Chapter 1176: Act First, Report Later
Bai Xue wanted to return to Snow Fox Mountain in Jun Prefecture with Bai Jiumeng. These words immediately startled both Bai Jiumeng and Huang Sha.
"President," Huang Sha began, "Snow Fox Mountain in Jun Prefecture is quite far from our Lecheng in Jingling Continent. This round trip would likely take a considerable amount of time. The war between our forces and the enemy has now reached a fever pitch. In such circumstances, how could the Flock of Demons Society possibly do without you, our President?"
Huang Sha spoke, attempting to dissuade her. Though some words he left unsaid, Bai Xue understood the underlying meaning.
With the war between the two sides progressing to this stage, she, as the President of the Flock of Demons Society, spent most of her time in the war room, discussing strategies against the enemy with Yang Haoran's other trusted confidantes. Because some battles required the strength of the Flock of Demons Society, she, as their President, could not be absent from any of the war meetings.
Beyond that, the Flock of Demons Society itself had numerous matters to handle, and some important decisions still required her, the President, to make them. Thus, she was equally indispensable.
As the President of the Flock of Demons Society, how could Bai Xue not have considered these two points? The reason she decided to return to Snow Fox Mountain in Jun Prefecture with Bai Jiumeng, apart from her concern for Bai Jiumeng's safety on this trip, was actually another: the fox clan's Charm Art.
When Bai Jiumeng joined the Flock of Demons Society, Bai Xue, prompted by Yang Haoran, had already set her sights on the Charm Art, one of the two great demonic arts of the fox clan. She had even formulated specific plans, but circumstances often outpaced plans; her intentions remained fully unimplemented until now.
Initially, Bai Xue held no particular fondness for Bai Jiumeng. At that time, she had resolved to cultivate a relationship with Bai Jiumeng, then find a way to extract information about the Charm Art. However, as her relationship with Bai Jiumeng grew stronger, she found herself too embarrassed to ask Bai Jiumeng about it.
Although Bai Xue's initial approach to Bai Jiumeng was indeed for the Charm Art, as their bond deepened, Bai Xue's willingness to spend time with Bai Jiumeng became entirely unrelated to the art itself. To avoid any misunderstanding, Bai Xue had continuously refrained from bringing up the subject.
Whether Bai Jiumeng knew the two great demonic arts of the fox clan remained a mystery. Since Bai Jiumeng had never demonstrated them nor spoken of them, and Bai Xue had never inquired, Bai Xue had, to this day, not only failed to obtain the Charm Art but also remained ignorant of whether Bai Jiumeng possessed knowledge of these two great fox clan arts.
Bai Xue felt embarrassed to ask Bai Jiumeng directly, but she would have no such qualms, nor any fear of misunderstanding, when questioning others. If she returned to Snow Fox Mountain in Jun Prefecture with Bai Jiumeng, she was sure to encounter many of Bai Jiumeng's kin. At that point, she could approach them directly, achieving her goal without causing Bai Jiumeng to misunderstand—a win-win situation.
Of course, this matter was merely one reason Bai Xue decided to accompany Bai Jiumeng to Snow Fox Mountain in Jun Prefecture. Her concern that Bai Jiumeng might face danger returning alone was also a reason, and indeed a very important one—perhaps even surpassing the former.
Huang Sha's words made Bai Jiumeng somewhat anxious. If Bai Xue weren't the President of the Flock of Demons Society, unburdened by numerous trifles, she certainly wouldn't mind Bai Xue accompanying her. After all, while this trip seemed to pose no danger in her eyes, having a good friend like Bai Xue along would still be a good thing; at the very least, the journey wouldn't feel monotonous.
The problem, however, lay precisely in the fact that Bai Xue was the President of the Flock of Demons Society, and the matters requiring her personal attention piled up day after day. If Bai Xue were to return to Snow Fox Mountain in Jun Prefecture with her, what would become of the Flock of Demons Society, and how would they explain it to their boss behind the scenes, Yang Haoran?
"President," Bai Jiumeng echoed, "President Huang is right. Our Guardian District is indeed too far from Snow Fox Mountain in Jun Prefecture; a round trip would genuinely consume a lot of time. As the President of the Flock of Demons Society, it's truly unsuitable for you to leave the Guardian District at this critical juncture. Should the boss hold it against you later, it wouldn't be good. So, I think you shouldn't worry about me; I can return to Snow Fox Mountain by myself."
Bai Xue listened to their pleas, considered for a moment, then shook her head with a smile, appearing not to agree with their suggestions.
"Indeed, the Flock of Demons Society has many affairs," Bai Xue stated, "but it isn't as if the Flock of Demons Society cannot function normally without me, Bai Xue. After all, the Flock of Demons Society has long been on the right track, with a very complete organizational structure. So, even if I'm not here, the Flock of Demons Society can still operate normally for a certain period."
As she spoke, Bai Xue turned her gaze to Huang Sha, who stood nearby, and said with a smile.
"After I leave, all matters, big and small, concerning the Flock of Demons Society will be entirely in your hands. With your current prestige within the Flock of Demons Society, managing it will certainly not be a problem. As for the daily war discussions in the war room, you can temporarily take my place. You and I are both trusted confidantes of Big Brother Underworld Official; those people in the war room will not possibly reject you, nor will they guard against you. It's perfectly fine for you to go in my stead."
At this point, Bai Xue paused for a few seconds, then continued speaking with a charming smile.
"As for Big Brother Underworld Official, I will personally report this matter to him. Even if it means persistent nagging, I will make him agree to let me go on this trip. I believe I still possess that much ability, so you absolutely don't need to worry about me."
Seeing Bai Xue's resolve, Huang Sha, although still feeling somewhat uneasy, swallowed the words of persuasion that had reached his lips after a moment of hesitation.
He had spent a considerable amount of time with Bai Xue and understood her character to some extent. Though Bai Xue constantly wore a charming, soul-stirring smile, appearing rather frivolous, he knew that was merely a facade she intentionally displayed to deceive others. In truth, Bai Xue was a very persistent person; once such a person made up their mind about something or someone, it was incredibly difficult to make them change their inner decision.
Huang Sha understood this, which was why he swallowed the words of persuasion that had reached his lips. In his view, if anyone could change Bai Xue's current decision, it was only one person: their boss, Yang Haoran. Apart from Yang Haoran, anything others said would have little effect.
Bai Jiumeng also perceived Bai Xue's unwavering determination, so after a moment of hesitation, she made the same decision as Huang Sha and no longer tried to dissuade Bai Xue.
After leaving the meeting room, Bai Xue immediately scurried off to Yang Haoran's residence.
Whether Yang Haoran would agree to her trip to Snow Fox Mountain in Jun Prefecture, Bai Xue herself couldn't be certain. However, she had long prepared to use persistent nagging, exhausting all her methods to make Yang Haoran agree.
However, she found no trace of Yang Haoran in the study, nor did she sense his presence in his room. Finally, she learned from Xiujuan that Yang Haoran was cultivating in the cultivation chamber.
Bai Xue arrived outside Yang Haoran's cultivation chamber, where she clearly felt the chamber enveloped by a restrictive barrier. This indicated that Yang Haoran was indeed cultivating inside, just as Xiujuan had said.
However, ordinarily, Yang Haoran, being inside the cultivation chamber, should have sensed her arrival. Since Yang Haoran had not appeared nor removed the restriction to let her in, this indicated that he was currently fully immersed in his cultivation and thus had not noticed her arrival at all.
In this situation, as soon as Bai Xue touched the restrictive barrier set up by Yang Haoran, and the barrier reacted, Yang Haoran inside the cultivation chamber would immediately sense her arrival. However, doing so would be tantamount to interrupting Yang Haoran's cultivation.
After some thought, Bai Xue abandoned the idea. Since Yang Haoran was so fully absorbed in his cultivation, it surely meant this cultivation was extremely important to him. Thus, she didn't want to interrupt his cultivation on her account. After a moment of consideration, she simply decided to act first and report later.
She left a message with Xiujuan, asking her to relay it to Yang Haoran once he emerged from seclusion. Then, she departed the Guardian District with Bai Jiumeng and hurried towards Snow Fox Mountain in Jun Prefecture.
Before leaving, Bai Xue also took a subordinate with her. Although merely a subordinate, this individual was a powerful great demon with several unique abilities.
Without Yang Haoran present, naturally, no one in the entire Guardian District could impede Bai Xue's steps. If she was determined to go to Snow Fox Mountain in Jun Prefecture, certainly no one could stop her; they could only advise her to be careful in all matters.
Shortly after Bai Xue and Bai Jiumeng departed, Xiujuan, after careful deliberation, still felt the matter was somewhat improper. After all, the New Beginning Realm had long since descended into chaos, with major factions claiming territories as their own. It would be fine if Bai Xue merely operated within Yang Haoran's domain, but the problem was that Bai Xue and Bai Jiumeng were not only leaving Yang Haoran's territory but even departing Jingling Continent. Such an action certainly offered no guarantee of safety.
Although Bai Xue's strength was formidable, and Bai Jiumeng was also a powerful Demon King, looking across the entire New Beginning Realm, there were still many experts far stronger than the two of them. It would be fortunate if they didn't encounter such powerful enemies, but if they did, their situation would become perilous.
Therefore, after several days of deep consideration, Xiujuan still decided to report the matter to Yang Haoran. Even if doing so would interrupt Yang Haoran's cultivation and potentially incur Bai Xue's displeasure, she still felt this was the most correct course of action. Otherwise, if anything were to go wrong with Bai Xue and Bai Jiumeng's trip, she, as someone in the know, would be beyond reproach and would find it difficult to explain to Yang Haoran.
With her decision made, Xiujuan no longer hesitated and immediately proceeded to Yang Haoran's cultivation chamber.
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