While waiting for their departure toward the capital, Cao Yun had enough time to cultivate. Since his blood cultivation was so smooth, he did focus on his Qi cultivation. The sensation of having a Soul Embryo in his stomach was extremely strange. But he was getting used to it by that point. Using his Fire Qi and Water Qi in combination in order to nourish it was becoming easier and easier. In fact, he didn't even need to think about it anymore. This was also part of the reason why he didn't want to speed things up.
Of course, he wanted to improve his intimacy with his own Soul Embryo and prepare firm foundations for his future. Indeed, Cao Yun was resolute. He would be the first one in many generations who would overthrow the curse of the Forsaken Dao Era. He would become a 1st-grade Sage, not a half-step Sage or any thing of the sort. For that though, he was looking for the best cultivation he could get. Now that he wasn't afraid of being too weak, he could focus on strengthening his foundation. Indeed, his blood cultivation would bring him higher and higher for a few years without any problem.
Apart from getting a firmer grasp of his Soul Embryo, spending time on this stage also allowed Cao Yun to experiment with his Fire Qi and Water Qi. In other words, he was gaining many things that would be useful in the future, while still improving himself daily. His mastery over his own Qi in various aspects was a net positive. In fact, he was also working on his understanding of the five elements which would help him in many other aspects of his cultivation, even in his martial arts in fact.
Moreover, working on his soul also helped him to work on his Spear Intent which he was trying to develop into a Spear Heart. Unfortunately, his Spear Heart and his Soul Embryo had in common that it was impossible to know how far they had advanced. Someone had described them as hatching an egg. There would be no change in the egg until one day it would suddenly hatch. In truth, it wasn't totally accurate as someone could see signs before the final moments, but the image was clear enough. Almost nothing would change for months, years, even decades for some. And suddenly, one's efforts would bear fruits. Most people were unable to advance, either because they lost their motivation, or because they had many other things to do that diverted them from this long work. Each day without improving was like regressing by an entire week.
In this stage of his cultivation, there wasn't anything special or extraordinary to do. It was very tedious work without any immediate reward. Cao Yun could tell why so many people failed to climb high. But it also reminded him of martial arts. Throwing thousands upon thousands of punches in order to perfect one's form was tedious, boring and many failed to adhere to such a routine. However, this was important work. And Cao Yun had mastered such a routing before. In fact, he derived a lot of pleasure just from noticing tiny and subtle details that differed from punch to punch. No punch was identical, ever, as no one could actually reach perfection. There were always imperfections to correct. At the moment, he was doing to same thing and it was keeping him focused and interested in his current cultivation.
-
While Cao Yun was waiting for the audience with Lord Wanghuo, Weiji He had reached his destination. Of course, he wasn't as fast as Cao Yun or Hongyu, but as a 5th-grade Accomplished Demon, he was still very fast. Besides, as a general in the Nalupu Kingdom's army, he knew the terrain. As such, he found the fastest way possible toward Duma City. And here he was, floating before the city.
When he had left, he had used his stealth and not a single Sister observing him had discovered anything amiss. At that moment, he was also using his stealth art and no one was the wiser. Although he couldn't know for sure, he was certain that the Sisters of the Abyss had sent Sisters to protect Boss Gui and the Blazing Swallow. From everything he had witnessed, there was now some form of alliance between them. Maybe the Sisters were trying to take over the entire Desolate Sepulcher. After all, if they took down City Lord Sihe completely, Boss Gui would eventually lead the Xinian Confederation. And if she was the pawn of High Mother Lisha, then the Sisters would rule the continent.
Weiji he knew Lord Wanghuo enough to be sure that he wouldn't involve himself with it unless it caused him direct harm. In fact, recently, Lord Wanghuo had become more and more indolent. He was spending increasingly more time in his harem. As a matter of fact, this had pushed Weiji He to get closer to City Lord Sihe through his niece's husband. Such a man was unfit to lead. Of course demons were much more sensitive to their emotions and passions, but they were not devoid of reason. Thus, they could control themselves. Lord Wanghuo's attitude wasn't too popular, but he was just too powerful. Even alone, he could kill most Accomplished Demons in the entire continent. Besides, his personal army was also extremely strong and ruthless when it mattered. In other words, no one would dare to challenge him.
Because he was trying to be discreet, Weiji He floated down and landed on the ground. Then, he restrained his spiritual senses as much as he could, focusing everything on his physical senses and his stealth. Most of all, he focused on controlling his bloodline, knowing that the Sisters were extremely good at detecting any bloodline. Afterward, he simply walked through the main gate and entered Duma City. It wasn't hard at all and no one seemed to notice his presence.
In Weiji He's mind, the culprit behind his niece's death was unequivocally Boss Gui. At least, it was what made the most sense. After all, he knew for a fact that she was also using poison like City Lord Sihe. But he couldn't expose her without exposing him. Also, he would probably have to expose the fact that his niece had indeed used some Bloodfire Vermilion Haze, and that he knew about it and had stayed silent. Anyway, he had many reasons to suspect Boss Gui but as many reasons prevented him from revealing anything at all. But if he simply killed her and took the evidence afterward, everything would be solved. At the very least, it was his logic.
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In the worst case scenario, he also simply thought he could get away with it. Indeed, his stealth was good enough that he was hard to detect. If Boss Gui had been able to kill his niece without leaving any proof, he could do the same. Of course, he didn't have the Sisters of the Abyss backing him up. In fact, he was quite literally in the opposite situation.
As he was walking through Duma City, he was slowly regaining his calm. Without the excitement and the freshness of the plan he had concocted, he realized that this might not have been such a good idea. On the other hand, he was there, so he might as well make the most of it. Unfortunately for Weiji He, as a general, this kind of rash decision had always benefited him. Thus, he had not learned to doubt himself too much. Even if he could see many holes in his plan, he was certain he could make it work.
During a battle, no plan was perfect. So he had to adapt to an ever changing situation. Until now, he had never lost a single battle. On the other hand, he had never fought a large battle, neither had he fought in a war. Until now, he had always repressed small revolts and uprooted bandits and criminals. From time to time, the military was even used to cull demonic beasts. He wasn't anything like the demons in the Empyrean Asura Theocracy who were constantly waging war against their neighbors, both demons and humans. Even the humans were always preparing for war with the demons, and felt as though they were in a constant state of siege.
Weiji He pushed all those thoughts aside when he reached the residence of Boss Gui.
-
Boss Gui was walking in her courtyard. Before her were dozens of men and women wearing very little clothing. All of them were covered in sweat and bruises. Clearly, they had just stopped an intensive training session. Everywhere around them, there were tools of training, weights, racks filled with various real and dummy weapons. On the ground, there were traces of fight, and a few blood stains. Thankfully, no wound was too serious and the demons had mostly healed. Still, some bruises remained here and there.
Behind Boss Gui were Mister Dai and Miss Wo. Since Cao Yun had last seen him, Mister Dai had reached the Accomplished Demon realm. Of course, he wasn't too powerful and he probably wouldn't reach the later stages of this realm. But this was a great accomplishment for a man from the nomadic tribes. Besides, he had also recently become a completely free man. When Boss Gui had agreed Cao Yun's terms, she had freed all of her slaves and employees. Of course, they now all had contracts with her which were almost as restrictive. But technically, they weren't slaves. That meant that she couldn't sell them, but she could sell their services as mercenaries.
Even if the difference didn't seem important at first, it was a huge improvement for them all. As such, they all saw Boss Gui in a new light. Obviously, she didn't care at all, she only cared about profit. Seeing how grateful they were showed her that Cao Yun was clearly right, she could make more profits from them as mercenaries rather than mere slaves.
Beside their freedom, the mercenaries were seeing how far Mister Dai had cultivated. And they could feel the effectiveness of Boss Gui's treatment, which came directly from the Blazing Swallow. Honestly, it was a bit less effective than her usual poisons, but there were fewer side effects. In fact, almost no one would die from it. And those who would die were already too weak to be trained anyway, so they wouldn't even receive the treatment.
Everything seemed to go well for Boss Gui. However, she was in a terrible mood. Since they didn't know her as intimately as Mister Dai and Miss Wo, the trainees didn't realize anything. After all, she was talented when it came to hiding her real thoughts.
"Very well! You've all made good progress. I'll increase your wage for this day. Those who are on duty must stay and keep guard. The others, you have your entire day. Good work!"
"This humble one thanks City Lord Gui!"
As one man, they all bowed. Even those who had to stay and keep guard around the residence were grateful. After all, they knew that their comrades were going to buy some wine and some meat for them too. The only problem was that they couldn't get some friendly company. But it wasn't such a good idea to even think about it around Boss Gui. As much as they were seeing her in a positive light, they hadn't forgotten about her cruel reputation either. She liked being both loved and feared at the same time. It was nice.
As the trainees left, she retreated in her chambers with Mister Dai and Miss Wo.
Once inside, she threw down the fur on her shoulders. Suddenly, she seemed much smaller, especially with the two large demons in front of her. Finally, she even took off her blindfold. Beneath it, her eyes were completely burned. Although she was a demon, she hadn't been able to regenerate her eyes. First of all, not all demon was as full of vitality as Cao Yun. And most importantly, she had received this wound when she had been much weaker. Her eyes were long gone and her flesh had healed around what remained. In other words, it wasn't pretty at all. Few people had ever seen her without the blindfold. Even seasoned soldiers would have found it hard to look at it without flinching the first time.
"Mistress, may I speak freely?"
"We're alone, so go ahead. I already know what's on your mind anyway..."
Miss Wo was a bit uneasy at how easily her mistress could read her.
"Is your mood due to Nie Pian?"
Before Boss Gui answered, she spit on the ground as her face was disfigured by anger.
"That old bastard! I should have skinned him alive when I had the chance! The next time I see him, I'll make him eat his own..."
"Mistress!"
"What?! You've already seen me do it a few times..."
Miss Wo was obviously disgusted because she had indeed seen such scenes before. After all, killing someone in such a way was always meant as a spectacle for Boss Gui. She didn't care about torture, or even death, but they were tools for her to instill fear in her enemies, and even in her own allies.
"That Sihe bastard is using the old geezer to take down my operations! That senile old fart gathered every intel he could on me and is now using it to bury me! When I get my hands on him, he'll beg for death for months. Hell, for years!"
"Mistress, I don't understand why he would betray you for City... for Sihe. After all, with Mo Yun's return, Sihe is doomed and you'll lead the Xinian Confederation."
Miss Wo stopped herself before saying 'City Lord', and this was the right decision seeing the anger in her mistress' eyes. Hearing the question though, Boss Gui took an entire bottle of wine and downed it in an instant.
"This bastard has been stealing from me and the Blazing Swallow for years, almost from the start. And we didn't see a damn thing. Yes, he helped the company, but he especially helped himself. I guess he thought it wouldn't matter since we were going to be crushed. But if we were the ones doing the crushing, Mo Yun and myself would find him out. And that Sihe pig was the only one who could unravel his seals. I'll grind his bones to dust!"
In her anger, Boss Gui was oblivious to Weiji He's concealed presence.