Love & Redemption
Chapter 210: Volume 5 Phoenix Flower Blooms, - 17 Searching for Him Among Thousands (1)

Chapter 210: Volume 5 Phoenix Flower Blooms, Chapter 17 Searching for Him Among Thousands (1)

As winter yielded to spring, it was now the vibrant month of May. The sides of the official road were ablaze with Phoenix Flower Forests, the blossoms layer upon layer of fiery red, seemingly stretching out to the very end of the sky. Although it was only May, the year was unseasonably hot; the sun was scorching, already giving a taste of peak summer heat. The travelers and merchants on the road were drenched in sweat and wished they could instantly sprout wings to fly to a distant inn.

Off to the side of the road, two individuals took their journey leisurely, one riding a donkey, moving slowly under the scorching sun. Both wore bamboo hats, concealing their features. One, with a slender waist and armed with two treasure swords, had hands that led the reins, delicate and as pale as jade—a young girl.

These were Xuanji and Tengshe. Over the past year, the duo had traveled through cities and towns in all directions, visiting Qingyang no less than ten times. However, Yu Sifeng and Liu Yihuan seemed to have evaporated from the human world, without a trace to be found.

This prolonged expedition was indeed exhausting, but fortunately, both were immortals, unbothered by the severe cold of winter or the harsh summer heat. Especially for Tengshe, the variety of local delicacies was a constant temptation, so he had not complained even once, delighting in accompanying her everywhere.

Since Yu Sifeng could not be found in Central Earth, Xuanji speculated whether he might have gone overseas. She had often heard that demons disrupted the overseas lands, cultures were strange, and customs differed greatly from those of Central Earth. Though her primary goal was to find Yu Sifeng, her extensive travels alone had broadened her horizons considerably, arousing her curiosity about the mysterious overseas areas, compelling her to explore them firsthand.

Thus, they arrived at a remote town called West Valley, rumored to have a ferry crossing the sea to reach the foreign wilderness. Occasional trade occurred across the shores here. Along the way, although Xuanji had not encountered any peculiar foreign folk, the items sold by traveling merchants were unlike anything she had seen before, supposedly brought over from overseas.

As Xuanji listened to a traveling merchant exaggerating the exotic customs of overseas lands, she coaxed the donkey to meander forward, and soon they reached the inn. In such a remote place, the inn was quite basic, just a two-story building with about ten rooms that you could count on your fingers. From her extensive travels, Xuanji knew that the more rundown an inn in such a remote location, the higher its prices would be, outrageously high that typical people could not afford. Being the only lodging option within a hundred miles, it had but those few rooms; take it or leave it. Therefore, many would rather sleep outdoors than waste money on such an inn.

Xuanji hopped off the donkey, patting the coin purse at her waist—it felt rather empty, hardly a few silvers left. It seemed she would have to find some demon exorcising or spirit dispelling work again, otherwise the money wouldn’t last Tengshe three days.

The moment Tengshe’s feet hit the ground, he started complaining about being hungry and thirsty, and he rushed towards the inn, only to find a crowd gathered outside, all pointing and discussing something, with the inn’s main door shut tight. Not knowing what had happened, he forcefully squeezed through the crowd, pushing people aside left and right.

When he reached the door, he saw a large red notice hung up, stating, "Due to ghost disturbances, the inn is temporarily closed. High reward offered for someone capable of exorcising the ghost." Seeing this, he immediately shouted, "Xuanji! Come over here and see! Business has come knocking! Xuanji! Hurry over!"

People, startled by his immense strength and the shock of silver hair under his hat, instinctively stepped back, not daring to get too close. Amidst the commotion, a delicate voice asked, "What business? You always make such a fuss." With that, the slender figure stepped forward and lifted her hat, causing everyone to catch their breath. She was indeed a radiant young woman wearing a light green dress, her skin so translucent it was nearly transparent, with jet-black eyes and brows. Her features exuded an ineffable spirit and elegance, and with a smile playing upon her lips, she brought with her the refreshing essence of spring.

As she approached, the crowd dispersed further, clearing a path for her. Xuanji, unembarrassed and composed, apologized with a smile and confidently went to look at the notice. The moment she saw the words "exorcise ghosts," her eyes lit up. She eagerly took it down, exclaiming, "Silver is coming!"

Upon seeing her remove the notice, the crowd turned noisy again. A concerned person said, "Miss, don’t underestimate this matter. This inn has been haunted for five or six days. Many experts have been invited, but none have returned. You’re so young and fragile, how could you possibly exorcise a ghost?"

Xuanji smiled and said, "No worries, just leave it to me." She then went to knock on the inn’s door. Most of the onlookers were merchants passing by, and there were also local farmers who had come to set up stalls selling herbal tea and clothing. Seeing such a delicate young girl take on the task of exorcising a ghost, they couldn’t help but stay to watch the excitement. Some even ran to call their friends, quickly filling the space in front of the inn with people craning their necks.

Soon, the door of the inn creaked open, and a young girl with long braids, apparently about sixteen or seventeen, peered out. She had clear, attractive features but a look of impatience on her face. She scrutinized Xuanji rather rudely before saying sharply, "Didn’t you see the notice outside? We’re closed!"

Xuanji, undisturbed, held up the notice and smiled, "I know, that’s why I am here to exorcise the ghost."

The girl clearly didn’t believe her and shook her head, "Stop joking. Do you think exorcism is a game? Please leave!" she said, trying to close the door. Xuanji gently pressed her hand against the door, and the girl, unable to shut it after several attempts, looked up at her in surprise. Xuanji softly said, "I really am here to exorcise the ghost. Let me come in and have a look."

The girl hesitated for a moment when someone inside shouted, "Lanlan! What are you doing? Didn’t I tell you not to open the door?"

Just as Lanlan was about to speak, Xuanji immediately called out to the inside, "Hello! I saw the notice, I’m here to exorcist the ghost! Can I come in?"

Footsteps were heard from inside the inn, followed by a middle-aged woman walking over. She, too, eyed Xuanji with skepticism but nevertheless, she nodded politely, "Well... Miss, if you can exorcise the ghost, we would be very grateful."

The girl named Lanlan, albeit reluctantly, let Xuanji in and then forcefully shut the door with a loud bang.

Did she harbor animosity towards her, Xuanji wondered? She seemed puzzled, wondering if she had done something to upset her. Lanlan turned to the middle-aged woman and complained, "Mom! Didn’t we agree to wait for Young Master Yi to exorcise the ghost? Why are you so impatient? What if he gets mad?"

Young Master Yi? Xuanji was utterly confused. The middle-aged woman sighed and said, "Young Master Yi is unpredictable. Who knows if he can come today? We can’t just close the shop and wait for him. How many days have we been without business? Are you ready to drink the northwest wind next?"

Lanlan pouted and said, "He clearly received our letter yesterday and promised he would come at noon today!"

"Oh, my little ancestor! It’s almost evening now! I know you’re looking forward to his arrival, but he’s such a mysterious person, always wearing a cold expression towards everyone. We can’t stick our warm faces to his cold rear!"

With that, Lanlan stomped her feet angrily and ran to the back. The middle-aged woman sighed a few times and seeing Xuanji staring blankly at her, she smiled awkwardly and said, "My daughter has been spoiled, very headstrong. Please don’t take it to heart, miss."

Xuanji shook her head, glancing around the inn. It was just as shabby as she had imagined, yet still somewhat clean. It had two floors; the lower level was the hall with several tables and chairs, and the upper level was for rooms. Oddly, it was dark in all the rooms except for one, which had candlelight shining through.

She asked, "What is this, a haunted room and yet someone is staying there?"

The woman’s face changed, and grabbing her sleeve, she whispered, "Keep your voice down! It’s that room! Usually, the candle is lit, and if anyone approaches, they hear ghostly wailing. At night, it sounds as if someone is smashing things inside. We used to let guests stay there, not knowing any better. But those who stayed in that room... they all disappeared. Over time, even guests staying in other rooms started disappearing too. It was then that I realized we had attracted something unclean. We have invited countless mages and experts, but none has returned. Miss, you are so young, I advise you not to recklessly take risks!"

Xuanji nodded, took a deep breath—there was indeed a demon energy, quite strong, suggesting some proficiency. She glanced at Tengshe, who was yawning out of boredom, clearly unimpressed by the opponent. Xuanji asked, "Is it just you and your daughter here? Why are you not affected while living here?"

The innkeeper sighed, "My husband passed away from an illness years ago, leaving just us, a widow and an orphan. Even if this place is haunted, where else can we go? This is our home. Fortunately, as long as we don’t go near that room, we are safe. We live in the small courtyard in the back."

Xuanji looked back and saw Lanlan staring at her from behind the back door, her expression clearly hoping Xuanji would leave quickly and not stay to cause more trouble. Amused, Xuanji blurted out, "May I ask, who exactly is Young Master Yi?"

At the mention of that name, the eyes of both the mother and daughter lit up. The innkeeper eagerly said, "That’s a long story! Young Master Yi came here more than a year ago, young and handsome, kind-hearted, and the most amazing thing is that he possesses mana. Exorcising demons and healing wounds, he does it all without even blinking. Normally, he also helps people with medical treatments, literally bringing the dead back to life! Everyone says he’s an immortal. Every family with a daughter here wants to be related to him by marriage. However, although he’s powerful, he’s quite peculiar, never close to anyone, always cold, and often goes out for several days at a time. If it weren’t for the haunting happening while Young Master Yi was not home, this problem would have been resolved a long time ago! Yesterday, Lanlan even tried to find him again. He had returned and after she delivered a letter to him, he promised to come today at noon, and he hasn’t shown up yet. Since you, miss, have supernatural powers, I ask you for the same favor. But please be careful, that ghost devours people!"

Hearing this, Lanlan called out anxiously from behind, "Mother! He said he would come, and he definitely will! Just wait peacefully, there’s no need to send this lady to her doom!"

Xuanji replied with a smile, "Don’t worry, I’ll take care of it right away." She drew her treasure sword and climbed the stairs quickly, pushing open the door of the room where the candle was lit. A strange wailing sound came from within, chilling to the bone. Xuanji swung the door shut with the back of her hand, and the crying stopped abruptly.

The mother and daughter waited anxiously downstairs, hoping to hear some sounds of fighting to judge that Xuanji was alright, but there was no noise from the room; instead, the candlelight suddenly extinguished, leaving it pitch dark and eerily quiet. The innkeeper, anxious and pacing, turned to see Tengshe yawning in chair and couldn’t help but smile nervously, "Sir, that young lady... has been gone for quite a while, could it be that she was devoured?"

Tengshe snorted, irritated, and said, "Just wait! It’s not yet determined who will devour whom!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the door creaked open. The mother and daughter both shuddered and turned to look, but saw Xuanji casually walking down, holding something fluffy in her hand, swinging it like a wind chime.

"Miss..." the innkeeper approached trembling, but saw Xuanji bringing the object forward with a smile, "This is it. It’s not a ghost, but a yellow weasel on the verge of becoming a demon." The innkeeper saw that the yellow weasel was fat and much larger than usual, with several holes poked by Xuanji, its fresh blood dripping onto the floor. She felt dizzy and hastily stepped back, stammering, "Th... thank you, miss! Was it really this... this creature causing trouble?"

Xuanji nodded and said, "Indeed. It came for revenge, claiming you splashed it with oil three years ago, causing it to make trouble. But it has eaten many innocent people and cannot be spared. Innkeeper, do you want the body?"

The innkeeper shook her head quickly, "No, no! Miss, you just take it away! ...Indeed, three years ago something was living in the kitchen, steeling chickens from the yard, I didn’t know what it was and splashed it with hot oil, so it was actually it..."

Xuanji tossed the fat yellow weasel to Tengshe and instructed, "If you’re hungry, roast and eat it! Keep the skin, once cleaned, it could make a scarf." Tengshe happily agreed and went off to the kitchen to prepare the meal.

Lanlan, seeing they were going to eat that creature, felt nauseous and hurried after him, intending to stop Tengshe from cooking the weasel in the kitchen, but then she heard two knocks at the back door, and a soft, low voice said, "I am Young Master Yi, sorry for being late." (To be continued, for further details please visit www.qidian.com, more Chapters available, support the author, support genuine reading!)