Twin Wraiths

The scene was truly a bit eerie.

But considering there were no other living things around, and that the native inhabitants would likely be familiar with the routes inside the Myriad Bones Forest, Song Yao hesitated for a moment, sheathed her Bishui Sword, and very smoothly accepted this title.

Becoming a mother without any labor pain.

Pretty good.

She turned around. The children, who had been a few paces away just a moment ago, had quietly drawn closer without her realizing it.

Their noses were almost brushing her shoulder, like two weightless shadows.

Only now did she see clearly that the two children weren't just tilting their heads toward each other; their heads were actually fused together.

There were almost no whites in their eyes; pitch-black pupils filled their entire sockets, staring straight at her with undisguised, almost drooling malice.

Their mouths split open all the way to their ears, revealing rows of fine, sharp, forest-white teeth as they spoke again.

“Mother, I'm so hungry.”

Saliva dripped from the corners of their mouths, carrying a rancid stench.

Song Yao raised an eyebrow.

She seemed to have heard of this kind of demon before.

They were called Twin Wraiths.

With one head and two faces in the form of children, they would cling to anyone they met like parasites, calling them “Mother” and constantly begging for food.

And they only ate human blood and flesh.

Their appetites would grow larger and larger. If their “mother” couldn't feed them, they would devour the person they clung to and move on to find the next mother.

The Myriad Bones Forest was considered a relatively small secret realm, so normally, there should be more minor spirits and fewer demons.

Since this was only the outer perimeter, there shouldn't be a demon of this level of cultivation here.

But no matter how powerful they were, they couldn't stir up much trouble.

And...

Her eyes sparkled, and she really couldn't resist reaching out to pat the fused top of the two children's heads. “Since your heads are connected like this, do you only have one brain?”

The Twin Wraiths' expressions visibly stiffened, a metaphorical question mark slowly rising above their heads.

Song Yao leaned down slightly to look them in the eyes, incredibly curious. “Then if one of you thinks of something really dirty or nasty, won't the other one know immediately?”

Twin Wraiths: “?”

Previously, they had been hunted by cultivators and had fled all the way here, slipping into the closing secret realm to seek a chance at survival.

How could they have known that the secret realm wouldn't open for five years? They had starved for five whole years.

Having finally waited for the secret realm to reopen, they had instantly set their sights on this fair, slender, young cultivator who looked like she would be easily frightened and manipulated, planning to slowly consume her until nothing was left.

Was her reaction normal?

Not only was she not afraid, she even... even suspected them of having dirty thoughts?

Seeing that they remained silent, Song Yao pressed further. “Do you two even have any privacy like this?”

“If you get into a fight and one of you secretly curses the other behind their back, won't the other person hear it?”

“Do you get embarrassed?”

The Twin Wraiths were questioned to the point of doubting their own existence as demons, dazed for a good while.

Once they snapped out of it, they instantly flew into a rage.

This brat was playing with them and mocking them to buy time!

Both mouths shrieked in unison, high-pitched and ear-piercing: “Mother, we're hungry!!!”

The Twin Wraiths' white fangs gleamed with a cold light.

Their withered, child-like arms suddenly elongated, carrying a sticky, foul-smelling, dark energy as they lunged at Song Yao like two twisted black shadows.

They actually wanted to wrap directly around her limbs, parasitically clinging to their “mother” like infants.

Song Yao glanced overhead.

There was no cloud screen watching this spot. She could make her move.

A clear ring pierced the dead silence as the Bishui Sword leaped from its scabbard.

Countless sword qi threads, fine as ice silk, instantly exploded outward, weaving into an airtight, freezing net that descended upon them from all directions.

The sword qi was as sharp as knives, carrying a bone-chilling cold.

The Twin Wraiths' shrieks were instantly forced back down their throats by the raging sword wind, leaving them without even a shred of room to resist.

With a dull thud, the two black shadows were violently slammed against the stone wall behind them by the sword wind.

Stone fragments flew everywhere. Their emaciated bodies were embedded in the cracks of the stone wall, their bones making strained, creaking sounds under the immense pressure.

The two children's pupils suddenly contracted, and for the first time, utter horror filled their pitch-black sockets.

How could this seemingly weak and defenseless young cultivator possess such terrifying cultivation!

This sword technique...

How on earth did she execute it!

This wasn't right!

Weren't only cultivators of the Golden Core Rank or below allowed to enter?!

In the next second, the young cultivator sheathed her sword. Stepping over the gravel, she leisurely walked over to them and squatted down.

Under their terrified gazes, she reached out to pat their heads once more, her voice gentle. “When Mother asks a question, you must answer obediently, or else you'll get a beating.”

Twin Wraiths: “!!!”

Ahhhhhhhhh!

Just because they called her “Mother” once, she actually started referring to herself that way!!

Didn't all the people they had clung to in the past cry and beg not to be their mother?!

How could someone who looked so cold and elegant, even a bit cute, say such terrifying things!

The Twin Wraiths struggled to get up and flee, but with a sharp clink, the Bishui Sword plunged into the gap right beneath their heads, stopping them in their tracks.

Song Yao said with a smile, “Alright, if you don't want to answer the previous questions, you don't have to. Mother will ask you something else.”

The Twin Wraiths felt like crying. Their eyes could no longer widen, and their mouths could no longer split open. Shivering, they stared at her, only hoping she would finish asking her questions quickly and let them go.

Song Yao pulled the map out of her spatial pouch and held it before their eyes. “Where are we right now?”

The Twin Wraiths immediately shook even harder, their previously dark and sticky voices growing somewhat hoarse. “W-We don't know. Can't read it.”

Song Yao frowned slightly. “You're already this big, yet you're so uneducated?”

“Do you think it was easy for Mother to raise you two to this size?”

“Is this how you repay Mother?”

Twin Wraiths: “...”

Ahhhhhh!

Why is she really treating herself as our mother!

Her clear, cold voice was quite intimidating when she spoke harshly. The two wraiths' psychological defenses crumbled, and they couldn't hold it in any longer. Biting their lips, they began to sob.

Song Yao blinked and swallowed the rest of her words.

Amusing.

She actually made them cry.

She withdrew her sword and comforted them gently, “It's fine if you're uneducated. Just tell Mother where the Lotus Crow-Sparrow Grass is.”

The Twin Wraiths stopped crying for a moment and shook their heads in confusion.

Song Yao said, “Not only are you uneducated, but you don't even know where things are? You've disappointed Mother so much.”

“...”

The Twin Wraiths had never suffered such grievance, not even when they were hunted by cultivators into the secret realm. They instantly cried even louder.

Song Yao covered one mouth with each hand. “There, there, Mother spoke too harshly. Surely you must know where the Twin Insect Cave is?”

The map indicated that the Lotus Crow-Sparrow Grass grew somewhere inside the Twin Insect Cave.

The people from Taiqing Pavilion and Beiyao Sect would surely make that their primary target as well.

The Twin Wraiths felt as if they had caught a life-saving straw. They stopped crying immediately and shook their heads like rattle-drums in agreement.

We know, we know!

Great!

They finally didn't have to be scolded anymore!

They finally didn't have to disappoint her!

Song Yao also let out a sigh of relief and stood up. “Wonderful. Lead the way.”