Without adding anything else or waiting for any kind of answer, Xue Rui left the restaurant in a hurry. Just as he walked out, a servant came to Cao Yun's table. Everyone in the restaurant had heard the grudge begin formed between the two alchemists. No one had dared come close to them.
Now that this was over though, the servants had waited for Xue Rui to completely walk out before going to Guai Mo. They couldn't take sides as they didn't know who would win in the end. Their best strategy was to not antagonize anyone. Even if Xue Rui came on top during the competition, Guai Mo might overcome him in the future. The opposite could happen as well. This restaurant was prestigious, but not as much as alchemists... In fact, they were acting a bit like Governor Jiahe in the matter, the main difference being that they were running a restaurant not a province.
While the atmosphere was still awkward, Cao Yun ordered many of the most expensive dishes he could see on the menu. With such a patron, the restaurant was quite happy. But they couldn't imagine that Cao Yun would eat so much. Cao Yun kept the servant busy for some time. He seemed to be particularly interested in all the various dishes and how they were being prepared. Many of them made use of alchemical ingredients. So it didn't appear odd for an alchemist to be interested in them. But maybe he was a bit too interested, and also a bit too gluttonous.
Cultivators didn't eat that often. So when they did, they liked to have very refined dishes. Or it was because they were starving out in the wild...
As Cao Yun was enjoying his meal, many rumors were being spread throughout Qingyun City. Cao Yun had not chosen that restaurant out of the blue. He knew that Xue Rui was a regular there. Since he had come into town, Cao Yun had already planned many things. Of course, he couldn't have planned for everything because he was still investigating. But he had prepared in advance. After all, it was more his style. Instead of waiting for events to unfold and reacting to them, Cao Yun wanted to be ready and cause the events he wanted to happen.
"Are you sure this was a good idea to antagonize him?"
"Well, I had several possibilities but after seeing him, it seemed like the best one... dare I say, the right one. If my deductions are correct, I know precisely where Gu Song is right now and I just need a bit more to take him down. I know Xue Rui's type, he won't be able to stand such an humiliation. Being thin-skinned is not a good thing."
In Cao Yun's mind, Dian Mo's voice resounded.
"Then, you felt it?"
"Of course I did. After all this time working with your seals, such a toy wouldn't escape my vigilance."
Even before seeing Xue Rui, Cao Yun had felt something. But when the alchemist had come closer, he had found out what it was. Xue Rui had a Heart Locking Fire Pact. This was the same kind of seal used on Luo Jiang in Yinmen City. With his new control over Evil Qi, detecting that seal had been rather easy. Even Xiao Xuefeng would have had a very hard time seeing through this. But to Cao Yun, it was as apparent as Qi. Even without spiritual senses, he could feel this ominous presence. For Dian Mo, it was even more obvious.
Although he had no reference to compare it to because he had not really felt Luo Jiang's Heart Locking Fire Pact back then, Cao Yun could not shake off the feeling that the same man had made both seals. And it was aligning with the facts. Gu Song had infiltrated the Golden Flowery Fragrance Institute and it had been Luo Jiang's goal as well.
The moment Cao Yun had felt the Heart Locking Fire Pact within Xue Rui, he had decided on his course of actions. For now though, he still couldn't be sure whether Xue Rui was truly a demonic cultivator. Clearly he was working under one. But with such a seal on him, he might just be forced to. Anyway, it didn't really matter to Cao Yun right now. Even if Xue Rui didn't know that his master was a demonic cultivator for sure, he had to at least suspect it. He couldn't be that oblivious to things.
Dian Mo was a bit impressed by Cao Yun's progress. His ability to control and sense seals had greatly improved. Recently, he had even put an end to his trauma concerning his Bai Hui. Furthermore, he was steadily advancing his mind and Qi cultivation. But he wasn't letting his martial arts, his alchemy or his array formations lag behind. The only part of his strength that was maybe lacking a bit was his blood cultivation. But this was probably because Dian Mo was used to demons so it felt odd to him.
Of course, Dian Mo would never say that to the young man. But to be honest, it was rather transparent during their many conversations. In fact, talking with Dian Mo had also been very beneficial to Cao Yun. Although he had lived cooped up in his Demon Palace, Dian Mo had read everything he could. And he had thought about it a lot. As such, it turned out that Dian Mo was a great conversationalist. Besides, Cao Yun also had read quite a lot and had more modern knowledge. When it came to certain topics, Cao Yun was far more advanced than Dian Mo. So discussing was very pleasant for the both of them.
Moreover, Cao Yun could be completely open with Dian Mo. No matter how much he trusted others, there were things he had to hide. For example, if he even talked about the possible involvement of the Imperial City to Yun Ping, he might be considered a traitor by not denouncing his friend. Besides, although the idea wasn't pleasant, it was possible that a demonic cultivator, or even any Spirit Warrior might perform a Soul Memory Search on his friends. But there were also other ways to get information out of someone.
For now, Cao Yun enjoyed his large meal as he was waiting for someone else.
-
At the same moment, Xue Rui was back in his personal chambers, much more spacious and luxurious than the secluded room of the Major Hall. Right now, he was in a fit of rage, breaking things here and there. Unfortunately, his servants were used to this kind of behavior. It wasn't rare that he would take out his frustration on them.
This time around, he had even hurt his servant's hand. Even now, she was feeling the pain. After all, she was only an early Mortal and he was a Mortal Warrior. Under the frustration, he had smacked her hand way too hard. If she had not removed her hand quickly enough, he would have broken her bones. And she was painfully aware of that. So were the other servants. They had never really liked working for him. But recently, it was getting worse. Thankfully for them, he had found another servant to vent all his anger on.
A few months ago, he had found a way to make the woman he was obsessed about his servant. He had thought that humiliating her would be enough to heal his bruised ego, but it wasn't. In fact, the more he was humiliating and punishing her, the less satisfied he was as he could see the contempt in her eyes. She was resilient and could take any punishment Xue Rui could think of. However, this just pushed him to become more and more vicious until he began to beat on her regularly.
After his discussion with Cao Yun, he was mad, completely enraged. In his heart, there was a fire burning his innards. As he couldn't take his anger out on Guai Mo, he decided to focus on the poor Zhong Ling. Indeed, that servant he was obsessed with was Zhong Ling, the receptionist who had left the Wubei Sect.
Unlike other times, he didn't even accuse her of any transgression, he simply took a bamboo stick and began to strike her back. His strikes were so powerful that her cheap clothes were ripped apart.
Of course, Zhong Ling was a Mortal Warrior so she could take it. In fact, she could probably fight off Xue Rui. Unfortunately, she had other things to consider. She was not free to act as she wished. Knowing that she was resistant, Xue Rui used all of his strength and broke three bamboo sticks on her bare back. In the end, there were barely any marks and it made him even more furious. He wanted her to suffer!
As he was about to use a metal rod, he decided to put it into the fire. Maybe a burning metal against her flesh would finally make her scream in pain. Around him the servants were nervous. Most likely, this wouldn't cause Zhong Ling too much damage. Despite knowing that, they were still seeing a man wielding a blazing rod to strike down a kneeling woman.
Fortunately, before he could strike her with this red rod, salvation came walking through the door. A gorgeous woman entered the chaotic room as Xue Rui's hand was about to fall. She had porcelain-like skin and black hair. With her make-up, it was hard to say whether her skin was that pure. Said make-up was perfect and elegant. Her forehead was decorated with a complicated red shape made of different shades and shadows. That bright red was also accentuating her lips and the corners of her eyes. Finally, her eyebrows were clearly traced with black make-up, a bit higher than her natural eyebrows should have been.
Besides this fine make-up, she was also wearing a sumptuous red and golden robe matching Xue Rui's now disheveled robe. On her head, her hair was very long and complicated as many golden pins and jewels were keeping it up. Some jewelries were looking like flowers made out of gold and precious ores.
Apart from all that ornament, this woman was very gracious and slender. Her forms were not very striking, but she had a natural elegance to her. Anyone would have been struck by her beauty. However, it was clear that she was making a lot of efforts in that direction. Thus, she was extremely proud of the effect she had on others, both men who desired her, and women who were envious.
"Husband?!"
That woman was Qiang Zilan, Xue Rui's first concubine. Although he loved her and knew how delicate she could be, Xue Rui also knew that she was capable of being fierce as well. She was only a middle Mortal as cultivation was not her strong suit. Yet, in that moment, she inspired fear in Xue Rui's heart. It was the fear of disappointing someone he cared about.
Hearing her call him out like that, Xue Rui let go of the metal rod that started to sizzle on the floor. All of a sudden, he was back to his senses. Although Xue Rui had always been petty, he didn't recognize himself from time to time. Until now, he put everything on stress but he was starting to fear something else. Maybe he had gone wrong with his cultivation, maybe he was losing it for real. And that made him terrified. His master had warned him and he knew the risks. But he never thought that he would succumb to them. He wasn't as talented as his brother, so when a shortcut appeared in front of him, he didn't hesitate. Now he was regretting it but it was too late.
Xue Rui went limp on the ground, not knowing what to do. Immediately, Qiang Zilan went to him in order to comfort him. On the other hand, Zhong Ling did not move at all. The punishment had barely hurt her at all but this didn't change much to how she was feeling. Deep down, she was repressing her true feelings as she had to submit to this crazy man. Right now, she had no choice. But as much as she despised Xue Rui, she had to admit that Qiang Zilan was a sweet girl. The two of them were not that different. For similar reasons, they had been forced to make a choice.
While Zhong Ling had been forced to become Xue Rui's servant, Qiang Zilan had been forced to link her fate with someone else's. For reasons unknown to Zhong Ling, she had chosen that disgusting Xue Rui. Apparently, she had found some qualities in him. But try as she might, Zhong Ling was blind to them.
As Xue Rui was still in a strange state, Qiang Zilan asked Zhong Ling to leave the room. Although she said nothing, her eyes told the poor servant that she was sorry about what she had to suffer through. And Zhong Ling knew that she was sincere.
"Husband, I heard what happened."
When Xue Rui heard her clear voice, he froze. In her tone, it was evident she wasn't pleased at all. At the moment she began to speak, she made a gesture. All the servants left the room and closed the door. Before they were far enough, Qiang Zilan began to shout at Xue Rui.
"How could you be so stupid?! Not only did you humiliate yourself in public, you also gave a terrible image of your Xue family. Don't you think people will talk? Soon, the entire Subei Province will know that you were ready to soil the honor of your servants to buy an alchemist. And despite this pathetic attempt, you got slapped in the face. What happened to you?! Recently, you've become more and more rash and irrational! I tied my fate to yours, doesn't that mean anything to you?!"
As though he coming out of a dream, Xue Rui finally regained his composure and his sanity.
"I'm sorry. I thought that he would accept... I was stupid, I admit. But that bastard...! How dare he...?! He... He... He tried to make a fool out of me!"
"And he did an excellent job. You maybe shouldn't have made it so easy for him."
When she spoke, there was no softness in Qiang Zilan's voice. Unfortunately, this was the voice she was forced to take more and more often with her husband. But it worked. Hearing this tone from the woman he thought was so gentle startled Xue Rui back to his senses.
"Husband, this Guai Mo got under your skin. He's clearly trying to make you lose your temper so you fail in your alchemy. If you can't control your emotions, your state of mind will be affected even before the competition. Your very training will be altered and he will have an edge the day of the real competition. Think about it!"
"You... You're right... I lost it, I'm sorry."