Rebirth: The Time-locked Girl
Chapter 178 Ye Wanlan and the Xiang Family’s relationship! [2 more]

Chapter 178: 178 Ye Wanlan and the Xiang Family’s relationship! [2 more]

It was precisely because of the darkness that Curator Xiang saw another side to this dagger.

Moonlight poured down, passing through the hollow handle of the dagger, casting a pattern on the ground that resembled some sort of astral chart.

With a flick of Ye Wanlan’s wrist, the pattern on the ground shifted and glowed brightly.

"This this this..." Curator Xiang was shocked. "Isn’t this the dagger made by the King of Yan? You entered the Qianyuan Treasury?"

The reason Xiang Lefeng couldn’t take the dagger back was that when he got the news, the dagger had already been delivered into the Qianyuan Treasury.

How could it now appear here?

"I only planned to wander around, and fortunately found an entrance to an underground passage." Ye Wanlan said calmly, "Then I saw my dagger and took it out along the way."

Curator Xiang: "..."

Would he believe such a story?

Only a fool would!

The method to open the Qianyuan Treasury had been passed down from generation to generation by the Elders of the Xiang Family.

And to ensure absolute safety, each of the seven elders controlled only one checkpoint.

Therefore, opening the Qianyuan Treasury required the presence of all the elders.

How then could Ye Wanlan, on her own, not only open the Qianyuan Treasury but also come out unscathed?

Curator Xiang stared at Ye Wanlan, feeling extremely frustrated. After struggling internally for a while, he still couldn’t hold back: "You know how to get into the Qianyuan Treasury?!"

No sooner had he spoken than he suddenly remembered Ye Wanlan saying she came to Yunjing to clean house, and then Xiang Yannan ended up unconscious in the hospital.

Could it be that she was actually a member of the Xiang Family?!

But if the Xiang Family had someone like Ye Wanlan, how could he possibly not know?

At this moment, Curator Xiang’s mind was in total chaos, his logic completely lost.

Ye Wanlan ripped off the label from the dagger and tossed it casually into the bushes: "This label should have a tracking chip. Once they notice the dagger is missing from the Qianyuan Treasury, they will find their way here. Curator, let’s leave first."

"Ah? Oh oh..." Poor Curator Xiang, still dazed, was pulled away from the scene by Ye Wanlan.

It was also at this exact moment, just as Ye Wanlan had predicted, that the guards watching over the Qianyuan Treasury noticed that the dagger was no longer inside.

This had never happened before and they didn’t know what to do, so they hurried to report to their superiors.

"Fourth Elder, there’s been a problem!" The Chief Guard was in a panic. "Just now, the King of Yan’s dagger has gone missing!"

"What?!" Fourth Elder uttered incredulously, "The dagger is missing?"

The members of the Elders Council weren’t all present, so the Qianyuan Treasury couldn’t be opened. How could the dagger possibly have vanished without a trace?

The Qianyuan Treasury, although it didn’t make use of any modern technology, was impenetrable with its layers of mechanical traps and countless pitfalls, coupled with the Eight Trigrams Formation. Even the most elite criminal gangs in the world couldn’t get in.

Because the Qianyuan Treasury was so secure, the Xiang Family had never thought to install any surveillance system inside.

Now that the dagger had suddenly disappeared without leaving behind a single suspect.

"It’s absolutely true, Fourth Elder." The Chief Guard was very anxious. "The label attached to the dagger was torn off; we found it in the bushes, but there’s no one at the scene and no footprints were left."

"Who has visited the Xiang Family today, and where’s the surveillance?" Fourth Elder demanded angrily.

"Today..." Steward Xiang was having a hard time, "only Young Master Yan came..."

"It must have been them!" Fourth Elder said through clenched teeth. "Send the guard team immediately, arrest them!"

Steward Xiang was startled: "Fourth Elder, that Young Master Yan is Young Master Shaoyu’s good friend, without evidence to act rashly..."

"Who else came to the Xiang Family openly demanding the dagger today?" Fourth Elder retorted, "I think they used a diversionary tactic, with him attracting our attention in the front hall so that his accomplice could take action."

But how exactly did this accomplice enter the Qianyuan Treasury?

Fourth Elder didn’t show it on his face, but his heart was already churning with tumultuous waves.

If the method of opening the Qianyuan Treasury had been deciphered by outsiders, it would be a devastating blow to the Xiang Family!

They must deal with this person before he could sleep soundly.

As Fourth Elder spoke, Steward Xiang hesitated: "Could it be wrong..."

"Shaoyu hasn’t taken the position of family head yet; he’s bound to have moments of misjudgment." Fourth Elder said coldly, "Before the family head transition, we should get rid of these fair-weather friends! Guard team, keep those people detained."

Footsteps sounded, and in less than ten seconds, the front hall had been surrounded by an entire guard team.

Xiang Lefeng stood up abruptly: "What do you think you’re doing?!"

"Fourth Elder’s orders, to capture the thief," the Chief Guard said coldly. "Young Master Yuefeng, please step aside so you’re not hurt. It wouldn’t be easy for us to explain that."

"This is absolute nonsense!" Xiang Lefeng was infuriated. "Tingfeng has been sitting here in peace, how could he be a thief? What did he steal?"

"The dagger has disappeared, and he knows it well," chuckled the Chief Guard coldly. "If you’ve stolen from the Xiang Family, don’t think about leaving!"

Xiang Yuefeng was also startled, "The dagger is gone?"

"How noisy." Yan Tingfeng finally opened his eyes, stood up, and smiled faintly, "The dagger was never yours to begin with."

"Crafted by the King of Yan, how is it not the Xiang Family’s, enough talk, hand it over—"

The words of the Chief Guard were not yet finished when Yan Tingfeng’s figure had already vanished from view, leaving only the cup of hot tea still emitting wisps of steam.

"..."

The entire front hall fell silent.

No one saw how Yan Tingfeng left the scene; they only felt a gust of wind sweep by, and then he was gone.

What kind of skill was this?

After the Chief Guard rushed out, there was no one outside, and the surveillance at all four gates of the Xiang Family mansion captured no trace of Yan Tingfeng.

It was as if, within the Xiang Family, he could easily enter and leave without a shadow or trace.

The expression of the Fourth Elder changed, "Qinggong?"

Even though Jianghu had crumbled and martial artists were in decline, there was still a portion of martial arts heritage passed down, it was just not made public to the entire world.

The Xiang Family stood unshaken for a century also because they held many exclusive martial arts secrets.

But such Qinggong, the Fourth Elder had only seen mentioned in historical records.

The history books recorded that on New Year’s Eve of 1715 in the Shenzhou Calendar, the Six Great Villains of Jianghu ambushed the Master of Highest Heaven Tower, but never saw him, only heard the sound of his flute from afar and then near, before fading into the distance. They all died on that night.

Not even leaving a single footprint on the three feet of thick snow demonstrated that the Master of Highest Heaven Tower’s Qinggong was unmatched and unpredictable.

The Fourth Elder’s expression grew more stern, "Return first, check if anyone else entered the Xiang Family today, scrutinize everything. Let’s not pursue this Young Master Yan any further."

"But Fourth Elder, if the dagger indeed was taken by him..." Steward Xiang ventured to ask, "Are we not going to investigate it?"

The Fourth Elder was silent for a moment, then slowly spoke, "This matter will have to wait until the other Elders and Young Master Shaoyu return to be decided."

He was already feeling some regret at this moment, wondering why he had been so impulsive earlier.

If he had known in advance that Young Master Shaoyu’s friend was endowed with inner strength and possessed Qinggong, he certainly would not have acted rashly.

**

On their part, Yan Tingfeng, accompanying Xiang Yuefeng, had already met up with Ye Wanlan at a coffee shop.

He sat down, "Did you get it?"

"Mhm." Ye Wanlan nodded, "They didn’t pay any attention to the Qianyuan Treasury, thanks for your trouble."

"No trouble at all." Yan Tingfeng blinked and chuckled lightly, "I’ve said before, anything I have can be shared with Miss Ye, and if Miss Ye needs help, I will assist. Besides, it’s just a trifle."

Xiang Yuefeng had also followed out and after hearing this conversation, he pondered for a moment before it dawned on him. He was astonished, "You were so fierce in the front hall just to draw the attention of the Xiang Family?"

"Fierce?" Yan Tingfeng, holding the teacup, said, "I think I’ve already learned to be quite gentle."

Xiang Yuefeng: "..."

Putting on such a display as soon as he entered the Xiang Family and that wasn’t fierce?

"Curator Xiang invited me to attend the auction, I will stay in Yunjing for another two days." Ye Wanlan asked, "How about you?"

"No hurry." Yan Tingfeng smiled slightly, "I’ve been on holiday recently, I can accompany you."

"You really got the dagger?" Xiang Yuefeng noticed the dagger in Ye Wanlan’s hand, "You, you, you went into the Qianyuan Treasury? That’s unscientific!"

"There are many unscientific things in the world, see enough of them, and you get used to it." Ye Wanlan said, "I’m going back to the hotel, remember to take your medicine on time."

Yan Tingfeng nodded in agreement, his eyes tender.

"I find something strange, even I am not clear on the methods of the Qianyuan Treasury." Xiang Yuefeng mused, "It’s said to use highly advanced Qimen Dunjia along with the Eight Trigrams Formation and Mechanical Techniques. How could Miss Ye know all these? Doesn’t that strike you as odd?"

"Why is it odd?" Yan Tingfeng suddenly smiled, "Don’t you want to know what else she can do? I find it very interesting."

"No no no, that’s not what I mean." Xiang Yuefeng became anxious, "I mean, does she have some connection with my Xiang Family? Otherwise, her skills in using Mechanical Techniques have surpassed even my ancestors."

Yan Tingfeng paused, then turned his head, "I take back my words."

"What words?"

"Comparing you to Rong Yu wasn’t right, you’re a little smarter than him."

Xiang Yuefeng: "..."

Was that a compliment or an insult?

Yan Tingfeng quietly gazed out the window for a few seconds, his voice faint, "Fourth Elder, can be replaced."

If the Xiang Family won’t change, he will.