WBICDPH Chapter 81

Chapter 81: Mist and Steam

Mingzhutian.

The ground beneath their feet was an eerie dark red, and everywhere the eye could see was decorated with silver ornaments that shimmered like a field of stars.

A woman wearing a full silver mask walked through the night. The demons she passed all bowed in greeting, then hurried away from her as quickly as possible.

They couldn’t see Han Xiao’s expression, but through the gaps in her mask, they could glimpse the cold, chilling look in her eyes.

Han Xiao ignored everyone and headed straight for a massive black palace at the center of Mingzhutian.

The palace was made entirely of ebony, with gauze curtains woven from celestial silver threads hanging along the corridors and doorways. She lifted a hand to part one of the curtains, and as it moved, it rippled with a dazzling sheen.

She entered the palace, passed through several doors, and finally stopped behind a screen.

The screen was made of semi-transparent gauze. Through the bright candlelight inside, she could vaguely make out a woman seated on a bed behind it. Beside her, a slender man knelt on one knee, head lowered as he stirred something in a bowl, seemingly preparing to feed her.

“My lord.”

Han Xiao glanced over once, then lowered her gaze and did not look again.

“Mm.”

Xiao Lancheng responded softly.

“If you have something to report, say it.”

The silver spoon clinked lightly against the bowl as he stirred.

Han Xiao hesitated for a moment before lowering her head and saying, “The puppet master… has been defeated.”

The sound of metal stopped abruptly—but only for an instant.

Soon, the stirring resumed, and Xiao Lancheng’s tone remained as gentle as before.

“How was he defeated? Before he acted, I recall you gave him the Shura Seal. Once the Shura Blood Prison forms, even immortals cannot survive—let alone Xiao Lanqi.”

Though Xiao Lancheng’s voice was calm, Han Xiao still broke out in a cold sweat.

“Yes. After the puppet master’s ‘Flower Field’ failed, he followed my instructions—sacrificed the vessel and used a soul offering to activate the Shura Blood Prison to kill them both. But that vessel used some unknown method to destroy the formation core before it could fully take shape, and so…”

“Oh.”

Xiao Lancheng responded lightly, offering no further comment.

After a long silence, only his soft coughing could be heard.

After a while, Han Xiao cautiously spoke again.

“My lord, I can refine another Shura Seal in the shortest time possible. This time—”

“No need.”

Xiao Lancheng let out a soft sigh.

“The last one already cost you nearly half your vital blood. You haven’t recovered yet—there’s no need to push yourself. Besides, they’ve already found a way to counter it. Why use a method destined to fail a second time?”

He paused, catching his breath before continuing.

“By now, Xiao Lanqi has likely recovered most of his cultivation. If we fight him again, our chances of winning are less than fifty percent. There’s no need to take that risk.”

“Then…”

“Forget it. Since we can’t beat him, we’ll leave him alone for now.”

He coughed a few more times, then continued:

“I know him. If we push my brother too far, he won’t give in—he’ll turn into a rabid dog and bite back at everything. It’s not worth it. Let it go for now. For his sake, three of the Twelve Guards of Mingzhutian have already fallen. We should conserve our strength—we have other matters to attend to, don’t we?”

Han Xiao lowered her head in acknowledgment. Before leaving, she glanced once more at the screen.

Behind it, Xiao Lancheng seemed to have finally cooled the soup. He lifted the spoon and gently fed it to the woman.

The woman, however, remained seated the entire time, unmoving.

Han Xiao bowed again, then turned and left the palace.

Lin Jin seemed to have fallen into a cycle of getting injured, recovering, then getting injured again.

After lying in bed for two days, he remembered he hadn’t written the mission report yet, so he asked Hua Nanzhi for the jade slip. But when she found out, she insisted on writing it with him. According to Miss Hua, she wasn’t like Han Ao—if they completed the mission together, then they should write the report together too.

Lin Jin had no objections. The only problem was that while Hua Nanzhi could fight, her writing was… questionable. After writing long passages full of errors and fluff, Lin Jin had to revise everything anyway. In the end, it was no different from writing it himself—just more exhausting.

This time, their mission also earned them a commendation seal from Xiao Yunkong.

When delivering it, Xiao Yunkong even apologized to them.

He had suppressed his cultivation to the Foundation Establishment stage when entering Shuangxi Village. Even after noticing something was wrong, he hadn’t used his barrier-breaking ability because he knew that if they relied on him as a safety net, they wouldn’t feel real urgency. He had intended to step in only at the critical moment so they could complete the high-level mission through their own abilities.

But he hadn’t expected the puppet master to have such a trump card.

When he realized something was wrong, he immediately sent Hua Nanzhi out of the village before rushing to help. But by the time he reached the mountain temple, it had already been sealed by a strange barrier. No matter what he tried, he couldn’t break it from the outside—until the barrier slowly turned transparent and finally dissipated.

When he entered, everything was already over.

Only Lin Jin lay unconscious on the ground, bleeding from all seven orifices. Beside him was the puppy, along with a jade box that was clearly no ordinary item, and at the center of the temple, a clay statue split cleanly in two from the shoulder.

Since Lin Jin was unconscious and Hua Nanzhi’s vision and spiritual sea were sealed, Xiao Yunkong handled the cleanup.

He destroyed the Seven Emotion Flowers in the village, burned the seeds in the flower fields, dispelled the ghostly fog, and even built an empty grave for Zhu Eryao in the back mountain.

He also remembered to return to Sanyang Town.

The mother and son at the inn, once controlled by puppet strings, had been in a daze for years. With the puppet master dead, the strings lost their effect—and they could no longer survive. Xiao Yunkong buried them, then used another of his abilities, “Snowfall,” to sweep away all lingering resentment and dark clouds within a hundred miles.

He was thorough—Lin Jin had nothing to worry about.

With Lin Jin polishing the report and Xiao Yunkong’s commendation seal, along with the unexpected difficulty of the mission, their work was once again rated as a perfect case study and proudly displayed on the announcement board.

Miss Hua was very pleased. From time to time, she would “casually” stroll by to admire it—especially her own name written on it.

After finishing the report, Lin Jin returned to having nothing to do.

Fortunately, this time his injuries were internal. Unlike before, when even turning over in bed was painful, he could now move around a bit.

Every day, he fed the chickens, tended his small garden, cooked meals, and visited Zhe Yu at the spring to drink tea and chat.

He continued taking the medicine prescribed by Jian Tao. A few days later, Liu Xun came to visit, bringing him some ancient books on formations, along with more medicine and a new prescription.

That evening, after seeing her off, Lin Jin sat on his bed and opened the prescription.

But after reading a few lines, his eyes suddenly widened, and he let out an excited hum.

Xiao Lanqi, who had been resting nearby, glanced at him coldly, wondering what he was up to this time.

Lin Jin soon began bustling around, gathering things.

What was he doing?

Cooking soup?

Didn’t seem like it.

Taking a bath?

Was he insane? A simple cleansing spell would suffice—why go through all this trouble?

Lin Jin dragged a large wooden tub into the room, filled it with water using talismans, then heated it over a fire.

Then he added a bunch of medicinal herbs.

Finally, he stood back, inhaled the steamy, herbal-scented air, and sighed contentedly.

“Ahh… amazing! It’s been a year—a whole year since I’ve had a hot bath! Master Jian Tao is the best. A medicinal bath—I can’t even imagine how good this is going to feel!”

“…Madman.”

As Lin Jin stripped down to his undergarments, Xiao Lanqi expressionlessly stood up, preparing to leave.

But before he could go, Lin Jin grabbed him.

“Not so fast—you haven’t had a bath in ages either!”

“…?!”

Get lost!

Weren’t humans supposed to be modest and reserved? What kind of lunatic casually bathes with others like this?!

Xiao Lanqi struggled furiously, but Lin Jin had already grabbed him by the scruff.

With a splash, he tossed him into the tub.

Lin Jin even thoughtfully set up a small platform inside so the puppy could stand without drowning.

Xiao Lanqi sank into despair.

As Lin Jin stepped in, he shut his eyes tightly.

He didn’t understand.

Human bodies had no elegant demonic markings, no beautiful patterns—and this one was especially scrawny. Didn’t humans feel ashamed of themselves? If they were ashamed, why not hide? Why expose themselves like this?

Still…

After a while, Xiao Lanqi relaxed.

The water… was actually quite comfortable.

Eventually, curiosity got the better of him, and he opened his eyes.

Through the steam, Lin Jin’s figure was still clearly visible.

Not Xiao Lanqi’s preferred type—too soft, too sly, like a cunning rabbit—but… not unpleasant to look at.

He had expected nothing but skin and bones, but surprisingly, Lin Jin had a decent build.

Still—

Where were the demonic markings?!

What kind of body didn’t have markings?!

…

“Why are you staring? Let me wash you.”

Lin Jin picked him up and started scrubbing him with soap nuts, working from his back to his left ear.

But when he reached the right ear, the puppy jerked away.

Xiao Lanqi exploded internally.

That was his limit!

Lin Jin grabbed his ear anyway and scrubbed it.

“Dirty dog doesn’t like baths? That’s a demerit!”

“…?”

Xiao Lanqi drooped his ears, sank into the water, and silently raised the temperature a few degrees.

Insolent human.

Getting scalded would serve him right.