Upon returning to the west wing, Sui Anlan transformed back into her human form.
Shen Chang had yet to cool his temper. He tilted his head back to gulp down a cup of tea before slamming the teacup heavily onto the table.
Sui Anlan, who was leaning over the table playing with a flower arrangement, was startled by his loud outburst.
Seeing the two of them looking so weighed down with worry, she couldn’t help lightly biting her lower lip, her delicate brows knitting tightly together.
It seemed she really ought to lend a helping hand somehow.
After pondering for a moment, her eyes lit up and she spoke: “I have an idea! Isn’t that dark mist demon specifically snatching young children? Why don’t we set a trap in a child’s home and lure the turtle into the jar?”
Hearing her suggestion, Shen Chang looked at her as if looking at an idiot: “Why do you think we settled down in the mayor’s residence to begin with? Isn’t Ah Yue a child?”
Sui Anlan froze for a moment before realizing her mistake, scratching her head awkwardly: “Oh…”
She turned her head to glance at Mo Yumian, who remained silent on the side.
He didn’t join the conversation, holding the registry of missing children in his hands with an unruffled expression.
Sui Anlan let out a long sigh. She had no real concept of beauty or ugliness, yet she couldn’t help feeling that her Benefactor was exceptionally handsome.
She reckoned that by mortal standards, her Benefactor must be remarkably good-looking. When they went out for visits this morning, she had noticed many women along the road stealing subtle, flirtatious glances at him.
Just as Mo Yumian picked up his teacup, he turned his head and locked eyes with her.
Resting her chin on her hand, Sui Anlan suddenly flashed a bright smile at him, dimples faintly showing at the corners of her mouth.
Mo Yumian shifted his gaze away.
“There are three days left until the night of the full moon. That demon will definitely commit another crime then,” he took a sip of tea, his tone even and calm.
“Little demon, I need you to do me a favor.”
“Tell me, Benefactor!” Sui Anlan perked up and sat properly, listening intently.
Mo Yumian closed the registry, gestured for her to come closer, and whispered a few instructions into her ear.
Beside them, Shen Chang’s eyes widened in disbelief. What was there that he couldn’t be allowed to hear? Was he really guarding against him like this?
Fuming with rage, he glared fiercely at Sui Anlan. It’s all because of this wretched demoness.
His Senior Brother was usually such a cold, aloof, and composed person, when had he ever been so intimate with anyone? Not to mention she was a demon! Those rumors outside were right, she truly was a troublemaker.
After listening to Mo Yumian’s words, Sui Anlan’s brows furrowed, her eyes brimming with confusion.
“Take a guess?”
What on earth did that phrase mean?
Before she could figure out the reason behind it, a servant rushed in with a panicked expression, shouting to them: “Oh no, oh no! The villagers are causing a riot at the front gate!”
The two cultivators and the demon quickly hurried to the main entrance. Mayor Wang was standing on the stone steps, frantically waving his hands as he tried his best to appease the crowd: “Everyone, please calm down! Daoist Mo and his companion are still investigating. Please wait a little longer and give them some time!”
“Wait? Wait how much longer?!” A burly man swung a hoe in his hand, shouting angrily. “My boy Zhu-zi has been missing for nearly half a month! They’ve investigated for five days and haven’t even seen a single shadow of a demon, yet they’re living comfortably in the mayor’s estate with fine food and wine!”
“He’s right!” A woman nearby chimed in tearfully. “Everyone says the Zhengqing Sect is a prestigious and righteous sect, and their chief disciples are formidable. How come once they arrived at our Yunxi Town, they turned into shrinking turtles?”
“If you ask me, this Zhengqing Sect is nothing but an empty reputation!” someone cursed aloud.
As soon as these words left his mouth, foul curses and insults erupted throughout the crowd like a wave. Someone even picked up stones from the roadside, raising a hand to hurl them into the courtyard.
Shen Chang was enraged by what he heard, rolling up his sleeves to charge out: “Where did you ignorant peasants come from?! It’s only been five days! The government officers investigated for half a month earlier, how come I didn’t see you rushing them back then? Now you come to blame us instead!”
“Junior Brother,” Mo Yumian extended a hand to stop him, his gaze sweeping across the mob.
Wisps of faint black qi lingered on the foreheads of the wailing woman and the burly man. That repulsive aura was far thicker than during his visits this morning; clearly, their emotions had spiraled out of control due to the influence of the dark mist demon’s aura.
Mayor Wang also hurriedly shielded Shen Chang, bowing continuously to the townspeople: “Everyone, don’t be hasty! It’s not that Daoist Mo refuses to help, but that the demon is simply too cunning to catch right away! Ah Yue is still inside the courtyard if that demon dares to return, they will surely protect the children!”
“Protect?!” An old man leaning on a walking stick snorted coldly. “I see they can’t even protect themselves! Aren’t immortal cultivators supposed to be so capable? How can they not even handle a demon that kidnaps children? We might as well risk our own lives to fight that demon ourselves!”
As he spoke, he thumped his walking stick heavily against the ground several times.
Shen Chang was flushed red with anger. Why was this old man joining the commotion at his age? Even a demon would find his old bones too tough to chew!
Just as he was about to lash out in response, Mo Yumian held his shoulder down.
“Little demon, do you see anything?” Mo Yumian asked softly toward his shoulder.
Sui Anlan perched on his shoulder.
She observed the crowd carefully, noticing that those with the fiercest hostility had the thickest black qi on their bodies, which continuously drifted off in a certain direction.
Leaning close to Mo Yumian’s ear, she whispered: “It seems that demon is feeding on their emotions.”
Although her Benefactor hadn’t mentioned the demon to her, Sui Anlan could tell that it was likely a demon like herself that relied on consuming human emotions, though its cultivation far surpassed hers.
Her Benefactor had mentioned that the demon would undergo a Lunar Calamity in three days. Since no children had gone missing recently, the demon was likely afraid of Mo Yumian and didn’t dare show itself to cause chaos publicly.
Since it couldn’t absorb the pure spiritual qi of children, it chose to directly absorb the grief and sorrow of the townspeople who had lost their children instead.
However, if a human’s qi were excessively drained by a demon, they would turn into a hollow shell like a walking corpse. The demon didn’t seem to want to cause outright deaths, so it had tampered with something in town, causing everyone’s grief to be replaced by rage instead.
Sui Anlan watched the rowdy mob, realizing that if this continued, her Benefactor would be driven out of town.
Listening to her explanation, Mo Yumian nodded slightly; it aligned closely with his own deductions.
He had initially assumed the demon would target Ah Yue again, which was why he stayed at Mayor Wang’s residence. He hadn’t expected to underestimate its cunning.
While Mo Yumian was lost in thought, an exclamation suddenly interrupted his mind:
“Look! What is that?!”
Everyone looked up to see a massive butterfly hovering above the crowd.
It shimmered brightly, its wings flapping slowly as fluorescent light flowed across its form.
“A… A demon!”
Someone shrieked, and the villagers turned on their heels and bolted. The main entrance, which had been packed to the brim moments ago, instantly cleared out.
Mayor Wang panicked, stumbling and almost falling to the ground: “Daoist Mo! Quick, kill that demon!”
The gust brought by the butterfly’s beating wings fluttered Mo Yumian’s dark hair and forehead band. He looked up at the butterfly with a frown, a flicker of doubt passing through his eyes.
What is she doing?
Mo Yumian glanced at the scattered mob. The crowd had already dispersed like startled animals; even the old man who had shouted about fighting the demon with his life was now hiding tightly behind a tree.
Looking at the butterfly, the corners of his lips curved up slightly, slipping out a faint laugh.
Did she deliberately reveal her true form to scare them away because she was afraid the villagers would do something drastic?
Mo Yumian used his Binding Spell to gather her back into his palm.
Sui Anlan bounced in his palm, seemingly waiting for praise.
The villagers who had fled out of sight earlier suddenly popped out from who-knows-where. Seeing that the giant monster in his hand had shrunk down to a tiny butterfly, their tone instantly flipped:
“Daoist Mo truly lives up to his reputation as a chief disciple of the Zhengqing Sect!”
“Indeed! Look at those moves, subduing a demon in an instant!”
“Yes, yes, yes! Immortal cultivators truly are extraordinary!”
Not a single word was mentioned regarding their fierce curses just moments ago.
Mayor Wang wiped the sweat from his forehead, giving a bitter smile: “Daoist Mo, please don’t take it to heart. Everyone is simply driven mad with anxiety. The families who lost their children can’t sleep night after night, so it’s hard to avoid them taking their anger out on you.”
Shen Chang snorted coldly, muttering under his breath: “If not for fear of disturbing the demon, I’d really love to give them a few blows with my scabbard.”
Mo Yumian acted as though nothing had happened, offering a few words of comfort to the crowd before returning to his room.
Nightfall descended, and the twilight grew thick.
The lights in the west wing were extinguished early, leaving the room in complete darkness.
Sui Anlan lay on her floor bed, peeked curiously through the bed curtains at Mo Yumian.
Their firefly butterfly clan was naturally more sensitive to emotions than ordinary demons.
She could clearly feel that her Benefactor was currently in low spirits—no doubt affected by what happened today.
Sui Anlan lowered her eyes with a sigh. In truth, her Benefactor wasn’t as cold as he appeared on the surface. When the villagers insulted them today, he had shown faint signs of anger, though he had suppressed them himself.
She didn’t understand if a person was angry, they should speak out; if sad, they should cry; if happy, they should laugh. Why keep it bottled up inside?
Inside the bed curtains, Mo Yumian heard her sigh and slowly opened his eyes: “Little demon.”
“Hmm?”
He turned his head. Even through the gauze curtains, he could see her smiling gaze fixed on him.
“Benefactor, are you unhappy?” she asked.
“No,” Mo Yumian replied decisively.
“Liar.”
“Believe it or not,” Mo Yumian turned his head away.
Ever since he was twelve years old, when his mother died right before his eyes, he had held no attachments to this world.
That night, he should have become food in the wolf demon’s belly, but daylight arrived, and the wolf left.
When the government officers arrived to collect his mother’s body, he grabbed hold of the straw mat, asking where they were going to bury her.
Annoyed that he was getting in the way, the officer shoved him to the ground: “Get out of the way! Or I’ll beat you!”
The surrounding crowd pointed fingers at him, their words filled with pity and sympathy, yet not a single soul was willing to reach out a helping hand to him.
He felt hatred, yet didn’t know who to hate.
He secretly followed the officers, only to discover that they dumped his mother’s corpse into a mass grave.
“What bad luck! A body mauled beyond recognition by a wolf demon!” The officer patted his clothes, glancing at the corpse with disgust.
Had the government not ordered them to dispose of bodies attacked and mauled by demons, they wouldn’t have wanted to do such dirty work.
“Tell me about it! Let’s hurry and leave, just looking at it turns my stomach,” the other officer urged, and the two walked away.
From afar came the sounds of wild dogs fighting over food.
Unwilling to let his mother’s remains be carried off by wild dogs or demons, young Mo Yumian dragged his mother’s body to a secluded spot, digging a pit with his bare hands.
Blood mixed with dirt on his palms, yet Mo Yumian felt no pain, digging until he buried his mother with his own hands.
He picked up a wooden plank and set it in front of the mound to serve as a tombstone.
After finishing all this, he sat blankly before the grave, feeling utterly lost and empty.
He had thought about ending it all right then, but remembered that his mother had died specifically to protect him, so he suppressed that thought.
He had to live.
Mo Yumian became a beggar.
He begged by day and found a ruined temple to make do for the night.
Because he didn’t like to talk, the other beggars disliked him. Sometimes they would even snatch the broken spiritual stones and food from his bowl.
If Mo Yumian tried to fight back, they would surround him and beat him brutally.
Thinking back on all this, Mo Yumian closed his eyes.
Sui Anlan rolled her eyes left and right, suddenly sensing that something was wrong with him.
She peeked into the bed curtains, was her Benefactor feeling… sad?
After a moment’s thought, Sui Anlan condensed a butterfly at her fingertips.
With a gentle flick of her finger, the butterfly slipped into Mo Yumian’s bed curtains and landed on the back of his hand.
A thin thread was attached to the tiny butterfly, connecting back to Sui Anlan’s finger.
She lightly tapped her fingers a few times, and the tiny butterfly spread its wings, radiating a gentle, starry glow all over.
On the bed, Mo Yumian suddenly let out a breath as if relieved of a heavy burden.
He felt a cool, refreshing stream flowing through his limbs, and even the stifling blockage in his chest began to dissipate.
Something is wrong!
Mo Yumian snapped his eyes open, looking at the butterfly on the back of his hand in disbelief.
She actually devoured his negative emotions?
The mental image of his mother being mauled by the wolf demon began to slowly fade away.
Mo Yumian quickly closed his eyes, wanting to firmly hold onto his mother’s image within the dream.
All these years, that vision of his mother being torn apart by the wolf demon had haunted his dreams, coiling around his heart like a giant serpent and suffocating him.
Yet no matter how hard he tried to recall that memory now, his mind remained completely blank, while his mother’s fading silhouette gradually dissolved.
“Mother… Mother!”
Mo Yumian opened his eyes abruptly, a complex light swirling within his gaze.
He lowered his eyes. The butterfly between his fingers was still flapping its wings, its hair-thin thread connected to the silhouette outside the curtains.
So be it, Mo Yumian thought to himself, closing his eyes once more.