It turns out, they were the main characters.

A fairy in a painting, ethereal and aloof.

No... it's more accurate to say that she was originally a fairy who descended to earth.

"Senior sister, how did you sleep last night?" Mu Zhian asked with a smile.

"I meditated last night." Lan Mulian's brows relaxed slightly, her eyes holding a faint smile, looking noble and aloof.

Sure enough, the person in the letter and the person outside of it are two different people... Mu Zhian asked with a concerned tone, "Is it because you weren't in the sect that you didn't sleep well?"

Lan Mulian gently shook her head, gestured for him to sit down, and said, "After reaching the Refining Spirit Realm, you won't need to rest anymore. You'll understand this when you reach the Refining Spirit Realm."

"I heard about your past experiences in Tianxuan City at the inn this morning. It was quite interesting," Lan Mulian added.

Who has such a gossipy mouth? Why bring this up for no reason...?

Also, why is my senior sister so gossipy? She keeps asking about this kind of thing as soon as she arrives in Tianxuan City... Mu Zhian felt a little regretful.

It seems that inviting Lan Mulian to Tianxuan City wasn't all a good thing... This whole affair is going to severely damage his image.

“According to what the man in black robes said before he died, there seem to be other demon cultivators in this city.” Lan Mulian frowned slightly and changed the subject: “If possible, it would be best to find out their identities before the sect assessment begins.”

Demon cultivators and humans are sworn enemies. A demon cultivator who is suspected to be at the Refining God Realm is lurking in Tianxuan City. This is like a time bomb that could explode at any moment.

Mu Zhian nodded slightly and said, "I will have the Mu family investigate this matter."

"If you don't mind, you can stay at the Mu family's place for the time being. If there's any news, I can let you know as soon as possible."

Lan Mulian shook her head and said, "If there's anything you need, you can come to the inn to find me. I'll be here the whole time."

As a sect examiner, it is still necessary to avoid suspicion appropriately. If he lives openly in the Mu family, there will inevitably be some gossip when Mu Zhi'an enters the Liangyi Sect in the future.

Mu Zhian did not dwell on the matter and chose to respect Lan Mulian's decision.

At that moment, his peripheral vision fell on a jade vase beside him, on which sat a pure and flawless snow lotus.

The paper cranes are indeed very fast at delivering messages... Mu Zhian said, "Then, Senior Sister, let's continue to use paper cranes to communicate from now on."

Lan Mulian hummed in agreement.

She prefers to express her feelings through letters rather than chatting.

However, this means we'll need to reset the position of the paper cranes.

Now, no matter how many paper cranes she sends, they will only fly to the back mountain of the Liangyi Sect. Only when she fixes her divine sense on this inn will the paper cranes fly here.

However, it's worth the little effort to keep correspondence.

After chatting with Lan Mulian for a few more minutes, Mu Zhian made an excuse to leave the inn.

He originally came to Lan Mulian with another matter to discuss, which concerned the beautiful snake woman.

However, he ultimately held back.

If this matter is told to Lan Mulian now, this senior sister will probably inform the higher-ups of the Liangyi Sect.

However... what if the demon cultivators are among the higher-ups of the Liangyi Sect?

If there are demon cultivators among the higher-ups, Mu Zhian's betrayal could send him straight to reincarnation.

Never mistake your enemy for a fool.

Since that beautiful snake dared to openly try to win him over and ask him to provide information, it's clear that she already had a plan to deal with it.

Anyway, the "Empress" said that she would report intelligence every three months. Once they entered the Liangyi Sect, they would first find out the identities of the demon cultivators lurking in the Liangyi Sect, and then make further considerations.

As for now... the most urgent task is to find out who the third demon cultivator in Tianxuan City is.

……

The Ye family.

Ye Yu sat cross-legged on the edge of the bed, his eyes tightly closed, his brows furrowed, looking clearly somewhat absent-minded.

A short while later, he slowly opened his eyes, his dark pupils filled with an unquenchable rage.

"Calm down. The theft of the Heavenly Dao Qi this time isn't all bad." An old voice slowly rang out from within Ye Yu's body, which calmed Ye Yu's anger somewhat.

"What do you mean by that, teacher? Could it be that losing the power of Heaven is a good thing?" His voice trembled slightly, and he was filled with regret.

He was blinded by anger at the time and never thought about why Mu Zhian had chosen Dragon Head Forest as the location for the sparring match. It wasn't until this morning, when he heard the uproar outside, that he finally came to his senses.

The sparring was just a pretext; Mu Zhian's real purpose was the two demon cultivators and the Heavenly Dao Qi within him.

The power of Heaven's Dao is very likely in Mu Zhi'an's hands now!

"Without the Qi of Heaven, your cultivation progress will indeed slow down, but it was precisely because of that Qi of Heaven that I was unable to pass on my secret techniques to you before," the aged voice within Ye Yu slowly spoke.

"Secret technique?" Ye Yu repeated, "What secret technique?"

Is there any secret technique that can compare to the power of the Heavenly Dao?

"The Qi of Heaven will automatically remove all impurities from your body and supply you with purified spiritual energy. The secret method I am teaching you, however, requires you to absorb impure spiritual energy into your body, which is a heretical path... It may be a bit difficult, but your future achievements may be even greater than when you possessed the Qi of Heaven."

"However, this process will be very painful. Think it over carefully first, and let me know when you've made up your mind."

Ye Yu immediately replied, "Master, I want to learn that secret technique!"

The old man chuckled and said, "I believe in your perseverance. Now that you've made up your mind, close your eyes. I will now pass on this secret technique to you."

Upon hearing this, Ye Yu's previously gloomy eyes rekindled with fighting spirit, and he quietly clenched his fist.

He did lose this time, but things might change when the sect assesses him!

If you endure for a few more days, once you reach the Qi Refining Realm, pass the sect's assessment, and gain the favor of the assessor, you can skip the outer disciple stage and become an inner disciple of the Liangyi Sect!

Even without the power of the Heavenly Dao, I am still a genius!

Ye Yu closed his eyes, adjusted his breathing, calmed his mind, and quietly listened to the secret method taught by the old man within his body.

……

White House.

Bai Ruoxi sat cross-legged on the bed in her boudoir.

The Heavenly Dao Qi frantically purified the surrounding spiritual energy and absorbed it into her body, making her cultivation speed three to four times faster than before!

Half an hour later, Bai Ruoxi slowly opened her eyes.

Those eyes were incredibly complex, containing joy, but also helplessness and pain.

He was overjoyed because his cultivation speed was now astonishingly fast, but he felt helpless and pained because of his mother.

Not long ago, she returned to the Bai family with trepidation, expecting to see her parents arguing. However, to her surprise, her parents in the hall were as harmonious as ever, as if nothing had ever happened.

Even though Father already knew about Gongsun Xiong and Mother's affair, why did he...?

She really wanted to go up and ask her mother, but she just couldn't bring herself to say it.

If it were Young Master Mu, what would he have done then?

When Bai Ruoxi thought of this, she couldn't help but sigh softly.

She didn't know when it started, but she found herself subconsciously becoming somewhat dependent on that person.

He clearly believed that his level of understanding was much higher than his.

dong dong.

As Bai Ruoxi was absentmindedly thinking about these things, a soft knock came from the door. Then, the maid's voice rang out: "Miss, the eldest young master of the Mu family is outside requesting an audience."

Why did he arrive so early...?

Bai Ruoxi's eyes flickered slightly. For some reason, she felt a strange joy in her heart, and even her tone became a little lighter as she said, "Please invite him in."

She thought for a moment, then looked up and continued, "Oh, right, don't disturb the master and madam. Bring him from the backyard to my room."

Chapter 47 The Correct Use of the Natural Furnace

White House.

Guided by a maid, Mu Zhian arrived at Bai Ruoxi's boudoir. After knocking on the door and hearing a response from inside, he pushed the door open and saw the Bai family's eldest daughter, who had a vulgar figure.

She wore a long white dress with no other decorations, and her lips were painted with a glossy blush, making them look alluring and supple.

Perhaps because she was at home, her attire was slightly more casual than when she was out. However, because of her good looks, even without any makeup, her beautiful and natural face was already very attractive.

After Bai Ruoxi had a maid serve tea, she dismissed the two maids beside her and said, "Young Master Mu came to see me because of my mother, right?"

This girl is indeed incredibly clever; she knows why I brought her back today… Mu Zhian didn't deny it, nodding and asking, “Excuse me, has your mother reacted at all?”

Bai Ruoxi hesitated and said, "They are still the same as usual."

This is a bit strange... Logically speaking, what man would not react at all to being put on such a big, round hat, and would even treat his wife as usual?

Moreover, Bai's father is a crude and uncouth man... he should be even less adept at hiding his emotions.

Could there be some hidden story behind this?

Mu Zhian pondered for a moment and said, "If there is any news, please let me know immediately."

It seems this matter needs further investigation... There are probably some secrets hidden on Bai's mother.

Bai Ruoxi nodded slightly, then suddenly changed the subject and asked, "By the way, did you go to Yangfeng Inn during the day?"

Mu Zhian suddenly noticed that when Bai Ruoxi raised her eyelids to look at him, her originally bright and beautiful eyes seemed to darken considerably.

This statement sounds like it's saying: "Did you go out and have an affair first thing in the morning?"

Compared to Bai Ruoxi's reluctance when the two first met in the carriage, her attitude has obviously changed drastically now.

In the past, she wouldn't have cared at all if Mu Zhian had intimate contact with any girl; in fact, she would have been happy for him to go and cling to someone else so as not to bother her.

Mu Zhian said helplessly, "I went to see Senior Sister Lan. After all, she is one of the people in charge of this sect assessment. I am only at the third level of Qi Refining. If I don't make myself known, she might not even let me into the sect."

“My father sent someone to invite her this morning, but they were rejected before they even got to see her.”

Bai Ruoxi's expression was aloof and cold as she said softly, "Since that senior sister is one of the sect's examiners, she will naturally know to avoid suspicion... Did Young Master Mu see her at the inn today?"

Mu Zhian shook his head and sighed, saying, "No, she doesn't intend to meet with anyone."

I didn't expect Bai Ruoxi to care so much about this kind of thing, and the news spread so quickly... It seems that things have indeed improved for the Bai family since Bai's father came back.

That makes sense. With Bai's father as the backbone of the Bai family, the Morning Light Chamber of Commerce didn't dare to launch commercial attacks against the Bai family like before... To put it bluntly, the Morning Light Chamber of Commerce packed up their bags and ran away overnight.

After all, the Gongsun family has lost a clan leader, and this clan leader still holds all the power in his own hands. He is too busy fighting among himself to deal with the internal strife, let alone deal with Bai's father who has returned to the Bai family.