Chapter 7
Lin Jichen stayed by Gu Qingci's side at night and set up an array around her so that he could detect even the slightest movement.
As for Shi Yunzhou, he had already slipped into Zhou Xuanzhi's room.
Looking at his junior brother who had come uninvited without even knocking, Zhou Xuanzhi replied good-naturedly, "Can't sleep?"
"Something's up."
"Gu Qingci?"
"I believe in my master's magical artifacts." He placed a sword identical to Zhou Xuanzhi's on the table, except that his sword was blue.
Looking at the sword on the table, Zhou Xuanzhi said, "Lin Jichen can be trusted."
“I didn’t doubt her, after all, she was originally…”
“There are many mysteries surrounding Gu Qingci.” Zhou Xuanzhi didn’t let Shi Yunzhou continue. He looked at the sword for a moment, seemingly lost in thought. “I originally thought that because of her special identity, we could delay the investigation of her for a while, but I didn’t expect to encounter the Illusion Demon here.”
Before my master passed away, he encountered a demon. To uncover the truth behind my master's death, the only way was to capture the demon. Fortunately, demons can share memories, so any demon is manageable.
"Gu Qingci is just like any other daughter of a wealthy family in the capital; there's nothing special about her." Shi Yunzhou knew that he would have to go to the capital to find out everything, but it wasn't easy for a cultivator to stay in the capital for long.
"The Immortal Alliance Conference is being held in the capital this time. We can take advantage of the conference to stay a little longer. We can find out everything then."
The Immortal Alliance Conference? I was so close back then...
"Okay, then we need to investigate as soon as possible."
However, the Immortal Alliance Conference is still some time away, and they face more problems now. Encountering the Illusionary Demon will definitely be reported to their sect, and they don't know which senior elder will come down to investigate. They can only hope that they won't be interested in their own affairs.
"Why would Senior Sister Mingmo come down the mountain at this time?" Mingmo is definitely going to the Immortal Alliance Conference, so she should be on the mountain preparing at this time.
"Training. There have been more demons lately, and the elders have become suspicious." This was also the reason why Zhou Xuanzhi was able to come down the mountain. Otherwise, his senior uncle, the sect leader, would have made him stay on the mountain.
The two exchanged a glance and realized that this phenomenon was the same as it had been two hundred years ago.
Having spent so long in the Illusionary Sea, he had never paid attention to the Boundless Realm behind the Ten Directions Barrier, only learning about it from others. Wasn't that a bit inappropriate? Shi Yunzhou touched his nose somewhat guiltily, thankfully no one seemed to care about this.
Shi Yunzhou hesitated for a long time before speaking, "In the past two hundred years, I have never heard of any barrier in my Illusionary Sea being broken." The Ten Directions Barrier was repaired by my master once two hundred years ago, so it shouldn't have cracks. Why did the Illusionary Demon appear?
"Don't think too much about it. The sect will find out about these things." Zhou Xuanzhi looked outside, his eyes unfathomable.
At daybreak, Zhou Xuanzhi went to the home of one of the victims. After revealing his identity and explaining his purpose, he was almost kicked out.
"You...you're cultivators? What are you talking about compassion? Bah!" The victim's sister chased them out with a large broom used for sweeping the yard.
The people around Zhou Xuanzhi all looked at him with disdain.
"How much money did the Li family give you? You still have the nerve to call yourselves cultivators and say you're doing this to save the world? Where do you get the nerve?"
Even after Zhou Xuanzhi left the courtyard, the victim's sister continued to shout and curse inside.
The same applies to the next household.
"You suspect I did it?" The victim's father was furious after learning the purpose of their visit.
“That’s not what I meant. I just wanted to ask what the Li family did after what happened back then, and whether there was anything unusual about it,” Zhou Xuanzhi asked.
What could it be?
Looking at the old man with graying temples in front of him, Zhou Xuanzhi thought of his master. She was very young, only in her twenties, but her temperament was very similar to his.
“If you want to save him, you won’t get any answers from us. Go back!” The victim’s mother looked out into the yard, seemingly lost in thought.
"The immortal sect has its own rules. Demons that harm people must be saved, while matters between people are the responsibility of the government. Unfortunately, after this matter is resolved, our group will be heading to the capital."
The first part of what was said was infuriating, but the two elderly people listened to what was said afterward.
They thought for a moment and said, "A few monks came to their house one day, supposedly from the capital."
"The capital?"
"They say they're from the capital, but who knows their true identities?" The old man continued to recall, "Before that, many members of the Li family fell ill, and we consulted many doctors, but none of them could diagnose anything. Later, we invited a few cultivators to come in, and they recovered in just a few days."
Has this happened before?
The old man said irritably, "They've done too many evil deeds; this time, their time is probably up!"
These words immediately alerted Zhou Xuanzhi to something amiss. His gaze shifted between the two elderly people. The old man seemed fine, his expression composed, but the old woman appeared quite nervous.
It seems the victim's family knows something about this, but...
"In that case, I won't disturb you any longer. Farewell." As he stood up, he caught a glimpse of the unusual interaction between the old man and his wife out of the corner of his eye.
He didn't leave immediately after going out the door, but stood in the yard out of sight of the people inside, listening to the sounds coming from inside.
"What are you afraid of? It's not like you did it. Let him investigate." The old man's accusing voice rang out.
"He's a cultivator. It wouldn't be right to lie to him!"
The old man was very angry, but he still lowered his voice, "Didn't you hear what he said? He said he absolutely had to catch the demon."
"Then...didn't he say that we should take revenge, that he wouldn't..."
Before he could finish speaking, the old man scolded him: "You believe everything he says? If he doesn't go to the capital, how will you get revenge? Even if we risk our lives, we won't be able to get close to that纨绔 (spoiled brat). How will we get revenge then?"
These words echoed in Zhou Xuanzhi's ears before he left, and he believed that the families of other victims would say the same thing. But what about the survivors? Did they know about this?
He left and went to the home of one of the survivors.
The surviving family lived in a remote fishing village, making a living by fishing. Zhou Xuanzhi's arrival cast a shadow over the family once again.
A young and beautiful woman was helping her family with chores outdoors, her outdated clothes unable to conceal her figure. But her eyes were lifeless, making her resemble a manipulated zombie.
After understanding Zhou Xuanzhi's purpose, she left her father's side, returned to her room, and closed the door tightly.
The father, his body tanned black by the sun, glanced at the door, his wrinkled face showing worry: "A few months ago, someone found us, saying they wanted to help us get revenge, and asked what price we were willing to pay?"
"Who is it? What price will they pay?"
"That person... seemed to be a woman. She was completely covered up, so we couldn't see what she looked like, but we could tell from her voice that she was a woman. The price... he wanted us to pay with half our lives."
Zhou Xuanzhi hurriedly asked, "You've agreed?"
"No, exchanging with demons is suicide."
Zhou Xuanzhi let out a long sigh of relief. He looked at the people in front of him and said, "Making a deal with demons is a very dangerous thing. If they find you again, remember to stall for time and bring us over."
Why did she find me?
"I don't know yet." Zhou Xuanzhi handed the man a stick of incense. He had gotten the incense from Lin Jichen; he had rushed down the mountain and hadn't brought many things with him.
The man looked at Zhou Xuanzhi, put away the incense, and thanked him.
In contrast, Shi Yunzhou seemed quite relaxed. He sat on the second-floor balcony of the opera house, watching the performers on stage singing and clapping along, leaning back in his chair and reciting the lyrics.
His contented demeanor was just like that of the man in his forties or fifties standing next to him.
Then, a man dressed in gray, who looked to be in his thirties and was quite handsome, appeared behind him.
"Young Master, we've found out." He leaned down and whispered in Shi Yunzhou's ear.
Shi Yunzhou then turned his attention to Chu Ren beside him and gestured for him to continue.
Chu Ren, sitting behind Shi Yunzhou, said, "This female demon's name is Fang Xiashen. She died a thousand years ago and her resentment was extremely strong. She turned into a vengeful ghost and caused chaos everywhere. Later, by chance, she encountered a wisp of demonic energy and became a demon."
What happened a thousand years ago?
The man found it difficult to speak, and after hesitating several times, he finally said: "At that time, her family was poor, and she sold flowers to make a living. She was very beautiful, and she always encountered some unpleasant things. However, she had a fiancé who worked nearby, so she was not bullied."
Later, she encountered several spoiled brats. Luckily, the woman had her fiancé to help her. However, they then plotted to frame Fang Xiashen's father, sending him to prison. They also beat her fiancé half to death, forcing her to...to stay with him for a few days, promising to release her father and give her money to get a doctor for her fiancé.
"But then they went back on their word." There are just too many cases like this.
Chu Ren didn't know how to answer, so he shook his head and sighed, "She didn't come out alive. No one knows what happened back then."
How old was she at the time?
“Just turned fifteen.” Showing no pity for these beastly men, he told Shi Yunzhou the results of his investigation: “The people Fang Xiashen harmed in the beginning were not all her enemies, which means she is now seeking more than just revenge. Also, this Young Master Li is one of the playboys from back then.”
Shi Yunzhou spoke with malice, "The people she killed don't deserve to be saved."
The man couldn't understand how someone like Shi Yunzhou could get into Tianyu Mountain. Even he, a "demonic cultivator" in the eyes of the world, would lend a hand in such a situation, but he had gotten used to it over the years.
Chu Ren said, "These people are indeed not worth it, but demons feed on people's resentment. She can still absorb resentment from these people now, but what will she feed on after she kills all the纨绔 (sons of wealthy and powerful families) in the world?"
"Besides, not all spoiled brats are despicable," the man advised. "We can't let her appetite grow too big; she's already established some kind of cooperative relationship with the Illusion Demon."
Shi Yunzhou did indeed consider delaying things and letting Fang Xiashen kill that young master Li.
He sat up straight and said self-deprecatingly, "My senior brother wants to save him, my senior sister wants to save him. It seems that only I really want him to die."
"Young Master..." The man was about to say something when he saw Shi Yunzhou reach out his hand to signal him to shut up.
"I understand. I'll tell everyone about it when I get back. Don't worry!" I wonder who came from Tianyu Mountain and why they care so much about these things?
However, according to this logic, Fang Xiashen is now killing people unrelated to her past life, so it's no longer revenge. But why didn't she kill Lin Jichen along with him back then? Why was she still concerned about this Young Master Li?
That night, after hearing the news brought by Shi Yunzhou, everyone looked at Lin Jichen standing to the side. Fortunately, that demon still had some reservations, otherwise…
Absorbing resentment? Zhou Xuanzhi began to recount the investigation he had conducted that day.
"It seems this is the deal she made with the victim's family." She wanted to absorb the resentment of the victim's family, as well as the resentment of the spoiled brat she killed.
Mingmo couldn't understand something, and probably everyone else couldn't either. She asked, "What does this have to do with the Illusion Demon?"
Back when he was still on Tianyu Mountain, his master had told him that the mission of the disciples of Tianyu Mountain was to protect the human world and drive away demons. Shi Yunzhou touched the bamboo flute at his waist and said, "We'll know once we capture Fang Xiashen."
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