When a woman’s appearance is beautiful enough, it can no longer be described by such a thin word as “pretty.”
She didn’t seem like a girl born from mortal flesh and blood, but rather a perfect puppet crafted by an omniscient deity.
Her entire facial contour was so standard it seemed measured by a ruler and custom-made.
The delicate features— whether brows, eyes, nose bridge, or lip shape— presented a breathtaking, androgynous beauty.
One glance would make people involuntarily feel the urge to protect her, while also stirring a darker impulse to crush and defile her.
Many female cultivators began to question their sexual orientation.
Some even felt jealousy and resentment.
A few male models blushed and twisted their bodies awkwardly.
Shen Mo suddenly felt like a graceful woman stranded in a street full of Indian thugs.
“This Immortal Maiden looks unfamiliar. It’s your first time at our Ten Thousand Flower Pavilion, right?”
A middle-aged beauty in a dark red brocade robe, who looked like a steward, approached with a proper smile, but her gaze swept over him sharply.
It paused especially on his flat chest and slightly stiff posture.
Shen Mo’s heart tightened. Following Qin Shuying’s teachings, he slightly lowered his head, deliberately softening and drifting his voice to create a sense of detachment.
“Yes… I passed through here on family business. Hearing of the Ten Thousand Flower Pavilion’s grand event, I came to… see the sights.”
A trace of understanding flashed in the steward’s eyes.
She attributed his stiffness to nervousness from entering such a place for the first time.
Seeing the jade token at his waist, she smiled and led the way.
“Immortal Maiden, please follow me. Today, the pavilion is warming up for the Flower Queen Competition. There are performances everywhere. You can enjoy them at your leisure. If you find a favored gentleman or need anything, just let me know.”
They passed through the noisy main hall and arrived at a relatively quiet waterside courtyard.
The view here was open, allowing them to see the dances on the central stage from a distance without being too close to the crowd.
“Enjoy yourself, Immortal Maiden. I won’t disturb you.” The steward smiled and withdrew.
Shen Mo thanked her softly and sat down on a chair by the corridor.
His posture was the elegant, reserved one of a maiden, trained countless times, but his back was still too straight.
—
To avoid attracting attention, Qin Shuying had separated from Shen Mo before entering.
Qin Shuying, under her real identity, checked into the most prestigious “Heavenly Level Area” within the garden, where the high-ranking members of major sects and family heads stayed.
Meanwhile, Shen Mo, carrying an ordinary jade token, settled alone into a quiet but somewhat simple small courtyard in the “Human Level Area,” designated for individual cultivators and small forces.
Before parting, Qin Shuying explained the competition rules.
“The competition officially begins tomorrow at the chen hour and lasts three days. On the first day, there’s the preliminary selection and first evaluation. All registrants must appear on the Gathering of Beauties Platform. All guests holding Fragrance Appraisal Tickets will vote anonymously, selecting the top fifty. On the second day, the top fifty advance to the top thirty, competing in talents. On the third day, the final round: the Master of Myriad Flowers Pavilion, three specially invited judges, and all attending guests will vote together to determine the champion.”
“Your goal is to be the champion. So not only do you need to stand out in the preliminary round, you must firmly capture everyone’s attention in the following two days. Your appearance is an advantage, but it’s not enough. You need a sufficiently special debut and a… sufficiently moving story.”
“Story?” Shen Mo was confused.
“A solitary, transcendent Immortal Maiden with a drifting background, forced to show her face and stoop to the mortal world to save a loved one—that kind of story stirs the protective instincts, the desire to conquer, and the… voting urge of those female cultivators far more than a beauty of unknown origin who merely flaunts her looks.”
A cold calculation flashed in Qin Shuying’s eyes. “I’ve already arranged your story. Just remember it well and cooperate when the time comes.”
“As for your talent, you’ve already practiced ‘Moonlit Epiphyllum.’ I’ll arrange for people to coordinate below the stage to create the atmosphere.”
“Remember, when you play the qin, your expression, your posture, even the timing of your tears must align with the mood of the music. You need to make people see your loneliness, your sorrowful beauty, your helplessness. Understand?”
“Understood.” Shen Mo’s voice was dry.
“Remember your identity and purpose. In the first two days, you need to blend in, observe. Don’t arouse suspicion, and don’t create unnecessary trouble. If there’s an emergency, crush the child talisman, and I’ll come.”
Qin Shuying said no more and turned to leave.
Han Yi disguised herself as a maid and kept watch not far away.
—
The small courtyard in the Human Level Area was simple but had all the necessary prohibition seals.
It was near a pond of clear water with lush lotus leaves. Occasionally, spirit birds skimmed the surface, stirring ripples, making it quite serene.
The waterside pavilion was hung with translucent silk gauze curtains, which blocked most prying gazes while still allowing a vague view of the main paths and pavilions inside the garden.
Shen Mo tightly closed the courtyard gate and breathed a slight sigh of relief.
He adjusted his slightly messy hair bun in front of a mirror and added some powder to hide his fatigue.
In the mirror, the maiden’s brows were lowered, a hint of melancholy hidden within. She did have a bit of the charm of a wandering orphan girl.
He couldn’t hide in the courtyard forever.
Qin Shuying wanted him to “blend in and observe,” so he had to go out and move around.
Taking a deep breath, Shen Mo pushed open the courtyard gate and stepped into the bustling streets of Jade Fragrance Garden (territory of Ten Thousand Flower Pavilion).
The sight before him dazzled his eyes.
Jade towers, flying pavilions with flowing crimson—everywhere was decorated with lanterns and banners.
The streets were crowded, mostly with women, along with a few men dressed as attendants.
His gaze fell upon young men in thin gauze, handsome and with varied postures, standing with smiles, either playing the qin or flute, reciting poems, or casting flirtatious glances at passing female cultivators.
Some even had female cultivators stop to flirt with them, their gestures intimate and unabashed.
This was a glimpse of the atmosphere of Ten Thousand Flower Pavilion.
A wave of discomfort rose in Shen Mo’s stomach. He forcefully suppressed the nausea, quickened his pace, and only wanted to find a relatively quiet teahouse or tavern to sit down and observe.
However, his appearance—”alone, of remarkable beauty, with sorrow in his brows, and walking hurriedly”—caught the eye of certain observant individuals.
Just as he was about to turn into a relatively quiet alley to catch his breath, deliberately light footsteps suddenly sounded from the side.
“Is the Immortal Maiden unwell?” A soft male voice spoke.
Shen Mo’s body stiffened, and he didn’t turn around.
A young man in a water-blue silk shirt, with a face like jade and affectionate eyes, walked over gracefully, carrying a red lacquered tray.
He stopped in front of Shen Mo, set down the tray, gently poured spirit tea, and offered it with both hands.
“You seem alone, Immortal Maiden. You must be thirsty. This is a newly made Refreshing Fragrance Dew from the pavilion. It’s excellent for calming the nerves. Please, have some.”
Shen Mo waved his hand impatiently.
Growing up in a female-dominated world, he had encountered men before, but the deliberate coquettishness and servility designed to please women in this man were completely at odds with his own principles.
It caused not only a physiological revulsion but also a deeper sorrow for the plight of men in this female-dominated world.
“I see you walking alone, with a hint of worry in your brows. Is this your first time in Jade Fragrance Garden, and you’re unfamiliar? If you don’t mind, I’d be happy to guide you and entertain you. I know a thing or two about the sights and interesting stories of this garden.”
As he spoke, he handed over the tea.
“Perhaps you don’t like this tea? There are others in the pavilion…”
“I said, no need.”
The man’s fingertip brushed intentionally against Shen Mo.
This teasing gesture made all of Shen Mo’s hairs stand on end.
He jerked back a big step, as if avoiding a poisonous snake, and blurted out a low rebuke: “Don’t touch me!”
His voice cracked from fright, but fortunately the Huanyin Jue modulated it without issue.
The blue-clothed man’s hand holding the tea froze in midair.
“Don’t be alarmed, Immortal Maiden. I meant no harm. I only saw you alone…”
“She said, don’t touch her.”
A slightly hoarse but magnetic female voice rang out from the side, lazily.
Shen Mo and the blue-clothed man both turned to look.
On the other side of the alley entrance, a woman in a crimson outfit and black gauze coat was leaning against the wall.
She appeared to be in her late twenties (actual age unknown), tall and slender, with a natural, unrestrained heroic air in her brows.
A faint, enigmatic smile curled at the corner of her mouth as she watched them with folded arms.
Her face was free of makeup, her long hair casually tied with an ebony hairpin, a few stray strands falling beside her cheeks, adding to her free and easy charm.
At her waist hung a sheathless, ancient-looking short blade, with faint dark red lines on the blade.
“This man clearly doesn’t like being approached by men. Your tricks are misplaced here.”
The blue-clothed man obviously recognized her. His expression changed slightly, and he didn’t dare to argue.
Embarrassed, he put away his tray, bowed to the woman in red, cast a complicated glance at Shen Mo, and quickly retreated.
The alley fell silent.
Shen Mo was still shaken.
Who was she?
Why did she help him out?
And that last sentence of hers…
The woman in red strolled over and stopped a few steps in front of him.
She looked him up and down with interest, her gaze more direct than the previous man’s, yet lacking that nauseating stickiness.
“Scared?” she asked. “From the look of you, is this your first time in a place like this? Makes sense. The aura you carry doesn’t match the powdery fragrance of this Jade Fragrance Garden.”
Shen Mo pressed his lips together, not knowing how to respond, and instinctively took another small step back.
The woman in red didn’t mind. Instead, she took another half step closer.
“Don’t worry. I mean you no harm. The way you reacted just now… Tsk, it’s exactly how I was the first time a man got close to me.”
She paused, her tone carrying a sympathetic teasing.
“What, do you also feel uneasy all over and nauseated when you see men?”
Shen Mo jerked his head up, meeting the woman’s perceptive, narrowed eyes filled with amusement. His heart pounded wildly!
‘She… Did she see something?’
No, she misunderstood!
She thought he was… a woman who detested men?
The woman in red read his emotions well and thought she had hit the mark. Her smile deepened.
She clapped him heartily on the shoulder.
“Relax, little sister. Here in Ten Thousand Flower Pavilion’s territory, people like us—though not the majority—are far from rare. Don’t feel embarrassed, and don’t be afraid of those blind fools who come pestering you.”
She pointed to herself, then to Shen Mo, and winked.
“My name is Pei Yu, a loose cultivator. I can’t stand those soft-boned guys who rely on their looks to serve women and still think they’re something. What about you? What’s your name? Where are you from? Alone?”
Pei Yu…
Shen Mo’s mind raced.
He seemed to recall this name from the information Qin Shuying had given him.
A well-known solitary itinerant cultivator in the Jade Fragrance Garden area, fairly powerful (about Mid-Nascent Soul), with a righteous-evil disposition and informal manner.
Her background was a mystery, but she had some connections with certain high-level managers in Ten Thousand Flower Pavilion and was well-informed.
A guide who came to him and had some connections?
Dangerous, but perhaps also an opportunity.