Chapter 66: The Secret of Wang Wushui

  The next morning, Sanbao packed her luggage and rode off alone from the royal capital.

  "What Wang Zuo Academy? I won’t go there. Wangcheng Division, Ghost-faced Man, all of you can go to hell," she mumbled, flicking the reins. The steed under her surged forward with a long neigh, raising its head proudly and striding confidently down the straight official road.

  By evening, Sanbao arrived at Yongqing Prefecture.

  She checked into an inn, had a hearty meal, and then returned to her room to meditate and study the Divine Illumination Sutra.

  She sat cross-legged, her hands forming seals, slowly guiding her spiritual energy in circution around her body, and her primordial spirit exited her body, arriving in the cultivation space within the Seven Treasures Bracelet.

  The dark Yin energy followed the twelve meridians and gathered in her dantian. As the Divine Illumination Sutra’s mental technique gradually worked, strands of spiritual energy flowed out from Sanbao’s body, like a babbling stream, neither hurried nor slow, gradually returning to a tranquil state. After circuting for several cycles, she exhaled a breath of stale air, her primordial spirit returned to her body.

  She slowly opened her eyes, her gaze as clear as water, but her eyes contained a suppressed gleam, indicating her cultivation had improved once again.

  She stood up and stretched, just as she was about to lie down to rest, a sudden knock came at the door.

  "Come in," she called out.

  The door creaked open, and a young woman in the inn’s servant attire entered, pushing a food cart. With a bright smile, she said, "Good evening, Miss Xu. Here is your supper."

  Sanbao was taken aback. "I didn’t order any supper."

  The servant, unfazed, smiled and lifted the lid of the food cart.

  Inside the tray, there was a gruesome sight—a pair of severed hands and feet, the flesh around the wounds mangled, as if freshly severed from a human body. Strangely, blood still oozed from the severed edges, but there was no scent of blood in the air.

  Sanbao snorted and raised her left hand. A water arrow shot out from her palm, striking the servant squarely in the chest.

  The servant let out a sharp, eerie ugh before colpsing to the floor and disappearing into the ground.

  "What’s going on?"

  A familiar voice came from the door, and before she knew it, Wang Wushui appeared, holding a long sword, his face filled with concern as he looked toward the room.

  Sanbao stared at him in surprise. "Young Master Wang? What are you doing here?"

  She hadn’t noticed that she was only wearing a silk nightgown, and as she had hastily moved earlier, the colr had slipped off her shoulder.

  She saw Wang Wushui’s face turn red, his gaze quickly avoiding hers. Only then did she realize her nightgown had slipped down to her chest.

  Sanbao’s face turned bright red in an instant. She squeaked and immediately dove into the bed.

  "Sorry," Wang Wushui said, embarrassed, lowering his head. "I should have knocked before entering."

  Sanbao muffled her voice from under the covers. "It’s fine... It’s not your fault."

  While adjusting her clothes, she briefly recounted her experience since leaving the royal capital and receiving the invitation that led her into a strange illusion.

  Sanbao stood up and looked at the spot where the ghostly servant had vanished, letting out a bitter smile. "I thought leaving the royal capital would allow me to escape this matter, but I didn’t expect that ghost to follow me here."

  Wang Wushui looked guilty. "It’s my fault. If I hadn’t persuaded Captain Wang to seek your help, you might never have caught its attention and gotten involved in this mess."

  A sudden surge of righteous anger rose in Sanbao’s chest. She patted Wang Wushui’s shoulder and said seriously, "This isn’t your fault. As cultivators, it’s our duty to eliminate demons and protect the way. Throughout history, many cultivators have sacrificed their lives to ensure peace for the common people. Now, the royal capital is overrun with evil spirits, sughtering at will. It is our duty, both morally and logically, to act and restore peace to the people of the royal capital."

  She spoke with unwavering conviction, her words like a crion call. But as soon as she finished, she noticed Wang Wushui’s expression was odd.

  He was staring fixedly at her exposed colrbone, his eyes filled with hesitation, as though lost in thought.

  Sanbao froze for a moment before her temper fred.

  I went through the effort of speaking a few righteous words to encourage us, and you’re thinking about random nonsense? Sanbao thought angrily to herself.

  She silently snapped her fingers, and a water ball formed at her fingertip, shooting out with a "whoosh" and hitting Wang Wushui’s cheek with a spsh, soaking him through.

  "Ah!" Wang Wushui seemed to snap out of his daze. He took a few steps back, but still muttered in a dazed tone, "Sanbao, you smell so good, even the water ball you shot out carries a fragrant scent."

  Sanbao’s face darkened. She stopped speaking and turned away, not looking at him.

  Wang Wushui finally realized the awkwardness of the situation. Apologizing repeatedly, he stammered something about coming back in the morning to discuss a pn and hurriedly left the room.

  The door closed, and the room fell silent.

  Sanbao stared at the door, her expression growing serious.

  "Am I being overly suspicious... Why does Wang Wushui feel so strangely familiar?"

  She muttered to herself, "Wang Wushui... Wang Wushui... If you remove the 'three drops of water' from the character 'Wang,' doesn’t that mean..."

  She stopped mid-sentence, turned to look out the window. The night was deep, the moonlight cold, and her eyes grew darker as she gazed into the distance...