Chapter 284 - 127: Gu Xiangzhu: Why Is Zhu Li on Top of You?

Chapter 284: Chapter 127: Gu Xiangzhu: Why Is Zhu Li on Top of You?

The mission’s reward was a total of fifteen merit points. Finding the missing Child Scholar was worth only five, while assisting the local Government Office in capturing the Carp Spirit was worth a full ten. It was self-evident which task was more difficult.

And yet... the three of them had worked themselves to the bone just to find him.

Meanwhile, Zhao Ci had captured the Carp Spirit in just one day.

This...

’Perhaps only a genius like that could so casually offer to take responsibility for others.’

It left a bitter taste in his mouth.

Something he might not achieve even if he gave it his all.

Yet someone else had done it without breaking a sweat.

For a moment,

a pang of bitter envy struck him.

He knew it was wrong to feel this way, but he couldn’t shake the thought.

"Let’s go. We’ll head back to the inn. You can rest for the night, and tomorrow, we’ll return to Lingge."

"Alright!"

...

「The next day.」

「Wangshu Palace.」

The sun was setting.

Warm, yellow light filtered through the treetops, casting dappled shadows on the wall and spilling the last vestiges of late autumn’s warmth.

"It’s getting a little chilly."

Gu Xiangzhu leaned against the windowsill. Her favorite pastime was to let her mind go blank at this time of day.

It always brought her a sense of inner peace.

But for a long while before, she hadn’t done so.

For some reason, it seemed she hadn’t lacked that feeling of tranquility back then.

Recently, she had picked the habit back up.

Yet now, it felt like something was missing.

’The young kid has been gone for over ten days now.’

Gu Xiangzhu smiled and shook her head. In the days since Zhao Ci’s departure, her heart had grown much calmer. The shame she’d felt for using her Charm Art on the handsome young man had vanished without a trace.

That shame had once unsettled her greatly, as moral dilemmas had always been a burden for Demon Cultivators.

But thankfully, it was gone now.

’Of course!’

’The Charm Art is such a minor technique.’

’It’s only meant to control others.’

’How could it possibly backfire on a demonic cultivation genius like myself?’

Gu Xiangzhu smiled. Though she hadn’t seen Zhao Ci these last few days, she could still sense his emotions through the Soul Mist.

’That young kid... he seems to have been very restless lately.’

’Perhaps he dreams of me every night?’

’He’s a young man, after all.’

’So easily flustered by a little teasing.’

She opened a book with a knowing smile. Its pages were filled with illustrations that would make one’s face flush and heart race.

This was the Charm Art that Mirror in the Moon had helped her find.

It was divided into two sections: physical techniques and mental control.

The second part was far simpler for her. Her Primordial Spirit was powerful, allowing her to master all sorts of mental control-type Magic with ease.

However, she had always looked down on mental control. It inevitably involved using one’s Divine Soul to influence another’s, which would contaminate both. Even though the contamination was limited, she found it unacceptable.

Furthermore, the target’s Primordial Spirit would be damaged, severely lowering their future potential.

So,

she had only studied the first part.

To be honest,

the first part was far more difficult for her than the second. She had mentally rehearsed many of the techniques over and over, yet her execution was still clumsy.

’But for this innocent young boy, it was more than enough.’

’Once I learn this Dream-Inducing Skill, everything will be set in stone.’

Gu Xiangzhu’s gaze fell on the Dream-Inducing Skill, which served as the bridge between the two sections. She couldn’t help but marvel at the sheer number of geniuses in the world.

Though this Charm Art was a minor art, it had many brilliant aspects.

Take the Dream-Inducing Skill, for example. Once mastered, one could guide a target’s dreams through subtle physical cues without even needing to use a Spirit Secret Skill.

Of course, the dreams were limited to carnal matters.

It had no effect on her own Primordial Spirit.

And it caused no harm to the target.

It would merely induce a dream that anyone might have.

This way,

on one hand, she could continue to deepen the young kid’s reliance on her.

On the other, she could also calm his restlessness, keeping him from impatiently rushing toward the final step.

Given enough time...

things would fall into place.

It was for the best, for both of them.

Just as she was lost in thought,

the sound of footsteps suddenly came from outside her window.

She snapped the book shut and circulated her True Qi to dissipate the heat from her cheeks.

"Saintess!"

Yunzhu greeted her in a low voice.

Gu Xiangzhu asked coolly, "What is it?"

Yunzhu said gravely, "According to our informant, Zhao Ci began his return journey to Lingge this morning. He should arrive in about two hours."

"Mm. How did the mission go?"

"Everything went smoothly!"

"Excellent."

Gu Xiangzhu nodded, the corners of her lips curling up slightly. ’As expected of the one I chose. To think he completed a C-rank mission so easily.’

Yunzhu’s tone suddenly shifted. "However..."

The tip of Gu Xiangzhu’s eyebrow twitched. "However what?"

"The way the mission was completed... was rather peculiar."

Yunzhu took a deep breath and relayed the intelligence the informant had collected and organized for Gu Xiangzhu.

Since they already had a mole within the Cao Bang’s upper echelon, the report was incredibly detailed.

Everything else was easy to explain.

The only thing that was difficult to explain was Liu Yang’s attitude toward Zhao Ci and Feng Kucha, and why it had changed so drastically.

She had considered many possibilities, but none of them seemed entirely plausible.

"This..."

Gu Xiangzhu also sank into contemplation. There were indeed many inconsistencies.

It was true that the Feng Clan had fostered the Cao Bang, but the gang was known to be quite unyielding even toward the Feng Clan’s own young scions. They would never sacrifice their own interests just to hand merit points to a youngster.

This was true even for the elite disciples.

So for a good-for-nothing like Feng Kucha, they would be even less likely to show any courtesy.

And yet, the matter had ended with Liu Yang caving in at lightning speed.

’There must have been something unexpected at play.’