Chasing The Moon (Moonlight Mystique) - Chapter 82
Chapter 82
In on the floor of Fan Yue sleeping chamber, a seven-pointed star formation flickered faintly, while the demonic fire in the glazed lamps swayed erratically.
Its master lounged lazily against the throne behind the desk, fingers lightly tapping his forehead, eyes cold as ice.
Bai Shuo was nestled in the soft cushion before the desk.
Just as she tried to push herself up, strips of fabric extended from the cushion’s edges, binding her hands.
She froze.
Fan Yue’s gaze landed on her like a knife, but he said nothing.
Bai Shuo conjured a sword in her palm without hesitation and cleanly severed the strips.
She stood up swiftly, meeting Fan Yue’s gaze head-on.
“What does the Palace Master mean by this?”
For the first time, Bai Shuo faced Fan Yue with neither cautious flattery nor fearful unease.
She asked plainly, out of true curiosity.
Fan Yue’s gaze flicked over the bundle she carried before he spoke slowly.
“This Lord remembers—by Purple Moon Lake, someone once declared they wished to join Haoyue Palace. This Lord also remembers someone saying, ‘In life, I belong to Haoyue Palace; in death, I am its ghost.’ The world is full of faithless words. Bai Shuo, what about you?”
Bai Shuo tilted her head, then pulled out a smile.
“The Palace Master’s grace is as vast as the sun and moon.”
“Oh?”
Fan Yue’s eyes held an unreadable glint.
“Is that so?”
Bai Shuo stepped forward, spread her hands, and a storage bag spilled its contents across the table—a mountain of pills.
She placed both hands on the desk, looking down at him.
“Three hundred forty-five first-grade pills, around two hundred seventy-eight second-grade pills. This much could rival an entire immortal sect. Haoyue Palace reigns over the Three Realms. Whether I join or not is of no consequence.”
The hall grew heavy with silence.
Fan Yue let out a cold scoff.
“Spiritual herbs from the Extreme North, refined in Haoyue Palace’s pill cauldrons? You use this lord’s own resources to repay this lord’s kindness?”
“The alchemy was fueled by my own spiritual energy—” Bai Shuo started, then choked halfway.
“Fine, you provided that too.”
Fan Yue narrowed his eyes.
“And this is what you call ‘as vast as the sun and moon’?”
“Of course.” Bai Shuo leaned in slightly, eyes blazing as she countered, “Palace Master is a demigod. These things mean nothing to you. But the girl you brought back—she needs them to survive. Does saving her life not count as something as vast as the sun and moon in your eyes?”
A flicker of intrigue crossed Fan Yue’s gaze.
Instead of anger, he chuckled.
“That temperament of yours—it’s rare.”
Suddenly, he raised his hand and grasped Bai Shuo’s wrist.
As he stood, the two were suddenly close—so close their breaths intertwined.
Then, his voice dropped, low and steady.
“Is she this lord’s sun and moon, Bai Shuo? Does that matter so much to you?”
Bai Shuo lifted her head.
Their gazes locked, and the overwhelming demon aura seemed to engulf her completely.
The Palace Master of Haoyue, with his pitch-black eyes, stared her down.
Bai Shuo opened her mouth.
“I…”
Suddenly, Fan Yue’s gaze shifted sharply toward the side hall.
His pupils trembled slightly, and without warning, he vanished from where he stood.
Bai Shuo turned toward the side hall.
A surge of unfamiliar spiritual energy had just erupted from within.
The person Fan Yue had brought back from Yuanling Swamp had woken up.
So precious.
Bai Shuo let out a slow breath and smacked her palm against the storage bag.
The entire table of spiritual pills disappeared back into her sleeve as she turned to leave the palace.
Behind her, cracks faintly appeared on the desk, until finally, with a sharp snap, it shattered into pieces.
Just as Bai Shuo stepped past the threshold, she suddenly paused and glanced back at the seven-pointed star formation in the palace.
Her eyes narrowed.
The seven stars still only had three burning.
But in Yuanling swamp, she had clearly retrieved the fourth piece of Bodhi Wood for Fan Yue.
Why hadn’t he refined it?
Fan Yue appeared in the side hall, stopping in the courtyard.
Snow fell heavily before the hall, where a girl in a thin white dress stood in the frost.
Her figure was lonely, the cold clinging to her, yet she seemed unaffected by it.
The girl reached out her hand, catching the falling snowflakes, watching them melt in her palm.
As if sensing something, she suddenly turned her head.
The moment she saw Fan Yue, the loneliness and coldness in her eyes fractured, replaced by a faint, gentle smile.
She simply stood there in the snow, gazing at Fan Yue quietly.
Almost unconsciously, Fan Yue stepped toward her.
By the time he reached her, a thick fur robe had already manifested in his hands, and he draped it over her shoulders.
“You don’t remember me,” the girl said with certainty.
“I don’t.”
“Then why did you bring me back?”
“This Lord does not like owing debts,” Fan Yue replied, his voice tinged with something unplaceable.
“I may not remember you, but perhaps I have killed you before.”
For countless nights, in his nightmares, Fan Yue always saw the divine radiance descending, the bloody formation, and the red-clad woman dissolving into smoke.
Every time he woke, remorse and unease gnawed at him, never granting him peace.
He never saw the woman’s face clearly, but he always remembered the eyes—filled with starlight—just like the girl before him.
“You know I’m dying,” the girl sighed.
“So you only brought me back to save my life.”
The snow fell in silence.
“If I don’t wish to be saved?” she murmured.
“If you can’t even remember who I am, does my survival even matter?”
Fan Yue frowned and looked down at her, his gaze firm.
“Living is not easy. Don’t speak of death so lightly.”
The girl’s lips curled faintly.
She suddenly reached out and held Fan Yue’s hand.
He stilled but did not pull away.
“Who are you now?” she asked.
“Fan Yue.”
“Then help me stay alive, Fan Yue. Until you ascend and remember me, just call me Ah Yue. I’ll wait for you.”
Outside the hall, on a snowy path, Mu Jiu ran with a wine jar in his arms, chasing after Hua Hong.
“Ah Huo, Ah Huo! I brought you a treasure! This is Wan Nian Zui from Jingyou Mountain—”
“Wan Nian Zui? What a ridiculous name. I’ve never heard of any wine that could make me drunk.”
Hua Hong scoffed, already regretting letting this fox inside. No matter where she went, he followed like a persistent leech.
“I named it ‘Ten-Thousand-Year Drunkenness’ myself,” Mu Jiu grinned.
“They say it’s from thousands of years ago, when our fox clan first migrated from the god realm. There were only three bottles in existence, but—”
“Wine from the god realm?” Hua Hong abruptly stopped.
With a flick of her hand, the jar was already in her grasp.
Without hesitation, she tipped her head back and drank.
Mu Jiu barely got the last word out before staring in shock as Hua Hong drained the entire jar.
A powerful surge of spiritual energy erupted from Hua Hong’s body, nearly blasting Mu Jiu away.
If he hadn’t summoned his miniature Wheel of Destruction in time, he might’ve lost half his life on the spot.
It took an entire incense stick’s time for Hua Hong to fully refine the surge of energy.
When she opened her eyes, she saw Mu Jiu staring at her with a soot-covered face, clutching his now-broken Wheel of Destruction.
“Good stuff,” Hua Hong exhaled, completely invigorated.
Just one jar had instantly increased her spiritual energy by a thousand years.
For the first time, she actually looked at the fox with approval.
She appeared before him in an instant, eyes gleaming.
“Got more?”
Mu Jiu shook his head, eyeing the empty wine jar in Hua Hong’s hand.
“This wine isn’t meant to be drunk now.”
“There’s a specific time for drinking this stuff?” Hua Hong frowned.
“So fussy…”
Before she could finish speaking, her expression suddenly tensed.
She turned to look outside the Haoyue Palace—several powerful demonic energies streaked across the sky, heading straight for them.
“We’re doomed!” Mu Jiu exclaimed, jumping up in panic and hiding behind Hua Hong, his face as pale as paper.
Outside the side hall, Bai Shuo leaned against a corridor pillar, chewing on a blade of wild grass.
She had heard every word spoken in the courtyard.
Spitting out the grass, she glanced at the two figures in the snowy ground, just about to turn away when she suddenly let out a light hum of surprise and looked up into the sky outside Haoyue Palace.
In the snow, Fan Yue also sensed the powerful auras approaching and raised his eyes.
“Chang Sheng and Chang Wu of Jingyou Mountain request an audience with the Master of Haoyue Palace.”
Two aged yet powerful voices echoed through the entire Extreme North.
Hua Hong turned her head—where was the little fox? He had already vanished without a trace.
Inside the grand hall of Haoyue, Fan Yue lounged lazily against his throne, gazing indifferently at the two white-bearded old men standing before him.
“You’re here to take someone?”
Chang Sheng and Chang Wu nodded in unison.
“The young clan leader of Jingyou Mountain—why have you come looking for him at Haoyue Palace? What reason do you have for this?”
Chang Sheng smiled.
“Since the Wutong Martial Banquet, our young clan leader has often visited the extreme north lands to see friends. There is urgent business in the clan, so we have been tracking his whereabouts. Several minor demons reported seeing him enter Haoyue Palace yesterday.”
“Oh?” Fan Yue tapped his black boots on the cold stone floor and looked up.
“Relying on hearsay, you dare knock on my Haoyue Palace’s door and demand someone? Chang Mei’s methods are certainly becoming more systematic.”
Behind the screen, Bai Shuo was peeking out thoughtfully.
Given Fan Yue’s temperament, it was already generous of him not to throw Mu Jiu out of the Extreme North. There was no reason for him to forcibly keep Mu Jiu.
A fluffy head suddenly popped up.
Mu Jiu grinned.
“I knew it! This is the perfect hiding spot. As expected of my dear Little Hua’s Palace Master—majestic and domineering!”
Bai Shuo got goosebumps, shot a glance at the schadenfreude-filled Mu Jiu, and poked him.
“They sent two elders to demand your return. What trouble have you caused this time?”
Mu Jiu stiffened, feeling guilty.
“Don’t slander me. I am a noble and virtuous young fox, pure and upright.”
Bai Shuo rolled her eyes, then the two of them leaned forward again to observe the hall.
Inside, Chang Wu’s face had darkened, but Chang Sheng remained composed and courteous.
“The Palace Master is busy with affairs and devoted to cultivation. It is understandable if he is unaware of who has entered his palace.”
Suddenly, Chang Sheng moved his palm, conjuring a red fox fur.
Without warning, the fur shot toward the back of the hall.
“Not good!” Behind the screen, Mu Jiu’s expression changed.
He turned to flee, but before he could take a step, he was lifted into the air.
The red fox fur thickened to the size of an arm, bound him, and dragged him toward the center of the hall.
In his panic, Mu Jiu still had the presence of mind to grab Bai Shuo’s sleeve.
Everything happened in an instant—before anyone could react, there was a loud thud, and Mu Jiu and Bai Shuo crashed onto the hall floor.
Standing nearby, Hua Hong crossed her arms, glancing at the two conspicuous figures sprawled on the ground, her lips twitching.
Meanwhile, Chang Sheng and Chang Wu were staring at Bai Shuo, their eyes gleaming as they took in her delicate and soft appearance.
“Young Clan Leader, could this young lady be the friend you frequently visit?”
Chang Sheng even clicked his tongue twice.
“She’s certainly lovely. It makes sense that the Young Clan Leader often descends the mountain.”
A cold gaze landed on Mu Jiu.
He felt a chill down his spine and jumped three feet away from Bai Shuo, quickly clarifying,
“Elder, this—this young lady is Bai Shuo!”
The moment those two words left his mouth, the elders’ smiles froze.
They simultaneously took two steps back and bowed toward Bai Shuo.
“My respects.”
Then, as if by instinct, they glanced at Fan Yue.
Their wrinkled faces crinkled even more.
“A misunderstanding, a misunderstanding! We did not know she was the future Palace Master’s wife. Palace Master, please forgive us!”
There was no denial from within the hall.
Bai Shuo couldn’t help but look toward Fan Yue.
She wasn’t sure if she was seeing things, but it seemed the coldness in his expression had slightly softened.
Chang Sheng’s face turned stern.
“Young Clan Leader, the Clan Leader has ordered us to take you back to the mountain.”
“I refuse!” Mu Jiu quickly hid behind Tianhuo, standing his ground.
“I came down the mountain with my own abilities. I’m not going back!”
“Marriage is a fundamental principle of the world. The engagement was arranged by the Clan Leader and is not to be taken lightly.”
Bai Shuo watched the scene with amusement.
“So, Fox, they went to such lengths to bring you back because you ran away from a marriage?”
“There were one, two, three, four… eight or nine fox girls. Whoever wants to marry them can go ahead. I won’t.”
Bai Shuo gaped in disbelief and gave Mu Jiu a thumbs-up.
“Your fox clan marries in batches?”
“Whether you like it or not, you’re going back today.”
Chang Wu and Chang Sheng moved at once, trying to bypass Hua Hong to seize Mu Jiu.
But suddenly, the Burning Heaven Staff struck out, forcing them back.
Caught off guard, the elders looked at Hua Hong in alarm.
“Burning Heaven Staff! Demon Lord Tianhuo, what is the meaning of this?”
Mu Jiu’s eyes lit up in excitement.
“Little—”
Before he could finish, Hua Hong stepped aside with an indifferent expression.
“My hand slipped. Please continue.”
Mu Jiu’s excitement evaporated instantly.
He stared at Hua Hong, his eyes slightly red.
Hua Hong averted her gaze awkwardly and refused to meet Mu Jiu’s eyes.
“Young Clan Leader, stop dawdling. Continuing the fox clan’s lineage is your duty.”
Chang Sheng and Chang Wu lost their patience and reached out again.
But just as before, their attacks were repelled.
Staring at the Burning Heaven Staff barring their way, even the ever-composed Chang Sheng lost his temper.
“Demon Lord Tianhuo, did your hand slip again?”
“It was perfect—neither fast nor slow,” Hua Hong replied, glancing at Mu Jiu.
“He doesn’t want to go back. Didn’t you hear?”
“Little Hua…” Mu Jiu muttered hesitantly.
“Shut up.”
“Oh.”
“Does the Haoyue Palace intend to interfere in the fox clan’s affairs?!”
Chang Sheng turned to Fan Yue with a grave expression.
This question was no longer just about taking Mu Jiu back—it was the fox clan of Jingyou Mountain confronting Haoyue Palace itself.
The hall fell silent.
Fan Yue lowered his gaze and replied,
“You have already witnessed my answer. If the Burning Heaven Staff is not enough, I can also summon the Slaughter Chain to say it again.”
As he spoke, he moved his palm slightly, about to summon the silver chain.
Chang Sheng quickly retreated several steps.
“No need, Palace Master. There is no rush—Young Clan Leader is still young. Delaying the marriage for a few more years won’t hurt.”
It wasn’t cowardice—Fan Yue was a demigod.
If he truly acted, the two fox elders would die here.
Besides, they had already mentioned Chang Mei’s name, and the Palace Master refused to acknowledge it. They could hardly be blamed.
The Haoyue Palace Master was infamous for not meddling in worldly affairs, so who knew what had gotten into him this time, making him insist on keeping Mu Jiu?
“Young Leader, if you truly refuse to return to Jingyou Mountain, so be it.”
Chang Sheng sighed and reached out his hand.
“But at least return the clan’s treasure. If you hadn’t stolen the sacred artifact, the Clan Leader wouldn’t have sent us to chase you across the Extreme North.”
Hua Hong frowned and looked at Mu Jiu.
“What did you steal? Return it.”
Mu Jiu’s face fell.
“I can’t. It’s gone.”
“Gone?!” Chang Sheng’s white beard trembled.
“My dear ancestor! That was the Divine Fig Wine! It grants three thousand years of cultivation! It was reserved for the future Clan Leader’s wife! How could it be gone?!”
No one noticed the sudden strangeness in Hua Hong’s expression.
Bai Shuo clicked her tongue.
“Fox, did you drink it?”
Mu Jiu shook his head like a rattle.
“Then what happened to it?” Chang Sheng demanded.
“Well, uh… probably, maybe, possibly…” A voice suddenly rang out in the hall.
Hua Hong spoke, though her words lacked their usual confidence.
“I accidentally drank it.”
Silence.
The elders suddenly saw everything clearly.
They looked at Mu Jiu, then at Hua Hong.
Chang Sheng turned to Mu Jiu.
“Young Clan Leader, come back with us.”
Mu Jiu shook his head.
Chang Sheng sighed.
“Then just kill us here.”
Mu Jiu froze.
“Elder…”
Chang Wu and Chang Sheng sat down on the floor.
“If you refuse to marry and the Divine Fig Wine is gone, you know the Clan Leader’s temper. If we return, we’ll be dead anyway. Better to die here and be done with it.”
“Elder! Aunt wouldn’t—”
“The clan leader, will she or won’t she? And you think you know? Can you guarantee that if the events of Yi city happen again, you’ll escape unscathed? Our fox clan’s Nine-Tailed lineage passes down through a single bloodline—if that bloodline is severed, Young Clan Leader, we’d have no face left to return to the clan leader.”
“Elder, it’s not that serious…”
“Serious or not, you—”
“I’ll go back with you.”
Hua Hong, unable to listen any longer, suddenly spoke.
The three foxes in the hall froze at the same time.
Mu Jiu blurted anxiously, “Little hua, don’t be rash. I was the one who stole the wine. If anyone’s to be punished, it should be me.”
“Who said I was going back to be punished?” Hua hong was impatient.
“What are they taking you back for?”
“To get married.”
“Then we’ll go back and get married.”
The hall fell silent.
Hua hong’s bold declaration nearly made Bai Shuo choke on her own spit.
What was going on?
“What?”
Mu Jiu’s eyes widened, thinking he had misheard, but he saw Hua Hong turn to Chang Wu and Chang Sheng.
“If I marry Mu Jiu now, do I have the right to drink that fig divine wine?”
The two elders nodded in unison, answering in one voice, “You do.”
“Then do you still need to throw a fit about dying?”
They shook their heads simultaneously, quickly getting up.
“No need.”
“Tianhuo.”
From the throne, Fan Yue frowned and spoke, but Hua Hong lazily smiled.
“Palace master, marriage is a personal decision—I make my own choices.”
“There’s no need.”
Mu Jiu looked at Hua Hong, his expression serious in a way Bai Shuo had never seen before.
“You don’t have to marry me just for a jar of wine. I’ll go back with the elders.”
Chang Sheng and Chang Wu’s faces darkened.
Tianhuo was already at the peak of the Demon lord level, and after drinking the fig divine wine, ascending to demigod status was only a matter of time.
If she married into the fox clan, it would be an immense advantage.
Just as the two elders were about to intervene, Hua Hong spoke again.
“What makes you think I’m marrying you just for a jar of wine? Why can’t I genuinely mean it, Mu Jiu?”
Mu Jiu was stunned.
Bai Shuo frowned and instinctively glanced at Fan Yue, whose expression was just as cold and dark.
The sun set, the moon rose, and darkness shrouded the Extreme North.
Fan Yue walked from the side hall back to his sleeping quarters.
Bai Shuo was already waiting in the courtyard.
No one had mentioned why Fan Yue had suddenly disappeared from the hall that afternoon.
“You insisted on keeping Mu Jiu in Haoyue Palace because you wanted to use him as a way to enter the fox clan and take the Demon-Gathering Banner?”
Bai shuo got straight to the point.
Fan Yue did not deny it.
“Then why didn’t you stop Hua Hong from using this method to enter Jingyou Mountain?”
“Bai Shuo, you don’t want to be one of Haoyue Palace’s people, so what does Haoyue Palace’s business have to do with you?”
“A person who has given you their heart and soul, who has protected you without hesitation—even at the cost of their life—is that person still worth less to you than someone you don’t even remember?”
Bai Shuo was furious, though she wasn’t sure if she was questioning him for Hua Hong or for herself.
Under the moonlight, Fan Yue suddenly laughed.
His thin lips curved slightly, his voice cool and indifferent as he looked down at her.
“When you stood in the Tomb of the Yi King and personally sent off the one who would have given their life for you, Bai Shuo, why didn’t you ask yourself if you were heartless? If you were cruel?”
Bai Shuo froze, her eyes instantly reddening, her whole body trembling uncontrollably.
Her little disciple, the only one in this world who had ever looked at her and her alone, had perished at her own hands.
The people who know you best always know exactly where to strike.
Bai Shuo wiped her eyes and turned away.
Fan Yue’s expression remained icy.
He coughed heavily, blood seeping from his throat.
A hand pressed against his back, channeling a steady flow of demonic energy into him.
Fan Yue’s mind cleared slightly, his body stabilizing.
“My demon energy isn’t as good as divine power, but since I drank divine wine today, this should do,” came Hua hong’s teasing voice from behind him.
“You didn’t need to go this far.” Fan Yue turned his head, frowning, his gaze filled with disapproval.
“Well, isn’t that funny? Just now, when she was questioning you, why didn’t you say that to her?”
“Tianhuo!”
“Your divine veins are already damaged. If you force your way through Jingyou Mountain’s barrier, you won’t be a match for Changmei. The Demon Emperor’s throne must not fall into Zhen Yu’s hands. Otherwise, the disaster of Yi city will repeat across the entire demon realm.”
Hua Hong spoke seriously.
“Since I can’t stop you from infiltrating the fox clan to seize the Demon-Gathering Banner, I have no choice but to help you. We leave for the fox clan tomorrow morning—Palace Lord, you should get some rest.”
She waved her hand and turned to leave.
Behind her, Fan Yue’s voice came low and steady.
“Mu Jiu has a pure heart. If he learns the truth one day, what will you do?”
Hua Hong paused in her steps.
“The future is the future—we’ll deal with it when it comes.”
She turned her head slightly, a cold and indifferent smile playing at her lips.
“Palace Lord, unlike you, I—long ago—stopped believing in such nonsense as true feelings.”
She walked away, her figure solitary under the moon.
Outside the hall, beneath a tree, a shadow lurked in the darkness like a ghost before silently vanishing into the night.
