Chapter 352: Chapter 351: Inviting Miaoyun Princess
As the Sect Leader of Daluo Palace, Gu Zhao naturally had to offer some perks to maintain the loyalty of his most powerful Guardian Star Official, the Winged Fire Serpent.
Yanxia Ridge. It had its ridges, and it had its valleys.
Within one such valley lay a hot spring. Steam billowed out, filling the valley and rising up to the ridges. In the daylight, the sun would shine through the mist, creating shimmering, rosy clouds—giving Yanxia Ridge its name.
Gu Zhao stood on a small platform at the entrance of the cave dwelling. The sun had just risen, its light grazing the peaks and forming halos that shimmered and blended with the rosy clouds in the mountain forest.
"Is it beautiful?"
A slender, fair hand caressed Gu Zhao’s shoulder before sliding down to his chest. Then, Ye Ruyan pressed her soft body against his back, writhing gently like a snake.
’No wonder the ancients used snakes to describe beautiful women,’ Gu Zhao thought. ’That enchanting, boneless figure really is snake-like. But what would it be like to experience a real snake demon?’
Gu Zhao had experienced it just yesterday.
Her question was as much about herself as it was about the view of Yanxia Ridge, so Gu Zhao nodded. "Beautiful."
Then, he felt Ye Ruyan’s other hand.
"Ahem." Gu Zhao cleared his throat and gently squeezed her hand, halting its progress. "Let’s digest yesterday’s harvest first."
Ye Ruyan had only just joined Daluo Palace. Although she’d been introduced to the scriptures of the Taoist Sect, she hadn’t truly begun her Cultivation. She was still in a phase of learning and accumulation. After all, her Dao Practice was the most profound, so changing her cultivation path or integrating a new one would require significant time and energy.
Yesterday, Gu Zhao had given her a true taste of it, then used the Cave Truth Yellow Record to help her build a foundation. Now, she could officially begin practicing Taoist Skills.
"The harvest was great, and very plentiful," Ye Ruyan giggled. "So I’d like to harvest a little more."
Sensing the change in Gu Zhao, Ye Ruyan pointed toward the valley below. "Let’s go for a dip in the hot spring."
Gu Zhao looked at Ye Ruyan. "Can snakes soak in hot springs?"
Ye Ruyan faltered at his question and couldn’t help but retort, "I’m a Winged Fire Serpent!"
As soon as she spoke, Ye Ruyan huffed and exhaled a wisp of scorching hot smoke from her mouth and nose. "I’ve been soaking in the hot springs in that valley since I was little!"
’Ye Ruyan’s Demon Power did indeed carry a scorching heat. Combined with the natural coolness of her serpentine skin, it was, admittedly, a unique kind of pleasure.’
And so, Gu Zhao and Ye Ruyan went down to soak in the hot spring.
As someone from Yangcheng, Gu Zhao had gone to hot springs with his parents before, but not since starting college. Soaking in a hot spring again after so many years, and in an Otherworld no less, felt quite novel.
The spring water was around 104 degrees Fahrenheit and carried the distinct smell of sulfur. Bubbles occasionally gurgled up to the surface.
’Flowing spring water, swirling mist, and a beautiful snake-woman by his side... This really felt like a scene from one of those classic strange tales.’
Just then, a streak of light flashed across the sky, shot straight down into Yanxia Ridge, and, without even changing course, landed in another hot spring deep within the mist.
Sensing the aura that had descended from the sky, Ye Ruyan’s head emerged from under the water. She gave Gu Zhao a coquettish glance, her throat bobbed with a soft swallow, and only then did she look in the other direction. "Miaoyun?"
"Ruyan, you’re back?"
The next moment, Miaoyun Princess paddled gently, emerging from the mist, only to find that besides Ye Ruyan, there was a man!
And Gu Zhao, likewise, saw Miaoyun Princess, who had already shed her clothes and was displaying her stunning figure.
"GASP—"
"AH—"
Gu Zhao sucked in a sharp breath, and Miaoyun Princess instinctively ducked underwater. Only Ye Ruyan was snickering, a look of schadenfreude on her face.
Gu Zhao hadn’t expected Miaoyun Princess to arrive naked, and Miaoyun Princess hadn’t expected to find a man here. One must understand that Yanxia Ridge was Ye Ruyan’s private abode and never had outsiders, so she wouldn’t have bothered to use her Divine Sense to scan the area.
The two women had always been on good terms. Ye Ruyan would often visit Miaoyun Peak for tea, and Miaoyun Princess would often come to Yanxia Ridge to soak in the spring. Even if the other wasn’t present, they could come and go as they pleased.
"Sect Leader Gu?"
Miaoyun Princess shrank back into the water, but she recognized Gu Zhao. Seeing him soaking in the hot spring with Ye Ruyan, she understood their relationship.
However, Miaoyun Princess still didn’t understand how they had gotten together.
"Hello." Gu Zhao gave a slightly embarrassed nod. She had greeted him first, so he couldn’t very well ignore her.
"Ruyan, didn’t you go to Yazhou to see a friend?" Miaoyun Princess asked.
For accomplished Demons like Ye Ruyan and Miaoyun Princess, let alone ordinary people, a trip taking ten days to half a month was quite common.
Ye Ruyan had mentioned it when she visited Miaoyun Peak for tea before leaving for Yazhou, so Miaoyun Princess still thought Ye Ruyan was in Yazhou and hadn’t even considered that she might be home.
"I did go to Yazhou to see a friend, but there was a... small incident." Ye Ruyan nodded, then explained to Miaoyun Princess what had happened.
"So, you’re a Guardian Star Official of Daluo Palace now?"
Miaoyun Princess was stunned. Even her usually cool and expressionless face showed a hint of dazed disbelief. "You just went and killed Old Wolf Mo of Thousand Peaks Mountain?"
After all, they were all accomplished Demons who had lived for over a century. Even if they hadn’t met, they had at least heard of his name.
In fact, compared to Ye Ruyan, Miaoyun Princess knew more about Mo Qianlang, because she had met him before. If the White Bone God Monarch and Lady White Bone hadn’t been a better match, Lady White Bone might have ended up marrying Mo Qianlang.
Mo Qianlang occupied Thousand Peaks Mountain, committed countless evil deeds, and was rumored to have backing from the Southern Border. Not even the Spirit Court could do anything about him, and he had terrorized the surrounding Tianxiang Village and Town for a hundred years... and he was just killed like that?
"Killed." Ye Ruyan looked at Gu Zhao with utter adoration. "They fought for less than the time it takes an incense stick to burn before the Sect Leader killed Mo Qianlang."
Miaoyun Princess was aghast. Mo Qianlang was a famous expert, after all. To think he couldn’t even last for the time of one incense stick. And from the way Ye Ruyan said it, it was obvious that Gu Zhao had been the only one fighting.
"Miaoyun, we sisters lived a carefree life on Wuya Ridge because we never ran into a truly powerful enemy. If we had, we would have been completely helpless."
Ye Ruyan continued her persuasion, "We used to think the Spirit Court was too caught up in its own affairs and internal strife. But at Daluo Palace, Brother Gu’s word is law, and it has so many other experts."
"As Guardian Star Officials, not only can we cultivate Daluo Palace’s Supreme Dharma Gate, but we also have no real tasks to do, other than defending the mountain when enemies attack."
"Is there any place more suitable for us than Daluo Palace?" Ye Ruyan raised an eyebrow at Miaoyun Princess.
Miaoyun Princess fell silent.
Ye Ruyan gave him a playful nudge under the water. Gu Zhao winced, then spoke up with the invitation, "One of the Twenty-Eight Star Constellations, the Wei Yueyan of the north. It would suit you well."
Miaoyun Princess looked at Ye Ruyan, then at the handsome and gentle Gu Zhao. Her cheeks flushed slightly as she took a deep breath.
"Alright!" Miaoyun Princess nodded firmly, stood up, and displayed her fair, stunning figure. Then, she waded through the water, walking step by step toward Gu Zhao. "I am willing."
Ye Ruyan: ???
Gu Zhao: !!!
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