Heavens' Laughter

Hè Jun gulped, her breaths coming shallow and uneven as she tried to steady herself. Truthfully, she had no idea how she had guessed the Second Young Master of the Feng family's true identity.

Her instincts had simply screamed it, a primal recognition deep within her core.

Every movement, every twisted smile, and the oppressive aura surrounding him—everything about the Second Young Master of the Feng family reminded her of the Laughing Demon, Zǔ Zhòu.

Hè Jun's mind raced, recalling the stories she had heard.

Stories of chaos and bloodshed, of an era long past…

"Everyone who can breathe knows about you..." Hè Jun stammered, her voice trembling as she struggled to form coherent thoughts:

"The madness you unleashed... without reason, without cause. No one could ever understand why you wanted everything to suffer. You are, and always will be, the most feared cultivator in history. Across all races, to every single breathing being."

As Cai Xiu listened to her childhood friend's words, a bolt struck her like lightning. Her chest tightened, and her thoughts spiraled in chaotic disbelief.

'Am I brain-dead...'

That's what Cai Xiu's childhood friend had all but called her, though not in so many words.

The implication was clear—she had been utterly ignorant, blind to the truth that had always been right in front of her.

'I should've really paid attention to my lectures…' Cai Xiu thought bitterly. The realization stung.

Feng Shen's grin widened as he scratched his chin thoughtfully, his chuckle growing darker with each passing second.

"It seems no one has forgotten me," he mused, his voice dripping with a twisted sense of satisfaction. "Of course, they wouldn't. How could they?"

Feng Shen's golden eyes flickered. "Everyone hates me!" he exclaimed with a dramatic flair, throwing his arms wide as if embracing the hatred itself:

"Even after millions of years, generations upon generations still curse my name!"

Feng Shen took a step forward, his grin now razor-sharp:

"I wouldn't have it any other way! To be hated across lifetimes, to be the stain no one can wash away—that's power. That's immortality!"

Feng Shen paused, his laughter dying down. He then turned on his heel, as he began to walk away, his hands casually tucked behind his back:

"Alright, alright~ enough playing around. We've had our fun, haven't we?"

Without glancing back, Feng Shen waved a hand. "Follow me, girls. I can't waste too much time away from my personal servant, after all."

Feng Shen's smirk deepened as his thoughts turned elsewhere. He still hadn't forgotten about her—his little piggy, still freezing her ass off in the icy waters.

With morning just a few hours away and the trial of survival nearing its conclusion, he figured it was about time to retrieve her.

After all, leaving his personal servant there too long would ruin the delicate balance of cultivation Feng Shen had in mind for her.

Cai Xiu instinctively fell in line behind her Master, her steps steady. She cast a brief glance at her childhood friend, who remained frozen for a moment, still grappling with the terror.

She sighed.

"Come on, don't make him wait," Cai Xiu snapped, her words laced with a chill that contrasted with the faint warmth reserved for her childhood friend.

Hè Jun snapped out of her fear, nodding rapidly as she grabbed her hammer and hurried to follow.

She dared not utter a word, knowing better than to speak without permission.

Hè Jun's mind raced, trying to make sense of her predicament, though deep down, she was consumed by a single, overwhelming thought:

'Why am I still alive?'

Hè Jun clenched her jaw, forcing herself to keep moving, but the terror wouldn't abate.

The idea that such a figure, the Laughing Demon, now stood before her—and had chosen to spare her—was almost more terrifying than the alternative.

'What does he have planned with me?'

Hè Jun tried to piece together the twisted puzzle of the Laughing Demon's intentions.

Her mind flickered back to what he had said earlier—the reason he had spared her, the way he had spoken of using someone to shift blame, to direct the rage of enemies elsewhere.

It was then that a chilling realization gripped Hè Jun:

'He needs a sacrifice…'

The more Hè Jun thought about it, the more she began to see the dark, calculating logic behind the Laughing Demon's actions.

It was her status that mattered. Her position—her proximity to those who held power.

The right rumor, the right scandal, could unravel everything.

Hè Jun knew she had the power to spread a few carefully placed rumors—she could stir chaos not only in the Crane Empire, but across the Upper Realm.

As they all kept walking through the forest…

Feng Shen walked ahead, completely absorbed in his own little world, humming a soft, carefree tune.

His mood was a stark contrast to the tense atmosphere surrounding the girls behind him.

Cai Xiu's curiosity gnawed at her.

She kept stealing glances at her childhood friend, whose face was drawn in thought, her brow furrowed as if trying to solve a riddle.

Though Cai Xiu couldn't bring herself to ask outright.

She was consumed by a desire to understand just how powerful her Master had been in his past life.

After all, Cai Xiu didn't care about his evil deeds—what mattered to her was the sheer magnitude of his strength.

Though, from what she heard from her childhood friend painted a picture of a terrifying force that had caused unimaginable suffering, and that kind of power couldn't be denied.

But despite this, Cai Xiu still felt the need to ask, to confirm just how far her Master's power truly reached.

'Once I have a chance… I'll ask for more information…'

▬▬ι═══════ﺤ

Arriving back at the spot where his personal servant had been left, Feng Shen clapped his hands together, the sound echoing.

His eyes looked around the area before landing on her still figure, unmoving in the cold, turbulent water.

A smirk tugged at the corners of Feng Shen's lips as he observed his personal servant.

"Get out of the water," he commanded, his voice steady and without a hint of concern, as he made his way toward the edge of the pond.

Feng Shen stopped a few feet away, his eyes narrowing slightly as he took in the sight.

His gaze lingered on his personal servant for a moment, almost as if measuring her.

'It seems the training is working…'

Feng Shen's sharp eyes noting the subtle shift.

His personal servant's Absolute Zero Physique was indeed kicking in.

Where most would have succumbed to the freezing cold, she seemed completely unaffected, as though the icy water held no sway over her at all.

Feng Shen could tell she wasn't just enduring—it was almost as if the cold didn't even touch her.

Her body appeared perfectly fine, not a trace of exhaustion or discomfort showing.

"At once!" Yùn Yì exclaimed with a joyful tone, her voice full of relief as she climbed out of the water.

Her skin, once pale from the cold, was its normal hue.

Yùn Yì's face lit up with a wide smile, her eyes shimmering with a sense of accomplishment.
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She was glad to see the Second Young Master back, and more than anything, she hoped she had made him proud by surviving the ordeal without succumbing to the freezing waters.

"Guess what—"….

However, before Yùn Yì could utter another word, her eyes shifted, noticing two unfamiliar women standing behind.

'Who are these bitches?'

Yùn Yì stood silently, her eyes narrowing slightly.

Though they hadn't done anything to provoke her, she couldn't shake the uneasy feeling growing within her.

A mix of jealousy and an odd sense of threat bubbled up inside Yùn Yì, making her cross her arms and puff herself up.

She tried to appear composed, but deep down, she felt her emotions bubbling to the surface—feelings she didn't fully understand, but couldn't ignore.

"Ah, these two?" Feng Shen glanced over his shoulder, his expression a mix of amusement and nonchalance:

"Let me introduce them properly. This here is my little maid, Cai Xiu, and beside her is the Ninth Princess of the Crane Empire, Hè Jun. Quite the pair, wouldn't you agree?"

Feng Shen turned back to his personal servant, a gleam of amusement flashing through his golden eyes.

He could easily tell how threatened she felt, the subtle tension in her every movement betraying her unease.

'This is simply too funny~.'

Feng Shen knew all too well that his wandering gaze made his personal servant insecure.

Seeing the awkward tension building, Cai Xiu let out a soft sigh, clearly irritated by the uncomfortable silence.

With a polite but strained smile, she stepped forward and extended her hand:

"Nice to meet you…?"

Cai Xiu wasn't simply making a formal introduction; she wanted to know the name of the personal servant who seemed to hold such a close position to her Master.

Her gaze lingered on the girl, trying to assess whether this was someone to be wary of.

Yùn Yì took the hand with a firm grip.

'I don't like her…'

"My name is Yùn Yì," Yùn Yì replied, her voice steady, though there was a slight edge of pride in it.

"I'm the personal servant of the Second Young Master. We're quite close."