For a moment, Wu Man's gaze dimmed, but then it swiftly turned cold once more.
"Yes, I betrayed the entire town."
She spoke simply and lightly:
"If a demon wants to survive, then they absolutely cannot just think about surviving... Wang Yangbo captured me, tortured me in every way imaginable for three days, and offered me a chance to live. I took it."
"He asked me for a token of allegiance, so I personally killed every demon in the town."
It really was a simple story, yet also an undeniably real one.
The Department of Shennong, when dealing with demons, used utterly ruthless means, regardless of whether the demon in question had committed any crimes or not.
But now, from the demon's perspective, it was clear that some disciples within the Department of Shennong had completely deviated from their original reputation and guiding principles.
Chen Kuang didn't judge everyone by the same standard. For instance, the disciple from the Department of Shennong who led the search tonight had at least acted with a measure of integrity.
But right now, what concerned him the most was this entire town, it seemed far from ordinary.
As he walked, Chen Kuang asked:
"Among the demons in this town, what was the cultivation realm of the strongest?"
Wu Man pointed toward the elderly woman selling flowers earlier and said:
"Granny Hua. She was the highest among them, at the peak of the Sea-Cleaving Realm. But because of her age, she wasn't as strong as Wang Yangbo."
Chen Kuang paused in his tracks and replied:
"But from what I sensed, she was at least Master Realm."
That old woman's aura was indeed waning, but even so... she was still very much at the Master Realm.
In fact, Chen Kuang suspected she might be even stronger.
He sensed that her presence was deliberately obscured, very possibly a hidden cultivation base.
The "Wujian Between" was like a mirror, and "Evil Karma" could not lie. As the ruler of this realm, there should be no reason he couldn't perceive someone's true strength.
So there was only one possibility, the one Wu Man killed had only been a projection.
Wu Man was stunned, frozen in place for a moment, before she shook her head:
"Impossible!"
But she quickly realized that Chen Kuang couldn't be wrong, not when she herself was now just a part of this "Evil Karma."
She thought further, if Granny Hua really had that level of strength, she would never have sat still and let herself be captured by Wang Yangbo.
The more likely scenario was that she had already led the other demons away. The town that was "destroyed" had been a fake.
"Granny Hua... was indeed good at illusions,"
Wu Man said with a hint of cold sobriety.
"So... I didn't really kill them?"
Chen Kuang replied:
"Perhaps not."
What remained here was just Wu Man's own projection. Whether she had regrets or not had little to do with Chen Kuang.
But from the moment this Ping'an Town was conjured from "Evil Karma," Chen Kuang had sensed something off.
Besides Granny Hua, there were at least two other Master Realm auras present.
This was practically a place where dragons and crouching tigers lay hidden, an utterly terrifying notion.
"No wonder the town could survive so many years undisturbed in Yang Kingdom. If not for Wu Man's betrayal, it might've remained hidden indefinitely."
Chen Kuang shook his head.
Truly a high-fantasy world, any old alleyway might turn up a few reclusive grandmasters.
His gaze sharpened as he suddenly realized the true terror of the "Wujian Between."
The reflections created from "Evil Karma" were all faithful reproductions of reality!
Which meant that, although he couldn't yet materialize things that weren't part of his own consciousness, if he played it right, he could still extract the knowledge and thoughts embedded in those mirror images.
For example... cultivation techniques, or classified Intel!
This was a genuine windfall for Chen Kuang.
However, to achieve that would take some doing.
Even though he could control the "Wujian Between," he was more like a switch than a true puppet master, the illusions still acted according to their own logic.
Having thought this through, Chen Kuang summoned Wu Man and had her cooperate in staging a play.
Unfortunately, the time flow in the illusion had now normalized... so it might take a while.
...
Chen Kuang opened his eyes and exited his meditative state.
He exhaled a murky breath, the newly reforged body had once again reached the Tower Ascension Realm.
With prior experience and the boost from the "Fetal Breathing Technique" passive, he progressed even faster than expected.
If all went smoothly, he could bring his physical body in sync with his spiritual sense within two days.
He had originally planned to cultivate all night.
But the reason he awoke now was that he vaguely heard the sound of sobbing outside his door.
If the voice hadn't sounded familiar, it would've had the ambiance of a horror film.
Chen Kuang stepped down from his bed and approached the door, but before he could open it, he heard the hurried rustling of clothing followed by retreating footsteps.
"Do you still want your gold leaf?" he called out.
The footsteps halted immediately. After a moment, a tearful voice replied dully:
"I already gave it to you. I don't want it anymore."
Then she added quickly: "I have plenty."
Chen Kuang pushed the door open, and indeed found a young girl in a pink dress sitting nearby, knees drawn to her chest, frantically wiping away tears.
It was Lian Mi.
Chen Kuang sat down and sighed:
"For a moment I thought some wild fox demon had gotten loose, weeping and wailing like that. It nearly scared me into wetting myself."
His words were coarse and blunt, Lian Mi's cheeks flushed bright red:
"You... you! How can you say things like that?!"
"Say what kind of things?" Chen Kuang asked, deliberately playing dumb.
Lian Mi puffed out her cheeks and glared at him:
"You're not allowed to call me a wild fox demon! I almost got killed by a demon today, you're not allowed to talk about demons or spirits!"
So that was the reason for her gloomy mood.
"What happened? Did a demon bully you?" Chen Kuang asked gently.
Lian Mi shook her head.
"No... it wasn't really a demon..."
She hesitated, pursing her lips, and ultimately swallowed her words.
Forget it... they'd only known each other for a day. What good would it do to talk?
She felt foolish, she could've just cried alone in her own room. Yet somehow, she'd wandered to his door...
As if crying here would help somehow.
Lian Mi tried to stand up quickly, but Chen Kuang stopped her.
"So it was a human, then?"
"Go on, tell me. Even if it's just to vent. Some things will eat you up if you hold them in."
Lian Mi tried to shake free, but found his grip frighteningly strong. She'd been stronger than most boys her age since childhood, yet in his grasp, she felt like a sparrow in a giant's palm, utterly powerless.
Chen Kuang was surprised.
That single tug from Lian Mi had strength rivaling a Qi Opening Realm martial artist, at least six-meridian strength!
Natural-born strength... If she had started training earlier, she might've been a prodigy.
The thought passed and he reached into his pocket and pulled out a gold leaf, placing it in her hand.
"Think of it as payment for telling me a story," he said with a smile.
Lian Mi protested:
"I gave you a whole tael of gold! How come I only get one gold leaf?!"
"Not all stories are equal," said Chen Kuang.
Lian Mi thought about it and admitted that made sense:
"Oh."
She sat back down. That brief exchange had lifted her spirits somewhat.
She mumbled:
"It's not even anything that interesting..."
Then she recounted the incident from earlier, how the constables had come to search the place, and how one of them insisted on inspecting the box where she kept her intimate garments.
As she spoke, her eyes reddened again.
"I thought everything would be fine once they left... But later, while working with the other maids, I found out, that constable is actually the son of the branch steward of the Wanlin Merchant Guild."
"Before he left, he told Madam Yu he'd pay ten gold ingots to buy me. Otherwise, even if the official silver is found, he'll keep coming back to 'inspect' us every day..."
Chen Kuang understood.
This man clearly knew that Liu Qingcheng would never willingly let the girl go, so he aimed to pressure Xuni Pavillion directly into making the decision.
Coming every day to search was unlikely, but since the theft of official silver remained unresolved, he could definitely make a big fuss over it for the time being.
Because Liu Qingcheng had already been "reserved" by a powerful figure, Xuni Pavillion wasn't operating as openly these days. Still, it remained the face of Zangfeng Prefecture, and many would still come just for its reputation.
If, during this sensitive period, the place was being searched every few days, it would be detrimental to Xuni Pavillion's reputation.
For the sake of a mere servant girl, Xuni Pavillion probably wouldn't want to create more trouble.
Very likely... they would compromise, and sell off Lian Mi.
That was exactly why she was heartbroken.
Chen Kuang looked at her and asked, "You don't want to leave Xuni Pavillion?"
Lian Mi shook her head and replied,
"I do."
She said softly, "Don't tell anyone... I've already saved up quite a bit. I was planning to redeem myself this winter and leave with my mistress."
She said firmly:
"I want to leave on my own. I don't want to be bought."
So those gold leaves... were her savings to buy back her freedom.
Chen Kuang felt a little complicated inside. He flipped his hand and returned the remaining gold leaves to her.
Lian Mi was stunned, confused:
"Why are you giving them all back?"
Chen Kuang reached out and patted her head.
"That was a good story. As good as mine. Think of it as a tip."
Lian Mi was bewildered.
She wasn't stupid, this guy didn't seem like a bad person, but he certainly didn't seem like a good one either. What kind of "good person" would accept a whole tael of gold without blinking?
She had assumed he was strapped for cash, but now he'd returned it all...
Chen Kuang smiled and said:
"How about this, want to make up a sequel? Not much, just worth another one or two gold taels."
Lian Mi rolled her eyes:
"You're tricking me again. Even if I make something up, you don't have that kind of money."
Chen Kuang said:
"Alright, you caught me."
"If you need money, just keep it," Lian Mi said. "I have enough. I don't need that little bit from you."
She sniffed for a bit but then forced a cheerful smile:
"Talking to you really made me feel better."
Chen Kuang looked at her.
"That's good."
Lian Mi patted the dust off her backside and walked away light on her feet, hands behind her back.
Chen Kuang muttered to himself:
"Wanlin Merchant Guild... what a coincidence."
A glow flickered in his hand and coalesced into a jade pendant.
This jade pendant was a gift from Lin Eryou, a token of apology marking him as an honored guest of the Wanlin Merchant Guild.
After all, the Wanlin Merchant Guild was run by Lin Eryou's family...
He tossed the jade pendant lightly in his hand.
"Looks like this time, I might not even need to lift a finger."
...
The Next Morning.
After finishing his chores, Chen Kuang sat in a corner, listening to the idle banter of scholars enjoying tea in Xuni Pavillion's main hall.
Liu Qingcheng had wanted to reassign him as a musician, but he had refused.
He specifically wanted to use this servant identity to gather information about what happened after his "death," and to learn about various matters of interest.
These so-called scholars were exactly the type to flaunt their knowledge. What they knew was far more accurate than anything that could be heard from merchants or common laborers.
Cultivators often visited Xuni Pavillion, too.
Today, for example, two Jianghu wanderers in the Qi Opening Realm had shown up.
Chen Kuang listened from the side as they casually drank and chatted, and he ended up learning quite a bit of useful information.
After his "death," Wen Si had apparently failed to protect the Lady of Liang and her daughter, only the young princess Su Huaiying survived, while Chu Wenruo died on the spot.
Chen Kuang's heart sank at the news.
But then another voice interrupted:
"I heard that at the time, aside from the Kunpeng appearing, an unidentified grand demon also emerged. That demon was the one who killed the three Master Realm cultivators from the Department of Shennong. I wonder if it's connected..."
"What demon dares to act up right under the Martial Saint's nose?"
"I don't know. But I heard that demon's entire body was snow-white, like a goddess from the Moon Palace!"
Moon Palace goddess?
Chen Kuang was stunned.
That hazy white light he once saw on Chu Wenruo, when using Piercing Insight, it had looked just like moonlight..
Combined with his earlier suspicions...
Could it be, this grand demon... was Chu Wenruo?
Chen Kuang found the idea completely absurd, but at the same time, he felt it wasn't impossible.
He kept his ears focused, hoping for more details.
But the two quickly lost interest in the topic and changed the subject.
"Such a pity about Chen Kuang, though. What a figure, to fight the Martial Saint's avatar!"
"What's to pity? He overestimated himself. Killed the Martial Saint's disciple and invited his own death... In times like these, self-preservation is the true path."
"Still, the Canglang Evaluation broke its own rules and placed him at tenth, even keeping his name there for a month posthumously, that's truly unprecedented."
"So what? He's still dead."
"The number one of the Canglang Evaluation is still a Shen. I thought we finally had someone who could stand against Shen Xingzhu."
"Speaking of Shen Xingzhu, the Shen family really is incredible."
"Yeah, I thought having just Shen Xingzhu was already impressive,but who would've thought... they had Shen Meinan too!"
Shen Meinan?!
Chen Kuang's pupils constricted.
What the hell? Shen Meinan shouldn't be part of this kind of discussion! That little girl... she was only at the Innate Realm, wasn't she?
The man continued with admiration:
"Truly terrifying."
"That Shen Meinan, so quiet and unassuming, turned out to be a Master Realm cultivator! Absolutely terrifying!"
Now Chen Kuang was truly stunned.
Shen Meinan? Master Realm?
How could those words even go together?
His expression darkened. Shen Meinan's cultivation absolutely couldn't have skyrocketed without some kind of intervention.
It had to be the Shen family... or more precisely, Shen Xingzhu. They had definitely done something!