After the Villainess Awakens

Leng Mushi regretted it, regretted it very much.

After she opened the barrier of the Cangsheng Courtyard and let Xiao Mian in, she regretted it so much that her guts turned green.

They were not the kind of relationship that could share a drink and have a good time. They were destined to not walk the same path. The more Leng Mushi glimpsed the Great Dao, the more she understood that if one wanted to reach the peak, one had to walk a lonely path.

Xiao Mian still approached her with love. Even if Leng Mushi didn't know the future, didn't know that he and Leng Tianyin would fall in love and have a world-shaking entanglement, even if everything could be broken free from, she couldn't respond to Xiao Mian's feelings.

The path Leng Mushi wanted to take was never to find one person and stay with them for life.

Inside the small house, Xiao Mian carefully and politely placed the food from the food box onto the table, his eyes not daring to look at her presumptuously, obviously afraid that she would change her mind.

Leng Mushi didn't understand where his feelings came from, just like she didn't understand what he liked about her. But the clearer she saw Xiao Mian's love, the more confused, the more ignorant, the more she wanted to retreat.

Love was the most uncontrollable thing in the world. It was not like alchemy, where you used certain materials, a certain fire, and infused a certain amount of spiritual power, and it would controllably give you the desired medicinal effect.

Love was not like that. Her mother had spent her whole life watering a poisonous, soul-destroying flower of evil, a flower that bloomed on the young man she had loved. Leng Mushi was just a bystander, but she felt horrified.

The human heart was too easily changed, and Leng Mushi never expected anything.

She stood at the door, thinking about how to tell Xiao Mian to leave.

But the morning sunlight streamed in through the window, illuminating Xiao Mian's tall and thin figure, casting a lazy warmth that made Leng Mushi feel as if something was stuck in her throat. She moved her lips several times, but couldn't make a sound.

Finally, she said, "You seem to have grown taller."

Xiao Mian had already set the two sets of bowls and chopsticks, and had adjusted the order of the food over and over again. The ones on Leng Mushi's side were all her favorite dishes that he had seen her eat when she went down the mountain, and on his side… were also her favorites.

Hearing this, he finally stopped his movements, took a light breath with his back to Leng Mushi, relaxed his tense expression a little, then turned around and said to Leng Mushi, "You've also grown a little taller… and you've lost weight."

Under Leng Mushi's gaze, Xiao Mian tilted his head slightly, pointed to her hair, and said softly, "Your hair has grown more than an inch…"

Leng Mushi was a little speechless. Xiao Mian didn't speak anymore, but lowered his head and looked at the ground.

The two stood awkwardly. The back of Leng Mushi's neck was about to be pinched, and she regretted it again.

Why did she let Xiao Mian in?

But just as the two were silent, a magic spider descended from the beam and went straight for the food on the table.

Leng Mushi quickly walked to the table, but instead of hitting the spider directly, she grabbed a red pill from the table and put it into her storage bag - the magic spider squeaked and immediately retreated back to the beam, disappearing.

Only then did Leng Mushi say, "Sit down and eat. The food is getting cold."

Leng Mushi sat down first, trying her best to appear natural, but Xiao Mian was too restrained, so restrained that Leng Mushi became nervous herself as she looked at him.

She had seen him as passionate as fire, when he had confessed his feelings to her that day.

She had naturally also seen him as cold as ice, when she had made it clear that she didn't like him, that she was just playing with him, and he had turned away in anger.

But Leng Mushi had really never seen Xiao Mian like this, cautious, even his breathing seemed practiced, controlled so well that there was no abnormality. But while his breathing was controlled, his wildly beating, noisy heart was not.

After Leng Mushi's advancement, her five senses were much sharper than before, so she could hear it very clearly.

Seeing Xiao Mian like this, Leng Mushi couldn't help but think of her own mother. When Leng Tianyin's mother first entered the family, her father had been guilty for a few days and often came to accompany her mother.

But at that time, her mother's original gentleness and comfort were gone. She was as cautious as Xiao Mian, her breathing as even, but Leng Mushi, leaning against her chest, could hear her heart beating like a drum.

Why be so humble?

Leng Mushi, as the one being loved, frowned, feeling even more uncomfortable than Xiao Mian.

It was often said that the influence of one's parents was uncontrollable throughout life. Leng Mushi had hoped that she could be more like her mother, but during her time wandering outside, anyone who met her father would say, "You are exactly like your father when he was young."

Her glib tongue and ability to deceive came from the blood of the person she hated the most. Leng Mushi had never been willing to admit it before, but now, at this moment, she couldn't help but think that perhaps even her heartlessness and ruthlessness were inherited from the old man she resented, deeply ingrained in her bones.

Otherwise, why would she put such a good person like Xiao Mian in such a situation?

Leng Mushi's heart was tangled in unspeakable ways, but Xiao Mian picked up the wine pot and began to pour her a drink.

"It smells very mellow." Leng Mushi smelled the fruit wine, it was indeed very mellow, and couldn't help but praise it.

Xiao Mian's pale fingers holding the wine pot paused for a moment, filled her cup, and then turned to pour himself a cup.

"Tai Chu Sect disciples are not allowed to drink alcohol except at designated sect banquets," Xiao Mian said, slightly curling his lips. "I tried several times, but failed. This is the only successful batch, hidden away, only this small pot."

Leng Mushi propped her elbow on the table, raised her eyebrows slightly, and rubbed her fingertips between them, waiting for Xiao Mian to finish pouring and raise the cup to her before she sat up straight.

"Congratulations on your advancement." Xiao Mian said.

Leng Mushi pursed her lips, picked up the wine cup, clinked it with Xiao Mian's, and said softly, "Thank you… but drinking alcohol like this, what will you do when you see people later?"

Xiao Mian said, "I can use spiritual energy to dispel the smell of alcohol, it's fine."

Leng Mushi didn't say anything more. The two of them each brought their cups to their lips and took a small sip.

Leng Mushi used to fool around outside, so her alcohol tolerance was not bad, but after a sip, she found that this fruit wine, though smelling green and sweet, was actually quite strong.

She exhaled, rubbed her forehead, and looked at Xiao Mian with a smile. "What kind of fruit is this brewed from? It's quite strong?"

Xiao Mian also smiled. "Flower Bamboo Fruit."

Xiao Mian said, "It's difficult to store, it often withers as soon as it's picked. You have to trick it into thinking it's still on the branch before you can use it."

Leng Mushi laughed, finding it very interesting. Seeing that she liked listening to this, Xiao Mian began to talk about the brewing process in a gentle voice, what ingredients he used, and so on.

Leng Mushi listened for a while, feeling that this thing actually had something in common with alchemy.

However, through Xiao Mian's description, she also discovered that this wine was something Xiao Mian had been preparing since he secretly saw her advancement, that is, a few days after they were punished to sweep the stone steps.

This meant that even after being treated like that by her, Xiao Mian not only didn't hold a grudge, but was also silently preparing celebratory wine for her advancement.

As Leng Mushi listened, she lowered her head and took a big gulp from her cup, only to feel her throat burn as if it were about to blossom.

Xiao Mian's feelings for her were like this cup of wine, smelling mellow and green, but spicy and intense. Leng Mushi felt a little overwhelmed.

After putting down the wine cup, she propped her chin with both hands, thought for a moment, and finally said, "Xiao Mian, I… um…"

Xiao Mian quickly stuffed a meatball into Leng Mushi's mouth, blocking her words.

Leng Mushi: "…"

She bit down on the meatball fiercely, juice splattering everywhere, the aroma of meat filling the air.

Xiao Mian slowly picked up his wine cup and took a small sip. It was unknown if it was because of the spiciness or something else, but his cheeks were slightly flushed.

His features were already beautiful, and this touch of red, under the morning light, in the light where even the fine hairs on his face could be counted, was like a splash of color on an ink painting, making him strangely vivid.

"Eat something first." Xiao Mian said in a low voice, using the chopsticks that hadn't touched his own mouth to pick up food for Leng Mushi.

Leng Mushi looked down at the food in her bowl, then at the dishes on the table. There wasn't a single one she didn't like, even the wooden bucket containing the rice was her favorite dark pattern. This really… made her at a loss.

He even remembered these details, it was not an exaggeration to call him meticulous.

But why was Xiao Mian like this?

Could it be just because of her few hypocritical acts of closeness? Xiao Mian was so meticulous that he even knew how much her hair had grown, how could he not see through her hypocrisy?

Was love really so blinding… that it could make one deceive oneself?

As Leng Mushi thought, she ate voraciously. That's right, eat first and then talk. Love could be let down, but delicious food could not.

Xiao Mian didn't touch his food at all, acting like a little palace maid serving a noble, diligently serving Leng Mushi.

Leng Mushi did miss the taste of real food, after all, Xiao Mian had tempted her with his food box more than once.

The morning light was bright, and the room was silent except for the sound of swallowing. After Leng Mushi's mouth was occupied and she didn't have to speak, the awkwardness between the two was actually resolved.

After sweeping away all the food Xiao Mian had brought, Leng Mushi wiped her mouth with a handkerchief and looked at Xiao Mian.

Xiao Mian had already stood up and drank the rest of the wine in his cup in one gulp. He stuck out his tongue slightly from the spiciness, and then said, "I'm leaving, congratulations! Everyone says that five spiritual roots are mixed spiritual roots, but I think that with you, it's even more powerful than a pure single spiritual root."

He was determined not to give Leng Mushi a chance to speak, like a death row inmate trying his best to delay the execution, delaying it for as long as possible.

As he spoke, he had already started walking out. The demonic beasts in the Cangsheng Courtyard, seeing that Leng Mushi didn't come out with Xiao Mian, began to stir restlessly, especially the red snake. It hadn't forgotten about the last time Xiao Mian injured it.

Xiao Mian was a little flustered and didn't notice the red snake behind him, opening its mouth wide, studying how to swallow him in one bite.

Xiao Mian walked quickly, afraid that Leng Mushi would call him back and say something he couldn't accept.

What happened a month ago during the disciple's initial test, it was he who had made a big deal out of it, but in the end, it was Leng Mushi who had defended him.

He had taken her sword energy at the critical moment, not because he wanted to, he hadn't thought of anything at that time.

Of course, he was fully aware of what kind of person Leng Mushi was, a fox who knew how to charm, but was too cunning to give her true heart. At first, he didn't believe her when she said she liked him, but later he did, but he believed in his own feelings.

He confirmed that he liked her, confessed passionately, imagined cultivating together in the future, even thought about how many children they might have, what their names would be.

He had wanted to give up after being rejected, she had made him experience unprecedented embarrassment and shame, but also an unprecedented urge to seek out and follow her figure. If love could be balanced, there wouldn't be so many heartbroken men and women in the world.

Xiao Mian didn't think he was a lovesick fool. His mind wasn't complicated, he didn't have any deep hatred or resentment. At the tender age of nineteen, he was even greener than the Flower Bamboo Fruit, and unlike Leng Mushi, he hadn't experienced so much love, hate, and the destruction of his family. What complicated thoughts could he have?

After all, before entering the mountain, he had no memory of his life. So he liked her, was rejected, wanted to give up but found he still liked her, and wanted to get close to her again. These were all natural things.

Since Leng Mushi ignored him, he had to change his approach.

He couldn't be as straightforward and reckless as before, he had to be gradual, little by little, testing her. Approaching her in a way she could accept, then slowly being good to her. After a long time, maybe she would naturally come to like him.

Just like how he naturally came to like her.

So he walked quickly towards the outside, walking and walking until it turned into a run, and the corners of his mouth also curled up. He considered today a success, he actually thought she wouldn't let him into the courtyard, but today it was obvious that she wasn't as resistant to him as she appeared to be.

Leng Mushi was still stunned in the house, and after a moment, she laughed as if sighing.

She watched Xiao Mian run away through the window, he even forgot to take the empty food box, he ran really fast…

But why wasn't he looking behind him?!

Seeing that the red snake was about to succeed in its sneak attack, Leng Mushi instantly disappeared from the table and rushed towards Xiao Mian!

When she kicked the red snake's head away with a flying kick, half of Xiao Mian's head was already in the red snake's mouth--

Leng Mushi jumped onto the red snake's head, the spider silk ribbon at her waist flew out, wrapped around the red snake's mouth, and she pulled on the "reins" like riding a donkey.

She sat on its head, looking down at Xiao Mian who had just turned around in a daze, and couldn't help but laugh.

"What are you doing, seeing that I'm hungry, you want to feed me, seeing that it's hungry, you want to offer yourself as a snack?" Leng Mushi said, "Or do you think your head is in the way and want it to help you twist it off?"

Xiao Mian opened his mouth slightly, then quickly closed it, pretending to be reserved as he said, "I was careless for a moment…"

Leng Mushi lightly jumped down from the red snake, landing in front of Xiao Mian, and said with a wry smile, "Did you cultivate all your cultivation into a dog's stomach? Still careless, it remembers the grudge from last time you hurt it, it almost succeeded."

Xiao Mian couldn't help but smile. "It really holds a grudge."

Leng Mushi also laughed. At this moment, neither of them were tense anymore, and both had drunk some wine, their minds relaxed.

Leng Mushi actually thought more than once that Xiao Mian was a very suitable person to be friends with. At this moment, he reminded her of her friends from the past.

So she habitually raised her hand, making a chopping motion with it, as if she was playing around with her old friends, and went to chop Xiao Mian's neck. "If you don't need this head, you can give it to me, I'll use it for alchemy…"

Xiao Mian grabbed Leng Mushi's hand.

Leng Mushi pulled but couldn't pull it back. The smiles on both of their faces faded, and the silent awkwardness spread again.

This time, before Leng Mushi could say anything heartless, Xiao Mian spoke first. "You don't have to feel burdened, you can try to treat me as a friend."

Xiao Mian said, "Not a senior brother, but a friend, like those friends you used to have. Don't you like making friends? What do you think of me?"

Leng Mushi didn't say anything as she looked at Xiao Mian. Xiao Mian let go of her hand, made a fist, and knocked on her shoulder.

Leng Mushi leaned back slightly, and Xiao Mian used a little more force to hit her again. This time, Leng Mushi's shoulder felt the force and she took a step back, then quickly slapped Xiao Mian's forehead. "Are you addicted to hitting me?!"

Xiao Mian laughed, his eyes and brows full of joy, and knocked on her head again. Leng Mushi blocked it and grabbed Xiao Mian's hand in return. "You…"

"Isn't this good?" Xiao Mian easily flipped his arm again, grabbed Leng Mushi's wrist and twisted it, forcing her to turn around, then pressed her wrist against her back.

Leng Mushi let out an "ah" and burst into laughter.

Xiao Mian let go of her. "Actually, I think being your test subject is quite good, my cultivation has been improving very quickly. What do you think, future Alchemy Immortal, give me a chance?"

Leng Mushi carefully looked at his expression, seeing no sign of reluctance or pretense, and her heart suddenly became clear.

She snorted and said, "You just realized that, huh. Tsk, my test subject slots are very limited."

Xiao Mian cupped his hands towards Leng Mushi. "Please let me be your test subject, this way I can keep it a secret for you. Your cultivation progress in these few months is equivalent to years of hard work for geniuses like me in the sect."

Leng Mushi opened her mouth wide, circled around Xiao Mian, and clicked her tongue. "I really didn't expect this, I thought you came here because you still had feelings for me, but it turns out you came to threaten me, huh!"

After all, if this matter were to be spread, it would definitely cause a sensation in the sect, and Leng Mushi would immediately become a hot commodity.

She just didn't want that, she just wanted to share this joy with the people she cared about, and didn't have time to be the "genius" of the Tai Chu Sect.

But if it really got out, it wouldn't be considered a threat, so Xiao Mian's words were just a joke.

Leng Mushi clicked her tongue again. "Look at you, you look like an ice cube, but you're quite cunning… It's not impossible, but you have to be responsible for sweeping the other half of the stone steps for me, finding me the materials I need, and… bringing me food every day!"

She said this deliberately, then observed Xiao Mian's expression, and seeing that he readily agreed, she suddenly leaned closer to him.

Their breaths were so close that they intertwined. Xiao Mian's expression didn't change at all, but the hand behind his back clenched tightly. He was trying his best to control his breathing and heartbeat. After a while, Leng Mushi retreated, crossed her arms, and looked at him as if he was a rare and exotic beast.

Xiao Mian looked at her too. "Don't doubt it, you're too confident. It's not like I haven't seen other women, there are many female disciples in the sect who have confessed to me, liking you was just a moment of infatuation."

A moment he couldn't pull himself out of.

Leng Mushi was completely reassured and relaxed. She raised her foot to kick Xiao Mian. "You forgot your food box, you rushed out to feed the red snake…"

Leng Mushi was the first to return to the house, Xiao Mian followed behind her. This time, neither of them were tense or awkward.

Leaving aside love, they had known each other for a while, their personalities were compatible, and they were both at a good age, with no shadows hidden in their hearts. Once they talked it out, it was fine.

It was just that this ease, one came from genuine feelings, the other from careful pretense.

Xiao Mian had no other choice, after all, the desire to get close to someone's heart was uncontrollable, he would slowly wait for her to change.

And Leng Mushi was completely unaware that this dog, Xiao Mian, was planning to boil her like a frog. She really thought that Xiao Mian had let go of his so-called love and came to her because he didn't want to lose a friend and wanted to cultivate by being her test subject.

This was a perfect match, she thought about alchemy all day long, alchemy could improve her cultivation, feeding Xiao Mian, Xiao Mian could also improve his cultivation, and then the medicinal effects would be fed back to her, she would continue to refine pills, perfect, this was a virtuous cycle.

Leng Mushi liked Xiao Mian's drive and held nothing back from him. After only two days of reconciliation, she took out the pill that controlled the magic spider and gave it to Xiao Mian to play with.

Xiao Mian was shocked, but only for a while. Now, apart from the compulsory classes, the compulsory tasks, and the three meals a day he had to get for Leng Mushi, he spent all his time at the Cangsheng Courtyard, refining pills and testing them with Leng Mushi, without returning to his own place at night.

Most of the time was boring, because Leng Mushi was a complete pill fanatic, often spending one or two hours buried in recording and developing pill recipes, without saying a word.

Occasionally, she would look up and say a word to Xiao Mian, but it was also about herbs.

Xiao Mian was extremely satisfied, because every day, he could look at Leng Mushi unrestrainedly, sometimes staring at her for an hour, and she wouldn't even notice. Even if she did, she would only ask, "Is there something on my face?"

Xiao Mian would shake his head with a smile, then nod, reaching out to pinch her cheek, only to have his arm swatted away by Leng Mushi.

In the dead of night, Leng Mushi wrote with her brush while saying to Xiao Mian without looking back, "Don't go back tonight, just sleep in my bed. A furnace of Curse Dispelling Pills will be ready after the fifth watch. It's refined from the Clear Spirit Pill recipe with Phantom Flowers. It can not only break the illusions of demonic beasts, but also break the curses of cultivators… You have to take the Soul-Bewitching Pill first, and then…"

Leng Mushi flipped to the front of her notebook, tapped her finger on the booklet, and then said, "Take it a quarter of an hour, one hour, and two hours after the pills are ready, to test the time and degree of effectiveness, and each time it takes effect, increase the amount of Soul-Bewitching Pill you take… I'll calculate the amount, you go to sleep first, I'll call you when it's time."

Leng Mushi said to Xiao Mian beside her, "There's a medicinal bath in the backyard, with herbs added to reduce resistance. Soak in it, preferably for two incense sticks of time. If you didn't bring any clothes, wear mine first, I have a set of larger disciple robes that I haven't worn…"

Leng Mushi said all this without even raising her eyes. Xiao Mian responded with "oh, oh", just watching her beside her, his eyeballs almost glued to her face, and Leng Mushi didn't notice at all.

Her wrist ached from writing, and it trembled slightly as she lifted the brush to dip it in ink. Xiao Mian grabbed her wrist, took the brush from her hand, and put it aside. Then he said, "I'll massage it for you."

Then, with the aid of spiritual energy, he began to slowly massage her wrist and palm.

"Is the strength okay?" Xiao Mian's voice was so gentle that it could give someone goosebumps.

Leng Mushi didn't notice anything wrong, she closed her eyes and pinched the space between her eyebrows with her other hand. When Xiao Mian rubbed the sore spot, she even hummed twice, her mind full of what other uses the Phantom Flower could be squeezed out for. She said hoarsely, "The strength is good, thank you."

Xiao Mian's handsome face was full of secret joy, under the dim light of the ever-bright lamp, his shadow was like honey, thickly covering Leng Mushi.

He grasped Leng Mushi's hand and rubbed it openly, even interlocking their fingers, slowly moving her wrist. "Aren't you going to sleep for a while tonight? I can help you watch the pill furnace."

This way he could lie down with her for a while, it was a beautiful thought.

But Leng Mushi shook her head. "No, I can't. You have a water spiritual root, the Phantom Flower needs earth spiritual energy to be effective, otherwise, it will ruin the medicinal properties. I'm fine, you go to sleep first."

As she spoke, she opened her eyes wearily and was momentarily dazzled by Xiao Mian's sweet smile. But when she rubbed her eyes, Xiao Mian had returned to his usual indifferent look, turning her hand a few more times before patting the back of her hand. "Alright, I'll go take a bath."

Leng Mushi hummed in response and watched him leave with a shake of her head and a smile, feeling that she really hadn't rested for too long and her eyes were playing tricks on her.

After Xiao Mian finished his bath, he entered the house wearing Leng Mushi's clothes, still damp. The female disciple robes were the same style as the male ones, but his build was such that Leng Mushi's clothes were indeed a bit small, even the pants were hanging low, revealing a section of his fair ankles.

Xiao Mian sat cross-legged on Leng Mushi's bed, the scent of herbs from her body was everywhere, making his heart race.

He actually had clothes in his storage bag, but he just wanted to wear Leng Mushi's.

He tugged at the clothes that were obviously more than a little small and asked, "Will you still wear these clothes in the future?"

Leng Mushi replied after a while, "Of course, don't stretch them out, I'm still growing, I'll be able to wear them when I'm a little older."

Xiao Mian almost couldn't help but laugh out loud at her words, and it took a lot of effort to suppress it.

He thought about how Leng Mushi would still wear the clothes he had worn, and felt inexplicably warm and happy.

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