The Substitute Female Supporting Character Sees the Bullet Screen

Chapter 39

In the grand hall at the top of the Xuan Tower within the Ten Thousand Demons Cave.

The deep black walls of the hall kept the interior perpetually dim. Suddenly, the person on the Xuan stone couch in the center stirred, tilted their head, and spat out a mouthful of blood.

Severing a strand of their divine consciousness had damaged their soul. Feng Hanying's already pale face looked even more ghastly. The vermilion dot between his brows was as red as blood. He wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, then got up from the stone couch barefoot and walked to the terrace outside the hall.

The Xuan Tower overlooked four cities, each clearly demarcating its territory. Feng Hanying flicked his fingers, and a small snake about two fingers thick broke through the void and coiled around his wrist.

The snake was entirely black, except for a tiny vermilion scale embedded in its forehead, resembling a drop of vermilion ink. It bore a striking resemblance to him.

The snake hissed, its cold forked tongue brushing against his fingertips.

Although Feng Hanying was in the Xuan Tower, it didn't mean he was oblivious to the outside world. The overt and covert struggles between the four cities, as well as the internal conflicts among the demon cultivators, were all within his knowledge.

A month ago, he had killed the lord of Molten Gold City. The golden "Molten Gold" demonic energy exploded, causing chaos in the city and triggering a reshuffle of power. The demonic energy of the former Molten Gold City leader was absorbed and refined by a single individual, who was now on the verge of breaking through to the Transformation Realm, locked in a stalemate with the seal above his head.

The new lord of Molten Gold City was a compliant person.

Qingzhou was a region blessed with natural advantages, with cities connected and well-developed water and land routes. Trade flourished, and the daily population flow was considerable. Once someone was lost here, it was like a fish entering the sea—nearly impossible to find again.

Now, two fish that had slipped out of the immortal gate's sight were hiding on a cloud ship. This ship, named "Giant Peng," soared upward, riding the wind, and was the fastest means of transportation between continents. It typically served cultivators and wealthy civilians.

The upper deck carried passengers, while the lower deck transported goods. The restaurant where Nie Yinzhi had sold herself was a chain, with businesses spanning the nine continents and four seas. It had a long-term cooperation with the cloud ship. When she first arrived in Qingzhou, she had endured a painful and tormenting period in the lower deck of the cloud ship.

The Ten Thousand Demons Cave was located in the northwest, tens of thousands of miles away from Qingzhou. Apart from this long-distance cloud ship, teleportation arrays were more convenient. However, long-distance teleportation arrays required a large amount of spiritual power to maintain, and they were mostly found in major sects.

Nie Yinzhi and Gu Jiang, this pair of hedonistic demons and seductive enchantresses, naturally wouldn't endure the day and night of flying on swords. Even a horse carriage, exhausting the legendary blood-sweating precious horse, might not get them there.

After handling some trivial matters in the Qingzhou Prefecture, the two slipped out from under the Immortal Gate's nose and boldly entered the black market where loose cultivators gathered. They bought two identity tokens and disguised themselves as loose cultivators to board the Giant Peng ship.

Following Gu Jiang's style, he certainly wouldn't bother with such a complicated routine. But he enjoyed watching Nie Yinzhi mess around.

The ticket price for this cloud ship was exorbitant. Even Nie Yinzhi felt a pinch when she had to personally fork out the spirit stones.

After boarding, Nie Yinzhi didn't join him in their room. Instead, she waved at him and walked to the next room. Gu Jiang frowned, looking at her in confusion, with an expression that seemed to say, "Why are you doing this?"

"You're not staying with me?" he asked, so unexpectedly that Nie Yinzhi was momentarily stumped. "Ah... yes, we shouldn't be staying together." To remind Gu Jiang of their current identities, she called out, "Brother."

Gu Jiang was accustomed to this address and was not reminded at all. He grabbed her arm and pulled her into the room, closing the door. The pressure emanating from the crack of the door swept out, shooing away the curious gazes.

The two stared at each other in the room. Nie Yinzhi had to explain, "We're now a pair of siblings from a small cultivation family, on a journey of training. We're biological siblings."

“What kind of messy identity tokens did you buy?” Gu Jiang said displeased.

"I asked for your opinion before, and you agreed."

He hadn't thought that far ahead at the time!

Nie Yinzhi tapped his furrowed brow, giving him a sweet smile. "Get some rest early, Brother."

Gu Jiang: "..."

Nie Yinzhi returned to the next room, surveying the arrangement inside. She had purchased an upper-class room on the cloud ship, which was spacious and well-equipped. Behind the screen, there was a small bathroom with a bathtub equipped with a magic array. If she wanted to bathe, hot water was available anytime.

As she stepped out of the screen after her bath, she saw someone lying on the couch. Nie Yinzhi met Gu Jiang's dark, haunting eyes. His lashes fluttered down, his gaze shifting downward.

Nie Yinzhi immediately tightened her collar and tied the string around her waist. "Why are you here?"

She uncovered the night pearl in the room, and its soft glow illuminated the surroundings. Nie Yinzhi glanced at the bed and decided not to wake Gu Jiang, letting him rest.

Nie Yinzhi sat alone at the table, eating slowly. She took a spoonful of wontons and found them unappetizing, then tried a piece of crispy duck, still feeling the food lacked flavor.

The ticket price for the Cloud Boat was so high, yet the food was so bad—it was unacceptable. Nie Yinzhi only ate a couple of bites before putting down her chopsticks.

Suddenly, there was movement from the bed. Gu Jiang stepped out, wearing only a loosely draped sleep robe made of ice silkworm silk, with dark blue patterns that reflected light—a style clearly chosen by Nie Yinzhi.

His messy black hair was caught in the open collar of his robe. Gu Jiang ran his hand through his hair and sat down at the table.

Nie Yinzhi watched him eat and started eating again, suddenly finding the food not so bad after all. The wontons were firm, the broth was flavorful, the crispy duck was tender inside and crispy outside, and the sweet soup was refreshing. She realized she had been unfair to the chef on the Cloud Boat.

Nie Yinzhi frowned, biting her chopsticks, feeling she was becoming too dependent on Gu Jiang. Even without him, the food seemed bland.

Gu Jiang picked up a piece of duck leg for her and said, "Don't chew on the chopsticks, chew on this instead."

Nie Yinzhi put down his chopsticks, opened his mouth to bite onto the duck leg without using his hands. His mouth skillfully picked out the bones and spat them out, chewing slowly and savoring each bite. After swallowing, a piece of green vegetables was handed over to him with chopsticks.

She looked at Gu Jiang and didn't refuse his attentive service. With his feeding, she ate a bit more until she was full, and then Gu Jiang finished the rest.

Nie Yinzhi propped her chin up and looked at him, asking, "Gu Jiang, were you sleeping before you were summoned? Where were you sleeping?"

“On an island in Floating Cloud River, inside the abandoned palace of the Dharma Sect.”

Floating Cloud River, Nie Yin knows that this name appears in the historical records of the cultivation world, as it is one of the territories of the Law Sect.

During the incident of celestial descent, the four great sect leaders fell into demonicness one after another within a span of less than five hundred years, leading to widespread consequences. At that time, nearly half of the cultivators in the cultivation world were drawn into the demonic path as well, resulting in a civil war within the celestial sects, during which the Floating Cloud River collapsed.

At that time, too many people died, and later, they were once again wiped out by both Gu Jiangzheng and the righteous and demonic paths. Over the course of more than two thousand years, this led to a break in the inheritance, causing a disconnection.

On that ruins, there remain too many array inscriptions that cannot be deciphered now; it is possible that even a single brick is engraved with a deadly array talisman. Therefore, hardly anyone dares to step within. Currently, the cultivators are only exploring the outskirts of Floating Cloud Valley.

Nie Yinzhi curiously asked, "Are you a disciple of the Law Sect? But aren't you a sword practitioner?" After all, it should be the Sword Sect that you belong to.

I am not a member of the Four Great Sects." Gu Jiang put down his chopsticks after finishing his meal. "It’s just that there is no spiritual energy in that hall, and no one would come in to disturb me. The climate is pleasant, there is plenty of water around, and sleeping there is very comfortable.

The light of the pearl reflected in Nie Yinzhi's eyes as she listened with great interest.

Gu Jiao picked up the teacup to rinse his mouth and said slowly, "But there are broken formations everywhere over there. Although the one who set up the formations is gone, the formations are still barely hanging on, changing every sixty years, which is quite annoying." As he spoke, he clicked his tongue, "It was during the change of the formations that something incomplete came in, and the moment I opened my eyes, I smelled your blood."

Nie Yinzhi particularly knows how to focus on the main point. She straightened her back and said, "It sounds like you're quite unwilling to meet me."

Gu Jiang fell silent for a moment and glanced at Nie Yinzhi's expression. "That's not what I meant."

After finishing the meal, Nie Yinzhi rang the bell to summon the puppet boy on the boat to take back the bowls and chopsticks. She turned around and asked him, "Are you going to sleep again now?" However, she had just eaten to her heart's content, and if she lay down now, she wouldn't be able to sleep at all.

Gu Jiang stepped out from behind the screen, having changed into attire suitable for going out. "I'll accompany you for a walk."

Nie Yinzhi was immediately delighted, "Okay."

This cloud ship is very large, living up to its name. As most of the people have left, it feels even more desolate at night. There is not a single person on the deck of their level. Nie Yinzhi glanced at his hand, hesitated for a moment, and then grabbed the hem of his sleeve.

The sky is adorned with drifting clouds, and the stars shine brightly, as if they could be plucked within reach.

The barrier on the cloud ship is not airtight; the night wind is stronger on the deck, making the hems of people's clothes rustle. The autumn night breeze is quite pleasant. Gu Jiang peeled her hand from the cuff and held it in his own.

Nie Yin lowered her head, resting it against his chest, and said softly, "Gu Jiang, I am a Nascent Soul cultivator; how could I not feel the changes in the surrounding spiritual energy?"