Chapter 133: Wingman Lin Yuan

Blood Crystal City, Boat-Docking Terrace. The Bailian Sect district.

Cao Chengyu had come alone this time. Apart from catching that petty thief, he intended to gather some information first. His cultivation had climbed, and with it, his aura had grown significantly. With another ten-odd percentage points, he would reach the late stage of the Violet Palace Realm. His progress in body refining was slower, but he could now preliminarily utilize the Four Extremes techniques.

Reaching the same platform as before, Cao Chengyu walked over with his hands behind his back. He found Fang Zhijiu and a group of Bailian Sect outer disciples boasting to one another.

"Brothers, on the fourth of last month, at the first quarter of the Wei hour, I officially joined the Bandit Alliance. If any of you have a fat sheep in mind, just let me know. We can all get rich together."

"Brother Fang is amazing! You must look after your little brother in the future."

"Easy, easy."

"Brother Fang, this Bailian Sect is a trash organization. The resource allocation is pitifully low, and they don't even dare to fight back when the Black Emperor Sect bullies them to their faces. The Bandit Alliance has the real connections. I truly admire you."

"Hahaha, you’ve got a sharp eye, kid."

Fang Zhijiu basked in the flattery of his colleagues, feeling no shame in betraying his sect; instead, he took pride in it. The Bandit Alliance was the trendy faction in the Yan Kingdom now. If one wanted resources, robbing others was always faster than operating slowly.

Cao Chengyu listened to the entire exchange and let out a cold laugh. "So, you’re the one who sold me out?"

The group turned around. The moment Fang Zhijiu saw Cao Chengyu, his expression changed drastically. Half a year ago, when Ghost Boss and his men all went missing, he had assumed they met with some accident on the road. Seeing Cao Chengyu now, he immediately realized they had been killed by this man. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been tracked down. He shouted in a panic, "Junior Brother Wang, go to the garrison and notify the Bailian Sect elders! The elders will save us!"

"..." Everyone present, including his fellow disciples, looked speechless.

"You really are shameless."

"The Bailian Sect must have had terrible luck to produce a talent like you."

Cao Chengyu shook his head. A blue flaming dragon emerged from his sleeve; in the blink of an eye, Fang Zhijiu was reduced to a pile of ash.

"You have no feud with me. Whether you report this is up to you."

"Senior, I seem to have developed night blindness today."

"Senior, I skipped work today."

"Senior, I..."

A bunch of "talents"—no wonder they could stick together. Fang Zhijiu was just a small diversion. After finishing him off, Cao Chengyu headed to the restaurant he had visited during his first trip to Blood Crystal City. Lin Wangyuan, that fellow, loved to make "friends" there and boast about his status.

To find Lin Yuan, finding his brother first was the surest bet.

In the familiar restaurant and at the familiar seat, he had barely entered when he saw a handsome young man standing on a table, loudly sharing what he had seen and heard. He spoke of how "Senior Hua" stomped his foot, causing mountains to crumble and rivers to stop flowing, and how his opponent, the Black Lotus Madonna, had her clothes shredded in a single blow, lying there naked and at the mercy of others.

What was this? Was this brat not afraid of death? Cao Chengyu was baffled.

He flicked several copper coins used for divination into the load-bearing pillars of the restaurant, turning them into streaks of light. With a wave of his hand, a high-grade second-order Bewilderment Array was formed. The crowd quickly returned to their seats, acting as if nothing had happened, drinking and chatting, completely ignoring both Cao Chengyu and Lin Wangyuan.

"Senior Hua, why are you here?" Lin Wangyuan jumped off the table and hurried over.

"Why are you spreading such rumors here? Aren't you afraid the Black Emperor Sect will catch you and kill you?"

"Heh heh, Lin Yuan told me to do it."

"Lin Yuan?"

"Yes. He said Senior Hua had taken a fancy to Mo Qingyu and felt you would be back soon. Since you did him a favor, he wanted to help you out in return."

*What the hell? Am I that obvious?* Cao Chengyu’s forehead was covered in black lines, not knowing what to say.

Mo Qingyu was the mother of Ning Ruolian. Helping an outsider woo his friend's mother-in-law? Was this really appropriate? What would your father-in-law think? Did he want me to be a "rebound" father? To become your father-in-law so you could be with Ning Ruolian openly?

The problem was, he was just a "sculpture-remover," purely testing the details of the ranking list. Suddenly, Cao Chengyu felt he had discovered Lin Yuan's true intentions. Regardless of what the Black Emperor Envoy—Lin Yuan's father-in-law—said, hearing these rumors circulating among the common folk would force him to investigate the truth, even if he didn't believe them. And for Mo Qingyu, having just been flirted with by "Hua Wuque" and then interrogated by her partner, a sense of distrust would immediately take root. To spark conflict between a husband and wife, distrust was the primary condition. Lin Yuan was very sharp.

"Back to the point: are you not afraid of getting caught?"

"Senior might not know, but I was indeed panicked at first. However, the Black Lotus Madonna and the Black Emperor Envoy have had a falling out, and Blood Crystal City is under the Black Lotus Madonna's jurisdiction. The Black Emperor Envoy surely wants to kill me, but he doesn't dare send his own people to arrest me for fear of escalating the conflict. As for the Black Lotus Madonna’s people, because of that girl Ning Ruolian, they notify me before they come, and they even tip me off if there's a trap. That’s how I’ve been able to spread these rumors for half a year and remain safe."

"But I suspect the Black Lotus Madonna herself is reaching her limit. I’ll do this for at most another month; I don't plan to keep at it."

"..." Even with all his understanding, Cao Chengyu couldn't fathom it. Did Ning Ruolian really hope for her parents' relationship to fall apart, or was she just dissatisfied with her parents because of Lin Yuan? This was so twisted it made his scalp tingle.

"Hoo..."

"Forget it, never mind that. Take me to see Lin Yuan. I need to ask him about the specifics."

"Very well, Senior Hua, follow me."

The two talked as they walked. The destination turned out to be a secluded courtyard within the city. "The greatest hermit hides in the city"—he had really mastered that. Lin Yuan was a smart kid. As they got closer, he saw that the courtyard was actually protected by several layers of arrays.

"The Origin-Obscuring Array, Sound-Isolation Array, Evasive Soul-Confusing Array, Spirit-Gathering Array, and a Spirit-Masking Array. Five high-grade first-order arrays. You’ve learned well, Lin Yuan."

"Senior Hua is too kind. This one has merely practiced diligently." Lin Yuan walked out from behind the wall abruptly, smiling and cupping his hands toward Cao Chengyu.

"Late-stage Spirit Refining cultivation. You’ve raised your cultivation by two small realms in half a year, and your talent for arrays is excellent. With such aptitude, I’m almost tempted to take you as a disciple." Cao Chengyu muttered, then quickly paused, seeing the fiery look in Lin Yuan’s eyes. He was eighty percent sure the kid was aiming for that.

"..." Cao Chengyu was speechless. Although he really wanted such an excellent wingman, they were roughly the same age, their identities were both fake, and he didn't want the trouble of taking on a disciple. He immediately closed his mouth.

Seeing that the righteous Senior Hua—whom he respected—remained silent, Lin Yuan knew he had been politely declined, but he wasn't annoyed. He led them into the courtyard and told Lin Wangyuan to go prepare some spirit food and wine.

Lin Wangyuan glared at his younger brother with resentment, but he had no choice but to go and prepare, leaving the space to the two of them.

"Senior Hua..."

"Don't call me Senior Hua. You inherited the legacy of Uncle-Master Liangyi, so you are on good terms with my lineage. Just call me Senior Brother."