Chapter 140: The Lie of Maple Bridge Night Snow

Just before leaping out of the window, he turned his head and gave me a profoundly ambiguous smile. "Lady Yuge, the way we are right now truly feels like lovers stealing a secret tryst. It's just that, once again, your odious master has torn us apart."

"Yes, yes, indeed."

Filled with anxious suspense, I watched him, hoping only that he would hurry and leave my Qingshui Tower. I had no spare time to ponder whatever hidden meaning might lie behind his words.

I heard him continue, "Rest assured, this scholar will come looking for you again."

With that, he dived headfirst into the small window.

Not bearing to watch him get his head stuck in the window frame in a miserable state where he could neither advance nor retreat, the moment I saw him plunge toward the opening, I quickly turned around and pressed both my hands tightly over my eyes, feeling a nervous flutter in my chest as I wondered if I was about to hear his cry of anguish once more.

However, things turned out quite beyond my expectations this time. After waiting for quite a while, I heard not the slightest unusual sound from behind. When I slowly turned around, Putai, dressed in his scholar's azure robe, had already departed from before the window.

Thankfully, this fellow's departure went rather smoothly. I glanced around the room to see if there was anything that did not belong to me but had been inadvertently left behind by Putai. Anxious to go see Zilian, I merely cast a casual look around, and then stepped out of Qingshui Tower, heading in the direction of Biyun Pavilion.

For the next three days, I went to the Luofu Palace every day to visit Fengshi Liuying. Each time I went, I brought her some delicious treats. Of course, these delicacies were not made by myself, but rather prepared by the immortal chef of Mount Lingyun specifically for Fengshi Liuying, which he then asked me to deliver to her.

I kept waiting, waiting for either Putai or Xiaoyao, waiting for either of them to come to Mount Lingyun and bring me some good news. Yet today, which marked the end of three days of eager waiting, I still could not catch a glimpse of either of them.

*Knock, knock, knock... Knock, knock, knock...*

The sound of knocking suddenly rang out. Just as I was about to go open the door, it was violently shoved open. And then, I saw my personal maid, Xiaoyao, abruptly appear inside my room.

"Princess, so you are here after all."

She rushed over to me in a few steps, dropped straight to her knees before me, and cried, "Princess, you have been away from the Demon Palace for so many days, how could you leave without even letting the Demon Lord know? Princess, have you any idea how worried the Demon Lord has been about you all these days?"

"Alright, alright." I grabbed her arms and pulled her upward, smiling. "Look, aren't I right here before your eyes now? Just give your princess a happy smile and stop frowning like that."

"Yes, Princess." Xiaoyao stood up, squeezing out a smile that was even uglier than crying, and offered me a bitter grin.

"Ugh..." A chill ran down my spine, and I said to her helplessly, "If you truly cannot manage a smile, then forget it. There's no need to force yourself to smile for my benefit."

As soon as I finished speaking, a look of worry instantly surfaced on Xiaoyao's face. She stepped forward, gripped my arms tightly, and looked me over with utmost scrutiny. "Princess, have the immortals on this mountain figured out that you are the Princess of the Demon Clan?"

"Of course not." I shook my head with a smile, looking quite pleased with myself as I told her, "Your princess is extremely clever. Before coming up to Mount Lingyun, I had an expert help me conceal the aura of the Demon Clan on my body."

"Concealed your aura?" Astonishment crossed Xiaoyao's face. "Princess, how did that expert pull it off? To be able to hide the aura of the Demon Realm from you entirely..."

"Well, about that..." I chuckled sheepishly, feeling somewhat guilty. "An expert, you see, relies precisely on such exceptional skills to make a living across the six realms. If I were to tell you his secret, that expert would surely be furious. Next time, instead of hiding my demon aura, who knows, he might just fly into a rage and hide me away completely."

"Then let's not speak of it, let's not speak of it." Looking thoroughly shaken, Xiaoyao patted her chest with one hand and continued, "Has any immortal on this mountain been bullying the Princess? Please tell Xiaoyao, Princess, and I will go help you kill them all."

"Unnecessary, entirely unnecessary." I waved my hands repeatedly with a smile. "Here on Mount Lingyun, I am revered by many disciples as their Junior Uncle. Seeing that my master is Immortal Lord Zilian, ordinary immortals and minor deities wouldn't dare do anything to me. Besides, regardless of everything else, I am still the princess of the Demon Clan, and my cultivation is not to be underestimated. You shouldn't look down on me, Xiaoyao. Most of the disciples on Mount Lingyun have only a few centuries of cultivation under their belts. Even if they wanted to bully me, where would they find the strength to do so?"

As I spoke, I raised both fists and waved them before her eyes to prove to her just how boldly I was living here.

"Oh." She nodded dubiously, though her gaze remained fixed on me without blinking, as if she wanted to bore a hole straight through my face.

I tugged on her sleeve, pulled her over to the couch to sit down, and asked, "Xiaoyao, you should have received the message I sent you through someone, right?"

"Yes, Princess," Xiaoyao nodded. "This servant already received the white silk handkerchief and the broken jade butterfly that the Princess entrusted to Young Master Putai. Young Master Putai told me these were given to you by the Princess, and ordered me to search for Fengqiao Yexue within the Demon Clan."

"And did you find Fengqiao Yexue?" I turned my head to look at Xiaoyao and asked.

"Yes, but I suppose one could also say no." With a troubled expression, Xiaoyao replied, "This servant did find Fengqiao Yexue in the Demon Realm, but..."

Seeing her hesitation, I pressed on, "Could it be that Fengqiao Yexue showed no reaction at all upon learning that his disciple has suffered for him for over three thousand years?"

"Not at all," Xiaoyao gently shook her head. "Fengqiao Yexue's life in the Demon Realm is not nearly as wonderful as the Immortal Realm and Mount Lingyun claim. Three thousand years ago, for the sake of that mortal woman, he made a bargain with the Demon Realm and cast aside his immortal status to become a demon. In the end, that woman abandoned him, and he ultimately met with a tragic fate that left him unwelcome across all six realms."

"Unwelcome across all six realms?" Hearing her say this, I asked in bewilderment, "Three thousand years ago, Fengqiao Yexue was, after all, an exalted immortal of the Heavenly Realm and also the sect leader of Mount Lingyun. We in the Demon Clan cherish talent; we shouldn't have refused to take in an exalted immortal like him."

Xiaoyao sighed and said, "The Demon Lord did take him in. However, he merely assigned him a residence and placed him under house arrest there."