Chapter 17: Staying Overnight

Miss Shang’s eye twitched. She closed her book and greeted the two, her voice cold. "Thank you for bringing Xiao Lu back. My name is Shang Yuan."

The parrot, seeing Shang Yuan, acted as if it had found a savior. It flapped its wings, trying to escape Lu Yang. Lu Yang released it, allowing the parrot to fly around the room.

"Be careful next time," Lu Yang said with a smile. "Luckily, this parrot kept flying in circles within Taiping Village. Otherwise, if it had flown elsewhere, it would have been truly lost."

Shang Yuan looked at the two in their refined attire. She could tell at a glance that they were young heroes who had long roamed the martial world, dispensing justice.

Lu Yang and Tao Yaoye’s attire was recommended by the Quest Hall of the Dao-Seeking Sect. Dressed like this, they could easily pass for young heroes who had long roamed the martial world, dispensing justice.

Shang Yuan's attitude was somewhat distant; she didn't know if it was due to her personality or something else. "Xiao Lu is back. You two should go home now."

Tao Yaoye's eyebrows furrowed slightly. She disliked the young lady's attitude.

Lu Yang acted as if he hadn't heard the words of dismissal. He said cheerfully, "Let's chat for a bit. The Shang family seems quite welcoming to us; they might even ask us to stay the night."

Shang Yuan sneered repeatedly. "The Shang family welcoming you doesn't mean I welcome you. You two should leave quickly, and it's best if you leave Taiping Village."

"There are no demons or monsters in Taiping Village, so why should we leave?" Lu Yang said. "You haven't left the Shang family for a long time either; don't you want to hear about the outside world?"

Shang Yuan was taken aback. She hadn't expected Lu Yang to say that. Her tone softened somewhat. "Where are you two from? I haven't left home for almost a month; could you perhaps tell me about your adventures in the martial world?"

"We are from the Dao-Seeking Sect, one of the Five Great Immortal Sects. Both of us are at the Foundation Establishment stage. We came to Taiping Village this time because we heard there was a demonic bird disturbing people..."

Lu Yang began to speak slowly and calmly. His voice was gentle, and he was an excellent storyteller.

Shang Yuan's eyes flashed with a hint of joy when she heard they were at the Foundation Establishment stage.

The three chatted for a while. Shang Yuan was captivated by Lu Yang's description of cultivators' lives, where they could travel freely. She also wanted to venture out and see the vast world.

"I want to cultivate immortality, but my father disagrees," she said. "He says cultivation is too dangerous. If he hadn't been lucky during a tomb exploration, he would have died in that ancient tomb long ago."

"I've asked him about it many times, but he never wants to tell me," Shang Yuan said indignantly. She loved hearing strange tales, and her own father had personal experiences yet refused to share them with her.

Lu Yang sighed inwardly. It seemed the Shang family head was also a man with a story.

"What is the Shang family head's cultivation level?"

Shang Yuan rolled her eyes as if recalling her father's smug expression. "According to his own boasting, he used to be at the ninth level of Qi Refinement. Then he encountered a great disaster and narrowly survived. His cultivation plummeted, and he's now either at the fourth or fifth level of Qi Refinement."

Tao Yaoye said, "That's not so bad. There aren't many cultivators in Taiping Village; the strongest, the village head, is only at the seventh level of Qi Refinement. Someone at the fourth or fifth level of Qi Refinement can live quite well here, not to mention the Shang family head still has some resources."

Shang Yuan sighed. "But I don't want to be confined to Quhe Commandery. I want to roam the martial world and see this magnificent and wondrous world. We're of similar age, yet you are already a Foundation Establishment cultivator, and I haven't even begun Qi Refinement."

Tao Yaoye was about to offer some advice when she heard Butler Zhang knocking on the door. "Miss, it's time for dinner. And for you two young heroes, the master specifically instructed that since it's late, you should finish your meal and stay the night before leaving."

"The master, madam, and Village Head Huang are already waiting for you all."

"Alright, we're coming," Lu Yang responded.

Tao Yaoye initially wanted to decline, but Lu Yang stopped her. "See? I told you the Shang family is hospitable and would ask us to stay the night. Why not accept their kindness?"

...

At the dinner table, the Shang family head sat in the main seat, chatting enthusiastically with Village Head Huang. Everyone else also ate heartily. Although the food wasn't as good as that of the Dao-Seeking Sect, it was still quite delicious.

Butler Zhang and the maids stood respectfully to the side, attending to everyone.

After a satisfying meal, Village Head Huang went home. Lu Yang and Tao Yaoye stayed the night, residing in the east wing. Only a wall separated their rooms.

Tao Yaoye wasn't very keen on sleeping there. She was very particular about beds; apart from the bed in her Dao-Seeking Sect cave dwelling, where she could fall asleep instantly, elsewhere it took her a long time to fall asleep.

Tao Yaoye knew this wasn't a good habit. For cultivators, sleeping rough was common. She tried to change, but so far without success.

"Senior Brother Lu, however, can fall asleep anywhere."

Tao Yaoye muttered to herself. For some reason, she chuckled softly. Then she yawned.

"I'm going to bed early today; it seems I'll get a good night's sleep..."

Tao Yaoye suddenly realized. "No! Someone poisoned us!"

She turned to grab her Illusory Umbrella and erect a barrier, but found that the spiritual energy in her body was sluggish and difficult to mobilize.

Her heart jolted with alarm. Someone had poisoned them silently. Who could it be?

This was a poison targeting cultivators. The culprit, knowing she was a cultivator yet daring to act, must also be a cultivator.

There were only a few people in the Shang family. Apart from the Shang family head, she hadn't detected any other cultivators.

Was it the Shang family head?

Or was it a cultivator whose cultivation was so much higher than hers that she couldn't detect them?

What about Senior Brother Lu?

A series of questions instantly flashed through Tao Yaoye's mind. She had no time to ponder them as light footsteps approached from outside the room.

The door was pushed open. Butler Zhang stepped in with a steady gait, a look of excited and cruel satisfaction on his face.

"It's you!" Tao Yaoye's eyes widened. She hadn't expected it to be Butler Zhang, and her heart sank instantly.

Her inability to discern that Butler Zhang was a cultivator meant that his cultivation level was higher than hers.

Butler Zhang held a flaying knife. Even from five paces away, Tao Yaoye could feel a thick resentment emanating from it. She wondered how many people had died by this blade, their resentment soaring to the heavens.

Moonlight shone on the blade. It gleamed brightly, stark and white.

Butler Zhang licked his lips, looking at Tao Yaoye, who was struggling in vain, as if she were a fierce animal caught in a trap.

"What beautiful skin!" he said. "I've never seen skin so fair and perfectly contoured in my life."

"I know you're from the Dao-Seeking Sect, and killing you would be very troublesome. The Dao-Seeking Sect's influence covers the heavens; how could a small fry like me dare to provoke them?" As Butler Zhang spoke, saliva drooled from the corner of his mouth. He wiped it away as he continued, "But your skin is simply too beautiful, compelling me to take this risk. And you willingly stayed to eat at the Shang family; it would be foolish of me not to seize such an excellent opportunity to poison you."

The dinner was poisoned!

Seeing Tao Yaoye still struggling, Butler Zhang kindly advised, "Don't struggle. Even if you weren't poisoned, you're no match for me. You've only just entered the Foundation Establishment stage, while I'm at the late Foundation Establishment stage."

Although he said this, Butler Zhang did not lower his guard. A Foundation Establishment cultivator from the Dao-Seeking Sect could never be treated as an ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivator!

Butler Zhang said this simply to prevent Tao Yaoye from resisting.

The more one resisted, the tighter the connection between skin and flesh became, and the harder it was to flay. This was based on experience.

"Relax," he coaxed, "it will only hurt for a moment, and then you won't be afraid anymore."

Butler Zhang licked the flaying knife and approached Tao Yaoye.

Suddenly, Tao Yaoye sprang to her feet. Her spiritual energy flowed freely throughout her body. She gripped her Illusory Umbrella and slammed it hard into Butler Zhang's face.

Butler Zhang, confident of his victory, was caught completely off guard.

"How are you not poisoned?!"