The next day, Mu Xinlian woke He Shu, who had been tormented by Hua Yanyun the entire night. After the two of them finished eating together, Mu Xinlian set off for the bustling southern district of Cloud Mist Immortal City.
As the capital of a nation, Cloud Mist Immortal City was enormous. Even traveling in a straight line from Wanyi Tower on the outskirts to First Grade Residence in the south of the city would take at least six hours.
This was only the time required for a direct journey; it did not account for the need to evade any possible tails or surveillance. As a result, Mu Xinlian would not be able to return to He Shu’s side tonight.
Mu Xinlian wore a black windbreaker she had bought some time ago. It served its purpose perfectly now.
With the immortal city’s grand array suppressing everything and being inside the city proper, cultivators on the streets would not casually release their divine sense. Doing so would be disrespectful to other cultivators.
This was also why Mu Xinlian had simply changed into a windbreaker that did not match her usual style before heading out.
The distance was considerable, and walking the entire way on foot was unrealistic. Mu Xinlian retrieved another artifact from her storage device.
It was a round orb artifact with a texture like cotton candy. It floated in mid-air, its surface displaying a 0w0 expression formed by black lines.
This was a common flying cloud artifact, capable of speeds roughly half that of a Golden Core cultivator. Such travel artifacts were mostly used by Foundation Establishment cultivators.
The reason was simple: Golden Core cultivators had no need for them, while Qi Condensation cultivators could not afford them.
Mu Xinlian’s cloud was better than average. It was a quasi-Golden Core grade flying cloud, its speed no slower than that of a newly advanced Golden Core cultivator.
This alone showed that Mu Xinlian was quite the little rich lady herself.
Lying on it like a lazy sofa, Mu Xinlian channeled her spiritual power into the flying cloud artifact. The device immediately carried her through the streets.
Mu Xinlian turned her head to look at the countless shops lining both sides of the road. There were all kinds—restaurants, inns, blacksmith shops, pill rooms, artifact refineries, talisman pavilions—you name it.
Of course she could have controlled the flying cloud to fly through the air. Without obstacles in the way, the speed would have been even faster. But that would have been far too conspicuous and contrary to her mission of traveling discreetly.
Besides, there was an unwritten rule: flying in the air within the immortal city was considered a privilege reserved for Golden Core or higher cultivators.
After a long stretch of continuous travel, Mu Xinlian’s spiritual power had dropped below the warning line. She had no choice but to stop and recover.
It was already the early hours of the morning. She had been traveling for more than five hours. Jumping down from the artifact, her legs felt a little weak from sitting for so long, and she nearly stumbled.
Leaning against the flying cloud to rest, she took the opportunity to restore her true essence. Looking up at the sky, Mu Xinlian saw the moon hanging high overhead, its light hazy, with countless stars twinkling above.
The moon in the sky was so serene, yet the immortal city below was still brightly lit.
Under the glow of the street lamps, she reached out and massaged her calves, manually easing the muscle fatigue.
“It will take at least four hours for my true essence to fully recover. I should find an inn to rest for now.”
Mu Xinlian stored the flying cloud back into her storage artifact and casually walked into a nearby inn.
The receptionist was a Qi Condensation female cultivator, currently slumped over the counter. Seeing Mu Xinlian enter, she quickly sat up straight.
Approaching the front desk, Mu Xinlian asked, “What kinds of rooms do you have here?”
“We offer more than ten different types of guest rooms. All the details are on this tablet. Please choose whatever suits you, esteemed guest.”
As she spoke, the receptionist handed Mu Xinlian a black stone tablet.
Inserting her divine sense into it, Mu Xinlian selected a single room on the fourth floor. She took out twenty lower-grade spirit stones from her storage artifact and handed them to the receptionist.
Taking the room token from the receptionist, Mu Xinlian climbed the stairs to the fourth floor, found her room, and stepped inside.
With a big leap, Mu Xinlian flopped onto the bed, then crawled under the covers on all fours.
“Whew—”
“I’ll take a short nap and continue once my true essence is fully restored.”
Muttering to herself, the gray-haired young woman soon breathed evenly and fell into a light sleep.
Just as Mu Xinlian drifted off, He Shu opened her still-dazed green eyes.
After eating lunch with Mu Xinlian earlier that day, He Shu had simply laid out a mat on the floor and gone back to sleep.
There was nothing else she could do. Every night Hua Yanyun tormented her without restraint, leaving He Shu mentally exhausted and extremely sleepy.
Rubbing her still-blurry eyes, she found a beautiful face filling her vision.
“Yawn—”
Letting out a yawn, He Shu spoke without thinking, “I haven’t slept enough yet… let me sleep a little longer…”
Pa!
A burning pain exploded across He Shu’s left cheek. Her head snapped to the right from the force.
Hua Yanyun had slapped her. The blow also jolted He Shu fully awake.
“It hurts…”
She instinctively pressed her small hand to her stinging left cheek and whimpered.
Even an ordinary person would have found that slap painful. For someone with He Shu’s extreme sensitivity, it felt as if scalding chili oil had been poured into an open wound. Every muscle in her body tensed.
“What a little lazy bug you are, still sleeping at this hour.”
With a mischievous glint in her eyes, Hua Yanyun grabbed He Shu’s left wrist—the one covering her face—and pinned both wrists together above He Shu’s head with her right hand.
Her wrists now bound, He Shu twisted her body in an attempt to struggle free, but it was useless. Hua Yanyun’s grip did not budge.
Giving up on futile resistance, He Shu fell still. Only then did she notice she had somehow been returned to the cage.
It must have been Hua Yanyun who threw me back in here.
He Shu had guessed correctly, but there was no reward for being right.
“You’re recovering quite quickly, little one. If nothing goes wrong, you should be fully healed in another week.”
Hua Yanyun’s tone was teasing. She was already calculating how she would study He Shu’s body once the girl had completely recovered.
Listening to her words, He Shu felt a chill spread through her heart. She knew all too well that the moment she was fully healed, Hua Yanyun would begin her research on her body. She had no idea exactly what that would entail, but she was certain it would not be pleasant.
Her heart sank. She had no way of knowing Mu Xinlian’s current situation and could only hope the girl would find Shen Qingci as quickly as possible and establish contact with Southwind Immortal Kingdom.
“I came a little later today than yesterday. Did my little one miss me?”
Hua Yanyun kept He Shu’s wrists pinned with her left hand while her right gently stroked the spot she had just slapped, sending another sharp sting across He Shu’s left cheek.
A pair of long, fair legs clamped around He Shu’s slender waist. Hua Yanyun sat down on He Shu’s thighs.
The full weight pressed onto He Shu’s legs. She felt as if her bones were about to snap.