Xuanjian: I am the tenth son of Zhenchi, and I plot to seize the throne from Zhenlong.

The voice in his head rang all night. The next morning, Su Ming was drinking porridge, rubbing his temples with a headache.

Although he didn't believe the words in his mind at all, while drinking porridge, his eyes couldn't help but drift towards Fugui, who was sweeping in the yard.

He had only finished half of the bowl of porridge when it got cold. Finally, he put down the bowl and said in a somewhat hesitant tone, "Fugui, come here."

"Young master, what are your orders?" The old servant sweeping the courtyard quickly set up his broom, ran to him, and stood respectfully as always.

Seeing this, Su Ming felt a pang of shame. He had actually believed the lies in his head, thinking that Fu Gui was such a loyal man.

So he quickly forced a smile and said in a gentle tone, "Have you had breakfast? Have some."

Fu Gui was so frightened that he immediately knelt on the ground: "Young master, please don't be so harsh on this old servant. How could Fu Gui dare to sit at the same table as you?"

Su Ming sighed, gave a self-deprecating laugh, and reached out to help Fu Gui, who was kneeling at his feet, up: "What status do I have now? You have served my mother and me for so many years. You have worked hard. Sit down, it's alright."

Upon hearing this, tears streamed down Fugui's old face. He kept saying that it was no trouble at all and that he was being too kind, yet he still dared not sit down.

Finally, at Su Ming's repeated insistence, he cautiously placed half of his buttocks on the chair, picked up the bowl, and his old face was covered in tears and snot, while he muttered that it would be worth dying for such a master.

Su Ming felt a surge of warmth when he first heard this, but after a while, he felt somewhat embarrassed. He had always treated Fu Gui like an ordinary servant, but now that he had lost his status and all the other servants had left, he had been persuaded by others to appreciate the value of human kindness.

Seeing that he was there and Fugui wouldn't be able to eat properly, Su Ming made an excuse to cultivate and fled.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

In southern Xinjiang, in an unnamed river...

"Alright, did you understand, little fish? If you die later, I won't be responsible. You can only blame yourself for being so useless~"

Inside the cave, Yunzhu played with the beads in her hand, looking at the carp in front of her with a playful tone.

Minghua exhaled two bubbles to indicate that she understood, and then turned and swam away.

She was speechless. In her opinion, the clam demon's plan was too brutal—it was to find a fish, kill it, finely chop it into minced meat, roll it around in the meat to get blood on it, pretend to be injured, and use it as live bait to lure the three-legged toad.

To make it more convincing, the clam demon would relentlessly pursue her with the power of a second-level Qi Refining cultivator. If she couldn't outrun it or if the toad was actually attracted and caught her, she would have no choice but to wait for death.

Yunzhu had already stated beforehand that no matter what the situation, she would not intervene to save them, but would instead use her magic weapon to kill both demons together.

Furthermore, it takes time to activate its magical artifacts. Even if Minghua could escape, she would still have to find a way to entangle it. This is why the clam demon cannot hunt the toad herself.

These harsh conditions almost made Minghua want to erase the mark and run away as soon as she left the cave, but unfortunately the clam demon followed closely behind.

Minghua glanced back, about to speak.

"Click~"

The clam demon suddenly bit her side, sending several scales flying and startling her so much that she broke out in a cold sweat and darted forward.

The two demons chased each other in the river, and blood seeped out of Minghua's body from time to time. This was because the clam demon changed its mind at the last minute and used the water flow to scratch her body.

After two hours of chasing, Minghua felt sore all over, and her tail felt swollen. It was the first time she had run at full speed for such a long time. Even with the support of spiritual power, she felt that she was about to be exhausted, but the toad was still nowhere to be found.

"Little fish, hurry! Keep running, hahaha, run faster!" The clam demon behind him shouted with its spiritual sense, seemingly immersed in this chase game.

After another long distance, Minghua finally couldn't help but reply, "Lady Yunzhu... I can't swim anymore. Do you... remember what we're supposed to do?"

"Huh? Cough cough, of course I remember. Never mind then, it seems the toad isn't nearby." Upon hearing this, the clam demon suddenly woke up, offered a few awkward explanations, and stopped its pursuit.

Minghua gradually slowed down. She didn't have much spiritual power left and was about to sink to the bottom of the river to rest when the ominous premonition that had been in her heart suddenly intensified, making her tense up. The next moment, she transformed into a stream of water and rushed into the nearest water plants.

The same scene reappeared. The three-legged toad that had not shown its form before appeared in the spot where Minghua had been. With a puzzled look in its eyes, it slowly retracted its tongue. It couldn't understand why this little demon at the second level of Qi Refining could turn into water.

When its first attack failed, it didn't hesitate to kick its leg and turn to leave, but suddenly stopped as a blade of water flew past it. What happened next was even more perplexing—the fish that should have fled turned back, ignoring the clam demon behind it, and blocked its way.

……

The river gradually calmed down, and the three-legged toad's corpse floated to the surface, its body deformed by the pressure and covered in bloody wounds.

"Snap!"

"Hahaha! Well done, little fish." The clam demon swallowed the middle leg of the three-legged toad with a bang, praising Minghua with its spiritual sense at the same time.

A black carp sank to the bottom of the river, slowly swallowing its pectoral fin, which had been cut off along with a small piece of flesh. Its heart was gloomy; it had figured out what was going on during the fight.

The idea of ​​luring the toad out during the chase was just a ruse; the moment she relaxed her guard at the end of the chase was when she truly became the bait.

"You did this on purpose?"

The clam demon stopped its devouring motion, its spiritual sense responding without a trace of remorse: "So clever, but so what? Little fish, you are my slave. Know your place!"

The clam demon tossed half of a toad's corpse into the riverbed, its words laced with superiority: "Little fish, seeing that you behaved well, I, the great one, will let bygones be bygones for your rudeness earlier. This toad is a good thing, so I'll give you a share. Take it and get lost."

Minghua remained silent, then her heart calmed down completely. She understood that the best revenge was not now; she needed another opportunity. However, continuing to follow this clam demon was too risky, so she had to find a chance to slip away.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

"...That bitch relied on her family's power to obtain a cultivation technique and spiritual energy from the Tangjin Sect. On the surface, she made peace with me, but in reality, she used the metal element to sever my path to cultivation."

"At first, I foolishly began cultivating under the instigation of wicked servants. It wasn't until I left my family and traveled outside, reaching the fifth level of Qi Refining and obtaining a legacy, that I suddenly awoke from my daze. As a result, I had no choice but to dissipate my cultivation and start over, suffering severe injuries and near death..."

"She will soon achieve her goal..."

Su Ming woke up again with a start, his eyes filled with rage but also with a hint of doubt and uncertainty.

He wouldn't believe that the bitch would come to make peace, but... if she really sent him the Golden Virtue Cultivation Method that he had mentioned in his mind, should he cultivate it or not?

He casually finished the tea beside the bed, calming himself down before calling out, "Fugui!"

Fu Gui's voice echoed from the courtyard: "Hey, young master, what would you like to eat for lunch?"