「A moment ago.」
Within a tent laid with pine wood flooring.
Humming a light-hearted folk song from the Northern Wilderness plains, Lin Suqing moved about gracefully. She helped make the bed, fetched hot water, and even prepared two immortal dresses she used to wear when she was twelve or thirteen.
Her care was meticulous and thorough.
As a simple heating Talisman dispersed into the water, the temperature of the ice water in the wooden tub gradually rose.
The dark-skinned girl had been standing in the corner the whole time, woodenly watching Lin Suqing, her expression somewhat indifferent.
Behind the girl's vacant eyes hid another pair of eyes...
「In a thicket, who knows how far from the Bear Hug Clan's Royal Court...」
More than a dozen figures clad in cloaks hid in various positions, carefully observing every rustle of wind through the grass.
On a flattened clearing within the thicket.
A young woman in light, revealing clothing and with a voluptuous figure sat askew on a wooden board. Her orange-red hair had slight waves, and her brown skin shone with a silky luster.
A small green snake and a small red snake were coiled into rings on her ears, forming earrings. They added a touch of wicked charm to her already striking makeup.
Lu Renjia, a true native of the Rain Mistress Nation, practiced the secret arts of witchcraft.
At that moment, Lu Renjia cupped a small tortoise shell in her hands, her eyes covered by a thin white film, gazing through another pair of eyes at Lin Suqing's silhouette from afar.
Humph, such a slender waist. A Cultivator from the Human Domain? The Young Master of the Bear Hug Clan isn't old, yet he's put quite some thought into *this*. These decadent Northern Wilderness clan rulers.
A scarlet tongue gently flicked across Lu Renjia's full lips, revealing several sharp, interlocking teeth.
Is the plan going too smoothly?
It had surprised Lu Renjia that the Young Master of the Bear Hug Clan had singled out her cute little puppet from so many slaves.
But how could she pass up such a heaven-sent opportunity?
All she needed to do next was wait patiently, find a chance to poison the Young Master's drink or food, and that treasure would easily fall into her hands.
Lu Renjia had just arrived in the Northern Wilderness and, by chance, encountered several Generals from the Bear Hug Clan selecting slaves in the market. After sending someone to inquire, she learned that the Bear Hug Clan rarely purchased non-Human race slaves.
Without enough time to prepare, she had to quickly adjust her strategy and, somewhat riskily, sent out this precious puppet.
That sentence, "Are you the master I am to serve?" might have already given the Young Master some strange feelings.
Tsk, young people. No matter how mature they pretend to be, their minds are still filled with *those* kinds of thoughts, aren't they?
First, let's gauge the strength of this Human Domain woman... Not too weak, but her vigilance is poor—nowhere near as alert as the guards around that Young Master. Just a showpiece. With this, the chances of my cute little puppet being exposed are almost nil. I can comfortably look for an opportunity to poison them.
Just then, Lin Suqing turned around and called out, "The water's ready, come take a bath~"
Does this Human Domain woman think she's very gentle? Using that tone one would use to care for children. I'll poison you too when the time comes.
The tortoise shell in Lu Renjia's hands flickered with a faint red glow. In unison, the puppet resembling a young girl in the tent spoke, "Yes, my lord."
"Don't be so formal. It's just the two of us here; I'm not any sort of lord."
Lin Suqing 'floated' over with nimble steps. She casually drew a few Talismans, and with a gentle push, they spread out into thin walls of light, enveloping the tent from within.
A Formation from the Human Domain?
Lu Renjia felt slightly suspicious and re-evaluated the Human Domain female Cultivator before her. As a Witch who had always skulked in the shadows, she naturally possessed a strong sense of vigilance.
"This is a Soundproofing array," Lin Suqing said, her eyes crinkling in a smile, a hint of pride in their depths.
Lin Suqing had accompanied the Young Master in Cultivation and discussions of the Dao for a long time. She had also been forced to consult numerous ancient texts, leading to a completely new understanding of Cultivation. As a result, she had not only advanced her realm by several minor levels but also made significant progress in Formations, Talismans, the Alchemy Dao, and dual-Cultivation Techniques.
She could now be considered a qualified… theoretician of the Condensation Establishment Realm.
The puppet girl looked around and blinked slightly, making the most fitting response according to her current persona.
"Mm."
"Aren't you happy?" Lin Suqing placed her hands behind her back, tilted her head slightly, and chuckled. "Indeed, being a slave must be unpleasant. The Great Wilderness is just that cruel."
Do you need to tell me that? Lu Renjia almost rolled her eyes.
"Are you really from the Rain Mistress Nation?" Lin Suqing mumbled softly, "Is it true that there are many Witches there? Is it really close to the rumored Valley of Hot Springs? Are you really tanned because it's too hot there? Is there really a legend of Kuafu chasing the sun? If that's the case, your Rain Mistress Nation should have records of it… Right, right, do you have some kind of evil secret technique over there that can refine a person into a living puppet without consciousness?"
Puppet! Lu Renjia subconsciously held her breath, secretly gazing at this Human Domain female Cultivator who was marveling curiously. This woman… could she be more than she appears?
Lin Suqing laughed. "I just happened to see a fragmented scroll recently that mentioned this! Oops, I've said too much. Come on, let's bathe."
A test? Or has she already seen through my puppet's identity and is deliberately saying this for me to hear? The puppet girl's movements were a bit stiff, but she didn't dare to act rashly now and slowly walked toward the wooden tub.
"Eh? The mark on the back of your neck is quite strange. Is it of the turtle or the Snake God you worship? Or does it signify something special?"
The girl instinctively stopped in her tracks.
Lin Suqing, hands behind her back and on tiptoe, inspected the girl's nape for a few moments. Then, realizing her rudeness, she apologized with a laugh, "Sorry, sorry, I got curious for a moment. I've read too many miscellaneous books about the Great Wilderness, and it's easy to get like this. Perhaps you don't like being watched while you bathe? In that case, I'll turn around. You go ahead and get in the tub. Just call me if you need anything; I can scrub your back as well~ You'll have your own place to stay tomorrow."
Looking at the wooden tub before her through the puppet girl's eyes, Lu Renjia almost forgot to breathe, her mind filled with hesitation. Had the other party seen through her secrets? If she recklessly entered the narrow wooden tub and the other party attacked suddenly, this puppet of hers would lose any chance to retaliate.
Suddenly, she heard the Human Domain female Cultivator mutter quietly behind her, "Strange, why would the Young Master suddenly want a maiden? And he definitely won't have maidens attend to him."
Hmm? Definitely won't have maidens attend to him?
"Is the Young Master bored of bullying just me and wants more people to pick on together?"
This! This young man actually finds one isn't enough? Corruption! The Northern Wilderness clans are truly too corrupt!
"The mark on her neck… it looks like something I've seen before, on an ancient parchment scroll… which one was it?"
Lin Suqing rummaged through her Storage magic treasure, completely unaware that an expression had appeared on the face of the girl behind her for the first time…
Lu Renjia was anxious! The mark on her neck is the proof of the puppet—the Snake God's Mark! This Human Domain female Cultivator's cultivation isn't high, so how does she know so many secrets of our Rain Mistress Nation? Indeed, those who can stay by the side of a Young Master from a Large Family Clan like the Bear Hug Clan are no ordinary individuals! And furthermore... Stop mumbling your inner thoughts out loud, hey!
Lu Renjia nearly cursed aloud. Her pupils trembled for a moment, her eyes full of indecision, but she quickly came to a decision.
Today's events, every part of them reeked of strangeness, as if it was all a trap set specifically for her.
She suddenly realized that from beginning to end, the Young Master's gaze upon this puppet hadn't shown the slightest fluctuation; it was so calm, so indifferent.
That's right, my puppet was knocked unconscious for a while... The other party has definitely seen through the puppet's identity and is probably already searching for our group's location! The Northern Wilderness isn't as 'strong in power, yet simple in mind' as the rumors say?
"Retreat!"
In the shrubbery far from the Royal Court.
Lu Renjia let out a somewhat anxious, low shout. Her interlocked sharp teeth revealed a trace of ferocity, and the tortoise shell in her hand shone brightly.
The dozen or so dark figures immediately surged forward, hoisting her and the wooden board, then swiftly sprinted towards the previously determined route.
At the same time, within Lin Suqing's tent.
The puppet girl turned to gaze at Lin Suqing's neck. Her petite figure leaned slightly forward, and the next instant, she exploded with extreme speed, so fast that a slight afterimage was left in her place!
Lu Renjia was quite decisive. At this moment, she was merely trying to retrieve the puppet as much as possible and create chaos in the Royal Court to cover her own retreat.
This female Cultivator is almost certainly a hidden expert. Although the puppet can unleash great combat strength, it can't maintain it for long. I must strike fast and…
"Hey! What are you doing?!"
Lin Suqing instinctively drew a Short Sword from her Storage magic treasure, but before she could grip it tightly, she felt her palm go empty.
The tip of the sword pointed at her slender neck!
THUMP.
Lin Suqing's legs went soft. Her eyes, however, revealed a peculiar righteous glow. In that lightning-fast moment, a cry of righteous indignation escaped her lips, "Fellow Daoist, spare my life!"
...
"The... the process... was... was more or less like that."
In front of the large tent, under the flickering firelight.
Wu Wang, arms crossed, watched Lin Suqing with a smile as she stood before him, drenched to the bone.
She was wrapped in a beast-skin cloak, shivering violently. Her teeth chattered with a series of CLACKS, and her words were slurred as she recounted what had just happened.
Not far away, an irregularly shaped ice mountain, missing a small chunk, emanated wisps of cold air. The girl, clutching the Short Sword, was sealed within the ice, her gaze still hollow.
The contours of the missing part of the ice mountain vaguely matched Lin Suqing's figure; clearly, Lin Suqing had just been 'chiseled' out.
"You've had a rough time." Wu Wang consoled her in a warm voice, remarking, "I never thought an assassin would infiltrate our midst. I truly never expected it."
Lin Suqing suddenly snapped back to attention, glaring at Wu Wang. "Young Master, did you realize it from the beginning?"
"What do you think?"
"I!" Lin Suqing suddenly felt aggrieved. "How could I possibly guess?"
Wu Wang sighed. "Arranging for you to take this puppet away was indeed my oversight. I mainly didn't consider that you might see through her identity. My original intention was to use your innocent nature to confuse the enemy and delay the one controlling the puppet... Now, I estimate the one manipulating the puppet from behind the scenes has already fled far away. However, I never had any intention of putting you in danger. Mother has always been watching over you and me. Under the starry sky, there's no need to worry about any mishaps."
Lin Suqing complained, "If something like this happens again, you should at least give me a heads-up beforehand! It's… it's so embarrassing. I even took out the old clothes I had left over."
Wu Wang's eyes crinkled into a smile as he looked at this 'old auntie' with her drenched hair. He raised his hand, intending to pat her head comfortingly, but then remembered his strange affliction and could only conjure a stream of warm air from his palm.
"Don't move. I'll help you dry your hair."
"Oh," Lin Suqing replied, tightening the beast skin wrapped around her.
"After much consideration, I still can't let these schemers off so easily."
Wu Wang withdrew his left hand and contemplated for a moment. He then took a head-sized Crystal Ball from the simple Storage magic treasure—a small leather pouch at his waist.
With a gentle push of his palm, the Crystal Ball floated before him, twinkling Stars visible within.
Wu Wang's hands swiftly formed hand seals while he murmured incantations. The Stars within the Crystal Ball were linked one by one by some unseen force, transforming into a beam of light as thick as a well's mouth, shooting straight into the starry sky.
"May the Star God's gaze pierce the mists and grant this supplicant true guidance."
「Hundreds of miles away in the night sky, a beam of light crashed down from the Stars, illuminating a hundred-zhang area as brightly as day.」
This beam was actually in constant motion, chasing the dozen or so swiftly moving figures below.
"That's the Northern Wilderness Praying Star Technique! It must be the Bear Hug Clan's High Priest who cast it!"
Lu Renjia looked up at the starry sky. She saw countless Stars, now shining nearly a hundred times brighter than before, filling the heavens. A deep sense of dread welled up inside her.
She shouted lowly, "Split up!" But as soon as the words left her mouth, she heard the continuous howling of wolves and the sounding of horns from all directions.
Lu Renjia's face instantly turned deathly pale. The figures around her scattered in every direction, but the column of light above their heads also split, following each of them...
「About four hours later.」
In front of Wu Wang's large tent, more than a dozen assassins lay trussed up, face down. They had been sealed by the clan Priests using the Praying Star Technique.
Several guards carried the puppet girl, still sealed in hard ice, to one side.
Lu Renjia knelt just inside the tent flap, bound by several chains. Her body glittered with the sealing Rune imprints of the Praying Star Technique, and the two small snakes on her earlobes had been crushed into dried skins.
She looked up at Wu Wang, her eyes filled with despair.
She could clearly feel that the astral power which had locked onto them out of nowhere originated from this very Young Master!
The heir to a clan that cultivates the Praying Star Technique? When had the Northern Wilderness become so different from what they knew?
"A Witch from the Rain Mistress Nation?"
Wu Wang's voice was somewhat ethereal, yet it instantly brought Lu Renjia back to her senses.
I still have a slim chance… my last opportunity…
"I am willing to become your slave!" Lu Renjia looked up at Wu Wang, retracting her sharp teeth. She forced a seductive smile, trying to exude her feminine charm. "I can do anything for you, as long as you spare my life."
Wu Wang said indifferently, "These things you're willing to do… are they proper?"
"Im... improper."
"Then I'm sorry. I am a Serious young Master."
Wu Wang gestured with his hand. "Drag her out. Deal with her."
"My Lord! Master! Master, please spare my life! I am willing to be your servant!"
Lu Renjia cried out frantically. A few guards had already rushed over, lifted her by the chains, carried her straight out, and threw her outside the tent.
Wu Wang's mouth twitched.
Even if I didn't have this strange affliction, I'm not just any man. Besides, that dazed 'old auntie' next to me is much prettier.