After Constantly Courting Death, I Became the White Moonlight - Chapter 24

He Zhizhou was bored out of his mind as they made their way through the woods, so he casually pulled out the mission slip and skimmed it again. Then, with genuine confusion, he asked, “Wait, there’s really a city built at the bottom of a lake?”

His own unreliable master was the type to vanish for months at a time, leaving his disciples to fend for themselves like a bunch of abandoned kids. Thankfully, the other elders couldn’t bear to see them left behind and often offered support in subtle ways. This time, Tian Xianzi had accepted a mission that involved leaving the mountain—and brought him along to “see the world.”

Though Tian Xianzi always barked at He Zhizhou whenever they crossed paths, truth be told, the old man liked him best out of all of Li Wangsheng’s disciples. Classic case of a sharp tongue and a soft heart.

Currently, He Zhizhou was walking through a thick forest alongside Ning Ning, Zheng Weiqi, and Pei Ji. The trees were untrimmed and densely packed, casting heavy shadows across the path.

Ning Ning twirled her sword tassel between her fingers, a hint of amusement in her tone as she replied,
“They say the entire city was flooded three hundred years ago.”

She paused, then added thoughtfully, “What I’m more curious about is—how do ordinary people manage to breathe freely inside a ruined city submerged under a lake?”

In the rules of the Xuanxu Sword Sect, once disciples reached the Golden Core stage, they were allowed to descend the mountain for real-world experience—slaying demons and subduing monsters.

Though the demons had long vanished from the mortal realm, countless rogue creatures still lingered—some brazenly wreaking havoc, others lying low in forgotten corners, occasionally causing just enough trouble to keep people on edge.

Case in point: the place they were currently heading—Jialan City.

The city had sunk beneath the lake over a hundred years ago, vanishing without a trace. It wasn’t until just a few days ago that something strange happened.

A woodsman, passing by the area, accidentally fell into the lake. He thought he was doomed—ready to drown in the icy depths—when, after a few moments of sinking… the pressure disappeared. The suffocating cold of water vanished, and his body suddenly felt light.

To his astonishment, he realized that beneath the lake, there was an ancient city, standing solidly on the lakebed.

An invisible barrier separated the water from the city, making it feel no different from land. Even underwater, the woodsman could breathe freely.

Terrified and confused, he exploded with a desperate will to live. Luckily, part of his body was still in the water, so he flailed his arms and legs, scrambling backwards like his life depended on it.

Most people fall into water and try to climb out. He was probably the first man to try escaping back into the lake with a face full of panic.

Anyway, the man finally made it to shore, returned home, and shared his bizarre tale with his family.

But before the story could even spread to the neighbors, something far more terrifying began to happen—

—People in the nearby city started going mad.

They lost all sense of self, like empty husks or mindless zombies. They wandered the streets with blank expressions, attacking anyone and everyone in sight, incapable of doing anything else.

A Taoist priest was finally called in, and what he found was even more horrifying: the victims had lost three souls and seven spirits—their very essence stolen without a trace.

“It must be a demon lurking at the bottom of the lake,” Zheng Weiqi said coolly, analyzing the situation.
“Hiding beneath the water lets it avoid detection, and it can still leave the barrier to feed on human souls. Two birds, one stone.”

He Zhizhou nodded, then began showering her with exaggerated praise,
“As expected of Senior Sister Zheng! I heard you’ve been out slaying monsters and subduing evil for years—you must have tons of experience!”

Zheng Weiqi shot him a sidelong glance.

She was the type with natural poise and elegance—her features refined and graceful, like distant mountains in mist. Dressed in men’s clothing today, she looked especially sharp and valiant, so eye-catching it was hard to look away.

But in the very next second, the beautiful girl let out a low tsk and muttered,
“Damn it. If I weren’t trying to escape my schoolwork, who the hell would want to be out here running around? Test after test—what the hell are they even testing for?! Just looking at the elders gives me a headache. Sleeping through class is my fault now?!”

…Such a beautiful girl. Why did her mouth have to ruin it?

Zheng Weiqi was, without question, a terrible student. Not just bad—catastrophically bad. A repeated flunkie who failed every test with such consistency, she could’ve been the poster child for the cultivation world’s equivalent of an eternal cram-schooler.

This kind of admirable, tragic perseverance struck a deep chord with He Zhizhou—who was also a proud member of the Failing Student Alliance. He sighed seriously and said,
“It’s definitely not our fault! Everyone knows schools make people sleepy because class is where all dreams begin!”

Top of FormNing Ning nodded solemnly. “One class feels longer than six. Even your last bit of energy can’t save you from the torture. Every kid who’s been through it ends up in tears.”

Zheng Weiqi agreed wholeheartedly. “It’s like a party for one… and a funeral for the rest.”

He Zhi Zhou chimed in right on cue, “Grant me a dream, and then wake me up instantly. One blink and poof—there goes the whole day.”

What started as a demon-slaying mission had now devolved into a pity party for academically traumatized cultivators? Pei Ji, who had been quietly watching the group, pursed his lips, expressionless.

Just then, his gaze accidentally met Ning Ning’s. His throat bobbed involuntarily.

“What are you nervous for?” Ning Ning gave a teasing smile. “No pressure, Junior Brother. I won’t make you join in. But I did hear back at the academy… you used to rank at the very top.”

She and Pei Ji had entered the sect the same year, but inner and outer disciples studied separately. She only knew about his stellar grades because the novel had briefly mentioned it.

With so many outer sect disciples coming from all corners of the world and all walks of life, Pei Ji managing to clinch first place in written exams every year was no small feat.

He froze slightly, then turned his face away, long lashes trembling faintly under the sunlight, as if trying to hide the shadow in his eyes. “I’m not as good as you, Senior Sister.”

From within, Cheng Ying’s voice rose again, humming mischievously: “How does she know your academic record from back then? Could it be… Ning Ning was watching you that early on—”

Pei Ji’s temples throbbed. “Quiet.”

But Cheng Ying completely ignored him. In fact, it chuckled like an old father finally seeing his daughter marry off. “Don’t be shy! We’re just being factual here!”

“Junior Brother’s that amazing?”

Zheng Weiqi’s eyes lit up like stars. Then she dropped a bombshell: “Junior Brother, saving a life is more virtuous than building a seven-story pagoda! You may not know this, but I hit my head when I was little. Half my brain just stopped developing. There’s no way this underpowered processor of mine can handle mountains of books and seas of exams, so—”

She grew more excited with every word, her grin brightening. “How about you dress up as a girl and take the test for me? With Junior Brother’s beauty that could put flowers to shame and fish to shame again, there’s no way those dusty old elders will catch on!”

He Zhi Zhou had just been drinking water. By the time she was halfway through, he was already spraying it everywhere. When she finished, he choked so hard he nearly coughed up a lung.

Ning Ning handed him a look of deep sympathy. Before she could say anything, Zheng Weiqi suddenly exclaimed, “We’re here!”

Sure enough, as they looked up, a vast and boundless lake came into view.

The lake was called Tian He—Heaven’s Abyss. Legend had it that even if you flew above it with your sword, you could still see its reflection from the skies. Its waters were astonishingly clear and expansive, appearing like a deep crack etched into the edge of the heavens.

The surrounding area was eerily still. The lake surface was so calm, it barely rippled—like a perfectly polished mirror. The sun sank into the water, scattering into countless glimmering silver fragments, floating and swirling like wandering spirits.

Just gazing at it, you’d never imagine what sinister things lurked beneath—nor the haunted city that lay below.

As the senior-most disciple, Zheng Weiqi naturally took charge. “Everyone, cast a Water Repelling Talisman. We’re going in together.”

The group followed suit. Ning Ning remained calm, her heart like still water.

She had read the original novel, so she knew exactly what awaited them.

Zheng Weiqi was mostly right—there were indeed monsters beneath the lake. But it wasn’t just one.

There was a whole nest.

Jialan City had once been a sanctuary for the demon clans. When the flood struck suddenly, it was a young city lord who used the last of his cultivation to shield the city beneath the lake, creating the barrier that kept it safe.

After that, the young lord collapsed from exhaustion, and the shockwave of spiritual energy had thrown the demons into hibernation as well. In recent years, as they began to awaken one by one, they realized what needed to be done—

They had to wake him up.

Their method, of course, was to steal the souls of the humans still trapped within the city—nurturing their power through the devouring of essence.

At first glance, exploring a demon clan’s ancient city and stopping the theft of human spirits didn’t seem like anything extraordinary. It sounded like a fairly routine commission.

But Ning Ning knew—this mission was destined to be anything but simple.

After activating the Water Repelling Spell, the four of them dove into the Heavenly Abyss Lake.

The Water Repelling Spell created a transparent bubble around each cultivator, keeping them dry and allowing for basic breathing while submerged.

Beneath the surface, the world was an endless stretch of deep, tranquil blue. Waves and fish brushed right past them, close enough to touch. Sunlight streamed down in golden beams, wind swept over the water’s surface, but below—there was only silence. The darkness below stretched endlessly, like a black abyss.

Like the gaping eye socket of some slumbering beast.

Suddenly, Zheng Weiqi’s panicked voice rang out through a voice-transmission spell—so different from her usual calm, composed tone. “Something’s wrong! That thing rising from below—is that a whirlpool?!”

It was a scene far from pleasant. Ning Ning only dared a quick glance downward.

It was as if the beast beneath her feet had finally opened its eyes after centuries of dormancy. Circles of snowy white foam spun into rings, one after another, surging toward them with unstoppable force.

A low, thunderous rumble echoed in her ears as Ning Ning tightened her grip on the Starmark Sword at her waist.

This mission was doomed to be difficult from the start.

Because from the very beginning, the whirlpool would scatter them, forcing each one to face the killing intent of the entire submerged city—alone.

…

Thanks to her spiritual shield and the Water Repelling Spell, Ning Ning wasn’t drowned or knocked unconscious by the crashing waves.

Instead, the whirlpool’s force actually accelerated her descent. It wasn’t long before she reached the massive barrier shrouding the ancient city at the lake’s bottom.

An illusion formation cloaked the entire city. From the outside, one would never see even a hint of Jialan City’s silhouette. Only by approaching the barrier directly could one catch a glimpse of the forgotten world beneath the water.

The moment she passed through it, the protective bubble around her body shattered.

At the same time, the ancient, sleeping city of Jialan slowly lifted its mysterious veil.

Sunlight could no longer reach this depth, yet the barrier itself emitted a soft, luminous glow, replacing daylight with its pearly radiance. Mist drifted through the water, casting shimmering reflections everywhere. Through the barrier’s refracted waves, streets and buildings sparkled like shattered glass and polished jade—ethereal and dreamlike, as though time had forgotten this place entirely.

The city was full of grand structures, its skyline dotted with tall buildings and ever-burning lamps that shimmered like a river of stars. The sky was submerged, the rooftops dark blue, the walls whitewashed. Trees along the streets had long stopped growing, their branches twisted and withered into hunched shapes, their inky shadows clawing at the walls like skeletal fingers.

The formation’s energy gently cushioned her landing. When Ning Ning touched down, her feet met the stone pavement without a single sound.

The original novel had detailed Pei Ji’s solitary exploration here, but little was said about what happened to anyone else.

Ning Ning remained alert, quietly scanning for hidden dangers. At the same time, she couldn’t help lifting her gaze in wonder, taking in the breathtaking sight of the drowned city.

Everything remained frozen in time, unchanged since the catastrophe. Not a soul was in sight. It was as though no living being had ever dared set foot here.

Like a ghost town suspended in memory.

She looked around cautiously—and just then, a chilling, blood-curdling cry cut through the silence:

“Help! Young Master, help!”

—Young Master?

The cry for help wasn’t meant for her—it was most likely directed at one of the two men who’d entered the city with her. Since Pei Ji shouldn’t have encountered her this early in the story, that left only one possibility—

Ning Ning’s heart stirred. She followed the direction of the woman’s voice and, sure enough, spotted He Zhizhou’s familiar figure not far away.

He looked utterly dazzled, as though bewitched by the illusion before him, wonder still shimmering in his eyes. And just a few steps away from him stood two strangers they’d never met before.

The woman crying for help was extraordinarily beautiful, her seductive charm undeniable. She was being held hostage by a man, a small blade pressed to her throat. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she sobbed pitifully, her voice trembling with desperation. “Young Master, save me!”

Behind her, the middle-aged man looked ferocious, his expression twisted with violence. His eyes were pitch-black and empty—like two cheap, polished stones, utterly devoid of soul.

His movements were sluggish, and what little reason remained in him flickered faintly. His voice was hoarse and slurred, the words nearly unintelligible. “D-Don’t come any closer! Or I—I’ll kill her!”

The moment Ning Ning saw the scene, a thought immediately crossed her mind: this was just like the descriptions in the book—humans whose souls had been drained, left barely coherent, driven by overwhelming bloodlust, and highly aggressive.

But…

He Zhizhou had clearly never seen anything like this before. Drawing from the typical hostage negotiation scenes he’d seen in dramas, he attempted a clumsy bit of persuasion. “Hey man, calm down, alright? Think about your family—your parents, your old man and old lady. If you do something stupid now, they’ll—”

Before he could finish, a familiar voice rang in his ear through a voice transmission spell.

“Don’t believe them. They’re fake.”

Startled, he turned—and saw Ning Ning standing nearby.

She wore a flowing dress the color of moonlight, the Starmark Sword at her waist faintly glowing. The soft, star-like glow from the barrier above shimmered on the water’s surface, casting reflections across her delicate face.

“That woman has no spiritual energy at all,” Ning Ning said calmly. “She’s definitely not a cultivator. And if she’s not a cultivator, then there’s no way she could have used the Water Repelling Spell.”

Yet her hair and clothes were perfectly dry and neatly arranged, not a trace of water on her. She looked pristine, like someone who had just stepped into costume—not someone who had struggled to survive in the depths of a lake.

“I remember this setup from the original novel.”

Ning Ning’s tone remained composed as she continued, “After the protagonist group entered the city, the local demons, too weak to engage in direct combat, transformed themselves into helpless human forms to blend in. They’d stick close to the main characters, setting traps, poisoning food, or stabbing people in the back whenever they could. The one who got stabbed in the back… was me.”

At that, she couldn’t help but curse silently.

Suffer hardship, and then suffer some more. Being a tool character in Devoted Support Role X was no joke—villainous and unlucky to the core.

And Ning Ning was absolutely right. The man and woman before them were none other than two members of the Jialan demon clan who had recently awakened—and were now enthusiastically putting their acting skills to the test.

The woman’s name was Meng Jiaqi, a fox demon; the man was Qin Chuan—he looked large and brutish, but was, in fact, a rabbit demon.

When word spread that cultivators had broken through the barrier, even the usually pompous city elders couldn’t hide their panic. After much debate, they decided to send Meng Jiaqi and Qin Chuan to infiltrate the intruders under human disguises—as undercover agents.

And what better way to earn trust than by staging a classic, overused, yet time-honored scene: beauty in peril, hero to the rescue.

But the moment Qin Chuan spotted Ning Ning, a sharp sense of danger surged within him. His eyes darkened, his fake hostility morphing into real killing intent. He rasped out a warning: “Don’t come any closer! Or I’ll—!”

But the rest of his line stuck in his throat, the script forgotten.

Because the girl in the white dress had simply smiled, raised one hand—and began forming a hand seal.

A burst of sword wind slammed straight down on the hostage’s head—Meng Jiaqing’s eyes rolled back and she passed out on the spot.

“All done,” the girl said cheerfully.

He heard her continue, tone light but indifferent, “The hostage’s been neutralized. You’ve lost your bargaining chip, so why not be a good boy and surrender now?”

Qin Chuan: ???

Qin Chuan was stunned, as if a herd of alpacas had just trampled across his heart.

She eliminated the hostage herself just to avoid being threatened? Is these what righteous sects do now? Seriously?

What happened to moral integrity? What happened to the noble trope of saving the beauty?! You just KO’d the beauty yourself—do you have some kind of psychological issue?!

Meng Jiaqing’s limp body slumped forward in his arms.

Qin Chuan’s heart slumped with her.

These people… something is wrong with them.

He didn’t even dare imagine what would happen to him if he got caught by that girl.

Assigned the villain role but desperate to survive, Qin Chuan made a snap decision—run! He transformed into a big fluffy white rabbit and tried to flee, but with his short legs, he didn’t get far before He Zhizhou casually grabbed him by the ears. “What’s this, an undercover mission?”

…Damn it.

So they’d seen through him from the start.

The chubby white rabbit kicked helplessly, then gave a sheepish smile. But what came out of his mouth was a deep, rough male voice: “It’s all a misunderstanding, really. I wasn’t here to sabotage you—I wanted to join you guys. Haha…”

Ning Ning didn’t waste time with pleasantries and went straight to the point. “Uncle, what’s your next move? Where are the young city lord and the elder steward?”

The rabbit nervously tilted its head—but instead of continuing the interrogation, Ning Ning just gave He Zhizhou a lazy glance and pointed at Qin Chuan’s round belly, grinning. “Pfft. Rabbit meat.”

“No, no, no!” the rabbit flailed in protest. “I’m over hundreds of years old! My meat’s all tough and dry—totally inedible!”

“Naturally aged jerky?” Ning Ning’s eyes lit up. “Even better!”

Qin Chuan: …

Ever since he saw her knock out the hostage without batting an eye, he believed this girl was capable of anything.

The deep male voice returned, this time spewing like rapid-fire:
“The elder and young city lord are just west of the city lord’s manor—I swear I don’t know any other plans—why would anyone want to eat a bunny—please big bro, big sis, let me go—thank you thank you thank you!”

Ning Ning gave a satisfied nod and patted the rabbit’s head. “Good boy.”

Then, without hesitation, she pulled out a storage pouch and shoved him inside.

“If we let him go, he’ll definitely alert the others.”

She added, “The original novel didn’t go into much detail about this quest. I’m not sure what other twists are coming… Let’s just take it one step at a time.”

He Zhizhou nodded and gestured at the unconscious woman lying nearby. “And her?”

As a fellow sword cultivator, he naturally knew Ning Ning hadn’t dealt a fatal blow. The woman was just knocked out.

“She’s still useful,” Ning Ning replied. “If we get into a bind, we might need someone from inside the city to help us out.”

With that, she crouched down and tapped her forehead sharply.

The woman jolted awake, panic and disbelief flooding her face.

“You’re awake.”

The white-robed girl beside her smiled sweetly, pure as a kitten.
“Don’t be afraid, big sis. That evildoer has already been taken care of by the two of us. I’m Ning Ning, and this is He Zhizhou—we’re disciples of the Xuanxu Sword Sect, here to eliminate evil.”

When Meng Jiaqing saw her face, she shuddered.

When she heard that the evildoer had been “dealt with,” her heart trembled even harder. It was like getting a glimpse of her future death.

“Meng Jiaqing,” she forced out with a smile. “I was washing clothes at the lake when that man suddenly rushed out and tried to assault me. I had no choice but to dive into the water and somehow ended up here… Thank you both for saving me. May I ask… where is that villain’s corpse?”

He Zhizhou and Ning Ning exchanged a meaningful glance.

He reacted quickly and chuckled, saying, “He didn’t seem human—might’ve been poisoned or cursed. We cut open his stomach to investigate. Pretty gory, but don’t worry—we cleaned up the mess.”

Meng Jiaqing nearly choked from shock. Still, she forced herself to ask, “Did… did you find anything?”

A brief pause.

Then He Zhizhou scratched his head and stuck out his tongue—six parts cute, four parts sheepish, smiling like a bashful schoolboy.

“Ehehe.”

At that moment, Meng Jiaqing knew—something was very wrong.

It felt like an octopus had suctioned onto her eyeballs—gross and terrifying.

Then, right on cue, He Zhizhou’s voice dropped a little, every word striking her eardrums like nails.

“You won’t believe it, but funny story… Turns out, his cause of death was dissection.”

Too. Damn. Coincidental.

Cause. Of. Death. Was. Dissection.

Meng Jiaqing: F**k.

F*KKKK!!!**

Qin Chuan, you pitiful bastard!!!

And you—what the hell are you sticking your tongue out for?! “Funny story” your ass! How thick-skinned must you be to say something like that with a straight face?!

These people… they’re not human.

Xuanxu Sword Sect is full of monsters!!!

Her mind fogged over. Her whole fox-self was falling apart.

As a proud, law-abiding yokai, Meng Jiaqing had heard her share of threats, seen her share of ruthless people—but never, not once, had someone made her feel this kind of raw, primal fear.

That guy… he wasn’t normal.

And that girl who KO’d a hostage without hesitation? Her soul must be pitch black.

Meng Jiaqing took a deep, shaky breath and gazed skyward at a 45-degree angle, refusing to let the tears fall from her reddened eyes.

Qin Chuan’s early demise wasn’t the worst part.

The worst part… was that she had to stay behind and continue acting as an undercover agent in this nightmare of a group. Who knew what depraved stunts they’d pull next? If they ever discovered her real identity, she might end up facing something worse than live dissection.

This… this was what it meant to wish you were dead.

“Meng-jiejie, are you crying? Were you scared?”

Ning Ning noticed the redness in her eyes and comforted her in all seriousness:
“Don’t worry, I’ll stay by your side from now on. Our sect is full of compassionate souls—especially my Senior Brother He here. He’s known far and wide for his pure heart, just like a blank sheet of paper. People even call him ‘He Paper.’”

Meng Jiaqing: Heh.

So kind. So sincere.

Did you see the cupping-sized bruise you left on my forehead? Thanks a lot, really.