The instant she was ambushed, Yin Luan jolted awake and instinctively prepared to unleash a Snake Fist on her attacker.
But when she saw the familiar arm, she froze. Far from striking back, she even loosened her collar a little and gazed at the intruder with vulnerable eyes that pleaded, “You have to cherish me properly.”
The other’s mouth twitched. She released her hold and pinched Yin Luan’s cheeks twice.
“The timing for a night raid is a bit late. Earlier, and I could’ve gone along with it…”
Little Snake said shyly.
“Shh.”
Du Xuan made a silencing gesture and pointed toward the window.
Yin Luan rubbed her eyes, threw on her clothes, and peered out alongside her.
The streets were deserted by day, but at midnight, scattered pedestrians roamed about.
With no lamps lit and only moonlight to guide them, the figures seemed to wander without purpose. They brushed past one another without so much as a word.
“How’d you spot it?” Yin Luan whispered into her companion’s ear. “Can’t sleep? You’re not seriously planning to raid me at night, are you?”
“Be serious,” Du Xuan replied, her cheeks faintly flushed. “I drank too much water during the day… Let’s go check it out. We might discover something from these people.”
“But I don’t feel like moving at night…”
“Then you’ll stay up here alone?”
“Better to stick together!”
The nights had grown a touch warmer lately. It wasn’t exactly cozy, but at least they wouldn’t freeze solid like a snake-sicle.
Once dressed, the pair crept downstairs on light feet.
They were just about to step out when a raspy voice sounded from behind.
“Two guests… out so late?”
Yin Luan and Du Xuan both jumped, the latter whipping half her sword from its sheath.
“Inn Proprietress,” the Demon Subduing Division Lord said, her scalp prickling, “next time, could you talk to us from the front?”
And in the dead of night, you weren’t sleeping—instead haunting the empty lobby, minding the shop?
They hadn’t even made it outside, and already they’d been spooked once.
The night breeze was chilly; the streets, chillier still.
Wandering pedestrians of every stripe—men and women, young and old—drifted along. Their faces were as deathly pale as the inn proprietress’s, slathered in what might have been corpse paint.
The two slipped into the throng, hoping to figure out what these people were doing.
“Still no traces of evil qi?”
Yin Luan murmured.
“None,” Du Xuan shook her head. “Their spirits are abnormally feeble, but there’s no sign of any spell at work.”
In other words, this behavior wasn’t forced by some outside influence—it was voluntary? But what normal person wandered the streets at random in the dead of night?
They didn’t dare approach anyone for a chat. These folks didn’t look much like the conversational type.
Suddenly.
“You two.”
A stranger’s voice cut in from behind, out of nowhere.
Clang!
This time Du Xuan couldn’t hold back. She yanked her sword free in a flash, grinding her teeth as she hissed—voice low as she could manage—
“I said, don’t talk to me from behind!”
“Sor… ry…”
The speaker was a man of advancing years, his temples half-silvered and his frame slightly stooped.
“Sorry about that,” Yin Luan said, pressing down on the Demon Subduing Division Lord’s arm with a forced smile. “My companion startles easily… Was there something you needed?”
“Um…”
The elder reacted sluggishly, pausing ages before he replied.
“Are you travelers from out of town? Here to buy pottery and jars?”
Du Xuan drew a pair of steadying breaths, reined in her temper, and sheathed her blade. She shot Yin Luan a meaningful glance.
Peddling in the wee hours?
What were you doing all day?
“Yes,” Yin Luan said. “We just got here and haven’t bought a thing yet.”
“I see… I know a place with goods for sale. Top-quality stuff. Care to take a look?”
The elder spoke in a slow drawl.
Top-quality, huh?
“…Lead the way.”
Those with superior skill need fear nothing (barring Little Snake, of course). If trouble brewed, they could always make a run for it—their valuables were all on their persons anyway.
They followed the elder in silence to a wide-open expanse.
Deserted by day, the spot now hosted a slew of stalls.
Anyone with a weak heart would’ve bolted on sight…
No outsiders in the whole city, and here were all these stalls? For whose benefit?
Du Xuan kept her guard up as she approached the nearest one.
Strange as it all was, the pottery on offer turned out to be of unexpectedly fine quality.
Though Earthstone City was renowned for its pottery, its fame extended little beyond East County. Du Xuan, who had lived in the Royal Capital Imperial City, had seen the finest works in the Great Zhou Kingdom and could easily tell good from bad.
Even in the eyes of the most fastidious merchants in the Imperial City, the items before her would be worth acquiring.
The stall owners showed no reaction to the arrival of customers, not even lifting their heads, leaving one to wonder if they were truly selling anything at all.
“Please keep moving forward,” the elder said. “These things are only for our own people.”
They pressed on.
Deeper inside, the stalls held fewer items, but their quality steadily improved. A few pieces even rivaled the tributes offered to the imperial family.
Strange— if Earthstone City could produce pottery this fine, wouldn’t the local authorities have reported it long ago? If it could supply the court, the city’s residents might never worry about food or clothing again.
“These barely qualify,” the elder said once more.
The bizarre situation had left the two women with numb scalps, and for a moment, they forgot to respond.
“If you’re not satisfied,” the elder continued on his own, “there are even better ones ahead.”
Even better?
Du Xuan started in surprise.
The elder led them to the finest stall at the center.
There sat a dozen or so pieces of pottery, ranging from palm-sized to half as tall as a person. Each was exquisitely crafted, breathtakingly beautiful— a full grade above the tribute-level items they had seen earlier.
The Demon Subduing Division Lord suppressed her inner shock and asked, “May I touch them?”
The stall owner nodded mechanically.
She reached out and gently placed her hand on the pottery jar.
“Eek——!!!!!”
In an instant, a piercing scream exploded in Du Xuan’s mind. Her body felt crushed under a thousand-jun weight, rendering her immobile!
Yin Luan watched as her companion, upon touching the pottery jar, froze completely—motionless, her expression and gaze unchanged. Sensing something was wrong, Yin Luan snatched her sword and slashed hard at the jar.
Bang—!
The sound of shattering rang out, starkly clear in the eerie silence of the city.
In the next moment, every stall owner, passerby, and even the elder who had led them there turned their gazes toward Yin Luan.
A faint, intangible force seemed to converge from all directions, poised to devour the two women.
“Hmph.”
The Snake Demon let out a soft snort, and the eerie pressure vanished instantly, as if it had never existed.
At the same time, Du Xuan snapped back to awareness, drenched in sweat. She staggered backward and collapsed to the ground.
“This thing…”
She pointed at the fragments of the pottery jar.
“How was it made?”
