This was the first time that Yun Ruoyan had seen the true form of Li Mo’s spiritual sword, but she wasn’t in the mood to inspect it carefully at the moment. She carefully stored the sword in her bracelet’s pocket dimension, then called out to Qiuqiu. “Wake up, Qiuqiu!”

“What’s the matter, Mistress? Is something wrong?” Qiuqiu responded rapidly, clearly having sensed Yun Ruoyan’s anxiety.”

“Can you see if you can sense Li Mo? Is he injured?” Although it was clear from the state of his spiritual sword that Li Mo must have suffered a grave injury, she held out hope that Qiuqiu might notice something she had missed.

When Qiuqiu replied that it couldn’t sense Li Mo’s aura at all, dashing Yun Ruoyan’s last hope, she had no choice but to believe that Li Mo had been taken by the Pi family.

“Li Mo, I’ll save you! Wait for me!” Yun Ruoyan’s eyes glowed with ferocious killing intent. “Pi Yang, if you dare hurt Li Mo, I won’t spare you!”

She began inspecting her surroundings. Li Mo’s sword had brought her to a small forest, likely not too far from civilization. Her first goal was to find a way out, enter the city governed by the Pi household, and think of a way to save Li Mo.

After about fifteen minutes, she finally found a small path leading out of the forest. By then, the skies had darkened. She retrieved a beast core from her pocket dimension and used it for illumination.

She was currently only at the level of a sixth-rank blademaster, and her night vision was far weaker than it used to be. Under the dim light of the beast core, it took Yun Ruoyan two hours before she finally walked out of the forest. The moment she did so, she noted a few fires not too far in the distance: some people were making camp. 

Yun Ruoyan reflexively stooped down and hid behind a bush, retracting her weakened aura as completely as she could. There were four fires not too far from her, which meant at least a group of twenty people. From the firelight, she could even make out the outlines of four rather ostentatious carriages.

At least on the Chenyuan continent, such large parties were either cultivators out hunting or merchants who had employed bodyguards to protect them on a long journey. Generally, these cultivators were crude, rough men, and it would be dangerous for her to approach them.

Although Yun Ruoyan was tired and hungry, she didn’t dare risk it. She was just about to turn and leave when a shadow suddenly darted out from a bush before her.

“Who is it?!” the shadow whispered. A gleaming white sword shone in the light: the shadow had drawn a sword, revealing her to be a woman a few years older than she was.

“Sister, please spare me!” Yun Ruoyan immediately stooped down and begged for mercy. 

Back on the Chenyuan continent, she was relatively tall for her age, but on the Mingyuan continent, she would be considered petite. For example, the woman in front of her seemed more like a man from her body alone. Yun Ruoyan hugged her knees as she squatted on the ground, playing the part of a lost white rabbit.

The tip of the woman’s sword was almost jabbing at Yun Ruoyan’s forehead, but she had no intention of resisting. Finally, the woman sheathed her sword and brought Yun Ruoyan to the campfire without saying another word.

Yun Ruoyan found that the people by the fire were all manner of women: some fair and delicate, others tall and broad-shouldered, yet others buxom and rotund. 

“A Fei, weren’t you going to the latrine? Where did you find this white rabbit?” a green-robed woman asked, smiling.

Yun Ruoyan was still wearing her white Kongming Academy uniform, so the green-robed woman’s description was rather apt. The twenty or so women all looked toward Yun Ruoyan; she slunk down, lowered her head, and made herself look even more like a tiny white rabbit.

“Who would have expected to find such a treasure on the way to the Pi city?” another girl added, inciting a chorus of giggles.

“Madam Hong, I found this girl by the edge of the forest.” Rather than respond to the other women, A Fei turned to a woman in a long, red dress, sitting by the fire.

“Raise your head,” Madam Hong instructed. Her voice was slightly hoarse but pleasant to the ear. Yun Ruoyan slowly raised her head and found herself staring at a beauty. “Who are you, and what are you doing out in the forest in the middle of the night?”

“I… I…” Yun Ruoyan’s eyes were wet and lustrous, as if she would cry at any moment.

“Speak!” A Fei commanded impatiently.

The woman in red raised a hand, motioning for A Fei to stop. Her gaze turned gentle as she spoke again to Yun Ruoyan, “Young lady, don’t be afraid. Take your time.”

“Sister,” Yun Ruoyan finally choked out. “My brother and I were slaves, and my master wanted to sell me off to some… unclean establishment. My brother escaped with me in the dark. When my master’s men gave chase, my brother hid me in the forest and left to lure them away, and then… and then, my brother was caught again.”

Tears streamed down Yun Ruoyan’s face. She cried for Li Mo, heavily wounded and captured. She cried for her two cousins, who weren’t so lucky as to escape the fate that awaited them. She cried for herself, hating that she didn’t have the power to save one and all.

“Ah, you pitiful child!”

“We understand your plight. You’re just like one of us…!”

Yun Ruoyan’s confession caused a sympathetic resonance with the women gathered around the campfires, and the air turned melancholy and solemn. Yun Ruoyan had been able to guess their profession from the women’s appearance and the ostentatious carriages around them, and had framed this half-truth in the manner that would produce the greatest impact.

Madam Hong glanced sharply at Yun Ruoyan. Rather than meet her gaze, however, Yun Ruoyan glanced furtively at the ground, as if her master’s men would find her at any moment. Madam Hong examined her closely, seemed to decide to believe her story, then began looking at her appraisingly.

Yun Ruoyan knew that she was relatively pretty, and looks were particularly important in this line of work. “Sister, won’t you please allow me to remain with you? I’ll be willing to do anything, even menial labor!”

Madam Hong didn’t immediately agree. She lowered her head and thought quietly for a moment. “Which city are you from, and whose servant are you?”

If Yun Ruoyan were a slave of the Pi family, taking her in would cause nothing but trouble for the group heading to the Pi city. 

Understanding this, Yun Ruoyan replied, “I’m from the Feng city, and I was a slave of the Feng family.”

“We’re headed for the Pi city. The Feng and Pi families don’t get along, and the two cities interact only infrequently. She won’t be a trouble, Madam Hong, so won’t you take her in?” the green-clothed woman who had first remarked on her begged on her behalf.

The other women murmured their agreement.

“Do you truly wish to stay with me?” Madam Hong asked.

“Yes, Madam.”

“Are you aware what we do?”

“I’ve seen it before in the Feng city, Madam. Isn’t this a troupe of courtesans, women who sell their arts and talents but not their bodies?”

Madam Hong nodded. “You may travel with us temporarily. For the moment, before you’re ready to demonstrate your talents, you can help A Fei out with miscellaneous tasks.”

And, just like that, Yun Ruoyan successfully joined a courtesan troupe.

“Come, white rabbit, sit by my side!” The woman in green, Xiao Qing, beckoned to Yun Ruoyan, and she gratefully walked over. “Ah, aren’t you pretty?” She rubbed at Yun Ruoyan’s cheeks.

“Sister, you look beautiful as well.” Yun Ruoyan praised Xiao Qing, causing her to smile. “Sister, I heard my brother mention how strong Lord Pi was. Are the rumors true? If the Pi city attacked the Feng city, which side would win?”

“Lord Pi is truly a talented cultivator,” Xiao Qing replied. “His eldest son, Young Lord Pi, is likewise quite talented. If the two cities were to fight, I’d hedge my bets on the Pi city… ah, why are you asking about this?”

“If the Pi city were to defeat the Feng city, my brother might be saved!”

“That—you might as well give up hope.”

“Don’t the two families not get along?” Yun Ruoyan pressed.

“Profit trumps all, and they’ll cooperate if they have to. Aren’t you aware of the spirit crystal veins?”

“I was responsible for odd jobs and menial labor in the household, and I rarely left the manor…”

“In that case, I’ll explain what you need to know.” According to Xiao Qing, the Pi family was responsible for much of the spirit crystals available on the Mingyuan continent, a commodity necessary for improving one’s cultivation that even served as a currency of sorts.

The other families all depended on the Pis for spirit crystals, so no matter how fraught their relationship, they couldn’t simply cut off the Pi family entirely. It was their monopoly on the spirit crystal veins that allowed the Pi family to become a hegemonic existence on the Mingyuan continent.

Is that how it is? 

Yun Ruoyan wondered. She very much wanted to ask Xiao Qing for a piece of spirit crystal to see what it looked like, but she was afraid of exposing her true identity.

“Alright, everyone, it’s getting late. Rest early, since we’ll still be travelling for quite a while tomorrow,” Madam Hong announced, clapping her hands for attention.

The women retired to their accommodations in the various carriages, and Yun Ruoyan squeezed into bed with Xiao Qing.

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