The black snake wasn’t particularly intelligent. Although it feared Sima Jiao and considered him a wretched master, when facing difficulties, it still came to him for help.
Throughout its many years of life, besides Sima Jiao, only Liao Tingyan had ever fed it. Hoping to continue mooching delicious drinks in the future, it risked its life to bring the unconscious woman to the central tower.
But Sima Jiao lacked the kindness to save anyone. His title was Dharma Lord of Compassionate Repository—given to him by some old baldy—which was laughable, as he had never had any association with the word “compassion” in his entire life.
Even when his longtime pet boldly approached him with a couple of hisses, his only response was to lift his hand and impatiently swat that large snake’s head away.
The black snake, thrown aside by its jerk of a master, landed heavily and immediately deflated. It didn’t dare to linger around Sima Jiao, so it could only silently crawl to a nearby pillar and coil up, leaving the unconscious Liao Tingyan still lying on the floor.
Shortly afterward, Liao Tingyan hazily regained a bit of consciousness, feeling unusually cold. She curled up and pulled a nearby “blanket” over herself, then showed no further movement.
Sima Jiao glanced at her again, thinking this Demon Realm spy was truly bold, having pulled his robe over herself as a cover.
For some reason, his interest was suddenly piqued again. He lifted her face with one finger to take a closer look.
“Come here.” This command was directed at the black snake.
The black snake eagerly slithered over from its coiled position on the pillar.
“What did she do that made you want to save her?”
The black snake shook its head, either not understanding or not knowing.
“Do you know why she’s here?”
The black snake shook its head again as if that was all it knew how to do. Sima Jiao showed an irritated expression and cursed at it: “You know nothing yet bring her before me—do you want to die?”
The black snake trembled, afraid he might go into another frenzy.
Suddenly, Sima Jiao pulled Liao Tingyan upright, placing his ice-cold palm on her stomach, appearing as if he intended to save her.
The black snake had no idea what its unpredictable master was up to this time and cautiously watched from the side, behaving obediently.
Sima Jiao didn’t think much of the Demon Realm’s petty tricks—just some method of controlling people. If he wanted to deal with it, he naturally had countless ways. He chose the simplest one.
Pinching Liao Tingyan’s mouth open, he inserted a cold, pale finger, feeling her teeth… He paused, his expression unreadable as he withdrew his finger. Then he grabbed the nearby black snake, pinching its mouth open in the same manner, expertly locating its sharp fangs and using them to prick his finger slightly before returning to Liao Tingyan’s mouth and casually swishing it around.
He fed Liao Tingyan a drop of his blood. His earlier action of sticking his finger in her mouth had been instinctive—after all, this was how he had fed the snake for years. He simply hadn’t immediately realized that humans and snakes were different; useless human teeth couldn’t even pierce his finger.
Liao Tingyan had no idea she had been disdained by this unreasonable ancestor. In her unconscious state, she had felt cold all over, especially in her stomach which had been in such agony earlier. After the pain subsided, it began emanating coldness, as if her stomach contained heavy ice blocks, the chill penetrating her limbs and bones. But suddenly she tasted something sweet in her mouth, followed by a domineering warmth surging into her body.
It was like a squad of soldiers, shouting battle cries as they cleared away the chilling elements, advancing to the main camp and gathering at the coldest spot in her abdomen. There, the originally arrogant icy flames trembled under the pressure of this scorching energy, continuously shrinking until they finally lay dormant.
Liao Tingyan finally felt more comfortable, her entire body warm and cozy, regaining her excellent sleep quality.
Sima Jiao waited for a while, intending to ask some questions when she woke up, but she showed no signs of waking. What was going on? Could his blood not cure that trivial demonic poison? She should have awakened immediately.
Then he realized that while she was indeed fine now, she hadn’t woken up—she had simply fallen asleep. And she was sleeping… quite soundly, even emitting soft snoring sounds if one listened carefully.
Sima Jiao’s expression shifted unpredictably. The black snake beside him retracted its head further and further; if it had ears, they would probably have flattened completely by now.
It seemed this person wasn’t bold-hearted, but rather carefree-hearted. Sima Jiao recalled seeing her sunbathing and napping that day, appearing even more leisurely than himself, and his expression grew even more peculiar. It wasn’t easy for the Demon Realm to send someone in here, and after all that effort… this was what they sent?
Perhaps the Demon Realm had declined over the years, leaving them without any competent spies, forcing them to use such an unambitious person—even less proactive than those from Gengchen Immortal Mansion.
Yet upon further thought, he decided this person must be extraordinary, likely more intelligent than those fools. Not only had she avoided approaching him to seek death, but she had also quietly won over that stupid snake. Perhaps today’s events were deliberately arranged by her—truly skillful indeed.
Sima Jiao, having figured it out, nodded with a hint of satisfaction: “Not bad.”
Such profound scheming suited that seductively wicked face of hers.
The profoundly scheming, seductively wicked Liao Tingyan finally woke up, immediately seeing that murderous ancestral demon looking down at her. This scene traumatized her no less than waking up that night to find the black snake opening its bloody maw above her. Her reaction was genuine—clutching her chest and gasping sharply, the intake of breath so intense it was audible.
Sima Jiao watched her performance with an ambiguous smile, thinking to himself: Truly excellent acting, very authentic.
Liao Tingyan nearly performed a goose-like screech for him. She had no idea what had happened, vaguely recalling that she had fainted from period-like pain—no, that wasn’t quite right, no period was ever that intense. Why was she in the Ancestral Master’s central tower?
She saw the large open window behind the Ancestral Master, the scenery outside clearly telling her where she was, though she didn’t understand how she got there. She certainly couldn’t have sleepwalked up here.
In her nervousness, she tightly clutched the “blanket” covering her. The blanket… was the Ancestral Master’s robe.
Liao Tingyan felt she could no longer lie low and was about to die.
Under the Ancestral Master’s inscrutable gaze, she released his garment, smoothed it out, and sincerely apologized, “Please forgive this disciple, Ancestral Master.”
Sima Jiao sat there like a snake about to strike its prey—not like the black snake, that fake snake, but like a terrifying venomous serpent. Using a tone that suggested he might erupt in murder at any moment, he praised her: “Your courage is truly remarkable.”
Liao Tingyan: “…” Huh??? This ancestor seemed to be calling her courageous for the second time, but where did he see that? If she were truly brave, she wouldn’t currently feel the urge to use the bathroom.
Sima Jiao observed Liao Tingyan’s genuinely baffled expression, his gaze turning cold. Poor acting he disliked, but such excellent acting he disliked even more. He felt inclined to give her an early departure from this world, so he posed the deadly question: “Why have you come here?”
Liao Tingyan hesitated briefly before choosing the standard answer from the answer sheet: “This disciple has come to serve the Ancestral Master.”
Sima Jiao, unsurprised, raised a finger and lightly touched her forehead, asking again: “Answer me, why have you come?”
Liao Tingyan: “To adjust my sleep schedule and relax my mind and body.” In brief, for a vacation.
Liao Tingyan: Aaaaaaahhhh what’s happening? How did my words change as they reached my lips? This must be that grandson’s trick! This fantasy world is harming me! How can there be a truth-compelling buff like this?
Sima Jiao had expected to hear about some nefarious plot but instead received a completely unrelated answer. He was taken aback, unusually showing a hint of surprise. He couldn’t help but ask again, and Liao Tingyan gave the same response.
Sima Jiao had complete faith in his abilities. Under the power of his bloodline, no one could lie to him, at least not this person before him, so she must be telling the truth.
Yet it was precisely this truth that left him speechless.
Was what she said even comprehensible? He had heard that people from the Demon Realm who practiced demonic cultivation often damaged their minds, but he had previously thought it was just a rumor—mere slander from righteous cultivators due to the irreconcilable conflict between good and evil. Only now did he begin to believe it. Coming here so brazenly for relaxation? This place was a den of tigers and dragons! Even those old fogies from Gengchen Immortal Mansion were afraid to come here. Anyone from the Demon Realm who wasn’t mentally deficient wouldn’t come here to relax.
Still doubtful, he approached Liao Tingyan, gripped her chin, and looking closely into her eyes, asked: “You don’t want to kill me?” If she were from the Demon Realm, that should have been her only mission.
Liao Tingyan, with a frozen expression, shook her head and uttered two words: “Don’t want.” What kind of baffling question was this?
Sima Jiao became even more confused, “Why don’t you want to kill me?”
Liao Tingyan truly felt this ancestor might be mentally ill. Was what he said even comprehensible? Why would she want to kill him? She was merely an innocent salted fish, with cultivation so low—who would be foolish enough to try killing him? Did he have paranoid delusions? Was he confined here because his mind had been damaged by cultivation gone awry?
Her mind was screaming, but her mouth softly murmured, answering Sima Jiao’s almost self-directed question:
“Because there’s no grudge, no reason.”
Why didn’t she want to kill him? Because there was no grudge, no reason.
Sima Jiao’s expression changed again as he seemed to recall some unpleasant memories, his face subtly contorting: “In this world, killing requires neither grievance nor reason.”
Liao Tingyan: “…” How should she put it—she was a law-abiding citizen raised in a society governed by the rule of law; their worldviews simply didn’t align.
Sima Jiao’s murderous aura began visibly leaking out: “For instance, right now, without reason or grievance, I simply want to kill you. How do you feel about that?”
Liao Tingyan’s mouth continued to disobey her: “I think that’s fine since I can’t defeat you anyway.”
After saying this, Liao Tingyan’s face fell into dejection. When would this truth-compelling buff be removed, giving her a chance to beg for mercy? If upon hearing this, the bastard simply struck her down with one palm, wouldn’t she just die? If there was a chance to survive, she’d still like to try to stay alive.
Sima Jiao had already raised his hand, but suddenly lowered it again, “You want me to kill you, but now I don’t feel like killing.”
Ha… are you some kind of angsty teenager?
This ancestor with his questionable mental state had extremely erratic thoughts, one moment wanting to kill, the next deciding not to. Not only did he refrain from killing, he even told Liao Tingyan: “From now on, you will come to attend to me.”
Inwardly, Liao Tingyan was refusing, but no one could refuse the Ancestral Master. The old man was now her ultimate boss, and for survival, the corporate slave compromised. When her boss asked her to revise a design proposal ten times, she might not want to but still had to do it; when the Ancestral Master told her to come to work, she might not want to but still had to come.
Thus, she inexplicably became a colleague of the black snake, and simultaneously became the first person in the hundred-woman group to successfully approach the Ancestral Master.