Chapter 75: The Master of the Eastern Market

Su Xiqiu was the first immortal master that Song Ye met upon arriving in this world, as well as the first cultivator he encountered. The invitation to Xuanqing Palace that Su Xiqiu had given him back then still lay in his game inventory. Fortunately, his game inventory was spacious enough, and he had thought that perhaps the invitation might be useful to Song Yan in the future; otherwise, he would have discarded it long ago.

A group of people accompanied Su Xiqiu, but Song Ye could only recognize two among them: Immortal Master Gu Xi of Mooncatcher Sect and her disciple, Duan Ling. The rest seemed to come from the Seven Stars Sect, Divine Wind Sect, and Tianxi Sect. Judging from their imposing presence, it appeared as if Su Xiqiu, the leader of Xuanqing Palace, was leading this band on some kind of crusade.

Zhang Zixuan was not among them. It was likely that, given her experience and strength, she was not yet qualified to accompany her master in such confrontations—she couldn’t even stand by to add moral support.

Given this situation, and as the “person in charge” of this street, Song Ye naturally felt compelled to find out what was going on.

“What brings you distinguished immortal masters to Yan City?” Song Ye stepped forward and inquired.

Su Xiqiu was momentarily taken aback to see Song Ye appear before her dressed in an official constable’s uniform. She had not expected that the rustic youth who once tended the tea stall could now hold such a position. The well-fitted uniform enhanced his already striking features.

Pushing aside these distracting thoughts, Su Xiqiu replied, “I have come to vanquish a demon!”

“A demon?” Song Ye was startled. “But the East Market is filled with nothing more than peddlers and vendors. What demon could there be?”

At this moment, Duan Ling, standing behind Gu Xi, poked his head out and quietly reminded Song Ye, “Brother Song, this is the Bloodsword Demon Lord I mentioned to you before.”

Indeed, just in the past few days, both Duan Ling and Zhang Zixuan had separately brought up the name of the Bloodsword Demon Lord to him.

“Master Su, there’s no need to waste time here speaking with a mere constable. Slaying the demon is urgent—if we delay, unforeseen changes might occur!” interjected a gaunt middle-aged man with a sharp face, a small tuft of beard on his chin, a longsword strapped to his back, and a brown robe adorned with seven golden stars.

He was clearly a member of the Seven Stars Sect. Song Ye had heard Zhang Zixuan mention this sect before: the Seven Stars Sect was one of the rare sword sects, with all disciples practicing sword cultivation. Since sword cultivators were scarce to begin with, the sect's numbers were not large, but each disciple possessed considerable strength.

Thus, though their ranks were few, the Seven Stars Sect was far from weak.

Song Ye swiftly used his investigative tool to assess the bearded man’s cultivation level.

[Zhou Zhengyang: Fifth Stage of the Void Spirit Realm]

Evidently, this sharp-faced Zhou Zhengyang was of immortal master caliber—his strength had already reached the Void Spirit Realm.

While he was at it, Song Ye decided to check Su Xiqiu’s level. Though Su Xiqiu had been the first immortal master he met, he hadn’t unlocked the “Realm Investigation” feature at the time, and so had never known the depths of her cultivation.

[Su Xiqiu: Seventh Stage of the Skybreaking Realm]

To his astonishment, Su Xiqiu was already at the seventh stage of the Skybreaking Realm. No wonder she ranked forty-eighth on the list of immortal figures. If she managed to break through two more minor realms, she could attempt to ascend to the Undying Realm.

Those at the Undying Realm could travel to Xuanji Mountain to vie for the seat of honor. In other words, reaching the Undying Realm was a ticket to Xuanji Mountain. If one passed the Immortal Sovereign Trial there, they would be bestowed the most prestigious title in the immortal sects—Immortal Sovereign!

Becoming an Immortal Sovereign was Su Xiqiu’s greatest desire at this moment, and thus she would not allow anything to disturb her cultivation or unsettle her heart at this critical juncture.

Two years ago, her foolish disciple Pang Anwang had gone so far as to confess his affections to her. After her sharp rebuke, he had descended into depravity, betraying the immortals and joining the demons. Fortunately, she had acted decisively, ending Pang Anwang’s life with a dagger and swiftly stabilizing her heart, so that her will for cultivation would not be distracted by trivial matters of love.

Song Ye had been one of the witnesses to her killing her disciple. To this day, he remembered the scene vividly.

“Song Ye, we are tracking down the whereabouts of a notorious demon lord. If you’re not afraid of death, you may come along,” Su Xiqiu said, then led the group to the entrance of an alley beside the East Market.

A disciple beside her whispered, “Master, according to our informant, the Bloodsword Demon Lord entered this alley yesterday. But the informant was too timid to follow him inside, so he doesn’t know which house the demon entered.”

Song Ye had visited this alley himself just yesterday—Murong Qingyi lived here.

At this moment, Su Xiqiu said, “The Bloodsword Demon Lord was gravely wounded and may still be hiding within. I ask everyone to suppress your cultivation so as not to alert him to our presence.”

Accordingly, everyone followed her instructions, restraining their internal energy and making sure no spiritual aura leaked out. Naturally, Song Ye, who had no cultivation to begin with, had no need to bother.

Once inside the alley, Su Xiqiu immediately locked onto her target, halting outside Uncle Shuisheng’s courtyard.

Murong Qingyi was the current resident there. Song Ye himself had seen her there just the day before.

“The Bloodsword Demon is no longer here,” Su Xiqiu announced coldly, “but there is a strong scent of sword blood in this courtyard. His sword has drawn blood here, which means he was indeed in this house.”

With that, Su Xiqiu raised her hand and struck open the courtyard gate, leading the group in single file.

At that moment, Murong Qingyi was in the kitchen, pondering how to refine another batch of pills. The tiny kitchen doubled as her alchemy room. Hearing the commotion in the courtyard, she rushed out, only to find the small yard suddenly crowded with people, all of whom appeared to be formidable. Her expression grew anxious.

She wondered if this was retribution—that after the old man had taken three Blood Marrow Pills from her yesterday and died suddenly at home, his family had now come to demand justice.

Su Xiqiu, seeing Murong Qingyi’s guilty demeanor, immediately questioned her, “Speak! What is your relationship with the Bloodsword Demon Lord?”

“The Bloodsword Demon Lord? The one who owns the Demon Spirit Sword?” Murong Qingyi’s innocent eyes widened. “I’ve only ever seen him in the illustrations of ‘Chronicles of the Demon Lords.’ I’ve never met such a formidable person in reality. If I had, I’d probably have died on the spot!”

“You’re lying!” Su Xiqiu declared with certainty. “Though you’ve cleaned up thoroughly, there’s still a strong scent of sword blood in this courtyard. That’s the blood shed by the Bloodsword Demon Lord’s demon sword!”