Chapter 16: The Search (V) Part 1

◎An Era Destined to Belong to You Two◎

That venomous glare stabbed over, nearly making one’s scalp tingle.

Yan Guixing did not want this spotless immortal to suffer filthy words because of her.

She thought to walk out, but saw the person before her unobtrusively block her from view.

Before her eyes were ink-black, flowing tresses. Beneath that dark color were meticulously embroidered patterns on fine clothing, silver-white and refined.

Yan Guixing slowly raised her head. The woman’s shoulder line was not broad; it was delicate and gentle, yet it inexplicably made one steadfastly believe that she was very powerful and could solve all problems.

Her brow smoothed. Yan Guixing took a small step forward, drawing a little closer to her.

Seeing her determined to protect the girl, Lady Yan was full of resentment in her heart, yet she dared not say anything harsher.

Even if she was impulsive and foul-mouthed, speaking without thinking, she still remembered what Immortal Lord Qingyang had said: this was a person they could not afford to provoke.

True enough—just looking at her, she was no ordinary person. She must be from a vast, great clan.

This kind of person, born possessing everything, was so lucky it was hateful.

Yun Jinxue watched her quietly, not missing a single flicker of emotion. She felt like laughing but held it in.

She asked once more. “Will you show the way?”

Lady Yan squeezed out a smile. “Of course. Immortal Lord, please follow me.”

The Yan household appeared to be a cultural wasteland; even the plants grew in a terribly unrefined manner. Yet there was still a study, hidden deep within, veiled by layers of green, like an upside-down emerald bowl.

Two attendants stood guard at the study door, standing face to face.

Immortal Lord Qingyang also stood before the door, as if protecting the law, but Yun Jinxue saw clearly: he had clearly just been squinting, dozing off.

Catching sight of the arrivals, his skinny fingers pinched, and he hastily assumed an otherworldly, Daoist demeanor.

The door was not closed. A thick, cloying incense drifted out, like a dense net, making one uncomfortable.

Lady Yan tossed her sleeves and walked into the study, her eyes boring toward the gauze curtain. “The great Immortal Lord has arrived. Won’t you come out to greet her?”

The gauze curtain stirred, and a plump, stout man emerged from behind it, oily-faced and fat-headed, his eyes narrow and long. “Who is it?”

Yun Jinxue stood outside the threshold and nodded slightly. “I come from the Divine Zenith Sect to help investigate the matter of the missing jade ornament.”

She herself found it laughable just saying it. Such a trifling matter, yet it could be brought to court for a trial. The money paid to the magistrate was probably worth more than that item.

Yan Hui’s eyes widened. “Oh my, this…”

He glanced at Lady Yan, rubbed his hands together. “Aiyo, why trouble the Immortal Lord with such a small matter? Come, come.”

He briskly lifted the gauze curtain and ushered the people inside. “It’s all here, all here.”

This fawning posture was like a thorn, stabbing into Lady Yan’s eye, making her entire body uncomfortable and her eyes full of violent malice.

Under that file-like gaze, Yun Jinxue walked to the desk.

The study was not particularly large, piled high with things, leaving little room to step. The desktop was the same—brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones were crammed head to head, foot to foot. Only a rectangular strip of space was empty.

That must have been the spot for the jade ornament.

The original work described this plotline in detail, including Elder Yan He’s process of judging the case, so the outcome was known from the start.

That jade ornament of a golden toad holding a coin in its mouth was at this very moment in the rockery of Lady Yan’s back garden. Yun Jinxue just had to mimic the Elder’s reasoning a bit.

Transmigrating was like entering a film crew. The most honed skill turned out to be acting. She should just go back later and sign with a talent agency to debut.

Immortal Lord Qingyang stroked his long beard and followed in as well, standing silently in the corner, seemingly wanting to see how she would operate.

Lady Yan gained an extra measure of confidence the moment she saw him.

She couldn’t distinguish between those confusing concepts of immortal cultivation sects, nor did she understand that immortals could also differ vastly from one another. Immortals were immortals, right? How big a difference could there be?

Her disgust for this beautiful Immortal Lord who had appeared out of nowhere was extreme. Naturally, she wouldn’t stay silent for long, her fury needing an opportunity to erupt.

“Immortal Lord, we are all ordinary commonfolk. We trusted you, which is why we let you into our home. If later we find something’s not right, or if you deliberately protect this lowly brat, we will report this to the Demon Inspectorate. Don’t let things get ugly then.”

Hearing this, Yun Jinxue’s expression turned slightly cold. “Yan Guixing has her own name.”

Lady Yan fiddled with her pearl hairpin, snorted lightly, and said no more.

It looked like, no matter what, she intended to find a pretext later to drag the person to the Inspectorate.

Yun Jinxue raised an eyebrow slightly and found it amusing.

If this were before she transmigrated, she might have had scruples and endured. But now, in the cultivation world where laws were weak, and possessing a body full of spiritual power—did she still need to endure such a minor pawn?

She was willing to become cannon fodder for the female lead and the villain, but that didn’t mean just anyone could walk all over her. Did this kind of petty character dare to cause trouble again and again?

She couldn’t beat the monster from Spring Crossing, but could she not deal with you?

Having initially planned to simplify the process, Yun Jinxue changed her mind. She tapped her fingertip on the empty space of the desk and drove a wisp of spiritual power into its surface.

A moment later, a faintly blue glowing spirit figurine climbed out of the table, waved to Yun Jinxue, then jumped off the desk, somersaulted, and flew out of the room.

Yun Jinxue said, “Let’s go. Let’s see where that jade ornament is at this moment.”

Yan Hui followed eagerly behind her. “Right, right, right, let’s quickly go see where it is.”

Lady Yan had never seen this trick before. She hurriedly asked in a low voice, “Immortal Lord Qingyang, what is that?”

Immortal Lord Qingyang was even more astonished than she was. He marveled inwardly—as expected of a rumored great sect. Such a technique was unheard of in the martial world.

After swindling and cheating for so long, now that he’d met a true expert with real ability, he only wanted to find an opportunity to slip away quickly, lest his complete lack of talent be discovered.

However, what he didn’t know was that this so-called object-seeking skill was merely Yun Jinxue putting on a show. If she wanted to find something whose location she already knew, any random method would do.

The spirit figurine’s goal was clear. It bypassed one residence after another, drifting lightly. If the group behind walked too fast and couldn’t keep up, it would simply lie down on a leaf and raise its head, waiting.

Following it slowly like this, the closer they got, the higher Lady Yan’s heart rose.

At the time, she hadn’t expected this outcome. After taking out the jade ornament, she had casually tossed it into her own courtyard.

If it really guided them to her room, how would she explain herself later?

She wanted to turn around and ask Immortal Lord Qingyang, but behind her was empty—the man had already vanished.

Just as she was frantic with anxiety, the group had already arrived before her residence.

Normally arrogant beyond measure, she had piled many nice things in front of her home. The small garden path leading to the inner residence was even inlaid with lustrous, colorful stones. Several servants were kneeling on the ground, wiping them clean.

Yan Hui looked around and only now realized. “Isn’t this where you live? Wife?”

Lady Yan, who had been cowering in fear moments before, bristled again upon hearing this. “So you still recognize I am your wife?”

The moment you see someone pretty, you stick to them like glue, your eyes practically growing on someone else’s face. Completely impossible to live with. Whose husband acts like this?

Yan Hui said, “Aiyo, what kind of talk is that?”

Yun Jinxue stopped before the residence’s gate and deliberately asked, “The object is likely within here. Whose room is this?”

Lady Yan stammered for a moment. “M-mine.”

Yun Jinxue gave a meaningful, “Oh.” “Then may we go in?”

Lady Yan said, “…Fine.”

Yun Jinxue did not spare her another glance. She directly stepped over the threshold and walked inside, winding all the way to the back garden. Amidst the murmuring water, she stepped across decorative rockery stones to the water’s center. Her slender fingers reached beneath the surface and fished out a dripping-wet Golden Toad Jade Platform.

The jade platform was not heavy, disproportionate to its volume. It was merely a pile of scrap material.

Lady Yan had used this as an excuse to persecute Yan Guixing. The reason she used was just as false and worthless as this object.

Yun Jinxue returned to the water’s edge and held the jade platform up in front of Yan Hui. “Is this it?”

Yan Hui’s gaze didn’t move, glued to her face. “Yes, that’s it. The Immortal Lord is truly divinely capable! Why not stay at the Yan residence and join us for…”

Yun Jinxue looked at Lady Yan. “Does Guixing usually have the opportunity to come over to this side?”

Yan Hui cut in, “No opportunity. That lass lives elsewhere.”

Yun Jinxue said, “In that case, it is clear that the one who stole it was not Guixing.”

Yan Hui agreed, “Right, it shouldn’t be her. That kid’s usually quite well-behaved.”

Yun Jinxue turned her head and looked at Lady Yan, not speaking.

Lady Yan’s face flushed purple. She glared furiously but, regrettably, had no grounds to explode. After witnessing this divine ability, she dared even less to say anything and could only say, quite meekly, “Then maybe I was mistaken.”