After sending her family away, Nan Zhi knew that her every move would now be watched.
Ever since she had entered the territory of the Northwest Circuit Demon Suppression Monastery, the pursuit of the hungry ghosts seemed to have vanished overnight.
Either Huiyuan feared Daoist Qinglong and dared not act rashly, or she had already walked straight into the tiger's den, making it entirely unnecessary to send more people to hunt her down.
“It's not a big deal. Even in the worst-case scenario—a Foundation Establishment facing a Nascent Soul Great Circle—the advantage is still on my side. If I lose, the worst that happens is I lose a life and reload to try again. But if he loses, he loses face and becomes the laughingstock of the cultivation world.”
Quite unperturbed, Nan Zhi found the young Daoist boy she had met yesterday to guide her, and she took a brief tour around the entire Demon Suppression Monastery.
—And what a chaotic mess it was.
All demon suppressors of the third-class and above in the monastery had been deployed by Shen Luohe, either to garrison the subordinate counties or to reinforce other circuits' Demon Suppression Monasteries.
Even the low-cultivation third-class and fourth-class demon suppressors were not spared. They were all overwhelmed with tasks, leaving the dozens of people under the Records, Supervisory, and Arrest divisions completely frantic and in utter disarray. The entire place could barely function normally.
As a second-class supervisor, Shen Luohe wore many hats. He had to sort through the letters of appeal sent by various county yamens to dispatch suitable people, while also handling all the miscellaneous chores in the monastery, keeping him busy beyond belief.
By contrast, Nan Zhi was much more leisurely.
—Her current status was rather awkward. Since there was no reply from Bianjing yet, she was technically still a “wanted fugitive of the Demon Suppression Division.”
She could neither interfere in the affairs of the Demon Suppression Division nor leave the Demon Suppression Monastery at will.
“Normally, the four officers of Records, Supervisory, Arrest, and Judicial for each circuit's Demon Suppression Monastery should be appointed by Bianjing or only enter the monastery after undergoing assessments and examinations. The four officers are supposed to supervise and support one another, each performing their own duties, with the four commissioners above them directly reporting to Bianjing. This is the only way to ensure that even if the commissioner's seat is temporarily vacant, the Demon Suppression Monastery can still function as usual.”
Sitting on the roof of the Records Pavilion, Nan Zhi looked down at the deserted, quiet courtyard below and couldn't help but ask:
“Since there is a Nascent Soul powerhouse guarding the monastery, how could it fall into complete chaos the moment a disaster strikes?”
Sitting beside her was a young Daoist boy. He was none other than A-sheng, the one who had complained that if Shen Luohe returned late, he would have to go hungry.
A-sheng held a slice of sweet melon and took a deep bite with his gap-toothed mouth, leaving two holes in the fruit. “You've asked the wrong person. I'm just a crane boy who tends the cranes.”
“Although I don't know what other Demon Suppression Divisions are like, ever since Master Mo of the Arrest Division went into seclusion three years ago, all affairs in our monastery have been managed by Senior Brother Shen.”
“That doesn't sound like the way of a government office; it's more like the style of a cultivation sect,” Nan Zhi mused. “By the way, have you seen Hua Xijian recently? She and I are both Arrest Officers, so technically, we should be working under this Master Mo.”
Nan Zhi felt no shame whatsoever in pumping a child for information, and she pulled some pastries from her sleeve to hand to him.
“Where did you hear that Master Mo went into seclusion? That news might be false. I heard that Master Mo returned to the Qingjing Sect for the recent sect selections in the cultivation world.”
The Great Song was located on the Four Provinces Continent, and its territory happened to border the two major cultivation sects, the Qingjing Sect and the Wuwei Sect.
Therefore, when the disciples of these two sects sought to temper their hearts in the mortal world, their top choice was the Great Song's Demon Suppression Division.
Mo Chenghuai was a cultivator dispatched here by the Qingjing Sect to experience the mortal world. It was said that his cultivation was around the mid-stage Golden Core realm, and he was extremely skilled in various killing formations. He was a man of intense killing intent, advocating that all demons must be slain and evil must be completely eradicated, earning him a fierce reputation that spread far and wide.
“Senior Sister Hua is also in seclusion,” A-sheng muttered, swinging his legs.
He retorted somewhat unhappily, “Who says my news is false? There's nothing in this entire monastery that I don't know about. Master Mo went into seclusion three years ago to study a new formation, and he hasn't come out since. As for the sect selections, they only happen once every ten years. Only senior brothers and sisters with a cultivation of Foundation Establishment or above are eligible to participate in the sect trials. What does that have to do with Master Mo?”
“My apologies, I must have remembered incorrectly,” Nan Zhi apologized with a smile.
“Do you happen to know where Master Mo is in seclusion?”
“There, isn't it just at Mount Maodie, ten miles outside the monastery?”
A-sheng casually pointed in a direction for her to see.
“But Master Mo is an expert in formations. Mount Maodie is covered in countless killing formations, so even Uncle Crane doesn't dare fly over there easily. If you admire him, just wait in the monastery for eight or ten years. Perhaps once he finishes his seclusion, you'll get to see his heroic bearing!”
Nan Zhi noted down all of this. Just as she was about to ask more, she suddenly saw a white crane flapping its wings in the sky. In the blink of an eye, its long avian legs landed beside them.
The white crane carried itself with elegant grace. The black marks left on its body by the lightning strike had faded significantly, and a layer of fine, dense down had grown back on its wings.
It looked down at Nan Zhi, craning its neck to let out a long cry:
“Ga-ga-ah! Ga-ah-ah-ah-ah!”
【My master wants to see you.】
With that, the white crane nudged its crane boy, A-sheng, with its head, flapped its wings, and quickly flew away.
Daoist Qinglong wanted to see her?
At a time like this?
Nan Zhi pursed her lips and glanced toward Mount Maodie. Then, she turned, tossed out a miserably charred red-skinned gourd, and pretended to fly on the artifact, closely following behind the white crane toward the Demon Suppression Tower.
...
Meanwhile, on the other side of things.
After the carriage had traveled over thirty li and the town grew closer, Nan Ye, sitting inside the carriage, recalled her eldest sister's warnings, her breathing growing slightly rapid.
Even the string of beads held in her hand seemed to grow hot to the touch.
“Zhi, zhi, zhi...”
Her sleeve rustled, and a reddish hedgehog poked its head out from inside.
Seeing Nan Ye's tension, the little beast offered a few squeaks of comfort. It then used its mouth to pull out a packet of powder wrapped in oil paper, whispering to gesture to her:
“Zhi, zhi, zhi... zhi, zhi...”
“Miss Nan, is something the matter?”
The cultivator driving outside heard the noise. He reined in the horses and lifted the curtain to check, only to be caught off guard as a packet of powder was flung directly into his face. Instantly, his entire body went numb and limp, and he slumped to the side as the carriage wheels slowly ground to a halt—
It worked!
What Eldest Sister had written in her letter was correct; this Spirit Swallowing Grass was indeed highly effective against cultivators!
Suppressing her excitement, Nan Ye lifted her skirt, pushed the cultivator into the roadside bushes to hide him, and turned around. She saw that the red hedgehog had already transformed into a young girl, who was now skillfully driving the carriage:
“Second Miss, I am Hongluo. Eldest Miss instructed me to escort the Master and Madam to Bianjing first, and she will follow shortly. Quick, get back in! If we are taking the land route to Bianjing, it will take quite some time!”
“Th-Thank you.”
Seeing that she was a demon, Nan Ye was startled at first, but she quickly suppressed her fear and nodded.
Climbing back into the carriage, she saw that her parents were still fast asleep. Just as she breathed a small sigh of relief, she was startled so badly in the next second that her entire body trembled—
Thud!
A soft but distinct sound came from the chest of local specialties in the back of the carriage.
To the highly tense Nan Ye, however, this sound was no different from a sudden clap of thunder!
Nan Ye forced the scream back down her throat. Clutching the powder, she suppressed her fear and opened the chest to look inside!
Inside, instead of the local specialties prepared by Shen Luohe, lay a drowsy young woman with a small red mole between her brows and a face as serene as Guanyin!
Who else could it be but Hua Xijian, who had been missing for so long?!
The shock in Nan Ye's heart nearly turned her world upside down.
Hua Xijian seemed to have been drugged. She was bound tightly by a gold silk rope, her eyes closed. Her wrists were wrapped in handkerchiefs to prevent chafing, and the steady rise and fall of her chest proved she was still alive.
—Nan Ye recognized this rope. It was the gold silk rope used by the Demon Suppression Division to bind little demons, rumored to be woven from the hair of demon beasts, making it nearly impossible to break free from.
There were other items in the chest as well: a long sword, four pouches, several changes of clothes smelling of soapberry, a few packages of pastries, and four glittering gold ingots.
Needless to say, these “local specialties” were personally arranged by Shen Luohe to be put onto the carriage, so the person was naturally bound on his orders.
But what on earth was happening in the Demon Suppression Monastery?
Why would Shen Luohe drug Hua Xijian and smuggle her out in secret?
What exactly did Eldest Sister know?
To the point where she had to send her entire family away to escape disaster!
They couldn't even stay in Dingyuan and had to flee to the capital overnight!
Unless... Eldest Sister was afraid that someone in the Demon Suppression Division would make a move against them.
If she left today, and the Demon Suppression Monastery truly turned out to be a den of wolves and tigers, Eldest Sister and Elder Brother would likely be in mortal danger.
Nan Ye trembled all over. She wanted to cry but did not dare make a sound, fearing she would wake her parents. She blinked back the tears filling her eyes again and again until a spark of resolve finally flashed through them:
Since Eldest Sister wanted her to do this, there had to be a reason.
She must not hold her sister back!
Nan Ye gently closed the wooden chest, her gaze growing increasingly resolute.
To Bianjing, to find Miaoyun!
Since the letter said Miaoyun was a good person, she would definitely be able to save Eldest Sister!
...
Nan Zhi was currently drinking tea in the newly built bamboo pavilion.
Sitting opposite her was the now-awake Daoist Qinglong.
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