Even though Shan Can hadn’t heard much from Wan Shao about her mother, she knew that her mother had passed away many years ago. At this moment, Shan Can couldn’t quite wrap her head around the outlandish idea that Wan Shao was trying to convey. She repeated in confusion, “…You’re saying Tianwaitian found someone who looks like your mother to be the acting sect master?”
“That’s what I mean,” Wan Shao nodded weakly, still struggling to come to terms with it. She emphasized again, “But I haven’t seen it with my own eyes yet.”
Overwhelmed by this sudden and unexpected information, Shan Can couldn’t quite process it. She asked blankly, “What? You haven’t met the new acting sect master of Tianwaitian in the past few years?”
“I have! But when I saw her, it wasn’t my mother’s face that I saw!” Wan Shao, stumbling over her words, gestured clumsily for a while before waving her hand, “That’s why I said it seems like she’s using a disguise—it actually makes sense when I think about it. The mask-making skills I have, I learned them from my mother…”
Seeing that both of them were getting more and more confused, Yun Duan interrupted the fragmented conversation, first asking Wan Shao, “Since you haven’t seen it with your own eyes, where did you get this information? Did someone else see it?”
Wan Shao took a few deep breaths to calm herself down, then nodded seriously and said, “…It’s news from Biluo Huangquan from a few days ago.”
“Tianwaitian has been oppressing the demon clans recently, and Biluo Huangquan was lucky to be spared, but those demons who live in hiding have been relentlessly pursued… A few days ago, a bird demon injured someone during a fight with cultivators. Using this as an excuse, Tianwaitian sent the acting sect master and her followers to the bird demon’s mountain. If Biluo Huangquan hadn’t intervened, the entire hawk clan would’ve been wiped out.”
Wan Shao sighed as she spoke, her tone becoming odd, “You could say they were lucky. Among the hawks, there was a particularly gifted young member with exceptional vision, able to see through many illusions. The first time he saw the acting sect master of Tianwaitian… he accidentally saw her true face.”
Shan Can listened intently, furrowing her brows as she asked, “Was he the only one who saw it?”
Understanding that Shan Can’s question implied doubt about the accuracy of the claim, Wan Shao first nodded, then quickly shook her head and said gravely, “I thought the same when I first heard the news. My mother has been dead for so many years, and her life lamp had clearly gone out. There’s no way this could be connected to Tianwaitian. But this matter is too important, so I didn’t dare to be careless. A few days ago, I gathered the flower demon clan to discuss it.”
“Although we couldn’t go back to that day’s scene, you know that flower demons are skilled in crafting potions.” Wan Shao tapped the sachet at her waist, and the sound of clinking bottles could be heard. “Yuan Ge and I have been working on a potion called ‘Dream Incense.’ Its effect is to allow one to glimpse the memories of the user.”
“While memories are vast and complex, usually only the most profound and unforgettable ones surface, often appearing strange and incoherent. But we’ve improved it over several days with the help of the flower demons, and with the cooperation of that hawk, I was finally able to see his memory of that day.”
Wan Shao’s expression shifted repeatedly, and in the end, she frowned miserably, weakly saying, “…Damn it, that face really was my mother’s.”
“…”
Even though Shan Can had anticipated this result from Wan Shao’s earlier behavior, the information still left her head buzzing. She and Wan Shao exchanged silent glances for a long time, unable to say anything. Finally, Yun Duan calmly asked, “Can the authenticity of the memory be confirmed? Could it be that the hawk saw an illusion?”
“…That, I don’t know. But at least the scene I saw through the potion was identical to what the hawk saw that day,” Wan Shao slumped dejectedly, her face full of confusion as she muttered, “It really was exactly the same. I’m not lying. My mother had a mole here, and that person had the exact same mole…”
She pointed to a spot below her eye, then quickly raised her hand to cover her face, sighing, “If I didn’t know for sure that my mother was dead, with her appearance and ability to disguise herself, I’d almost suspect that she really did defect to Tianwaitian.”
Shan Can closed her eyes in response to her friend’s exasperated cries. She had never seen the rumored new acting sect master, so she turned to Yun Duan and asked, “Have you met her?”
“I’ve seen her a few times,” Yun Duan said, but since she had been preoccupied with Shan Can’s recovery in recent days, she hadn’t paid much attention to the acting sect master. She shook her head, “But we didn’t talk much. I remember her being a rather mysterious and reserved person. As for her appearance…”
She pondered for a moment, then lightly touched the area under Shan Can’s eye, speaking softly, “She doesn’t look like Wan Shao, and there’s no mole here.”
“Exactly,” Wan Shao, still lying dejectedly to the side, said. “I’ve seen her too, but if it weren’t for the hawk’s discovery, who would have thought… Do you think this could all just be a coincidence?”
There were many ways to convince themselves that this was just a coincidence, but Shan Can furrowed her brows and exchanged a serious look with Yun Duan. Yun Duan’s hand, which had been gently caressing Shan Can’s face, dropped to hold Shan Can’s clenched hand, her calm voice breaking the silence.
“Now that I think about it, the whole matter of the new acting sect master has always been rather strange.”
Yun Duan’s eyes flickered as she spoke thoughtfully, “I’ve never paid much attention to Tianwaitian, since it’s another sect’s business. But this acting sect master does seem rather unusual… All I’ve heard is that she’s the sect master’s top disciple, but before this, she was almost unheard of.”
She looked up at Shan Can, took a deep breath, and said, “Now that I think about it, I want to investigate—how did this almost anonymous disciple suddenly become the acting sect master of Tianwaitian?”
“…It’s true that her appointment was rather abrupt, but it’s not like there was no mention of her before,” Chu Ming, who had been invited to help gather information, furrowed his brows in confusion as he recalled, “I’d heard about her a few times before, but nothing significant. As for how she became the acting sect master this time…”
He shrugged in defeat, “I found it strange too, but Tianwaitian didn’t seem to have any objections, and it’s their internal matter, so we outsiders didn’t have much to say.”
“And about this whole matter of her using a disguise…” Chu Ming glanced cautiously at Shan Can, who was still talking to Wan Shao in disbelief, before carefully asking, “…Is it possible that it’s just a case of mistaken identity or simply someone who looks similar? This… this is a big deal…”
“…If this wasn’t tangled up with so many other strange things, I might be able to think like you,” Yun Duan sighed softly, standing up. Her gaze also landed on Shan Can as she said quietly, “Do you know what we were just asking?”
Chu Ming blinked in confusion, and Yun Duan’s lips pressed together tightly. She sighed softly, “Shan Can just asked Wan Shao when her mother died. Wan Shao said she couldn’t remember exactly, but it was at least thirty years ago.”
Chu Ming, who hadn’t been sensitive to this timeline, didn’t immediately react, but Yun Duan’s elegant, cold eyes narrowed as she muttered in a low voice, “…The sect master of Tianwaitian also went into seclusion around that time, didn’t she?”
“We asked our master about Yu Jiu before. She said that although they didn’t interact much, Yu Jiu was a strict person—meticulous in her actions and extremely dedicated to cultivation. Her decision to enter seclusion came very suddenly and was uncharacteristically unprepared for someone like her.”
“Nearly the same timeframe—Biluo Huangquan’s demon lord died, and Tianwaitian’s sect master went into seclusion…” Yun Duan murmured, her eyes lowering, “And now we suddenly have a disciple who looks exactly like the demon lord…”
Chu Ming stood there, dumbfounded, unable to say a word. Yun Duan let out a soft sigh, shaking her head quietly, “Whether or not this is related to Tianwaitian’s upcoming Daoist Assembly or the events involving us, the more we know now, the harder it seems to stay uninvolved.”
“…Ah Can and I might try to find a way to meet the sect master who is currently in seclusion, and after that…”
The unfinished sentence hung in the air as Yun Duan silently tightened her grip on the hilt of her sword, Wu You, which rested at her waist. She lifted her gaze to the boundless sky, her eyes cold and distant, filled with unspeakable thoughts.
Although the day to reopen the Dao Debate Conference had yet to arrive, Shang Can was already feeling restless. The group set out together for Yan Yang.
“…I think we should carefully reconsider this,” Chu Ming grumbled, feeling responsible for trying to hold the reins, “I’ve heard that the Sect Master Yu Jiu’s cultivation is unparalleled, probably the strongest in centuries. You shouldn’t go knocking on her door looking for trouble.”
Shang Can pouted and leaned on Yun Duan’s shoulder. “And yet here’s the first flawless celestial body in centuries. If we’re keeping track, I might just be the only half-demon in thousands of years—guaranteed the Sect Master’s never seen that before.”
Chu Ming was about to lecture them with more earnest advice when Yun Duan, who was usually so sensible, stroked Shang Can’s hair and casually added, “And if we end up fighting and can’t win, no worries. At least Ah Can can be reborn again after a Nirvana cycle.”
“Nir-what?” Shang Can lazily closed her eyes and wrinkled Yun Duan’s perfectly smooth robes. “If it comes to that, I’ll just die with this life’s memories. There’s always a way out.”
Though the two of them were clearly joking, Chu Ming somehow sensed a layer of sincerity underneath. Alarmed, he quickly interrupted, “Let’s avoid any fighting! Please don’t die!”
“Die? Can’t you say something more auspicious?” Wan Shao, who had been feeling increasingly emotional as if she were going to meet her mother, scolded Chu Ming unreasonably. Then, she turned and glared at Shang Can. “Stop flirting! When it comes to it, I’ll just heal you both!”
Shang Can couldn’t help but laugh. “Sure, if a fight breaks out, it’ll be in revenge for your mother anyway. I won’t bother thanking you.”
Wan Shao glared at her before wilting again, sighing gloomily. “…I still find it hard to believe that Yu Jiu might be the one who killed my mother—the same person who disguised herself as a friendly cultivator.”
But soon after, she seemed to come to terms with it. “On second thought, it makes sense. No wonder my mother was always secretive and hiding things. If the elders of Bi Luo Huang Quan knew the demon lord was on friendly terms with the sect master of Tian Wai Tian, they would have talked about it for days. If I were in her shoes, I wouldn’t have said anything either.”
Chu Ming, who knew the least about these matters, listened attentively and finally asked in a small voice, “…But, but if Yu Jiu really killed your mother, why didn’t she ever mention it? I mean, in the world of cultivators, the fact that the Tian Wai Tian sect master killed the demon lord of Bi Luo Huang Quan would be considered a great achievement…”
Thinking along those lines, Shang Can didn’t bother to guess any further. After all, if Yu Jiu had hidden this and even found someone who looked identical to her to serve as the sect’s head disciple, it was hard to believe nothing had happened between them. She simply said, “Didn’t we come to Yan Yang to figure all this out? Let’s start by paying a visit to that rumored acting sect master at Tian Wai Tian.”
Chu Ming, still frowning, reluctantly nodded. “That might be better. Visiting the acting sect master Qing Lian Jun should be easier than trying to see the reclusive sect master.”
Upon hearing an unfamiliar name, Shang Can sat up straight, startled. “Qing Lian what?”
“Qing Lian Jun,” Chu Ming repeated, startled by her reaction. “Since Tian Wai Tian reveres the lotus, I heard that the sect master held this disciple in high regard and named her after Qing Lian Lake. Why? What’s the matter?”
Shang Can’s expression changed several times before she turned to look at Wan Shao. “…If we’re being honest, it could just be a coincidence. But I seem to remember you mentioning that your family…”
Wan Shao immediately understood what she was hinting at. Her face paled a little more as she dryly responded, “…It’s nothing, really. Just that my family—my mother and I—we’re both lotus demons.”
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