Sensing the burning gaze beside her, Tang Yao turned to look.
Xiao Linyu was staring at Tang Yao with admiration written all over his face. Like a conjurer, he pulled a lounge chair from his Storage Bag.
"Boss, have a seat."
The sight of Tang Yao cutting down the puppet was still vivid in his mind. He had decided to follow Tang Yao forever!
"Boss, come to the Beast Taming Sect! You contracted the Vermilion Bird! If you join, you can be our eldest senior sister! That Chu Household brat isn't worth mentioning next to you!"
Xiao Linyu was beside himself with excitement.
If Tang Yao came to the Beast Taming Sect, she could watch his back even better.
When Xiao Linyu mentioned her contracted beast, Tang Yao instinctively checked her sea of consciousness, only to discover that the Vermilion Bird was the only one there. Taotie and the demonic sword had both vanished without a trace.
In an instant, the Vermilion Bird appeared. He had originally looked like a seven- or eight-year-old child, but now he looked like a boy of thirteen or fourteen!
His crimson hair fell straight to his waist. Standing beside Tang Yao with his arms folded, he looked at Xiao Linyu with warning in his eyes.
"Don't tell anyone about my emergence for now."
He had yet to recover completely. If he ran into his mortal enemy, he could only be reborn through fire, turn back into an egg, and hole up for another few thousand years.
Xiao Linyu swallowed and nodded like a chick pecking at grain.
After warning Xiao Linyu, the Vermilion Bird told Tang Yao delightedly, "That brat Taotie did pretty well! Some old injuries from the great battle are gone, and my wounds have healed somewhat. I'm still far from a full recovery, but at least I don't have to sleep every day!"
It seemed that warning had been quite effective.
Tang Yao could sense that the Master-Servant Contract was still there, but she could not sense where Taotie and the demonic sword were.
She thought of how Taotie had diligently kept his promise on the battlefield during the great battle: absolutely no hitting the Vermilion Bird, absolutely no hitting his "future colleague."
Meanwhile, on that battlefield three thousand years ago, the Vermilion Bird, who knew nothing of this, would surely beat Taotie viciously without holding back.
He might even think Taotie was an idiot.
At the thought, she felt a little sorry for him and wanted to laugh.
Tang Yao took out her Jade Slip. It was piled with messages from the Profound Heaven Sect, which had been thrown into utter chaos by her disappearance. She quickly replied to Sect Master Duan, "Sect Master, I'm all right. Please don't worry."
When the message went out, the time displayed on it was two months after they had entered the Fusang Secret Realm.
Somehow, two months had already passed.
Tang Yao opened Chu Song's ninety-nine messages and learned that the Fusang Secret Realm had shattered the instant she and Xiao Linyu were transported into the spatial rift.
The other cultivators had all left feeling fortunate, while Chu Song and the others had come every day to wait for Tang Yao.
Several days later, when Tang Yao still had not emerged, Jiang Yueyan took them back to report the situation to the sect master. The Profound Heaven Sect mobilized the entire sect to search, but still could not find Tang Yao.
During the second month, the Beast Taming Sect suffered a heavy blow. Several Devil Cultivators had infiltrated the sect, and many of its spirit beasts were contaminated by Devil Qi. It also disturbed the beast cultivators' minds, causing them to maliciously injure disciples of other sects while training outside.
Chu Song came clean with Sect Master Duan and insisted on returning to the Beast Taming Sect, no matter what. He had thought Sect Master Duan would break his legs, but instead, the sect master pressed several Spirit Artifacts that preserved mental clarity into his hands.
His final message said that he believed Brother Tang would surely be safe.
Tang Yao scrolled further down to Tang Xin's messages. She said that many elders of the Azure Cloud Sect were now dissatisfied with Tang Yao, and even the sect master was wavering. If she remained missing, Mu Shixue would very likely become the Azure Cloud Sect's head disciple.
Seeing Tang Yao spend so long reading her Jade Slip, Xiao Linyu sidled up beside her with a smarmy, ingratiating grin. "Boss, how about adding my spiritual signature?"
Tang Yao raised her hand, sending a spiritual signature into Xiao Linyu's Jade Slip. Thrilled, Xiao Linyu scratched his head and stammered, "Boss, what-what's your name?"
"My surname is Tang." That was all she could say. Xiao Linyu surely knew the body's original owner.
"You got it, Sister Tang!" Holding his Jade Slip, Xiao Linyu beamed like a blooming flower. This was his connection to a big shot!
Thinking of what had happened to the Beast Taming Sect, Tang Yao sighed and told Xiao Linyu about it. Who would have thought that the very next second, Xiao Linyu would declare that he was going back to the Xiao Household and would rather die than return to the Beast Taming Sect?
Tang Yao frowned at his adamant refusal. But it did seem that Xiao Linyu would not be much help even if he went. Just then, the Vermilion Bird spoke.
"You." He pointed at Xiao Linyu. "You have to go back to the Beast Taming Sect."
?
"Me?" Xiao Linyu pointed at himself, repeating it in disbelief.
As his words fell, the Vermilion Bird raised his small hand and held out a little flame to Xiao Linyu. At first, Xiao Linyu resisted, not daring to touch it, but the Vermilion Bird forcibly stuffed it into his palm. He discovered that it was not hot at all.
"This Li Fire won't go out. Go back. It can burn away Devil Qi."
Cupping the flame carefully, Xiao Linyu asked in confusion, "But wouldn't that expose your existence? Only the Vermilion Bird has Li Fire."
"It doesn't matter! Since they've started making their move, I won't stand by and do nothing." The Vermilion Bird narrowed his golden eyes, his voice firm.
Seeing Xiao Linyu still wavering, holding the flame with some fear, Tang Yao patted his shoulder. "Haven't you always wanted to prove yourself? First, you need the courage to take that first step."
"Instead of hiding behind other people for everything." Tang Yao had said all she had to say. If Xiao Linyu still refused to go, she intended to haul him to the Beast Taming Sect and drop him in front of everyone. He would have no say in it.
After hearing her words, Xiao Linyu saw scene after scene flash through his mind: his father's and mother's disappointed expressions, and his sister's look of frustration at iron failing to become steel. Gritting his teeth, he put the flame into his Storage Bag, as though making some kind of resolution. "In that case, I'll go back right now!"
The circumstances were unusual. There was not a moment to lose.
"Um, when you see your eldest senior brother, try to speak a little more nicely. He might not have a very good impression of you." Seeing that he was about to leave, Tang Yao offered a "friendly" reminder.
Xiao Linyu: "?" What did that mean? Had Chu Song found out that he had secretly cursed him?
Xiao Linyu did not dwell on it. He verbally agreed to Tang Yao's request, then pulled a flying Law Artifact from his Storage Bag.
Watching his departing figure, Tang Yao smiled helplessly. He was young, after all. A few words had been enough to spur him into going. At least he could offer the Beast Taming Sect some help.
As for her, it was time to visit the Azure Cloud Sect.
Tang Yao entered Shushu's space and dug several sets of men's clothes out of her Storage Bag. As expected of a rich wastrel, these clothes were all of the finest quality, adorned with gilded auspicious cloud patterns. Tang Yao casually picked a dark blue robe and used a jade crown to bind her long hair into a high ponytail.
The instant she tied it up, Tang Yao grew a little taller, and her features became even more handsome and refined, like naturally formed jade, with sword-like brows and starry eyes.
The jade crown was actually a high-grade Law Artifact that changed the wearer's outward sex and appearance. No wonder the original owner had gone undiscovered for more than a decade.
The Vermilion Bird stared dumbfounded as his master changed sex, then spoke with some hesitation.
"This won't do either. Some old fellows will be able to tell you're using a Law Artifact."
Tang Yao thought the Vermilion Bird made perfect sense. Besides, she was going to the Azure Cloud Sect, where the sect master and elders would see through her at a glance. Before Tang Yao could think any further, the Vermilion Bird gave a sly smile. "I'll help you conceal the Law Artifact's aura."
Tang Yao gave the Vermilion Bird a look that said, Just what I'd expect from you.
"Then let's set off now." Tang Yao grinned as she ruffled his hair.
The Vermilion Bird felt a little unnerved. "How are we getting there?"
Why did he have a bad feeling about this?
"On you." Tang Yao smiled brightly.
"Me??" The Vermilion Bird stared at Tang Yao with his golden eyes wide and his brows furrowed. "In your dreams!"
It was not that she wanted to squeeze the Vermilion Bird dry. Her pockets were cleaner than her face. Unless she went and sold her talismans on the spot, she had no money whatsoever to use a teleportation array.
Tang Yao blinked. "Do you have any Spirit Stones in your pockets?"
The Vermilion Bird: "..."
He had jack shit!