Dawn pierced through the clouds as mist dispersed, with birds calling endlessly over the river.
Xing Shuishui woke up and immediately saw wooden planks above her. Confused, she sat up in bed with messy hair, blank for a moment before her memories returned.
Wait… Wasn’t the plan to get He Liansheng drunk and steal the pagoda? How did she end up blacking out first?
She rubbed her aching head and followed the red string on her wrist. He Liansheng was still meditating, his expression as unapproachable as ever. She wondered if she had said anything wrong last night…
Xing Shuishui got out of bed and walked to He Liansheng, bending down to test the waters: “He Liansheng?”
He Liansheng opened his eyes with an unfriendly expression.
Xing Shuishui forced a smile: “Good morning!”
He Liansheng sneered: “We’ve already had lunch. Yes, quite early indeed. You sure can sleep.”
Had she really slept that long?
She untied her messy hair and rebraided it, securing it at the back of her head with a red string. She told him: “I didn’t expect to black out suddenly… Usually my alcohol tolerance is quite good. This time was just an accident.”
“But now that you mention it, I am hungry. I’m going out to eat something.”
Secretly observing He Liansheng, there was no other reaction. Xing Shuishui secretly let out a sigh of relief. Thank goodness. She probably hadn’t said anything she shouldn’t have last night.
Hearing this, He Liansheng threw her a fasting pill, still with that disgusting taste. Xing Shuishui looked down at it, wanting to crush the awful thing and feed it to the fish, and also wanting to kick He Liansheng into the river.
She took a deep breath and refused: “This is for cultivators like you. It’s not really suitable for me. Besides… it looks expensive. And it doesn’t taste good.”
He Liansheng didn’t care about her opinion and snapped: “Then starve.”
What an annoying person.
The boat was almost at shore. It was too late for a proper meal now. Xing Shuishui was indeed hungry, so even though she was reluctant, she had to eat something. After much mental preparation, she finally crushed a bit of the fasting pill and put it in her mouth in front of He Liansheng.
But unexpectedly, it was different from what she had eaten before.
It wasn’t so hard to swallow.
Was she eating it wrong in her previous life? Xing Shuishui pondered for a moment but couldn’t figure it out.
Never mind. Let it be.
By now, the boat had docked.
Li Guanyu and Li Guanxing were calling for them outside.
Xing Shuishui pushed aside the curtain and stepped out. Before her eyes was a classic Jiangnan water town scene: lotus leaves and flowers, flowing water and pavilions, white walls reflecting the shadows of pear blossoms. Before they even properly entered the city, several vendors were already enthusiastically asking if they wanted to buy some freshly picked lotus flowers or lotus-based pastries. They were all driven away by He Liansheng’s cold stare.
Li Guanxing sighed with feeling: “Finally, not a street full of Luoyu flowers.”
Li Guanyu smiled slightly.
He Liansheng said: “We’re going to the west side of the city now.”
The location of the mastermind revealed by the white-robed demon was indeed a secluded courtyard in the western part of Qingzhou City.
Xing Shuishui asked: “Shouldn’t we find an inn first?”
Looking around, there seemed to be many people here, not just traveling merchants but also many cultivators. What if all the inns were full and they had to sleep on the streets tonight?
He Liansheng lowered his eyes to stare at her coldly: “No.”
Xing Shuishui wanted to say more but held back. He Liansheng’s next words were: “Xing Shuishui. Stop talking nonsense.”
It was clear he was extremely eager to break the heart-connecting string technique and didn’t want any delays. Li Guanyu and her brother exchanged glances and could only helplessly follow along. Xing Shuishui was half dead with frustration.
The western part of the city was much more desolate compared to the center.
The streets were quiet and empty, with only a few children playing in the alleys. They easily found the courtyard mentioned by the white-robed demon.
The courtyard was empty, the main gate locked tight, with obvious signs of fire damage.
He Liansheng took out the demon-subduing pagoda to release the white-robed demon for confirmation – this was undoubtedly the place.
Unfortunately, they had come too late; whoever had been here was long gone.
Indeed, the commotion caused by these Lingshan people through Luo Dan was not small. The other side was also clever, knowing they would track them here, and had destroyed the evidence in advance.
Xing Shuishui secretly observed that just from this courtyard alone, she couldn’t guess who its owner was.
Li Guanyu spotted some children playing nearby and walked over to crouch in front of them, asking gently: “Can you tell big sister what happened to this courtyard?”
The children rarely saw someone as beautiful as Li Guanyu and were stunned for a long while.
It wasn’t until Li Guanxing stared at them with an annoyed expression that they reacted.
One child finally responded: “This courtyard used to have lots of people. Demons would come and go sometimes, it was scary. Our parents wouldn’t let us play nearby.”
“But not long ago, there was suddenly a strange big fire that burned everything in the courtyard! The people who lived inside just vanished into thin air.”
He was also curious: “Big sister, what exactly happened?”
It was as they had guessed.
Li Guanyu asked: “Did you ever see what the people in this courtyard looked like?”
The child shook his head: “They all wore masks and white robes. They were strange people. We couldn’t see their faces at all.”
The trail ended here. Everyone’s expressions weren’t looking good.
From nearby, a stern voice called out: “Xiaoqing, you naughty child, how many times do I have to call you? Come home now, your mother is worried about you.”
The child called Xiaoqing sheepishly rubbed his head, said goodbye to them, and called back: “Grandma, I’m coming!”
The elderly might know more than children. Li Guanyu and her brother exchanged glances and went to question the old woman.
The old woman was clearly wary of strangers and kept Xiaoqing behind her: “Who are you?”
Li Guanyu clasped her hands and bowed, speaking softly: “I am Li Guanyu of the Li family from Lingshan, disciple of the True Person Chiqing. By order of the Mountain Lord, we are investigating the Luo Dan national flower incident, and our investigation led us to Qingzhou. If grandmother knows anything about this courtyard, please tell us. I represent Lingshan in expressing our deepest gratitude.”
When the old woman heard they were from Lingshan, her furrowed brows relaxed, and she spoke in a raspy voice: “You’re asking about the courtyard? I’m old now, and many things are unclear in my memory. I only vaguely remember this courtyard has been in the western city for a long time, it was here when my maternal grandfather was born. It used to be very beautiful, but sadly it was burned and ended up like this.”
According to the timeline of the Luoyu flower outbreak, it indeed matched up.
Li Guanyu asked: “Does grandmother know who owned this courtyard?”
The old woman paused, then said: “The owner? I believe it was a female cultivator of profound cultivation who never showed her true face. No one knew what she looked like. I heard from my mother-in-law that her name was Hua Yue, and she was the owner of Huayu Tower, Qingzhou’s premier treasure house. She would come to this small courtyard once every month.”
Huayu Tower? Luoyu flower.
It must be her.
Xing Shuishui thought.
She had never been to Qingzhou in her previous life and was hearing about Huayu Tower for the first time. But thinking about it, it made sense – there were many civilian organizations and all sorts of strange things, just like how the cultivation world had many sects, though Lingshan was the foremost among the hundred schools of immortal cultivation.
She was puzzled.
What was the relationship between this Hua Yue and Du Dizhu? How did Du Dizhu’s Luoyu flower end up in her hands?
Li Guanxing asked: “So where is this Hua Yue now?”
He was clearly a straightforward fellow.
The old woman sized him up for a while, growing impatient: “Where else would the owner of Huayu Tower be but at Huayu Tower? Besides, isn’t Huayu Tower holding some kind of matchmaking gathering recently? Many outsiders have come to Qingzhou, the streets are full of either cultivators or demon kings who don’t follow rules at all, seriously disturbing our lives. Even reporting to officials is useless. I just hope Huayu Tower finds a match soon and sends these big shots away! Our little Qingzhou city can’t handle such distinguished guests!”
Hearing this, Li Guanyu couldn’t help but wonder: “How could a matchmaking gathering attract so many cultivators and even demon kings?”
The old woman said: “Young lady doesn’t know, they say Huayu Tower’s betrothal gift is a peerless demon sword! I think it’s called… Qitong?”
This news shocked not only Li Guanyu and Li Guanxing, but even He Liansheng raised his eyes, squinting thoughtfully.
Li Guanxing exclaimed in surprise: “Did I hear that right! Is it really Xue Jiuling’s Qitong? Wasn’t this demon sword turned to ash when that demon woman died years ago? It actually still exists in the world! Truly, evil things last a thousand years!”
Li Guanyu said: “The reappearance of the Qitong sword is no small matter. We must visit Huayu Tower, not just for the Luoyu flower issue.”
Only Xing Shuishui remained silent.
If that fake thing was called Qitong, then what was the name of the one hidden in her sleeve? System?
She vaguely felt uneasy, sensing that everything wasn’t as simple as it seemed.
Returning from the western city, the streets grew increasingly crowded. They hadn’t noticed earlier, but now looking carefully, there were indeed many cultivators and demon kings. When these two groups met, the hostile energy was intense, and it was only because of the many mortals present that they didn’t fight in the streets.
The appearance of Lingshan people undoubtedly became the center of attention. It seemed many people recognized He Liansheng – well, he was indeed easy to recognize, being the only celestial master in all of Lingshan who wore a vermillion headband, and his presence was strong.
“Lingshan people! Look at those clothes, they’re from the Li family! Why did they come too? I knew Lingshan would get involved in this matter.”
“The one next to the little girl seems to be He Liansheng. I heard he became a celestial master at such a young age? Seeing him today, he truly is heaven’s chosen one. Is he here for the matchmaking gathering too? Who’s that beside him? His dao companion? She doesn’t seem to have any cultivation.”
“Haha, Lingshan people are here, you demons’ good days are over. You better run while you still can.”
Li Guanyu greeted people politely, while Li Guanxing stood in front of his sister with an annoyed expression. He Liansheng coldly stared at the person who spoke, making them turn pale instantly. Xing Shuishui, however, felt nothing, looking around, searching for her former nemesis Du Dizhu.
With Du Dizhu’s intelligence level… he was probably tricked here by the fake Qitong.
What was Hua Yue’s purpose in setting up such a scheme?
Qingzhou was originally a small city with few people, and the inns were usually quiet. With so many people suddenly flooding in, the inns were packed full. After asking several places with no vacant rooms, Xing Shuishui looked at He Liansheng with an “I told you so” expression.
He Liansheng had become increasingly irritated by the string connected to his hand throughout this journey – it couldn’t be burned off or broken, and there were plenty of unwelcome eyes staring at this string. When Xing Shuishui walked in front, the red string became even more obvious when pulled taut.
He couldn’t help but say irritably: “If you keep running around randomly, I’ll make sure you can’t bounce around in your next life.”
Xing Shuishui turned back with an innocent expression. So fierce.
She stopped walking and added: “Okay. I got it.”
They finally found an inn – the largest and most impressive in Qingzhou – which fortunately had two rooms left. The lobby was bustling with noise, wooden tables all occupied, with tea, melon seeds, cardamom, and fruit plates laid out.
Suddenly a group of people burst in. The lobby fell silent.
From the corner of her eye, she saw the leader wearing cyan robes, his black hair unbound, holding a folding fan, with several attendants following as he walked toward the front desk.
Why did it suddenly get so quiet?
Xing Shuishui was still waiting for Li Guanyu to finish registering. Curious about who had arrived, she turned her head slightly to look.
The man walked to her side, just a few steps away, barely noticing her, only saying to the clerk: “A month ago, our Lihua Mountain Villa asked your manager to reserve several good rooms. Are they still available?”
“Yes, yes, honored guest, they’re all kept for you.”
Xing Shuishui quickly lowered her head the moment she saw him, her pupils contracting.
It was Xue Sansi.
She hadn’t expected him to come too.
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