...
Meanwhile, on the way back to the inn, Su Yueli's brow furrowed slightly as she processed the information she had just gathered.
Shen Huai'an's reaction didn't seem like an act...
The indifference and blankness he showed when mentioning his biological older brother, Shen Qing'an, made it seem more like he was completely unaware, or perhaps entirely blinded by the sect's brainwashing.
Of course, one could never truly know what was in another's heart. It was entirely possible that he had done something dirty, kept it to himself, and was deliberately playing innocent.
The Blue Moon Sect was a massive immortal sect, and its waters ran incredibly deep. Trying to uncover everything would be no easy feat.
With her current strength, she was far from capable of marching up to their doors to demand answers by force.
At this thought, she clenched her fists. Her strength was still not enough...
As she was quietly calculating her options, a sudden chill ran down her spine. She vaguely sensed an obscure yet immensely powerful pressure trailing behind her.
It felt like the white-haired elder from the tea pavilion earlier.
Su Yueli raised an eyebrow and sneered inwardly. The old man is truly relentless. He actually followed me out.
Meanwhile, in the shadows of the street not far away, the white-haired elder hid in the air, staring intently at Su Yueli's back, his brow deeply furrowed.
He swept his divine sense over her repeatedly. No matter how he looked at it, the green-robed woman in front of him was just a pure martial artist.
Aside from some vigorous blood qi fluctuations in her body, she didn't possess even a shred of spiritual energy.
If she were an assassin sent by a rival immortal sect to probe the Young Sect Master's background, they would have to be completely out of their minds to send a mundane martial artist. It would be pure suicide.
But just to be safe, the white-haired elder decided to approach and question her directly.
With a soft ripple in the air, the space in front of Su Yueli warped slightly, and the white-haired elder blocked her path out of thin air like a ghost.
Su Yueli feigned surprise, instinctively taking half a step back before steadying herself. She cupped her hands in a respectful salute. “Immortal Master... Are you perhaps the senior who was with Fellow Daoist Huai'an earlier?”
Seeing that her demeanor carried the awe a mortal should have upon encountering a cultivator, the white-haired elder's expression softened slightly. He nodded and, in a rare gesture, returned the salute with cupped hands.
“Indeed. This old man saw Miss Qingli chatting quite happily with our Young Sect Master earlier. Our Young Sect Master usually only knows bitter seclusion and cultivation; it has been a long time since I last saw him smile.”
“Out of curiosity, I followed you to ask about your origins, Miss. Perhaps we might share some fate in the future.”
The old fox spoke very politely, but the scrutiny flashing in his eyes was like steel needles.
Su Yueli sneered inwardly. He is suspicious to his very bones, as expected.
However, she did not panic in the slightest.
After all, in this mortal world, almost everyone who knew her true background was dead, leaving only Qi Feng.
Qi Feng was merely a low-level disciple and wouldn't attract any attention at all.
A perfectly measured look of bitterness appeared on her face as she fabricated a very generic excuse:
“You think too highly of me, Immortal Master. I am but the orphaned survivor of an ordinary mortal escort agency.”
“A few years ago, I accompanied the agency on an escort mission, only to encounter a ruthless band of mountain bandits who slaughtered everyone. I was the only one who managed to survive.”
As she spoke, Su Yueli's beautiful eyes filled with sorrow. “Since then, I have been wandering alone. Recently, I heard that the Imperial City was hosting the once-in-thirty-years Martial Arts Tournament, which promised to be highly lively, so I thought I would come to broaden my horizons.”
The white-haired elder stroked his beard and nodded, pretending to have a sudden realization.
He then smiled and said, “So you come from an escort background. No wonder...”
“However, since you have entered the Imperial City and your blood qi seems quite solid, why not take the stage to participate in the Martial Arts Tournament and fight for fame and fortune?”
Su Yueli quickly shook her head with a bitter laugh and waved her hands. “Please do not mock me, Immortal Master. The experts from the major families on that stage are truly powerful. With my meager, amateur skills, going up there would be pure embarrassment, and I might even lose my life.”
As she spoke, she quietly and firmly suppressed the Delusion Breaker Rank blood qi within her body, only letting her surface display the blood qi of a Second or Third Realm martial artist, keeping a low profile.
The white-haired elder stared at her for a few more moments. Seeing her natural demeanor and clear eyes carrying a perfectly measured trace of worldly timidity, most of the suspicion in his heart finally dissipated.
A common mortal martial artist, even if she was a bit clever and asked about the Young Sect Master's past, had probably just brought it up in casual conversation.
“Since that is the case, take care of yourself, Miss. This old man shall take his leave.”
The white-haired elder left these words flatly, and his figure instantly transformed into a wisp of light smoke, vanishing from sight.
The elder returned to the Spiritual Tea Pavilion and recounted everything he had discovered to the black-faced elder.
The two old monsters discussed it and felt that an ant-like mortal martial artist could neither stir up any trouble nor affect the bigger picture, so there was nothing to worry about.
Furthermore, slaughter and destruction of families happened every day in the mortal world, making it extremely tedious to investigate, and the sect usually couldn't be bothered to interfere in such trivial matters anyway.
“Young Sect Master, the hour is late. We should head back.”
Shen Huai'an had just put down his chopsticks and wiped his mouth. His handsome face once again returned to its high-and-mighty, dull, and arrogant expression.
He did not even ask a single question about what the white-haired elder had just done, as if everything that had occurred was completely meaningless to him.
The three of them turned into three streaks of light and directly departed from the noisy mortal restaurant.
On the other side, Su Yueli did not stop walking and smoothly returned to the secluded inn where she was staying.
She shut the door and tightly latched the wooden window of her room.
Sitting on the bed, she let out a long sigh of relief, a cold gleam flashing in her eyes.
“Ninth Realm old monsters of the cultivation world indeed have incredibly sharp spiritual senses. I almost slipped up. Without enough strength, dealing with these guys is just too passive.”
Su Yueli shook her head.
She couldn't rush things regarding Shen Huai'an. Her primary focus now had to be raising her strength.
She took out the True Spirit Dharma-Image Jade Fragment from her storage bag once again and closed her eyes.
Her injuries were healed, and her state of mind was calm. Next, she would dig deep into the core of her Delusion Breaker Rank blood qi to thoroughly forge the Martial Soul belonging to the mortal martial path!
Rate on N.U.
