Chapter 93 The Demon Lord has a chicken's head and a human body; he is ugly and unattractive.
Wei Changzai had no intention of explaining. He calmly looked away and said, "I haven't heard of that. Senior brother, you've asked the wrong person."
In terms of rank, Ji Changying is undoubtedly the senior disciple of Daohe Palace, but he spends about half of each year away from the sect, and all these trips are for his master's sake.
Visiting other sects, resolving the chaos in the Northern Plains, searching for spiritual veins, organizing conferences... it can be said that he undertook almost all the tasks that a sect leader should do, and the power in his hands was not small.
But Wei Changzai was not interested in fame or fortune, so he never took it to heart.
To be fair, Ji Changying is a very good senior brother. He is kind and gentle, always smiling. Over the years, I have almost never seen him get angry.
But whenever Wei Changzai saw him since childhood, he would feel a vague, inexplicable chill and disgust, as well as a little bit of indescribable fear.
This emotion came out of nowhere, and he didn't know where it came from. But in the past, he would have suppressed it and faced it calmly. But ever since he learned that Lin Feiran had gone up the mountain with him alone to look for plum blossoms, that coldness had completely emerged and even overshadowed other emotions.
He was finally able to openly admit that he simply disliked Ji Changying.
In the dark alley, one man stood under the eaves, the other in the middle of the road, their expressions contrasting sharply – one smiling, the other calm. People walked past them, but the tension remained palpable.
Ji Changying smiled, clearly displaying a tolerant demeanor, yet her words were utterly ruthless.
"Why are you looking at me like that, junior brother? Could it be that you're still upset that I went up the mountain with my junior sister to look for plum blossoms but didn't take you with us?"
He had practically watched Lin Feiran and Wei Changzai grow up, and he could almost touch their sore spots with his eyes closed.
As expected, upon hearing this, Wei Changzai's gaze finally changed, becoming even colder.
Seeing this, Ji Changying's smile became even brighter, without a trace of gloom, and the small mole under his lip lifted slightly: "Junior brother is truly a wonderful person. You are about to marry Junior Sister Qiutong, so why are you still angry with me over Junior Sister's affairs?"
The term "junior sister" he used always referred to Lin Feiran.
Wei Chang paused for a moment, naturally not explaining anything to him. His dark eyes turned back, unusually showing a probing look: "You don't seem surprised that Xunfang appeared at the Flying Flower Gathering, Senior Brother."
Ji Changying patted the corner of her robe and began to tidy herself up, her voice clear and melodious.
"How could I not know? Before my martial aunt left the mountain, she took medicine to temporarily suppress her cultivation level, but her damaged spiritual veins couldn't withstand such fluctuations and she almost had a mishap. If my master hadn't sent me to treat her, I'm afraid she wouldn't have even made it to Chuncheng."
This reason was within expectations. Everyone thought that his master was heartless, but few people knew that he actually missed his original sect very much and cared about it a lot. Otherwise, given his personality, he would not have allowed Xunfang to stay for so many years.
Just then, Ji Changying raised an eyebrow and suddenly spoke: "If Master knew about Uncle's death, I wonder what his reaction would be. However, Master's heart is unfathomable, and he might just laugh it off."
He had previously acted as if he wanted to exonerate Xunfang, questioning him with a smile, but now he turned the page silently. How could Wei Changzai not know the reason?
Such a clean and decisive sword strike is rare, and few disciples of the Flying Flower Society can wield it. Therefore, when Ji Changying saw the sword mark, he immediately thought of him and came to interrogate him.
But at this moment, Ji Changying suddenly changed her tune and decided not to pursue the matter any further, clearly having already guessed who killed Xunfang.
Throughout the entire Daohe Palace, he only treated Lin Feiran this way.
Ji Changying lowered her eyes, a look of pity on her slightly drooping lips: "The wrongful death of my martial uncle is now an unsolved case. If you or my junior brother Qiu Tong have any news, please inform me as soon as possible."
Wei Changzai understood the unspoken meaning; he was afraid that Qiu Tong also knew about this matter. He simply said in a low voice, "Senior brother is overthinking it."
"Oh dear, as the senior brother, I should always consider the needs of my junior brothers and sisters." He put the straw hat on his head and focused all his attention on the long queue.
"I don't know why the Sage left Master and the others behind... Junior Sister's book is interesting, I'll leave my mark there too. Junior Brother, you stay here quietly and don't move around."
Wei Changzai: "..."
Before Wei Changzai could react, he had already reached the end of the line. He was handsome and had such a friendly smile that he quickly started chatting with the people in the queue.
Those who have worked as flower farmers cannot tell ordinary people about the secret realm, but Ji Changying is a cultivator who has walked through the secret realm, so there is no barrier between them. In just a few words, the group quickly started talking about Wenran.
Ji Changying's gaze swept casually over the leader of the group, and she smiled, her eyes crinkling, "Really? She even saved you? That's amazing!"
"Absolutely true! The young immortal stood right in front of so many people..."
...
The queue was long and crowded, and quite a few people had come. However, after hearing Lin Feiran say that there was no guarantee of retrieving the spiritual herb, many people left in a daze.
Hope and despair are separated by a fine line, but they could no longer bear that last straw.
Lin Feiran did not force the issue. If the person was willing, she would write it down in her notebook; if not, she would not try to persuade them to stay.
When the next person stood in front of the table, she picked up her brush, dipped it in ink, and asked in a clear voice, "What kind of spiritual herb do you want? Let me make it clear first, there's no guarantee I'll bring it back."
The man pondered for a moment: "I've heard that there's a kind of sword mushroom that grows on Sword Mountain. It doesn't look particularly appealing, but when it opens its cap, a fresh fragrance wafts for miles. One bite is enough to make you want to swallow your tongue. If it's not too much trouble, could I have a bunch?"
She loved mushrooms, and the voice sounded so familiar. Lin Feiran immediately looked up in surprise. The word "teacher" landed on her tongue, but she forced it back down.
Ji Changying was not short; when he stood in front of the table, he resembled an extremely tall pine tree. He wore a patterned bamboo hat with the sash tied at his chin, which conveniently shielded her from the glaring autumn sun, allowing her to clearly see his face.
His eyebrows and eyes were gentle, his gaze was like a spring breeze, and a small mole under his lip was upturned. Then he winked at her.
"Could I have a clump of it?"
Lin Feiran then realized that he had indeed recognized him, so he lowered his eyes and smiled, but still said, "I can't guarantee that I can bring it back, but I can make a note of it."
She placed her pen in the blank space and wrote the two characters "Sword Mushroom".
Ji Changying feigned disappointment: "Alright then."
He took the journal, carefully flipped through it, his eyes filled with curiosity, until he understood why she had done it. Then he lowered his eyes and untied the binding. Before Shen Qi could raise her hand to stop him in surprise, he took out a sewing kit and quickly retied the entire book.
"This binding method creates a slipknot for sealing the book, so you can easily add or remove pages later by simply untying this knot."
After explaining, he picked up his pen, wrote his name on his page, added the words "No Regrets," and handed the letter back.
Bi Qing, who was hiding to the side, covered her face with her fan and exclaimed in surprise: "This is the first time I have ever seen someone more skillful than the clan elder!"
Biqing had already recognized the person in front of her. This was Lin Feiran's senior brother. They had met at the Daohe Palace's Little Immortal Gathering. To avoid being exposed, she and Xuanzhen had already hidden behind Chen Qi. However, upon seeing this method of connecting the dots, they couldn't help but exclaim in amazement.
Ji Changying smiled and said, "It's just a trivial skill. Fellow Daoist Wenran has done such a good deed, but I can only help with these insignificant matters. I feel a little ashamed."
Lin Feiran put away the pen and paper, flipped through the booklet, and looked at it over and over. A slight look of amazement appeared in his eyes. Then he smiled and said, "No need to feel ashamed. If you really bring back the sword mushroom, just give me a bowl of fresh soup."
Ji Changying looked at her and smiled, "Of course."
After speaking, he naturally stood by the table and looked at the approaching people along with the others.
Just as the procession was about to wrap up, a thunderous roar suddenly boomed in the clear sky, as if the heavens and earth were splitting apart. Everyone immediately looked up and saw that the layers of white clouds had dispersed, revealing a narrow, dark slit.
In a short while, cultivators were thrown out one by one. They immediately formed hand seals and incantations, either using magical artifacts or riding the wind, before slowly landing in various streets and alleys.
A disciple on the street recognized the man and immediately stepped forward to help him steady himself: "Master, be careful!"
The man was dressed in a purple robe and wore a golden crown, but his hair was flying wildly, making him look somewhat disheveled. It was unclear which aristocratic family head he was. He subconsciously pressed down on his disciple's shoulder to steady himself, but his expression remained unpleasant.
Anxious, the disciple disregarded whether they were on the street and called out, "Master, were you ambushed inside?"
The man's eyes were still somewhat unfocused, and he waved his hand.
"It wasn't an ambush. I only know that the sage seemed to be looking for something, so he left us behind, but I can't remember anything about what happened during that time."
Lin Feiran frowned as he looked over. The other people who had landed had the same grave expression as him, indicating that they had also lost their memories.
As soon as everyone landed and their senses returned, they heard another thunderclap. Four people flew out from the gap, and judging from their figures and postures, they were undoubtedly Murong Qiudi and her three companions.
She flew to the front, looked down at the crowd, and spoke slightly, her voice resounding throughout Chuncheng.
"All disciples, assemble immediately at the city gate! There is a matter concerning the Sacred Valley that needs to be announced!"
As soon as the words "Pilgrimage Valley" were uttered, the scattered cultivators quickly surged to the foot of the city. When they looked up, the four priests happened to land on the city wall. Although they had different appearances, everyone's eyes were focused on Murong Qiudi's hand.
She held a scroll in her hand.
Murong Qiudi stood on the city wall, her left hand resting on her waist with her sword. Her gaze slowly swept over the crowd, then she raised her right hand, her fingertips twitching slightly, and the scroll cascaded down like a waterfall, creating a commotion.
The white brocade, the black ink characters, vigorous and powerful, each stroke revealing the name.
"These are the eighty-one people who were finally listed on the honor roll, and they are also the winners of this Flying Flower Gathering." After saying this, she turned the scroll over, revealing the dark and silent back.
"The Pilgrimage Valley will soon open. Before entering the valley, those who are listed on this list will be able to meet the saint."
These words caused an uproar in the city, and even the sect leaders who had just been thrown out were taken aback.
Murong Qiudi shook her hand, and ink flowed down the black scroll, gradually revealing white characters amidst the black.
Compared to the densely packed names on the front, the back was much more spacious, with only fifteen names in total, and the name Wen Ran was listed at the top.
Lin Feiran looked down and saw that, apart from her, Wei Changzai, Qiu Tong, Shen Qi and others were also listed above, but this was obviously not in the order of the eighty-one, because Pei Yu, who was ranked second, was not on the list.
Someone noticed something amiss and immediately protested, "I'm fifth, why isn't my name on the list!"
Murong Qiudi glanced at the man but didn't speak. Hanshan Jun, who was beside her, took out a booklet, coughed a few times, and started making marks on it with a pen, his voice extremely cold.
"Those who feel it is unfair can summon the 'List of Beauties' and see what color the jade tokens with names engraved on them are. Those with red jade tokens are not on the list."
The city fell silent. The onlookers were completely bewildered, but the cultivators present all understood perfectly. Even so, some still stubbornly summoned the Compendium of Beauties.
"I did not massacre any cultivators, I only killed a few flower farmers..."
When the jade token was opened, it was still stained with a few traces of blood, and was no longer pure white.
Xie Kanhua said, "This jade token was made by a sage. From the moment it was hung at your waist, it has been connected to your hearts. As your hearts are, so is the jade. The sage has never seen anyone stained with blood."
Shen Qi looked at the scroll, and a sense of absurdity crossed his mind. It was astonishing that only these few people had never harbored any intention to harm anyone.
The joy of being able to enter the valley to search for treasure was gone; many people looked ashen-faced, gritting their teeth as they looked at the fifteen names, their eyes flashing with jealousy and hatred.
Finding treasure depends on chance and you may not get it, but meeting a sage has real benefits. If you think about it this way, you've ended up doing all the work for someone else!
A fat cultivator stared at his blood-red jade token, glared hatefully at the scroll, his gaze falling on the top of the list, his face filled with indignant anger.
Wen Ran clearly killed someone too; he saw it with his own eyes. So why is her jade token completely unharmed? Is it just because she won first place in the Flying Flower Gathering? Why?!
He spat and began to curse furiously, but blinded by rage, his words became incoherent: "I'm not convinced! She killed someone too, so why should she see the Emperor? This is unfair... Wenran, you little thief..."
He pushed through the crowd, trying to get forward so that Murong Qiudi could hear his accusations, cursing as he went: "If killing is forbidden, why didn't the Sage give us a heads-up beforehand! If Wenran hadn't interfered and ended the Flying Flower Gathering early, how could she have been the top of the list!"
Ignoring the strange looks from the others, he grew angrier and angrier as he spoke, feeling his blood boiling. As he took another step, he suddenly shivered.
An indescribable chill came from behind me, quiet and desolate.
He subconsciously swallowed, and before he could turn around, someone raised a hand and covered his mouth. The fingers were long and slender, extremely cold, like a traveler who had been walking in the snow and ice for many years. Just by extending one hand, he could feel the chilling frost.
"Shhh."
The man didn't even speak; the short, sharp breath he emitted was enough to freeze him in place, rendering him speechless and unable to move.
To those around him, the person behind him remained silent, simply leading him away from the crowd.
Someone complained, "Where did this madwoman come from? Take her away immediately! She's even cursing Wen Ran. If it weren't for her, we would have been buried in the secret realm long ago!"
The man was filled with immense fear and a sense of helplessness, as if he had nowhere to turn for help. The people around him either watched the spectacle or looked on with disdain. After he was led away from the crowd, they all turned their attention away and became preoccupied with pondering the people on the list.
The fat monk was led to a dark alley. Under the sparse shadows of the trees, he finally saw the person who had taken him hostage. The person had a cold and pure face, a slender figure, and a pair of cold and lonely dark eyes that were completely calm as they looked at him.
"You saw it." He spoke, but not as a question, slowly drawing the snow sword from his hand.
The fat cultivator's lips trembled slightly, his eyes were panicked, and he stared straight at the sword, stammering, "What... what are you saying, fellow Daoist? I don't understand!"
The person in front of him ignored him. He simply raised his hand to touch the blade, his expression unchanged, but his movements were gentle as he muttered something to himself.
The fat monk remained silent, a chill running down his spine. He swallowed hard, then said in a trembling voice, "I don't know what you're talking about..."
The person in front of him suddenly looked up. There was no murderous intent or anger, only a strange look on his face, as if he had just seen a stubborn weed and had taken a moment to observe it.
Those dark eyes scrutinized him, their gaze clear and detached, seemingly indifferent to worldly affairs, yet they uttered a statement that was utterly incongruous with their own.
"One life for another, say it and he will die in your place."
The snow sword was sheathed, revealing the true meaning behind his words.
Wei Changzai did not understand good, but he understood evil very well, so he proposed a condition that no evil person could refuse.
The fat monk hesitated, no longer gritting his teeth and forcing himself to endure, but his expression remained complicated. At that time, he was indeed the only one on the roof, but in order to survive, he had to make up another person.
He hesitated for only a moment before making a choice. Just as he was about to speak, a white light suddenly flashed before his eyes. Before he could react, the scene before his eyes had been turned upside down. After rolling around a few times, he saw his headless body and the boy wiping his sword and sheathing it.
"You're the only one on the roof," he said, still not in a question.
As darkness fell, the person had already walked out of the alley and could no longer be found.
...
On the city wall, Murong Qiudi tossed the scroll in her hand into the air for people to examine closely, and continued speaking despite the murmurs of the crowd.
"Pilgrimage Valley will open tomorrow and close in three days."
The short sentence was like a thunderclap. The city was quiet for a moment, and then a huge commotion broke out. Not only the cultivators, but also the common people couldn't help but whisper among themselves.
"How could it be so fast? I've read the ancient texts, and the festival before the valley opens should take about a month to prepare. But now, less than a day has passed since the Flying Flower Festival ended. Putting aside the preparations, how are we supposed to prepare the spiritual energy treasures to enter the valley in less than a day?"
"This year is truly strange. There are quite a few monsters in the valley. Should I just go in with a wood-chopping knife?"
"How could it only be three days! The mountains and fields are covered with unknown spiritual herbs, and the magical treasures are nowhere to be found. Even if we searched tirelessly for three days, we might not be able to find even the slightest trace of them!"
"What are you afraid of? Just go in and grab whatever you can find, no matter what it is, put it all into a mustard bag."
"Is it just to retrieve the swords for those ten people? If so, three days will suffice!"
For a time, the situation was extremely heated, with everyone having their own reasons.
"The Demon Lord and the people of the demon race will also be present at this festival to celebrate with us."
The chaotic discussions ceased again, and no one spoke for a long time. Murong Qiudi was not surprised, and simply raised her eyebrows slightly as she looked over.
Although the leaders of various sects, the heads of aristocratic families, and even the lords of various regions are all powerful figures who dominate their respective regions, they are not actually mysterious to the general public.
But the Human Emperor and the Demon Lord are completely different. They are both rulers of their respective realms. Let alone being familiar with each other, it is as difficult as ascending to heaven for ordinary people to even meet them.
Especially the elusive Demon Lord.
According to folk tales and legends, the Demon Lord is a member of the Peacock Clan, with a chicken's head and a human body, and is ugly and unattractive. In more remote towns, the Demon Lord is even said to be able to stop children from crying at night.
At this moment, everyone's resentment was overshadowed by curiosity.
If it were just a rumor, it might not have such an immediate effect, but that was a demon lord, a demon lord who had never shown himself in public.
Compared to the Human Emperor, who was still known to some, he seemed more like a legendary figure who did not exist in this world.
"The Demon Lord, though not quite a chicken-headed, human-bodied being, is certainly not a respectable figure. I heard that he seized the throne because the previous Demon King said he was ugly, and in a fit of rage, he took action."
"On the day Princess Mingyue was married, he only sent a civil official to pick her up. He was so indifferent. He must not be a good person."
"I heard that he was cruel and extremely jealous. After the princess married him, she spent her days in tears and lived a very miserable life."
Some sighed, some felt sorry, and some even decided to take out their extremely precious image-recording beads to engrave the Demon Lord's appearance and make a fortune.
Having conveyed the message, Murong Qiudi and the other three did not linger. They left the scroll in mid-air and each leaped away to prepare for tomorrow's ceremony.
After the four left, the cultivators who had been gathered below the city suddenly came to their senses and dispersed to prepare for entering the valley and how to squeeze to the front the next day to catch a glimpse of the Demon Lord's true face.
Before long, only a few people remained below the city. They were all among the top ten of the Flying Flower Gathering, but Lin Feiran was not familiar with them, so he did not go up to exchange pleasantries. He simply ignored their insincere glances, turned around, put the table away, and left with Biqing and the others.
That night, Spring City was brightly lit. Whether they were rushing to the festival or cultivators about to enter the valley, everyone was busy spending this sleepless night.
The next day, as dawn was breaking, Lin Feiran had finished her breathing exercises. She got out of bed, opened the window, and saw that an altar had been erected in the sky above Chuncheng. The city was also full of new ideas, with prayer ribbons hanging everywhere.
As dawn broke, a ray of sunlight finally leaped out from the east, spreading across the sky, followed by a procession of bluebirds in a royal carriage.
It sang loudly, its voice resounding throughout the world.
The Human Emperor is about to arrive.
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