Soaring Dragon Empire's Recruitment
Qin Shiyue suppressed the emotions in her heart and sighed softly instead. "I heard about it. Elder sister was heartbroken too. But what I need to discuss is quite important as well. I hope little sister can listen to me properly..."
Ji Hongxue had no way to refuse and nodded.
The two of them took their seats.
Only then did An Bulang begin sizing up the Grand Princess of the Soaring Dragon Empire.
She wore a short white dress like goose feathers, showing off her lovely figure. Her fair, slender legs were pressed tightly together and angled to one side, reflecting a faint sheen beneath the firelight. Her hair was pinned up, adorned with a jade hairpin glowing with golden light. Her nose stood tall, her features were exquisite, and her slender neck traced a beautiful curve. As she looked at Ji Hongxue, her eyes naturally revealed the pride and nobility of one accustomed to standing above others.
If Ji Hongxue's arrogance was put on, then Qin Shiyue's arrogance flowed from her very bones.
Her looks were not bad. An Bulang silently gave the woman two points in his heart.
Qin Shiyue first exchanged a few pleasantries with Ji Hongxue without mentioning anything important. Then she suddenly turned her gaze toward An Bulang beside Ji Hongxue. "Oh? Young man, why aren't you sitting?"
She revealed a gentle, approachable smile. "If you have nowhere to sit, you can sit over here with elder sister."
The woman sat upright. Her snowy legs, pressed closely together, shifted unconsciously, seeming to reveal a trace of springtime scenery that flickered in and out of view, as though she trusted someone completely and did not care about such matters at all.
"No need. I just ate my fill, and sitting down wouldn't help my digestion." An Bulang declined with clear eyes.
Qin Shiyue smiled. "That works too. I heard earlier that there was a genius cultivator by Ji Hongxue's side named An Bulang. That must be you. Now that I see you today, you truly are a fine talent, peerless in both character and appearance."
"Anything else?" An Bulang asked.
Qin Shiyue froze. "Hm? What?"
"Do you have any more compliments for me?" An Bulang asked.
Qin Shiyue: "..."
Was he really this shameless?
"Big Sister Shiyue, if you have something to say, just say it. I'm very busy," Ji Hongxue said, already somewhat impatient.
Qin Shiyue smiled softly. "The Soaring Dragon Empire has been short on talented people lately. I heard that Little Sister Hongxue has a rare talent at her side, so I came to ask whether Little Sister Hongxue would be willing to part with him despite the pain..."
As she spoke, her beautiful eyes fell upon An Bulang.
Ji Hongxue was stunned. She had thought the other woman had come for her, but she had not expected Qin Shiyue to be here to poach An Bulang instead!
An Bulang pointed at himself. "You want me?"
Qin Shiyue nodded with a smile.
"Outrageous! You're poaching people right under my nose?" Ji Hongxue's pretty face flushed red as she rose to her feet in anger.
Qin Shiyue, however, remained calm and composed, as though victory was already in her grasp. "This is fair competition. In the end, it depends on Young Master An Bulang's wishes, doesn't it?"
Ji Hongxue was left speechless, and her gaze dimmed afterward.
Qin Shiyue was right. Whether An Bulang stayed or left was not something she could decide. She and An Bulang did not have any clearly defined relationship at all.
Seeing Ji Hongxue's expression, Qin Shiyue's lips curled up slightly. Then she looked at An Bulang and said, "Fellow Daoist An Bulang, you must understand the current situation as well. The Soaring Dragon Empire is determined to claim the Azure Kingdom. No one can stop us. There is truly no need for you to hang yourself from a single tree."
An Bulang was not surprised that Qin Shiyue addressed him as Fellow Daoist.
Qin Shiyue was also a cultivator, and a Profound Body Eighth Layer cultivator at that. Her strength was exceptionally formidable even across the entire Azure Kingdom.
"I know you concealed your cultivation. You were able to kill an elder of the Other Shore Pavilion. No matter what means you used to kill him, you are remarkable." Qin Shiyue stood and walked before An Bulang, her face wearing an unhurried smile. "So you should be a smart person too, someone who understands what to choose and what to abandon."
An Bulang nodded, indicating that she had praised him well.
"People climb toward higher ground. Cultivators should be even more so." A trace of pride gradually surfaced on Qin Shiyue's face. "Take the Azure Kingdom, for example. Its territory spans three million square li. Among the many surrounding kingdoms, it can be called the foremost. You must think this country is very large too, right?"
"Very small," An Bulang said.
"Uh!" Qin Shiyue paused.
She drew a deep breath and continued, "But the Soaring Dragon Empire spans over ten million square li. It has incomparably prosperous cities, cultivation sects that have developed to dazzling heights, and mighty cultivators of the Heavenly Origin Realm presiding over it. If you remain in the Azure Kingdom, all you can see is a lake. But in the Soaring Dragon Empire, you can see a true sea. That is where you belong!"
Qin Shiyue gazed at An Bulang, the pride and sharpness in her eyes growing ever stronger. "The imperial family of the Soaring Dragon Empire is powerful beyond your imagination. So do not delay your bright future over the affairs of some tiny kingdom. Pledging allegiance to the imperial family of the Soaring Dragon Empire is the proper path. I can give you resources beyond your imagination. Whatever Ji Hongxue can give you, the Soaring Dragon Empire can give you tenfold, a hundredfold!"
With every sentence Qin Shiyue spoke, Ji Hongxue's face grew a shade paler.
"Pfft..." An Bulang could not hold it in any longer and burst out laughing.
Qin Shiyue was taken aback. "What are you laughing at?"
An Bulang looked at the woman before him, whose eyes brimmed with pride, and smiled. "Do you know what you look like to me right now?"
Qin Shiyue said, "Like what?"
An Bulang shook his head. "Like a frog sitting in a well, endlessly boasting to a great roc soaring through the nine heavens about how huge its well is, how much larger it is than the little frog next door's well."
Ji Hongxue's face was filled with shock.
Qin Shiyue's face darkened completely. The warm smile from before vanished without a trace as she said coldly, "What do you mean by that?"
An Bulang did not answer. He silently pushed open the reception hall's doors and gazed at the star-filled sky.
Qin Shiyue looked at An Bulang's back, waiting for his explanation.
"The great roc did not wish to speak, and gave the frog only its back," An Bulang's voice suddenly came.
Ji Hongxue: "..."
Qin Shiyue: "???"
The air suddenly fell silent.
Boom!
An incomparably dense killing intent erupted.
Veins bulged on Qin Shiyue's forehead. Her fury was nearly impossible to suppress as she clenched her fists. "An! Bu! Lang! Are you saying I'm a frog?"
In all her life, no one had ever dared look down on her like this.
An Bulang sighed. Too lazy to continue tangling with her, he said directly, "Leave. I refuse your invitation."
"Good! Very good!" Qin Shiyue took a deep breath, her eyes turning icy cold. "You do not even place the Soaring Dragon Empire in your eyes... I have seen many with extraordinary talent, but this is the first time I have seen someone as arrogantly ignorant as you."
Qin Shiyue strode on her long legs, passed An Bulang, and walked out the door. "The ignorant know no fear. I already gave you a chance to live, but you abandoned it. Next, you will see the consequences of standing in the Soaring Dragon Empire's way."
With that, the Grand Princess of the Soaring Dragon Empire drifted away proudly, too disdainful to say another word.
"An Bulang..."
Behind him came a call laden with complicated emotions.
An Bulang turned around and saw the woman quietly watching him. Her red lips were pursed, and her eyes seemed to ripple with autumn waters.
An Bulang moved, instantly arriving before Ji Hongxue. One arm wrapped around her slender waist as he leaned his face slightly closer, close enough to catch the faint, elegant fragrance of her body. "Hm? You're looking at me with such deep affection. Do you want to do something?"