Chapter 784: Hakiqin, You Old So-and-So...
A cold knot of dread tightened in Qin Yuan's gut. "No... how can there be nothing?" he whispered, his voice a ragged breath in the opulent, empty room. "Where did Shen Anyu take Yaoyao?"
He was distraught. The storage ring, if it existed, would be small enough to wear. But the bronze coffin was massive. It couldn't possibly be carried around on one's person, could it?
A horrifying thought struck him, and the blood drained from his face, leaving it the color of ash.
'Could it be... Shen Anyu can use the storage ring? But he shouldn't have set foot on the Immortal Path yet, right? Or was the information from my past life wrong? Is Shen Anyu already a cultivator?'As he contemplated this worst-case scenario, a leaden weight settled in his chest, crushing the last vestiges of hope. If Shen Anyu was already cultivating, he would possess the Divine Sense needed to access the storage ring. The miraculous elixirs contained within would be a tremendous boon to his progress, making the task of rescuing Yaoyao exponentially more difficult.'Not good, Shen Anyu is back!'
A sudden, violent tremor in the spiritual energy of the villa jolted him from his spiraling thoughts. A familiar, terrifying aura was closing in—fast. The sensation was five miles out one instant, and in the next, it felt like it was breathing down his neck, just a hundred meters away. The sheer velocity was beyond comprehension.
When Qin Yuan sensed Shen Anyu's return, his first instinct wasn't to bolt. Instead, he clamped down on his own spiritual presence, smothering the already faint aura until it was little more than a dying ember. He became as still as the stone statues in the garden, a ghost among the manicured hedges. He knew escape was impossible. His only chance was to gamble that Shen Anyu wouldn't detect him at all.
He had a sliver of confidence in this. Back at the Wu Shen Cult's territory in Nanjiang, Shen Anyu had failed to notice his Divine Soul lurking underground, a failure that had allowed him to escape that disaster. He had even taken the precaution of sending out only his Divine Soul for this reconnaissance mission, precisely to avoid any accidents.
Though his rebirth had not returned him to the peak of his former power, Qin Yuan had brought back a considerable portion of his previous life's Divine Soul strength. As a former peak False Core realm cultivator, his soul in this life was comparable to that of a mid-to-late Foundation Establishment realm expert.
The Jinxiu Mountain Villa's Number 1 residence was more than just a house; it was a sprawling estate complete with gardens, a swimming pool, and vast lawns. Its grounds, covering nearly ten thousand square meters, dwarfed even his River View Manor in Magic City. Qin Yuan was currently concealed in the garden, near the rear of the main villa.
He felt Shen Anyu's aura touch down within the main building, not rushing towards his position. A silent, shaky breath escaped Qin Yuan's lips.
'Indeed,'he thought, a grim sort of relief washing over him.'Shen Anyu is powerful, but his spiritual perception isn't strong enough to find me while I'm hidden like this. What a pity... he came back too soon. I couldn't find a single clue about the storage ring or Yaoyao...'
"Now I can only wait for him to leave before I slip away," Qin Yuan resolved, his expression a mask of uncertainty. "I can't risk making any sound that might alert him..."
[Ding! The Child of Destiny, Qin Yuan, has been startled. Plundering +9999 destiny value!]
[Ding! The Child of Destiny, Qin Yuan, is in a foul mood. Plundering +9999 destiny value!]
...
'Hakiqin, you old so-and-so, are you here to deliver another tribute?'
Carrying Wu Shenyun over one shoulder, Shen Anyu felt the faint, suppressed flicker of Qin Yuan's presence hiding in the garden. A genuine sense of warmth, almost like gratitude, touched him. To come all this way, tirelessly, just to offer up his destiny value... this Hakiqin fellow was a man of true conviction.
Even without the system's prompts, Shen Anyu's God-Level Perception had painted a clear picture of Qin Yuan cowering in the shadows.
'I'll give you a little surprise later,' Shen Anyu thought, a slight curve gracing his lips. He continued walking, carrying the two women wrapped in cloaks into the main villa.
The interior of the main villa was a sanctuary; besides Shen Anyu himself, only women were permitted entry.
Bai Bing, still slung over his other shoulder, heard the approaching patter of footsteps from within. Her expression shifted; the thought of being seen in her current state by the other women was a mortifying prospect. The next instant, her form flickered like a phantom, vanishing from Shen Anyu's shoulder without a trace, her graceful exit leaving not even a ripple in the air.
"Oh, Brother Shen, what is this?" Zhang Yaqian's clear, star-like eyes widened, her pale pink lips parting in a small 'o' of surprise. Her gaze was fixed on the cloaked figure still draped over Shen Anyu's shoulder. From this proximity, she could vaguely tell that the person beneath the cloak, Wu Shenyun, seemed to be wearing very little.
Wu Shenyun kept her phoenix eyes squeezed shut, her jade-like face pale as she feigned unconsciousness. She had wanted to vanish just like Bai Bing, but Shen Anyu's hand was clamped firmly on her hindquarters, pinning her in place. She was the venerable master of the Wu Shen Cult, a Land Immortal. To be seen in such a state by a junior like Zhang Yaqian was an unbearable shame. Playing dead was her only recourse.
A smile tugged at the corner of Shen Anyu's lips, but he had the good grace not to expose her charade. He addressed Zhang Yaqian, his tone casual. "Yun Nu sustained some injuries. I'm going to treat her."
"Oh! In that case, Brother Shen, please hurry and help Sister Wu Shenyun," Zhang Yaqian said quickly.
Although Shen Anyu called her Yun Nu, Zhang Yaqian was well aware of Wu Shenyun's formidable power and divine abilities. She wouldn't dare be presumptuous and always treated her with the utmost politeness.
'But how did Sister Wu Shenyun get injured?'Zhang Yaqian mused to herself as she watched Shen Anyu carry the woman away.'Who in the world could possibly hurt her?'
"Still feigning unconsciousness?" Shen Anyu asked with a playful smile after placing Wu Shenyun in her room. His large hand began a slow, deliberate survey of her delicate body, ostensibly "checking for injuries."
Wrapped in the black cloak, Wu Shenyun slowly opened her phoenix eyes and let out a long, shuddering sigh. The color drained further from her face, now that she no longer needed to put on a strong front for Shen Anyu. She had indeed sustained some internal injuries from her earlier clash with Bai Bing.
They weren't severe, however. Wu Shenyun felt that a day or two of quiet meditation would be enough to recover.
"Lord Shen~, you don't need to treat me. I can recuperate on my own."
"That won't do. You are my most beloved Yun Nu."
As she leaned against the wall, the black cloak failed to cover her completely, revealing a pair of long, slender legs. They were as fair and beautifully shaped as pillars of jade, their skin silky smooth to the touch.
Wu Shenyun noticed Shen Anyu's gaze and instinctively tried to retract her legs, pulling the cloak tighter around herself as if sensing danger.
"I'm checking your injuries, why are you shrinking away?" Shen Anyu chided, his large hand forcefully grasping her beautiful foot.
A faint blush crept across Wu Shenyun's exquisite, oval face. She could feel a gentle, healing warmth spreading from his touch, seeping into her damaged meridians and soothing the internal turmoil. The warmth didn't stop there; it seemed to travel straight to her heart, melting the icy pride she held so dear.
"You and Bai Bing can fight, but was it really necessary to go for mutual destruction? That was a bit reckless, wasn't it?" Shen Anyu's voice cut through the gradually heating atmosphere in the room.
"I... I had it under control~" Wu Shenyun started, looking up at him. She saw the concern and heartache warring with the scolding tone in his eyes. For someone who was usually loath to explain herself, she found herself offering a few more words. "I have the protection of my Wu Men cultivation techniques. I would only have been injured, not died. And Bai Bing, controlling her flying sword from a distance, shouldn't have suffered too much damage either. It was just a tactic to resolve a disadvantageous situation."
Perhaps Bai Bing would have feared injury and withdrawn her sword. Either way, Wu Shenyun believed she could have turned the tables and recovered from her initial mistake of underestimating her opponent.
The next moment, she found herself pulled onto Shen Anyu's lap, a sharp smack landing on her hindquarters.
"You had it under control? You thought Bai Bing would get scared and pull back her sword?" Shen Anyu's eyes narrowed as he began his lecture. "Bai Bing is a ruthless woman who wiped out her entire family. She's the Ice Phoenix, a cold and decisive queen of killers. You think she wouldn't trade an injury for a kill?"
The first few smacks were hard, but his touch gradually softened, the punishment slowly turning into something that could almost be called a massage.
Lying across Shen Anyu's lap, Wu Shenyun could feel a pleasant warmth spreading from her backside. Her jade-like face flushed a deep crimson, the color even reaching the tips of her ears.
"I didn't expect Bai Bing to be so strong," she muttered, still clearly unconvinced and feeling that her loss was purely due to her own carelessness. "A few days ago, she was just a Heavenly Human. Now she's a Land Immortal with a stable foundation, and she's even mastered the legendary Sword Control Art. I underestimated her. The next time we fight, I'll go all out from the very beginning. I won't end up in a situation like this again!"
Shen Anyu thought to himself that Bai Bing had the advantage of training in the Main God Reincarnation Game, where the flow of time in mission worlds was clearly different from the real world. Even he couldn't guarantee he could match Bai Bing's rate of improvement. Wu Shenyun managing a draw this time, even while underestimating her opponent, was already impressive. Next time might be much more difficult.
However, Wu Shenyun was also a Destined Heroine. The Child of Destiny associated with her had not yet appeared. Perhaps she, too, would have a fortuitous encounter and manage to catch up. Who could say?
Thinking of the Child of Destiny connected to Wu Shenyun, a thoughtful flicker appeared in Shen Anyu's eyes.
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