Blue Phoenix Chapter 63 – Lady Or Beast?

Excitement filled Sha Yun’s eyes as she saw the pagoda in the distance, yet the excitement slowly changed to a yearning which caused a small smile to appear on Hui Yue’s face. Although he did not have a mental connection with this female beast, it was incredibly easy to understand how she felt as she displayed everything on her face.

The group sped up as they saw their home finally within distance. They raced towards the city gates hoping to make it in time before they closed for the night. The training trip ended up taking slightly longer than expected. They all longed for their warm beds and fluffy pillows, rather than one more night sleeping on the cold hard ground.

Still, a slight nostalgia had descended on them all, and they were quiet as they made their way towards the city gates. Although all of them had previously been together at the academy, they had never been together in such a proximity before and especially not for such an extended period. To go back to their previous lifestyle would be somewhat unfulfilling now that they had been used to playing around all day.

Although they had seen the pagoda on the horizon, it still took a couple of hours to travel that far of a distance, and they even had to pass through few villages on the way. The sun was setting at the time they managed to reach the city gates. Creaking sounds could be heard as the heavy wooden doors were about to be sealed shut.

“WAIT!” One of the sentries called from atop the city wall. “I see the young lord and young lady coming this way. Do not close the gates before they arrive!”

As soon as the voice sounded from above the gates, the creaking sounds stilled and a cheer was heard roaring to the sky. Lord Rong Liang was a very well-liked city lord, and his heir was similarly popular as he would mingle with the guards as though they were his equal. This young man had been gone for some time, and now that he returned, it was evident that the guards wished to give their best in welcoming him back.

The loud cheering was a pleasant surprise for Hui Yue and the others as it meant that the city gates would stay open. Unfortunately, Sha Yun did not know that cheering was a joyous thing. Instead, she became anxious, and a loud hiss resounded in front of the gates causing the cheering to stop instantly and the guards to become alerted; this was definitely the sound of a troublesome magical beast. Shock spread among the guards as they saw that the beast was a part of the entourage.

Sha Yun had lived within the Magical Forest her whole life. Cheering was a sound which she heard every time humans managed to slay a beast. They would cheer much like this, so cheering turned into a sign that someone had slain a magical beast. How could she not become alerted in such a situation?

“Relax,” Hui Yue laughed at the snake-woman who had moved to his side, ready to defend him against the cheering men on top of the towering building in front of her. “They are cheering.” He explained, “Cheering is something you do when you are happy. Those men are happy to see us.”

The beautiful silver eyes were narrowed with doubt, and she refused to move from Hui Yue’s side. Still a small growling sound emerged from her throat, but she was no longer poised to attack.

The cheering did not resurface. Instead, a thick and dense atmosphere appeared which felt as though a knife was needed to cut through. The many guards on the ground had their spears raised in attack formation until the entourage neared and the first guard noticed the silvery eyes.

A huge shock appeared on his face as he dropped his staff, causing the others to follow his gaze and notice the silvery eyes. Some gasped in shock while others just stood there frozen and confused, as they saw the woman who was half-snake and half-human.

Although Sha Yun from the Magical Forest was a humanoid beast who rarely met humans, she and her sisters were fairly well known by the mercenaries. If a mercenary group were to enter one of their domains they were likely to have some casualties. It was true that these three sisters were not a real match for many mercenaries. Nevertheless, by using tactics such as ambushing people, along with their relationship with the Saint ranked King of the Forest, it was obvious that no one wished to engage in combat with them.

This humanoid beast which everyone would normally try to stay away from was now entering Riluo City, clearly under the bond of a beast pledge. Within the hearts of these guards, a feeling of veneration grew towards Hui Yue. This young cultivator was indeed worthy of their respect and worthy of being the student of an esteemed expert because he was able to subjugate the snake-woman.

Other guards did not feel veneration; instead, they felt jealousy. Hui Yue was but a young boy, more than ten years their junior, yet he had managed to become the student of an expert, not to mention now he was even the master of such a beautiful and fierce magical beast.

Step after step, every meter that they traversed within the city caused more and more citizens to gape in astonishment upon seeing this beautiful and tall woman. The shock was evident as they noticed that this woman’s skin was adorned with scales. Her lower body was not two shapely legs, but instead, a long snake-tail which seemed to be longer than her entire body. While making her way through the streets, it was curled underneath her alluring figure as she swayed and moved along.

Everywhere the seven youngsters went, sounds stilled and eyes widened as they discussed the group’s members. It was obvious that some of them knew a little about magical beasts as they stared at the woman. A few whispered the words, ‘human shape’ and ‘Saint ranked'.

No one knew for sure what rank this magical beast was; however, anyone could see that it was far from average. The human shape was something only beasts of very high cultivation could assume, much like only strong cultivators could turn into beasts.

Just as they had walked a hundred meters into the city, Deng Wu said his farewells and with an awkward smile turned his steed around, moving towards the Deng family compound. It only took a few intersections within the city before Ma Kong, Gao Yan, and the Rong twins had done the same, leaving Hui Yue alone with Sha Yun.

“Mother, why does that woman have snake-legs?” a small boy asked his mother as his eyes were glued to Sha Yun, amazement written all over his chubby face. Although the mother quickly hushed him and pushed him away, Hui Yue could not help but smile at the inquisitive boy and chuckle slightly. Only the children were unafraid of the snake-woman by his side as none of them knew the dangers of magical beasts. To them, Sha Yun was nothing more than a beautiful and slightly more exotic woman, yet not any more dangerous than any other citizen.

“Follow me,” Hui Yue sighed as he dismounted the magical beast he had been riding on for the entire journey. With the reins in his hands, he quickly found a city guard whom he offered two gold coins to ensure that the magical beast would be returned to the City Lord’s mansion safely.

After finally getting rid of the mount, Hui Yue walked on the ground and showed Sha Yun the sights in town. He had noticed how her silvery eyes were filled with astonishment as she kept turning her head left and right, looking at anything from simple stone buildings to elaborate horse carriages.

Hui Yue chuckled as he brought her to the crowded marketplace where they visited stalls that sold a variety of food and candy, wrapped in colorful paper. Although the bustling streets had quieted down, it was impossible for such a big marketplace to stop business completely just because of one magical beast. Sha Yun managed to experience the bustling market, where Hui Yue bought her a long sand-colored cloak which, although it could not cover up the fact that she was a snake-woman, at least the cloak made it less obvious.

After traversing the marketplace for a couple of hours, the sun had set, and the roads were now solely lit up by the moon and lanterns hanging from the house walls. Walking from the marketplace, Hui Yue walked by the elaborate family compounds, and he could not help but enjoy looking at the excitement within Sha Yun’s now silvery eyes. A feeling of fondness appeared within Hui Yue’s chest.

Hui Yue felt as though Sha Yun had changed from a nuisance to a friend. She was still not as close to him as the Rong twins and the others, but she was without a doubt someone who Hui Yue would be able to rely on in the future.

Smiling happily while thinking about the excitement shown on Sha Yun’s face caused Hui Yue to decide that now it was time for the two of them to find an inn where they could rest.

“I…. I am truly sorry sir,” the manager said with a trembling voice, as he kept sending frantic glances towards the intimidating Sha Yun who was standing behind Hui Yue.

“You will not accommodate us because Sha Yun is a magical beast?” Hui Yue disbelievingly repeated what had just been said to him. The words made the manager shake his head so vigorously that it looked as though it might fall off if he shook it any harder.

“No sir, not at all," the manager quickly replied. “We would love to accommodate the two of you, yet we cannot give you separate rooms. Although this…. lady…. is very humanlike she is nevertheless a beast, and we do not allow beasts to have their own rooms.”

A sigh escaped Hui Yue, and although he had been in a great mood earlier, his head started aching once more as he thought of the possibilities ahead of him. He could easily go and look at another inn, yet he had a strong premonition that anywhere he went the information would be the same.

“Then give me your biggest room,” Hui Yue sighed, as he handed over a few gold coins before accepting a memory stone which worked as the key to the room.

Upon walking up the stairs, Hui Yue could not help but feel satisfied with his choice of the inn, as the quality was much better than any he had been in before. The staircase was not narrow, but wide and the walls at the sides were decorated with flowery wallpaper in excellent condition.

Everything was lit up with beautiful lights, and during the day the sunshine would be shining through the windows which were currently hidden behind curtains. Every door along the way was painted in a crisp white with small brass signs that indicated the room numbers.

Opening the white door, Hui Yue noticed a scent of potpourri wafting out, enveloping the two as they moved into the room. The headache grew to a thunderous degree.

As Hui Yue took off his shoes, he noticed the room’s floor had a soft carpet, allowing for Hui Yue’s worn out feet to feel some luxury as he walked into the room. The bed was giant and had one shared blanket together with two pillows. The entire room was filled with the scent of potpourri, and fresh roses had been placed on the two bedside tables together with small snacks.

Although Hui Yue had known that it would be only one bed, he really did not wish for it to be true, and yet now nothing could be done about it. He heaved a heavy sigh, as he slumped onto the soft mattress allowing for the softness to wrap smoothly around his exhausted body.

Closing his eyes, Hui Yue waved his hand as he spoke to Sha Yun, “You take a bath first, I’ll go after.”