The Fairy: From the Traveling Merchant

Chapter 560 Beginning

If it were a normal day, Xuancheng should be bustling with people just after the afternoon... But Zhao Chen and Ming Xueling walked from the County Magistrate's Mansion to the Happy Treasure Pavilion, but they didn't see a single person along the way.

The streets were empty and the surrounding buildings were silent. If it weren't for a few shops open, Zhao Chen would have thought he was in a dead city.

The few shop assistants who were still able to operate the shops all had numb eyes and dull faces. One could tell at a glance that they were the type of people who had eaten sweet potato rice for more than three years and whose spiritual power was almost exhausted.

"Except for those who have been eating sweet potato rice for a long time, and the cultivators who have cultivated their spiritual consciousness above the mana level, the rest have exhausted their energy and fallen into sleep." Ming Xueling carefully sensed it and frowned slightly, saying, "The person behind the scenes is likely to want to use the collective dreams of the people in the city to achieve some purpose."

"There's no point in thinking about these things now. We can't stop them anyway. We can only deal with them when the time comes." Zhao Chen shook his head and strode to the front of the Happy Treasure Pavilion.

This is a pavilion built of rare jade, exotic stones and other materials. It is eye-catching from the appearance and exudes an unusual atmosphere, which seems to make people who enter it let down their guard and just want to explore the secrets and truth of the beauty.

"This rumored top entertainment venue in Ganzhou has become deserted under the current circumstances."

After complaining in his heart, Zhao Chen stepped onto the stairs, pushed open the half-open door of the treasure pavilion, and entered the pavilion with Ming Xueling beside him.

As soon as they entered, a large number of graceful figures appeared in front of them. Amid the charming voices, the young girls laughed and talked happily. Each of them had her own charm, which was unforgettable.

But Zhao Chen had long known from Ming Xueling that these were just illusions, and his "Hollow Eyes" could also see through the essence, so he was not fooled by them. Instead, after looking around, he looked towards the corridor on the second floor and said loudly:
"Zhao Chen is visiting with the 'Three Wonders Fairy', please let Pavilion Master Bai show up to meet them."

"Fairy Sanjue" is Duan Mingxue's nickname, and Mingxue Ling now uses the identity of her former master Duan Mingxue when she goes out.

Not long after Zhao Chen finished speaking, a woman in a white dress, who looked like a lady in a painting, floated down from the upstairs, separated from those illusory beauties, and came out to greet them.

She was thin, with pale skin, and a hint of red between her eyebrows. When she walked, she was like a willow swaying in the wind, with her thin eyebrows slightly wrinkled, which made people feel pity for her.

When they got closer, the woman who looked like a weak official lady said in a soft voice: "My concubine Bai Nongmei greets 'Blood Sword Master' and 'Three Wonders Fairy'. Please come in."

Is this the "Plum Blossom Fairy"? But looking at her appearance, she doesn't look like the plum blossom that "faces the frost and defies the snow". It's more like saying she's the hibiscus that "blames the east wind and feels bad for itself"...

Zhao Chen muttered to himself, but on the surface, after greeting the woman, he followed her into a small but elegantly decorated room on the second floor of the treasure pavilion.

After the two of them sat down, the seemingly weak woman skillfully prepared tea sets, as well as various fruits and snacks for Zhao Chen and Ming Xueling.

After doing all this, Bai Nongmei sat opposite Zhao Chen and the others and asked in a gentle voice, "Are you two here for the Mu family wedding banquet tonight?"

"Yes, the current situation in Xuancheng is weird, and this wedding banquet is probably inappropriate... We came here to seek cooperation with the fairies and help each other." Zhao Chen nodded and said bluntly.

"Mr. Zhao is indeed sincere, but I'm sorry that I can't agree to it." Bai Nongmei chuckled and rejected Zhao Chen unexpectedly.

"Oh?" Zhao Chen raised his eyebrows. Seeing that Bai Nongmei seemed to be hesitant to speak, he couldn't help but ask, "Fairy, can you tell me the reason for your refusal?"

"It's very simple. Huanxi Baoge is not a guest at the Mu family's wedding banquet tonight..." Bai Nongmei smiled and looked at Zhao Chen with her cherry lips. She said crisply, "But we are one of the organizers!"

One of the organizers? In other words, Huanxi Baoge was the mastermind behind this?

Hearing this, Zhao Chen was startled at first, but then he calmed down, because if the Plum Blossom Fairy in front of him really wanted to harm him, she would have revealed her true intentions now, instead of revealing information to him like an NPC in the game.

He and Ming Xueling looked at each other. The latter was obviously caught off guard by these sudden words and was speechless for a moment.

Zhao Chen thought for a moment and asked tentatively: "Fairy, do you know who is the real organizer of the wedding banquet?"

"Mr. Zhao, your question is not very decent..." Bai Nongmei covered her face with her sleeves, as if she was laughing secretly, "The ones who are looking for someone to plan the wedding are naturally the groom and... the bride."

After saying the word "bride", Bai Nongmei's already pale face turned even paler, as if she was in great pain. However, she covered her face with her sleeves and said it casually, which limited the pain to an bearable range.

Seeing this, Zhao Chen's mind seemed to be struck by lightning, illuminating the person he had always ignored -

Mu Zirong's bride, the fairy from the aristocratic Meng family, the other half of this wedding farce!
"Yes... From the very beginning, no one had ever doubted the Meng girl who was going to marry into the Mu family as a concubine. Obviously, she was the most suspicious one in this farce-like marriage.

“Even Mu Zirong’s performance at the restaurant outside Zhangye might have been to show her presence.

"Everyone, including me, ignored her from the beginning...

"Is this fairy from the Meng family the real mastermind behind this incident?
"However, Pavilion Master Bai of Huanxi Bao Pavilion revealed this information to me. Is it because there is a flaw in the way Fairy Meng controls people, or is she doing it on purpose?"

With his eyes slightly narrowed, Zhao Chen's "Dongxu Eyes" reflected Bai Nongmei's figure, but unfortunately, due to the lack of in-depth "field research", the information obtained was quite limited.

There is only one thing worth noting, that is, the fundamental practice that Bai Nongmei practices belongs to the lineage of Joyful Bodhisattva -

For Zhao Chen, who is extremely talented in "The Picture of Joyful Bodhisattva", this is too familiar and he would never make a mistake.

The lineage of Joyful Bodhisattva... I remember that the original body of the Bodhisattva in my Joyful Bodhisattva picture was suppressed by the Meng family, and the Meng family was always hunting down monks who practiced Joyful Bodhisattva's method...

The Meng family...are they using Joyful Bodhisattva to do something shameful? And now this Meng family fairy is out of control?
While Zhao Chen was thinking, he saw that Bai Nongmei's face looked better and she seemed to have recovered. So after a little consideration, he asked again:

"Fairy White, do you know who the bride is?"

Seeing this, Bai Nongmei immediately had a bitter face and said with tears in her eyes: "Sir, can you please let me go... If the Bodhisattva knew that I said something wrong, I would be in danger of my life."

After saying this, Bai Nongmei stood up and without saying anything, sent Zhao Chen and Ming Xueling out of the Happy Treasure Pavilion and closed the door.

Bodhisattva? Happy Bodhisattva?!

When Zhao Chen heard this title, it was as if he heard the sound of another boot hitting the ground. After all, according to what Fei Meng said at the beginning, even if it was an impersonation, the person who could bear the title of "Bodhisattva" was at least half a step into the "Shengxuan" realm.

"So, the disappearance of the Mu family was indeed due to being dragged into the 'Dharma Realm' rather than the mist of history..." Zhao Chen sighed, and said to Ming Xueling beside him with a wry smile, "It seems that we have to face an existence who is at least at the peak of the second level of 'Dongxuan'."

However, after a period of silence, Ming Xueling gave a different opinion: "That kind of existence would not do things in such a roundabout way... just like the Qingyuan Temple priest you have seen, once he has determined the target, he will directly take action.

"And the one we are facing cannot even fully control her own subordinates... So, either she is in a bad state and her strength has not fully recovered, or there is a being of the same level interfering with her, forcing her to use roundabout means to achieve her goal."

It must be said that Ming Xueling's words made sense, and it also reduced Zhao Chen's pressure by half...

As for the other half, it is because we cannot rule out the possibility that the “Happy Bodhisattva” is a person who likes to play tricks on others!

"Forget it. Anyway, we originally planned to face the peak of 'Dongxuan' as our opponent. There is no need to worry about it. After all, we will not be the strongest among those who enter the ruins. If the sky falls, there will be taller people to hold it up!"

Zhao Chen exhaled a breath, then pulled Ming Xueling towards the east district.

Since this was not the way back to Yuelai Inn, Ming Xueling couldn't help but ask in surprise: "Where are we going?"

"Going to pick up a friend of mine...she seems to have just woken up."

……

On the second floor of Huanxi Baoge, in a simple and elegant room.

Not long after Zhao Chen and the others left, Bai Nongmei's temperament suddenly changed. Her original weakness disappeared, and was replaced by a true "Plum Blossom Fairy" with "bright fairy figure and tender feelings, and fairy petals wrapped in crimson silk."

"My second personality is so badly injured that it can't recover even by sleeping...

"Fortunately, the information was successfully transmitted, and it was worth it that the senior helped me get rid of the control in the Heart Island.

"This 'Blood Sword Prince' who is even more handsome than the rumors say has arrived just in time!
"Also, 'Heaven'? To think there is such a secret organization..."

While mumbling silently, Bai Nongmei picked up the teacup and took a sip, then she chuckled, "Anyway, the Bodhisattva's wedding is getting more and more complicated.

"This is the best news for me!"

……

At the same time, the Mu family mansion, which was apparently deserted, was decorated with lights and illuminated by red light.

Sitting at the head of the bed, Mu Zirong, the "Lü Gong Monument", barely regained some clarity in his eyes. He looked towards the door with difficulty and seemed to see a strange man wearing a "Xuanwu" mask standing there, but he disappeared in an instant.

“No… No…

"We can't let that witch succeed. We have to... we have to leave some hope..."

His eyes were bloodshot, and he tried his best to raise his fingers, gathered his magic power and wrote a few words in the air, printed them on a piece of jade, and then threw it out of the window.

If it were a normal space, the jade would at most fall under the window. However, since the entire Mu family mansion was dragged into the "heart realm" and the strange "law domain", the structure had long been in chaos, so even Mu Zirong himself didn't know where the jade had gone, and could only wait for the right person to get it.

After doing all this, the strength that kept Mu Zirong clear-headed was completely exhausted, and his eyes were once again filled with pure desire.

……

In a two-story commercial and residential building near Xuancheng Railway Station, Zhen Fan, dressed as a scholar, sat at a square table and carefully wiped the Youlong gun he carried with him to suppress the madness overflowing from his soul.

At this time, the sound of boots stepping on the wooden stairs was heard, and then a middle-aged man pushed open the door and walked in.

This person closed the door and set up a soundproof formation before sitting opposite Zhen Fan.

"Old Yi, are you closing so early?" Zhen Fan put down the Youlong Gun and asked with a smile.

"How can there be any customers in the city now? If we don't close, people will be suspicious." The middle-aged man called Lao Yi replied casually, staring at Zhen Fan and said, "How are you? The order issued in the meeting is a death order. We must get that thing."

As the person in charge of the "Star Club" lurking in Xuancheng, Lao Yi does not trust Zhen Fan, a young man who suddenly gained power, at all, but the other party is the task executor appointed by several vice presidents.

Zhen Fan glanced at him, but answered the question irrelevantly: "Do I really have a chance to take revenge this time?"

Old Yi frowned and said seriously: "You must remember to put the mission first!"

"It seems like there really is one..." Zhen Fan grinned, not taking Lao Yi's words to heart at all, and asked casually, "By the way, is that woman outside the window yours?

"What?!" Lao Yi became alert immediately after hearing this, because he had not noticed anyone outside the window until now.

In fact, at the same time when Zhen Fan asked that question, the musket in his hand silently spewed out flames!

The next moment, a muffled groan was heard from outside the window, followed by a flash of lightning and no further sound.

“She took my Ketu Rahu bullet but she didn’t die? She even managed to run away? That girl is quite capable. It doesn’t seem like a low-grade magical power at all…” Zhen Fan’s voice was obviously a little surprised, but then he said with relief, “So that’s how it is… Her fate is no longer in her control, so she can’t face death immediately.

"However, this also shows that the person who controls her fate is very lucky."

"Aren't you going to chase him?" asked Old Yi at the side in a deep voice.

"No need..." Zhen Fan shook his head, then looked at the sun that was about to set and said calmly, "The wedding is about to begin, and we will meet again soon."

As soon as he finished speaking, the invitation on the table suddenly flew up, and then changed into a big red sedan chair carried by eight people, sucking Zhen Fan and Lao Yi into it.

……

Almost at the same time, Su Hanshui, Meng Sicheng and other "distinguished guests" who received the invitation got into the "palanquin" that suddenly appeared. Amid the sound of "music and drums" coming from nowhere, they crossed the boundary between reality and illusion and arrived in front of the Mu family mansion that had disappeared in Xuancheng.

(End of this chapter)