Chapter 0.105 – Ren Ci’s Act
The Lord of the Bi Fang Clan chuckled, finding the conversation intriguing. “Fellow Daoist Jia Ren, your ideas are truly unexpected. However, I believe you understand the principle of playing with fire and getting burned.”
“Rest assured, Fellow Daoist. In the end, this Seat will still lean towards your side!”
Ren Ci’s eyes turned cold as she secretly transmitted her thoughts to the Bi Fang Lord: “That guy indeed has what I desire, but I also… truly wish him dead!”
At the same time.
Although Qin Gou had no way of knowing the content of Ren Ci’s private communication with the Bi Fang Lord, a prompt suddenly echoed in his ears from his old pal.
“Ding. Due to the Host’s presence, ‘Dominator of the Ren Clan’ Ren Ci has felt immense shame regarding her own acting skills. Reward: 100 Merit points!”
Qin Gou paused for a moment, sighing inwardly, “Little Ci, that wench…”
This wasn’t the first time Ren Ci’s words and actions didn’t align. The phrase, ‘a goddess of ice on the surface, but a complete mess on the inside,’ was the perfect description for her.
If not for experiencing the true, original ‘Little Ci’ in the Illusory World Cloud Marsh back then, Qin Gou would have found it hard to imagine how sensitive this girl’s mind could be. Her psychological activity was astonishingly rich, and it made him wonder if it was because a naive and cheerful young girl – ‘Ren Su’ – genuinely resided within her heart.
“Then please, proceed.” The Bi Fang Lord gestured towards the main hall. “Our clan’s promise will surely not disappoint Fellow Daoist Jia Ren.”
After a short while, their figures vanished from sight, and Qin Gou could only disperse along with the other clan members present.
Returning to ‘Yan Qihao’s’ cave dwelling.
Yan Ming had disappeared somewhere early in the morning and had not yet returned. Shang Jieyi seemed very curious about the great commotion that had occurred within the Bi Fang clan today, but since Qin Gou didn’t initiate the conversation, she didn’t pry further. After serving her master his meal, she tirelessly practiced controlling the crimson short blade in the courtyard, as if she would never tire.
As dusk settled, the ominous black feathers that had filled the sky, serving only as a threat, suddenly vanished without a trace. Throughout the day, Qin Gou had barely exerted any effort, yet he had accumulated a total of thirty-one thousand Merit points.
Combined with his previous savings, it was already enough for him to directly break through his realm via a power infusion. However, the breakthrough of a Dharma Aspect Realm cultivator was bound to attract some attention, which was why he had temporarily refrained from acting.
“Bang bang bang.”
Suddenly, a knock echoed.
Qin Gou couldn’t help but frown slightly. He clearly heard the knocking, but a scan of his divine sense revealed nothing outside the door.
“Enter.”
As soon as the words left his mouth.
Ren Ci, with her cool demeanor and icy-pure skin and jade-like bones, directly stepped into the room, appearing before Qin Gou.
“You actually dare to come find me so brazenly?” Qin Gou’s expression startled. He quickly noticed that Ren Ci seemed somewhat strange, her entire aura restrained to the extreme. If he closed his eyes at this moment, he wouldn’t be able to detect her presence at all.
“Relax! You must have noticed, this is an special clone I created using my own blood and the Thousand Soul Body. It won’t be exposed so easily.” Ren Ci calmly met Qin Gou’s gaze. “Long time no see, Fellow Daoist, are you well?” With that, she tossed another black feather towards Qin Gou.
Qin Gou nodded slightly, waving his hand to catch the black feather. He originally intended to say that they had only met a month or two ago, but then he remembered that it was Xiao Su who had controlled his body at the time. He also noticed that, for some reason, Ren Ci did not address him as ‘Zhen Yu’ directly as she had in the past.
Ren Ci chuckled playfully. “Your Excellency, a mere human, has come alone to the Beast Land and caused such a stir in the sacred ground of the Fire Crow Bi Fang clan. This Seat truly admires your courage.”
This was even stranger.
Although Ren Ci knew that Qin Gou possessed the dual bloodlines of the Human Race and the Faceless Hermit Clan, she had always viewed him more as a demon. Now, she was acting completely out of character.
Without waiting for Qin Gou’s response, Ren Ci continued, “Also, not long ago, with the help of one of your subordinates, I personally delivered a ‘grand gift’ to the Gu Xi Dynasty. I presume this indirectly helped you avenge your great hatred, didn’t it? You haven’t even properly thanked me once yet?”
This was a complete reversal!
“Fellow Daoist Jia Ren, what exactly do you want to say?” Qin Gou narrowed his eyes.
“Just pointing out the favors this Seat has done for you, Fellow Daoist. Just like just now, didn’t I, putting aside past grievances, help you once again?” Ren Ci lightly chuckled.
Upon hearing this, Qin Gou deliberately followed Ren Ci’s lead, mimicking her somewhat impolite tone. “Ridiculous. You’re using me as a bargaining chip to trade with the Bi Fang Lord. Can that really be considered helping me?”
“Of course.”
Ren Ci said without hesitation, “If I hadn’t appeared, the Bi Fang Lord would have been able to pay a certain price himself and perform divination. Within ten days at most, he would have seen through your true form. I do believe in your strength, Fellow Daoist, and you certainly have ways to escape. You might even leave a very troublesome disaster for the Bi Fang clan before leaving. But since you’ve chosen to conceal your identity, you must have other plans and wouldn’t want to be exposed so quickly, would you?”
Qin Gou raised an eyebrow. “Are you saying you’re willing to help me stall for time?”
“It’s hard to say just yet.” Ren Ci smiled faintly. “This Seat still needs to consider whether the price you’re willing to pay will satisfy me. In any case, the Bi Fang Lord seems to have already placed quite a bit of trust in this Seat!”
“Then what exactly do you want?” Qin Gou asked coldly.
“Such a simple question, Fellow Daoist, can’t you figure it out?” Ren Ci pouted and smiled. “Why must you… pretend to be ignorant?”
Old Qin felt extremely depressed. All he knew now was that Little Ci’s acting was really good lately!
At the same time, within the main hall of the Bi Fang clan.
Ren Ci’s true body stood shoulder to shoulder with the Bi Fang Lord, both staring intently at a massive spiritual power scroll before them.
The image displayed within was everything that had been discussed between Ren Ci’s clone and Qin Gou since they made contact! This included Qin Gou’s recent act of freely controlling the ‘Calamity Heavenly Feather.’
However, regarding Qin Gou’s location and his current appearance, both were intentionally shrouded in a hazy mist. Even his voice had been altered with special modulation, making it still difficult for the Bi Fang Lord to discern his true identity.
“Now, Fellow Daoist Yan, do you still question this Seat’s abilities?”
Ren Ci lightly gestured towards Qin Gou in the scroll, her eyes fixed on the Bi Fang Lord, and said with a meaningful smile, “You see, this fool clearly trusts this Seat completely and is on his side!”
