Mountain and River Festival

Chapter 488 Isn't this an investigation into demons?

The so-called nationwide inspection of demons and monsters could not possibly be carried out by a single imperial envoy traveling all over the country. The real body of the investigation was the Demon Suppression Division, which was presided over by Sheng Qingfeng in the capital.

The imperial envoy only selected some key places for spot checks and inspections, and his whereabouts needed to be kept secret. It was only natural that he would be "unknown to his whereabouts".

Even Gu Yiheng was speculating which city Lu Xingzhou would choose to investigate first, but no one expected that Lu Xingzhou would leave Beijing and head straight for the country.

He had been holding back for so long, eager to visit the pregnant Dragon Lady; he was practically bursting with anticipation.

"This is your demon patrol? You've gone straight to the demon's lair, haven't you?" Dugu Qingli looked at the vast and boundless demon realm with a blank expression.

"You tell me, aren't they here to find a demon? They're not on patrol, they're investigating."

Dugu Qingli drew her sword: "I think you are a demon."

Ah Nuo clung to her tightly: "Sister Qingli, calm down, calm down..."

Dugu Qingli said, "He went to see the child in the Demon Emperor's belly. That presence means you're about to fall out of favor."

Ah Nuo let go of her hand.

The sword light, now unobstructed, headed straight for Lu Xingzhou.

"Damn it!" Lu Xingzhou fled for his life: "Even if I had ten thousand children, I would still love Anuo. Don't try to sow discord!"

"Anuo, did you hear that? He wants ten thousand more."

Ah Nuo secretly applied a speed-boosting talisman to Dugu Qingli, increasing the speed of the sword light by three points.

Even Ah Nuo has become a little traitor; he's truly abandoned by everyone.

The sword light followed closely behind, and Lu Xingzhou had no choice but to reach back and grab it, making a "ding" sound.

Upon closer inspection, one could see that he wore rings on both hands, one black and one white, one yin and one yang. As he reached for the sword, the rings emitted a faint glow, and the sound of metal clashing against metal rang out as he caught the sword with his bare hands.

What looks like a ring is actually a glove.

This artifact combines the functions of storage, protection, and amplification of cultivation techniques. It was meticulously crafted by the Heavenly Yao Saint Lord, a master of the Qian Yuan level, and is a peak-level magic weapon.

The first opponent they would deal with was the Holy Lord's obedient disciple, Little White Hair.

Dugu Qingli felt even more like an outsider, which made her even angrier. She drew her sword even more fiercely: "Lu Xingzhou, you die!"

Lu Xingzhou parried the attacks all the way, fighting and running at the same time, and the three streaks of light flew northward.

"Even if I really just wanted to see the Little Dragon Man, did you have to cut me?"

"Don't you know why I would cut you?"

"That thing on my face happened so long ago... I didn't do it on purpose, it was just an accident..."

"This matter cannot be resolved!"

"Fine, I'll spray you in the face too, okay?"

"go to hell!"

Ding-ding-ding-ding-ding...

Dugu Qingli felt very frustrated because she realized that she couldn't do anything to Lu Xingzhou.

She also took the pills Lu Xingzhou gave her, which strengthened her Ice Soul Sword Body. However, her cultivation hadn't broken through to the first rank; she was only at the peak of the second rank, while Lu Xingzhou's first rank was already at the mid-stage.

Thinking back to when I was a fourth-rank cultivator, Lu Xingzhou was still a seventh-rank cripple. In the Tianyao Holy Land, they seemed to be evenly matched, but I actually always let Lu Xingzhou win. Now, on the other hand, I'm at the Tiangang level, and my cultivation is inferior to his.

However, while they couldn't do anything to Lu Xingzhou, they weren't countered either. This was because Lu Xingzhou's cultivation had advanced too quickly, but his actual combat skills were increasingly lagging behind. Even though he hadn't yet reached the stereotypical image of "alchemists being bad at actual combat," he could only rely on the quality of his cultivation techniques being slightly better than those of his peers, which didn't match his reputation as a genius.

Meanwhile, Dugu Qingli spent the better part of half a year training overseas, where she was no stranger to bloodshed and violence.

This is also a major reason why Lu Xingzhou was eager to leave the capital for training. There was no room for fighting in the capital, and the number of battles he had fought was very limited. In all this time, he had only fought two tough battles, one against Huo Xingyuan and the other against Huo Liancheng. The former had the help of A Nuo, while the latter was a large-scale siege, which was of some importance but not very high.

Continuing to serve as an official in the capital, burying himself in paperwork and scheming, will eventually diminish his abilities. He's already being challenged by the young upstart...

But this little white-haired guy is really strong... I'm slightly better than the average person of the same level, and I can only barely deal with him. If it were anyone else, they would be easily defeated by him.

Fighting our way through this experience can be considered a form of training and practice.

The two fought all the way, making quite a commotion, which alerted a flight squadron in the distance.

Countless streaks of light then swarmed in: "Where did these humans come from, causing trouble in our demon realm! Take them all down!"

Their voices were like thunder, their aura imposing, and all their escape lights were extremely powerful, seemingly several of them being of the first rank.

Ah Nuo rode her little pig forward, but the group of powerful figures opposite her, who had initially appeared menacing, suddenly braked, their stern rebukes turning into fawning: "Miss Ah Nuo, it's you..."

Ah Nuo: “…”

It was none other than Long Ao, the commander of the Dragon Clan's Imperial Guard.

These are imperial guards, aren't they? A group of imperial guards here, does that mean the Dragon Emperor is on a trip?

Is it such a coincidence?
Upon seeing Dugu Qingli chasing Lu Xingzhou, Long Ao's gaze immediately fell upon the entire Imperial Guards. They surrounded Dugu Qingli, shouting, "Where did this white-haired brat come from? How dare you chase after the Empress...and Mr. Lu! Surrender now!" Dugu Qingli, bewildered and surrounded by a group of dragons, was so angry she nearly unleashed her ultimate attack. Lu Xingzhou, sweating profusely, stepped in front of Dugu Qingli, saying, "It's a misunderstanding, all a misunderstanding."

Long Ao understood. His gaze towards Dugu Qingli changed from that of an enemy to that of a mistress. All the dragons glanced sideways at the adulterous couple without saying a word.

Caught in the act!

Dugu Qingli sheathed her sword, crossed her arms, and gritted her teeth: "Wherever you go, it's Lord Lu's territory, huh? I've learned my lesson."

"Ahem." Lu Xingzhou cupped his hands and asked Long Ao, "How are Commander Long's children doing lately?"

Long Ao finally smiled: "My wife is pregnant, all thanks to Mr. Lu."

No, how is it Lu Xingzhou's doing that your wife got pregnant? He's the one who conceived the child?
Dugu Qingli turned her head away.

An even stronger pressure descended instantly, and Long Qinghuang appeared in the arena with lightning speed, directly inserting herself between Lu Xingzhou and Dugu Qingli. She smiled and took Lu Xingzhou's arm: "You told me to wait for you, does that mean you've decided to come back now?"

Dugu Qingli was thrown several feet away by this thrust and arch, and she was furious when she was in the air.

Ah Nuo held her tightly, saying, "Calm down, calm down, you really can't beat them this time."

As they spoke, their large eyes were fixed on Long Qinghuang's belly and couldn't look away. Similarly, Dugu Qingli didn't pay attention to what the legendary Dragon Emperor actually looked like; her eyes were only focused on that belly.

Lu Xingzhou didn't answer Long Qinghuang's question, but instead touched her belly, his voice trembling slightly: "Was it hard?"

Dugu Qingli really wanted to say, "What a load of rubbish! She's not even showing any signs of pregnancy."

As a result, Long Qinghuang said sadly, "It's been so hard. This is the first time the child has seen his father in so long. Other pregnant women have their husbands caring for them, but my husband married a woman in Daqian. I've been waiting for him for so long, only to see him come back with a white-haired mistress. Why is my life so miserable..."

Dugu Qingli: "..."

Ah Nuo: “…”

Long Ao and the others collectively shut down their hearing, unable to hear anything.

Lu Xingzhou, equally unable to answer, finally managed to stammer, "You're pregnant, why are you still going on patrol?"

“There was an earthquake in Dongyue Hanchuan when you left. At first, it was a minor tremor and didn’t cause any problems. But then it happened every few days, and each time it was more serious than the last. Now there are landslides in the border cities. I sent people to inspect it, but they couldn’t find any problems. They were all useless. I had to go and see for myself.”

Long Ao lowered his head; he was one of those useless people who couldn't find any problems after going on patrol.

Long Qinghuang's expression brightened again: "So you knew I had a problem and came to help, right?"

Lu Xingzhou replied righteously and firmly: "Of course!"

Dugu Qingli took a deep breath.

Long Qinghuang's expression changed, and she grabbed Lu Xingzhou by the neck and shook him: "I don't believe you! You just asked me why I went on an inspection tour!"

“Really, really.” Lu Xingzhou pointed at Dugu Qingli: “Qingli is an expert on the Frozen Moon and Cold River matter. I brought an expert with me. This is the evidence.”

Dugu Qingli: "?"

There was no such person in the database who could lie so blatantly and convincingly. Little White Hair couldn't even process it. Could it be that he brought him to the Demon Realm because he had foreseen the earthquake?
This isn't right. The reason Master sent me out with Lu Xingzhou was to train elsewhere, not to go to Dongyue Hanchuan casually.

Long Qinghuang glanced sideways at Dugu Qingli: "What kind of expert is this little white-haired girl who hasn't even grown all her feathers yet?"

"Just because Qingli grew up in Dongyue Hanchuan, she knows no one as well as anyone else."

The dragons gasped in astonishment. "What an expert! So this isn't a mistress? Everyone's misunderstood?"

Long Qinghuang's anger turned to joy. She let go of Lu Xingzhou and affectionately took Dugu Qingli's arm: "Little sister, you misunderstood earlier..."

“You’ve definitely misunderstood.” Dugu Qingli said expressionlessly, “I’ve never had any relationship with him, but you and I aren’t exactly friends who can walk arm in arm, and I certainly won’t help you solve your problems.”

"why?"

"My master is Master Tinglan."

It turns out she wasn't the mistress at all, but the mistress's apprentice.

Long Qinghuang's smile remained unchanged: "Although your master is morally bankrupt in her relationships with men and women, and is a hypocrite and a purist, she is still reliable when it comes to the lives of ordinary people. If she knew that the earthquake had caused civilians to suffer, she would also do her part."

Dugu Qingli felt that she agreed with this statement; the second half was true, and the first half... was also true.

He immediately realized that his mindset was wrong, and put on a serious face: "My master is as noble as jade, and wholeheartedly devoted to the Dao. Do not slander him. It is His Majesty the Dragon Emperor who, knowing that Lu Xingzhou had a lover, forcibly kidnapped him and imprisoned him at Dragon Cliff. He is the one who is morally despicable."

Long Qinghuang looked at her with surprise: "No, do you even believe what you're saying?"

Dugu Qingli shut her mouth.

"In any case, let's rest in a nearby city for a while." Long Qinghuang was already overjoyed to be reunited with her child's father after so long, and the fact that he brought along an expert from Dongyue Hanchuan was even more delightful, whether intentional or coincidental.

Anyway, he's the mistress's apprentice, not the mistress herself. The fact that he's an apprentice makes it much less likely that the child's father will cheat on her. He was just chopped at, which means that this apprentice doesn't want a stepfather.

That's fine.

Long Qinghuang was in an extremely good mood. Overjoyed, she pulled Lu Xingzhou along and they quickly went to a nearby city: "Come on, let's name the child first?"

(End of this chapter)