Chapter 589: Doubting Life

"Who is it?" Zu An was on alert. He had just arrived in the capital and barely knew anyone, so who would be looking for him at this hour?

"It's me..." A soft, timid voice came from outside the door. Zu An was overjoyed and was about to deactivate the door's protective spell when he heard someone climbing over the wall.

He couldn't help but complain. The protective spells at Ding Manor were quite ordinary, far inferior to those at the academy or the Embroidered Envoy's dormitories in the palace. They could, at best, deter petty thieves; anyone with a slightly higher cultivation level could easily bypass them.

He quickly put Daji away, not wanting her to be seen when the person arrived.

Soon, a figure in a black robe jogged over. Zu An waved repeatedly, "I'm over here."

The newcomer wore a black cloak that covered almost their entire body. Seeing Zu An in the bathtub, they froze for a moment. "You... you're taking a bath."

The voice was delicate and pleasant, clearly belonging to a woman.

Zu An splashed the water. "Care to join me?"

"Ugh, no!" The woman removed her cloak, revealing a pristine white outfit underneath. It was Zheng Dan, whom he had just seen. She had already asked for the address at the Sang family's residence, and this place wasn't too difficult to find.

"Why are you still wearing those clothes?" Zu An asked curiously.

Zheng Dan pouted slightly. "I couldn't help it. I snuck out and have to go back later. Changing clothes would be too much trouble. If you find it inauspicious, I can change into something else here?"

"No need, this is perfect," Zu An said, pulling her close.

"Oh..." Zheng Dan stumbled slightly, but quickly understood his meaning, and her beautiful face flushed instantly. "Pervert."

Zu An chuckled, then lifted her directly into the bathtub. Her clothes were completely soaked, clinging to her body.

Zheng Dan had no time to marvel at his sudden increase in strength; she was too embarrassed and anxious. "How am I supposed to go back like this?"

A small flame ignited in Zu An's hand. "I'll dry your clothes for you afterward."

That's the advantage of the cultivation world; you can achieve many things without external tools.

"You've awakened fire elemental abilities?" Zheng Dan was somewhat surprised. While she was delighted by her lover's progress, he had awakened a fire element ability.

Sang Qian, she recalled, also had fire abilities. She had previously thought their incompatibility, like fire and water, led to their outcome. Now, unexpectedly, her lover was also of the fire element, and she suddenly felt a wave of worry, finding it ominous.

Guessing her thoughts, Zu An laughed. "Don't worry, I don't just have fire abilities; I can control water too." With a flick of his finger, a small stream of water rose from the bathtub.

This was a skill from Blue Drake; in the presence of water, he could manipulate it to a certain extent. However, he couldn't directly transform water elements in the air into water for combat like a true water element wielder, and his control over water was still inferior to dedicated water element cultivators.

Its greatest ability, however, was water affinity, allowing him to breathe freely underwater like a fish. Furthermore, learning water element cultivation techniques and battle skills in the future would be much easier for him. The only thing he lacked now was awakening a true water element ability, and from the looks of it, he could only hope to summon a water element Valkyrie in the future.

Zheng Dan's worry instantly turned to joy. "Ah Zu, you're amazing."

Zu An leaned in close and whispered into her ear, "You know I have something even more amazing."

"You're annoying..." Zheng Dan softly chided him, but her eyes were already brimming with a watery glow.

Seeing her in pristine white mourning clothes, an inexpressible thought surged wildly in Zu An's mind. He could no longer hold back and let out a growl, lunging forward.

...

Meanwhile, Qiu Honglei finally managed to persuade the people at the capital branch. By evening, she was hurrying towards Zu An's courtyard.

Her heart fluttered with anticipation at the thought of their impending reunion.

She had developed a strong fondness for him back in Brightmoon City. Later, during their journey to the capital, they had faced life-and-death situations together multiple times; he had protected her with his life, and she had even sucked poisoned blood from a wound on Zu An's back...

Oh dear, was she perhaps too unrestrained back then? His wife, Chu Chuyan, was an ice-cold beauty. Would he prefer that style instead?

Hmph, it's just pretending to be proper, anyone can do that.

A thought flashed through her mind, and the charming smile instantly vanished from her face. Her entire demeanor became very dignified, as if she were a direct disciple of a prestigious righteous sect.

However, her face was too alluring; even when she intentionally put on a serious expression, her whole being still exuded femininity.

Arriving outside Zu An's door, she pulled out a small mirror to check her appearance. Yes, she had specially washed her hair before coming out and applied light makeup. From their previous interactions, she had learned that he didn't like heavy makeup.

The expression on her face was also good, lacking her usual enchanting allure. Yes, she should maintain this; he would probably prefer it.

Content, she put the small mirror back in her pocket and then gently knocked on the door.

What? Climb over the wall? Although the manor's defensive spells were useless against her, climbing walls was something a temptress or demoness would do. A lady, of course, would use the front entrance.

As her slender fingers were about to rap on the door, she suddenly heard faint sounds from inside. The smile on her face instantly froze.

Fuming, she kicked a pebble by the roadside. She should have known; she truly should have had the capital branch burn this house down.

This infuriates me!

Anger value from Qiu Honglei +999+999+999...

Unfortunately, Zu An was preoccupied with other matters at the moment and completely oblivious to the string of anger values appearing in the background.

Qiu Honglei was about to turn and leave, but then felt it would be too dissatisfying to simply walk away.

Hmph, is that Chu Chuyan in there? She acts like an ice fairy in front of others, but she's screaming louder than the girls in the Immortals' Abode.

She decided to go in and witness the other woman's "ugly spectacle." That way, when they met again, she would see what Chu Chuyan had to be proud of.

As soon as this thought struck her, she could no longer resist and climbed stealthily over the wall.

Knowing that both individuals inside were experts, she was extremely careful, moving like a cat without making a sound.

Soon, the sounds that made one blush grew clearer, and she crept further inside.

"They're doing it right in the bathtub? Is Chu Chuyan really that repressed and lewd? Was her usual cool, fairy-like demeanor just an act?" Qiu Honglei fumed internally.

She then peeked inside, and her expression immediately became highly complex.

"She didn't even take her clothes off?" Due to the angle, she couldn't clearly see the woman's face, but a white outfit was undeniable, precisely the kind Chu Chuyan typically wore.

She suddenly began to question life itself. What was wrong with this world? Did people wear clothes while bathing? That seemed far too eager.

Wait, hold on, did mouths have *that* use besides eating?

Who exactly were the demonic cult members here?

She felt somewhat dazed until the two people inside emerged from the bathtub, and Zu An, with flames dancing in his hand, dried the woman's clothes. Only then did she snap back to reality.

Had Zu An awakened fire element abilities now? The quality of the flames seemed quite high, unlike ordinary mundane fire.

Wait, this woman wasn't Chu Chuyan.

She had seen her before on the journey to the capital and quickly recognized her not as Chu Chuyan, but as Zheng Dan, the Sang family's young daughter-in-law. And she wasn't wearing a white dress, but mourning clothes.

She secretly spat. What a vixen, seducing men right after her husband's death.

Although she had suspected the ambiguous relationship between them on their journey to the capital, guessing was one thing, and witnessing it firsthand was another. The recent scene had been too visually impactful.

After her clothes were dry, Zheng Dan hurriedly put on her cloak and ran out, clearly wanting to return quickly.

She had barely run a few steps when her legs gave out, and she nearly stumbled, making Qiu Honglei's eyebrows twitch. Serves them right, for having been so wild just now.

While she was silently cursing, she became somewhat distracted, and her concealment was no longer perfect.

"Who's there?" Zu An thought that most of what had just happened had probably been seen, so he attacked without hesitation.

To his surprise, the other person neither dodged nor retreated, but simply remained in the tree, watching him coldly.