Chapter 76: Street Performance
On the way to the capital, Lü Qingyan realized her teleportation ability was working again. Eager to experience the bustling city, she immediately teleported to a hidden spot near the city gate.
It was a good thing she had chosen a secluded location. Suddenly appearing out of thin air would have terrified the mortals.
Transforming into a human had its advantages. She could move freely, and this secret realm was different from the previous one.
In the previous secret realm, they had been stripped of their powers, rendering them helpless. But this time, they had retained their cultivation and abilities.
Zhu Er, having experienced the wonders of teleportation, was both amazed and terrified. She had just robbed two powerful demons.
Her heart pounded in her chest, but then she remembered that these two demons seemed to be rather easygoing. If it had been any other demon, she would have been dismembered.
As she contemplated returning the spirit stones, the sound of hooves reached her ears.
“Make way for the Imperial Advisor!” a voice shouted. “All commoners, step aside!”
The people on the street quickly moved to the sides, some even kneeling, their heads bowed in reverence.
A luxurious carriage emerged from the cloud of dust, its curtains drawn. As it passed them, a hand reached out, pulling back the curtain.
A handsome man, his face pale, his features delicate, stared at them, his gaze intense, as if he had sensed their presence.
Then, he released the curtain, and the carriage continued its journey, entering the city.
Bai Jingxue closed her eyes, then opened them, her gaze fixed on the carriage. A faint aura of death clung to it, but carriages didn’t possess such an aura. It seemed the Imperial Advisor’s life was nearing its end.
She had encountered countless extraordinary individuals. A mere mortal advisor held no interest for her. But it seemed they needed identification to enter the city.
Zhu Er had also realized this. She usually transformed into her spider form to sneak into cities, then transformed back into a human once she was inside.
But that wouldn’t work for Bai Jingxue and Lü Qingyan.
They could, however, teleport.
They emerged from a deserted alley, Bai Jingxue surprised by the bustling activity of the capital.
Lü Qingyan, however, was enthralled. She stared at everything with wide eyes, her excitement bubbling over.
The streets were crowded, and Bai Jingxue, afraid of losing Lü Qingyan, followed closely behind, but she needn’t have worried. Lü Qingyan would always stop and wait for her.
Mortals used currency, not spirit stones. They could only look, not buy. Lü Qingyan’s face fell as she realized this.
Bai Jingxue, seeing her disappointment, spotted a pawnshop. She couldn’t remove the hairpin from her hair, but she had several of Luo Nianshang’s spare hairpins in her spatial ring.
She pretended to reach into her sleeve, retrieving a jade magnolia hairpin from her spatial ring.
She pawned the hairpin, receiving a hefty sum of silver, which she handed to Lü Qingyan.
Zhu Er, staring at them, her jaw slack, was stunned by their sudden wealth. She felt a surge of admiration for the Ejian Sect.
It must be an extraordinary sect, and it seemed they didn’t discriminate against demons.
She suddenly wanted to join.
As she calculated how many spirit stones she would need to reach the Ejian Sect, a jade pendant was suddenly pressed into her hand. She looked up, her gaze fixed on the jade, its color similar to her spider form.
She stared at Lü Qingyan, who had given her the pendant, her voice hesitant. “Is this for me?”
The jade pendant, purchased from a street vendor, was clearly of low quality, its value insignificant. Lü Qingyan had simply thought it resembled Zhu Er’s spider form.
She nodded. “Yeah, keep it,” she said. “It wasn’t expensive.”
Zhu Er, clutching the pendant, felt like she had encountered a benevolent deity.
But before she could express her gratitude, Lü Qingyan’s voice rang out. “Qingyan! Look! Acrobats!”
Zhu Er, following Lü Qingyan’s gaze, saw her dragging a reluctant Bai Jingxue away.
She quickly followed, not wanting to be left behind.
Bai Jingxue disliked acrobatic performances, but Lü Qingyan loved them, so she endured.
At least they weren’t fire-breathing acrobats.
A burly man lay on a bench, a thick stone slab resting on his chest. A thinner man stood beside him, banging a gong and shouting.
“Come one, come all! Witness the incredible feat of chest-crushing stone! Show your support, honored guests!”
A crowd quickly gathered, and Zhu Er, after much effort, managed to squeeze through.
She didn’t understand what was so interesting about this. They could teleport. Why were they watching such a mundane performance?
Bai Jingxue had the same thought. She stared at Lü Qingyan, her expression a mixture of amusement and confusion, but Lü Qingyan was clearly enjoying herself, so she simply let it go.
Urged by the crowd, the man with the gong picked up a hammer, smashing it against the stone. The stone shattered, and the crowd roared its approval.
The man then approached them, seeking payment.
Bai Jingxue, seeing Lü Qingyan’s tail twitching beneath her robe, discreetly moved to block it from view, her voice a gentle warning. “Your tail, Qingyan. Control it.”
Lü Qingyan, startled, quickly stilled her tail, her cheeks flushing as she scratched her head sheepishly.
She often forgot about this new appendage.
The man reached Lü Qingyan, his hand outstretched. Lü Qingyan, in her past life, had been a spendthrift. Her habits hadn’t changed. While others tossed copper coins, she retrieved a silver ingot, placing it in the man’s hand.
The performer, surprised by her generosity, showered her with blessings.
But humans were never satisfied. Having witnessed the chest-crushing stone, they craved more.
“Is that all you can do?” someone shouted. “Show us something more exciting!”
“Yeah, that’s nothing! I could do that too!”
“You earned so much money! Give us another show!”
The performer, not one to disappoint, grinned. “Don’t worry, honored guests,” he said. “My brother and I have traveled the world for many years. We have many skills. But this space is too small. We can’t perform our other feats here.”
The crowd booed.
He then pulled a young girl from the corner, his voice filled with pride. “But my daughter is skilled in the art of jar-balancing,” he said. “She’ll entertain you.”
Bai Jingxue, seeing the girl’s pale face, her thin frame, her eyes filled with fear, her demeanor suggesting illness, frowned.
She was supposedly his daughter, but her delicate features bore no resemblance to the performer.
The man retrieved a large porcelain jar. It was thick and heavy, judging by the bulging muscles in his arms.
The girl, staring at the jar, her face even paler, lay down, her legs raised, her feet pointing towards the sky. The man placed the jar on her soles.
Bai Jingxue’s eyes narrowed. She noticed that the girl’s face had turned even paler the moment the jar had touched her feet.
Lü Qingyan, unable to bear it, shouted, “Stop it! Why are you making such a young child do something so dangerous?”
The performer, recognizing the generous woman, hesitated, his expression troubled.
The crowd, however, was unfazed. They assumed the beautiful young woman was simply a sheltered noblewoman.
“Let the girl perform!” someone shouted.
“Yeah, she’ll have to earn a living eventually!”
The performer, his voice apologetic, said, “I apologize, miss, but she’s not as delicate as you. Country children are tough. She’ll be fine.”
Lü Qingyan was furious. She wanted to snatch back the silver she had given them.
But Zhu Er stopped her, her voice a low whisper. “Don’t be impulsive,” she said. “Attracting too much attention is dangerous. The mortal realm is also governed by cultivation sects. If they discover we’re demons, it’ll be troublesome.”
Lü Qingyan, however, wasn’t listening. She was ready to intervene. She rolled up her sleeves, preparing to fight, but Bai Jingxue grabbed her arm, stopping her.
Lü Qingyan stared at Bai Jingxue, her expression a mixture of confusion and frustration. She didn’t understand.
Bai Jingxue, her gaze fixed on a tall building across the street, noticed an open window facing them. Someone was watching.
She turned to Lü Qingyan. “There’s a cultivator watching us,” she said.
The cultivator’s aura was stronger than theirs, and they couldn’t see her face. She was wearing a veiled hat. It was best to be cautious.
Lü Qingyan calmed down. The girl had already begun her performance, but the task was clearly beyond her capabilities. After only two attempts, the jar slipped, about to fall onto her head.
Lü Qingyan, seeing this, couldn’t help herself. She dashed forward, kicking the jar away.
It shattered upon impact, its fragments scattering across the ground.
Bai Jingxue, watching this, rubbed her temples, her heart sinking.
The crowd, after a moment of stunned silence, erupted in cheers.
Lü Qingyan, usually shameless, suddenly felt a surge of embarrassment, which quickly transformed into pride.
She glared at the two performers.
The girl, who had narrowly escaped injury, thanked Lü Qingyan, her voice trembling, then glanced at her father, her eyes filled with fear.
“That woman is strong!”
“She looks so delicate, but she kicked that jar at least three meters high!”
“This is much more entertaining than the chest-crushing stone!”
Lü Qingyan, basking in their praise, her ego inflated, couldn’t help but boast. “That’s nothing!” she exclaimed. “I can split a stone with my bare hands! And my friend can breathe fire!”
Bai Jingxue, hidden among the crowd, hearing those words, her breath hitched.
“I knew it,” she thought. “This was a bad idea.”
The woman in the tall building closed the window, settling down at her desk. She removed her veiled hat. “What do you think, Yue Lian?” she asked.
Fang Yue Lian smiled at Fang Xin. “They don’t seem like the ones we’re looking for,” she said. “They’re all female. The sect’s information mentioned a male demon.”
Fang Xin nodded in agreement. “And a man-eating demon wouldn’t be this reckless,” she said. “He would be hiding.”
The food and wine on the table remained untouched. Fang Yue Lian disliked this tense atmosphere. She poured herself a cup of wine, then filled Fang Xin’s cup.
She raised her cup, smiling. “Let’s discuss this later,” she said. “We still have to meet the Imperial Advisor.”
Fang Xin, however, slammed her fist against the table, her voice filled with frustration. “If our sect wasn’t so poor, I wouldn’t have taken this job.”
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