"Qinghe?" Shen Yue’s eyes narrowed. "That backwater mortal town?"
"We believe so. But the region is vast, and the Young Lord possesses no cultivation to track. If he’s being hidden or shielded—"
"Find him," Shen Yue interrupted. "I don’t care how many operatives you deploy. I don’t care what resources you use. The original legacy cannot be lost. Do you understand?"
"Yes, Elder."
"He’s all we have," she continued, and her voice cracked slightly with genuine emotion. "The last pure bloodline. If the factions take control—if someone like Zhao Feng or Mu Chen becomes Heavenly Demon—everything his father built will be corrupted. The balance will shatter."
The Shadow operatives knelt in unison, fists over hearts.
"We will find him," they said in synchronized voices. "Or die trying."
Shen Yue nodded, dismissing them with a wave.
They melted back into shadows, vanishing as silently as they’d appeared.
And she stood alone in the cracked chamber, looking up at the distant ceiling, as if she could see through stone and steel to the sky beyond.
"Where are you, Young Lord?" she whispered. "The throne stands empty, and wolves circle. Come home before it’s too late."
Miles away, in a completely different world from palace politics and succession trials—
Cang Wuhen emerged from behind a waterfall, stretching lazily, his transformed body relaxed and satisfied.
A week of constant fucking had left him energized rather than exhausted, his cultivation stable at Core Formation peak, his body glowing faintly with residual spiritual energy.
Zhang Yue had left an hour earlier, eager to prove herself, to exact revenge on the Wei family Elder who’d dared threaten her.
He’d let her go. The hunt would be good for her. Help cement her transformation.
And he had other interests at the moment.
Like figuring out where the hell he actually was.
The waterfall region was beautiful but remote. No civilization visible in any direction. Just endless forest and mountains.
He extended his spiritual sense, scanning the area for—
Wait.
There. Maybe two miles north. A small village. Mortal level, with perhaps three or four low-level Qi Condensation cultivators.
And something else. A strange energy signature coming from higher up the mountain. Old. Powerful. Dormant but present.
’Spirit beast?’ he wondered. ’Or something else?’
His curiosity was piqued, but he was in no hurry. Zhang Yue would be gone for days, assuming she didn’t just obliterate the entire Wei compound in rage. He had time.
So he walked. Not flying, not running. Just walking through the forest, enjoying the afternoon sun filtering through the canopy, the sounds of birds and insects.
After perhaps thirty minutes, he heard it.
Water. Not the thunderous cascade of the main waterfall, but the gentler sound of a stream.
He followed the sound, emerging into a small clearing where a natural hot spring fed by mountain runoff created a perfect bathing spot.
And in that hot spring—
A woman.
Cang stopped, concealing his presence instinctively, and watched.
She was young. Maybe twenty-two or twenty-three. Long dark hair that floated around her in the water, currently unbound and reaching past her shoulders. Fair skin with a healthy tan suggesting outdoor work.
And completely, gloriously naked.
Her body was slender but curved in all the right places. Not the exaggerated proportions of Zhang Yue’s transformed form, but natural, balanced. High breasts that floated slightly in the water—maybe B-cups, with dusky pink nipples currently hardened from the temperature change.
Narrow waist. Flared hips. Long legs that she had bent, resting her feet on submerged rocks.
She was washing herself methodically, running her hands over her body, face peaceful, eyes closed.
Enjoying what was clearly a rare moment of relaxation.
And Cang’s cock, which had been dormant during his walk, stirred against his robe.
’Beautiful,’ he thought appreciatively. ’Not cultivator-enhanced, just naturally beautiful. That’s rare.’
He could leave. Should leave, probably. Let her bathe in peace.
But where was the fun in that?
So he walked forward, making no effort to conceal his footsteps, and sat down on a large rock directly across from where she bathed.
Maybe ten feet away. Clearly visible.
And waited.
It took perhaps thirty seconds before she sensed his presence.
Her eyes snapped open. Her hands moved to cover herself instinctively—one arm across her breasts, the other hand between her legs.
And she stared at him with wide, shocked eyes.
"Who—?!" Her voice was higher pitched than normal, startled. "Who are you—?! What are you doing here—?!"
Cang smiled, deliberately letting his gaze roam over what parts of her body weren’t covered.
"Enjoying the view," he said honestly. "You’re quite beautiful."
Her face flushed bright red, anger mixing with embarrassment.
"I’m BATHING—!" she said, voice rising. "Have you no shame—?! No decency—?!"
"Not particularly," he admitted cheerfully. "Should I?"
She stared at him, seemingly at a loss for words, then—
Turned her back, still covering herself, and began wading toward where her clothes lay on the rocks at the spring’s edge.
But Cang’s voice stopped her.
"You know," he said conversationally, "most women in your position would be terrified right now. Screaming for help. Or trying to kill me. But you’re just... annoyed. Why is that?"
She paused, back still to him, and—
Laughed.
Not a happy laugh. A bitter, resigned laugh.
"Because I’m already dead," she said simply, not turning around. "So why waste energy on fear?"
That got Cang’s attention.
"Explain," he said, genuine curiosity in his voice.
She finally reached her clothes, quickly wrapping a thin robe around her body before turning to face him. Her expression was composed now, the initial shock and embarrassment fading.
"I’m a sacrifice," she said bluntly. "To the Mountain Demon. Supposed to climb to the cave at the peak and offer myself before sunset. So whether you kill me here or the demon eats me there—" she shrugged, "—I’m dead either way. At least with you I’d get to be annoyed first."
Cang blinked. Then smiled.
"Mountain Demon?" he asked. "Tell me more."
The woman sat on a rock, adjusting her robe which clung to her still-wet body, outlining her curves.
"There’s a beast that lives in the mountain cave," she explained. "Has for generations. Every six months, it demands a sacrifice from our village. Usually livestock, but this time—" her voice tightened, "—this time it specifically requested a young woman. And I’m the only one old enough who isn’t married or too valuable to lose."
"How pragmatic of your village," Cang observed dryly.
"That’s survival," she said with a shrug. "We lose one person or the demon destroys the entire village. Simple math."
"And you’re just... accepting this?"
"Do I have a choice?" she countered. "If I run, my younger sister is next in line. She just turned nineteen this year. Beautiful. Kind. Actually has prospects for a good marriage."
Her expression softened.
"She’s everything I should have been. I won’t let her die for my cowardice."
Cang studied her, genuinely intrigued now.
"That’s very noble," he said. "Also very stupid."
"Probably," she agreed. "But it’s my decision."
She stood, retying the sash of her robe.
"Well, stranger, it’s been... interesting meeting you. But I have an appointment with death, and I’d rather not be late. The village elder said if the demon finds me ’unacceptable’—too dirty, too ugly, too something—it might reject the sacrifice and attack anyway. So I stopped here to bathe. Make myself presentable for being eaten."
She started walking, heading up a narrow path that led higher into the mountains.
And Cang—cock still pressing insistently against his robe, mind churning with possibilities—
Stood and followed.
"What are you doing?" she asked without turning around.
"Following you," he said simply. "I’m curious about this ’demon.’ Want to see what kind of creature demands such specific sacrifices."
"Sigh, Suit yourself," she said, still walking. "But don’t blame me when it eats you too."
Cang’s eyes dropped, watching the way her hips swayed as she walked, the thin robe doing little to conceal the shape of her ass—round, firm, moving hypnotically with each step.
Her long legs were visible from mid-thigh down where the robe split.
And her wet hair left damp spots on the fabric that made it semi-transparent in places.
’Delicious,’ he thought, feeling his cock throb harder.
"You know—" he said, matching her pace, "—I can think of several things I’d like to do to you that don’t involve eating."