The sky was clear and the air crisp that day, a gentle breeze blowing softly; the inn was perfectly tranquil.
Yuan Yizhi, leader of the Flower Fruit Society, stood guard outside the door, his old face solemn.
Yuan Mengji sat in the room, patiently coaxing him. "You truly have nothing to worry about. At least one-sixth of Cloud-Brushing City bears the surname Yuan. That Crimson Moon King can keep herself hidden, but once she leaves a trace, I have a hundred ways to deal with her. If all else fails, I can ask my grandfather to intervene. To tell you the truth, I invited you here merely to make use of your name, so that Lu Qilang fellow won't keep yapping. You have neither family nor connections, yet rose suddenly to prominence—so naturally, you must have secretly received some inheritance, and happened to possess something capable of killing Snake Guyu... That makes perfect sense, doesn't it?"
Chai Asi's heart tightened.
Yuan Mengji's final words carried more than a hint of threat.
Before participating in the Golden Sun Terrace Martial Tournament, he had already sorted out the thread of his cultivation history. Like his grandfather's deliberately weathered spirit tablet, he had touched up the past, ensuring that everything which had happened before could be traced back to something—
For instance, the swordsmanship and body-tempering art he cultivated had both been accidentally obtained by his grandfather while scouring for old books in his early years. As for where he had found them, or how he had managed to pick up such priceless manuals for a bargain... his grandfather was already dead, and he himself did not know the details.
He had never had many friends before, keeping to himself in solitude. That had given him time to hide in his own little