Marrying the Soft-hearted Villain

The Fire Warm Grass emitted a soft, warm glow within the cave.

Xiong Duoduo, Xiong Yuan, and Tian Xiu, three male demons, sat around the merchandise, gazing expectantly at the cave entrance. They waited for Ruan Qiuqiu and the others to return, while also hoping that some demon might come by to barter.

“Sigh, Brother, say, if I survive this time, should I consider Xiao Hong?” After a long while without any visitors, Xiong Duoduo started chatting idly with Xiong Yuan.

Xiong Yuan glanced at his younger brother with exasperation, his tone dripping with sarcasm. “Whatever you want. If you like her, agree. If not, don't.”

Tian Xiu, who had been somewhat withdrawn these past few days due to the attack on the Sand Tribe, perked up at these words. “The Xiao Hong you're talking about, is she the one from the Shark Tribe?”

Xiong Duoduo, a fluffy black and white ball of fur with patches of missing hair, nodded, his voice melancholic. “I can't beat her in a fight.”

Tian Xiu patted his shoulder. “Brother, I can't beat my wife either…”

Xiong Duoduo looked at Tian Xiu, then thought of the fierce Tian Ye, and couldn't help but ask, “Then how did you win her over?”

Tian Xiu was about to explain that he and Tian Ye were childhood sweethearts when he heard hurried footsteps outside.

Da Diao immediately stood up and looked out. He saw Tian Ye rushing towards the cave with Ruan Qiuqiu on her back. Behind them followed a small child with two glowing ram horns on their head, whose aura identified them as a high-ranking demon.

Tian Xiu instantly tensed up. He and the Xiong brothers ran forward, blocking Tian Ye, and shouted, “Demon! Release them!”

Yue Chen: “…”

He poked his horns on his forehead rather speechlessly, dimming their glow considerably. In an irritated tone, he said, “I didn't hurt them.”

As he spoke, three voices intertwined, sounding quite eerie in the quiet night.

Tian Xiu's expression shifted, and he was about to speak again when Tian Ye said, “He didn't harm us. Don't worry about that now. Quick, tidy up the small cave and lay out the fur blankets. Something's happened to Qiuqiu.”

Xiong Duoduo's face paled. He wiped the rain from his face and, without further questions, hurried into the cave with his brother to prepare.

Tian Ye carried Ruan Qiuqiu into the cave and laid her on the stone bed padded with soft fur blankets. She then placed the Fire Warm Grass in the small cave.

She wiped Ruan Qiuqiu's forehead and the blood from her lips with a warm, wet cloth, her eyes filled with worry.

—Time rewinds to a short while ago.

After hearing Yue Chen finish recounting the story of the previous Demon King, Ruan Qiuqiu stood frozen in place.

Tian Ye guessed that the previous Demon King was likely Yuan Jue, and the person he was searching for was Ruan Qiuqiu. However, she couldn't understand how Yuan Jue had managed to travel back from the future, or why he would do so. She was completely bewildered.

Although she didn't fully understand, she knew that Ruan Qiuqiu must be in a worse state than she was.

Hesitantly, Tian Ye took a step forward, wanting to comfort Ruan Qiuqiu. But as soon as she opened her mouth, she noticed something was wrong. “Qiuqiu…”

Tian Ye had excellent night vision. As she approached, she saw Ruan Qiuqiu trembling all over.

One hand clutched her chest, and her previously clean clothes, aside from water droplets, were stained with spreading bloodstains, a shocking red under the faint light of the night pearl.

Tian Ye's face paled. Her gaze moved upwards, and she saw fresh blood trickling from the corners of Ruan Qiuqiu's lips. Her long eyelashes were half-closed, her eyes staring blankly ahead, her entire being seeming to have lost its soul.

“Qiuqiu? What's wrong?” A bad premonition rose in Tian Ye's heart. She reached out to support Ruan Qiuqiu's arm and asked anxiously.

But Tian Ye didn't receive a response. She only felt Ruan Qiuqiu's body slump forward, limp and completely reliant on her for support.

“Qiuqiu…?” Tian Ye's voice trembled. She carefully held Ruan Qiuqiu and reached out to touch her forehead.

—It was burning hot. She had a fever.

“Seriously?” With such a commotion, Yue Chen also noticed Ruan Qiuqiu's unusual state.

The black-horned, high-ranking little demon muttered, his expression becoming increasingly complex.

Yue Chen stepped forward, his two ram horns emitting a soft glow, and nudged Ruan Qiuqiu's arm.

Almost instantly, the light on his horns changed.

“It really is…” Yue Chen murmured, his tone complicated. “She really is…”

“Is what? Can you just say it all at once?!”

Tian Ye was irritated by his cryptic words. Ignoring any need to conceal her strength, she removed the straw raincoats and hats from herself and Ruan Qiuqiu, warping the space above them to prevent the rain from falling, and then hoisted Ruan Qiuqiu onto her back.

Yue Chen was baffled by Tian Ye's slightly angry tone. He didn't understand why a usually good-tempered and silent female demon suddenly became so aggressive.

But he was still immersed in the shock of his recent discovery and didn't get angry. Instead, he explained patiently, “She is Ruan Qiuqiu.”

Tian Ye's steps faltered abruptly.

She raised her voice in surprise. “What did you say?”

Yue Chen was a little impatient. “I said, she's the human the previous Demon King was looking for!”

“The sudden vomiting of blood and fever is probably, as recorded in the Demon Scrolls, the beginning of her memory awakening.”

Yue Chen's voice was laced with a hint of excitement, his three voices intertwining in a strange kind of thrill. “I never thought Yue Chen would encounter such a strange event. If my brothers knew, they would be so envious…”

But his excitement made Tian Ye feel uneasy. Her brow furrowed tightly, worry filling her heart. “Can you stop talking about this? She's like this now. Is she in danger?”

Yue Chen, having been snapped at, retorted, “She shouldn't be in mortal danger. Generally, as long as she gets through this smoothly, she'll be fine. But I've never encountered this situation before, so I'm not entirely sure…”

Hearing this, Tian Ye's mood worsened. His words were practically meaningless.

Regardless, staying outside wasn't an option. So, Tian Ye hurriedly carried Ruan Qiuqiu back to the small cave and fed her some of the healing water beads they had brought and hadn't yet traded.

However, Ruan Qiuqiu's condition didn't improve. She seemed trapped in an inescapable nightmare, her beautiful face pale, as if she might vanish at any moment.

Tian Ye explained everything about the previous Demon King, Ruan Qiuqiu, and the related events to the bewildered Tian Xiu, Xiong Duoduo, and the others. None of the demons looked pleased.

Xiong Duoduo felt particularly foolish because he hadn't understood a word Tian Ye had just said.

Xiong Duoduo simply sat on the stone stool, looking at Ruan Qiuqiu, whose pale face made her seem as if she might disappear at any moment, and voiced his confusion. “Sister Tian Ye, what do you mean? What previous Demon King? What traveling back from the future?”

“What reincarnation?” Xiong Duoduo was full of questions. “Are you saying that some bad things happened, and then Mr. Yuan changed those bad things? Is that it?”

Tian Ye nodded. She was a bit confused herself, but she figured Xiong Duoduo's interpretation was close to the truth.

Xiong Yuan and Tian Xiu remained silent, perhaps still trying to process everything. Yue Chen, however, couldn't bear it any longer.

During their previous conversation, he had figured out the relationship between Yuan Jue and Mo Xi, and understood why Ruan Qiuqiu wanted to trade for treasures. A theory began to form in his mind.

He was bursting with things he wanted to say, and seeing that Xiong Duoduo hadn't grasped anything, he couldn't hold back.

“Stupid demon,” Yue Chen said irritably. “Do you know that demons have talents?”

“The more powerful the talent, the later and harder it is to awaken. For example, your enemy, Mo Xi, his talent is creating spatial passages.” Yue Chen continued, “And according to what you just said, Mo Xi treated Yuan Jue and Ruan Qiuqiu as subjects for cultivating 'fruit,' which means Yuan Jue should also be a half-demon with decent talent.”

Xiong Duoduo nodded. “Yes, but what does that have to do with anything?”

“Of course it does.” Yue Chen touched his horns. “Stupid bear, you can understand it this way. Originally, you might all have been killed by Mo Xi, which stimulated that wolf, awakening his talent. Then, after a series of events, he came back to save you.”

Xiong Duoduo nodded, seemingly understanding, while Tian Xiu seemed to grasp something, his expression complex.

Yue Chen continued, “But I don't know what his talent is… Perhaps reincarnation?”

Unsure, Yue Chen's voice gradually trailed off, his words becoming little more than a mumbling guess.

Tian Ye shooed the male demons out, telling them to take the opportunity to exchange some of the cave's goods for food.

Xiong Duoduo and Xiong Yuan set off. Yue Chen, acting like a lord, commandeered all the dried beef and sat by the Fire Warm Grass, eating.

Tian Xiu hesitated, then walked over to Tian Ye, whispered something to her, and turned to leave the cave.

Tian Ye sat by the bed, worriedly watching Ruan Qiuqiu, her mind racing through a series of seemingly feasible yet also impossible plans.

…

Ruan Qiuqiu felt as if she were lost in a thick fog.

From the moment she realized what was happening, her consciousness sank rapidly, piercing through a hazy sea of clouds, seemingly following the cycle of time back to a past that had already been altered.

She saw the familiar cave at the edge of the Yan Wolf Tribe's forest.

Beneath her feet was soft snow. The sky remained overcast with dark, heavy clouds. A biting wind swept past, making Ruan Qiuqiu shiver uncontrollably.

Ruan Qiuqiu looked down at her fur-lined boots, then raised a hand to pinch her cheek. The pain felt real, as if everything was truly happening.

She carried a vine-woven basket containing a few medicinal herbs she had just dug up.

Yue Chen's words echoed clearly in her mind, making it difficult for her to discern whether she was truly reliving her memories.

If she was indeed in her past memories, shouldn't she and Mr. Big Bad Wolf be preparing to flee?

Thinking of that heavy, painful memory she was reluctant to revisit, Ruan Qiuqiu's hands trembled.

She gazed at the familiar yet strange wooden door, her eyes stinging.

What was this? Was she going to have to completely relive the pain of separating from Mr. Big Bad Wolf?

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