Lu Ming looked utterly unconcerned. "How could robbing people make money this fast?"
"Besides, His Highness the Crown Prince, do you understand what kind of place Jixia Academy is? It's a sacred land hidden from the world!"
"If you want Jixia Academy to make an exception for you, how can you do it without paying a price? Besides, my 'friend' has quite the appetite. Out of these ten million, I still have to use some to grease the wheels."
Lu Ming spoke with perfect justification, as though he were doing something exceptionally righteous.
Xue Qinghe stared fixedly at Lu Ming, her chest heaving violently.
She desperately wanted to turn around and leave, never to deal with this insatiable bastard again.
But...
Those brutal simulated scenes surfaced in her mind once more.
If she did not form an alliance, if she did not change her fate, she would die.
Even her divine position would shatter, and she would be erased by that supreme being.
Even as the Young Master of Spirit Hall, this sum would leave her badly wounded financially, painful enough to make her bleed.
But compared to her life and future, money was ultimately just a worldly possession.
"Whew..."
Xue Qinghe slowly exhaled, and her gaze gradually hardened.
As long as she could change her fate, as long as she could get close to that mysterious Dean and supreme being, all of this would be worth it.
"Fine!"
The word seemed to have been forced through clenched teeth.
"I agree!"
Xue Qinghe felt as if her heart were bleeding.
She took an exquisitely crafted Soul Tool from her robes and slammed it heavily onto the stone table.
"There are three million Gold Soul Coins inside. Consider it the deposit."
She looked at Lu Ming, her eyes filled with pain and warning. "As for the remaining seven million, the amount is too large. I didn't bring that much with me, so I'll need to draw from the treasury or raise the funds."
Lu Ming did not even glance at the Soul Tool. He merely nodded with a smile. "His Highness the Crown Prince is certainly forthright."
Xue Qinghe did not want to stay another moment. Every time she looked at Lu Ming, she felt like a complete sucker.
"Once this is done, not only will I deliver the remaining seven million with both hands, but..."
Xue Qinghe gritted her teeth. To ensure that Lu Ming would truly give it his all, she raised the stakes again.
"As long as you arrange everything properly, you may choose any beauty I keep in my residence! Whatever kind you want, I'll send them to you!"
After saying that, she shot Lu Ming a vicious glare.
"I hope Brother Lu Ming won't take the money and fail to do the job. Make the arrangements quickly!"
With that, Xue Qinghe turned and left, walking so quickly it was as if some terrible beast were chasing her.
Watching Xue Qinghe's somewhat disheveled retreating figure, the smile on Lu Ming's face gradually faded.
He did not touch the Soul Tool containing the massive sum of three million.
With the entire Jixia Academy system at his disposal, wealth beyond that of a nation, this money was nothing more than a number to him.
Everything just now—whether his greed for wealth or lust for women—had merely been an act put on for Qian Renxue.
Only by making her believe he was a greedy, lecherous scoundrel would she lower her guard and think she could control him.
Lu Ming lightly rubbed the rim of his teacup, his gaze profound as he looked in the direction Qian Renxue had vanished, muttering to himself.
"Qian Renxue, you're willing to pay such an enormous price just to get close to Jixia Academy..."
"What exactly are you trying to do?"
As Qian Renxue's somewhat panicked figure completely disappeared from sight, the frivolous smile on Lu Ming's face vanished in an instant.
"Come out."
Lu Ming spoke softly to the seemingly empty air at his side.
The moment his words fell, the surrounding space seemed to distort slightly.
Crack.
A crisp sound, like a mirror shattering, rang through the air.
Countless tiny, gleaming fragments appeared from nowhere and swiftly gathered into the form of a tall, cold, stunning woman.
She had neat short hair and wore tight leather clothing that outlined her breathtaking curves. Several floating prisms surrounded her, and her entire body radiated an icy aura that kept strangers away.
She was Mirror, the Shadow Hunter of Jixia Academy's Law Enforcement Hall.
Mirror dropped to one knee, her expression respectful. Her eyes, which seemed capable of seeing through people's hearts, were lowered.
"Dean."
Lu Ming did not turn around. His gaze remained fixed in the direction where the person called "Xue Qinghe" had departed.
"Keep an eye on him."
Lu Ming's voice was calm, yet carried an unquestionable authority.
"Wherever he goes, whoever he meets, whatever he says—I want to know every detail."
Although Qian Renxue had currently been thoroughly fooled by him, the Young Master of Spirit Hall was deeply calculating and far from easy to deal with.
One must always be on guard against others.
Mirror did not hesitate in the slightest, nor did she ask why.
"Yes."
As that single word fell, her body transformed into countless shattered mirror shards once more and dissolved into the air, as though she had never appeared at all.
After Mirror left, Gongsun Li, who had been standing behind Lu Ming all this time, finally could not hold herself back.
She walked lightly to stand before Lu Ming. Her peach-blossom eyes, usually always smiling, now held a distinct trace of resentment.
"The Dean certainly has impressive methods."
The Flower Parasol in Gongsun Li's hand slowly spun, her tone sour.
"Not only did you take someone's enormous payment, you were flirting with His Highness the Crown Prince, and you even wanted to use your 'horse riding skill'?"
She deliberately emphasized the words "horse riding skill," clearly having heard Lu Ming teasing Qian Renxue earlier.
"What? Is A Li jealous?"
Lu Ming turned around, looked at the little rabbit throwing a tantrum before him, and gently flicked her pert nose.
Gongsun Li gave a soft snort and turned her head away to avoid his hand, but her body did not move an inch.
"A Li wouldn't dare be jealous of the Dean. A Li is only worried that the Crown Prince is so fair and delicate. Though he's a man, who knows? Perhaps the Dean likes that sort of thing?"
As she said this, she seemed to think of something and looked at Lu Ming warily.
"Dean, you aren't actually interested in men, are you? If you dare like men, A Li will drive every male student out of this academy!"
Lu Ming could not help laughing.
This girl's way of thinking was as bizarre as ever.
"What nonsense are you thinking?"
Lu Ming withdrew his hand and looked toward the shimmering lake in the distance.
"That Xue Qinghe is no ordinary man."
"More than that, he isn't a man at all."
Gongsun Li froze. Her large eyes blinked, filled with confusion.
"Not a man? Then she is..."
Lu Ming did not explain.
"The good show has only just begun."
Outside Heaven Dou City, on a secluded official road.
An ordinary-looking carriage raced along the road.
Inside the carriage, Qian Renxue, having removed her disguise, sat upright with an expression too complicated to decipher.
She gently touched her slightly burning cheek, while Lu Ming's aggressive words and actions kept replaying in her mind.
That bastard!
He actually dared to put his hands on her!
If it had been in the past, the grass on the grave of any man who dared put a hand on her shoulder would already be three feet tall.
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