Chapter 142
Yu Sui watched Cao Yan board the Cloud Carriage Flying Dragon, and only then did she breathe a sigh of relief. When turning around, she saw Nian Qiuyan standing not far away.
Beside Nian Qiuyan were Zhang Xiangyan and Luo Fu.
Seeing Cao Yan leave, Zhang Xiangyan finally withdrew his gaze. With Luo Fu standing between him and Nian Qiuyan, his question was directed at Nian Qiuyan: "When do you plan to go retrieve the Silver River Water?"
Nian Qiuyan said: "I've already told you the location. You can go whenever you want."
Zhang Xiangyan narrowed his eyes: "You're not planning to go?"
Nian Qiuyan asked: "Is it necessary?"
"You don't think it is?" Zhang Xiangyan handed over his Wind-Listening Ruler, which Luo Fu passed to Nian Qiuyan. "Last night Mei Liangyu, Zhongli Shan, and Xing Chun went to Mechanism Island. They still haven't returned. Guess what they went to Mechanism Island to do?"
Nian Qiuyan looked down at the Wind-Listening Ruler Luo Fu handed him, which contained records of Mei Liangyu's three's movements from last night. He chuckled softly: "Mechanism Island is a place he often visits. It's not strange that he went there."
Zhang Xiangyan studied Nian Qiuyan's expression, trying to guess the truth in his words.
Meeting his scrutinizing gaze, Nian Qiuyan said: "Would I actively make Mei Mei suspicious of me?"
Zhang Xiangyan shrugged with a cold laugh: "Maybe he's already suspicious of you."
"You pick a time then." Nian Qiuyan stepped back.
Only then was Zhang Xiangyan satisfied. When beckoning Luo Fu to leave, he glanced at Yu Sui in the distance and smiled: "Little Princess, do you want me to give you another ride back?"
Yu Sui looked up and glanced at him, giving Zhang Xiangyan a cold face without answering, continuing to talk with Blackbeard beside her.
Zhang Xiangyan wasn't annoyed either. When he looked at Yu Sui, it was like looking at a rabbit he could grab by the ears and lift up at any time. When he was happy, he'd tease her a bit. After all, this little Princess was indeed adorably cute.
Yu Sui avoided making eye contact with Nian Qiuyan, whispered a few words to Blackbeard, then returned to the carriage and had the Nangong family practitioners send her back to the academy.
Nian Qiuyan also disappeared into the bustling Outer City.
Yu Sui wasn't in a hurry to talk with Nian Qiuyan. Someone like him wouldn't tell the truth even if asked, and would only smile and say they just needed to maintain a mutually cooperative relationship.
Because neither of them wanted Mei Liangyu to know about these matters.
On her way back, Yu Sui received a notice from the academy through her Wind-Listening Ruler: the academy informed the disciples about the Saints going to the Outer City last night to eliminate the Lan Poison organization, and announced the organization's hiding place, leaders, and so on.
The Lan Poison matter was considered concluded. The academy deliberately didn't mention news about the Silver River Water, letting the disciples focus their attention on the eliminated Lan Poison organization.
This wasn't surprising. The academy's attitude had always been to cut through the mess quickly and not let the Lan Poison matter drag on too long.
After returning to her dormitory, Yu Sui didn't do anything else and fell into bed to sleep.
……
Yu Sui had heard about the existence of Lan Poison since childhood, but her first contact with it was at age 15.
In the eyes of the world, Lan Poison was a vile, filthy existence, but in some people's eyes, it was something wonderful, symbolizing money and power.
It could disguise itself as spices, drinking water, pills, and many other forms, varied and impossible to guard against.
Nine Schools Arts practitioners both loved and hated it. When encountering cultivation bottlenecks, perhaps just one dose of Lan Poison could help break through, but from then on you would live symbiotically with Lan Poison, becoming its slave.
That year, based on intelligence Yu Sui provided, Old Yan intercepted a batch of Lan Poison and caught several Lan Corpses.
In that dark, dry dungeon, Old Yan led Yu Sui to examine the intercepted Lan Poison.
"Lan Poison is a general term. They all have similar orchid fragrances. Some can't be detected just by smell and need to be tasted after consumption." Old Yan picked up the black cloth bag on the table and poured out the red powder inside with one hand, extending a finger to press into the powder. "This powdered form is the lowest grade, inferior Lan Poison, called 'Gold Dust.'
Gold Dust takes effect quickly with short duration. Users suffer severe mental damage, and once they stop using it, they experience obvious hallucinations, become violent, and lose their sanity."
Yu Sui stepped forward to look, her dark pupils staring unblinkingly at the red powder, which appeared very fine.
She asked: "Is Gold Dust also the most circulated Lan Poison?"
Old Yan nodded, then said: "Besides being addictive, Lan Poison's common trait is that it can keep people in optimal condition, whether the happiest, strongest, or most excited. This differs somewhat for Nine Schools Arts practitioners."
As he spoke, he picked up the small white porcelain bottle beside him: "It's called Lotus Mist."
After opening the stopper, Old Yan handed the white porcelain bottle to Yu Sui. Yu Sui reached out to take it and looked down: "There's nothing here?"
Old Yan said: "Look carefully."
Yu Sui held up the white porcelain bottle, opening one eye and closing the other to examine it: "The inside of the bottle has become moist, with water vapor?"
"'Lotus Mist' is considered a higher grade Lan Poison. It's mist-like, and when inhaled, it can merge into Five Elements energy, temporarily causing your Five Elements energy to surge, strengthening Nine Schools Arts." Old Yan said, "Bring it closer and you can summon the mist inside."
Upon hearing this, Yu Sui quickly held the white porcelain bottle farther away.
Old Yan took back the white porcelain bottle and placed it on the table, his gaze turning to the three golden-brown incense sticks placed at the back.
The incense sticks were thin and short, the longest no more than an adult's thumb.
On the surface, they looked no different from ordinary incense sticks, just more refined and beautiful.
"People call it 'Soul Return Incense.'" Old Yan picked up an incense stick and handed it to Yu Sui, saying, "Inhaling Soul Return Incense is as wonderful as a soul returning to its body, allowing one to see the immortal realm of the Dao."
Yu Sui: "Sounds very impressive?"
Old Yan switched to a simpler, more understandable explanation: "It has calming and heart-soothing effects, can quiet those with extreme emotions, can also stabilize chaotic Five Elements energy, and can resolve Five Elements Energy Chaos."
"So it's more useful for Nine Schools Arts practitioners?" Yu Sui looked up at Old Yan.
"For Nine Schools Arts practitioners, Lan Poison can solve many problems." Old Yan handed her the Soul Return Incense. "This incense requires Five Elements energy to ignite."
Yu Sui said: "Then ordinary practitioners can't use it either."
But Old Yan stared at her and said: "After inhaling Soul Return Incense, ordinary practitioners can temporarily gain the power to control Five Elements energy."
In other words, Soul Return Incense could easily transform ordinary practitioners into Nine Schools Arts practitioners, letting them experience another world.
Yu Sui reached out to take the Soul Return Incense, playing with it in her hand: "For ordinary practitioners to inhale Soul Return Incense, they'd still need Nine Schools Arts practitioners to help light it. That's too troublesome."
But Old Yan said: "There are many such people."
Yu Sui was slow to understand what he meant, reaching up to touch her face, thinking that indeed, people like her: born wealthy but unable to cultivate, were quite numerous.
"Even if I wanted to become a Nine Schools Arts practitioner, I wouldn't rely on such things." Yu Sui placed the Soul Return Incense back on the table, not very interested.
She turned to leave but was called back by Old Yan: "Come back."
Yu Sui turned around, blinking curiously.
"Though I don't know what power you truly possess, your self-protection ability is very weak." Old Yan said, "You need to learn to recognize these things that could harm you."
The Prince's manor wouldn't teach her to identify Lan Poison, but she was very likely to encounter these dangerous things.
The young girl who had walked to the door pondered for a moment, then walked back: "What should I do?"
……
Yu Sui didn't wake up until nightfall.
She rubbed her eyes with one hand while holding her Wind-Listening Ruler with the other. Thinking of the events in her dream, she looked down and opened the message interface with Old Yan.
Just as she opened it, she received a voice message from Zhongli Que. Yu Sui answered it and heard Zhongli Que's cheerful voice: "Sui Sui, are you busy?"
Yu Sui said: "No."
Hearing her voice, Zhongli Que knew she had just woken up and asked: "Did you sleep for a long time? Are you hungry?"
"I might be too tired lately, so I slept quite long today." Yu Sui got out of bed to wash her face, chatting with Zhongli Que and gradually forgetting those troublesome matters.
Yu Sui stayed up at night, and Zhongli Que kept her company. It wasn't until the latter half of the night when Yu Sui urged her to rest that she reluctantly ended the voice call.
Near dawn, Yu Sui went to the dining hall to finish her morning meal, then went to the Ghost Way Saint Hall to see Master and routinely ask cultivation-related questions.
She calculated the time, leaving after classes at the Ghost Way Academy began, spending the entire day moving between different academies to attend lectures.
In the evening, she practiced sword techniques with Li Jin Shuang at the Military School training ground.
Li Jin Shuang was in exceptionally good condition today, knocking Yu Sui's sword away several times. Seeing her fall to the ground panting from exhaustion, she said: "Rest a bit before continuing. You seem to be in a good mood today?"
"You're not in good condition today." Li Jin Shuang sheathed her sword, looking down at her.
Yu Sui widened her eyes slightly to look at her: "Is that why you're in a good mood?"
Li Jin Shuang shook her head, staring at Yu Sui for a while before finally asking: "After you went to the Outer City and came back, do you have something troubling you?"
Yu Sui slowly blinked, feeling the sweat flowing on her skin. Her gaze moved away from Li Jin Shuang's face and became aimless: "Troublesome things will exist no matter where you go. No matter what I'm doing, whether I'm in a good or bad mood, they'll suddenly come knocking."
Li Jin Shuang fell silent after hearing this.
She wasn't naturally eloquent to begin with.
Though she wanted to comfort her somehow, she didn't know what to say and froze for a moment.
Fortunately, Yu Sui didn't want her comfort either. She grabbed her sleeve to wipe the sweat from her face, then rolled around on the indoor floor, rolling over to hug her long sword that had been knocked to the ground.
Li Jin Shuang: "..."
She racked her brains to think of something to say: "Gu Qian still hasn't discovered anything."
Yu Sui said: "I know."
Li Jin Shuang thought for a moment and added: "The Military School also has quite a few secret texts hidden away. I'll pay more attention."
Yu Sui, lying on the ground, turned her head to look back at Li Jin Shuang: "Military School secret texts, are those the kind where you can learn certain sword techniques just by understanding them?"
Li Jin Shuang said: "More or less."
Her intention was to say she'd help pay attention to things related to the Heavenly Character Text on the Floating Pagoda fragments, but it seemed both sides understood different meanings.
Yu Sui hugged her sword and laughed: "Good, pay more attention, learn a few more sword techniques, become more powerful, so you won't have to fear your grandmother when you return to Nanjing in the future."
Li Jin Shuang pressed her lips together, knowing Yu Sui had misunderstood but not knowing how to explain. After remaining silent for a while, she asked: "Should we go to the dining hall to eat?"
Yu Sui agreed and got up from the ground.
After parting with Li Jin Shuang at the dining hall, Yu Sui went to the Ghost Way Saint Hall again. The main hall was quiet, and she asked curiously: "Master, didn't Senior Brother come today?"
Saint Chang Gen answered: "He didn't come."
Yu Sui remembered that Mei Liangyu had left with Zhongli Shan before. She hadn't asked much that day, but not seeing Mei Liangyu all day today, he probably still hadn't returned.
She took out her Wind-Listening Ruler, planning to check Mei Liangyu's location. But looking at where the red dot showed, she was stunned. Where was this?
Yu Sui stared at the Wind-Listening Ruler with a strange expression, lightly tapping the surface with her fingertip to bring up Taiyi's map, then comparing it with Mei Liangyu's position.
Not at the academy, not in the Outer City, not on any island either, but very, very far away... in the sea.