31 p2: A Pause in Cloudmist City
On their way out of the alley, Gong Yiling briefly explained how the two raw stones containing high-grade spirit crystals had been switched.
Simply put… she had intentionally tripped the attendant, then offered to pick up Yan Zilan’s chosen stone and hand it to him.
Since everyone’s eyes were on the stones, no one suspected any foul play.
What could be seen wasn’t considered a trick.
Right under everyone’s noses, Gong Yiling drained the spiritual energy from the two raw stones.
Of course, she couldn’t reveal her demonic cultivation to Yan Chuyue, who might still become a righteous cultivator. So, she fabricated a skill.
“The Usurper of Heavenly Winds,” Gong Yiling said, “That’s the technique I used to switch the stones.”
She was certain this woman from modern times hadn’t seen Final Fantasy, so she made up a similar-sounding ability.
In fact…
Yan Chuyue hadn’t seen Final Fantasy, but she found the name… puzzling.
Why would such a Western-fantasy-sounding skill name appear in her xianxia novel? Actually, there were even more absurd names, but Gong Yiling kept those to herself.
“And then?” Yan Chuyue temporarily put aside her confusion. “What about Young Master Xuli later?”
“Oh, that.”
This she could explain.
Gong Yiling shrugged.
“I stole the ticket that the First Prince stole, so that idiot Xuli probably got the wrong person.”
Yan Chuyue couldn’t help but laugh. “Pfft… so you were the one who stole the First Prince’s ticket.”
“What? Are you going to report me?” Gong Yiling fanned herself nonchalantly. “Miss Yan of the Yan family seems to have a broken, yet not quite broken, engagement with the First Prince of the Heartflame Empire?”
Yan Chuyue stuck out her tongue. “Did we look like we were engaged today?”
“Miss Yan is a master of disguise, a natural actress. You could probably find a place in a theater troupe.” Gong Yiling smiled. “I’m not discerning enough to tell the difference.”
“Come on, weren’t you acting too?”
“Maybe. I might actually be a prince from another country. Or maybe my mother’s name is actually ‘Mother Empress.’” (Gong Muzhi rejoices in the distance)
Yan Chuyue became intrigued.
“So, Young Master, what is your name?”
“Guan Yilin,” Gong Yiling replied. “Miss Yan can address me however you like.”
Guan Yilin???
The name wasn’t strange, but it sounded familiar.
If this man’s personality wasn’t completely different from another character in her book, Yan Chuyue would have thought he was the villain, Gong Yiling, in disguise.
Currently, Gong Yiling should be searching for a way to repair her meridians with her mother’s help, then stumble upon a place filled with vengeful spirits, thus starting her path as a villain.
She couldn’t possibly be here.
“May I ask, Young Master Guan… where are you from?”
“Uh… my home is in the plains of the Tiwat River Valley, east of the Baiyao Dynasty in the Four Kingdoms. You probably don’t know where that is.”
Yan Chuyue: “…”
Did she even write about such a place?
Even as the author, she couldn’t possibly remember every detail of this world.
Small place names were often made up on the spot.
So, when she needed to mention a place later in the story, she had to go back and check what she had named it.
Perhaps, during a late-night writing session, she had randomly assigned a strange name to some location.
Who knew?
“Then Young Master Guan is here to…?”
“Bring my disciples to see the world.”
“Are Young Master Guan’s disciples the two young ladies at the entrance that day?”
“Yes, them.”
Thinking back to Qiu Shui and Chun Lian, Yan Chuyue still felt she had written about them, or perhaps seen them in an illustration.
But they definitely weren’t important characters, probably just passersby in the Hundred Paths Mountain?
If Gong Yiling could hear her thoughts…
She would wholeheartedly agree.
One was the destined one of the Nine-Colored Deer, and the other possessed the Seven Treasures Universe Talisman Secret Art.
What passersby. These passersby were not ordinary at all.
As they spoke, Yan Chuyue and Gong Yiling arrived back at Gong Yiling’s inn.
They exchanged pleasantries, coordinated their stories about the incident, and parted ways downstairs.
However…
For safety, Gong Yiling wouldn’t use the name Guan Yilin again.
The conflict between the First Prince and Young Master Xuli could easily be traced back to her. Eventually, they would discover that the non-existent Daoist elder who tricked them was her.
Upon returning to her room, Gong Yiling immediately called for Qiu Shui and Chun Lian.
Then, before the First Prince could react, they left Cloudmist City overnight.
As for Yan Chuyue… perhaps they would meet again soon.
…
…
Shangguan Qingyun glared at his subordinate.
This person had his ticket stolen right before the auction, costing him the chance to get close to the alchemist.
That alone was annoying enough, but the thief had also shifted the blame onto him, infuriating him even further.
“That’s what happened,” Shangguan Qingyun said to the person beside him.
That person was Young Master Xuli.
After trashing Shangguan Qingyun’s shop and piecing together the events, Young Master Xuli finally realized they had been played.
As for the culprit…
Hearing the subordinate describe the person’s appearance again, Shangguan Qingyun suddenly realized something.
This person… seemed to be the same as the wealthy young master who came to his shop.
Since he had initially considered befriending the young man, he hadn’t suspected him at all.
And the information from Yan Zilan further confirmed this.
—That man later tricked the three million taels of silver back from Yan Chuyue.
That idiot Yan Zilan was unreliable, but there was no reason for her to lie about this.
Everyone had played into that man’s hands.
“That person was so brazen. His appearance must be fake.” Young Master Xuli was furious.
“To dare toy with this prince repeatedly…” Shangguan Qingyun was equally enraged. “As long as he’s still in the Heartflame Empire, this prince will find him!”
Of course, Shangguan Qingyun didn’t know yet…
That Miss Gong had left him an even more unexpected gift.
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