30. The Missing Male Lead
“Are you inviting me to join the Sword Alliance?”
However, Miss Gong didn’t agree immediately, instead saying pointedly, “Your offer is tempting, but what do you require of me?”
“Nothing.”
“Nothing?” Gong Yiling frowned. “Even the Returning Heaven Sect had some conditions when they invited me to join. Does the Sword Alliance not have such things?”
A simple sentence, expressing both her confusion and hinting at her origins.
Although she didn’t know how the Eight Desolations Sword Alliance viewed the Returning Heaven Sect, this move to elevate her own status was still meaningful.
“Our Sword Alliance is different from the Hundred Paths Mountain,” Mo Yechong said with a smile. “Even if you are a cultivator from the Returning Heaven Sect, you can still join the Sword Alliance. We will not restrict your freedom. We only ask that you assist the alliance when we need your help.”
Was this Sword Alliance so free?
Or were they just not interested in ordinary pawns?
Miss Gong pretended to consider his offer for a long time, then crossed her arms and agreed.
“If the Sword Alliance can truly do as you say—provide interesting opponents or help me find the Eight Desolations Sword Master—then I’m willing to join.”
Hearing this, Mo Yechong smiled. “Then may I take you to the Mo family’s residence first? You can decide after you’ve seen it.”
“Alright. Now?”
“Now, if you’re free.”
“Lead the way.”
—
—
On the way, Gong Yiling came up with a new identity, so she could answer smoothly when asked.
And her preparation was soon put to use.
When they arrived at an old-looking mansion, Mo Yechong turned and asked, “May I have your name, young lady?”
“Su Youying.”
This name was carefully chosen.
The Grand Elder of the Returning Heaven Sect had a disciple with the surname Su.
But no one knew her full name or had ever seen her.
This misleading name was a mix of truth and lies, leaving it up to the other party to interpret.
However, Mo Yechong didn’t seem to notice her trick. He simply invited her into the mansion.
The interior was in stark contrast to the exterior.
Although old and dilapidated on the outside, the furnishings and decorations inside were all new. The back mountain had also clearly been renovated.
This all seemed to prove that the Mo family had bought this mansion after emerging from seclusion.
And within the Mo family’s residence, Gong Yiling saw many disciples sparring.
Their cultivation levels were mostly at Core Transformation or Return to Origin, with only a few patrol supervisors at the Profound Void and Soul Origin realms.
After a tour, Mo Yechong encountered another member of the Mo family and asked Gong Yiling to wait while he had a quiet word with them.
Their conversation seemed to be about her.
Miss Gong discreetly took out her recording stone.
After they finished, she excused herself to the restroom and listened to the recording.
From the voices, she could distinguish who was speaking.
Mysterious Person: “Who is this?”
Mo Yechong: “A suspected cultivator from the Returning Heaven Sect, with some knowledge of the Eight Desolations Sword Alliance and the Sword Master.”
Mysterious Person: “Can we rule out any connection between her and the Sword Master?”
Mo Yechong: “She showed off her sword skills in public. Anyone with a bit of knowledge could see she’s no ordinary person. If the Sword Master were so weak, why would we be so cautious?”
Mysterious Person: “Caution is never a waste. You need to find a way to verify her identity and purpose.”
Mo Yechong: “We’re short on manpower now. Our spies will investigate her identity. Brother Chenmo, instead of worrying about this, you should be thinking about how to handle the Eight Desolations Deer Hunt.”
The mysterious person, who had been responding immediately, fell silent for a long time before saying, “The Hundred Paths Mountain is already eyeing this Eight Desolations Deer Hunt. We also have to worry about the Youhan Dynasty sending their ‘Sea of Sin Pavilion’ to interfere. If anything goes wrong, you know the consequences.”
“You too.”
With that, the mysterious person left.
Only Mo Yechong remained, sneering. “Jiang Chenmo, don’t think you can act so arrogant just because you’re from Tianli Daoist Mountain.”
“In this Eight Desolations Deer Hunt, you’ll see who’s really in control.”
The recording ended.
Gong Yiling wanted to kiss the system.
My dear, dear system, you’re my real… wait, I have a real dad. Then you’re my real son.
This recording stone always managed to capture interesting things, and this time, it was a jackpot for a conspiracy theorist.
The amount of information in this conversation was immense.
First, Jiang Chenmo.
If he hadn’t appeared here, Miss Gong would have almost forgotten about him, the male lead of this book.
After she took Yan Chuyue away, the two of them hadn’t met yet, and it was likely they wouldn’t for a long time.
Instead, she had a score to settle with him.
For reporting her, and for stabbing Qiu Shui, two deadly offenses. She would beat him to a pulp.
And besides that, there was another important piece of information: the Eight Desolations Deer Hunt.
This was something the system hadn’t detailed, and it was connected to some very powerful factions, not just the top sects of the Hundred Paths Mountain, but also a nation only mentioned in the book’s background.
The third of the Four Kingdoms, the Youhan Dynasty.
This was the most mysterious of the four, with almost no interaction with the others, yet its influence spread across the continent.
The most well-known was the Youcang Court, the largest trading house on the continent, which controlled about seventy percent of the trade for a long time.
And Leng Yuli’s father had wanted to enter the trading business, hoping to take a small share from this organization.
As for the Sea of Sin Pavilion, it was the Youhan Dynasty’s secret service. What were they planning to do here…?
As Gong Yiling was pondering this and walking, she bumped into someone.
