Ch76 - The Good Child Went to Bed

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TW: Descriptions of torture

Editor: Sahloknir

Li Huanhan startled. He didn’t know what he had done to make Jiang Yinghe cry, but he had sensed something was off about Shizun as soon as he had entered the meditation room.

He raised a hand to wipe the corners of the other person’s eyes again. As a faint trace of moisture brushed by his finger, he quietly asked, “What did I do wrong?”

Jiang Yinghe steadied himself before saying, “Lan Ruo Temple specializes in karma divination and tracing the origin of things, so I borrowed a water mirror from the Abbot to take a look at…the past and the future.”

But it seemed like the future of those three were beyond the water mirror’s ability to perceive.

Although he did not explicitly say it, Li Huanhan had already guessed what had happened. He just didn’t know how much Jiang Yinghe had watched. He patiently waited for the other person’s emotions to settle down before saying, “Those events have already passed. Shizun needn’t take them to heart.”

Jiang Yinghe gave him a look. “How can I not when you’re already in my heart?”

He rarely spoke so starkly and bluntly.

Li Huanhan suddenly froze, his bloodshot eyes pausing on Jiang Yinghe’s face for a moment. Then he tightened his grip on his waist and pressed their lips together, whispering, “Why do you want to see these things?”

Jiang Yinghe told him the truth about how the system had assigned him a mission. Just as Li Huanhan couldn’t resist kissing him again, a snow-white cat squeezed in between them, its soft, fluffy ears perking up as it pushed its way over to compete for favor.

Jiang Yinghe smoothly picked up the white cat and brushed it on the back. “Why did you come over, didn’t I tell you…”

“Qin Jun is there.” Li Huanhan said, “With him present, even if something happens to Tong Guiyu, it will not affect others in Lan Ruo Temple.”

Jiang Yinghe nodded, and then asked with some surprise, “He…let you come?”

“He was originally reluctant,” Li Huanhan meaningfully looked at the white cat in the other party’s arms before faintly saying, “but it’s better than allowing a monopoly.”

…He just knew that these three were all aged jars of vinegar. They kept themselves busy fighting with the air all day.  Jiang Yinghe didn’t think the kitten in his arms was dangerous in any conceivable way. He brushed it one last time before instructing Li Huanhan to remain quiet. Then, Jiang Yinghe sent his divine sense into the water mirror once again.

Ripples appeared on the mirror’s surface.

Because Chang Ye was around, Jiang Yinghe subconsciously thought of his youngest disciple. The mirror remained blank for several breaths before an image appeared before him.

It was a completely different setting from the tragic and dark starting point of Li Huanhan’s past. After Jiang Yinghe got his bearings, he immediately noticed a little kitten tumbling away in front of him.  He instantly tried to catch the kitten, but someone was faster. A female devil with fox ears on her head and a knife wound on her face scooped up that little kitten. She said disdainfully, “Can this thing survive? Is this the new cub born to your tribe?”

The young woman with wings standing on the side nodded repeatedly. “Don’t underestimate him because of his size. The test showed that he has a hidden bloodline. He might be just a cat now, but he might become someone great in the future…”

It was ten thousand years ago.

Devil tribes were everywhere, living in dark, stone caves sometimes illuminated by firelight. Right now, two tribes were conducting a transaction of their slaves and trying to pull the wool over each other’s eyes.

This was the time period closest to the dark era before the Dao Ancestor split his soul, a world rife with killing and infighting. A peaceful transaction like this would only happen between two tribes of equal strength. As soon as this balance of power was tilted enough, the stronger one would invade the other and wantonly abuse their power.

And at this time, the overall strength and status of the devil tribes was much higher than that of the human cultivators. They often went on skirmishes to capture humans, either to eat or to sell them.

Although he had not shown himself for a while, only the reputation of Sword Saint Taichu gave them pause. After all, not even the Devil God, Hundun was his match. So even though the devil tribes were strong, they were wary of invoking the wrath of the strongest cultivators. Thus, they left themselves room to maneuver.

The little kitten in front of him did not fetch a high enough price. He was taken away by the fox-eared devil as a gift and kept casually in this tribe as a pet.

As time passed and this cat devil’s spiritual power grew, he transformed into human form, revealing his stunning beauty.

It was also the first time Jiang Yinghe had seen Chang Ye without his mask and both parts of his face intact.

He was too green and innocent, but his stunning looks and obedience made the tribe keep him well-sheltered from the hard and cruel outside world.   They raised Chang Ye as an actual cat.

He was well behaved and simpleminded, always speaking sincerely with glittering eyes.

Jiang Yinghe sat next to Ye-er, watching him wag his tail and lick his fingers. He froze when he got to the second lick, seemingly remembering that he had taken human form before silently shrinking back.

Jiang Yinghe was very relieved, thinking that his littlest disciple lived a decent enough life after all. No wonder he was so well behaved, cute and spoiled—

He had completely forgotten what kind of nature Chang Ye had possessed in his last life.

He was once a hypocritical, cunning, crazy, obsessed, megalomaniac who cared only for himself and his own desires.

Jiang Yinghe was so charmed by Ye-er that he was about to reach out to pet the cat’s head.

Then the sound of devil fires burning and the roars of invading forces came from outside the cave.

This tribe, which had been growing steadily for many years, was finally challenged by the dark jungle. The predators hidden in the upper reaches of the river opened their bloody mouths wide and tore this once peaceful story to shreds.

In the midst of this non-stop battle, the tribe was utterly and completely conquered, its members enslaved. That fox-eared devil collapsed in a pool of blood after dragging herself out of the cave and pushing Chang Ye off a cliff.

Surrounded by burning devil fires, a predator glanced at the cliff.

“Should we chase after it? I heard it was this woman who pushed a cat devil down there.”

“A cat devil?”

“Yeah, a pretty good looking one too.” The little devil next to him licked his lips, “If we can find her alive, then…”

Their chief sniffed the air. “It’s a male.”

Thus, the invading clan immediately lost interest in Chang Ye and began to take stock of their spoils and dead. They had no idea that they would one day bow down to this fugitive who had fallen off the cliff.

Jiang Yinghe also did not expect this turn of events. One second he was going to pet a kitty’s head, now he was watching a bruised and battered youth spitting blood and crawling his way out of the jungle at the base of the cliff.

Jiang Yinghe thought the youth would cry, but he didn’t.

In his recollections, Chang Ye had always cried easily in front of him. But at this moment, he didn’t even shed a single tear.

When had Jiang Yinghe even seen Chang Ye so hurt? This brat would come running over for reassurance after the slightest of injuries normally, but now he left a trail of blood behind him.

Jiang Yinghe just knew that his system was up to no good. The most he could bear to do to this little brat when he was being annoying was kick him off the bed. How could he possibly bear to watch him in such a state?

It took Jiang Yinghe a long time to build up his courage and continue perusing the water mirror. He followed the kitty, who had fled alone to find a new home and start a brand new life as a devil.

Chang Ye rarely came into contact with the other little devils. He never got involved in the chaotic internal conflicts outside or tried to expand his territory either. He was a lazy, vagrant cat that lived a carefree life.

Everything seemed to be going well.  Jiang Yinghe breathed a sigh of relief. He watched as Chang Ye preened his stubbornly sticking up cowlick by the water. He looked as obedient as a house cat with his sharp claws retracted.

…He really is good looking.

The Shizun who had been deceived by beauty couldn’t help but reach out and gently touch the cowlick waving this way and that on the youth’s head.

Naturally, he couldn’t actually touch it, but that didn’t stop him from feeling happy about it.

After a few breaths of delight, Chang Ye suddenly looked up and seemed to notice something across the river bank. He identified what it was cautiously before approaching that person’s side.

It was a human who had been wounded by a jungle beast. Judging by his clothing, he seemed to be a cultivator who had not yet built his foundation.

Chang Ye was stunned. He stood around for a while, as if he didn’t know what to do now. After a quick moment of contemplation, he decided to take in this human as a pet.

Jiang Yinghe looked on with a head full of questions. Then he remembered that it wasn’t unusual for devils to take in humans as pets in this time period. The knowledge helped him hold back the tiny bit of jealousy in his heart as he watched his kitten carry the man he had found home.

He propped up his lower jaw on one hand, trying to convince himself that a bit of companionship would do his solitary little disciple some good. He also scrutinized this man who had stolen his cat, even thinking about dying his hair green.

By the time Jiang Xianjun’s mind had eased, the human had easily accepted the fact that he was being kept as a pet by a cat devil. Over the next few days, he showed that he knew the habits of cats like the back of his hand.

Once Jiang Yinghe paid attention again, he immediately felt that something was not right.

He watched Ye-er’s subtle and tentative attempts to get along with this man.

He watched the little kitty try his best to take care of his ‘pet’.

He watched him teach this cultivator he had found how to move freely in the jungle and conceal his scent.

But then, he could only watch as the ‘grateful’ human cultivator drugged Chang Ye with a pot of medicated wine.

Jiang Yinghe was stunned.

After spending so much time with Chang Ye, he had a deep understanding of his disciple’s nature and methods. He never believed that Chang Ye would be schemed against—until now, when it was happening before his very eyes.

…No one is born hypocritical, cunning and full of lies.

Jiang Yinghe’s fingers tightened their grip. He watched as the cultivator pulled out a pair of pliers, jammed one end into Chang Ye’s finger and pressed down hard.

There was the sound of bones cracking.

Chang Ye woke instantly. His eyes were dark and bright, not even really understanding what was happening at the moment the pain descended. But soon, the shattered bones stabbing into his skin and flesh almost made him scream until he swallowed the sound back into his throat.

“A cat devil this pretty should fetch a good price on the black market.” The man said casually, “And one that’s alone, too. The ones in tribes aren’t easy to get, so this is a real bargain.”

Chang Ye watched him unblinkingly.  The chain artifact binding him suppressed both his cultivation and devilish energy. There was nothing but a constant and never-ending pain.

“Don’t look at me like that, ah. You even taught me how to avoid being tracked.” The man chuckled. He didn’t seem to feel like the bound devil in front of him was any threat at all. He taunted, “How can there be such a…pretty idiot like you in a world like this.”

The pliers moved on to their next target. Catching the first joint, they crushed the bone viciously.

The man didn’t hear the screams he was expecting. Surprised, he glanced at the cat in front of him. “Don’t you feel any pain?”

He met the other‘s clear, unblinking gaze head on. Only when he saw the cold sweat soaking through Chang Ye’s shirt did he bristle. “If you cat devils didn’t have such sharp claws to hurt people with, I wouldn’t have to break your fingers.”

He sounded extremely disgusted, as if he found such a brutal practice troublesome. Then, he smiled as he crushed the next finger on the youth’s hand. “A pretty idiot, that’s what you are. I’ve never seen such a simple minded and easy to catch devil…You’ve been well sheltered before this, haven’t you?”

“The more innocent and kind you are, the more this world will destroy you. I’m just teaching you how to survive.” The man said as he looked down.  Fingernails and bones were mashed together, some parts still covered by a layer of bloodstained flesh.  But Chang Ye did not say a word.

In the midst of this oppressive atmosphere, even the man torturing him began to grow agitated and furious.

“Why don’t you scream? Why aren’t you cursing me? Why do you keep looking at me?!” The man raised his voice as he became even more brutal. Like he was venting his frustration at being suppressed by another species, he crushed all of Chang Ye’s finger bones.

Blood dripped down from between the layers of flesh. As the pliers moved, the sound of the broken bone fragments within the splintered flesh could be heard shifting.

Cold sweat trickled down Chang Ye’s forehead, his body shaking due to the unbearable pain.

The man kept murmuring about what price he would fetch. Talking to himself about the benefits he would reap finally let him gradually calm down, but when he raised his head, he still met Chang Ye’s gaze.

The youth was splattered with his own blood and immobilized, but his eyes remained as innocent and pure as ever.

“Don’t look at me, don’t look at me! Do you not know how to cry?! You have to beg me for mercy, you have to cry and curse me! You…”

At the moment the man was about to go mad from his gaze, Chang Ye looked away. His hoarse voice was heard after a moment. “You said I was…an idiot?”

This was his first time encountering the term, but he could sense that this would be the last time in this life that someone would use it to refer to him.

In the instant that followed, the cat bloodline in his body seemed to be usurped by something. His sealed bloodline broke through to the surface in response to his extreme emotional fluctuations, spreading into every meridian that flowed with blood.

Tianhou opened his eyes.

And the good child went to bed.

Author’s Corner

Happy Children’s Day! A wish for the good children.  May you encounter hardships that help you become a better person. Without difficulties, one will always remain innocent.  (From “The Incremental Scriptures“, with modifications)

Rain

This chapter… It was like cute, cute, cute, squick. At least Huanhan’s backstory was dark from the start. Don’t declaw your cats, guys.

Sahl

I second Rain. Please don’t declaw your kitty-cats. I can’t wait for what Tianhou will do to this scum. * laughs evilly and looks nervously at editor cats * (Ragdoll x and Abysinnian x)