Chapter 603 - 602: Night Rain and Wind, Get a Fan-girl

Even though Xiang Yunxian had changed dramatically after choosing the path of the Demon Taoist, she certainly would not be a match for Li Jing, having never truly experienced the perils of the world.

But by this point.

Xiang Yunxian had come to understand.

The master was not oblivious to her feelings, he was merely avoiding any possible mishaps between them.

In response to this.

Xiang Yunxian felt more joy than sorrow.

Some of these sentiments had been present even before she was influenced by the demonic nature.

After all, not only did Li Jing save her life, but he was also powerful and considerate.

As it was mentioned earlier.

It is innate for women to admire the strong.

Any other elements are simply icing on the cake.

However, prior to the demonic influence, Xiang Yunxian had a realistic understanding of herself.

She knew.

That she didn’t deserve Li Jing.

And it was clear that he was not enticed by her Nine Yin Body.

Therefore, she would naturally have no unwarranted thoughts.

The flower falls willingly.

The water flows heartlessly.

In the end, it is she who gets hurt.

Why put oneself through such pain and suffering?

It was only after being influenced by the demonic nature that she dared to boldly show her feelings.

On one hand, the demonic nature magnified the desires in her heart.

On the other hand, after obtaining the Prayer for the Gods Record and experiencing a surge in her strength, plus the influence of the demonic nature, she did harbor some degree of arrogance.

Of course.

From a factual standpoint, Xiang Yunxian definitely had the credentials to be arrogant.

Her Second Origin was beginning to take shape.

Setting aside the Emperor Level for now.

In the whole Immortal Realm, there’s probably no one who could rival her at the peak of Latter Venerable.

Especially the Prayer for the Gods Record is a Demon Skill renowned for its astonishing power.

It’s worth mentioning that.

At this stage, Xiang Yunxian hasn’t had a chance to experience Blue Star culture and doesn’t know the game of "calling daddy."

If she knew, she would surely be even happier...

Returning to the subject at hand.

With Li Jing’s decision, the ruse of pretending to be father and daughter was established.

The two soon flew to the entrance of Nightly City.

You wouldn’t believe it.

In such an inhospitable place as Nightly City, there were actually quite a number of people coming and going.

Not just numerous, their cultivation levels were not low, either.

At first glance, those entering and exiting Nightly City were at least at the Venerable level.

Admittedly.

Zhongzhou is teeming with Venerables.

But this is mainly because those who have reached the Venerable realm from the Four Realms of Immortals have all flocked to the center of the Immortal Realm, Zhong Shen Zhou, to find a way to break through to Return to Origin.

If you want to take it seriously.

In the Zhongzhou Earth Realm, the Tenth to the Twelfth Realm are the main population.

These people.

Some are born and raised in Zhongzhou, while others have come from the Four Realms of Immortals to scrape a living in Zhongzhou.

Following these high realm individuals.

There are ordinary people who have grown up in the Zhongzhou Earth Realm, and some with even lower cultivation levels.

Finally.

There are a slightly larger number of Venerables.

In one city.

It couldn’t possibly all be Venerables.

Even the Imperial Palaces everywhere aren’t that exaggerated.

Yet Nightly City has largely achieved this to a large extent.

At least at this moment, what Li Jing saw.

Those entering and leaving Nightly City were all Venerables.

The number of Venerables within the city was countless, with very few auras of those below the Twelfth Realm or even ordinary people.

However, Li Jing, upon giving it a thought, understood why.

Nightly City is located in the special Eternal Night Boundary with a harsh environment.

Those with lower cultivation levels might be able to earn Immortal Crystals here by risking their lives.

But to permanently reside here, without some tenacity, it might not be possible.

Not to mention those with lower cultivation levels.

Take Li Jing himself for example.

If you asked him to live long-term in a realm where the sun never shines, he would not be willing.

Humans, after all.

Always need some sunshine.

Even a salted fish needs to flip over and sunbathe, let alone humans?

Of course.

Everyone sees things through their own perspective, and in essence, it is not a rigid requirement.

Li Jing was observing the front gate of Nightly City, while Xiang Yunxian, resembling a mischievous thief, looked left and right and suddenly linked arms with him.

?

Li Jing was perplexed.

"Daddy, let’s go this way."

Xiang Yunxian spoke in a gentle and innocent tone with a touch of cunning flashing through her eyes.

Seeing this, Li Jing was speechless.

Such childish tricks seemed trivial in his eyes.

However, he could understand why Xiang Yunxian would act this way.

Because she was born and raised in Zhongzhou City.

Not to mention the now emerging and popular "Blue Star culture" in the Eastern Immortal Domain. Xiang Yunxian barely traveled beyond her city.

In her mind.

Linking arms was a gesture of intimacy.

Even if influenced by demon possession, this concept was hard to change.

After all, it was a matter of personal experience.

Xiang Yunxian was unaware

Back at Blue Star.

Young girls would cling onto others, draping their entire bodies over them.

And those instances were still the more conservative behaviors in public.

While in private.

There were all sorts of close cuddles!

At the moment, seeing Xiang Yunxian stealthily finding amusement in linking arms with him, as if she thought she’d scored a win, Li Jing really didn’t know what to say.

He knew clearly.

As Xiang Yunxian adopts the path of Demon Taoist, unavoidably, many things bound to happen and he would have to deal with it, or give her a "banishment to the frontier".

But looking at the current situation, it seemed like there was no problem.

If she wanted to enjoy herself, let her be happy on her own.

Limited by her comprehension, Xiang Yunxian wasn’t aware of how childish she appeared in Li Jing’s eyes.

Seeing that he wasn’t upset or dissatisfied by her intimacy, Xiang Yunxian knew better than to act out more, and while holding Li Jing, walked towards the city gates.

At the city gate.

There were eight Venerables covered in Golden Armor, armed with Taoist Items in their hands.

Quite an impressive formation.

Venerables acting as gatekeepers.

From a town’s perspective, probably only Nightly City, known for its overflowing wealth, could afford such "luxury".

Xiang Yunxian took out her pass certificate and effortlessly gained entry.

Here’s a small detail.

The guards didn’t verify Li Jing’s identity.

In other words.

As long as you accompany a person with a pass certificate, you can enter Nightly City. It isn’t necessarily restricted to Taoist Companions or spouses.

Who is Li Jing, after all?

He naturally noticed these details.

But he couldn’t be bothered to expose Xiang Yunxian.

However, he couldn’t let her get too pleased with herself either.

The present stage of Xiang Yunxian, her demonic charm was simply stifled by limitations of her individual experiences.

But as her experiences broaden in the future, the impact from the demonic charm would grow.

In a certain sense.

She was presently a sheet of almost pristine white paper, stained with a spot of black.

And this little speck of black, in the future, would be the root cause that dyes the whole sheet of white paper black.

Even though the end was unavoidable, at least the rate and manner at which Xiang Yunxian turned bad was somewhat controllable.

What it boiled down to was that Xiang Yunxian should not be indulged.

The more she’s indulged.

The quicker she changes.

And it’s more probable she gradually grows arrogant and oblivious...

Shortly after they entered the city and started journeying, Li Jing pulled his arm free, harnessing the Silent Shadow skill now integrated within his third breakthrough skill, "Soaring."

?

Xiang Yunxian.

Li Jing pulling his arm back was one thing.

But to her surprise, he suddenly vanished from her sight.

Did he...

Leave or...?

She examined her surroundings, but couldn’t find Li Jing anywhere, which made her a bit anxious.

Just then, Li Jing’s voice echoed in her ears

"Lead the way to the Nalan’s house."

Following his directed command, Silent Shadow’s perception-disturbing effect no longer worked on Xiang Yunxian, revealing Li Jing’s figure in her vision.

Noticing that Li Jing was still by her side and hasn’t moved at all, Xiang Yunxian was baffled.

Relieved, yet curious, she questioned.

"Leader, what kind of skill is this?"

"A spiritual-level technique created by my mother-in-law, capable of messing with people’s perceptions."

Li Jing spoke nonchalantly, saying,

"It was useful to me in the past, but after becoming an Emperor, having a separate world became a flaw. However, it is still very effective when dealing with powers below the Emperor."

"Mother-in-law!?"

Xiang Yunxian’s eyes widened, immediately catching the implication, she exclaimed in shock.

"Lo... Lord, have you got married!?"

"Is it abnormal for me to have got married as it is a major event?"

Li Jing tilted his head.

"..."

Xiang Yunxian.

She understood the reason.

It was not surprising for a man like Li Jing to have a few close female friends.

But being close friends is one thing, marriage is another.

They are completely different concepts.

Who is she?

Who was capable of winning over such a man like Li Jing?

And even becoming his wife!?

Xiang Yunxian’s heart was filled with turbulence.

Seeing her staring blankly at himself, Li Jing clicked his tongue and said indifferently,

"That should be enough, hurry up and lead the way. If you continue to indulge in your own thoughts, or try to scheme something, I’m not going to take care of you."

Upon hearing his words, Xiang Yunxian shivered and quickly replied,

"Lord, the Nalan family’s residence is this way."

With these words, she turned around to guide the way.

Seeing her obeying, Li Jing’s lips curled into a smile.

As it was proven.

There was much potential to "train and educate" Xiang Yunxian.

And she was even more interesting than when she used to nod and agree with everything before stepping into the Demon Taoist path.

...

The simple phrase "I won’t take care of you" had a great effect on Xiang Yunxian.

She didn’t dare to have any other thoughts or be careless when they arrived at the Nalan family’s residence.

That said,

Li Jing felt somewhat sympathetic towards her.

It’s true that Xiang Yunxian’s decision to step into the Demon Taoist path was a factor leading to her current state.

However, what mattered most was that she had lost everything she used to cherish after obtaining the Demon Pact seal.

Now, all she had,

Was the Chen Tang City, which she didn’t even know where it was, and him, the current Leader accompanying her.

This was a responsibility that he, Li Jing, should bear.

Side-glancing at the well-behaved Xiang Yunxian standing by his side, Li Jing sighed inwardly and looked up at the closed entrance of the Nalan family’s residence.

His Primordial Spirit extended.

In the large courtyard of the Nalan family, there were only about ten to twenty people scattered around.

Looking at the size of the mansion, there should have been at least hundreds of people here.

The ten to twenty people who were in the yard didn’t seem to have high cultivation levels.

As it seemed,

Nalan Que had yet to return.

It seemed that the influential people of the Nalan family were out due to some event.

Just as he was contemplating, Xiang Yunxian spoke up.

"Lord, it seems like only some servants are present in the Nalan family. This situation doesn’t seem to be caused by Nalan Que’s return, but because they are out for some reason."

As she spoke, she carefully said,

"I’ve been to the Nalan family a few times, and the servants here recognize me. Shall I knock on the door and inquire?"

"All right."

Li Jing nodded.

Upon receiving his response, Xiang Yunxian moved forward to knock on the door.

With a light knock,

The door was quickly opened by an Eleven Realms level servant-like figure.

When he saw Xiang Yunxian, he stood there dumbly.

Xiang Yunxian.

He did recognize her.

After all, she could potentially become the future young mistress of the Nalan family.

But Xiang Yunxian, who had stepped into the Demon Taoist path, had completely transformed. Her whole persona had changed, making a huge impact on him.

Especially as she looked so enchanting even standing still.

This was completely different from the Xiang Yunxian he knew.

Seeing the servant stand dazedly before her, Xiang Yunxian’s delicate eyebrows furrowed, a hint of displeasure flashed in her eyes.

The current her,

Was no longer the weak girl from the past.

But a complete Demon Taoist Enchantress...

A mere Eleven Realms power dared to look at her so openly?

It was a death wish!

However, Xiang Yunxian wasn’t so heavily influenced by the demonic nature to become insane. She knew she should not casually kill people which would easily stir up trouble.

She couldn’t afford to make a mistake.

Especially those that concerned Master.

"You should recognize me. Is the Nalan family’s head here? Nalan Longao encountered some incidents at the Returning Cloud Palace and I have come to deliver a message for him,"

Xiang Yunxian spoke, trying her best to make her tone sound indifferent.

The servant was dumbfounded by her words.

Though he was from the eleventh realm, as a servant, he naturally had the ability to judge the situation properly.

True, Xiang Yunxian was talking in an indifferent manner but it was clear that she was displeased by his neglect.

It was obviously the future mistress herself and there was mention of Nalan Longao encountering troubles. Not having much time to think, the servant spoke,

"The master and others have all gone out for some urgent matters. Mistress, you..."

Before the servant could finish his sentences, Xiang Yunxian cut in.

"Tell me where I can find them."

There was a moment of hesitation in the servant.

It was rather apparent.

It was a little sensitive for the entire Nalan household to go out all at once, and he dared not rashly disclose their whereabouts.

However, thanks to Xiang Yunxian mentioning that Nalan Longao encountered an accident at the Returning Cloud Palace, the servant assumed that the Young Master faced some urgent difficulty requiring family assistance.

With not a single person from the Nalan family in charge present, it left the servant somewhat confused, not knowing what to do.

Glancing around nervously, the servant lowered his voice.

"I honestly don’t know where the master and the others went, they left three days ago. Mistress, you can go to the City Lord’s Mansion to check. It was the people from the City Lord’s Mansion who fetched the entire Nalan family three days ago."

"Alright, I understand."

Xiang Yunxian responded and walked away.

Seeing this, Li Jing quietly followed.

...

Xiang Yunxian had limited personal experience, but she was quite perceptive.

Only when they moved a certain distance from the Nalan residence did she turn back to look at Li Jing, who was unnoticeable to others due to the Silent Shadow.

"Master, the entire Nalan family was taken away by the Night City Lord. This likely indicates that the Night City has recently made an enormous discovery nearby. The Night City Lord probably wants to take all the benefits at once. Otherwise, his movements wouldn’t be so extensive," she analyzed.

"Everyone that comes to dabble around in Night City is sharp and has keen senses. It’s as obvious as a pearl in plain sight that the Nalan family, a treasure in Night City, has been taken away and only few servants are left. Even a blind person could tell that there has been a major discovery near Night City. Hence, it appears that while Night City seems calm on the surface, undercurrents are sweeping beneath."

Li Jing nodded at her words and said,

"Your speculation isn’t without reason, but it’s pointless for us to guess around here. We might as well go and investigate properly."

Receiving this response, Xiang Yunxian’s eyes flickered slightly and she hesitated before speaking.

"Master, you have a passion for treasure hunting, this issue, should we..."

"We’ll see how things go."

"Anyway, Nalan Que hasn’t returned yet. If the benefits are big enough, we can intervene in this Night City issue without it making much difference," Li Jing said with a smile.

Hearing this, a hint of excitement flashed across Xiang Yunxian’s face.

Despite not saying it out loud.

She understood it very well in her heart.

She wouldn’t be able to follow Li Jing forever.

The reason he recruited her was basically because he valued her skills as a pharmacist and wanted her to serve Chen Tang City.

Once the Nalan Que issue is resolved, she would probably be sent to Chen Tang City.

If Li Jing gets involved in the Night City matter, it means she can stay with him a while longer.

With a joyous thought, Xiang Yunxian spoke,

"So Master, should we go to the City Lord’s Mansion now or...?"

"If things are really as you’ve said, the Night City Lord would likely be with the Nalan family, not in the City Lord’s Mansion."

Li Jing spoke steadily.

Xiang Yunxian was taken aback, before revealing an awestruck expression.

He is indeed worthy of being her Master!

That which she hadn’t thought of, he figured out in a minute.

Seeing her transformed in a blink into a devoted fan with an admiring face, Li Jing couldn’t help but laugh. Then canceling the Silent Shadow, he led her towards a shabby tavern at the corner of the street.

???

Xiang Yunxian.

"The people of the Nalan family have been gone for three days already. Those who are aware and have the ability to interfere should have already rushed to get involved. Going in all directions to find information now is a bit too late."

Li Jing explained, continuing,

"After all, it’s a big deal and the news will definitely be blocked."

With that, he added,

"Instead of doing something pointless, you might as well visit a tavern, where the good and the bad are mixed in. Have a drink and maybe pick up on some news. There are no walls without chinks in the world, there will surely be some rumors from the outside. And such information, is most likely to appear in the hands of those ordinary people who know about it but lack the ability to interfere."

Hearing his reasoning, Xiang Yunxian was amazed.

The key was.

She thought it made sense.

For a moment, her gaze towards Li Jing was full of little stars as she sincerely exclaimed,

"Master, you really know a lot."

"..."

Li Jing.

Xiang Yunxian was highly receptive given she had only recently experienced the influence of magic, that was a fact.

Li Jing also planned to mold her properly.

But now he found it a bit difficult.

Before he could figure out how to mold Xiang Yunxian, she had already swiftly headed towards becoming a devoted fan... and it looked like she didn’t plan to turn back.

...