Chapter 6

Liuyu knew what Yan Ning was thinking.

Ever since that incident, she hadn’t said a single word to Lady Liu, let alone called her Aunt Liu in a friendly manner.

But today, she suddenly suggested that Yan Ning and Lady Liu move into her courtyard, making Tan Ning naturally think she was being sarcastic.

“I’m not joking with you.”

Seeing Yan Ning’s eyes nearly pop out of her head, Liuyu’s expression became more serious.

“By the way, my mother’s not here. Is Aunt Liu home?”

Yan Ning still looked suspicious, as if she wished she could dig into Liuyu with her gaze to see what she was up to.

“…She’s home. What do you want to do?”

“I need her help with something. If she’s not busy, go invite her for me.”

Help?

Invite?

Yan Ning’s eyelids twitched at these words.

Seeing Tan Ning’s bewildered expression, whatever sisterly affection Liuyu had left quickly dissipated. She rolled her eyes slightly and said coldly:

“Hurry up. If you don’t move, don’t blame me if I take all your craftsmen. Without craftsmen, your jade refining room will just be a display.”

…Now that’s more like it.

This was the tone Yinshan Liuyu used when speaking to her.

Yan Ning finally felt a sense of familiarity and her previously stunned mind began to function again.

— My mother is now with my aunt, spending her days in the Yin Mountain clan’s accounting office. Liuyu asked her to call my mother; perhaps it has something to do with this.

Seeing Yan Ning finally get up to call someone, the maidservants who had been watching couldn’t help but chuckle.

“I thought Miss had changed her ways, but it turns out she still loves to bully Miss Ning.”

“Who’s bullying her,” Liuyu said innocently, “when I’m nice to her, she thinks I’m sick. She likes being bullied by me, right, Ayuan?”

Eating the grapes that Chao Ming had peeled for her, Chao Yuan nodded and answered honestly:

“Miss is good, Miss Ning is silly.”

However, if you were to really talk about being silly, Yan Ning was definitely not the silliest one in the family.

After the time it took to drink a cup of tea, the woman called from the accounting office was sitting uneasily in front of the communication array. Her long, thick eyelashes fluttered nervously like butterfly wings, occasionally glancing at Liuyu but quickly looking away.

“Ning Ning said that Miss Liuyu had something to instruct me. I wonder if there’s anything I can do to serve Miss Liuyu?”

This was Yan Ning’s biological mother, Liu Niang.

Liuyu herself was a beauty and had seen countless beauties in the world, but to be fair, Liu Niang was still one of the finest.

At this moment, kneeling respectfully and obediently in front of her, she looked like a spring pear blossom with dewdrops. Even the youthful Tan Ning beside her paled in comparison to her mother’s radiance; Tan Ning probably resembled her biological father more.

Such an otherworldly beauty, yet she always kept her head down, not daring to look people in the eye. Her responses were always half a beat slow. Talking to her was like speaking to a block of wood with no echo, utterly uninteresting.

However, this timid woman, in a past life, fought to the death to save Liuyu.

In the end, she met a grisly fate.

Liuyu sighed.

“I have something I need Aunt Liu’s help with. There’s no need for such formalities.”

Liu Niang looked up at Liuyu in surprise.

Just as Ning Ning had said, Miss Liuyu did seem different today.

Realizing that she had just looked directly at Miss Liuyu, Liu Niang hurriedly lowered her gaze again.

“Forgive me, Miss Liuyu, if there is anything you need, just instruct me. I will certainly…”

“Aunt Liu is my elder, there’s no need for such formal language with me.”

Liu Niang’s expression became even more panicked.

“Miss Liuyu, you flatter me. I was born in a brothel and am not worthy of being called your elder…”

Liuyu took a deep breath.

Very well.

These two, mother and daughter, were sent by the heavens to torment her.

“In that case, I will be straightforward. Aunt Liu, please organize the communication coordinates of Yin Mountain’s bases near the Demon Ghost Great Wall for me, along with a list of personnel responsible for these bases and the details of their families. Organize everything meticulously.”

“Apart from you, Tan Ning, and my parents… actually, not my father; he loves to drink and can’t keep secrets. Apart from you four, no one else in Yin Mountain can know about this. Three days should be enough, right?”

Hearing Liuyu’s commanding tone, Liu Niang finally shed some of her previous unease and visibly calmed down.

Although she didn’t know why Liuyu needed these things, this was the first time Liuyu had asked her to do something. Even if it meant going through fire and water, she would do her best.

So Liu Niang nodded solemnly and said:

“That should be enough time. Thanks to Madam Jing’s careful teaching, I now manage some affairs in the accounting office. I will certainly do my best for Miss Liuyu.”

Seeing that she could finally communicate normally with Liu Niang, Liuyu breathed a sigh of relief.

Of course, Liuyu knew her abilities.

Liu Niang was not good with words but was patient and cautious, suitable for accounting and managing affairs, and had been taught personally by Nangong Jing.

In her previous life, she became Nangong Jing’s assistant and the head steward of the Yin Mountain clan.

But… had she been so overbearing before?

From Tan Ning to Liu Niang, they all seemed to fear her.

“Miss Liuyu…”

Liu Niang’s timid voice came from the communication array. Liuyu came back to her senses and asked:

“Aunt Liu, is there anything else?”

“The matter of the Lianyu Room, Ning Ning didn’t inform Miss Liuyu. It’s Ning Ning’s fault. Please, Miss Liuyu, forgive her…”

As if anticipating Liu Niang’s long-winded explanation, Liuyu immediately interrupted:

“Yan Ning, you can stay in my courtyard, but only in the side rooms, and you must keep them spotless every day. Aunt Liu, my courtyard has precious flowers and plants. The newly transferred maids might not take good care of them, so please help me look after them.”

Yan Ning’s eyes widened. “So, this is your plan! Yin Mountain Liuyu, who do you think you’re treating as servants—”

Liu Niang quickly covered Tan Ning’s mouth.

“Miss Liuyu, don’t worry. When you return home, everything will be as it was before.”

Amid Tan Ning’s muffled protests, Liu Niang looked at the girl in the communication array, her eyebrows furrowed slightly, and said:

“Miss looks much thinner. Have you been mistreated in Jiuyou?”

Liuyu was taken aback.

“No,” Liuyu smiled, “he treats me well, and… I haven’t been mistreated.”

She swallowed the bloody tears of her past life, glossing over it with a faint, light tone.

Yan Ning broke free from Liu Niang’s hand and was about to mock how Jiuyou’s demons couldn’t compare to the elegant Prince Zhanghua. But then she saw a fleeting glimmer of water in those clear eyes like glass.

Perhaps it was her imagination.

Yan Ning opened her mouth, but in the end, said nothing.

Deep in the miasma-filled dense forest, the phosphorescent light glowed like blue flowers, dotting the boundless night.

A ghost servant in black clothes and a bamboo hat stood by the shore, holding a lantern, illuminating the blood flowing into the spring water through the cracks in the stones.

A ghost girl hopped over the scattered heads on the ground, counting as she jumped.

One, two, three…

A total of nineteen plague ghosts.

Truly worthy of being the Lord, almost equivalent to the entire Twelve Masked Gods alone.

“Taking advantage of the Lord’s grand wedding and the gathering of demon ghosts in Ye City, the puppet-faced spider and its followers are more active than usual.”

A woman dressed in white as snow sat on a stone by the shore, using her energy to heal Mo Lin’s wounds, her expression grave as she spoke:

“The city lords of Chidi, Qingye, and Xianchi all have secret dealings with him. Whether these city lords are pretending or truly pledging allegiance, the puppet-faced spider’s influence is sure to grow stronger. My Lord… do you really intend to let this go unchecked?”

“Yeah, can’t you just capture and kill him directly?”

A demon ghost squatting in a tree swayed its monkey-like tail, its expression agitated and full of hostility.

“We’re here killing plague ghosts with great effort, while the puppet-faced spider and those city lords live luxuriously, plotting to eliminate us. Damn it! Just thinking about it is infuriating!”

“How foolish.”

The female ghost rolled her eyes at him.

“The Lord can easily kill the puppet-faced spider, but haven’t you considered where the puppet-faced spider gets so much wealth to buy people’s loyalty?”

The monkey demon looked confused:

“Wealth? Sister Ting, what do you mean?”

Bai Pingting watched as the deep wounds on the green-clad demon ghost’s shoulder gradually healed, then spoke:

“To buy loyalty, one either promises power or offers benefits. Both require significant wealth. Otherwise, do you really think the puppet-faced spider and those city lords just talk and win people over?”

The monkey demon scratched his head, seeming to understand a bit.

“But he owns Jade Mountain, producing countless jade stones, so he shouldn’t lack money.”

The cute, childish face of the ghost girl was full of frustration.

“Mountain imps are really misunderstood, Migang, you are the one so foolish you should go to the Ghost Academy.”

The monkey demon threw a fruit at her from the tree.

“What she means is, although the jade from Jade Mountain is precious, it can also be refined into top-grade magical weapons. Since the puppet-faced spider and his followers oppose the Lord, they won’t exchange the jade for gold or silver but will craft weapons to strengthen their power.”

Bai Pingting pondered:

“Indeed, their influence is growing… so where does all that money come from?”

The demon ghost lord, who had been resting against a tree with eyes closed, slowly opened his eyes.

Cold green phosphorescent lights floated in the miasma, and from the cracks in the rocks, a tiny orchid-like bud seemed to bloom.

Mo Lin reached out and touched it.

The orchid, unable to survive in the underworld, quickly withered, falling to pieces in the soil.

His outstretched finger stiffened.

After a moment, he retracted his hand.

“It’s time to go back.”

The ghost girl blinked: “Oh, the Lord is eager to return and see the Lady…”

A cold glare shot her way, and the ghost girl tactfully covered her mouth.

“What about the preparations I asked you to make?”

The ghost girl obediently took out a pair of black gloves and respectfully handed them to her ill-tempered superior.

The night’s fierce battle had left Mo Lin’s pine-green robes covered in black demon patterns and snake scales.

He donned the black gloves.

They perfectly concealed the demon patterns on the back of his hands.

The wind died down, clouds dispersed, and the moon hung in the blue sky.

In the pitch-black night, lanterns dotted the mountainside like a river of stars.

As usual, the Extreme Night Palace was adorned with lanterns, and the red silk from the wedding still hung, maintaining a hint of newlywed atmosphere.

Mo Lin stood outside the main building, his sword-like brows furrowed, his face showing little joy.

The deeper the night, the more he recalled the girl’s cold expression from the previous night.

The seemingly eased attitude during the day made him suspicious, unsure of her true thoughts.

The demon patterns and snake scales under his gloves felt hot, like a shameful scar.

There was a faint sound of window lattices moving above.

Mo Lin looked up.

Tonight, the moon was bright, its light flowing.

A girl in a robe leaned against the window, looking at the moon in thought. The mountain wind, still carrying the night mist, blew through her long, flowing black hair. Her wide sleeves wrapped around her arms, resembling light clouds embracing the moon in the sky.

She stood there, just like in countless similar dreams he had.

The slight resentment in his heart seemed to be blown away by the night wind.

…Forget it.

He might as well keep the gloves on tonight and not show them in front of her; she should have nothing to say then.

“Greetings, my Lord.”

A young man in black holding a lantern stood before Mo Lin, his face carrying a layer of polite detachment.

One of the twins by her side—seems to be called Chao Ming.

Mo Lin responded with a sound, intending to enter the building, but the young man blocked his way.

Chao Ming sensed a subtle pressure from the demon ghost lord, almost triggering his instinctive battle intent.

It’s said this demon ghost lord’s power rivals a ninth-level cultivator; it seems the rumors are true.

He bowed his head slightly, smiling:

“Please forgive me, my Lord. These are Lady Liuyu’s orders.”

Mo Lin’s long brows lowered a bit, a cold smile forming:

“Is she staying in the Extreme Night Palace to get me to move out?”

It might seem unreasonable for others.

But Yinshan Liuyu was capable of such things.

“My Lord jests, the Extreme Night Palace is your palace, how could the Lady dare to usurp it? However—”

Recalling last night’s humiliation, Mo Lin’s eyes turned cold.

“However what?”

Zhao Ming smiled, clapped his hands, and a group of maidservants entered, carrying trays with men’s nightclothes, bathing beans, incense burners, and other items—all brought by Liuyu from Xiandu Yujing.

Mo Lin’s tense nerves relaxed slightly, but his brows remained furrowed.

The young man smiled with his eyes:

“Please, my Lord, bathe, change clothes, wash your hands, and then join her in the building.”