Chapter 140

Chapter 140: Butterfly Effect

True Lord Jiu Yue felt a thread of unease and extended her divine sense to sweep carefully over Lu Wang You. Her eyes suddenly sharpened, and she raised a hand, catching a tiny grey speck from his body and instantly crushing it.

True Lord Jiu Yue spoke icily, “Hmph! These demonic cultivators truly have cunning methods. They dare set their sights on my disciple—they deserve death!”

Lu Wang You was also startled. He had been extremely cautious, yet the demonic cultivators still managed to mark him. Fear lingered in his heart.

He quickly pleaded, “Master, those cultivators who escaped with me were likely marked as well. Please help them remove this hidden danger.”

After sharing hardships, Lu Wang You was willing to extend kindness to those cultivators.

True Lord Jiu Yue didn’t refuse, turning instead to Daoist Master Tan. “Fellow Daoist Tan, please call those escaped cultivators here to see me.”

“Yes, True Lord.” Daoist Master Tan was relieved to have help with the aftermath and immediately sent out a communication talisman.

Only then did True Lord Jiu Yue say, “Wang You, recount the details of this incident carefully.”

“Yes, Master.”

Lu Wang You described everything in detail. Soon, other cultivators arrived, adding their own accounts. The wicked actions of demonic cultivators kidnapping talented disciples as cauldrons were fully exposed.

But just as True Lord Jiu Yue prepared to interrogate the captured henchmen of the demonic cultivators, all of them suddenly died in the prison. Daoist Master Tan investigated and discovered that their spiritual seas had exploded—they had clearly been silenced.

Daoist Master Tan wiped the sweat from his brow, fearfully admitting, “True Lord Jiu Yue, this was my oversight. I never imagined demonic cultivators could reach our prison.”

True Lord Jiu Yue stared coldly at Daoist Master Tan for a long moment, finally speaking only as the other was about to kneel. “You bear responsibility, but it isn’t entirely your fault. Those demonic cultivators must have placed restrictions in their followers’ spiritual seas. Once they realized Rosy Cloud Valley was exposed and their subordinates were captured, they activated the restrictions to silence them and halt our investigation.”

“True Lord is wise. What shall we do next?” Daoist Master Tan relaxed slightly, respectfully asking for guidance.

True Lord Jiu Yue considered briefly before responding, “There is no need to conceal this. We must spread the news far and wide. Who’s to say demonic cultivators are only abducting disciples in our western region? Similar events may be occurring in the other four regions, just waiting to be exposed.”

“True Lord speaks rightly. If all cultivators remain vigilant, these demonic cultivators will struggle to succeed, and we might even track them to their nests.”

Not long afterward, elders of the rescued disciples’ sects, patriarchs of their clans, and elders from the rogue cultivator alliance arrived at town. After verifying the information, they unanimously supported True Lord Jiu Yue’s proposal.

Soon, the news spread throughout the Lofty Cosmos Realm, severely hindering the demonic cultivators’ plans. Repeated failures nearly led investigators back to their strongholds, forcing the demonic cultivators to withdraw their claws.

Yun Xi, of course, didn’t yet know the consequences of her meddling. Her butterfly-like actions had once again altered the original course of events.

At that very moment, Yun Xi and Xia You crashed into a deserted courtyard under the quiet moonlight. Yun Xi stood up, swiftly cast a cleansing spell to tidy her appearance, and glanced around. Xia You, in slightly better condition, was already cautiously surveying their surroundings.

“Fellow Daoist Wei, where are we?” Xia You asked, confused.

Yun Xi took a deep breath. “I don’t know. The spiritual energy here is incredibly thin.”

She released her divine sense to explore the area quickly. Moments later, she withdrew it, sighing softly. “It appears we’ve landed in the mortal world.”

“Ah? How did we end up here?” Xia You exclaimed in shock.

Yun Xi considered the situation, then explained, “Right after we were teleported away, the array was likely destroyed. We must’ve been thrown out halfway through teleportation. We’re lucky—we could’ve easily been crushed by spatial turbulence.”

Xia You sighed in relief, grateful for their good fortune. She quickly asked, “What about those two fellow daoists from Hundred Flowers Pavilion?”

“I’m not sure. We were ejected from the teleportation channel one after another. They shouldn’t be far. We can search for them after dawn.”

“Alright.” Xia You had no objections. Their being together was thanks to that red thread. She trusted Yun Xi’s judgment completely.

At that moment, Dian Dian poked his tiny head out from Yun Xi’s arms, sniffed around curiously, and transmitted, “Master, what is this place? The spiritual energy is so thin.”

“This is the mortal realm. We’ll have to investigate tomorrow to learn exactly where we are.”

Dian Dian blinked his little black eyes, continuing, “Master, that Flying Rosy Cloud Butterfly says it can’t fulfill its agreement with you. Its eggs were destroyed, and it was driven from its territory. Now it wishes to form a contract with you.”

“Clearly, it realizes it has no way to protect itself and wants me as a free bodyguard,” Yun Xi responded.

“Master, it’s still a third-rank beast. It could prove useful,” Dian Dian persuaded gently.

“Fine,” Yun Xi relented. “Since it’s third-rank, I’ll accept being inconvenienced and form a contract.”

In truth, Yun Xi didn’t mind having an extra butterfly decoration. Besides, during her battle with the late-stage Golden Core demonic cultivator, she’d realized that the powder from Flying Rosy Cloud Butterfly’s wings held great potential. She wanted to investigate it further.

She quickly drew a contracting array but set it as a master-servant contract.

The Flying Rosy Cloud Butterfly, clearly displeased, fluttered arrogantly onto the master position. However, immediately afterward, it fell helplessly to the ground beside Yun Xi’s feet.

Yun Xi bent down, grasped its delicate wings, placed it firmly back into the servant’s position, swiftly completed the sealing gestures, and watched as the contract’s mark split, embedding itself between Yun Xi and the butterfly’s foreheads.

Dian Dian mocked mercilessly, “See? Told you to behave yourself! Trying to become my master’s master? Are you tired of living? Master only spared you because she needed your eggs; otherwise, she’d have crushed you just now.”

Flying Rosy Cloud Butterfly was embarrassed and replied indignantly, “We’re both demon beasts! Why wouldn’t you help me?”

“Why should I help you? I only advanced to second rank thanks to Master’s nurturing. We have no friendship.”

Dian Dian didn’t fear the butterfly in the slightest. He might have low combat strength, but the Flying Rosy Cloud Butterfly was even weaker. Besides, Dian Dian could find treasures for his master, far more valuable than a mere butterfly.

Yun Xi ignored their little squabble, waved Flying Rosy Cloud Butterfly onto her hairpin, and prepared to rest in the courtyard for the night.

Just as Yun Xi and Xia You were about to enter an empty room, someone holding a lantern opened the courtyard gate. A piercing shriek immediately echoed through the night air:

“A ghost!”

After shouting, the person fainted straight away, leaving Yun Xi and Xia You irritated and slightly offended.

“Fellow Daoist Xia, do I look like a ghost?” Yun Xi asked, touching her cheek.

Xia You shook her head vigorously. “Certainly not. Cultivators nourished by spiritual energy could never be ugly. This mortal clearly hasn’t seen much of the world.”

Xia You truly believed her words, confident in her own appearance; otherwise, Pan Yuan wouldn’t have betrayed her in jealousy.