“Miss Xiang, my unc… Master Dao Chen is bathing. You might need to wait outside for a while,” Bai Xingxian led the way.

Xiang Tianqing nodded, about to speak, when she saw the “Master” approaching hurriedly from the opposite direction.

From a distance, Yin Changli looked toward Bai Xingxian: “Where is Miss Xiang?”

With Xiang Tianqing right in front of him, the “Miss Xiang” he referred to was naturally Xiang Haikui. Bai Xingxian pointed toward the direction of Yin Sha City: “Little Sister Kui has gone home.”

His brows deeply furrowed, Yin Changli brushed past them, silent and looking straight ahead, heading directly outward.

“Master…” Xiang Tianqing turned with him, a trace of surprise on her lotus-like face.

She had previously felt that the Master had advanced several major realms, becoming as unapproachable as a deity.

But now his eyes were bright, like a spirited young man.

Bai Xingxian was stunned: “Where are you going?”

Yin Changli: “To chase after her.”

“That absolutely won’t do!”

Bai Xingxian hurriedly caught up, whispering: “Uncle, you can’t go out that door right now!”

The urgency in his tone made Yin Changli slow his steps, then stop at the entrance of the Buddhist cave.

Yes, he couldn’t go out.

Miss Xiang was trustworthy.

So the current crisis must be real.

He couldn’t be certain if the Underworld officials hunting him had followed Miss Xiang or not.

He couldn’t be certain if they could identify him when they saw him.

He wasn’t even certain if they had truly mistaken her identity or had other plans.

“Miss Xiang is risking herself.”

Yet he was powerless.

At present, he couldn’t protect himself, let alone others.

Yin Changli was only about a foot from the cave entrance, which was open with no door.

But in his eyes, there was a thick wall separating him from the outside world.

“Uncle trusts us now?” Bai Xingxian was overjoyed. He knew best how deeply suspicious his uncle was.

Just as he had followed his uncle for five hundred years without knowing his uncle’s true form was a snake.

“Tell me everything you know about me.”

…

By now, Xiang Haikui was quite far from the Buddhist cave.

But she looked back instinctively, glancing once more.

Strange, she felt as if a gaze was watching her.

It wasn’t from the two Underworld bigwigs, because this gaze was very peculiar.

How to describe it?

It was like a documentary about a village family left behind—a mother about to leave for work in the city, a child standing at the village entrance, eyes full of tears, waving a small hand, earnestly yearning for reunion—that kind of attachment.

It was too strange. She shuddered, her hair standing on end.

As the camel beast crossed the barren Gobi and approached Yin Sha’s main city, they began to see many people coming and going on the road.

Without prompting, passersby made way for Meng Xilou and Wu Mian.

Riding together, Meng Xilou hadn’t spoken to her the entire way, but suddenly whispered: “Little Junior Sister, do you see how the common people look at me?”

Xiang Haikui had a belly full of worries and no leisure to observe the people. Only after his prompting did her gaze shift from the back of his head.

“I can see they all admire and respect Senior Brother.”

Xiang Haikui’s words weren’t flattery. Meng Xilou had abandoned a comfortable life in the royal capital to come to this barren border region, slaying demons and monsters, protecting people’s peace, day in and day out for a hundred years. He truly qualified as a heroic figure.

Meng Xilou again transmitted his voice softly: “Have you heard what they’re talking about?”

Xiang Haikui shook her head.

Cultivators had good hearing, but they didn’t allow all sounds within a radius to flood into their ears indiscriminately. If that were the case, the noise would be unbearable.

Listening had directionality. Only after she directed her ear sense to a specific area did she hear…

“Ah, our great City Lord, wise all his life, how could he be captivated by this little seductress from the royal capital?”

“Yesterday, she entangled with Master Dao Chen. I heard from the young monks that she clung to him all night in the Buddhist cave.”

“Master Dao Chen’s discipline is remarkable. She must have given up, and now she’s clinging to Lord Meng.”

“Except for our Young Miss, I’ve never seen Lord Meng ride together with anyone else.”

Initially, Xiang Haikui would get angry hearing such rumors.

Now she was used to it and felt nothing. Instead, she even wanted to take out a mirror to look at herself. Fox spirit, seductress—these were affirmations of a woman’s charm.

Wu Mian fell back from the front, his handsome face dark, turning to glare at Xiang Haikui: “You left your camel beast and insisted on riding with Senior Brother. Are you deliberately trying to ruin his reputation?”

Xiang Haikui shook her head: “How could that be, Third Brother? I initially wanted to ride with you, but you rejected me.”

Wu Mian was taken aback. It seemed to be true, which made him more annoyed: “Then you originally planned to ruin my reputation?”

Xiang Haikui fell silent for a moment, then looked back seriously: “Third Brother, what reputation do you have?”

“I…” Wu Mian was stumped.

He was a half-demon discriminated against by the humans of the Central States.

He was a militant who felt uncomfortable if he didn’t fight every day.

Before Xiang Haikui came to Yin Sha, he had been the biggest stain on Yin Sha’s Great City Lord Xiang Heng, constantly being pointed at and gossiped about.

Reputation? He didn’t have any.

Wu Mian awkwardly pointed at himself, then patted the seat behind him: “Now I agree. Come ride with me.”

Xiang Haikui refused to go.

You reject when you want to reject, and allow sharing when you want to share? Don’t I have any face?

“What are you dawdling for? Come over quickly!” Wu Mian reached out to grab her shoulder.

She dodged to the side.

Meng Xilou turned his head to admonish Wu Mian: “We’re about to enter the city. What are you making a fuss about?”

Wu Mian feared him and quickly withdrew his hand: “Senior Brother, haven’t you heard…”

Meng Xilou interrupted: “Have you forgotten what Master taught? With integrity, why fear rumors?”

“Oh.” Wu Mian hung his head like a chick and responded, falling behind the two.

Xiang Haikui couldn’t help but look at Meng Xilou’s straight back, her mind churning with doubts.

He seemed quite upright.

“Senior Brother, I’m sorry for accidentally tarnishing your reputation.”

“It doesn’t matter. I don’t care about reputation anyway.” Meng Xilou paused briefly, then continued in a whisper, “Everything I do is to provide Tianqing with a stable environment to grow up in, because I am her older brother from the Upper Realm.”

This unexpected turn left Xiang Haikui momentarily stunned.

Meng Xilou spoke calmly: “Tianqing is reincarnated for tribulation, while I secretly came down to the lower realm with a split soul, possessing this physical body. That’s why I gave up entering Jin Ling Academy and came to the border to stay by Tianqing’s side.”

Xiang Haikui: …

After all her calculations, she hadn’t anticipated that he would voluntarily reveal himself!

Not Xiang Tianqing’s servant, but her actual brother.

Xiang Haikui remained silent. When unable to guess someone’s intentions, silence was the best approach—what her boss often called “if the enemy doesn’t move, I don’t move.”

“Looking at Little Junior Sister’s expression, it’s quite intriguing—a mix of both expected and unexpected?”

The camel beast entered Yin Sha’s main road amid greetings from the gate guards.

It was already night, with lights from thousands of homes. More gazes fell on Meng Xilou, and discussions rose and fell.

Meng Xilou’s divine consciousness focused on examining the face of the young woman behind him.

Although she had quickly concealed her expression, she was, after all, just a mortal girl, not even a fraction of his age.

With his proactive approach, he could see through her seven or eight tenths.

Her return to Yin Sha this time was indeed well-prepared, with guidance from some “expert” behind her.

Previously, Meng Xilou hadn’t considered Xiang Haikui worth his attention at all. Even when Huai Mie reported that she wielded Tian Kuang, he didn’t care.

It wasn’t until he questioned the guards present at the time that he discovered she wasn’t just relying on the divine sword in her hand.

Her tricky sword techniques, elusive movements, and quick reactions all indicated that she had received excellent guidance.

Meng Xilou: “Little Junior Sister knows about Tianqing’s identity, presumably from the ‘expert’ who gave you the Tian Kuang sword, right?”

Xiang Haikui remained expressionless, looking up at the moon.

Meng Xilou smiled faintly: “Of course, you don’t need to answer me. I’m being honest today because I don’t want you to be deceived or used. My family has many enemies in the Upper Realm, and there are always people trying to create obstacles for us. Preventing them is why I came to the Lower Realm.”

“I’ve been diligently serving in Yin Sha for over a hundred years, and Master’s trust in me is evident to all. Little Junior Sister is still young and easily deceived by wicked people. I hope you can see early on, to avoid causing pain to those close to you and joy to your enemies, hurting Master’s heart.”

A person who rarely spoke and often maintained a stern face suddenly spoke so kindly and at length.

If Xiang Haikui hadn’t glimpsed the future in her dream, she might have been fooled by him.

What was he trying to achieve by revealing himself now?

In five days, it would be her father’s first small heavenly cycle. Was he trying to lower her guard?

Or did he think, since she was young and easily deceived, that he could extract from her who the “expert” behind her was?

Both, but mainly the latter.

Now, Meng Xilou believed that, compared to torturing and killing her to drive Xiang Heng mad, thus helping his sister take the first step on the path of merit, it was more important to know who was pulling strings from the shadows.

“By the way, Little Junior Sister, that room Master prepared for you seems to have been wrecked by your sword energy.”

“Yes.”

“I’ve ordered it to be repaired. During this period, you can stay in my courtyard. Since I’m from the royal capital, the courtyard’s style is gentler. You should like it.”

“Thank you.”

Xiang Haikui didn’t refuse.

Although she didn’t know what he was planning, with two Underworld bigwigs following her, his invitation couldn’t have come at a better time.

…

After returning to the City Lord’s mansion, Xiang Haikui stayed across from Meng Xilou.

As he said, the courtyard had a Jiangnan garden style, quite different from other parts of the City Lord’s mansion.

Many maids stood inside and outside, swiftly serving tea and water.

Xiang Haikui accepted everything, since having more people around was better.

Just as she sat down to drink some calming tea, Meng Xilou’s servant came to invite her over for dinner.

After some thought, Xiang Haikui took her sword case and went.

Upon entering, she froze, seeing that Meng Xilou had tried to please her—the entire table was filled with her favorite dishes.

Most of them were snake meat!

Normally, she could have eaten it all, but now the voice in her mind pressed the confirm button again: “Xiang Haikui, you’re going to die!”

She truly never wanted to eat snake meat again, ever.

Meng Xilou walked in from the back hall: “Little Junior Sister has just arrived, and I, as your Senior Brother, haven’t yet properly welcomed you.”

“Actually…” Xiang Haikui looked up, her gaze fixed.

In the short time since she’d last seen him, Meng Xilou seemed to have bathed and changed into a different long robe, emitting a faint fragrance.

“Please sit.” He sat down at the dining table.

Xiang Haikui sat opposite him, not removing the sword case from her back.

Meng Xilou paid no attention to her vigilance: “Would you like wine or tea?”

Xiang Haikui: “Tea.”

Meng Xilou prepared tea himself: “I’ve only gradually adapted to the tea in the mortal realm in the past two years…”

After the door was locked, only the two of them remained in the hall.

Meng Xilou spoke about his life in the Upper Realm. His manner of speaking and gestures were full of the aura of a noble young master.

Then, he took off an ornament like a necklace from his neck. The chain held a translucent, oval-shaped stone.

“Has Little Junior Sister seen this before?”

Xiang Haikui had seen it. Xiang Tianqing had one exactly like it.

Meng Xilou sat up straight: “A life-saving treasure, difficult to bring down from the Upper Realm. There are only two—one for Tianqing, one for me.”

He placed it on the table and pushed it toward her: “I’m giving mine to you, as a gift to celebrate your arrival in Yin Sha.”

Xiang Haikui refused to accept it: “This gift is too valuable. I can’t accept it.”

“I know you’ve been instigated by that person and still harbor deep suspicions toward me. I don’t know what they told you, nor do I want to know. Time will prove everything.”

As he spoke, he stood up, took the pendant from the table, and walked to Xiang Haikui’s side.

What was he up to?

Tian Kuang didn’t react, indicating he had no killing intent at the moment, but Xiang Haikui still wanted to stand up, unwilling to leave her back exposed to him.

But he extended his hand, forcefully pressing her back down.

Xiang Haikui felt somewhat irritated, and Tian Kuang couldn’t stay quiet in the sword case either: “Senior Brother, there’s no need…”

Meng Xilou firmly cut her off again: “I’ve never taken back something I’ve given. If Little Junior Sister doesn’t like it, just throw it away when you leave.”

Xiang Haikui: …

Slightly bending, he forcefully helped her put it on. As he straightened up, Meng Xilou said in a low, husky voice near her ear: “Big brother doesn’t particularly like disobedient girls.”

Xiang Haikui:?

Belatedly understanding, he was trying to seduce her!

This stinking idiot thought he was being a domineering CEO, cultivation world version?