A bowl of hot porridge down her stomach, a cozy warmth spread through her belly.
Song Yao set down the porcelain bowl, and a damp cloth was immediately handed to her from the side.
Thinking nothing of it, she took it to wipe her face and handed it back. “Let's go.”
Xie Zhou took the cloth back and gave a quiet hum of agreement.
Sunlight spilled over the courtyard walls, illuminating the entire space.
The courtyard was packed shoulder-to-shoulder with the residents of Shao City, crowding from the corridor all the way to the courtyard gate. They had clearly been waiting for a long time.
When they saw her come out, their gazes turned toward her in unison, their eyes filled with deep gratitude.
Two people stood right at the front.
Chao An stood to the side with her hands resting at her front.
The woman standing in the center wore plain clothes. Her posture was straight, her complexion ruddy and glowing, with only a trace of post-illness fatigue lingering in her eyes. There was absolutely no sign of the critically injured, dying state she had been in just a few days ago. She was none other than Chao Ning, the City Master of Shao City.
Seeing Song Yao appear, Chao Ning immediately hurried forward to greet her.
She walked up and, without a word, bowed deeply in a solemn salute, her voice sincere and clear. “Immortal, you saved my life and the lives of everyone in Shao City. This kindness is something I, Chao Ning, will never forget as long as I live.”
As she spoke, she straightened up, turned sideways, and raised her sleeve to gesture toward the citizens behind her. Her tone was solemn. “The entire city is deeply grateful for your immense benevolence, Immortal. Please accept our bow.”
As soon as the words left her mouth, the crowd behind her bent their knees in unison, preparing to bow down.
Song Yao paused slightly, finding the scene rather familiar.
In her past life, people had constantly hunted her down to kill her. In this life, however, people were bowing and scraping to her at every turn. She really wasn't used to it...
She silently took half a step back, closed the door, and walked toward the window at the back, clearly intending to jump out and make a run for it.
Xie Zhou watched her movements, a complex mix of emotions rising within him.
The Song Yao in his memory was exceptionally flamboyant and unrestrained. In the past, if she encountered such a situation, she would definitely have demanded, with a smirk, that they kowtow a couple more times just for her amusement.
What was she afraid of now? What was she trying to avoid?
He slowly followed her to the window. “If you don't let them bow, they will only feel uneasy.”
“Let them feel uneasy then. As long as they're alive, who cares?”
Song Yao propped a hand on the windowsill and nimbly climbed out, her green robes brushing past the wooden frame. Once she landed, she turned back and smiled at him, her eyes curving in a lazy, carefree arc. “Having so many people bow to me will shave years off my life. Let's go. Aren't you in a hurry to return to Nine Saints Hall, Fourth Senior Brother?”
Xie Zhou: “...”
It felt like something had changed, yet it also felt like nothing had changed at all.
With a flash of his figure, he appeared outside the window.
A figure suddenly rushed out from around the corner of the courtyard wall.
Chao An ran over, panting, cradling a vermilion wooden food box. From afar, she called out, “Immortal, please wait!”
She ran up to them and held the food box out to Song Yao, her cheeks flushed red from running. “Immortal Zhu, we really don't have anything good to give you. This is sweet osmanthus cloud cake from a famous old shop in the city. You can have it as a snack if you get hungry on the road. If you have time in the future, you must visit Shao City again. The entire city will always remember your kindness.”
Xie Zhou reached out first to take the food box. He raised his eyes to look at Chao An, his voice as cold as morning frost. “Immortal Zhu?”
Only then did Chao An notice him. The youth had pale, handsome features, and standing in the morning light, he was enveloped in a cold, aloof, and somewhat gloomy aura. He was exceptionally good-looking.
She blinked in a daze before quickly collecting herself, saying with a smile, “Forgive me, Young Master. I was too focused on speaking with Immortal Zhu and didn't notice you... The beautiful young lady who came with Immortal Zhu earlier seemed to be her sister? You are also so handsome. Could you all be from the same family? Are you Immortal Zhu's older or younger brother?”
Xie Zhou: “...”
So she was using Zhu Zhao's name out here.
And she even called Wen Tang her sister.
Song Yao felt a sudden chill on her back. Just as she was about to explain that he was her senior brother, she saw him expose her without a hint of haste. “Who is Immortal Zhu? Isn't your surname... Lin?”
Song Yao: “...”
This guy was really protective of their Second Senior Sister.
He wouldn't even let her use Second Senior Sister's name.
Seeing Chao An standing there dazed, she decided to introduce herself openly. “I was worried you wouldn't believe us earlier, so I did borrow the name of my Second Senior Sister, Zhu Zhao. I am her Seventh Junior Sister, a pill cultivator named Lin Mu. The girl who was with me earlier is Wen Tang, my Fifth Senior Sister. She's the one you all claimed was colluding with Black Cloud Mountain.”
She paused, then added, “The abduction of your townspeople by the evil cultivators was actually ordered by Taiqing Pavilion. It was my Fifth Senior Sister who risked her life to rescue them a few days ago, and she was also the one who taught me how to neutralize the poison.”
Realizing what was going on, Chao An hurriedly cupped her hands. “So you are Immortal Lin.”
After hearing this, she immediately felt deeply ashamed. “It was our fault before. We put Taiqing Pavilion first and believed every rumor, actually thinking that the people of Nine Saints Hall were all evil heretics. Who would have thought that in the end, we would rely on you and Immortal Wen to save our entire city?”
She bowed deeply. “Though the citizens of Shao City are few, if there is ever a need for us to testify or help in any other way in the future, we will absolutely not hesitate.”
Seeing her solemn expression, Song Yao smiled instead and helped her up. “Don't worry about it.”
Qi-Replenishing Pills were easy to refine and cheap.
It was a simple matter of saving a few lives in passing; there was no reason not to do it.
After finishing her bows, Chao An looked at Xie Zhou again. “So is this gentleman also an Immortal from Nine Saints Hall?”
Song Yao gave an affirmative hum. “He is my Four—”
But Xie Zhou interrupted her unhurriedly once more. “No, I am her brother.”
Song Yao: “...?”
Did he absolutely have to take advantage of her today?
She opened her mouth, intending to explain, but then felt it was probably unnecessary.
After a moment, she waved her sleeve and summoned the Bishui Sword, stepping onto it lightly. She rose into midair and looked down at him. “Let's go.”
Then she added, “Brother.”
Xie Zhou: “...”
...
The two of them flew on their swords extremely fast, entering the territory of Nine Saints Hall in less than half a day.
Song Yao suddenly remembered something. “Jiang Jin is still locked up on Black Cloud Mountain.”
The name sounded a bit unfamiliar.
Xie Zhou remained silent for a moment before remembering that this was his highly arrogant Sixth Junior Brother.
His face remained expressionless as he asked, “Why is he on Black Cloud Mountain?”
Song Yao tried to speak with a piece of cloud cake in her mouth, only to nearly choke to death on the dry pastry. Xie Zhou flew his sword to her side and handed over a water skin.
She took two big gulps of water to wash it down, then sat lazily on her sword. “Who knows? He came running over a few days ago saying he wanted to arrange a marriage with me, acting like a madman. Fifth Senior Sister found him annoying and gave him a beating. Afraid he would cause trouble, I had Fifth Senior Sister lock him up for the time being. I was actually planning to bring him back with us this time...”
As she spoke, she continued to battle the cloud cake, her eyes lowered. She didn't notice Xie Zhou's gaze beside her growing darker and darker.
Only after a long while did she hear him squeeze two words from his throat: “Ignore him.”
“Okay.”
Song Yao didn't notice anything amiss and agreed casually. Seeing that they were about to arrive at Sichun City, she swept her gaze downward and suddenly let out a soft cry of surprise. “How strange. Why is there not a single person around?”
Rate on N.U.
