Sumeru Bag! More the Merrier! (Two Chapters Combined)

Still warm?

Warm your sister!

Looking at Yu'er's cheeks, which were suffused with a dark, deathly aura, Chen Mo rubbed his temples.

He hadn't expected that the top headliner of Qingya Pavilion would actually be a plant buried by the Heir.

It was understandable, though; his predecessor was a well-known romantic fool in Heaven Capital City who had disregarded his family's interests and torn up a marriage contract all for the sake of a courtesan.

Yu'er was stunningly beautiful, with a slender figure and a mastery of the zither—she was essentially a lower-tier substitute for Gu Manzhi.

As for why she was "lower-tier"—

The bewitching, soul-stirring charm of the Extreme Yin Virgin Body was something no one else could imitate.

Even though Gu Manzhi's constitution had yet to fully mature and she deliberately restrained her aura in daily life, she still garnered countless admirers and reigned as the head of the five great courtesans of the Music Bureau.

Yu'er's temperament was not bad, but compared to that enchantress, she paled in comparison.

"Actually, I'm not opposed to a beauty trap; there was no need to be so sneaky about it..."

"The problem is that Yu'er is dead now, and there's no telling what the Heir might do next..."

Just as Chen Mo was frowning in thought, "Yu'er's" cherry lips parted, and a paper figure poked its head out from within her mouth.

"Master, she's still warm, do you really want to..."

"Shut up!"

Chen Mo barked.

The paper figure shrank its head back and retreated inside.

The sight made Chen Mo frown deeply—going in and out of someone else's body like that was truly impolite!

However, this did spark an idea in his mind.

Chen Mo turned his head to look at Gu Manzhi and asked, "If you used the Paper Puppet Technique to imitate Yu'er, how similar could you make it?"

"Why do you ask... Oh~"

Gu Manzhi realized his intent, smiling as she said, "You want me to impersonate Yu'er, deceive the Heir, and act as a double agent?"

Chen Mo spread his hands, speaking frankly, "It's merely mutual benefit. Since you have to stay in the Music Bureau, you need a decent identity. What kind of information could a little maid possibly dig up?"

Gu Manzhi blinked, "So, you're not going to kill me anymore?"

Chen Mo snorted coldly, "If I wanted to kill you, I would have done it long ago. Would I have kept you until now?"

"But let's get this straight: if you dare to plot against the Chen Family again, I will show no mercy!"

Hearing his fierce tone, Gu Manzhi's eyes grew slightly hazy, and the corners of her mouth curled upward uncontrollably.

Hmph, what a hypocrite. It's clear he just can't bear to part with me...

Chen Mo had his own considerations.

Back when he was only a seventh-rank martial artist, he could injure Gu Manzhi as long as he struck first.

Now that his strength was far beyond what it used to be, he figured she wouldn't be able to stir up any trouble.

But if something were to happen to Gu Manzhi and the Moon Radiance Sect sent a Grandmaster, or if that Holy Master came in person... the trouble would be quite significant!

No matter how he looked at it, keeping her around for the time being was the best choice.

Besides, I can farm favorability rewards while I'm at it.

But then again, my predecessor fawned over her for so long to no avail, yet she gained so much favor after I slapped her once. Could she have the same constitution as Li Yuan...

["Gu Manzhi" favorability increased.]

[Current progress: 47/100 (Regret not meeting sooner).]

Chen Mo: "..."

The Paper Puppet Technique came in two forms.

One was "fabrication from thin air," similar to the method Gu Manzhi had used on Chen Mo before.

The prerequisite was that it had to be nurtured with the original owner's essence blood; the longer it was nurtured, the more realistic the paper figure would be. To achieve a perfect likeness in both spirit and form, it would take at least a month.

Since Yu'er was already cold, this method was naturally useless.

That left only the second method: the paper figure would burrow into the corpse, "reborn" by borrowing the shell to take its place.

"I've followed Yu'er for a while, so I can imitate her speech and mannerisms to about seventy or eighty percent. If I drive a wandering soul to possess it and familiarize myself with it for a while, I shouldn't be easily exposed."

"But the problem is that her soul has been extinguished; she's lifeless and devoid of any vitality..."

Before Gu Manzhi could finish, Chen Mo pressed his finger to the center of Yu'er's brow. With that point as the center, a verdant green radiance bloomed, and the originally dark, deathly face rapidly turned fair and rosy, the aura of death swept away entirely.

Lying there quietly, she looked as if she had merely fallen into a deep sleep.

"Is this good enough now?"

Chen Mo asked.

Gu Manzhi's lips moved, but no words came out.

Just how many more tricks did this guy have up his sleeve?

She truly felt he was becoming more and more unfathomable...

Chen Mo said, "I left a wisp of vital essence within her body; it should last for about seven days. I will come back to replenish it then."

A corpse could not retain vital essence, so it had to be injected periodically.

Fortunately, since it was only to maintain her outward appearance, the consumption of essence was minimal. With the reserves in his acupoints, he could keep this up for a year or even half a year without any issues.

"Yu'er" slowly sat up, constantly adjusting her expressions and movements.

At first, she was a bit stiff, but she gradually became more natural.

A pair of limpid, autumn-water eyes looked toward Chen Mo, her red lips slightly parted:

"Husband, why don't we..."

"Get lost."

"..."

Chen Mo couldn't be bothered to pay her any mind and went over to the corpse of the Faceless Man to rummage through it.

He found a palm-sized black pouch inside the abdominal cavity.

It was embroidered with gold thread depicting mist-shrouded mountains. He didn't know what material it was made of, but it felt as smooth as silk to the touch, yet possessed the suppleness of animal hide.

He opened it to take a look, but it was completely empty inside.

"A ghost cultivator, actually carrying such an exquisite pouch... By the way, where did that Bronze Lamp he was holding earlier go?"

Gu Manzhi caught sight of this, a flash of surprise crossing her eyes as she said, "If I'm not mistaken, this should be a Sumeru Bag... Why don't you try dripping a drop of blood onto it?"

"A Sumeru Bag?"

Chen Mo paused for a moment.

Without hesitation, he used his true essence to force a drop of blood from his fingertip, letting it fall onto the surface of the pouch.

As if a sponge absorbing water, the blood was quickly soaked up, and he felt a faint, intangible connection form between himself and the pouch.

He turned the pouch over and gave it a shake.

Clatter, clatter—

A pile of miscellaneous items tumbled out, rolling all over the floor.

"This is... a game inventory?!"

Chen Mo's eyes lit up.

Gu Manzhi sighed, "I never expected this ghost cultivator to have such a treasure on him; your luck is truly not bad."

Chen Mo asked curiously, "Is this thing rare?"

"Of course."

Gu Manzhi said, "This is more precious than any magical treasure. 'A mustard seed containing Mount Sumeru, a speck of dust hiding the great thousand worlds'—it involves the profound truths of the Great Dao. Even ordinary master craftsmen cannot refine such things... I have only ever seen one on my master."

Chen Mo thought that made sense.

This thing could be considered a "spatial magical treasure," so it naturally couldn't be some common, mass-produced item.

He tried to sink his consciousness into it; his vision went dark, and he seemed to enter another space.

It was pitch black and deep, but he could perceive its boundaries—about seven feet square. It wasn't very large, but it was more than enough for storing personal belongings.

Chen Mo picked up a water cup from the table, focused his mind, and the cup suddenly vanished.

With another flick, it appeared back in his hand.

After testing the cup, he began to try it on tables, chairs, and stools... For a while, he was having a great time.

After testing, he found that as long as an object was within a foot of his body, he could store it directly into the pouch, provided it wasn't a living creature.

What a great treasure!

Looting corpses was indeed a good habit!

After he grew tired of playing with it, Chen Mo began to inventory the rest of Daoist You's belongings.

[Earth-grade high-tier magical treasure: Soul-Guiding Lamp.]
[Uses living souls as wicks and human fat as oil to attract wandering spirits and strengthen ghost entities.]

Looking at the bronze lamp in his hand, Chen Mo was somewhat surprised.

A spatial Sumeru Bag, a Heaven-grade mid-tier Soul-Summoning Banner, and now an Earth-grade high-tier magical treasure... This Daoist You was truly filthy rich!

What kind of path did the Ghost Devouring Sect actually follow?

"By the way, you mentioned that the Ghost Devouring Sect was wiped out. What happened there?"

Chen Mo asked aloud.

Gu Manzhi said indifferently, "Just like the Moon Radiance Sect, their entire family was slaughtered by Imperial Concubine Yu."

Chen Mo: "..."

In the original plot, the Moon Radiance Sect was a major sect in Qing Province, holding territory and relying on their martial prowess. They refused to submit to Imperial Concubine Yu and publicly executed the envoy sent to negotiate with them.

As a result, they were tragically wiped out three days later!

Only the sect master, who was in seclusion at the time, and a few disciples out on training missions managed to survive.

It would be no exaggeration to call this a blood feud.

That was why they were sparing no effort to deal with Yu Youhan, and the Chen Family had been the breakthrough point chosen from the very beginning...

Seeing that Gu Manzhi's expression was off, Chen Mo wisely refrained from continuing the topic.

He continued to inspect the spoils.

Aside from the Bronze Lamp, there was an ancient book with a weathered, primitive cover, upon which the words "Ghost Book" were scrawled.

After a cursory flip, he saw it contained techniques for refining living souls and controlling ghosts—thoroughly wicked stuff. Chen Mo had no interest in it and tossed it directly into his Sumeru Bag.

The rest were just bones, human tallow, blood beads... and other items used by ghost cultivators.

There wasn't even a single tael of silver...

Chen Mo stuffed these miscellaneous items and the corpse of Daoist You into the bag, put away the sound-dampening formation, and cleaned up the scene.

Then, he walked to the bed and lay down fully clothed.

Gu Manzhi was stunned for a moment. "What are you..."

"Sleeping."

Chen Mo kept his eyes tightly shut and said in a muffled voice.

Having absorbed too much soul power just now, he felt a sense of floating. Although his consciousness was extremely sharp, his movements were half a beat slow, as if there were a delay.

However, he didn't understand soul-refining methods, so he could only try his best to relax his mind and let his body adapt to this "delay."

It seems that improving too quickly isn't a good thing.

When I have time, I'll go to the Highness and extort a soul-refining technique...

Seeing that Chen Mo wasn't moving, as if he had truly fallen asleep, Gu Manzhi sat on the edge of the bed, resting her chin on her hand, and gazed at his handsome, rugged face.

Her hazy eyes were slightly moist, and a faint blush appeared on her pretty face, though no one knew what she was thinking.

The hour of the Rat was already more than half over.

The guests in the tavern had all dispersed, each taking a girl to bed.

Only Li Yuan remained, drinking by herself, with empty wine jugs scattered across the table and at her feet.

Her originally spirited brows and eyes had become blurred, like the misty rain of Jiangnan in March. Her lips, lightly touched with rouge, appeared even more vivid, and a flush seeped through her fair skin like morning clouds reflecting off snow.

She was drunk.

As a sixth-rank martial artist, Li Yuan could have easily used her true energy to dispel the alcohol, but she didn't do so, as if by numbing herself this way, the frustration in her heart could be lessened.

Yet, for some reason, the face of that scoundrel kept flashing before her eyes, becoming clearer and clearer.

Gulp, gulp, gulp~

Li Yuan raised the jug and drank deeply, the wine spilling from the corner of her mouth and flowing down her neck into her cleavage.

"Out of wine again... Someone, bring more!"

After a long while, no one answered.

Li Yuan frowned, stood up, and swayed as she walked toward the inner chambers.

She lifted the curtain, passed through the corridor, and entered a tea room floored with soft carpets.

The air was filled with calming incense, and a full set of white jade tea ware was laid out on the table.

Li Yuan had come looking for wine, not tea.

There was another door behind the tea room. She walked over, pushed it open, and entered a luxuriously decorated bedroom. The most eye-catching feature in the room was a large bed; judging by its size, it could easily sleep four people.

Although Li Yuan was a bit dizzy, she knew she had trespassed into someone's private quarters.

Subconsciously, she prepared to back out of the room.

Suddenly, her feet stopped. She turned her head to look at the bed, a hint of bitterness flashing in the depths of her eyes.

Biting her lip, she hesitated for a long time before slowly walking over.

She lifted the canopy and discovered that there were actually three people lying on the bed.

Li Yuan rubbed her eyes and muttered softly, "Looks like I drank too much; I'm seeing double..."

She squinted, trying to distinguish them carefully. Seeing Chen Mo lying on the outer edge, she reached out to grab his wrist, wanting to pull him up.

"Chen Mo, get up... I, I have something to tell you..."

"Mmm..."

Paralyzed by the alcohol, Li Yuan felt her strength desert her. Instead of pulling Chen Mo up, she tumbled backward onto the bed.

Just as she struggled to rise, she was pulled into an embrace. An arm draped over her, pinning her down and leaving her unable to move.

Waves of heat radiated from that strong chest, searing Li Yuan through their clothes. As the intoxication surged, her final shred of consciousness and strength dissipated into nothingness.

Chen Mo had a dream.

He dreamt he was buying steamed buns on the street.

The vendor lifted the lid of the steamer, and as the piping hot buns emerged, he began to pick through them with great focus.

"This batch is well-made, soft and fluffy, and the size is just right."

"This batch is a bit smaller, but light and delicate with an airy texture; it should taste quite good as well."

"Stop it... that tickles..."

The vendor looked at him with shy, bashful eyes.

"?"

Chen Mo's consciousness returned, and he slowly opened his eyes.

Bright morning sunlight spilled into the room, filtering through the sheer curtains onto the bed. As his vision focused, Chen Mo's expression gradually stiffened.

He saw Li Yuan clutching his arm tightly, sleeping soundly. Sunlight bathed her flushed, fair cheeks, giving her an air of innocent, girl-next-door charm.

Her lips were slightly pursed as she murmured, "No, three people... that won't do..."

Chen Mo: "..."

He turned his head to the right.

Gu Manzhi had shed her disguise at some point and was now nestled in his arms.

Her face, capable of toppling kingdoms, was as flawless as jade. In her deep sleep, the seductive, bewitching aura she usually wore was gone, replaced by a pure and lovely appearance.

She was using Chen Mo's arm as a pillow, and Chen Mo's palm was resting exactly on...

Chen Mo took a deep breath and carefully withdrew his hand from the collars of the two women.

"Hmm?"

Li Yuan's eyelashes fluttered as she woke from her slumber.

Her dazed gaze slowly cleared. She looked at the man beside her, then glanced down at her own chest.

Her face flushed a deep, vibrant red, as bright as a sunset cloud!

"You lecher, you actually, you actually..."

It wasn't enough that he had struck that spot of hers last time; this time, he had even changed targets!

Before Chen Mo could explain, Gu Manzhi, lying on the other side, rubbed her eyes and murmured:

"What time is it now... Hm!?"

The three of them stared at one another, and the atmosphere froze instantly.

"Lecher, where did she come from?"

"Chen Mo, who is she?!"

Li Yuan and Gu Manzhi asked in near-perfect unison.

Just then, "Yu'er," who had been curled up in the corner, sat bolt upright. She stretched her waist and turned to look at Chen Mo:

"Husband, it's truly warm this time. Are you sure you don't want to try?"

"..."