Early next morning, the graceful music of the zither flowed out of Demon City, causing the clouds to swirl and gathering infinite Spiritual Qi which rained down soon after.
All the demons in the city cautiously gathered around the palace as if they were summoned by the music, each waiting patiently in their spot, listening to the music with their eyes closed.
A surge of overbearing energy surged up from their bodies, and with the rhythm of their breathing, it created a whirlpool of Spiritual Qi being absorbed from the sky.
If they were not aware of the expert’s taboo, if Daji and Fire Phoenix did not warn them beforehand, they surely would not have been able to control their hot-bloodedness and descend into a frenzy. This should be avoided at all costs to maintain peace under the sky.
This was a sudden breakthrough. Under the sound of the zither, every demon in the city became unbelievably active, as if with every playing of the note, their demon spirit would increase. What was previously an unbreakable bottleneck had now been smashed into pieces as easily as crumpling a piece of paper.
Upon waking up, they were greeted with this surprise, causing them to jump with joy. The music was slowly fading and disappointment flashed in the demons’ eyes. They looked at the palace with deep respect.
The expert was probably guiding the new study servant and music servant. Even a simple play could be an opportunity for all of them to reach enlightenment. How blessed were they to be able to stay by the expert’s side? Qin Manyun and Shi Tuqin should be dancing with joy.
But they dared not voice their thoughts out loud. Although they wished they were in their position, they dared not succumb to jealousy for the two had become followers of the expert. Hence, the rest of them had no right to be jealous. Their energy would be better spent thinking about how they could be closer to the expert.
In the palace, Li Nianfan stopped his playing and laid his hands on the zither. He looked at Qin Manyun and said, “I’ll only demonstrate this once. The name of the song is ‘Guangling San’. Listening to it can calm one’s heart. It’s very easy to play.”
‘How is this easy?’ wondered Qin Manyun. She tightly pressed her lips together and her eyes trembled a little. “Don’t worry, Mr. Li! I’ll work hard for sure!” she said with determination.
She wondered when she could reach the same level as the expert. If that were to happen one day… It gave her goosebumps just thinking about it.
Li Nianfan’s smile showed that he had confidence in Qin Manyun for she already knew the basic foundation. Plus, she truly loved playing music, so naturally, she would be able to progress quickly. He looked forward to the day when she could entertain him with her music.
As for Shi Tuqin…
Li Nianfan looked in the direction of where she was. It was probably something to do with her having paws for hands which made it unsuitable for holding on to a calligraphy brush. It made her writing unbelievably ugly.
Sometimes, a whole piece of paper could be wasted practicing a simple stroke. Li Nianfan felt his nerve was taking a beating and regretted taking her in.
Meanwhile, outside of Demon City, two old men landed with their Merit Clouds near the city wall. There were two demons who had not completed their transformation by their side. One looked like a red bear with golden scales around his neck and the other looked like a wolf with a single horn on his head that was crackling with electricity.
The Unicorn Wolf sniffed the ground and air. His eyes suddenly flashed. “The young princess isn’t far from here. She should be inside the Demon City!”
The two old men’s eyes flashed at the same time. Then, one of them asked curiously, “Isn’t Qin captured by the Ministry? Why would she be here?”
“No matter what, we need to make sure she’s safe and scout out the situation before doing anything!” said the other gravely.
They both took a deep breath at the same time and increased the speed of their Merit Clouds toward the Demon City.
The closer they got to the center, the more puzzled they were. They reminded themselves to take more caution as they could feel many demons’ spirits gathered there. It was not only the number that made them cautious but the level of their power, with some of them powerful enough to make them feel threatened.
The most shocking thing to them was the residue of Insights swirling around in the sky. It was truly magnificent, to the extent they began to doubt whether they were mistaken.
“Brother Zhou, something is going on in Demon City. How could it change so much in such a short time?”
“Yes, I instructed my follower to do some scouting here before. How did it develop to such a grand scale? I’m afraid the Demon King isn’t something we should take lightly.”
The Legendary Beast Sect naturally has a close bond, a special relationship, with the demons. Meaning to say, they did not see each party as their enemies. On the contrary, they were willing to cohabit peacefully alongside each other. This had the added benefit of making it easier for the sect to find a suitable demon for their disciples. Hence, it was normal for them to send somebody over to scout around Demon City.
But it seemed like Demon City had just gone through some huge changes. They radiated their intention of coming in peace when they neared the main gate. The two Wild Boar Demons noticed them and greeted them with a group of low-level demons.
“Please, state your official business for coming here,” he said seriously.
At this moment, all the demons in the city refrained from causing trouble and swore they would protect the stability of the city. They had even taken the initiative to patrol around the city to ensure nothing would disturb the expert. It was an unspoken agreement and done without the order of the Demon King.
Elder Zhou put his hand together in greeting. “Brothers, we’re both elders from the Legendary Beast Sect. We’re here to look for someone.”
The Wild Boar Demon had an inkling of who they were looking for. “And does this person have a name?” he asked gruffly.
“Yes, Shi Tuqin, my follower!” Elder Zhou did not dare to cause any offense. “She was unfortunately captured by the Ministry. We don’t know where she is now but we’ve followed her scent here,” he explained politely.
“Oh, it’s her.” The Wild Boar Demon smiled knowingly. “Yes, she’s here in Demon City. She was rescued by our Lord Demon King.”
“That’s great!” The two old men were jumping with joy, their wrinkly faces creasing even more. “We owe our gratitude to your Lord Demon King. Could you please send word of our arrival so we can thank them face-to-face?”
Shi Tuqin was not only a princess of the Legendary Beast Sect, she was also their most talented practitioner in many decades. Even her bonded demon—the Sky Wing White Tiger—was rare. She was cemented as the future master of the Legendary Beast Sect, her future was as bright as it could get.
The Ministry was notorious for their evil deeds, so when Shi Tuqin was captured, it dealt a huge blow to the Legendary Beast Sect. Now that they knew for sure she was safe and sound, they felt relief wash over them.
“You want to meet with the expert?” The Wild Boar Demon shook his head. “I’m afraid that’s not possible.”
They would never let any Tom, Dick, or Harry meet with the expert.
Without waiting for their reply, the Wild Boar Demon continued saying, “But I can ask Goddess Shi Tuqin to come here.”
“Yes, it’s fine with us. Please, do,” said the two old men quickly.
After some time, the Wild Boar Demon came back with Shi Tuqin. Tears sprang from Shi Tuqin’s eyes when she saw the two old men.
“Grandpa Zhou, Grandpa Xu!”
“Qin!” The two old men were too excited to see her until they saw the state she was in. They started crying and found themselves unable to breathe with the pain they were feeling.
“What… You…”
Shi Tuqin looked at her white tiger paws and in a low voice, she said, “Little White’s dead…”
They did not need any elaboration for they had already guessed what had happened. Their hearts were drowned in sorrow.
“You poor thing. You must’ve been through so much. I’m so sorry I wasn’t there to protect you,” said Elder Zhou in a raspy voice.
Elder Xu was furious, anger coloring his face red and his hair shot up vertically. He had nowhere to vent his anger. “Those Ministry fools! I, Xu Zixiao, will make them pay for this. They better pray we never cross paths! Come back with us, Qin! I’ll find a way to cure you.”
Elder Zhou nodded. “Yes, Qin. The past is in the past. Come back with us. There’s bound to be a way.”
Their eyes were filled with pity and sorrow. Their understanding of how deep a bond Shi Tuqin had with Little White made it difficult for them to comfort her.
Shi Tuqin shook her head and gently stroked her paws. “Grandpa Zhou, Grandpa Xu, I’m okay.”
“Good, good. As long as you’re okay.” The two old men breathed a sigh of relief.
“I’m not going back with you all. I’ve already decided to learn calligraphy!”
“Calligraphy?” The two old men were stunned. Elder Xu’s eyes were as wide as saucers. “Qin, what’s there to learn about calligraphy? Aren’t you throwing your talent away? Come back with us and I promise you I’ll find the rarest demon to be your new bonded demon!”
“Nonsense!” said the Wild Boar Demon who had been eavesdropping from the very beginning. He could not help the sudden interjection when he heard the old man looking down on the expert’s calligraphy. “How dare an old man like you look down on calligraphy? You make me laugh.”
Having the opportunity to learn calligraphy from the expert was akin to being crowned as ‘the chosen one’ in the Chaos. Anyone would have jumped at the chance. The Wild Boar Demon was a fan of Li Nianfan, therefore he would not tolerate anyone looking down on him.
Elder Xu felt offended. “How dare a low-level Wild Boar Demon speak to us this way? How could you compare calligraphy to our Legendary Beast Sect’s practice? Even ignorance has its limits!”
The wild boar demon became even cockier. “I bet you don’t even know what calligraphy is, old man. You’re unworthy to even speak to me.” He truly felt that way for he had seen Li Nianfan’s calligraphy.
Elder Xu felt as if he was talking to the wall. He beat his chest and shouted, “Fool! What a foolish pig!”
He was about to continue but was stopped by Elder Zhou. “Shut up!”
Elder Zhou looked at Shi Tuqin and asked gently, “Qin, do you really wish to learn calligraphy?”
Shi Tuqin nodded and bowed deeply to the two old men. “Thank you for all that you’ve done for me, my two beloved grandpas. Please, pass on this message to my father—from now on, calligraphy’s the only thing I’ll be focusing on. Please, don’t send anybody to come for me. Thank you.”
“Qin, no need to thank us. We’re family after all.” Elder Zhou felt his nose go red. The young Qin who used to follow him around was now all grown up. If possible, he wished she did not have to grow up so she could be a carefree child forever. “Don’t worry, I’ll support whatever decision you make. Study hard. I’ll inform your father of the situation.”
“Okay, I have to go back to my practice now. Goodbye, Grandpa Zhou and Grandpa Xu!”
Shi Tuqin did not want to waste any time, so she quickly rushed back after letting them know she was safe.
Looking at her getting smaller and smaller, Elder Zhou and Elder Xu were filled with sorrow and nostalgia.
“Brother Zhou, what are you doing? How could you agree to her request so easily?” asked Elder Xu.
Elder Zhou glanced at him from the corner of his eye. “You really need to learn how to control your temper. Qin has already gone through so much. It’s a wonder she could still function normally. Calligraphy can calm the mind and strengthen the heart. That must be the reason she wants to learn it so badly. We shouldn’t force her to come back with us now. We should be thankful she’s safe.”
Elder Xu let out a sigh. ‘Those Ministry fools! I’ll make them pay!’ he thought to himself.
Elder Zhou turned his gaze to the Wild Boar Demon. His eyes became a little brighter. “By the way, you look like a fine demon. Why don’t you join our Legendary Beast Sect?”
“Join your sect?” He roared with laughter. “What makes you think I would want to join your sect? Why don’t you quickly go back to where you came from and stop bothering me? I won’t ever join your sect unless there’s something wrong with my brain.”
“Do you seriously think there’s nothing wrong with your brain?” retorted a raging Elder Xu. “The Legendary Beast Sect has inherited great power, a power so great that you cannot even comprehend. Not to mention, our mastery’s suitable for demons to grow with our monks. Isn’t that a hundred times—no—a thousand times better than being a guard in Demon City? It doesn’t take much brainpower to know which is the better choice!”
“The phrase ‘ignorance is bliss’ is obviously made for you.” The Wild Boar Demon’s eyes were knowing, as if it contained all the knowledge of the universe. “Even being a low-level demon here would reap more benefits than joining your stupid Legendary Beast Sect! What more, I’m the captain of the guards here.”
“Our captain’s right! We’ll never join the Legendary Beast Sect even if you begged us!”
“Only those in the know would understand!”
“I’d rather be a pig in Demon City instead of a king of the Legendary Beast Sect!”
The Wild Boar Demon puffed up with arrogance at the egging of the low-level demon.
Elder Xu was about to go mad with fury. His worldview had been challenged. He pointed a shaky finger at them and said, “Who’s the ignorant one here? A bunch of narrow-minded fools. Too bad there’s no cure for stupidity!”
“Calm down, Brother Xu!” Elder Zhou pulled him away and used the Secret Voice Transmit Method to remind him. “Why do you even bother talking to some lowly demons? Remember, don’t fight crazy with crazy.”
Elder Xu took a deep breath to calm himself down. “You’re right. We’re not on the same level so it’s natural we see things differently. Why should I argue with them?”
“Don’t come crying to me when you’ve changed your mind,” said Elder Xu to the group before leaving. “You’ll forever be a pig guarding the door at your level!”
“What do you know? I’m proud to be a guard! In fact, I’ll die happy if I could do this forever!”
