The Immortal’s "White Moonlight" Reborn - Chapter 74

“The Demon Realm seeks to bury the Immortal in this very sea.”

“Senior Sister, that man is…” Wen Qiwu lowered her voice as she spoke to Yun Heng.

Yun Heng glanced at the corpse, her expression showing neither surprise nor alarm. She simply pulled Wen Qiwu closer into her embrace, shielding her from the metallic stench of blood.

“Let’s head back,” Yun Heng said.

The candy was already bought, and Wen Qiwu had picked up several other local Shark Moon City delicacies to store in her spatial ring. But after witnessing such a gruesome scene, she had completely lost her appetite.

“What happened here!” Men from the City Lord’s manor arrived quickly, pushing through the crowd to surround the killer.

The murderer had just finished his noodles. He stood up unhurriedly. Surprisingly, the leader of the manor guards froze the moment he saw the man’s face, his footsteps faltering.

“To dare kill someone in broad daylight in Shark Moon City, take him away!” The guard, usually a fierce and intimidating figure, spoke with a noticeable lack of confidence. He signaled for his men to seize the killer. The man offered no resistance and made no excuses, maintaining an air of cold arrogance.

The guards approached him cautiously, terrified he might suddenly lash out and slaughter them all. Curiously, the man who had just killed someone over a minor disagreement didn’t struggle or attempt to flee; he stood perfectly still and allowed himself to be apprehended.

They bound him with artifacts designed to suppress spiritual power. Despite the restraints, his calm, composed demeanor was so unnerving that the guards kept their distance, afraid to use any real force.

As the guards suspected, any bystander could see something was amiss.

“He doesn’t seem afraid of being caught at all. Does he have people inside the City Lord’s manor?” Wen Qiwu and Yun Heng had already begun walking away. Once they were a safe distance away, Wen Qiwu shared her thoughts.

If the street vendor who was supposed to be in a dungeon could walk free with a new face, it stood to reason this killer could just be going through the motions of a “trial” before being released.

The City Lord’s manor was likely riddled with holes, infiltrated by various factions. Wen Qiwu worried for Yun Heng’s old friend. Could the City Lord truly handle this mess? Since Yun Heng still hadn’t managed to meet her, Wen Qiwu feared something terrible might happen to her.

“Even so… with the Dragon Gate Ceremony about to start, he shouldn’t be this arrogant. It makes him a target for everyone,” Wen Qiwu noted. It felt almost as if he had killed that man on the street intentionally to draw attention.

“Perhaps it was a deterrent,” Yun Heng said softly.

“A deterrent?” A flash of realization hit Wen Qiwu. “Do you remember what they said before the fight broke out?”

Wen Qiwu remembered. They belonged to two different factions—one local to Shark Moon City and one from the outside. They were bitter rivals.

“The ‘Old Frog’ that man mentioned refers to the uncle of the previous City Lord. He is of mixed blood, half-demon from the Spirit Frog Clan. To steal the throne from his nephew, he secretly manipulated Bai Jiao into a life-and-death struggle with the former Lord, hoping to sweep in and take the prize for himself. Instead, Bai Jiao won and drove him out.” Yun Heng had heard Bai Jiao mention this past once. Back then, Bai Jiao was born into a failing minor family that offered her nothing but trouble. She had climbed to her current position only after dancing with wolves and risking her life many times over.

Unfortunately, the uncle had escaped. It wasn’t surprising that he was behind the current chaos in the city.

Yun Heng hadn’t known the specifics of the current power struggle, but their threats in the street had clarified things. “That half-frog demon has likely never given up on reclaiming the city. He reacted quickly when Bai Jiao fell ill. He should be the leader of the largest faction within the city right now.”

“But external forces want a piece of the pie too. No, perhaps they don’t just want a piece, they want to take the whole pot.”

Their greed had been written plainly on the face of the man who was just arrested.

“They need to establish authority, to intimidate the other factions as quickly as possible. The best way to do that is to strike at the largest power in the city. His actions were a performance for the other observers.” Yun Heng glanced toward the half-closed windows along the street. Behind those shutters, people were whispering. Even though they had set up privacy barriers, they were no match for Yun Heng’s perception.

Wen Qiwu followed her gaze and noticed the suspicious windows as well.

“If the half-frog doesn’t respond effectively, his subordinates will abandon him. I suspect he will make his move tonight at the latest.” The ceremony was the day after tomorrow; they didn’t have time to drag this out. Yun Heng surmised that a winner would emerge tonight.

“So… the City Lord is letting them whittle each other down first?” Wen Qiwu realized.

Yun Heng only smiled, neither confirming nor denying. “She likely has such a plan.”

Wen Qiwu nodded. Since the situation was already a mess, it made sense to let it descend into further chaos. Let the hidden fish jump out of the water and tear each other apart; it would make it easier for the City Lord to clear the board later.

Relieved, Wen Qiwu spent the walk back browsing the shops and buying more local specialties.

The public murder hadn’t dampened the city’s festive mood. These were all cultivators; they were used to violence. Once the killer was gone, the streets became lively once again.

Wen Qiwu bought a string of beautiful shells from a young girl. Yun Heng helped her put them on. Though the shells were only the size of a fingernail, they were translucent and exquisite, making Wen Qiwu’s skin appear even more delicate and fair.

Wen Qiwu then picked out a matching string for her Senior Sister. While she was busy selecting the shells, two figures walked past behind Yun Heng.

They were an old man and a youth, one tall and one short. Their faces were so ordinary they would disappear in a crowd instantly.

The old man hesitated for a split second as he passed Yun Heng, then moved on without a word.

Yun Heng felt a prickle of intuition and turned around, but she only saw their unremarkable backs disappearing around a corner.

Only when he was certain Yun Heng was no longer looking did the old man stop.

“Wise Sage? What is it?” the youth asked.

“Strange. Why would that person be here?” the old man muttered to himself.

“Who?” the youth asked, confused.

The Sage’s expression turned grim. “A very troublesome existence.”

“Even you find her troublesome?” The youth’s face filled with gravity.

This man was the most mysterious figure in the Demon Realm. No one knew how long he had lived, only that every Demon Lord had addressed him as “Wise Sage.” Having served him for many years, the youth had never seen him look so unsettled.

“Anyone would find her troublesome.” The Sage glanced back toward Yun Heng and Wen Qiwu. “She should be on the verge of madness. It’s impossible for her to be here…”

He had calculated the future countless times. The Immortal’s fate was meant to be either suicide or a fall into the demonic path. Yet, the scene before him contradicted every prophecy.

An uneasy feeling that things were slipping out of his control tugged at his heart.

“Who are you talking about…” The youth’s curiosity got the better of him, but he was silenced by a cold, sinister glare from the Sage.

Yun Heng was the greatest obstacle to the Demon Realm’s expansion. If she wasn’t removed, their ambitions were nothing but dreams.

Wait—is her goal the Dragon Gate as well? As far as he knew, the dragon heritage didn’t include any secrets regarding resurrection.

The Sage fell into deep thought. Their plans would have to be much more cautious. However, if Yun Heng insisted on interfering, they would be in trouble. Avoiding her would only lead them into a dead end.

And right now, the Immortal was at her weakest. As the saying goes, “Strike while she is sick.” If possible, he wanted to ensure this most difficult enemy of the Demon Realm remained buried in this sea forever.

Rumble!

Just as night fell, a bolt of lightning tore through the dark sky.

Cultivators were battling above the city. The air was thick with violent immortal energy and traces of demonic qi. Those with weaker cultivation felt the air turn viscous, making it hard to breathe; for ordinary people, it was life-threatening.

Gao Fu pushed open her window and shouted a string of curses at the sky. She was holding the sickly child in her arms. Though the girl was blind and deaf, her small frame was trembling violently, clearly affected by the raw power clashing above.

Gao Fu had grown quite fond of the child. Even though she was the last person in the tavern to meet her, the girl clung to her more than she did to Xiao Tong or Qiwu. Eventually, Gao Fu had simply taken the child to her own room for the night, only for this chaos to erupt.

The combatants in the sky were becoming increasingly reckless. The power levels of the clashes rose from the Nascent Soul stage to the Earth Immortal Realm. Gao Fu’s face paled, and she immediately ordered the staff to reinforce the defensive barriers.

Once the fighting reached the Earth Immortal level, the city’s standard protections might not be enough to stop all the stray attacks.

Her intuition proved correct.

In a fit of rage, a Golden Immortal among the combatants unleashed a forbidden technique. The pitch-black sky turned a fiery red as countless meteors, larger than the tavern itself and dripping with molten lava—streaked toward the ground like falling stars.

The city’s defenses wavered under the weight of a Golden Immortal’s forbidden spell. If those meteors broke through the barrier, the consequences would be catastrophic.

Their madness had exceeded all expectations. But a split second before the barrier shattered, a wave of absolute cold swept across the sky. The lava-dripping meteors were instantly encased in thick ice. Then, a single, vast sword intent cleared the heavens above Shark Moon City, shattering every meteor into tiny, harmless ice crystals.

“Cough…” Yun Heng let out a light cough as she withdrew her sword. Wen Qiwu’s heart leaped into her throat. she quickly fed her Senior Sister a pill and gently patted her back to help her catch her breath.

“Did it aggravate your old wound?” Before Yun Heng could answer, Wen Qiwu began checking her meridians.

“It’s fine. I just swung the sword a bit too quickly,” Yun Heng said, pulling Wen Qiwu gently into her arms.

Hearing Yun Heng’s steady heartbeat, Wen Qiwu finally relaxed. “Your injuries have only partially healed. If you push yourself in a real fight, it’s easy to cause a relapse. You must be careful.”

Yun Heng’s expression remained calm and gentle, soothing Wen Qiwu’s worries. However, in a place where the younger girl couldn’t see, Yun Heng looked at her right hand. Her eyes were deep and somber. Her hand was tainted with a faint trace of demonic qi.

Just as she had opened the window to strike, something had been hiding outside. She had touched it.

Would you like me to translate the next chapter or would you like to discuss the connection between the “Wise Sage” and the current chaos?

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