"Not many, mostly demon souls," Mu Anxiao said softly.
"Demon souls..."
"Yes, those demon souls are spirits of妖怪 who have committed mistakes. Their true forms," Mu Anxiao lowered her gaze, "I haven't seen."
"How many did you capture in total?" Feng Qishi asked.
"Excluding the wolf demon not yet apprehended this time, two hundred and fifty in total."
"Two hundred and fifty..." Feng Qishi repeated, then chuckled, "You really are quite a fool, even the number of demon souls you capture is so foolish."
"It's none of your business," Mu Anxiao glared at Feng Qishi.
Feng Qishi hesitated, then said, "But speaking of which, did you capture them by force, or did they agree?"
"I captured them directly. Wasting time talking to them would just be a waste of time," Mu Anxiao said.
"How is that a waste of time? If you capture them like this, they'll surely hold a grudge. Aren't you afraid of causing trouble for yourself?" Feng Qishi suddenly became serious.
Mu Anxiao looked at Feng Qishi helplessly and said, "Unlike you, I don't overthink things. Besides, it's just my mission. I only need to complete the mission; the rest has nothing to do with me."
"Aren't you afraid those demon souls will escape and seek revenge on you?" Feng Qishi asked nervously.
Mu Anxiao curled her lips and said, "You mortal, what do you know? If everyone thought as much as you do, no one would be captured."
"I don't think it's appropriate," Feng Qishi shook his head.
"Sentimental," Mu Anxiao spat out two words, then stood up and looked around, asking, "Do you smell any demonic energy?"
"Demonic energy..." Feng Qishi said, standing up and sniffing the air, then shaking his head, "No."
"No," Mu Anxiao repeated, glancing sideways, then suddenly turning to see a dark green ray of light, saying, "Look, what is that?"
"What is this?" Feng Qishi looked down at the chain that had fallen on the ground and asked.
Hearing this, Mu Anxiao turned and followed Feng Qishi's gaze down to the chain that had fallen on the ground, her eyes widening, "Isn't this... the chain that seals the vine spirit?" As she spoke, she bent down to touch the chain, but it turned into a wisp of green smoke and disappeared.
"What's going on?" Feng Qishi exclaimed.
Mu Anxiao looked at her hand, straightened up, and said, "Why would it do that?"
"What is a vine spirit?" Feng Qishi asked.
Mu Anxiao glanced at Feng Qishi and said, "It might be my imagination. I remember clearly handing that chain over to the underworld messenger."
"Long time no see."
Hearing this, Mu Anxiao frowned, turned, and looked at the old gentleman approaching her, exclaiming, "It's you."
"I thought you had forgotten me," the old gentleman smiled.
"What are you joking about?" Mu Anxiao said, glancing cautiously at Feng Qishi beside her, "Why are you here?"
"If I don't come, how can I take you back?" the old gentleman said.
"It's you," Feng Qishi looked at the old gentleman in surprise and said.
The old gentleman looked at Feng Qishi and smiled, "You still remember me."
"Of course, don't think I don't remember just because I'm dead. I still have my memories," Feng Qishi said arrogantly.
Mu Anxiao looked at Feng Qishi, who had no idea who the person in front of him was, and said, "Let me introduce you. This is your master from your past life. You should show him more respect."
"I don't care about that. That's from my past life. Now," Feng Qishi stared directly at Mu Anxiao, "you are my master."
The old gentleman smiled and said nothing.
Mu Anxiao looked helplessly at the boastful Feng Qishi and said, "Um, I have a question for you."
"It's not convenient here. Let's go somewhere else," the old gentleman said calmly.
Mu Anxiao looked around and nodded, "Okay."
In a blink of an eye, they arrived in a secluded alley. Feng Qishi and Mu Anxiao were standing close together. Feng Qishi whispered, "Are you going to ask about that... vine spirit?"
Mu Anxiao glanced at Feng Qishi, then looked at the old gentleman and said, "Excuse me, do you know about the vine spirit?"
"Vine spirit." The old gentleman frowned and thought for a moment before asking, "You mean the demon soul you and Shen Yan captured over fifty years ago?"
"Yes," Mu Anxiao nodded, then said, "Just now, I sensed him."
"Wasn't he taken away by the underworld messenger?" the old gentleman asked.
"I don't know, but I definitely sensed him just now," Mu Anxiao said.
The old gentleman calculated with his fingers and shook his head, "No demonic energy."
"Is that so?" Mu Anxiao replied in a low voice.
Feng Qishi said, "The old gentleman says there isn't, so there isn't."
Mu Anxiao nodded slightly.
"We leave here in three days," the old gentleman said, then vanished.
Feng Qishi smiled, "This person is clearly more capable than Zhang Yan."
Mu Anxiao stared blankly at a certain spot, saying, "How is that possible? I definitely sensed him."
"I saw it too," Feng Qishi said.
Mu Anxiao glanced at Feng Qishi and said, "You didn't say that just now."
"If I had told the old gentleman there was demonic energy in front of him, he would have been unhappy. Then, what if he didn't take us away?" Feng Qishi said thoughtfully.
"That's true," Mu Anxiao agreed with Feng Qishi's idea and said, "Then let's go look for him."
"Okay," Feng Qishi nodded.
Mu Anxiao's era...
Deep within a gloomy forest, a soul with a very distinctive appearance was looking angrily at Hei Feng, who was squatting in front of a tree, and asked, "Did you lose the chain that seals the vine spirit?"
"No, he escaped on his own," Hei Feng said, looking up at the soul.
"How did he..."
"I'm worried he went to that era," Hei Feng interrupted the soul.
The soul frowned and asked, "What is he doing there?"
"Looking for Mu Anxiao," Hei Feng said, pointing to the gradually dissipating dark green mist above, "If I'm not mistaken, that's what he left behind."
"This mist... it's been here for several days," the soul said, looking at the dissipating mist.
Hei Feng pursed his lips and said, "He probably went with some great deity from above."
"I heard Shen Yan's master went," the soul said actively.
"That makes sense," Hei Feng nodded.
"And you! It's been several days, why didn't you say anything?" the soul asked angrily.
"I was thinking of looking for it. If I found it, it would be fine. Who knew the chain had legs," Hei Feng covered his face with his hands, "I hope Mu Anxiao sensed something."
"It's almost time," the soul said.
"Yes, I hope Mu Anxiao is safe," Hei Feng nodded, then stood up and said, "I'm going to confess."
"Don't go yet," the soul blocked his path.
"Why?" Hei Feng asked.
"You don't understand the situation at all right now. Let's wait," the soul said.
Hei Feng's eyes flickered, and he nodded, "Okay, I'll listen to you." As he spoke, he retreated and sat back down on the ground.
The soul glanced at Hei Feng, then turned without a word and disappeared through the trees.