In the City Lord’s Mansion, a dimly lit room.
“Untie me! Wuyazi! I want to kill that pair of dog lovers! Do you hear me? Wuyazi, untie me!”
Bound with golden ropes, Shao Yinhua writhed on the ground, cursing nonstop.
Wuyazi stood silently beside her, his expression blank as he looked down.
“Have you forgotten why the National Instructor sent us to Peng City?”
Hearing the words “National Instructor,” Shao Yinhua trembled all over, ceased struggling, and fell silent. Then she ground her teeth and snarled:
“I want to kill them—what does that have to do with the National Instructor?”
“Foolish! If you ruin the National Instructor’s grand plan because of your personal grudge, can you bear the consequences?”
“That’s because you’re not helping me!”
“Idiotic beyond words! Those two clearly have extraordinary backgrounds—you can’t see that?”
Shao Yinhua lay silently on the ground.
Wuyazi continued:
“And that Ye Yiyun—she cultivates the ‘Taiqing Nine Mysteries’! At such a young age, she’s already reached the Five Elements stage in the ‘Taiqing Nine Mysteries.’”
“Who exactly is her master, Xuanjizi, to have produced such a disciple? I’ve never even heard of such a person.”
Shao Yinhua glared with hatred:
“Are you just going to let this go? They humiliated me like this, and you’ll let it slide?”
“Of course not!”
Wuyazi’s previously gentle, kind face twisted into a grimace. He crouched beside Shao Yinhua and reached out to gently stroke her ugly face. His expression softened again like flowing water as he murmured obsessively:
“How dare they treat my beloved like this? I will make them experience the pain of ten thousand ghosts devouring their hearts! But… it will require some methods—some that leave no trace behind.”
“Hmph! That’s good! How is your great formation coming along?”
“Almost ready, almost. Once I activate the formation, no one will leave Peng City alive. No one!”
*****
At the same time, inside Room Tianzi No. 1.
Ye Yiyun seemed to sense the tense atmosphere in the room and loosened her arms from around Ling Xiaodong, trying to push him away—only to find that Ling Xiaodong’s arms had quietly wrapped around her waist.
Her cheeks flushed as she lightly tapped the arm encircling her slender, willow-like waist.
“Enough! Let go! The reward period is over!”
“No! Aunt Yun smells so good! So warm!”
Ling Xiaodong clung shamelessly to Ye Yiyun, tightening his embrace and burying his head against her chest.
“You’re going to die! Let go! I’m your aunt!”
Ye Yiyun struggled to push his head away, but how could a weak woman push off Ling Xiaodong, who had the ability to defeat Grandmasters?
“Aunt Yun, you make me feel as safe as being held by a mother. Can I hold you a little longer? Just a little!”
Thinking of his mother?
Ye Yiyun knew Ling Xiaodong had no memory of his parents. Hearing his words, she softened and relented:
“Alright, but just a little longer.”
In truth, Ling Xiaodong wasn’t recalling a mother’s embrace. He was simply acting on impulse, knowing Aunt Yun’s soft heart, wanting to be mischievous.
But Aunt Yun’s body really was soft and gentle—like a fluffy pillow where his head rested, a slender waist easily enclosed by one hand, and a faint, elegant fragrance filling the air.
Not like the master’s chiseled perfection, nor like Xiaoyan’s tender youthfulness; it was a mature fullness unique to Aunt Yun.
Half an incense stick’s time passed.
“Done yet?”
“No, almost.”
Another half incense stick passed.
“How about now?”
“Still not.”
Half an incense stick later.
“Ling! Xiao! Dong! Are you done yet!”
“Hey! Hey! Hey! Aunt Yun! Don’t pull my ear! Fine! Fine!”
Ling Xiaodong rubbed his reddened ear and deeply reflected on himself.
How had he so easily fallen into Aunt Yun’s gentle embrace? The ancients never lied! The “land of tenderness” is a hero’s grave! Look how red Aunt Yun’s face has become!
Ye Yiyun sat on the Grandmaster’s chair, eyebrows furrowed, eyes wide, her cheeks flushed with a few blossoms of red—clearly quite angry.
“Enough! I still have some families to visit. Since you rarely come to the city, go play by yourself.”
Ling Xiaodong clung on, “Where Aunt Yun goes, I go.”
“It’s just some social calls. I need to visit several important guests at Qingfeng Temple. It’s boring, and they’re all women—you can’t get into the inner courtyard anyway.”
“Oh, right!”
Ye Yiyun suddenly seemed to remember something. She pulled out a few taels of silver from her pouch and handed it to Ling Xiaodong.
“Go buy some new clothes at the tailor’s shop. Look at your robe—how many patches are on it?”
In Great Zhou, an adult’s monthly salary was about 1,400 wen. One tael of silver could be exchanged for 1,500 wen. To buy one shi of rice cost two taels—enough to feed three people for a month.
For Ye Yiyun to casually pull out what equaled several months’ salary to buy clothes was very generous.
Ling Xiaodong happily accepted the silver and then asked:
“What about the demons and monsters inside Peng City? Are we still handling them?”
Ye Yiyun was kind-hearted and could not bear to see demons and monsters harming the common folk.
“Of course! Demon hunting is our duty as cultivators. But those ghosts mostly come out at night. If I’m not mistaken, there should be a ghost cultivator among the Luo Sect. We’ll meet at the inn in the evening and wait for the right moment.”
The two left the inn and split up.
Ling Xiaodong wandered aimlessly down the street, casually observing the passing commoners.
“Tailor shop, tailor shop, where is it?”
He turned and twisted into a dim alley lined with brightly colored buildings.
“Oh! What a handsome young man!”
A heavily made-up woman greeted Ling Xiaodong, her dress revealing a large swath of white skin that dazzled the eyes.
“Hello, miss,” Ling Xiaodong responded politely.
She waved at him.
“You look unfamiliar—first time here? Want to come in and have some fun?”
Ling Xiaodong looked puzzled: “Fun? What kind of fun?”
The woman covered her mouth with a light laugh, winked seductively, and coquettishly said: “What kind? The kind between men and women, of course.”
Ling Xiaodong immediately understood.
Could this be the brothel his master’s novels had mentioned?
“No thanks, I don’t have money!”
He refused decisively. He had no interest in brothel women, and if Aunt Yun found out he spent her money there, he’d lose his ears for sure.
But the woman was persistent. She pressed closer, her palm lightly stroking Ling Xiaodong’s chest as she giggled:
“If you’re as handsome as you are, young man, you don’t even need money.”
No money? Such a fortunate thing!
Though Ling Xiaodong wasn’t interested in brothel women, having read plenty of novels, young men always harbored curiosity about brothels—not to do anything wrong, just pure curiosity about what’s inside.
Maybe he should go have a look and then leave?
Just as Ling Xiaodong was battling his thoughts fiercely, a flash of familiar white clothing passed outside the alley.
Wasn’t that the girl he had met earlier at the inn?
Ignoring the woman’s invitation, Ling Xiaodong immediately turned and gave chase.
From behind came an anxious call:
“Hey! Young man, don’t go! I’ll pay too!”