It was a night with a high moon. Most of the Qilin Guards had gone to the main gate to protect the two masters, never expecting that these great immortal sect cultivators would choose such an underhanded method as sneaking in secretly.

Ling Luo used to care about such things, but now she doesn’t.

Mu Xujing had never considered himself a member of a great immortal sect.

Yue Liangze, seeing how comfortable the two were with this approach, felt any admonishment would just make him sound long-winded.

The three silently made their way toward the back gate of the manor.

The manor had protective formations to keep the peace inside, preventing most demons and spirits from entering. The formations were useless against ordinary people, but if demons or cultivators forcibly entered without understanding the operational principles, they would trigger various protective or offensive mechanisms, alerting the guards.

Ling Luo stood outside, looking up, and asked Mu Xujing, “Do you know how to create painted-skin spirits?”

Mu Xujing: “No.”

“Then I’ll teach you, guaranteed success.” Ling Luo formed a hand seal, and when Yue Liangze looked over, she said, “Taking action inside will alert the manor’s people. At that point, they won’t dare stay in the manor any longer. You go in to stir things up, while he and I wait outside to catch them.”

Mu Xujing: “…”

He glanced at Ling Luo. Her use of that idiom was truly unique.

Yue Liangze asked, “I’m going in alone?”

Ling Luo continued forming seals and drawing, raising an eyebrow, “What do you mean alone? He and I will enter in painted-skin spirit form, reducing the risk of discovery.”

Yue Liangze: “Why are you teaching him painted-skin spirits?”

“You’re allowed to teach him Flash Step but I can’t teach painted-skin spirits?” Ling Luo snorted. “If you can teach him, why can’t I?”

I teach better than you! Simpler and easier to understand!

She glanced at the motionless Mu Xujing, her eyes threatening: Learn it!

Mu Xujing, without a word, silently channeled his spiritual energy and followed her instructions.

“You’ve seen that large cat, right? You can control the size and form. Even if it’s a cat, as long as you wish, you can make it as tall as an adult or as small as a fist,” Ling Luo taught unhurriedly. “But this requires mastery of the technique and abundant spiritual energy. For beginners like you, just draw a butterfly or cricket or something.”

Smaller beings were less complex and easier to control with spiritual energy.

Following her instructions, Mu Xujing carefully drew a black butterfly and then summoned the spirit from the drawing.

Everything was stable. The black butterfly that flew out of the drawing spread its wings like an ordinary butterfly, without losing form or dissipating spiritual energy.

Ling Luo said: “Not bad.”

Mu Xujing stared at the first painted-skin spirit he had ever summoned without blinking.

Yue Liangze asked her: “What are you drawing?”

Ling Luo casually sketched a few strokes with her finger, revealing a fox. When it materialized, it was a small white fox that wagged its tail as it perched on Yue Liangze’s shoulder, waving its paw arrogantly and saying: “Let’s go!”

Yue Liangze: “…”

He unconsciously straightened his back. The white fox’s soft tail seemingly unintentionally swept across his neck, making him feel ticklish.

Though it looked like a fox, it contained Ling Luo’s consciousness. Every movement was her will, essentially placing Ling Luo on his shoulder.

Yue Liangze became more serious.

So Yue Liangze, with a white fox on his left shoulder and a black butterfly on his right, used magic to pass through the wall into Prince Gan’s Manor.

Before reaching the inner courtyard, patrolling guards were everywhere. The manor was enormous; going from one courtyard to another required passing through several corridors or garden paths.

While Yue Liangze concentrated on avoiding the formations, Ling Luo was quietly teaching Mu Xujing the essentials and applications of painted-skin spirits.

Mu Xujing initially seemed uninterested, but after staring at his black butterfly for a while, his attitude changed completely, and he began to learn earnestly.

Whenever Yue Liangze occasionally interjected to add a point or two, the white fox would scratch his face with its paw: “Don’t talk while I’m teaching! Otherwise, it becomes your teaching!”

The furry, fleshy paw smeared across his face.

Yue Liangze fell silent.

After finishing her lesson, Ling Luo asked: “You haven’t taken a master?”

“No.”

“And no one at Moon Palace teaches you?”

“They don’t teach.”

“Why?”

After a moment of silence, Mu Xujing answered without emotion: “I don’t know.”

“Then why did they bring you back?” Ling Luo asked, feigning curiosity. “The heir of Moon Palace will inherit the position of Master in the future.”

Mu Xujing: “Then that’s why they brought me back—to inherit the position of Master.”

The white fox reached out to threaten the black butterfly on the other shoulder but was stopped by Yue Liangze: “That’s what I just said!”

Mu Xujing remained silent.

Ling Luo changed the subject: “Was it Jiang Miao who brought you back?”

What business did she have bringing her ex-husband’s illegitimate son back to Moon Palace? It was already merciful not to have him eliminated outside.

“No,” Mu Xujing said indifferently. “The person who brought me back wasn’t her.”

“Yet you’re always by Jiang Miao’s side. Everyone thinks you’re her confidant,” the white fox sat with dignity. Yue Liangze glanced over and noticed that even as a painted-skin spirit, it inherited Ling Luo’s innate pride. “If your relationship is good, you’re her confidant; if not, you’re monitoring her.”

The black butterfly, motionless as if dead: “Moon Palace affairs cannot be told to you.”

The white fox snorted coldly, its ears twitching, then asked: “So what do you think of Jiang Miao?”

After a moment of silence, Mu Xujing finally answered with rare certainty: “Boring.”

Ling Luo wanted to ask more, but then she saw Yue Liangze stop in front of a quiet pavilion and say: “We’re here.”

Her attention shifted to the Bone Demon who had stolen the sword, and she surveyed the pavilion.

“You go,” the white fox pointed at the black butterfly.

The black butterfly flapped its wings and flew away, circling the pavilion to count how many serving girls and guards were outside. Yue Liangze used this intelligence to avoid the guards and silently entered the back courtyard.

There was an unpleasant medicinal smell in the courtyard, which included the Nylon Flower Leaves that Ling Luo despised. The white fox covered its nose with its front paws in disgust.

Besides the unpleasant smell, the three also detected a faint demonic aura coming from inside the room.

The window was half-open for ventilation. Yue Liangze cast an illusion to avoid the serving girls guarding the courtyard entrance and went inside. There was no one at the front of the room, but as he approached the window, he discovered why.

Tian Rong sat up in bed, unhurriedly putting on her clothes. Near the bed at the dressing table was a black shadow, seemingly human-shaped. Black mist swirled and transformed around it; one could only see that it was a tall figure but couldn’t make out the features.

The conversation between these two could not be known to others.

“Did you get what you wanted?” Tian Rong asked softly.

“The immortal sect people are at the manor’s entrance. The Qilin Guards can’t hold them back. I’ve come to take you away,” the Bone Demon said.

His voice was deep and pleasant. Just hearing it gave the impression of a refined and handsome young man.

“What about Si Chou?” Tian Rong asked as she got out of bed.

Bone Demon: “Bai Linglong has already gone to prepare to take him away.”

Tian Rong pursed her lips and said softly: “You will cure him, won’t you?”

The Bone Demon chuckled softly: “This is our deal, of course, I will.”

Tian Rong lowered her head as she tied her belt. Hearing this, a smile gradually appeared on her pale face, “That’s good. You should go now, don’t worry about me.”

The Bone Demon looked at her without speaking.

Tian Rong continued on her own: “When I was twelve, Master took me as a disciple. Although we spent less than a year together before she went into seclusion because of my senior brother’s affair and never saw each other again, during that year, Master gave me the courage to live on.”

“She hated my senior brother for becoming a demon, but because he was her most beloved disciple, she couldn’t bring herself to kill him. She could only torment herself, secluding herself in the Mingxin Shrine, reciting soul-pacifying scriptures daily for the vengeful spirits killed by my senior brother, quelling their resentment to atone. I could only talk to her from outside, separated by a door.”

The Bone Demon smiled without humor: “She took you as a disciple yet taught you nothing. How is she worthy of being your master?”

Tian Rong shook her head. She turned to look at the Bone Demon, her delicate face full of comforting gentleness: “Some people appear at the right moment and become unforgettable for life. Master was such a person, and so was Si Chou.”

“Master gave me the courage to live, but I betrayed her and violated sect rules. I can save Si Chou, but as long as he lives, that’s enough. I’ve committed an unforgivable mistake with no way back, and I don’t want to hurt Master.”

“Your master doesn’t care about you at all,” the Bone Demon said contemptuously.

“Tianji has issued a warrant. I can’t escape for long,” Tian Rong said calmly. “You should take him away quickly.”

She walked toward the exit.

“Where are you going?”

“I’m going to turn myself in,” Tian Rong said. “I also want to apologize to Master before I die.”

The Bone Demon raised his hand, freezing her in place.

His tone suddenly became grim: “I said I would take you away.”

“You don’t need to do this,” Tian Rong frowned slightly. “You’ve already gotten what you wanted. You can go do what you want to do. I won’t reveal a single word to the immortal sects.”

“Even if you don’t say anything, they have various methods to extract it from your mind,” the Bone Demon said coldly. “The methods of the great immortal sects can sometimes be more cruel than those of demons.”

“You…” Tian Rong had just begun to speak when she was enveloped by black mist and lost consciousness. The Bone Demon half-carried her, about to leave, when he suddenly turned his head to see a sword light already before his eyes.

The familiar black sword carried terrifying killing energy, along with a contradictory blend of righteous power coexisting with that killing intent.

A black barrier appeared in front of him, but Wusheng shattered it. The Bone Demon erupted with black light that collided with Wusheng, sweeping across the pavilion.

This disturbance quickly caught the attention of the guards outside, who immediately sent signals to relay the news.

The Bone Demon flew out of the pavilion into the void, coldly looking down at Yue Liangze: “You’re truly persistent, following me all the way here.”

Yue Liangze looked up at him, his sword energy spreading out, stirring up fierce winds.

“Return Zhen Xianyu to me,” he said.

The Bone Demon laughed: “Didn’t you say you didn’t want it?”

Yue Liangze asked: “What do you intend to do with it?”

“Rest assured, I’m just borrowing it. I’ll return it after I’m done,” the Bone Demon said meaningfully. “In this world, only you can wield Zhen Xianyu. I couldn’t take it from you even if I wanted to.”

Yue Liangze changed his sword stance and said lightly: “I don’t lend it.”

Using the Wind-Riding Spell, he rose into the void pursuing the Bone Demon, who had no intention of prolonged battle and kept trying to distance himself.

The sword’s light and demonic energy sweeping across the sky left the people below with complex emotions.

“Princess! Something’s happened!” A serving girl rushed to report.

Gan Mao, who was still pulling at Feng Tianyao’s hair and clothes, saw the sword light in the distance and became even more furious: “How dare you! You sneaked into our home! Despicable! And you call yourselves righteous immortal sects? How are you any different from thieves? Shameless!”

Feng Tianyao angrily replied: “I’m not the one who snuck in! What does it have to do with me? I, young master, openly stormed your manor! I didn’t sneak around!”

“All equally shameless!” Gan Mao continued throwing punches.

Feng Tianyao said: “Look at that cloud of demonic energy. Still saying you’re not harboring anyone?”

Gan Ting’s eyes flashed with anger as she directed the Qilin Guards to investigate.

Chu Yi recognized Yue Liangze’s Wusheng sword energy and glanced at his people, asking Chang Fei expressionlessly: “Where’s Ling Luo?”

Chang Fei spread his hands innocently: “I don’t know.”

Just as he finished speaking, they saw Ling Luo’s sword energy sweep nearby, and between the high walls, two figures were engaged in combat.

When the Bone Demon and Tian Rong mentioned that Bai Linglong was taking someone away, Ling Luo and Mu Xujing had gone to intercept them.

Now, two Bai Linglong assassins, each carrying an injured comrade on their backs, were being chased as they tried to leave the manor. Ling Luo and Mu Xujing blocked their path, forcing them toward the manor’s main gate.

Ling Luo used Flash Step to move forward, and with the Wind-Riding Spell, she slashed down at Bai Linglong who had leaped into the void. With nowhere to dodge, the assassin fell to the ground awkwardly. Just as the others were about to act, a voice shouted: “Stop! Or the young master dies!”

One of the Bai Linglong had taken Gan Mao hostage, with a black jade sword pressed against his neck.

This maneuver lived up to the reputation of top assassins—able to silently seize Gan Mao despite the protection of Life and Death Boundary Qilin Guards.

Feng Tianyao raged: “You dare to capture someone in front of me!”

Just as he was about to act, the Bai Linglong unhesitatingly cut, the blade penetrating the skin and causing immediate bleeding.

Gan Ting’s hands clenched tightly within her sleeves: “Stop!”

Feng Tianyao stopped, and no one else dared to move.

The Bai Linglong said coldly: “Anyone who moves even a step, he dies.”

Feng Tianyao gritted his teeth in anger: “Cowardly!”

Demonic energy descended from above. The Bone Demon arrived on the path and snapped his fingers, creating a long black line behind him that opened as he approached.

“A Rong?” Gan Ting bit her lip as she saw the unconscious Tian Rong in the Bone Demon’s arms and shouted angrily, “Release my brother!”

“Princess, please calm down. I’m just borrowing your brother briefly and will return him soon,” the Bone Demon said unhurriedly.

The Bai Linglong assassins moved closer to him and entered the Death Mist Gate.

The Bone Demon looked at the Tianji people and mocked: “Go back and tell your sect leader if she wants her life, come find me to get it.”

Ling Luo saw him open the Death Mist Gate and knew they couldn’t stop him. She had already sheathed her sword, but unexpectedly, a sword light slashed from her side toward the Death Mist Gate. The sword’s energy was astonishing, powerful, and domineering as if it could pulverize mountains into dust.

Because of this sword light, the Bone Demon, who was turning to enter the gate, looked back in surprise.

The sword light struck the Death Mist Gate but was swallowed by the black mist, silently. The black line closed and scattered like fireflies.

Ling Luo glanced at Yue Liangze, who had unleashed this sword strike, her expression inscrutable.

This man had also slashed at the Death Mist Gate she had opened years ago.

Do you have some grudge against this gate?