The wine shop's doors were already closed.
--Since it hadn't opened for business, there was no need to close up.
The place was remote enough, and they had cast a soundproofing spell in advance. Nothing too loud would disturb anyone.
Qin Xiaolou sat in a chair, eyes tightly shut, his expression shifting constantly.
"No..."
"Don't... don't..."
"We're just drinking. We're not doing anything else..."
A string of words tumbled from his mouth.
His tone grew more and more urgent, and his body began to squirm restlessly.
Only then did a woman's voice ring out:
"That's enough."
Qin Xiaolou fell silent at once, slumped back in his chair, and began to snore.
--He had fallen asleep.
The Heavenly Demoness who had cast the spell withdrew it, bowed to Xie Daoling, then stood off to one side, looking uneasy.
Xie Daoling said expressionlessly, "I never imagined that the descendants of the Profound Immortals of old would need such methods to deal with all living beings."
Li An stepped forward to explain. "They're just spells for protecting ourselves. In truth, we haven't given ourselves over to debauchery or sunk into depravity."
"Oh? Are things that difficult for you?" Xie Daoling asked.
"All the Celestials of the previous generation of the Six Paths Heavenly Realm have perished. Only our Profound Immortal clan remains, barely clinging to life," Li An said, lowering her eyes.
Xie Daoling looked at her and asked, "I never asked before, because I thought it was a matter between my disciple and you. But now that you've shown yourself, I'll ask: how were you able to attach your divine sense to my disciple and follow him all this time?"
A murderous intent rose from her, locking directly onto Li An.
The entire wine shop fell silent.
Li An paused, then answered