Qi An had a dream. In it, before she had ascended to immortality, she had taken liberties with a virtuous young man. Although she could not clearly recall the young man’s appearance or voice, she felt certain, based on the sensation, that he was someone of peerless grace and elegance.
She woke up slowly, still savoring the vivid sensation from the dream, only to open her eyes and find a young girl perched by her bedside, staring at her unblinkingly.
She was instantly gripped by terror.
The girl, however, was beaming with joy and called out sweetly, “Sister Immortal, you’re awake!”
Qi An suppressed her inner alarm. Seeing the girl’s luxurious attire, her lovely and charming face, and the subtle resemblance in her features to Mo Qing, she quickly deduced the girl’s identity.
She sat up and met the girl’s gaze at eye level. “Princess, your visit in the middle of the night is there a pressing matter?”
“Sister Immortal is so clever! You knew who I was without me even having to say it.” After showering Qi An with praise, Yuejiao finally revealed her purpose. “Sister Immortal, will you take me with you?”
Qi An felt her brain was still struggling to function after the hangover. “Take you with me? Take you where?”
Yuejiao’s eyes seemed to shimmer. “To the Heavenly Realm. Take me to find Yangxu.”
Qi An could not help but rub her throbbing temples. “Since you came to see me in the middle of the night, Princess, surely you did not have the Demon Lord’s permission?”
Yuejiao hung her head, looking guilty.
“If you can obtain the Demon Lord’s consent and have him notify the Heavenly Emperor, I would be happy to take you to the Heavenly Realm, how about that?”
Hearing this, Yuejiao knew that Qi An was unwilling. She drooped her head in disappointment and muttered, “My brother will never agree.”
Qi An shrugged, indicating there was nothing she could do to help.
After being rejected, Yuejiao did not give up and leave. Instead, she climbed onto Qi An’s bed and, with great naturalness, tucked herself under the covers.
Qi An watched, stupefied, as the girl settled in. Seeing her on the verge of falling asleep, she finally managed to say, “Princess, do you intend to sleep here? Is that… appropriate?”
“Sister Immortal’s bed is much more comfortable than mine. Let me lie here for a while.” Yuejiao said, turning on her side to look at Qi An. “Sister Immortal, I cannot return to my room right now. If I do, my brother will lock me up.”
Qi An frowned. “Lock you up?”
“Yes,” Yuejiao pouted. “There are a few days every month when my brother locks me in my room and sets up a barrier to prevent me from going out. I have tried to escape, but whenever the middle of the month arrives and I haven’t returned, no matter where I am, he sends his subordinates to bring me back. Today, I only managed to escape when they were changing shifts.”
Qi An wondered, “Do you know why the Demon Lord locks you up?”
Yuejiao shook her head. “I don’t know; he refuses to say. But I once saw an ancient book in his room which said that to refine a supreme magical artifact, one must incorporate the blood of a close relative. So I think, perhaps he wants to use my blood to refine an artifact, and locking me up every month is just a way to draw my blood?”
The more she said it, the more convinced Yuejiao became of her own theory. “Come to think of it, I always faint for several days after being locked up.”
Although Qi An had only known Mo Qing for three days, she did not believe he was the type of person to do such a thing. Yet, Yuejiao spoke with such sincerity that it did not seem like a lie.
For a moment, she really did not know whether she should believe the princess. She could only comfort her, “The Demon Lord has already agreed to the marriage between Prince Yangxu and you. If he truly intended to harm you, he likely would not have accepted the proposal from the Heavenly Realm.”
Speaking of this, Yuejiao swept away her negative emotions and looked much more vibrant. “That’s true! My brother told me about it today. I thought he would never agree to it. Since the engagement is set, it’s only natural for me to go see my fiancé, isn’t it? So, Sister, please take me to the Heavenly Realm!”
Qi An did not know how to tell this young princess that she was merely a minor immortal who had only been immortal for a hundred years, and a low-level odd-jobber with no official authority to bring people from other realms into the Heavenly Realm at will.
Just as she was struggling for words, she heard footsteps outside. Before long, someone tapped gently on her door it was a palace maid from Yuantong Palace.
“Is the Immortal here?”
After giving Yuejiao’s hand a gentle pat to reassure her, Qi An walked to the door and asked, “Is something the matter?”
“Apologies for interrupting your rest. Our Princess has been playing and gone missing, so we wanted to ask if she might be in your room?”
Qi An instinctively looked back at the bed. Upon looking, she discovered that Yuejiao, who had been lying on the outer edge, had vanished. She searched the room in astonishment but could see no sign of the princess.
Outside the door, the maid asked in confusion, “Immortal?”
Qi An snapped back to reality and replied, “The Princess is not in my room.”
She was not trying to deceive them intentionally, but she remembered what Yuejiao had said and was unsure if she should expose her. Besides, Yuejiao was truly not in the room, so her answer was technically not a lie.
After the maid left, she searched her room inside and out, but could not find Yuejiao. It seemed the girl had run off, fearing that Qi An might betray her. However, Qi An could not fall back asleep; she felt that something about the situation was not quite right.
The next day, when she bid farewell to Mo Qing, she still brought it up, mentioning that Yuejiao had visited her room the night before.
Mo Qing did not seem surprised. After his gaze swept over her head, he asked calmly, “What did she want with you?”
Qi An hesitated, then selectively summarized Yuejiao’s request, saying, “She wanted me to take her to the Heavenly Realm. I did not dare to make such a decision on my own, so I did not agree.”
Mo Qing nodded in understanding, not paying much mind to the matter. “No matter. She is always naughty and playful; I will find her myself later.”
As he spoke, he conjured a crystal-clear, glowing bead from thin air. “This is a farewell gift for you. You have worked hard this time.”
Hearing him say that made Qi An feel truly ashamed. Coming to the Demon Realm to propose was her duty; yet he, as the Demon Lord, not only cooperated with her at every turn but also provided so much help, allowing her to benefit greatly, even gifting her Jiangbu.
If there was any “hard work” involved, it was that she constantly had to convince herself to accept his kindness without guilt.
Seeing that she remained silent and fearing a refusal, Mo Qing added, “You’ve already accepted Jiangbu, so one more thing makes no difference. Besides, this bead isn’t particularly valuable; I simply thought it suited you, which is why I hope you will accept it.”
It was true she had already received so much, one more bead did not matter. Qi An accepted it silently, though she felt a bit strange. Does the Demon Lord have a hobby of gifting things?
Mo Qing smiled, then handed Qi An the Xian-Yuan Dan Shu (Scripture of Fate) and a letter. “Give this scripture and the letter to the Heavenly Emperor, and he will know that I have agreed to the engagement.”
To Qi An, these two items were equivalent to her own appointment letter. Knowing Mo Qing would not go back on his word, she still feared a sudden change and quickly tucked the items into her Qiankun bag, which could hold anything.
After a few more pleasantries, Mo Qing saw Qi An to the palace gates and watched as she mounted Jiangbu to return to the Heavenly Realm.
On the way, Qi An could not help but reminisce about her experience in the Demon Realm. To be honest, she was quite reluctant to leave; after all, these past few days had been the smoothest since her ascension.
Outside the Heavenly Gate, the gate-guarding soldiers saw a red fireball rushing toward them from afar. They initially thought it was a falling golden crow and were about to report it, but looking closer, they realized it was a spirit beast carrying a minor immortal. They recognized this immortal—she was Qi An, the “tramp” of the Heavenly Realm.
Qi An’s path to ascension was legendary. She had never practiced Taoism, yet in broad daylight, she summoned nine heavenly thunders that struck her into immortality. No one knew why she was able to ascend, and even Qi An herself was muddled. She had once suspected that the heavenly thunders had struck the wrong person, allowing her to steal someone else’s chance. However, after an investigation by the Star Lord Si Ming, this theory was debunked. To this day, Qi An’s ascension remains a mystery in the Heavenly Realm, making her the most famous “wonder” there.
The two guards were among the immortals who had witnessed that spectacle back then. When Qi An landed, they stared blankly at her and Jiangbu—where had their Heavenly Realm’s “odd-jobber” managed to kidnap such a rare spirit beast?
Qi An did not notice their expressions. She took off the jade plaque representing her identity, and after their verification, prepared to enter through the gate. But just as she lifted her foot, one of the guards crossed his long halberd to block her way. “Why do you carry demonic energy?”
Qi An was stunned for a moment, then looked at Jiangbu and realized. “This is a spirit beast of the Demon Clan, which is why it carries demonic energy. Don’t worry, sirs, I know the rules. I will take it to the Immortal Beast Garden for registration shortly.”
Qi An’s attitude was sincere, and there were no other suspicious signs, so the guards did not overthink it. One simply handed her a silver ring. “Since you know the rules, put this on it. If anything goes wrong, we won’t be able to bear the responsibility.”
This silver ring was known as the Yi-An Ring. Once placed on a spirit beast, it would suppress the beast’s magical powers. After a previous incident where a spirit beast went mad, all spirit beasts entering the Heavenly Realm were required to wear the Yi-An Ring. Qi An was no exception.
She placed the ring over Jiangbu’s head, and the silver ring automatically opened and closed, latching onto Jiangbu’s neck. She stroked Jiangbu’s head. “Is it uncomfortable?” Jiangbu shook its head, signaling it was fine, and only then did she feel relieved, leading Jiangbu through the Heavenly Gate.
However, after taking only two steps, she suddenly felt a sharp pain in the hair on the top of her head. Thinking her clothes had snagged on her hair, she paid it no mind and did not stop walking.
Behind her, a small, black, unidentified object rolled off her hair, rolling further and further away until it disappeared without a trace.