Crane Elder

Chen Xu had not expected a single guess to earn him several hundred grams of Refining Liquid. So she was a hidden rich girl—worth keeping an eye on. He had always loved dealing with wealthy people.

"But I do have one condition. By tomorrow night, I want to see at least a hundred grams of Refining Liquid to prove your sincerity."

"Got it." Demon God's Eye squeezed the words out through clenched teeth, drained the remaining watermelon juice in one gulp, and slammed the cup heavily onto the table, drawing glances from the other diners.

"Hiss, did that young couple just have a fight?"

"Oooh, another couple is about to break up. Being single really is the way to go!"

"Laughing at the simp."

When the diners noticed Chen Xu's gaze sweep over them, they immediately pretended they had seen nothing, withdrawing their eyes while perking up their ears.

"Waiter, another bowl of rice."

The smiling waiter did not react at all.

"Waiter?"

"Sir, were you calling me?" The waiter's smile froze. This was not how the scene was supposed to go.

"Yes. One bowl of rice, heap it up a little more, please."

Seeing Chen Xu's relaxed manner, all the male diners could not help feeling solemn admiration. Calm and composed, utterly unflustered—truly a hero and a role model for men everywhere. This was how a real man should be!

Chen Xu had no idea what sort of image people had concocted for him in their minds. Once he had eaten and drunk his fill, he strolled leisurely out of the restaurant.

Thud, thud.

Yu Yanran imagined Tiger King's face beneath her feet, stomping down hard with every step and occasionally grinding her heel into it.

When she returned to the Jinning Hotel built beside the venue, she took off her mask and sunglasses. She did not want Lin Qi to discover her true identity.

In the brief few days she had spent with Lin Qi, she had felt far happier than she ever had during more than a decade of living in that "cage."

"Miss Pupil, where did you go? Your injuries haven't healed yet. You can't just run around." When Lin Qi saw Yu Yanran returning alone, he went up to meet her.

His eyes were full of concern as he repeatedly looked her over.

"I'm fine." Yu Yanran's tone was cold. She turned sideways and entered her room.

"Brother, why are you so nice to her? If not for you, who knows where she'd still be lying around. Is that any way to treat her benefactor?" Lin Xue indignantly defended Lin Qi.

Lin Qi gently rubbed Lin Xue's little head, then crouched down in front of her. "We save people not because we expect repayment, but because of the kindness in our hearts.

"You must never use a favor to demand repayment. Remember that, Xiaoxue."

Lin Xue's eyelids twitched as she glanced away. "Brother only knows how to lecture people."

Inside the room, Yu Yanran kicked off her shoes and threw herself onto the soft bed.

After turning over, she took a crystal-clear little bottle from the dust-covered pouch on the floor and held it high in the air.

When she had been chased here, she had hidden it somewhere to keep those people from getting it. Only after leaving the restaurant had she gone to dig it back up.

This was a higher-grade Refining Liquid for Martial Artists at the [Martial Form] level and above. Naturally, it had all been diluted. If it were not diluted, anyone below the Martial Artist level might die on the spot after using it, beyond saving.

Even the diluted version was not something just anyone could use. She had been allotted some precisely because of her status as royalty.

This kind of Refining Liquid contained far fewer impurities than ordinary Refining Liquid, and its effects were incomparably better as well.

Even the diluted version had effects equal to a hundred grams of ordinary Refining Liquid per gram.

Yu Yanran suddenly felt a trace of chill and instinctively looked toward the windowsill.

The breeze stirred the curtains. A wooden hairpin held up his long, half-gray, half-white hair as it fluttered in the wind. The skin on his face was so smooth and supple that he looked nothing like a middle-aged or elderly man past fifty.

He flicked the ancient brocade robe that looked utterly out of place with modern clothing and gave a slight bow.

"Her Royal Highness the Princess."

"Crane Elder." Yu Yanran blurted out his name. He was one of the few stewards most trusted by her father, and he had been her father's companion since childhood.

"Your Highness, it is time to return. As the future Viscountess, you cannot be so willful."

"I don't understand. Great Abyss and the Federation have already become like this, so why must I be sent into a political marriage?" Tears fell from Yu Yanran's eyes. She truly could not accept being sent away as a tool by her own father.

"His Majesty and Lord Heavenly Stem King's decisions are not for people like us to question.

"Those who pursued and tried to kill you have all been executed. Her Royal Highness the Princess, please do not make things difficult for this old servant."

Yu Yanran remained silent for a long time. She glanced at the little bottle in her hand before speaking. "Can I use an item to trade for another princess to go to the Federation in my place?"

"An item?" A glint flashed across Crane Elder's face. Yu Yanran's words had piqued his interest.

"If it is precious enough, this old servant can contact Lord Heavenly Stem King and ask him to decide."

"The [Bloodline Armament] the Federation is secretly researching."

At the words [Bloodline Armament], Crane Elder's pupils contracted.

As a Martial Artist, he understood better than this princess the potential and uses of a [Bloodline Armament], as well as its value to Great Abyss.

"Where is it?" Crane Elder's voice was slightly hoarse. If he could present a [Bloodline Armament] to Heavenly Stem King, perhaps the reward would give him hope of reaching that level.

Great Abyss wanted to research [Bloodline Armament], but over the past few years, the total number they had seized was fewer than ten. First, there were not yet many users of [Bloodline Armament]. Second, its protection mechanisms were simply too thorough—it would often self-destruct on the spot.

Crane Elder's change in expression did not escape Yu Yanran's notice. Or rather, Crane Elder had not intended to hide it at all.

"May I ask how Her Royal Highness the Princess obtained this [Bloodline Armament]?"

Yu Yanran shook her head. "It is not in my hands yet. I merely found it in the Black Market. Other than knowing it can amplify strength, I know nothing else."

"An enhancement-type [Bloodline Armament] that ended up in the Black Market?" Crane Elder paced back and forth across the room.

Yu Yanran recounted every detail of her meeting with Chen Xu that day, concealing only the part about threatening him with Lin Qi. Instead, she changed it to Chen Xu using other methods to force her into submission.

"To dare threaten a princess of a nation—his crime deserves death!" Crane Elder's expression was indifferent as he decided Chen Xu's fate, as though he were not killing a person but merely some pig or dog.

"Your Highness, rest easy tonight. Tomorrow evening, this old servant will avenge the threat against you. No matter when or where, no one may ever speak such words to royalty. His death will be no loss."

The moment he finished speaking, Crane Elder vanished from the window after several flashes, as though he had never appeared.

Yu Yanran stared blankly in the direction Crane Elder had left. She had not yet processed what had happened. She had only wanted him to teach that guy a lesson while he was at it, so that he would not be able to harm Lin Qi. How had it suddenly turned into murder?

Because of just a few words from her, someone was about to lose his life forever.

But she did not dare persuade Crane Elder otherwise. She knew clearly that, in the eyes of that so-called father of hers, her status was absolutely lower than Crane Elder's. Whatever Crane Elder did, whatever decisions he made, all she could do was silently accept them.

Looking on the bright side, trading a stranger who had threatened her for freedom from going to the Federation and ensuring Lin Qi would never be threatened again was actually quite a bargain.

At the very least, Yu Yanran knew that if she truly went to the Federation, she would be walking into certain death.

Between letting herself die and letting someone else die, she had long made her choice.

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