Thus, Chu Weiliang declared confidently:
“For instance, you could consider taking me as your disciple and offering me protection. I promise to be more sensible than those disciples outside, ensuring I never bring shame to the sect and instead bring you honor everywhere.”
“Take you as my disciple…?” Wen Shubai’s brow furrowed.
What obsession do you have with master-disciple romance? Haven’t you learned your lesson even after dying once?
“This Sovereign never takes disciples.”
His expression abruptly shifted, flatly refusing.
“Time to sleep.”
With that, he rose, flicked his sleeves, his long hair cascading loosely as he trailed his embroidered cloak into the inner chamber.
Chu Weiliang, straddling the bathtub, wiped her lips with her sleeve—the same lips his palm had covered earlier.
Pah!
If you won’t accept me, so be it!
I don’t care!
Pah! Pah! Pah!
Before she could finish her spitting, she shrank with a “whoosh—” back into a little wooden puppet, flying through the bead curtain into Wen Shubai’s hand.
Unable to speak or move, she was clutched in his palm as he sat cross-legged in meditation, his thumb stroking and stroking and stroking…
Chu Weiliang: Aaaaaah…! Let go!
You won’t even spare a little puppet, you pervert!!!
The next day was the official wedding of Thousand Machines Sect Leader Fang Jixue and Galan Kingdom Princess An Nan Chan. The disciples of Brahma Heaven Palace had tidied up early in the morning, full of energy, ready to accompany their Grandmaster—who hadn’t descended the mountain in centuries—to the wedding banquet.
In the courtyard, Chu Weiliang, dark circles under her eyes, was combing Wen Mian’s hair.
She hadn’t had a moment’s peace last night, being rubbed and fondled by Wen Shubai the entire time.
That blind Wen was strange too—despite his heaven-defying cultivation, he insisted on eating and sleeping like an ordinary person.
He wouldn’t let her off during cultivation, nor during sleep, clutching her in his palm, stroking and stroking!
He’d nearly rubbed her paint off!
Moreover, if he only entered the world a hundred years after her death, why would he carve a puppet in her likeness, so vividly lifelike?
Chu Weiliang looked down at Wen Mian, who sat obediently waiting for her hair to be combed.
“Mian’er, tell me, who did the Grandmaster use as a model when he carved me?”
“Me!” Wen Mian declared proudly, swinging her little feet.
Chu Weiliang: …
She wasn’t ready to give up.
“Mian’er, why is the Sword Sovereign your father, yet Brother Qin and the others call you Little Sister?”
“Because Daddy is too lazy to teach me. He threw me to Master. Master calls Daddy Grandmaster, and Big Brother and the others also call Daddy Grandmaster. I call Master ‘Shifu,’ and Big Brother and the others call me Little Sister.”
Though convoluted, Wen Mian explained it clearly.
It was hard to tell whether Wen Shubai had taught her patiently or if she was just clever.
Chu Weiliang asked again, “Oh, then… what about your mother?”
“Mian’er doesn’t have a mother. A Liang is Mian’er’s mother.”
Chu Weiliang could only patiently correct her again, “It’s A Liang, not A-Niang.”
Father and daughter were cut from the same cloth—you try to fish for information, and they pull you right back in.
Just then, Qin Buji happened to pass by under the corridor.
He was a bit simple-minded; perhaps she could pry something out of him.
“Big Brother!” Chu Weiliang proactively greeted him.
Qin Buji was delighted and approached, beaming, “Little A Liang, I heard up front that you’ve gained sentience. So it’s true!”
Chu Weiliang: The news spread that fast?
“Who said so?”
“None other than the Grandmaster himself. He just instructed us to be extra cautious around you from now on, saying you’re quite mischievous now.”
Chu Weiliang: …
Well, since no one else was around, mischievous it was.
“Oh, Big Brother, do you know which fairy is Mian’er’s mother?”
Brahma Heaven Palace had never had any other female disciples, so Qin Buji naturally felt inclined to be close to her.
He then mysteriously covered his mouth and leaned in closer:
“Little A Liang, you’ve just become human, so you need to understand the wickedness of human hearts. There are some things I’ll tell you, but you mustn’t go around spreading them.”
Chu Weiliang finished combing Wen Mian’s hair and sent her off to play. Turning around, she tilted her head with a smile, clasping her hands together, pretending to be obedient.
“Mm, alright, Senior Brother, go ahead. I promise I won’t tell anyone.”
You probably don’t know, but the most wicked person in this world right now… is me.
Qin Buji: “As for the Grandmaster, since his retirement, he has been secluded in the back mountains cultivating alone for centuries. He has always detested women—not just women, but even female mosquitoes. Yet, when he emerged from seclusion five years ago, he was actually holding a baby girl in his arms.”
Chu Weiliang raised an eyebrow—there must be some scandalous affair!
“Go on.”
Qin Buji lowered his voice even further, “So, the disciples in our sect have been whispering privately that Mian’er… is the child the Grandmaster gave birth to all by himself because he was too lonely and wanted someone to play with…”
“Pfft…!!!”
This time, Chu Weiliang genuinely couldn’t hold back.
Are all the men in Brahma Heaven Palace this foolish and this… extreme?
Qin Buji was about to continue when a junior disciple called him away to prepare the carriage, saying the Grandmaster was going out.
Thus, Chu Weiliang only got to hear half of the gossip.
Throughout the entire morning, she hadn’t managed to ask a single useful question but had learned a heap of useless information. When she saw Wen Shubai again, her feelings toward him were entirely different.
Her mind conjured images of this Sword Sovereign, clad in flowing white robes and possessing peerless elegance, biting down on a piece of silk gauze in agony as he gave birth alone in his secluded chamber…
Chu Weiliang simply couldn’t control her expression.
“Keep snickering and I’ll turn you back into a puppet and put you away.” Wen Shubai didn’t need to look to know she was brewing mischief.
Afraid of being toyed with in his hands again, Chu Weiliang had no choice but to grit her teeth and hold it in.
But the image of Wen Shubai giving birth stubbornly lingered in her mind.
Along the way, other sects heading to the Thousand Machines Sect to offer congratulations all employed various supernatural methods—some soared through the skies or traversed the earth, others rode rare and exotic beasts—all fearing that their display wasn’t grand enough, their prestige not dazzling enough.
Yet the disciples of Brahma Heaven Palace, though every one of them capable of sword flight and divine speed, insisted on walking, accompanying Wen Shubai’s carriage on either side as they proceeded on foot.
Wen Shubai’s reason was: Mian’er is afraid of heights; we mustn’t scare the child.
By the time they, the last group, entered the main gate of the Thousand Machines Sect, the place was already adorned with lanterns and decorations, bustling with noise and excitement.
Standing at the gate to welcome them was the Master of Ceremonies under Fang Jixue.
Chu Weiliang didn’t recognize him; this person must have been appointed later. The previous Master of Ceremonies had probably been blown to bits by her.
The scene on the Sin Cleansing Platform back then, during the Celestial Demon Disintegration—though she had only caught a glimpse in her final moments—was utterly bloody and haunting.
Seeing Wen Shubai approach from afar, the Master of Ceremonies hurried forward, offering both welcomes and apologies.
“The presence of the Sword Sovereign truly brings immense honor to our humble Thousand Machines Sect. Yesterday, our disciples were blind to your eminence and offended you. We are deeply grateful for your magnanimity. The offenders have already been detained, but with today’s joyous occasion, it is inconvenient to deal with them. We sincerely beg your forgiveness for their insolence.”
Wen Shubai gave a noncommittal “Hmm,” appearing as though he wouldn’t hold a grudge.
The Master of Ceremonies felt greatly relieved.
As the two walked toward the Moon Yin Hall, they casually chatted about current affairs.
For instance, recently near the Demon Realm Gate, evil monsters have been stirring restlessly, attempting to summon Demon Lord Jun Fuyi and his Silent Riders to return.
For instance, in recent years, the demon race has been causing trouble everywhere, and the newly risen demon kings, each arrogant and unruly, have frequently provoked our Supreme Chong Holy Sect.
Furthermore, Her Highness the Princess has severed her master-disciple relationship with the Sect Leader. Their marriage was exceptionally designated by the Holy Maiden herself from the religious authority. Lovers finally united is a joyous occasion of immense significance.
Chu Weiliang followed one step behind Wen Shubai, listening intermittently, her gaze fixed on the distant Demon Suppression Tower.
The tower remained exactly as it was a thousand years ago.
The whispers, growls, roars, and screams of the monsters within the tower still echoed in her ears.
Although she had severed her Evil Root, there would always be an inextricable mutual attraction between her and the monsters.
Suddenly, she heard Wen Shubai say:
“Yesterday, upon entering the city, disciples from my sect were lavishly entertained by Yu Yaonu. My Brahma Heaven Palace is poor and lacks suitable congratulatory gifts, so we prepared two sets of wedding attire for the newlyweds to accept with a smile. I heard… Sect Leader Fang particularly favors the color green?”
The Thousand Machines Sect members who had come to greet them: ……