Birthmark

"Zi Yun loves eating Banana Orchids most. She's been recognized as a gifted girl since childhood, loves reading, and enjoys staring out the window. Isn't that right, Zi Yun?"

Ye Ziyun wasn't quite sure how to answer either. Should she say he was right or wrong?

He was right, but also wrong.

Nie Li snorted outright. With such a shallow understanding, he dared claim he knew Zi Yun?

"You're wrong. She doesn't actually like eating Banana Orchids. Lord Ye Mo just tricked her into believing they could strengthen her soul force. Who would enjoy reading such dry, incomprehensible things? She only does it because she has to shoulder the responsibility of protecting Glory City. And she stares out the window because she loves adventure and wants to see the world outside."

Ye Ziyun's eyes widened. She had never imagined Nie Li would understand her thoughts so well.

Shen Yue couldn't hold back anymore. "What nonsense are you spouting?"

Nie Li sneered. "Since you know Zi Yun so well, she has a butterfly-shaped birthmark on her body. Do you know where it is?"

Shen Yue didn't know, so he could only pound the table in anger.

Ye Ziyun sprang to her feet. "Nie Li! You pervert!"

Well done. Nie Li's image in Ye Ziyun's mind took an immediate nosedive.

To his image as a peerless genius who understood inscriptions and knew an incredibly powerful cultivation art, she added another label: pervert.

Ye Ziyun ran out of the library.

"Oh no, she's angry."

Nie Li knew he had said something he shouldn't have.

Having suffered another defeat at Nie Li's hands, Shen Yue could only leave him with a threat, telling him not to get too smug. He would remember this and make Nie Li pay.

With Ye Ziyun gone, Nie Li naturally had no interest in staying either. Before leaving, he didn't forget to mock Shen Yue as nothing more than a useless spoiled heir. If he dared pester Zi Yun again, he couldn't blame Nie Li for teaching him a lesson.

Inside the City Lord's Mansion.

Ye Ziyun stamped her feet in fury, still calling him a filthy pervert and a complete bastard.

What puzzled her even more was why Nie Li knew she had a butterfly-shaped birthmark on the left side of her chest.

Could he have secretly peeked at me while I was bathing?

But I've always bathed in the damn City Lord's Mansion!

What guy who hasn't even reached Bronze would dare sneak into the City Lord's Mansion?!

And dare spy on the city lord's daughter bathing?

How many lives and how much nerve would he need to pull that off?

Ye Ziyun was even more curious about why Nie Li had simply taught her an art as powerful as the Nine-Turn Ice Phoenix Art.

Forget it. I really can't figure it out.

In the end, she cultivated in her room.

After she practiced for a while, brilliant light burst from her body.

The guards were so alarmed that they hurried over to knock on her door and ask what had happened.

Ye Ziyun hastily sent them away.

I broke through? I've only been practicing for such a short while, and I already broke through?

She had already thought this cultivation art was powerful, but it turned out to be even stronger than she had imagined.

Then Nie Li...

"No, no! I absolutely cannot forgive that filthy pervert!"

Beneath the Sky Screen.

Nie Li clicked his tongue. He really had been careless about this.

Fortunately, on his side, he and she had been husband and wife in their previous life, which was why he knew about the birthmark.

The one up there, unable to explain himself, would probably have to carry the "pervert" label for a while longer.

He observed a moment of silence for his self on the Sky Screen.

On the Sky Screen.

Nie Li was troubled as well. Ye Ziyun was clearly angry; she hadn't appeared in the library for two days.

He entered a shop.

The shop carried quite a wide selection: weapons, armor, inscription scrolls, and Space Rings.

He looked at a helmet. "No, this is too heavy."

But his gaze soon settled on a set of leather armor.

With bracers, inner armor, and boots included, the set caught Nie Li's fancy at first glance.

Its defense and comfort were both excellent. Moreover, it was inner armor, so he could wear it directly beneath his clothes and keep a low profile.

"Hello, could you please get me a set of this inner armor?"

The shop assistant first examined Nie Li's clothes, then folded his arms, his expression changing as he began his pitch. "Young master, this inner armor is a masterpiece of Bronze-grade craftsmanship, made from the scales of a Flame-Rage Beast. Against anything below Silver, you'll sweep all before you. With the kneepads and bracers included, the entire set costs five hundred thousand Demon Spirit Coins!"

Nie Li said, "Hmph, only five hundred thousand Demon Spirit Coins?"

He pulled ten Demon Crystal Cards, each worth fifty thousand Demon Spirit Coins, straight out of his Space Ring.

The assistant's expression changed at once. He packed the inner armor into a large box in less than five seconds.

"Hehe, young master, would you like anything else?"

"I'll take a look first."

Knowing that a big spender had come into his shop, the assistant rubbed his hands and followed beside Nie Li with a chuckle.

A Flame-Rage Sword.

A set of outer armor.

Five or six inscription scrolls.

Two large boxes in total.

Plus a Space Ring with five cubic meters of storage.

The shopkeeper stored the large boxes inside the Space Ring.

Nie Li changed into the inner armor right there in the shop.

After he stepped outside, the assistant was still calling after him. "Take care, young master!"

After all, big customers with such deep pockets were hard to find.

On the way to school.

Nie Li rubbed the back of his head. "The wind today is a little... Forget it. I'll return the money and ring to Xiao Ning'er first."

What he didn't know was that Shen Yue and several of his lackeys were standing behind him.

They had clearly come up with another trick.

But the Sky Screen ended at that moment. Its golden light receded, and the sky became a deep, clear blue once more.

Nie Li made a quick calculation. "A few minutes shorter than yesterday, then."

By then, Chen Linjian had arrived at the City Lord's Mansion.

"Brother Nie Li, this is our first meeting, but I've long heard of your great reputation."

"Young Master Chen, a pleasure to meet you!" Nie Li replied, cupping his fist.

Chen Linjian laughed heartily, stepped forward, and took Nie Li by the arm. "Brother Nie Li, I've been looking forward to meeting you for a long time."

Nie Li smiled and nodded, while quietly sizing Chen Linjian up. He was tall and handsome, with a heroic air about his brow, and certainly carried himself with considerable distinction.

No wonder he could gather so many people around him.

Nie Li replied modestly, "You flatter me, Young Master Chen. I only gained a little fame through luck."

"Brother Chen, long time no see."

Ye Ziyun also came over with a smile to greet him.

"It's been a long time, Zi Yun."

Chen Linjian was two years older than Ye Ziyun, and their families were longtime friends. There would have been nothing wrong with him calling her his little sister.

"Young Master Chen, I'm Lu Piao!"

"My name is Du Ze."

Chen Linjian didn't look down on them just because some came from commoner families. With his naturally forthright disposition, he soon fit right in with everyone.

"Young Master Chen, since the Sky Screen has already shown the future, and I've chosen to go to Gulan City with you, does our agreement still stand?"

Chen Linjian smiled. "Brother Nie Li, who in all of Glory City doesn't know you've been reborn now? Who doesn't recognize you? The Sacred Family hates you to the bone as well. If you head out like this, you could very well come to harm."