“What?”

Wang Chongyu exclaimed, glancing at Bai Fanlu. Unlike him, Bai Fanlu seemed indifferent, his expression calm and unperturbed.

After a pause, Wang Chongyu said to Yun Zhan, “Qingyang Sect Master’s situation is unclear. There might be demons involved, and it’s too dangerous for you to stay here alone. Why don’t we wait until tomorrow morning and sneak in together?”

Yun Zhan put down his wine cup and clapped his hands towards the outside. Two beautiful women lifted the curtain and entered, one sitting on either side of Yun Zhan. One began massaging his legs, while the other poured him more wine.

Seeing Wang Chongyu’s eyes widen in disapproval, Yun Zhan smiled with obvious amusement. “I’m just staying here to gather some information. What’s wrong? Do my two senior brothers wish to join me in sharing such pleasures?”

That was enough. Yun Zhan could say such outrageous things, but for Bai Fanlu and Wang Chongyu to stay any longer would indeed be absurd.

The two exchanged glances. Bai Fanlu shrugged, as if to say that if Yun Zhan wanted to stay, then let him. Wang Chongyu said to Yun Zhan, “We’ll return to the inn. We’ll come back tomorrow morning.”

“No need to return. Just wait for my news.”

Where did Yun Zhan get such confidence? He had sent a message asking for backup, but now he was telling them to back off. Bai Fanlu recalled Yun Zhan’s inscrutable expression when he mentioned the “Ling Jue.” Could it be that Yun Zhan really had a plan?

By the time they returned to the inn, it was already late. Bai Fanlu had something urgent to attend to, so he bid Wang Chongyu goodbye. However, Wang Chongyu hesitated, and after a moment, he asked again, “Are you really not bothered by Yun Zhan’s behavior?”

“I’m not bothered.”

So, Wang Chongyu was still worried about that? Bai Fanlu couldn’t help but feel a little exasperated. “You know me best. Do I look like I’m lying to you? Do I?”

Bai Fanlu deliberately widened his eyes and stared at Wang Chongyu, causing Wang Chongyu to feel a bit embarrassed. He couldn’t help but smile, finally relaxing. “Well, that’s good then.”

Seeing how Yun Zhan had become so reckless, anyone would think the original protagonist had been wronged. Bai Fanlu had finally seen through this troublesome protagonist.

He had once worried that if he suddenly distanced himself from Yun Zhan, it would arouse suspicion. But now, with Yun Zhan openly indulging in debauchery, distancing himself was the perfect move. No one would find it strange; they might even commend him for his wisdom in cutting ties in time.

Bai Fanlu patted Wang Chongyu’s shoulder. “Feeling better now? Then get some rest.”

As he was about to return to his room, Wang Chongyu suddenly called out to him again, “Senior Brother.”

“Yes? What is it?”

“You said you no longer have any feelings for Yun Zhan, but…”

Wang Chongyu paused halfway through his sentence. His gaze lingered on Bai Fanlu’s face for a moment, but in the end, he only said softly, “Nothing. Senior Brother, you should rest early.”

How odd, Bai Fanlu thought as he watched Wang Chongyu head to his neighboring room. He waited until Wang Chongyu closed the door, then quietly tiptoed down to the first floor.

At the front desk, a young servant was nodding off to sleep.

Bai Fanlu approached and gently nudged him. The servant woke up groggily, mumbling, “Who is it?” before suddenly jolting awake and jumping out of his seat.

Without even looking to see who it was, the servant started stammering, “Master, master! I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to slack off!”

“Don’t worry, it’s just me.”

The servant finally focused and saw that it was Bai Fanlu. He breathed a sigh of relief. “Oh, it’s you, sir. Is there something you need? A late-night snack or some hot water for a bath?”

The servant yawned as he spoke, remembering that he had seen Wang Chongyu and Bai Fanlu return earlier, so he naturally recognized him.

Bai Fanlu said, “No, I don’t need any of that. I just have a question I’d like to ask you.”

“Oh, what is it?” the servant asked, though internally he wondered why it had to be now that he was being asked.

Bai Fanlu noticed the servant’s impatience, but he was prepared. He pulled out a small piece of silver as a tip, enough to ensure the servant would tell him everything he knew.

Upon seeing the silver, the servant perked up immediately, his sleepiness vanishing. He quickly pocketed the silver and grinned, “What would you like to know, sir? Ask away! I’m here every day, and no one knows more than I do!”

Bai Fanlu got straight to the point, “Was there a strange plague in Yufang City recently?”

“Oh, are you talking about a little while back?” The servant was familiar with the topic. “Yes, there was a plague, but it’s over now! So don’t worry, sir. Yufang City is a blessed place, especially in April when the scenery is beautiful, and our wine is delicious. Would you like me to bring you a pot now…?”

The servant’s enthusiasm continued, but Bai Fanlu was more interested in the fact that the plague was “over.” Could it be that Yun Zhan had spent the last month here ridding the city of the plague?

Bai Fanlu asked further, “You said the plague is over? How did it end?”

“How did it end?” The servant thought for a moment. “I’m not really sure. The plague appeared out of nowhere and disappeared just as quietly. It’s been about ten days since anyone in the city died from it, so everyone says it’s over.”

Bai Fanlu understood the implication behind “no one has died like that anymore.” The original novel had described it clearly.

When he entered Yufang City earlier, he hadn’t heard anyone talking about the plague, which struck him as odd.

But with Wang Chongyu by his side, it wasn’t convenient to ask directly. Now, thanks to this servant, he learned that the plague in Yufang City had indeed ended, and it had ended inexplicably.

“And what about the lady named Qianqian from Baihua Pavilion? Do you know when she arrived in Yufang City?”

Hearing this question, the servant blushed slightly, a hint of admiration in his eyes. “I’m just a lowly servant and have never seen Lady Qianqian, but I’ve heard the guests talk about her a lot. If I’m not mistaken, Lady Qianqian first appeared in Baihua Pavilion about seven days ago. I work in shifts every seven days, so I’m pretty sure of the timing.”

So, Wu Yue Shuang appeared in Baihua Pavilion a few days after the plague ended.

Bai Fanlu had no more questions and returned to his room. After pacing back and forth for a while, he sat down on the bed.

The events in Yufang City were different from the original novel. He needed to calm down and organize his thoughts.

The situations in Yingzhou and Lingcheng had also differed from the original plot, but the key elements still had similarities. If that pattern held, Yufang City might have parallels that could be useful.

In the original plot, when Yun Zhan and the original protagonist first arrived in Yufang City, they learned that a strange plague was spreading through the city. The source was unknown, and the method of transmission unclear. Those who contracted the plague would suddenly lose all their energy, their bodies withering away, and they would die in a state resembling dried-up wood.

The disease had no obvious early symptoms, and when it struck, it did so suddenly. Victims would die within the time it took to burn half a stick of incense. Moreover, during the final stage of the disease, victims would lose their sanity, making it impossible to gather any useful information. Since there was no significant person-to-person transmission, the cause remained a mystery.

After Yun Zhan and the original protagonist arrived in Yufang City, they discovered that all the victims of the plague were young men in their prime. There were no children, and only one person over fifty had died. Seeing the state of the bodies, which appeared drained of their life force, they initially suspected that the cause wasn’t a plague at all, but rather the work of demons.

However, Yufang City was said to be protected by immortal spirits, and the city was surrounded by a faint aura of immortal energy, making it almost half an immortal realm. Ordinary demons would find it difficult to stay in such an environment for long. They considered the possibility that the demon might be entering and leaving the city frequently, so they set up a barrier outside the city to detect any demonic presence.

But after days of waiting, no demons appeared, even though new deaths continued to occur in the city.

They then shifted their thinking, guessing that the demon might be hiding within the city. The most dangerous place could be the safest one, and the demon might be using the immortal energy as cover, making it difficult to detect its demonic aura. This made finding the target a challenge.

But Yufang City was large, and searching for the demon was like looking for a needle in a haystack. This was usually when the protagonist’s plot armor would come into play.

One day, while Yun Zhan was gathering information, he overheard a newly widowed woman telling someone that her husband had recently been frequenting Baihua Pavilion with a friend who had just passed away. She worried that her husband might also be in danger.

This piqued Yun Zhan’s interest, and he followed the woman. A day later, her husband also died. This made Baihua Pavilion a place of particular interest to him.

Although neither Yun Zhan nor the original protagonist had ever been to such a place, they decided to sneak into Baihua Pavilion to investigate. Their initial search yielded no results, but they accidentally witnessed an unspeakable scene.

What’s worse, despite not finding anything, Yun Zhan insisted on returning to Baihua Pavilion the next night, openly posing as a young lord seeking pleasure, flirting with the women in front of the original protagonist and even declaring that he would stay the night.

The original protagonist, furious, stormed out of Baihua Pavilion, while Yun Zhan actually did spend the night there.

The novel, written from Yun Zhan’s perspective, revealed that although Yun Zhan stayed at Baihua Pavilion, he didn’t do anything inappropriate. He was secretly searching for clues.

He had sensed something off about Baihua Pavilion, something hidden beneath the surface of the intoxicating perfume and the lavish surroundings.

But the original protagonist didn’t know this, and Yun Zhan, instead of explaining, let the misunderstandings deepen. Eventually, the original protagonist, after investigating around the city, realized that Baihua Pavilion was the most suspicious place and returned to find Yun Zhan.

What he found was Yun Zhan indulging in the company of women, as Bai Fanlu had seen tonight. But while Bai Fanlu didn’t care, the original protagonist was deeply affected.

The original protagonist, now thoroughly agitated and goaded by the women’s teasing, drank wine for the first time, despite having been taught by Ling Qingzi to never drink alcohol. The result was predictable: he got terribly drunk and had to be carried to a room by the women.

Yun Zhan, however, followed them, dismissed all the women, and spent the night on the same large bed as the original protagonist, though they were separated by several feet.

The next morning, the madam of the brothel saw them leave the room one after the other and teased Yun Zhan, saying that the original protagonist had looked so beautiful in his drunken state that the women felt ashamed of their own looks.

Bai Fanlu remembered this part vividly. The original protagonist overheard the madam’s comment, and Yun Zhan’s response was, “What good is looking pretty? It’s not as comfortable as holding a soft, fragrant woman.”

That comment was infuriating, and Bai Fanlu had cursed Yun Zhan as a scoundrel multiple times when he first read it.

Yun Zhan had led the original protagonist on, only to turn around and dismiss him because he was male. While Yun Zhan hadn’t actually done anything wrong from an omniscient perspective, from the original protagonist’s point of view, this was proof enough of Yun Zhan’s philandering ways.

Unable to tolerate it any longer, the original protagonist asked Yun Zhan what it would take for him to leave with him. But then, a jealous woman from the brothel suggested that the original protagonist wear women’s clothes, saying that if he was as beautiful as they claimed, Yun Zhan might be willing to give up the brothel beauties for him.

The spectators, eager for drama, egged him on. The original protagonist, humiliated, felt he had no choice, and Yun Zhan, being the scoundrel he was, didn’t oppose the idea and allowed the others to mock him.

In the end, the original protagonist, in a fit of anger and defiance, donned women’s clothes—red, just like Wu Yue Shuang’s today—and stunned everyone when he appeared.

Even the experienced madam couldn’t help but praise the original protagonist’s beauty, saying that if he walked down the street like that, he would undoubtedly captivate every man.

One of the women, looking at Yun Zhan with jealousy, sarcastically suggested that if the original protagonist had the courage to walk down the street dressed like that and everyone agreed he was beautiful, then it would truly mean something.

The original protagonist, enraged and still angry at Yun Zhan, accepted the challenge without hesitation. He covered his face with a veil and walked through the busiest part of town.

This led to the iconic scene where the original protagonist, dressed as a woman, caused a stir, attracting a huge crowd.

But this commotion caused a strange surge in demonic energy, which Yun Zhan detected, leading him to discover a corpse demon disguised as a courtesan hiding within Baihua Pavilion.

After subduing the corpse demon, they discovered that she had been cultivating by absorbing the life force of men in Baihua Pavilion.

The corpse demon’s cultivation was mediocre, and she wasn’t skilled enough to completely hide her demonic aura. However, she was cunning. The predominance of women in Baihua Pavilion, where yin energy was strong, helped her conceal her demonic aura.

The strong perfume in the pavilion also contained a subtle, undetectable fragrance that helped neutralize the yang energy. If someone with cultivation entered, the scent would mask the demon’s presence.

At night, the corpse demon could use the flow of people in Baihua Pavilion to slowly absorb yang energy. Because she did so indiscriminately and at a slow pace, it took time for anyone to suspect her.

However, she hadn’t anticipated the original protagonist’s appearance in women’s clothing, which caused an influx of men into the pavilion, overwhelming the balance of energy and exposing her presence.

But why was the corpse demon able to remain in Yufang City, surrounded by immortal energy, without being suppressed? When Yun Zhan and the original protagonist reported this to Ling Qingzi upon their return to the Tianxu Sect, Ling Qingzi explained that if a powerful figure guided the demon, it was possible to find a weak point in the surrounding immortal energy. Furthermore, once a certain level of cultivation was reached, the influence of immortal energy would be minimal.

For example, Bai Junming could withstand the suppression of immortal energy at the TianxuSect. But since the corpse demon wasn’t highly cultivated, it suggested that someone had guided her, teaching her how to hide in Baihua Pavilion.

When Bai Fanlu read the book, he hadn’t considered this possibility, but now that he recalled the plot, the mention of a “high-level guide” brought to mind what He Sang had said about such a figure—someone who didn’t follow the usual path and led the wicked down the wrong path. Could they be the same person?

This was still just speculation. Wu Yue Shuang’s commotion tonight didn’t cause any demonic energy to be revealed, suggesting that the corpse demon was no longer around. But the plague had indeed occurred, only to disappear. Should he ask Yun Zhan about it tomorrow?

When they parted ways, they had heard about the strange events in Yufang City and the deaths, so starting with that should be feasible.

Apart from the corpse demon, Baihua Pavilion now inexplicably housed the Qingyang Sect Master. What connection did she have with the corpse demon in the original story?

Bai Fanlu recalled the strange fragrance he had smelled in Baihua Pavilion today. If the corpse demon were still alive, that fragrance would have been present. Otherwise, it meant the fragrance came from another source, which certainly wasn’t ordinary.

Bai Fanlu decided to discuss it with Wang Chongyu. He would mention his suspicion that there was something off about the fragrance in Baihua Pavilion. He didn’t need to explain everything, just that the fragrance should be investigated. Wang Chongyu, being skilled in refining medicine, might find some clues.

Having found a lead, Bai Fanlu felt somewhat relieved. However, it was too late to discuss it tonight. He planned to talk to Wang Chongyu tomorrow.

With that in mind, Bai Fanlu was about to sit down and meditate when he suddenly felt a gust of wind near his ear.

He quickly turned around and saw a figure dart past the window. A moment later, an arrow shot through the air, embedding itself in the wooden floor at his feet with a thud.

The arrow had a small white object tied to its end—it was a piece of paper.

Bai Fanlu immediately rushed to the window, but the night was dark, and the figure had already vanished into the shadows.

He hesitated briefly before returning to the arrow. He bent down, pulled out the arrowhead, and studied it for a moment before it dissolved into a mist, leaving only the paper in his hand.

It was a spiritual arrow, with traces of immortal energy still lingering on it.

Bai Fanlu carefully unfolded the paper and saw that it contained only four words:

Beware of Yun Zhan.