The Dust Settles

Before long, the familiar cave entrance appeared ahead.

The two of them, one in front and the other behind, passed through the narrow cave and landed steadily on the solid earth outside.

“Wait for me,” Lu Qiancha said softly to Shangguan Yunzhu beside her.

Then she turned around to face the mountain wall that moments ago had been the entrance.

She extended her small paw and gently covered the cool, rough surface of the rock, closing her eyes and focusing her mind.

Her thoughts flickered.

A strand of pure spiritual power slowly flowed along the meridians of her arm, gently pouring into the jade-white stone bead that floated quietly in the Sea of Qi within her dantian.

Buzz—!

The talisman seemed to sense something and trembled slightly within her dantian.

At that very moment—

The cave behind them that served as the entrance to the secret realm suddenly rippled violently. Like a bubble being popped, it twisted violently and collapsed inward.

In the blink of an eye, it actually transformed into a dazzling, pink and white shooting star.

Trailing a dreamlike tail of light, it shot straight toward Lu Qiancha’s throat under the astonished gaze of Lu Qiancha and Shangguan Yunzhu.

“Mmm!”

Lu Qiancha felt a sudden chill around her neck. Immediately following was a subtle but distinct feeling of constriction.

It felt as if something soft and cool had gently encircled and fastened around her neck.

“?” She subconsciously raised a hand to touch it, and the sensation from her paw tips was that of a delicate, cloud-like light gauze.

“Little Qiancha?! What is that thing?!”

Shangguan Yunzhu was also taken aback.

Lu Qiancha quickly conjured a clear water mirror, lowered her head, and peered into its surface—

Around her slender, fair neck, an exquisitely crafted, peach-pink velvet choker had appeared at some point.

The choker’s surface was delicate and supple, and its edges were adorned with layers of intricate, snow-like lace ruffles, making it look refined and undeniably cute.

Lu Qiancha instantly realized that this thing was the replacement for the secret realm’s gate.

Her paw tips cautiously touched the soft lace around the choker’s edge.

The sensation was cool, delicate, and surprisingly comfortable.

‘Not bad, from today onward—I’m a big shot who can “wear” a small world wherever I go’.

Lu Qiancha nodded with satisfaction.

The only small, insignificant drawback of this choker… was that it was a little too cute, with its peach-pink color and lace. It didn’t quite match her style.

Lu Qiancha couldn’t resist looking at the water mirror again—

In the mirror, the furry, blue-haired little loli had a delicate, pink lace neck accessory, making her deliberately serious little face look even more like she was pretending to be fierce out of spite.

Lu Qiancha’s lips couldn’t help but twitch. She sighed helplessly in her heart, ‘Oh well, practicality is what matters, appearance is secondary’.

She could just conceal this choker when using the Myriad Phantoms Mirage Art to disguise herself.

Just then, that “restless” slender hand beside her stretched out again—reaching forward to poke the choker on Lu Qiancha’s neck and unable to resist asking, “Little Qiancha, what’s this?”

“Pa!”

Lu Qiancha reacted swiftly, slapping away that hand full of curiosity without any politeness, before explaining, “A concrete container for the secret realm’s portal. Once it recognizes its master, it serves as both the key and the door.”

“Oh—” Shangguan Yunzhu nodded in sudden understanding, her amber eyes then curving up, sparkling with a teasing light, as she leaned close to Lu Qiancha’s ear and whispered, “That thing is very cute, super—suits you.”

Hearing this, Lu Qiancha forcibly suppressed the urge to claw her, shifted her form, and disguised herself once again as the fair young man in white robes.

“Tsk, tsk, tsk…”

Shangguan Yunzhu circled around her twice, stroking her chin with her fingers, her eyes full of scrutiny and amazement, constantly sizing up Lu Qiancha in front of her: “That disguise, it’s truly seamless. How do you do it?”

As she spoke, her paws stretched out restlessly again—

First, she tentatively poked Lu Qiancha’s palm—hmm, the furry touch was no different from the blue-haired little loli from before.

Then, Shangguan Yunzhu’s sinful fingertips quietly slid toward the “young man’s” face and gently pinched it…

“Ouch!”

Shangguan Yunzhu abruptly retracted her hand.

On her fair hand, there were three claw marks that had broken the skin. Shangguan Yunzhu hugged her hand aggrievedly, her eyes even a little red, muttering, “If you don’t want me to touch, then just say so, why did you have to scratch me…”

Lu Qiancha expressionlessly flicked her hidden tail, completely ignoring the resentful accusing gaze behind her. With a tap of her paw tips, clouds gathered, and without looking back, she soared into the sky on a cloud.

Target—Jiangling City!

“Hey! Little Qiancha! Wait for me!”

Shangguan Yunzhu stamped her foot anxiously, no longer caring about her grievances, and her crimson spirit sword instantly unsheathed.

Transforming into a rainbow that tore through the clouds, she chased after the white cloud.

Jiangling City, inside the county yamen’s main hall.

The air was as heavy as solidified gelatin. Behind the sandalwood desk, Magistrate Zhou’s forehead lines seemed even deeper, layer upon layer, with ravines running across them, filled with anxiety and exhaustion.

His calloused fingers unconsciously tapped the thick stack of missing persons case files, each tap like striking a heart full of cracks.

It had been almost ten days, and there was still no news from the immortal master…

A deep sense of despair was slowly tightening its grip on his heart.

“Alas…”

The heavy sigh echoed dully in the empty inner hall, deepening the wrinkles on his forehead by several inches.

“Report—!!!”

A sharp, even slightly broken, cry of announcement suddenly tore through the silence, and a servant almost rolled and crawled into the inner hall.

“What’s the panic?!” Magistrate Zhou’s already tense nerves were startled by the sound, and the bitterness on his face deepened, his voice even carrying a trace of imperceptible trembling, “Could it be that… another new case of disappearance has occurred outside the city?!”

“No, not that! Your Honor!”

The servant panted heavily, but his face was filled with joy like a timely rain, “It’s the immortal master! The immortal master—he… he’s back! He’s waiting outside the door!”

“What?! Quickly! Quickly, invite him in!”

Magistrate Zhou stood up abruptly, almost shouting, “Do not neglect the immortal master! Open the main gate! Quickly, open the main gate!!”

“Yes.”

The gatekeeper acknowledged and hurried out to let people in.

A moment later.

Lu Qiancha and Shangguan Yunzhu sat upright on the carved wooden chairs in the inner hall. Two cups of freshly brewed green tea steamed with curling water vapor, and the bitter tea fragrance slightly dispelled the old, ink-laden smell in the county yamen.

Magistrate Zhou’s gaze quickly swept over the unfamiliar red-clothed girl beside Lu Qiancha, not daring to ask too much, and placed all his hopes on Lu Qiancha before him, his tone humble and urgent: “May I… may I ask, immortal master, those missing, poor people… is there… is there any news of them?”

“I have found the people.”

Lu Qiancha’s clear, ice-cold voice rang out. Just these words caused Magistrate Zhou’s tightly clenched heart to suddenly loosen by half, and a glimmer of light burst out in his eyes.

“However…” Lu Qiancha’s tone changed, with a hint of cold regret, “They are all dead, parasitized by evil spirits, no longer living people.”

As she spoke, she gently placed a semi-transparent memory stone, with water-like luster swirling within, on the desk. With the activation of spiritual power.

Buzz—

A solid light screen projected from above the memory stone.

In the image, a man’s face was dull, his eyes were empty and lifeless, and his skin displayed an ominous crimson color. Even more horrifying was—beneath the crimson skin, there were countless tiny, bizarre bulges wriggling slowly like living creatures.

“Li… Li Qiang?!”

Magistrate Zhou’s whole body shook violently. The person in the picture was precisely one of his capable constables, who had been sent to the mountains to investigate a few days ago and had disappeared without a trace.

The scene was too terrifying.

An icy chill climbed up his spine, causing his voice to change its tone: “This… this…”

“When I found them, they were all parasitized by evil creatures and had lost their lives.”

A hint of imperceptible regret flashed through Lu Qiancha’s eyes.

“I see…”

Magistrate Zhou’s face was as pale as paper, and a bitter smile, more unsightly than crying, squeezed out from his furrowed face: “Immortal Master, please don’t blame yourself. People have their own destinies, and this is all a predestined tribulation.”

Lu Qiancha silently shook her head, said nothing more, but picked up the celadon teacup and gently sipped the slightly cool tea.

The dust had settled, and there was no longer any suspense.

Magistrate Zhou let out a long breath, as if he had unloaded a thousand-pound burden, or as if he had been completely drained of strength.

He tremblingly took out a polished wooden token from his sleeve, with an ancient, vigorous “Heaven” character engraved in the center, and respectfully held it in both hands in front of Lu Qiancha: “Immortal Master, thank you for your trouble. This is the token for submitting the sect’s mission…”

His voice was weary and low: “I… I still need to prepare documents to… comfort the relatives of those poor people. I dare not delay the immortal master any longer…”

After saying that, in his bloodshot eyes, only deep fatigue and indescribable sorrow remained.