Chapter 1341: It’s Time to Go Back
In the dead of night, Tang Yu took a quick shower and scrolled through some short videos.
By now, the resurgence of spirit qi was no longer a secret. Short clips of cultivators fighting appeared online frequently, more thrilling than any martial arts film. He was watching two cultivators locked in a duel. They were forming hand seals, commanding the wind and rain.
Tang Yu watched with envy. He had tested his aptitude, but he had no spirit root and couldn’t cultivate.
However, his life had improved. Perhaps they had grown a conscience, but his supervisor now treated Tang Yu with caution, while the company valued him greatly and promoted him. For some reason, his ex-girlfriend apologized to him in tears, saying she shouldn’t have abandoned him.
“Maybe you brought me this good luck.” Tang Yu smiled and stroked the black cat’s head. The cat obediently nuzzled closer and meowed a few times.
Tang Yu watched several more short videos, most of them related to cultivators. One was a news report about a suspected cultivator who was a serial killer on the run in their city.
The Cultivation Affairs Bureau had dispatched agents to track them, and the public was advised to stay indoors at night. Possessing superhuman abilities could amplify the desires in one’s heart, which was why sects from the Cultivation World to the Blue Planet placed such importance on temperament.
“Not all cultivators are good people, huh,” Tang Yu mumbled to himself. He yawned and went to sleep.
After he fell asleep, the black cat transformed into a cat-eared girl. She quietly took the small brass cauldron and slipped out of the window, leaping across rooftops.
Since achieving success in cultivation, she had first given Tang Yu’s ex-girlfriend and supervisor a good scare, then began nightly patrols through the city, punishing evil and upholding justice. Urban legends about her had already started to spread.
Upholding justice was her passion. She had also noticed that since the urban legends appeared, the brass cauldron condensed Creation Divine Liquid faster. It motivated her to work even harder.
“Ah—!” A scream caught the cat-eared girl’s attention.
Several schoolgirls were out late, and a thug brandishing a gleaming dagger lunged at them.
Clang!
The small cauldron clashed with the dagger.
The schoolgirls looked up. A cat-eared girl in black weaved through the moonlight, descending from above.
“Run, quick!”
Hearing the cat-eared girl reprimand them, the schoolgirls hurriedly fled, forgetting all about taking photos.
“A cat demon? Since they’re gone, I’ll use your demon blood instead!” The thug’s voice was hoarse, as though he hadn’t spoken in a long time. He licked the dagger and lunged at her.
The thug was exceptionally skilled. He was the toughest opponent the cat-eared girl had ever faced. But she was still a cut above and killed him.
She smashed at him a few more times with the cauldron and confirmed he was dead before crouching to examine him. “Hmm, why doesn’t he look like he just died?” She discovered that the thug had been dead for at least a month.
The thug’s right hand twitched. The dagger flew out, aimed straight at her heart!
“Oh no!” The cat-eared girl inwardly cursed. The dagger is too close. I can’t dodge!
A figure suddenly appeared, catching the gleaming dagger between two fingers.
“A weapon spirit sucking its master’s blood dry and controlling his corpse to hunt for virgin blood,” Lu Yang said as he held the trembling dagger. “There’s no point keeping something like you around.”
He applied slight pressure and snapped the dagger in two.
The cat-eared girl’s pupils contracted. “Who are you?”
She knew how hard the dagger was. It had clashed with the brass cauldron several times without losing ground, yet this man had snapped it effortlessly.
“The Creation Divine Cauldron is in your hands. Looks like you have pretty good luck.” Lu Yang smiled.
The cat-eared girl secretly activated the small brass cauldron and watched Lu Yang warily, horrified that he knew the cauldron’s true name. Yet the cauldron shook uncontrollably, as if terrified of the man before her.
“The bloodline of the Nine-Tailed Spirit Cat and the Supreme Daluo Mantra. That’s not a bad combination. No wonder you’ve reached your current level of cultivation.
“Relax. The Creation Divine Cauldron may be a decent spirit treasure, but it’s nothing special to me,” Lu Yang said, reassuring her. He had been watching this cat-eared girl for some time and found her a promising junior.
“Have you considered joining the Cultivation Affairs Bureau? Your cultivation is top-tier even among the agents.”
“Cultivation Affairs Bureau? You’re with the authorities?” The cat-eared girl was startled. There’s such an expert with the authorities?!
“Somewhat, I guess. I was the one who proposed establishing the Cultivation Affairs Bureau,” Lu Yang replied with a smile, casually dropping a bombshell.
These days, Lu Yang had been secretly assessing talented cultivators, recruiting them into the government to bolster its strength. The cat-eared girl’s talent ranked among the finest of those he had recruited.
The cat-eared girl valued her freedom and wasn’t keen on joining a government organization.
Seeing her lack of interest, Lu Yang added, “The bureau has several artificial spirit roots I’ve provided. They can be obtained with enough contribution.”
“Artificial spirit roots?” The cat-eared girl’s heart skipped a beat. Isn’t that exactly what Tang Yu needs?
Lu Yang could tell that she was reluctant to leave Tang Yu. “The bureau isn’t as strict as you imagine. There’s no need to clock in; you just have to complete missions.”
At those words, the cat-eared girl no longer hesitated. “Alright, I’ll join! But will you humans reject us demons?”
In her ancestral bloodline were fragments of memories from the ancient era, when humans and demons didn’t seem to have gotten along well.
“They’ll be more than happy to welcome anyone I introduce. Come on, let’s go meet the other agents.” Lu Yang slowly walked into the night with his hands behind his back, the cat-eared girl following close behind.
~~~
“Elder Xiaaaaa!”
“Even the revival of spirit qi couldn’t save Elder Xia?”
“We were still a step too late. If spirit qi had returned sooner, perhaps Elder Xia could have pulled through!”
At Xia He’s funeral hall, people wailed in grief and bawled their eyes out, all genuinely unwilling to see her go.
Those who attended her funeral were either dignitaries, her former subordinates, or elders who had lived through the old apocalypse. The cries never ceased, and the atmosphere was heavy.
The attendees held lilies and queued to place them beside the coffin. They had been Xia He’s favorite flowers. It seemed even the heavens didn’t wish to see Xia He leave, and a light rain began to fall.
Not far from the funeral hall, two figures stood beneath umbrellas in the rain, unnoticed by everyone.
“What’s it like attending your own funeral? It’s not an experience many get,” Lu Yang teased. Beside him stood Xia He, the subject of the funeral.
Having removed her necklace, Xia He was no longer disguised as an old woman, revealing her youthful and beautiful appearance. She rolled her eyes. “I want to offer myself a bouquet.”
“You’ve decided to leave the Blue Planet?” Lu Yang confirmed once more, lest she change her mind.
Xia He pointed at the funeral hall. “Do you think I still have a chance to change my mind?”
She sighed. “Besides, you won’t stay on the Blue Planet forever, right?”
Having spent so long together, Xia He understood Lu Yang’s stance. The Blue Planet is his “hometown” but not his “home.” The same applies to Senior Everlasting. They won’t stay on the Blue Planet indefinitely.
Hence, she had decided to follow Lu Yang to the Cultivation World with Bai Shuang.
“Yes, it’s time to go back.”