VAP - Chapter 99
Chapter 99: Flawless Cold Bone, The Peerless Sword Venerable (23)
With the Dao Companion vow made, the main event of the ceremony was over. Even if Yun Yijiu were to announce the end of the ceremony right then, no one would question it. They might even think it was perfectly in character for the Wushuang Sword Venerable.
But Yun Yijiu only glanced thoughtfully at the sky and said nothing.
The newly-bound Dao Companions took their seats at the head of the hall.
Everyone in the hall was all smiles as they offered their congratulations one by one, showcasing their rich vocabularies and saying every possible word of praise and blessing they could think of.
Watching them, Yue Du felt a wave of emotion, as if she were seeing employees racking their brains to write New Year’s greetings for their boss.
However, Yun Yijiu seemed to quite enjoy it. As she listened to the endless stream of unique congratulations, her expression softened slightly. “Not bad.”
With that, she bestowed some small trinkets upon them.
They were small trinkets to her, but to others, they were rare treasures. Of course, the Tribulation Transcendence Venerables present had no use for them, but they were perfect for their younger disciples. From another perspective, what they received wasn’t as important as the act of receiving a gift from the Wushuang Sword Venerable itself. It was something to brag about, a great honor.
First came the immortal cultivators, then the demon cultivators.
That’s right, the ceremony had also invited representatives from the demonic path. After all, with Yue Du’s identity being what it was, and Yun Yijiu not caring about the distinction between immortals and demons, she had invited them all.
Many on the immortal side disapproved of this arrangement, but no matter how unhappy they were, they couldn’t change the minds of the ceremony’s protagonists. They could only swallow their resentment.
Not many demon cultivators had accepted the invitation. The one leading them was none other than the Minghe Sect Master, Youming Demon Venerable.
He hadn’t brought his son, Ming Yezheng—the one who had secretly tried to poison Yue Zhuo. It made sense. Unless he no longer wanted his son, there was no way he would dare bring him here.
Facing the woman who, just over a year ago, had been his fiancée (by verbal agreement) and had been targeted by his only son, Youming Demon Venerable remained perfectly calm and acted as if nothing had happened.
When he offered his congratulations, his vocabulary was no less extensive than that of the immortal venerables.
Below him were Gu Ling, the Budong Demon Venerable, the Yin Demon Venerable, and others, as well as some unfamiliar men and women. Most of them had brought disciples or juniors with them—and among them, Yue Du spotted Ji Changqing, who had since fallen to the demonic path.
After becoming a demon cultivator, Ji Changqing had originally intended to be a rogue cultivator, but he was unexpectedly recruited by the Lord of Hundred Slaughter City and taken in as a disciple.
He was indeed a good fit for the style of Hundred Slaughter City and had adapted completely in a short time.
Once most of the congratulations had been heard, the banquet began. Attendants brought out spirit fruits, fine nectar, and rare delicacies, arranging them neatly on the tables.
At banquets like this, cultivators generally didn’t eat and drink freely. This was especially true for those present; they would take a few polite bites before setting down their jade chopsticks, each one more prim and proper than the last.
In this context, the behavior of the two protagonists on the high seat seemed exceptionally refreshing and unconventional. They paid no mind to the gazes of the guests below, leisurely enjoying their food and drink.
Influenced by the two of them, many couldn’t resist taking a few more bites.
And it had to be said, the food and wine were truly rare and delicious, more than sufficient to be used as cultivation aids.
Some venerables had wanted to go up and offer a toast, as was customary for a Dao Companion Ceremony. Of course, no one dared to have the newlyweds toast them, so they could only go up themselves.
But every time they saw the two of them eating together, they felt an inexplicable urge to retreat, not daring to disturb them.
…Forget it, it’s better not to go up. We might just be seen as a nuisance.
And so, the toasting segment was silently skipped—or so they thought.
There was one Gu Ling Demon Venerable who couldn’t read the atmosphere. He filled a cup with wine, sauntered up, and after a perfunctory “Greetings, Venerable Wushuang,” he brazenly raised his cup. “Congratulations, Duyue! A toast to you!”
Yun Yijiu glanced up at him coldly.
Yue Du: “…” Oh, this silly child.
With the first person offering a toast, a second and a third naturally followed.
Eventually, Yun Yijiu’s gaze grew so frigid that those who came after didn’t dare to approach and could only return to their seats, cups in hand.
As the sky began to darken, attendants came forward to clear the silver plates and jade bowls.
Yue Du and Yun Yijiu exchanged a look. Facing the crowd below, they spoke in unison, “Everyone.”
The hall instantly fell silent.
“The banquet is over. If there is nothing else, you may all depart,” Yun Yijiu said coolly.
Yue Du, on the other hand, smiled brightly. “Thank you all for coming. We’ll meet again if fate allows.”
The subtext was:
You’ve eaten, you’ve drunk, now everyone go home. Show’s over!
Everyone was sharp enough to take the hint. They bid their farewells one after another. Gu Ling Demon Venerable let out a cry of protest, but before he could say anything, he was grabbed by Yin Demon Venerable and dragged away with the main contingent of demon cultivators.
The demon cultivators, as a whole, felt a shared sense of melancholy.
From the looks of it, Duyue Demon Venerable’s entire heart was now with the Wushuang Sword Venerable. She had long forgotten that the demonic path was her true home.
Alas, what a pity. A great Demon Venerable had just run off to the immortal path like that!
The immortal cultivators, as a whole, also felt a shared sense of unease.
From the looks of it, Venerable Wushuang’s entire heart was now with Duyue Demon Venerable. Everyone knew that Venerable Wushuang couldn’t be bothered with immortal-demon affairs. Now that she had formed a Dao Companion bond with a demon cultivator and was treating it with such importance, there was no guarantee she wouldn’t start favoring the demonic side.
Alas, how hateful! To think the demon cultivators would come up with such a scheme to turn Venerable Wushuang’s heart away!
So far, surprisingly few people had thought of it as an immortal-demon marriage alliance… perhaps because from beginning to end, neither the immortal nor the demonic faction had been able to get a word in edgewise.
Mu Xingluo followed her master back. As soon as they returned, her master went into seclusion, likely having been stimulated by the day’s events.
After all, her master was of a certain age and had yet to meet a compatible partner. It was inevitable that she would feel a bit melancholic.
With her master gone, her senior sister took a deep breath and let out a small shriek. “Aaaaaahhhhh.”
Mu Xingluo asked, “Senior Sister, are you alright?”
“I’m fine, just a little emotional,” her senior sister said, cupping her face with a look of longing. “Did you see it? Just now, when Venerable Wushuang was peeling shrimp for Venerable Duyue, a flash of sword qi, and the shell and meat separated so cleanly! And the brocaded mandarin fish, the bones were picked out with sword qi too!”
“…” said Mu Xingluo.
“I wanted to tell you during the ceremony, but there were too many venerables around, so I didn’t dare use voice transmission. Now I can finally say it.”
“…” Mu Xingluo was still speechless.
This senior sister of hers had always been a bit of a romantic. She recounted several sweet little details she had noticed, finally covering her face with a long sigh. “I also want to find a Dao Companion who pampers me like that, ahhhhh!”
Mu Xingluo didn’t know what to say for a moment and could only offer a dry laugh. “I’m sure you will.”
She had seen this sort of thing many times on Wushuang Peak, so she was used to it. After a thought, she added, “But for something like this, both sides have to be attentive. I’ve also seen Venerable Duyue do these things. Their feelings for each other must be very strong.”
Her senior sister thought she had a point and amended her goal to finding a mutually doting Dao Companion.
To achieve that goal, she had to cultivate hard!
Her senior sister was filled with fighting spirit.
Just then, Mu Xingluo let out a soft “Huh?” and said in surprise, “Senior Sister, look, today’s moon—”
On the eastern horizon, the moon finally emerged from behind the clouds. Its edge shimmered with a crimson-gold color, and it seemed as if thousands of golden threads were spilling out from the moonlight.
“Is this… a Yuanduoyue?”
“Tonight, the Yuanduoyue descends,” Yun Yijiu said.
After the guests had departed, the newly-wed Dao Companions returned to the inner hall.
Yue Du searched through the vast sea of term definitions and found the entry for Yuanduoyue. It was a special celestial phenomenon that appeared randomly, the opposite of a Heiluoyue night. It was the moment when positive spiritual energy was at its most abundant.
Without a doubt, it was also one of the best times for cultivation.
Yue Du asked, “The divination from a year ago?”
“It was probably because of this,” Yun Yijiu said, a smile in her eyes. “The Yuanduoyue is also suitable for dual cultivation.”
Yue Du understood. Divination was generally a way of asking the Heavenly Dao about a knowable future. When Yun Yijiu had divined for a wedding date last time, the Heavenly Dao had eagerly told her that one year later would be the best time, just in time for the Yuanduoyue.
Was this person not the Heavenly Dao’s favorite child or something?
Yun Yijiu said with a straight face, “The Yuanduoyue has arrived. There’s no time to lose. Let us begin.”
Yue Du said, “But I have a Five Elements Spirit Root, and my cultivation method is…”
“It’s fine. Follow me. Follow my rhythm.”
Yue Du obediently replied with an “Oh,” then suddenly felt something was off.
Based on her previous thoughts, Yun Yijiu shouldn’t have known about these things, and she hadn’t seen her make any special effort to learn about them.
So, when Ah Jiu said to follow her, was she referring to the flow of energy? That didn’t seem right either. But on second thought, given the host’s natural talent, it wouldn’t be strange for her to be self-taught.
“What are you thinking about?” Yun Yijiu asked.
“I was wondering if you knew what you were doing,” Yue Du said honestly. “I can teach you, actually.”
“We can instruct each other.”
The last syllable dissolved between their lips.
The Wushuang Sword Venerable was like a connoisseur sampling a new dish. After just a small taste, a glint of appetite sparked in her dark eyes.
Yue Du woke up two days later.
This was one of the downsides of being a cultivator. Even if you were mentally exhausted, your body would remain in excellent condition. It was impossible to get so tired that you just passed out.
…You could only endure the terrible sensation of being continuously struck by waves.
Truly terrible.
Yue Du turned her head to look at her Dao Companion.
Although Yue Du was always the one lying flat, the host was always the one sleeping soundly beside her in the morning, not yet awake.
This time, however, Yun Yijiu had woken up first.
Even though she was awake, she was too lazy to get up. She simply lay on her side next to Yue Du, her long fingers twirling a lock of Yue Du’s hair. She’d wind it up, let it slide off, then wind it up again, thoroughly amused.
The way she lay on her side revealed the exquisite curves beneath the silk quilt. Yue Du blinked, then raised a hand to rest on the dip where her waist met her hip, murmuring softly, “Ah Jiu.”
“Mm.”
“Not going to sleep a little longer?”
“I want to look at you.”
For some reason, Yue Du felt a strange sense of accomplishment, something along the lines of: Between sleep and me, the host chose me. I’m so moved…
Alright, it wasn’t that dramatic.
Yun Yijiu’s gaze traced the contours of her face.
When her eyes passed over the sharp, upward tilt of Yue Du’s eyes and the faint red vertical mark between her brows, she frowned slightly, as if something felt out of place.
“We’ve met before, haven’t we?” Yun Yijiu said softly. “Before the Grand Immortal-Demon Competition.”
Yue Du opened her mouth, but when she felt a resistance, she wisely stopped herself. She tilted her head and asked, “Is that so?”
Yun Yijiu stated with certainty, “Yes.”
Yue Du just smiled.
Yun Yijiu let go of the small lock of hair she had been tormenting and turned to bully its owner instead.
Not to be outdone, Yue Du retaliated—at first, they were evenly matched, but she was gradually defeated.
“Wait, it’s broad daylight! I need to get up.”
“Running away when you can’t win.”
“I’m not, I didn’t, don’t misunderstand.”
“Then don’t run.”
The morning light filtered through the window paper, casting a warm glow on the carved wooden posts of the bed. The thin silk quilt was spread in disarray, and the touch of fingertips was warmer and softer than the sunlight at this hour.
There was an addicting, lazy tranquility to it all.
—This was a satisfaction that belonged to “humans.”
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