Chapter 17: Twin Rings

On the third day, the cultivators who participated in the training at Lanquan Ravine returned to the city. As the daughter of the city lord, Tang Yue's actions easily became the center of attention. Some accused her of cheating, while others argued that preparation was part of the test itself. The sect members were divided into two camps, and those with nothing better to do busied themselves with arguing. Upon hearing this, Tang Yue simply remarked that popular people always attract gossip and didn't care much. If some people liked her, others were bound to dislike her. If she spent all her time worrying about what others said, she wouldn't have time to do her own thing.

Madam Shui and Senior Brother Wei both felt Tang Yue's attitude was quite good—staying true to herself without being swayed by outside opinions was beneficial to her cultivation. Only Tang Wenhua criticized her, saying she'd made him lose face. As usual, Tang Yue replied with a few perfunctory "yes, yes," and let it go.

Interestingly, the Jin Dan-ranked official from the Zixiao Sect came to visit Tang Yue at the City Lord's estate. They hoped to obtain the forging blueprints for the Heaven and Earth Net and Herbal Spade, believing these tools would help cultivators collect resources more efficiently and thus benefit Kunwu City's overall productivity.

Tang Yue had no issue with the ordinary disciples of the Zixiao Sect and had a pleasant conversation with the official. But in the end, she handed the two blueprints to Senior Brother Wei and let him decide how to use them.

Wei Hongyun was generous. He arranged for Qionghua Pavilion to purchase the blueprints and produce the tools in bulk, distributing them freely to inner disciples. Outer sect and rogue cultivators could also purchase the tools if they wished.

Tang Yue received a hefty amount of spirit stones in return, which made her very happy. She appreciated Wei Hongyun's respect for intellectual property and was glad she hadn't been asked to hand them over for free.

After returning home, Tang Yue rested for a while and made a jacket from the saber-toothed tiger pelt for Madam Shui. Though not the most exquisite in craftsmanship, the stitches were neat, and the design tasteful. On Madam Shui, the jacket appeared regal and elegant, not at all gaudy.

Pleased, Madam Shui wore it the whole day and cleaned it before storing it away carefully that night. After all, it was the first item her daughter had ever made for her—with a pelt from a beast her daughter had personally hunted—making it especially meaningful.

She also learned what Meng Yangxing had done to Tang Yue and decided to retaliate directly. As a result, the Meng family was subject to constant tax audits for an entire month, suffering heavy losses. Normally, Qionghua Pavilion would overlook minor tax evasion to encourage commerce, but this time, even small infractions led to fines. Only after a personal request from the City Lord did Madam Shui finally call off the audits.

The entire Meng family was shaken, trying to figure out who had offended Madam Shui. Eventually, they traced it back to Meng Yangxing and were horrified to learn he had dared to lay a hand on the City Lord's daughter.

The old Meng patriarch gave Meng Yangxing a harsh beating, scolding him for putting the entire family at risk. Even his parents—currently the heads of the Meng family—couldn't stop it and had to watch their son get beaten.

Disciples of prestigious families often had life lamps in their homes. If they died while away, the lamp would reveal their final moments and surrounding environment, allowing elders to identify the killer and take revenge.

This tradition made people wary of harming elite disciples, helping ensure the survival and continued power of such families.

Though the current Meng family leaders understood this principle, they couldn't help but feel heartache for their son. They believed it had all started because Tang Yue had set him up first. In truth, they simply feared the City Lord's power and the backing of Wuji Mountain behind Madam Shui.

So they sighed, unable to seek justice for their beloved son, and instead threw their full support behind Zhuang Qiaohui and her son, planning to settle the score once Madam Shui eventually fell from power.

Tang Yue, for her part, had no idea someone else was now holding a grudge against her. She had plenty of things to keep her busy at home and couldn't be bothered to remember irrelevant people.

Today, she thought of something interesting. The black curse ring inside her body had only appeared after the original Tang Yue's death in the book. The blackened ring had summoned her and then fused with her body.

But now the current timeline hadn't yet reached the point where the curse ring was originally used. So what happened to this timeline's version of the curse ring?

Originally, the curse ring had been part of Madam Shui's dowry, selected by her father. Thinking that it might be useful in a life-or-death situation, he had added the sinister item—acquired from an evil cultivator—as a last resort for self-protection.

So theoretically, the ring should still be sitting in Madam Shui's dowry collection. Tang Yue wanted to see it for herself.

According to the novel, the original Tang Yue had found the ring on the second floor of Madam Shui's private treasury. Tang Yue could freely enter the first floor now, but needed special permission to access the second floor.

She told Madam Shui she wanted to read some advanced Daoist classics to improve her comprehension.

"Those books are far too difficult. Even I can't understand them. They're only on the second floor because they're rare," Madam Shui said suspiciously. "What are you planning now?"

Tang Yue sweatdropped. "Mother, I truly want to study classic texts. Lately, I've been facing a lot of confusion in cultivation and hope the writings of great sages can provide clarity."

"And I promise—you can check me—I won't take anything out."

Madam Shui still looked skeptical, but since she could inspect her daughter afterward, she relented. "Fine, but you're not to take anything. I'll check thoroughly."

"Okay!"

Tang Yue took the key and went up to the second floor. After some searching, she found a spot resembling the one described in the book and opened a cabinet. Inside was a sandalwood box. Thanks to the protective wards in the treasury, nothing gathered dust or moisture—perfect for storing books and materials.

The box looked new. According to the book, the curse ring had been stored in a nondescript purple sandalwood box.

She carefully opened it. Inside was a white jade ring, engraved with fine magical patterns. She guessed this world might be an alternate timeline. In the original line, the heroine had been devoured by the curse, turned into a cripple, and Madam Shui had died protecting her.

Thinking of Madam Shui's sacrifices made Tang Yue feel sad.

As she stood there mourning, a sudden burst of dazzling white light erupted from her chest, and the jade ring was sucked directly into her body.

Shocked, Tang Yue thought, Why does everything end up inside me?! She quickly checked her inner state. The original black ring was now joined by a white ring, the two interlocked like twin loops. The white ring's inscriptions had vanished; its surface was now smooth and glossy, like the black ring.

She had no idea what this meant or how it would affect her. The curse ring didn't explain anything this time, so she placed the box back in its original spot.

So much for keeping her promise—since the ring had fused with her body, it had no choice but to leave with her. And there was no way she'd tell Madam Shui about the twin rings; it would expose her secret of being a soul from another world.

If she had to break one promise, she'd at least fulfill the other. She went to the rare books shelf and pulled out a classic titled Teachings of True Lord Tianbao, a text on overcoming Dao heart barriers in cultivation. She managed two pages before her head hurt.

But she didn't want to disrespect the rare text, so she forced herself to memorize a section and only left after half a day had passed.

When Madam Shui examined her, she found nothing unusual—no items smuggled out. She noticed Tang Yue frowning in pain and wondered: Was she really just reading books?

"See? I told you those texts are too hard."

Tang Yue honestly admitted, "They are too hard. That's why I want to attend more lectures from spiritual teachers."

Madam Shui smiled. Her daughter was actually becoming interested in Daoist texts? "Alright, listen carefully then."

Later, the two had lunch together, and Tang Yue showed Madam Shui her cat.

"This cat's appearance... I've never seen anything like it," Madam Shui said. "You should have a specialist from the Beast Pavilion examine it."

"Mother, the ragdoll cat won't eat ordinary beast feed. Just like that man I met said."

She had previously told Madam Shui about the strange cultivator she'd met, but with so few clues, Madam Shui couldn't identify him.

"Then take it to the Beast Pavilion."

The next day, Tang Yue took the cat to the pavilion. It felt a bit like a mother taking her child to the doctor.

Upon entering the hall, she spotted the young man she'd met at Lanquan Ravine. He was adjusting heat sources for beast eggs on a rack.

The Beast Pavilion used Blazing Crystal Stones to warm eggs and hatch spiritual beasts. Some were live-born; others hatched from eggs. These were probably bird eggs.

Tang Yue didn't go out of her way to greet him. They'd only met once and weren't really acquainted. She figured he probably didn't even remember her. She went straight to the front desk and said, "Hello, I need someone to examine my cat. It won't eat the spirit feed from my home."

"Hello, Miss Tang. I'll arrange for a specialist to help you right away. Please wait a moment," the clerk replied.

At some point, the young man appeared beside her and said, "Hello, Miss Tang. Ever since we parted that day, I've been thinking about your cat and have waited here for days."

Tang Yue was slightly surprised. He waited here on purpose? Could her cat really be so special?

She replied, "Thank you for your concern. I've only just had the time to bring her."

"Miss Tang, I also work here at the Beast Pavilion. I'm fairly skilled and would be honored to examine your cat." Yu Yuan was aware that Tang Yue was the City Lord's daughter and spoke to her more politely this time. If she didn't allow him to examine the cat, there'd be no other way to get close to it.

Though Kunlun Palace was far more powerful than anything in Kunwu, he was still an outsider in this region. If the locals felt he disrespected their elites, he could be expelled, and that wouldn't do.

Tang Yue replied, "Weren't you just someone with some connections to the Beast Pavilion? Since when did you become an employee?"

She didn't know who Yu Yuan really was—if she had, she wouldn't have poked holes in his words so easily.

Yu Yuan wasn't offended. After all, he had concealed his identity first. "My background isn't convenient to disclose publicly, or it would cause quite a stir. Please, let's speak in the exam room, and I'll explain."

Unconsciously, he no longer treated her as a child. There was a maturity and insight behind her actions. Her seemingly willful behavior always carried a purpose—using her youthful appearance as cover for her goals.

Inside the exam room, he explained who he was. Tang Yue was stunned—his background was far stronger than hers. She realized she'd have to be more careful not to offend him.