Day One

Before leaving, Song Miyun exchanged contact information with Qi Xianqing.

In this world, cultivation mattered, but so did connections.

So-called exchanging contact information meant that Song Miyun sent a wisp of her divine sense into Qi Xianqing’s communication talisman. If Qi Xianqing ever needed to find her in the future, she could use the talisman to reach her briefly.

Song Miyun turned back and looked at Yan Jue deeply, smiling faintly. “Fellow Daoist Yan, let’s exchange contact information too.”

Her gaze on Yan Jue was fervent.

But it wasn’t the usual kind of fervor.

Yan Jue felt more and more that Song Miyun was looking at her as if she were some especially precious medicinal herb.

“...”

They always said the doctors of Lotus Island were obsessed with medicine. It really wasn’t an exaggeration.

And precisely because Lotus Island devoted itself to medicine and paid little attention to anything else, remaining detached from the world year after year, Yan Jue wasn’t worried that Song Miyun would leak her identity.

Song Miyun soon drifted away.

Lu Yanshuang gave Yan Jue and Qi Xianqing another cool, distant look, then turned as if she too intended to leave.

Qi Xianqing suddenly stopped San Niang. “I have something I’d like to discuss with Aunt.”

The way she said “Aunt” was so natural that Yan Jue suddenly realized what was going on, and her ears went bright red at once.

Yan Jue turned to look at Qi Xianqing, lips moving, but she couldn’t manage to say a single word.

Yun Zhen’s disciple had a temperament completely unlike Yun Zhen’s.

Yun Zhen’s bearing was flirtatious and unrestrained, all dominance and swagger.

But Qi Xianqing was cool and restrained; when she spoke, she never gave the slightest impression of disrespect or discomfort.

No matter whether Lu Yanshuang admitted it or not, Yun Zhen had clearly taught her little disciple very well.

San Niang stood where she was, unmoving. Qi Xianqing lifted a hand and made a polite inviting gesture, asking her to step aside and talk.

Yan Jue, listening from the side, couldn’t help being startled as well.

She didn’t know why Qi Xianqing was suddenly so familiar, or what she wanted to say to San Niang.

Yan Jue followed them over, but a hand suddenly took hers.

Qi Xianqing stood beside her, looking down at the ground. “There’s a pit here; be careful not to step in it.”

In the sunlight, Qi Xianqing’s fingertips were soft and cool. As if holding herself back, she only lightly hooked two of Yan Jue’s fingers.

Yan Jue’s scalp went numb. Out of the corner of her eye, she caught Lu Yanshuang’s strange expression.

Yan Jue: “I know; I’m not blind.” Even so, if Qi Xianqing hadn’t reminded her, she really would have stepped straight into that rabbit hole.

So this was the treatment one got for being Qi Xianqing’s dao companion? If that was the case, she really couldn’t tell that this violent, ruthless, kill-without-thinking type could be so nagging.

Yan Jue’s ears burned red. She opened her palm, pulled free of Qi Xianqing’s hand, and went around the little pit first, walking ahead.

Qi Xianqing: “...”

The three of them sat down in a clearing behind a large tree.

Qi Xianqing’s gaze fell, unconsciously, on the white butterfly perched on Lu San-niang’s shoulder.

The white butterfly had a cat’s face and had stayed on her shoulder since earlier, lightly fluttering its wings.

Such a bizarre butterfly.

It really was a little like Master’s style.

Lu San-niang’s expression was still somewhat unpleasant. After all, this was Yun Zhen’s disciple, and she even seemed to want to steal their princess away. No matter what, she couldn’t feel friendly toward Qi Xianqing. “Go on. What is it you want to say?”

Qi Xianqing clasped her fists and rested them on her knees, sitting properly as she asked, “I want to ask Senior Lu whether the demon race has recently received any messages from anyone.”

She paused. “For example, news of my whereabouts.”

San Niang met Qi Xianqing’s gaze and hesitated for a long while.

“...”

Yan Jue sat beside Qi Xianqing and gave San Niang a small nod.

For someone like Qi Xianqing, if she weren’t speaking in complete honesty, she wouldn’t ask something this directly.

She was someone who could be trusted completely.

Lu Yanshuang: “I don’t know.”

No matter what, it was still impossible for her to fully trust the righteous immortal sect in such a short time.

So Qi Xianqing took the lead in explaining her own view of the demon race, starting from Yan Jue’s statement that “the Sect Master is the Demon Lord” and ending with “she was hunted at the Cliff of Severed Malice,” slowly breaking it down for San Niang.

In truth, Qi Xianqing had been somewhat confused about this matter before.

But once Yan Jue clearly told her that the Sect Master was the Demon Lord, all the doubts were cleared up at once.

“If what Junior Sister Yan said is true, and the Sect Master is the Demon Lord of Soul-severing Mountain, then his ultimate goal must be to revive the demon race.”

“It’s just that I don’t know whether the leak of my whereabouts has anything to do with him.”

“If it really was one of his subordinates who leaked my location to the demon race, then his purpose is unclear.”

Qi Xianqing’s expression was cold as she said, “At most, it would be to use me as bargaining chips with the demon race.”

“If the demon race is willing to ally with them, they could obtain the latest information on the Immortal Spirit Physique.”

As expected of Yun Zhen’s disciple: her analysis was clear, her mind composed, and she had the bearing of a top disciple of Five Dragons Sect.

Lu Yanshuang fell silent.

If that was really the case, then naturally their fox clan would not receive any news about the Immortal Spirit Physique, because they had not yet decided to move closer to the demon race.

“The Demon Lord of Soul-severing Mountain has already returned; that’s no longer a secret in the demon world.”

Lu Yanshuang glanced at Yan Jue, then slowly said, “Our fox clan also spoke with the Demon Lord of Soul-severing Mountain once, but only briefly, through space. We don’t know where he is. And we don’t know whether he is the Sect Master of Five Dragons Sect.”

Though she only said that much, it was already rare enough.

Qi Xianqing’s eyes narrowed slightly.

On the one hand, he was trying to win over the demon race as the demon race, in order to promote its revival.

On the other hand, he was hiding within the immortal sects and suppressing the demon race on a large scale, forcing the demon race to resist.

In the end, it was all for the great cause of the demon race’s revival.

If she hadn’t guessed wrong, then the entire Five Dragons Sect might now be gradually being devoured by the Demon Lord.

It was a pity that, as a chief disciple, there was nothing she could do.

Lu Yanshuang was silent again before asking the question she had wanted to ask since earlier. “Do you know how rare it is for an immortal sect’s Sect Master to be taken over? The two of you are really being far too rash.”

There was another layer to Lu Yanshuang’s words.

So Yan Jue said it was, and it really had to be?

Qi Xianqing smiled faintly. “Since Junior Sister says it is, she must be completely certain.”

Yan Jue sat beside her, her heart pounding hard.

“I know her abilities very well,” Qi Xianqing said. “She wouldn’t lie to me.”

-

“So you’re saying you met that doctor in the deep mountains.” Qi Xianqing said thoughtfully. “And after you had the Lotus Island doctor take my pulse, you learned how to save me.”

Back by the creek earlier, Song Miyun had looked at Yan Jue with such fervent interest that even after returning to the cave, Qi Xianqing was still bothered by it.

Yan Jue nodded stiffly, unable to stop her eyes from drifting toward her own hand.

After Lu Yanshuang left, the two of them had returned to the cave and were sitting on the stone bed, going over what had happened recently.

They had been speaking normally, but somehow Qi Xianqing’s hand had come over and taken hers.

Under the dim light, the girl’s fingers were slender and neatly jointed, the back of her hand pale as snow, with faint blue veins just visible; the familiar cool touch was still there.

Yan Jue tried to pull her hand away.

Qi Xianqing looked up at her; those beautiful peach blossom eyes were dark and bright. “We’re trying to become dao companions, and we can’t even hold hands?”

Her tone was a little displeased.

As if Yan Jue didn’t want skin-to-skin contact with Qi Xianqing.

At this point, probably no one in the world wanted to hold Qi Xianqing’s hand more than she did.

Just the touch of their fingertips sent a pleasant, tingling numbness slowly spreading through her entire body.

Yan Jue closed her eyes, endured it again and again, and in the end lost all strength to struggle.

After all, she had only just absorbed Qi Xianqing’s yang energy; Qi Xianqing had an utterly fatal appeal to her, and Yan Jue couldn’t break free of her hand no matter what. She lifted her eyes slightly and stared at her with deadened resignation.

Then Yan Jue suddenly stood up and moved closer.

Bit by bit, the distance between them shrank until only a very small gap remained.

Qi Xianqing was slightly startled.

Yan Jue held her gaze for a long moment, then went completely limp, burying her head in Qi Xianqing’s waist and breathing in the scent of the girl’s Immortal Spirit Physique.

It smelled so good it made her want to cry.

Yan Jue knelt on the ground, both hands wrapped around Qi Xianqing’s waist, unwilling to let go no matter what.

Qi Xianqing looked at her, and the corners of her lips couldn’t help but lift.

With her eyes closed, Yan Jue recalled the dual-cultivation method from a few days ago, little by little drawing Qi Xianqing’s yang energy into her abdomen; her mind went blank.

Her whole body was trembling with comfort.

After all, the spiritual power she had lost a few days ago still hadn’t fully recovered.

She simply couldn’t leave Qi Xianqing.

Qi Xianqing gently patted her back, smiling as she soothed her, her voice carrying a teasing note.

Yan Jue became even more certain that this woman was seducing her.

It ended quickly. Yan Jue also knew the principle of not exhausting the pond to catch all the fish; taking the other’s essence meant taking only a little.

But Qi Xianqing’s pure yang energy was so potent that even a little of it had nearly broken Yan Jue.

Yan Jue collapsed in Qi Xianqing’s arms, unable to recover for a good while.

Qi Xianqing’s cheeks were tinged with a faint flush. She lowered her head and stroked the soft crown of the girl’s hair. “But how was Junior Sister Yan able to determine the doctor’s location so quickly?”

Myriad Demons Pavilion was a secret within the demon race.

A secret like that could not be allowed to reach cultivators.

Some people may have heard of Myriad Demons Pavilion, but because it was mobile and its aura was extremely well concealed, even if some human cultivators knew of it, they still couldn’t find it.

If Myriad Demons Pavilion were discovered by cultivators, the consequences could be catastrophic.

For example, last time in Nanxing Town, Xue Shuangxing from Beast Taming Pavilion somehow learned the location of Myriad Demons Pavilion and launched an attack on it. Most of the little monsters inside Myriad Demons Pavilion were not the sort that could be openly mentioned in cultivation circles, and because the demon race had kept a low profile for a long time, nobody wanted trouble. Under the cultivators’ forced incursion, they had no ability to fight back at all.

Yan Jue blinked slightly; for a moment, she actually hesitated over whether she should tell Qi Xianqing.

The cave fell into a brief silence.

Qi Xianqing also knew that Yan Jue had secrets.

She remembered what Senior Lu had said earlier, and had never expected Yan Jue’s status in the Ghost Mansion Fox Clan to be so noble.

Such a precious status meant responsibility and burden, just as being the chief disciple of Five Dragons Sect did for her.

Qi Xianqing understood this very clearly.

Since Yan Jue didn’t want to say it, Qi Xianqing naturally wouldn’t force her.

Yan Jue suddenly said, “Myriad Demons Pavilion.”

Qi Xianqing was stunned.

Yan Jue: “That’s where I got the information from.”

“That place is basically a market for demons, and it exists everywhere in the world.” Yan Jue paused, then lowered her voice. “That place can do anything.”

Yan Jue was just like this.

Before she understood her own feelings, she might deceive herself.

But once her heart was clear, Yan Jue would hand over every bit of her sincerity without reservation.

She liked Qi Xianqing, and she was willing to trust her.

Myriad Demons Pavilion was a secret in her heart; naturally, Yan Jue would tell her about it too.

Qi Xianqing looked at her, and it seemed as if starlight drifted through the darkness of her eyes. “Mm.”

“I’ve heard of Myriad Demons Pavilion before too. Master once told me that it exists in every corner of this world.”

“Since Junior Sister is a fox demon, it makes sense that you’ve been there.” Qi Xianqing supported her under the arms and lifted her a little, saying seriously, “Thank you, Junior Sister, for being willing to tell me.”

Yan Jue let out a breath of relief. In an instant, she transformed into a small fox with fiery red fur, found a comfortable spot on Qi Xianqing’s lap, closed her heavy eyelids, and wrapped her six fluffy tails around Qi Xianqing’s hand.

The cave was dimly lit. Lying in Qi Xianqing’s arms, Yan Jue yawned lazily, feeling a soft touch settle over the top of her head.

Qi Xianqing held the little fox, her gaze lingering on those half-lidded amber eyes, then lowered her head and gently kissed the fluffy little head.

Qi Xianqing’s movements were very gentle, as if afraid of frightening her.

Yan Jue’s whole body stiffened on instinct.

Qi Xianqing rested her chin on the fox’s fluffy head and leaned against the rock wall as well, closing her eyes.

Qi Xianqing murmured, “As for what dao companions are usually supposed to do, I actually don’t know very well either.”

“If we don’t know, that’s fine. We can learn slowly in the future.” Qi Xianqing smiled to herself as she said it.