After breakfast, Wen Mingyu and the others, who had been busy all day yesterday, found themselves with nothing to do at the moment, so they excused themselves to go back to their rooms to rest.
Tang Muxi, feeling a bit tired from talking, didn’t try to keep them and, after saying goodbye, tidied up a bit before taking a walk on the spacious deck with Senior Sister.
This immortal ship had three levels.
The first level was below, inside the ship, used for storing various items. The second and third levels were above the deck, with better ventilation and lighting, serving as living quarters.
There was also a tall lookout tower connected to the massive spiritual sails, but cultivators, with their keen senses, didn’t need to stand high to explore their surroundings with spiritual awareness, so the lookout was more for sightseeing and leisure.
Tang Muxi had just received the immortal ship from Wen Mingyu and was very curious about this tall ship.
Seeing the towering lookout, she eagerly flew up to it.
Immersed in the ethereal mist, she watched the dazzling sunrise slowly rise on the horizon, feeling a sense of clarity and joy.
Jiang Yin knew she liked to play and didn’t disturb her, quietly following behind.
A gentle breeze brought a slight chill of moisture.
The ship sailed very fast, but it didn’t sway, remaining very stable.
Standing on the narrow lookout, one couldn’t feel any movement at all.
Tang Muxi restlessly stood on tiptoe, half of her body leaning over the railing.
Jiang Yin, worried she might fall, reached out to support her waist, making it look like she was holding her in her arms from the side, which was quite intimate.
“Is Senior Sister unhappy?” Tang Muxi played around for a while and, seeing Jiang Yin hadn’t spoken for a long time, couldn’t help but ask, “Is it because of Mingyu’s friend?” The events at the dining table were still fresh in her mind.
Again with Mingyu.
Jiang Yin felt uninterested upon hearing this name and gently pinched Tang Muxi’s face, teasing, “You have so many ‘sisters,’ little sister.
Are you going to abandon Senior Sister one day and run off with some random ‘sister’?”
Tang Muxi was taken aback by Jiang Yin’s jealous words, not quite understanding, but she didn’t want to be misunderstood, so she quickly explained, “Senior Sister is Senior Sister, and Mingyu is Mingyu.
They’re different.
I won’t run off with anyone else.”
She often heard the big demon say similar things and didn’t understand why the other was so convinced she would run off with someone else.
Did she really seem like someone who would abandon others and flirt around? Tang Muxi pursed her lips, feeling a bit annoyed, and let out a small huff, feeling like her mood for enjoying the scenery was ruined.
Jiang Yin ignored her dissatisfaction, pinching the other side of her face, playing with it like pulling noodles, and said persistently, “I don’t like it.
Don’t call others ‘sister’ in front of me.”
After thinking for a moment, she added, “Be good.”
Tang Muxi pursed her lips, “Fine, I won’t call her that.
How should I address her then? Wen Mingyu? Is that okay?”
Using her surname made it seem quite distant.
Jiang Yin reluctantly nodded, not telling her that she was still not satisfied.
Wen Mingyu was still not good enough; it would be best if she didn’t even have a name.
After all, this person was quite strange, calling her little sister a few times and really making her a little sister.
If one day she changed the way she addressed her, who knows what would happen.
It’s always good to be cautious.
Seeing her nod, Tang Muxi changed the topic, “Senior Sister seems to dislike the demon clan.”
“First Bai Ling, then Master and Wen Mingyu, and now ‘aid from the demon domain.’ It seems that as long as it’s related to the demon clan, Senior Sister instinctively dislikes it.”
Her intuition told her there must be an underlying reason.
Jiang Yin paused, not expecting the usually silly person to suddenly become sharp.
She smiled faintly, with a hint of longing in her expression, “Want to hear?”
Tang Muxi blinked and nodded seriously, “Of course.” As she spoke, she leaned closer.
Unexpectedly, Jiang Yin suddenly curved her lips, gave her a light kiss on the cheek, and teased, “But I’m too lazy to tell.” Then she laughed heartily.
Tang Muxi was stunned, realizing she had been tricked, furrowing her brows with a face full of grievance, “Senior Sister is so annoying, deliberately teasing people.
You’ll easily lose me like this!”
Jiang Yin ignored her words, and after laughing enough, she stopped, reaching out to poke Tang Muxi, “How is it teasing? You have to pay for things, and little sister hasn’t paid any price, so why should you hear a story?”
She conveniently forgot that she had been eating little sister’s food for so long without paying a cent.
“What does Senior Sister want? As long as Muxi has it, just say the word.” Tang Muxi looked at Jiang Yin seriously, her cheeks puffed up in a huff, but no one would doubt her sincerity.
Her eyes were clear and pure, with no trace of impurity except for a slight annoyance.
Her words were simple and sincere, containing the most passionate heart.
Jiang Yin’s heart skipped a beat.
Faced with such genuine words, it was as if her beautiful facade had been stripped away, revealing only the dirty and ugly inside.
She despised honesty the most, believing it to be the most useless thing in the deceitful world of cultivation.
But when someone completely relied on and trusted her, her heart couldn’t help but leap with joy.
Why did she despise the demon realm? Because in her previous life, the only time her shrewd and powerful self failed, she almost lost her life.
“Senior Sister?” Tang Muxi saw her in a daze and couldn’t help but speak again, “What do you really want?” From her tone, it seemed as if she was willing to give up her life if Jiang Yin just asked.
Jiang Yin was speechless, her heart in a panic, and finally decided to use a lie to muddle through.
“What do I want… I haven’t thought about it yet.
I’ll tell you when I figure it out.” She smiled, brushing away her panic and regaining her usual composure.
“Besides, it’s not something important.
It’s been so long, I can’t remember.” “I’m a bit tired.
Would you accompany Senior Sister back to rest?” Jiang Yin said as she pulled Tang Muxi down from the high viewing platform, determined not to give her a chance to ask further questions.
Tang Muxi knew she was being evasive again and kept it in her heart.
The speed of the immortal boat was fast, flying in the sky without being affected by the terrain, allowing them to travel at any time.
But as Wen Mingyu said, the closer they got to the capital, the stricter the inspections became.
Initially, they could avoid inspections by claiming they were just passing through and not entering the city, but later, even if they didn’t enter the city, as long as they flew over it, someone would stop them.
The Nine Fiends Hall ruled by combining sects with the court, dividing control areas according to the sect branches.
The cities near the capital were under the control of the Nine Fiends Hall’s main force, strictly controlling the movements of various forces.
Human cultivators were slightly better off; as long as they weren’t hostile forces, they could come and go freely, and those with higher cultivation might even be treated as guests.
But they were very repulsive to ghosts, demons, and monsters, and if they entered without permission, they would be captured on the spot.
After the Spirit-Demon War, relations between the two realms became increasingly tense.
The Nine Fiends Hall was extremely repulsive to demon cultivators, killing them on sight regardless of their identity.
Wen Mingyu, who had been trading with various realms for years, had a token that allowed her to pass through all territories unimpeded.
But for some reason, since the capital was sealed off a month ago, even with the token, she had to undergo inspections, and sometimes even had to bribe with money to pass through.
Today was no different.
When they arrived at Qixuan City, not far from the capital, three Nascent Soul cultivators stopped the immortal boat.
“Fellow Daoists, by the order of His Highness, all cities within a hundred miles of the capital must be strictly inspected.
Please don’t make it difficult for me,” said the leader, Feng Yuan, a late-stage Nascent Soul cultivator, with a flowing robe and an immortal demeanor.
Behind him were two early-stage Nascent Soul cultivators, both handsome and clearly of high status.
Wen Mingyu greeted them warmly, gracefully cupping her fists in salute.
“We come from Youming City, intending to go to the capital’s Treasure Pavilion to replenish goods.
This is our travel token, please have a look.” She took out a delicate wooden token from her sleeve, carved with patterns around the edges, with the Treasure Pavilion’s emblem in the center and a rune personally endorsed by the Nine Fiends Hall’s master below.
There were three types of tokens: those with the city lord’s mark were low-grade; those with court approval were mid-grade; and those with the hall master’s imprint were high-grade.
The first two could be obtained with a large amount of money, but the last required considerable status and background.
The Treasure Pavilion operated across the human, demon, and monster realms, and while not ubiquitous, it was wealthy enough to rival nations, so having a token personally granted by the hall master was not surprising.
Feng Yuan, seeing her luxurious attire and extraordinary demeanor, and holding a token personally granted by the hall master, immediately understood her noble status and did not accept her salute.
“So it’s a fellow Daoist from the Treasure Pavilion.
I apologize for not welcoming you sooner,” he said politely.
“However, you may not be aware that the capital is currently in distress.
Even with a token personally granted by His Highness, we cannot let you pass immediately.
How about this: you call your friends and subordinates over, and I’ll just take a quick look, then let you through.” Wen Mingyu frowned, not surprised by this outcome, but concerned about the situation in the capital.
“Distress in the capital? I heard that the capital was suddenly sealed off a month ago.
What happened?” Feng Yuan, considering her status, did not avoid the topic and sighed.
“You guessed correctly.
Recently, there have been evil spirits in the capital, causing many casualties.
A month ago, His Highness ordered the evacuation of the people for their safety, then sealed the city to exorcise the spirits, leading by example, which is commendable.”
“Now the capital is completely sealed, and no one is allowed in or out.
You might as well rest in Qixuan for a while and wait until the evil spirit issue is resolved before heading to the capital.
Otherwise, you’ll be blocked by the city’s protective array.” Wen Mingyu heard this and a glint of doubt flashed in her eyes.
Before the complete lockdown, she had been in contact with the Treasure Pavilion in the capital and had never heard of evil spirits appearing, nor of any order for the people to flee.
Compared to unknown cultivators, she preferred to trust the Treasure Pavilion’s information.
“Thank you for the advice.” She did not question it, only keeping these words in mind, planning to think it over later.
“Please wait a moment, I’ll go find my friends.” She had long known about the tense relationship between the Nine Fiends Hall and demon cultivators, so she had already advised Jiang Yin to disguise herself.
Although she could also hide in a small world, Panlong couldn’t enter or exit, and in the coming days, they might need to gather information in Qixuan, so constantly hiding would be inconvenient.
Wen Fei specially crafted a magical artifact for her to conceal her identity, so much so that even a Nascent Soul cultivator couldn’t detect it.
However, she never expected that this would still cause problems.
Once everyone had gathered, Feng Yuan cupped his hands and said, “I apologize for any offense,” then took out two spirit mirrors, one black and one white, from his hands.
The surfaces were engraved with mysterious runes, emitting an ominous aura.
Jiang Yin recognized the familiar patterns on them and her face immediately changed dramatically.
Demon Disk!
