Chapter 225 - 221: She Is a Spy for the Demon Race?

"Great Dream Master! It’s been a long time. You’re looking more impressive than ever." Du Youqian gave a formal salute.

An awkward, pained smile touched the corners of Meng Xiao’s lips as he quickly returned the salute. "My Lord, please, let’s talk normally. The fact that I safely passed my Heart Demon Tribulation should be proof enough that I’ve never had a single thought of breaking my oath."

Du Youqian chuckled. "You’re a Core Formation Master in your own right now. There’s no need to call me ’Lord’ anymore. Just ’Fellow Daoist’ will do. In all these years, have I ever treated you like a servant to be ordered around?"

Meng Xiao’s expression turned serious. "I will never forget the grace you’ve shown me. The whole world knows I follow your lead, so there’s no need to be coy about it."

Du Youqian sighed. "Why must you be like this? Aren’t you afraid of the gossip?"

Meng Xiao smiled. "A few critical words won’t bother me. Even if it’s slander, I’ll bear it gladly."

After their back-and-forth, Du Youqian, satisfied, pulled Meng Xiao to sit down, and they made small talk over Spirit Tea.

After a while, he finally broached the main subject. "Right, back when I was in the Desolate Abyss, you wrote to me saying you had some thoughts on Human Dao Fortune you wanted to share."

"I was just about to bring that up," Meng Xiao said with a chuckle, taking out several Jade Scrolls. "Some of the Secret Techniques I’ve collected, along with a few of my own insights, are all in here."

Du Youqian accepted them.

Looking pleased with himself, Meng Xiao took out the Soul-Imbued Jade and called out softly, "Meng Ran!"

A wisp of green smoke rose gracefully from the Soul-Imbued Jade and unfurled.

It soon transformed into a graceful, beautiful, and poised woman... a female ghost.

Du Youqian studied her for a moment, then nodded slightly.

After transitioning into a Ghost Cultivator, Xi Mengran had finally made some progress. It looked like she had reached a Realm equivalent to a Human Race Cultivator’s Foundation Establishment.

Not only was her soul much more corporeal, but her expressions were also far more vivid and natural.

It seemed Human Dao Fortune was indeed beneficial for Ghost Cultivators.

Xi Mengran first gave Meng Xiao a gentle smile. But when her gaze fell upon Du Youqian, she immediately showed deep fear, instinctively hiding behind Meng Xiao.

Meng Xiao gave a wry smile.

Du Youqian was slightly taken aback. "Has she regained her memories? The last few times she saw me, she wasn’t afraid of me at all."

Regret flickered in Meng Xiao’s eyes. "Regaining her memories... I’m afraid that’s impossible. I estimate that even if a Ghost Cultivator reaches the Core Formation Realm, they can only recover a tiny fraction of their memories from their past life. To recall everything, she would probably have to reach Nascent Soul Formation. But here in Momenan, Nascent Soul Formation? Heh."

Du Youqian asked with a smile, "Then what’s going on with her?"

"She must have some vague, incomplete impression of you."

"I remember, you’re a big villain! You bullied me!"

Xi Mengran suddenly transmitted via her Divine Sense.

Du Youqian couldn’t help but frown. He was always wary of the unknown, especially since Xi Mengran had been his enemy. ’I can’t give her any chance to turn the tables on me.’

He asked tentatively, "Then what exactly do you remember?"

Xi Mengran’s brow furrowed deeply. Her expression as she looked at Du Youqian was a mixture of conflict and something like shyness. "You... you took advantage of me!"

Du Youqian suddenly felt something was off. ’This isn’t Xi Mengran’s way of speaking at all,’ he thought.

’How could the elegant, dignified Xi Mengran, the one with such a resolute Dao Heart, ever speak in a tone like that?’

Meng Xiao transmitted helplessly via his Divine Sense, "This girl... among the memory fragments she recovered are scenes of... being intimate with you."

The air seemed to turn sour with a hint of jealousy.

Du Youqian was dumbfounded.

Meng Xiao couldn’t help but palm his forehead, a subtle, uncomfortable feeling washing over him—the kind a man gets when he’s been cuckolded.

’Intimate? With her?’

’Could it be that before her death, she fantasized or dreamed about using me for Gathering and Replenishing?’

’And then, after becoming a Ghost Cultivator and reaching Foundation Establishment, she recovered that tiny memory fragment and mistook the fantasy for reality.’

Du Youqian didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.

He thought for a moment and sighed internally.

’Dying and turning into a Ghost Cultivator is like starting a new painting on a blank canvas.’

’The Xi Mengran of today is no longer the same person as the Xi Mengran of the past.’

’My earlier wariness was completely unfounded.’

"Why don’t you go back and rest," Meng Xiao said affectionately to Xi Mengran.

Xi Mengran nodded obediently, dissolving into a wisp of smoke that was quickly absorbed back into the Soul-Imbued Jade.

Meng Xiao stared at the Soul-Imbued Jade for a long moment before tearing his gaze away. "My Lord, I’ve heard about Gu Xiaofang. I wasn’t in the Sect when it happened. By the time I hurried back, he had already been sent to the Desolate Abyss."

Du Youqian said calmly, "I don’t blame you."

Meng Xiao added, "I’ve arranged for a few people to follow and protect him. I’m worried Wandering Dragon might try to eliminate him on the sly."

Du Youqian was inwardly startled, but his expression remained impassive. "And why would you think Wandering Dragon wants to eliminate him?"

Meng Xiao fell silent.

Du Youqian’s eyes narrowed. "What are you hiding from me?"

Meng Xiao shook his head. "It’s not that we want to hide it from you. It’s just... Gu Xiaofang’s theory is only a guess. He doesn’t have any concrete evidence."

"What is his guess?" Du Youqian leaned forward, pressing for an answer.

Meng Xiao looked troubled. "Even I think he’s lost his mind. Something like that... how is it possible? With Senior Blood Slaughter Sword and Senior Rivers and Mountains Map present, how could such a thing happen?"

"What is it!" Du Youqian was losing his patience.

"Gu Xiaofang thinks," Meng Xiao said, raising his head to meet Du Youqian’s gaze, "that Yin Ruozhen might be a spy for the Demon Race."

Du Youqian was stunned.

That was simply unbelievable!

"My Lord, you think it’s impossible too, right? The land of Momenan has no connection to the outside world. Even if Yin Ruozhen really were a spy for the Demon Race... what could she possibly do? What’s more, she’s in the Taihe Sect, right under the nose of Senior Rivers and Mountains Map. How could she be a spy for the Demon Race and go undetected?"

For a moment, Du Youqian was at a loss.

He naturally had the utmost trust in Gu Xiaofang.

At the same time, he also harbored suspicions about Yin Ruozhen.

But his suspicion was that Yin Ruozhen had perhaps found some Demon Race Treasure and had her mind bewitched by it.

He hadn’t considered the possibility that Yin Ruozhen herself was a spy for the Demon Race.

After all, just as Meng Xiao had said, Momenan was cut off from the rest of the world. Even if she were a spy, how would she pass on information?

After a moment of contemplation, Du Youqian asked, "Why did he force his way into Yin Ruozhen’s immortal cave that night? Did he find anything?"

Meng Xiao looked completely blank; he knew none of the details.

Du Youqian could only say, "If there’s suspicion, it’s better to err on the side of caution. Fellow Daoist Meng, I must ask you to make a trip to the Desolate Abyss and bring Xiaogu back personally."

Meng Xiao rose and bowed. "Rest assured. I may not be skilled in Magical Combat, but I’ll have no problem protecting Gu Xiaofang."

But in the end, Meng Xiao never made it to the Desolate Abyss.

Before he could even depart, a Flying Boat from the Sect arrived.

An unconscious Gu Xiaofang was carried off the boat.

The disciple accompanying him had a grief-stricken look on his face. "It was a Demon!"

"A living Demon!"