Chapter 277 Chapter 277 Is the vixen evil enough? ...

"Where are you going?"

And the next moment.

The young man who was just on the treetop has come to the two of them.

The handsome and well-behaved young man curved his eyebrows and looked at the two little brats with a smile.

The brother holding his sister was startled, but he still retreated stubbornly, still thinking about what he had just said, and said: "We went to seek refuge with our relatives in Nanzhou--"

Yan Ning nodded and thought about the situation of the Great Xia Dynasty.

"Hmm, why are there only two of you kids? Where are the adults?"

Yan Ning looked up and looked around.

The little girl in his arms suddenly had tears in her eyes.

"Mother, my aunts have all been captured—they're all dead—"

She lay pitifully in her brother's arms, looking at the friendly young man in front of her.

The young man in front of me seemed to have a unique magic.

Just by looking at you with the corners of his lips curved like this, all the grievances you have suppressed will burst out in an instant.

She was sobbing and crying, tears streaming down her face, and she held her brother's clothes tightly.

Sobbing and crying.

And behind Yan Ning.

Cui Jiao followed and fell down, looking around casually.

His appearance made the brother and sister slightly nervous for a moment.

Yan Ning glanced at the other person.

Cui Jiao sighed softly and retreated with his eyes narrowed.

Keep enough safe distance.

After all, Cui Jiao is too powerful, and he has been accustomed to being in a superior position for so many years. The cubs usually feel fear when they see him for the first time.

Yan Ning had already obtained the information he wanted.

The number of missing persons in the Great Xia Dynasty was far more serious than they had expected.

Within the imperial city, many families of children, like their brother and sister, had their female elders abducted. Not long after, their mutilated and eaten bodies appeared not far from their homes.

For a while, the people in the imperial city of the Great Xia Dynasty were in a panic, and everyone was terrified.

But the brother and sister left, mainly because their father died early. The brother and sister had been living with their mother and aunt. After their mother and aunt passed away, the sister cried every day. The young boy had to take on the responsibility of supporting the family, but those immortal masters could not solve the problems here at all, and now the little girl also began to disappear.

The elder brother was completely disappointed with those immortal masters who only took tribute. He felt that he could only have a way out by relying on himself, and he was determined to take his sister away from here.

He was afraid that his only relative, his younger sister, would also be captured by that mysterious monster that had not yet been caught.

Yan Ning nodded as she listened, gently wiping away the tears from the little girl's face.

My brother also reacted, pursed his lips tightly, and took two steps back.

"That's all I have to say. Thank you for saving me and my sister, but we are leaving now, so I won't lead the way for you."

Yan Ning burst out laughing.

Are they worried that he will make some guarantees before sending them back?

"Okay, I understand."

Yan Ning nodded.

"This place is really far from Nanzhou. It's really dangerous for you two kids to travel."

Yan Ning raised her hand, and two small pendants appeared in her hand.

"This is the talisman paper drawn by my senior brother. It can protect you along the way and arrive safely."

Yan Ning hung the pendant on the two cubs, then stood up with a smile.

The brother and sister were stunned for a moment, but they quickly reacted and nodded.

They continued on their way, but the young boy was frightened by what had just happened. He pulled the cart while holding his sister tightly, his little face full of seriousness.

Although they had walked far away, Yan Ning, with the excellent hearing of a cultivator, was still able to hear what the two were saying.

"Brother, is that immortal master also what you call a mere show-off? I thought that immortal master was very powerful—"

"Be quiet, hold hands, and hurry."

"Oh...Brother."

"Okay, I get it, I get it. Maybe part of what you said is true. I apologize to you, but we still have to leave here as soon as possible, okay?"

"Uh-huh."

Yan Ning watched them walk away with a smile on her face.

"Hello."

Behind him, Cui Jiao squinted his eyes and held the snow-white ball of fluff in his hand.

Snowball kicked his four short legs in dissatisfaction and whimpered.

"Why don't you take care of this little bastard? Is it unable to walk independently without someone?"

Yan Ning turned to look at him and curled the corners of her lips.

"If you dislike it so much, don't pull it like this."

If you didn't hold it like this, it would have pounced on you long ago.

Yan Ning raised his hand again, letting the cloud boat in the sky come down, and he spoke lightly.

"Let's go and take a look at the imperial palace of the Great Xia Dynasty."

And at this moment, in the imperial palace of the Great Xia Dynasty.

The elderly emperor looked at the news from Qingyun Immortal Sect with some panic.

He has lived for more than two hundred years by relying on longevity elixirs.

He is of the same generation as Cheng Hanqiu.

When he was born, Cheng Hanqiu was still in the imperial palace of the Great Xia Dynasty.

As long as he could remember, his elder brother, the Crown Prince, who always seemed to be a heavy burden on them, was enlightened by an immortal and went to the fairy mountain to become an immortal.

He once fantasized about becoming an immortal.

But he had no talent for cultivating immortals, and his eldest brother was a complete outlier in their royal family.

He has outstanding talents and good character.

This makes people yearn for it, and the former emperor also admired his eldest brother very much.

But as the fight for the throne progressed, he tried every possible way to pursue immortality, but he could only maintain this decaying appearance and lived for less than two hundred years. Moreover, he could clearly feel that he was unable to do so recently.

Thus, the yearning and envy for the eldest brother gradually turned into jealousy.

In addition, the ministers below also wanted him to be appointed as the crown prince, either openly or secretly.

This jealousy grew stronger with the passage of time, but in the end, it was suppressed. With Cheng Hanqiu, the Emperor of Heaven, around, he dared not go too far.

Most of his sons are dead.

Now most of them are grandchildren.

After the eldest prince passed away, the queen mother gave birth to a son. The son had neither the ability nor the desire to seize the throne, but for Cheng Hanqiu's sake, he had always lived a good life and had long been like a mascot in the palace. Unlike other vassal kings, they still had the status of royal family.

But after the previous generation passed away, they no longer had a deep connection with Cheng Hanqiu.

What worries the old emperor the most is the branch of Cheng Hanqiu's family. He is still a young boy and does not have a very good life in the palace. This is also due to his jealousy.

However, even though he knew the relationship between Qingyun Xianmen and that guy, the old emperor did not react at first.

After all, nearly two hundred years have passed, so it’s almost time.

This life is over.

But now Qingyun Immortal Sect took the initiative to mention the other party.

Ask about the situation here.

The old emperor only realized it belatedly and became extremely anxious. He usually ignored it, but now he was frightened.

Changes had to be made quickly.

At this moment in the imperial garden.

A group of imperial grandchildren gathered here.

They all frowned as they watched the guards from the Imperial Household Department come in and out.

"That's the Dongzhu that Dongzhou offered up, right? I heard it has the effect of illuminating the night and can prolong life. It's a treasure that can only be enshrined in the emperor's bedroom. How could you just give it to that kid?"

"But there's more. We also give him coral ornaments, spiritual objects, calligraphy and paintings as if they were free."

"I heard it was the immortal from Qingyun Immortal Sect."

"Immortals, I've seen them quite a lot lately. They're really just like that. They just know a few spells and some things we don't. There's no difference in essence, right? And haven't they still been unable to find the monster that's wreaking havoc on the Imperial City? Several of them have died, too. That's all."

"Don't let Grandpa Huang hear you say this."

There seemed to be silence around.

Finally, someone couldn't help but speak.

"What's the big deal if I heard it?"

"The instructors have all told me that their lineage is nothing more than a lucky charm. Our ancestors were always thinking about the Immortal Emperor that came out of that lineage, and they always wondered if there would be another one, to be worshipped as a lucky charm in the palace. But he's no different from us, right? And he's even more unsociable."

"Yeah, that's why Qingyun Immortal Sect suddenly brought it up—"

"What does it have to do with us if he's not doing well..."

A group of teenagers gathered together, with envy, jealousy, slight fear, and finally carelessness in their eyes.

"Anyway, let's wait and see. If the Immortal Master of Qingyun Immortal Sect can't handle it, they are just a few ordinary people. So, let the monster eat them."

Anyway, it’s no big deal.

After all, the truly important people are guarded by special guards, so rarely anything happens to them.

"It seems like they don't take us seriously."

A corner of a house far away.

Cui Jiao leaned against the eaves and laughed.

Yan Ning watched all this, tilted her head and looked at Cui Jiao.

“Some people who stay in high positions for too long tend to forget things, but apart from some crooked ones, there are still others who have some talent.”

Yan Ning raised her hand and pointed at a boy not far away who had not been talking to the group of young boys.

That boy was dressed differently from the other boys.

There were palace maids and guards waiting by his side, and the princes nearby looked at him with a hint of fear.

"The old emperor wasn't good at other things, but he did put a lot of effort into training his successor. I thought that after getting rid of that monster, he would also have to take care of the mundane affairs that he wasn't proficient in."

Yan Ning shrugged her shoulders, exclaimed, and turned to look over.

"Come to think of it, shouldn't I call him uncle? But focusing on only one person's growth is a bit troublesome."

There are so many grandchildren of the emperor here that it is obvious that his uncle didn't have to worry too much about it.

"What about that one?"

Cui Jiao pointed to a house not far away - that was the residence of the young man from Cheng Hanqiu's mother's lineage who had stayed in the palace as a mascot.

"I've seen it. Actually, he doesn't live a bad life, just not that extravagant. He just loves reading and can't get along with these imperial grandchildren."

Yan Ning smiled and shook her head.

"Alright, my father said not to interfere with the natural order of a dynasty. Let's go and learn more about the situation."

Cui Jiao narrowed his brows.

"You are quite generous and tolerant."

According to his personality, he should at least show these guys some power. And he keeps calling them "daddy" all the time. How much do you like your father who loves to quarrel with you?

The demon king Cui Jiao is very powerful, but he also has a very obvious problem: he is too protective of his own children.

It's somewhat indiscriminate.

Yan Ning has landed lightly.

He turned and looked at Cui Jiao.

"It's better for you not to get involved in some things. We're not familiar with each other to begin with. If you do something bad with good intentions, that would be a problem."

Cui Jiao looked at Yan Ning smiling at him and couldn't help but look away.

He also muttered.

"So where are you going to put that stupid dog?"

"I've made arrangements for it. It's on the cloud boat. I go to see it every day."

Yan Ning waved her hand.

"Let's go."

The two met the frail old emperor.

The two men came so quickly that the old emperor was startled.

He thought that the work was not yet done.

Looking at Yan Ning, who seemed gentle and harmless, he felt a strange sense of guilt.

But Yan Ning didn't say much, she just took Cui Jiao to ask about the relevant situation briefly.

He was given the privilege to investigate everywhere in the imperial city.

Without saying anything more, he left quickly.

The old emperor wiped his forehead in a daze.

"Your Majesty, the little prince is here."

"Let him in."

The old emperor spoke.

The young man who had just been alone walked in quickly.

"Grandpa Emperor."

He spoke clearly.

"Where is the Immortal Master from Qingyun Immortal Sect that you mentioned?"

"I've already gone to investigate the situation in the Imperial City."

The old emperor waved his hand.

"Jing'er, you are right."

The young man called Jing'er smiled and saluted respectfully.

"In essence, that blood relative hasn't suffered much injustice here. He didn't live a good life, but only compared to his other extravagant brothers and sisters. Not to mention he enjoys reading. I've always kept this in mind and have arranged everything properly. I advised Grandpa Huang to rest assured. The Immortal Master of Qingyun Immortal Sect isn't so petty as to nitpick with us."

"You're right."

The old emperor sat on the throne.

His life was very long, and he had not achieved much, and he was also full of resentment towards his elder brother who was holding him under great pressure.

He also treated the young boy badly afterwards.

"Has the Immortal Master gone to investigate the situation?"

The young boy spoke again.

“I hope the problem can be resolved as soon as possible.”

"Well, Jing'er, don't go wandering around if you have nothing to do. Also, Grandpa Emperor doesn't usually ask anything of you, but right now, your brothers are being a bit too rude, so you should go and discipline them a bit."

"Jing'er knows."

*

And here.

Yan Ning only paid a brief visit to the royal family and gained a general understanding of the situation of the royal family.

This was not a very wise rule, but it was not a very foolish one either.

At least there are still many people in the city who have expectations for the royal family.

Yan Ning took Cui Jiao for a walk.

I just heard that he likes to kidnap women at night.

There was once a female immortal master who used herself as bait and quickly lured out the other party. The other party seemed to like the immortal master's aura more, but soon, the immortal master really disappeared.

Not long after, they also found the body of the female immortal master. The immortal master was not a cultivator of low cultivation level. This made people realize the severity of the situation here. It was after that that many immortal sects did not dare to come and take over the problems here.

"Do you prefer immortals?"

Yan Ning chatted casually with the people in the city.

He looks well-behaved, has a sweet smile, and has a boyish voice that easily makes people like him.

When he frowns, he looks very well-behaved.

He is definitely the type of young talent that the elders like.

At this moment, a group of people were still gathered together, talking about similar things. Although this was also the imperial capital of the Great Xia Dynasty, it was too far away from the palace and the security was not strict, so many things happened here.

At this moment, the old man described the phantom he saw in a very realistic way.

There were also people nearby who brought tea and poured a bowl for Yan Ning.

"That's right. The guy I saw who kidnapped the little girl from the city was as tall as a house. He walked unsteadily and seemed to have countless tentacles. It was very scary."

The old man continued, sighing and shaking his head.

"I didn't even dare to look any further. I took one look and ran away. Later I heard the news that the little girl was missing."

"So that's how it is."

Yan Ning picked up the tea bowl and took a sip.

It is the coarse tea that the people here often drink. It is hot and has a light white mist.

Seeing that there were no more bowls nearby, someone poured some more tea into his tea bowl, and Yan Ning casually handed it to Cui Jiao behind him.

Cui Jiao was stunned for a moment. The fox was originally looking at the surrounding situation, somewhat absent-mindedly, wondering where the guy would come in and where he would leave if he came here. Suddenly, there was such a thing in his hand, and he spoke in horror.

"What are you doing?"

"Drink, what are you doing?"

Yan Ning glanced at him and felt that his question was really outrageous.

Cui Jiao wanted to say something else.

But Yan Ning asked again.

"Old man, can I ask where that female immortal master was abducted?"

"That house over there."

He pointed to a dilapidated house at the end.

"There used to be a family living there, but they've all been destroyed. Everyone who needed to leave has left. The lock is now managed by someone nearby. If you're curious, you can ask for the key and go in to take a look, but you'd better stay away. Although you're men, judging by the extent to which that guy has been kidnapping people these days, that unknown creature really likes beautiful and enchanting women. The more beautiful they are, the more likely they are to be targeted."

Yan Ning nodded thoughtfully.

I think this is also a very important clue.

You can go and take a look over there.

As for the enchanting woman...?

Yan Ning was thinking about this.

Behind him, Cui Jiao was also looking stiffly at the tea bowl in his hand.

The tea in the tea bowl was still steaming, giving it a strange feeling.

Of course, as the Demon King, he was not interested in this kind of tea.

In other words, this kind of tea should not be consumed.

Earthly tea is harmful rather than beneficial to spiritual practice.

Yan Ning also took another look at it just now, and the meaning was very clear. If you don’t want to drink it, then don’t drink it. Just leave it there.

but--

but----

Cui Jiao looked at the marks on the edge of the tea bowl.

The watermark still remained there, where Yan Ning had just drunk.

The color in his eyes continued to darken.

This guy not only made him drink this mortal tea, but also made him drink what he had drunk?

Isn’t that a bit too much?!

Isn’t that a bit too much?!

No matter what he says, he is still the Demon King after all!!

After so many years, Cui Jiao is still very dissatisfied with Yan Ning's attitude.

He always wants a satisfactory direction, but he can't tell what it takes to be satisfied.

Or perhaps he was taking the opportunity to stay by Yan Ning's side and prepare to find an answer.

"Okay, thank you all very much. My brother and I will go over there to take a look."

Yan Ning did not reveal her identity when she came here.

I just pretended to be someone related to the matter and came to inquire about the news.

At this moment, Yan Ning seemed to have thought of something. His eyes were shining brightly. He turned his head and looked at Cui Jiao behind him.

He was about to speak.

Cui Jiao looked conflicted, and finally, like a brave warrior, he raised his tea bowl and drank it all in one gulp.

Yan Ning: …

It's not that serious.

Not to mention——

Yan Ning paused, a little hesitant.

He seemed to finally react.

Oh, is that the place where he just drank?

Yan Ning realized it later and felt a little weird looking at the other person's rolling Adam's apple.

He had long been accustomed to Cui Jiao following him, irritable and annoyed, like a little fox who was always going crazy.

And now, finally, the little fox was a little different.

Yan Ning opened her mouth and wanted to say something.

Cui Jiao had already put down the tea bowl.

"What?"

The fox lowered his eyes and glared at him.

He looked upset, but otherwise nothing seemed amiss.

It was as if the feeling in Yan Ning's heart was abnormal.

Yan Ning reacted, looked away and waved her hand.

"Come on, come on, I'll tell you over there."

Cui Jiao followed behind Yan Ning.

"Have you got the news? So, how about finding someone on short notice? A female cultivator?"

Cui Jiao continued to speak slowly.

"Still over there? Are you and I hiding it outside? This thing is ferocious, but the main problem is that it has great hiding skills. As long as we can catch it, everything will be easy."

Yan Ning turned around and extended her hand to Cui Jiao.

"Let me see your hands."

"What?"

Cui Jiao looked down at the hand stretched out in front of him.

"Let me see your hands."

Yan Ning repeated it, and Cui Jiao subconsciously put his hand in the other's hand, just like when Yan Ning wanted to touch his ear.

Then Cui Jiao felt his hand being pinched twice.

It seems like he was judging.

"Very tender."

Cui Jiao: ...

Cui Jiao:!!!

So what are you going to do? Cui Jiao felt that Yan Ning's eyes were malicious.

Of course, he had no good intentions at this moment.

Yan Ning tilted his head and stroked his chin as he spoke, "None of the nearby immortal gates are very large, and any female cultivators who can come here are somewhat dangerous. It wouldn't be a good idea for us to rashly borrow people, so I thought of a solution - can you become shorter? Lose a head? Or two heads?"

Cui Jiao: "I told you, my brain is not for making up numbers."

Don’t just cut my head off so casually!!!

Yan Ning: He still cares so much about his brain.

But it was reasonable to care a little. After all, to be honest, Yan Ning hadn't found another guy who looked as pleasing to the eye as Cui Jiao. It was just that this guy always had a bad temper. Yan Ning looked at the young man in front of her, and she felt more and more satisfied. He even held Cui Jiao's hand. Yan Ning's palm was warm and dry, and that bright and obedient smile made Cui Jiao slow to react.

So why on earth did everyone want to hang out with this guy? Cui Jiao wondered, did they think he was approachable? Given the decade-long love-hate relationship between Cui Jiao and Yan Ning, this guy was a complete venomous bully, full of thorns. Who knew he'd start a tirade against you? He had a chatterbox, so don't mess with him.

...Those people think he is well-behaved and easy to get along with. They don’t just look at his face, right?

At this moment, Yan Ning, who was looking at his face seriously, reached out and patted his shoulder, with admiration in her eyes. She came closer with a sparkling look, and it was obvious that she wanted to ask for help.

Don’t you want someone with a monstrous appearance? The more monstrous, the better?

Let's see, is the fox spirit evil enough? Is the little demon king of the demon clan evil enough?

Cui Jiao:?