In the end, Qian Ying did not continue probing and left with Zhou Zixing.
Before leaving, however, he looked back at Chen Mo. His gaze lingered on Chen Mo for a moment, then swept over Ouyang Ruo Xi before finally settling on their clasped hands.
His eyes held scrutiny, speculation, and a hint of something indescribable.
Chen Mo noticed, but he did not respond. He merely watched calmly as Qian Ying turned away.
"The way he looked at you was a little off." Standing beside Chen Mo, Ouyang Ruo Xi kept her voice low enough for only the two of them to hear. "He may already suspect that you are not at the Houtian Stage, but the Xiantian Realm."
Ouyang Ruo Xi was no fool. To become the acting Clan Leader of the Ouyang Family at her age, she had relied on more than just her birthright. Qian Ying's glance had seemed casual, but it concealed too much—the vigilance of a hunter spotting prey, and the scrutiny of a chess player noticing an unexpected variable.
Chen Mo merely smiled as he watched Qian Ying and Zhou Zixing walk away.
"It's fine," Chen Mo said. "Suspicion is not certainty. As long as he does not personally make a move, it will remain suspicion. And if he really does fight me and finds out what my strength truly is, that is fine too. So what if he knows?"
He spoke lightly, as if they were discussing the weather rather than his own secret.
Although Ouyang Ruo Xi nodded, she tightened her grip around Chen Mo's hand, her fingertips slightly cold. "A Mo, you still need to be careful. Qian Ying is a Xiantian Third Order Peak Master. What if he suddenly attacks you?"
A Xiantian Third Order Peak expert was a prominent