As that group of people stood silently in the bamboo forest, holding various weapons and watching the elegant old-fashioned building, waiting for the right moment to sneak in, Chu Lian's hand feeding soup to the white-haired girl suddenly paused for a moment. Then she scooped another spoonful of broth, blew it cool, and brought it to her lips to drink.
"Now can you tell me your name?" After several minutes, she had finally fed the reluctant white-haired girl the entire bowl of soup. Pretending not to know her name, Chu Lian asked.
The white-haired girl's gaze followed the movement of her hand with the bowl. Hearing the question, she immediately answered: "Kurosaki Satsuki, an ominous name."
"Oh? Why do you say that?" Chu Lian was genuinely curious this time. Her father was clearly Huaxia, so why did she carry such an obvious Japanese surname like Kurosaki?
"My father is Huaxia, my mother Japanese. Originally, I should have had both a Huaxia name and a Japanese name. But because of a certain matter, in the end I could only bear the surname Kurosaki, and not Wu or Suzune." Realizing that everything Chu Lian had done was actually for her sake, the girl no longer rejected her. She began to seriously answer her questions.
"I don't remember exactly what happened. I only know that before I was three, I was still called Suzune Yuri. But at the age of three, out of curiosity, I entered my family's forbidden ground, went into a cave, and fainted. When I woke, I was already back home. Father was sighing, Mother was crying. Afterwards, I was given the surname Kurosaki, and my name was changed to Satsuki."
"On the path of darkness, a cold, lonely moon? So that is the meaning of your name?" Chu Lian pondered a moment, breaking down the meaning of her name, then asked.
"Father said so, but I always felt there was some special meaning behind it." Kurosaki Satsuki first nodded, then shook her head, indicating she wasn't sure.
"Alright, let's stop here for now. Rest a bit, and when you've regained your strength, we'll talk more. Sleep now…" A stream of warm spiritual power flowed from Chu Lian, her voice turning hazy, like a call from within a dream. But in Satsuki's ears, it was gentle and soft. Her eyes involuntarily closed with her words, and soon her breathing evened as she drifted into sleep.
Chu Lian carefully moved the girl's head from her lap onto the pillow, then gestured to Inori and the others to follow her outside.
"Enemies have arrived outside. According to Tina's analysis, there's a ninety percent chance it's the group pursuing Kurosaki Satsuki. I don't know how they discovered she's here, but no matter what, we can't let her fall into danger now." Chu Lian's expression was extremely serious—this time, the enemies were indeed tricky.
"Chu Chu and Xiu'er, stay here. I'll have Tina return shortly. With her here, even if you meet enemies, you can retreat safely. Tina said among them only two or three are stronger than her, but none could capture her."
Gently caressing Chu Chu and Li Xiu'er's cheeks, Chu Lian tenderly reminded them: "So this time, I'll go out with Inori. You must prioritize your safety. If necessary, even if you must abandon her, protect yourselves."
"Don't worry, Big Sis. As long as I still have strength to resist, Xiu'er won't suffer any harm. That's my promise to you." Chu Chu narrowed her eyes, enjoying Chu Lian's tenderness, and spoke firmly.
"I won't be a burden. Even if I have no strength and don't know how to fight, I will not let Chu Chu worry about me." In contrast, the usually weak Li Xiu'er was uncharacteristically strong this time. Hearing her words, if such a situation truly came, she might really act on them.
"Nothing will happen. Believe me…" Chu Lian focused her gaze, studying the two girls for a moment. Then she turned and took Inori's hand. "Inori, these enemies may be stronger than all the ones we've faced before combined. Until we meet a truly overwhelming foe, we'll fight together. If we can't hold on, then we'll draw the Void Greatsword."
"Because I'm worried that if we draw the great sword but don't find that person, it will be a disaster…" Chu Lian's words made Inori's heart tense. She pulled out the silver pistol from her thigh and nodded: "Lian, we'll be fine."
"Of course. If I thought otherwise, I wouldn't have done this." She was referring to taking in Kurosaki Satsuki despite knowing it would bring danger.
After speaking, she closed her eyes and stood there. Her pure, clear aura suddenly began to shift, a cold and deep murderous intent spreading around her.
When her eyes opened again, her black pupils had turned completely violet. Even her long straight hair curled slightly at the ends.
"Let's see who dares to act so arrogantly here. Haha, it's been so long since I've appeared. Did you miss me?" The violet-eyed girl turned to Inori and Chu Chu, her smile brimming with sinister energy.
"Hmph, I hate Big Sis when she's blackened the most. Go away, I don't want to see you. Xiu'er, let's go inside…" Chu Chu stuck out her tongue in distaste, grabbed Li Xiu'er's hand, and slipped back into the room.
Meow… At some point, Tina had returned to the room. She let out a soft cry, leapt straight onto Chu Chu's chest, rubbed her little head against her, then comfortably lay there and closed her eyes to sleep.
Once Tina had fallen asleep, Chu Chu gently closed the door, giving a dramatic eye-roll before disappearing. This made Dark Chu Lian laugh. "Haha, that girl really needs discipline. White Chu Lian is far too gentle. If it were me, she'd have been obedient long ago."
"Exactly because of that, you can only be Dark Chu Lian, while she remains the Chu Lian who can always face the world outside." Breaking free from her grasp, Inori raised her gun with both hands and spoke firmly.
"You're right. I am me, and she is her. We each do things differently—that's how it should be." Dark Chu Lian didn't mind Inori's obvious rejection, only shook her head and sighed.
"Enough, no more pointless talk. Keep this up and those guys will come in any second. Tch, a bunch of rats daring to act arrogant before me—they must be tired of living." With a flash of her figure, Dark Chu Lian vanished after a few swift movements. Inori hesitated, but still followed. Even if she had become another Chu Lian, she was still Chu Lian.
In the bamboo forest outside the Wafuu Inn, over a dozen strange figures of varying shapes stood silently behind a burly man with a long spear on his shoulder and a purple-gold crown on his head, listening to his words.
"Among those of the Shun Prison Sword Style, only she remains. The answer we seek is either on her, or it no longer exists. But I don't believe the prophet's words could be wrong. That thing—she must know of it. Even if she doesn't, her soul does." The man's deep voice carried murderous intent, yet sounded utterly calm.
"The Daughter of Fate has already appeared in Huaxia. She is the most important key for us of the Otherside to enter the surface world. Unfortunately, I still don't know who she is. Those short-sighted fools think they're being secretive, but they don't realize we already discovered them." Speaking of those people, disdain filled the burly man's square face.
"Even if we haven't found the Daughter of Fate, finding the thing suspected to be the return of the Death Moon is good enough. With the Death Moon, even without the key, we still have a chance to break into this world." When he spoke of this so-called "Death Moon," the excitement in his eyes was impossible to hide.
"In this world obsessed with so-called technology, their personal strength is far too weak. Guns pose no threat to me. Even artillery shells I can block." When one's strength reached a certain level, firearms indeed became less of a threat. He wasn't lying.
"But there are still some old fellows who haven't died yet, and a few promising youngsters too. If we cause too big a commotion and they interfere, that would be troublesome. By then, not only would news of the Daughter of Fate's appearance reach them, prompting them to do everything to stop us, but even the matter of the 'Death Moon's' return would be exposed. That would be far too inconvenient. In the surface world, our power is still too weak. Otherwise, why would we need to fear these demons and monsters?" His tone carried a sigh, yet his words were as he said.
If not for the hidden families of the surface world—those dedicated to handling matters of the cultivation world and the Otherside—he wouldn't need to worry at all. He would have charged in, slaughtered freely, and captured that sly, rat-like girl already. Why bother thinking so much?
"Demons and monsters? Hehehe, big guy, you're overestimating yourself, aren't you?" Just as he was about to continue speaking, a crisp, bell-like voice laced with mockery pierced into his ears, making him erupt with rage: "Who's there?"
"Me. Look up above you." Dark Chu Lian sat calmly on a slender bamboo stalk, her right hand propping her chin as she looked down at him from above.
"A yellow-haired brat who hasn't even grown up yet dares to be this arrogant? Hand over your life!" When the burly man saw it was just a petite girl, his fury deepened. With a sweep of his spear, he stepped beneath the bamboo she perched on. The sharp blade, empowered by his immense strength, cleaved through the ten-centimeter-thick bamboo in one strike.
"How clumsy. I already left that spot long ago, yet you still flail about. Should I call you stupid, or stupid, or maybe just stupid? Truly a brainless ox with nothing but muscle." Dark Chu Lian's figure reappeared on another bamboo stalk more than ten meters away, still seated, still in the same posture.
"If you have guts, come down and duel me one-on-one! Don't scurry about like a rat. I hate cowards like you the most!" The burly man, abandoning his earlier calm, became agitated and violent, his words coarse and crude.
"You say come down and I should obey? Who do you think you are?" Dark Chu Lian sneered, as if mocking his childishness.
But at that moment, the furious-looking man suddenly revealed a cold, sinister smile. With a flick of his left hand, a hook tied to a transparent wire shot straight toward her.
The sudden change happened with lightning speed—so fast she had no time to react. It turned out his earlier display had been nothing but a disguise. Yet… who wasn't wearing a disguise here?