Chapter 713: Little Junior Sister's... Older Sister Voice?

How can such a weirdo exist in this world?

Xu Xiaoshou watched the two storytellers leave. While cleaning his freshly washed ears, he pondered what kind of place could produce such "masters" as these storytellers.

Sheng Nu was full of strange people, and the storytellers were undoubtedly the most eccentric among them.

He hadn't thought for long when footsteps sounded from outside the building.

Clearly, the main group was returning home.

"Xu Xiaoshou!"

As soon as Mu Zixi entered the building, she threw herself at him with all her might.

She had been following that fake "Xu Shao" outside, feeling incredibly frustrated, which had bottled up inside her.

But as soon as she faced him, the young girl's delicate nose twitched, and her eyes turned suspicious.

"Xu Xiaoshou, where have you been fooling around?!"

Mu Zixi raised her eyebrows and demanded.

Xu Xiaoshou's eyes nearly popped out of his head.

This junior sister—did she have a dog's nose? How could she still smell something when he had just washed up?

He waved his hand, pushing away the junior sister who was sniffing around his ear and trying to climb on him, pulling her off. "Stop messing around. Didn't I say outside to call me Xu Shao?"

"Well, there are no outsiders here..."

Mu Zixi muttered, her eyes rolling craftily as she pointed accusingly at her senior brother. "Don't try to change the subject—what exactly have you been up to?"

"Han Xiang Lou," Xu Xiaoshou blurted out casually.

"Hmm?"

The young girl froze instantly, actually believing it!

She mulled over the words "Han Xiang," and her whole demeanor soured. Clutching her head, she looked utterly incredulous. "Xu... Xu Xiaoshou! I never thought... you'd be that kind of person!"

In that moment, everyone could see the shock, disappointment, and utter despair in Mu Zixi's eyes as she stumbled back.

Mo Mo shook her head with a smile, unable to watch Xu Xiaoshou tease his junior sister anymore. She pulled out a chair and sat down. "Did the storytellers come by?"

"Oh?" Xu Xiaoshou was surprised. "Did you run into them?"

Did the two storytellers just leave the building and bump into Mu Zixi's returning group?

"No," Mo Mo shook her head, "I just remember their special scent."

Mu Zixi was startled and instinctively sniffed again, finally realizing. She felt a slight relief in her heart.

She also recalled that this special scent belonged to the storytellers.

"You little brat! How dare you trick me..."

The young girl pouted, upset at being played, but strangely, she felt a weight lift off her chest. Unlike her usual outbursts, she just grumbled silently and discontentedly.

"Cursed, passive value, 1, 1, 1, 1..."

Xu Xiaoshou ignored it and turned his gaze to the small bronze furnace burning purple sandalwood in Mo Mo's hand, recalling the scene from his conversation with those people at Jiang Shi.

"You might have been exposed," he said.

"Hmm?" Mo Mo paused.

Xu Xiaoshou kept staring at the small bronze furnace. "Someone probably recognized your 'Zhi Xu Wu.' Maybe you should switch to another one, or at the very least..."

He glanced at Xin Gugu.

Xin Gugu's Zhi Xu Wu was a Zen staff, but now it had transformed into a small necklace around his neck, which most people wouldn't recognize.

"Or at the very least, you could transform it, or make it smaller," Xu Xiaoshou said, pointing to Xin Gugu's necklace, "like his."

Before Mo Mo could speak, Xin Gugu stepped forward and sat down.

"You're overthinking it, Xu Shao. 'Zhi Xu Wu' has to be compatible. There aren't many that can seal attributes properly, let alone ones that can transform."

He touched his necklace and continued, "Mine is a high-end product from 'Xu Yue Hui Gong,' with extremely strong sealing capabilities. Mo Mo's probably does a good job at sealing attributes already, so it likely can't transform."

Mo Mo nodded in agreement.

If it could transform, she wouldn't have to keep holding the small bronze furnace.

Xu Xiaoshou narrowed his eyes and said nothing—this was tricky.

Although Mo Mo's small bronze furnace was just a subtle signal that most people wouldn't notice, if someone was determined to investigate, they could use it as a breakthrough to figure things out.

"Who?"

At that moment, Mo Mo spoke, but her voice changed to a hoarse, neutral, and muffled tone. "Who discovered it?"

The gray mist figure...

Xu Xiaoshou raised an eyebrow; he hadn't expected this to draw out the gray mist figure.

"Rong Da Hao—do you know him?"

There was silence from the other side, clearly the gray mist figure didn't remember such a person.

Xu Xiaoshou sighed. "He must have seen your existence before, so even though Mo Mo disguised herself, he recognized her through certain features."

"You're way too careless! How could you let someone remember your features without any caution?"

Xu Xiaoshou criticized while sighing, "Passing by someone who recognized you, and you didn't even have a hint of vigilance. Yet you went ahead and possessed my friend, strutting around like that?"

The gray mist figure fell silent for a moment before grumbling, "Kid, watch your tone!"

"What's wrong with it? You're my bodyguard now!"

Xu Xiaoshou didn't hold back at all.

With the Eighth Sword Immortal as his backing, the gray mist figure was like Sun Wukong trapped under Five Finger Mountain—full of power but unable to lay a hand on him.

"Rong Da Hao—I remember him."

Just then, Mo Mo's voice emerged, as if recalling something. "Back at Bai Ku, that chubby guy was probably from a major force... Oh, right, he was with Duo Jin Shang Hang that day, but how did he recognize me?"

Mo Mo was puzzled.

At Bai Ku, even if Rong Da Hao was nearby, she had hidden herself well.

Later, when they entered Ling Rong Ze and encountered the storytellers, the gray mist figure had taken over, and the memories after that weren't hers.

The memory gap meant she only remembered her normal interactions with Rong Da Hao and nothing from afterward.

But later, when the gray mist figure appeared, Rong Da Hao had witnessed Mo Mo's transformation in the ice barrier.

Naturally, when they met at Duo Jin Shang Hang that day, Rong Da Hao had recognized her.

Mo Mo, however, hadn't given it a second thought, her habitual thinking creating a blind spot that prevented her from considering exposure.

So, ultimately, this was the gray mist figure's fault.

Mo Mo frowned immediately, her tone accusatory. "You didn't recognize him?"

The gray mist figure: "How could I remember some insignificant ant? To be worth my notice, they'd at least need to be at the Wang Zuo level with the power to sever paths."

Mo Mo: "But failure often comes from the overlooked. Those insignificant people you ignore could put me in danger."

The gray mist figure: "Hah, what's the point of all that talk? Rong Da Hao, right? Just kill him."

Mo Mo: "Rong Da Hao is with Jiang Shi, and Xu Xiaoshou just came back from there. That means things have already escalated—Jiang Xian knows, and Jiang Shi might know too."

The gray mist figure: "Wipe them all out!"

Mo Mo: "...That's a Ban Sheng family!"

One person, two voices, muttering back and forth to themselves.

Not just Xu Xiaoshou, who stared in stunned silence, but even Xin Gugu and Mu Zixi were seeing for the first time such an absurd scene of one body arguing with itself.

The group felt a complete sense of discomfort and unease.

Xu Xiaoshou was at a loss, quickly waving his hand to stop it. "Okay, stop! Enough. We can't take down Jiang Shi. Mo Mo's right—that's a Ban Sheng family; you can't just wipe it out on a whim."

Mo Mo turned her head, but it was the gray mist figure laughing coldly: "You're just thinking too small. Even a Ban Sheng family, as long as the Ban Sheng themselves don't show up, I can eliminate them without a trace."

Xu Xiaoshou: "..."

He was momentarily speechless.

True, he had been troubled by the "undying legend" of Ban Sheng descendants and didn't dare act rashly.

But the gray mist figure was originally some kind of "Sheng," and with the sealing attributes, he might really be able to silently eliminate Jiang Xian and the others who knew the secret.

But upon second thought, Xu Xiaoshou shook his head. "We can't rush into this. Jiang Xian knows about it, and who knows if the people behind him do too. Taking out just one won't help; it might just alert the others and blow everything up."

The gray mist figure: "So it's just a hornet's nest? Stir it up, then! Whatever hornets come out, we'll wipe them out too!"

Xu Xiaoshou: "..."

That certainly fits your style!

But that's a Ban Sheng family—even if he, Xu Xiaoshou, wanted to cause trouble in Dong Tian Wang City, he couldn't do it that way.

Stirring it up like that would just create another mess...

If things blew up, his original mission as the shit-stirrer would fail, and he'd be too busy dealing with the fallout. Mission failure aside, his own life would be at risk.

"Is there some middle ground?" Xu Xiaoshou asked.

He didn't want to kill lightly, and the gray mist figure's method was impossible.

"None—just kill them..." The gray mist figure started, but Mo Mo's voice cut in again. "There is—seal the memories. I don't want to kill; that's what I've always done."

Xu Xiaoshou: "..."

He was once again floored by this one-body, two-voice standoff.

—This is just too damn weird!

"Fine, you two sort it out yourselves. When the time comes, find an opportunity... like at the trade meeting tomorrow night, if Jiang Xian and Rong Da Hao are there, you can act accordingly." Xu Xiaoshou rubbed his forehead.

"Just kill them..."

The gray mist figure's voice started again but was cut off by Mo Mo: "Okay, let's do that!"

"Cursed, passive value, 1."

The gray mist figure quieted down, its last curse a defiant grumble.

Mo Mo returned to her serene demeanor, and her mouth no longer spat out talk of killing and wiping out.

Xu Xiaojiao, listening from the side, felt his legs tremble.

He had thought the most gentle person around Xu the Great Demon King had such a creepy other side, casually talking about killing and wiping out...

Shivering, Xu Xiaojiao trembled all over, realizing that the original residence was his best refuge. He shouldn't be here.

Xu Xiaoshou didn't plan to get involved in Mo Mo's affairs.

As long as he mentioned it, with the gray mist figure's years of experience in the world, if he hadn't been recognized, he'd have his own ways.

But he couldn't ignore his junior sister's situation.

Xu Xiaoshou turned his head and called Mu Zixi over, asking, "Lately, have you felt anything off, like someone is always trying to kill you?"

Mu Zixi was stunned.

Xin Gugu, nearby, felt his scalp tingle instantly.

Incredible!

His eyes widened. Earlier, during their outing, Mu Zixi had mentioned multiple times that she felt "someone wants to kill me," but they had searched fruitlessly.

"How did you know?" Xin Gugu marvelled inwardly.

If Xu Xiaoshou had been with them, such alertness wouldn't surprise him—after all, his sixth sense was even sharper than a woman's.

But with him not around and still sensing his junior sister's situation like this... what kind of divine ability was that?!

"It really happened?" Xu Xiaoshou had only asked casually, but when Mu Zixi didn't respond and Xin Gugu confirmed it, he was taken aback.

"What happened during your outing?" Xu Xiaoshou wanted to get the details.

"Um." Xin Gugu nodded. "Just on that trip, Mu Zixi kept feeling... oh, forget it, you tell him." He gave up on explaining the tangled mess and let the person involved speak.

Mu Zixi was still lost in the surprise of "How did Xu Xiaoshou know this," "Xu Xiaoshou has been secretly protecting me," "Xu Xiaoshou really cares about me," and "Xu Xiaoshou didn't go to that Han Xiang Lou."

In her mind, an image was forming of her senior brother appearing warmly and elegantly whenever she was in trouble, gently patting her head and saying, "It's fine, I'm here."

But before it fully formed, she felt a sting on her cheek.

"Smack."

Xu Xiaoshou patted her face. "Snap out of it! What are you daydreaming about?"

Mu Zixi shook her little face, her fleshy cheeks jiggling, and her face turned red. "Uh... um, what were we talking about?"

Xu Xiaoshou had no idea how his junior sister could let her thoughts wander during a serious discussion; it gave him a headache. "On your way back, did any danger happen?"

"Oh, oh, yeah, there was..."

The young girl blinked blankly, her thoughts jumping back on track, and she opened her mouth. "I kept feeling like someone was watching me in the shadows, but when I told Xin Gugu, he didn't believe me. He kept saying there's no one..."

"As if I didn't believe you!" Xin Gugu jumped up in frustration. "I just said that on the surface, but I was searching the whole time, okay? Don't twist my words! I just couldn't find the assassin you mentioned."

"Hmph!" Mu Zixi pouted, full of disbelief.

She glanced between her senior brother and Xin Gugu, comparing them in her mind: one could sense it even when not around, the other couldn't detect anything despite being right there.

"Incompetent," she muttered.

"Me???!"

Xin Gugu was dumbfounded, feeling like he'd eaten bitter herbs—full of unspoken grievance.

"That's it then..."

Xu Xiaoshou didn't pay attention to the young girl's thoughts; his mind jumped to that "Yan Wang" figure, and he frowned. "This time I went out, not only did I get something from Jiang Shi, but I also ran into a masked person on the way."

"They call themselves 'Yan Wang,' and their target is probably..."

Xu Xiaoshou paused, his gaze fixed on his junior sister's eyes. "Your eyes!"

Mu Zixi couldn't handle his intense stare and slightly averted her gaze, turning her head. "Oh, oh, is... is that so..."

Xu Xiaoshou pulled out the "Tian Zhi Zhu" and asked, "Do you recognize this?"

Mu Zixi turned back and examined it closely, but her mind was still blank, her fingers intertwining. "No... I don't recognize it."

Xu Xiaoshou: "???"

She doesn't recognize it?

That was unexpected!

Why was his junior sister still so out of it?

"Take a closer look—you must recognize it..." Xu Xiaoshou placed the "Tian Zhi Zhu" in Mu Zixi's hand.

As soon as Mu Zixi touched her senior brother's warm hand, she panicked even more. "I-I really don't..."

"Tian Zhi Zhi Yan."

At that moment, her words stopped, and her voice turned into a charming, ethereal tone, soft and captivating.

The entire Tian Shang First Tower fell silent.

Xu Xiaoshou froze; he remembered hearing this voice before, like when Mu Zixi said "San Yan Tong Mu" at the Duo Jin Shang Hang entrance—it was just as alluring.

Xin Gugu froze too; he never expected the little Mu girl to have such an ability. Her voice could become so... seductive? That didn't make sense!

Mo Mo froze as well; she was shocked that the most normal human around Xu Xiaoshou was also one of their kind? A ghost beast host?

"Thud!"

A sound broke the silence—it was Xu Xiaojiao collapsing to the ground.

Xu Xiaojiao was completely stunned.

His eyes darted among the people in front of him, his gaze dazed.

Xu the Great Demon King, ghost beast host number one, ghost beast host number two, ghost beast host... number three?

Oh heavens!

Xu Xiaojiao clutched his head, his mind blank after the thunderous shock.

What kind of group was this?

Jie Ye, please come back quickly and take me to Yuan Fu—I don't want to be in this haunted place anymore!