Chapter 644: Don't Be So Stiff

Shen Yi's words were not mere pleasantries.

Because among this group, there really were a few he had not seen in a long time.

For instance, that young lady he had met in Bai Yun County—he still remembered that the last time they met, it was when Long Yuetian had captured Senior Xuanqing, and she had come out to look for him.

The situation had been urgent at the time, and altogether they had not managed to exchange more than a few words.

There were also those senior and junior martial brothers from Mount Wutong, as well as the Xu family members who had helped him set up arrays for the construction of Daqian.

He himself had walked on in too much of a hurry, while these people had stayed behind on that road, doing their best to smooth it out and make it more even.

Seeing them again now, he was, after all, somewhat delighted.

The Divine Dynasty's good point was precisely this: it could accommodate these living beings whose cultivation was not high.

It allowed Shen Yi to be in no such rush, and to have the time to calmly offer a word of greeting.

"..."

The crowd, their expressions complicated, had not even dared to offer a greeting at first—after all, Shen Yi was now burdened with trouble. They were not worried about being implicated themselves, but rather afraid of becoming a burden to this young man.

Yet, with those mere four words spoken,

smiles instantly surfaced on the faces of the crowd, and that familiar sense of reassurance welled up in their hearts once more.

Lin Baiwei carefully let go of Senior Sister Jiang's sleeve, stepped out from the crowd, and walked up to Shen Yi with a touch of bashfulness.

Her nose twitched; she closed her eyes and drew in a gentle breath.

It was still that faint, blood-tinged scent from her memory.

It was as if she had been instantly transported back to that dim, cramped room—a side chamber that could barely fit two people—waiting for the battered wooden door to be pushed open, for the young man to return with food, and with the fresh bloodlust of one who had just walked through slaughter.

In the span of less than a single month, it had been so unforgettable.

"I missed you."

Lin Baiwei murmured with her eyes closed, her voice as faint as a mosquito's hum.

Just as the words were about to fade, a slender hand with clearly defined knuckles had already landed on her head, rubbing it a few times with familiar ease.

The young lady's face gained a few shades of shyness and contentment.

She opened her eyes, raised her hand, and on her fingertip hung a golden bell, her eyes hiding a hint of anticipation.

In the mere span of a few years, she had actually been able to advance to a Golden Bell Demon-Catcher, which meant she had already entered the Embracing Elixir Realm. Compared to Shen Yi it was of course negligible, but this was already the absolute limit of what Lin Baiwei could achieve.

She wanted him to know that, even though she walked very slowly, she had always been striving to catch up.

"I want to give this to you." Lin Baiwei's voice grew smaller and smaller, until she did not dare look at the young man before her.

"..."

Shen Yi was stunned for an instant. He withdrew his hand, took the bell from the young lady's hand, casually hung it at his waist, fastened it tightly, and said softly, "Thank you."

Lin Baiwei pressed her lips into a smile, contentedly waved her hand, turned around, and retreated back into the crowd.

She knew she was not the only one missing Big Brother Shen.

And right now, he still had so, so many proper matters to attend to.

"Seems a bit different from what you told me, brother." Senior Zi Xian nudged her elder brother with her elbow, a look of suspicion on her face.

At first he had boasted in his heart about being a big official of the Divine Dynasty, and then talked about how vast Shenzhou was, not like the remote backwater of Hongze, and that one had to take it step by step.

Then why was that Shen Zongzhu being attended on by immortal officials?

"You compare me to him? Why don't you compare yourself to him." Ziyang grumbled as he looked ahead, equally baffled.

Weren't they both Rain-Summoning Envoys and Cloud-Walking Envoys? How could the gap be this huge?

In front of the Earth Deity's temple, Meng Xiuwen had already fallen silent. He glanced sidelong at Min Zhiyan beside him—one was the former Demon-Slaying Official of Jianyang Prefecture, the other an Earth Deity who had governed the local area for many long years.

Perhaps there really were people who could deceive their eyes and ears, but it was absolutely impossible for such a huge crowd to have sprung up all at once.

"It can't be real, can it?"

Meng Xiuwen rubbed his temples; he had never seen such a strange cultivator.

But based solely on what he had witnessed earlier, in his heart he already believed it seven or eight tenths of the way.

Min Zhiyan did not respond. His gaze fell on the bell at Shen Yi's waist—the way the young man had just carefully fastened the thing—finally allowing him to see a touch of "humanity" in him, rather than a bringer of disaster.

He shook his head, stepped forward, and waved to summon two boy attendants: "Bring the roster from that day, let me look at it again."

True to form for an Earth Deity who outranked his peers by an entire grade, after a cursory glance he already had a clear idea of where these people belonged. With a light flourish of his brush, he left the name of some immortal sect or some government office of the imperial court after each name.

Min Zhiyan walked forward, handed the roster to Shen Yi for review, and said, "I will have the boy attendants prepare a letter of recommendation shortly; you should have a reply in about three days."

"This old man is merely an Earth Deity, without much face to give, and cannot help with much. I can only say I'll find them a suitable place to settle down. As for how far they can ultimately go, that will depend on their own fortune."

"Many thanks, Earth Deity."

Shen Yi handed the roster back and gave a slight nod of his chin in thanks.

Watching the Earth Deity return to the temple, the people who had come out of Yu Nanhong all showed looks of pleasant surprise. Having just arrived in a strange place, they had inevitably felt somewhat adrift; that restless, uneasy feeling in their hearts had finally settled at this moment.

As expected of Shen Zongzhu—he had not even needed to open his mouth himself to easily resolve this matter!

"I know you can't bear to truly hand him over to General General Yan Lan."

Back inside the temple, Min Zhiyan sighed and looked at Meng Xiuwen beside him. Though this fellow Meng was something of a scoundrel, he was also truly loyal, and had caused quite a few muddled incidents because of it, to the point that he was still unable to get a promotion.

"Trust these old eyes of mine one more time. As long as this group of people remains in the Divine Dynasty, this one will not have any thought of bringing disaster to a region."

"Hah! Now you're playing the good guy. Who was it that told me to keep an eye on him back then?"

Meng Xiuwen rolled his eyes, using it to cover the embarrassment of being seen through.

Only after the two immortal boy attendants had respectfully escorted that group of outsiders back to Jianyang Prefecture did he turn, push the door open and step out, and casually glance at Ye Jing, who had been quietly standing guard outside. Looking at the young girl's complicated expression, he asked, "What's with you now?"

"N-nothing."

Ye Jing forced out a smile and stood woodenly in place.

Meng Xiuwen was in no mood to bother with such things now. He strode quickly to Shen Yi's side: "My lord, that one is almost here."

Compared to the matter of the Jade Dragon Sect last time, this trip to White Cloud Grotto had resulted in a direct, thorough purge. Every cultivator involved in the matter of the Jin Yu ancient tree had been left without a single survivor—it was no exaggeration to call it the extermination of an entire clan.

"When you talk later, don't be so stiff. We're not in the right here."

Meng Xiuwen rubbed his palms together, finding it strange to say such a thing—back in the day, it was always others who had to talk him around like this.

He leaned close to Shen Yi's ear, lowering his voice: "She's really strong. If we can avoid testing her, let's not test her."

If it really came down to a fight, Meng Xiuwen frankly admitted to himself that he couldn't withstand that woman's sword.

Before the words had even faded, a streak of white light descended from the sky.

Meng Xiuwen hurriedly straightened his back, putting on an honest, well-behaved look.

"..."

Ye Lan still wore that same cold, aloof look, her face revealing neither joy nor anger; a white robe in men's attire made her steps appear crisp and clean.

She looked straight ahead, not even sparing her own younger sister a single glance.

She only stopped in front of the Earth Deity Temple. Though her figure was tall and slender, she was still a touch shorter than Shen Yi.

But standing before Shen Yi like this, there was somehow a hint of looking down on him in it. Ye Lan gazed directly at this newly appointed Demon-Slaying Officer, her voice carrying a thread of chill.

"If I remember correctly."

"Last time you promised me that you could keep an eye on him."

"..."

Shen Yi raised an eyebrow, glanced at Meng Xiuwen, and recalled the other's earlier reminder: "He's quite honest."

He wasn't some fool himself—how could he possibly put on a stiff face toward his direct superior?

"Honest?" Ye Lan's eyes narrowed slightly. "Honest enough to bring a wipe-out raid to White Cloud Grotto?"

Shen Yi withdrew his gaze, met hers, and said lightly: "That was my doing."

The moment these words came out, Meng Xiuwen beside him slapped his own forehead with a smack.

Damn! All that talking was for nothing!

(End of this chapter)