Jian Dan knew the Nine-Tails probably had questions for her. Besides, she couldn't let her Mo Yue identity slip. Staying behind worked perfectly, especially since she could use this chance to hand over the gift she'd prepared for Xiao Yue.
After the people from the Heavenly Sword Sect bowed to the Nine-Tails and stepped out of the cave residence, they didn't immediately follow Bai Jue out of the beast clan's territory. Jian Mao spoke with polite restraint.
"Bai Jue Daoyou, the Beast Lord probably won't keep Junior Sister Jian Lu for long. Since we came out together, naturally we should return to the Sect together. Please allow us to wait here for her."
"Of course. The Beast Lord's probably just catching up with Jian Lu Daoyou. It won't take long. Please wait a moment."
Bai Jue returned the bow without objecting.
People from the other sects were itching to go home, but each of them still left behind a message jade slip. After all, they only made it back safely because Jian Lu stayed behind to cover their retreat, and she even got injured for their sake. They had to acknowledge that debt.
Jian Jing accepted the jade slips with a cheerful squint in her eyes. She thanked them on behalf of her junior sister, and only then did everyone officially part ways.
Kuang Dao was the last to leave. Before he went, he also left a jade slip and asked Jian Jing to pass on a message. Once he returned to the loose cultivator alliance, he planned to go into seclusion for a while, so his master Qian Wanguan might visit Jian Lu Zūnshàng.
Jian Jing understood instantly. Among the loose cultivators, Kuang Dao was the only one who survived the trip. No one knew how the alliance would divide the resources he brought back. Qian Wanguan might not be able to shield him from the aftermath and would probably come hide in the Heavenly Sword Sect.
All of that still depended on Jian Lu's attitude, though. Since she accepted the jade slip and said she'd relay the message, Kuang Dao finally relaxed. Without delaying another second, he chased after the others, left beast territory safely, and rushed back to the alliance at full speed.
"Qian Wanguan from the loose cultivator alliance is pretty lucky. He ended up with a disciple who actually plans ahead."
Jian Chun laughed quietly.
"Yeah. Junior Sister mentioned before that Kuang Dao stepped onto the path of cultivation through the blade back in the mortal world. Qian Wanguan noticed him by chance and took him in. Even though he's a dao cultivator and can't guide Kuang Dao directly, he still tilted resources heavily in his favor. Kuang Dao worked hard enough to earn what he has now. After everything he experienced this time, I bet his cultivation's going to rise again when he gets back."
Jian Jing tucked the jade slips away and smiled as she explained. They all respected cultivators who clawed their way up through hardship. After traveling together through so many dangerous situations, Kuang Dao's performance had been solid. He never dragged anyone down despite having lower cultivation.
Inside the cave residence, the Nine-Tails had already sent the little yellow sparrow to summon Xiao Yue. She lounged on her seat with lazy grace while chatting with Jian Dan, though most of it was her asking and Jian Dan answering.
"You guys were lucky this time. You actually brought back so much vital information. This matters to everyone in Lingyun Continent."
"It was everyone's effort. We didn't expect to gain this much either."
"Still, that sword hanging over everyone's head is about to fall. On the bright side, Xiao Yue's bloodline evolved and gave my beast clan an extra boost."
"Xiao Yue's sharp. I'm guessing he sensed her opportunity coming, so he insisted on following me. Good thing she did. Without him, we really might not have made it back."
That was the truth. Jian Dan was genuinely grateful she trusted Xiao Yue in the first place. That trust led them all the way home.
"The little one actually saw blood this time. His aura looks good. He's about to break through to the sixth rank."
"Yeah. His bloodline awakened and unlocked his inheritance. His cultivation's only going to grow smoother from here on. With the Nine-Tails Beast Lord guiding him, he'll definitely stand on his own soon."
Jian Dan offered her flattery with an easy smile.
The Nine-Tails clearly enjoyed it. Right then, Lang Xiao arrived with Xiao Yue. The heavy gloom that used to cling to him was gone. His eyebrows, the corners of his eyes, even the scar on his face seemed to be smiling.
"Greetings, Beast Lord!"
"Good. Now you can relax. Stop coming to me to cry."
The Nine-Tails couldn't resist rolling her eyes.
For the past hundred years, Lang Xiao would show up every now and then to complain about his child. Where was he? Why wasn't there news? Did something happen? He bothered her so much she eventually ran off and left Bai Jue to deal with him.
Bai Jue always kept a blank face. He'd let Lang Xiao cry beside him while he calmly managed beast clan affairs. Only after Lang Xiao finished would he summarize everything with one line.
"Don't worry. Xiao Yue should be back soon."
That one sentence kept Lang Xiao going for a century.
During that time he even went to the Heavenly Demon Palace several times to find Mo Yue. Every time he went, he got the same answer.
"Mo Yue Zūnshàng accepted the Zhēnzūn Order and is out on assignment."
Helpless, he kept returning to search for the Nine-Tails and Bai Jue. Since he never got any useful information, his temper worsened and he beat nearly every wolf clan in beast territory, unifying them in the process.
Since Lang Xiao never delayed his cultivation or his training and even managed to unite the wolf clans while throwing tantrums, the Nine-Tails and Bai Jue just looked the other way. Whenever they started getting impatient, he always sensed it and excused himself before they could kick him out. Because of that, the Nine-Tails finally asked today's question.
"Hehe, I've always trusted the Beast Lord and Bai Jue Zūnshàng. Now that Xiao Yue's back and doing so well, I can't be happier."
Lang Xiao grinned.
Xiao Yue, on the other hand, was already impatient. He dashed straight toward Jian Dan.
Yesterday he'd returned to the clan to receive the full welcome of the Howling Moon Wolves. The elders crowded around him one after another. When he got the message today, he'd been telling the clan about her experiences.
"Jian Lu, are you going back to the Heavenly Sword Sect?"
===
Yeah, my mood's finally back. I think what really lifted it was realizing I've already caught up to the latest raw chapters for After Killing Dao Partner, the Villainess Becomes the Demon Ancestor and The Villainess Refuses to Repent. It honestly felt like my "burden" shrank again, and I got this weird little sense of accomplishment. LOL.
So now I can actually focus on True Heir of Chaos: From Villainess to Empress, Stealing Luck from the Heavenly Dao's Favorite, and Troublemaker's Guide to Immortality on Webnovel, since The Cube Queen's Apocalypse Feast already has 200 draft chapters waiting.
On my AO3 side, My VR Games Terrify the World is also under 50 chapters, and How I Fed the World My Nightmares is almost fully translated too. By the way, How I Fed the World My Nightmares has a former Escape Room Boss as the MC, and she's also a newborn god. So yes, we literally have a god as the main character. Later her believers build a religion around her to fight back against the Evil God trying to devour the world. I think it eventually turns into a god versus god showdown… I mean, I haven't finished translating it yet, so who knows.
Oh, and Summoning Players: From Magistrate to Monarch on my AO3 is officially tagged NoCP, but it definitely has yuri subtext. The MC and her "fiance" candidate clearly have feelings for each other, and there's even a player who falls for the same woman. Basically, the original body was living disguised as a man, then later admitted she was actually a woman. While she was still "male," her teacher wanted to match her with his daughter, but that fell through when she revealed her real gender. Now the current MC is using that body because the original died while traveling, and she unexpectedly inherited her feelings for that woman. The "romance" stays mostly one sided in the narration, like they never talk about it out loud, but their thoughts and body language keep screaming that they like each other. It's just never official. If you want to check it out, it's under my username "Rikhi."
And I Became a Fairy and Lived Forever in the Fairy World, the one I'm rewriting on Webnovel and also posting on AO3, is now at chapter 292: Five Elements Mountain?
Thanks for everything and for being so patient with me~