I came down from the third floor and went straight back to the bedroom. As I opened the door, I saw Xiao Cui sitting in front of the vanity mirror, putting on a necklace and bracelets. She was holding a pair of earrings and poking them at her ears, seemingly unable to put them in.
The sight made my heart skip a beat.
Was she awake?
But when I got closer, I was instantly disappointed. The hairpin on her head was stuck in her hair like a pair of chopsticks in a salad bowl—completely messy. If she were truly awake, no normal woman would dress herself like this.
I walked over, looked at her reflection in the mirror, sighed inwardly, and gently took the earrings to help her put them on. In a soft voice, I asked, "Wife, these are your wedding gifts. Do you remember them?"
There was a flicker of awareness in Xiao Cui's eyes at first, but when she heard my question, her gaze turned blank.
Clearly, she had no memory of the past.
Seeing the pain emerging on her face, I quickly comforted her, "If you can't remember, don't force it. I'll wake you up soon. Come, let's go to bed."
After calming her, her eyes gradually became lively again. She looked at me innocently and asked, "Are you going to bully me again?"
Her sudden question stunned me.
It took me a while to recover and quickly explain, "That's not bullying. We're husband and wife. That's just part of normal life."
"Oh!" Xiao Cui seemed half-comprehending, but there was a trace of fear in her eyes.
Seeing that, the fire inside me was instantly extinguished.
Thinking about my behavior, I realized I was taking advantage of her. Even if I wanted something, it should be with her full awareness and consent.
With that thought, I restrained myself.
The next morning, Jin Qiaoqiao arrived early.
After helping Xiao Cui with breakfast and reminding her to stay home and seek Aunt Su's help if anything happened, I made sure she was settled. Only then did Huang Jiu, Zhan Ling, and I leave the house, with Xu Wanrong once again driving us.
On the way, Zhan Ling suddenly said, "Li Yang, I just got some news last night. There's been conflict in the Ten Thousand Mountains. A lot of corpses were found near the outskirts."
My heart tightened.
Xiao Cui wasn't in the mountains anymore. Could the rebels be purging her supporters?
If that was the case, she might be completely driven out of the Ten Thousand Mountains.
Zhan Ling continued, "The ten leading sects in the Xuan World are now discussing forming a team to enter the mountains."
No need to ask—the Xuan World was clearly planning to take advantage of the situation.
Huang Jiu cursed, "What are they trying to do? Besiege the Light Summit?"
I stared out the window, thoughts tangled.
The Ten Thousand Mountains were forbidden territory for me—even more so now.
Getting close could mean death at the hands of their people.
But if I did nothing?
Xiao Cui would surely resent me in the future.
Thinking of this, I turned to Huang Jiu and said, "Have Xiao Lu go to the Ten Thousand Mountains and ask your wife about the situation."
Then I said to Zhan Ling, "I want to buy information—not from within the mountains, but on the locations of their people in the city. Price is no issue."
Time was short, and relying on Hei Huang and the others wouldn't be fast enough.
Zhan Ling replied, "I don't have that info, but you can pay to post a bounty. Whether anyone finds anything, I can't guarantee."
Post a bounty?
I asked worriedly, "Wouldn't that leak the news?"
"Don't worry about that. If you're sure, I can contact them now. But with bounty tasks for demon hunters, payment is upfront." Zhan Ling pulled out her phone.
"How much roughly?" I asked, uncertain. With all the recent expenses, I didn't have much left in my account, and demon hunter info was notoriously expensive.
Zhan Ling thought for a moment. "If it's just location info, 200,000 yuan should get someone to do it. But if we find them, do you have the ability to deal with them?"
Her reminder made me frown.
I had been focused on finding people and hadn't thought about how to handle them. I fell silent.
Xu Wanrong, who had been quietly listening, suddenly said, "Li Yang, we can use the Demon Hunting Token. I brought my master's token with me."
I had thought about using the token earlier.
But with the ten major sects planning to enter the Ten Thousand Mountains, I was already planning to invite the top-ranked demon hunter.
Now, hearing Xu Wanrong was willing to lend me Tang Quan's token, I immediately said to Zhan Ling, "Then let's use the Demon Hunting Token."
Zhan Ling asked, "Who do you want to request?"
"Is it the same token for anyone?" I asked.
Zhan Ling nodded.
Huang Jiu said, "Then what's there to ask? Go with the top-ranked one—safer that way."
Zhan Ling, seeing I was leaning that way, explained, "Normally, you'd start with someone of moderate strength. If they fail, the headquarters will then send someone stronger, escalating until the mission is completed."
"Can't we specify directly?" I asked.
"You can, but no one has ever done that since the Demon Hunting Tokens were issued," Zhan Ling replied.
I didn't care about that at all and said firmly, "Then I want the top-ranked."
Huang Jiu agreed. "Yes, top-ranked! No point wasting it."
I added, "Tell them the hunter must meet me first. I want to be present during the kill. He handles the kill—I'll handle the aftermath. That's my condition."
Killing wasn't my goal—I wanted something specific.
If I didn't clarify this now, they might kill the target and take everything. I'd be left with nothing.
Both Huang Jiu and I were a bit excited at the idea of calling in the top-ranked hunter.
Zhan Ling looked at us and asked again, "Are you sure?"
"Absolutely," I said without hesitation.
She hesitated a bit. "How about the second-ranked? I've never met the top-ranked, but I heard he has a bad temper."
Huang Jiu laughed, "Worse than that grumpy plague god on the third floor?"
Zhan Ling rolled her eyes. "Maybe not worse, but he's definitely stronger than Mr. Hu. His aura is also more intimidating."
"Then stop talking and get it done. We're almost at the cemetery," Huang Jiu said.
With no other choice, Zhan Ling complied.
It didn't take long—she logged into a website, wrote a request in a designated section: "Demon Hunting Token holder Xu Wanrong, disciple of Tang Quan, requests top-ranked hunter." She then filled out my requirements and address.
Less than a minute after submitting, Zhan Ling's phone rang.
She looked at the screen and said, "The headquarters has accepted the task."
I asked, "How soon will the top-ranked arrive?"
"If there are no issues, he should be here by tomorrow," Zhan Ling replied.
I was very satisfied with that speed.
Huang Jiu said cheekily, "Should we roll out a red carpet and hang a banner to welcome him?"
Zhan Ling replied flatly, "Do whatever you want."
I simply told Huang Jiu to shut up and stop talking nonsense.