Chapter 131: The Popular Fairy Ye
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The woman speaking had delicate, charming features. As Yu Zhao approached, a wary look appeared in her eyes. But when Yu Zhao mentioned Ye Cong Xin, the frost in her gaze melted away, replaced by a warm smile.
Yu Zhao nodded. “If the Fairy Ye you’re referring to is Ye Cong Xin, then yes, I do know her.”
“That’s her!” the woman exclaimed in delight.
“I’ve met Fairy Ye a few times before, but it’s been quite a while since we last crossed paths. From what you just said, she stayed at this inn before?”
“Yes, but you’re too late; you just missed her. She left about half a month ago,” the woman replied with a sigh of regret. “I’m even more unlucky—I only met her once before getting caught up in other matters. By the time I tried to see her again, she was already gone.”
A flicker of doubt crossed Yu Zhao’s eyes.
Why was this cautious female cultivator, so guarded toward strangers, particularly fond of someone she’d only met once?
Moreover, since Ye Cong Xin left, strange incidents had been occurring at this inn. Could this truly be a coincidence?
Yu Zhao quickly made up her mind. She decided to stay at this inn tonight.
Calling over Ji Han Zhou, she shared her decision. Without hesitation, he nodded in agreement.
After all the experiences Ji Han Zhou had gone through with Yu Zhao, he adhered to a simple philosophy: Yu Senior Sister always had her reasons for her actions. His role was to comply unconditionally, speak less, and learn more. Yu Senior Sister would never lead him astray.
The curious onlookers, having satisfied their nosy instincts, were ready to disperse. However, when they saw the young man and woman walking toward the inn, they froze.
The innkeeper, slouched against the doorframe, noticed the shadows of the pair cast over him. Lifting his weary head to glance at Ji Han Zhou and Yu Zhao, he immediately slumped back down, shaking his head and sighing.
“Another couple of clueless kids come to join the fun,” he muttered under his breath.
“Innkeeper, we’d like two upper rooms,” Yu Zhao said.
The innkeeper’s sigh caught in his throat, and he began coughing violently, nearly choking on his own saliva. Despite his coughing fit, he desperately grabbed Ji Han Zhou’s sleeve, rasping between fits, “G-guest… please…”
Ji Han Zhou frowned deeply, clearly tempted to shake off the innkeeper’s grip.
The innkeeper clung to his sleeve as if his life depended on it, tears streaming down his face from the effort, refusing to let go.
Seeing Ji Han Zhou’s exasperated expression, Yu Zhao stepped in. “Innkeeper, we’re here to stay, not to run off. But shouldn’t you consider giving us a discount?”
The innkeeper finally managed to catch his breath. He nodded eagerly. “A discount! A discount, absolutely!”
He couldn’t let these rare, fearless customers slip away. Forget a discount—he’d pay them to stay if he had to.
Under the enthusiastic gaze of the onlookers, the innkeeper and his assistant welcomed Yu Zhao and Ji Han Zhou into the inn with great zeal.
“Honored guests, all of our upper rooms are available. Please, feel free to choose whichever one you like,” the innkeeper said, bowing so low his voice practically dripped with flattery.
“Innkeeper,” Yu Zhao began, “tell us which rooms the deceased guests stayed in.”
The innkeeper’s expression instantly turned sour.
However, he understood her concern—who would want to stay in a room where someone had died?
“Rest assured, honored guests,” the innkeeper said as he led them through the hallways, “those unfortunate guests all stayed in the lower and mid-tier rooms. The doors to those rooms are sealed, and they won’t be reopened until Buddhist monks come to offer blessings and release their souls.”
As expected, just as the Shopkeeper said, all the rooms where the guests stayed were on the first and second floors, and their doors were sealed with unique talismans.
Yu Zhao deliberately observed the layout of several rooms and noticed that, except for two rooms directly above and below each other, there was no apparent connection between the rest. This suggested that the issue was likely not with the inn itself, but with the people staying there.
“Shopkeeper, I heard that Fairy Ye stayed at your inn half a month ago. Do you remember her?”
“You know Fairy Ye!” The shopkeeper’s reaction was one of pleasant surprise rather than shock. “Of course I remember her! In all my years of running this business, I’ve never seen a female cultivator as popular as Fairy Ye! She stayed here for a few months, and during that time, our inn’s business thrived—rooms were fully booked every day!”
After his enthusiastic reply, the shopkeeper suddenly seemed to realize something, and his expression darkened. “Could it be that someone was jealous of the inn’s success and cursed us out of spite? That would be truly malicious!”
Yu Zhao focused on what the shopkeeper had said. Ye Cong Xin had stayed at this inn for several months, which also meant that Lan Zi Yu and Su Ming had been in Black Armor City for the same amount of time. But what were they doing here?
As she recalled the Marsh Forest located just outside Black Armor City, Yu Zhao’s gaze grew cold.
She hoped it wasn’t what she suspected. Otherwise, she’d very much like to crack open Lan Zi Yu and his companions’ heads to see what they were thinking.
“Who’s Fairy Ye? Is she very beautiful?” Ji Han Zhou, noticing Yu Zhao deep in thought, took the initiative to ask.
“Well, how should I put it? Fairy Ye isn’t exactly the devastatingly gorgeous type, but there’s just something about her that makes people adore her. The moment you see her, all your worries seem to disappear,” the shopkeeper said, his mood visibly lifting as he began to describe Fairy Ye. He animatedly recounted how likable and sought-after she was.
Ji Han Zhou raised his eyebrows in surprise. “So there’s someone like that in the cultivation world?”
“I didn’t believe it myself at first, but after seeing her in person, I couldn’t help but be convinced,” the shopkeeper replied. Compared to the guests who had gone to extreme lengths to curry favor with Fairy Ye, his behavior seemed relatively restrained. Yet, to Yu Zhao and Ji Han Zhou, his attitude could only be described as fanatical.
“Shopkeeper, let me ask you one more thing. Were the deceased guests the ones who had more frequent contact with Fairy Ye?”
The moment this question was posed, both the shopkeeper and his assistant’s faces grew visibly uncomfortable.
The shopkeeper, no longer as amicable as before, snapped, “What do you mean by that? Are you insinuating that this has something to do with Fairy Ye? Let me tell you, that’s absolutely impossible! When Fairy Ye left, those people were perfectly fine. Besides, they had no grievances with her. Why would she harm them?”
He looked Yu Zhao up and down, his tone sharp. “Are you here to stay at the inn, or are you here to stir up trouble?”
Yu Zhao remained unbothered by his hostility. She smiled faintly. “Of course, I’m here to stay. I was just curious and asked one too many questions. If I offended you, I apologize. Now, could you show us to our rooms?”
Still skeptical, the shopkeeper led Yu Zhao and Ji Han Zhou to an upper-class room, his attitude no longer as welcoming as it had been earlier.
Once he left, Ji Han Zhou entered Yu Zhao’s room, his tone firm. “That Ye Cong Xin is definitely suspicious!”
Yu Zhao smiled knowingly. “Oh? What makes you say that?”
“Anyone who can make a profit-driven shopkeeper take such a risk defending her is already strange enough, isn’t it?”
Indeed, it was strange. But those involved in the situation were often blind to the truth. How many could see clearly while caught in the middle of it all?