“Night Roaming Deity?” Jiang Yin held up the indescribably ugly headpiece, disbelief written all over her face. “You call this thing a Night Roaming Deity?”
She had never expected this answer.
On the Eastern Profound Continent, most common folk would wear the shells of fake demon beasts at night and patrol around, hoping that if a real demon passed by and saw that the place was already occupied by its ‘kind,’ it would go elsewhere.
These kinds of demon beast shells were called Night Roaming Deities.
In truth, it was just a psychological comfort. Jiang Yin understood it well. This thing was more or less like the modern-day sunny dolls or rain charms.
The problem was that whether it was sunny dolls or rain charms, their appearances were generally quite similar. But the Night Roaming Deities of the Eastern Profound were bizarre and varied, with each place having its own different look.
Jiang Yin only knew what a Night Roaming Deity looked like from the original text where it appeared once. It had been majestic and imposing, brimming with ferocity. So no matter what, she could not associate this thing, which seemed to combine all the features of domestic poultry, with a Night Roaming Deity.
She had even thought it was a mutated demon beast and had never considered that it was a Night Roaming Deity.
‘…No wonder Liu Niang works at night. Night Roaming Deities are supposed to patrol every night.’
Jiang Yin returned to the medical hall in low spirits, threw herself onto the bed, and rolled and rolled until she wrapped herself up in the blanket.
All that effort had been for nothing.
Not only had the demon beast matter turned out to be a misunderstanding, they had even accidentally injured Liu Niang.
So many eyes in Sanshan Village had seen the dazzling entrance she had carefully arranged for Xie Huaian. There was no way to deny it even if she wanted to.
Now it would be even harder to get Liu Niang to agree to let them take Xue Zhuang’er to the Xuantian Sect.
But difficult as it was, Jiang Yin still did not want to give up.
She silently told herself to try one more time, just one last time. If it still did not work, then at least she could say she had done her best.
Jiang Yin rubbed her sore eyes and climbed back to her feet.
She had to go find Liu Niang and build up some goodwill, in case she got driven away again before even having the chance to speak.
…
Liu Niang woke when the last slanting rays of the setting sun disappeared into the mountains. Jiang Yin had been keeping watch by her bedside the entire time. The moment she saw her awake, she immediately poured a cup of warm water and brought it over.
“How are you feeling? Does your body hurt? Do you need me to call a physician?”
Jiang Yin had a naturally pleasing and obedient-looking face, and she deliberately softened her voice. With such a string of concerned questions, Liu Niang found herself unable to keep a stern expression.
Taking the tea, she took a sip. There was a faint throbbing pain in her head. “What happened to me?”
She remembered going to the Sun family to collect the Night Roaming Deity headpiece. These had always been kept by Sun Erniu, the village head. But today, with his wife not at home, he had actually tried to force himself on her.
Later, a sudden fire broke out outside. Sun Erniu cursed as he went out to put it out, and she took the opportunity to escape through the back door.
On the way, she seemed to hear someone calling her. Then something fell onto her head, and she lost consciousness.
Had something knocked her out?
Jiang Yin did not avoid Liu Niang’s questioning gaze. Even if she could sweet-talk and deceive her now, Liu Niang would still learn the truth once she returned to Sanshan Village. By then, she and Xie Huaian would only gain another label of being stubborn liars who refused to repent. There was no need for that.
She chose to tell the truth, though she polished it slightly, omitting the part where they had someone pretend to be a demon beast. She only said that she had heard from Xue Zhuang’er that demons had appeared in the village, and she had been worried. Out of gratitude for saving her life, she had wanted to eliminate the demon for everyone.
“It was just that the night made visibility poor, and I mistakenly took you for a demon beast. I am truly sorry.” Jiang Yin’s gaze was cautious, her whole demeanor that of someone who had done something wrong and did not know what to do.
Liu Niang was still angry, but seeing her like this, she could only say resentfully, “Meddling in other people’s business.” She could not bring herself to say anything harsher.
Jiang Yin immediately took advantage of the situation, bowing to apologize, pouring tea and water, and throwing out nice words as if they cost nothing. In the end, she took out a wooden hairpin she had carefully chosen from the jewelry shop as compensation.
She had originally wanted to give a jade hairpin, but she was afraid Liu Niang would not accept it. Besides, the styles of jade hairpins here were quite limited, whereas the wooden ones were carved very exquisitely.
“I saw that the pagoda flowers in the courtyard were blooming beautifully. You should like this hairpin. Wooden hairpins are not worth much. Just take it as a token of my apology. You must accept it.”
Liu Niang took the wooden hairpin and said irritably, “So annoying.”
Jiang Yin smiled. As long as she accepted it, that was enough.
She did not forget to build a bit of presence for Xie Huaian. As she poured the prepared medicine into a bowl, she said, “Drink the medicine and rest well tonight. Tomorrow we will return to Sanshan Village. You do not need to worry about Xiao Zhuang. Young Master Xie is at the Xue family keeping him company. In a while, I will have someone send a letter back. You have been unconscious for a whole day and night. They must be worried about you…”
Before she could finish speaking, Liu Niang suddenly reached out and grabbed Jiang Yin’s wrist. The medicine bowl tipped over, and the scalding liquid splashed all over their hands. Jiang Yin cried out in pain from the burn. Liu Niang’s hand trembled as well, but not because of the heat.
“You said… how long was I unconscious?!”
“A day and a night…” Jiang Yin endured the pain and apologized again. “This matter is our fault, but do not worry, we will definitely make it up to you.”
“Who cares about your compensation!”
Liu Niang forcefully shook off Jiang Yin’s hand, got out of bed, and hurriedly ran outside.
Seeing this, Jiang Yin ignored the burn on her hand and chased after her. “Wait, Liu Niang, where are you going? The physician said you just woke up, you need to rest properly… Liu Niang, wait a moment, wait for me.”
Liu Niang could no longer hear her voice.
A bright full moon hung in the sky, glowing with a pale white light, clear and luminous, suspended against the pitch-black heavens like the eye of a giant beast.
“It’s over… it’s over…” she muttered, then dashed out of the medical hall as if she had gone mad.
When Jiang Yin saw her running toward the mountain, her legs went weak. Gritting her teeth, she chased after her again.
At first, she tried to call out and persuade her, but Liu Niang paid no attention. Instead, the wind dried out her throat. To conserve her strength, she had no choice but to fall silent and follow closely behind, teeth clenched.
After crossing the first hill, the path began to slope downward. Liu Niang ran a few steps, but failed to steady her momentum. She fell to the ground and rolled several times before being stopped at the waist by a tree.
When Jiang Yin helped her up, she saw the pain on her face. Liu Niang’s hands were tightly clutching her side, and it seemed she had injured her waist from the impact. Jiang Yin hurriedly said, “Stay here and wait for me. I will go to the town to get help right away.”
But before she had taken more than a few steps, she heard rustling sounds behind her. Turning back, she saw Liu Niang enduring the intense pain, trembling as she used the tree trunk to stand up, still trying to continue on her way.
“Do you have a death wish?!” Jiang Yin grabbed her, her tone unusually firm. “Liu Niang, I know you are worried about Xiao Zhuang, but Young Master Xie will not harm him. Your waist is injured now. If you keep going like this, something will happen!”
“If I don’t go back, something will happen!!!” Liu Niang roared, trying to shake Jiang Yin off. But her body was weak and her waist injured. The attempt only caused her to fall to the ground again.
Moonlight filtered through the shadows of the trees and fell across her fingers. She lifted her head and looked at the full moon in the sky, her lips trembling, almost in despair. “It’s too late…”
“What do you mean it’s too late?! What exactly happened? Why would something happen if you don’t go back? What will happen? Liu Niang?”
The girl’s relentless questioning gave Liu Niang a sliver of hope. She tightly gripped Jiang Yin’s hand, as if placing everything on a desperate gamble, and asked, “Jiang Yin! Miss Jiang! You said you would repay the life-saving grace, right?”
Jiang Yin’s hand was already red and swollen from the burn. Now, being gripped so tightly, the pain made her suck in sharp breaths. “Yes… I will repay you. Don’t be anxious. We can talk it through slowly. I’m here.”
Although she did not know exactly what had happened, she could see that Liu Niang was in an extremely unstable state, like someone standing at the edge of a cliff, ready to shatter into pieces with the slightest misstep.
So she endured the pain and took the initiative to hold Liu Niang’s hand in return, giving her some support.
The rough back of her hand was held by soft fingers, and Liu Niang finally made up her mind.
She said first, “Miss Jiang, actually, the one who saved you from the beast trap cave was not me. It was Xiao Zhuang.”
Jiang Yin was not too surprised. After all, Xue Zhuang’er was indeed very strong.
But what Liu Niang said next shocked her greatly.
“You… what did you say?!” Her voice did not even sound like her own. “Xiao Zhuang… is… is…”
“He is a demon, a stone demon from this mountain,” Liu Niang said.
Ten years ago, Liu Niang had fled with her family to escape disaster, but they encountered mountain bandits along the way. Her parents, her husband, and even her newborn child were all killed by the bandits. Though she had narrowly escaped, the bandits, wanting to eliminate all future trouble, sent people to hunt her down. In her panic, Liu Niang ran into a mountain cave, where she saw Xue Zhuang’er.
Or rather, she saw a stone turn into a small child.
Soon after, the bandits chasing her found the cave. Seeing that there was also a child inside, they raised their blades, intending to kill him first.
Even Liu Niang herself did not know where she found the courage at that moment. She had clearly seen with her own eyes that this child had transformed from a stone, yet when the bandit’s blade came down, her first instinct was to rush forward and shield him.
However, that blade never fell. The boy, who was only about two or three years old, grabbed the blade, killed the bandit instead, and protected Liu Niang.
Liu Niang would never forget that night. The full moon shone pure and flawless, its light soft and luminous. The stone demon staggered into her arms and called her, “Mother.”
Just like her child who had died.
“I gave Xiao Zhuang my child’s household registration and let him use it. To the outside world, I claimed he is my son.” Tears washed over the wrinkles on Liu Niang’s face as she cried and begged Jiang Yin, “I know he is a demon, but aside from those two bandits, he has never killed anyone again. He does not even know that he is a demon himself. Miss Jiang, I beg you, I beg you to save him. Please. I cannot lose Xiao Zhuang again.”
Jiang Yin took a deep breath.
No wonder Liu Niang’s attitude toward cultivators was different from that of ordinary people, and no wonder she had been so anxious to rush back today. It was because Xue Zhuang’er was a demon.
On the night of a full moon, a demon beast’s demonic power would become unstable, stirring up the deepest desires within. Some lesser demons would even be unable to control themselves, revealing their true forms, becoming violent and restless.
And at this very moment, there was only one cultivator from the Xuantian Sect in the Xue family. One demon and one person, and between them, it was destined that one would die!
Jiang Yin finally understood why Liu Niang had been so desperate to hurry back earlier, because now she herself was also running toward Sanshan Village like she had gone mad.
If she fell, she got back up. Her legs ached as if filled with lead, but she did not dare to stop.
Liu Niang feared something would happen to Xue Zhuang’er because she did not know that Xie Huaian had no spiritual power or cultivation. His physical strength had even been cursed by the puppet demon’s demonic power. At the time of the full moon, the curse would be at its strongest, leaving his entire body weak. At that moment, even a minor demon could take his life!
Xie Huaian, in danger!!!