Chapter 22: Secrets, Hehe
Soon, the matches on the various stages began.
Xiang’er’s match wasn’t scheduled for a while. Using the excuse of wanting to mentally prepare, she slipped away.
Chen Yin, of course, knew that she was going to participate in the competition first as Yin Mengwan.
Coincidentally, Yin Mengwan’s match was taking place on a stage not far from where Chen Yin had placed his bet. So he went over to that stage and waited.
A large crowd had gathered around the stage, mostly fellow disciples and supporters of Zhang Qing, the female cultivator from the Profound Cloud Sect.
Chen Yin observed them quietly, saying nothing.
Not long after, the young man who had taken his bet at the stall came over and sat down next to Chen Yin, making him curious:
“Hey? What are you doing here? Don’t you have to watch the betting booth?”
“I’m on break until the afternoon.” The young man smiled. “Seeing you place that bet got me a little interested, so I came to watch the fun.”
“By the way, do you really think that girl named Yin Mengwan can win?”
“Who knows?” Chen Yin shrugged.
“Sometimes, when luck is on your side, you can’t refuse money even if you tried.”
As they chatted, the two participants had already entered the stage.
Zhang Qing, though not exceptionally beautiful, was still quite pretty and charming. Judging by the cheers from the audience, she was clearly a popular flower in her sect.
In contrast, “Yin Mengwan,” dressed in plain black clothes and her face concealed by a veil, seemed much more mysterious.
After they took their positions, Zhang Qing muttered, “Changli Palace… never heard of that sect.”
“If you surrender now, you can avoid unnecessary injuries.”
Yu Xiang simply replied coldly, “Too noisy.”
Zhang Qing was instantly enraged and charged at her with her sword.
Yu Xiang merely raised her hand and clenched her fist in the air. A wave of overwhelming spiritual energy, as tangible as a physical force, pressed down on Zhang Qing, immobilizing her. It felt as if she was being choked, lifted off the ground, and left helplessly struggling in mid-air, her face turning red.
The next moment, she was tossed off the stage like a piece of trash.
Silence fell over the entire audience.
The Profound Cloud Sect disciples stared blankly for a long time before rushing to check on their Senior Sister. The referee also stood frozen for a while before finally announcing the victory.
From beginning to end, Yu Xiang hadn’t said a word. After her victory was declared, she immediately turned and left, vanishing without a trace.
The young man’s eyes widened in disbelief. After a long while, he swallowed hard and turned to Chen Yin with a stunned expression.
“Holy crap… You really struck gold! That girl in black is a true master!”
“How strong is she? I’m just a low-level cultivator, but I could barely breathe under her pressure. I can’t even tell what level she’s at.”
“1:12 odds, you’re going to be rich!”
“Just lucky, just lucky.” Chen Yin laughed, his eyes flickering imperceptibly. He turned and said casually, “I have something to do, I’ll be going now. Remember to put my winnings on my tab.”
Then, he swiftly left the stands.
***
As Yu Xiang secured her first victory as “Yin Mengwan,” an inconspicuous figure quietly slipped away from the crowd.
The man hurriedly avoided the crowded areas and was about to enter a secluded path.
“Hey, hey, hey! Wait a minute, brother!”
The man turned to see Chen Yin approaching him with a friendly smile, his arm casually draped over his shoulder, acting like they were old friends.
“Judging by your impressive demeanor and bearing, you must be a prodigy from a prominent sect.”
“It’s fate that we’ve met. Are you interested in some… private photos of the participating fairies?”
Chen Yin put on a sleazy expression, like a street vendor selling illicit goods. He chuckled, “I have a lot of good stuff, guaranteed to satisfy you.”
The man seemed taken aback and waved his hand dismissively. “No, I’m not interested in that stuff, leave me alone!”
“Hey, don’t be so quick to refuse, brother. Let me show you a couple of samples, I’m sure you’ll change your mind.”
He led the man towards a deserted area while keeping his arm around him.
“Cut the crap! I said I’m not interested, who the hell are you? Do you want to get beaten up?”
The man was clearly getting impatient, his tone turning hostile.
“Hey, brother, don’t be so angry. The price is negotiable.”
Chen Yin said with a smile, “If you think it’s too expensive, I can give you a friend discount.”
“…How about you pay with your life?” His voice suddenly turned cold.
The man’s eyes widened in horror. He suddenly realized that his dantian and meridians were sealed by an invisible sword energy. As long as the person in front of him willed it, he would die before he could even make a sound.
He was about to resist when Chen Yin’s cold voice rang out, “Don’t move if you don’t want to die.”
“Answer my questions. Don’t say anything else.”
The man nodded hastily.
“Name.”
“W-Wang Wei.”
“Age.”
“Thirty-one.”
“Gender.”
“…Do you even need to ask?”
Chen Yin said impassively, “If you don’t answer properly, I can change your answer right now.”
Wang Wei quickly crossed his legs and stammered, “M-male.”
“Sexual orientation.”
“?”
“Fetishes.”
“???”
After being bombarded with a series of bizarre and embarrassing questions, Wang Wei’s mind was in a daze.
Who the hell was this guy? He had restrained him without warning and was asking all sorts of strange questions.
He had heard rumors of rogue cultivators with peculiar tastes for the same sex… could he be so unlucky to have encountered one today?
As he was trying to figure out how to protect his rear end, Chen Yin casually asked:
“Which branch altar is your superior from?”
Wang Wei’s pupils constricted.
“I… I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“It’s okay. I can help you remember.”
Chen Yin reached out and pressed a finger against the back of his neck. The next moment, Wang Wei’s eyes bulged as if they were about to pop out.
“Ugh!”
“You have one more chance. Next time, it won’t be the nerves in your spine that get crushed, but your head.”
Wang Wei nodded frantically, his eyes filled with terror and fear.
“I-it’s the Fragrance City branch altar.”
“There’s a demonic branch altar in Fragrance City? Where is it?”
“In the well in the backyard of Elegant Pavilion on East Street.”
Chen Yin turned his head and nodded slightly towards the void, then continued asking:
“You seem to be in a hurry. Did you discover something that you need to report?”
“Is it about your Holy Maiden, Yin Mengwan?” he asked directly.
Seeing that the other party seemed to know everything, Wang Wei didn’t dare to hide anything and said tremblingly: “…Yes.”
“The sect has ordered that any sightings of the Holy Maiden be reported immediately.”
Chen Yin pondered for a moment and continued asking, “What’s your communication tool?”
“Here.” Wang Wei handed over a transmission stone with trembling hands.
Chen Yin took the stone, looked around to make sure no one was paying attention, and then led Wang Wei to a spot between some artificial rocks.
After spending an hour asking all the questions he wanted, he emerged from behind the rocks alone.
…He was just a small fry, he didn’t know much.
But it was enough for him.
So, he stretched lazily, put on his usual carefree expression, tucked his hands into his sleeves, and sauntered away.
—
Yu Xiang changed back into her own clothes and waited in front of the stage where her match was about to take place.
She glanced around from time to time.
After an unknown amount of time, someone patted her shoulder. Xiang’er looked up and saw Chen Yin’s smiling face.
“Honestly, you’re late, stinky Senior Brother.”
Xiang’er wrinkled her nose with dissatisfaction. “Where did you go?”
“Well, there were two female cultivators fighting fiercely over there. I heard that in the end, they both ran out of spiritual energy and ended up wrestling with each other, their clothes all torn.”
Chen Yin said with a look of amazement, “I’ve never seen such a fierce fight between women… I mean, cultivators. I had to go check it out.”
Seeing the disapproval and resentment building up in Xiang’er’s eyes, Chen Yin coughed awkwardly and said softly:
“Hey, look, I’m here now. Of course, I wouldn’t miss Xiang’er’s match.”
“Go for it! Beat your opponent!” Chen Yin gave her a thumbs-up encouragingly.
Xiang’er pouted and rolled her eyes at him, but even her eye-roll had a certain charm and playfulness.
“Well… you have to cheer for me from the audience, Senior Brother.”
“Of course, I’ll cheer louder than everyone else combined.”
“You don’t have to go that far… It’s embarrassing.”
Yu Xiang took a couple of steps toward the stage, then turned and gave Chen Yin a sweet smile.
“Then, Senior Brother, I’m going up.”
Chen Yin nodded with a smile.
Watching Xiang’er skip onto the stage, Chen Yin smiled with pride.
“Our Xiang’er is so cute.”
—
A while later, Yu Xiang walked back down, dejected.
“Wuu… I lost right away…” She pouted sadly, her eyes watery, on the verge of tears.
“What are you talking about?”
Chen Yin puffed out his chest and said seriously, “Our Xiang’er was like a celestial being, completely dominating your opponent, leaving them with no chance to fight back.”
“If they hadn’t resorted to a sneak attack, our Xiang’er wouldn’t have lost.”
Seeing that Xiang’er was still downcast, Chen Yin patted her head comfortingly.
“It’s okay. Don’t be sad. Senior Brother will take you shopping for clothes. It’s a reward for our Xiang’er.”
“Really?” Yu Xiang’s eyes lit up.
“Of course it’s real.”
“Yay!” She cheered softly. “Senior Brother is the best!”
Seeing her excitement, Chen Yin chuckled and didn’t say anything more.
“But the clothes at the Ten Thousand Fragrance Pavilion are so expensive. How did Senior Brother suddenly become so rich?”
“Well… that’s a secret. Hehe.”
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