After Cutting Off Love And Emotions, I Was Pestered By The Demon Sect’s Enchantress - Chapter 18

Immediate Jade City (Part IV)

The next day, the streets were bustling. The small stalls featured a kaleidoscope of various jewelry and snacks. A-Xu bought a string of candied haws and pointedly lifted them in front of Zhu Shengxi.

Zhu Shengxi, not understanding her intent, asked, “What are you doing?”

“You’ve cultivated at the Guyun Sect for many years and rarely leave the mountain; you surely haven’t eaten candied haws before,” A-Xu said, tilting her head and looking at her with a look of certainty.

Zhu Shengxi glanced at her. “I have long since achieved Bigu (fasting from grains).”

Hearing her answer, A-Xu curled her lips. Why did this person always like to answer a question with an irrelevant point? But since she refused to answer directly, it meant she definitely hadn’t eaten them.

A-Xu moved the candied haws a bit closer. “Since that’s the case, I’ll give you the first bite.”

Zhu Shengxi still refused: “I do not like sweets.” She thought that after saying this, A-Xu would give up, but to her surprise, A-Xu only furrowed her brows and continued to offer the candied haws forward.

The candied haws before her were a brilliant crimson, the hawthorns encased in a sugar coating. Facing the other’s expectant gaze, Zhu Shengxi felt a bit helpless. She leaned forward slightly and bit off the first hawthorn.

A sweet and sour flavor blossomed in her mouth. It wasn’t the cloying sweetness she had imagined; it was a taste she had never experienced before.

A-Xu observed her expression and asked tentatively, “How is it? It’s good, right?”

Zhu Shengxi’s expression remained indifferent, but she gave a nearly imperceptible “mm” in response. She turned to look at A-Xu, only to see her nodding with satisfaction as she finished the rest of the candied haws in three or five bites.

A-Xu tossed the bamboo stick away and then looked up, only to find Zhu Shengxi watching her with a slight frown. Confused, she asked, “Is there something on my face?”

Zhu Shengxi looked at the corner of her mouth with a complicated expression. “Wipe the sugar crumbs from your mouth.”

Hearing this, A-Xu fell silent for a few seconds. She took out a handkerchief and wiped her face—there really were sugar crumbs. Rare embarrassment flickered across her face as she silently put the handkerchief away.

Zhu Shengxi glanced at her. Her lips were slightly red, perhaps because she had just eaten the candied haws.

The softness and warmth of those lips… she had felt them last night.

“Let’s go.” Her sleeve was pulled, and only then did Zhu Shengxi snap back to her senses and follow A-Xu.

Realizing what she had just been thinking about, Zhu Shengxi’s expression became somewhat unnatural. Searching for a topic to break the silence, she asked, “Where are you taking me?”

A-Xu replied as she walked, “I said before I would help you find the jade fragments. Teahouses have the most hearsay and gossip; we’re going to a teahouse.”

Her steps were light and brisk; she seemed extremely familiar with this place. Taking a shortcut, the two of them soon arrived at the front of a teahouse. After entering, A-Xu did not take a seat but went straight to the back to find the storyteller.

The storyteller was the same woman from that day. A-Xu pulled out a silver ingot and said directly, “Miss Zhao, I want recent news regarding the Xie family in the city.”

The woman glanced at her but did not immediately take the silver. Instead, she said meaningfully, “I remember you. You came to ask for news three years ago.”

A-Xu looked at her with a half-smile. “Miss Zhao must have remembered incorrectly. This is my first time here.”

The woman smiled and took the silver, saying slowly, “The Xie family is the only aristocratic family in Immediate Jade City, skilled in the art of mechanics. Recently, the head of the Xie family has been widely recruiting cultivators, hoping someone can capture an escaped demon beast. The cultivator who catches the beast can choose any one item from the Xie family’s treasury.”

“There are many rare treasures in the Xie family’s storehouse; perhaps there is something you want.” Having finished, the woman waved her fan and headed to the front stage.

A-Xu glanced at the person beside her who had fallen into deep thought and explained, “Miss Zhao has been a storyteller in Immediate Jade City for several years and knows all the local gossip. What she says won’t be false.”

Zhu Shengxi pondered for a moment. “She isn’t an ordinary person; she’s a cultivator, right?”

A-Xu nodded. “Yes. If she didn’t have the ability to protect her own life while knowing so many secrets, neither the righteous nor the demonic paths would let her off.”

She kicked a small pebble by the road and asked, “Are we going to the Xie family?”

Zhu Shengxi: “Yes. Perhaps… it is there.”

It was the first time A-Xu had heard her use such an uncertain tone, as if she were holding onto the mindset that as long as there was hope, she had to try. She asked softly, “How many pieces of this broken jade are there in total?”

There was no harm in telling her.

Zhu Shengxi said truthfully, “Three pieces.”

“Do you have no way to track the fragments? You can only rely on luck?”

Zhu Shengxi shook her head, her expression somewhat bitter. “Yes. I can only rely on luck.”

She had originally thought she could suppress it after her realm improved, but she hadn’t expected the symptoms to become more severe as her cultivation grew. The cold poison was only one of them.

Time was pressing. She had hidden the truth from her Senior Sister, claiming she was merely cursed and needed to leave the sect to find a way to break it. In reality, the situation was far worse than what she had described. The world was vast, and the profound jade was scattered everywhere. She had no dharma treasure in her hands that could sense the jade; trying to find them was no different from searching for a needle in a haystack.

Thinking of this, Zhu Shengxi lowered her eyes, her mood inevitably becoming heavy.

A-Xu looked at her, momentarily speechless. This person had a detached nature and usually liked to hide her emotions; this was the first time she had sensed such obvious feeling from her.

It seemed the jade fragments really were important to her.

A-Xu thought about it and suggested, “Let’s go to the Xie family first. They are the only aristocratic clan in Immediate Jade City, after all. After all these years, their foundation should be considered rich. There are many rare treasures in their storehouse; perhaps a fragment is among them.”

Zhu Shengxi heard the comfort in her voice and responded, “Mm.”

The Xie family was located in the center of Immediate Jade City. As soon as the two arrived, they saw cultivators from various sects gathered before the main gates.

A woman in red held a portrait and addressed the crowd: “This demon beast is named Chenze. Its form is similar to an eagle. We of the Xie family have raised it for over ten years, and there is only this one. A few days ago, the Chenze beast escaped its cage and its whereabouts are unknown. The Family Head has said that whoever can retrieve the Chenze beast may choose any one item from the Xie family treasury.”

Someone below asked, “Any treasure at all?”

The red-clothed woman smiled. “Of course. Having said this, we will never go back on our word. We ask you all to find a way to help us recover the Chenze beast.”

Hearing her confident words, the crowd no longer doubted. One after another, they began to recommend themselves. Suddenly, a woman’s voice rang out:

“May I ask, what rank is the Chenze beast?”

The red-clothed woman answered, “It is a Rank 3 demon beast.”

As soon as these words came out, the cultivators who had been excited just a moment ago went silent. Demon beasts are ranked from one to five, with Rank 1 being the weakest. The higher the rank, the harder they are to deal with. Although Rank 3 seemed to be of moderate difficulty, Rank 4 and Rank 5 beasts were basically extinct nowadays, making Rank 3 the most difficult to encounter.

Furthermore, the Chenze beast was a creature raised by the Xie family; one could not harm it during capture, which increased the difficulty even further.

A-Xu looked at the woman who had just spoken and lightly bumped Zhu Shengxi’s arm, whispering, “Isn’t that Yao Zhixin of the Kunchen Sect?”

Zhu Shengxi had been thinking about the situation regarding the Chenze beast and hadn’t noticed. She looked over intently, and it really was Yao Zhixin.

“She wouldn’t be participating too, would she?” A-Xu muttered. In the next moment, Yao Zhixin happened to look over and locked eyes with the two of them.

Yao Zhixin had been expressionless, but upon seeing them, her eyes immediately filled with disgust.

Zhu Shengxi gave her a faint look without much reaction, then turned to A-Xu. “Let’s go get the tokens.”

Most of the cultivators gathered at the door shook their heads and left after hearing it was a Rank 3 beast. The remaining few accepted the wooden tokens from the red-clothed woman’s hand.

After Yao Zhixin took her token, she didn’t leave but looked askance at Zhu Shengxi. “Long time no see.”

Zhu Shengxi ignored her, took two wooden tokens, and prepared to leave. Seeing this, Yao Zhixin let out a cold snort and blocked their path with her sword.

A-Xu disliked her arrogant manner and spoke with a biting tone: “Oh, why is Miss Yao here? Could it be that your Senior Sister’s love-gu hasn’t been dispelled yet, so you’ve come to see if the Xie family treasury has a spiritual medicine to break the charm?”

Yao Zhixin sized her up for a few moments, her tone impatient: “What does it have to do with you!”

A-Xu feigned pity: “Cultivation isn’t easy. I’m afraid your Senior Sister will lose a lot of her cultivation base. But to trade cultivation for a piece of true love isn’t exactly a loss.”

Hearing this, Yao Zhixin’s anger flared. She snapped, “What nonsense are you talking about? What ‘true love’? My Senior Sister was harmed by someone.”

A-Xu wanted to say more, but Yao Zhixin drew her sword directly. With a clack, the blade lunged straight toward her. A-Xu’s eyes sharpened as she prepared to draw her jade flute to block it.

Right at that moment, Zhu Shengxi blocked the longsword with her scabbard and looked coldly at Yao Zhixin.

Yao Zhixin: “So the two of you are together. I will remember today’s matter. Once I find the medicine to dispel the gu, I will settle the debt for that day along with this one.” After leaving her harsh words, she turned and left.

Hearing the threat, A-Xu let out a scoff, unbothered. Zhu Shengxi said softly, “Why waste your breath on her?”

A-Xu countered, “For someone with such an arrogant heart, striking her with words is the only way to make her feel the most miserable.”

Zhu Shengxi gave a faint smile and handed one of the wooden tokens to her.

A-Xu took it and sniffed it, remarking, “The Xie family really is loaded. Even these tokens are made from high-quality sandalwood.”

Zhu Shengxi hummed in agreement. A-Xu looked at her quiet face and suddenly asked, “Why does Yao Zhixin also like to draw her sword at the drop of a hat? You were like that at the beginning, too. Is it some kind of habit of your sect?”

Zhu Shengxi didn’t know how to answer and could only deny the last part. “No.”

“Then… will you point your sword at me again in the future?” A-Xu tugged at her sleeve and asked softly.

“As long as you don’t provoke me on purpose, I won’t,” Zhu Shengxi replied. At that moment, the two of them arrived back at the small house.

A-Xu pointed at the threshold and said leisurely, “I tied a thin thread across the threshold. It was fine last night, but this morning the thread was broken. Daoist Zhu, did you sneak out last night?”

Zhu Shengxi looked in the direction she was pointing. Indeed, there was an extremely thin thread. She paused, then could only say truthfully, “I went out for a while.”

A-Xu’s lips curved slightly as she continued to ask, “Wasn’t everything fine before bed? Why did you suddenly go out in the middle of the night?”

Zhu Shengxi remained silent for a long time.

How was she supposed to answer? Could she tell this person that she simply couldn’t calm her heart while lying beside her, and that’s why she left?

Seeing her silence, A-Xu thought for a bit and then feigned confusion. “And, it’s strange. Last night, I felt someone touch my brow.”

Upon hearing this, Zhu Shengxi’s hands, hanging at her sides, gradually tightened.

It turned out A-Xu hadn’t been completely unconscious last night. Then… did she remember what she herself had done?

At that moment, the voice of the other person rang in her ear, filled with a sly smile: “Last night, the one who touched my brow… was it you, Daoist Zhu?”