"May I ask... are you Xia Jingzhi?"
"That is Xia himself."
From within the mass of black beetles came Xia Jingzhi's icy, emotionless voice.
Tu Yue looked suspicious, but his tone softened somewhat. "Could I trouble Mr. Xia to reveal his true form? Now that you have the secret beetles of Southern Border Insect Valley protecting you... I won't disperse my divine sense to investigate."
"What if an outsider is impersonating me? What then?"
As soon as Tu Yue finished speaking, the mass of black beetles shifted. It split open, revealing one figure within, but the other figures did not show themselves.
Tu Yue narrowed his eyes and looked over. He saw that Xia Jingzhi was tall, yet unnaturally thin. His face was pale—pale as a corpse.
There was no luster in his eyes. What filled them instead was a gray-white deathly air.
Such a "person" had completely lost his vital essence and spirit. He could no longer even be considered human.
No wonder the Crow called the people of Southern Border Insect Valley demons, one after another.
A stiff smile appeared on Xia Jingzhi's pale, bloodless face. "You and I both serve the Third Prince. We should have met long ago, but because of my special identity, we have only met today. It truly pains me that we met so late."
Tu Yue had seen Xia Jingzhi's portrait in Lin Bai's hands. Now that he had confirmed his identity, he smiled as well. "I have long heard of Brother Xia's great name. Meeting you today is truly a blessing earned over three lifetimes."
Xia Jingzhi said, "It is inconvenient for me to stay out for long this time. I wonder whether Brother Tu truly has the Soul-less Spirit Bloom?"
"If you do, what price are you planning to sell