Chapter 11: A Young Man's Invitation, A New Journey Begins
"I'm serious, come with me."
Zhang Xuan squatted down and spoke to Qingyu, who was adding fuel to the fire at the stove.
Qingyu sighed, and as the fire shadow swayed, she clapped her hands and turned to Zhang Xuan, "You, you go and talk to Wen Chuan. I'll talk to him after he agrees."
"That's what he just said!"
Zhang Xuan flicked his robes, while Wen Chuan, who was being pointed at in front of the pot, remained calm.
Qingyu exclaimed "Hey!" and raised her eyebrows at Zhang Xuan, saying, "Don't shake it here, the wind is howling and you might put out the fire."
Zhang Xuan, who had nothing better to do than rest and recover from his injury, came here again in the middle of the afternoon.
They ostensibly invited them to visit Shengjing.
Zhang Xuan: "Aren't you all going out too? It would be perfect if you came with me. We can look after each other and travel all the way to Shengjing. I can also be a host for once."
Smoke curled from the chimney as Wen Chuan skillfully covered the pot with the lid and said to Zhang Xuan, "The food will be ready soon, let's eat together."
Zhang Xuan arrived around 3 PM and kept talking to them.
Zhang Xuan: "...Oh."
After a pause, he asked again, "So what do you want to eat?"
Qingyu gathered some firewood and threw it into the fire, where the flickering, warm flames emitted a reassuring crackling sound.
She replied listlessly, "Rice, dishes, whatever Wen Chuan makes, we'll eat."
Zhang Xuan: "...Oh."
Qingyu lazily lifted her eyelids, not even glancing at Zhang Xuan, "If you're bored, go play with Cai Cai, Cai Cai is fun."
Zhang Xuan remained silent, only taking the handful of vegetable leaves Wen Chuan handed him and turning away angrily.
Cai Cai: "Gu Gu Gou Gou Ga!"
Inside the house, Qingyu stirred the firewood into the fire with a fire poker, then leaned to the side and looked at Wenchuan, who was cooking in front of the pot: "I'm hungry, when will it be ready?"
Wen Chuan was busy at the stove, chopping vegetables with a knife. The sound of the knife hitting the cutting board was constant, and the steam rising from the pot concealed the slight upturn of the boy's lips.
"Soon."
...
"Look, look, look! Boiled shrimp, braised fish, kelp sprouts, sweet potato porridge—these are all Wenchuan's specialties!"
Qingyu introduced the situation to Zhang Xuan with great interest, perhaps because she had taken on the role of the fire-starter for the first time today.
"Wow, it smells so good!!!"
Zhang Xuan readily agreed to the invitation, and indeed, he found it very delicious, unlike any other food he had ever eaten in Shengjing.
Wen Chuan nodded slightly and smiled gently.
Zhang Xuan: "I'm serious, have you guys thought this through? Come with me."
Zhang Xuan ate while looking on with anticipation.
Qingyu ate her porridge, her eyes glazed over.
Being with Zhang Xuan wasn't a problem in itself, but she found the cultivator next to Zhang Xuan quite troublesome.
Wen Chuan: "Didn't you say before that there were elders at home watching over you and not letting you run around?"
Zhang Xuan: "Yes, but because of this incident, Uncle Lin has actually changed his 'care' for me. Who knows!"
Strangely enough, given that Zhang Xuan was injured, Lin Fengdu should have kept a closer eye on him. However, Lin Fengdu waved his hand and said that he would not go back with Zhang Xuan, as long as Zhang Xuan returned to Shengjing on time.
Lin Fengdu: "It was my fault for not keeping a close eye on you. After thinking it over, I realized that freedom is probably what you want more than protection. So, to make it up to you, I will stop watching over you. Just make sure you return on time. As for your father, I will speak to him myself."
After saying this, Zhang Xuan was overjoyed, while Lin Fengdu simply smiled and turned to leave.
Young people are always inexperienced and cannot understand the worries of a venerable master.
Therefore, he helped Zhang Xiang out.
...
Qingyu nodded slightly as she enjoyed her meal.
"So, you're going to travel back to Shengjing from Qingshui alone?"
Zhang Xuan: "That's right, I didn't bring any servants, just me."
As Zhang Xuan spoke, he took a big gulp of porridge. "Actually, it's not... really, really, really far from Qingshui to Shengjing. We can travel light. I rarely have this opportunity, so I'm very happy."
Zhang Xuan was very happy and wanted to invite them to join him, thinking that this would make them even happier.
Qingyu raised the bowl with both hands to drink the porridge, glancing at Wenchuan across from her.
Wen Chuan understood: "We were going to say that it wouldn't be convenient for us to come with you, but if it's just you alone, I think..."
He smiled at Qingyu, then turned to Zhang Xuan and said, "We are willing to go with you, so we can look out for each other."
Qingyu smiled, her eyes brimming with laughter, "It would be impolite to refuse such kindness."
Zhang Xuan's lips curled up, revealing a row of white teeth, looking radiant and even a little silly.
At dusk, the warm, orange-red glow of the sunset illuminated the waves.
So radiant and serene.
"Okay, you guys wait for me to recover, and we'll set off in a few days!"
...
Zhang Xuan came excitedly and left excitedly.
Qingyu leaned against the kitchen door frame, arms crossed over her chest, a slight smile playing on her lips, appearing relaxed and at ease.
She looked at Wen Chuandao, who was washing the dishes.
"Now I know why Zhang Xuan's knife reacted to me."
Wen Chuan washed the dishes with a cloth and casually said, "Hmm, why?"
Qingyu: "That knife needs to be activated with the blood of its master. It is a common practice among demons to complement each other. It is a real demon knife."
To be honest, she had suspected it before, but she never had the chance to verify it.
Just then, Zhang Xuan took the bouquet she had wrapped. Qing Yu had imbued the bouquet with some demonic energy. As they walked down the street, the bouquet was in Zhang Xuan's arms, very close to the Blood Moon Blade on his back. Naturally, Qing Yu sensed the unusual nature of the blade.
Wen Chuan didn't react much, just focused on his work. The boy's long, slender, pale fingers were immersed in the cold water, accompanied by the clinking sounds of the bowls and chopsticks colliding.
Flowers will wither, and then new flowers will bloom.
Qingyu leaned his head against the door frame. The girl was dressed in a vibrant red dress today, but unusually, she was quietly watching him.
...
Before leaving, they visited the Gao residence.
I heard that Madam Gao has been silent since she returned home, and Master Gao doesn't care about her either. Madam Gao's family is very worried and has come to visit several times, but Madam Gao still hasn't spoken.
At that time, Master Gao and Zhang Xuan were exchanging pleasantries, his words full of flattery.
Qingyu didn't care much about that. Under the guise of a visit, she went directly to see Madam Gao with the jade pendant.
It was around that time that Qingyu learned the name of Madam Gao, Song Ci.
When Qingyu saw her, he couldn't help but be startled for a moment.
Song Ci, leaning against the bed, had a calm expression and a thin, frail figure. When she saw Qing Yu, she even curved her lips into a smile, looking no different from an ordinary person.
But she exuded an aura of death.
Once you've chosen your own path, no one can save you.
Qingyu lowered her eyes and said nothing, but politely handed the two jade pendants to Song Ci.
Song Ci's expression didn't change much. She weakly stroked the jade pendant in her hand, then looked up at the girl in front of her. She remembered her.
This girl is both beautiful and capable; she really likes her, Song Ci thought.
However, Song Ci still didn't speak; she really hadn't spoken in a long time.
She simply looked at Qingyu with gentle and serene eyes, as if she wanted to pour the little strength in her life into this moment, this one glance.
-Thanks.
-You're welcome.
Qingyu looked at the woman, and for a moment their eyes met.
Finally, Qingyu raised a gentle smile, solemnly bowed in farewell, and turned to leave.
The girl's skirt fluttered slightly, the sunlight shimmered, and the overlapping shadows were all beautiful.
She thought that perhaps they were just lucky enough to witness the end of a story.
The beautiful, pale woman watched her retreating figure.
A cool breeze lifted the gauze curtains.
Indistinctly visible.
She thought, "That's good, my story continues."
...
Two weeks later.
In front of Qingshui City Gate.
Qingyu, carrying the chicken, raised an eyebrow and looked at Zhang Xuan.
What's with those Demon Suppression Pavilion people behind me, young master?
Zhang Xuan coughed a few times and blinked a few times.
Let's talk about it after we get on the horse—
Qingyu turned around and looked at the carriage and people behind her.
Their journey began in Danzhou. Since Qingshui was close to Danzhou, the three of them initially planned to ride horses and then change to carriages in Danzhou. However, the people from the Demon Suppression Pavilion stayed in Qingshui to watch over Zhang Xuan and traveled with them, even bringing a carriage behind them.
Qingyu looked at the four or five cultivators from the Demon Suppression Pavilion. The middle-aged man in the lead had already gotten into the car. Qingyu smiled and thought, "Don't underestimate this small temple; it's quite breezy."
She turned around and mounted her horse nimbly, still holding Cai Cai in her arms.
Zhang Xuan and Wen Chuan also mounted their horses, and the three of them set off first.
Inside the carriage.
The middle-aged man closed his eyes and pretended to be asleep, while two monks attended to him.
Cultivators throughout the world are divided into four levels: Heaven, Earth, Profound, and Yellow. This middle-aged man, having cultivated for half his life, finally achieved strength approaching the Heaven level. He diligently cultivated at the Demon Suppression Pavilion in Danzhou and became the Deputy Demon Suppression Envoy of Danzhou.
That day, the aura of the Azure Water Demon was trembling. He led his men to the scene, only to find Zhang Xuan in a terrible state after his injuries. He couldn't even find Lin Fengdu.
"Your Excellency, the man and woman next to Zhang Xuan are rogue cultivators from Qingshui. The man is from Qingshui, and the woman is said to have appeared out of nowhere."
"Yes, sir, that Azure Water Demon must be related to that rogue cultivator. These past few days, Zhang Xuan has been staying with those two."
The cultivator beside him said, Bai Lang, the middle-aged cultivator sitting in the middle, opened his eyes and interrupted them, "Alright, since they are just rogue cultivators, it's not appropriate for us to say anything more. We'll talk about everything when we get to Danzhou."
The monk beside Bai Lang bowed his head in agreement.
Bai Lang closed his eyes again. When he was transferred from Shengjing to Danzhou, how could he not know that Zhang Xuan was a member of the Zhang family? He was unwilling and would not provoke these aristocratic scions. As for those two rogue cultivators, there were plenty of rogue cultivators and demons in the world. Compared to them, Bai Lang cared more about the affairs of Danzhou.
A gust of wind blew by, and Zhang Xuan's ears twitched. He slowly rode his horse forward.
The sunlight before him was intense, and he lowered his eyes, a dark light flashing deep within them.
Wen Chuan, carrying the vegetables that Qing Yu had just thrown over, glanced back at the Qing Shui city gate as he moved forward. He looked at the streets of Qing Shui, the people of Qing Shui, and the homes of Qing Shui.
Finally, he glanced at the surging waves.
A black whirlpool rises in the dark depths of the sea, attempting to suck everything away.
He looked away.
They continued forward until Qingshui gradually became a small dot, and the faint salty, fishy smell in the air disappeared.
As she passed through the woods, Qingyu thought she would have some reaction, but to her own surprise, she didn't think of anything at all.
She simply looked ahead and then raised her whip.
Sunlight filters through the fluttering leaves, and when the wind rises, the girl's face is painted with a play of light and shadow.
Horses hooves pounded, and neighs echoed through the forest.
She became the first person to move at full speed.
It was now broad daylight, and everyone had their own thoughts.
They embarked on a new journey.
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