Chapter 8

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Chapter 8: Title

“Ugh…” Ye Qingshang rubbed her forehead and pushed herself up. When she saw where she was, her expression tightened. She sighed, a rare touch of sadness in her voice.

The bone spell used white bones to create an illusion. Unlike other illusions, in this spell, every person came from bones, with full awareness and actions like real people.

The Lin Su they met earlier was the bait for the bone spell. No matter how Ye Qingshang and Mu Huaiyun tested her, they found nothing wrong because she had once been human, but died long ago.

The bone spell needed much spiritual power. One Flame Beast alone couldn’t do it; at least five were required. This worried Ye Qingshang most.

The spell was hard to break. If she broke it by luck, she wouldn’t die in the illusion. But she’d fall right into a trap of Flame Beasts.

Truly, she was stuck between a rock and a hard place, every path leading to doom.

Her head throbbed harder. As she held her forehead, she suddenly noticed Mu Huaiyun’s expression.

Ye Qingshang asked, “What’s with that face? I’m not dead yet; why look like you’re at a funeral?”

Mu Huaiyun looked even more sorrowful. \"I\’m sorry. If it weren\’t for my insistence on coming in, we wouldn\’t be trapped in this illusion now.\"

\"True. I did warn you, but you didn\’t listen.\" She had said that if there were companions of the Flame Beast in the forest, they definitely couldn\’t defeat them alone. Since things had reached this point, talking about it was useless. \"Well, now that we\’re here, we\’ll just take it one step at a time.\"

As she spoke, she reached for Mu Huaiyun\’s hand, but paused just before touching his wrist. How could she do this so naturally? Was it because of Qiu Huayi\’s influence?

She was truly confused.

So she pulled her hand back and simply said, \"Let\’s go,\" before walking ahead.

*

\"Miss, Miss.\"

On the wide, noisy street, Ye Qingshang heard someone calling, several times, as if calling her.

She turned and saw a stall where the vendor was smiling brightly at her.

Indeed, the illusion made by the Flame Beast was very detailed, matching their obsessive nature. Even the ordinary people in the city played their roles perfectly, without a flaw.

Take this vendor: first, she was beautiful; second, she sold makeup; and third, she was calling Ye Qingshang over to get customers!

If Ye Qingshang hadn\’t known this was an illusion, she might have believed it.

The vendor said, \"Miss, look at this makeup. It has a nice pink shade that suits you well. You\’re very pretty; why not buy one to look even better?\"

Ye Qingshang thought: No need to flatter so much; it\’s just makeup. Calling her stunning was overdoing it.

Seeing no reply, the vendor turned to Mu Huaiyun. \"This young man is handsome and lucky to have such a beautiful wife. Why not buy one for her?\"

Ye Qingshang thought: Great. Lin Su said Mu Huaiyun was a good man, and now he\’s called a husband.

She shook her head and cut in, \"The makeup is nice, but we have no money and can\’t afford it. Thanks for the offer.\"

Besides, even with money, they wouldn\’t dare buy it. Who knew if it was a burial item?

After walking further down the road, Ye Qingshang said, \"For picky monsters like the Flame Beast, do you think the things in their illusions are real or fake?\"

\"It\’s real,\" Mu Huaiyun said firmly. \"This is Qizhou.\"

Ye Qingshang thought: Huh? Why didn\’t she notice?

Mu Huaiyun went on, \"We flew here on our swords to avoid disturbing people. We stopped at Qizhou\’s city gate and took this road to Zhou Mansion.\"

So that was it. Ye Qingshang\’s group had entered Qizhou from the back mountain, which was empty, so they flew in. She hadn\’t paid attention to the city\’s roads or scenery.

\"Well…\" Ye Qingshang stopped as she spotted a familiar figure.

Someone got down from a carriage in the distance—it was Zhou Hanguang. With him was another person she couldn\’t see clearly, but the shape was of a graceful woman.

Mu Huaiyun said, \"That\’s Miss Zhou. Before going to Zhou Mansion, we asked about the Zhou family, and there was news about her.\"

\"Tell me.\"

Mu Huaiyun said, \"Miss Zhou hasn\’t married yet but cares for someone. It\’s said he\’s a scholar. Mr. Zhou is a merchant, and since the scholar came from a poor family, he refused the marriage.\"

\"Then what?\"

Mu Huaiyun said, \"After that, the townspeople weren\’t sure. They only knew Miss Zhou hadn\’t left home for a long time.\"

Ye Qingshang remembered that at Zhou Mansion, the servants hadn\’t even mentioned Miss Zhou. She had thought Mr. Zhou only had one son, not knowing this story.

Ancient records stated that the Flame Beasts were very particular about killing; they disliked bloodshed, which was why they created the bone spell. It trapped cultivators until they used up their spiritual power and grew exhausted. Then they would die in the illusion or be killed by the Flame Beasts.

The illusion created by the bone spell unfolded around the formation\’s core, regardless of reality. Once the core\’s story concluded, it triggered a killing move. Destroying the core before the story ended would break the spell.

Since the Flame Beast transformed into a Taoist to aid Mr. Zhou, he was likely the core in this illusion.

\"Mu Huaiyun, let\’s gamble.\"

\"What do you mean?\"

Ye Qingshang said, \"We\’ll… temporarily treat Mr. Zhou as the core and observe. If he is, perfect. If not, I\’ll die with you.\"

She spoke earnestly, soft light illuminating her face and melting her usual coldness, making it hard to look away. Mu Huaiyun felt his heart flutter as if treading clouds.

Suddenly, crimson warnings about the bone spell flashed in his mind. He read aloud, \"The core differs from others in the illusion, bearing a hidden rune mark. Only during deepest emotion does it surface.\"

\"Ancient texts scarcely mention the bone spell. How could you…\" He nearly referenced her two lifetimes of knowledge but swallowed the words.

No matter—quibbling now would seem petty.

Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted Zhou Hanguang and a woman entering a restaurant.

Withdrawing her gaze, she asked, \"The Yunshan Sect has many treasures. Did you bring any? Anything granting invisibility?\"

She added, \"To avoid inventing excuses when meeting people.\"

Mu Huaiyun answered, \"Yes, but it lasts only one day.\"

Ye Qingshang said, \"Time flows differently here. One day outside could be a year inside. Let\’s try.\"

*

Inside a private dining room, Zhou Hanguang poured wine for his companion, wearing a merchant\’s smile. \"Brother Fang, please.\"

Fang Xun hesitated, drained his cup, and replied, \"You honor me, Mr. Zhou.\"

Zhou Hanguang said, \"Brother Fang has admirable character. Our Yuanyi is fortunate.\"

\"Uncle Zhou, what do you mean—\" Fang Meiyong beside him blurted out.

Fang Xun pressed her down. \"Don\’t interrupt elders. Know your place.\"

He apologized, \"My daughter is impulsive, Mr. Zhou.\"

Zhou Hanguang waved dismissively. \"Youngsters get excited over important matters. But I must state: Our Zhou family, with its \’golden branches and jade leaves,\’ should marry nobility. Yet she insists on your son, so I agreed. However, the betrothal gifts…\"

He trailed off meaningfully. Fang Xun asked, \"Naturally. What do you require?\"

Zhou Hanguang said, \"As a scholar, you know of \’ten miles of red satin.\’ But that\’s excessive for your family. I\’ll compromise—seventy or eighty percent. Agreed?\"

Fang Xun faltered. \"Since you request it… we\’ll try. But might we have more time?\"

Zhou Hanguang beamed. \"Ten days, even! I\’ll await your news.\"

As the families dined with hidden agendas, invisible Ye Qingshang murmured from a corner, \"The Fang family… scholars… why does that sound familiar? Do you know them?\"

Mu Huaiyun answered, \"No. But since Miss Zhou favors a scholar—likely this Fang Gongzi—and his family is modest, Mr. Zhou\’s demands are unreasonable.\"

Meanwhile, the families descended the stairs. Inside their carriage, Zhou Yuanyi complained, \"Father! You know the Fangs are poor. Why make impossible demands?\"

Zhou Hanguang said, “You’re still young; what do you know? The Fang family is poor, but if they can’t even present a betrothal gift, what right have they to propose? Yuanyi, if you hadn’t insisted I meet him, Fang Meiyong wouldn’t even qualify to marry you!”

“Father…”

Zhou Hanguang snapped, “Enough! This matter ends here!”

Though the maiden had her feelings, parental authority couldn’t be defied. Ye Qingshang shook her head, finding it rather regrettable.

Outside the carriage, the coachman wiped his sweat while eyeing the mild sunlight: Strange, why did driving feel unusually strenuous today?