Miss Shang's eyes twitched as she closed her book to greet the two newcomers. Her voice was cold as she said, "Thank you for bringing Xiao Lu back. I am Shang Yuan."
The parrot, seeing Shang Yuan, flapped its wings in a panic, trying to escape from Lu Yang. Lu Yang let go, allowing the parrot to fly around the room.
"Next time, be more careful. Luckily, this parrot was just flying in circles around Taiping Village. If it had flown off somewhere else, it would have been impossible to find," Lu Yang said with a smile.
Shang Yuan looked at the two well-dressed individuals and could tell they were young heroes who had been wandering the world for a while.
Lu Yang and Tao Yao Ye were wearing outfits recommended by the Wendaozong for their mission. Dressed this way, they could easily pass as those young heroes.
Shang Yuan's attitude was a bit distant, whether due to her personality or something else was unclear. "Xiao Lu is back, so you two should leave now."
Tao Yao Ye frowned, displeased with the young lady's attitude.
Lu Yang pretended not to hear her dismissive words and cheerfully said, "Let’s chat a bit. The Shang family welcomes us. Who knows, they might even invite us to stay overnight."
Shang Yuan sneered, "Just because the Shang family welcomes you doesn’t mean I do. You should leave quickly, preferably out of Taiping Village."
"There's no monsters or demons in Taiping Village, so why leave? You haven’t been out of the Shang family for a long time. Don’t you want to hear about the outside world?" Lu Yang replied.
Shang Yuan was taken aback, not expecting Lu Yang to say that. Her tone softened a bit, "Where are you two from? I haven’t been home for nearly a month. Can you tell me about your adventures in the martial world?"
"We are from the Wendaozong, one of the five great sects, and we are both at the Foundation Establishment stage. We came to Taiping Village because we heard about some troublesome monster birds..."
Lu Yang spoke slowly, his voice gentle, making him a good storyteller.
Hearing that they were both at the Foundation Establishment stage, a hint of joy flashed in Shang Yuan's eyes.
After chatting for a while, Shang Yuan became intrigued by Lu Yang's descriptions of the lives of cultivators and wanted to venture out herself to see the vast world.
"I want to cultivate, but my father disagrees. He says it's too dangerous. If he hadn't been lucky during an exploration in an ancient tomb, he would have died there long ago."
"I've asked him several times about his experiences, but he refuses to tell me," Shang Yuan said angrily. She loved hearing strange tales, yet her father, who had firsthand experiences, wouldn’t share them with her.
Lu Yang thought to himself that it seemed the head of the Shang family was someone with a story to tell.
"What level of cultivation does the head of the Shang family have?"
Shang Yuan rolled her eyes as if recalling her father's proud expression. "According to his own bragging, he was at the ninth level of Qi Refining. Later, he encountered a great disaster and barely survived, so his cultivation dropped significantly. Now, he’s either at the fourth or fifth level."
Tao Yao Ye added, "That’s not too bad. There aren’t many cultivators in Taiping Village. The strongest village chief is only at the seventh level of Qi Refining. Being at the fourth or fifth level is enough to live well, not to mention the head of the Shang family has some background."
Shang Yuan sighed, "But I don’t want to be limited to Quhe County. I want to roam the martial world and see this magnificent and strange world. We are about the same age, and you are already a Foundation Establishment cultivator, while I haven’t even started Qi Refining."
Just as Tao Yao Ye was about to say something, they heard Butler Zhang knocking on the door. "Miss, it’s time for dinner. And for the two young heroes, the master specifically instructed that since it’s getting late, you should stay for dinner and spend the night before leaving."
"The master and mistress, along with the village chief, are already waiting for you."
"Okay, we’ll be there," Lu Yang replied.
Tao Yao Ye intended to refuse but was stopped by Lu Yang. "See? I told you the Shang family is warm and welcoming. They are just being kind, so why not accept their hospitality?"
At the dinner table, the head of the Shang family sat at the main seat, chatting excitedly with the village chief. Everyone was enjoying their meal, which, while not as good as the food from Wendaozong, was still quite tasty.
Butler Zhang and the maid stood respectfully to the side, serving them.
After a satisfying meal, the village chief went home, and Lu Yang and Tao Yao Ye stayed in the east wing, just a wall apart.
Tao Yao Ye wasn’t keen on sleeping here. She was very picky about beds; aside from the one in the Wendaozong cave, which she could fall asleep on immediately, she usually took a long time to fall asleep elsewhere.
She knew this wasn’t a good habit. Cultivators often had to sleep outdoors, and she tried to change it but hadn’t succeeded yet.
"Lu Shixiong can sleep anywhere," she murmured to herself, not knowing why she smiled softly, then yawned.
"Seems like I’ll sleep early today. I should be able to get a good night’s sleep..."
Suddenly, she realized something was off. "Wait! Someone poisoned the food!"
She turned to grab her Thousand Illusions Umbrella to create a barrier, but found her internal energy was sluggish and hard to control.
Her heart sank. Someone had poisoned her silently. Who could it be?
This poison was aimed at cultivators. The person knew she was a cultivator and still dared to act, which meant they were also a cultivator.
There were only a few people in the Shang family. Besides the head of the family, she hadn’t noticed anyone else who was a cultivator.
Could it be the head of the Shang family? Or was it someone with a higher cultivation level that she couldn’t sense?
What about Lu Shixiong?
A series of questions raced through Tao Yao Ye's mind, leaving her no time to think. She heard light footsteps outside.
The door swung open, and Butler Zhang stepped in with a gleeful yet cruel smile on his face.
"It’s you!" Tao Yao Ye's eyes widened in shock. She hadn’t expected it to be Butler Zhang, and her heart sank.
Not being able to sense that Butler Zhang was a cultivator meant his cultivation was higher than hers.
Butler Zhang held a skinning knife, and even from five steps away, Tao Yao Ye could feel the thick resentment emanating from it. She couldn’t imagine how many people had died by that knife, leaving behind a sky-high grudge.
The moonlight shone on the blade, making it gleam brightly.
Butler Zhang licked his lips, looking at the struggling Tao Yao Ye as if she were a fierce but trapped prey.
"What beautiful skin you have. I’ve never seen such fair skin with such good lines in my life."
"I know you’re from Wendaozong. Killing you would be troublesome. The power of Wendaozong is immense, and how could a small person like me dare provoke them?"
Butler Zhang said, saliva dripping from the corner of his mouth as he wiped it away. "But your skin is just too beautiful. I can’t help but take the risk. You willingly stayed in the Shang family for dinner, and such a good opportunity to poison you is too good to pass up."
The dinner was poisoned!
Seeing that Tao Yao Ye was still struggling, Butler Zhang kindly advised, "Stop struggling. Even if you aren’t poisoned, you’re no match for me. You’ve just entered the Foundation Establishment stage, while I’m at the later stage."
However, despite saying this, Butler Zhang didn’t let his guard down. A Foundation Establishment cultivator from Wendaozong should never be underestimated!
Butler Zhang said this just to discourage Tao Yao Ye from resisting.
The more she resisted, the tighter the skin would be, making it harder to peel off. That was his experience.
"Relax; it’ll just hurt a bit. You won’t be scared for long."
Butler Zhang licked the skinning knife and moved closer to Tao Yao Ye.
Suddenly, Tao Yao Ye sprang up, her internal energy flowing freely. She grabbed the Thousand Illusions Umbrella and smashed it hard against Butler Zhang's face.
Butler Zhang, who thought he had everything under control, was caught off guard.
"How could you not be poisoned?!"
(End of Chapter)