Chapter 101: The Many Layers of Nanling Yaohua’s Schemes
“Master Fang, do you know? Just now, that kind of scale of Miracle Flower blooming, I’ve only seen it on the Holy Son before! Uh, it was last time at Zhenwu… But, I only caught a glimpse from afar, but this time… Oh my! First time so close!”
“Is that the power of the Sacred Relic? A miracle, a rare miracle in the world!”
“Praise the miracle!”
“…”
Watching Xiem babble excitedly, Fang Ji sighed silently and said with some impatience, “Elder Xiem, you’ve already repeated the same thing thirty-two times; like a marketing campaign, can’t you come up with some new phrases?”
“Master Fang, I’m just too excited!” Xiem said awkwardly, but soon his excitement reignited, “Just now, that scale of Miracle Flower…”
Seeing Xiem about to repeat his tiresome monologue again, Fang Ji rubbed his slightly throbbing forehead, stood up, and walked towards the tent exit.
“Hey, Master Fang, where are you going?”
Hearing Xiem’s call, Fang Ji paused slightly, turned his head, and replied, “I’m going for a walk. I have a vague feeling that I might miraculously find calamity.”
Xiem was momentarily taken aback and quickly got up to catch up, “Why didn’t you say so earlier? I’ll go with you!”
“No need!” Fang Ji raised a hand to stop Xiem, “In your state, better to stay here and calm down a bit, right? The Holy Son will be here in a couple of days; be careful not to offend him. Also…”
He paused, then shifted his tone and said seriously, “Since the Holy Son is about to arrive, the ceremony can be prepared as well. Elder Xiem, you can handle this, right?”
Upon hearing this, Xiem steadied himself and replied respectfully, “Yes, I will follow the arrangements of the Left Envoy.”
Fang Ji nodded, turned, and left the tent, heading toward the darkened next door, soon disappearing from sight.
After leaving the tent, he took advantage of the night to walk alone, wandering aimlessly between the rolling gray-white sand dunes until he saw a girl half-buried in the sand, her breath faint…
“Oh? Here you are? Finally found you, the fake Miss Calamity…”
Fang Ji murmured to himself, a significant smile appearing at the corners of his mouth.
————
After finishing the “Ancient God” sheep brought by Luxianbei, the Siye Association operatives gathered in the open space outside the Hole Ridge Base quickly dispersed.
Only three remained, responsible for night security.
Spiritual ability users are also human; while they can push through sleepless days, it’s better for their overall condition if they can rest more.
As the Siye operatives gradually returned to their caves and the open space became increasingly quiet, Luxianbei stood up, ready to head back to her designated cave.
However, when she asked about the location of her cave, she received bad news.
“What?” Luxianbei turned to look at the cave that had collapsed due to being hit by a truck, still needing to be cleared and repaired, and widened her eyes, “That’s the cave assigned to me?”
She had already observed that there were at least a dozen caves for the Siye operatives to rest in at the Hole Ridge Base, and yet the one that collapsed was the one assigned to her… Wasn’t that a bit too coincidental?
“Of course, it’s not a coincidence.” Nanling Yaohua shrugged, “It’s because that cave was collapsed by you, so after discussing it, everyone decided to assign that cave to you.”
“Hah?” Luxianbei frowned, “How could they do that? Making a decision without consent…”
“It was my decision.” Nanling Yaohua said blandly.
“…” Luxianbei was momentarily speechless.
Hearing Nanling Yaohua say this, she suddenly realized that the caves at the Hole Ridge Base were all properties of the Yumen Sands Sea Branch, and the person in charge of the Hole Ridge Base was also Nanling Yaohua.
Without Nanling Yaohua’s authority, even if the Siye operatives wanted to assign the collapsed cave to her, they wouldn’t have the power to do so.
Fine, if you say so, then it is what it is!
Who told me that cave was the one I collapsed? And besides, I’m afraid of being dissected by you!
Responsibility lies with the person who caused it, at worst, I just won’t rest tonight… Luxianbei thought.
Just then, Nanling Yaohua suddenly took her hand and smiled, “Don’t mind it. I’m arranging this to reduce everyone’s dissatisfaction with you. Until that cave is repaired, let’s stay together, okay? My cave is quite spacious.”
Luxianbei, “…” Hiss! This sounded a bit off!
Seeing that Luxianbei didn’t immediately agree, Nanling Yaohua moved directly in front of her, tilted her head and said, “Qingyi, you shouldn’t mind, right?”
“I think, in a special situation, and we’re all girls, and we get along so well, it shouldn’t matter, right?”
“And if you’re really not used to sharing a bed, I can move a bed over. I just checked; that cave may have collapsed mostly, but the bed inside is still intact.”
“Uh…” Luxianbei hesitated for two seconds, then nodded, “Yeah, it’s fine.”
Since Nanling Yaohua said so, what else could she do?
Can I tell her that I’m not a girl? Of course not! My identity of Lu Qingyi is fabricated!
Anyway, it’s just for one night in one cave, still two beds, pure and clean, what could be the problem? Luxianbei thought.
However, some things seem wonderful in theory but are another concept in practice.
Especially when someone is scheming behind the scenes…
Nanling Yaohua’s cave was not far from the collapsed one, Luxianbei easily moved the single bed from the collapsed cave into her cave, then under Nanling Yaohua’s guidance, she left the cave to wash up.
When she returned to the cave about ten minutes later, she was stunned.
Her pillow and bedsheet were soaked in a large area, with some milky substance faintly visible, emitting a strong smell.
Beside her, Nanling Yaohua held a cup of water, looking awkward.
“Uh, I’ve had the habit of drinking a cup of hot sheep milk before bed since I was little, and just now, I accidentally sat on your bed while drinking, and… sorry about that!”
“You see, there aren’t many extra pillows and sheets here, so I can only wash them tomorrow and replace them for you. For tonight… you can just manage with me.”
“Here’s the deal, I’ll put my sword in the middle of the bed, and we’ll each take one side!”
Saying this, she gracefully walked to her big bed, lifted her skirt, revealing her pale legs, slowly sat down, then extended her hand, gently patting the edge of the bed.
With a slight smile, looking very welcoming.
Watching Nanling Yaohua, who resembled a scumbag trying to get a girl to share a room with a big bed, Luxianbei’s eyes twitched slightly.
Accidentally spilled?
An A+ grade spiritual ability user, skilled in physical techniques, can’t even hold a cup of sheep milk steadily? You’re fooling me!
It’s all a scheme, and a multilayered one at that.
Stinky Sister, look at others; if you had been this persuasive instead of turning the room into something like a prisoner’s chamber, wouldn’t you have accomplished your goal much earlier?
However, if Jumeng told Luxianbei that the large Taohua family inn had only one room left, Luxianbei probably wouldn’t believe it either.
Luxianbei looked at Nanling Yaohua’s exquisite face, filled with sincerity and warmth, and could clearly sense an air of conspiracy.
She suddenly recalled the extra years of memories spent in the Dream City; in the memories, Nanling Yaohua, though gentle and kind most of the time, was actually a bit wicked.
If the Nanling Yaohua in Dream City is the real person rather than a reflection, does that mean she also has a similar personality?
“…”
So… could it be that she has already uncovered my identity and is intentionally making fun of me?
Or has she been hurt so badly that she reinstalled the XP system?
d*mn it, no matter which scenario it is, if I get into that bed tonight, even if I can get out tomorrow, the day after tomorrow or the day after that, I would definitely not be able to escape. Luxianbei thought.
This kind of situation recalls what is said in the “Six Nations Discourse”: “Today seizing five cities, tomorrow seizing ten cities, and then obtaining one peaceful night of sleep. Upon awakening and looking at the surroundings, the Qin army is already approaching again… Dealing with the Qin with territory is like carrying firewood to extinguish a fire; as long as the firewood is not exhausted, the fire will not be extinguished.”
Today Nanling Yaohua invites her to share a bed, tomorrow she’ll have to remove that sword in the middle, and what she’ll do the day after, Luxianbei didn’t dare to imagine!
“I appreciate Miss Nanling’s kindness, but since following the Chief Priest for some time and mastering the technique to circulate the moonlight, I haven’t really slept at night for a long time.”
Luxianbei flatly refused Nanling Yaohua’s invitation, sitting down on the single bed she moved in, saying lightly, “I’ll cultivate here tonight. Miss Nanling, please feel free.”
After saying this, she crossed her legs and closed her eyes.
To be honest, facing a girl with such stunning looks as Nanling Yaohua, whose invitation sparked physiological temptations, Luxianbei wanted to accept it very much, but psychologically she couldn’t.
First of all, Nanling Yaohua’s actions might be hiding a conspiracy.
Secondly, if something does happen, it would be unfair to Miaomiao Sauce and… a certain two-character deity.
“Oh, is that so? Then you do your best.” Nanling Yaohua said, not persuading Luxianbei any further, blew out the lamp, lay back on her bed, and covered herself with a blanket.
Soon, silence returned in the darkness, only the wind whispering through the window cracks and faint breathing sounds.
It seemed Nanling Yaohua had settled down to sleep…
But Luxianbei didn’t believe that!
Though her eyes were tightly closed, her spiritual senses quietly expanded to the utmost, staying alert to Nanling Yaohua, until the sky outside the window turned slightly light.
All night long, Nanling Yaohua made no unusual movements; looking at her sweetly sleeping profile, Luxianbei furrowed her brows.
Could it be that I’m overthinking this?
There’s really no conspiracy; she simply feels a connection with “Lu Qingyi” and is therefore particularly warm? Luxianbei thought.
She originally thought that last night, Nanling Yaohua would do something tricky.
Just as Luxianbei began to doubt her life, a commotion sounded faintly outside.
“Something happened, something big happened! Where’s Miss Nanling?”
“……”
