Into the cage

Aside from those clever and multi-witted plant spirits, most demon-kin rarely dream.

Three hundred years since his last slumbering vision, Bai Yujing found himself in a dream once more. Unfortunately, this one was brief, and far from sweet.

In the dream, he had reverted to a hatchling snake, tucked away in the robes of the benefactor he yearned for. They were on a path leading down a mountain; the night moon was as clear as flowing water, making the little white snake look exceptionally pale and adorable.

An identical jade-carved snake hung from its neck, secured by a tightly woven red cord. The little snake bore the look of a creature pampered to the extreme. It swayed its head, coiling around the man’s wrist with fearless abandon, utterly oblivious to the road ahead.

After traveling for an unknown time, it finally sensed something amiss. It looked up at that blank, featureless face.

【”Benefactor, where are we going?”】 【”Down the mountain.”】 【”Why go down the mountain?”】

There was no answer.

A subtle unease rippled through its heart. The little snake stopped swaying and unconsciously bit the tip of its own tail. Soon, the premonition came true. The long mountain path finally reached its end.

The way ahead was bright with sunshine, yet the valley behind remained in eternal night. It was placed down at the boundary of dawn and dusk—the intersection of a beautiful dream and a nightmare.

Panic flooded it like a tide. The little snake, barely as thick as two fingers, struggled to turn back to the warmth of those robes, only to see the figure look down and “say”—

【”Qingqing, you are free.”】

—He doesn’t want me anymore.

The dream shattered. Childhood terror propelled Bai Yujing awake.

In the cold darkness, the first things he saw were several vertical bars, and then, a pair of eyes behind them. Still reeling from the grief of abandonment, the snake remained dazed. He didn’t immediately realize what the bars were, nor did he recognize who the eyes belonged to.

Su Jiu-shao looked at the little snake, which appeared devastated to its core. Her voice trembled with guilt: “I’m sorry, Senior… I’m so sorry…”

In the freezing night, the woman’s bright eyes overlapped with a pair from his memories. However, the girl in his memory had never cried like this.

…Qing羽! The child I raised with my own hands!

Bai Yujing fully jolted awake, memories of the moments before his blackout rushing back.

【Collection】, 【Level】…

Among those countless bizarre words was a name that made his heart shudder.

【Human Cultivator “Song Qing羽” collection complete. Tribulation-stage Cultivator collection progress…】

How dare that disgusting voice use a term like “collection”—a word for grading objects—in the same breath as Qing羽?!

Rage and confusion scorched his thoughts. He was never one for deep thinking; these consecutive mysteries felt as if they were about to split his head open. In a surge of agitation, he instinctively shook his head in the darkness, only to see a vast expanse of snowy-white scales shimmering under the moonlight.

“…”

The little snake froze. Finally, he remembered things that happened even before that eerie voice. He had drunk the wine Shen Fenglin offered, reverted to his true form before the crowd, and then…

Bai Yujing slowly looked up, finally realizing what the “bars” were.

—It was a gilded cage.

Seeing the white snake go still, as if finally understanding its situation, Su Jiu-shao’s heart twisted. She watched him for a moment, then closed her eyes and took a deep breath, as if making a final decision.

When she opened her eyes, the spiritual energy surrounding the cage shifted subtly. The Su family’s innate talent, the “Exquisite Heart,” could peer into heavenly secrets above and shield mortal eyes below. However, with her Foundation Establishment cultivation, she couldn’t maintain the shroud for long, even at full strength.

…There’s no time.

Su Jiu-shao gritted her teeth. The moment her hand touched the cage, the etched runes exploded at her fingertips, charring them instantly.

“…”

Bai Yujing snapped out of it, looking at her in shock.

The girl endured the pain, her voice trembling. “Senior, you shouldn’t have drunk that cup for me… You shouldn’t waste your sorrow on someone like me. Please, run!”

…What does she mean?

The forbidden curse began to crawl up her forearm. Su Jiu-shao spoke rapidly to the frozen snake: “Shen Fenglin saw through your disguise. He sent the second scale you gave him to the Changming Sect… He plans to trade your demon core and scales for a position as an Inner Disciple.”

…Ah, so it was Shen Fenglin who locked me in here.

Everything became clear in an instant. The child he raised, the “Little Benefactor” he spent three lifetimes to find, had personally handed over his scales—all for the sake of a grand future.

So the nightmare wasn’t fake. That person had pushed him away once again.

But should he thank fate this time? At least now he knew the reason. Unlike the first time, he wasn’t left discarded for a motive he couldn’t even fathom.

Su Jiu-shao watched the little snake. With its snowy tail curled and its body frozen, it looked both dazed and beautiful—a far cry from the haughty arrogance of its human form. Was all that coldness just a protective shell he wore?

Before she could finish the thought, the white snake flicked its tail. The pain in Su Jiu-shao’s arm vanished instantly, and her charred fingertips were restored as if they had never been touched by a curse.

She froze. The next moment, Bai Yujing curled himself back up without a word, showing no intention of leaving with her.

Su Jiu-shao grew frantic. “Senior, it’s not just the Changming Sect Leader who covets your core. I heard… I heard that an ‘Immortal Sovereign’ from the Great Realms might personally descend. You must flee!”

Bai Yujing remained listless. Hearing the title “Immortal Sovereign,” he instinctively associated it with the Changming Sect.

What “Immortal Sovereign” could the Changming Sect possibly have? Jin Yu, that soft-hearted fence-sitter? All his “Sovereign” elders combined aren’t fit to carry “that man’s” shoes.

Misfortune truly comes in batches. In his current state of bad luck, Su Jiu-shao’s words reminded him of a certain loathsome individual he hadn’t seen in a long time. Some memories are like pearls on a string; once you pick up the thread, you can’t stop the rest from following.

—”A stupid snake who can’t tell good from evil… if you ever lose your cultivation and get locked in a cage, remember to notify this Sovereign. I shall certainly come to… redeem you.”

—”If picking up ungrateful wolves were a talent, you would be unrivaled in the heavens, Your Majesty Demon Emperor.”

—”Mortals say a dog will bite the hand that feeds it. But in this Sovereign’s view, compared to you, the dog isn’t nearly so foolish.”

“…”

Su Jiu-shao watched Bai Yujing’s expression worsen. The snake looked like it was about to explode with rage. She had no idea he was actually fuming over his “face” in the eyes of his arch-rival; she thought he was grieving his disciple’s betrayal.

She clearly didn’t understand why he wouldn’t run, and she seemed more anxious than the snake itself. But as she opened her mouth to plead further, a ball of faint light exploded from her chest.

Su Jiu-shao’s face changed. She felt her “Exquisite Heart” talent temporarily jump from the fifth level to the seventh. She vanished into the shadows of the night, but the spiritual pressure she had placed on the cage was pushed back by that same force.

—This is absolutely not the power of a Golden Core. What is the origin of this young snake?

Before she could think, a familiar aura approached from the distance. With a flick of the snake’s tail, Su Jiu-shao vanished completely into the night. The tail then hooked the cage door, pulling it shut; the curse and the bars were restored to their original state.

She stood aside, stunned, as Shen Fenglin walked into the light. The youth, convinced of his victory, did not sense her presence.

“Master,” Shen Fenglin knelt before the cage, whispering as if to a lover, “did you sleep well?”

Bai Yujing said nothing. He simply looked up, observing the disciple he had raised from a perspective he had never taken before. This time, he saw no ghostly blue light, nor did he hear the voice. It was as if it had all been a hallucination.

Shen Fenglin reached in, intending to touch the raw, unhealed wound where the scale had been torn away, only to have his hand lashed by the snake’s tail.

A sickly emotion flickered in his eyes. “…Is Master still angry with me?”

No response. Bai Yujing withdrew his gaze coldly. He was no longer a hatchling; making the same mistake twice was enough. He didn’t need a third time.

Seeing that Bai Yujing refused to engage, a flash of ferocity crossed Shen Fenglin’s eyes. He smiled brightly. “Actually, I knew Master was a demon a long time ago.”

“…”

The little snake still gave no answer. Bai Yujing seemed prepared to remain silent no matter what was said.

Shen Fenglin licked his canine teeth. “I even knew Master was a snake demon. Do you know why?”

“—It is because of that name you are so proud of.”

“In truth, Master’s name was chosen very poorly.”

At those words, as if his tail had been stepped on, Bai Yujing snapped his head up to look at him.

Shen Fenglin laughed, but his next words were spoken through gritted teeth. “‘White Jade Capital in the Heavens’… Master, you were likely fooled by his flowery descriptions. ‘Yu Jing Zi‘ has always referred to a snake. The person who named you seemed terrified that people wouldn’t discover your true form, Master.”

Their eyes met in the cool night. The darkness and jealousy in the youth’s gaze had nowhere to hide.

“It seems my ‘past life’ didn’t love you at all, Master.”

“Otherwise, how could he have had the heart to abandon you?”

Bai Yujing remained silent, turning away to curl into a ball. Shen Fenglin said a great deal more—strange, rambling things—but Bai Yujing didn’t listen to a single word.

Finding him impenetrable, Shen Fenglin stood before the cage with a terrible expression for a long time before finally letting out a cold snort and sweeping away.

Whether out of exhaustion or a sense of “waking up,” Bai Yujing found his feelings for Shen Fenglin fading. Like emerging from a meticulously woven web, both the parental affection and the potential hatred for the betrayal felt as light as water—utterly insignificant.

…Strange. Did I accidentally switch to the Path of Heartlessness while I was out?

“Senior…”

A timid female voice sounded in the quiet night. Bai Yujing remembered there was still someone there. He flicked his tail, withdrawing the demonic power he had lent her. 【”This Sovereign does not blame you. Go.”】

Su Jiu-shao heard the voice condensed from divine sense. It was like jade—slightly different from his usual speaking voice, more ethereal and refined.

…Is this his true voice?

The thought flashed through her mind. She blurted out, “But Senior, you can clearly escape…”

【”It does not concern you. This Sovereign has his own plans.”】

Bai Yujing interrupted her listlessly. Su Jiu-shao opened her mouth, but seeing he was unwilling to speak further, she finally desisted. Before leaving, she removed her storage ring and placed it solemnly beside the gilded cage. “Take care, Senior. The gifts you bestowed earlier… Jiu-shao is unworthy of them.”

With a bow, she too turned and left.

Bai Yujing used the tip of his tail to hook the ring inside. Under the moonlight, he looked at the familiar engravings. This was a ring he had “borrowed” from a certain someone before his “death.” Who would have thought that as soon as he gave it away, he’d run into trouble… That bastard’s things really are bad luck.

Cursing internally, he stowed the ring and stared intently at his serpent belly, trying to determine if there was something inside. After a while, he lowered his head to lick the soft spot where the scale was missing.

No reaction.

Internally, it was as if nothing had happened—no pain, no burning. Even with divine sense, it felt empty, as if the golden light had been a hallucination.

…To the Abyss with this.

He coiled there in silence. In human form, his silence made people think he was profound and unfathomable. But now, revealed as a small, white, soft snake, he just looked bewildered.

This was why Bai Yujing hated his true form, and hated people knowing his age.

But there was no other way. There was something undeniably “wrong” with Shen Fenglin. If he flipped the table now, he would alert the enemy. Better to stay still and observe.

Bai Yujing fell into thought, biting the tip of his tail just like when he was young.

He remembered hearing two voices yesterday. The first was the child-like voice from the golden light he swallowed; its whereabouts were currently unknown. The second was the voice from the blue light beside Shen Fenglin. He only understood three words from the first half of its speech: Song Qing羽.

As for the second half, he had been nearly unconscious, but he vaguely remembered: 【An unidentified “Celestial Seed” has been dropped… Suspected deployment by an Immortal Realm Observer!】

…Does “Celestial Seed” mean a literal seed, or is it a metaphor?

Though the mysteries were impenetrable, his instinct told him: to solve everything, he had to find that “Seed.” And right now, his instinct also told him not to act rashly.

Time and again, history had proven that when facing major decisions, even if the instinctive choice wasn’t the outcome he wanted, it was best to follow it. After all, for eight hundred years, whenever he desperately sought something, he always ended up with empty hands.

Bai Yujing coiled into a ball, biting his tail under the moon as he closed his eyes.

Only this time, there was no one to lecture him that he shouldn’t bite his tail while sleeping.

Still, the first time was heartbreaking. The second time… he was already an expert at it.

The next day at noon, Liuming came to visit, wearing the jade serpent pendant. Through the bars, he smilingly told Bai Yujing the “good” news: Shen Fenglin had prepared a “Demon Offering Ceremony” for him, and even an Immortal Sovereign from the Fentian Great World would descend personally for him.

Fentian? That bottom-tier world is certainly ambitious. A stray cultivator from there dares to call himself an Immortal Sovereign? Isn’t he afraid of losing his head?

Bai Yujing stayed coiled in the cage, resting with his eyes closed, not granting even a single glance.

Seeing this, Liuming’s smile faltered, his tone turning cold. “By the way, Senior likely doesn’t know the time of the ceremony yet, does he?”

“It is in three days.”

“But don’t worry, Senior. It is only to offer your demon core and scales to the Sovereign.”

“In the end, you will still return to the Ancestor’s side.”