Qi Yu looked at Chi Shangming and Wang Lanqing staring at her with complex expressions. She couldn't help but turn sideways and point to the glowing spot ahead: "Ordinary mortals can't see it with their naked eyes, but cultivators should be able to see a formation over there. I left it here before. Let's go to that formation. Once we enter, we can reach the nearest path up the mountain."
Chi Shangming pondered for a long time, unsure how to respond. Finally, he nodded awkwardly and replied with an "Oh."
Wang Lanqing, on the other hand, was more cheerful. She followed Qi Yu like a tail, chattering incessantly:
"So that's how it is. That's much better than us stumbling around blindly. But, Qi Yu, what's going on in your territory? Why are there vengeful spirits causing trouble?"
Wang Lanqing wasn't curious about why a place known as an assassin organization would have vengeful spirits.
She was curious why, in a place that would occasionally be stained with blood, there weren't regular ceremonies to appease the souls.
Whether it was cultivators or mere martial artists in the mortal world, anyone who had shed blood and couldn't ascend, or had no future, would hold ceremonies to appease souls after committing deeds that harmed their virtue and lifespan. The main purpose was to prevent being haunted by vengeful spirits.
But judging by the missions she had received, that assassin organization should not have held such ceremonies for a long time.
"How should I put it? The assassin organization you're referring to is called the Dark Assassination Pavilion in my territory," Qi Yu said as she led them towards the formation. "10,000 years ago, I would go there regularly to hold ceremonies and appease souls."
"But ever since I reincarnated, I haven't had the time. Plus, it's been over 10,000 years since I hatched from my egg."
As Qi Yu spoke, they had already reached the entrance of the formation.
Si Qing, standing nearby, finally voiced the question that had been bothering him for a long time: "Sister, you had so much gold in your previous life, hidden everywhere. Is that gold still yours now? Can it still be found?" Just like this Dark Assassination Pavilion. Although Qi Yu's original intention was to provide a haven for cultivators who couldn't ascend, were abandoned by their clans, and carried deep grudges, those cultivators should no longer be around after tens of thousands of years. Even if they were still alive and had become powerful beings, would the treasures still be safe? After all, Qi Yu had neglected them for so many years.
"Any gold or treasure of mine, even the barriers on my territory, are all bound to my soul. If anyone uses them, I can track them through a thousand-mile pursuit to see who has handled them, who has touched my formations with this gold," Qi Yu said proudly, displaying a miserly demeanor to Si Qing.
"..." Si Qing looked at her with some confusion: "You had so many identities. Why didn't I ever see you use them in your previous life?"
"..." Qi Yu fell silent for a moment, and only after stepping into the formation did she softly say: "Because I didn't dare to use them." She looked at Si Qing: "In my previous life, I didn't dare to use these connections. Although I took them in, I was always worried they wouldn't agree, worried they might betray me."
"How should I put it?"
"It was as if I always placed myself in a lower position than them, and I didn't understand my original purpose for taking them in – was it to accumulate good deeds, or to make them my pawns?"
Qi Yu spoke with a sense of confusion and bewilderment.
Si Qing, however, felt that it was because his sister had possessed too little in her previous life. It was like a child with only two candies, unwilling to share even one. And his sister had no candies, only the gratitude of strangers. Because she had never been thanked before, the attitude of strangers formed a twisted state in her. On one hand, his sister tried to convince herself not to care, but on the other hand, she tried her best to maintain the good impression those who were grateful to her had, even lowering herself to the point of not daring to use these connections. As a result, it was like drawing water with a bamboo basket – in the end, nothing was gained except for the gratitude of strangers. Si Qing felt sorry for Qi Yu.
After another two sticks of incense, the formation transported them to the foot of a mountain, onto a particularly eerie country road. Although dusk was falling, their eyes as cultivators could see clearly in the dark, so they didn't pay attention to the time and directly entered the mountain. They walked forward along the country road. When they reached the mountainside, Qi Yu led them through a few more formations, and in the blink of an eye, they were near the main entrance of the Dark Assassination Pavilion.
The magical barrier near the main entrance of the Dark Assassination Pavilion sensed their approach, first raising a protective wall and sounding an alarm. But when Qi Yu placed her hand on the barrier, it immediately stopped alarming and quickly opened its gates upon sensing its owner's soul.
At the same time, many cultivators from various races rushed out from inside the Dark Assassination Pavilion. They held swords and weapons, their eyes filled with killing intent, thinking that some enemies had come seeking revenge. But when they saw who had arrived, they were all stunned. It was actually cultivators from the Dragon race and humans. But how did they possess the ability to make the formation and the gate open automatically?
Qi Yu believed that simply talking about identifying oneself was meaningless, as words without proof were untrustworthy. Therefore, when she saw the people from the Dark Assassination Pavilion charging out with murderous intent, ready to fight to the death, she didn't explain or stop them. Instead, she suddenly struck the ground with her palm. The ground in the Dark Assassination Pavilion's courtyard trembled, and the surroundings collapsed. The crimson imprint, unique to the Pavilion Master of the Dark Assassination Pavilion, appeared above Qi Yu's head.
Then, Chenxi, Si Qing, Chi Shangming, and Wang Lanqing all witnessed the assassins of the Dark Assassination Pavilion, who had just drawn their swords against them, suddenly put down their weapons and kneel on one knee towards Qi Yu, loudly saluting her: "Your subordinate greets the Pavilion Master."
Wang Lanqing was stunned by the chorus of voices. She realized then that the protagonist was indeed the protagonist. Even though her protagonist's halo had been taken by another transmigrator, she was still not someone to be underestimated. Just like Qi Yu. Although soft and small, it didn't diminish her commanding presence as she was worshipped by so many people.
"Alright, alright, get up," Qi Yu said, casually taking out Wang Lanqing's mission scroll and tossing it over. "The Dark Assassination Pavilion is troubled by vengeful spirits? Although I haven't been here for 10,000 years, the ceremonies to appease and send off souls should still be held, right? You don't need me to be present for them to be conducted. Who can explain what's going on?"
Hearing this, the members of the Dark Assassination Pavilion looked at each other. One demonic cultivator, who had been expelled from the demon race by demons 10,000 years ago, stepped forward and explained to Qi Yu: "The Pavilion Master said that after accepting a mission for revenge, we must hold ceremonies to appease and send off souls. None of us have forgotten this."
"But we don't know when it started. The ceremonies for appeasing and sending off souls became ineffective. The pavilion was frequently invaded by external evil energies, and we couldn't get rid of them."
Wang Lanqing frowned: "So, it's not that you committed too many sins within the pavilion, causing continuous vengeful spirits, but rather that someone deliberately led vengeful spirits and evil energies to your place? But you said those evil energies and vengeful spirits were external. Do you have any evidence? What did you do with those external vengeful spirits? Or did you not deal with them at all?"