Yin Ci experienced a unique kind of "object addiction".

Unlike their initial encounter, Sect Leader Shi no longer treated his disciple as a precious object, trying to strictly control him. However, that clingy feeling had not faded - now Shi Jingzhi himself had turned into a sticky syrup, occasionally sticking to him, every move exuding a soft sense of satisfaction.

Demon Lord Yin had been susceptible to softness rather than toughness for hundreds of years, and was already extremely accustomed to this. Not only did he not stop it, he instead indulged this person even more excessively.

When Shi Jingzhi reached out his paw, Yin Ci grabbed it without hesitation, unabashedly feeling that warmth.

By the end of the delicious meal, Sect Leader Shi's bottom seemed glued to the stool. With an abnormally amiable expression, he ordered a few more plates of pricey pastries.

"Sect Leader, what's next?" Su Si remained silent for quite a while before finally speaking. "The righteous faction will still pursue Ku Mountain Sect, and Qizhou is crowded with many eyes. We need to find a peaceful place."

Shi Jingzhi picked up a pastry and used his true qi to cut it in half, giving one half to Yin Ci. He didn't directly answer Su Si's question: "From what you're saying, you plan to stay with Ku Mountain Sect?"

Su Si: "..."

"Not many in the Red Hook Sect know your identity. According to the most widespread story now, both Dark Blood Witch and the 'Young Sect Leader' are gone. The Red Hook Sect is too busy with its own troubles to order anyone to search for you again."

Shi Jingzhi looked fixedly at Su Si.

"Su Si, you are free now. You were originally a subordinate of my sect and can leave anytime. The muddy waters we have to tread are not shallow. If you leave in time, you can still be a carefree, solitary hero."

Shi Jingzhi spoke very directly. Yin Ci chewed on the pastry, also staring at the somewhat dazed Su Si.

Su Si was not like Yan Qing. Along the way, he didn't even have much desire to become stronger. Rather, this person had always been pushed forward by fate, choosing the path he had to walk.

Previously, one of the main reasons Su Si followed Ku Mountain Sect was the Red Hook Sect's pursuit. Now, not only would the Red Hook Sect no longer bother him, his friend Yan Qing had also progressed rapidly and no longer needed his special "protection".

Investigating the Immortal Gathering was, in a sense, going against the National Teacher, the court, and even all the citizens who believed in the Divine Emperor Wu. Su Si was so intelligent that he must be clear in his heart - to stay solely on the grounds of "protecting Yan Qing" would undoubtedly shift that pressure onto Yan Qing, and might even backfire.

Su Si rarely showed a pained expression: "I don't know, I haven't figured it out yet."

Suddenly lacking the force pushing him to make a choice, Su Si suddenly didn't know how to proceed.

"I won't leave Ku Mountain Sect." Yan Qing's tone was firm, "I've benefited greatly here, and can't even repay the kindness. Ah Si, I won't consider leaving because of you. You should also choose the path you want to walk. It's not like we won't see each other again if you leave Ku Mountain Sect."

"...Let me think about it some more." Su Si said with a bitter smile, "How about this, you guys eat first, I'll go out for some air."

"I'll go with you." Yan Qing put down his chopsticks with a clatter and followed closely behind.

Seeing the two subordinates leave, Shen Zhu looked at Shi Jingzhi with a profound gaze: "You did that on purpose, right?"

"This matter had to be brought up sooner or later. The road ahead will be difficult, and I don't want to keep a muddleheaded fence-sitter by my side." Shi Jingzhi mumbled while chewing on a pastry. "But indeed, with them gone, some things are easier to clarify."

The private room faced the street, with bustling pedestrians below, the fragrance of cosmetics and wine wafting in through the window, mixing with the sweet aroma of pastries.

Shi Jingzhi glanced at the scene outside the window for a while before speaking: "The treasure map is almost complete, and it's only a matter of time before Taiheng finds the Shi Rou. We don't have many opportunities left and must choose the right breakthrough point... Qizhou is Yan Budu's birthplace. While staying here, there is one matter I'd like you to investigate in detail."

"Please go ahead."

"Yan Budu was born into the wealthy Yan family, the youngest son of the Yan family head, born to a concubine the Yan family had only had for less than a year. That concubine was weak and sickly, and passed away soon after giving birth to Yan Budu... This is the most certain version of the story so far."

Shen Zhu had always been investigating the Immortal Gathering and wasn't very interested in these old matters: "That is indeed the case. Before entering the Ghost Tomb, Yueshui Bureau had given us relevant records."

"Occasionally, people with 'ghost eyes' would appear in the Yan family. Back then, people didn't call them ghost eyes, but instead considered them an auspicious sign. That Yan family head had a talented and beautiful younger sister who was chosen to enter the palace because of those red eyes. Unfortunately, her beauty was fleeting. Miss Yan passed away less than two years after entering the palace."

Just like his own birth mother, Shi Chongyu.

"I always found this matter strange - the Yan family was prosperous, and the Yan family head's legal wife alone had four sons. Yan Budu's birth mother was not favored when she was alive, yet he, a concubine-born son, received treatment no worse than the legitimate sons. It doesn't quite add up."

Shen Zhu clicked his tongue: "Maybe that Yan family head valued looks. Besides, Yan Budu was clever-minded and exceptionally capable. The old man probably liked what he saw. This kind of thing isn't uncommon."

"Indeed, that makes sense. It's just that Yan Budu was of common birth, yet he was well-versed in the matter of 'determining desires'. This is another oddity."

Shi Jingzhi took a sip of water and continued unhurriedly.

"Taiheng has been hunting down the Yan family descendants for a hundred years, to the point where even the Taiheng people themselves feel it's going overboard. On the other hand, Taiheng has always had close ties with the court. Don't you find it interesting?"

Shen Zhu instantly reacted: "You mean--"

"If the royal bloodline flows out, they naturally need to find an excuse to clean it up." Yin Ci calmly added.

Through the matter of Yan Zheng's revenge, Yin Ci also had his suspicions. The Dayun had Desire Children in every generation, and there were formations in the blood of the Desire Children. The Mi Lan Empress and Shi Jingzhi were connected by blood, yet only Yan Budu was excluded. It really didn't make sense.

Although they already had guesses, to thoroughly investigate the "Desire Children" and the National Teachers' "hundred-year great undertaking", they couldn't act based on guesses alone.

"Just as Ah Ci said." Seeing that his beloved's thoughts aligned with his own, the corners of Shi Jingzhi's mouth never drooped. "The Yan family's favor, knowledge of determining desires, descendants being executed. Each matter can be explained individually, but put together... I suspect Yan Budu is also a member of the Dayun royal family. Please investigate this."

"Understood." Shen Zhu didn't argue further and answered straightforwardly. "As Su Si said earlier, it's fine for me to investigate in Qizhou, but you guys should at least find a peaceful place to stay."

Shi Jingzhi: "I've long found a suitable place, absolutely safe. When the time comes, you can send a sparrow to find me."

A few hours later, the four members of Ku Mountain Sect stood in front of the "absolutely safe" place, each with a different expression.

Since leaving Taiheng, Yan Qing had never seen such a magnificent courtyard, and the shock on his face was impossible to hide. Su Si's expression was more relaxed than before, but he still seemed distracted from time to time, clearly undecided about whether to stay or leave. He absentmindedly hugged Lord Bai, staring at the... back door of the courtyard.

Sect Leader Shi looked solemn: "This is the residence of an old acquaintance of mine. The aftermath of the Zongwu Mountain incident has not yet subsided, so we will regroup here for a few days before deciding where to go next."

Then he turned to the side and whispered to Yin Ci: "Don't worry, Ah Ci, the owner of this place is my great-great-grandfather. The first thing I did after leaving the palace was to acknowledge our relationship, and he dotes on me very much. He will never reveal our whereabouts."

Unfortunately, contrary to Shi Jingzhi's expectations, Yin Ci's face not only showed no signs of relaxation, but gradually turned green.

Not only would he not reveal their whereabouts, but for the sake of his beloved grandson, the owner of this place had once deceived his true old acquaintance—

Yin Ci stood stiffly at the door of Sun Huaijin's residence, feeling guilty for the first time in his life.

It was true that Sun Huaijin had lied to him for Shi Jingzhi, and it was also true that he had a close relationship with Shi Jingzhi. In his three hundred years of life, Yin Ci had never experienced such an absurd situation, and for a moment he did not know what expression to use to face his former subordinate.

Seeing that his beloved was not reacting well, Shi Jingzhi hurriedly continued to whisper: "My great-great-grandfather comes from the jianghu and has seen all sorts of storms. There's no need to worry about him backing out at the last minute. Coincidentally, when he was young, he was even an elder of the Red Hook Sect, following... following..."

He suddenly realized a terrifying fact, his heart skipped a few beats, and his tongue instantly tied into a knot.

Sun Huaijin's wrinkled face surfaced from the depths of his mind, the old man's tone proud and vicissitudinous: "In my early years, I was adopted by Su Zhi and witnessed the most glorious period of the Red Hook Sect. Back then, only Grandpa could call him big brother."

Before entering the door, he had been thinking about how to be intimate with Ah Ci in a proper way without startling the old man. Now, Shi Jingzhi wished he could find another place, but the arrow was on the string and had to be released. He wanted to cry but had no tears.

Seeing Yin Ci's face turning slightly green with "calmness", Sect Leader Shi could only try his best to maintain his facial features and pray that Sun Huaijin knew nothing about Yin Ci's "undying and imperishable" matter.

The Sun family's courtyard was no longer a scene of dry winter, but a lush green under the gentle spring breeze. Old Master Sun still sat in the courtyard, looking like the same wrinkled peach pit. With winter gone, he had shed his fur coat and was wrapped in silk from head to toe. Knowing that Shi Jingzhi was coming, Sun Huaijin had specially ordered people to add a long table in the courtyard and prepare the best tea.

As the group from the Ku Mountain Sect entered the courtyard, Sun Huaijin's gaze remained locked on Shi Jingzhi, smiling and saying, "Good boy."

Upon meeting, Sun Huaijin did not really look at Yin Ci. The grandfather and grandson chatted on and off, all about trivial topics that were neither painful nor itchy. Yin Ci breathed a sigh of relief on the side—after all, Sun Huaijin was a shrewd person, and perhaps the situation would not progress to an overly embarrassing state.

Although Shi Jingzhi had a weak sense of family affection, he was quite good at "pleasing people". At this moment, Sect Leader Shi was busy escaping reality, his attention highly focused, and he was particularly hard-working in his speech. After a few hours, Old Man Sun was coaxed by Shi Jingzhi into a cheerful smile, and even the finest wrinkles on his old face had smoothed out.

Yin Ci, on the other hand, had completely transformed into a silent gourd, quietly drinking tea with Su Si and Yan Qing without making a sound.

The Sun family was very attentive to their guests. Whether intentionally or unintentionally, Sun Huaijin arranged four separate high-quality guest rooms for the four of them. Neither Shi Jingzhi nor Yin Ci said anything, pretending to be oblivious and obediently following the arrangement.

However, Sect Leader Shi could not hold back after all. In the middle of the night, he snuck into Yin Ci's room like a thief. Sect Leader Shi sat upright on the edge of the bed, his questioning tone sounding as if it had been pickled in three pounds of bittergourd juice.

"Ah Ci, about your matter, how much does great-grandfather... um, know?"

The usually fearless "Su Zhi" slowly turned over, not making eye contact with Shi Jingzhi: "He knows I am Su Zhi."

Shi Jingzhi: "..." Yin Ci's true identity did not scare him, but this time he was truly and thoroughly frightened.

"The first time you and I came to Qizhou, I even asked him about your background."

Shi Jingzhi sat dumbfounded on the edge of the bed, not knowing whether to lie down or leave. Yin Ci sighed and turned around: "If we speak frankly, Huaijin should be able to help more."

Sect Leader Shi was stunned by the way he addressed him as "Huaijin". He lay down on the bed in a daze, burying his face in Yin Ci's neck: "I know, let me recover for a bit..."

Unfortunately, things did not go as he wished. Shi Jingzhi was flustered and had not yet sorted out his thoughts when a voice came from outside the door.

"Big brother, are you still awake?"

Author's note:

Sun Huaijin: Help?