Love & Redemption
Chapter 135: Volume 3 Heartless Xuanji - 42 Trickery

Chapter 135: Volume 3 Heartless Xuanji Chapter 42 Trickery

"Lonely Moon Walk" Book Number: 1013621 She is a king, a king at the end of her rope.

Surrounded by formidable enemies and plagued by internal and external conflicts, she left her country, holding the chess piece of power and strategy, ready to overturn the game!

The clash of kings, the game of intelligence and beauty, who can capture both love and the world?

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As days passed, Yu Sifeng’s injuries healed faster, and he could already walk slowly leaning on the wall. Xuanji spent money to hire someone to look after him, and after giving instructions, she felt relieved to leave Germu and flew to Qingyang using Sword Control.

She was in a hurry to rescue Linglong and then return to Germu with her, to help Si Feng recover from his injuries. The three of them would then go to Buzhou Mountain to bring Sixth Brother back. Thinking of this beautiful process, Xuanji couldn’t help but break into a joyful smile, instantly sweeping away the gloom of the past days, eagerly wishing she could leave with Linglong right after setting foot in Qingyang.

Having visited Qingyang before, she was already familiar with the place. She first went to Brother Liu’s den to look for him, but he was not at home, so she had to turn back to Jiaohong House. Considering this man’s poor habits, spending every day amid flowers, even Ting Nu suffered, forced to accompany him to brothels for debauchery.

It was now noon, and Jiaohong House was quiet with few customers. As soon as Xuanji entered, she immediately drew many gazes. The experienced madam recognized her as one of the troublemakers who had come before and immediately geared up, smiling obsequiously, "Miss, is this your second visit? Would you like some girls to accompany you for drinks to cheer up, or would you prefer some pastries and tea first?"

Xuanji thought to herself, I am not a man, why would I need girls to cheer me up with drinks. However, when she glanced at the pastries on the table, she couldn’t help but feel tempted. She had traveled here using Sword Control, which despite covering a vast distance didn’t take half a day; however, Sword Control was still physically demanding, and she couldn’t help feeling hungry, too embarrassed to speak, just staring blankly at the pastries.

The attentive staff immediately served the pastries to her, and Xuanji recognized one of the round-faced women who had kissed her on the face last time, calling her cute. She immediately beamed a smile and said, "Sister, you eat too."

The courtesan was flattered and looked back at the madam, seeing her signaling with her eyes, she boldly ate two pieces of pastries and chatted with Xuanji.

"Miss, why have you come here again? This is not a good place; young girls shouldn’t come here."

Xuanji quickly said, "I’m looking for Liu Yihuan, is he here? Is there a man in a wheelchair with a handsome face with him..."

Before she could finish, loud laughter came from upstairs, "I was wondering why my eyelids were twitching today, it turns out it’s you, little girl! Since you’re here, why didn’t you come up to find me?"

Upon hearing this, Xuanji, thrilled, sprinted up the stairs, and sure enough, saw Liu Yihuan disheveled, his chest bare, leaning against the door flashing his teeth at her, his smile and demeanor as cheeky as ever.

"Brother Liu!" she called out, rushing forward to urgently ask, "Where’s Ting Nu?"

Liu Yihuan gestured toward the room with his lips, "He’s sitting inside. I’ve taken good care of him for you; not a single hair is missing."

Xuanji looked inside and sure enough, Ting Nu sat upright in the room, accompanied by two young and beautiful courtesans, one feeding him grapes and the other pouring him wine, appearing quite calm and not at all distressed.

He’s definitely been corrupted by Liu Yihuan! Xuanji glared at Liu Yihuan, walked in, and said, "Ting Nu, I have something important to discuss with you."

Ting Nu looked up and smiled gently, his demeanor refreshed and voice soft, "You’ve retrieved Linglong’s soul, haven’t you?"

"Ah! How did you know!" Xuanji exclaimed, her face flushing with excitement as she quickly took out the crystal bottle. Seeing that they needed privacy for their discussion, the two courtesans tactfully left the room, lingering outside to flirt with Liu Yihuan.

"Look! We succeeded! We snatched Linglong’s soul back from Buzhou Mountain!"

She did not mention how the soul was snatched, merely looking at him eagerly, hoping he would quickly say, "Let’s go to Shaoyang Sect."

Ting Nu took the bottle, looked down at it for a while, then smiled slightly, put it down, and asked, "What about Min Yan and the others? Didn’t they come with you?"

Xuanji’s smile froze slightly, and after a long moment, she managed a forced smile, "They... didn’t come. It’s just me."

"Did something happen at Buzhou Mountain?" His tone, previously gentle, became quite intense.

Xuanji’s heart ached vaguely; she bit her lip and remained silent.

Liu Yihuan scoffed from behind, "Let me guess. That foolish boy, thinking he is an invulnerable hero, went to spy inside their ranks, right? And that boy wearing the mask followed him, right?"

Xuanji suddenly turned around, rushed over and grabbed his collar, nearly flipping him to the ground. Liu Yihuan laughed and yelled, "Hey hey! You’re still a little girl... I’m not interested in those who haven’t bloomed... Wow, that’s quite the enthusiasm! Alright! Considering how passionate you are..."

He hadn’t finished speaking when his feet wobbled and she yanked him down, causing him to fall backwards. Xuanji fell on top of him, her vision spinning with stars.

Liu Yihuan grimaced in pain and shouted, "If you like me, just say it... Why be so physical..."

Hot tears suddenly fell on his face, interrupting his idle talk immediately. Xuanji leaned on him, her tears falling like rain, pattering on his face and hair. She grasped his collar tightly with both hands, her voice trembling as she said, "You knew! You’ve known all along! You have the Heavenly Eye... you know everything in advance! Why didn’t you tell us?!"

Liu Yihuan rarely showed a serious expression, he lifted his hand and gently patted her head, saying softly, "Fate cannot be defied. Even if I knew what was going to happen, if I told you, would you not have gone?"

"But... at least, they wouldn’t have ended up like this..." Xuanji didn’t know what to say, her chest tightened repeatedly, and her tears wouldn’t stop.

Liu Yihuan said sternly, "You’re wrong. Little Xuanji, let me tell you now, the reason I stole this Heavenly Eye was to foresee the outcome. I once thought I could change fate, but in the end, I realized that no matter how you change it, you can only alter the process; the outcome remains unchangeable. Even if they didn’t join Buzhou Mountain today, they would have ended up doing so eventually due to some coincidental reasons. The outcome is always the same."

He pushed Xuanji away and stood up, then said, "You feel uncomfortable inside and need someone to blame, I understand. If blaming me makes you feel better, then hate me for your whole life. Just as long as it makes you feel a bit better!"

Xuanji wiped her tears and remained silent for a long while, before speaking softly, "No... no, I don’t blame anyone. I only blame myself for being powerless, able only to watch them take that step..."

Liu Yihuan chuckled, walked over, and lightly flicked her forehead, whispering, "If you are powerless, then there’s nobody in the world who has power. General."

Xuanji turned her head abruptly, but he had already moved to sit next to Ting Nu, studying the soul within the crystal bottle together.

"You..." she didn’t know what to say.

Liu Yihuan ignored her, reached for the bottle, and gently shook it; the colorful specks of light inside also shook, shimmering beautifully. He watched it for a while, then said with a smile, "I say, girl, have you been deceived? Could this thing possibly be a soul?"

His words were like a sudden thunderclap on a clear day, startling Xuanji until she felt dizzy, her voice trembling as she said, "What... what do you mean? Isn’t that Linglong’s soul?"

Liu Yihuan shrugged his shoulders, "As far as I know, a human soul does not look like this. This type of colorful, light soul belongs only to animals. I’m not very knowledgeable in this area, though; you should ask Ting Nu. He knows."

Xuanji looked blankly at Ting Nu who seemed somewhat reluctant but finally nodded and said softly, "Xuanji, this definitely cannot be Linglong’s soul. A human soul appears flame-like; this soul, as I see it, seems like the essence soul of common wild grass and flowers... The plants absorb the essence of heaven and earth to grow, so their colors are varied... Human souls have only one color."

Xuanji’s head spun, darkness swirling before her eyes, her legs softened, and she knelt on the ground. The experiences at Buzhou Mountain flowed past like water in her mind. Why did Wu Tong remove Linglong’s soul so easily, why did he bring Chen Minjue out as well... It was all a trap! He agreed too easily to return Linglong’s soul, which should have made them suspicious, but bringing Chen Minjue along made it credible that the bottle indeed contained Linglong’s soul.

Then he played a little trick, making them feel he was suspicious, naturally diverting their attention away from the authenticity of the soul. In fact, from the very beginning, he never believed in Zhong Minyan and Ruo Yu! He lost nothing and deceitfully gained two individuals to serve him!

Xuanji felt more and more terrified, her limbs ice-cold.

The two people opposite her saw her dispirited look and couldn’t bear it. Liu Yihuan sighed, "Little Xuanji, you needn’t be sad. Linglong’s soul will be retrieved eventually, if not this time, then the next. You young people, just starting out in the world, are greenhorns and it’s normal to be deceived. Being tricked once or twice will teach you to be smarter!"

Xuanji shook her head miserably, her face pale. This time, they had lost, completely lost, and the loss was tragic. They had even nearly lost their lives. In the end, they had gained nothing at all.

Ting Nu said softly, "You haven’t seen a person’s life soul before, so being fooled is no big deal. How about this, next time I will go with you to Buzhou Mountain to negotiate. I can tell at a glance whether the soul they bring out is Linglong’s or not."

Upon hearing that he was finally willing to accompany them, Xuanji couldn’t help but wearily wipe her face and slowly nodded.

Liu Yihuan nodded, "Right, I will also join you. There’s not much fun staying in Qingyang for long. The courtesans in other houses should be prettier..."

After speaking, he suddenly remembered something and asked, "What about Little Phoenix? Did he not come along?"

Xuanji replied in a low voice, "Si Feng... he’s been seriously injured and cannot travel. I’ve arranged for someone to take care of him; he’s staying in Germu."

Liu Yihuan abruptly stood up, anxiously exclaiming, "You really are foolish! How could you leave him alone in that place?! Don’t you know that because of the mask issue, he has already become a target in the eyes of many at Lize Palace?!"

Xuanji was greatly alarmed yet still confused, and had to ask, "What mask? He... he didn’t tell me anything about it."

Liu Yihuan was so frustrated he itched to give her a beating to wake up that wooden-headed brain.

He said sternly, "His mask is made from Kunlun Divine Wood and is under a Lover’s Curse. Only the destined person can lift the mask, and when the mask smiles upon being lifted, the spell is broken. You lifted his mask for no reason, yet the spell wasn’t broken. Under such circumstances, he would be severely punished in Lize Palace! They must have been constantly looking for an opportunity to take him away and held back only because you were there. Now that you left and he has been injured, isn’t he like a turtle in a jar, completely at their mercy?!"

Xuanji was shocked. She leapt to her feet from the ground, turned, and ran out of the house, oblivious to the greetings of the old madam and courtesans below. In a blink, she had disappeared outside the door.

Liu Yihuan hurriedly pushed Ting Nu to follow and shouted, "Wait! I’m coming too!"

With those words, he dashed out of the brothel’s main gate, as fast as lightning that doesn’t cover one’s ears, causing everyone to stare at the trailing dust in a daze. It took a good while before the old madam reacted and realized that the silver he had recklessly spent over the past few months at the brothel was dodged again. Naturally, the bitter and resentful curses that followed need no further mention. (To be continued. To know what happens next, please visit www.qidian.com. More Chapters available there. Support the author, support genuine reading!)