After Being Struck By The Love Gu, I Reached A Happy Ending With My Frail Best Friend - Chapter 13

“Who? Who kidnapped the young princess?!”

“Shen Fangzhou… Isn’t she the chief disciple of the human race’s Sword Pavilion? The legendary possessor of Innate Sword Bones, one in ten thousand. Hmph. Is she trying to provoke a war between the two races?”

“Shh, you can’t say things like that carelessly. I heard Her Majesty reached Huizhou Pass a day ago and only hurried back after learning the young princess had been abducted. Strictly speaking, it’s hard to say which side struck first.”

“All right, all right! Everyone, look over here! Listen to me!”

The city gate was in utter chaos.

Left with no other choice, a White Eagle demon guard struck a bronze gong and pointed repeatedly at the portraits pasted on the wall.

“These are the two! One is Shen Fangzhou, who carries a case of swords on her back. The other is Xie Guiwan, who wears white and carries nothing at all! Report any clues immediately. The reward is one hundred gold zhu!”

At that moment, a question from somewhere in the crowd interrupted the guard.

“What use is knowing only that? Are these two really in Yaodu?”

The question made perfect sense.

After kidnapping the demon princess, would they really throw themselves into the demon realm’s net?

As far as the crowd was concerned, those cunning humans had probably already sneaked home.

The White Eagle guard gave a cold snort and slapped Shen Fangzhou’s portrait even harder.

“That is precisely why these two are said to be outrageously bold! They hold Her Majesty in contempt. Fortunately, the young princess has her own methods and has already confirmed that they are here in Yaodu!”

“Ah—”

An uproar broke out on all sides.

The middle-aged demon women began indignantly defending their pitiful young princess. They resolved that even if they had to search heaven and earth today, they would find these two human traffickers and hang them from the streetlamps.

Not for the reward of one hundred gold zhu, but simply to vent their anger.

The White Eagle guard continued spitting everywhere as she tried to mobilize the demon populace.

She did not notice that two people at the back of the crowd had quietly slipped away and joined the line to enter the city.

Disguised as a black-cat demon, Shen Fangzhou pondered aloud,

“Did Zhou Xu place some kind of tracking talisman on us? Or is she following our scent? Just what species is the demon royal family, anyway, to have senses this sharp?”

She should have released Zhou Xu later.

Now that Zhou Xu had returned ahead of them and issued a warrant, their escape had become much more difficult.

Still, the Crane Feather was probably truly important to the demon race.

The wanted notice did not mention it at all, likely because they feared causing panic.

Xie Guiwan, who wore a pair of fox ears atop her head, tilted her head without moving her gaze much.

“Perhaps she is a cat with especially sharp hearing. For instance… someone who looks like you do now.”

“Oh, this?”

Shen Fangzhou touched the furry ears created by her disguise.

“They feel quite nice. It’s just a little strange having them on my own head.”

When she looked up, she saw the intense amusement filling Sect Master Xie’s eyes.

For some reason, embarrassment suddenly rose in her heart.

She turned her head away, her tone unusually unnatural.

“Sect Master, don’t look at me like that.”

The system, watching from the side, was nearly falling apart.

“&￥% Shen Fangzhou, you’d better remember you still want to live! Put some distance between yourself and the female lead. I’m begging you.”

Shen Fangzhou straightened her back and condemned the filthy-minded system.

“Your head is full of obscene stories! Isn’t it perfectly normal for women to tease each other like this?”

“Yes, perfectly normal.”

The system spoke with heavy sarcasm.

“You’ve shared rooms all the way here, stopped by the western side of the demon realm to look at the sea, and now you’ve dressed up as a little cat. What next? Are you trying to collect the three essential lesbian experiences in another world?”

Shen Fangzhou clicked her tongue.

“I can’t be bothered with you. You’re making things up again.”

Before transmigrating into the novel, she had been committed to staying single.

Romance was impossible in this lifetime.

The system was about to argue when it realized it had been muted again.

The system: You lust-blinded bastard, Shen Fangzhou, I &（￥%%&%&…

Yaodu was the foremost city of the demon realm.

It was crowded, and trade flowed through it constantly.

Shen Fangzhou had come here partly to draw Zhou Han’s attention and partly to see the Demon Palace with her own eyes.

In the original novel, Bian Yingxue and Xie Guiwan had not initially held an especially hostile attitude toward the demon realm.

By the middle of the story, the Sword Pavilion had even intended to negotiate peace with Zhou Han.

But once the two sides arranged to meet inside the Demon Palace—

Xie Guiwan and the Sword Pavilion Master had both canceled the negotiations on the spot and severed all relations with the demon race.

The original text attributed the incident to the Crane Feather.

When Sword Pavilion Master Qi Yu saw that it had been broken in half, she believed Zhou Han had disrespected the immortal realm and immediately fought her.

From then onward, the two sides began a relentless war to the death.

Shen Fangzhou had read that section too quickly at the time.

Now that she thought back on it, the entire situation was full of inconsistencies.

Setting aside whether Qi Yu would truly turn hostile over a single feather, a war between the two races would cause countless deaths.

Given the personalities of Xie Guiwan and Qi Yu, neither would declare war so hastily.

Shen Fangzhou considered the matter.

If the black shadow at the end of the book was the true final enemy, then Zhou Han could obviously form a united front with them.

Together, they could build a harmonious and beautiful ecosystem across the Three Realms.

They simply needed to learn where the supposedly irreconcilable conflict between the demon and human races truly lay.

Yaodu was extremely efficient.

Before long, the two reached the inspection point at the city gate.

Shen Fangzhou handed over the demon identity documents she had stolen from the inn and smiled brightly, preparing to deceive them completely.

“A black cat and a fox?”

The documents showed no problems, but the Black Eagle guard frowned while holding the entry stamp.

“I’ve never heard of these two races getting along. Why have you come to Yaodu together?”

Shen Fangzhou answered smoothly,

“Our tribe was destroyed by humans. After becoming homeless wanderers, we decided to live together. I’m her older sister. This time, I’m bringing her to Yaodu to seek refuge with family.”

“Explain what you mean by seeking refuge. Also, can you speak faster?”

The guard immediately became suspicious, wondering whether these two demons intended to immigrate.

Over the past several days, Shen Fangzhou had grown accustomed to speaking slowly so that the temporarily deaf sect master could read her lips.

Hearing the guard’s complaint, she immediately realized the problem and changed her explanation.

“Oh, I mean we came to contribute to Yaodu’s continued growth and strength! We’ll work hard to make the demon race great again! We’ll conquer the immortal realm above and crush the human realm below, unite the world, and dominate everything! Make the demon race great again!”

“Good, good! What an excellent speech!”

The Black Eagle guard was deeply satisfied.

She had no idea what the final sentence meant, but it sounded extremely stirring.

Without hesitation, she stamped their documents and returned them with a sincere expression.

“It has been a long time since I saw such motivated young demons. I wish you both every success.”

The system: “…Imagine if you knew what they actually came here to do.”

Shen Fangzhou and Comrade Black Eagle exchanged a passionate look before solemnly parting.

After the two entered the city, Shen Fangzhou was about to say something to Xie Guiwan when she turned and noticed the expression on the woman beside her.

Xie Guiwan asked leisurely,

“What did you just say you were to me?”

Shen Fangzhou assumed she had not heard clearly.

She blinked and joked,

“I said I’m your older sister, Sect Master.”

In terms of actual age, Xie Guiwan was four years older than Shen Fangzhou.

But Shen Fangzhou had long viewed the female lead as someone she needed to protect, so claiming the position of elder felt entirely justified.

Xie Guiwan smiled ambiguously.

“I didn’t see what you said.”

“I said I’m your—”

The words older sister were about to leave Shen Fangzhou’s mouth when she abruptly stopped herself.

She gave a quiet snort.

Sect Master, you really are quite wicked.

She had no intention of conceding.

Instead, she took Xie Guiwan’s left hand and traced across it as she had done many times before, writing the two unspoken words.

Shen Fangzhou lowered her eyes and wrote carefully.

Her slightly callused fingertip slowly crossed Xie Guiwan’s palm, as though warmth were flowing between their hands.

Xie Guiwan paused.

Her open fingers instinctively tried to close, but the sly-eyed swordswoman before her prevented them from doing so.

The swordswoman looked triumphant.

“Now you know, Sect Master.”

How truly…

Disrespectful toward her elder.

Xie Guiwan felt she had misjudged her.

Where was the gentle, cautious chief disciple of the Sword Pavilion she had first met?

She raised an eyebrow and looked at Shen Fangzhou, her tone carrying deeper meaning.

“Sword Venerable Shen should perhaps study arithmetic more carefully. Judging by age, it seems someone else should be called the older sister.”

Shen Fangzhou hummed twice without answering.

The little black cat ears on her head swayed along with the movement as she began arguing shamelessly.

“Sect Master, that reasoning is flawed. There are many standards for deciding who is older and who is younger! Age is only one factor.”

“First, I can barely be considered the eldest senior sister at the Sword Pavilion. Second, I’ve spent many days traveling and tempering myself outside the sect. My entire body radiates a weariness far beyond my years.”

Xie Guiwan nearly laughed aloud.

“Shen Fangzhou, Sword Master Shen, who is barely over twenty—did you just claim to possess weariness beyond your years?”

Shen Fangzhou gave another hum and leaned closer, blinking at her.

“Of course. Look carefully, Sect Master. The words utter exhaustion are practically written beneath my eyes.”

“Whether by emotion or reason, it would not wrong you to call me Older Sister.”

“It would not wrong me?”

“Of course it wou—”

Shen Fangzhou suddenly froze.

The distance between them abruptly narrowed.

Xie Guiwan raised her hand and lightly hooked a finger beneath the green-robed swordswoman’s chin.

Their breathing seemed to strike directly against each other’s chests.

Shen Fangzhou’s mind went completely blank.

Even her usually beautiful, sharp eyes became vacant.

The Tianji Sect Master, whose cold and intimidating reputation had spread throughout the immortal realm, now wore a lazy expression.

Her clear, pale-brown eyes shifted faintly and met Shen Fangzhou’s without the slightest restraint.

The woman’s cool, pale fingers rested against the swordswoman’s somewhat slender jaw.

Like someone teasing a cat, she gently scratched beneath Shen Fangzhou’s chin.

Then her fingers glided upward like a long, graceful fish and straightened the two cat ears atop her head.

Xie Guiwan laughed softly.

“All right, then, Older Sister.”