"Senior... you're awake..."
Su Fan's voice carried a faint, barely perceptible tension. This time, he no longer deliberately pretended not to recognize her, but bluntly exposed her identity.
He knew how perceptive the woman before him was. Continuing to put on an act would only seem deliberate and affected, so he might as well admit it openly.
The Old Witch's eyes had only just opened and still held a trace of sleepiness. At his words, she clearly froze for a moment. Her long lashes trembled twice, and then she let out a low, amused chuckle.
There was not the slightest trace of Baleful Qi in her laughter. Instead, it concealed a hint of knowing mockery, as if she had long since seen through his earlier disguise but had simply been too lazy to expose him.
"You're not pretending anymore..."
Her voice was hoarse from just waking, yet every word was clear. It sounded teasing, but also as if she accepted his frankness.
A trace of embarrassment flitted across Su Fan's face. The corners of his mouth pulled into an awkward smile as he slowly shook his head, unable to hide the unease in his eyes.
Having one's little thoughts exposed was never a pleasant feeling.
Especially when the person exposing them was the unfathomable Old Witch before him. That made him even more uncomfortable.
Suppressing the awkwardness in his heart, Su Fan steadied himself and told the Old Witch every detail of the Great World's organization of the Dao Assembly, from its causes and consequences to the entire chain of events.
The Old Witch listened quietly without interrupting once. The sleepiness in her eyes gradually faded, replaced by utter indifference.
Only after Su Fan finished did she slowly speak. Her voice was so calm that it held not a ripple,