Outside the window, dark clouds gathered, and fierce winds roared, heralding an impending storm.
The ladies of the Flower Moon Building were taking shelter from the rain on the wooden pavilion of the massive painted boat, their gazes fixed on a guest room aboard.
"Ms. Zhu... is feasting solo again."
"Iâve never seen such a pretty girl before."
"Thatâs from the Immortal Sect, you think."
"Come on, this time itâs hard to say Pingniang is feasting solo, after all, she comes from the Immortal Sect... There must be some serious business, right? Theyâve specially come this time, not for you to just gawk at."
"Exactly, if you anger the Immortal Sect girl, letâs see how youâll deal with that."
The ladies laughed and suddenly, some with sharp eyes froze for a second, pointing their fingers at the stormy lake.
"Whatâs that! Look over there!"
"What are you looking at?"
The group of ladies turned to look, and they too froze in astonishment.
Upon the lake, a small boat braced against the storm, heading towards their painted boat like a green leaf in the storm, swaying as if it could capsize at any moment.
Never mind how feasible it is to head towards the center of the lake in such heavy rain, just considering the rain alone, larger, heavier anchored boats should be used instead of a topless small wooden boat.
The torrential rain could fill the boat in less than a quarter of an hour.
For a moment, the ladies were dumbfounded.
Though the darkness made it hard to see the approaching figureâs specifics, it was barely discernible that it was a woman.
"Which buildingâs foolish girl is this? Why is she out like this?"
"Heavens... she really is bold, if she accidentally capsizes and falls into the water... who could possibly see?"
With rain roaring like thunder, truly falling into the water amidst an accident would mean no one could hear no matter how one shouts, and by the time sheâs discovered, sheâd likely be already floating on the lake.
"Why are you still staring! Go fetch her!"
A lady hurriedly spoke up.
The group of ladies immediately woke up, grabbing umbrellas, lowering the plank, and went to fetch the new arrival onto the boat.
But as the small wooden boat approached, all the ladies froze.
Because what was on the boat wasnât an ordinary Flower Moon Building girl, but rather a thoroughly drenched... Daoist Nun?
Yes, a Daoist Nun.
Unlike most of the Flower Moon Building ladies with flashy attire, this Daoist Nun wasnât wearing a long skirt but a very neat and austere ancient-style Daoist robe.
As they welcomed the Daoist Nun aboard, the ladies looked strangely at the womanâs arrival.
The Daoist Nun had a very ordinary face, unable to evoke even a shred of amazement, completely out of sync with the lively, dazzling women of the Flower Moon Building, appearing to be under thirty years old, with no makeup, her expression calm.
Crucially, the Daoist Nun seemed quite pitiful at the moment; having not brought an umbrella, her Daoist robe clung to her body, its corners faded, the worn hem continually dripping water.
Her hair bun was disheveled, black strands plastered against her face, utterly bedraggled.
Such a Daoist Nun left the Flower Moon Building ladies, who had just seen Wen Li, momentarily unresponsive, but some young woman was already eyeing the Daoist Nunâs chest, revealing envy over her figure.
Even though a person of religious vows... her figure is quite excellent.
"Who... invited the nun?" someone promptly questioned.
"Bah, bah, bah, sheâs a Daoist, who are you calling a nun, do you know manners?"
"Doing rituals... itâs all the same anyway."
"What do you know, Daoists and monks are different, doing blessings, exorcism, and demon-catching..."
"Itâs all the same."
"Not quite, weâre not hosting a ritual, throwing a banquet... why invite a nun."
The group of ladies chattered, surprisingly setting aside the newly arrived Daoist Nun, and it was evident they were quite intrigued by this unexpectedly foolish female Daoist.
At that moment, a lady hesitated before speaking: "Could it be... sheâs here for Ah Qing?"
Ah Qing?
Her words left all the ladies stunned, and then they fell silent.
After a long pause, one ill-tempered lady stood up, glancing at the surrounding ladies, and said angrily: "Hasnât Pingniang told us to accept Ah Qing? Everyone knows for whom todayâs feast is thrown, who did this? Clearly knowing this... yet invited a Daoist Nun here! Whoâs being disgusted? Ah Qing or Pingniang? Youâve really grown a spine!"
"It wasnât me."
"Donât look at me, I have nothing to do with it."
"I quite like Ms. Qing, donât look at me like that."
For a time, the Flower Moon Building ladies were in a chaotic panic.
Evidently, the arrival of the Daoist Nun made these ladies misunderstand that she was entrusted to "exorcise" because Ah Qing is a Half-Demon, and indeed, some within the building didnât like her.
"Not liking Ah Qing is fine, but... inviting someone for a ritual in this setting... is a bit too much." someone whispered.
"Exactly, exactly."
"Ask her, then."
"Alright."
After discussing, their gazes fell on the woman in the completely soaked Daoist robe, unsure whether she was dazed by the rain or if religious people were all like this, they felt this Daoist Nun before them seemed... distracted.
"Madam... Daoist." A Hua Shang woman stepped beside the Daoist Nun, first bowing respectfully, then softly said: "Daoist, perhaps youâve come to the wrong place... we donât have any rituals to perform here."
Daoist Nun: "..."
She appeared completely oblivious, Liu Mei furrowed, her gaze fixed on the patch of dark sky over Beisang City, seemingly entirely captivated.