Finding Immortal Lord Ying Heng—that was Sang Dai’s only family. The little fox was determined to win Ying Heng’s approval so that he could formally propose marriage.
—
At the peak of a high mountain, the full moon hung in the sky. The terrain here was so elevated that it felt as though one could reach out and touch the moon.
Shadows of trees swayed, and the wind whistled sharply.
From this mountain peak at the outskirts of the city, one could overlook the entire Linglong Town. This small town didn’t have many residents in total.
Behind him, rustling sounds came from the grass. Vines tried to reach out and touch his calf, but he kicked them away.
“Get lost. Don’t touch me after eating a person.”
The vines shivered pitifully, shaking their leaves as they let out a burp.
The black-clad youth frowned. “Disgusting.”
The vines: “…”
How could a vine be disgusting!
The black-clad youth rolled his eyes at it and asked, “Are you full?”
The vines nodded, shaking their leaves to signal him to look.
Only the last flower remained unopened.
Just one more to go.
He sat cross-legged on the ground. Below this mountain lay the ghost market, and further away was Linglong Town. Neither of these places would be peaceful.
The vines stayed by his side and lightly brushed against him with their leaves.
“What do you want?”
The vines gestured wildly.
The black-clad youth raised an eyebrow. “You’re asking what to do about Ying Heng?”
The vines nodded.
The black-clad youth took a sip of wine and said, “As long as he doesn’t die, leave him be.”
The vine thought this man was truly strange. He went to great lengths to save someone but didn’t see it through to the end. He handed over the pill but let a person who had lost all five senses choose for themselves, as if he wasn’t the least bit afraid they might poison themselves. It seemed like everything he did was simply because he wanted to, without asking for a reason or seeking anything in return—just because.
The vine slumped weakly next to him and asked when it could eat a few more “Four Sufferings” bodies.
The black-clad youth finished the last jug of wine. He was slightly drunk, his cheeks flushed, as he tilted his head to gaze at the full moon.
“Tonight, after eating a few more Four Sufferings, you’ll be able to bloom.”
—
Sang Dai slept all the way until evening.
She woke up twice during the day, but seeing Su Xuan still holding her and napping, she hadn’t had the heart to wake him, so she fell back asleep.
By evening, she finally couldn’t stay asleep anymore. She opened her eyes, pondering how to quietly slip out of Su Xuan’s embrace.
The little fox holding her suddenly moved, cupped her face, and planted a kiss on her cheek.
Sang Dai blinked, belatedly covering her mouth. “What are you doing?”
Su Xuan ruffled her hair. “Awake? Did you sleep well?”
“…Mm.”
Sang Dai glanced outside the window. “It’s already evening.”
They had been in this room for an entire day, ever since entering yesterday.
Su Xuan got up, carrying her toward the bathhouse.
“Let’s bathe first. Are you feeling uncomfortable?”
Sang Dai lazily leaned into his arms. “I’ll bathe myself.”
Su Xuan held her with one arm while testing the water temperature with the other.
“Not bathing with me?”
“…No.”
Having not eaten all day, Su Xuan didn’t have the heart to tease her further. Smiling, he placed her in the hot spring bath.
“You bathe first. I’ll fetch your clothes.”
Sang Dai didn’t dare look at him, turning her head away and curling up in the water. “…Mm.”
By the time they had both tidied up and come downstairs, they spotted a shiny bald head and a flamboyantly dressed peacock in red.
Tan Huai was sipping a bowl of porridge. When he saw the two of them, he seemed to remember something and gave a light cough.
“Uh… Miss Sang must be tired. Why don’t you eat first?”
Sang Dai: “…”
Liu Lixue shook his fan and tapped the empty seat next to him. “Sit down. Aren’t you tired after a whole day?”
Everyone could understand the implication of that remark. The little fox glanced at Sang Dai, whose face was flushed, and naturally clasped her hand.
“Come on, let’s eat.”
Under the watchful gazes of the two men, Sang Dai sat down. The marks on her body could easily be erased with spiritual energy, and after sleeping well, she looked no different from the day before.
Liu Lixue and Tan Huai stared at her intently.
Sang Dai: “…Let’s eat. The food’s getting cold.”
The peacock asked in a low voice, “Lord, when will the Twin-Soul Pact ceremony take place? I’ll make sure it’s a grand event. We’ll invite all those blind immortals from the celestial realm to witness it.”
Tan Huai leaned forward. “This humble monk currently has no pressing matters. I’d appreciate it if the Beast King and Miss Sang could send me an invitation as well.”
Su Xuan, his expression calm, quietly picked food for Sang Dai and said plainly, “Shut up. Eat.”
Liu Lixue glanced at Sang Dai, who was sipping tea frantically, and Su Xuan, who was calmly peeling shrimp. His beautiful eyes narrowed.
“Is asking such a thing forbidden? Lord, don’t you intend to take responsibility? Who knows, Miss Sang might already be carrying a little fox cub.”
The tea Sang Dai had just swallowed suddenly got stuck in her throat. She covered her mouth and coughed softly. Su Xuan quickly helped her calm her breathing.
“Did you choke? Does it hurt?”
He glared fiercely at Liu Lixue. “Shut your mouth.”
The peacock muttered resentfully, “But… weren’t you the one always talking about wanting to marry Miss Sang? Now that you’ve already shared a marital bond, you should take responsibility.”
Sang Dai, having stopped coughing, quietly explained, “It’s not… we didn’t…”
“Hm? Didn’t what?”
Liu Lixue blinked innocently.
Tan Huai eavesdropped sneakily.
Sang Dai: “…”
What was she supposed to say?
Should she say they hadn’t gone all the way, so there was no way she could be pregnant with a little fox cub?
But how could she possibly say that out loud in this situation?!
Su Xuan interrupted coldly, “Eat. After dinner, get to work.”
Liu Lixue raised an eyebrow but swallowed the rest of his words.
Fair enough, there was still serious business to attend to.
The rest of the meal was eaten in relative quiet. Sang Dai ate slowly, so Su Xuan, Liu Lixue, and Tan Huai slowed down their pace to match hers. By the time they finished, night had fallen.
Su Xuan wiped his mouth and spoke unhurriedly, “I will head to the City Lord’s residence to find Wu Hanshu. The mistress of Manxiang Pavilion has said that only Dai Dai is allowed to enter Manxiang Pavilion. Liu Lixue, you—”
He glanced at the peacock’s slightly pale face, his lips pressing into a thin line, and said, “You are to stay here and are not allowed to go anywhere.”
Liu Lixue: “?”
“Lord—”
“Tan Huai, where do you plan to go?”
Su Xuan didn’t have the time to argue with Liu Lixue. His light-colored eyes shifted to Tan Huai as he asked in a deep voice.
Tan Huai put down his bowl, brought his palms together in a respectful Buddhist gesture, and responded gently, “This humble monk has personal matters to attend to. I ask for everyone’s understanding.”
Liu Lixue didn’t know exactly what had transpired in the ghost market, but Su Xuan and Sang Dai understood the implication behind his words.
The two of them remained calm.
“Mm, alright.”
Liu Lixue looked at Tan Huai in confusion, but the monk stood up.
“This humble monk will take his leave.”
Su Xuan and Sang Dai answered in unison, “Alright.”
After watching Tan Huai leave, Liu Lixue asked in surprise, “The matter of the high-level spirit beast capturing rogue cultivators falls under the Zen Sect’s jurisdiction, doesn’t it? If he’s not going with you to investigate, what could he possibly have to do that’s so urgent right now?”
Sang Dai smiled and asked, “How does Young Master Liu know that Master Tan Huai’s business isn’t related to the high-level spirit beast?”
Liu Lixue was momentarily stunned.
Indeed, he didn’t know. The disappearance of rogue cultivators in Linglong Town was tied to the person behind it all—someone using vines to capture these people. Furthermore, the City Lord of Linglong Town, Wu Hanshu, had suddenly advanced in cultivation. This was likely also related to the incident. Wu Hanshu practiced the Way of Steadfast Mind. If not for this path, there wouldn’t have been so many rogue cultivators entering the city.
Now, the Chunying Sword had appeared in the ghost market, but the whereabouts of Ying Heng were likely known only by the man in black working behind the scenes. Liu Lixue assumed that the man in black was intentionally luring Sang Dai to the ghost market.
Liu Lixue believed the investigation could only proceed from two angles: Wu Hanshu or the ghost market.
But Tan Huai had chosen a third option, unrelated to either side.
Liu Lixue frowned, but since his Lord and the Lord’s wife appeared calm and even began chatting casually, he could only suppress his unease.
He glanced at the door. The night was growing deeper.
As midnight approached, Sang Dai and Su Xuan stood and left the inn.
The streets were sparsely populated. The little fox glanced at his sword cultivator.
She had Changmang tied to her wrist, the Zhiyu Sword at her waist, the Nine-Ring hairpin in her hair, and a Qiankun Bag filled with numerous life-saving elixirs. She was thoroughly prepared.
He leaned down to hug Sang Dai. “Dai Dai, if anything happens, come out immediately. Don’t push yourself too hard.”
“Alright.” Sang Dai wrapped her arms around his shoulders. “If I don’t return within a day, come find me, alright?”
Su Xuan nuzzled the side of her face and kissed the shell of her ear.
“Alright, I’ll remember.”
He watched Sang Dai teleport away to the ghost market.
Su Xuan withdrew his gaze and headed toward Wu Hanshu’s residence.
They didn’t plan to sneak around anymore—perhaps sometimes brute force was the key to solving problems. If Wu Hanshu refused to talk, they would just beat him up.
Sang Dai arrived outside the ghost market. The area was still shrouded in miasma, but she wasn’t part of the demon race, so the effects of the Jiexin Grass didn’t apply to her.
She drew her longsword and walked toward the ghost market.
The ghost market was a shadowy gray area, and in theory, there was no curfew here. The ghost markets Sang Dai had visited in the past were bustling with activity even in the middle of the night, filled with crowds.
But tonight, the ghost market in Linglong Town was eerily quiet.
The closer she got to Manxiang Pavilion, the stronger the ominous aura became.
Changmang tied to her wrist hovered behind her, while Zhiyu Sword, sensing something, buzzed incessantly.
Sang Dai stopped in front of the entrance to Manxiang Pavilion.
The seven-story building was the only source of light in the dim ghost market. Dozens of lanterns hung from the building, making it stand out too much in this lightless place—too bright, too eerie.
Sang Dai’s expression remained calm.
A figure slowly stepped out, their wide skirt trailing behind them, long black hair cascading to their waist, and their features strikingly vivid and beautiful.
Sang Dai locked eyes with her.
Hua Ling softly asked, “Miss Sang, I’ve been waiting for you for a long time.”
Zhiyu suddenly unsheathed itself, vibrating non-stop, its tip pointing directly at the interior of Manxiang Pavilion.
Sang Dai, in sync with the sword spirit of Zhiyu, received its message in her sea of consciousness:
“Master, I sense the aura of Chunying. It’s inside Manxiang Pavilion.”