The child’s tender voice, with its milky lisp, interrupted her before she could finish her sentence.
“Sister, why has this Mercy City been emptied?”
They turned their heads at the sound.
They saw five people of varying heights, arranged in a stepped formation, their auras exuding the distinct vibe of some clandestine organization.
Were they here for Mercy City too?
Were they allies, enemies, or simply passersby?
The shortest among them was a child, dressed in a small, stand-collar cape with an intricate embroidered pattern. The cape’s design was unique, fitted snugly at the shoulders and arms, but the upper garment featured a half-length false hem, creating a cinched waist, while the lower part flared out. At first glance, it looked like a two-piece outfit, but it was actually a single, integrated garment. Additionally, he wore a small, round-brimmed black hat.
This attire was quite different from the typical children’s clothing in the current cultivation world. It appeared both lively and convenient, yet novel and luxurious, and one could feel the uniqueness and exquisite craftsmanship of the garment just by looking at it.
Standing at the forefront was a petite woman. She wore a padded shoulder long cape, not fastened with drawstrings, but secured with several slender, gilded chains that connected to a looped button on the other side. The material was thick and draped elegantly, falling straight from her shoulders and neck, lending her a graceful and ethereal posture.
The three behind her were equally striking. One was as robust as a mountain; while others wore dark cloaks to appear mysterious and profound, his simply looked like a marble statue draped in black cloth, worn haphazardly and ill-fitting.
The other two also wore cloaks of the same style and color, but they had not pulled up their hoods, seemingly confident enough not to hide their faces.
One had slender eyebrows and eyes, and bright red lips, giving the impression of a cunning individual always plotting, yet his demeanor was elegant and unhurried, like a superior who perpetually paid attention to his noble status.
The other possessed handsome features, even a hint of effeminacy, with subtle wisps of demonic charm trailing from the corners of his eyes. His hair had a slight dark blue hue, and an aura of restrained darkness emanated from him.
At first glance, these five individuals didn’t immediately draw much attention, but upon closer inspection, they all seemed… not like good people!
“Who are these people?” Lu Ziyin leaned closer to Yan Tianjiao, whispering to him.
Although Yan Tianjiao wasn't the best conversationalist for gossip, compared to a venerable figure like the saintly monk Cheng Hong, who was not to be casually profaned, he at least offered some sort of reaction.
Yan Tianjiao’s gaze was sharp, and he sensed an unusual atmosphere around them. His cold eyes narrowed: “Not of the same kind.”
“What do you mean?” Lu Ziyin turned his head.
Not of the same kind?
Did that mean they weren’t of the same kind as their group, or that these five weren’t of the same kind among themselves?
He truly hated it when certain people were so stingy with their words, as if speaking more would cost them their lives.
Yan Tianjiao ignored his question, his gaze primarily fixed on the three men.
Lu Ziyin, thinking of Fengdu, remarked, “Speaking of which, they don’t look like ghost cultivators either…”
They weren’t shrouded in ghostly energy, but they shouldn’t be human cultivators either. Could they be demon cultivators?
What was their cultivation level, to not reveal any racial aura at all?
Cheng Hong nodded beside them and said, “They are not all ghost cultivators; only that tall one is.”
His eyesight was as keen as a judge’s, and he discerned this.
As Lu Ziyin was about to respond, the girl with the pretty, youthful appearance spoke, “Mercy City has been relocated to another sealed space, but there must be a teleportation passage between here and that sealed space.”
As soon as she said this, everyone in Cheng Hong’s group turned to look at her.
Their expressions held a degree of surprise.
“Passage?” Xiao Sijun didn’t understand what she meant. He only wanted to know, “Can we find it then?”
The girl’s heart-shaped face broke into a confident smile: “Of course.”
With that, she sent a beam of purple light into the air, positioning herself directly above the original gate of Mercy City. Her five fingers clenched as if grasping, and she infused qi into the space. White gas transformed into flowing clouds, and the transparent air before her was torn asunder by her grip, creating an expanding black vortex.
The surrounding void fractured and distorted, and natural space continuously attempted to repair itself, but under the force of her fingers, it was continuously broken and blocked, unable to mend.
“Tearing space?!” Fu Wanyan’s face changed drastically.
Such a feat would require at least a Nascent Soul stage cultivator, if not higher. Yet, the girl before them looked like any ordinary junior sister or nephew from their sect, entirely lacking the demeanor of a powerful expert.
But her actions were undeniably real, which could only mean… appearances could be deceiving.
Unlike others who were awestruck by the girl in the pink dress, the man in the white cloak’s attention was not on her. Instead, he was more interested in the child whose face was half-hidden by his hat. He had his back to him, so the man couldn’t see his face.
However, the voice he had spoken with earlier sounded inexplicably familiar.
“Is… is that Mercy City inside?”
Beyond the black vortex, a mirrored image appeared. Even from this distance, they seemed to smell the incense, the blood, the terrified screams, and the panic that wafted from Mercy City.
“The passage, it’s open!” Cheng Hong exclaimed, his eyes wide with surprise.
Lu Ziyin immediately thought excitedly, “Since we can’t do it ourselves, why not let them give us a ride in?”
Fu Wanyan’s expression turned a little cold when she heard him specifically mention the words “can’t do it ourselves.” While she might not possess the same abilities as the girl, she disdained comparing herself to others.
Yan Tianjiao shot him a look, as if mocking his wild idea: “Do you think they’d be so kind?”
Lu Ziyin faltered.
“Then let’s entice them with benefits.”
Lu Ziyin made up his mind, adjusted his clothes, and with a suave, not lewd, demeanor, walked over.
He first bowed with his fan, displaying impeccable grace: “Esteemed immortal senior, to be frank, we also have urgent matters that require us to enter Mercy City. Since you can open the passage, could you perhaps give us a ride as well?”
Before Gu Junshi could reply, Kai Shan Gui, Ji Du Mo, and Cang Yu Yao flashed forward, blocking Lu Ziyin. Their eyes conveyed a clear warning, as if to say that if he dared to take another step forward, they would consider it a declaration of war.
Lu Ziyin’s conviction that these three were definitely not good people grew even stronger.
“Don’t be nervous. I’m just here to make a deal. I have a high-grade spiritual artifact here. If you’re willing to lend a hand, I’ll—”
He didn’t know what it was about his words that offended the three.
“Scram!”
“We don’t need it!”
“Pah, bad luck!”
Lu Ziyin: “…”
Why was it bad luck? Huh?
Why didn’t they need it? Ha?
Why were they looking down on a high-grade spiritual artifact?
Do you guys have a mine at home, to be so dismissive of even a high-grade spiritual artifact?!
You’re so arrogant and irritable, you’ll lose a sucker like me very easily, do you know that?!
Lu Ziyin wasn’t usually one to get angry. As the saying goes, harmony brings wealth. But these three were simply too infuriating!
Gu Junshi had already noticed Cheng Hong and his group and could roughly guess the reason for their presence.
However, she remained indifferent. Old acquaintances? Apart from Cheng Hong, her relationship with the others was merely that of chance encounters. Even with Cheng Hong, their interactions in this lifetime were brief, and all debts were settled.
Given that her current actions were somewhat illicit, she was ultimately not of the same path as a saintly figure like Cheng Hong, who radiated Buddhist light. The first lifetime was a prime example: she couldn’t enter his world, and he couldn’t accept her philosophy. Righteousness and evil were irreconcilable. Forget being friends; they couldn’t even part ways peacefully.
She played the role of Hua Mi, her eyes curved into a smile, and she picked up the child, preparing to step in. Just then, a voice, like the faint frost of early spring, bloomed with clear sound: “Wait. What if I trade you a Demon Concealing Pearl for it?”
Gu Junshi heard this and turned around, her gaze sweeping over the man. Her lips curved into a smile, and she said unhurriedly, “Not enough.”
“And add the Black Crystal Coffin.”
As the man in the white cloak spoke, Gu Sijun suddenly stiffened.
He suppressed the urge to instinctively turn his head and his heart began to pound uncontrollably. His fingertips tingled as blood rushed too quickly. He curled himself up and nestled into Gu Junshi’s embrace.
How could *that* person appear here?
Upon hearing of the Black Crystal Coffin, Gu Junshi regarded the fair-skinned, handsome man with a newfound appreciation. This item was truly not something an ordinary person would know about.
“To offer two secret treasures of the demon realm at once, you are quite generous.”
At this moment, Fu Wanyan spoke. She knew that although the girl appeared ordinary, with her feat of “tearing space” just now, she was definitely more powerful than anyone present.
“Esteemed senior, even if you don’t value these things, please consider that my son is currently trapped in Mercy City, and the situation there is extremely tense. That child is similar in age to your younger brother, innocent and playful. The dangers in Mercy City are perilous, and it’s quite worrying.”
Seeing that she couldn’t sway the girl with material incentives, and observing the interaction between the girl and her brother, Fu Wanyan decided it was better to try appealing to her emotions.
Gu Junshi glanced at her. She recognized the masked woman before her as Fu Wanyan, who had appeared once on the “Newcomer Ranking.”
She was also the official female lead for Liu Jiang Fusheng.
However, why was she here at this moment?
Shouldn’t she be by Liu Jiang Fusheng’s side?
“Why should I care about someone who has nothing to do with me? Didn’t you all already decide in your hearts that we are not good people? Or perhaps, in your minds, bad people can be so reasonable now?”
Her faint sarcasm was like a slap to their faces.
Lu Ziyin and Yan Tianjiao’s expressions faltered slightly.
It was difficult to describe whether they felt awkward or something else at that moment.
At this point, it was Sijun who broke the stalemate: “Sister, I really like that pearl…”
The pearl the man in white had produced earlier to prove his words, the Demon Concealing Pearl, was in his hand. Gu Junshi knew what a Demon Concealing Pearl was and had seen a genuine one in Mu Nanxue’s possession, so she didn’t doubt the authenticity of the one in the man’s hand.
“You like it?”
Gu Sijun, upon hearing her question, was unable to speak. His face was flustered and flushed with shame, but… that woman just now mentioned “his son,” wasn’t that the sickly one?
He was currently in that supposedly dangerous Mercy City. He had been so frail since childhood, and now he was alone. What if he… in there…
“Sister…”
Mother, please save him, okay?
His eyes were red, brimming with tears, as he looked at her.
At that moment, Gu Junshi seemed to understand the words in his eyes.
She didn’t press him for his true intentions, but simply pulled his head into her embrace and said, “What you want, how could I refuse?”
“Since my brother likes that Demon Concealing Pearl, then I accept this trade.”
Kai Shan Kui, Ji Du Mo, and Cang Yu Yao were filled with fierce jealousy and envy.
They wanted it too, but they… didn’t have the face.
They just regretted that they were tall and imposing, not as fair-skinned and tender as the child who knew how to act cute. This was the hardship of being an adult.
Hearing the child call her sister, was he the younger brother of that powerful young woman? This brother was truly sensible!
The group entered. However, the passage did not deliver everyone simultaneously. There were differences in speed, or perhaps temporal discrepancies. Even a second’s difference would result in arriving at different places and times.
Only Gu Junshi knew this; others did not. So, when they arrived at Mercy City, they discovered that their companions had disappeared, leaving them alone.
Upon witnessing the current tragic state of Mercy City, they forgot about everyone else and rushed to rescue them.
They saw more and more zombies devouring the people lying on the ground. The city was filled with screams.
The once bustling and noisy streets were now ravaged and chaotic. Various cars were haphazardly jammed along the entire street. Some cars had crashed into lampposts, and zombies were feasting. As if sensing the two of them, the zombies abruptly lifted their heads, their faces covered in viscous blood, their mouths stretched to their jaws, teeth bared, with a small piece of intestine still hanging from them.
The old nuns in Mercy City might have been able to deal with ghost cultivators, but they were ineffective against zombies. These creatures had no souls and were immune to physical attacks. Their bodies were stiff, and even hacking at them with magical artifacts made it difficult to kill them instantly.
Gu Junshi landed with Xiao Sijun in her arms, but Xiao Sijun was now very worried about Le Bao, the sickly one.
He knew that person was powerful, but…
“Mother, do you have important business to attend to in Mercy City?”
“Why the sudden question?”
“Mother, you go and do your business. It’s inconvenient with me, I’ll wait for you here.”
Gu Junshi remained silent for a long moment.
“Sijun, is there something you’re hiding from me?”
She held him and said, “Don’t you trust me?”
“No, Mother, I…”
Gu Junshi saw a youth leading a group of old nuns running ahead, followed by a horde of zombies. The evolved zombies became more powerful after consuming flesh and blood. Furthermore, there was the interference of the bloody sky.
The youth, panting, turned his head and shouted at them, “You guys run first! I’ll hold them off!”
“No, you just saved us—”
“It’s alright, I can do it!”