Today, The Villain Couple is Settling Scores Again

Jian Huan was lost in thought for a moment.

A middle-aged man in a long robe rushed out of a teahouse. When he caught sight of Jian Huan standing there, he abruptly halted his steps and exclaimed, "Close call, close call! I almost ran into you!"

"Miss, our teahouse is closed!" The man tightened his bundle and kindly reminded her, "Haven’t you heard? The demons are coming to slaughter the city! If you don’t run now, you’ll lose your life! Hurry, miss!"

Jian Huan snapped out of her reverie, closed the book she was holding, and smiled at the man. "Thank you, sir."

But she couldn’t run away.

This was her trial illusion. She could only move forward, not retreat.

The young woman stood on the stone steps in front of the door, her smile radiant. Though her words were grateful, her demeanor showed no sign of wanting to flee.

The man in the long robe hesitated, wanting to say more.

Young men and women of this age were all stubborn and wouldn’t listen to advice.

The man shook his head. The words he had just spoken were already a rare act of kindness on his part. He didn’t say anything more, but his gaze fell on the book in Jian Huan’s hand. With a cold snort, he snatched it from her and slammed it onto the ground. "Miss, this book is not worth reading! It’s all made up, not a single word of truth!"

The man’s beard quivered with anger. He left her with the words, "Take care, miss," then stepped over the book, *The Tale of Junior Sister Jiang Qiaoqiao*, and disappeared into the crowd, fleeing toward the bridge.

Jian Huan chuckled softly, her gaze lingering on the book on the ground. She stepped forward, crossing over it.

But as she did, something seemed to occur to her. She immediately turned back, stomped on the book, and crushed it into pieces.

To hell with it!

To hell with it!

Passersby looked at her in surprise.

"What is she doing?"

"Another one gone mad."

"Miss, you should run..."

"..."

Jian Huan took a deep breath, withdrew her foot, straightened her slightly wrinkled skirt, and smoothed the stray hairs on her forehead. She flashed a bright smile at the countless eyes turned her way, then turned and dashed against the tide of people, heading straight for the city gates without hesitation.

The gates of Approaching Immortal City had already been breached. Hordes of demon soldiers poured into the city, cheering wildly.

"Kill! Our demon race will conquer another city! Long live the Demon God, long live the Demon Lord!"

"So fragrant, so fragrant blood! Kill!"

"Long live the Demon God, long live the Demon Lord!"

"..."

Their bloodthirsty faces resembled wild beasts catching the scent of prey, filled with madness and greed.

The blades in their hands slashed furiously at the cultivators defending the city.

The cultivators held their ground for a dozen moves, but they were no match. With a sickening crunch, a blade struck from behind.

The sound of the blade piercing flesh was drowned out by the roars of the demons.

In the blink of an eye, the cultivator’s head was severed from his body.

A circle of demons closed in, tearing the cultivator’s body apart like vultures fighting over prey.

The demon who had drawn the blade grabbed the cultivator’s head and cradled it in his arms, licking the blood from the face and laughing maniacally. "Humans are truly no match for us, but—"

A gust of wind swept past, cold as ice against his neck.

Hidden within the wind was a talisman sword, thin and razor-sharp, slicing cleanly between the demon’s head and body.

The wind passed.

The demon’s laughter ceased abruptly as the head in his arms rolled to the ground.

Instinctively, he reached up to touch his own head. The moment his fingers made contact, his head slid off his neck and fell to the ground.

With a thunderous crash, the massive demon body collapsed.

The surrounding demons scattered slightly, their eyes turning toward the woman who had flown down the empty alley.

In the future foreseen by the Bodhi Spirit Tree, the day Approaching Immortal City fell was a gloomy one.

The shops lining the streets were all open.

Thanks to the efforts of the cultivators from the Imperial Pacification Office, almost all the citizens had packed their belongings and fled toward the narrow path leading out of the city across the bridge.

Inside the shops, chaos reigned.

The things the citizens couldn’t take or didn’t want were swept into the streets by the howling wind.

The cold wind wailed, and dark clouds pressed low. The ground was littered with severed limbs, a scene of desolation and tragedy.

The green-robed girl moved like lightning. In an instant, Jian Huan reached the front line where humans and demons clashed.

This long street, stretching from Approaching Immortal Bridge to the city gates, was once the busiest and most prosperous part of the city.

Now, the remaining hundred or so cultivators from the Imperial Pacification Office stood like bricks, forming a defensive formation along the street.

They used their flesh and blood to guard this street, this city, buying time for the citizens behind them to escape.

Fluctuating spiritual energy radiated from them, forming a shimmering barrier of light around them.

In front of the barrier, about a hundred cultivators wielded their swords, locked in a bloody battle with the oncoming horde of demons.

One ​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‍by one, the cultivators fell. The spiritual barrier was struck again and again by the flying demons.

Blood seeped from the noses and mouths of the cultivators maintaining the formation. They groaned in pain.

Someone shouted hoarsely, "Hold on, brothers! Just a little longer!"

The group took a deep breath, steadying their energy, and swallowed the metallic taste of blood in their throats.

The faltering spiritual barrier brightened slightly.

Jian Huan watched the scene before her, her lips pressed into a thin line as she tightened her grip on her sword.

With a light tap of her foot, she soared into the air, effortlessly passing through the spiritual barrier. With a single swing of her sword, a frost-like blade light pierced the sky, and the surging sword energy swept through the demons before her.

The demons fell like bats struck down, thudding to the ground.

The cultivators below paused briefly, glancing up at Jian Huan in the air.

Though a group of demons had been slain, there were still tens of thousands more.

They didn’t have time to say much. Lowering their heads, they focused on the battle ahead, raising their swords, swinging, and swinging again.

They swung until they could no longer lift their swords.

And then, they died.

Jian Huan didn’t look back.

Her eyes remained fixed on the endless tide of demons ahead as she flew forward.

When demons charged at her, she cut them down.

The deeper she ventured into the demon horde, the stronger the demons became.

After an unknown amount of time, a demon struck her chest with a palm strike.

Excruciating pain spread through her entire body. Jian Huan coughed up blood and plummeted into the midst of the demon horde.

In an instant, demon soldiers swarmed her from all sides.

Jian Huan’s expression hardened. She rolled onto her back, raising her sword horizontally in front of her chest. Spiritual energy formed a barrier, blocking the countless demon blades.

Jian Huan lay on the ground, surrounded by standing demons.

The stalemate didn’t last long.

Crack, crack.

Jian Huan’s sword barrier began to shatter.

The demon blades fell one after another, and cold, murderous demonic energy seeped through, cutting her brows, her face.

A blade infused with demonic energy stabbed into her stomach, pulled out, stabbed again, and pulled out again.

Blood flowed from her countless wounds as Jian Huan lay in a pool of her own blood.

Thanks to the illusion, she was still alive despite all this.

But she knew clearly that her time was running out.

When she entered the illusion in the Bodhi Pagoda, the demon tide had already risen to the second level. When it reached the ninth level, the Bodhi Pagoda would be destroyed, and everything would be too late.

The pain only made Jian Huan more alert.

She kept her eyes open, staring at the cruel and horrifying faces of the demons.

These crowded faces were like weeds growing wildly on the surface of a river, completely obscuring the sky above, leaving the world in darkness.

Jian Huan knew that everything in this illusion was a false image.

At this moment, they were all fake.

The fleeing citizens she had passed along the way.

The bodies of those trampled to death on the road.

The human flesh torn apart by the demons.

The group of Imperial Pacification Office cultivators who would be devoured by demons in less than the time it took to burn an incense stick.

All of these were illusions in her trial.

But at the same time, they could become real.

This trial illusion was a training ground constructed for her by the Bodhi Seed using the prophetic dreams of the tree spirit.

If she failed to comprehend the Dao, everything she saw today would come to pass in the not-too-distant future.

This city, which she had walked through countless times over the past three years, would become a city of death.

Her friends and mentors in the Jade Clarity Sect would die one by one.

And Shen Jizhi.

And him.

And what about her?

According to the Bodhi Tree Spirit, her soul would return to her homeland, Earth, and she would be reincarnated.

The Bodhi Seed that nourished her soul would ensure her peace and happiness in all her future lives.

But would the next life still be her?

Without the experiences and memories of being "Jian Huan," would that still be her?

She only had this life.

And she only wanted this life.

Three years ago, her life should have ended in a car accident.

But the Bodhi Tree Spirit had given her three more years.

In the early days after transmigrating into this book, faced with the dire straits of poverty, Jian Huan had lamented and complained.

But she had still resolutely set out on the path to the Jade Clarity Sect, enduring the hardships and finding joy in her efforts to earn money and cultivate.

At that time, on the Nine Provinces Continent, the sun rose in the east and set in the west, and the people lived in peace and contentment.

The major sects enjoyed tranquil days, and though life was modest, she could see her path clearly.

Because of her hopes, every day when she opened her eyes, she could smile with joy.

It seemed that a good life was just around the corner.

She had already reached the high stage of the Golden Core, just one step away from the Nascent Soul Stage.

The house on the hillside had been built with three rooms, but after its completion, she hadn’t been able to stay there for long, as it was mostly enjoyed by the Earth Fruit Spirits.

In her Mustard Seed Pouch, there were many spirit stones she hadn’t had the chance to spend.

Her Dao Companion, too, she hadn’t kissed or held nearly enough.

Jian Huan didn’t want to die.

She didn’t want the visions from her prophetic dreams to come true.

As a talisman cultivator, she sought to reach the Nascent Soul Stage through talismans.

Before coming to the Jiang family, Jian Huan had pondered for a long time how to comprehend the talisman that belonged to her.

What was her own talisman?

But now, she thought she knew.

With trembling hands, Jian Huan extended her blood-stained fingers and, like a child learning to write, began to draw on the uneven ground, stroke by stroke.

First, a horizontal stroke, then a dot.

She didn’t want her spirit stones to turn into useless rocks.

She didn’t want her house to become overgrown with weeds.

As a person of this world, Jian Huan wished for the mountains and rivers to remain unharmed, for the world to be free from calamity, for everyone to live in joy, for houses to be lived in, and for money to be spent.

Another stroke, a horizontal hook.@@novelbin@@

This was the talisman her parents had bestowed upon her the moment she was born.

A wish for her to live a life full of joy.

She had been unfilial, leaving home for the big city to attend university after graduating high school, and since then, she had rarely seen her family.

She had worked tirelessly to establish herself in the city, always thinking that once she earned enough money, she could properly fulfill her filial duties.

But the unexpected car accident had brought everything to an abrupt end, separating her from her parents forever.

Fortunately, during her time in the modern world, she hadn’t wasted her days. She had acquired a three-bedroom apartment and saved some money, leaving her parents with some means of support in their old age.

The final stroke, a downward slash.

This was for herself.

For Shen Jizhi.

She didn’t want him to lie buried in the sunless depths of the Dark Abyss.

A character for “joy,” written in blood, gradually took shape, clearly imprinted on the yellow earth.

The Joy Talisman was neither an offensive nor a defensive talisman. It contained only the power of prayer and protection.

Through the looming shadows of demons, Jian Huan gazed at the sky, her blood-stained lips silently murmuring, “My talisman, my wish…”

“May the people of the world wear smiles.”

“May my parents live in peace year after year.”

“May Shen Jizhi and I share eternal joy.”

As the blood dried, layers of dazzling golden and green light surged over the character for “joy,” growing larger and larger until, with a loud bang, it exploded outward in all directions!

The entire illusion began to collapse, the deafening roar like a hurricane or tsunami, unceasing.

Jian Huan felt her soul sink, plummeting downward, being pulled directly into her physical body in the Yin-Yang Sea.

Her dantian trembled and rose, and in the midst of the chaos, it merged completely with the primordial spirit in her mind!

In her consciousness, an island stretched across the sea, shrouded in immortal mist, with countless flowers blooming.

A small bodhi seed fell into the moist soil of the island and sprouted before her eyes.

The bodhi leaves were a vibrant green.

A tiny version of Jian Huan’s primordial spirit fluttered among the flowers, gently blowing on a partially blackened five-colored flower in the corner.

The five-colored flower floated lightly, landing on a bodhi leaf.

Outside the Bodhi Pagoda, Shen Jizhi swung his sword, slashing at the swarm of demon heart insects as numerous as locusts.

But suddenly, his body shook violently, and a muffled groan escaped his throat as he nearly lost his footing.

Gu Shan, who was being protected behind him, was pale, his eyes already somewhat unfocused, but he was still gritting his teeth and holding on.

Seeing this, Gu Shan was startled and quickly swung his sword, pulling the young man back. “You fool, are you alright?”

Shen Jizhi clutched his dantian, realizing something, and turned to look back. “Jian Huan…”

At that moment, a deafening roar echoed as the blood-red moon hung in the sky, and the pitch-black heavens were torn apart by a golden lightning bolt from outside the Dark Abyss, carrying the mysteries of the heavens and striking directly at the Bodhi Pagoda!

The demon heart insects crawling up from the Dark Abyss, almost reaching them, were instantly turned to smoke by the residual power of the heavenly lightning.

“This is…” Gu Shan was all too familiar with the aura of the golden lightning. “The Nascent Soul Heavenly Tribulation!”

“Quick, get out of here!” Gu Shan shouted at Shen Jizhi, then grabbed Yin Yusheng, the weakest among them, and with his last ounce of strength, pulled him as they flew out of the palace. “Nephew, take out the spatial bowl. This old man doesn’t want to be struck by lightning!”

As Gu Shan left, one bolt of heavenly lightning after another followed the initial golden strike, relentlessly crashing down.

The tribulation rained down like a torrential storm, centered on the Bodhi Pagoda, encircling the Dark Abyss.

The crackling sounds were terrifying to hear, and the demonic energy and demon heart insects vanished like bubbles upon encountering the lightning’s power.