Chapter 61: Being a Monster, So Thrilling! (Five Thousand Words Combined)

In the blink of an eye, Wang Wu had already been living out in this desolate wilderness for a week; although the incident a couple of days ago made Zhao Xingyue seem a bit evasive toward him now, Wang Wu didn't mind.

After all, that's how monsters are; Wang Wu now no longer feels he is human, and indeed he was never the same race as the humans of this world.

The ghost girl showed up again today, and she even came during the day. However, she couldn't enter Wang Wu's demon‑suppression circle, because that device strongly suppresses her, whether she's a demon or a ghost.

Or rather, she should be called a "demon‑ghost."

Wang Wu didn't actually do anything with the ghost girl today; the two only brushed cheek to cheek for a while, he rested his head on ghost girl Zi Yuan's thigh, feeling her hand as cold as dark ice, and absorbed the last tiny bit of demonic pill remaining in his hand.

These days are truly comfortable, dear family. Modern society really can't compare, dear family.

"Dinner's ready, Wu Lang."

Hearing Wu Er Niang's voice from nearby, Wang Wu rose from the ground, gave the ghost girl a light kiss on the face, then walked to where Wu Er Niang had vanished, lifted two buckets and entered the wooden hut.

Wu Er Niang and the others seem very afraid of Zi Yuan, so when Zi Yuan appears, they hardly linger nearby.

Zhao Xingyue still lies on the bed, but her mental state has improved a lot compared to a few days ago, and she can perform some limited movements now, though her hands still barely lift and her legs hardly move.

However, as her stomach and other digestive tracts regenerate, her recovery speed will accelerate. She estimates that by around the Cold Dew period she should be mostly recovered and able to leave.

"Dinner's ready; from today you can eat something, and you'll recover faster," Wang Wu said as he carried the rice bucket into the hut, addressing Zhao Xingyue on the bed.

Outside the door, Zi Yuan stood a short distance beyond the demon‑suppression circle, looking at Wang Wu through the doorway. Her gaze merely brushed over Zhao Xingyue on the bed, then she focused all her attention on Wang Wu.

Yet that single glance was enough for Zhao Xingyue to feel an overwhelming demonic aura.

Di Yi's third female Zi Yuan, before her death, successfully cultivated a demon, swallowed it, and attained a true demonic body as a True Realm demonic cultivator.

A True Realm demonic cultivator is far stronger than a True Realm cultivator of the same tier, let alone Zi Yuan, who is clearly a late‑stage True Realm cultivator.

Wang Wu previously had no notion of Zi Yuan's strength, and although he now does, he doesn't care.

"The one outside the door is…" Zhao Xingyue glanced at the female ghost outside, then withdrew her gaze and asked.

"Yes, that's Zi Yuan, the ghost girl I mentioned earlier," Wang Wu said while counting, lifting the lid of the rice bucket, and a fragrant aroma instantly wafted out, intoxicating him.

I have to admit, Wu Er Niang's cooking is truly getting better and better.

Today's lunch is carrot‑stewed lamb; unfortunately it's from wild sheep, not farmed, so the meat is a bit inferior, but it's still better than the lamb Wang Wu ate back home, lacking any gamey smell and very fresh.

Though not as tender as the farmed lamb from He Dong Xian, it's heartier and has its own distinct flavor.

"Sss, great, really great…" Wang Wu raised the bucket, scooped a few pieces of meat with a ladle, put them in his mouth, and instantly felt such pleasure he shook his head.

"In this late autumn, you have to eat lamb, haha…"

A few pieces of lamb, a mouthful of lamb broth down the throat. Wang Wu looked up at Zhao Xingyue on the bed and asked, "Aren't you eating?"

He asked.

Zhao Xingyue said nothing, merely looking at him calmly.

"Oh right," Wang Wu said, tapping his head, "I remembered you can't move, can't eat by yourself."

Thus, in a heartbeat he devoured the bucket of lamb. Wang Wu set down the now‑empty bucket, rose to Zhao Xingyue's bedside, and lifted her onto the bed.

While being held by Wang Wu, Zhao Xingyue's body tensed briefly, but soon relaxed.

Then Wang Wu moved the wooden bucket onto the bed and took a pair of chopsticks from his ring.

"Here," Wang Wu said, holding the bucket, picking up a piece of lamb and bringing it to Zhao Xingyue's lips.

"What's the matter?" Wang Wu asked as Zhao Xingyue kept her mouth closed for ages, "Eat? It's delicious, though it may not compare to the chefs in your human restaurants, but we can't expect much here, right?"

"Y‑yes, it's a bit hot…" Zhao Xingyue stammered.

When Wang Wu's chopsticks reached out, a torrent of thoughts erupted again in Zhao Xingyue's mind. In the end, reason triumphed over the chaotic emotions, prompting her to utter what sounded like a refusal.

"A bit hot?" Wang Wu was taken aback, but he retrieved the chopsticks, blew on them, and offered them again.

When Wang Wu withdrew the chopsticks, Zhao Xingyue also let out a sigh; though an unrecognized sense of loss had quietly arisen within her, nevertheless, at least…

Until Wang Wu blew on the lamb again and brought it to his own mouth.

The lamb still emitted a faint steam, and for some reason she suddenly felt that the heat on it was linked to the breath exhaled by the man before her.

And as the thought sprang in her mind, her lips had already touched that warmth, that sensation.

In an instant, she felt something in her mind snap open.

Her mind went blank, and Zhao Xingyue slowly opened her mouth, swallowing the lamb on Wang Wu's chopsticks.

It was merely a momentary event, yet in that instant something within Zhao Xingyue's heart shattered.

"Oh right," Wang Wu said, withdrawing the chopsticks, realizing his yin extremity true qi could also cool things, so he stopped using this inefficient method.

When Wang Wu stopped blowing on the food and fed a few bites, by some inexplicable impulse—or perhaps an emotional influence—Zhao Xingyue spoke:

"It's still a bit hot."

"How could that be?" Wang Wu was startled, "I used true qi to cool it for you, how could it still be hot?"

Reason instantly returned to her mind, causing Zhao Xingyue's face to flush bright red.

But Wang Wu was now bent over, scooping a spoonful of lamb into his mouth without looking at Zhao Xingyue. He said while eating,

"It's not hot at all, is it?"

"Just a joke, Brother Wang," Zhao Xingyue said, and when she looked at him again, her face bore a teasing smile, looking completely natural, without any other emotion.

The bucket of lamb was quickly finished; Zhao Xingyue, being a cultivator, naturally didn't eat slowly. After finishing, Wang Wu realized Zhao Xingyue was still in recovery, and perhaps this food wasn't very suitable.

So he took out some refined rations from his ring; due to storage considerations they were pre‑made pellets. The taste was average, but the energy and nutrition they supplied were incomparable to ordinary food.

"I almost forgot," Wang Wu said, pouring a few black pellets from a porcelain bottle, then picking one up and placing it at Zhao Xingyue's lips, "this is more suitable for you now."

This time Zhao Xingyue didn't hesitate; her expression was normal as she gently opened her mouth and swallowed the pellet Wang Wu offered.

However, each time Wang Wu's finger touched her lips, her body tensed briefly.

"Why is your foot still moving?"

After feeding three pellets and putting the porcelain bottle away, Wang Wu helped Zhao Xingyue lie down again, his gaze sweeping over her boots, noticing they were still moving.

"It's a bit itchy; it's been one or two days," Zhao Xingyue said.

It's not because of Wang Wu; it really is itchy, after all the boots have been on her feet for over ten days—not just a few days, but since she arrived here.

"Then shall I take it off for you?"

Wang Wu asked.

Earlier, when Wang Wu was feeding Zhao Xingyue, her face hadn't reddened at first, and Wang Wu hadn't seen her blush. But at this moment, Wang Wu clearly saw the woman's face flushing red at a visibly rapid pace.

"Shy, huh?" Wang Wu said, looking at her. "Then never mind, or maybe tomorrow I'll have Zhu San Niang and the others help…"

"Then, then I'll trouble you, Brother Wang." Before Wang Wu could finish speaking, Zhao Xingyue spoke up.

"Um…" Seeing her like that, Wang Wu said nothing, nodded, and sat beside Zhao Xingyue's legs to start taking off her shoes.

The teal‑blue cloud‑patterned silver‑threaded high‑crowned boots were removed by Wang Wu, and a faint sour stench instantly filled the air.

"Ew, so even a True Realm cultivator's feet can smell?" Wang Wu tossed the steaming boots onto the ground, unwrapping Zhao Xingyue's foot bindings, and asked curiously.

Looking at Zhao Xingyue, he saw her face swollen red to the point of almost bleeding, and even through her clothes Wang Wu could feel her body's intense heat.

"I—I am only a True Realm, though I've already… though I've shed my old self, I'm not that immaculate body…" Zhao Xingyue stammered, "This, this is naturally normal…"

"Haha, it's fine, it's fine." Wang Wu laughed, cutting her off, "I'm just curious, so don't take it to heart, Miss Xingyue."

"Is it… is it very smelly?" After a pause, Zhao Xingyue spoke again, stammering.

"Quite fine." Wang Wu nodded, looking at Zhao Xingyue.

"Quite… what does 'quite fine' mean?" Zhao Xingyue was a bit confused.

"You know, everyone's tolerance differs, but as for me, I can quite easily accept it." While taking off Zhao Xingyue's other boot and unwrapping the foot binding, Wang Wu said.

Zhao Xingyue remained silent, her face still flushed. Her eyes held surprise and oddity, yet the corners of her mouth twitched slightly.

Though it was quickly smoothed over, it was clear Wang Wu's words pleased her.

Placing Zhao Xingyue's legs back onto the bed, the lingering odor still hung in the air. Seeing her still flushed, Wang Wu asked again:

"How about I fetch a bucket of water for a foot soak? Honestly, it's just a little foot odor; you don't need to fuss over it. I'd wager my shoes, after being worn this many days, might even smell worse than yours."

Zhao Xingyue felt as if she were standing on a brink, the edge of a red line. If she kept going like this…

Yet somehow, just as reason prepared to push her to refuse Wang Wu's kindness and end this already overly indulgent moment, a memory of something she had said a few days earlier flashed in her mind:

"Senior brother must have encountered something he couldn't extricate himself from, so he couldn't come…"

It's already been so many days…

Zhao Xingyue suddenly realized.

"Brother Wang… you don't find it off‑putting?"

So, swept by a sudden surge of emotion, Zhao Xingyue looked at Wang Wu and asked.

"Off‑putting about what?" Wang Wu didn't understand what she meant.

"Help me… wash my feet." Zhao Xingyue looked at him softly.

"I never said I'd wash your feet." Wang Wu looked at her, his expression odd, but then he recalled something and changed his words:

"Um, fine, I forgot you still can't… move."

He nodded, "Alright, after all, a healer's compassion, I'll give you a hand."

With that, Wang Wu left the room, leaving Zhao Xingyue alone inside.

Lying quietly on the bed, recalling her earlier words, Zhao Xingyue felt her face burning.

Not long after, Wang Wu returned, carrying a bucket of water, still hot.

Though his golden‑type cultivation method isn't fire‑based, the Sun Wheel Golden Blade's name carries the character "Sun," so heating things up is no problem.

He helped Zhao Xingyue up again, placed something behind her so she could sit, then lifted one of her feet and gently set it on the water's surface.

"How's the temperature?"

"Quite… quite fine." Zhao Xingyue's voice was barely audible, like a mosquito. If Wang Wu didn't have good hearing, he might not have heard it.

So Wang Wu slipped both of her legs into the water.

While lowering the other foot, his tense, rigid body caused Zhao Xingyue's toe to accidentally brush Wang Wu's nose tip.

"S‑sorry…"

"It's fine." Wang Wu rubbed his nose, just as he said, completely unfazed.

"Are my feet too big?" Zhao Xingyue asked, cheeks reddening, looking at the wooden bucket that couldn't fully contain her foot.

"A bit small." Wang Wu glanced at Zhao Xingyue's foot in the water, reached in, lifted it, and helped rub between the toes and the sole.

If her body hadn't still been unrecovered, Zhao Xingyue would probably have leapt up right then.

Zhao Xingyue was exceptionally tall, a bit taller than Shu Niang, close to 1.8 m, about 1.79 or 1.78 m.

At that height, her shoe size couldn't be small; she was somewhat dissatisfied, since a size 42 didn't quite match current fashion trends.

Though foot‑binding wasn't practiced here, societal taste still favored smaller feet.

After washing one foot and switching to the other, Wang Wu felt nothing, but Zhao Xingyue sensed a strong tremor surge from somewhere within her, like a tide.

That tremor even gave her a slight tingling.

It came from the deepest part of her body, the most primal, instinctive throb.

"All done."

After giving Zhao Xingyue a quick rub, Wang Wu lifted her foot from the bucket and took a nearby towel to dry it.

"Your feet are much smaller than Zhu San Niang's and the other lady's," Wang Wu remarked, eyeing Zhao Xingyue's slender toes.

"But being petite is quite nice, also quite pretty."

Finishing, Wang Wu stood, hoisted the water bucket, and left. Zhao Xingyue lay on the bed, breathing heavily as if surviving a disaster.

Wang Wu's words echoed in her mind, the lingering sensation on her skin stirring a strange feeling in her heart.

Zhao Xingyue recovered well; by the tenth day, her limbs gradually could perform simple movements.

Internal organ repair accelerated day by day thanks to food intake and the demon pill.

But since the day Wang Wu fed this woman and washed her feet, he noticed she seemed to be taking advantage a bit.

"Fuck, you think I'm your servant???!"

Wang Wu originally intended to rebuke her loudly, but when he saw the demonic clan technique and gold ingots Zhao Xingyue produced, Wang Wu fell silent.

Human sects raise demonic beasts, so they can also raise demonic clans.

And to make the demonic clans better serve humanity, humans naturally develop various techniques suited to them.

However, these techniques often have backdoors to facilitate human control.

But the technique Zhao Xingyue gave was not like that, because it came from a demonic city gathering place, a technique flowing out of a demonic city.

As for whether this technique is trustworthy, after Zhao Xingyue pointed to the sky and swore a poisonous oath invoking demonic entry and realms, its credibility was beyond doubt.

Swearing a poisonous oath is truly effective in this world.

"Brother Wang?"

At lunchtime, Wang Wu was outside the wooden house chatting closely with San Niang; the call from Zhao Xingyue coming from inside the house made his face freeze.

"What now?"

Reluctantly stepping into the house, he looked at the smiling Zhao Xingyue and asked.

"I'm a bit hungry again; could you give me a few more food pellets?"

Wang Wu took out a porcelain bottle and placed it beside her.

Zhao Xingyue reached out to take it, but failed several times.

So Wang Wu sighed, sat beside her, opened the bottle, poured out a few food pellets and fed them to her.

Healing wounds, practicing cultivation, slaying demons, absorbing demonic energy, and studying cultural lessons to understand the human world.

For the past ten days, Wang Wu's life had been just like this.

Not only had his cultural level skyrocketed; likewise, his technique progress had done the same.

Zhao Xingyue is an excellent fish bait that can attract a large number of demons.

Moreover, in the following days, she could use a magical artifact to assist Wang Wu when he slayed demons at night.

It seems this woman, perhaps because she's lived a lady's life too much, even after her mobility fully recovered, still constantly makes him feed her, even wash her feet; she appears addicted to foot washing.

Fortunately she didn't ask him to change clothes, otherwise Wang Wu would truly become a servant.

Time quickly reached Cold Dew, and Frost Descent was about to arrive, leaving only about a week.

In the morning, Wang Wu finished absorbing the demon pill, ground the now‑ineffective demon pill in his hand into powder, and tossed it into the air.

He turned to look at the wooden bed behind him; it was empty. Only a few gold ingots lay on a sheet of paper, beside which rested an exquisite jade pendant, three books, and three jade tablets.

Looking at the bedside, a pair of pointed-toe silver‑thread tube boots were still neatly placed there, making Wang Wu's expression somewhat odd.

"That... Zhou people... have left."

Outside the door, Zi Yuan's voice sounded. She spoke in Great Zhou official language, stammering.

"Yeah." Wang Wu replied in Shang language.

Wang Wu learned the Shang language from Zhao Xingyue; she knows it, but time was limited, so he didn't learn much.

But she left the book to Wang Wu, so it wasn't a problem.

Zi Yuan's official language was learned from Wang Wu; she had just "arrived" in this world, as she only woke from her own tomb after Wang Wu's transmigration.

"Hmm, I understand." Wang Wu said as he walked outside the door and dispersed the demon‑suppressing circle.

Zi Yuan instantly appeared behind Wang Wu and attached to his back.

"Five... Lang."

"Hmm?" Wang Wu affectionately nuzzled with her.

"I want..."

(End of chapter)