Chapter 40
On his way back to the capital, Zhou Xuanzhi suddenly remembered something. Taking advantage of the fact that no one was around, he went to Shi Yunzhou's room and saw him about to leave.
"Are you going out?"
Shi Yunzhou made way for him, saying, "We truly are worthy of being fellow disciples." After Zhou Xuanzhi entered the room, he closed the door and set up a protective barrier.
Seeing Shi Yunzhou's cautious demeanor, Zhou Xuanzhi said, "This is a celestial vessel from Tianyu Mountain. Their Exorcism Division's spies can't hear what we're saying."
Shi Yunzhou turned to look at Zhou Xuanzhi and smiled: "It seems we think the same thing."
The Exorcism Bureau, located far away in the capital, is about to hold the Immortal Alliance Conference. The advance disciples sent by various sects have already arrived. Why would there be Exorcism Bureau disciples leaving the capital at this time?
"So I've already asked Senior Sister Ming. They don't know the specific reason either."
Shi Yunzhou tapped his fingers on the table, then suddenly turned to look at Zhou Xuanzhi, as if remembering something: "Do you still remember Deng Lan from Cold Maple Valley?"
"He's not in the capital either." Deng Lan is the disciple of the Cold Maple Valley's leader. He should be attending the Immortal Alliance Conference and even competing against others on stage. It's indeed strange that he's in Jianye Town, a thousand miles away from the capital, at this crucial time.
Shi Yunzhou added, "There's another point: why did Fang Xiashen want us to go to Jianye Town? The only ones related to Master are Ding Xiuyao's two disciples." In fact, it could be said that these two people have no direct relationship with Master.
Perhaps she was deceived by Fang Xiashen? Impossible. Fang Xiashen has already been arrested. She knows the consequences of lying at this time.
"Any leads on Gu Qingci's side?" We'll ask Fang Xiashen about it when we get to the capital, but Gu Qingci has already returned to the capital, so there should be results regarding her matter.
Zhou Xuanzhi nodded and said, "This is the only good news. Junior Sister Lin has obtained a portrait, and we will be able to see it when we arrive in the capital."
The people in the capital have recently had a real treat, as countless cultivators have passed before their eyes and all of them have entered the Exorcism Bureau.
"The ones wearing blue clothes the other day were from Tianyu Mountain, and the ones wearing cyan clothes yesterday were all men from Qingxu Sect." People were talking about the clothes of these people as they watched.
"Look at how nice the colors of other people's clothes are! Then look at our Exorcism Division's all-black outfits, they're so ugly!"
"The clothes from Cold Maple Valley were also very nice yesterday. Those young men in red were so handsome."
“The white clothes on Chongwu Mountain are quite nice too.”
"Anyway, they look better than the black ones worn by the Exorcists."
As soon as Xiao Mu entered the city, he heard the people talking. He looked down at his blue school uniform. He had never thought the uniform looked good before, but after hearing everyone say this, he suddenly felt that his sect had good taste.
He turned around to discuss the school uniforms of Tianyu Mountain with Zhou Xuanzhi, but all he saw was Shi Yunzhou. He craned his neck to look behind him but couldn't see Zhou Xuanzhi at all.
Where is Senior Brother Zhou?
Shi Yunzhou pointed behind him without turning his head, his voice completely flat, "They're behind us, feeling timid as they approach home."
Yes, Zhou Xuanzhi is a native of the capital, and he hasn't set foot in the capital since he became a disciple of Tianyu Mountain. However, two hundred years have passed, and the capital must have undergone tremendous changes.
"Why weren't you with him?" Shouldn't you be there to comfort him? But Shi Yunzhou, upon hearing Xiao Mu's words, seemed to find it a joke, "He's not a child, he can't get lost!"
Xiao Mu seemed to have heard something incredible, "He's in a bad mood, shouldn't you be there to comfort him?"
Shi Yunzhou stopped and looked at Xiao Mu, then asked, puzzled, "Why do you think he'd be in a bad mood?"
His unpleasant childhood experiences in the capital told him this. Xiao Mu didn't dare to voice his thoughts, especially since the person opposite him looked very impatient.
Just then, Zhou Xuanzhi finally walked up to the two of them. Seeing them standing there, he smiled and asked, "Were you waiting for me?"
Shi Yunzhou pointed to Zhou Xuanzhi, who still had a smile on his face, and said, "He's in a very good mood."
Hearing Shi Yunzhou speak of him like that, Zhou Xuanzhi looked puzzled: "What's wrong?"
Xiao Mu smiled awkwardly and waved his hand, "I misunderstood, it's nothing. Let's hurry to the Exorcism Division! Senior Sister Lin and the others should be waiting." He quickened his pace, leaving the awkward situation. They were fellow disciples; if his senior brother was in a bad mood, Shi Yunzhou would naturally comfort him. It wasn't his place as an outsider to remind him.
Zhou Xuanzhi noticed that Xiao Mu's pace was quickening and became suspicious. He pointed at Xiao Mu's back and asked, "What's wrong with him?"
"Nothing, are you done reminiscing?"
Hearing his junior brother's teasing, Zhou Xuanzhi simply waved his hand and said, "I didn't go out often when I was a child, so I don't have much of an impression of what the outside world was like."
"So you're reminiscing about the city where you grew up." Shi Yunzhou looked at the people coming and going on the street and the buildings on both sides of the road. This place was different from Yunzhou City.
Yunzhou City is located by the sea, and the vendors along the roads mostly sell things related to the sea. The capital city, however, is different; it's the political center of the country, and you can find all sorts of things there.
As the two walked, Shi Yunzhou saw Xiao Mu's back. By this time, Xiao Mu had long forgotten the awkward moment just now, and was chatting and laughing with someone he knew.
“Actually, I’m quite envious of him sometimes.” Shi Yunzhou looked at Xiao Mu and thought of his own childhood as a homeless person. “He has loving parents and has been well protected since he was a child.”
Zhou Xuanzhi looked at Xiao Mu, and he too had felt envy. Back then, he had just joined the sect and witnessed Xiao Mu's parents sending him to Tianyu Mountain to learn martial arts. He still remembered the look of reluctance on his mother's face as she hugged Xiao Mu as she left. Xiao Mu had a very good temper and got along well with everyone; it was clear he had been raised with the love and care of his parents.
Seeing his senior brother's expression, Shi Yunzhou knew that he had also felt envious. He sighed, "We two are indeed worthy of being called brothers; neither of us had a very good childhood."
Almost all the inns in the capital were full. If you arrived late, no matter how rich or noble you were, there were no rooms available. To be able to rent an entire floor of a luxury inn when rooms were so scarce was a testament to one's immense wealth.
Looking at Shi Yunzhou in front of him, Xiao Mu really wanted to ask, "Do you also have connections in the capital?"
Because Xiao Mu said that the news could not be shared within the Exorcism Bureau, Shi Yunzhou "contributed" his assets in the capital.
After exchanging pleasantries, we finally took our seats.
On the third floor facing the street, by the window, tables and chairs had already been set up. Looking at the people coming and going below, he really wanted to cheer for Shi Yunzhou. Because of the special status of cultivators, all city gates were equipped with magic arrays that only allowed mortals to pass through, while cultivators entered the capital through a single city gate. There was also a magic array set up by the Exorcism Bureau at the city gate, which could distinguish the aura of each person.
This street is the only way to the Exorcism Bureau. Xiao Mu thought that if his comings and goings were controlled by others, it wouldn't be a pleasant experience.
"What a generous gesture! Does Huanhai need more people?" Xiao Mu voiced his thoughts.
“This restaurant is my property,” Shi Yunzhou explained. “It should be said that it was left by my ancestors.”
"From this vantage point, you can see who comes in, but it's not easy to track their movements," Zhou Xuanzhi sighed.
Shi Yunzhou shook his head and said, "It's good enough that we know who has come in. This is the capital. Don't you know how strict things are here?"
Zhou Xuanzhi paused for a moment while pouring tea, then resumed his normal hand gesture, shaking his head and saying, "I left the capital when I was less than ten years old, and before that, I rarely went out."
"Is this how daughters of wealthy families are raised?" Shi Yunzhou's sarcastic tone finally gave Xiao Mu a familiar feeling.
Zhou Xuanzhi: "..." If it were Lin Jichen's temper, they would probably have already started fighting.
"So, Senior Brother Xiao, what news have you brought?"
"This year's Immortal Alliance Conference will be attended by all sects, whether you can name them or not." He raised an eyebrow as he looked at Shi Yunzhou across from him. "After investigation by our senior uncles and masters, we found that Huanmo from Yunzhou City and that Fang Xiashen are not the ones who escaped from the net back then."
Zhou Xuanzhi, who was standing next to him, and Shi Yunzhou, who was opposite him, were both agitated this time. They remembered their sect's teachings and set up a barrier around the area. Then they asked, "Explain what happened."
Xiao Mu said slowly, "After the commotion on the back mountain that time, Senior Brother Zhou, you secretly went down the mountain, and the senior uncles and aunts began to investigate. Senior Sister Ming sent the information about meeting you and Gu Qingci to the mountain. After the investigation by the senior uncles and aunts, it was found that the gate of Guancheng was not opened to that innocent girl by accident, but that someone deliberately sent that girl in."
Send a girl to Guancheng?
"The fugitives who escaped the net over the years could not and would not dare to cause such a commotion. Moreover, we have always kept track of the whereabouts of the fugitives who escaped the net back then. If it is not them, then it must be the demons of the Boundless Realm."
Impossible. If the barrier were broken, the immortal sects guarding the vicinity would surely react, not to mention the demonic cultivators watching the Illusionary Sea day and night.
"That's unlikely, isn't it?" Shi Yunzhou didn't believe it.
The two men had no doubts about the news Xiao Mu brought; in fact, they felt a certain admiration for him. He had barely arrived in the capital, traveling the same route as them, and hadn't even entered the Exorcism Bureau yet, and he already had information.
Shi Yunzhou remained skeptical, somewhat puzzled. "So Fang Xiashen is still in the capital? Didn't anyone ask her how she left the Boundless Realm?"
Xiao Mu waved his hand and said, "You know you should ask, don't the elders know? Maybe she just didn't say!"
As if remembering something, Zhou Xuanzhi asked, "Could it be Guancheng?"
Xiao Mu shook his head and said, "When we learned that Miss Gu had been sent to Guancheng, someone went into Guancheng to investigate, but there were no traces."
Shi Yunzhou smiled and said, "This is interesting."
He didn't know how others viewed the demons, but he had an irreconcilable hatred for them. Previously, the demons had always been in the Boundless Realm, which he couldn't enter, so it was alright. But today, they dared to appear in the mortal realm; Fang Xiashen could let them go.
But the Phantom Demon, who had been causing trouble behind the scenes, was different. He raised an eyebrow and said, "So the elders are planning to capture the Phantom Demon here?"
"How did you know?" Xiao Mu was shocked. His own father had told him this, so how did Shi Yunzhou know? Could it be Wei Maitong?
However, when did he, the young master of Huanhai who has no real power, become so close to the actual ruler of Huanhai?
Shi Yunzhou frowned at the change in Xiao Mu's expression. "Do you need someone else to tell you these things? You can guess them yourself."
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