Qian Renxue's Covert Actions

As the silhouette of Bibi Dong, clutching the food box and fleeing in a disheveled panic, vanished into the night, the Library Pavilion fell silent once more.

Su Chen withdrew his gaze and, with unhurried movements, reached out to brush away the scattered wood shavings from the tea table.

The taste of that bowl of mush, a concoction of charcoal and fishy odors, still left a nauseating sensation in his stomach.

Just as he leaned back into the repaired bamboo chair, the edge of the light screen for the Eye of Omniscience deep within his mind suddenly flickered.

The golden dot representing Qian Renxue was pulsing at an incredibly high frequency.

Opening the panel, the emotional metrics displayed a volatile mix of extreme irritation and resentment, with a faint underlying trend of being on the verge of an explosion.

At the same time, within the inner city of Martial Soul City, at the Young Master Palace.

Qian Renxue slammed a palm onto the mahogany table, making the teacups jump.

"A total curfew? To protect that useless waste, she's even willing to throw away the dignity of Martial Soul Hall!"

Qian Renxue felt a stifling pressure in her chest from the rage.

Having to comb the hair of a servant last night was humiliation enough, and combined with Bibi Dong's frantic lockdown order this morning, her proud self-esteem felt as though it were being ground into the dirt.

Just then, a glaring scarlet notification popped up before her eyes.

The cold, mechanical voice lacked even a trace of emotional fluctuation:

[Ding! Advanced task triggered: Secretly collect ten unknown details about Su Chen to deepen your understanding.]

[Task Reward: Six-Winged Angel Martial Soul resonance +5%!]

Qian Renxue's breath hitched. She glared at the words "secretly collect," and the sheer absurdity of it made her laugh in anger.

Secretly collect?

Is this broken system asking her, the dignified Young Master of Martial Soul Hall and Crown Prince of the Heaven Dou Empire, to engage in such petty, underhanded skullduggery?!

She nearly ground her teeth to dust.

But the temptation of an "increase in Martial Soul resonance" was simply too lethal.

At her level, even a 1% increase in the resonance of her Angel Martial Soul was harder to achieve than ten years of bitter cultivation.

Furthermore, if she could get a handle on this waste, she wouldn't just complete this damn task—she could also fiercely reclaim her standing in front of Bibi Dong!

Her reason was instantly crushed by her competitive drive and the god-tier reward.

Qian Renxue forcibly suppressed her humiliation and tore off her magnificent platinum formal attire.

She opened the bottom drawer of her wardrobe, dug out a rough, gray cloth servant's uniform that smelled faintly of soap, and quickly changed into it.

She wound her waist-length golden hair tightly, hiding it beneath a dusty cloth cap.

She took a deep breath, channeled her high-level soul power, and suppressed her aura until not a trace leaked out.

Like a lifeless phantom, she carefully bypassed the patrolling Judgment Knights on the perimeter, slipped silently into the night, and headed straight for the northeast corner of the inner city.

Inside the Library Pavilion.

Su Chen was resting with his eyes closed when the Eye of Omniscience emitted a faint hum.

On the holographic radar, a sneaky golden energy mass was clearly marked just three feet outside the window.

The holographic panel even displayed the slightly erratic heartbeat of Qian Renxue, caused by her current tension and humiliation.

[Target Status: Extremely resistant, guilty, high mental focus]

Su Chen did not open his eyes, but a meaningful curve tugged at the corner of his mouth.

Want to play "secret observer"?

Fine, then I shall let you be an "audience" member who gets hit by a dimensional strike.

The one thing he had in abundance was details.

Outside the window.

The early autumn night breeze carried a hint of chill. Qian Renxue crouched in the shadows, looking every bit like a thieving assassin.

She extremely carefully peered through a crack in the broken wooden planks to look into the room.

The system's cold, sharp notification sounded again: [Warning: Only micro-actions with distinct personal characteristics count as details; common habits do not qualify.]

Qian Renxue's phoenix eyes widened as she stared fixedly at the figure under the dim oil lamp in the room, cursing inwardly.

What kind of hellish "unknown little habit" could a low-level servant who spent his days sweeping floors and wiping tables in the Library Pavilion possibly have?

Is it something ridiculous like picking his feet or sighing?

Inside the room, Su Chen moved.

He naturally pulled a yellowed ancient text from his side and, by the light of the oil lamp, began to flip through it with an air of nonchalance.

But Qian Renxue's gaze was immediately drawn to his right hand, which was resting on the edge of the page.

Su Chen's right index finger, following the movement of his gaze, was unconsciously and slowly tracing tiny circles on the edge of the paper.

That was no random doodle, but a display of extreme focus, even carrying a peculiar, rhythmic muscle memory.

It was like the subconscious habit of a high-ranking figure who had spent years wielding great power and orchestrating grand strategies, now lost in deep thought.

This rhythm exuded a composure entirely inconsistent with his status as a menial servant.

Qian Renxue's eyes sharpened.

[Ding! Record successful. Detail one: Tracing circles with the index finger while thinking.]

The system's notification prompt left her stunned. It was actually real?

Time trickled away bit by bit.

Su Chen set down the ancient book, seemingly tired from reading, and tilted his head slightly to let out a yawn.

The moment he opened his mouth, he subconsciously raised his left hand, back of the hand facing outward, and naturally half-covered his face to shield his mouth and nose.

The movement was startlingly fast, yet it radiated a sense of upbringing and restraint.

It wasn't the crude, wide-mouthed yawn of a low-level laborer, but a refinement and self-protective instinct etched into his very bones.

Qian Renxue's heart gave a violent jolt.

Crouched outside the window, watching the frail silhouette outlined by the dim, yellowish lamp, her heart skipped a beat for no reason.

How could a menial servant without even a single spirit ring possess a sense of restraint that could only be taught by the core etiquette instructors of the Heaven Dou Imperial Family?

Her perception of this man as a "crude piece of trash" developed its first crack.

[Ding! Record successful. Detail two: Defensive habit of covering the face.]

The next half-hour became a perfect solo performance by Su Chen.

He acted like an unsuspecting specimen, fluidly displaying several highly personal, minute habits.

When he stood up to straighten his robes, his hands precisely folded the inner pleats inward by a third—this was a habit only found in military generals to prevent blades from snagging!

When he walked to the table to pour water, his fingers didn't touch the handle directly; instead, the back of his fingers lightly brushed the cup wall to test the temperature.

When he set the teacup down, he let the rim touch the table first before slowly leveling it, completing the action without a single sound of collision.

On the screen of the Eye of Omniscience, the data was undergoing a miraculous chemical reaction.

Qian Renxue's emotional panel began to shift uncontrollably from initial "vigilance" and "resistance" toward "curiosity" and "inquiry."

Her favorability rating, which had been stuck firmly at [15], quietly flickered at this moment, shifting to [16], before slowly climbing to [17].

Outside the window, Qian Renxue's legs had gone somewhat numb from crouching, but her gaze remained locked onto Su Chen, unable to pull away.

[Current progress: 9/10]

Only one last detail remained.

Inside the room.

Su Chen suddenly set down what he was holding. He turned around and walked slowly toward the broken window on the other side that faced the night sky.

He reached the window and stopped.

In the next second, the skin of hunchbacked, cowardly, and timid behavior he wore seemed to be blown away by a gust of wind.

Su Chen clasped his hands behind his back, his spine straightening inch by inch like a javelin poised to pierce the night sky.

He slowly raised his head, looking at the cold, clear moon in the night sky.

The faint moonlight spilled onto him, rendering his figure sharp and distinct.

At this moment, there was no fear in his eyes, no sycophancy—only a profound, heart-stopping calmness and loneliness that seemed to have seen through the ages.

It was the feeling of a god who had slept for countless epochs, now looking down upon this continent with indifference through the vessel of a mortal body.

This aura, which could never belong to a low-level piece of trash, struck Qian Renxue's heart like a ten-thousand-ton hammer!

Crouched in the shadows, her pupils contracted violently, and her breathing stopped.

Madness!

What kind of monster is this?!

The loneliness and sense of looking down from above—even her grandfather, Qian Daoliu, did not possess such an air!

[Ding! Record successful. Detail ten: Divine gaze beneath the disguise.]

[Ten details collected! Reward issued: Six-Winged Angel martial soul resonance +5%!]

The system's notification exploded in Qian Renxue's mind.

A surge of holy power, pure to the extreme, appeared out of thin air within her meridians, rushing wildly and cleansing her limbs and bones.

The Six-Winged Angel martial soul let out a joyful, long cry.

Her power was skyrocketing, but Qian Renxue could no longer concern herself with the changes within her body.

On Su Chen's light screen, Qian Renxue's favorability rating, following the dual shock to both vision and soul from that final strike, held steady at [18].

Qian Renxue gripped the edge of the window frame so tightly that her nails snapped against the wood, splinters digging into her flesh, yet she felt no pain at all.

Her phoenix eyes were filled with a mix of suspicion, uncertainty, and a shock that overturned everything she had previously known.

She took one last look at that tall, unfathomable figure standing under the moonlight.

This man was not some pathetic plaything at all; he was a bottomless pool of stagnant water, hiding a behemoth within that could devour everything.

Qian Renxue etched this chilling, composed temperament deep into her mind.

With a heart full of stirred-up confusion and a pulse that refused to calm down, she desperately suppressed her aura and, just as she had arrived, vanished silently into the night of Martial Soul City.