The Immortal Lord Always Pretends To Be Affectionate Towards Me - Chapter 9

In the small courtyard on the edge of the Wang residence, Yu Zaixi crouched before the dog hole, contemplating the groom’s action of covering the bone whistle. He possessed two such whistles, yet he lacked a “just deceased” person on whom to test them. Even if he had one, he could only determine whether the method could transfer a soul between bodies. Soul shifting was simple enough; one did not even need a whistle to perform it, though it required immense cultivation. Ordinary people could only achieve it through artifacts.

Yu Zaixi leaned down and peered through the dog hole. Outside lay a dark alley. The woman’s soul must have been swapped with the bride’s; the person currently at the Zheng residence was not the real bride. She surely knew a great deal about the groom and had to be questioned.

He had to go out once more. Yu Zaixi sighed bitterly. This life was truly miserable; even getting a decent night’s sleep was a struggle. To save time, he did not walk but activated a formation that brought him directly to the bride Zheng Xueran’s courtyard. He startled a maid, who clutched her chest in relief upon seeing him. “Young Master Yu, you are back! I thought you had followed the others to the Wang residence.”

The maid was spirited, and Yu Zaixi enjoyed talking to her; she was far more pleasant than Jiang Yan, that silent block of wood. “Why are you standing in the courtyard? Where is your mistress?” he asked.

The maid saw nothing amiss and gestured toward the room. “Master Jiang is inside speaking with my mistress, and he told us to wait outside.”

Yu Zaixi moved toward the room and activated a sound-blocking formation. He wondered what significant matter Jiang Yan could be discussing that required such caution. Had he also discovered that the bride was an imposter?

He was in no hurry. He sat under the eaves to wait, his mind still preoccupied with the use of the two bone whistles and the whereabouts of the one the groom had held. Why did the vicious beast eat the groom? Was it also trying to snatch the whistle? Yu Zaixi felt speechless. He had searched for years without finding a single one, and now, in this city, he had potentially found a third. If he had known, he would have come sooner and taken it before Jiang Yan left seclusion. But then again, fate worked in mysterious ways.

He was lost in thought when he heard voices inside. Zheng Xueran was recounting the events of the wedding day in broken sentences.

“I was an adopted daughter of the Wang family, and I was in love with Brother Wang. But because of our status, we were destined to be apart. I decided to run away from home, but I delayed until the day of the wedding. I wanted to see Brother Wang in his wedding robes one last time before leaving. As I walked down the street, I suddenly fainted. When I woke up, I had become Zheng Xueran.”

“I do not know why this happened. I opened my eyes and found myself in her body. Brother Wang helped me up, completely unaware that I had become a different person. I could not bear to lie to him, but when I tried to explain, he grew angry, shattered a cup, and drove me away. When I tried to explain again, the servants forcibly sent me back to the Zheng residence.”

“It is a major scandal for a bride to be returned. Fearing I had ruined Zheng Xueran’s reputation, I had to sneak home through the back door and pretend to be her to explain the situation to her family. I was afraid Brother Wang would be implicated, so I simply said I returned because we had a disagreement.”

She finally broke down in tears. “But after I left, Brother Wang met such a terrible fate. If I had known, I would never have left. I would rather have died with him.”

Yu Zaixi still could not understand why the beast had targeted Wang Zhe, the groom. Moreover, Wang Ting—now Zheng Xueran—did not know the truth. What had Wang Zhe done, why had he killed the real bride, and why had the beast chosen him? It was difficult to investigate. If he had Wang Zhe’s corpse, he could trace his memories, but he had already been buried. Digging up graves was not his preferred course of action.

After Zheng Xueran finished speaking, a deep silence filled the room. Yu Zaixi could imagine her crying like a delicate flower while Jiang Yan watched on with cold, heartless indifference. Jiang Yan did not seem interested in pursuing the matter any further; he offered no reaction to her confession. He had clearly not come down the mountain to investigate this. If Yu Zaixi could not see that, he would be no brighter than Miao Pei.

Jiang Yan was here to keep an eye on him. He had fabricated a reason and even dragged Qin Nai into it. Qin Nai was likely just unlucky, happening to be with Yu Zaixi when Jiang Yan staged the whole ordeal.

Wind blew through the courtyard. Yu Zaixi felt tired of sitting and shifted to a different spot, waiting to see if anything else would be said. He had come to the Zheng residence to question the bride, and now he had his answer. There was no need to go inside, and he could leave whenever he wished.

The maid remained at the door, her expression blank. She had no idea what was happening, nor did she know that the person inside was not the one she had served on the wedding night. She had likely been replaced to avoid exposure. It was quite thorough. If the incident with Wang Zhe had not occurred, and if Jiang Yan had not come to investigate, no one would ever have known she had been swapped.

Yu Zaixi closed his eyes to rest, casting his spiritual energy out to locate Wang Ting’s body. His energy slipped into a small alley and found the decaying remains under a ragged straw mat. Beside the mat crouched a child—it was the young beggar he and Qin Nai had encountered the day before. The child was kind; despite being homeless, he had given up his own mat to cover Wang Ting’s corpse.

Yu Zaixi withdrew his energy and began to walk away. Just then, the door opened behind him. He looked back and saw Jiang Yan standing tall and graceful, his demeanor aloof. He looked as if his peace had been disturbed.

Yu Zaixi could not help but remark, “Why are you looking at me like that? Have I annoyed you again?” He had come and gone quietly; what did that have to do with Jiang Yan?

“Something happened at the Wang residence,” Jiang Yan said. He cast a formation, and with a gesture, brought Yu Zaixi back to the Wang residence.

When Yu Zaixi stepped out of the formation, he saw that the Wang residence was in ruins. Trees were toppled, doors and windows were shattered, and debris lay scattered everywhere. At first glance, it looked as if a tornado had passed through. He recalled the demonic wind at the Zheng residence and noted that the weather today had been clear and calm. However, when he sat at Zheng Xueran’s door earlier, a small gust of wind had stirred. That must have been the moment. He had only been gone for a short time, and the wind had struck the Wang residence. It was definitely targeting him.

Yu Zaixi walked inside in a foul mood, checking for survivors. He grew tired after searching one room, so he released his spiritual energy to sweep the mansion. There were no living beings in the residence, nor were there any corpses. Even the Tianji Pavilion disciples and Qin Nai were gone.

Yu Zaixi sighed and asked Jiang Yan, “Use that life-force bond of yours and check where Qin Nai is.”

He was not overly concerned; Jiang Yan would never allow people at the Wang residence to be in danger. Even if he did not care about the Wang family, he had to look after his own sect’s disciples.

Jiang Yan ignored him and walked straight toward the courtyard where Yu Zaixi had stayed. Yu Zaixi followed him helplessly. “What, do you think they would all be hiding in my pathetic little courtyard?”

Jiang Yan ignored him again, searched the room, and asked, “Was this the courtyard where you entered the illusion?”

“Why do you ask?” Yu Zaixi leaned against the wall and tilted his head.

“Zheng Xueran’s soul is still here.”

“Oh.” Yu Zaixi asked, “Can you see her?”

Jiang Yan remained silent.

“Can you communicate with her?”

Jiang Yan still did not respond.

“Or perhaps you can enter her memories?”

This time, Jiang Yan acted. He waved his hand—Yu Zaixi did not see him cast a seal—and with a fluid movement, Miao Pei appeared in the courtyard. He looked bewildered but quickly composed himself. “Master, do you have instructions?”

Jiang Yan looked at Yu Zaixi. “Use the bone whistle to swap their souls.”

Yu Zaixi looked from Miao Pei to Jiang Yan. “Is he your biological disciple?” He wondered if Jiang Yan was using Miao Pei to get revenge on Yuan Qi. That would be incredibly petty, and what did Miao Pei have to do with any of this?

Miao Pei had no objections to Jiang Yan’s order. In fact, he seemed curious. He turned to Yu Zaixi and asked, “Brother Yu, can you really swap souls? Where does my soul go when it leaves my body? Does it float around?”

Yu Zaixi had no idea, as he had not even mastered the whistle yet. But seeing Miao Pei volunteering as a scapegoat, he decided to experiment. He would not pass up the opportunity; he was not a good person, after all.

He blew the whistle at the courtyard, but there was no sound. He covered it, moved closer to Miao Pei, and blew again. Miao Pei seemed to hear the sound, as his eyes began to glaze over.

Yu Zaixi waited for a moment. Miao Pei blinked, turned abruptly, and knelt before Jiang Yan. “I beg the Immortal Venerable to save me!”

Yu Zaixi pouted from behind. Why kneel before Jiang Yan immediately? How snobbish. What if Jiang Yan refuses to help?

Contrary to his previous coldness, Jiang Yan seemed quite interested in Zheng Xueran. “Speak.”

Zheng Xueran, now in Miao Pei’s body, began to recount the entire ordeal. However, she started from the beginning of her childhood, and neither Jiang Yan nor Yu Zaixi had the patience for it. Yu Zaixi interrupted her. “Were the marriage arrangements a coincidence, or was it orchestrated?”

Zheng Xueran paused, realizing the irrelevance of her previous account. “It was orchestrated. My family never had good relations with the Wang family. I had never even met Wang Zhe, and I was completely unwilling to marry him.”

“Then what made you different from others? Why were you targeted?” Yu Zaixi asked.

Zheng Xueran finally reached the crux of the matter. “On our wedding night, he demanded the whistle you just blew. It was given to me by an old immortal who said it could save my life. I had no feelings for Wang Zhe and did not know how he learned I had it. When I refused, he killed me to take it by force.”

Yu Zaixi realized, “So the whistle was yours. Do you know where that old immortal came from?”

Zheng Xueran shook her head. “I met him by chance. He was on the verge of death and gave it to me because he said we were fated.”

Yu Zaixi asked, “When was this?”

“Several months ago.”

“Do you remember his appearance, his clothing, or his voice?”

Zheng Xueran thought carefully. “He wore black robes that covered his face. I could only tell from his voice that he was an old man.”

Yu Zaixi stroked his chin. A cultivator who died within a few months, ranked by cultivation: there was one at the Deity Transformation stage in the Wufeng Tower, one at the Nascent Soul stage in the Luli Temple, and the rest were minor cultivators. The Wufeng Tower prioritized talisman cultivation, and artifacts were of little use to them unless they were combining them with ancient formations. The Luli Temple was different; the monks were skilled in eighteen types of weapons, so it wouldn’t be surprising if one had a bone whistle.

Good. Once I get out of here, I will head to the Luli Temple.

Having formulated his own plans, Yu Zaixi ignored Zheng Xueran, who knelt on the floor in confusion, unsure if she had said something wrong. Yu Zaixi only wanted to know the origin of the whistle, and he had enough information now. Out of a sense of responsibility, he added, “I will help you retrieve your body and clear your name. How about that?”

The only remaining mysteries were how Wang Zhe learned about the whistle and the origin of the vicious beast. Once the beast was investigated, the truth about Wang Zhe would surely follow. Yu Zaixi intended to prompt Jiang Yan to leave Quzhou City.

But before he could say anything, Jiang Yan shook his head. “That person was Elder Tianhe of the Tianji Pavilion.”

Yu Zaixi was familiar with that name, but wasn’t he supposed to be in secluded cultivation? Seeing his confusion, Jiang Yan explained, “He failed his tribulation.”

Yu Zaixi gasped. His first thought was that Jiang Yan’s position as the world’s strongest was almost usurped. It was a pity that there was no way to investigate further.

Jiang Yan gestured toward him. “You will return to the Tianji Pavilion with me.”