The Cannon Fodder Turns His Sister Into A Soaring Phoenix – Chapter 456

Chapter 455: Senior Brother, the Mantis Stalks the Cicada, the Oriole is Behind!

The warm sunset cast its light upon the streets. Before the gates of Nanke Immortal City, pedestrians came and went ceaselessly, their noisy shouts filling the air.

On top of a small tiled house at one side of the street, Feng Yu Die, her hair dyed a deep chestnut brown, was propped up, her upper body peeking over the roof ridge. She held her breath and focused her attention on two stall vendors selling pills across the street.

The two merchants were dressed like traveling rogue cultivators, and the pills they sold were the commonly used Spirit Gathering Pills favored by immortal cultivators. At first glance, there seemed to be nothing unusual about them.

But that was only at first glance.

Feng Yu Die had been observing them from this small tiled house for four days.

Now, all the vendors on this street by the city gate were familiar to her.

Normal vendors, in expectation of customers, would show an enthusiasm exceeding two hundred percent, fearing that customers might not buy anything from their stalls.

However, these two were too lazy to even shout out. When people came to look at their pills, they adopted an indifferent attitude, as if it didn’t matter whether they bought anything or not.

If this still wasn’t enough to raise suspicion, Feng Yu Die had actually sneaked away with two bottles of Spirit Gathering Pills the previous night. Yet, the two sellers hadn’t even noticed when they packed up. Their stall had a total of only about twenty bottles. A normal business would have reported the theft to the city lord’s mansion immediately to apprehend the thief.

Feng Yu Die was convinced that those two had something suspicious about them.

Furthermore, she had previously encountered two masked men who were buying a portrait of Ye Anping.

Her intuition told her that those two “rogue cultivators” selling Spirit Gathering Pills were the same two people she had met that night.

Now, those two had been guarding the city gate day and night for four days without rest, which indicated they were extremely certain that Ye Anping would definitely come to Nanke Immortal City.

As for where they got their information?

That wasn’t important. The important thing was that Young Master Ye was highly likely to come to this Immortal City, and that was enough for her.

This was just like the saying: “The mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind!”

Feng Yu Die felt she was a genius for noticing this. The strand of hair standing on her head twitched, and she retracted behind the roof ridge, flipped over, and took out Ye Anping’s portrait from her Storage Bag. She smoothed it out and looked at it in the sunset.

“Hehehe…”

She didn’t know why, but nowadays she liked to take out this painting and look at it every now and then. Every time she saw Ye Anping’s face in the painting, she felt quite content.

Tap, tap…

Two clear footsteps echoed on the roof tiles.

Xiao Yunluo, her hair styled like a beehive, emerged from the alley below, carrying a box of pastries she had bought and leaped onto the roof.

Seeing “Second Fool” lying there, staring blankly at the paper with a silly grin, completely oblivious to her return, Xiao Yunluo tiptoed over, holding her breath and concentrating, wanting to get a closer look.

However, just as she was about to see the portrait on the paper, Feng Yu Die quickly folded the canvas.

“Senior Sister Xiao~ You’re back…”

Xiao Yunluo fell silent for a moment, then sat down and placed the box of pastries beside her.

“Second Fool, something’s not right in the Immortal City. When I passed by an alley earlier, I clearly smelled the stench of Gu insects, but it disappeared very quickly… I also tried to probe with my Spiritual Sense, but I couldn’t find anything. I’m afraid there’s a Gu cultivator at or above the Nascent Soul Stage hiding in this Immortal City.”

“A Gu cultivator at the Nascent Soul Stage…” Feng Yu Die’s brows furrowed slightly. She pondered for a moment, resting her chin on her hand. “This place is only a little over a thousand li from Taibai Sect.”

Xiao Yunluo nodded in agreement, lowering her head slightly, trying to see what was on the painting in Feng Yu Die’s hand.

“Yes, it’s the heartland of the Southern Domain’s immortal families. Although the Southern Domain doesn’t have permanently snow-capped mountains like the Northern Region, if a Demonic cultivator at the Nascent Soul Stage has already reached this place, it means the Demonic cultivators might be planning something big.”

Feng Yu Die quickly rolled up the painting and put it back into her Storage Bag, chuckling.

“Let’s wait until Young Master Ye arrives. We shouldn’t alert them. Let’s pretend we know nothing and just keep watch… Ouch!!”

This caused Xiao Yunluo to reach out and grab her face, knitting her brows and retorting.

“Let me see that painting you were holding just now, what is it?”

“No way! I bought it with my own money.”

“What’s wrong with just taking a look!” Xiao Yunluo reached out to touch her Storage Bag. “You’ve been staring at that painting and smiling foolishly every day for the past few days. Let me see it!”

Feng Yu Die quickly rolled away, dodging her. “No!”

Suddenly, a male voice came from below the tiled house.

“Hey! Is anyone up on the roof?”

The two of them immediately quieted their movements, holding their breath. Seeing that the person didn’t seem intent on probing further, they finally relaxed and exchanged glances.

Xiao Yunluo sat down and opened the pastry box.

“Then tell me, what’s in that painting?”

“Hmm… it depicts the Great Dao!”

?

Xiao Yunluo was stunned. She immediately recalled the books in her own Storage Bag but thought it unlikely, so she didn’t press the matter further. She picked up a pastry and popped it into Feng Yu Die’s mouth.

“Eat up!”

“Mmm…”

… …

————

Unknowingly, the sunset yellow on the street had deepened and darkened.

Sitting in a small rattan chair, one of the cultivators manning a carpet stall in front of the city gate looked up at the sun, which was nearing the horizon, and sighed softly.

“Martial Uncle, the sun is almost set. The Young Master of the Hundred Lotus Sect probably won’t be coming today, will he?”

The other person glanced at him upon hearing this.

“Whether he comes or not isn’t up to you. Elder Seventh ordered us to watch the South Gate, so we’ll watch. If he comes, we’ll pass on the message. If he doesn’t, we’ll wait for the Elder to tell us to leave.”

“What I mean is, he’s just the Young Master of the Hundred Lotus Sect. We don’t need to make such a big fuss, do we? Elder has already deployed the Gu net. Is it really necessary to alarm all the immortal cultivators in this city just to catch a cultivator at the Core Formation Stage? It’s only a thousand li from Taibai Sect.”

“…Spring aspect spiritual energy.”

“Huh?”

“Young cultivators like you don’t quite understand what Spring aspect spiritual energy really means. That’s an ultimate Gu artifact. Even the Sect Master felt restless upon hearing the news. For Dual Cultivation arts, Spring aspect spiritual energy is an almost perfect cauldron for Dual Cultivation, and for us Gu cultivators, a Spring aspect cultivator is the best Gu feed.”

“Really?”

“Naturally. Spring aspect is born from true dragons. Since ancient times, artifacts refined by true dragons and Gu worms fed by them have always been the best. Let me put it this way: if you could get just one fingernail of the Hundred Lotus Sect’s Young Master and use it to feed your newly hatched Gu, you could directly break through your current realm.”

“But even if we capture him, Elder probably won’t share a single piece of meat with us.”

“In any case, keep watching.”

“Hey! How much are these Spirit Gathering Pills?”

Seeing a customer arrive, the person addressed as “Martial Uncle” looked up with a cold expression and replied indifferently.

“Three hundred Spirit Stones per bottle, five pills per bottle.”

“Can you make it a little cheaper…”

“If you’re not buying, get lost.”

“Hiss—What kind of attitude is that for a businessman…”

And just as he was dealing with the customer, the Demonic cultivator beside him nudged his waist with his elbow and desperately gestured with his eyes towards the city gate.

“Martial Uncle… Mmh hmm!”

The Demonic cultivator Martial Uncle glanced over and saw a youth wearing the sect uniform of Xuan Xing Sect, followed by two women in the black and white Daoist robes of Taibai Sect, entering through the city gate.

The youth was remarkably solemn, and bore at least a nine-tenths resemblance to the portrait they had bought at the painting stall in the East City.

He quickly put on a smile for the customer in front of him, spread his hands, and said, “They’re here. Fifty Spirit Stones off for you.”

“What do you mean? You just told me to get lost…”

… …

————

Ye Anping stepped from the shadow of the city gate tower onto the stone-paved street. He looked like a tourist, smiling cheerfully as he scanned the merchants and vendors in front of the city gate, and couldn’t help but exclaim,

“The Immortal Cities in the Southern Domain are indeed much better looking than those in the Western Regions. These white walls and green tiles have a quiet and refined charm.”

Elder Cao, who was walking ahead and acting as his guide, turned back with a smile upon hearing this.

“One region, one people. The water towns of the Southern Domain have their own charm, and the mountain forests of the Western Regions have their own beauty. Neither is better or worse than the other. Young Master Ye flatters us.”

Zu Lingzhi, however, looked disgusted and whispered,

“Putting on an act.”

But then, she leaned towards Pei Lianxue and said,

“Junior Sister Pei, there’s a lot of delicious food in Nanke Immortal City. Shall I take you to explore later?”

“I’ll go if Senior Brother goes.”

“Oh, Elder Cao can take him around. I’ll take you. We two girls, we share similar interests. I’ll take you to buy some rouge.”

… …

Watching Zu Lingzhi constantly trying to please her junior sister, Ye Anping felt a sense of helplessness.

Ever since that encounter with True Lord Hehua, Pei Lianxue had blocked a sword strike from Zu Lingzhi for him. Since then, she had been trying in every way to please his junior sister along the way.

Zu Lingzhi was indeed a girl who admired strength and had no friends in the game. It was understandable that she wanted to be friends with his junior sister after witnessing her prowess.

But…

Ye Anping inexplicably saw a shadow of Feng Yu Die in the current Zu Lingzhi, and he couldn’t help but sigh and shake his head.

“Alas…”

However, playing aside.

He was aware of the situation in Nanke Immortal City.

Although it was only about a thousand li from Taibai Sect, it wasn’t actually a particularly prosperous Immortal City.

There were only two to three Nascent Soul cultivators stationed in the city, making it the weakest defended among all the surrounding Immortal Cities.

In other words, if an Elder of the Hehuan Sect had already come to capture him, and the Demonic cultivators were not willing to give up, then Nanke Immortal City would be their best target.

However, in his estimation, if there was indeed a trap set for him in Nanke Immortal City, the person who set the trap would be at most a cultivator at the Nascent Soul Stage, and most likely a Gu cultivator or a Ghost cultivator.

After all, it was too close to Taibai Sect. The higher the cultivation level, the harder it was to conceal one’s aura.

If a Deity Transformation Stage Demonic cultivator were lurking here, the protective formation of Taibai Sect would certainly have detected it.

However, it was precisely what he needed.

For this trip to Taibai Sect, he needed a perfect timing.

That timing would be when the sect masters of the Demonic cultivators invaded the Southern Domain.

But according to the Jade Slip that Brother Liang sent him a few days ago, he still needed to stall for some time before meeting Zu Yuan at Taibai Sect.

As the saying goes, everything is ready except for the east wind.

He needed to wait for this “east wind” he had stirred to blow into the Southern Domain before he could enter the sect of Taibai Sect.

Thinking of this, Ye Anping smiled and asked,

“Hmm… Senior Cao, there shouldn’t be any rush, right?”

Elder Cao naturally understood his meaning and replied with a smile.

“Young Master Ye is our guest, and as such, I naturally have to fulfill my duty as a host. We’ll find lodging within the city later. I’ll accompany Young Master Ye to tour the Immortal City for a few days before we set off. Anyway, it’s only a thousand li to Taibai Sect, and at normal flying sword speed, it would take at most a day.”

“Then I shall trouble you.”

Ye Anping cupped his hands in agreement, pretend to admire the scenery, and looked around as he walked towards the inner city with Elder Cao.

The street was filled with chatter.

And perhaps because of his handsome face and the sect uniforms of Elder Cao and Zu Lingzhi, many pedestrians on the street couldn’t help but cast their gazes in their direction.

Even though Ye Anping could guess that there were likely Demonic cultivator spies among them, it was still difficult for him to identify a Demonic cultivator spy at a single glance in such a situation.

Whether he found them or not didn’t matter, but this feeling of being spied upon was quite unpleasant.

After thinking for a moment, he looked at Pei Lianxue, who was walking beside him, and called out,

“Junior Sister, although Moon Shadow Sword Sect is also in the Southern Domain, the customs and traditions here are different. This is your first time here too, so look around more. Don’t keep your head down.”

Pei Lianxue, who had been ignoring Zu Lingzhi like she was ignoring Feng Yu Die, twitched her ears upon hearing this and immediately understood the underlying meaning.

—Senior Brother means, there are bad guys on the street!

Her orange eyes rolled around. Like Ye Anping, she began to scrutinize the roadside stall owners and the passersby.

Then, she saw a slightly swaying beehive-like hairstyle on a tiled house some distance away.

“…Senior Brother.”

Pei Lianxue quickly tugged on Ye Anping’s sleeve and said,

“Ten o’clock.”

This was the “twelve o’clock reporting method” he had taught his junior sister in the past.

Ye Anping quickly looked in the ten o’clock direction and then saw the beehive-like hair sticking out from the roof ridge. He was stunned for a moment.

Why did it look so much like Yunluo’s head…

Did she follow him? Then Feng Yu Die must have followed too?

Ye Anping had originally wanted Xiao Yunluo and Feng Yu Die to stay in Xuan Xing Sect and cultivate diligently, but now that they had followed…

—Then let them follow.

“Alas…”

Ye Anping sighed softly and murmured,

“Tian.”

“Hey!”

Instantly, a spiritual light, visible only to him, emerged from between his brows and transformed into a human form. Xiao Tian, with her arms crossed, appeared and quickly observed her surroundings. Then, she tapped her nose and immediately said to Ye Anping,

“Anping, I smell Demonic cultivators… and also the scent of Yu Die.”

Ye Anping raised an eyebrow slightly and silently asked with his eyes, “Where?”

Xiao Tian paused for a moment, then stretched out her arms like a scarecrow. One hand pointed towards the tiled house roof with the beehive-like head, and the other hand pointed towards the two rogue cultivator merchants who looked like they were selling Spirit Gathering Pills.

“There!”

“…”

Ye Anping glanced in both directions, completely ignoring Xiao Yunluo’s side, and then turned his gaze towards the two rogue cultivators by the roadside.

“One is at the Mid Core Formation Stage, and the other is at the Late Foundation Establishment Stage! Anping, they used magical artifacts to conceal their cultivation.”

Since they could have a Mid Core Formation Stage Demonic cultivator working as a stall vendor here, there was probably a Nascent Soul Stage cultivator in the city?

A Gu cultivator or a Ghost cultivator?

With this question in mind, Ye Anping pondered for a moment, then pretended to be interested in buying Spirit Gathering Pills and walked towards them.

“Fellow Daoists, how much are your Spirit Gathering Pills?”

“…Three hundred Spirit Stones per bottle, five pills per bottle.”

“Oh~ that’s quite expensive.”

“If you’re a senior, can I give you fifty Spirit Stones off?”

“That’s not necessary.”

As Ye Anping was chatting with the man, Elder Cao, who had been walking in front of him, noticed him approaching to buy Spirit Gathering Pills and followed with Zu Lingzhi.

Elder Cao glanced at the Spirit Gathering Pills on the stall and raised his eyebrows slightly.

“Does Young Master Ye still lack these things? If you need them, can’t I just give you a few bottles?”

Ye Anping smiled and waved his hand, pointing to the two people behind the stall and replied,

“No, no, I don’t lack these things. It’s just that these two look very much like Demonic cultivators, so I came to take a closer look, hahaha…”

As soon as these words were spoken, the expressions of Elder Cao, Zu Lingzhi, and the two people behind the stall instantly became solemn…

… …