What a mess. It's all Jiang Jingwei and Xie Lingxi's fault—one dropped the ball at the critical moment, and the other talked without thinking, Zhang Yuanqing thought furiously, clutching his phone as he walked out of the bathroom.
He kicked off his boots, sat cross-legged on the bed, and stared at his phone in a dilemma.
Whether he went to see Guan Ya or Xiao Yuan, neither was likely to be a quick in-and-out affair.
If he went to see Xiao Yuan first, Guan Ya would definitely get jealous and blow her top. Hunting enemies while nursing a petty grudge was an extremely dangerous gamble.
If he cast Xiao Yuan aside and saw Guan Ya first, Xiao Yuan would take it as Yuanshi's silent rejection. She would sever this ambiguous connection once and for all, keeping things strictly as friends from then on, nothing more.
Come to think of it, maybe that wasn't a bad opportunity. He could cut off lingering thoughts, dedicate himself wholeheartedly to Sister Guan Ya, and embrace a bright future and a wonderful life.
No, Mentor said Xiao Yuan is sensitive and fragile inside. If her mindset is damaged because of this, tonight's battle will be very perilous. Right, I'm doing this for the bigger picture... An idea struck Zhang Yuanqing. He sent identical text messages to both Xiao Yuan and Guan Ya:
"In the restroom. Be right there."
Then he quickly tapped Ling Jun's avatar and sent an SOS:
"Mentor, you there? I have an extremely tricky issue I need advice on."
When it came to romantic dilemmas, someone with his shallow experience couldn't handle it. Professional matters required a professional.
Ling Jun replied quickly: "I've got something going on over here. Whatever your question is, make it quick. Keep it brief."
Zhang Yuanqing immediately typed out a message describing his current predicament and hit send.
Ling Jun replied:
"Oh? Your flirtation ran into your official girlfriend, and both texted to see you at the same time? You idiot! How could you let yourself fall into such a disadvantageous position? What have I always taught you? A gentleman never stands beneath a tottering wall! Keeping your romantic interests from ever crossing paths is an essential skill for any gentleman."
Yuanshi Tianzun: "Mentor, cut the crap. You're pressed for time, and so am I."
Ling Jun: "If it were anyone else, I'd say you're doomed, just wait to die. But you're different—you're a Night Walker. Listen carefully and engrave what I'm about to say into your mind. But before that, I need to confirm: is this ambiguous interest of yours the older, sensitive and fragile one?"
Yuanshi Tianzun: "Yes, yes!"
Ling Jun: "Then it's simple. All you have to do is placate both of them. First off, she's only an ambiguous interest, right? As long as you didn't actually cheat on her, passing Guan Ya's test is pretty easy. Don't you have that Ghost Mirror? Bring it along. Then, this is how you placate her..."
Ling Jun: "As for your flirtation, I recall you saying you pursued her before, but she gave you the cold shoulder, leaving you at a loss for how to proceed. You can push the blame onto her completely, and take this chance to confess again! Who knows, it might even deepen your relationship. Here's what you do..."
Three minutes later, with the Ghost Mirror tucked into the back of his waist, Zhang Yuanqing turned the doorknob, left his room, and walked to the left.
Immediately after, Blood Rose turned the doorknob, stepped out of the room, and walked to the right.
Knock, knock!
Zhang Yuanqing knocked on Guan Ya's door. At the same time, he heard Blood Rose knock on Xiao Yuan's door at the far end of the corridor.
The two "Zhang Yuanqings" exchanged a glance from a distance and nodded at each other, cheering each other on.
"I don't feel like opening the door. Come in yourself," Guan Ya said coldly.
Zhang Yuanqing transformed into starlight and flashed into the room. At that exact moment, Xiao Yuan opened her door. Seeing Blood Rose on the threshold, she froze, her expression instantly chilling as she moved to shut the door.
"Blood Rose" quickly blocked the door, his voice dry and raspy. "Don't shut it. Let's talk inside, talk inside..."
He forced his way in and closed the door behind him.
Without a word, Xiao Yuan walked over to the table, pulled out a chair, and sat down. Crossing her legs, she said indifferently,
"I want a raise."
A raise? Zhang Yuanqing was startled. He had thought Xiao Yuan would subject him to cold mockery, along the lines of: Weren't you starved for motherly love? Didn't you like older women? How come you found yourself an infantile brat under thirty...
After spending so much time with her, Zhang Yuanqing knew that beneath Xiao Yuan's aloof and quiet exterior, she was actually quite sharp-tongued.
Xiao Yuan fixed her gaze on him, her tone distant and aloof:
"Two Level 5s, plus whatever potential enemies there are. The risk I'm bearing far exceeds 2.5 million. Four million. No bargaining. If you agree, I stay.
"If not, I walk!"
Four million... that's a bit steep. No, four million is the fair market rate—the reasonable price when you put personal ties and feelings aside. 2.5 million was the friendship rate. Is Xiao Yuan trying to draw a line between us? Zhang Yuanqing grimaced inwardly, but kept his expression completely composed. He nodded:
"Fine. Four million it is."
Xiao Yuan showed no joy. Her gaze dropped slightly, tinged with a faint gloom, but she quickly raised her eyes again and smiled faintly.
"Your girlfriend is very pretty!"
Zhang Yuanqing paced over to the table, suddenly leaning his face in close—so close they could feel each other's breath.
"Yet in my heart, Aunt Xiao Yuan is the most beautiful," he said with heartfelt sincerity.
Meanwhile, Guan Ya sat with one leg crossed over the other, leaning against the back of her chair. Her pretty face was frost-clad as she watched the rising starlight coalesce into her boyfriend.
"I never knew you had such talent—keeping an evil class woman on the side. You're no inexperienced virgin who's never dated; you're a bona fide Casanova." Guan Ya smiled sweetly as she remarked, "Ling Jun wouldn't even qualify to wipe your ass. At least I've never heard of him picking up someone from an evil class. Our Lord Tianzun truly possesses irresistible charm."
Though spoken with a smile, there wasn't a trace of warmth on her face.
Zhang Yuanqing moved closer.
Guan Ya sneered immediately. "Don't bother making excuses. You know I'm a Scout. I see far more than you think."
Zhang Yuanqing straddled her lap, sitting right on Guan Ya's thighs, and asked with a beaming smile,
"Jealous? She and I are really just friends."
Xiao Yuan furrowed her brow, scrutinizing him closely, and scoffed,
"Are you trying to play both sides with me? Yuanshi Tianzun, do you think I won't beat you up?"
"Every word I said came from the bottom of my heart. Guan Ya is my colleague. She's beautiful, with a great figure, but I just feel that Aunt Xiao Yuan is the most charming." Zhang Yuanqing sighed and continued:
"I told you before that I like older women. In truth, that was my confession to you. But you never answered me, leaving me completely at a loss. As you know, I don't have any dating experience.
"I once thought that as long as I worked hard to get closer to you, I could embrace you. Later, I realized that to me, you were an unattainable mirage, a distant and breathtaking mountain peak.
"And it makes sense. How could a mature, intellectual, and worldly woman like you ever fall for an inexperienced kid in his early twenties who hasn't even graduated from college? Right around that time, Guan Ya confessed her feelings to me..."
At this point, he paused, took in the conflicted look on Xiao Yuan's face, and murmured:
"I suddenly realized that perhaps the person truly meant for me was right beside me all along, while you, Aunt Xiao Yuan, were my beautiful fantasy... How does the saying go? The person who walks with you to the end isn't necessarily the one you loved the most."
Zhang Yuanqing's expression was steeped in deep affection, his eyes filled with sorrow and helplessness, as if reminiscing about a beautiful, bygone romance.
This is so cringeworthy... Forgive me! Ling Jun taught me all of this. That guy is such an utter scumbag. A pure-hearted young guy like me could never come up with such sickeningly sweet lines even if you beat me to death... Zhang Yuanqing fixed his eyes on Xiao Yuan, watching her reactions closely.
According to Mentor, all he needed to convey were two things: the grievance of "The only reason I have a girlfriend now is because you rejected me, leaving me no choice but to settle for second best," and "Even though I found another girlfriend, you are still the moonlight of my heart."
Xiao Yuan fell into an extended silence. She lowered her eyes, her eyelashes fluttering rapidly.
The coldness had already faded from her brow.
"Just friends?" Guan Ya scoffed, shoving him. "Off, get off me... If you're just friends, why were you acting guilty? The way she looked at you was definitely more than just friends."
Pushed onto the floor, Zhang Yuanqing took advantage of the momentum to sit by the edge of the bed and said with a wry smile:
"Alright, fine. I did admire her once, but that was a long time ago. Back when I had just become a Spirit Realm walker, she helped me many times. And I discovered that even though she's an evil class, she has a kind heart..."
Guan Ya narrowed her eyes, studying her boyfriend's gaze and micro-expressions.
When talking about that woman, his gaze was tranquil, his complexion calm. There was no dodging or guilt, only a peaceful, forthright honesty.
"Go on. Why'd you stop?" she prompted.
Zhang Yuanqing scratched his head. "It just so happened that she was my type, so I couldn't resist pursuing her."
"Looked to me like she fancied you quite a bit too. How come things didn't go any further?" Guan Ya asked with a half-smile.
Zhang Yuanqing grinned cheekily.
"Isn't that because of you? You're so gorgeous, you've got a fantastic figure, and you talk so delightfully. As we grew closer, I liked you more and more, and gradually forgot all about her."
Guan Ya sneered dismissively. "Save it!"
Zhang Yuanqing pointed to the sky in an oath: "Every single word I said is true from the bottom of my heart, or may lightning strike me down! After we made things official, I barely contacted her. I only acted guilty because I like you and worried you'd overthink things. If there were anything illicit going on between us, would I have asked for her help? Am I that stupid? Sister Guan Ya, you have to believe in my feelings for you."
Sigh, I really sound like a scumbag right now. Thank goodness Guan Ya is only a Level 4 Swordsman. If it were Fu Qingyang, even the Ghost Mirror probably couldn't conceal it... Zhang Yuanqing stood up, walked over to the desk, and looked into Guan Ya's eyes.
"You're a Scout. You know full well whether I'm telling the truth."
In Ling Jun's strategy, what Guan Ya wanted were an "attitude" and a "commitment"—the attitude of indifference toward other women, and a commitment to never stray.
After all, she had only caught her boyfriend having an ambiguous dynamic with another woman, not actually two-timing her, so the situation wasn't fatal.
Zhang Yuanqing had already displayed the requisite attitude.
If Mentor's deduction is correct, Sister Guan Ya should ask me for a commitment now... Just as this thought crossed Zhang Yuanqing's mind, Guan Ya scoffed:
"Even if what you said is true and you haven't cheated now, does that mean you won't in the future?"
Zhang Yuanqing replied smoothly, "That depends on your performance."
"My performance?"
"Every night, you'll have to help me with this..." Zhang Yuanqing took the veteran driver's small hand and pumped it up and down.
Guan Ya blushed slightly and spat in mock disgust.
Seeing this, Zhang Yuanqing immediately leaned in and bit her lips. "I could help you too, of course."
"Ow, let go..." Her lower lip caught and tugged between his teeth, Guan Ya swatted him a few times in pain and muttered indistinctly, "Aren't you supposed to take care of business? Go, hurry up and go..."
"You're not going to interrogate me anymore?"
"No more questions."
"You believe me now?"
"Yes, yes, I believe you. Now get lost."
Zhang Yuanqing immediately let go of her lips and said with regret, "Then I'm off."
He turned the handle, stepped out of the room, and happened to see "Blood Rose" walking out of the room at the end of the hall.
The two Zhang Yuanqings exchanged a knowing smile.
Back in his room, Zhang Yuanqing took Edo Swordsman's bloodstain from his inventory and summoned the Red Dancing Shoes.
Stuffing the blood into the shoes, Zhang Yuanqing issued the command:
"Take me to him."
Tap, tap, tap... The Red Dancing Shoes passed right through the hotel's floor-to-ceiling window, sprinted down the exterior glass wall, and quickly vanished beyond the edge of his vision.
Zhang Yuanqing's body dissolved into dreamlike starlight and reappeared on the rooftop across from the hotel. Then, he donned the Gale Gloves, activated his Night Walk skill, and rose on the wind, chasing after the Red Dancing Shoes.
Alternating between Star Escape and the Gale Gloves, half an hour later he had left the urban center behind and arrived in the sparsely populated outskirts.
The Red Dancing Shoes halted outside a small estate.
Zhang Yuanqing cut off the shoes' tracking just in time and paid the price on the balcony of a nearby villa.
Retrieving the bloodstain and stowing away the Red Dancing Shoes, he put on the Gale Gloves, shot into the sky, and overlooked the villa compound.
The compound covered a vast area, containing thirty to forty villas at the very least. The layout was quite orderly, with courtyards arranged like tofu blocks along grid-patterned streets lined with sparse greenery.
Unlike the lush, verdant south, this place carried the distinct, rugged air of the north.
The manor targeted by the Red Dancing Shoes was the largest and most lavish in the entire development.
Edo Swordsman is inside. This villa is likely one of Blood Drinking Mad Blade's strongholds, so they won't be the only ones here—he's bound to have subordinates present...
Hovering invisibly, Zhang Yuanqing surveyed the estate while thinking rapidly.
Chun City isn't close to the Soldier Master sect's northwest headquarters, but this is the north after all. Who knows if a Divine General or even a Heavenly King happens to be here in Chun City? If we can't end this quickly, things could get very ugly. Before the battle starts, we must be thoroughly prepared...
The safest method would be blanketing the manor with heavy artillery, enforcing justice through sheer volume of ammunition. Heh, headquarters would never approve, and even if they did, the court wouldn't...
Zhang Yuanqing didn't linger. He turned and departed.
7:00 PM. The hotel.
Everyone gathered in Zhang Yuanqing's room to discuss the plan of action.
Zhang Yuanqing described the layout of the compound where Edo Swordsman was hiding, then said:
"Besides Edo Swordsman, the villa houses Blood Drinking Mad Blade and his subordinates. To say nothing of any potential Divine Generals or Heavenly Kings, a prolonged fight will work against us given the traits of a Mist Lord.
"Therefore, our priority is to pin down Edo Swordsman's location and carry out an immediate decapitation strike. Li Chunfeng, you'll be responsible for hacking the manor's surveillance cameras to blind them. Xie Lingxi, you're on eavesdropping duty to locate Edo Swordsman's exact position.
"Xiao Yuan, before the battle starts, bless everyone to boost our success rate. By the way, I have Edo Swordsman's bloodstains here. Can you curse him to death?"
Xiao Yuan remained aloof and glamorous as she shook her head slightly.
"The blood has already lost its vitality. A curse would at most affect him and inflict minor harm. It won't cause severe injuries, let alone kill him."
"That's enough!" Zhang Yuanqing said. "Once we locate Edo Swordsman, Guan Ya, Xiao Yuan, and I will handle the decapitation strike. Commandery Princess, you handle Blood Drinking Mad Blade. Asano Ryo, you and Queen deal with Blood Drinking Mad Blade's subordinates."
As for Li Chunfeng and Xie Lingxi, one was a technician and the other support; there was no need for them to take the field.
Guan Ya crossed her arms and leaned against the window, saying gravely:
"If I were Blood Drinking Mad Blade, I would post sentries around the estate or even near the villa. The moment suspicious individuals or vehicles approach, they'd raise the alarm."
Staring straight ahead, Xiao Yuan said impassively, "Gathering so many evil classes together is an idiotic move."
Guan Ya scoffed. "I said sentries. Who said anything about evil classes? With a Mist Lord's abilities, he could easily bewitch ordinary mortals to act as sentries without losing any Morality Points."
Zhang Yuanqing hastily interjected, "That's an easy fix. We can use the Night Cloak and Gale Gloves to infiltrate one by one and take control of the occupants in the villa next door to the estate. That way, even if they are sentries, they won't be able to send any warnings."
Forty minutes later, relying on the Night Cloak and Zhang Yuanqing's Gale Gloves, the group sneaked into the compound and took control of the residents in the villa opposite the estate.
They confounded the ordinary mortals with illusion techniques, knocked out the middle-aged couple, child, and elderly resident, and carried them into the bedrooms.
Xie Lingxi put on headphones, walked to the window, and carefully peered out toward the grand estate in the distance, listening intently.
Meanwhile, Li Chunfeng opened his laptop, fingers flying across the keyboard. A few minutes later, the screen split into more than twenty feeds, each representing a surveillance camera.
"They're in the dining room!" Li Chunfeng said.
The group gathered around the laptop to take a closer look. In the feed in the bottom-left corner, two middle-aged men were seated across from each other drinking wine, with a shapely waitress standing obediently beside them to attend to their needs.
The footage was somewhat grainy and facial features weren't sharp, but the silhouettes of their faces were enough for Zhang Yuanqing and Asano Ryo to recognize them.
"That's him—Edo Swordsman!" Asano Ryo said under her breath, gritting her teeth.
On screen, Edo Swordsman and Blood Drinking Mad Blade drank and talked.
"Can we get audio?" Zhang Yuanqing asked.
Li Chunfeng hit Enter. Muffled, distorted voices accompanied by crackling static came through the laptop speakers.
Alright, looks like we have to rely on Xie Lingxi! Zhang Yuanqing turned toward the window. "Lingxi, what did you hear?"
Xie Lingxi turned around, her pretty face ghastly pale as she stammered in a trembling voice:
"Edo Swordsman asked... w-when will Fear Heavenly King arrive..."
Chapter 406