What surprised Li Ye was that Flower Demon arrived just one hour later.
Today, she wore a tight black dress, with a thin gauzy robe over it that accentuated her curvy, fiery figure.
Her long, straight black hair was casually tied behind her. Her bangs partly veiled her beautiful face, and she wore no makeup save for a touch of pale rouge on her lips.
Even so, the simple makeup did not diminish her peerless beauty in the slightest. If anything, it gave her a distinctive air.
When Flower Demon entered, a faint, delicate fragrance spread from her.
She looked around Li Ye's dim room and at the bedding that seemed not to have been washed in ages. Displeased, she said, "Honestly, Brother Li, you really have thrown yourself into your role as a Corpse Burner."
"Your little sister is still an unmarried young woman, after all. You call me over in the middle of the night, and you couldn't even get us a decent room in the city?"
"You're so stingy."
Li Ye gave her a casual glance. "Just make do. I won't take up much of your time. Sit wherever."
Flower Demon carefully scanned the room, but couldn't find a single place to sit. "I'll stand."
She'd just changed clothes and had no intention of sitting on Li Ye's filthy bed.
Li Ye didn't insist. He took a warm steamed bun from his Spatial Storage Bag.
It was exactly as it had been the moment before he put it into the Spatial Storage Bag.
Flower Demon burst into laughter. "You didn't call me here just to treat me to a steamed bun, did you?"
"We're on the same side, Brother Li. You're too kind."
A hint of amusement flickered in Li Ye's eyes. "Heh. It wasn't meant for you."
"But if you want it, I don't mind."
Flower Demon was embarrassed.
That was my Brother Li for you.
He couldn't bear to part with even one steamed bun.
He was saving up to become the richest man alive.
"As long as you're not afraid of its poison," Li Ye added.
The bun was poisoned?
Flower Demon's expression changed. Then, full of curiosity, she reached for it, wanting to examine it.
She was an expert in poisons, after all.
Li Ye stopped teasing the beauty and explained the poison's properties.
What?
This poison could destroy a person's cultivation, turning them into a cripple.
And they would waste away and die?
The young woman's hand, which had been reaching for the bun out of curiosity, froze in midair. She quickly pulled it back, breaking into a cold sweat. "There's really a poison like this in the world?"
Flower Demon's expression turned grave.
She had never heard of such a poison.
"The Devil Sect is quite skilled with poisons, isn't it?"
"I called you here because I want to ask you to investigate this poison, the person who made it, and anyone who can requisition it."
"Best of all, find me a list of everyone who's requisitioned it."
Li Ye explained.
After listening, Flower Demon reached for the bun again and held it beneath her nose.
"Sure enough, it's colorless and odorless. How fascinating."
"But where did you get this bun? You want a list, so you must know something about where it came from, right?" Flower Demon asked in surprise.
"Don't worry about where I got it. I can tell you it came from the Imperial Guards."
"What? The Imperial Court?"
"Right. Also, help me look into an Imperial Guard named Red Fox. If possible, find out who Red Fox reports to..."
"That's no problem, but it may take a little time."
"Good. I'll wait."
"Then what do I get out of it?"
"Nothing. You're dismissed."
"Of course, Brother Li."
"Wait. You got here in just an hour. Is the Devil Sect near the Divine Concealment Sect?"
"No. I haven't even gone back yet. I was in Qingcheng just now."
So that was it.
Li Ye understood.
Then he asked, "What were you doing in Qingcheng?"
Flower Demon replied, "The Earth Gate is there. I heard they found clues to the tomb of some Great Cultivator."
The Earth Gate—the tomb-raiding sect?
Li Ye was astonished. "A Great Cultivator? Who was it? Were they powerful?"
"Great Cultivator" was usually used to describe a cultivator of immense cultivation, impeccable character, and an excellent reputation.
There were bound to be plenty of treasures in such a person's tomb.
Flower Demon shook her head. "How would I know? The Earth Gate is keeping the news tightly under wraps."
"I had people watch them for days, but that was all I managed to find out."
"Still, it looks like they haven't chosen the burial site yet."
"Who knows how long it'll take to dig up a Great Cultivator's tomb?"
"I'm planning to return to the Devil Sect first. I can look into the poison for you while I'm at it."
"The Ninth Elder and the others showed themselves in Qingcheng. Everyone's sure to think that's where the Earth Gate is headed."
"Exactly. Little do they know, we've already arrived in Licheng City."
"Hahaha..."
A group of mysterious people appeared outside Licheng City, chatting and laughing.
They came from the Earth Gate, and there were seven of them.
At their head was a tall, powerfully built, golden-haired old man with a ruddy face and clear eyes.
He was obviously a cultivator of profound skill.
The other six ranged in age from their twenties to their fifties.
"After years of researching ancient texts from every angle, we've confirmed that the tomb of the Great Cultivator Shangguan Ming, who lived ten thousand years ago, was probably somewhere around Licheng City."
"If we find it, we'll be rich."
A man in his forties, with a face covered in stubble, spoke up. Greed streamed through his tiger-like eyes.
Then a lean man in the robes of a scholar, in his early thirties, continued:
"According to legend, Shangguan Ming was the only person in those days to enter the Gate of All Beings and return unharmed. His cultivation reached the heavens and penetrated the earth, the pinnacle of the Human World. Unfortunately, he cultivated a mysterious scripture brought back from the Gate of All Beings, suffered Qi Deviation, and was ambushed by his nemesis, Xie Jian Cheng Bufan. He was gravely wounded and died of his injuries."
The only woman among the seven smiled. "Speaking of Cheng Bufan, wasn't he Shangguan Ming's junior brother?"
"The two of them both loved their junior sister, Li Xian'e. But Li Xian'e loved her Eldest Senior Brother, Shangguan Ming, and that drove the two brothers apart."
"Shangguan Ming felt guilty at first and repeatedly yielded to Cheng Bufan. Who would've thought that, on the day of his wedding, Cheng Bufan would attack and accidentally kill their junior sister, Li Xian'e?"
"From then on, the brothers were sworn enemies. Am I right, Sixth Elder?"
The woman wore black and looked to be in her late twenties. A hint of heroic spirit shone between her brows.
She was quite beautiful.
The golden-haired elder at the head nodded. "That's right. The two of them were disciples of the ancient Lingxian Palace."
"They say the Lingxian Palace was an immensely powerful sect in ancient times, filled with experts and shrouded in mystery."
"Shangguan Ming, Cheng Bufan, and Li Xian'e were the last generation of Lingxian Palace's successors. Each cultivated a world-shaking art and dominated the Human World. If not for their internal strife, the world would belong to those three today."
Hahaha!
The young man in a green robe at the end of the line laughed. "Sixth Elder, you're just jealous of the Lingxian Palace's legacy."
"After Cheng Bufan left the Lingxian Palace, he founded the Evil Sword Palace. The Evil Cultivators revered him as their leader back then, and the Evil Dao still honors him as its Ancestor, the Evil Ancestor."
"Shangguan Ming inherited the mantle of the Lingxian Palace and led the world's Daoist sects, becoming the Dao Head."
"Before Li Xian'e passed away, her cultivation had also reached the point of Immunity to Years."
"If we can unearth the Lingxian Palace's legacy, our Earth Gate will surely become a second ancient Lingxian Palace before long. Hahaha..."
The Sixth Elder chuckled and scolded him, "You little brat..."
"But while I certainly want to dig up the ruins of the Lingxian Palace, what I want even more is the mysterious scripture that the Great Cultivator Shangguan Ming brought back from the Gate of All Beings."
Everyone fell silent.
The woman in black asked, "Should I prepare a coffin for you?"
The Sixth Elder froze. "You little girl..."
The woman in black giggled. "Even the Great Cultivator Shangguan Ming couldn't master that divine art, yet you want to lay hands on it?"
"If I don't prepare a coffin for you in advance, I'm afraid there won't be time later."
The people of the Earth Gate burst into laughter.
Flower Demon left, her movement technique astonishingly swift.
In the night, she swept across the sky like a black gust of wind, then drifted away.
No one in the entire Corpse Refining Courtyard noticed that she had been there.
Her delicate fragrance lingered in the room.
Li Ye looked at his grimy bed. After thinking it over, he took one of Flower Demon's outer robes from his Spatial Storage Bag and spread it over the bed.
That way, it wouldn't be dirty.
Li Ye happily lay down on it.
He hadn't slept for days and was a little drowsy.
Before he knew it, he'd fallen asleep...
Before you continue