Chapter 294: Master, Please Be More Reserved

Dugu Qingli was inexplicably snatched away by her master. Her initial instinct was always to react as if the King of Hell were attacking, and she instinctively tried to resist. She wondered how she would fare if she met the real King of Hell. In any case, she couldn't even counter half a move from this "King of Hell" and was simply picked up like a chick. The white-haired girl gave up resisting.

Tianyao Xuan Yue had just about managed to redeem herself as a respectable cultivator.

It wasn't until they were halfway up in the air that the little white-haired quail finally protested: "I was just asking him something, I was only halfway through when you suddenly showed up. I still had so many questions! Why did you suddenly drag me away?"

Ye Tinglan released her disciple, removed her mask, and her expression was quite grim. "Still wanting to ask? Still squatting in the guest quarters? If I hadn't come, you would have been used as a formation core!"

Dugu Qingli looked completely bewildered.

Ye Tinglan then recounted everything she had learned from beginning to end to her disciple. Dugu Qingli remained silent. She naturally thought of her own origins. Could she possibly be the Ice Demon herself...?

Ye Tinglan comforted her, saying, "You are human, without a doubt. Even if it's related to the origin of ice, it's highly likely that you've simply absorbed it. This concept is entirely separate from being an Ice Demon. While concentrated origins can form spirits or be utilized by humans, it doesn't define one's soul."

Dugu Qingli felt slightly relieved and whispered, "Thank you, Ma... Martial Aunt." She was thanking her master's concern. Worried that she might get into trouble, her master had traveled thousands of miles to help, and even debased herself by impersonating the King of Hell... Wait, no, her master was already impersonating the King of Hell.

Lu Xingzhou, sitting nearby in his wheelchair, said helplessly, "Actually, if our 'King of Hell' hadn't shown up, Ling Qixuan wouldn't have even thought of instigating the King of Hell to deal with a direct descendant of Tianyao. He wouldn't have had the guts to confront her himself, so the situation where Qingli would be used as a formation core simply wouldn't have existed."

Ye Tinglan thought about it, conceded the point, and said nothing more.

Dugu Qingli glanced sideways at their harmonious, couple-like behavior and also remained silent.

Lu Xingzhou continued to criticize the "foolish woman": "You acted too rashly; there were many things I hadn't asked yet. We didn't even clarify how that formation works or where it operates. And putting aside Qingli's origins, if this Ice Demon truly escapes, it could cause massive problems, potentially leading to the icy ocean engulfing the human world. You're usually so calm. He was only instigating; he hadn't actually done anything, and there was no immediate danger. Why were you in such a rush...?"

Ye Tinglan knew she had been a bit impulsive today, but argued, "That's different! As a master, when you hear someone wants to use your beloved disciple as a formation core, wouldn't anyone's anger just shoot to the heavens?"

Seeing the young man's criticism, Ye Tinglan softened considerably. She stammered, "I know I was impulsive, and it wasn't good for the overall situation. But I am Qingli's Martial Aunt; I cannot bear to hear such talk. People have their limits..."

Dugu Qingli: "..."

Although she didn't know what had happened, it sounded quite touching. Even though she was still clinging to the "Martial Aunt" title, which was rather foolish, her opinion of Tianyao Xuan Yue was still rising rapidly.

Lu Xingzhou said, "Qingli is also my... friend. So it's fine for *me* to hear such talk? As the saying goes, 'impatience spoils great plans.' We should at least clarify the immediate matters first. What do we do now?"

"Now..." Ye Tinglan chuckled, settled onto his lap, and hooked her arms around his neck. "I have smart disciples to do the work, so there's always a way to clean up the mess, isn't there?"

Dugu Qingli shuddered, goosebumps breaking out all over her body. Living in the Frozen Moon Cold River for so many years, she had never gotten goosebumps like this!

Lu Xingzhou directly pulled Ye Tinglan into his embrace, his hand actually reaching for her rounded bottom. "Is this how you 'clean up'?"

Ye Tinglan gritted her teeth: "Lu! Xing! Zhou!" As she spoke, she suddenly shifted, almost breaking the annoying man's hand beneath her.

Lu Xingzhou's face turned purplish-red, and Dugu Qingli let out a sigh of relief.

Just as she was about to continue praising Tianyao Xuan Yue, she heard Ye Tinglan say, "There's still someone else here, what are you doing?"

Dugu Qingli: "?"

So, when no one's around, you can just casually grope each other's bottoms, right? No, what do you mean "there's still someone here"? Just now you said I was your limit, and now you find me an eyesore?

Dugu Qingli was currently flying on her sword beside them, while Lu Xingzhou sat in his wheelchair with Ye Tinglan in his lap. Watching their postures, Dugu Qingli couldn't help but recall her own past... So that's how pathetic she had been back then...

Lu Xingzhou was whispering into Ye Tinglan's ear: "Ease up, my hand hurts."

Ye Tinglan shifted her bottom.

Lu Xingzhou finally managed to pull his hand out, looking wronged. "Regarding the formation, the only option now is for me to secretly meet Ling Qixuan again. I'll tell him the King of Hell isn't interested, but that we, as subordinates, should perhaps seize the opportunity, just in case it's feasible... We'll see if he reveals anything. Otherwise, the only 'stupid' method left is to secretly keep an eye on them. For now, the 'stupid' method might even be more effective; if I go and ask separately, I might not gain his trust."

Ye Tinglan knew she had made a mistake and chuckled apologetically. "I was wrong... just punish me, but not by 'cleaning up the mess' in that manner."

Lu Xingzhou lowered his head and kissed her.

Dugu Qingli, who was flying on her sword, swerved, almost causing an aerial accident. But listening to their words, it sounded as if her master had made a mistake and was being punished because of her... Therefore, whether Tianyao Xuan Yue was truly good or not still needed further observation.

Lu Xingzhou, having kissed to his satisfaction, finally pulled back slightly. "Since things are this way, I need to find Old Ji and have him instruct the Yin Corpse Sect to cooperate with me. Then, everything else will be much simpler."

Ye Tinglan asked cautiously, "This is acting behind the King of Hell's back. Would Ji Wenchuan and the Yin Corpse Sect dare to do that?"

Lu Xingzhou said, "Why act behind the King of Hell's back? We can be completely straightforward. That foolish woman dared to promise to help defeat the Ice Demon without clarifying anything. Aren't we just 'cleaning up' after her? As for the Yin Corpse Sect, they were originally subdued by Ji Wenchuan, so his word carries weight with them."

"So how do you contact Ji Wenchuan?"

Lu Xingzhou scratched his head. "I can't use your kind of jade talismans; my cultivation isn't high enough. I'll have to use traditional paper cranes for messages. The efficiency isn't too bad, though. Let's head back to the previous inn and wait."

Dugu Qingli couldn't help but say, "Paper cranes aren't as fast or safe as I am. Why don't I go? Where is he?"

"Uh, unless something unexpected happened, he should be in Danxia Mountain now."

"Even better! I haven't seen Shen Tang in ages, I'll go meet her. Is Anu also there?"

Lu Xingzhou glanced at her, sensing that the shameless display of her master embracing a man was making the white-haired girl unable to bear it any longer; she clearly intended to escape the current scene. However, upon reflection, letting her leave this vortex wouldn't be bad. She seemed to be at the center of the vortex now, and Ling Qixuan might suddenly go mad and try to harm her. It would be better for her to withdraw first. He then said, "Alright, I'll write the letter first."

As Lu Xingzhou wrote the letter, Ye Tinglan finally sat up from his lap. Dugu Qingli couldn't hold back any longer and tugged on her master's sleeve. "Mas... Martial Aunt, a word in private."

The master and disciple slipped away dozens of feet from Lu Xingzhou. Ye Tinglan secretly glanced back at the young man, then asked, "What is it?"

Dugu Qingli said, "You... even if you're using the Martial Aunt identity, isn't this... isn't this a bit too much...?"

Ye Tinglan retorted self-righteously, "Yuan Muyu is shameless, but what does that have to do with me?"

Dugu Qingli: "..."

"Besides," Ye Tinglan mused to herself, "wasn't this what you supported earlier? If it weren't for your encouragement, I wouldn't have let loose so quickly... Surely you're not going to retract your support now, are you? What would I have been doing then?"

Dugu Qingli genuinely didn't know how to express her strange emotions, so she could only say tactfully, "Master, I know you've been repressed for many years, but don't be so uninhibited... Modesty, you still need a little modesty... Hmm, how does that saying go? 'Men don't cherish what comes too easily.'"

Ye Tinglan's eyes widened, and she looked her disciple up and down. Did her clueless disciple, who knew nothing about romance, just say that? Where had she been for 'advanced studies'? Heaven knew that Dugu Qingli said all this merely out of a small, inexplicable bout of jealousy that she couldn't stand to witness.

"Don't worry, your master won't just casually cross any lines," Ye Tinglan said, putting her arm around her disciple's shoulder in a friendly, sisterly manner. "It's just ordinary affection. Your master hasn't been this happy in a long time. Nothing more, not yet anyway."

Dugu Qingli's face flushed, and she thought, "You actually thought that far ahead? I was only talking about touching bottoms." Forget it. I'm tired; let it all go to hell.

At this moment, Lu Xingzhou finished writing the letter. Dugu Qingli, looking utterly devoid of hope, flew off on her sword like a streak of light, heading straight for Xiazhou to deliver the message.

Ye Tinglan, on the other hand, cheered up. She settled back into the man's lap, hooking her arms around his neck. "Come on, let's go back and tend to your injury."

Lu Xingzhou's heart fluttered. "Healing" could mean, at the very least, a kiss. Or, he could expect more...

Just as the two were returning to the inn, the Ice Prison Sect's mountain gate welcomed another group of guests.

"The newly appointed Western Ghost Emperor of the Yama Hall pays his respects to the mountain. Let us have more exchanges in the future. From now on, this Emperor will be the one handling matters concerning the Frost Kingdom."

Ling Qixuan, suppressing his internal injuries, once again stepped out to greet them at the mountain gate. His mind was a blur. "The King of Hell just left. Why are you all here again?"

The former Sect Master of the Yin Corpse Sect, now the Western Ghost Emperor of the Yama Hall, Old Man Yin Feng, looked even more bewildered. "W-what? The King of Hell just left?" It was true that the King of Hell's movements wouldn't be communicated to him, so if the King of Hell had just arrived, it wouldn't be too strange. But the King of Hell had clearly been instigating earthquakes in Miaoyin Mountain just recently, so why was he suddenly here again? Old Man Yin Feng was very puzzled.

"It was indeed the King of Hell; how could I be mistaken?" Ling Qixuan sighed. "Your Highness the Ghost Emperor, if you had only arrived a few hours earlier and told us that the King of Hell found a new 'substitute' for the Judge, we wouldn't have been so rude."

"A new... new substitute for the Judge?" Old Man Yin Feng was utterly dumbfounded. On second thought, it wasn't impossible for such a thing to happen. Many in the Yama Hall secretly knew that the King of Hell deeply missed his Judge but couldn't bring himself to admit it. So finding a substitute was certainly understandable. But the problem was, he didn't know this new substitute Judge...

Old Man Yin Feng secretly thought that he absolutely couldn't make Ling Qixuan's mistake. He couldn't afford to not recognize the Judge if he were right in front of him and cause trouble, which would be disastrous. So he immediately sent a message to Ji Wenchuan: "Mr. Ji, who is the King of Hell's new substitute Judge? Please fill us in..."

Ji Wenchuan was playing chess with Anu, casually sipping tea. Upon receiving the message, he spat out a mouthful of tea, splattering all over Anu's chubby little face.