She was admiring it all with great interest when suddenly a stern voice barked, “Who’s there?!”
Startled, the little camellia demon spun around in panic. She saw two female immortals approaching side by side, leading several palace attendants. One wore red, her expression cold and distant; the other, dressed in dazzling yellow robes, was lavishly adorned. It was the one in yellow who had just spoken.
The yellow-robed immortal looked at her with disdain. “Who gave you permission to wander in here?”
The little camellia demon was at a loss. “I didn’t see any signs saying not to enter…”
A palace attendant quickly scolded, “Where did this little demon come from? Don’t you know the rules of the palace? These are Envoy Mei Xian and Envoy Xing Xian!”
Realizing she had offended someone important, the camellia demon instinctively knew what to do. She dropped to her knees in panic, begging for forgiveness.
Xing Xian gave a cold laugh. “Throw her out.”
The camellia demon’s face flushed red. This was her first time entering the palace, and she had been careful every step of the way, afraid of making a fool of herself. She truly hadn’t seen any “No Entry” plaques or notices. For an outsider to walk in by accident wasn’t so rare. There was no real reason to expel her—except, of course, that the other party held far more power. She had cultivated painstakingly for five hundred years, and now she might be thrown out before even getting to witness the Flower Festival banquet. The thought made her heart sink, and so she bit back her anger and bowed repeatedly in apology.
In truth, it was Xing Xian who had forgotten to instruct her subordinates to place restriction signs. Now, she was using the little demon to deflect blame. Seeing this, Mei Xian frowned slightly and spoke up: “That’s enough. It wasn’t easy for her to get in. Since she now understands her mistake, let it go. Come—we mustn’t delay the Divine Lord’s orders.”
Now that her dignity was preserved, Xing Xian had no further excuse to escalate. She left with a cold face.
Once the celestial envoys and attendants had walked off into the distance, the camellia demon finally climbed to her feet. Deeply grateful to Envoy Mei Xian, she knew she couldn’t stay here any longer. She turned and quietly slipped away, retracing her steps until she found a quiet, safe corner to rest in.
She had only just sat down when a scent drifted toward her—one she had never encountered before. It was rich and intoxicating, as though the fragrance of countless flowers had been blended into a single, heady perfume.
Curiosity piqued, the little camellia demon stretched her neck and looked around. She soon realized the scent was wafting from beyond the high wall across from her. But the wall blocked her line of sight, and she couldn’t see what was inside.
Once inside the Flower Palace, no one was allowed to use magic of any kind—she naturally didn’t dare attempt anything risky. But then her gaze fell on the corridor column nearby, and an idea struck her.
Seeing no one around, she quietly wrapped her arms around the pillar and began to climb.
Beyond the wall lay a vast garden. A raised platform stood in the center—the main stage. Below it were countless arranged seats, each accompanied by a small table. On the tables sat wine pitchers crafted from lily petals and goblets shaped from morning glory blossoms. Beautiful celestial maidens moved gracefully among them, each carrying large wine jars and filling the pitchers one by one. The air was thick with the intoxicating aroma of blooming flowers and immortal wine.
This is where the inner banquet of the Flower Festival is held!
So it was just one wall away all along. The camellia demon suddenly understood—and inhaled deeply, utterly enchanted. The scent had to be from the legendary Hundred Flowers Immortal Brew. They were preparing for the banquet!
Feeling that she’d caught a glimpse before anyone else, she couldn’t help but feel a little smug.
“Why are you up there?” came a warm, amused voice.
This place was so quiet that she never expected anyone to appear—she was so startled, she nearly fell off the pillar.
. Part 2){kind=link}
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