Chapter 25: Splendid Voice (Part 4) "I've been looking for you so hard." ...

The reaction of the immortal-looking man was so overwhelming that it drew the attention of the crowd gathered around him. Li Zhixing wiped the tea from the corner of his lips and said sheepishly, "Sorry, sorry, this tea is a little hot, a little hot."

Upon hearing this, Chu Mozhi's expression suddenly changed, as if she had done something wrong. She held out her hand and said in panic, "Excuse me, Master Li, are you alright?"

The embroidered handkerchief, which had been tucked back to her waist, was listening to the private conversation in the room through her earrings. Seeing her bewildered look, he sighed quietly.

Li Zhixing saw the young woman's face full of guilt and uneasiness, and quickly changed his tone, saying, "I drank too quickly and choked. It's not your fault."

Chu Mozhi's expression brightened slightly.

Wen Gu, who had been watching silently from the sidelines, suddenly asked, "What are the two characters in your name, young lady?"

His question was so frank that the women sitting around the stone table all covered their faces and laughed.

The pretty woman who had first asked the question, Yun Ying, had been learned by the exiled immortal from his conversations with the other women. Like the others in the courtyard, she was an embroiderer. He jokingly said, "Young man, you look so cold and unapproachable, I'd have thought you were an iceberg. But I didn't expect you to be so anxious, asking a pretty girl how to write her name. Are you writing a visiting card?"

Yun Ying finished her words, then looked at the elegant young woman beside her and asked with a smile, "Sister, isn't that right?"

The woman with gentle features, named Yun Tianpiao, hid her handkerchief and said, "Yingying, how should I answer you? You should ask this young man." She glanced at the young man, whose expression remained unchanged.

Wen Gu frowned slightly and looked at the exiled immortal, who was suppressing a laugh, wondering what he and the others were laughing at.

Li Zhixing folded his arms and smiled, remembering the boy's reaction at the gates of hell when he heard he would be sharing a room with the young woman who had become an embroiderer. He wasn't as calm and composed as he was now; his face would have blushed.

He chuckled and came to the rescue, "Please be kind and stop teasing my junior brother who doesn't know etiquette or romance. He's a fool and doesn't know what kind of misunderstanding his words just now will cause."

As he spoke, Li Zhixing bowed to Chu Mozhi and apologized, saying, "Miss, please don't blame me. I, your junior brother, just wanted to ask you about your name in order to track down the monster."

There was no embarrassment on her face. Chu Mozhi had the same expression as the teased boy. She smiled lightly and shook her head, "It's okay. I just don't know what my name has to do with monsters." A trace of fear flashed in her eyes, and she continued, "My name was chosen by Miss Ye from Sui'an County--"

As soon as she finished speaking, some people present were stunned.

The beautiful little girl paused, worried she hadn't explained enough, and recalled, "I heard from the old woman in the village that it rained heavily the night I was born, and my father went out to look for a midwife. He happened to run into Mr. Ye's family, who were staying at the inn. After learning of my father's predicament, they lent him their carriage and came to visit after my mother gave birth successfully." "

To express his gratitude, my father asked Mr. Ye to name me," Chu Mozhi continued, a serene smile on her lips. "The midwife said that Mr. Ye was pacing in thought when he suddenly saw Miss Ye, who was only four years old at the time. She placed a white angelica flower next to me, pointed to the ink stain on the flower, and said word by word, 'Mo, Zhi.'" "

My father said that children are smart, so he smiled at Mr. Ye and asked me to call him by this name." Chu Mozhi looked at Wen Gu and answered his question, "Mo is the Mo of ink, and Zhi is naturally the Zhi of angelica."

As the words fell, Chu Mozhi's eyes were filled with some strange expressions, with loss and nostalgia.

Hearing what she said, Wen Gu nodded lightly, indicating that he knew, and his eyes fell calmly on the embroidered handkerchief on the waist of the woman a few steps away, his face gloomy.

He really loves to name others so much.

Ye Qingzhan, who was distracted in the house and outside the yard, was suddenly met with the sad eyes of the young man. He was stunned for a moment, and inadvertently did not hear the last words of the two people in the house. He complained in his heart: What happened to Wen Gu...

Just when he was worried, he heard Chu Mozhi ask: "Master Li, is there anything wrong with my name?"

He just casually said the name of the monster just to confirm his identity. Now it was almost certain that Mo Zhi and Chu Mozhi were the same person. Li Zhixing's eyes rolled and said nonsense: "Master once captured a monster and accidentally let it go. The name is somewhat similar to yours, but the characters don't match. I'm sorry to have frightened you." He bowed and saluted again.

Sitting on the stone bench, Yun Ying couldn't help but ask, "Could there really be such a stupid demon?" She was always outspoken and never used euphemisms. "Master Li, if Chu Mozhi is really related to a demon, how could she still use this name after all these years?" As she spoke, her eyes slid from Li Zhixing to Wen Gu, her face filled with suspicion. "Also, are you really alchemists who exorcise demons and evil spirits? If so, how come you can't sense any demonic energy, but instead you bother asking for its name?"

"..." Li Zhixing was stunned by the question. He gave them a displeased look and thought to himself: How could I have known that this young man would ask so directly about what was wrong with him? Then he thought again, his answer was also stupid.

As the embroidered handkerchief, Ye Qingzhan was also nervous for the two of them at this time: This Yingying is so smart, are they going to be exposed?

Wen Gu met Yun Ying's gaze and said calmly, "The monster that Master let go is not an ordinary monster."

"The monster has deep power, but it has a fatal weakness." His expression was as steady as a rock, unmoved by the wind, and he continued,

"I can't lie."

Li Zhixing: "..." It's true that people are influenced by the company they keep... No, why is he scolding himself? This should be called "the disciple surpasses the master", yes, that's right!

Inwardly admiring him, Wen Gu continued, "The monster hiding here has no demonic aura."

As soon as he finished speaking, Ye Qingzhan, who was eavesdropping under the handkerchief, couldn't help but open his eyes wide, his eyes full of surprise and doubt: How did he know?

"This young man is right."

The voice from under the eaves interrupted the chatter in the courtyard, and everyone's attention was drawn to it, and they all looked at the person who spoke, Chu Letian.

He spoke methodically, "Many aristocratic families have come to Camellia Village to exorcise demons and slay evil spirits, but none has yet discovered the exact location of the demon lurking here."

"There are two reasons. One is that the demonic aura of this demon isn't visible; it's hidden very deeply."

Li Zhixing glanced at Wen Gu, wondering if he'd been right, or...

"What's the other reason?" Yun Ying pressed, her curiosity growing. "How can we know a demon exists without a demonic aura?"

Chu Letian looked at her, his gaze sweeping across the group of young girls. "It only appears in mortals' dreams, invisible and formless. It's a melodious sound that bewitches the human heart."

The courtyard fell silent at these words.

The moon hung on the willow branches, and the evening breeze swayed, swaying the desolate courtyard. The remaining osmanthus fragrance threatened to crumble.

"So the rumors are true," Yun Ying spoke first amidst the silence. "I've heard before that there are monsters running rampant in Yongzhou. They've been to Sui'an County and have caused chaos in Changning County. Fenghua County is relatively peaceful now, but I didn't expect that monsters would also disturb Chahua Village."

As she spoke, fear and sorrow appeared on the face of the young girl Mingxiu, and fear also appeared on the faces of the women around her.

Ye Qingzhan looked at Chu Letian and the beautiful woman beside him, thinking about their previous conversation. Suddenly, he heard the exiled immortal say, "Don't worry, everyone. We will definitely subdue this monster!"

Such shameless words attracted the attention of those who heard it, and their eyes were full of suspicion.

Li Zhixing met his gaze, smiled, patted his shoulder, and said, "My junior brother is a master at subduing demons. No evil demon can escape from his grasp."

Although the young man was thin and his face was gloomy, he was surprisingly reliable. The young girls looked at him expectantly.

In such trusting eyes, Wen Gu's eyebrows moved, and a strange feeling spread in his heart. This feeling was the same as when he knew that the medicine on the bedside table was given by Xie Zhiyan. It was a fleeting moment, as if it were a lifetime ago.

Then

came the excruciating pain that gnawed into his bones - the evil spirits in his internal organs attacked his heart again, as if to tear him apart. He frantically tried to stop the spread of this emotion.

The veins on his wrists bulged, he lowered his head, and clenched his palms tightly.

Others might not understand the strangeness in the young man's expression, but Ye Qingzhan saw it clearly. During these days of getting along, she gradually understood the signs of his evil spirit.

Wen Gu was about to vomit blood again.

Ye Qingzhan quickly took out the ginkgo from his sleeve and wrote a few lines to pass on to the exiled immortal.

Li Zhixing also noticed Wen Gu's abnormality, and after being reminded by the little girl, he interrupted, saying, "It's getting late, everyone should get some rest."

Before he finished speaking, Yun Ying hurriedly said, "Master Li, do you know anything else about this monster besides what Mr. Chu said?"

Li Zhixing shook his head and said, "To be honest, we have never encountered this monster and know very little about it."

Yun Ying said "Oh" in disappointment and looked at Chu Letian again. The latter also shook his head slightly and said nothing more.

The beautiful woman fighting alongside him stepped forward, glanced at the rising moon, and said, "Girls, rest early. We have to travel tomorrow morning." She then glanced at Zexian, Wen Gu, and Mo Zhi, who had been standing by the osmanthus tree, and continued, "With three chivalrous men protecting us, that demon won't dare attack."

This beautiful woman was the owner of Jinxiu Villa and the embroiderers' master. Her name was Yunyan, and the girls called her "Auntie Yun." Ye Qingzhan heard the soothing tone in her words and knew she was deliberately supporting Zexian so that the three demon-slayers would fulfill their duties and protect the young girls. She looked at the three.

Zexian understood, and said happily, "Of course, I will do my best to protect you."

Their clenched hands slowly loosened, and Wen Gu looked at the older woman and nodded slightly.

Mo Zhi, beneath the osmanthus tree, followed Wen Gu's example and nodded vigorously.

Yunyan smiled and said to Chu Mozhi, "Please lead the way, young lady. Let us rest for the night."

Upon hearing this, Chu Mozhi glanced at his father timidly and whispered, "Come with me."

Ye Qingzhan, who was hanging on Yuntianpiao's waist, hurriedly passed another page of the letter to the exiled immortal Ginkgo, and then followed the girls into the east wing.

Suddenly, only four people were left in the courtyard.

Chu Letian said, "Master Li and Master Wen, the west room is still empty. If you two are tired, you can go there to rest." As he spoke, he coughed a few times, held his waist, and looked at Mo Zhi under the tree. "Mo Zhi will take you to her room."

These few words seemed to take all his strength. Chu Letian continued, "I can't hold on any longer, so I'm going to bed early. Please do as you please."

Li Zhixing hurriedly bowed and said, "Thank you, Brother Chu."

Chu Letian waved his hand and turned to enter the main hall.

As they left, Wen Gu glanced at Mo Zhi, who lay beneath the tree, and suddenly asked, "Do you want to stay awake, or..."

Mo Zhi, reduced to a charcoal-black skeleton in her lifetime, couldn't speak even after being reborn as a fallen immortal. She nodded, indicating she wanted to stay awake.

Wen Gu understood, and a sinister aura suddenly emanated from her, overwhelming the courtyard.

Li Zhixing hurriedly said, "Don't be impulsive. What are you going to do..." Before he could finish his words, he saw—

the young man's eyes, once cold and emotionless, suddenly turned crimson. A single crimson mark suddenly appeared between his brows, like the first bloom of a bloody flower. He said calmly, "I didn't finish my words. There's no demonic aura here."

"It's only hatred." As

Wen Gu finished speaking, Ye Qingzhan, who was resting beside his pillow in the east wing, saw a black mist swirling around him. The women, immersed in it, all closed their eyes.

Then, she heard ghostly voices coming from all directions.