Shi Chun said with some helplessness, "Miss Mulan, you are in the prime of your youth, pure and precious as jade, this pretext is truly not good. It will tarnish your reputation."

He wasn't particularly principled. Everything else was negotiable except for this matter, which he really couldn't accept. He feared that a reputation as a fiance might be heard by the one he loved.

Furthermore, he didn't want to ruin someone else's reputation. He had inquired about the situations outside; it was still okay to just fight and kill, but there were some things that were really unacceptable to do, especially for disciples of a famous sect—messing with scandals could lead to death.

He didn't want to touch such situations where he couldn't enjoy the benefits but ended up causing trouble.

Xiang Laner felt that playing this sullen character was exhausting, her lips pursed almost invisibly. She turned her head to look at the night around her, not wanting to see Shi Chun's reaction, fearing she would burst out laughing.

Mulan Qingqing said, "Since you care so much about my reputation, let's forget everything, release the people that should be released, and I guarantee that my Su Yuan Sect will not settle accounts afterward."

Shi Chun thought to himself, believing her would be ridiculous—it was typical for a determined person who would sacrifice even themselves for their sect's reputation.

He didn't pick up on that point and said pragmatically, "In that case, it's not necessary to say they should be given to me. Just separate the people, and I'll handle the rest myself."

Mulan Qingqing said, "Not specifying that they should be given to me will cause a lot of trouble. How will our bet be publicly implemented if no one takes the lead in fighting for it? How will half of the Extreme Crystal be given? If I give it to you for no reason, how will I explain it to others? You from Youxia Mountain are not from Su Yuan Sect, you don't have the right or the prestige to control those thousands of people, and even if you could eventually handle it, how long would it take? It's not only a matter of whether you can control those thousands of people; you need an identity that can control the thousands from my side too. Do you think they will just accept anyone jumping in for a bet? Without a solid identity, you don't even qualify to bet. They could renounce their agreement at any time, and the separated men could demand to reunite. I can't openly oppose their interests, nor can I manage it. An improper title leads to improper reasoning, which would cause many unforeseen troubles. The Sky Rain Meteor Conference isn't far off. Are you sure you want to introduce so many complications over a trivial temporary title?"

"It's not that I don't care about my reputation, nor am I insisting on doing this. My concern is chaos, and I don't want things to get out of hand. You don't seriously think I have feelings for you, do you? If it weren't for this circumstance, personally, I think, to speak frankly, you don't even qualify to be mentioned alongside my name. Where do you get these unreasonable demands from? I'm here to negotiate sincerely, and I've been accommodating your opinions. But splitting the Xuan State forces into two is absurd. You're overestimating me. This isn't something I can just decide as I please. The best solution is still what I initially proposed, and that's already the biggest concession I can make. I really can't understand why someone as intelligent as you can be so stubborn. Think over it again."

Her words had convinced Shi Chun.

After her speech, Shi Chun readily agreed, "Alright, let's go with 'fiance.' It's just a facade anyway, which can be nullified once we are out, causing nothing but a little gossip behind my back. If you are not afraid, what should I be scared of?"

Although he had made a concession, at the end of the day, he still hadn't accepted the best option.

Truthfully, being married was something he couldn't accept. He could be attracted to this woman's beauty, but he couldn't accept her as his partner.

In layman's terms, he was fine with sleeping with her, but not with marrying her.

The matter of a false identity wasn't something he could just go through with.

Mulan Qingqing couldn't comprehend his struggles, slightly furrowing her brows, yet she herself had no standing to negotiate.

Though she came to negotiate, it was essentially a plea, begging the other party to show mercy and let go.

As long as the issue could be resolved, she would agree to anything she could manage.

She genuinely feared that the other party would, like in the previous encounter with Hu Yan, choose to throw everything into chaos out of revenge, leaving her unable to explain to her sect, especially given her identity.

Seeing as Hu Yan had stirred the situation to a negotiable state appeared to be a silver lining.

Still, she had to set some conditions, sensing that the general direction was already decided, she spoke again, "Having established a relationship as nominal fiancés, isn't it unreasonable not to spare my junior brother, Chao Zhilin?"

Shi Chun shook his head, not agreeing.

Mulan Qingqing reluctantly took another step back, "If you're worried, we could hold him until the matter is resolved, giving him a chance to live."

After all, as fellow sect members, she still wanted to fight for him as much as she could.

Shi Chun indifferently replied, "He's already dead, that happened before coming here."

He couldn't spare Chao Zhilin; it was impossible because he was a member of the Demon Path. When he saw Xiang Laner expose her Demonic Qi while taking action, how could he possibly let Chao Zhilin leave alive?

Overhearing this, Xiang Laner slightly curled her lips up, understanding that he had taken her situation into account.

Mulan Qingqing pressed her lips tightly, hiding all her anger beneath her usual cold facade, took a deep breath, and then calmly stated, "This is not something I can decide alone. I can only try to push for it, and success isn't guaranteed. For now, it's only a personal agreement from me. Whether it can be implemented, you'll still have to wait for my news."

Initially, seeing that the people from Hu Yan's side were too intimidated by the Su Yuan Sect to even ask for their rightful position, Shi Chun really thought that the woman from Xuan State had the final say. So, he proposed some ridiculous conditions. After the recent conversation, he realized he had assumed too much.

He became aware that there was still a lot about the outside world he needed to slowly come to understand.

Knowing her difficulties, Shi Chun nodded and said, "Don't make me wait too long."

Mulan Qingqing raised the Sandalwood Gold in her hand, illuminating the other's features a bit more clearly before suddenly snuffing it out. With a swift motion, she soared into the air, riding the Wind Scale to ascend again and quickly flew away.

Shi Chun clicked his tongue lightly, "As expected of the number one famous sect in Shengshen Continent, each person has a Wind Scale."

Xiang Laner teased, "Such a beautiful fiancée, congratulations."

Shi Chun, "You act like you've never seen a man before, always jumping to marriage, it's frighteningly odd. What's this woman's role in Su Yuan Sect?"

Xiang Laner, "I really haven't looked into that."

Not knowing was fine, he'd inquire more later. For now, things were settled according to his plans, and he breathed a sigh of relief. Shi Chun pulled out an immobilization charm from his sleeve, always ready, and stuffed it into his pocket.

Seeing this, Xiang Laner laughed, "Scared?"

Shi Chun, "You made Su Yuan Sect sound so formidable, I had to take extra precautions."

Xiang Laner, "It seems you really don't know how formidable Su Yuan Sect is. I forgot to tell you, immobilization charms are ineffective against their disciples."

"Eh…" As Shi Chun was casually surveying his surroundings, he suddenly stopped and turned to her, "Ineffective? Why?"

Xiang Laner seemed surprised, "What's so hard to understand? Immobilization charms are ineffective against some Cultivation Techniques. For example, ones that emit Demonic Qi, as the Demonic Qi dissipated naturally breaks the charm. How did you break the charm in Lankang City?"

"Demonic Qi can break an immobilization charm? That's not right. What about Sun Shigang…" Shi Chun stopped mid-sentence, realizing he'd said too much.

Xiang Laner, taken aback, then exaggeratedly exclaimed, "You really used an immobilization charm on Sun Shigang? That's impossible!"

Shi Chun kept silent, also pondering how that had happened.

He didn't want to think about it, but upon clearer thought, he nearly sweated coldly. At that time, it was fortunate he reacted quickly. After using the charm, he immediately stabbed with a knife and swiftly placed a restriction on him; otherwise, the consequences would have been dire.

He also wondered why Sun Shigang, who could use Demonic Qi to break the charm, still struggled.

On second thought, he could understand; the man probably didn't want to reveal his ties to the Demon Path in front of him.

Wait, that's not right. Was the ambush not meant to kill him? If it were to kill him, he wouldn't worry about exposure.

So he retorted, "What exactly did Sun Shigang intend by ambushing us?"

Xiang Laner refused to answer, scrutinizing his attire and diverting the topic, "Dressing up in Wukang Mountain clothes to impersonate someone from Youxia Mountain, such a sloppy job. Did you think Xuan State has no one?"

Shi Chun nonchalantly said, "Why fuss over such trivial details? Just look at what Wu Jinliang is wearing now. Who dares say he doesn't belong to Youxia Mountain?"

Xiang Laner was dumbfounded. So this was how they saw the issue; tangles in her logics, made sense why they were so reckless.

Shi Chun also took out a Wind Scale, and wrapped both of them as they soared into the air.

When they returned to their temporary hideout, the sky had already started to brighten slightly after a night of turmoil...

As night fell, the capital's training ground became lively again, with the Sky Rain Meteor Conference drawing closer to its end, and the atmosphere of the event improving.

After getting off the carriage, Lan Qiaoyan took her daughter's hand, a mother's joyous smile mirroring a daughter's slight shyness as she was pulled along by her mother.

Miao Yilan knew another matchmaking attempt was underway; aside from a bit of shyness, she didn't have much self-will, somewhat blindly following what seemed to be parental guidance on her first experience of such matters.

From her mother's mouth, she heard that the go-between had relayed that Gong Shaoci was quite fond of her.

Her father's attitude towards this affair seemed rather blurred.

Miao Dingyi also arrived, the last to get off the carriage, supposedly to check on the progress of the conference. However, the family knew he was there to see Gong Shaoci in person.

Just as he stepped off, he saw Young Master Nan similarly alighting from a carriage not far away. Miao Dingyi initially wanted to greet him, but decided against it.

Usually alert and looking around, Young Master Nan today walked forward with a stoop, as if carrying a heavy burden.

Lan Qiaoyan noted this and asked her husband, "What's with Young Master Nan looking so listless?"

Miao Dingyi casually mentioned, "He's preparing for the betting payout, seems like borrowing money isn't going smoothly."

Lan Qiaoyan, "But the results of the betting haven't come out yet, right?"

Miao Dingyi calmly said, "It involves too many people. If they can't produce the money when it's time to pay up, there could be big trouble. They have to raise funds beforehand."

Just as the family entered the venue and had reached the pavilions, someone rushed off to a corner and whispered to the waiting Gong Shaoci, "Miss Miao's family has arrived." Pointing them out with his hand.

Gong Shaoci immediately stood up, straightening his clothes. Seeing the three Miaos settling down in the front row, he started to walk toward them, then stopped again, waving someone over, "Insert a mirror image, target that Shi Chun, make it last longer."

He had previously communicated with Miao Yilan, knowing that she and Shi Chun were friends, and also aware that the Miao family was particularly interested. Naturally, he wanted to make an impression.

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