Marrying the Soft-hearted Villain

Ruan Qiuqiu pondered the fleeting kiss, a thin layer of sweat gradually beading on her forehead.

The surging spiritual energy within her quickly left her no room to think about anything else. Her whole body trembled slightly, and she bit her lip with all her might, preventing herself from making any embarrassing sounds.

She poured all her focus into cultivating the Tongyuan Technique. Her meridians, which had already reached their limit, began to expand again. A wave of pain swiftly washed over her entire body.

Fortunately, the pain wasn't unbearable.

Compared to the other, more intense and peculiar sensations, the pain was the most acceptable.

Mr. Big Bad Wolf wasn't having an easy time either. His fingers interlaced with Qiuqiu's, his body grew hotter and hotter, and even his narrow, crimson eyes began to burn.

With his other sweat-drenched hand, he laboriously pulled off the fur strip, now mostly soaked with sweat and involuntary tears.

Outside the softly lit cave, a blizzard raged, coating the cliff face and jagged rocks with a thin layer of silver.

But inside the new bridal chamber, concealed by a thick animal hide curtain, he and his long-coveted little wife were intertwined, their spiritual energy flowing together as they cultivated.

His ears flushed red. By the time Yuan Jue came to his senses, his tail had already wrapped tightly around Ruan Qiuqiu's waist.

A crystal drop of sweat trickled down his forehead. His eyes, which had been devoid of light for so long, gradually flickered with starlight.

His vision slowly cleared, but it was still like looking through a thick veil of mist, hazy and indistinct.

As Qiuqiu channeled more and more spiritual energy to him, the cracks on the Big Bad Wolf's shattered demon core gradually disappeared. His magic core strengthened at a rate comparable to cultivating at the edge of a barrier, where spiritual energy was abundant.

Although the sensations coursing through Big Bad Wolf and Qiuqiu were difficult to endure, they shared a strange unspoken understanding. Apart from the occasional heavier breaths when they couldn't suppress their reactions, both the wolf and the woman focused all their attention on cultivation, gradually becoming completely immersed.

The spiritual energy within the back mountain barrier seemed to sense their guidance, flowing towards the cave where Qiuqiu and Big Bad Wolf resided at a faster rate than usual.

Qing Ruyi, who was absorbing spiritual energy to prolong Mo Bugui's life, also noticed the unusual flow of spiritual energy.

After a round of energy transfer, Qing Ruyi opened her eyes in confusion. She carefully sensed the direction of the spiritual energy flow, a smile gracing her lips.

Mo Bugui, looking younger than before, gazed at his beloved and asked in a gentle voice, "What's wrong?"

Qing Ruyi smiled and snuggled closer to him. "It's a good thing. Qiuqiu and the wolf cub's strength is about to increase again."

As she spoke, she felt a deep sense of wonder. It hadn't been long, yet their strength was soaring again.

After absorbing so much spiritual energy, she probably wouldn't be able to defeat the wolf cub once Yuan Jue and Qiuqiu woke up from their cultivation.

Her master, Mo Xi, was a cautious demon. When he discovered that Yuan Jue was half-demon, half-yokai, he spent a considerable amount of time investigating his growth trajectory, ultimately concluding that Yuan Jue possessed decent talent for a mixed-blood. Even when severely injured, he wouldn't easily die in winter. However, under harsh conditions, his talent was insufficient for him to recover his strength.

Even in the most improbable scenario, it would be impossible for him to break through two major realms and reach the seventh rank in just two months.

That's why he wanted to cultivate a heart to his liking, using the most ancient method of the abyss.

But who could have imagined that Mr. Big Bad Wolf's strength would increase so rapidly after meeting Ruan Qiuqiu?

No, perhaps her master had considered it, but such a near-impossible, close-to-zero possibility could be completely disregarded.

Not to mention, she had unexpectedly encountered her "deceased" Mo Gege here.

Qing Ruyi sighed, her brows furrowing slightly.

Ten days were almost up. She had to feed the demonic Gu with a tenth of her demonic blood to contact her master.

Her eyelids drooped, and a hint of worry appeared in her eyes.

…

The flow of spiritual energy in the back mountain naturally attracted the attention of Tian Xiu, Xiong Duoduo, and other relatively strong yokai.

"Hoo hoo~ (Brother, why do I feel like the spiritual energy here has decreased?)," Xiong Duoduo, transformed into his panda form and sitting cross-legged on his stone bed picking at his feet while cultivating, couldn't help but open his eyes and look at Xiong Yuan, who was sleeping and cultivating on the opposite stone bed.

Xiong Yuan laboriously rolled over, patted his not-so-thick belly, and let out two low growls, "Woo~ (It seems like it has? Is Grandpa Patriarch cultivating?)"

The two bears immediately climbed down from their stone beds, intending to investigate outside the cave.

Xiong Duoduo hesitated for a moment, then picked up a fur cloak that Grandpa Patriarch had given him that evening and put it on.

Both bears were quite rough around the edges. Their cave was clean and bare, with nothing but shed fur; not even a fur blanket.

After all, the Winter Bear Tribe was truly poor. They weren't married, and their strength was sufficient to keep them warm in winter simply by transforming into their yokai forms and sleeping in the cave. When they went out, they wore their own fur. They were bachelors, with no female yokai to impress.

However, Xiong Duoduo looked rather pathetic after selling his fur, so Grandpa Patriarch, unable to bear the sight, gave him an old fur blanket, usually used for cubs, to wear as a cloak.

As soon as the two bears emerged from their cave, they bumped into Tian Xiu, the Great Eagle, who had also sensed something amiss and come out to investigate.

Although not a member of the Winter Bear Tribe, Tian Xiu had helped them a great deal. Coupled with his considerable strength, which allowed him to resist the negligible demonic energy in the back mountain's spiritual energy, Grandpa Patriarch had allowed him to live in a clean little cave at the foot of the back mountain.

"Hoo! (Brother Eagle!)," Xiong Duoduo greeted Tian Xiu enthusiastically, a smile appearing on his somewhat bald, furry panda face.

Tian Xiu, in his human form, thought, "…" He couldn't bear to look at the almost-bald bear making such an expression.

"It's Yuan Jue's cave," Tian Xiu, whose strength surpassed the two bear brothers, quickly identified the direction of the spiritual energy flow.

"Ao? (How can this be?)," Xiong Yuan asked curiously.

"…" Tian Xiu, having come from the relatively powerful Sand Tribe, was slightly speechless at Xiong Yuan's naive question. He patiently explained, "When cultivating and advancing in rank, one absorbs a large amount of spiritual energy. This kind of situation occurs occasionally."

The eagle had wanted to ask, 'Doesn't your tribe's powerful yokai cause a similar commotion when they advance?', but considering the current weak state of the Winter Bear Tribe, with few strong yokai, he wisely held his tongue.

Xiong Yuan quickly recalled that when the Winter Bear Tribe was still relatively strong, his uncles and elders seemed to cause such a stir when they cultivated.

"Ao. (So that's it.)," Xiong Duoduo, quicker on the uptake, smiled good-naturedly, showing no sign of displeasure.

"Hoo hoo~ (Then Yuan Jue and Madam Yuan must successfully break through!)," Xiong Yuan added.

Soon, several other bears residing at the foot of the mountain, whose strength was around the second rank, also emerged. Even Grandpa Patriarch was alerted by the commotion. The four-meter-tall giant panda, covered in cubs, slowly made his way to the foot of the mountain.

After hearing the two brothers' explanation, the bears quickly understood.

Grandpa Patriarch chuckled, his fur shaking and causing the cubs clinging to him to laugh.

Tian Xiu was secretly surprised by the open-mindedness and blessings of the Winter Bear Tribe.

He didn't know about the forbidden area and the damaged barrier in the back mountain. He assumed that the total amount of spiritual energy in the back mountain was limited. Therefore, the more spiritual energy Yuan Jue and Ruan Qiuqiu absorbed, the less would be left for the Winter Bear Tribe.

Yet, they didn't seem to mind.

But Tian Xiu didn't know that the Winter Bear Tribe had few powerful yokai and relied heavily on Grandpa Patriarch and a few other relatively strong bears. Most of their tribe was starving, and many bears couldn't even get enough to eat. Even with abundant spiritual energy, they wouldn't be able to absorb it.

Moreover, Yuan Jue had been abandoned by the Flame Wolf Tribe. Now that he had moved here, he was considered a member of the Winter Bear Tribe.

The stronger he was, the better it was for the entire tribe.

Besides, the healing water beads Qiuqiu brought had saved the lives of many weak bears. What was a little spiritual energy in exchange for that?

Grandpa Patriarch even secretly thought that perhaps, after absorbing so much spiritual energy, the young couple might feel embarrassed and hunt more food and hides to contribute to the tribe.

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