Chapter 83

As the Immortal Capital Yujing trembled, Liuyu, who had returned to the Nine Nether Extreme Night Palace, was in the courtyard, planting the first flower tree from the Dan Sui seeds.

“Will it really bloom? It won’t die halfway, will it?”

The ghost girl looked up, anxiously watching the lonely, pitiful little sprout on the mountain cherry tree, her thin brows furrowed in worry.

Dan Sui and the mountain demon were clearing the snow that had accumulated beneath the tree overnight. Hearing her, Dan Sui looked up and, stepping on a shovel, said:

“I’m not sure. Miss Hualian and I spend more time researching grains and spiritual herbs. Whether this mountain cherry tree survives, we’re not very confident… but if it doesn’t work this year, it will definitely work next year!”

The latter half of the sentence was directed at Liuyu, who was holding an umbrella and standing to the side.

If the Lord’s wish was to see a real flower bloom in the Four Seasons of Nine Nether, so that his beloved could enjoy the flowers and scenery every year…

Then her wish was—

She hoped the Lord’s wish would come true.

Standing beneath the morning umbrella, Liuyu tilted her head and smiled:

“Once you’re done, come inside and have some soup. It’s what Chaoming made early this morning, just the thing to warm you up.”

“Alright!—Mountain Demon! Put down the hot water in your hands! Are you an idiot?!”

The mountain demon, who had his braid pulled by the ghost girl, didn’t understand: “Wasn’t I clearing the snow to prevent the tree from freezing? I thought hot water would melt the snow faster… Ow, ow, ow! Ghost girl, if you don’t let go, I’ll really hit you!”

“If you kill the tree, you’ll get punished when the Lord comes back!”

The noisy bickering of the demons faded into the inner room as Liuyu listened to the sound of snowflakes falling onto the umbrella, watching the gnarled, dead branches of the mountain cherry tree in a daze.

Someone quietly approached from behind.

“The Ji Mo family has already raised the suspicions of Jiufang Qian. It won’t be long before he connects the Ji Mo family to you.”

Liuyu, listening to Mu Cangshui’s words, didn’t turn around and replied:

“Then it’s too late.”

Mu Cangshui glanced at her, his face smiling:

“It is indeed late. If he knew that the Ji Mo family had been supplying provisions for the Nine Nether demon army, he wouldn’t dare let the Lord leave the Demon Ghost Wall.”

Jiufang Qian’s willingness to meddle with the Dragon Vein’s foundation and promise to let Mo Lin lead the demon ghosts out of the Demon Ghost Wall was based on one premise:

—Nine Nether had no source of provisions.

Without provisions, once they marched, they would have to fight their way through, scavenging as they went.

In chaotic times, when natural and man-made disasters were frequent, food was more valuable than gold and silver. Even wealthy families would clutch their food supplies tightly.

If Nine Nether went to war, every day of battle meant a day’s worth of food. Once the food ran out, they would have to resort to plundering and burning to survive.

Therefore, even if Mo Lin successfully captured the Shentu family’s city, Jiufang Qian wasn’t worried about raising a strong enemy.

As long as they sacked the city, burned, and killed, the demon ghosts would forever be the evil forces opposed to the human race.

The people would never acknowledge their human bloodline. They would use all their strength to drive them out of human territory.

But now.

Yin Lanruo had spent seven days calculating the assets of the Ji Mo family, inventorying the grain silos left by the Xiangli family, and evaluating the new rice harvest from Longque City after spring. She calculated the maximum amount of provisions that could supply the demon ghost army.

At the same time, they had to rely on the Yinshan family in the western region, the Yuyuan market, and the warehouses in the Fengyi District to subtly transport provisions to the front lines.

With everything prepared, Liuyu watched as Mo Lin led his troops out of Nine Nether, taking action against the Shentu family, which controlled six cities.

Everyone viewed the demon ghosts’ invasion of human cities as a disaster, and they all waited to see the demon ghosts sack the cities—

But Liuyu refused to let them have their way.

As long as she was present, the demon ghosts and humans under her command would never resort to burning and plundering for survival.

As long as Mo Lin was present, any demon ghost who tried to harm innocent civilians in revenge would be punished according to military discipline.

“—Jiufang family wants to see the Nine Nether demons become enemies with the whole world, but you, instead, have managed to put all the world’s families on the hot seat. From now on, if anyone captures a city but doesn’t distribute rice and provisions like Mo Lin, wouldn’t they be scorned by the people, called worse than demons?”

A voice drifted from the snow as Yinshan Qi, who had been slowly walking toward them, spoke leisurely.

Liuyu glanced at her long-unseen third uncle, her gaze landing on the mustard seed bag he held.

“What’s that you’re holding?”

Yinshan Qi raised an eyebrow, smiling mischievously:

“Just some kindling to add fuel to the fire.”

He tossed the mustard seed bag to Liuyu. When she opened it, she found it was a stack of poetry books.

Liuyu was puzzled, but as she flipped through the poetry collection, she realized what he meant.

—These were all poems written by the demon ghosts in the Ghost Path Academy.

Liuyu skimmed through some lines: “Stone veins, water flowing, springs dripping sand; ghost lights, like lacquer, dotting pine flowers.” She couldn’t quite believe it.

“These were written by the demon ghosts?”

Yinshan Qi smiled:

“Some have been polished by me, but most of them were written by them. I used to think these demon ghosts were shallow and ignorant, but it turns out they’re great talents hidden in the mundane world. With a little refinement, raw gems can shine.”

It was thanks to the books South Palace Yao brought over.

Without these vast collections of poetry and classical texts, even great talents would struggle to stand out.

Yinshan Qi blew off the snowflakes on the poetry collection and looked down:

“If you really want to change how humans view the demon ghosts, relying on Mo Lin’s performance alone won’t be enough. These poems and writings may not be as strong as soldiers and horses, but they have their own use.”

Liuyu lifted her eyelids and glanced at him.

“Third uncle, I didn’t expect you to…”

“The words aren’t finished yet.”

He smiled and opened his palm.

“Every word and line in the poetry collection was painstakingly copied and transcribed by me. The monthly stipend you pay me doesn’t even cover the cost of my lamp oil. Each poetry book costs ten gold zhu, and if you want a bulk order, I can offer you a discount price of a hundred gold zhu. By the way, I’ve also co-founded a bookstore with Bai Pingting. If you want to publish a large number of books, we can discuss the price further. Since you’re my niece, I’ll give you a special rate as a favor.”

Liuyu: “…”

Her third uncle truly seemed to have been driven to desperation by money.

Watching Yinshan Qi’s figure enter the hall, Liuyu suddenly remembered that in ten days it would be New Year’s Eve.

Molin had sent a message yesterday, saying that he still needed to negotiate with Shentu Xiang over their share of the refining workshop, and with the journey back, he definitely wouldn’t make it in time for the New Year’s Eve.

These were all tasks Liuyu had assigned to him. It wasn’t surprising that he couldn’t finish everything, but—

Liuyu just missed him a little.

She stepped on the snow and touched the sleeping mountain cherry tree, imagining how the blossoms would fill the Nine Hells when spring returned to the land.

It would be even more beautiful than Xiandu Yujing.

That night, at the third watch, the night was deep. Liuyu, who was lightly sleeping on the bed, was awakened by Chaoming and Chaoyuan, who came in holding a lantern.

“…What happened?”

Both were covered in snow, and Liuyu hadn’t fully woken up yet, feeling the cold air from their bodies brushing her face.

She groggily saw Chaoming lighting a lamp, Chaoyuan placing a communication array on the desk, while a few female attendants quickly helped her change clothes. Her first instinct was that it wasn’t anything good.

This scene seemed somewhat familiar.

“It’s Miss Ning,” Chaoyuan half-squatted beside the bed, gazing seriously at Liuyu’s eyes. “She says it’s very urgent and she must tell you right away.”

A sharp pain stabbed her forehead, and Liuyu suddenly realized why this scene seemed familiar.

In her previous life, it was also such a deep night when she received a message from Xiandu Yujing, informing her of the deaths of Yinshan Ze and Nangong Jing.

Liuyu’s mind cleared instantly.

The communication array revealed the face of Tan Ning.

She still had that noble appearance, with crescent-shaped eyebrows and peach-colored cheeks, even though it was late and they were meeting in a rush. She had undone her hairpin and styled her hair simply, clearly paying attention to her posture even while sleeping, to an extreme degree.

But Liuyu quickly noticed that her hairpin was slightly undone, a few strands of hair falling loose.

With her dignified posture, it looked somewhat comical.

“Listen, I have something very serious to tell you. Though it’s grave, I hope you don’t panic. I’m already trying to figure it out, but I think you should know about it, so I woke you up in the middle of the night. It’s not that I’m completely helpless…”

Liuyu suppressed her temper and forced out three words:

“Get to the point.”

“—Father is sick, and it seems quite serious. He even coughed up blood.”

There was a brief silence.

The candle in the inner room flickered lightly, and the glass lamp shivered as a gust of cold wind blew in from the window.

After a long moment, Liuyu looked up at Tan Ning, whose eyes were glistening with tears.

“But you do seem a bit helpless,” Liuyu said.

“…”

Tan Ning hesitated, unwilling to show weakness in front of Liuyu, but she couldn’t help but wipe her eyes with her sleeve.

When she looked up again, there was a dazed expression in her eyes as she said:

“There have been a lot of things happening at home recently.”

“Mother said the market in the western region of Yuyuan was lost, and half of the Yinshan clan’s foundation collapsed. After Nangong uncle’s incident, mother stopped going to the royal capital and moved the court to our house. But even I know that while these officials are handling affairs, their ranks are not high. The high-ranking noble families are now all in the homes of the Jiufang and Zhongli families—everyone says the Yinshan family is no longer what it used to be.”

“Now even Father is in trouble,” Tan Ning looked at Liuyu with steady eyes, her fingers gripping the edge of her sleeve tightly. “Will… will you come back?”

She actually meant to ask: Can you come back?

Tan Ning had already heard about the demon ghost Mo Lin leading ten thousand ghosts to invade and conquering three cities of the Shentu family.

Though there were no reports of atrocities in the cities taken, the strength of the Nine Hells’ demon ghosts was growing, while the Yinshan family was declining rapidly. Liuyu, as the Empress of Nine Hells, found her position in the middle of this situation becoming quite precarious.

What kind of attitude would the demon ghosts have towards the Yinshan family, which had built the colorless city?

In the worst case, Liuyu’s life might be at risk, let alone her ability to leave Nine Hells freely.

But Liuyu responded with a determined tone:

“I will leave as soon as possible.”

The weight that had been pressing on Tan Ning’s chest was suddenly lifted.

Then she realized, though she didn’t want to admit it, that in this family, the only one who gave her a sense of security, besides her father and mother, was Liuyu, her estranged half-sister.

“But you need to tell me everything about father’s condition from the beginning, the more detailed, the better.”

Tan Ning straightened up a little.

The origin of this issue began with Jiufang Miaoyi.

Three days ago, after the Lingyong winter exams ended, the academy had a thirty-day break. On the way back, Jiufang family’s carriage was traveling parallel to hers. Tan Ning originally thought it was Jiufang Zhanghua, but when the curtain was lifted, it was Miaoyi, whom she hadn’t seen for months.

She raised a paperboard:

[Just saw Jiuyu先生. I heard your family is looking for Xiangli, the medical immortal. Is it because uncle and aunt are sick?]

The four great grandmasters of the Great Chao were all reclusive, and Xiangli, the medical immortal from Xiangli’s clan, was a renowned healer. As long as there was still a breath of life, he could save it. He was the last hope for many critically ill patients.

But only when someone was at death’s door would they think of seeking this elusive medical immortal.

Who in the Yinshan family had fallen gravely ill to this extent?

Tan Ning immediately began to keep a close eye on Yinshan Ze during the academy break.

—She focused on Yinshan Ze because Nangong Jing was meeting with guests every day, and any unusual activity would be hard to hide.

As expected, today during the day, Yinshan Ze tried to send her away. She stayed alert, and after walking ten steps, she immediately turned back, only to encounter the scene of Yinshan Ze coughing up blood.

“…Father explained to me that he isn’t ill, and the coughing up of blood was just a side effect from his medication. But when I asked him why he was taking medication, he avoided the question and only told me not to tell you.”

Tan Ning agreed readily.

That night, when everyone was asleep, she urgently contacted Liuyu using the communication formation.

Liuyu, upon hearing this, felt the tension in her heart loosen a little.

“If Father said so, it must be true.”

Tan Ning didn’t believe it. “Taking medicine and coughing up blood—what else could it be but illness?”

Liuyu couldn’t make sense of it either.

In her past life, her father had lived healthily into his hundredth year, with no signs of illness.

Even though this life’s unexpected changes had accelerated the plans of the Jiufang and Zhongli families, it also caused the Yinshan family to weaken publicly ahead of schedule. There was no reason for them to harm her father.

…Unless he wasn’t actually ill.

Liuyu had shared all of her previous life’s memories with Nangong Jing during their first communication. Even though she didn’t believe it at first, she certainly did now, and was prepared to respond accordingly.

Perhaps this was their plan?

Liuyu couldn’t be entirely certain.

But she was sure of one thing: with her intelligence and the advantage of her past life’s memories, she could handle everything. Her parents would never just sit back and wait.

Liuyu bit her lip and lowered her gaze in thought.

Now that the conditions to return to Xiandu Yujing were all set, they could leave at any time. The only issue was—should she tell Tan Ning about the Yinshan family’s plan to slip away?

Tan Ning, feeling uneasy, suddenly met her gaze with scrutiny.

Her thoughts took a turn, and she frowned, then asked, “You don’t suspect me, do you?”

In the dim light, the girl in the communication formation suddenly broke into a meaningful smile.

“After I left, how did you get along with Zhanghua?”

Tan Ning froze for a moment, her frown deepening. “What’s the time now, and you’re still concerned about this?”

Since she couldn’t fly back to Yujing immediately anyway, and Liuyu probably wouldn’t sleep well tonight, Tan Ning instructed Chao Ming to pack their bags and continued, “Just curious? Can’t say it? That means after I left, no one paid attention to you, huh?”

Tan Ning’s temper couldn’t handle such a provocation, and she immediately sneered. “You’ll be disappointed. In spring, we admired lanterns together; in summer, we rowed boats and gathered spiritual herbs in secret realms; in autumn…”

She stopped suddenly midway.

Liuyu rested her chin on her hand and asked, “Why did you stop?”

Tan Ning pursed her lips, and after a long pause, feigned disinterest as she said, “I’m not in the mood to talk about this.”

“Oh?” Liuyu said slowly, “Could it be that you think I’m living poorly here, and you don’t want to show off in front of me because you’re afraid I’ll be upset?”

Tan Ning’s face flushed slightly at the remark.

“Full of yourself!”

She did feel some sympathy for Liuyu.

In the past, they had lived under the same roof, constantly fighting.

Tan Ning also knew that she had no real reason to compete with Liuyu, so rather than truly competing, it was more about her pure jealousy. There was nothing to hide in admitting it.

Liuyu was from a good family, beautiful, and talented.

More importantly, she had flawless parents and seemed as if she had been specially crafted by the heavens for happiness.

Such a person constantly appeared in front of her—how could it not make her angry?

But when Liuyu married into the Nine Hells, to a so-called monster with three heads and six arms, just to secure the Yinshan family’s reputation in the Great Chao, Tan Ning felt she shouldn’t have been so resentful.

A person like her could be detestable when she was successful, but when she fell from grace, it made people feel sorry for her.

Liuyu looked at her calmly and suddenly spoke.

“You should stay away from Jiufang Zhanghua. He’s not a good person.”

Tan Ning was surprised she would say such a thing, but quickly, a look of disdain mixed with a subtle sense of triumph appeared on her face.

“I know.”

“You know?”

“Yeah, I know.”

For once, Tan Ning seriously talked about Jiufang Zhanghua with Liuyu, speaking slowly but firmly.

“He’s not as perfect as he seems. I’ve always known. I’ve said it before, you and he are not meant to be. The person who understands him best in this world is me. He and I, we are alike.”

This was the first time Liuyu heard Tan Ning speak like this.

It made her view Tan Ning in a slightly different light.

“I think you don’t truly understand him,” Liuyu told her honestly. “If you really knew him, maybe even if he wanted to marry you, you wouldn’t accept.”

“Impossible.”

Tan Ning was completely confident, not knowing anything about the past life.

She looked at Liuyu with complex eyes.

“You, with your smooth life, how could you understand him better than me? You don’t even know… what he truly wants.”

Liuyu sneered inwardly.

What he wants, why should I care?

“…As long as you’re happy.”

Liuyu decided that as a punishment for Tan Ning’s love-struck thoughts, she would temporarily hide things like the matters with the Ji Mo family, Nangong Yao, and Yinshan Qi from her, leaving her to struggle on her own.

However, there was one thing Liuyu had to make clear to Tan Ning.

“No need to feel sorry for me. I’m doing just fine here, and—my husband is much more handsome than your crush!”

Liuyu hummed proudly and then unhesitatingly cut off the communication formation, leaving Tan Ning dumbfounded.

Who was comparing such things with her?

…Even if they had to compare, this time! She was definitely the winner!

The following morning, the people of the Extreme Night Palace learned of Liuyu’s decision to return to the Immortal Capital Yujing.

“Aren’t you waiting for the Lord to return before going together?”

The ghost woman lay on the large chest that the maid had just organized, showing an unusually aggrieved expression.

Liuyu was a bit puzzled:

“Why wait for him? Can’t we just meet on the road?”

The mountain demon carrying another large chest passed by, gnashing his teeth with effort.

“She’s asking if the Lord will return at all, or if once he goes, he won’t come back for them…”

The ghost woman released a butterfly the size of a palm to smack the mountain demon’s face.

“I don’t care,” she said, sitting by the stairs of the Extreme Night Palace with a relaxed posture, “Anyway, I’m going with you. I’ve never properly seen what the Immortal Capital Yujing looks like.”

The ghost woman immediately raised her hand to say she wanted to go too.

“Of course, you all have to go,” Liuyu said helplessly, “If you don’t go, who will protect the Lord’s safety?”

Going to the Immortal Capital Yujing, it was impossible to bring a large army.

The ghost woman and the others suddenly understood.

Oh right.

The Twelve Masks’ duty was to protect the Lord.

…They also forgot that it was their Lord who subtly brainwashed them into protecting the Lord’s consort, making them forget who their superior actually was.

And the Lord had hardly ever needed them to protect him.

The group set off at dusk.

It wasn’t just the Twelve Masks; this time, Liuyu could finally openly bring along Zhaoming and Zhaoyuan, while Fang Fucang, Xiang Lihualian, and Yinshan Qi had to disguise themselves and hide in the group.

The Gu Huo Bird, raised by Yinshan Qi, led the ghost cart into the twilight, while Liuyu, lying inside the cart, yawned and asked Zhaoming, who was on the roof of the cart:

“What did my father say?”

Zhaoming, just having cut off the communication array, replied:

“Still the same, he said you don’t need to come back, just mind your own business.”

“What was his reason?”

“He didn’t say. He just said he’s fine, and that Miss Ning is overreacting.”

“…Next time, you handle the communication array. If anyone asks, just say I’m dead.”

Liuyu turned over in a huff.

Let her father know what it feels like when you don’t say anything, but just ask and say someone’s dead.

The journey from Beihuang Jiuyou to Nanlu Immortal Capital would, if all went smoothly, take seven days at the fastest.

It was said that the previous time Jiu Fang Miaoyi intercepted the puppet general’s troops, they took a whole month, all because of the furious Zhongli family ambushing them midway.

Liuyu closed her eyes and silently hoped they wouldn’t be that unlucky.

Although she hadn’t slept all night, this nap didn’t feel secure.

She dreamt of Yashan again.

The heavenly gate seal loosened, and cultivators from all over the world gathered on the summit of Yashan, but Yinshan Ze turned around and struck the formation’s core with a sword.

That sword destroyed the Yinshan family, ending the lives of the entire clan, and gave the world a legitimate reason to attack and criticize.

Why?

Why did my father do that?

In her dream, Liuyu seemed to be standing on the edge of a cliff, with waterfalls splashing around her. She wanted to get as close as possible to the truth, but it was like looking through a mirage, and she couldn’t grasp the fiery crimson figure—

“Liuyu!”

Liuyu, startled awake in the ghost cart, sniffed the familiar morning mist scent.

“…Molin?” She blinked in surprise, thinking she was still in a dream. “Aren’t you supposed to be coming in a few more days?”

“The city is under the control of Shentu and Yulie, don’t worry. Shentu Xiang brought a team of people and said he wants to talk to you in person. I originally planned to meet up with them near Xuandu, but Zhaoming told me that you were returning in a hurry because something happened to your father.”

“So, I came to find you first.”

Molin, travel-worn, carried the chill of the icy world with him.

He looked at his wife, whose black hair was tousled, eyes swollen with dark circles. When he first entered the cart, her face was pale, her brows tightly knotted, as though trapped in a nightmare. Molin had to hold her shoulder to wake her from her dream.

Her jet-black hair hung around her tear-streaked face, with eyes like dark, lustrous apricots. Her clothes were a bit disheveled, and she looked at him in a dazed way, as if still not fully awake from the nightmare.

Molin felt a pang in his heart as she looked at him like that.

“What did you dream about…”

Before he could finish his sentence, the young woman suddenly leaped toward him.

Her warm, soft body pressed against his icy robes, and Molin feared she would freeze, but she refused to let go.

He gently stroked her back and buried his face to inhale the sweet scent of her neck.

“…You’re being clingy, now I really don’t know what to do.”

He wasn’t good at comforting people.

Except for holding her like this, he didn’t know what else to do.

“This is enough.”

Liuyu wrapped her arms tightly around his neck and muttered:

“You were gone for so long this time, I missed you.”

Liuyu felt him take a deep breath, as if something filled his lungs, making it hard for him to breathe.

Liuyu spoke first:

“You don’t need to say anything. Whether you missed me or not, your touch will tell me.”

Molin withdrew his hand and pressed the few useless tentacles back under his robe.

“…I don’t need them. I’ll tell you I missed you without them.”

Liuyu slowly released him.

The glass lantern outside the ghost cart swayed in the bumping, and for a brief moment, their gazes met. Liuyu stretched her neck and kissed him first.

Liuyu could almost hear the frantic beating of his heart, but his kiss was restrained.

Their lips and tongues met in a gentle, lingering exchange. It wasn’t aggressive, just softly caressing her lips, their body heat slowly syncing.

Liuyu, amidst the chaotic breaths and moist sensations, felt like she was crushed into pieces like a cloud.

All the uncertainty and anxiety melted into a warm, light stream of water, dissolving in his intermittent whispers calling her name.

He said—

“It will be okay, Liuyu.

You are so good, you’ve saved so many people… even the heavens wouldn’t want to make you sad.”

Liuyu’s cheeks flushed with a rosy glow as she smiled, gently tugging at his hair.

“What if the heavens insist on opposing me?”

The green, moist eyes reflected the weight of the girl’s thoughts as she smiled, and he tenderly stroked her face, saying:

“If the way of heaven is unjust, then we will destroy the way of heaven.”