Chapter 50 Reunion in the City "Fellow Daoists, it's been a long time..."

After Qiao Yanshen explained the celestial phenomena to the two of them in detail, Qin Shiying was not pleased. He simply smiled and nodded, saying, "If there is indeed divine assistance, then I wish this journey will be successful."

She looked up at the unusual sky; the red light slowly faded, like a dying candle, quickly disappearing. The night sky returned to darkness, all the stars flickering and then extinguished, as if they had all died in an instant, leaving only a stillness. The water below flowed gently, propelling the boat; this night was destined to be long and arduous.

"The starry sky is meant to guide all living beings, not just for counting to pass the time." The young princess unsheathed her sword and placed it aside. "There are so many more stars on the snowfield than here. I even named them, like Da Ming and Xiao Bai..."

"You absolutely mustn't keep a pet, otherwise its name will definitely be terrible," Shen Lixia said quietly.

Qin Shiying merely smiled, offering no comment. The snow-covered plains were swept by howling winds; the night was long and dark. Beneath the vast expanse of white, the starry sky stretched like a sea, often blurring the line between heaven and earth. On her journey here, she was unfamiliar with the sweltering heat, and once fell ill from the discomfort. In her sleep, she murmured incoherently that she didn't want to return to being a princess, didn't want to rule the country, and only wanted to remain on the snow-covered plains with her aunts and sisters from the cavalry. But now that they had followed her here, she had no choice; she could no longer be cowardly, and she absolutely should not regret it.

She reached inside her clothes again for the crumpled, rough letter—it was from her mother, and it brought her back to reality. Women in the country were suffering terribly due to the change of regime, and their long-held beliefs had been replaced.

And even worse...

When Qin Shiying saw Qiao Yanshen looking over, she subtly pulled her hand to the edge of the cloak, tightened it, and pretended to be feeling cold because of the drop in temperature at night.

Qiao Yanshen withdrew his gaze and instead sent a telepathic message to Shen Lixia: "Sit closer to me."

Knowing her intention, the young man moved a little distance away and sat facing Qiao Yanshen. The two understood each other implicitly, their hands clasped tightly, fingers intertwined, a faint luster flowing between them. Beneath the river, spiritual energy also flowed, constantly monitoring the surrounding movements.

Seeing that they had begun their cultivation, Qin Shiying took out her storybook again and began to read. The romantic tales of the immortal sects were quite captivating. The story had reached the point where the two had confirmed their feelings for each other, yet were separated by the vicissitudes of life. The junior sister had become a righteous person, sacrificing herself for the world, while the senior sister had fallen into demonic possession, only seeking to gather her soul so that her junior sister could return to the mortal realm. She felt a lump in her throat as she read, and a sentence caught her eye: the senior sister had drawn her sword and committed suicide, saying that her master was like a mother to her, and that she had been taught by her for many years, yet today she had betrayed her sect, and should return her flesh and blood to her mother.

Sword after sword, the chill piercing to the bone, demonic energy emanating from her body. The senior sister could no longer hold her sword, blood and tears flowing together:

"I've come looking for you... lest you lose your way home..."

Qin Shiying pursed her lips, turned to look at the woman rowing the boat, and finally couldn't help but ask in a low voice, "Sister, what happens if a person's soul is scattered?"

The other person was silent for a moment, as if pondering, before replying: "Wandering in the world, lost and lonely, until completely vanished."

That was really lonely...

She closed the storybook, shut her eyes, and said nothing more.

Nothing was said that night.

The next morning, the group arrived at the town gate earlier than expected, leaving Qin Shiying scrambling to get ready. With Qiao Yanshen's help, she quickly disguised herself and bought a bamboo hat, transforming herself into a wandering swordsman. The female soldiers who brought her there waited near the water to provide support and relay messages.

The three concealed their weapons and disguised themselves, trying to keep a low profile.

Even so, they still encountered trouble. As soon as they reached the city gate, several guards surrounded them. Upon seeing that the people in front of them were all women, they immediately lost their serious demeanor and said with a smile, "Ladies, we are so sorry, the city is currently under lockdown. Please come again next time."

One of them even said flippantly, "However, if they are family members of people from within the city, they can be allowed to pass. These young ladies look unfamiliar—"

Before he could finish speaking, a wave of scorching heat swept over him, instantly drawing blood and sealing his throat, leaving only a strange, hoarse sound. This sound was quickly silenced, as the flesh stopped bleeding and was instead charred, preventing the blood from flowing out. The guard's face turned ashen, and he finally collapsed helplessly to the ground.

Shen Lixia drew her sword and made a hand seal, causing a raging fire to erupt from the corpse. She then took out a talisman and used an array to seal off the lingering odor, coldly watching the person before her gradually turn into a blackened mass. The acrid smell caused the three people beside her to cough incessantly, momentarily forgetting to run away, and they began to retch.

She turned her gaze and was about to deal with those people when Qiao Yanshen gently tugged at her sleeve.

"I'll do it." The woman in white whispered in her ear, then summoned her sword. Without drawing it from its sheath, she smashed the three men unconscious, slamming it down with all her might.

Then, Qin Shiying found a bundle of hemp rope from somewhere and tightly tied the guards together in a pile, then threw them into a dead corner of the city gate. After tying them up, she seemed to think her hands were dirty, and went to the river to wash them several times.

Unable to fathom Qiao Yanshen's intentions, Shen Lixia walked to her side and asked, "Senior Sister, are you going to drown them?"

Qiao Yanshen shook his head. "No, just leave it here. Killing the guards will probably raise the city's alarm bells, and things will get complicated. I'll erase their memories."

"But these people..."

Suddenly, a voice transmitted through Shen Lixia's mind resounded: "I know there is demonic energy. Later, you will set fire to destroy the evidence."

She immediately understood—this was meant for Qin Shiying.

The boy slowed his pace, and after the two were some distance away, he threw another talisman, which silently lit a fire, engulfing the group in bright flames.

Inside the city, the noise of people filled the air. Along one street, someone sat on a bench, shouting loudly.

"Fortune telling! Fortune telling! Two coins a divination, or you'll still pay! Life's a saga, just get by, but if you knew tomorrow's fortune, you might just rise to the top. Today you're bullied by Xiao Wang, tomorrow you'll trample him in the back—"

People were drawn by the shouts and gathered around.

After shouting this string of words, the man seemed tired. He picked up the water bottle at his waist, took a couple of sips, adjusted his sunglasses, and said with a smile, "Oh, benefactor, would you like your fortune told?"

The newcomer was a man adorned with various jewels, accompanied by a woman who kept her head down, avoiding looking anywhere else. The man didn't answer, but suspiciously stroked his chin, staring at the woman before him for a long time.

"Your fortune telling was quite accurate, wasn't it?"

The woman in the navy blue coat crossed her legs, maintaining a gentle yet polite smile: "Since you have your own thoughts, believe it if it's good, and ignore it if it's bad. Why ask any more questions?"

As she spoke, she stretched out her hand, “It just so happens that when I saw you, I felt an aura of wealth and prosperity surrounding you, as if there was a fragrant aroma of oil. I also saw that you were under immense financial pressure, which prevented you from achieving anything. So I decided that regardless of whether you have a fortune or not, I would charge two coins for each reading. Alright, four coins, thank you.”

The man was so confused by her words that he took them all as praise. He was also surprised that she understood his thoughts, so he immediately took out four coins and handed them over.

After the woman accepted the money, he glanced at the woman beside him, rubbed his hands together, and asked in a low voice, "Can you tell my fortune about marriage?"

“Oh! A marriage proposal,” Simmons looked up at the woman beside him. Upon hearing this, she lowered her head again, making one worry that she might twist her neck. “Of course, alright, two coins, let’s pay together after we’ve settled the bill.”

As she spoke, she adopted a solemn posture, placing two fingers together in front of her chest, her eyes tightly closed. For a moment, a faint golden light actually shimmered around her, making her appear to onlookers like a complete charlatan, her level of professionalism outrageous. Not content with that, she also muttered incantations, which were indistinct even when listened to closely. This caused the woman who had been keeping her head down to secretly raise her eyes, but then, filled with fear and despair, she looked away again, sighing incessantly.

With a snap of her fingers, Simmons opened her eyes wide, a broad smile on her face. Seeing her expression, the man beamed and asked, "Well, is it a good match?"

The woman turned the prayer beads in her hand, nodded vigorously, clapped her hands together loudly, and laughed, "What a wonderful marriage! What a wonderful marriage! It's especially good! Four coins."

The other person clapped their hands with delight, forgetting all about the money, and asked with a beaming smile, "What exactly is it?"

Simmons took a deep breath and said, "Heaven says that she will soon be out of danger and live a peaceful and prosperous life; while you will have your family destroyed and die violently in the streets. What a wonderful marriage!"

Upon hearing this, the man's expression immediately fell, and the surroundings became so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

However, Simmons still had a bright smile on her face, looking extremely happy.

Finally, someone nearby couldn't stand it anymore and sneered, "This eccentric martial arts practitioner has really gone mad!"

"You madman, you're asking for death!"

The man roared and swung his arm to slap Simmons across the face.

The woman was startled and instinctively looked up, then closed her eyes again, unable to bear watching any longer. But then she felt a gust of wind beside her, followed by the dull thud of a fist striking flesh. However, it wasn't in front of her, but rather—

Bang!

The man was suddenly thrown several meters away, his back making solid contact with the brick wall, producing a teeth-grinding cracking sound that sent the crowd scattering in horror.

Simmons blinked, nonchalantly putting away the money bag she had taken from the other person during her counterattack. Then, she covered her face and screamed twice, "Wow! Someone's being hit! Someone's being hit in the street! Everyone saw it! He attacked first!"

After shouting, she lowered her voice and said to the woman, "Go south along this street to the end, turn left into an inn with an axe hanging on the door. They specialize in helping foreign women who have been kidnapped here. I will come to meet you later, so hurry up."

The woman nodded, her eyes brimming with gratitude. Simmons smiled at her, then slowly began to tidy up the clutter on the stall that the man had knocked over. The others tactfully stepped back, but a few curious women pulled her aside, wanting to have their fortunes told.

Upon hearing the question, Simmons' sunglasses gleamed slightly, and he said mysteriously, "Heavenly secrets cannot be revealed."

After exchanging a few pleasantries with the group, she tidied up the stool, picked it up, and was about to leave when she heard someone next to her say in a high-pitched, smiling voice, "Master, could you tell my fortune about my marriage too?"

Simmons' heart skipped a beat. She turned her head and, sure enough, met a pair of golden eyes. There were two other women beside her. One was an acquaintance, dressed in white; the other was a stranger, holding a candied hawthorn and biting into it like popcorn, watching her with great interest.

I actually saw popcorn in a dream; I heard you can eat it while watching a play.

She chuckled twice and cupped her hands to Shen Lixia, saying, "Fellow Daoists, it's been a long time."