Human World (Part 3)
The cat demon stared blankly at the person he had ripped open, as if he couldn't understand what was happening before his eyes.
He Shu was also stunned by this sudden change. He looked at Fu Qingle who was lying on the ground and dying, then looked at the distraught cat demon, and his hand holding the bow slowly dropped.
"Chi...Chiyu..."
"Qingle——"
The cat demon was brought back to his senses by the dying groan and let out a shrill howl.
She rushed to the side of the person who was lying limp and twitching on the ground, and tried in vain to stop the surging blood with her hands. She poured her demonic power into him randomly, but it only accelerated the loss of life.
Fu Qingle's scattered eyes struggled to focus on her face, his lips moving slightly as he uttered a few intermittent sounds:
"Uh-huh...huh..."
His arm trembled, but he didn't have the strength to lift it up.
"Don't... oh... make a mistake... again..."
The light in Fu Qingle's eyes completely dimmed.
"No...it shouldn't be like this...no..."
The cat demon was talking incoherently and looked like a madman.
She seemed to have grabbed a life-saving straw, and suddenly stopped crying. She took out the hairpin from her bosom with trembling hands, muttering something. The glittering pill gradually appeared, turned into a stream of light, and quickly sank into Fu Qingle's slightly open mouth.
"Stop! The power of the elixir is too much for a mortal—"
Seeing this, He Shu's face changed drastically and he hurried forward to stop it, but he was still a step too late.
His footsteps stopped just half a step behind the two of them, and he felt a heavy and heart-pounding immortal power dissipating.
Fu Qingle's originally pale face actually turned rosy at a speed visible to the naked eye. The horrible wound on his chest began to wriggle and heal. Even his gray hair began to turn black little by little. The wrinkles on his face smoothed out, giving him a strangely youthful look.
He Shu subconsciously took a step back, feeling inexplicably panicked.
Sure enough, the next second, the body that had just regained life began to twitch violently, as if countless tiny living things were wriggling under the skin, and the bones all over the body made a teeth-grinding "crunching" sound.
This is forcibly cutting tendons and replacing marrow, and regenerating broken bones!
He Shu thought something was wrong and hurried forward to check. Fu Qingle in front of him was like a fish out of water. He suddenly opened his mouth wide, but could not make any sound. His eyeballs bulged out horribly, and his face was distorted by the pain.
The glimmer of hope that had just risen in the cat demon's eyes faded away in an instant. She helplessly grasped the hand of the person under her and pressed it against her cheek, calling out hurriedly:
"Qingle...Qingle, what's wrong with you? Don't scare me!"
He Shu tried to insert his gentle immortal power into Fu Qingle's veins to guide the spiritual energy that was running wild in his body, but he was almost attacked by the tyrannical force. He had no choice but to withdraw his hand, lowered his eyes and whispered:
"There's no hope..."
"How could this happen... How could this happen... Shouldn't the elixir save him? Why! Why!"
The cat demon couldn't accept this fact, holding the body that had no breath left, begging desperately and unwillingly,
"I beg you to wake up and look at me... Qingle... Qingle, please look again—"
Her words stopped abruptly.
The body in his arms suddenly swelled up strangely as if inflated, and spider-web-like purple-red bloodshot appeared on the surface of the skin.
The next moment——
"Bang!"
There was a muffled sound and a bloody mist filled the air.
He Shu's face turned pale. He quickly spread his wings and took several steps back to avoid being affected by the splattering blood and flesh.
He subconsciously raised his hands to cover his mouth and nose. The strong smell of blood instantly hit him in the face, making his stomach churn.
The cat demon suddenly lost its support and collapsed to the ground.
His face, body, and even his hollow, dilated pupils were all splattered with warm blood and tiny pieces of flesh.
She stared blankly at her suddenly empty arms, then slowly lowered her head, her gaze falling on the bloody mess on the ground.
The light in the amber pupils gradually went out, leaving only endless emptiness and deathly silence.
"It's me...it's me who killed him...it's me who killed him..."
She murmured to herself, her voice as soft as a wisp of smoke.
Then, the whisper turned into a heartbreaking wail:
“It’s me—it’s me! Ahhhhhhh—”
The immortal pill that had not been fully integrated backfired at the moment when his mind collapsed.
The cat demon suddenly covered his chest and spat out a mouthful of dark, dirty blood with a "wow" sound.
Immediately afterwards, winding trails of blood slowly flowed from her eyes, ears, nostrils, and corners of her mouth.
"Qingle... Qingle... don't leave me... You are all I have... You are all I have..."
The cat demon was bleeding from all seven orifices, but he still managed to hold up his limp body and lie down in the blood.
She choked and her voice was broken and full of regret.
Desperate tears mixed with thick blood continued to flow down, spreading a small, inconspicuous dark red on the bloodstained collar.
"Don't leave me... Qingle... don't leave me..."
The shrill sound became weaker and weaker, and the cat demon curled up in a pool of blood, dying.
He Shu stood there, looking at this extremely tragic scene, as if all his strength had been drained.
He held onto the cold, rough tree trunk beside him, bent down uncontrollably, and gasped for breath. The strong smell of blood penetrated into his nostrils through every pore.
There was only deathly silence in the forest.
The last rays of the setting sun cast a sad, bright crimson glow over the woodland.
"This is the consequence..."
Suddenly, these words rang in his mind.
——
A few months later, Muyun Pass.
In the early morning, the pass was already filled with the sounds of carriages and horses and the noise of people.
A long queue formed under the gray city wall, with peddlers carrying loads on their shoulders, porters pushing carts, and scholars riding donkeys mixed in. It was noisy and full of the worldly atmosphere.
The officers and soldiers guarding the city held their swords at their waists and checked the passes one by one with serious expressions. Their shouts and the neighing of livestock could be heard one after another.
“Whoa—”
A seemingly ordinary carriage with a green curtain finally approached the checkpoint along with the slowly moving crowd.
Qingshan jumped out of the car nimbly, took out a roll of documents from his arms, leaned over slightly, and politely handed it to the soldier who was checking it.
"Take my wife to visit relatives in Shenyue Town."
His voice was gentle and calm, and he moved aside to make it easier for the other party to see.
"This is the road permit and the official certificate."
The soldier took the document, looked through the place of origin, and was slightly surprised:
"Shuzhou? It's quite far away!"
"There's nothing I can do. My wife's younger sister married far away."
Qingshan smiled, his expression natural, his words carrying a touch of homely helplessness and concern.
"My sisters haven't seen each other for many years, and my wife misses you so much that she has come a thousand miles to visit you. The journey has been tiring, and it has taken her over three months."
The soldier nodded upon hearing this, his eyes swept across the carriage with the curtains closed, and he said as a matter of routine:
"Is there only one person in the car? Lift the curtain and take a look."
Qingshan was not at all flustered. He obediently took a step back and raised his hand to gently lift a corner of the curtain.
The dim morning light slanted into the slightly dark carriage. Inside, a figure with long, loose jet-black hair leaned against the wall. He was wearing a plain cloak, and most of his face was hidden in the shadows, with only a small section of his white chin showing.
The soldier narrowed his eyes and leaned forward to take a closer look.
Just at this moment, the person in the car seemed to be disturbed and moved slightly. His long hair like a waterfall slid down from his shoulders, revealing half of his handsome profile.
The peaks of her eyebrows reveal a slightly heroic air, but the slightly drooping corners of her eyes and her thick, long eyelashes strangely blend a bit of indescribable delicateness.
Just as the soldier felt something strange and wanted to check again, Qingshan spoke at the right time, his brows slightly furrowed, revealing a hint of worry:
"Please forgive me, my wife is not used to the climate here and has caught a cold. She has a fever and cannot stand the wind. I'm afraid I might pass my illness on to you all."
As he spoke, he quickly lowered the curtain to block the inquiring gaze, and turned to the car to soothe the people inside:
"My dear, please be patient for a moment. We will be able to leave soon and go to Shenyue Town to meet Xiao Li."
"Let it go, let it go!"
There were still many people waiting for inspection behind. Seeing that the documents were correct, the soldier was too lazy to waste any more time. He waved his hand and threw back the official certificate with the red seal.
"Thank you very much."
Qingshan caught it steadily and carefully put it back in his arms. This was something Xuantongzi had specially obtained for them.
After the cat demon was taken away by the heavenly soldiers, he and He Shu buried Fu Qingle on the spot and adopted his cat together. They also communicated with Sang Li and learned that the salamander demon was not in a hurry to get the cold chalcedony. Once his soul was intact, they started the journey of returning the cat demon, stopping and walking along the way, half for sightseeing and half for traveling.
It was still early spring when we left, but now it is almost autumn.
Qingshan sighed, jumped onto the wheel track, gently shook the reins, and drove the carriage out of the city gate.
As soon as we drove onto the official road, the curtain behind us was quietly opened from the inside, and a low voice complained from inside the car:
"Who is your wife..."
There was a hint of bluffing shame in his tone.
Qingshan turned around upon hearing the voice, and happened to meet the slightly widened eyes behind the slit in the curtain. He saw the sparkling light in the other's eyes, which was lovely and even brighter than the morning dew. He couldn't help laughing, and a gentle smile appeared on the corner of his mouth:
"It's just a temporary solution, don't blame Wuming."
"Tsk, smooth talk!"
The person behind the curtain scolded lightly, but without much anger.
Qingshan turned around and wanted to say something, but Heshu had already slammed the curtain shut with a "swish" sound, hinting at his anger.
After a complete setback, he could only turn back in frustration and raised his voice helplessly:
"Alright, Wuming, take a good rest. You must be tired from traveling last night. I'll call you when we get to the destination."
The car was silent for a moment before a muffled response came:
"Drive your car well... don't keep Sang Li and the others waiting too long... we're already late..."
The voice gradually became lower, and the person who spoke seemed to be really exhausted and gradually fell asleep.
Qingshan didn't reply, but just gently swung the reins, slowing down the speed of the carriage a little bit, making the movement more stable.
He looked up at the light dust rising in front of the official road, and the corners of his lips curled up silently.
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