Zhu Diezhen had a strong personality; seeing Wei Aoshu cower like this sometimes made her want to walk away.
But in the end she held back.
She comforted her patiently. “Xiao Wei, Xiao Wei, at this critical moment you absolutely mustn’t drop the ball. Our husband is such a formidable figure—if he senses anything amiss, all our hard work so far will have been for nothing. So you must act as composed as possible. Look at our Wuweitower Sect now—more and more sisters are flocking here. Don’t you feel any sense of danger? Come on, listen to your sister and take the bravest step. In a little while you move, and tomorrow you ascend! Understand?”
Wei Aoshu nodded vigorously, then rubbed the storage ring on her right hand. Inside lay the crystallization of their efforts over this time—the Xianyuan Dan.
...
In another part of the sect, in Dong Kui’s room:
Ying Naiyan strolled in with a teasing smile. “Master, I just saw our husband come out of your room. Have you two made any more progress?”
“No!” Dong Kui’s reply was curt and decisive. She flung the Justice textbook onto the table. Even though the table was carved from immortal stone, cracks spidered across its surface.
Ying Naiyan’s smile froze. Master’s temper seemed to be heating up more and more.
“Oh, right—almost forgot the main point.” Ying Naiyan hurried on. “Master, please contain your aura. A dense black cloud has already formed above the sect. It could arouse the suspicion of other immortals, so you must remain calm!”
At her words, Dong Kui’s eyes widened. Her volatile emotions had indeed released a thread of ghostly qi—and that was no good.
Dong Kui sat cross-legged and reined in her aura. Soon the cloud above Wuweitower vanished as well.
Having done that, she drew a red brocade pouch from her sleeve—the Yan Tianji. It was the very thing that had allowed her to conceal her ghostly qi perfectly in the Heavenly Realm. But now it was cracked, thin fractures at its base, so her qi still leaked out. That was why Ye Yu had located her first.
She had tried to repair it many times, but each fix wouldn’t hold for long before the cracks reopened. Now she was desperate to find something to replace it.
She turned to Ying Naiyan. “Is there another way to hide ghost qi?”
“Master,” Ying Naiyan said, “why not seek out our sect’s artifact-master, Feng Yingzhi? She may seem unreliable, but she’s top-notch at forging immortal implements. You can’t go wrong with her.”
Dong Kui fell silent. Ask a stranger immortal for help—was that really safe?
As she hesitated, her expression suddenly changed. She looked up at the sky.
“It’s the aura of the First Fierce of the Three Great Hungers from the Fenghun Pool! How could he appear here?”
Her words had barely fallen when Dong Kui vanished from sight.
...
Next door, Ye Yu tapped the tabletop with his fingers. Ever since he’d returned, he’d been waiting for Zhu Diezhen and Wei Aoshu to make their move. Those two were certainly up to something secretive—but with all the other ladies present, he couldn’t ask directly. So he’d been waiting for an explanation.
Yet no one came. Instead, he sensed an exceedingly subtle fluctuation of ghost qi.
Tsk tsk tsk—was that Dong Kui? Why would she leave the sect at this moment? Had she stormed off in anger at his teasing? That seemed unlikely—she wasn’t that childish. And even if she left, where could she go?
With a single thought he could summon Dong Kui back. He needn’t worry too much.
Just then, a pair of small hands pressed against Ye Yu’s face.
“You’re with me, yet thinking of others—have you considered my feelings?”
Jiang Yumo’s heart burned with anger. Ever since they’d returned to the room, Ye Yu had leaned by the window, tapping the table as if lost in thought. She found it intolerable, so she acted decisively.
Her demand was simple: when he was with her, don’t let his mind wander. Was that too much to ask?
Ye Yu’s thoughts shifted. He denied briskly, “I’m not thinking of anyone else—I’m just wondering how someone as beautiful as my Yumo could exist without defilement. And I thought your neck looked empty, so I’ve been deciding what pendant could suit you. Now I know!”
In the next instant, he produced the Tianniu Heart-Protection Jade.
They said: when a woman is angry, a gift cures all—an axiom countless men had confirmed. Though there were no handbags in the Heavenly Realm, jewelry served the same purpose.
As Jiang Yumo saw the jade, eighty percent of her anger vanished in an instant.
“You’re really giving this to me?”
“Without a doubt!”
Ye Yu personally fastened the jade around her neck, completely defusing the crisis.
Indeed, dating a woman was like taming a tiger—one had to stay on guard.
Outside the room, Zhu Diezhen and Wei Aoshu stood silently, waiting. They were fully prepared. The moment Jiang Yumo stepped out, they would strike at Ye Yu—giving no chance for the other ladies to intercept.
They exchanged a glance and nodded in unison. Their resolve was absolute.
...
Three thousand li from Wuweitower, at the ruins of an immortal gate:
Dong Kui had tracked the aura here, but upon arriving, she found that the ghost qi had vanished. Moreover, some kind of formation seemed to cover the site.
Her expression turned grave. She spun around—and abruptly realized a handsome young man stood not far off, a strange smile on his face.
If Ye Yu had been here, he would have recognized him at once: the Dao-immortal Shan Ting of Taiyan. But ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) now Shan Ting’s high crown had vanished, his hair hung loose, and the ethereal immortal aura was gone—replaced by a bizarre, malevolent grin.
Most unbelievable of all, she could clearly sense the presence of Netherworld qi emanating from him.
