We Agreed On Experiencing Life, So Why Did You Immortals Become Real?

Chapter 525: Look… And You Still Say You Don’t Like Me (2 in 1)

Book of a Hundred Lives.

Tushan, Moon God Peak, beneath the Moon God Tree.

After nearly ten days of the Moon God Tree’s baptism, the young woman beneath the tree finally opened her eyes.

“Good. Very good.”

Tushan Meng walked over, looked at Tushan Jingci, and nodded in satisfaction.

“As expected of the person I chose. The Moon God Tree has a natural affinity with you. One day of cultivation here is equal to several days of cultivation for other clan members.”

“Grand Elder overpraises me. It is only that Jingci was fortunate.” Tushan Jingci rose and smiled modestly.

But she had to admit that even she was astonished by the effects of the Moon God Tree.

Her cultivation, which had originally been stuck at the early stage of the Golden Core Realm, had now faintly begun to loosen. In no more than a few days, she would smoothly step into the middle stage of the Golden Core Realm.

And that was after only a few short days.

“Hahaha... That modest manner of yours is truly identical to your mother when she was young.” Tushan Meng smiled, a touch of reminiscence in her eyes.

“Jingci, go back and rest well. In addition, I still hope you can become Tushan’s holy daughter. This is not only for Tushan. In truth, it is also for you and Xiao Mo.”

“For me and Xiao Mo?” Tushan Jingci blinked lightly, her heart tightening slightly.

“You like Xiao Mo, don’t you?” Tushan Meng smiled, her tone gentle.

“Grand Elder, what are you saying? How could I possibly like Xiao Mo...” Tushan Jingci smiled and denied it after her secret was struck, but vigilance had already risen in her heart.

“Jingci, there is no need to hide it.”

Tushan Meng sighed, her tone sincere.

“I am not some stubborn, pedantic person. In my view, what does liking someone have to do with his race or bloodline?”

“However, the fact that I do not think so does not mean others think the same.” She paused, her gaze deep as she looked at Tushan Jingci. “Jingci, if you want others to shut their mouths, the only way is to stand at the very peak yourself. When you become the holy daughter of my Tushan clan, when you become the future clan chief of Tushan, when that time comes, will anyone still dare gossip?”

“...”

Tushan Jingci lowered her delicate head. Her slender fingers unconsciously rubbed against one another, as though she were considering something.

“Very well. Xiao Mo is staying in the innermost courtyard of Hundred Flowers Alley. Go find him yourself.”

Seeing that Tushan Jingci had already wavered somewhat, Tushan Meng said no more. She merely added, earnestly and meaningfully, “But the things I said just now... I hope you will think them over carefully.”

...

“Young Master, I can’t take any more...”

“Young Master, no more...”

“I really can’t go on, Young Master...”

“Oh, Young Master, you really are my ruin...”

Inside the room, Xiangniang was hugging a soft, long pillow stuffed full of cotton. Her body kept twisting and rolling about, and her fragrant lips kissed the pillow again and again as she murmured ceaselessly in a dreamlike voice.

Off to the side of the room, Xiao Mo leisurely poured himself a cup of tea and sipped it unhurriedly, his expression calm as he watched the scene before him.

Last night, Xiao Mo had long since noticed Xiangniang’s intention.

He had not drunk that cup of tea at all.

On the contrary, the instant he accepted the cup, Xiao Mo had quietly cast an illusion art on Xiangniang.

Everything that happened last night had been nothing more than Xiangniang’s own illusion.

Still, to be fair, those dreamlike murmurs and alluring movements Xiangniang made inside the illusion—if an ordinary man had seen them, he would likely have swallowed several times and found it difficult to maintain control.

Xiao Mo shook his head, rose, and left the room to make breakfast in the kitchen.

About the time it took an incense stick to burn, the illusion gradually dissolved. Xiangniang slowly opened her eyes on the bed.

Her eyes still carried a trace of haze, as well as the languid satisfaction of a flower after rain and dew.

But very soon, Xiangniang discovered that the thing she was tightly hugging in her arms was not Xiao Mo, but a cotton pillow as tall as a person.

First, she froze. Then her already flushed cheeks turned even redder, all the way to the roots of her ears.

Xiangniang was, after all, a cultivator at the perfected Dragon Gate Realm. Having reached this point, how could she not understand what had happened?

I fell under an illusion art!

In other words... she had rubbed against a pillow for an entire night?

The more she thought about it, the angrier she became. Fuming, Xiangniang flipped herself off the bed, yanked open the door, and saw Xiao Mo sitting leisurely in the courtyard, eating breakfast.

Xiao Mo turned his head and glanced at Xiangniang calmly. “Since you are awake, come eat a little. But before that, change your clothes first. It is broad daylight, after all.”

“...”

Xiangniang looked down at the thin gauze dress on her body. Beneath the fabric, her hazy skin appeared and vanished. Even for someone as bold as her, dressing like this in broad daylight was indeed rather shameful.

She slammed the door shut, changed into a pale pink court-style dress, and only then walked out again. Sullenly, she sat down beside Xiao Mo and picked up a bun.

Only, when she bit into the bun, she used particular force, as though she had taken the bun for Xiao Mo himself, biting down and chewing with resentment.

But as she chewed, she suddenly looked down at the bun in her hand in surprise, her eyes blinking.

“This bun... Young Master made it?”

“I made it casually.” Xiao Mo took a sip of millet porridge, his tone indifferent. “Miss can make do with it.”

“Hmph...”

Xiangniang was still somewhat angry, but the bun truly was delicious. Before she realized it, much of the frustration in her heart had faded.

“Young Master really is heartless...”

Xiangniang’s tone sounded half like coquettish complaint, half like resentment.

“I went that far, yet Young Master still refused to yield to me. Instead, you used illusion art on me. In Young Master’s eyes, am I truly so unbearable?”

Xiao Mo listened, then shook his head, his tone peaceful. “Naturally not. It is only that matters of feeling truly cannot be forced.”

“Cannot be forced?” Xiangniang set down the chopsticks in her hand, her pair of bewitching fox eyes looking straight at Xiao Mo. “Then does Young Master already have someone in his heart?”

Xiao Mo did not answer.

But even without him speaking, Xiangniang had already guessed most of it.

“Young Master... As for the person you like, putting aside whether she likes you or not, even if your feelings are mutual, so what? You and Jing— you and she ultimately cannot be together.”

As she spoke, Xiangniang’s tone unconsciously softened a little, like persuasion and like a sigh.

“Young Master, just yield to me. It would be good for both of us. Not only could we practice together, we could even have a whole litter of little foxes. This servant would also serve you properly for life. Otherwise, Young Master, here in Tushan, I fear...”

Halfway through, Xiangniang seemed to realize she had said too much. Her voice stopped abruptly. She lowered her head and lightly bit her thin lip, saying no more.

“Otherwise, my life may be difficult to protect?” Xiao Mo smiled and finished the words for her.

Xiangniang did not answer.

But silence was itself an answer.

“Xiao Mo... Xiao Mo...”

Just as the courtyard fell into stillness, a young woman’s bright, pleasant call suddenly came from outside the gate. It was crisp as a bell and especially lovely in the morning light.

Hearing Tushan Jingci’s voice, Xiao Mo and Xiangniang rose at the same time. Together, they walked forward and opened the courtyard gate.

“Xiangniang greets Young Lady Jingci.”

Xiangniang folded her hands before her and dipped gracefully in a respectful bow.

Tushan Jingci’s gaze moved back and forth between the two of them. In her beautiful eyes, there was worry difficult to conceal, and hidden within it was a faint trace of jealousy.

But with someone else present, she ultimately pressed those complicated feelings down. She smiled slightly, her tone polite. “Greetings, Xiangniang.”

After she spoke, Tushan Jingci turned her gaze toward Xiao Mo. Her expression carried a faint sourness as she said, “I heard Xiao Mo was staying in Hundred Flowers Alley, so I came to see you the moment I emerged from seclusion. But... it seems I have come at a bad time? With a beauty keeping you company, Young Master Xiao must have been living quite well here.”

“Well enough,” Xiao Mo answered honestly. “But I have been hoping for Young Lady to emerge from seclusion.”

“Truly?” Tushan Jingci took one step forward. Her eyes stared at Xiao Mo without blinking, carrying a trace of scrutiny. “You were truly hoping I would emerge from seclusion? You were not afraid I would disturb your romantic indulgence?”

“What romantic indulgence?” Xiao Mo shook his head, his tone open and calm.

“Hmph. Good that there is none. Then let’s go.” Tushan Jingci turned her head away with a little hum and muttered softly, “Living in this sort of place all day—one would not even know how one got eaten alive.”

Xiao Mo smiled and simply pretended he had not heard Jingci’s mutter. He turned around, then bowed solemnly to Xiangniang.

“Many thanks for Miss’s careful care over these past few days, and many thanks for Miss’s kind reminder just now. But how the road ahead should be walked will, in the end, still depend on myself.”

After speaking, Xiao Mo took a pearl from his robes and held it out before Xiangniang.

“This resonance-of-the-Way pearl was condensed from my own resonance of the Way over these past days. Although it cannot be considered especially precious, perhaps it can offer Miss a little help when you break through to the Golden Core Realm.”

“This... is for me?” Xiangniang was slightly stunned, her eyes full of surprise.

She had not expected Xiao Mo to have prepared a gift for her.

“To meet is fate. Consider this my rent for staying here.” Xiao Mo gently placed the resonance-of-the-Way pearl in Xiangniang’s hand, his tone calm. “Farewell. No need to see us off.”

“Sister Xiangniang, we will be leaving now. Thank you for taking care of Xiao Mo these past days.” Tushan Jingci also dipped in a bow, dignified and graceful.

“Take care, both of you...”

Xiangniang watched as Tushan Jingci and Xiao Mo turned and left together.

Holding that resonance-of-the-Way pearl tightly in her hand, Xiangniang gazed at Xiao Mo’s figure as it gradually receded. Reluctance slowly appeared in her eyes, and she could not help taking a step forward.

But in the end, she stopped.

Leaning against the doorframe, Xiangniang stared dazedly at the sight of him and Young Lady Jingci talking and laughing, until the two figures completely vanished at the end of her vision...

“Young Lady Jingci belongs to the Nine-Tailed Heavenly Fox clan. How could you possibly be together with her... You are throwing your life away... do you know that...”

Xiangniang pressed her thin lips together. Her expression trembled faintly. Lowering her delicate head, she murmured to herself.

“What a fool...”

...

“Young Lady seems to have made considerable progress in cultivation these days.”

Xiao Mo and Tushan Jingci walked side by side through the town streets. Sensing the spiritual power flowing around her and noticing that Jingci’s aura had become purer and more solid, Xiao Mo realized that she seemed to have already entered the middle stage of the Golden Core Realm.

In the blink of an eye, her realm had surpassed his.

“It has indeed advanced quite a lot.”

Tushan Jingci nodded happily, joy filling her brows and eyes.

“Xiao Mo, you have no idea how powerful the Moon God Tree on Moon God Peak is. I cultivated beneath that tree for only a few short days, yet it felt as though I had cultivated for several decades. If there is a chance later, I will let you cultivate beneath the Moon God Tree too.”

Xiao Mo only smiled and did not take up that subject.

Ordinary fox-clan members had to render great merit if they wanted to cultivate beneath the Moon God Tree, let alone a human like him.

“From what Young Lady says, the Moon God Tree truly deserves its reputation as the Tushan clan’s clan-protecting treasure.” Xiao Mo changed the topic, his tone carrying a touch of emotion. “I wonder how Tushan’s ancestors obtained it.”

“Everyone has their own opportunities. How could such things ever be explained clearly?”

Tushan Jingci waved a hand. Then, changing the subject, she turned her head and looked at Xiao Mo with a smile that was not quite a smile.

“Speaking of which, Young Master Xiao’s cultivation has also improved quite a bit over these past few days. What is it? Could someone have used a dual-practice method with Young Master Xiao?”

“That did not happen.” How could Xiao Mo fail to hear the sour jealousy in Jingci’s words? He shook his head. “Xiangniang and I are completely innocent. Nothing truly happened.”

“Then aside from Xiangniang, the ones living around Young Master Xiao are all beautiful fox demons. Did Young Master Xiao truly not feel tempted?” Tushan Jingci pressed again, though her tone was a little more relaxed than before.

Xiao Mo still shook his head. His tone was calm but serious.

“They are not as beautiful as Young Lady.”

Tushan Jingci was slightly stunned. Then a smile rippled across the corners of her lips, and she nodded. “That is true. They are not as beautiful as I am.”

She paused, then suddenly slowed her steps and turned her face to look at Xiao Mo. Her eyes carried a trace of seriousness.

“Oh, Xiao Mo. You once told me that you would never lie to me for your entire life, right?”

“Yes. I will not lie to Young Lady.”

“Good... Then I will ask you a question. You must answer me truthfully.” Tushan Jingci’s eyes curved into two lovely crescents. Her voice carried a touch of playfulness, and hidden within it was an expectation not easily detected.

Xiao Mo answered, “Young Lady may ask directly.”

Tushan Jingci quickened her steps. Her long legs moved lightly beneath her skirt as she walked ahead of Xiao Mo. Her hem lifted slightly, and she turned around with airy grace, hands clasped behind her back, looking at him with a bright smile.

“Then, Xiao Mo, tell me—if the person who wanted to practice together with you were not Xiangniang and the others, but me, would you agree?”

“...”

Xiao Mo fell silent. His throat moved slightly, and for a moment, he truly did not know how to answer.

Looking at Xiao Mo like this, the smile in Tushan Jingci’s brows and eyes grew all the brighter.

She walked forward with graceful steps. In those clear fox eyes of hers, the gentlest light in the world seemed to ripple.

Softly, she said, “Look... and you still say you don’t like me...”