Marrying the Soft-hearted Villain

The light from the night pearl wasn't weak. As Ruan Qiuqiu's eyes gradually adjusted to the darkness, she could make out the figures of several people emerging from the large cave. They were indeed wearing clothes completely different from beast skins. The material looked like linen or cotton. They carried finely woven bone umbrellas, and beneath them, through the curtain of rain, she could faintly discern human faces.

Tian Ye sensed from afar that they possessed formidable strength and immediately pulled Ruan Qiuqiu aside.

Only when the group of six or seven drew closer could Ruan Qiuqiu clearly see their faces. They were indeed human, but different from ordinary humans. Their skin was exceptionally pale, and their hair and eye color were also light.

Most of them wore unhappy expressions. Two younger-looking individuals at the rear couldn't help but murmur complaints.

"Just a bit of emergency medicine, and they want to sell it for so much?? The defensive tools we brought are good enough, aren't they…?" one young man muttered.

The slightly younger woman beside him punched him lightly and whispered, "Stop talking. Don't speak carelessly outside. Let's try our luck elsewhere. Tsk, the high-ranking magical beasts this month are really difficult to deal with…"

As the young woman spoke, she noticed that the person walking at the front had stopped. She immediately fell silent and stopped walking, no longer speaking.

"Be careful what you say." A clear and elegant male voice sounded. The person at the front turned slightly, and the low-held bone umbrella lifted a little, revealing a handsome, pale face.

Black hair, black eyes, five or six points similar to her own appearance.

For a moment, Ruan Qiuqiu wondered if she was mistaken. She clenched her hands, nervously looking at the person leading the group.

But after speaking, the man lowered his umbrella again, turned, and continued walking. Ruan Qiuqiu couldn't see his face anymore.

Her head buzzed, and her heart beat a little faster.

Ever since she understood that her situation was more like a soul returning to its body, Ruan Qiuqiu had been curious about her origins.

However, with the recent dangers, she hadn't been mentally prepared to open the Soul Reflecting Mirror. She was afraid of discovering she had been abandoned.

But Ruan Qiuqiu had never imagined that she might have other relatives in this world.

If she hadn't been mistaken just now, that person really did look a lot like her.

Ruan Qiuqiu was lost in her chaotic thoughts until Tian Ye's call brought her back to reality.

"Qiuqiu, what's wrong?" Tian Ye asked worriedly, seeing her strange expression.

"…Tian Ye, did you see that person's face clearly?" Ruan Qiuqiu asked Tian Ye with a dry throat.

Tian Ye replied, "What? Those humans just now? No."

From her angle, she had been blocked by a blind spot and hadn't seen the person's face. Her demonic awareness wasn't strong, its range limited. Now that those people had gone far, she couldn't see them even with her demonic awareness.

"It's nothing." Ruan Qiuqiu shook her head. "Maybe I was mistaken. I thought the person in the lead looked a lot like me."

Tian Ye paused, her fiery red eyebrows twitching. "Let's go take a look later. I heard them say they didn't exchange for anything. Maybe our Healing Water Pearls can be exchanged for those defensive tools?"

Ruan Qiuqiu nodded, glancing at the departing group, putting aside the thought of the person who resembled her, and followed Tian Ye into the large cave at the center of the demon market.

Inside the cave designated for high-ranking magical beasts, third-tier burning wood was lit. Just approaching the entrance, one could feel a wave of warmth.

But besides the warm light, a chilling demonic aura emanated from the cave. This meant that even though the cave entrance was sheltered from the rain and appeared warm, no demon was willing to approach it.

Ruan Qiuqiu and Tian Ye walked together to the rock wall outside the cave, took off their straw raincoats, and, still wearing their conical hats, politely knocked on the rock wall. "May we come in?"

They waited for a few seconds, and three voices echoed from within the cave.

A gentle female voice, an old male voice, and a child's voice, all sounded almost simultaneously, yet with different intonations, carrying a strange melody—

"Come in." / "Come in~" / "Come in…"

Ruan Qiuqiu and Tian Ye exchanged glances, surprise evident in their eyes.

Because when they arrived at the cave, they had already sensed that there was only one magical beast inside, with a strength around the sixth rank.

But since they were already here, they had to try.

Ruan Qiuqiu took a deep breath and walked into the cave with Tian Ye.

The cave was bright. Aside from the demonic aura that ordinary humans and demons couldn't tolerate, there was nothing chilling about its appearance.

The cave's layout was simple, with a stone pot near the entrance and a clear view deep inside.

There was a simple stone table with three items casually placed on it. A child-like boy sat behind the table, looking up at them with round, black eyes.

The boy wore a loose beast skin garment, had two black ram horns on his head, and messy, dark blue-black short hair. He frowned impatiently, staring intently at Ruan Qiuqiu. "What do you want to exchange? What items do you have?"

When he spoke, Ruan Qiuqiu heard the three distinct voices again.

Even the slowest person would understand that these three voices came from the child-like sixth-rank magical beast in front of them.

Surprise flickered across her face, but because she was still wearing her conical hat, the magical beast didn't see it.

After a brief moment of astonishment, Ruan Qiuqiu regained her composure. Looking at the four items on the stone table, she spoke sincerely, "I'd like to ask, what are these items on the table used for? We have clothes woven from Green Moon Cotton, some spirit stones, and potions effective for healing wounds."

To avoid revealing all her cards at once, Ruan Qiuqiu didn't mention everything they had, nor did she describe the full effects of the Healing Water Pearls.

"Hee hee hee." Hearing her words, the child-like magical beast let out a sharp laugh. Ruan Qiuqiu vaguely saw his chubby face suddenly split into three terrifying mouths.

Her pupils constricted, a chill ran down her spine, and a thin layer of sweat formed on her forehead.

But when she looked again, the sixth-rank magical beast had returned to its boyish form, as if the absurd image of three mouths had been an illusion.

"With just these things, you want to exchange for my treasures? Go on, go on." The boy stopped laughing, covering his mouth with both hands, his voice a strange mixture. "You can't afford my treasures!"

As he spoke, his eyes were fixed on Ruan Qiuqiu's backpack, as if something inside greatly attracted him.

Ruan Qiuqiu heard a gurgling sound seemingly coming from his stomach.

"What are you looking at? Haven't you seen a hungry stomach before? Look again and I'll eat you!" The sixth-rank magical beast bared his teeth, his expression fierce and his tone mischievous, making Tian Ye frown.

Ruan Qiuqiu, noticing his growing impatience, the rumbling of his stomach, and his hands tightly covering his mouth as if afraid of revealing his true form, didn't directly answer his question.

Instead, she took out a small bag of beef jerky from her backpack and tentatively asked, "I also have some delicious beef jerky. Might you be interested? Would you like to try some?"

The little magical beast's eyes lit up, then he pouted. "Your food must also have a lot of impurities. The Underground people just tried to bribe me with food, tsk."

"It's alright." Ruan Qiuqiu smiled, placing the small bag of beef jerky on the stone table in front of the magical beast.

The closer she got to the magical beast, the stronger the sense of oppression Ruan Qiuqiu felt. However, although the demonic aura around him was dense, it was far less than what emanated from Mr. Big Bad Wolf before, still within her tolerance.

"Your flesh smells so good," the sixth-rank magical beast remarked as he reached out his thin arm to take the beef jerky.

Ruan Qiuqiu: "…"

She couldn't help but ask, "Is my flesh any different from an ordinary person's?"

"Very fragrant." The sixth-rank magical beast grabbed a handful of beef jerky, turned his back, and stealthily revealed three large mouths, devouring the small bag in one gulp.

He chewed with a "crunch, crunch" sound, making Tian Ye's hair stand on end.

She took two cautious steps forward, subtly shielding Ruan Qiuqiu.

"The beef jerky tastes good." The sixth-rank magical beast turned around, his expression softening. He glared at Tian Ye, then rested his chin on his folded hands, looking sideways at Ruan Qiuqiu, sniffing deeply. "Your strength, the scent of your blood…"

The magical beast's eyes widened. "What's your relationship with those stingy Underground people?"

Ruan Qiuqiu immediately thought of the young man who resembled her and frowned slightly. "Those people just now, are they from the Underground tribe?"

"Yes, a bunch of misers." The sixth-rank magical beast smacked his lips. "Your beef jerky is alright. Do you have any more? Surprisingly few impurities, rare."

Ruan Qiuqiu smiled. "I have some more, but I don't know how to address you? Could you please tell us about these three items on the table?"

"I'm called Yue Chen," the little magical beast said. "You can call me Brother Yue."

Ruan Qiuqiu: "…"

Yue Chen? Was it the Yue Chen she knew, the one vying for the position of Demon King?

Seeing Ruan Qiuqiu's silence, the little magical beast realized she might have misunderstood something and immediately changed his expression. "What? My name is Yue Chen, Chen as in morning. Not the same as my damned brother!"

Ruan Qiuqiu's eyes lit up. Carefully choosing her words and suppressing her excitement, she asked, "I heard there's a very powerful seventh-rank magical beast in the Demon Realm, Brother Yue's older brother?"

"Hmph, that was before." Yue Chen waved his hand, but there was a hint of pride and smugness in his tone, and his attitude softened a little. "Never mind him. Since you treated me to delicious beef jerky, I'll tell you."

"That black thing is a token to enter the Demon Realm. It can disguise your aura. If you can't survive in the Demon Continent, you can disguise yourself as a magical beast and go to the Demon Realm." Brother Yue explained, his giggling laughter adding a strange quality to his words.

"This red thing, like a demonic explosion stone, is quite lethal even to seventh-rank magical beasts. I stole… took it from my brother's room. But unfortunately, you can't afford it~"

"The last leaf has very strong life force. It can prolong life or heal minor injuries. I stole… took it from my sister."

After finishing, the little magical beast crossed his thin legs and looked at Ruan Qiuqiu and Tian Ye smugly. "You can't afford them, right?"

Ruan Qiuqiu looked at the three items on the table, her heart filled with desire. These three items were extremely useful to them, but compared to these treasures, what they had in hand was truly insufficient for an exchange.

Seeing Ruan Qiuqiu and Tian Ye remain silent, Yue Chen spoke leisurely, "I know you can't afford them. Go on, go on. Don't hold up my next customer. Maybe they'll have something I want."

Ruan Qiuqiu looked at the items on the table, reluctant to give up. "Brother Yue, what kind of things do you want? Special treasures? Food? Or… information?"

Ruan Qiuqiu guessed one by one, speaking slowly, observing the little magical beast's expression.

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