The hot tea in the pot had long since gone completely cold.

Zanxing poured two cups of tea for Mendong and Tian Fangfang. These two had been running around outside all day and were extremely thirsty. Without a word, they first drank two cups of cold tea. Tian Fangfang pulled out a booklet from her chest and handed it to Gu Baiying: “Junior Brother and I visited five households today in total. All the information we gathered is recorded in this booklet.”

Gu Baiying opened the booklet, and Zanxing moved her stool next to his to look together.

Though Mendong was young, he had excellent handwriting. However, as Tian Fangfang had said, the contents recorded in this booklet indeed seemed quite useless.

“The events from back then happened a long time ago,” Tian Fangfang said. “Many people can’t remember the details clearly. We asked quite a few people, and the situation is similar to the victims we encountered last night. All were girls alone in their homes who were drained of their blood and died.”

Zanxing asked: “But why isn’t the merfolk’s appearance recorded in this booklet?”

“Because no one has ever seen the merfolk,” Tian Fangfang said. “When those murdered girls were discovered, they were already dead. No one has seen what the merfolk looked like.”

“Merfolk are demons,” Mendong said. “After killing people, they would naturally leave. How could ordinary mortals possibly catch the true form of a demon?”

Zanxing shook her head: “I still feel something’s wrong. According to this, the only ones who’ve seen what the merfolk looked like are the royal family members from forty years ago, when the merfolk were slain, but no one caught the merfolk in the act of committing murder. Furthermore…” She looked at the wet trail on the floor. Honestly, she found it very hard to imagine merfolk dragging a fish tail while crawling on the ground.

Gu Baiying only looked at the records in his hands.

Mendong asked: “Uncle, why aren’t you saying anything?”

“The women who were victimized forty years ago were all eighteen years old,” Gu Baiying suddenly spoke.

Tian Fangfang was stunned for a moment, then nodded: “Yes, this demon knows how to harm people. Girls at the very bloom of youth – one of the households we visited today, the girl was about to be married, was killed by the Demon Shark the day before her wedding. The groom was so grief-stricken that he took his own life to follow her. How sinful.”

“Could it be that he specifically selects eighteen-year-old women?” Zanxing asked.

“It’s probably just a coincidence,” Mendong said. “Wasn’t the woman who was victimized the night before last only fifteen?”

“Maybe his taste changed?” Tian Fangfang slammed her palm on the table and said angrily, “This Demon Shark is picky!”

“That’s not right.” Gu Baiying interrupted their conversation, flipped through the booklet in his hands again, and asked Tian Fangfang: “When you went out today, didn’t you inquire about those women’s birth dates?”

“No.” Tian Fangfang shook her head: “We weren’t arranging marriages or exchanging betrothal documents – why would we ask about people’s birth dates and times?” Seeing Gu Baiying’s gaze becoming increasingly sharp, Tian Fangfang’s voice lowered: “…We forgot, Uncle.”

Seeing Gu Baiying’s expression wasn’t good, Mendong asked: “What’s wrong, Uncle? Is there something off about these birth dates and times?”

“Tomorrow you’ll make another trip and get those women’s birth dates and times,” Gu Baiying said coldly. “Don’t miss a single one.”

His tone was very serious, so Tian Fangfang and Mendong didn’t dare say anything more. It was already late at night, and tomorrow morning, the two would have to get up early again to gather information. So after saying a few words, they left to return to their rooms to rest first.

Gu Baiying also stood to leave.

Zanxing grabbed his sleeve: “Uncle!”

“What?” he asked impatiently.

“Tonight, that demon snuck into my room wanting to attack me. Although it fled midway, there’s no guarantee it won’t return. Even you couldn’t catch up to it, which shows it’s very strong. I might not be able to handle it alone.”

“So?”

“So tonight, why don’t you come sleep in my room?” Zanxing answered readily. “We can watch out for each other.”

“What did you say?” Gu Baiying asked incredulously.

“There are two beds in this room,” Zanxing pointed them out to him. “You can sleep on that spacious one, I’ll sleep on the small one. They’re not in the same bed, and they’re quite far apart. It should be fine, right?”

“Yang Zanxing,” Gu Baiying stared at her as if he’d seen a ghost. “You’re a woman and I’m a man – how can we sleep in the same room?”

“Is the cultivation world this strict?” Zanxing said. “Just think of this room as the wilderness – we’ll each sleep in a corner, won’t that work?”

Gu Baiying took a deep breath: “Give up that idea. I will not sleep with you.”

Zanxing looked at him. The young man was tightly pursing his lips, his face iron-blue, as if what she’d suggested was some heinous crime. After a long silence, Zanxing took a step back: “Fine, if not, I’ll go find Senior Brother Tian. Though his cultivation isn’t as good as yours, if something happens, it’s good to have someone to watch out for me.” Late at night like this, having just had someone sneak into her room, she wasn’t careless enough to immediately act as if nothing had happened. The palace guards in Li’er Kingdom were truly useless – by the time someone came to ask what had happened, the intruder had already fled three li away, and no one would know even if she’d been killed.

“No!” Upon hearing this, Gu Baiying suddenly looked at Zanxing and said angrily: “Yang Zanxing, I’ve told you – dual cultivation is forbidden in the sect.”

“I’m not dual cultivating.” Zanxing was speechless for a moment, then said, “We would just be in the same room, sleeping. Not cultivating.”

“That’s also not allowed.”

Zanxing finally lost her temper and simply looked at Gu Baiying: “Then what do you suggest, Uncle?”

“Don’t sleep tonight,” Gu Baiying said. “Cultivate in the room.”

Zanxing stared wide-eyed, hardly believing what she heard: “Uncle, even if I don’t sleep tonight, there are still several days until the Secret Realm opens. I can’t go without sleep every night, can I? Besides, if I exhaust all my energy now, what will I use to compete with the Chihua Gate people when I enter the Secret Realm? Won’t you say then that I’m bringing shame to the sect?”

Gu Baiying looked up at her.

This person stood in the room, looking at him with extremely candid eyes. It wasn’t that there were no disciples in the sect who sought comfort, but among those who became personal disciples, Yang Zanxing was probably the first who could act shamelessly with such righteousness.

She also lacked the awareness of being a woman, actually able to say “sleep together.” If this were anyone else, transferring the Qin Chong seed would be far too easy.

Qin Chong…

Thinking of Qin Chong, Gu Baiying felt another wave of frustration in his heart.

“Uncle, have you decided yet?” Zanxing saw the young man’s eyes flickering with changing light and couldn’t guess what he was thinking.

“You sleep,” Gu Baiying said. “Tonight I’ll cultivate in your room.”

Zanxing: “……”

She said: “You’re not sleeping?”

“I’m not like you.” Gu Baiying sat down on the long couch in the room and indeed began to close his eyes and rest.

“Not sleeping?” Zanxing asked kindly.

Gu Baiying kept his eyes closed and ignored her.

Zanxing felt very moved in her heart. Look, what an upright young man. This kind of character setting in a male-oriented power fantasy novel was simply a monster-like existence, too unscientific.

However, with Gu Baiying guarding here tonight, presumably the Demon Shark wouldn’t dare return. She could rest assured.

Zanxing quietly got onto the bed and blew out the oil lamp at the bedside. The sea of stars outside the window fell upon the window, casting half a frame of dappled light and shadow. On the long couch in the room, the young man’s silhouette was upright. In this slightly cool night, he was like a spring breeze, carrying gentle warmth that made one feel at peace even in dreams.

She watched and watched, unknowingly falling asleep.