Caught in the Act
Qi Xianqing: “Thank you, Master. I’ll go back and try again.”
Yun Zhen suddenly noticed something. “The poison on your arm doesn’t seem to have cleared yet.”
“Hm?”
It had been nearly a month since they returned from Suyang Immortal Mansion. The bite marks left by the spider on Qi Xianqing had mostly faded, but the residual poison still hadn’t been fully purged; faint traces of discoloration remained on her arm.
Yun Zhen: “The Myriad Souls Venom Spider’s poison can’t be cured by ordinary pills. You can try your luck in the Valley of a Hundred Flowers and see whether you can gather six Winter Leaves.”
That day in Suyang Immortal Mansion, Qi Xianqing had been struck by the poison, and only thanks to Yan Jue’s pills had she barely managed to keep her life.
But the Myriad Souls Venom Spider was one of the most poisonous things in the world. By now, there was still residual poison left in Qi Xianqing’s body; every night it flared up, making the pain unbearable.
However, the famed flower Winter Leaf was notoriously hard to find.
It could cure all poisons and also help open up the meridians. It bloomed once every three years, and looked no different from an ordinary flower.
With the countless flowers in the Valley of a Hundred Flowers, finding even one Winter Leaf was no easy task.
Qi Xianqing only took it in stride. She was usually very busy and had never truly planned to go looking for it. “Yes. Thank you for the guidance, Master.”
-
After resting in the dormitory for a few days, Yan Jue came out as if nothing had happened.
The weather had been excellent these past few days. She wore only a blue-gray pleated horse-face skirt with floral patterns, and her long hair, black as crow feathers, was tied up with a wooden hairpin.
Golden sunlight poured down. Her phoenix eyes were half-lowered; her lips were red and her teeth white, her face powdered like jade.
The collar around her neck jingled softly with each step she took; she was the very picture of swaying grace, every movement like a lotus in bloom.
Du Ying just happened to come out to fetch water. “What’s with you? Why do I feel like you’re prettier than before? What exactly were you cultivating in seclusion, some kind of anti-aging art?”
Yan Jue said expressionlessly, “Maybe it’s because studying makes people more beautiful?”
Du Ying rolled her eyes at her. “Really? Then why did I just come out of seclusion a few days ago and not get prettier?”
Yan Jue studied her for a couple of seconds. “You should have more confidence in yourself. You’re pretty too.”
Du Ying punched her lightly. “Thanks a lot.”
After finishing her tribulation, Yan Jue felt as if she had endless energy.
In a sense, she and Qi Xianqing were the same.
That day in Suyang Immortal Mansion, Qi Xianqing had used Red Lotus Karmic Fire to refine herself and break through to the mid-stage of the Fusion Realm.
As for Yan Jue, she had borrowed heavenly lightning and successfully broken through to the early stage of the Fusion Realm.
At this rate, she was going to catch up to Qi Xianqing’s pace.
But Yan Jue was in no way proud.
After all, Qi Xianqing was already a seasoned adult.
She was still only a little fox baby of a few thousand years old.
Whether in experience or talent, Qi Xianqing completely crushed her.
-
Yan Jue calmed herself down and practiced a set of punches in the courtyard.
When she returned to the dormitory, she happened to see a brand-new copy of The Five Dragons Encyclopedia placed at her door.
She raised an eyebrow and couldn’t help smiling.
Du Ying hadn’t forgotten to bring her the paper on schedule. Just as well; she’d wanted to know whether anything new had happened lately.
Yan Jue returned to her room, set the paper on the table first, and began sorting through the martial arts she had recently studied.
First, the divine abilities.
Ever since her spiritual root had successfully mutated, her body’s compatibility with ice-type attributes had only grown better and better.
Ice Summoning Art was now fully mastered.
Yan Jue stood in the room, stepped back sharply, formed seals with both hands, silently recited the incantation, and a thick wall of ice appeared before her.
The ice wall stood there like a small mountain. Yan Jue believed that given enough time, it would become a powerful means of defense.
Then there was the Spirit Communication Art.
Northern Sea black iron was, after all, not omnipotent. Even if it could take any form, it still had its limits.
For example, if it became a sword, she couldn’t hold it in her hand and swing it; it could only fly above her head, rather like a flying sword.
Yan Jue silently recited the incantation, and the Northern Sea black iron around her neck immediately dropped off, transforming in midair into a tiny golden sword.
Yan Jue flicked her right hand, and the sword flew into motion, carrying a sharp, cutting wind wherever it passed.
As for magical artifacts, Yan Jue decided that from now on she would try to use the Northern Sea black iron mainly as a flying sword and specialize in a single form.
After all, always using it like a whip to lash people was rather uncouth.
Then there was the Soul-Binding Cord.
Yan Jue took it out of her Qiankun bag to examine it for a while, then put it back inside.
At the Five-Dragon Summit, each disciple could only register one artifact for use.
If she also wanted to participate in the Five-Dragon Summit, the Soul-Binding Cord might not be of much use.
As for movement techniques, Yan Jue then reviewed the lightness arts Drifting Snow, Flying Swallow Steps, and Instant Thousand Miles.
Then there was the martial technique Shuaituo.
As for divine sense, she was also continuing her practice of extending it.
The more self-defense skills, the better.
Yan Jue could feel death drawing closer, and the more she thought about it, the more she felt that her self-defense abilities were truly far too few.
The original owner was from the Red Fox Clan, after all. With such excellent bloodline, she absolutely had to make good use of it.
Yan Jue sat down by the bed afterward and picked up the paper to read.
The first item in The Five Dragons Encyclopedia was about the imminent Five-Dragon Summit.
The Five-Dragon Summit was in urgent preparation.
According to the report, this year’s Five-Dragon Summit was very different from previous ones.
Not only would the great sects send disciples to observe and learn, but the competition grounds would also use the most advanced array formation.
In other words, this time, people would no longer duel on a normal stage as in the past.
They would stand within an array formation.
The formation would set up many obstacles for the disciples.
That also meant the competition would be even more exciting, more intense, and much harder than in previous years.
What was even more worth mentioning was that news had come from the Five Dragons Sect: the prize for this competition was the legendary immortal sword Drifting Ice.
It was said that this sword had been forged a thousand years ago together with the immortal sword Zhuying, and that the two were a matched pair, male and female swords.
At the previous Five-Dragon Summit, Zhuying had awakened early and gone to Lord Meng Heng’s household.
At the end of last year, the sword spirit of Drifting Ice had already shown signs of awakening. Whoever won Drifting Ice would then…
The newspaper text ended abruptly there.
When Yan Jue saw the words Drifting Ice, her eyes couldn’t help twitching.
In the novel’s plot, Drifting Ice was the male lead’s natal sword.
Because the male lead had absorbed her yin essence on the eve of the Five-Dragon Summit and his cultivation had soared, he actually defeated Qi Xianqing at the summit and became the new first disciple of the Five Dragons Sect.
This could also count as a classic great-male-lead script; men were always stronger than women in the script.
Qi Xianqing also developed a deep interest in and obedience to the male lead after being defeated by him. In short, it was all kinds of unsightly.
Yan Jue frowned slightly and flipped the paper to the second page.
Headline: Shock! The Lord Meng Heng You Thought You Knew Is Actually a Big Eater?
Yan Jue: “…”
Someone had encountered Lord Meng Heng at a banquet in Fengxian Town.
They had thought she was an ethereal fairy untouched by mortal dust, but who would have guessed she actually had an entire table of fine wine and liquor packed up to take away.
The writer couldn’t help but say: Lord Meng Heng, even if you packed up all of that, you still wouldn’t be able to finish it in three days and three nights.
Could it be that the goddess was really a foodie…
Yan Jue: “…”
Although Lord Meng Heng had always had many admirers in the Five Dragons Sect, The Five Dragons Encyclopedia was still fearless in what it wrote.
Yan Jue didn’t even know what to say.
She was just about to put the paper down when she was surprised to find that this issue of The Five Dragons Encyclopedia actually had a third page.
Usually, it only had two major reports.
After all, this was an old-style paper, not a modern newspaper; information simply wasn’t that developed.
The third page contained a little popular science article: Do you know how powerful a fox demon’s allure arts can be?
Yan Jue instantly became interested and started reading.
A truly formidable fox demon could use allure arts to command people without them noticing.
Advanced allure arts could make a clear-headed man instantly lose all reason; after the fox demon enchanted the man with allure arts, it would seize the opportunity to absorb the other party’s yang energy. Men who fell victim to this trick often had no way out.
It was said that within our southwest territory, there was just such a fox demon with exceptionally powerful allure arts.
After investigation by Kongqing Prefecture, the fox demon lived on Little Spring Mountain and publicly called herself the Jade-Faced Lady of Spring Blossom Cave, specializing in teaching allure arts to brothel women.
Only in this mountain, beyond the clouds, no one knows where.
It was a pity that people sent by Kongqing Prefecture searched the mountain for several days and still never managed to visit this fox demon lady with her powerful allure arts.
Perhaps she was only willing to associate with women of the demi-monde, and unwilling to meet disciples of the righteous immortal sect.
No one knew.
Yan Jue stared at this final news item and suddenly thought of something.
Right.
What foxes were best at should be…
Allure arts.
Yan Jue frowned slightly and fell into thought.
She remembered that in this novel, the male lead’s harem also included a fox demon.
A white fox who was especially skilled at allure arts.
That fox demon met the male lead during a mission and ultimately formed a master-servant contract with him, remaining absolutely loyal to him. She also seemed to be called the Jade-Faced Lady.
White fox and red fox were both of the same clan.
This white fox was encountered by the male lead during a mission in Qingye Town.
But according to later explanations in the novel, the two had actually met long before that.
Yan Jue suddenly remembered the white fox she had seen last time in Fengxian Town, at the painted-skin ghost’s residence.
The male lead had been there then too.
But the one who ran into the white fox was her.
A bold idea suddenly flashed through Yan Jue’s mind.
-
When Yan Jue arrived at the Administrative Hall, there weren’t many people there.
Maybe because the Five-Dragon Summit was approaching, everyone was busy cultivating and had no time to come take missions.
Many mission plaques hung on the wall.
Yan Jue relied on her memory to search through them and finally found one of the tasks.
Qingye Town, case of Old Master Li encountering a ghost.
If she remembered correctly, this should be the mission where the male lead obtained a major opportunity.
It was in this mission that the male lead formed a master-servant contract with a white fox exceptionally skilled at allure arts.
Since last time in Fengxian Town, she had been the one to encounter that white fox first.
Then if she now took the same mission the male lead would later accept, maybe she could find that white fox before he did.
Yan Jue took the mission plaque straight off the wall. “I want this mission.”
The elder was reading a book with his head lowered. Hearing this, he slowly lifted his eyes and gave her a look. “Register your name.”
Yan Jue quickly finished registering and turned to leave.
The moment her front foot stepped out the back door of the Administrative Hall, another figure arrived.
Chu Fu wore a bright, jade-green Daoist robe. He was handsome and elegant, and entered the hall together with a man in a blue robe.
“May I ask what mission Junior Brother Chu wants to take this time?” the man in blue asked with a light laugh. “The Five-Dragon Summit is almost here; there should be quite a lot of missions to choose from.”
Chu Fu came up to the desk and looked up at the mission plaques.
His gaze swept across them, and he slowly frowned…
Why did it feel like there wasn’t any mission that interested him?
-
Yan Jue returned to her room and began analyzing the contents of the mission plaque.
She had only analyzed half of it when—
“Yan Jue!”
Since transmigrating into this book, Yan Jue had made quite a few friends.
Hearing the familiar voice outside the door, she couldn’t help smiling.
Yan Jue opened the door and, as expected, saw Du Ying’s familiar face.
Du Ying was from Muyin Sect, and the Daoist robe she wore was the standard blue-green one issued to Muyin Sect disciples. It had been a long time since she had seen this face, so to Yan Jue it looked especially familiar.
Du Ying: “Long time no see, Junior Sister Yan. How have you been lately? The Five-Dragon Summit is almost here; are you ready?”
Yan Jue currently had no intention of participating in this Five-Dragon Summit.
First, she was now an outsider.
Second, Yan Jue did not think her current strength was enough to fight those big shots in the sect.
Who exactly would she be facing if she participated in the Five-Dragon Summit…
Leaving Qi Xianqing aside, she probably couldn’t even beat Lin Xi and Ji Guiyan, who had gone with her on the mission to Emptiness Mountain last time.
“I’m not sure yet.” Yan Jue skipped lightly over the topic and asked with a smile, “How about you? Are you ready?”
Du Ying: “Pretty much. More or less. Anyway, I definitely can’t beat our senior brothers and sisters from the same sect, so I’ll just treat the competition as training.”
“You’ve helped me refine my artifacts a lot, too.” Yan Jue asked, “What did you come to see me about this time?”
Du Ying: “Junior Sister Yan, I recently took a mission, but no one wants to go down the mountain with me.”
Yan Jue: “Hm? A mission?”
Du Ying: “Last time I went with you to Nanxing Town, didn’t we just happen to complete the second beginner mission? I want to keep taking missions and try to finish all the beginner-level ones before the Five-Dragon Summit starts, so I can participate in the competition lottery.”
Yan Jue understood. “I see.”
Du Ying: “We got along pretty well on our last mission, so I came to ask if you were interested in going out on a mission. Could you keep me company?”
Yan Jue froze, then suddenly remembered something and asked, “What mission did you take?”
Du Ying: “The mission location isn’t far; it’s in Qingye Town at the foot of our mountain.”
Yan Jue: “Hm?”
Du Ying: “This should be the simplest mission I’ve seen since coming up the mountain; it’s basically guaranteed profit. A large household in Qingye Town—the Li family’s first madam—has issued an invitation to the Five Dragons Sect, asking us cultivators to… catch an adulterer.”
Yan Jue was slightly stunned and immediately lowered her head to check her token.
No way. Could it really be such a coincidence?
Du Ying’s mission was actually the same as hers!!!
Du Ying: “Madam Li suspects her husband is having an affair, and the husband’s lover is a demon.”
That was too much of a coincidence…
Yan Jue frowned and thought for a moment; then her thoughts suddenly became clear.
Last time on the road to Nanxing Town, the male lead had also been there, and he had performed exceptionally well on the mission, leaving a deep impression on Du Ying and successfully becoming her confidant.
Now, with the Five-Dragon Summit approaching, Du Ying had run to Watercloud Sect and asked the male lead to go on a mission with her.
The two of them just happened to receive the same task.
It was that kind of coincidence.
Du Ying: “Yan Jue? What’s wrong with you?”
Yan Jue came back to her senses and lifted the wooden plaque in her hand. “What a coincidence; I also just received a mission from the Administrative Hall. It’s also about helping a wealthy family in Qingye Town catch a ghost.”
Du Ying: “? No way, we’re that fated?”
“This mission only seems to have three slots, too.”
Yan Jue gave an awkward smile and nodded.
Du Ying then gave her a gossip-loving look. “But whatever the case, for a mission of this level, it’d be such a pity if you didn’t go.”
“It’s catching an adulterer in a wealthy household; just thinking about it tells you what kind of scene it’ll be.”
“…"
After some discussion, Yan Jue and Du Ying finally agreed to meet at the Li residence gates at the hour of Xu that night.
Yan Jue had nothing to do during the day anyway. After Du Ying left, she tidied up a bit and then directly went down the mountain.
-
In the afternoon, the sunlight was just right.
Yan Jue wore a lightweight Daoist robe and walked unhurriedly along the mountain path.
After last time going to Xiaoxing Village with Qi Xianqing, Qi Xianqing had given the Concealing Breath Canopy to Yan Jue.
Yan Jue put the Concealing Breath Canopy over her head and went down the mountain all the way to the Myriad Demons Pavilion.
Maybe it was because this time she had no intention of running away, or perhaps because taking a roundabout route really did work in front of the Heavenly Dao…
This time when she went down the mountain, the Heavenly Dao didn’t stop her.
The nearest town to Five Dragons Mountain was Qingye Town.
Yan Jue went straight to the Myriad Demons Pavilion in Qingye Town.
As a wealthy woman who owned several thousand top-grade Spirit Stones, Yan Jue kept smiling the entire time she was out shopping.
Yan Jue came to the Pheasant Spirit’s stall. “Boss, do you have any pills that can increase cultivation?”
There were quite a lot of pills that could increase cultivation compared with other kinds of pills.
That was because this type of pill was in high demand in the cultivation world; there were simply too many people in this world who wanted effortless gains.
Yan Jue quickly bought a large bag of pills, with all kinds of colorful pills packed into a cloth bundle and handed over to her.
“Foundation Establishment Pill.”
“Marrow-Cleansing Pill.”
“Qi-Combining Pill.”
Yan Jue looked at them and was a little unsure. “Are these enough?”
Pheasant Spirit: “Little lady, let me put it this way: with this pile of pills, making an ordinary mortal at the Foundation Establishment Realm break through to the Opening Light Realm is no problem at all.”
If she wanted to avoid interfering with the plot, she would have to raise the male lead’s strength even higher.
Yan Jue thought about it and handed over the black-veined coral she had stored with her immortal medicines.
The black coral lay quietly in her palm; under the sunlight, the cracks within it were faintly visible.
The Pheasant Spirit found this difficult. “This black-veined coral, while alive, fed on the souls of living beings. Its yin energy is very heavy, and it also carries a demonic aura. If it’s made into pills, it can indeed greatly increase cultivation, but it’s not much different from demonic cultivation.”
The demonic path was also a very sensitive topic in the demon world.
Because the demonic path had always stood in opposition to the immortal sects, the demon race also didn’t dare to get too close to it for the time being, lest it be dragged down with them.
Yan Jue: “It’s fine, it’s fine. Just make it into pills.”
Pills with such strong sinister energy also greatly increased cultivation.
Maybe that was why the Demonic Cult was clearly so bad, and yet still so many cultivators threw themselves into it one after another.
Anyway, the male lead would eventually fall into demonhood too. As long as it increased his cultivation, Yan Jue would have no burden feeding him anything.
The Pheasant Spirit took Yan Jue’s materials and quickly refined a black-vein pill.
Looking at her full bag of pills, Yan Jue nodded in satisfaction.
-
That night, Yan Jue met up with Du Ying at the entrance to the Li residence.
Yan Jue stood waiting at a distance and soon saw Du Ying walking over from that side.
There was another person beside her.
The person was a woman in a brown Daoist robe. She looked at Yan Jue faintly and didn’t speak.
Yan Jue: “And this is?”
Du Ying: “This is Senior Sister Yun Jie; she joined at the last minute.”
Yan Jue: “Oh.”
She and the senior sister exchanged a polite glance.
For some reason, this senior sister’s gaze at her felt strange.
Could she be another one of her enemies, or someone who had resented her for a long time?
Yan Jue couldn’t help feeling a bit awkward.
Along the way, Du Ying explained things to Yan Jue.
This sharp-eyed Senior Sister Yun Jie was the first disciple of Mystic Escape Sect in the Five Dragons Sect.
The Five Dragons Sect had five main peaks, and each peak had its own first disciple.
For example, Qi Xianqing was the first disciple of Thunderflame Sect.
Every year at the Five-Dragon Summit, the inner disciples’ election of each peak’s first disciple was also an important opportunity; who knew how many people fought tooth and nail for such a position.
The status of the first disciple was very high.
Maybe because the Five-Dragon Summit was approaching and there were simply too few missions available, Yun Jie had insisted on joining, and Du Ying couldn’t really say anything.
Yun Jie: “All of you are at the Opening Light Realm. Just follow behind me later.”
As the first disciple of Mystic Escape Sect, she naturally refused to lag behind. Several days earlier, she had broken through to the fourth realm, the Fusion Realm, during seclusion, so she wouldn’t be crushed by Lord Meng Heng at the Five-Dragon Summit.
“Yes.”
“Especially you.” Yun Jie’s gaze swept over Yan Jue, and she frowned slightly.
She had heard some gossip about Yan Jue.
They said this person had an extremely willful and spoiled personality, was very hard to discipline, and didn’t have much cultivation to speak of.
For some reason, when they met today, this person also seemed a little slow…
She just hoped she wouldn’t cause trouble later.
The new generation’s Five Dragons Sect chief disciple selection was coming up soon; she did not want to lose to Qi Xianqing on mission scores.
Yan Jue: “…”
As expected of a wealthy household, the Li residence was imposing in grandeur, and the courtyard beyond the gate was also adorned with carved beams and painted rafters.
Led by servants, the group passed through a long corridor and soon arrived at the back courtyard where Madam Li lived.
“Immortal lords, thank you all so much for coming today. Here is the situation…”
Madam Li was a richly dressed woman.
Though already in her forties, time had carved a few wrinkles at the corners of her eyes.
Yet from her brows and eyes, one could still tell what an exquisite beauty she had been in her youth.
Madam Li looked at them for a few moments, then began explaining with a miserable face.
“Our husband and wife used to have a very good relationship, but for some reason, half a year ago, the master fell ill.”
“He used to be a scholar in Qingye Town, full of energy every day. But now he’s dull-eyed, thin and haggard, and that area… he’s also impotent in bed. He really wasn’t like this before!”
By the time Madam Li got to this point, she started coughing violently.
Yan Jue maintained a smile as she asked, “With these symptoms, it’s also possible that his body is just depleted. How did Madam determine that the master’s lover is a demon?”
Madam Li: “It was Madam Zhang who told me… My husband had bought farmland and a residence outside the town a long time ago, and he was keeping someone there!
That’s why he only comes home once a month. I once sent people to investigate around that residence, but as soon as they got close, stones would somehow start being thrown at them.”
“That residence… at night, one can still hear laughter and chatter coming from inside.”
“We all suspect that whatever is entangled with my husband is a demon.”
“Now my husband has not come home for two months.” Madam Li grew more and more agitated as she spoke. “It must be that fox spirit that drained the master dry! She may even have killed my husband!”
Yun Jie: “Please rest assured, Madam. If Old Master Li really has been entangled by ghosts and monsters, we will certainly not tolerate it!”
Du Ying also chimed in from the side. “We’ll definitely subdue the demon and return you a healthy, robust master!”
Madam Li rose and bowed deeply to them. “Then I must trouble the immortal masters.”
Because Yun Jie’s cultivation was higher, she was still the one leading the mission this time.
Yan Jue and Du Ying did not really get a chance to speak.
-
Cases like this involving wealthy households had always been popular among cultivators.
Because as a general rule, these kinds of cases weren’t too complicated.
Yun Jie chatted with Madam Li for a while, and everything was already very clear.
Yun Jie turned around and looked at the two of them with a serious expression. “According to Madam Li, Old Master Li is only impotent in bed and listless; there are no signs such as a darkened forehead. That means Old Master Li is not being haunted by a ghost.”
“It’s a demon.”
Yan Jue nodded, indicating for her to continue.
Yun Jie’s analysis was logical and orderly. “Because that demon is Old Master Li’s lover, let’s tentatively assume it needs to absorb a man’s vital essence to advance its cultivation. In this world, the only ones who can cultivate by taking yang to supplement yin are fox demons.”
After saying that, she even frowned, as if she deeply hated fox demons.
Yan Jue: “…”
Fox demons really were quite unwelcome in this world.
Yan Jue: “Then does Senior Sister have a way to deal with this fox demon?”
Yun Jie took something out of her Qiankun bag. “This is called a Fox Nail. The principle is the same as a bone-piercing nail, but it’s specially made for foxes; it’s a perfect counter to them. As soon as it comes into contact with a fox’s body, it will immediately pierce through its flesh and bones.”
The fox nail looked like a nail the width of a palm, sharp at the tip and glinting with a dangerous light.
Yan Jue stared at the nail. “…”
-
After everything had been arranged, the group came to the outer residence of Old Master Li.
After careful consideration, none of them alarmed the target.
Yun Jie stood outside the residence, formed hand seals, and gave a low shout. “Immortal Art: Earth Escape.”
Yan Jue only felt the world go dark. The faint sound of rocks grinding against each other could be heard all around her; in the space of half a cup of tea, the group had arrived in front of Old Master Li’s residence.
Mystic Escape Sect had always been highly skilled in formations and geomancy; it was indeed well deserved.
Yan Jue wore the Concealing Breath Canopy.
Du Ying took a cloak out of her Qiankun bag.
Senior Sister Yun Jie of Mystic Escape Sect swallowed a Concealing Breath Pill.
Each had their own means of concealment.
Yan Jue looked at the bone-piercing nail in Yun Jie’s hand, and her mood became somewhat complicated.
If Old Master Li himself was dishonest, flirting around and entangled with ghosts and monsters, the cultivators wouldn’t interfere.
But if a demon harmed people, then it was not something anyone could ignore. More importantly, according to Madam Li’s account, Old Master Li was already in a state of bodily depletion.
Night had deepened.
Everyone dared not even breathe loudly, holding their breath and focusing their minds as they waited for the demon to arrive.
Although they didn’t know how strong this demon’s cultivation was, those coming to exorcise it were all disciples of the Five Dragons Sect, so regardless of whether the demon was powerful or not, no one dared let their guard down.
Yun Jie frowned, and the Fox Nail in her hand grew gripped even tighter.
Yan Jue looked inside through the window and saw a haggard man lying on the bed, head lowered as he fiddled with something in his hands.
It was a gold hairpin.
The man lay on the bed and waited for a moment; then the door over there was suddenly pushed open.
The demon had arrived!
A ravishing woman wearing a crimson gauze robe embroidered with gold hibiscus walked in gracefully. Under the dim light, her features were lovely and her skin snowy white; her red lips parted slightly as she cooed softly, “Lang…”
Yan Jue’s pupils shrank.
It was actually… Madam Li.!
TL Note:
horse-face skirt (马面裙) = a traditional Chinese skirt with pleated panels.
Five-Dragon Summit (五龙峰会) = the sect’s annual tournament, where disciples compete for rank and a prize.
taking yang to supplement yin (采阳补阴) = a Daoist cultivation method that boosts power by absorbing a man’s vital energy.
"Only in this mountain, beyond the clouds, no one knows where" (只在此山中，云深不知处) refers to a famous Tang-poem line meaning the place is secluded and hard to find.