"Aren't you coming out yet?"
"Jing Yuan…"
"General?!" Hearing that name come from his grandmaster's mouth, Yanqing's face lit up with pure joy. He looked around eagerly, scanning the area for any sign of Jing Yuan.
But no matter how he searched, Yanqing could not find even a trace of the general. Just as confusion crept into his heart, a voice that filled him with an overwhelming sense of safety drifted over.
"Haha."
"As expected of my teacher. Even after all these years, your instincts haven't dulled in the slightest."
Everyone turned toward the sound. A tall man stepped out from a corner no one would ever have thought to notice.
Seeing all eyes on him, the man raised a hand and casually greeted everyone.
"Yo. Looks like everyone's here."
"General!" The moment he saw the man, Yanqing could no longer hide his excitement and jogged straight over to Jing Yuan's side.
"Well done, Yanqing." Jing Yuan had been present for quite some time already and had seen the entire beating Yanqing took, but that did not stop him from praising the boy.
At Yanqing's age, his level was already something unheard of.
It was just his temperament…
Jing Yuan could not help but sigh inwardly.
This was a problem time could fix, but right now…
There really was not much time left.
Jing Yuan did not dwell on it. His gaze shifted to Jingliu, then to Blade lying on the ground, and finally to Dan Heng. A flicker of realization surfaced in his eyes, only to be quickly suppressed.
He put on a smile and waved his hand.
"The three of you returning to the Xianzhou after so long, out of respect for old ties, you should have informed me earlier."
"Mm… Jing Yuan…"
The brief death Jingliu had granted him had already ended. Blade slowly got up, holding his head. Once his emotions settled a little, he looked at Jing Yuan, his eyes calm, without the slightest ripple.
"Jing Yuan. What I came to do is already finished."
"Mm. Finished." Jing Yuan nodded with a smile, then continued, "You helped the Xianzhou with a small matter. I appreciate it."
"Go. This time, I'll pretend I saw nothing."
Blade: …
Blade stared at Jing Yuan for a moment. He said nothing, simply stepping forward, ready to leave.
"Hold it. You can't go!"
Just as Blade had taken a few steps, a voice rang out, stopping him in his tracks.
Hearing that voice, Blade stopped with surprising obedience.
Everyone looked over, only to see a short little—scratch that—three young girls walking toward them.
One of them had her hands on her hips, glaring fiercely at Blade. She was clearly the one who had spoken.
"Clara?" Blade looked at the girl in front of him, puzzled. Then he shifted his gaze to the wine-red-haired woman beside Clara, as if silently asking what on earth Clara was up to this time.
Catching the question in Blade's eyes, Kafka simply smiled and shook her head, telling him not to worry about it for now.
Let her be confused first.
Blade: …
Clara noticed the silent exchange between Kafka and Blade but offered no explanation. Instead, she turned her gaze toward Jing Yuan.
"Hey, Jing Yuan."
"Look, I've caught both Kafka and Blade now. So about my…"
Clara stretched out one hand and rubbed her fingers together, clearly hinting at something.
As the Divine Foresight General, Jing Yuan naturally understood what she meant. With a grateful smile, he said,
"Hahaha."
"Miss Clara has helped the Luofu capture two criminals. I am deeply grateful."
"If Miss Clara has any request, feel free to name it."
"The Luofu, and even the entire Xianzhou Alliance, will agree to Miss Clara's request."
"Mm…" Hearing that, Clara immediately fell into thought.
It had to be said, Jing Yuan really lived up to his reputation as an old fox. A reward that was too small would displease Clara, but one too great would leave the Luofu badly wounded.
So, to avoid offending her while also protecting the Luofu, Jing Yuan handed the choice of reward over to Clara herself.
After all, Clara had no idea how deep the Luofu's reserves really were.
He even dragged the entire Xianzhou Alliance into it, just to keep her from asking for the moon.
"General, why—"
"Shh… Yanqing, don't speak."
While Clara was thinking, Yanqing was utterly baffled.
The way Clara, Kafka, and Blade interacted, they were clearly on the same side. What capture was there to speak of?
But before Yanqing could finish his question, Jing Yuan cut him off directly.
Jing Yuan was extremely tolerant toward Clara, and for no complicated reason at all. It was simply because her strength was absurdly powerful.
He was not foolish enough to turn Clara into an enemy of the Luofu over a bit of reward.
The consequences of making her an enemy were already on full display. Hadn't the Interastral Peace Corporation provided a perfect example?
Their headquarters had been blown up twice in a row… no, maybe three times.
If even the IPC headquarters at Pier Point could not stop Clara's reckless behavior, then the Xianzhou Luofu stood even less of a chance.
So unless it was absolutely unavoidable, Jing Yuan would never show hostility toward Clara.
"Mm. I've heard for a while now that the Xianzhou has something called an Alliance Jade Signal. As long as you send a message, the other half will receive it. No matter how vast the galaxy, the Cloud Knights of the Luofu will come running to fulfill the request." After thinking for a bit, Clara recalled this handy little treasure and smiled brightly at Jing Yuan.
"Since you're thanking me so sincerely, why not give me the Luofu's Alliance Jade Signal~"
Jing Yuan: …
Hearing that, Jing Yuan's expression stiffened for a brief moment. But in the blink of an eye, his smile returned.
"Haha. Since Miss Clara thinks so highly of us Cloud Knights, I certainly won't let you down."
"The Alliance Jade Signal is currently kept in the Seat of Divine Foresight. Once this matter is concluded, I will personally hand it over to Miss Clara."
Jing Yuan did not refuse. He agreed on the spot.
If a single Alliance Jade Signal could rid him of the trouble known as Clara, Jing Yuan was more than willing.
The only problem was that after dealing with this trouble, a whole new pile of problems might follow…
Sigh. What a headache.
But those were worries for a future Jing Yuan.
After sorting through his thoughts, Jing Yuan shifted his gaze to Kafka.
"As criminals who have been captured, I should have locked you in the Shackling Prison."
"But since you helped the Luofu with a small matter, I'll let it slide this time. You may go."
Hearing this, Kafka and Blade did not move right away. Instead, they looked toward Clara.
Only after she nodded did Kafka lead Blade away.
Once they were gone, Jing Yuan finally withdrew his gaze.
Feeling the power of the Imbibitor Lunae radiating from Dan Heng, Jing Yuan smiled.
"Old friend. Long time no see."
…
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