Chapter 103: Crimson Flowers Hidden in White Bones (3)
At first, Bai Chunsheng didn’t fully understand Shen Yuying’s meaning. Yan Yi had once mentioned to him that demons had appeared in the Shattered Stone Mortal Realm, claiming that he had already slain them. Moreover, the people from Yusheng Sect who had handled the matter were present at the time. The issue should have long since been reported and dealt with.
According to Shen Yuying, however, Fairy Hongtao sent by Cuiwei Palace had been deceived by illusions, meaning that the real problem had never been resolved, and now it had escalated into a disaster.
Bai Chunsheng thought: “Fairy Hongtao of Cuiwei Palace is my grandmother’s closest friend. Even though her cultivation hasn’t reached the Mahayana stage, her skills are considerable. There’s no way she could have been fooled by mere illusions.”
Shen Yuying said: “Exactly. The person I made a deal with, who claimed to be from Tianqing Sect, said it must have been a method applied to her soul. Fairy Hongtao never even entered the Shattered Stone Mortal Realm—her fragile soul separated from her body, which is how she was deceived.”
“Her soul?” Bai Chunsheng was somewhat surprised. “I remember that methods targeting the soul have been forbidden in the cultivation world for over a thousand years.” It was precisely for this reason that not even a single book on such techniques existed in the Ten Thousand Demon Sect’s library.
When he had seen the Lingyu Mountain puppet, Bai Chunsheng had thought that Changliu Mountain’s legacy might concern the soul, and that the remains left behind were by a Mahayana cultivator from a thousand years ago. But he had not expected that not a single object from Changliu Mountain could be taken. Everything there was bizarre and unpredictable. He hadn’t dared to stay long enough to study what the jade puppet truly was, so he left hastily without fully understanding it.
Shen Yuying smiled: “What if these demons were sealed a thousand years ago?”
She asked: “That’s enough to stop you from reporting it, right?”
Bai Chunsheng: “Even if you hadn’t said it, I would have found out sooner or later.”
Shen Yuying retorted: “News is all about timing. Knowing early is always better than knowing late.”
Bai Chunsheng felt she made a reasonable point, albeit grudgingly. He nodded and bid farewell to Shen Yuying before entering the Star-Plucking Pavilion.
He was still lost in thought.
When he and Yan Yi had passed through the world gap from the Shattered Stone Mortal Realm to the Grand World, Tiannan City in that realm was in the midst of the once-in-a-century “Smoky Year”. How had it vanished so suddenly…?
Thinking of this, Bai Chunsheng realized that Tiannan City, during the Smoky Year, had been sealed off from the outside. The city was shrouded in an impenetrable fog, and every household had doors and windows tightly closed. Even if demons had been feeding on humans, no one could have called for help under such conditions. Bai Chunsheng and Yan Yi, with the identity tokens allowing access to the world gap, had entered seclusion and thus would have had no way of knowing that demons had been active in the Shattered Stone Mortal Realm during those months.
Understanding this, Bai Chunsheng finally felt the first real sense of proximity to the chaotic upheaval sweeping the cultivation world.
Back at the Star-Plucking Pavilion, he lay on the bed, staring blankly for a while. He had intended to catch up on the sleep interrupted by Bo Yan, but now he couldn’t fall asleep no matter what. With the demons emerging from Fuyu Mountain, Yusheng Sect, and Tiannan City, many lives and much blood had surely been consumed.
The idea of demons skilled in manipulating souls a thousand years ago was terrifying.
If Shen Yuying was correct, then Daoist Changping might have been harmed by someone, his soul extracted and transformed into a demon. In that case, the true mastermind must still be at large.
The more Bai Chunsheng thought about it, the more anxious he became. He reached under his pillow and felt around until he found a thin letter. Seeing it eased his worry slightly, because it diverted his concern from the Shattered Stone Mortal Realm to whether or not he should open the letter.
This was the letter Yan Jingqiu had sent him before entering seclusion, though he had never read it. Even when he held it up to the light stone embedded in his spirit platform, the light couldn’t penetrate the paper. Bai Chunsheng couldn’t tell what Yan Jingqiu had written inside.
He hesitated, curious but also afraid.
After some time, Bai Chunsheng decided against opening it.
He reminded himself that, back in Lutai, he had slapped Yan Jingqiu—surely not words of kindness awaited in the letter. It was safer not to read it. Murmuring to himself, he placed the letter into his storage pouch, intending to return it to Yan Jingqiu once he regained his memories.
After cultivating for a while, he took out some classical texts and secrets borrowed from the library before leaving the Ten Thousand Demon Sect, planning to refine his focus. Since the chaotic era was arriving, it was best to improve himself.
The next afternoon, Bo Yan returned from outside. A paper crane flew into the Star-Plucking Pavilion, which Bai Chunsheng opened to find a message from Yi Zhou: “The Lord has returned.”
Bai Chunsheng didn’t think it was anything surprising. He replied: “Naturally, if he has legs, he’ll come back.”
He secretly wished Bo Yan wouldn’t return just yet, so he could fully clear his head in the Water Abyss Realm.
Despite his words, Bai Chunsheng opened the Pavilion’s defensive formations and theatrically sat in a soft chair to read, pretending to be scholarly and studious.
The windows of the loft were open, and the red curtains fluttered in the wind.
Before long, Bo Yan strode into the Star-Plucking Pavilion, wearing dark blue brocade robes embroidered with subtle golden dragons. He leaned close to Bai Chunsheng and whispered: “The Lord has returned.”
It seemed that Yi Zhou had been instructed by Bo Yan to send the paper crane message.
Bai Chunsheng didn’t even blink. He waved his hand dismissively: “I know. Go on down.”
Bo Yan asked: “Aren’t you curious what I did all day?”
Bai Chunsheng feigned surprise: “You went out?”
Bo Yan raised an eyebrow: “I don’t believe Yi Zhou didn’t tell you.”
“Oh.” Bai Chunsheng pretended to be defeated, then asked honestly: “What did you do?”
Bo Yan said: “Immortal Miaoyan died. Xuanzhen Zhenren said he calculated that the last person Immortal Miaoyan saw before dying should have been me. Some remaining members of Tianqing Sect jumped out, claiming I was the true culprit. They said they had leverage on me, that I had coaxed Immortal Miaoyan into drinking the ‘Unwilling to Forget’ and ultimately dying under his inner demons.”
He sneered: “Funny—I didn’t even know about it myself.”
“I had no grievances with Immortal Miaoyan. There’s no reason I would put him to death over a few words.” Bo Yan continued, “Besides, he had told me his lifespan was nearly over. He looked like someone who wouldn’t live long. Waiting a few more days, he would have died anyway. What grudge would I have to act on?”
He grew confident as he spoke: “And if I had killed him, why would I need to cover it up? Kill or don’t kill—it wouldn’t matter. Could these people do anything to me?”
Bai Chunsheng: “…”
“Did you answer anyone who asked you the same way?” he asked.
Bo Yan: “Of course.”
“No wonder,” Bai Chunsheng said. “With that attitude, it’s no surprise people suspected you when something went wrong.”
Bo Yan nodded: “You’re right.”
Bai Chunsheng was about to nod and gently guide him with a “as long as you understand” when Bo Yan added: “If anyone comes to me and talks nonsense again, I’ll send their soul to the West and make them understand what they can and cannot say.”
Bai Chunsheng: “…”
Huge shoutout to @_nyanmaru_ on Discord for commissioning this! The chapter will be posted regularly, show your support for Ciacia at Kofi.
