Jiang Yuebai didn’t rush to the Yun Family. She first entered the city, hid her cultivation aura, found a tavern full of mixed company, ordered a pot of spiritual wine and two pounds of beast meat, and sat down to listen to the tavern’s discussions.

At a table adjacent to Jiang Yuebai’s, a few young cultivators surrounded an old Foundation Establishment cultivator, inquiring about the Yun Family’s affairs, just in time for her to eavesdrop.

In the Frost Snow Domain of the Doumu Realm, around the Jiancang Mountain range, there were two major families, the Yun Family and the Lei Family. Previously, the strength of the Yun and Lei Families was comparable, both having Divinity Transformation cultivators overseeing them. The Yun Family’s ancestor even advanced to the Refining Void Stage earlier.

But unforeseeable storms happen in the sky. The Yun Family’s ancestor who advanced to the Refining Void Stage had previously served as the clan leader, entangled in worldly affairs, unable to eliminate delusions, causing his cultivation to stagnate.

To cut through delusions, he used an unconventional method Jiang Yuebai had read about in books before: refining a Refining Void Illusionary Body, then cutting it off to eliminate delusions.

However, this method was risky and not everyone had the favor of the Heavenly Dao. The Yun Family’s ancestor fell because of this, resulting in the family’s downfall.

Pressed by the Lei Family’s pressure, the Yun Family moved from Frost Snow City to reside in Jiancang Mountain. For over a century, the clan’s highest cultivation level remained at Peak Nascent Soul, unable to break through to Divinity Transformation and unable to compete with the Lei Family in the city.

In fact, the people in Frost Snow City still respected the Yun Family more. The Lei Family was always arrogant and domineering, with tendencies of extortion, but the Yun Family was kind and even willing to set up a Charity Hall in the city to receive orphans and guide those with good aptitude into the Dao.

But these good deeds could not prevent the doom destined in the Yun Family’s fate.

A major event on Yun Muyuan’s side, who was originally the most hopeful to advance to the Divinity Transformation Stage, emerged, sufficient to destroy the Yun Family.

When Yun Muyuan was young, he was high-spirited and always a standout among his peers, also possessing an elegant appearance. During his early travels, he brought back an unknown woman with whom he fell deeply in love, intending to marry her and pursue the Dao together.

Although her background was a mystery, the Yun Family did not object because, in the Doumu Realm, whether it was doing business or getting married, a contract had to be established.

The Dao Fruit of Immortal Monarch Fatian made the force of contracts in the Doumu Realm stronger than any other realm. Anyone who violated a contract’s terms would suffer contract backlash.

Such was the marriage contract.

The union of two surnames, a contract established in one hall, a harmonious and perpetual union, mutual devotion, support in sincerity, never betraying one another.

In the early years, Yun Muyuan and his wife Ruan Qiongfang were in perfect harmony, practicing the Yun Family’s inherited cultivation technique, with their cultivation progressing rapidly, advancing from Late-Stage Nascent Soul to Peak Nascent Soul within just thirty years.

They had two children one after another. But ten years ago, when Yun Muyuan was preparing to seclude himself for Divinity Transformation, Ruan Qiongfang attempted to steal the Yun Family’s secret treasure and was discovered, revealing her true identity.

As it turns out, she was not human, but a Snow Demon.

Ruan Qiongfang tried to escape from the Yun Family with the two children, but was stopped by the Yun Family. In the ensuing battle, her eldest son was accidentally killed by her, and the other child suffered severe injuries but was kept by Yun Muyuan at the cost of his life.

Ruan Qiongfang, with Peak Nascent Soul cultivation and perfectly adapted to the perpetual snow in Jiancang Mountain, overpowered everyone.

If not for the marriage contract’s backlash, the entire Yun Family would not have been her match.

As she fled, grievously injured, Ruan Qiongfang left behind words that one day she would return to avenge her child’s death.

Since then, Yun Muyuan fell into despair, with his cultivation regressing rather than advancing, now living a secluded life with his younger son left behind in the Yun Family’s rear mountain.

"...Poor Yun Muyuan, a dragon among men, and those innocent children. The frail child struggles to endure the demonic power of Ruan Qiongfang’s Snow Demon lineage, bedridden, requiring constant warmth from spiritual fire, lest a slight misstep leads to his body freezing and dying."

The old cultivator clicked his tongue in lamentation, looking up to find a female cultivator of indiscernible cultivation calmly sitting opposite him, holding a wine pot.

"Fellow Daoist, I’m curious, how do humans and demons have children?"

Jiang Yuebai stuffed the wine pot into her storage bag, as this wine was for the Supreme Elder.

The old cultivator, asked such a question by a female cultivator, was somewhat embarrassed, "How would I know? I’ve never married a demon as a Daoist companion."

"No, I’m just purely curious. Snow Demons are the essence of snow, even if they take human form, they don’t possess the ability of human cultivators to bear children. So I’m curious how they produced the two children, whether it’s the same method as Human Clan couples or using other Secret Techniques..."

"Cough cough, cough cough cough!"

The old cultivator coughed intensely, blushing as he stood up, while the surrounding cultivators laughed lightly.

"You, girl, sigh!"

"Hey, don’t leave. There are still many questions in your story. How could a demon, which is said to have no heart, fall in love with a man? Yun Muyuan lived with a Snow Demon for over twenty years, slept together every day, even had two children, and never noticed she was a demon? That’s impossible!"

The old cultivator fled as if escaping, while Jiang Yuebai frowned.

"What are you looking at? Is it wrong to have many questions?"

Jiang Yuebai paid her bill and left. She hadn’t intended to ask, but the old cultivator’s story full of inconsistencies made her uncomfortable.

Having lived among the Demon Clan for ten years, she was well aware of most demons.

If it’s a beast, developing feelings for the Human Clan might still be possible.

But aside from demons like the Phoenix, Immortal Crane, Geese, and Wolf Clan, who practice monogamy, most ’love’ of demons only arises in the spring to propagate the species.

Outside this period, who recognizes whom? Female mantises eat male mantises!

Thus, most demons lack a heart; love between sexes is less important than clan rules for them.

Like Tian Nanxing before, seemingly fond of Blood Orchid, but it was just a whimsical desire to experience human love.

In life-or-death moments, Tian Nanxing could still sacrifice Blood Orchid without hesitation.

Snow Demons are not beasts, nor even plants but the essence of snow in the world, inherently lacking the ability to love, let alone have children?

There’s something peculiar about this matter.

Jiang Yuebai inquired about what the Yun Family’s secret treasure was, but there were mixed answers, with no definitive conclusion.

It makes sense: if a secret treasure wasn’t secret, how could it be called a secret treasure?

As she walked out of the restaurant, Jiang Yuebai stood at the doorway pondering whether to participate in the Yun Family’s recruitment. Although she wasn’t afraid of signing an employment contract, she didn’t want to be used as a pawn.

"The Snow Demon has already incited mountain beasts to attack the Yun Family twice, and the Yun Family has taken proactive action once, all to no avail, with numerous casualties. This is not an easy matter to handle."

"If Fellow Daoist wishes to know the inside story of the Yun Family and the Snow Demon, I can inform you, one question, one hundred Spirit Stones."

A lazy voice came from beside her. Jiang Yuebai turned her head and saw a scruffy middle-aged male cultivator with a full beard, yawning as if he hadn’t slept well, covered in white snow.

"A hundred Spirit Stones? Why don’t you just rob me!" Jiang Yuebai retorted.

The middle-aged male cultivator straightened up, exhaling white breath, "That counts as a question. One hundred Spirit Stones. Pay up first, then I’ll answer."

Jiang Yuebai: ......

This man must be crazy, but he had hidden his cultivation, and even Jiang Yuebai couldn’t discern it.

Learning from Buxu Wanderer’s lesson, Jiang Yuebai swallowed her words and ignored him, stepping into the snow to leave.

After walking only two steps, someone was suddenly kicked out from a nearby shop, landing heavily in the snow before Jiang Yuebai. The man’s arms scattered with Spiritual Wood.

"Oh~ isn’t this the pride of our Yun Family, Yun Muyuan? How can you trip while walking? Ah, I forgot, you’re no longer a Nascent Soul cultivator; your cultivation has fallen to Foundation Establishment, no wonder."

A sarcastic voice came from the shop, and a Mid-Stage Golden Core blue-clad male cultivator stood at the door, his expression mocking, dressed in luxurious blue attire with a black wooden pendant at his waist, engraved with the character ’Lei.’

Jiang Yuebai observed the man slowly standing up ahead. His clothes were coarse, a footprint marked his lower back, and his cultivation was only at Late-Stage Foundation Establishment, silently enduring, indeed quite handsome.

Though he appeared youthful, with a full head of gray hair, he stooped to collect the firewood-like Spiritual Wood, aged as if he were an elder of sixty or seventy.

He spoke not a word, collected all the Spiritual Wood, shakily placed them into his storage bag, and with his head down, trudged through the snow to leave.

The blue-clad male cultivator did not pursue further, only snorted coldly and left in another direction.

Jiang Yuebai scanned around and keenly noticed a hint of malice flicker in the eyes of the unkempt male cultivator who had earlier asked her for a hundred Spirit Stones. Rubbing his nose, he quietly followed after the Lei Family’s blue-clad male cultivator.

On the other side, Yun Muyuan had walked far away.

Thinking it over, Jiang Yuebai secretly split off a White Vine Avatar to follow underground while her main body went after Yun Muyuan.