Marrying the Soft-hearted Villain

Because of the numerous unforeseen events, they weren't far from the Winter Bear Tribe, so Big Eagle simply transformed into his human form.

This was the first time Ruan Qiuqiu had seen Tian Xiu's human form—

His features were well-defined, and he looked rather resolute. However, he didn't appear to be in his early twenties; instead, he had the look of a more mature man.

“Xiong Yuan, Xiong Duoduo, what in the world is going on?” Tian Xiu pointed at the strange cub in Xiong Yuan's arms, his brow twitching.

“…” Hearing the name Xiong Duoduo, the corners of Ruan Qiuqiu's lips curled upwards involuntarily. The hand pushing Big Gray Wolf Mister’s “wheelchair” tightened its grip, suppressing her laughter.

If she wasn't mistaken, the demon called Xiong Duoduo was a young man who looked about seventeen or eighteen years old. The name was a bit peculiar.

But she quickly controlled her expression, took a deep breath, and focused on listening to the two bears' explanation.

Grandmother Ruyi waved her hand. “It's getting dark. Let's talk as we walk.”

The demons agreed. Ruan Qiuqiu pushed Big Gray Wolf Mister and heard Xiong Yuan gritting his teeth. “It was that old Black Python.”

“Old Black Python?” Ruan Qiuqiu was just about to ask when she realized Tian Xiu had already voiced her question. She immediately fell silent and continued to quietly push the wolf.

“It's an old Black Python demon who has lived for over three hundred years.” Xiong Duoduo explained from the side. “His strength is at the early stage of Tier Four. He used to live in the extreme south, but suddenly moved to the vicinity of our tribe half a year ago.”

Xiong Duoduo's tone became tinged with a hint of gravity as he spoke. “At first, everyone thought he was a good demon and went to visit him, but who knew we would see many battered cubs in his courtyard.”

Ruan Qiuqiu paused in her steps, her brows furrowing.

Xiong Duoduo gritted his teeth. “That old python also seemed to have suffered some injuries. At the time, the Old Black Python explained that their family had been attacked by demonic creatures…”

“And you believed him?” Grandmother Ruyi said coldly. “Don't tell me you even sent him a lot of medicinal herbs out of pity.”

As Grandmother Ruyi's voice fell, Ruan Qiuqiu noticed, with some exasperation, a flash of embarrassment on Xiong Duoduo's face.

Having the foolish thing they had done pointed out by Grandmother Ruyi, Xiong Duoduo seemed at a loss. He awkwardly scratched his head. “That's right…”

He seemed to want to prove that he wasn't that stupid and hurriedly added, “But later we realized something was wrong, so we stopped giving them.”

Ruan Qiuqiu “…” Although the Winter Bear Tribe's bears had stopped giving him herbs, the Black Python demon, accustomed to receiving benefits, certainly wouldn't let go of such an easily exploitable tribe so readily.

Moreover, it was strange that he would suddenly appear near the Winter Bear Tribe. Perhaps he had ulterior motives from the very beginning.

“Later, the number of cubs in the Black Python demon's courtyard decreased for some unknown reason. By the time we realized something was wrong and wanted to rescue the cubs, the beast tide came…” Xiong Yuan added, his voice filled with self-blame.

Ruan Qiuqiu was silent. When the beast tide came, the Winter Bear Tribe was already overwhelmed trying to protect themselves. The Black Python demon had early Tier Four strength; even if they wanted to rescue the cubs, they were powerless.

“Then what about this one? Why did the Demonic Explosion Stone detonate when it touched you bear demons?” Grandmother Ruyi continued to question.

Xiong Yuan looked bewildered at her words. After a moment, he suddenly realized, a flash of hatred in his eyes. “Before we left, the Black Python demon visited the Clan Leader once, saying he wanted to live on the back mountain.”

“The Clan Leader didn't agree. Could that beast have held a grudge against us because of this?”

Ruan Qiuqiu asked Xiong Yuan, “Is your Clan Leader also a Tier Four expert?”

Xiong Yuan nodded, then surprise flashed across his eyes. “How did you know? Our Clan Leader is a Tier Four peak Giant Panda demon, very formidable!”

Ruan Qiuqiu “…” She was suddenly speechless.

If a tribe was full of weaklings, given the Black Python demon's tendency to abuse cubs, he wouldn't have hesitated to attack directly.

The Black Python demon most likely got the news from somewhere about the barrier on the back mountain of the Winter Bear Tribe and the abundant spiritual energy there, which was why he moved in.

To be honest, the Winter Bear Tribe had a good geographical location, a small population, and a large amount of spiritual energy within the barrier on the back mountain. It could be said to be a desirable piece of territory. The fact that it hadn't been targeted for so long was a testament to Clan Leader Grandpa's formidable fighting strength.

After all, the Clan Leader of the Wind Lion Tribe she used to belong to only had early Tier Four strength.

Clan Leader Grandpa not dealing with that Black Python demon probably had its reasons.

Ruan Qiuqiu pondered and exchanged a glance with Grandmother Ruyi, both seeing a hint of helplessness in each other's eyes.

The Winter Bear Tribe was indeed a good place to live, and the bears were mostly adorable, just a bit too simple-minded…

“Damn it!” Xiong Duoduo was furious. “Why am I so weak? If I were as strong as Grandpa, I would have beaten that Black Python to a pulp!”

Beaten to a pulp.

Ruan Qiuqiu's lips curved, a plan gradually forming in her mind.

Big Gray Wolf Mister listened quietly to Xiong Yuan and Xiong Duoduo, his lips pursed, remaining silent, his thoughts unknown.

As they were about to reach the tribe, the Xiong Duoduo brothers finally reacted.

Xiong Duoduo turned his head, looked at Ruan Qiuqiu pushing the wheelchair, and belatedly trembled. “Wait, Madam Yuan, why are you following us?”

Ruan Qiuqiu blinked at his foolish expression and teased him with a smile. “Starting today, we're moving in.”

Xiong Duoduo “…………”

He wore a dazed expression, as if struck by lightning, speechless for a long time.

Xiong Yuan looked at the pile of things on the willow cart and finally reacted after a long while. “No wonder… Who would be foolish enough to want to camp in the forest in the middle of winter…”

Ruan Qiuqiu “…………” What on earth was going on in these two bears' minds?

She slowly pushed Yuan Jue, her palms sweating slightly from nervousness.

She knew Big Gray Wolf Mister’s reputation wasn't very good outside, and she also knew he couldn't control his demonic energy very well before, unintentionally hurting some demons. Therefore, she had always worried about whether they would be accepted by these bears, like they were in the Flame Wolf Tribe.

The originally noisy atmosphere disappeared, replaced by a terrifying silence.

Ruan Qiuqiu looked at the silent Xiong Duoduo and Xiong Yuan brothers, her heart gradually sinking.

“…” Xiong Duoduo turned his head, glanced at Yuan Jue and Ruan Qiuqiu a couple of times, then sighed helplessly. “I guess Grandpa must have agreed. Then you can stay! Have you chosen a cave? There are still many empty caves in our tribe.”

As Xiong Duoduo spoke, his eyes lit up, seemingly intending to help them move.

In fact, that was exactly what he was thinking.

At first, he was a little afraid of Yuan Jue, worried that he would be unlucky if he got close.

But from the time they met until now, more than ten minutes had passed. He and his brother had been within a meter of Yuan Jue several times, but he hadn't felt any discomfort.

Brother Diao was close enough to Yuan Jue, and hadn't he been alive and kicking all the way?

Since the rumors were false, and Yuan Jue had just saved his brother and the cub, why should he dislike him?

Xiong Yuan also smiled and looked at Qing Ruyi. “What about this Auntie? Is she also moving to our tribe?”

Qing Ruyi stroked her chin and said aloofly, “Call me Grandmother.”

Xiong Yuan “？？？”

Ruan Qiuqiu “…”

Tian Xiu chuckled softly from the side and slowly explained how Grandmother Ruyi had moved in two days ago.

Looking at the demons walking ahead, getting along harmoniously, she slowly relaxed.

She bent down slightly and whispered softly in Big Gray Wolf Mister’s ear, who had been silent, “Husband, that's great.”

Yuan Jue had already put away his pointed ears and big tail, and now he looked like an ordinary human.

Hearing Ruan Qiuqiu's words, his earlobes slowly reddened. After a while, he seemed to casually turn his head slightly. “…Mm.”

The wolf wasn't happy (?), it was just that his little wife's voice sounded very happy, and he didn't want to disappoint her.

Under the white fur, the tightly furrowed, dark brows of Big Gray Wolf Mister, which had been slightly gloomy and ferocious, slowly relaxed a bit.

…

As the sky darkened, Ruan Qiuqiu and the others finally arrived near the back mountain barrier.

As soon as they arrived at the tribe, Xiong Duoduo and Xiong Yuan hurried off to give the medicinal herbs to Clan Leader Grandpa. After helping them move their belongings into the cave, Grandmother Ruyi also left.

Big Eagle, holding the pitiful cub in his arms, thought for a moment and then bid farewell to Ruan Qiuqiu and the others, going down the back mountain to find Clan Leader Grandpa.

Before the sky completely darkened, Ruan Qiuqiu set up the stone stove, lit some firewood, and took a torch in hand before she began to examine her and Big Gray Wolf Mister's new home.

The cave had already been cleaned; it was very clean inside, and the ground was flat and at a suitable height.

The cave entrance was about the same size as their previous one, but the open space inside was a bit smaller.

Walking about ten steps further in, one could see two forks. Two steps to the left was a very large cave, almost impervious to wind.

This cave was even larger than their previous “master bedroom” and even had a slit that resembled a “window.” It had a willow branch frame and could be opened for ventilation. Grandmother Ruyi had likely helped with this.

Entering to the right led to a relatively large open space, forming a storage area. A little further in, one could see two smaller caves.

One was a smaller storage room, but a “window” had been opened at the top of the sloping ceiling, allowing for decent lighting.

The other was a cave half the size of the one on the left. It also had a small “window,” and even a single stone bed, a simple stone table, and stone stools. It looked like a single bedroom.

The temperature in the cave was much higher than outside, and it was well protected from the wind. The lighting was also much better than their previous dwelling.

More importantly, as soon as she entered this cave, Ruan Qiuqiu felt that the surrounding spiritual energy was more than ten times denser than in their previous home.

The Spirit Gathering Pearl felt faintly warm. Ruan Qiuqiu's eyes brightened. If she could cultivate in this place, even if she couldn't get spirit stones for a while, Big Gray Wolf Mister’s injuries could still improve a lot.

She finished inspecting all the rooms, and Big Gray Wolf Mister had already placed their marriage bed in the largest cave, the one with the densest spiritual energy.

“I'm back.” Ruan Qiuqiu trotted to his side and saw the wolf gracefully spreading the animal skin mat on the marriage bed.

She vaguely saw that something seemed to be carved on the marriage bed, but it flashed by too quickly, and she didn't see it clearly.

The spell's duration had ended, and he didn't have the demonic power to cast another one, so the somewhat guilty wolf calmly shook his hand and nodded aloofly. “Mm.”

Ruan Qiuqiu “…”

She explained the layout of the cave. When she mentioned the other single stone bed, the corners of Yuan Jue's lips uncontrollably turned downwards.

The bad feeling in his heart grew stronger, and his chest ached.

“This place is much bigger than our previous one, so I was thinking, besides the sleeping area, the other two caves could be used like this…” Ruan Qiuqiu was about to tell her wolf husband her plans when she noticed that the atmosphere around Big Gray Wolf Mister seemed a bit off.

“What's wrong?” Ruan Qiuqiu followed the fragmented light coming in from outside the cave and saw the fine hairs on Yuan Jue's handsome face.

She didn't know that the wolf had firmly memorized the information about their new home.

The new home had four small caves. His little wife said that besides the sleeping area, there were two other caves. Did that mean she wanted to sleep separately from him?

Yuan Jue's knuckles turned white from clenching his fists. His eyelashes trembled, and his voice was husky, low, and aggrieved. “Wife, are you going to sleep separately from the wolf?”

ʕ•́ᴥ•̀ʔっ

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