Chapter 73 : Learning to Endure
Canghai City.
At noon, the scorching sun shone on the bare little courtyard, making one's eyes ache.
Inside the room, the Crown Prince held a teacup, looking at his extremely respectful gray-robed subordinate. Even though he was now just dressed as a mere laborer, it couldn't hide the smugness on his face.
This assessment was indeed difficult.
But fortunately, he had prepared for a rainy day, transferring two ninth-rank death warriors from Chizhou in advance, thus avoiding the situation where he, as crown prince, would have to personally gather intelligence.
But the menial work this identity required...
Hmph!
"Your Highness, I've gathered general information about the several candidate saintesses. As for more detailed information... I'm afraid it will take some time," the gray-robed person said with difficulty.
"Oh? Let me see."
The Crown Prince said, taking the paper handed to him by the gray-robed person and slowly reading through it.
The more he read, the deeper his frown became.
'Of the seven demon clan candidate saintesses here, four are ninth-rank, three are eighth-rank, and as for seventh-rank... not a single one? Even though they're demon clan candidate saintesses, why is there such a gap compared to our human race?'
'No, that's not right.'
The Crown Prince's eyes flickered as he quickly recalled the information he had seen.
'I remember that demon clans have long lifespans and their early cultivation speed indeed can't match our human prodigies.'
'But I never paid attention to this before.'
'Mm, that Lou Guanyue woman is fifth-rank, her cultivation speed is merely comparable to ordinary human prodigies, yet she could become the demon clan saintess... Looking at it this way, didn't I underestimate her before?'
'Good thing I noticed now.
The Crown Prince thought for a moment and began explaining what he knew to the gray-robed person.
The Human Gate assessment was of great importance—he had no intention of keeping such information to himself.
"I see, truly worthy of Your Highness!"
The Crown Prince was slightly pleased with himself and smiled:
"However, their talents have nothing to do with us. Even if someone was foolish enough to choose the demon clan faction, they could only be one of those four ninth-ranks and couldn't stir up much trouble."
"I see… Should I go closely monitor those four ninth-ranks?" the gray-robed person asked.
"No," the Crown Prince said with some meaning: "We should also pay attention to those eighth-rank saintesses. There's a mission to kill demon clan saintesses, and I estimate the stronger the target, the more contribution we'll gain."
The gray-robed person nodded: "What about finding the other person?"
"I'll leave that to you. Work a bit harder these next few days, and there will definitely be great rewards after we get out!" The Crown Prince put on an expression of appreciation and made promises.
The gray-robed person was excited:
"I swear loyalty to Your Highness unto death!"
The Crown Prince looked at his subordinate's excited appearance, feeling satisfied in his heart.
Bringing a death warrior in was truly the right choice. It was just a pity he hadn't managed to rendezvous with the other death warrior.
Now he could probably only temporarily plan against ninth-rank saintesses, and if he was lucky, maybe catch a demon faction ceremony participant.
As for eighth-rank?
He'd wait until the other subordinate came to rendezvous.
The conversation came to an end.
The gray-robed person withdrew first.
A moment later, the Crown Prince put down his tea, looking puzzled: 'Why do I feel like she's not as respectful to me as she was a few days ago?'
'Forget it, it's probably just my imagination.'
'Her identity couldn't possibly be fake, could it?'
○
Returning to her small courtyard, the gray-robed person pulled back her hood, revealing a young, cold face without any expression.
She stood in place for a long time.
Only then did she suppress the killing intent in her heart and sit on the bed.
The Crown Prince wanted her to find the other two death warriors in this Human Gate trip. She definitely wouldn't go looking—that would be no different from exposing her identity. On the contrary, she would do everything possible to prevent them from finding the Crown Prince.
Or kill them ahead of time.
Anyway, she knew Skyreach Tower's codes and methods to contact them, so she wasn't afraid of being unable to gain their trust.
At this moment, she was thinking about another matter.
Zhu Yan hadn't forgotten—this Human Gate journey was with Mu Qinglan.
But at this moment, she still hadn't found her.
She couldn't help but feel anxious.
With Mu Qinglan's frail body, how could she survive safely in the ceremony? This was the demon clan's heartland where people were devoured without spitting out bones!
But all the urgency and anxiety in her heart ultimately became motivation for action.
'I must find Sister Mu, but I can't let go of the Crown Prince's thread either. I remember Sister Mu also has a grudge against the Crown Prince. I'll ask her about how to deal with the Crown Prince after I find her.'
'No rush to kill him…'
'But I can't be discovered either…'
'I remember Sister Mu said she was a magician skilled at controlling shadows? Let me see if I can find any clues.'
Zhu Yan silently thought to herself.
If she wanted to take revenge personally, the Human Gate was undoubtedly a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
But she had to learn to endure.
Endure...
After repeating this three times in her heart, Zhu Yan put on her gray robe again and turned to leave.
'Tonight, I'll kill those two death warriors first!'
○
At this moment, far more than just this former master-servant pair were discussing the situation in Canghai City.
Eastern part of the city, in a restaurant.
"Brother Wan, the victor of this Human Gate will undoubtedly be us!" A ordinary-looking man laughed heartily. "In such a large city, we two managed to rendezvous in just one day—if this isn't heaven's will helping us, what is?"
The handsome man called Brother Wan smiled slightly:
"Brother Su, I'll borrow your auspicious words. After this Human Gate trip, I'll be one step closer to my elder brother."
Su Yunfan didn't take it seriously: "Brother Wan is already a dragon among men, with a place at the Hundred Flowers Banquet. Why must you insist on comparing yourself to that extraordinarily talented brother of yours?"
Wan Hong shook his head.
Su Yunfan suddenly said:
"What does Brother Wan think of this Human Gate assessment? Should we kill ninth-rank demons, or plan ambushes against eighth-rank ones?"
"Ninth-rank, eighth-rank?" Wan Hong suddenly smiled, his tone disdainful: "Brother Su seems to have overlooked a rumor that spread through Canghai City this morning, which is why you're considering who to target."
"Hm?"
Su Yunfan was puzzled, with one guess after another surging through his mind.
He and the man across from him knew each other in reality—he was the son of a high official, while the other was the second son of the Wan family, the biological younger brother of the Hundred Flowers Banquet's number one.
"Please enlighten me, Brother Wan."
Su Yunfan shook his head apologetically and drained his cup.
Wan Hong smiled faintly, looking down at the bustling tavern below, slowly lowering his eyes with a murderous expression:
"Candidate saintess Lou Qing broke through to eighth-rank yesterday with a purple destiny trait, and boasted that starting tomorrow she would teach the other two eighth-rank saintesses in Canghai City a lesson."
"So arrogant?"
When first entering eighth-rank, shouldn't one's realm be unstable and avoid combat as much as possible?
How confident was this person in herself? Su Yunfan clicked his tongue in amazement.
"She simply doesn't know her place, which is convenient for us."
Wan Hong's expression was calm:
"Though purple destiny traits are strong, their owner seems to lack brains. Moreover, this is the Human Gate after all—even if we're facing eighth-rank demons..."
Su Yunfan understood and completed the latter half: "Their strength won't be too excessive."
"So what if it's eighth-rank!"
Wan Hong stood up, pacing back and forth in the private room with gleaming eyes!
"I'm a ninth-rank genius who could attend the Hundred Flowers Banquet—am I supposed to fear an eighth-rank whose realm isn't even stable?!"
"But she's a demon, and a demon in the early stages..."
Su Yunfan pondered.
"Just fox clan," Wan Hong shook his head. "The advantage demon clans have over humans in the early stages is the difference in physical strength. While fox demons are stronger than humans, they're definitely not as brutally domineering as tiger demons or ox demons."
"In that case..."
Su Yunfan breathed a sigh of relief and took another large gulp of wine: "Then wait for me to prepare some good medicine to assist you tonight!"
Wan Hong smiled and cupped his hands:
"Then I'll rely on Brother Su's assistance!"
○
"Saintess, this is far too risky."
In the saintess's residence, after seeing off the demon clan envoy who had come to verify Mu Qinglan's current rank, Xiao Zi said disapprovingly.
After hearing Mu Qinglan's plan yesterday, Xiao Zi had already expressed concern once.
Unfortunately, her protest was ineffective.
As a candidate saintess and her master, whatever Mu Qinglan said, she had to obediently carry out without the slightest defiance.
But Xiao Zi would still try to persuade her.
"Risky?"
Mu Qinglan smiled and shook her head, her gaze profound: "Only facing strong enemies is called risky. For this small pond specially arranged for saintess selection, this is called fishing!"
After sipping the hot tea Xiao Zi brought, the girl's face gained some color.
Her white fox ears also perked up.
Without giving her a chance to chatter more, Mu Qinglan waved for her to withdraw and contemplated her current situation alone in the courtyard.
"Those ceremony participants probably think I'm an NPC right now."
Mu Qinglan's smile was faint:
"After all, I'm eighth-rank. How could ceremony participants taking the Human Gate assessment be eighth-rank? This kind of arrogant demon candidate saintess must be an important villain to be defeated in the Human Gate plot."
The fox tail behind her seemed to sense its master's pleasure and swayed slightly.
Now those ceremony participants had all fallen into the trap.
But this wasn't enough. Yesterday Mu Qinglan had also systematically learned about saintess selection, discovering that demon clan saintesses needed talent, reputation, and achievements.
All three were required.
To be called a saintess.
Talent alone probably wouldn't suffice.
'So I need to continue setting traps, luring out those court spies to kill them as my achievements.'
'Mm... as for reputation, after I beat up the other three eighth-rank saintesses, I'll have reputation too. I can also say some nonsense about how other saintesses are nothing special and humans are trash.'
'Then reputation will be established too.'
'Though this rhetoric is a bit crude, many people just like hearing this kind of nonsense.'
Cupping her face, Mu Qinglan increasingly felt the demon saintess position was achievable.
The demon clan inspector would arrive after seven days.
Before that, she had to establish invincible authority and great achievements in Canghai City to ensure that inspector would report her talents and establish her as saintess in advance.
She began thinking about how to maximize benefits.
○
The demon clan's daytime seemed exceptionally long.
Just after nightfall, taverns throughout Canghai City were packed and bustling.
Wan Hong took a large gulp of wine and was about to call the waiter to settle the bill when he suddenly heard strange suona horn sounds from the distant horizon.
Like a sticky tongue licking around inside one's ear, it was extremely disgusting.
Wan Hong's movements stiffened.
At this time, the unrestrained loud laughter of tavern guests below also reached his ears:
"What human heroes—they're just chickens and pottery dogs that the saintess can suppress with a flip of her hand!"
"That Hundred Flowers Banquet is also just a bunch of trash!"
"Haha, is that all?"
Only then did Wan Hong finally pay attention, narrowing his eyes.
'The demon clan's newly advanced eighth-rank saintess.'
He tapped the porcelain plate with his fingertip, softly reciting the name of the person the tavern guests below were praising.
'Lou Qing.'
'Really arrogant... she indeed needs to be taught a lesson…'