Chapter 126: Beyond the Walls
Seven days remained until the prayer ceremony. It was enough time for Bai Lizhao to leave Cang Xi and see the world beyond its borders.
She had wanted to summon the First Princess and appoint her as regent, but the Demon Lord had dissuaded her.
Such a move would attract too much attention. The Demon Lord had suggested feigning illness, then posting trusted guards at her bedchamber. They would only be gone for a few days. Nothing could go wrong.
Bai Lizhao, after careful consideration, had agreed.
She had summoned her most trusted advisors, her voice firm. “I will be indisposed for a few days,” she had announced. “I will not be receiving any visitors.”
The guards, kneeling before her, their voices echoing in unison, had replied, “Yes, Your Majesty!”
Having settled everything, she returned to her bedchamber, her fingers tracing a hidden latch near the bed. She pressed it, and a section of the floor opened, revealing a dark passage.
She retrieved a night-pearl from her bedside table, its soft glow illuminating the narrow passage, then she descended the steep steps, her footsteps echoing in the silence.
The passage led outside the palace walls, where Luo Nianshang and the Demon Lord were waiting.
The moon was high in the sky. The Demon Lord, her arms crossed, one finger tapping impatiently against her arm, glanced at Luo Nianshang. “Do you think she tricked us?” she asked, her voice laced with suspicion.
Her suspicion was understandable. If she were Bai Lizhao, and two strangers from another kingdom had held a dagger to her throat, claiming they were there to save her kingdom, then demanded she accompany them on a journey…
It sounded like a trap. Avoiding these strangers would have been the logical course of action.
But Bai Lizhao had even revealed the location of this secret passage. She hadn’t seemed like she was trying to avoid them.
Luo Nianshang sat cross-legged on a large rock, the moonlight illuminating her face, her beauty surpassing even the moon’s.
Her sword, Nianxue, rested across her lap. Hearing the Demon Lord’s complaint, she gently stroked the sword’s sheath, her voice soothing. “Be patient,” she said. “She’ll come.”
The Demon Lord was growing impatient. If it had been anyone else, she would have unleashed her sarcasm, but she couldn’t bring herself to be sarcastic with Luo Nianshang.
As if in answer to Luo Nianshang’s words, the ground before them shifted, a hand holding a night-pearl emerging from the earth. Bai Lizhao climbed out, her clothes and hair slightly disheveled from her journey through the narrow passage.
She took a deep breath, savoring the fresh air, then turned to them, her voice calm. “Let’s go,” she said.
Luo Nianshang had acquired an inconspicuous carriage, its color a dull gray, and she had volunteered to be their driver.
The Demon Lord and Bai Lizhao were alone in the carriage.
Bai Lizhao was wary of the Demon Lord, remembering the dagger at her throat, but the Demon Lord’s disguise was flawless.
The Demon Lord idly played with her hair, her gaze occasionally darting towards the window.
They were traveling quickly, the carriage’s curtains flapping in the wind, offering glimpses of Luo Nianshang’s silhouette.
Bai Lizhao’s gaze shifted between the Demon Lord and Luo Nianshang. The journey was long and boring. She needed something to occupy her mind.
She was curious about their relationship. “You two seem close,” she said, her voice casual.
Her words caught their attention. Luo Nianshang’s back stiffened slightly, but she remained silent, her gaze fixed on the road ahead.
The Demon Lord, assuming Bai Lizhao had noticed something, her eyes widening, quickly said, “We’re enemies.”
Bai Lizhao was confused. Enemies didn’t usually act this way. She had seen Luo Nianshang try to help the other woman into the carriage, her hand outstretched.
But the woman, seemingly oblivious, had simply brushed past Luo Nianshang’s hand, leaping into the carriage. Luo Nianshang had withdrawn her hand, her expression unreadable.
Bai Lizhao wondered if she was simply too old to understand these young people’s strange customs. Or perhaps her sheltered life in the palace had made her naive.
Seeing the faint blush on the Demon Lord’s cheeks, she decided it was simply a matter of youthful shyness. The three of them, except for Bai Lizhao herself, were clearly skilled warriors. She wisely changed the subject.
“How old are you, Miss Qiu?” she asked.
The Demon Lord, her composure returning, considered this for a moment, her fingers counting silently, then she said, her voice hesitant, “I haven’t calculated it recently, but… definitely over five hundred.”
Bai Lizhao’s eyes widened. “Are you also a demon?” she asked.
The Demon Lord was amused. Cang Xi was truly isolated. Even the Emperor could communicate with cultivators and distinguish between demons, cultivators, and demon cultivators.
But they couldn’t identify someone like her, a powerful demon in disguise.
She decided not to mock Bai Lizhao. It was more entertaining to enlighten her.
She propped one foot on the seat, her hand resting on her knee, her posture resembling a bandit’s.
Bai Lizhao, assuming she had offended the Demon Lord, swallowed nervously, but her fear was unfounded. The Demon Lord was simply trying to look more imposing.
“I’m a human,” the Demon Lord said, her voice firm.
She then proceeded to explain the world beyond Cang Xi’s borders: the path of cultivation, the difference between cultivators and demon cultivators, the decline of the demon races.
Everything she described was new to Bai Lizhao, whose world had revolved around a single goal: eliminating the Flower Goddess’s influence.
Now, her perspective broadened, she realized how small her world truly was.
The Demon Lord, her voice filled with pride, continued, “The most powerful sect in the righteous realm is the Ejian Sect, and their Sword Saint ancestor is the strongest cultivator in the world. The only one who comes close is the Demon Lord.”
She had been specific about the other sects and individuals, but she hadn’t mentioned their names. Bai Lizhao, her curiosity piqued, interrupted her. “May I know the names of the Sword Saint and the Demon Lord?”
The Demon Lord had been waiting for this question. She straightened her back, smiling. “The Sword Saint’s name is Luo Nianshang,” she said. “And the Demon Lord is Qiu Yingxi.”
Bai Lizhao’s eyes widened in realization. “So you’re…?”
The Demon Lord, pleased by her reaction, nodded. “As you can see,” she said.
Bai Zhao felt a headache forming. She didn’t believe her. This story was full of holes.
If what she said was true, then the Sword Saint and the Demon Lord should be sworn enemies, not… this.
The Demon Lord, unaware that Bai Zhao now considered her a liar, continued her cheerful chatter.
After three days of travel, they finally left Cang Xi.
The moment they crossed the border, their spiritual energy returned, and the Demon Lord, leaping from the carriage, stretched languidly under the warm sun.
Luo Nianshang, petting the horse, seemed to be whispering something to it.
The Demon Lord, approaching them, her voice laced with a hint of amusement, said, “You’re giving it a great opportunity, Venerable One.”
Luo Nianshang didn’t deny it. “It carried us tirelessly for three days,” she said, her voice calm. “Guiding it onto the path of cultivation is a small repayment.”
The Demon Lord smiled.
She unhitched the horse, then, with a playful swat, sent it galloping away.
Bai Zhao, staring at the empty carriage, her brow furrowed, wondered how they would continue their journey. They were still in the wilderness.
Luo Nianshang, ignoring her, summoned her sword, Nianxue, which floated obediently beside her.
Bai Zhao, still lost in thought, was startled when Luo Nianshang grabbed her shoulder, lifting her onto the sword.
The Demon Lord had been planning to fly on her own, but seeing this, a sudden surge of jealousy gripping her heart, she also leaped onto the sword.
But Nianxue wasn’t that large. Three people was a bit too much.
Luo Nianshang, glancing at the Demon Lord, but not objecting, retrieved a fan from her spatial ring, muttering a few words.
The fan expanded, becoming large enough for two people to stand on.
Luo Nianshang tossed Bai Zhao onto the fan, then turned to the Demon Lord. “Stay close,” she said. “It’s dangerous.”
The Demon Lord, who had been expecting a reprimand, surprised by Luo Nianshang’s casual acceptance, nodded, then moved closer to Luo Nianshang.
Once she was close enough, she started to move away, then she stopped, her foot hovering in the air.
Bai Zhao, at her age, had never experienced anything like this. Being tossed around like a sack of potatoes was bad enough, but now she had to watch these two flirt?
But she was just a mortal. She had no choice but to endure it. If they withdrew their magic, she would fall to her death.
The sword and the fan moved forward, the clouds parting before them, and Bai Zhao felt like she was flying, a fleeting glimpse of immortality.
Then, she saw it: a towering mountain, its peak covered in snow, a seemingly insurmountable barrier separating Cang Xi from the outside world.
And now, she was flying over it, its height insignificant.
She couldn’t describe what she was feeling. Perhaps Qiu Yingxi had been telling the truth.
As the spiritual energy in the air grew stronger, Luo Nianshang paused, then, with a gesture, she tore a rift in space.
Time was of the essence. She used her spatial ability to transport them to the Ejian Sect.
The Ejian Sect disciples, seeing the Sword Saint arrive, dropped to their knees, their voices echoing in unison. “Welcome back, Ancestor!”
Luo Nianshang, flustered, simply hummed in acknowledgment.
She then took the Demon Lord and the stunned Bai Zhao to her residence.
Once they were gone, the disciples began whispering among themselves.
“Was that the Demon Lord behind the Ancestor?”
“What’s the Demon Lord doing here?”
“Did she surrender?”
“No way. Qiu Yingxi is too cunning. This must be a trick!”
Their speculations continued, but She Yuwei, a gleam in her eyes, a brush in her hand, simply chuckled. “Enemies to lovers,” she murmured. “My inspiration has returned.”
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