Yin Yang Soul Searcher

Once they were far enough away from the city's garrison, Bai Jueming finally spoke, asking, "Are there really this many experts in my Great Xia? Are all the generals guarding the city fourth-rank?"

"How could that be? Fourth-grade martial artists are so difficult to train, it's impossible for them to be wasted in a place where there's basically no fighting." Han Xueshan shook her head: "It's said that the other three city gates are guarded by fifth- or sixth-grade martial artists, only the south gate is special."

"Why is that?" Bai Jueming asked humbly.

"How would I know? I'm not a great general." Han Xueshan pouted. "According to the officials' explanation, it seems that apart from the southern city, the other three places in the capital are all naturally fortified, easy to defend and difficult to attack."

"That makes even less sense. There's an outer city wall outside the south city as a buffer zone. The other three places don't have one." Bai Jueming thought about the layout of the capital, which was almost identical to that of the Ming and Qing dynasties. Only the south had an outer city wall.

"I already told you I don't know, why are you still asking?" Han Xueshan rolled her eyes at him, then used the wooden sword at her waist to poke Bai Jueming.

Bai Jueming hopped around like a toad, jumping up and down with every poke. He had no choice but to beg for mercy, saying, "Miss Han, please have mercy! I won't ask anymore, I won't ask anymore..."

You wretched woman, you're bullying me because of my low cultivation level! Just you wait! Once my cultivation surpasses yours, I'll hang you up and beat you to a pulp, you tomboy!

Han Xueshan sheathed her sword, displaying a graceful demeanor. Then she asked, "What did you and your sister talk about? Why was she so enthusiastic towards me?"

Bai Jueming pretended to think about it seriously before replying, "I didn't say anything, I just mentioned it to my sister, saying that in the Yin-Yang Palace, you were the only girl protecting me, which was quite difficult. That's why my sister was so warm and gentle to you."

The night was still and quiet. Only the soft echoes of their footsteps echoed on the cobblestone streets of the capital. There was no one around, except perhaps a few brothels and gambling dens where customers might spend the night. The two hurried along the side paths towards the area where Bai Jueming was on duty.

Han Xueshan frowned, resting her chin on her hand as if deep in thought: "It's not just that, is it? Besides being warm and gentle to me, your sister also looks at me with a very special emotion in her eyes, a look that's like, like..."

Han Xueshan racked her brains for a moment, and finally blurted out, "She wants to be my mother!"

What the hell is this description?!

"But your feeling is quite accurate." Bai Jueming feigned surprise: "Miss Han, what are you thinking about?"

Han Xueshan also realized that her thinking was wrong, so she simply stopped thinking about it and instead pressed Bai Jueming for answers: "Why did you interrupt your sister twice!"

Bai Jueming remained silent for a moment, just about to make something up. Suddenly, his ears twitched, and he heard a faint sound of fighting. He turned to look at Han Xueshan and saw that she looked serious. He nodded slightly.

Bai Jueming pointed to the rooftop, and Han Xueshan understood immediately. She put her hand on Bai Jueming's shoulder, and with a light leap, the two landed on the rooftop by the street.

Before Bai Jueming could regain his footing, Han Xueshan had already looked around in the direction the sound came from. Suddenly, Han Xueshan's expression changed drastically. Ignoring Bai Jueming's unsteady stance, she grabbed him and pulled him to the ground.

"Miss Han, slow down. My young bones can't take this up-and-down motion," Bai Jueming protested.

"I saw that demon cultivator!" Han Xueshan's voice trembled slightly, filled with disbelief. This was the inner city street; how dare a demon openly cause trouble!

Bai Jueming raised an eyebrow: "That one from Treasure Beast Mountain?"

Han Xueshan nodded solemnly: "I saw three people. Next to the demon cultivator who was chasing me was a woman who looked exactly like the portrait we found during the soul search that day. The two of them were fighting a man in black."

After receiving the news, Li Zhengshan told Bai Jueming that the demon cultivator who was so green it was dizzying was named Yang Liu, and was a tree spirit. The alluring and seductive demon cultivator was named Jinxiu, and was a fox spirit.

No wonder Han Xueshan was so surprised; the strength Yang Liu displayed when chasing him was at least at the fifth rank. She almost got hunted to death by that demon cultivator just from a glimpse of him from afar!

He never expected these two demon cultivators to dare appear in the inner city, let alone that he would run into them. Bai Jueming rubbed his chin. Either of the two demon cultivators could easily kill him and Han Xueshan.

I'd better not get involved, besides, this isn't my night shift area... other colleagues will be going over there...

Just as Bai Jueming was about to retreat, Han Xueshan handed him two talismans, saying, "These are concealment talismans. Do you want to sneak over and take a look?"

Why would you pull this out at a crucial moment?!

After thinking for a moment, Bai Jueming cautiously asked, "Is it reliable?"

Han Xueshan nodded seriously: "This is a life-saving talisman that my master made for me after I was injured last time. If I had had this kind of talisman last time, Yang Liu wouldn't have found it."

Damn it, are you Taoist disciples so protective of your own? Are you afraid this precious disciple will be in danger? Bai Jueming was a little envious.

"Shall we give it a try?" Bai Jueming made up his mind that if he didn't hear any valuable information, he would secretly retreat and go back to the Yin Yang Palace to call for reinforcements!

The Yin-Yang Palace token could contact Li Zhengshan, but it didn't have a communication function; it could only allow him to lock his location. Bai Jueming decided not to use it for the time being, in case Brother Shan rushed over and alerted them.

Without a word, Han Xueshan made a hand seal and sent talismans into the bodies of the two people respectively. If this scene were witnessed by others, it would appear as if the two had vanished in the blink of an eye!

After the talisman was injected into his body, Bai Jueming felt as if he were surrounded by water, his whole body enveloped in a soft and comfortable sensation.

Han Xueshan explained, "This talisman is a little different from other talismans; it's not a one-time use talisman."

Bai Jueming's eyes lit up. Just as he was about to speak, Han Xueshan put her arm around his shoulder and lightly leaped onto the roof.

Han Xueshan leaped high onto the roof with Bai Jueming, then landed gently. Their footsteps on the tiles made not a sound.

The two stopped on the roof of a restaurant, two streets away from the demon cultivators. From there, they could clearly see the situation and it would be convenient for them to retreat. They held their breath and silently observed the three people on the street.

Jinxiu wore a red and white dress, her round and perky buttocks perfectly forming a captivating and alluring figure.

Yang Liu, standing beside her, wore a dark green robe that was so vibrant it was visible even in the darkness. Her sunken eyes and prominent nose gave her a slightly sinister air.

Jinxiu smiled at the man in black before her: "You can use the power of the four seasons, you must be from Western Shu!"

"Since I've made a move against you, my identity isn't hard to guess." The man in black smiled, his expression relaxed.

Jinxiu's smile faded, and she crossed her arms. "You threatened him to secretly seize the mineral resources within the Great Xia territory, as well as the weapons forged by the Great Xia. Who in the Great Xia court is helping you?"

Yang Liu said impatiently, "Why waste so much breath on him? Just capture him already! I have plenty of ways to make him wish he were dead!"

The man in black dusted himself off and said nonchalantly, "I didn't expect that old bastard to have colluded with your demon race so quietly. Luckily, I found you on the way back, otherwise you would have really found the person behind me."

Then, the man in black said sarcastically, "If you want to capture me, you'd better hurry. Our exchange just now may have alerted the night watch dogs."

Jinxiu's expression changed, and she said coldly, "We don't want to kill you either, just tell us who's behind you!"

The man in black didn't speak, but his skin turned red and became incredibly hot. The moisture in the air sizzled as it was burned by the heat from his body.

"If you won't listen to reason, you'll have to suffer the consequences. Let's get started!"

A willow tree standing nearby suddenly changed its skin; the green faded, and it instantly turned into wrinkled bark.

Then, two withered, wooden hands reached for her hair, which, upon landing in Yang Liu's hands, suddenly transformed into a willow branch covered in green leaves: "Do you think this little bit of heat can burn me to death?"

On the roof of a restaurant not far away, Bai Jueming, who witnessed all of this, suddenly shuddered and scratched his back as if a willow branch was whipping him.

Han Xueshan, noticing Bai Jueming's actions, asked in confusion, "What's wrong with you?"

"No, it's nothing," Bai Jueming thought to himself, hoping that his older sister wouldn't get her hands on this willow tree...

Han Xueshan nodded, looked away from him, and said instead, "The Four Seasons Masters are unique to Western Shu, just like the Yin-Yang Masters of Great Xia and Beichen."

Bai Jueming nodded and analyzed, "Judging from their conversation, this Four Seasons Master is colluding with the Great Xia people, threatening that person to steal Great Xia's mineral resources and magical artifacts. And that person is colluding with the demon race to rebel, trying to find the person behind the Four Seasons Master."

Finally, one can't help but sigh, "The waters in the capital are really murky!"

Immediately afterwards, Bai Jueming suddenly remembered something: he had been caught by the Yin Yang Palace for stealing minerals, and the demon race said that the person behind the Four Seasons Master had been threatening that person to steal minerals and magical artifacts!

Considering that Chu Jiangyuan had always worked as a middleman in the black market, and his last job was helping someone steal mineral deposits! Could these two forces be backed by the same person?

Bai Jueming frowned, increasingly convinced that it was the same person! In his ambush plan, the half-dead Chu Jiangyuan was crippled by Cheng Yanbing and ultimately saved by a giant eagle! He was a demon cultivator! He was definitely in cahoots with the two demon cultivators below!

Listening to their conversation, if my analysis is correct, then that's how things are.

The Four Seasons Master and the person behind him threatened the person behind the demon race to steal the mineral deposits. That person couldn't stand it anymore and colluded with the demon race to find the person behind it. But why didn't that person report it when threatened? Why did he have to collude with the demon race to find it himself?

There's only one reason: the Four Seasons Master and the person behind him have something on him! He wants the demon race to find the person behind him through the Four Seasons Master.

Once he knew the person's identity, the threat would be null and void, because that person had also colluded with the Four Seasons Master of Western Shu. Colluding with cultivators from other countries was a capital offense! This way, he had leverage over the other party! He wouldn't be threatened anymore.

If I can find the person behind the demon race, I can then find out where Chu Jiangyuan is hiding and take revenge! Knowing who is behind the Four Seasons Master will also work; he definitely knows who the demon race is serving!

Thinking of this, Bai Jueming could no longer contain himself. Now was the perfect opportunity to completely eliminate Chu Jiangyuan!