Sharing a Room

Carp Tide City, the most famous city for tide-watching in Qing Province, attracts many tourists every year.

It was currently the bustling peak season.

The streets were crowded with people, and the calls of vendors echoed endlessly.

A group of a dozen people moved forward through the crowd with extreme discretion.

The group was down to a single carriage.

A young woman with a good figure, dressed in plain clothes, walked at the front, leading the horse. Her eyes sparkled as she looked around the streets of Carp Tide City... This was Deng Baiyi's first time seeing such a prosperous and lively scene, a sight unseen in Northern Prefecture for eight hundred years.

Deng Baiyi sighed with emotion, envying those lucky enough to be born within the borders.

Even in a chaotic world, they could find peace.

However, what truly surprised her was something else.

"You seem to be very good at running away?"

In the past few days, she had witnessed Xie Zhen's expertise.

Starting from Taian City, heading east to reach Carp Tide City was supposed to be a straight line, but Xie Zhen's chosen route was extremely strange, like a winding snake, taking only remote paths not marked on any map...

This guy must have been here before.

No.

He must have run away often before.

"I've been hunted before," Xie Xuanyi said casually.

He was indeed very familiar with Qing Province. Back then, when Great Chu issued a bounty, cultivators from all four regions came out, and he had operated and entrenched himself in Qing Province for a long time.

He knew the roads here well, and he knew the methods of the Imperial City Bureau even better.

After killing Xu You and Shen Yan, Xie Xuanyi set several fires, burning down the mansion arranged by Xu You, taking advantage of the chaos to knock out the garrison soldiers, and conveniently shaking away a portion of their soul memories... Now that Qing Province was under lockdown, the Primal Chaos Monitor must have detected the anomaly in Taian City. Even if the Sandalwood Guard of the Imperial City Bureau rushed to handle the case, the evidence and witnesses would be insufficient. Relying solely on that bit of "karmic heavenly secret" to find him would not be easy.

Before stepping into the Spirit Severing Array for the life-and-death duel with Xu You, Xie Xuanyi had already prepared this method of handling the aftermath.

His identity was always best kept hidden.

But Xu You's death needed at least one "person" to pay the price...

Since this Deputy City Lord was a deeply hidden demon cultivator, then this incident would be perfectly covered by a "demon cultivator."

Jiang Huang was a descendant of the True Phoenix, and her blood, bones, and hair all contained True Phoenix demonic energy.

Xie Xuanyi had previously taken a few drops of Jiang Huang's blood while drawing talismans in the carriage, not needing much... This talisman used Phoenix blood as a primer, not seeking lethality, but only to allow those who carefully observed it to discover the faint "demonic energy" left behind by the talisman's explosion.

The Imperial City Bureau wanted clues—this was the clue he was giving to the Imperial City Bureau.

Now that they had successfully entered Carp Tide City, this journey, although the road was a bit off and a bit far, Fortunately, there were no pursuers.

The "unease" that had been lingering in Xie Xuanyi's heart gradually disappeared...

The feeling of having his lifeline held by someone finally dissipated.

He felt much more at ease.

To facilitate his actions, Xie Xuanyi deliberately refined several low-grade, simple magical artifacts along the way.

He boiled tree resin with Primordial Qi and injected his soul power into it, turning it into a thin facial mask.

Covering his face could change his appearance.

This "human skin mask" was not much of a skill, but it was very useful for traveling the world.

After being reborn, he was ten years younger, and the features of his face had also changed slightly...

But there were still some risks.

Once he entered a large city, he would inevitably be noticed.

To ensure "safety," Xie Xuanyi refined a different human skin mask for everyone in the caravan.

After entering Carp Tide City, they were no longer "refugees" from Northern Prefecture.

Instead, they were merchants trading and moving their households.

Deng Baiyi wanted to stop several times to look around and buy some jade hairpins and other accessories, but Xie Xuanyi in the carriage "kindly reminded" her.

To avoid suspicion, the Deng Estate group was now all disguised as "servants" hired by him.

And she was playing Xie Xuanyi's maid, responsible for leading the horse and doing dirty work.

A maid... naturally did not deserve to buy accessories.

It wasn't until they checked into the inn and she finished feeding the horses in the stable that Deng Baiyi could finally catch her breath. She wiped the sweat from her forehead as she returned to her room.

Finally, they had arrived at a place for "people to live."

After leaving Jade Pearl Town, they had been living in the open, never getting a good night's sleep.

She had finally had a chance to rest for one night in Taian City.

But they just had to run into something like that.

However, the moment Deng Baiyi pushed open the door, her smile froze. She took two steps back, checking if she had entered the wrong room...

"Don't bother looking, this is it."

Xie Xuanyi sat on the windowsill, looking out at the long street not far away, and said, "Tonight, you're staying in the same room as me."

Although the Northern Prefecture was barren, the Deng family was still a well-known local family. Deng Baiyi was, after all, a young lady who had never had to lift a finger.

For the past few days, she had been playing the role of a maid, being ordered around the whole time.

Deng Baiyi said indignantly, "Is this my father's idea?"

Xie Xuanyi was silent for a moment.

Looking at Deng Baiyi's angry eyes, he roughly understood why this young lady was so angry...

What women valued most was probably their reputation for purity, their untouched bodies.

"No, this is my idea."

Xie Xuanyi continued to look out the window, calmly saying, "Since you are my maid, you naturally have to share a room with me."

Such a calm answer stunned Deng Baiyi.

"You probably don't understand what the 'Imperial City Bureau' is."

Xie Xuanyi gestured for Deng Baiyi to come closer.

From the highest point of the inn, one could see seven or eight long streets, stable and crisscrossing. Now, as night approached, the streets and alleys were bustling with people, very lively, with people carrying lanterns, hawking, performing, and doing lion dances. Deng Baiyi was a little dazzled, not understanding what these people had to do with the Imperial City Bureau that Xie Xuanyi was talking about.

"At most one hour after Xu You's death, the Imperial City Bureau will notice."

"If Xu You left a life lamp in the Imperial City, then their reaction speed will only be faster... The Sandalwood Guard stationed in Qing Province will act immediately. Once this case involves demon cultivators, Taian City within a hundred miles will be strictly investigated. The 'Primal Chaos Monitor,' responsible for monitoring the Primordial Qi of the four borders of Great Chu, will capture the aura of the perpetrator as soon as possible."

Xie Xuanyi said leisurely, "In other words, even if we take countless detours to reach Carp Tide City, we are by no means safe. Do you see the person selling candied haws in 'West Peace Lane'? He has been standing at the entrance of the alley for a long time, unable to sell a single item and not even hawking. These people are called 'Fly Eyes.'"

Fly Eyes?

Without Xie Xuanyi explaining... Deng Baiyi understood the meaning of this name.

As the name suggests, there were many of them.

"This world is unfair. Some people can grasp things with a simple reach, while many people cannot obtain them even in their entire lives."

"Fly Eyes are 'special cultivators' under the Sandalwood Guard, and there are a great number of them. There are many in every city of Great Chu... You also know that not everyone has the opportunity to cultivate."

Xie Xuanyi said meaningfully, "Even if they obtain cultivation methods, not everyone can become a Qi Refiner."

Deng Baiyi lowered her head silently.

Unable to sense the Primordial Qi of heaven and earth, unable to absorb Primordial Qi to ignite the acupoints.

Such people... even if they had cultivation methods, it would be useless.

There should be many such people.

"Most Fly Eyes are like this." Xie Xuanyi said calmly, "These people have mediocre talents. Even if they obtain cultivation methods, they cannot become Qi Refiners. In order to seek a future, they willingly sign contracts with the Imperial City Bureau. The Sandalwood Guard has ways to let them 'cultivate,' and they need to pay the corresponding price."

"The price... is what?"

"To become a Qi Refiner, and then only be able to be a Qi Refiner for the rest of their lives." Xie Xuanyi smiled, "Doesn't that sound like there's nothing wrong with it?"

Deng Baiyi nodded cautiously.

Relying on oneself, it would be impossible to become a Qi Refiner in a lifetime.

Joining the Sandalwood Guard made it possible.

There was indeed nothing wrong with it.

Even if they only drew a few Qi Refining talismans, they would be much stronger than ordinary people. One day, if they went to other places, they would be "Immortal Masters" admired by all.

"They can never become the 'Immortal Masters' in the eyes of others in their entire lives."

Xie Xuanyi said quietly, "The Sandalwood Guard gives them cultivation methods so that they can work for them... This is the real price. Once these people nod, they will never have the opportunity to leave the control of the Imperial City Bureau. They cannot refuse any tasks."

"If they die?"

"Then they die."

The words Fly Eyes were enough to show their humble status and low position.

This world was unfair? No, it was very fair.

All the gifts given by fate were secretly marked with a price.

"I don't know how far the investigation into the Taian City case has progressed..."

"But I know very well that from the moment we stepped into Carp Tide City, we have been checked by 'Fly Eyes.'"

Xie Xuanyi changed the subject and asked, "Although I burned down the Taian City residence and created false evidence, do you think Xu You's adopted son will dispel his doubts because of this?"

Deng Baiyi opened her mouth, speechless.

Xu Jing had seen the appearance of her group, as well as the relationship between the Deng Estate and Xie Zhen.

"When traveling outside, if you cannot bear the risk of things being exposed, then do not leave even one-thousandth of the possibility of exposure."

Xie Xuanyi closed the window and said calmly, "So, no matter how unwilling you are right now, just obediently be my maidservant. We'll talk about everything after the storm passes."

Deng Baiyi bit her lip.

Actually... being Xie Zhen's maidservant wasn't so bad.

If she really didn't want to, she wouldn't have agreed so readily in the first place.

"But..."

Her gaze shifted, and she said with a mix of shame and indignation, "There's only one bed here. How are two people supposed to sleep?"

It was the peak season for watching the tide, and Carp Tide City was overflowing with people. It was already lucky to even get an empty room.

But this room was really too small.

There was barely any space left to even sleep on the floor.

Not to mention that pitifully narrow bed, which seemed only big enough for one person.

Xie Xuanyi frowned, as if he'd heard a very strange question.

"The bed is so small... of course we'll sleep together."

Oh~