Chapter 35: Another Demon Emerges

The sky grew dim; dusk had arrived.

The soldiers who had waited long outside the city finally saw the Phoenix Carriage of Her Highness Hongyu.

Dozens of carriages were arranged in front and behind, over a thousand Imperial Guards formed a protective ring, and the ceremonial procession stretched for several li; truly, this was no small display.

Yet no one could have imagined that inside Hongyu's carriage sat a man with an effeminate appearance.

If people found out, rumors would surely spread immediately.

But the maids in the carriage seemed not to see this man at all; each sat low with her head down, not even daring to breathe loudly.

Chen Ye probably could not have guessed that the Young Master Jiang Shiyue, whom he was about to plot against, was now sitting in the same carriage as Her Highness Hongyu.

Her Highness Hongyu was only sixteen, with delicate features; a robe of red embroidered with gold threads made her skin appear whiter than snow, yet her eyes were as calm as dead water, and she was like an empty shell, devoid of any vitality.

Jiang Shiyue felt no offense taken; instead, his face was full of displeasure.

"Junior sister, why do you wear such a stern face all day? Who is that expression for?"

Her Highness Hongyu's eyes moved slightly, as if regaining some life; hearing the man speak thus, she replied in a cold tone, "Senior brother, if you cannot stand it, go ahead and complain to Master. Besides, Senior brother, you possess the art of flight; there is no need to humble yourself by riding in a carriage."

Jiang Shiyue snorted coldly and spoke in a sarcastic tone, "Junior sister, you have lived in luxury since childhood and know nothing of others' suffering. If you can ride in a carriage, why bother exhausting yourself with flight? Do not pretend before me; not long ago, you were nothing but a vessel prepared for soul usurpation."

"Raising you for over ten years, spending so much effort on you, was merely waiting for the day to slaughter you; it is no different from raising a pig. Do you truly think that because Master reluctantly accepted you as a disciple, you can now stand on equal footing with me? The Great Array of Infant Soul and Soul Washing may not even be effective; when the time comes, you will still have your soul-devouring spirit swallowed by Master, and your soul will scatter into the void forever."

Hearing these threats, Her Highness Hongyu's expression did not change in the slightest.

Indeed, she was merely a vessel prepared by cultivators for soul usurpation; from the moment she could remember, she had known this.

Facing Jiang Shiyue's mockery, Her Highness Hongyu simply replied coolly, "Does Senior brother hope that Master will fail to advance, so that you may usurp my body?"

Jiang Shiyue's face instantly changed; how could he dare to answer that?

If this reached Master's ears, he feared he would be skinned and his tendons pulled out.

For now, he could only grit his teeth and say, "Do not think of sowing discord. Once Master succeeds in advancing, you will be useless. Your handling of the matter of collecting boys and girls this time was full of blunders; in the end, I still have to clean up the mess."

"Once this matter is settled, I will have Master give you to me; then I will make you know what it means to wish for death but be unable to die."

Her Highness Hongyu did not refute; she simply watched him silently.

Jiang Shiyue felt that Her Highness Hongyu's eyes were like those of a corpse; being stared at by her always unsettled his mind, yet he dared not truly lay a hand on Her Highness Hongyu.

Jiang Shiyue's Master needed boys and girls to sacrifice, helping him break through Tongxuan and advance to the Soul Transformation realm. Whether success or failure remained uncertain; if he failed, he would directly usurp Her Highness Hongyu's body.

In other words, Her Highness Hongyu's body could not suffer the slightest damage; even if a single hair fell out, he, Jiang Shiyue, could not bear the consequences.

Finally, unable to endure it any longer, Jiang Shiyue turned his body, transformed into a wisp of thin mist, and flew out of the carriage.

Truly, this person was too oppressive; Jiang Shiyue only wanted to return to Cui Xian immediately and kill a few people to vent his hatred.

Only then did Her Highness Hongyu withdraw her gaze, once again becoming the lifeless state of a withered tree.

The wheels rolled on, continuing toward Cui Xian.

From the bumpy dirt road to the hard bluestone pavement, the silent procession outside the carriage grew lively, beating gongs and drums, announcing loudly.

For the first time in over ten years, this prosperous place welcomed its true master.

The Magistrate of Cui Xian had been waiting at the city gate long ago, yet he was turned away without even seeing Her Highness Hongyu's face.

Her Highness Hongyu's Phoenix Carriage went straight to the magnificent mansion, then, citing exhaustion from the journey, refused to see any guests.

Although the nobles of Cui Xian waited in vain all day, no one dared utter a single complaint; after leaving heavy gifts, they still had to wish, "May Her Highness take good care of her precious health."

After the crowd dispersed, Her Highness Hongyu had changed into a thin single-layer garment and sat on the soft bed.

The moonlight outside the window was beautiful, but Her Highness Hongyu had no heart to appreciate it until a black shadow swept past and fell into the room.

The newcomer's steps were light, landing without a sound, but as soon as he entered the room, he said eagerly, "Her Highness, I'm back!"

Miss Lan Shi, as always cheerful, hopped and skipped to Her Highness Hongyu's side.

The withered-tree-like Her Highness finally showed a slight smile; she reached out, pulled Miss Lan Shi into her arms, removed the face-covering scarf from her, and then carefully plucked the withered leaves stuck to her head.

No one knew how far Miss Lan Shi had run on the tree tops and roof tiles; she was covered in dirt. Yet Her Highness Hongyu did not mind at all that she had soiled her new clothes, gently tidying up this younger sister who was only a few years younger.

Only after Miss Lan Shi had washed her face did Her Highness Hongyu ask, "How did the matter go?"

Miss Lan Shi quickly said, "Her Highness's foresight is divine; the matter in Cui Xian has caused such a stir that it has finally attracted cultivators. The so-called Little Immortal rumored in Cui Xian some days ago was not a fraud; he truly has ability. I almost got caught by him."

Her Highness Hongyu hurriedly asked, "Were you injured?"

Miss Lan Shi said proudly, "No, no; I am very clever. However, that person is truly formidable; before long, he discovered that I was deliberately provoking him to clash with Jiang Shiyue's people..."

Miss Lan Shi recounted her meeting with Chen Ye; Her Highness Hongyu listened carefully, her brows sometimes relaxing and sometimes furrowing, until Miss Lan Shi said she had returned to Hengdao Inn and seen the message left by "Qinghe Sword Sect," only then did Her Highness Hongyu finally breathe a sigh of relief.

"Qinghe Sword Sect has finally come."

Hearing Her Highness Hongyu's tone change, Miss Lan Shi quickly asked, "Her Highness, is Qinghe Sword Sect really so formidable? I saw that young man is not old; even if he is a cultivator, his cultivation is probably not high. Can he truly deal with those demons?"

Her Highness Hongyu shook her head and said, "I do not know, but we cannot simply sit and wait for death."

Although called Junior sister by Jiang Shiyue, Her Highness Hongyu knew little about cultivation matters; after all, she had previously been merely a vessel for soul usurpation. Qinghe Sword Sect was a name she had quietly investigated for a long time before hearing of; it was rumored to be a very powerful immortal Dao sect.

But exactly how powerful, Her Highness Hongyu did not know; yet this was the only hope.

From the moment she could remember, Her Highness Hongyu knew she had no control over her own fate; that demon had turned the harem into his own Dao field, cultivating by borrowing the fortune and resources of the imperial court.

For many years, Her Highness Hongyu had been extremely cautious, winning the favor of that old demon, barely managing to preserve her life.

Now that the demon's lifespan was nearly exhausted; if he could not advance to the Soul Transformation realm, he would usurp a body to be reborn. Her Highness Hongyu took advantage of the demon's seclusion and bitter cultivation, ordering Cui Xian to collect boys and girls. On the surface, this was to gather blood food for the demon's cultivation, but secretly she had the Magistrate of Cui Xian raise the banner of "Qinghe Sword Sect."

She only hoped to lure the so-called righteous cultivators to come and slay the demons.

But whether Qinghe Sword Sect could achieve this, Her Highness Hongyu herself had no certainty.

Miss Lan Shi, mentioning Chen Ye, added, "Her Highness, he left a message at Hengdao Inn, challenging Jiang Shiyue to a duel seven days from now. What shall we do?"

Her Highness Hongyu asked, "Can you still find him now?"

Miss Lan Shi shook her head; Chen Ye had left long ago and left no contact method; how could he be found?

"This does not seem right. If he left no contact method, why did he ask you to steal the county office's documents? If you stole them, how would you give them to him? Also, why did he set the date for seven days from now? Is there something special about this date and location?"

Miss Lan Shi still shook her head; how could she guess what Chen Ye was thinking?

Her Highness Hongyu thought carefully for a long time, then asked again, "When you returned to the inn, did you not see those martial artists he injured? Did you not see the corpses either?"

"No, not a single one was seen. Jiang Shiyue's people and the inn's staff are all gone, not even a corpse remains. Could they have been taken alive by him?"

"Even if they were taking hostages, why would they need to take all dozen or so people? No living person seen, no dead body found. This cultivator from Qinghe Sword Sect..." Princess Hongyu couldn't help but clench her fists, her voice trembling as she said, "is likely a demonic fiend who kills people to refine corpses."