So, spiritual perception. It was some kind of mental energy, and it was produced by a cultivator thanks to the planar energy within their bodies. How that worked, or why, Bianca didn’t expect to figure out, but she could definitely confirm it had existed ever since she stepped onto the part of cultivation.

Most importantly, with the Weave, it had gone from something she knew she had, but could never properly use, to being an incredible tool. It was still hard to do much with it without invoking the Demonic Tyrant to aid her, but even without it she was able to reach out with strands of mental energy and scan across her surroundings. When she did use that strange, demonic power, it became even easier, to the point that it could easily substitute her sight when used for peering at nearby things.

Of course, for more distant objects, her spiritual perception was simply insufficient to reach them, and thus sight was better no matter what.

Since she now had the Weave, she was committed to mastering her spiritual perception as much as possible, and she felt like she made good progress in the small amount of time she spent before an interruption inevitably came her way.

While the others remained at the camp, a certain fox decided to make her way over, and even without needing to say anything, Bianca found herself distracted. Her spiritual perception had zero problems in penetrating clothing, and thus her attention inevitably wandered to the kitsune’s soft skin, to her average but perky tits, to her gorgeous ass and soft hair and lips…

If she used her eyes, she might’ve needed to look at each detail one by one, and some things would’ve been out of sight unless Xue Yaling undressed. However, spiritual perception had none of these obstacles, and thus Bianca could see anything and everything at once.

In a sense, it did motivate her to improve her control over that mental energy, but she was unable to go far beyond merely ogling her.

Since that was the case, she might as well just drop the effort for the moment, opening her eyes and saying, “Do you want something? I was doing the exact thing that you wanted me to do, so you better not complain.”

“I wasn’t about to. Rather, won’t you tell me what exactly happened back there? How did the Sect Master of the Phoenix Sect end up following us around?”

“I’m not sure, though even if I was, I don’t have to tell you. I may not understand all of the nonsense that happens, but I do know that every now and then, you do things that are very much aganst my interest. Hell, it was bad enough for the Demon Queen to pop out and teach you a lesson, so… you know.”

“Not sure what exactly you’re trying to imply, but I can tell you this – either you genuinely pulled out some ability that I didn’t know you had, that shouldn’t even be possible, and controlled a sixth realm woman just like that, or she’s playing along with you and just pretending to be enslaved.”

“… And?” she asked, trying not to show any indication to Xue Yaling that the kitsune had gotten right.

“Well, in either case, there’s a certain issue. If it’s some form of control, I don’t know if it’s permanent. It might well expire in the middle of the night, and if it happens, then you’re fucked – and not in a nice way,” Xue Yaling explained, “On the other hand, if this is voluntary, then there’s no guarantee that she would remain interested in working alongside you forever. If something happens and this alliance of yours ends, then, again, you’re fucked.”

“… And if you’re correct, then what am I supposed to do? I’ll get stronger, and then eventually I won’t need protection. After all, I seemed to have gotten through to the third realm rather quickly, by your estimation.”

“True, but the later realms are more challenging, and I doubt that Yan Taijun has many more planar stones to throw at you,” the kitsune said, sitting down opposite her, “I’m not saying that you shouldn’t be trying to, uh, set things up in your own way, independent of me. However, ultimately, we aren’t enemies. I can help you.”

Bianca stared at her for a while, then shrugged, “You can keep doing that, then. I’ll just have someone else on my side to make sure that things go well. That isn’t so bad, right?”

The kitsune sighed, “I suppose you’re free to do whatever you wish to do. Just remember that we know one another’s secrets, so we can trust one another – more than you can with Huang Su. If you ever grow wiser, well… you’ll know where to find me…”

She rose and started to walk off, though she stopped and turned on the spot a moment later.

“What?”

“You know, you could ensure that she won’t ever turn against you. If you-”

“I’m not corrupting her. In fact, I’d rather not corrupt anyone, but I can’t exactly control it,” Bianca cut her off, “Just fuck off, please.”

The kitsune shrugged and walked off properly this time, her tail waving back and forth as she returned to the campsite. A moment of silence followed, during which Bianca considered returning to her attempts to study her mental energy, but then she felt Huang Su approach, so she sighed and abandoned her pursuit for the day.

“Hey.”

“Hello, Mistress. I figured I should mention, for your sake and the kitsune’s, that my spiritual perception is wide enough to cover a large portion of the sect grounds. This small campsite is, obviously, much smaller, so…”

“Ah, you could hear everything… wait, she should’ve known, so… you know what, I don’t get her at all,” she sighed, laying back onto the grass, “She’s obviously up to something, though.”

“From my understanding of that woman,” Huang Su waved her hand, and the barrier reappeared around them, “she always is. I’ll keep an eye out, though I’d imagine you would prefer if I would avoid peering at you while you engage in more private matters.”

“Yeah, that would be best… though if the kitsune shows up, you may still want to look at her,” Bianca said, “Oh, and I don’t plan to do what she suggested, obviously. Not that I should need to mention that, but…”

“I figured, Bianca. I wasn’t assuming anything, though it would be best if you stuck to your word. It is important to not give in to your temptations with abilities such as this…” Huang Su looked out into the distance, then spoke more quietly, “But it is often powers like this that cause people to turn, as many would call it, demonic.”

“What do you mean?”

“It’s the temptation.  You have something powerful, and the cost is only a little bit of sacrifice. Just affect one person’s mind, and now you’ve got an ally, someone obsessed with you, someone that would do everything you wish because they couldn’t fathom anything else. Why not affect one more, then two, then four… I’m not saying your ability is necessarily like this, but it will depend on you to ensure that your intentions remain pure.”

Bianca nodded as she tried to imagine what it would’ve been like if the ability was more like those that seemed traditionally associated with demons in this world. Sacrificing other people in a more direct way, killing them or using their blood or whatever else.

She knew that if she had gotten something like that, she would’ve rejected it at first, but if she ran into someone that she would kill anyway, as had happened already… yeah, she might’ve used a technique on them. Then, if it proved extremely useful…

‘Crap.’

Considering how she was already finding excuses to use her cock-summoning technique on Song Ming – and she still planned to do so, as she had promised her sweet pet already – despite really, really wanting to avoid throwing more corruption her way, she could imagine how someone who cared less for those around them would be tempted to employ more vicious techniques.

‘I suppose that the label of demon isn’t too inaccurate, at least in regards to my skills. I’m still a better person than that, but… fuck, how long will that actually remain true?’

She almost wished that she could have a clone of herself to keep herself in line, someone that would be less prone to abusing the effects of the abilities that she possessed. Unfortunately, if that was an option, then she had no idea how to go about accomplishing it, and if she did, she had no clue if that clone wouldn’t behave as a devil on her shoulder. If she did, then she would find it so much harder to actually dismiss the temptations that she had.

“Anyway, it might be best to plan our journey today, as the new few days ought to be spent on the road. I’ll dismiss this barrier now, Bianca,” Huang Su said, “I’ll also support you if you wish to head in any particular direction for a good reason.”

The veil dispersed, and with that, she departed after giving her a brief bow in view of everyone, presumably in order to present the impression that she was acting in subservience to Bianca. For a moment, she wondered how long this would fool everyone – if it ever did – before she rose as well and headed over to the camp, joining the others at the fire.

Naturally, Song Ming rushed to her feet, kneeling down beside her and resting her head on Bianca’s leg as the latter took a seat on a stump that the Sect Master of the Phoenix Sect had prepared. The others also sat on similar stumps, with one now being empty since her pet chose a more comfortable spot for herself.

“Well, we’ve got the Weave, and if not for everyone interrupting me, I might’ve practised with it a little. So, question now is, where do we go?” Bianca asked, deciding to take charge for the moment.

The kitsune was the first to speak, “We need territory for that Weave to be of use. Your skills don’t inherently benefit from the improvements to your spiritual perception, and thus we need an array. I don’t imagine that our Sect Master here is an expert in them.”

“I am not, kitsune. I can provide you with talismans, but unfortunately, even the greatest of talismans is an inherently transient matter. It is impossible for me to create a permanent defensive array using them alone,” Huang Su explained, “However, I would ask where you intend to find such an array. Most sects aren’t ones that would simply hand them over.”

“I don’t suppose yours would, for your lovely Mistress?” she asked, shrugging right away, “Didn’t expect it. So, we need to claim it from a weaker force of some kind.”

The blacksmith groaned, “Such as? Stop beating around the bush, you sly bitch.”

“We can either go for a sect, or a temple. Both have cultivation skills and techniques, and both will seek to protect their lands, so an array is all but guaranteed. We don’t have any factions like the Western Continent’s Luo Family, who will happily devote themselves to talismans to such an extent that they will replace all of their means and methods with talismans.”

“Sorry, you intend to attack one of the temples? That is quite the deed to commit to, even if you plan to make some kind of demonic sect,” the Sect Master said.

“Yes, yes, so terrible, but it’s the best option for us. We’ve got several choices. The first and foremost would be to vie for the God’s Grave Temple, as it’s closest, but at the same time, we’d put ourselves in the path of the warring tides between the Exarch and Long Shiyi,” the kitsune explained, “The other-”

“Mistress, is this something that you approve of?” Huang Su looked to Bianca, instantly forcing her into the spotlight.

“… Remind me about the temples, please. I know that they all worship graves, or some equivalent thereof, but I’m afraid I don’t recall much besides that… judging by your reaction, they’re considered a positive force for the world?”

“They are certainly not frowned upon. However, the more important matter is how the other sects see them – not to mention the matter of invading the space of another force, but you already seem intent on doing that, so I wouldn’t attempt to dissuade you unless I believed you to be in danger. If you go to war against one of the sects, the only ones that would step in to help are their allies, and even then, not every sect has reliable alliances,” the Sect Master explained, “The temples are a more neutral force, and many sects enjoy their presence as it ensures a certain degree of safety on their borders.”

“What she’s trying to say is that if you were to take over one of the temples, it would open you up to attack and retaliation of the sects in the vicinity. It might be fine if we did this to the God’s Grave Temple, since the Exarch and Long Shiyi would prioritise one another-”

“Or they might decide to siege the grounds due to the opening…” Yu Juan suddenly spoke up, “I recall Yan Taijun mentioning how the Dancer’s Abode is at immense risk due to being so close to the battlefield.”

“Dancer’s Abode… Ah, yes, that’s true. If the two sides don’t believe that their conflict will be brief, they will likely seek to claim the city for the purpose of obtaining more supplies, people, and land.”

“And the God’s Grave Temple, while closest to us, is also closest to them, so… yes, unfortunately, going for them is not the optimal choice,” Xue Yaling said.

“Unfortunately? Why are you so tempted to attack the temples?” the Sect Master asked.

“They’re by far the closest and most easy target. They may be cultivators, but they don’t have much combat experience, and their particular skills are known to be… of varied usefulness. With Huang Su and Bianca’s skills, I suspect that they wouldn’t be able to threaten us for long. We might even be able to kick them out peacefully, and then establish our foothold in their lands by the time that they return.”

Bianca sighed, “I believe that Xue Yaling might have a case of kleptomania on a way larger scale than I do.”

“A case of what now?” the kitsune raised an eyebrow.

“Is… is that not a word?” she tried to recall what words her mouth had spoken, though she quickly realised that there would be little point to trying to discern that as she couldn’t comprehend anything anyway, “A constant compulsion to steal stuff, basically, except I want to take the occasional trinket – by the way, I picked this up – and she wants to take the bases of factions.”

Bianca pulled out – as usual, she wasn’t quite sure from where – a small item that fit in her palm, handing it over to the Sect Master.

“This… where did you get this?”

“In the treasury. Why, is it important?”

“… I think that some of my treasures might have been broken out of their sealed containers. This item is a permanent talisman that allows you to tap into an aspect of the Phoenix Sect’s cultivation technique… in short, producing multiple projectiles from your strikes, wherever applicable. For instance, your primary combat skill would instead manifest several waves of energy as opposed to one.”

“Wow… any downsides?” Bianca happily took the item back, examining the item a bit more closely.

It was some kind of pin that could be attached to her clothes, by the looks of it, and when she let her spiritual perception flood into it, she felt some kind of power within. She struggled to discern its nature or reason, but given the Sect Master’s explanation, she chose to trust in the effect that she was told it had and put it on.

Indeed, as soon as it was worn, the power within the trinket flowed into her body, a constant yet faint current that spread across her body for reasons she knew she wouldn’t be able to comprehend.

“But, if this item was broken free, do you think others were as well? When did that even happen?”

“I’m not sure, Mistress, but this talisman is already incredibly valuable to those that aren’t affiliated with a sect. If something else was taken, then…”

 

Luck. Luck was a force that defied comprehension, that defied expectation, and yet, each and every time it worked in her favour, she couldn’t help but trust it all the more. Whatever happened in the Phoenix Sect culminated with flames and some kind of enormous planar construct of a phoenix soaring away, it resulted in an item she desired falling into her lap – almost literally, as the object fell from the skies and landed on her leg as she was sitting down and waiting.

Thus, she put it away safely and fled the scene, excepting the situation in the sect to escalate and for people to start looking around, perhaps searching for that phoenix.

By the time that this happened, she would be far, far away, and perhaps she’d have even ascended to the next realm.