Jue lay on the bed, pressed her palm against the spirit beast egg, and infused a trace of true qi into it.

As true qi entered it, the black egg blazed with spiritual light.

Yan Jue even suspected that it might explode the next second.

She watched the egg for a while, then closed her eyes and let her divine sense sink.

Her body gradually shrank; she turned back into the form of a little red fox. Yan Jue shook out her fur, twitched her ears, and jumped out the window.

She wanted to see what Qi Xianqing was doing.

The little fox trotted along the familiar mountain path and soon reached the Cold Pool, which radiated frosty air.

It was summer, and the Cold Pool was an excellent place to cool off.

But because not many people knew about it, there still wasn’t anyone around, even during the Five-Dragon Summit.

Wagging its tail, Yan Jue arrived at Frozen Peach Haven and looked up; sure enough, Qi Xianqing was holding a water dipper and watering the peach trees again.

She seemed to have just arrived at Frozen Peach Haven; she was still wearing that pleated dress, and even the immortal sword Zhuying was hanging behind her, not yet taken off.

Whether it was an illusion or not, Yan Jue felt that the plump pink peaches seemed to have grown a little larger, and the spiritual energy they gave off was even richer.

That was all thanks to Qi Xianqing taking such good care of them.

Qi Xianqing heard the little fox’s footsteps and turned to look over, the corners of her brows and eyes curving slightly. “You’re here.”

Yan Jue ran over with tiny steps and rubbed against Qi Xianqing’s knee.

Qi Xianqing set the water dipper beside the well, lifted a hand to smooth back her messy hair, then crouched to stroke the little fox’s fur. “Your fur’s gotten a little dirty.”

The little fox was usually very clean; it was just that it had rained recently, and when it crossed the mountain path, its fur inevitably picked up leaves and dew.

Qi Xianqing picked it up and muttered to herself, “I’m about to bathe anyway; I’ll wash your fur while I’m at it.”

Yan Jue: ?

Yan Jue shook her head violently and took a step back, letting out a cry toward Qi Xianqing: “Wuu-ao—”

Qi Xianqing looked at those narrow amber phoenix eyes and seemed to pause. “You don’t want to?”

Since that was the case, Qi Xianqing didn’t insist; she just put the little fox down and waved for it to follow her.

The room was still the same as before; in the farthest corner sat a bathing tub.

The tub had long since been filled with hot water, wisps of steam rising from it.

The air was full of a gentle woody fragrance.

The little fox only glanced once before keeping its head down and walking toward the bed inside. Then it suddenly heard Qi Xianqing’s voice from behind. “Stay here with me, all right? There aren’t many candles lit today, and I’m a little scared.”

The room really was very dim. In the quiet room, the girl’s voice was soft and pitiful; Yan Jue’s steps suddenly halted, and her whole body seemed to freeze in place.

Qi Xianqing lifted a jade-white hand and slowly undid her collar; the inner garment slid down gradually, revealing her slender neck.

Yan Jue straightened her back and sat by the bathtub like a wooden stake, not daring to look around at all.

Her heart was beating so fast it seemed ready to leap out of her chest. Listening to the faint sound of water coming from above her head, the whole fox felt utterly miserable.

No one knew how long had passed before there was another sound of water.

Qi Xianqing had put on her inner garment and was slowly tying her sash with one hand. She glanced sideways at the little fox on the floor, which did not dare move a muscle; her eyes flickered.

The little fox sat where it was, its back stiff, its four tails tightly tucked behind it.

Yan Jue heard footsteps approaching and knew Qi Xianqing was done bathing. Just as she was about to breathe a sigh of relief, her whole body stiffened again.

She was hugged from behind; Qi Xianqing supported her under the hips and gently lifted her up. Yan Jue was so frightened that she placed both front paws on Qi Xianqing’s shoulders.

Qi Xianqing lifted the bed curtains and set her on the bed.

Then Qi Xianqing got onto the bed as well and wrapped an arm around her waist from behind.

The girl’s body was very soft.

Yan Jue’s pupils tightened; her hind legs went numb and soft as if they had a mind of their own, and the whole fox pressed tightly against the bed.

Qi Xianqing lay on her side, holding the little fox and closing her eyes in contentment. She breathed in the clean, milky fragrance coming from the little fox’s body, while her fingertips idly scratched at its belly from time to time.

The night was quiet. The little fox felt like it was about to die; its whole body was actually itching. Its head tilted slightly, its body drawing into a stiff arc, and its hind legs lifted and kicked uncontrollably. Even its clear phoenix eyes narrowed.

What was wrong with this woman today? Was she in a bad mood, or...

Weren’t they fine just now when they were drawing blind boxes?

This woman was seducing her!

!!!

How could this vicious woman bear to seduce a fox?!