Not long after descending Jialing Mountain, the two of them arrived at Xingluo City.
This was Mo Tiange's first time setting foot in a place where Demonic Cultivators lived.
At first glance, Xingluo City was no different from towns inhabited by Immortal cultivators: the same rows upon rows of houses, the same ceaseless flow of people, the same streets lined with stalls.
The only difference was that the entire Xingluo City was enveloped in an aura of Demonic Qi, which grew denser the closer one got to the city center.
Mo Tiange and Nie Wushang each circulated their Spiritual Qi to protect themselves as they entered Xingluo City.
This was different from Demonic Cultivators. Demonic Cultivators did not feel discomfort in environments filled with Spiritual Qi; they could even use Spiritual Qi for cultivation. The denser the Spiritual Qi, the more beneficial it was for them. However, Immortal cultivators would feel discomfort in environments saturated with Demonic Qi.
The reason for this could be traced back to the ancient times, to the origins of Immortals and Demons.
Legend had it that in ancient times, Spiritual Qi and Demonic Qi coexisted simultaneously, with Spiritual Qi rising and Demonic Qi sinking.
However, the world was primarily dominated by Spiritual Qi, with Demonic Qi existing in limited quantities. Later, as the seas turned into mulberry fields, Demonic Qi became even scarcer. Demonic Cultivators thus struggled to survive in this world. In order to survive in this new mortal realm, they learned to convert Spiritual Qi into Demonic Qi through changes in their cultivation techniques and methods, allowing their lineage to continue.
As for Demonic Domains, they were special existences. The large-scale gathered of Demonic Cultivators led to the accumulation of Demonic Qi in the surrounding areas, thus forming Demonic Domains.
Because Demonic Qi was scarce in the world, Immortal cultivators rarely encountered it. And since Demonic Qi was primarily destructive, facing it could affect their strength to some extent. Of course, as long as the Demonic Qi wasn't too dense, High-Level Cultivators could move freely simply by protecting themselves with Spiritual Qi.
However, this Demonic Qi was a headache for low-level Immortal cultivators. They simply couldn't cultivate within Demonic Domains, and mortals living in Demonic Domains for extended periods would also have their lifespans affected. Therefore, there weren't many low-level Immortal cultivators in this Xingluo City; most of those coming and going were at the Foundation Establishment stage or above, and those doing business were mostly low-level Demonic Cultivators.
The two of them casually looked around, finding little interest in the goods sold here. Mo Tiange asked, "Fellow Daoist Nie, how much do you know about Xingluo City?"
Nie Wushang glanced left and right and said, "Absolutely nothing."
"..." A vein twitched on Mo Tiange's forehead. "And yet you still suggested coming here?"
"Idle hands are the devil's workshop. Just came to take a look," Nie Wushang said.
Mo Tiange was speechless. To be fair, she was the same. Ling Yunhe had said to meet again in three months, so the final payment for the Carefree Valley trip wouldn't be collected until three months later. With these three months of idle time, she also thought to find some place to pass the time. Coming out of Carefree Valley, Xingluo City happened to be the closest. Having never seen a Demonic Domain before, she wanted to come and see the spectacle. She had originally hoped Nie Wushang would know more, but it turned out she was equally clueless.
The two of them stared at each other blankly for a moment before Nie Wushang finally ventured, "How about we find a Tea House first?"
Mo Tiange hesitated slightly. "Would a Demonic Domain even have Tea Houses?"
"We can just ask and find out, can't we?" Nie Wushang said, then immediately grabbed a low-level Demonic Cultivator. "Fellow Daoist, which way to the Tea House in Xingluo City?"
This Demonic Cultivator was only at the fifth or sixth layer of Qi Refining. Being grabbed like this and seeing two Immortal cultivators with unfathomable cultivation, he was startled and stammered, "O-over... over there..."
Nie Wushang released his hand and shrugged at Mo Tiange. "See? They do have them."
"..."
A year ago, Mo Tiange would have found it hard to imagine Nie Wushang being like this, and even harder to imagine the two of them walking together like this.
If, after their encounter on Beiji Island, they were no longer enemies, then this trip to Carefree Valley could be considered as them being a little bit like friends.
Walking along the street for a while, listening to the rising and falling cries of hawkers, Mo Tiange felt a vague sense of having returned to Tianji.
Back in the Xuanqing Sect, Luo Fengxue would occasionally invite her to go out for a stroll, to relax and chat idly. However, ever since her own cultivation gradually increased, and Luo Fengxue became increasingly busy managing the Ganlu Peak's affairs hall, such opportunities became fewer and fewer. During the two years living with Qin Xi, they had countless matters to attend to and even less mood for such leisurely pursuits.
At this moment, experiencing this relaxed contentment, Mo Tiange couldn't help but let a smile touch the corners of her mouth.
After leaving Carefree Valley, she realized she seemed to have become softer-hearted. She had been alarmed by this at first, but upon careful reflection, she felt it wasn't a bad thing.
When she was still just a Foundation Establishment or even a Qi Refining cultivator, she dared not be soft-hearted. Because she was still too weak. A moment of soft-heartedness could easily affect her judgment, leading to mistakes, and the result could very well be death without a burial place. So, she could only grit her teeth and move forward with vigilance and calmness.
But now it was different. Even when facing Nascent Soul cultivators, she wasn't completely helpless, no longer the Mo Tiange who could only survive by being extremely cautious. In other words, she already possessed a certain degree of power, and thus had the capital to be soft-hearted.
Consider this: which would be more prone to soft-heartedness—a struggling low-level cultivator treading carefully through the world, or a Core Formation cultivator with divine abilities at hand, no longer at the mercy of others?
Perhaps most people would naturally assume it should be the low-level cultivator. But in reality, it was often the Core Formation cultivator who was more prone to soft-heartedness.
Because those soft-hearted low-level cultivators had mostly already vanished on the rugged path of Immortality. And those Core Formation cultivators had, over their long cultivation careers, honed sufficient judgment. In an instant, they could determine whether a situation was harmful or harmless to themselves. If it wasn't necessary, they could afford to be a bit soft-hearted, because they possessed enough power and weren't afraid of backlash.
So, from a certain perspective, this world was inverted. Only after gaining power did one have the qualification to be soft-hearted.
Mo Tiange asked herself: Could she, in an instant, judge whether a person or situation posed a threat to her, and then make the most appropriate decision? The answer was yes. In her long cultivation career, self-preservation had become an instinct. Since she could, then what did it matter if she were a bit softer-hearted?
And from another perspective, this wasn't a bad thing. At the Qi Refining stage, cultivators gathered Spiritual Qi to transform their bodies. At the Foundation Establishment stage, they learned to use Spiritual Qi, truly stepping through the gates of cultivation. Starting from the Core Formation stage, they had to come into contact with the essence of Spiritual Qi, exploring the true meaning of Immortality. By the Nascent Soul stage, it was about comprehending the Heavenly Dao; the more one comprehended, the more powerful their divine abilities became.
Therefore, after reaching Core Formation, they were originally supposed to invest more emotion into the experience and understanding of life. Cultivation cultivated the heart. To cultivate a stronger state of mind, one had to understand the heart more deeply. Hence, whether it was Daoism, Buddhism, or Confucianism, there were sayings like "the supreme state is to be without emotion" and "having emotion is the same as having no emotion."
"What are you thinking about?" Nie Wushang's grating voice sounded by her ear.
Mo Tiange snapped out of her reverie, frowned, and said, "Your voice is truly unpleasant." Her original voice was just somewhat hoarse and muffled, but this disguised voice was excessively unpleasant, as if her throat had become a sieve—grating and leaky everywhere.
Nie Wushang chuckled lowly. "No choice. If I don't do this, how can I disguise my accent?"
"..." Mo Tiange rolled her eyes. "That's you making trouble for yourself. In the vast Yunzhong, who knows who Nie Wushang is? Even if you appeared in your true form, it wouldn't be a big deal, would it?"
Nie Wushang said, "But I stole a sect treasure from the Tianyan Sect. If I were discovered..."
"That is indeed a problem, but is it necessary to torment yourself into this ghostly appearance?"
"Do you think changing one's appearance is simple?" Nie Wushang shot her a sidelong glance. "Why don't you try it yourself?"
"I haven't stolen anyone's sect treasure. Why would I need to?" Mo Tiange thought for a moment, then added, "But it might indeed be worth trying."
Just as Nie Wushang was about to press further, the two of them spotted the tall tea character flag within Xingluo City.
Neither of them concealed their cultivation, which earned them enthusiastic service from the Tea House attendant. Cultivation represented strength, and strength represented wealth. If they could satisfy a High-Level Cultivator, even their casual tips would be rare income for low-level cultivators.
Neither of them had any intention of befriending fellow cultivators of the same rank. So, after asking the Tea House attendant a few questions, they left.
The attendant said that within the Demonic Domain, there were also inns specifically for Immortal cultivators to stay. They just needed to pay attention to the signs outside.
Mo Tiange and Nie Wushang walked around the vicinity and immediately found the inn the attendant mentioned—outside the inn hung a small flag with a white cloud painted on it.
As soon as they stepped into the inn, someone immediately came forward to greet them: "Are you two Seniors looking for lodging?"
Mo Tiange raised an eyebrow. The person receiving them was actually a low-level Immortal cultivator, not a Demonic Cultivator.
With a sweep of her gaze, she saw the inn was quite large and didn't have too much foot traffic; those entering were mostly at the Foundation Establishment stage. It seemed this inn had high standards, catering mostly to High-Level Cultivators. She glanced at Nie Wushang, seeing she was relatively satisfied, and said, "Yes. Do you have any quieter places?"
"Yes, yes, yes!" the low-level cultivator receiving them said with a smile. "Our inn specializes in receiving High-Level Cultivators like you two Seniors. We can even rent out Cave Abodes. I wonder how long you two Seniors plan to stay? Would you prefer an ordinary inn room, a separate small courtyard, or a Cave Abode?"
Mo Tiange looked at Nie Wushang. She was fairly casual about this, but didn't know if Nie Wushang had any special requirements.
Nie Wushang looked at her and said, "Let's take a separate small courtyard."
Mo Tiange nodded. A small courtyard was indeed a better choice. They both preferred quiet. An ordinary inn room could at most serve as a meeting place; with too many mixed people, it definitely wouldn't be suitable for staying. And a Cave Abode was too much trouble; they might leave at any time. A small courtyard was sufficient.
"Then we'll take a quiet courtyard. The duration is indefinite, just pick a good one."
The low-level cultivator smiled. "Very well. One superior courtyard, two Spirit Stones per day."
Two Spirit Stones? That price was a bit expensive. Mo Tiange raised an eyebrow, but before she could ask, the attendant, being quite sharp, had already answered with a smile: "Senior, you may not know. Our inn specializes in providing lodging for Immortal cultivators. Doing this within a Demonic Domain requires some effort, hence the slightly higher price."
Mo Tiange thought about it and accepted this explanation. Looking at Nie Wushang, it was clear she also didn't mind two Spirit Stones a day. She said, "Lead the way."
The attendant respectfully made a "please" gesture. "Please follow me, you two Seniors."
Just as Mo Tiange and Nie Wushang were about to follow this low-level cultivator inside, suddenly someone stepped through the inn's entrance, their body brimming with Demonic Qi: "You two Immortal Fellow Daoists, please wait!"