Because she had learned her lesson from the last time and the time before that, Xu Fu deliberately chose to visit during the day this time, to avoid running into that man doing anything improper again.
She prided herself on being flawless in her judgment, but she hadn't expected that when she merely wanted to turn around, Gu Fangchen would refuse her.
Xu Fu's movement halted, her brows slightly furrowing as she confirmed that, at this moment, only she and Gu Fangchen were in the room.
Gu Fangchen wasn't even sleeping without clothes, just lightly dressed. There was no reason for him to act so evasive...
This man, who was so shameless and unrestrained with that little maid, now suddenly became bashful.
Unless, it was because he realized it was her and not Xuexiang.
Thinking of this, Xu Fu's brows relaxed slightly.
Gu Fangchen had once said he admired her. Though the truth of his words remained uncertain, from the difference in his attitude now, there truly seemed to be a trace of genuine respect and unwillingness to offend the "aloof, pure, and untouchable Grand Preceptor."
Her thoughts raced, he had dared to indulge himself so boldly in private when using the other girl's body, yet upon meeting her true self, he didn't dare cross the line.
Indeed, even the last time, though she had practically invited him, Gu Fangchen had only asked for her handwritten scriptures.
Which meant... that day, he truly hadn't realized it was her.
After she returned that day, she couldn't possibly act as though nothing had happened. She had suspected whether that bastard had simply been pretending.
After all, the first time she possessed Xuexiang, Gu Fangchen had recognized her immediately. For him not to recognize her later did seem inconsistent.
Yet now, his first reaction hadn't been to feign ignorance, it had been to cover up immediately.
Xu Fu's heart eased slightly. Though this man harbored desire toward her, when faced with a second-grade Divine Dao expert, he still didn't dare to be presumptuous.
But what she didn't know...
Gu Fangchen had long rehearsed this moment countless times, all for the sake of displaying the perfect balance between "awareness" and "innocence" before the Grand Preceptor, just enough to lessen the suspicion of "knowing and offending deliberately."
However, after being rewarded by the Princess the previous night, his nineteen-year-old body, constantly tempered by vigorous martial arts, was inevitably full of vitality and impulses of its own.
Gu Fangchen closed his eyes; the light of the lunar wheel shone bright within. His spirit instantly cleared, suppressing all untimely reactions.
Ah... having a strong soul really was convenient. His control over his body was dozens of times greater than that of ordinary people.
Without some justifiable reason, those scenes of "losing control after taking a drug" would never happen, especially when facing a top-tier Divine Dao expert like the Grand Preceptor.
That fleeting thought vanished. He then sat up, smiling with his usual charm.
"Grand Preceptor, could it be that you have found a clue to the karmic thread from the Sixth Division Star Lord?"
Xu Fu finally turned around, calm and graceful, and nodded.
"I came precisely to speak with you of this."
She proceeded to describe in detail the situation of "Blade Sect" Master Cao Tianzhou.
"Cao Tianzhou has been clinging to life for three years now. His time is short. The urgent task is to go to Gushu Dao's Dugu Clan's Demon-Suppressing Prison, rescue him, and then use the secret method to sever the karmic link.
Otherwise, once he dies, this karmic thread will return to the cycle of reincarnation, and may fall into the hands of the Demonic Sect first."
Gu Fangchen raised a brow. So this time, the random fate thread had landed on that man...
In the game, Cao Tianzhou had merely been a side character, but his tragic-hero image had made him rather popular.
Though described as "barely clinging to life," he actually survived for another three years. When the player rescued him, he burned his life essence to slay Dugu Yue with a single strike.
As for the truth behind it all, it had been simple.
Dugu Yue had secretly told him that his wife and daughter were imprisoned within the Demon-Suppressing Prison. If he had the guts, he could go save them himself.
Cao Tianzhou, being an honest and single-minded man, had rushed straight in, only to be captured like a turtle in a jar.
He'd been imprisoned ever since. The world believed him dead.
Yet he had survived through sheer hatred and obsession, living alongside demons and abominations in that dark pit.
Gu Fangchen did respect him for that, though he was, admittedly, quite the fool.
Of course, while a fourth-grade peak cultivator was formidable, the Dugu Clan's influence was no laughing matter. They had multiple experts of that level.
If Cao Tianzhou tried to fight his way out, it would lead nowhere.
Gu Fangchen organized all this information in his mind, pondering briefly.
Rescuing Cao Tianzhou wouldn't be difficult, and conveniently, he was already planning to visit Gushu Dao.
Speaking of which, Gu Fangchen did have a connection to the Dugu Clan...
Ning Caiyong and Ning Songjun's father was the Master of the Sword Pavilion, and their late mother, Dugu Ping, was born of the Dugu Clan of Gushu Dao, making her Dugu Yue's half-sister.
This was exactly how things went with the great sects and noble families, their bloodlines intertwined and tangled beyond recognition.
It was also why Ning Caiyong had gone to give birth in Gushu Dao back then.
She was the Dugu Clan's legitimate granddaughter. At that time, Gu Yuye was still battling the Qiong Barbarians on the frontlines and couldn't return. Ning Caiyong, heavily pregnant and left in the capital, was taken by the Dugu Clan to be cared for.
But on the way, disaster struck, a demonic entity attacked, and Ning Caiyong went into labor early.
Though mother and child survived, the Demonic Sect took advantage of the chaos to switch the infants.
Thus began the entire struggle over the true and false heirs of the Gu family.
If he wanted to uncover the truth of that year, he would indeed have to start in Gushu Dao.
Gu Fangchen narrowed his eyes, his tone grave.
"In that case, I will go to Gushu Dao myself. Grand Preceptor, please have the Blood-Robe Guards capture a decoy target to divert the Demonic Sect's attention."
This had been part of their plan from the beginning, so Xu Fu nodded in agreement.
Then Gu Fangchen added, "Grand Preceptor, if this succeeds, we'll truly be one step closer to Peace under Heaven..."
He looked up and sighed.
"To serve under the Grand Preceptor is my honor, but... saving a man from the Dugu Clan is no small feat."
His words carried a faintly suggestive tone, hinting at the need for some "incentive."
Xu Fu: "..."
Of course, he couldn't stay serious for long.
Her gaze met his burning eyes, and, against her will, she remembered that night, the feel of his palm against her borrowed body, that strange, serpentine warmth coiling around her... and anger and shame both surged up anew.
She wanted to say that the reward had already been given, that he shouldn't even think about asking for more, but that would expose the truth of her possession.
So Xu Fu could only snort coldly.
"What is it this time?"
Gu Fangchen chuckled, rubbing his hands together.
"The Grand Preceptor truly sees through all things..."
Xu Fu drew a deep breath, biting her lip. "Speak, then. What do you want this time?"
Gu Fangchen's gaze grew bright and intent.
"I want... the Celestial Fate Dao's Divine Dao Visualization Diagram."
?
A question mark practically popped up in Xu Fu's mind.
This man, who couldn't stop teasing and clinging to a mere maidservant as her substitute, now came asking for this?
She'd prepared herself for some indecent demand, yet his desire turned out to be for a visualization diagram.
Did this mean that in his heart, those scriptures and diagrams mattered more than she did?
Xu Fu did not realize that when a man with a loose tongue still acted with restraint, it was usually because his ambitions reached far higher than lust.
Gu Fangchen blinked innocently. "Of course, every sect's visualization diagram is a secret inheritance. If the Grand Preceptor is unwilling, "
Xu Fu quelled the strange flicker of irritation in her heart and said coolly, "Celestial Fate Dao is unique. We seek destiny rather than strict doctrine. If you wish to learn it, I will pass it to you when you return."
But the transmission of a visualization diagram was indeed a secret affair. She could not pass it to him openly, she would have to use her true body at the Pillar of Silence.
Gu Fangchen grinned, extending his little finger.
"Then it's a deal."
Xu Fu blinked in surprise as he explained, "It's a mortal custom, a pinky swear to seal a promise."
She, who had never lived among the commoners, didn't understand such things. Seeing how solemn he was, she imitated him and hooked her pinky with his.
The touch was brief. Gu Fangchen didn't try to take advantage.
Xu Fu nodded slightly in secret satisfaction. Indeed, it had been wise to come during the day. Much safer this way.
With that comforting thought, "daytime is safe", she withdrew from Xuexiang's body.
Xuexiang's eyes fluttered open, dazed, realizing she was somehow by the Young Lord's bedside. Confused, she blinked, just as Gu Fangchen leaned in and kissed her twice.
Her mind went blank. Her face turned crimson, her heart thundering so hard she nearly fainted.
Though the Young Lord had done more intimate things before, this was the first time he had kissed her.
Xuexiang wasn't the Grand Princess, a peerless expert she was not. One touch, and her whole body went soft. When he pried open her lips, her thoughts scattered like falling petals.
Then, from outside, came Cui Granny's voice.
"Young Lord, the Purple Extremity Hall summons you."
Gu Fangchen released the near-limp Xuexiang, looking unsurprised.
"Got it."
Xuexiang, still flustered, jumped up, grabbed his robes with trembling hands, and helped dress him with teary eyes and flushed cheeks, still fulfilling her duty diligently.
...
Just as the Grand Princess had foreseen, Gu Yuye indeed started his move through the groom.
Inside the Purple Extremity Hall, Gu Yuye brought forth the captured groom, a rough, dark-skinned man with coarse features, covered in marks of interrogation, his collarbones pierced with iron hooks.
"Clatter!"
The groom fell to his knees in chains, trembling.
"Mercy! Spare me! I didn't mean to, it was those people who forced me! Here, here is their mark!"
"I, I was momentarily blinded by greed when I made that deal with them..."
He raised his arm, revealing torn flesh beneath which glowed a dark sigil shaped like the character "Hu."
It was the mark of the Dao of Constancy, one of the Tenfold Dao.
The blackness seemed to burrow into his very bones, radiating a hungry, devouring aura.
But for now, it was held in check by another majestic power suppressing it.
Among the Tenfold Dao, the Dao of Constancy was not considered highly dangerous; its followers often appeared as merchants or wandering Daoists.
To them, all natural cycles, yin and yang, sun and moon, breath and balance, were the Dao's manifestation.
And the simplest way to practice the Dao of Constancy was through "equivalent exchange."
But should one violate the exchange, the Dao itself would devour the transgressor.
This groom had clearly made some deal with a follower of the Dao of Constancy, which led to the swapping of the infants.
Gu Yuye spoke sternly, "Your Majesty, according to this groom's confession, Gu Fangchen was not his child, but a baby switched by followers of the Demonic Sect's Dao of Constancy!"
"Even if the exchange was not Gu Fangchen's doing, this matter is grave. Especially as a 'Path of Emotion' cultivator once impersonated him and disrupted the Dao Hearts of scholars at the Qionglin Banquet, it is possible that the Demonic Sect is plotting something deeper. Your servant believes it must be investigated thoroughly!"
Gu Fangchen looked up at the Emperor behind the veil, blinking slowly.
He wanted to say, really? You're dragging the Dao of Constancy into this?
If they dug too deep, things would get very messy.
If the investigation reached the Emperor himself... that would be the endgame.
If the mask fell, revealing the being beneath the title "Eternal Peace Emperor", none of them would survive.
Gu Fangchen didn't even dare reveal the truth to him. He had only ever spoken in riddles because "the Eternal Peace Emperor" and "the Lord of the Dao of Constancy" were not the same being.
It was like a role being played. While wearing the Emperor's mask, that existence acted according to the Emperor's persona.
If the mask came off, what lay beneath was no human.
Gu Fangchen still didn't know what the Lord of Constancy truly wanted, nor why he'd been thrown into this world. He dared not act rashly.
But Gu Yuye... seemed determined to dig his own grave.
If he truly uncovered anything, it wouldn't be Gu Fangchen who suffered for it.
The Eternal Peace Emperor looked genuinely shocked.
"Is that so?"
He sighed, as though troubled, and after a pause, turned his gaze to Gu Fangchen.
"In that case, since the one who tied the knot must untie it, your origins shall be investigated, by you yourself."
"Go to Gushu. Bring the truth back to me."
At those words, Gu Fangchen froze, a shiver crawling up his spine.
"Untie the knot yourself..."
Those had been his exact words to Guagua, leading the latter to become an undercover agent within the Demonic Sect and escape the Dao of Death's pursuit.
Now, hearing them from the Emperor, he realized the meaning.
It was as if the Emperor were saying, I know everything you've done.
Gu Fangchen took a deep breath and bowed.
"As you command."
...
Gu Fangchen returned to the Prince's Manor with Gu Yuye.
At the gate, Gu Yuye stopped, his eyes cold and narrow.
"Gu Fangchen, don't think this means you've won. This is only the beginning."
Now that the mask was off, Gu Yuye no longer cared about reputation. With no pretense left, his future strikes would be merciless.
Gu Fangchen spread his hands and grinned arrogantly.
"If the Prince wishes to kill me, then go ahead. Do it now if you like."
Gu Yuye wasn't that stupid. With a sharp flick of his sleeve, he turned and flew off.
"Chen'er!"
Ning Caiyong hurried forward, worry etched in her face.
"The Emperor wants you to go to Gushu?"
Gu Fangchen nodded. "Yes."
He thought for a moment, then stepped forward and embraced her tightly.
"Mother, I have a request..."