past
Inside the city lord's palace.
The two rushed over as soon as they returned. The medicinal effects of evening primrose would dissipate over time, so they had to hurry.
Wen Zheng was holding a box of evening primroses when she almost bumped into Xiao Ze, who had dark circles under his eyes, as she walked around the corner.
"Hey, watch your step!" Wen Zheng, carrying the box, stepped aside, nearly falling over as she lost her footing.
A hand suddenly reached out to support her from behind, and took the box from her. "Be careful."
Mu Qing gave Wen Zheng a gentle push, and she steadied herself, looking at Xiao Ze: "Are you alright?"
He looks like he's about to die.
Xiao Ze waved his hand weakly, "It's nothing, hurry up and take the medicine to the doctor." After saying that, he staggered away.
Wen Zheng saw him walking unsteadily and wanted to help him, but Mu Qing stopped her, saying, "Detoxification is the priority. He looks like he hasn't had enough rest."
Getting down to business, Wen Zheng took the box and found the doctor. After obtaining the last antidote, the doctor hurried back to the pharmacy to make the medicine. Wen Zheng and Mu Qing were free and were arranged by the steward of the city lord's mansion to rest in a courtyard.
Both of them were exhausted from their long journey. Now that the detoxification was over, they could finally take a break.
Wen Zheng went back to her room and had a good sleep. When she woke up, it was already the next day.
When she left the courtyard, Mu Qing and Xiao Ze were drinking tea and playing chess, seemingly waiting for her. Wen Zheng walked over slowly to look at the chess game, but her light footsteps still caught Mu Qing's attention. He asked, "Have you rested enough?"
Wen Zheng: "Yes, I had a good night's sleep."
"That's fine then. I'll take you to see Zhuque after I finish this game of chess," Xiao Ze said without looking up, a chess piece between his fingers.
He was so engrossed in the chessboard that he had no time to think about anything else.
Wen Zheng sat to the side waiting for them to play chess, her mind blank, recalling the reason why the system suggested she come to the demon race.
The note in Hua Rong's hand, which is related to Qingling Daoist, is connected to her. However, she has been in the demon race for some time but has no clues. Should she ask Xiao Ze directly?
What is the connection between the abrupt note and the dream of the wooden bracelet?
Wen Zheng was so engrossed in her thoughts that she didn't even notice when they finished their game of chess. It was only when Mu Qing nudged her that she came to her senses.
Mu Qingqing looked at her with cold eyes, "What are you thinking about?"
"It's nothing." Wen Zheng casually brushed the dust off her clothes and followed Xiao Ze's steps.
Mu Qing frowned slightly as she watched her hurried steps, pursed her lips and remained silent for a while before following her.
The three arrived at the city lord's room and saw him after he had been detoxified. Unlike the last time they had seen him with his multicolored complexion, this time the city lord's complexion was much more normal, though his lips were slightly pale, probably because he had just been detoxified.
"You look perfectly fine, so it seems the poison has been completely neutralized." Xiao Ze sat down beside him and poured himself a cup of tea.
The city lord had just been detoxified and was still recovering. He coughed twice as he spoke, "Thank you for your help this time."
"It was just a small favor," Wen Zheng said. "I also have my own selfish reasons for helping you."
She was referring to the matter of using the peacock feather fan to break the seal. The city lord had previously been persuaded by Xiao Ze to lend it, and after this incident, he decided to lend the feather fan.
"Let's keep things separate. The matter of borrowing the feather fan is another matter, but we still need to thank you for the antidote." The city lord said, taking out a red feather.
“This is one of my tail feathers. The Vermilion Bird is associated with fire, and its tail feathers are incredibly powerful when burning, equivalent to a human cultivator’s self-destruction. Be careful when using it.” After saying this, he handed the tail feather to Wen Zheng.
The fiery red feathers emitted a faint light, and you could feel their scorching heat when you touched them. Wen Zheng held the tail feather and looked at Mu Qing. After he nodded, she accepted the tail feather.
After expressing his gratitude, Xiao Ze brought up the current situation of the Feather Fan, saying, "The man in black who injured you is locked inside the Feather Fan."
The formation was designed by Zhuque, who knew the situation inside. Xiao Ze briefly mentioned it, and he immediately understood. "That person is ruthless and has high spiritual power. He won't be able to get out for a while."
Zhuque had considered this situation and took precautions when setting up the formation. People with low spiritual power could easily escape from the feather fan, while those with high spiritual power could not.
“That’s right, your men have been keeping an eye on the feather fan, and that person hasn’t come out yet.” Xiao Ze had been watching for a while, and his eyes were dark from lack of sleep. When he went back to rest, he ran into Wen Zheng coming back.
After pondering for a moment, the Lord of Suzaku City looked at Wen Zheng and said, "The Feather Fan is imprisoning someone. If you want to use it, you'll have to get that person out first."
"Get it out?"
"Yes, there is a remnant soul left behind by the Peacock King inside the feather fan. To break the seal, you need to use this remnant soul. You must enter the feather fan."
After explaining, the Lord of Vermilion Bird City handed the choice to Wen Zheng, "There are only two methods now. One is to wait for that person to die under the torment of the formation before you can enter the Feather Fan."
Wen Zheng: "And the other one?"
"Go in, break through the formation, and bring the person out."
As soon as the City Lord of Suzaku finished speaking, Mu Qing objected first, "That person can even injure you, she's just throwing her life away if she goes in."
Xiao Ze had no choice but to refute his friend's suggestion, "She's been inside before and the formation is simple. If she runs into that person, she'll be doomed."
He had fought that man before; every move he made was aimed at vital points, and he simply couldn't defend himself.
The Lord of Suzaku City coughed, interrupting them, "My suggestion is that you wait a bit."
He could tell that Wen Zheng's cultivation level was not high, making it almost impossible for her to kill that person.
Wen Zheng listened quietly to them, and when their eyes turned to her, she said, "Time waits for no one, I want to give it a try."
The situation is shrouded in mystery, and she must seize every opportunity to become stronger in order to withstand any danger before it arrives.
Mu Qing looked at her abruptly, about to speak up to stop her, when the Lord of Vermilion Bird City spoke first, "Alright, let's go now."
While the Lord of Vermilion Bird City was tidying himself up, Mu Qing took Wen Zheng to a corner, her cold voice laced with anger, "Do you want to go and die?"
Wen Zheng knew best how strong he was. Whether it was the black-clad men from the Immortal Chasing Sect or the white-clad men from Blue Water Town, Wen Zheng could only finish them off from the sidelines; he had no ability to defeat them at all.
Wen Zheng broke free from Mu Qing's grasp, rubbed her hand, and joked, "It's not that serious. Maybe that person is at his last gasp and I can easily take care of him."
After she finished speaking, Mu Qing's expression remained serious. "There's no rush to seal your dantian. There will be other opportunities later. Trying now is just courting death."
The words were harsh, but they were meant to be for Wen Zheng's sake, hoping she would think it over.
"I know, but I have to go." Wen Zheng spoke softly, but it was enough for Mu Qing to know her determination.
"Mu Qing, I can't leave this hidden danger unresolved, even if it won't erupt for the time being."
She is an insecure person who always hopes to deal with all the potential problems now so that the road ahead will be easier.
Moreover, she is currently shrouded in mystery, and a sense of crisis is chasing her like a shadow, suffocating her. Only by becoming stronger can she catch her breath.
The atmosphere between the two was tense. Mu Qing didn't speak again because he knew he couldn't persuade Wen Zheng.
Not far away, Xiao Ze called out to them, signaling that they could leave. Wen Zheng took out the tail feather given to her by the Lord of Vermilion Bird City and handed it to Mu Qing, saying, "Take this."
"No need," Mu Qing coldly refused.
Wen Zheng wouldn't allow him to argue, and forcefully stuffed it into his hand, "You didn't want the evening primrose dew from before, but I can't let you suffer a loss. Consider this as a share of the half-month's worth of evening primrose dew."
Yesterday, when she asked for some evening primrose dew, Mu Qing refused. She called her door for a long time but no one answered, so she had no choice but to accept it for now and planned to compensate her with something else.
After she gave him the tail feather, she quickly responded and walked towards Xiao Ze's direction.
Mu Qing held the tail feather in his hand, holding his breath, and followed behind her without saying a word.
The two were led by the Lord of Vermilion Bird City to see the feather fan, an ordinary-looking blue feather fan, but when unfolded, the blue patterns on it seemed to shimmer with tiny lights.
As Wen Zheng craned her neck to observe, the Lord of Vermilion Bird City turned around with a feather fan in his hand. She immediately snapped out of her daze and looked at the feather fan with clear eyes.
The surroundings were dimly lit, and the guards and the men maintaining the formation had all retreated, leaving only the four of them.
"Come here and put your hand on it." The Lord of Vermilion Bird City held out his feather fan, and Wen Zheng naturally reached out and placed her hand on it.
"The formation will repeatedly remind you of your past fears. I've left you a protective spell; just bravely break through it."
The next moment, the city lord twisted his five fingers and formed a magic seal that landed on Wen Zheng. Before she could even ask, a light emanated from the feather fan and sucked her into it. In the last moment before she entered the feather fan, she saw Mu Qingchao's footsteps rushing towards her.
When Wen Zheng opened her eyes again, she saw a meadow in front of her, and a large blue bird was preening its feathers by the lake in the distance, looking relaxed and carefree.
Wen Zheng looked around and saw nothing but the blue bird. She slowly approached the bird.
As she got closer to the bird, she realized that it wasn't a large bird at all, but a blue peacock with iridescent tail feathers.
Remembering what the city lord had said about breaking through the formation, Wen Zheng cautiously asked, "Hello, where do I go to break through the formation?"
The city lord's words were too vague, and she didn't ask for details, so she could only ask the peacock first.
The blue peacock flapped its wings and shook its body, its long tail feathers spreading out more as it shook, making it even more dazzling in the sunlight, and Wen Zheng couldn't take her eyes off it.
Her gaze was fixed on the peacock's tail feathers, completely unaware of the peacock's blackened pupils. When she turned her head, she felt a splitting headache and her vision went black.
When she opened her eyes again, everything in front of her had completely changed; it was as if she had returned to the scene when she last entered the dream bracelet.
The surrounding decorations were not much different from those in her dream. Last time, she saw herself as about thirteen or fourteen years old, but this time she seemed to be an adult.
Wen Zheng thought of the dream she could only watch from the sidelines last time. She walked up to her, waved her hand, and patted it, but she could still only watch from the sidelines.
She sighed and watched the person who shared the same face as her stare blankly in front of the mirror until someone knocked on the door outside, at which point she snapped out of her daze and started washing up.
The door was knocked on again, but it wasn't the same fierce maid from last time. This maid simply said that it was time to close the door after knocking.
As Wen Zheng looked at herself, pondering the meaning of those words, her perspective shifted, and she became herself again.
Looking at her astonished reflection in the mirror, Wen Zheng pinched her cheek in disbelief.
It hurts a lot, it really does.
Is she about to experience the painful things from her past memories?
As Wen Zheng pondered, she changed her clothes and went out. When she opened the door, she was startled by the several maids standing outside. They all had the same face and were all bowing their heads and not speaking, like dolls.
"Miss, it's time to go," a maid reminded her.
Wen Zheng hummed in agreement, shifting her gaze from the maid to the road outside.
Where is she going?
Will they notice if I wander around aimlessly?
She slowly took her first step, and her body, as if guided by memory, led her around different buildings, finally stopping in front of a grand and imposing hall.
"We've arrived, Miss, please go in." The maid took out a key and opened the door.
Wen Zheng stared at the empty gate and carefully stepped inside. The gate slammed shut behind her with a "bang," startling her so much that she turned around abruptly.
The gate disappeared, and the scene inside the hall appeared. The windows were covered with opaque black cloths, and white candles were lit beside the stone pillars inside the hall. The wax dripped unevenly, like people kneeling and begging for mercy.
Wen Zheng swallowed hard and continued walking forward. In the main hall sat a person whose face was obscured, resting his face on his arm and leaning against the seat.
She looked up and could only see darkness and the red flowers embroidered on the other person's shoes. She was about to take a closer look when the other person interrupted her.
"It's been so long and you still haven't learned to obey. It seems we need to replace those maids."
The dark-faced man spoke clearly, but his words became fragmented and incoherent when they reached Wen Zheng's ears.
Unsure of the current situation, Wen Zheng could only remain silent.
The dark-faced man sighed and said calmly, "Since you are unwilling to speak, I don't want to force you. Go to the Sword Pavilion and cultivate in seclusion for thirty days."
After he finished speaking, he waved his sleeve, and the place where Wen Zheng was standing changed again. Countless swords stood in front of her, some broken and stuck in the ground, and some intact and hanging high on the roof beams.
When Wen Zheng looked up, she could still see the sharpness of the sword tip. She carefully avoided it and only stopped trembling after she reached a safe place.
She had no memory of this event, nor was she afraid of the swords; the reason her body trembled was mostly due to muscle memory.
The last time she was thirteen or fourteen, the things she said about Long Aotian proved that she was the original owner of this body, so does this memory also belong to her?
As Wen Zheng pondered this, she broke free again, like a wandering ghost watching herself anxiously pacing around the Sword Pavilion, before finally opening a mechanism to enter underground.
Wen Zheng followed him to a place where various magical artifacts were placed. Seeing him stop in front of a mirror, she said, "Haven't you made up your mind yet? If you don't, your soul will dissipate."
A semi-transparent figure appeared in the mirror, weakly asking, "Is your method really reliable?"
"Of course, you agreed."
The person in the mirror had no strength left to speak, so they nodded.
Wen Zheng looked at what incantation she had drawn on the mirror and then pulled the person in the mirror out. She curiously leaned over to take a look and stared in surprise.
Did she already know Qingling Daoist before?
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