Chapter 556: The World of the Western Regions

A single lonely lamp bathed the guest room in warm light.

As was her habit in a new place, the cat circled the room, sniffing here and there before finally hopping onto the bed to investigate the scent of the blankets.

The swallow perched on the table, its head tucked in, eyes half-closed—clearly exhausted from catching demons earlier.

All of their belongings were placed beside the table.

After a while, the cat finally turned her head and said, “This place is weird.”

“So you sensed it too, Lady Calico?”

“Even the mice here don’t move!”

“I see.”

Song You leisurely went to wash up.

The cat followed him closely, shadowing his every step like a loyal watchdog. Throughout the process, she kept stretching her neck to peer outside the doors and windows, as if determined to guard the Daoist in this strange and unsettling place.

Just then, the Daoist finished washing up and bent down to pick her up.

At that moment, the bodyguard cat, who had been dutifully carrying out its security task with meticulous seriousness, suddenly went limp. Its entire body turned soft like cloth, easily lifted into a long, dangling strip, even swaying slightly without meaning to.

“Lady Calico, your face smells like milk...”

“From drinking milk!”

“How did it get on your face?”

“It just does!”

The cat’s body was soft and limp as she dangled in his hands, but her expression remained serious as she stared at him.

“Every time I lower my head to drink from the bowl, the milk just floats up on its own and lands on my face. I find it very annoying.”

“I see.”

“Put me down.”

“Not before washing your face.”

“I can wash myself!”

The Daoist ignored her protests and insistently wiped her face clean before finally setting her down.

By now, the night was deep. Song You lay down on the bed and closed his eyes.

Lady Calico, however, was far from at ease. Quite the opposite—she was deeply worried.

She climbed onto the bed after wiping her paws, leaned in close, and examined the Daoist’s face over and over. Though it was clearly a cat’s face, it almost seemed like she was frowning.

Seeing how peacefully he slept only made her more anxious. She looked around the room, then, after a moment’s hesitation, leapt off the bed.

She rummaged through the travel bag and sash, retrieving her small flag and the Water-Splitting Knife. Carrying them back to the bed, she carefully stuffed them under the Daoist’s pillow. Then, she pulled out the coin pouch and tucked it against the inner side of the bed.

After some thought, she even transformed into her human form to lift the travel bag closer to the bedside.

Only then did she feel slightly reassured. But only slightly.

Though she lay on the bed, she positioned herself facing outward, ready to spring up at any moment. Her eyes remained half-open, alert.

“Lady Calico, stop keeping watch.”

“

Meow

!!”

The sudden voice beside her startled the already-tense cat.

She whipped around, only to see her Daoist lying perfectly straight with his eyes closed, still as a corpse. Yet, he said, “Go to sleep. We’re heading to Jade City in the morning.”

The cat couldn’t help but ask in confusion, “Not keeping watch,

meow

?”

“They won’t come.”

“How do you know?”

“It’s just a guess.”

“How did you guess that?”

“Go to sleep. It’s late.”

“But what if they do come?” The cat glanced toward the pillow, the inner side of the bed, and the travel bag—she had brought so much money and so many treasures, after all.

“Then that would be perfect.”

“

Meow

?”

“Sleep.”

The Daoist spoke no further.

There were no great demons here. In fact, there hadn’t even been a monastery to begin with. The mountain was full of monks, but they were just minor spirits and creatures—though the Buddhist scriptures they recited were real.

Even the senior monks in the hall had limited cultivation, though the entire mountain’s worth of demons were skilled at concealing their demonic qi and disguising themselves as humans. The monastery itself was so convincingly built that it could almost be mistaken for the real thing. That, at least, was a skill of its own.

A great demon was never here. And one would never be found here.

This was simply a way to test the waters, to uncover their true intentions.

Unless they quickly proved that Song You was not as powerful as he seemed—and had concrete evidence to support it—they wouldn’t dare make a move tonight. Even then, the great demon might not show itself.

For a high-level cultivator from the Great Yan, one who could melt the mountain’s ice with a mere gesture, this demon lurking in the Western Regions was extremely cautious.

Song You, on the other hand, was in no hurry.

It seemed as though he was still in the open while his opponent remained hidden, his location unknown. But in truth, the advantage was already his.

All he had to do was wait for the demon to come to him.

Before long, Song You drifted into sleep.

The mountains were eerily quiet. The nights in Jade City were already cool, and after the rain, the air was even crisper. The monastery itself was well-constructed—the bed made of fine wood, the bedding filled with real silk and down. It was, without a doubt, the most luxurious bed Song You had ever slept on in his life. From this alone, it was clear that the monks of this temple had not mistreated him.

Or perhaps they were simply too wealthy to own anything of poor quality.

The first half of the night passed undisturbed.

At the fourth watch, footsteps could be heard outside. At the fifth watch, someone stopped by the window, peeking in. Then came hushed whispers, putting the ever-vigilant night-watch cat on high alert.

Then, a single sharp rebuke rang out. After that, silence.

Song You slept soundly through the night, dreamless and at peace.

By morning, the sky had cleared. The senior monks personally came to invite him to breakfast.

Lady Calico was extremely reluctant to leave, wanting to stay in the room to guard her treasures. She only agreed to go after Song You slung on her pouch, carrying her small flag and Water-Splitting Blade with him.

Breakfast consisted of grapes, milk, and baked flatbread. The monastery’s flatbread was far softer than the ones they had been carrying on the road, and its aroma was especially enticing.

After breakfast, the monks gathered to bid him farewell.

The send-off was grand.

All the high monks from last night walked barefoot behind the Daoist, escorting him down the temple steps. Behind them, the entire monastery’s monks stood at the mountain gate and along the stairway, silently watching him depart.

Yet many of them couldn’t help but sneak glances at the luggage on the horse’s back.

For a moment, Song You wasn’t sure whether they were sending him off or just reluctant to part with the water-element spiritual resonance.

“Farewell.”

“Safe travels, Daoist Master.”

The sound of horse bells jingled through the mountains. The heavy rain from last night had left the roads muddy.

Lady Calico insisted on walking, and with every step, her cat paws sank into the wet earth, leaving tiny holes. Her pristine white “gloves” soon turned into muddy mittens.

As they walked, she couldn’t help but lift her head to gaze at the swallow soaring above them, eyes filled with envy.

Then, suddenly, the swallow swooped down.

“Sir.”

Landing lightly on the horse’s back, the bird spoke in a serious tone, “The temple behind us... it’s gone!”

The cat froze in place, then immediately turned around to look.

Sure enough...

In the distance behind them, only a lush green mountain remained. Half of it was covered in bright, grassy meadows, while the other half was a dense, dark-green coniferous forest. The colors and scenery were pristine, untouched.

Gone was the grand, golden temple from last night. There wasn’t even a trace of human craftsmanship left behind.

“It’s gone!” The cat froze in place.

Even though she had known from the start that this temple was unusual and had mentally prepared herself, seeing it vanish without a trace still gave her the surreal feeling of stepping into one of those legendary tales people spoke of.

“...!”

She quickly snapped out of her daze, shifting back into her human form in an instant. With a flick of her hand, the mud on her fingers disappeared completely. Then, she tiptoed to rummage through the luggage on the horse’s back.

Her small flag was still there. So was the Water-Splitting Blade.

The money pouch was untouched, and the four elemental spiritual resonance were also safe and sound.

“...”

Only then did Lady Calico breathe a sigh of relief. She turned to look at her Daoist, only to find that his expression was as calm and composed as ever, as if he had expected this all along.

“Let’s go, Lady Calico,” the Daoist spoke lightly and continued forward.

“What kind of demon was that?” The girl quickly followed, gripping her small bamboo staff as she picked up her pace to keep up with him.

“You’ll find out in the future.”

“The future?”

“Yes.”

“Will we see them again?”

“Not necessarily. They were just small fry.” Song You paused briefly. “But I suspect we will meet the one who controls them.”

“How do you know?”

“I’m very smart.”

“...”

“Can’t you figure it out?”

“...”

The little girl pressed her bamboo staff into the ground as she walked in silence beside him. Since a child's legs weren’t as long as an adult’s, she had to take quicker steps, making her stride look unintentionally amusing.

After a moment of silence, she finally spoke again.

“That Golden Awl was amazing! If we had one, we’d never have to worry about running out of meat on the road or water in the desert!” The little girl’s eyes sparkled with excitement. “We wouldn’t even have to worry about not having money in the city! We could have anything we wanted! Just one tap, and it appears!”

“It’s just a thief’s tool.”

“A thief’s tool?”

“A magical artifact for stealing.”

“Stealing?”

Song You turned to look at her. “Where do you think that roast chicken, that grilled fish, that bowl of milk, and that jug of wine came from? Weren’t they just like the grapes, stolen from somewhere else?”

“Uh....”

The little girl scratched her head.

Well, that wouldn’t do. Stealing was wrong.

Mice stole things, and that was why people kept cats to catch them.

After walking another twenty li, the road quickly dried.

In just a short stretch—no more than a zhang—the ground transitioned from muddy to completely dry. Song You stopped on the firm yellow dirt road and stomped his feet to shake off the mud from his shoes. Whatever didn’t come off, he patiently scraped away with his bamboo staff.

The girl beside him clearly had a better way to clean off the mud, but she stood next to him anyway, mimicking his movements—stomping her feet and using her bamboo staff to scrape the dirt away.

As she copied him, she kept glancing at him, carefully studying his technique.

Song You couldn’t help but ruffle her hair.

Another twenty li, and they arrived at the gates of Jade City.

This city, built amid lush green mountains and clear waters, was surrounded by thick fortress walls. At the gate, caravans of camels and horses passed in and out, with most of the travelers having the distinct features of the Western Regions. Both men and women wore traditional clothing unique to the area, their heads wrapped in turbans, adorned with jade ornaments.

Through the city gates, glimpses of the inner buildings revealed architecture vastly different from that of the Great Yan dynasty.

Even the faint sound of local music drifted through the air.

In an instant, the exotic charm of a foreign land washed over them.

Song You took a sweeping glance at the scene before him before stepping forward.

Presenting his ordination certificate, along with a handwritten letter from the prefect of Shazhou, he was finally granted entry into the heart of the Western Regions.