Chapter 99: The Deal

Gong Shuting followed his subordinate’s pointing finger and looked over. At the edge of the sky, in a patch of gray mist, a faint silhouette seemed to appear. When they entered, their search was rough—each person was checked, anyone found was knocked unconscious, and only when there were too many ninjas gathered did they give up. Mongolian cavalry observed from all directions—east, south, west, north. This time, they did not keep to the edge of the city walls within bow range, but instead watched from a hundred paces outside the moat. Their scope of observation extended beyond this area, expanding outward from the city to roads and fields.

Sifeng Jingyue raised her brows and curled her lips into a cold smile. “Qiao Xinglian, let’s see where you run this time!” With that, she ignored the young noble still speaking to her, turned, and strode away. Yu Wei’s face was ashen; she paid no heed to those around her, staring at Le Bing opposite her, gritting her silver teeth nearly to breaking.

The process and outcome had little to do with the inherent wickedness of human nature. Rather, it was the ill-suited rules that magnified selfish desires and wreaked havoc on the matter itself.

In the distance, the forest was as black as ink. When the wind blew, it rolled the shadows like waves in a sea of darkness, the rustling sound echoing far and wide.

The Dowager Princess’s makeup had always been excessively heavy. Perhaps the cosmetics of this era lacked refinement, for the makeup appeared coarse; even the less coarse attempts seemed dry, likely because the powder was not fine or moist enough.

Mao Leyan did not know how to defend herself, so she remained silent. What good would explanations do? Everything was already a mistake.

The Empress Dowager was furious. The guards escorted Mao Leyan back to Zhaoyang Palace. Upon hearing this, the Empress Dowager immediately ordered Mao Leyan to be confined to the Cold Palace, awaiting further punishment.

The most wretched soul was already dead, but if she knew this truth, she would surely roar and claw her way back from hell.

Suddenly, the door was flung open. Yu You, frightened, burrowed deep beneath the covers, not daring to look at the person who had brought her back last night.

“I resolutely obey the organization’s decisions. No matter where the organization assigns me, I will work hard and never betray their trust.” The matter was settled; Zhang Jialiang naturally expressed submission.

Lu Yue’e was not one to be trifled with... after such turmoil at home, who could avoid feeling stifled?

When Grandma Ye left, she was deeply worried about Ye Miao. Ye Miao had promised faithfully that, by the time Grandma returned, she would have sold everything here. But Grandma had been gone for a while, and nothing had really moved.

Mo Jiuchen had not yet stepped through the door when he heard even louder knocking than before, and a cold murderous intent flickered in his dark green eyes.

Ou Ting’s smile grew deeper and more enigmatic; he felt as though something was seeping into his heart.

“You...” Gu Jinxi scanned him up and down, but before she could finish her words, the bed beside her suddenly sank.

Anyone who could be called “Ancestor” was rarely easy to deal with—especially someone from the Yan family, who could shelter the entire clan.

In solo competitions, snipers had limited bullets, but Li Hezheng’s shots could not touch Luo Tianhuan. In fact, choosing to fight Luo Tianhuan as a sniper had been a mistake from the start.

Leng Yihan wore a moon-white long robe, his long hair casually pinned with a jade hair stick, falling over his shoulders with elegant poise; Su Luoman donned a pink silk gown, her hair styled in a delicate blend of ancient and modern fashion, adorned with her own beautiful handmade accessories.

At this moment, Rong Yixia thought: Fortunately, Brother Gao mentioned Qingyuan—and she was indeed afraid of Brother Qingyuan. Otherwise, with her inability to lie, wouldn’t she have suffocated herself?

“Ronghua Manor has withdrawn from the martial world for many years, and rarely receives outsiders. Young Master Gao, do you have any thoughts on this?” Su Zige looked at Gao Mohan with keen interest, eager to see just how skillful the legendary first young master of the martial world truly was.

Wulu’s setup was chaotic, but Margus still detected information that could help him guess the situation, though a slight sense of foreboding followed.

“It seems Golden Cicada Sect truly lives up to its reputation—with more than ten Nascent Soul cultivators gathered at once, this force combined could wipe out many formidable sects. Well, lead the way; I want to see this exchange meeting for myself.” Zhang Yi said calmly, then fell silent.

Jin Qing frowned in thought, took the prescription, and struggled to decipher the wild calligraphy. It listed ephedra, cinnamon twig, licorice, and scutellaria, all traditional sweating herbs. But the final ingredient caught Jin Qing’s attention—it was bezoar.

Chang Ning felt her feet were numb from the cold, her body nearly collapsing with exhaustion; making it this far was entirely due to her innate determination.

When she cosplayed as Sakuya and arrived here, she realized her earlier notions were naive. The atmosphere here made even Izayoi Sakuya hesitate! Yet despite her unease, she was confident she could escape if danger arose.

Before him lay countless passageways. None were straight—“winding paths leading to secluded places” was an apt description. Zhang Yi knew one of them must be the route the monstrous insect had taken, but which one, he could not tell.

With these thoughts, he silently recited Buddhist scriptures, spreading his emotions with mental power and casually plucking harmonious notes with his fingers. The air’s ambiance shifted from clear and lonely to distant and tranquil.