Inside the Red Lotus Pavilion, the air was warm and tangy with the smell of perfume and the overpoweringly fruity aroma of the peach blossom wine. While the other oblivious customers were enjoying the food, music and the dances, Xiao Yun was quietly sweating bullets. This wasn’t earth anymore, danger was behind every corner, specifically sitting by the corner of Xiao Yun’s table. He tried to keep it together but the knowledge of an actual demonic cultivator sitting so close by was burdening his mind.

  In the novel, the Blood Cult were practically walking, talking red flags, harbingers of doom and definitely not the kind of people you wanted to casually share Peach Blossom Wine with.

  His shabbily constructed fa?ade of nonchalance was crumbling. His eyes widened, pupils dilated. He stared at the tattoo once more then back at Jue Li's face, horror flooding his mind. He could feel his pulse thundering in his ears. He probably looked like he’d just seen a ghost or worse, a demonic cultivator in disguise.

  Jue Li’s smile faltered, her blue eyes sharpened. She followed his gaze to her chest then back to his face. Her professional yet charming smile vanished completely. "Is something the matter Young Master?" she asked, her voice losing its earlier velvety purr, hardening into something sharper and colder.

  Xiao Yun’s mind raced, scrambling for an explanation, an excuse, anything. He couldn’t just blurt out, “YOU’RE A DEMONIC CULTIVATOR! I RECOGNIZE YOUR TATTOO FROM A FICTION BOOK!” That would be less than ideal. Especially in a world where demonic cultivators were very real and very stabby.

  Much to Xiao Yun’s chagrin, Jue Li spoke up before he could present his excuse, her voice low and seductive as she addressed the group.

  "Such generous patrons, I couldn't help but be drawn to your table. What brings you to the Red Lotus Pavilion tonight?"

  Xiao Yun, his mind racing, managed a forced smile. "We're just here to enjoy the evening, nothing more. But if you'll excuse us, I'm afraid we have some urgent business to attend to."

  He didn’t dare to look Jue Li in the eye, afraid that she might have bewitching technique or something of the sort. Demonic cultivators possessed all kinds of unorthodox means. Fatty Wang and Mei’er were oblivious to his sudden change in mood, yet Jue Li did notice. The way Xiao Yun’s expression fell had caught her trained eye. “Oh? Is it that I have attracted your interest, young master?” She leaned over, feigning a playful curiosity as she set her shimmering gaze upon him. She purposefully leaned in a way that her dress would reveal her not so hidden tattoo.

  Xiao Yun swallowed hard, his heart racing with every beat. He deliberately turned his gaze away from her bosom. He needed a scheme, an excuse to remove himself from this precarious situation. “I, uh, I just remembered I have to attend to a vital task!” He hastily pulled Fatty Wang to his feet, nearly tipping the table over in the process. “Wang Jun, come on! We cannot be late for the uh pill formation, yes. I forgot to extinguish the flame under the pill cauldron, if we don’t hurry the batch of ingredients will be wasted, and you know how expensive spiritual herbs can be!” He quickly came up with a Xianxia themed excuse, which was the cultivation world equivalent of ‘I left the stove on’.

  As they awkwardly shuffled towards the exit, Fatty Wang protested loudly, his face a picture of exaggerated indignation. "What the hell Xiao Yun? Pill cauldron? Since when did you start concocting pills? Can't a refined young master even enjoy himself around you? Fine, fine but you owe me another jug for this!"

  Mei'er shot a curious glance at comical looking duo, her eyes wide with unspoken questions. The tension coiled around Xiao Yun’s heart like a serpent and Jue Li’s smile widened. "But young masters, what if I told you that there are more interesting things than spiritual pills right here?" She left the table and stepped closer and Xiao Yun felt the weight of her gaze, and subsequently the gazes of almost all the male patrons inside the Red Lotus Pavilion.

  ‘Why was this exotic beautiful dancer from far away seemed so interested in those two losers?’ was the question in their minds. And right now, Xiao Yun would have gladly switched places with those poor patrons feeling ignored by this beautiful and deadly flower.

  Fatty Wang turned around, looking almost bewitched by Jue Li’s words. “That’s right brother Yun, why don’t we watch her dance for a bit longer, it was beautiful-”

  "Enough!" Xiao Yun exclaimed, unable to keep the fear from his voice. He turned abruptly, pulling Wang Jun’s arm. "We should go already!"

  As they hurried away, Jue Li's laughter rang behind them, sweet yet sinister. The other patrons watched with a mix of envy and intrigue, but Xiao Yun didn’t look back. He was acutely aware of the danger lurking behind her beauty. The Blood Cult was not to be trifled with, and they may have drawn their attention in the worst possible way. This was his reality now and he didn’t have extra lives nor a way to defend himself. As for whether he had to power of ‘returning to past with each death’ he wasn’t too keen on trying to find that out.

  Xiao Yun hurriedly walked the crowded streets illuminated by lanterns, leading Wang Jun into the cool embrace of night, the music of the brothel fading behind them. The air outside was crisp and he took a deep breath as they stepped away from the opulence and danger of the Red Lotus Pavilion.

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  “Xiao Yun, what was that about?” Fatty Wang asked, slightly dazed. “Did you see a ghost or something? You were acting all weird! And since when did you start concocting pills, why didn’t I see anything in your room?”

  Xiao Yun hesitated, unsure of how much to reveal. Fatty Wang was supposed to be his friend, but the less he knew the safer he would be, for the time being at least. The Blood Cult wasn't an enemy they could afford to be noticed by, and the fewer people were involved the better. They were almost singlehandedly responsible for raising the PG rating of “The Heavenly Fate” with the atrocities they committed.

  “Forget about the pills for a moment Wang Jun.” Xiao Yun replied, locking eyes with his friend, “that performer…. I think she’s connected to a very dangerous group. We couldn’t stay there.”

  “Dangerous? Peh, how dangerous could a dancer be haha.” Wang Jun replied in a mocking tone, still drunk from all the pink wine he’d consumed.

  “Look at me Fatty, I am serious! Did you see the tattoo on her chest? The red serpent?”

  “Oh yeah, I think I saw something but those twin peaks distracted me ehehe” sputtered Fatty Wang, still entranced by Jue Li’s beauty.

  “Be serious!” Xiao Yun grabbed Wang Jun by the shoulders.

  “In the future, if you ever see someone with that tattoo, the red serpent, stay as far away from them as you can. Do you understand me, it could decide your life or death!”

  Finally seeing Xiao Yun’s grim look and hearing his ominous warning, Fatty Wang sobered up a little.

  “But Xiao Yun, what group does she belong to? Is she a criminal? Then shouldn’t we alert the city guards, the Red Lotus Pavilion’s workers and customers might be in danger, Mei’er might be in danger!”

  Thinking a little bit, Xiao Yun answered calmly, “I…I don’t think she’s here to cause trouble for now, she’s most likely here as a spy, otherwise why would she go to the trouble of disguising herself as a courtesan? She’s probably looking to gather information from the drunk customers.” Also, if she was indeed a spy, there was good chance she wasn’t alone. There might be others, and you couldn’t just go around the city asking every suspicious looking person to strip so you could check for a red serpent tattoo. If he even managed to somehow convince people that she was indeed a demonic cultivator (which was already farfetched due to his abysmal reputation) and the authorities captured her, her colleagues might decide to take revenge on him. The only reason he even knew what that tattoo meant was because he’d read the novel back on earth.

  “Well, if she is not dangerous, why did we have to leave early? I didn’t even get to finish my last bottle?” Fatty Wang complained like a petulant child.

  ‘Just how much did he like that swill of a wine?’ Thought Xiao Yun.

  “We had to leave because I was worried she would realize that I knew her true identity. Anyways, we should stay away from the Red Lotus for a while. You said that she was not from the True Yang prefecture, right? Hopefully she’ll go back wherever she came from soon. In the meantime, you should find a different place to drink your wine, Fatty.”

  After Xiao Yun made sure that Wang Jun understood how dangerous Jue Li was, they separated and went to their respective homes. After almost getting lost a couple times, Xiao Yun eventually managed to find his way back to the crumbling estate and locked himself in his room, deliberating his situation…

  …Meanwhile, inside the Red Lotus Pavilion, Jue Li, having watched their hasty retreat, returned to their now-empty table. Her smile, which had been warmly inviting now held a sliver of ice.

  “They left rather abruptly.” she said smoothly, turning to Mei’er who was still looking after the departing figures with a puzzled frown on her face.

  “Yes, Miss Jue Li.” Mei’er replied in a soft tone. “Young Master Xiao said something about the concocting pills, but how come I haven’t heard about him doing anything like that until now? He said he left the cauldron still burning when he came here.” Mei’er repeated the phrase, her brow furrowing further.

  Jue Li’s sapphire eyes narrowed slightly, though her smile remained fixed in place. “Indeed. ‘Concocting pills’ at his stage. How fascinating. Tell me Mei’er, you know these young masters well don’t you?”

  Mei’er nodded her smile returning, albeit a little uncertain now. “Yes, Young Master Xiao and Young Master Wang are regular patrons. Young Master Xiao, he used to come here very often.” She trailed off, remembering the original Xiao Yun’s more overtly enthusiastic visits. “He hasn’t been quite himself lately though. He’s quieter. Seems more distant, his mind preoccupied.”

  Jue Li leaned closer, her voice dropping to a soft whisper, though her gaze remained sharp and assessing. “Preoccupied you say? And did he seem at all startled when he was watching me dance? Did he say anything unusual when I was on the stage?”

  Mei’er considered, her brow furrowed in concentration. “Well, he did seem to watch your dance very intently. More than usual, perhaps. But unusual things? He mostly just listened quietly. And the, uh, he mentioned how the wine didn’t taste too good.” She giggled again, the tension of the moment momentarily forgotten in the face of Xiao Yun’s absurd excuse.

  Jue Li’s smile didn’t waver, but the ice in her eyes seemed to deepen, her gaze drifting towards the now empty doorway. “Perhaps the Peach Blossom wine is too strong for Young Master Xiao’s delicate constitution.” She paused, then turned back to Mei’er, her voice regaining its charming tone. “Thank you, Mei’er. You’ve been most helpful. Perhaps you can tell me more about these ‘regular patrons’ another time.”

  As Mei’er, oblivious to the subtle danger that had just brushed past her happily agreed, Jue Li’s mind was already racing. Although she was hiding her cultivation, she was in the latter stages of the Qi Condensation Realm, and she could sense that Xiao Yun must be in the earlier stages. Someone so weak practicing alchemy, and not only that but forgetting about his pill cauldron and leaving it on fire was a ridiculous excuse, certainly. But the flicker of recognition she had seen in the young master’s eyes, that was no worry for precious ingredients. She saw true fear. He must have seen the mark. Although not very likely, he might know its significance. And that for Jue Li and for the Blood Cult, was a problem that might need addressing.

  Though, no one outside the Cult should know the significance of that tattoo, additionally Mei’er said that Xiao Yun was acting a bit weird even before Jue Li appeared, his peculiar actions might be unrelated to her, but was she willing to take the chance and risk getting exposed? The gaudy lights of the Red Lotus Pavilion glittered around Jue Li, masking the shadows gathering in the sapphire depths of her eyes.