Two months later, one day, Yang Kai returned from outside.
Back at the Holy Lord's estate, he summoned Xu Hui and asked whether the disciples had discovered anything during this period, but there was nothing to report.
Yang Kai couldn't help but feel a twinge of disappointment.
Two months ago, he had mobilized all his connections, requesting several powers to keep an ear out for news from Zhongdu. Combined with the Nine Heavens Holy Land's own efforts, they had still come up empty.
Moreover, over these two months, he himself had been searching everywhere for an entrance to the minor realm.
He had entered and exited a good twenty or thirty minor realms, but not a single one led to Zhongdu.
The Flying Sky Shuttle's swift speed had proven enormously helpful at a time like this. In two months, Yang Kai had covered nearly half of human territory.
Every three days, he would return to the Holy Land, lest he miss any useful intelligence.
But he had received no news whatsoever.
Xu Hui had withdrawn. A trace of fragrant breeze wafted over, and Yang Kai looked up to see Xia Ningshang standing before him, clad in light gauze, her graceful figure swaying gently. It seemed she had sensed the anxiety in his heart, for a look of empathetic concern had also surfaced in her beautiful eyes.
Yang Kai reached out and pulled her, and amid her startled cry, drew her into his lap to sit. "Done refining the pills?" he asked.
"Mm." Xia Ningshang nodded gently. "Thanks to the minor realm situation lately, fewer and fewer people have been coming here for pills, so there's not much to refine now."
Because so many minor realms had suddenly appeared, most of the warriors had rushed off to seek their own fortunes, leaving the Nine Peaks behind. As a result, no one queuing outside the Nine Peaks for pills needed to wait in line anymore.
This had also given Xia Ningshang and the other grandmasters some leisure.
The senior and junior brother sat pressed close together, each taking in the other's scent, their hearts serene.
"Junior Brother, you're trying to find the passage back to Zhongdu, aren't you?" Xia Ningshang suddenly spoke up.
"You asked the Grand Elder?" Yang Kai was taken aback.
Xia Ningshang shook her head. "I figured it out myself. Zhongdu is technically a minor realm too. The entrance couldn't be found before, but now that the entrances are opening on their own, someone should have discovered it by now—yet no news has come through. You must be very worried, Junior Brother. You've been going out a lot lately too, so I guessed."
"Yeah, I've been looking. Just haven't found anything."
"There will be leads eventually. Don't worry, Junior Brother." Xia Ningshang comforted him softly, taking his large hand in her own with a wistful sigh. "At such a critical time, Master has gone off who knows where. If he were here, at least there'd be someone to discuss things with."
"Manager Meng… he probably has something important to attend to." Yang Kai had no idea where Manager Meng had run off to at this juncture.
But the moment he had arrived at the Nine Heavens Holy Land, he had left immediately. He had even handed Xia Ningshang over to Yang Kai's care—whatever it was, it had to be of great consequence.
Yang Kai even suspected he might have gone to the Demon Territory.
After all, back in the day he had suffered a terrible loss at the hands of the Demon Lord. Now that he had recovered his strength, perhaps he had gone to settle that score.
If that was truly the case, then Manager Meng's prospects were grim indeed.
Thud thud thud thud—rapid footsteps sounded from outside.
Xia Ningshang leapt from Yang Kai's arms like a startled rabbit, her face flushing red. She stood awkwardly to the side.
When they were alone, she could be intimate with Yang Kai, but in front of others, she couldn't bring herself to be so bold.
The one who entered was Xu Hui, looking very much in a hurry.
Yang Kai regarded him with surprise. "Does the Grand Elder have something else?"
Xu Hui had just reported to Yang Kai about the disciples' findings and had left not long ago, yet now he had hurried back—clearly there was something to report.
"Holy Lord, two women have arrived outside, stating plainly that they wish to see you." Xu Hui glanced cautiously at Xia Ningshang's expression and cleared his throat lightly before continuing his report.
"Women?" Yang Kai frowned. "What kind of women?"
"Er… very beautiful, and quite young." Xu Hui kept his gaze straight ahead and reported matter-of-factly. His tone was thoroughly earnest, clearly assuming these two women were romantic entanglements Yang Kai had picked up outside who had now come looking for him.
Xia Ningshang thought so too, and couldn't help pressing her lips together with a soft laugh. She gazed at Yang Kai with her lovely eyes and said softly, "Junior Brother, I'll head back to my room first."
Yang Kai's mouth twitched. "I don't know any beautiful young women outside…" he declared with righteous conviction. "Could they be Yun Xuan and Ruan Xinyu from the Pride Alliance? Those two came to the Holy Land last time—the Grand Elder met them then."
"They're not them." Xu Hui shook his head, then brightened. "Oh right. Those two girls appear to be twins—they look identical, but their temperaments are quite different. One is charming and alluring, the other ethereal and sprite-like… They're both exceptionally rare beauties, I must say."
He had the air of someone envying Yang Kai's remarkable fortune with women, evidently convinced that the two visitors shared some unclear relationship with him.
Yang Kai's expression changed abruptly. He shot to his feet and growled in a low voice, "Twins?"