The arrival of Sheng Yuanyao made Long Qinghuang’s face, already sour from Lu Xingzhou’s defiance, turn even darker.

Where did this little hussy pop out from?

What does this envoy delegation need accompanying guards for? Our army of one hundred thousand is marching north; your ragged few hundred-person guard unit is less than a speck of dust mixed in. I could blow you away with one breath. What envoy could you possibly guard? So, what are you here for?

And you’re riding alongside Lu Xingzhou, laughing and chatting all the way. Are you here for a picnic?

Long Qinghuang forgot that while guards might not be needed for the northward journey, they would be for the return trip.

She hadn’t even considered Lu Xingzhou’s return journey. At this moment, all she could think about was finding an excuse to get rid of this vice-envoy. So annoying.

Lu Xingzhou also knew he shouldn’t offend this vixen too severely. If she decided not just to dismiss Sheng Yuanyao but to eliminate her, that would be a huge problem. So, Lu Xingzhou deployed his nuclear weapon, Anu.

“Atuan!” Long Qinghuang grabbed Anu. “You little liar, you’re in my hands again, aren’t you?”

Anu gave a forced smile. “Sister Long, I’ve never lied to you. My full name is Lu Nuomituo! Anu, Ami, Atuan are all acceptable names.”

“Then why don’t you call yourself Azi?” Long Qinghuang laughed in exasperation. “You said he was your elder brother, but it turns out he’s your Shifu. You said he liked me, but look at him now, all smiles with that little hussy. Does he even look at me directly? Who does he like? Do you have a single true word in your mouth?”

“Brother and Shifu aren’t contradictory. Shifu raised me since I was small, but our ages aren’t that far apart. If he were like a father, Sister, have you ever seen such a young father?”

Long Qinghuang didn’t know Anu’s exact age, but judging by her six-year-old appearance, Lu Xingzhou, at twenty, having a six-year-old daughter seemed a bit excessive. Indeed, calling him ‘father’ wasn’t appropriate.

She became curious. “Then why don’t you call yourselves siblings, but Shifu and apprentice?”

Anu scratched her head, unsure how to answer.

When she first learned to speak, she called him ‘Daddie’. But then Sister Yu was there and said, “How can there be such a young Daddie? Not suitable, not suitable.”

She didn’t know what Shifu was thinking at the time, but eventually it became ‘Shifu’.

Actually, it was because Lu Xingzhou’s psychological age was older; he genuinely felt like a father, not an older brother. But Yuan Muyu’s point was also valid—how could there be such a young father? So, they compromised on ‘Shifu’. In reality, Lu Xingzhou didn’t teach Anu much; Anu learned more from Yuan Muyu.

Of course, later, when she turned into a ‘black-filled dumpling’, that was probably truly Shifu’s influence through his words and actions. She didn’t learn the good things, only the bad.

Although Anu didn’t know what Shifu was thinking, she could probably now understand what Sister Yu was thinking… She was actually being proactive, guarding against “sibling affection,” intentionally widening the generational gap.

Guarding against a little dumpling? Anu sighed. You had that level of vigilance back then, how did you become like this now…

Seeing Anu’s difficulty in answering, Long Qinghuang didn’t press the matter. After all, what she called him should have been decided by Lu Xingzhou; when would it be up to a little dumpling to call him whatever she liked? Besides, whether it was ‘Shifu and apprentice’ or ‘siblings’ held no significant meaning for most people. What kind of lunatic would guard against a little dumpling?

“Even if you call him ‘elder brother,’ that can be勉强 said to make sense; he could indeed be considered your brother. But what about the latter part, what nonsense about ‘liking someone’?”

Anu gave a forced smile. “That was just my guess, men…”

She paused, her expression becoming mysterious. “Besides, am I really wrong? If Shifu genuinely had no feelings for Sister Long, why did he warn Sister Long back then, and why is he helping protect the Sacred Mountain this time? Back then, we were just strangers. To put it bluntly, we were still Sister’s captives. Why would Shifu do that?”

Long Qinghuang actually thought the same thing. The narcissistic vixen believed Lu Xingzhou definitely had some interest in her, which also made her attitude towards him special. People are always more lenient towards those who like them. Of course, those who are ugly are just pathetic sycophants only fit to provide money.

But now she didn’t believe it anymore. “So, the way he is now, who does he seem to like? I think he likes that ‘Yinyang’ general of yours, that’s more accurate.”

Anu said, “That’s Shifu’s good brother, the kind I should call Shishu.”

Long Qinghuang was stunned. “Men and women are also brothers? We demons have never heard of such a thing. At most, you call each other siblings, but bloodless siblings are the fakest, just a disguise.”

“Hush, not siblings, just brothers,” Anu said. “Sister Long must know that some women have a very easygoing personality, bold and resolute, like a boy…”

Long Qinghuang’s face was expressionless. “Yes, I was like that when I was young.”

“…” Anu stiffened for a moment, then continued, “It’s even better that Sister Long was like that, so you should understand that such girls have no romantic feelings for men; they’re like comrades-in-arms.”

Long Qinghuang secretly thought that indeed, back then I had no romantic feelings, and I did interact with many male demons as comrades, but my behavior was different from hers.

I simply didn’t bother with other male demons, finding them stupid, weak, and not fond of bathing. Later, when my status was higher, I would be more amiable towards them for political reasons.

Nothing like this woman, who giggles and laughs with Lu Xingzhou. What kind of decorum is that?

However, now that Anu said that, it made Long Qinghuang understand a lot—no wonder these two weren’t afraid of offending her, laughing and chatting in front of her like that. Perhaps their mindset was different, and they weren’t seeing it as a male-female interaction at all?

Long Qinghuang’s anger subsided considerably, though she still said indifferently, “Still shameless. You say demons don’t understand royal teachings, but I think you humans are quite elaborate in your games.”

Anu: “…”

No matter. Shifu says I’m an immortal dumpling, so most likely not human.

She deliberated for a moment, then cautiously said, “Did Sister Long argue with Shifu? He might actually be deliberately trying to annoy you.”

Long Qinghuang said coldly, “What argument? I haven’t even bothered to argue with him. Truly, his cultivation isn’t high, but his temper isn’t small.”

At the end of the day, Long Qinghuang was still a reasonable dragon. She knew she owed Lu Xingzhou a great debt for rescuing the Sacred Mountain, and indeed, she had forced him to come with her. It was understandable for him to be unhappy, and she shouldn’t dwell on it. But those in high positions always feel, “I’ve been so good to you, even deliberately considering your reputation. That’s to make you feel comfortable, not to make it easier for you to leave, is it?”

Why wouldn’t he warm up, and just wanted to leave? And to contradict her, and disrupt the demon clan, and “Dragon Lady”—any ordinary person would have been smacked dead.

But he said he was willing to help the Dragon Lady…

Anu was saying, “Did Shifu say he was willing to help Sister Long?”

“Yes, but where does he look like it?”

“He’s willing to help the girl he likes, not an emperor who forcibly commands him.”

Long Qinghuang fell completely silent.

Lu Xingzhou’s words were actually quite easy to understand. As for whether it was “liking her,” that’s another matter; this brat’s words now needed to be taken with a grain of salt.

But the emperor’s heart couldn’t change its flavor… Or perhaps, Long Qinghuang hadn’t known how to interact with others with a non-imperial mindset for several hundred years.

Even if she found Lu Xingzhou somewhat attractive, what she thought at the time was to capture him and bring him back to the demon clan to be a concubine.

As for anything else… she hadn’t even considered it.

Were there any other ways to interact?

Long Qinghuang turned her head again and looked over. Lu Xingzhou and Sheng Yuanyao rode side by side, smiling brightly.

Unlike Long Qinghuang’s vexation, Sheng Yuanyao was having her happiest moment in years.

For a gossip-loving girl whose curiosity was explosive, it wasn’t just about other people’s stories. For the demon realm, which few people in the entire Daqian had ever entered, Sheng Yuanyao had long held full expectations and dreams.

Of course, her former dream was to break through the demon mountains and water her horses in the demon river. Sheng Yuanyao was once a vanguard in subduing demons and slaying devils.

Even if she wasn’t quite clear about the names of those mountains and rivers.

Now, to be able to enter a place she had been curious about since childhood as a guest, her excitement was no less than if she had fought her way in. And to be riding alongside the man she liked, even with tens of thousands of soldiers around them, Sheng Yuanyao felt as if she were on a picnic.

Look at the Demon Emperor’s expression, her eyes were so murderous, yet she couldn’t say anything? Hehe.

Lu Xingzhou’s conversation with her wasn’t about sweet nothings; surrounded by the former guards of Guiyuan City, with people constantly moving around them, it was impossible to talk. He was speaking seriously: “I see that Daqian knows very little about the demon realm. Why is this? Logically, no matter how hostile the nations, there should be some level of interaction, especially among the common people.”

Sheng Yuanyao said, “Humans and demons are different from ordinary enemy nations. Who would dare to casually come to the demon realm, not fearing being eaten? In fact, there are cultivators who aren’t afraid of death who come to the demon realm for experience, but the risk is really high; it’s considered one of the most dangerous types of training grounds, and they often don’t return.”

“So, many demons lurk among humans, but few humans lurk among demons, leading to a disparity in information.” Lu Xingzhou mused, “But I heard that many humans also live in the demon realm?”

“Those are humans who originally lived in this region… Hmm, they have a strict travel permit system, and are strictly forbidden from leaving without permission.” Sheng Yuanyao said, “When I was in the Zhenmo Division, I knew a bit about these matters. Some people from the Zhenmo Division once infiltrated the demon realm, but none of them ever returned. It’s unknown whether they died or were forcibly kept. Later, as a scout in the army, we ourselves were strictly forbidden from going deep. Hmm… If you’re talking about humans who know the most about demons, it would have to be the Guoshi. Why don’t you ask her?”

By the end of her sentence, her tone finally became a little sour.

She hadn’t expected that the esteemed Guoshi would now even be mentioned with such a feeling.

“When I was by her side, I never thought that one day I would have to enter the demon clan to do things; this wasn’t in my plan.” Lu Xingzhou sighed. “It doesn’t matter. We’ll go ourselves and understand it ourselves. Perhaps what we find will surprise us greatly.”

“Aren’t they just a bunch of savages who eat raw meat and blood? You’ve seen the demon in Xiazhou before…”

“But does Long Qinghuang look like that?”

“Uh…” Sheng Yuanyao choked. Indeed, let alone Long Qinghuang, even Long Zheng had left a very good impression on her. She always felt that perhaps her innate dislike and fear of demons had gone wrong somewhere.

Lu Xingzhou also felt that with Ye Tinglan’s vigilance and prevention against the demon clan, for which she had engaged in various games and concessions with Gu Zhanting, demons were considered the greatest arch-enemies. But seeing Long Qinghuang and Long Zheng like this, it didn’t seem to be the case. What was the problem here?

Just attributing it to good demons and bad demons? Civilized faction and wild faction? Was that too simplistic? There should be something more fundamental.

To gain the initiative in the demon realm, he had to understand all of these things. Perhaps the demons Gu Zhanting colluded with, and the traitors Long Qinghuang found so vexing, were all closely related to this phenomenon.