Looking at Silly Shizun’s clumsy and awkward appearance, several black lines appeared on Chen Qing’s forehead.
This Silly Shizun really intended to perform the apprenticeship ceremony toward her.
Although this Silly Shizun was a bit dim-witted, she was already her Shizun, so she definitely couldn’t take Chen Qing as her master again.
Su Mu had no idea about this. For such a solemn ritual as the apprenticeship ceremony, she had only poured tea for Chen Qing to butter her up and learn a couple more tricks.
Su Mu carefully held the teacup and offered it to Chen Qing.
Chen Qing didn’t take Su Mu’s tea. Instead, she flicked her on the forehead.
She hadn’t used much force, but Su Mu still felt a little aggrieved.
This damn Villain was too hard to please. She had proactively poured tea for her, yet she still got flicked.
Next time, she would definitely swap the tea for scalding hot water and burn this damn Villain.
While Su Mu was still plotting how to get revenge on Chen Qing, Ye Qinglian and Wu Ran, who were also outside, returned to the inn.
As soon as they got back to the inn, they spotted the White Lotus Cultist whom Chen Qing had captured.
“These White Lotus Cult people are surprisingly so impatient.”
Looking at the White Lotus Cultist who was tied up tightly, Wu Ran was somewhat surprised.
She had thought it would take at least several days to lure out the White Lotus Cult members.
Moreover, the White Lotus Cult should have targeted Her Highness, the Imperial Princess.
Unexpectedly, both of her guesses were wrong. Not only had the White Lotus Cult eagerly jumped out today, but they hadn’t targeted Her Highness at all.
However, although Wu Ran found it a bit strange, Chen Qing had intentionally kept quiet about the White Lotus Cult’s special attention to Silly Shizun.
Wu Ran pondered for a long time and could only conclude that although the White Lotus Cult members were arrogant, they still didn’t dare target an Imperial Princess.
After discussing among themselves, they decided on the next plan.
Chen Qing and Su Mu would pretend to be captured sacrifices and infiltrate the White Lotus Cult Lair to rescue the abducted girls.
Ye Qinglian and Wu Ran would provide support from outside. Using Ye Qinglian’s identity as the Imperial Princess, they would rally forces and, upon receiving the signal from Su Mu and the others about the White Lotus Cult Lair’s location, wipe out the White Lotus Cult in one go.
This plan satisfied all three of them.
Wu Ran’s greatest principle was to ensure Ye Qinglian’s safety no matter what.
Ye Qinglian also knew she wouldn’t be much help if she sneaked in, so it was better to gather forces she could use from outside. Ensuring her own survival was her top priority as well.
For Chen Qing, the White Lotus Cult’s special attention to Silly Shizun weighed heavily on her mind; she had to get to the bottom of it.
If Ye Qinglian joined them in infiltrating, she would only be a hindrance.
So splitting up now was the best course of action.
Only Su Mu stared blankly as they hashed out the plan’s details.
As she listened, she grew bored, lowered her head to sip the hot tea in her hand to stave off the tedium, and let her mind go completely blank the whole time.
“So that’s settled then. Senior, when do you plan to move out?”
“Right now. The White Lotus Cult is powerful; we have to act fast.”
Why the White Lotus Cult had shown special attention to this Silly Shizun was like a thorn in Chen Qing’s heart.
Since her rebirth, this was the first time something had slipped beyond her control. She had to resolve it as quickly as possible.
Ye Qinglian hadn’t expected Chen Qing to be in such a hurry.
But Chen Qing had a point, so even though they had only just rested at the inn for a short while, the group set off again.
Su Mu picked up the teapot, preparing to pour herself another cup to taste.
The tea was a bit bitter going down, but it actually tasted pretty good.
“How about we pack up the teapot and take it with us?”
Seeing Silly Shizun’s leisurely demeanor, Chen Qing couldn’t help but complain.
“Can we take this teapot too?”
Su Mu was a bit surprised as she looked at the exquisite teapot in her hand.
She hadn’t realized that booking a room came with such a nice freebie.
“Whatever.”
The exasperated Chen Qing dragged Su Mu to the room where the White Lotus Cultist was being held.
At that moment, the White Lotus Cultist was struggling desperately, trying to saw through the ropes binding her wrists against the corner of the wall.
When Chen Qing and Su Mu pushed the door open and entered, the White Lotus Cultist’s expression instantly turned awkward.
“I’ve been tied up for so long that my hands and feet are sore. Just loosening up a bit.”
Chen Qing eyed the escaping White Lotus Cultist with an icy gaze and pulled out the Small Porcelain Bottle from her bosom.
Su Mu recognized it at a glance—this was the bottle she had used to store the Gu Worms.
This damn Villain wouldn’t use her own Gu Worms to intimidate this White Lotus Cultist, would she?
Facts proved that Su Mu’s guess was correct.
Chen Qing uncorked the bottle, revealing the blue Gu Worms inside.
Upon seeing the oddly colored little bugs in the porcelain bottle, the White Lotus Cultist’s heart instantly filled with unease.
“I assume you’ve heard of Gu Worms. Once they crawl into your body, they’ll make your life a living hell.”
“I-I’ll listen! Tell me to do anything, and I’ll do it!”
The White Lotus Cultist was spineless to begin with, and now she faced the Gu Worms—one of Jianghu’s Three Great Evils.
According to rumors, once targeted by those terrifying Gu Masters, who implanted Gu Worms into your body, a single whistle from the Gu Master would make the worms go berserk, devouring your flesh and blood until you died in agony.
She had zero interest in experiencing what it felt like to be eaten alive by Gu Worms.
Seeing the terror in the White Lotus Cultist’s eyes, Chen Qing knew the intimidation had succeeded.
She was just about to cork the bottle when the Gu Worms, catching the bloody scent on the White Lotus Cultist, suddenly darted out of the Small Porcelain Bottle, landed on her skin, and burrowed inside in no time.
“Hey, they’ve gone in! I was wrong, I was wrong! I’ve really told you everything I know!”
The White Lotus Cultist could clearly feel the Gu Worms biting a small hole in her skin and wriggling inside.
Thinking Chen Qing meant to eliminate her now that she was no longer useful, she was on the verge of kneeling and begging for mercy.
Meanwhile, Chen Qing watched the whole time as the Gu Worms burrowed into the White Lotus Cultist’s body.
Leaving the Gu Worms in this cultist’s body served as an extreme deterrent for her.
After all, since she had surrendered so quickly, there was a good chance she’d betray them the moment they infiltrated.
With those Gu Worms inside her, the cultist wouldn’t dare pull any tricks.
However, Chen Qing was still worried about one thing: these Gu Worms were far too hard to control.
Silly Shizun had only fed them for a few days and might not be able to handle them.
Moreover, she had no intention of letting Silly Shizun practice with Gu Worms, let alone study Gu Control Techniques.
That said, although Chen Qing didn’t want Su Mu practicing with Gu Worms, Su Mu had already secretly picked up a little on her own.
The moment the Gu Worms burrowed into the White Lotus Cultist’s body, Su Mu wanted to test whether the Gu Control Technique Miao Qing had taught her actually worked.
But upon seeing Chen Qing’s blood-red eyes, Su Mu temporarily shelved the idea.
This damn Villain wouldn’t let her learn Gu Techniques. Displaying a Gu Control Technique right in front of her would be throwing herself into the lion’s den.
Seeing the hesitant flicker in Silly Shizun’s eyes, Chen Qing knew she had already learned the Gu Control Technique.
