184: Chapter 184 My Master is the most important person in this world.

Xiao Shiyu's pretty face flushed red, but since she was committed to the act, she stomped her foot and shouted in mock anger:

"Hmph! Finding someone myself is still better than whoever you'd find for me!"

Pavilion Master Xiao Linfan chuckled, neither agreeing nor disagreeing, and turned his gaze toward Leng Qingshuang.

"Sword Venerable Leng, it has been a long time."

Leng Qingshuang's eyes were cold, her demeanor keeping everyone at a distance. "Pavilion Master Xiao, have we met?"

Pavilion Master Xiao Linfan chuckled again:

"You naturally wouldn't know me, but that aura of Wind Spirit Intent on your person is something this old man is all too familiar with."

Chen Yan immediately became alert, quietly shielding his Revered Master behind him.

Pavilion Master Xiao Linfan looked at the Revered Master and disciple pair and smiled:

"Young friend, there is no need to be nervous. I have come today only to tell you some things that are not recorded in the intelligence reports of Duobao Pavilion."

As he spoke, he took out a verdant green jade buckle from his sleeve and gently sent it toward Leng Qingshuang.

"In the painting, the person who rescued the young Sword Venerable Leng was the previous head of my Duobao Pavilion, Xiao Yuanshan."

"In other words, my father!"

Leng Qingshuang looked at the jade buckle, her body trembling violently.

On that jade buckle, the character 'Wind' was engraved, and an aura lingered upon it that was identical to her Wind Spirit Intent!

Chen Yan was also shocked by the news. He looked at Pavilion Master Xiao Linfan and asked in surprise:

"Pavilion Master Xiao, you're saying... it was the previous Pavilion Revered Master who rescued my Revered Master?"

Pavilion Master Xiao Linfan nodded with a smile, his gaze deep as he looked at Leng Qingshuang.

"Back then, my late father was on good terms with the Feng Clan. Upon learning of the Tongtian Alliance's conspiracy, he rushed to the Feng Clan."

"But the Tongtian Alliance had planned for a long time and acted very swiftly. By the time he arrived, the battle was already over."

"He found you unconscious in the ruins and took you away from danger."

"However, the Tongtian Alliance had infiltrated various factions, and Duobao Pavilion's locations had too many eyes and ears. Keeping you with him was far too dangerous!"

"Therefore, he revealed your whereabouts to the Peak Revered Master of the Ninth Peak of the Taiqing Sword Sect, Leng Yi."

Leng Qingshuang's heart shook violently.

Leng Yi.

That was her Revered Master!

Her childhood memories began from the moment her Revered Master picked her up.

Pavilion Master Xiao Linfan looked at Leng Qingshuang and slowly spoke again: "But in reality, Leng Yi was not only the Peak Revered Master of the Ninth Peak of the Taiqing Sword Sect; he was also Leng Yue's biological older brother!"

"Which is to say... he was your biological uncle!"

Buzz~~~

In an instant, Leng Qingshuang felt her head buzzing.

She stood frozen on the spot.

Her lips trembled slightly as she wanted to ask, but her throat felt blocked, and she couldn't say a single word.

Even Chen Yan, who was used to many melodramatic dramas, was completely stunned at this moment.

Revered Master's Revered Master wasn't just her Revered Master, but actually Revered Master's uncle?

Was it really this convoluted?

An incident from three hundred years ago actually hid so many secrets?

He felt his head itching, as if he were about to grow a brain!

"What the hell is going on here?"

Seeing their expressions, Pavilion Master Xiao Linfan also let out a soft sigh.

"It is a long story..."

Chen Yan silently rolled his eyes. "Then make it short!"

Pavilion Master Xiao Linfan chuckled, not taking offense, and continued:

"Back then, it was Leng Yi who acted as the matchmaker for Leng Yue's marriage into the Feng Clan."

"But when he learned the Feng Clan had met with such disaster and Leng Yue had died, he felt constant guilt, believing it was because of him that Leng Yue met such an end!"

"So as soon as he learned of your whereabouts, he didn't say a word and headed straight for Qingzhou. Even though he was on the verge of breaking through to the next realm at the time!"

Leng Qingshuang's breathing instantly became rapid. "The verge of breaking through? So Revered Master... it was because of me that he later failed his tribulation?"

Pavilion Master Xiao Linfan looked up at Leng Qingshuang with a somewhat strange expression, a hint of inexplicable amusement in his eyes.

Yet he did not explain anything, instead continuing:

"You should have been named 'Feng Qingshuang,' but the Feng Clan was destroyed, and Leng Yi worried the Feng surname would draw attention, so he gave you your mother's surname."

He said: "The Feng Clan Bloodline is a double-edged sword. Those with this Bloodline progress in cultivation at a tremendous pace, but they will also be targeted by the Tongtian Alliance!"

"Leng Yi did not want you to repeat the Feng Clan's tragedy, so he intentionally kept it hidden."

Leng Qingshuang closed her eyes, two lines of clear tears falling.

Revered Master.

So you were protecting me all along.

Chen Yan gently took her hand, saying nothing.

After a moment, Leng Qingshuang slowly opened her eyes and looked at Pavilion Master Xiao Linfan, her gaze full of caution:

"Pavilion Master Xiao, by telling us all this, what do you hope to gain from us?"

Hearing this, Pavilion Master Xiao Linfan suddenly burst into loud laughter. "Sword Venerable Leng is indeed straightforward."

He looked at Chen Yan, his eyes flashing with a sharp light:

"My goal is simple. Duobao Pavilion wishes to borrow little friend Chen for a task."

Chen Yan narrowed his eyes displeasurably. "Wait, are you father and daughter just going to keep fleecing me alone?"

Pavilion Master Xiao Linfan smiled and walked to the window, looking at the fallen leaves in the courtyard as he spoke to himself:

"The people from Medicine King Valley will arrive tomorrow."

"Regardless of whether what is between you and Shiyu is real or fake, since Shiyu does not agree to this marriage, then as her father, I naturally cannot force her."

"This marriage must naturally be canceled."

He turned around and looked at Chen Yan.

"I want you to use your identity as Shiyu's fiancé to make Medicine King Valley take the initiative to withdraw the proposal."

Chen Yan was stunned for a moment. Wasn't this exactly what Xiao Shiyu had planned?

But in the next second, he realized the catch.

"Damn! You want me to use my identity as the Young Sect Master of Taiqing to face off against Medicine King Valley?"

Pavilion Master Xiao Linfan said with a smile: "Medicine King Valley has superb medical skills and has saved countless people, possessing vast connections. Duobao Pavilion consists only of businessmen, so we naturally don't want to fall out with them."

"Therefore... Young Master Chen is the best choice."

Damn! You guys get the benefits, and I carry the trouble?

You've certainly calculated this beautifully!

Chen Yan stroked his chin, and a smile like that of a crafty merchant suddenly appeared on his face.

"Pavilion Master Xiao, that's not how business is done."

Pavilion Master Xiao Linfan raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"

Chen Yan looked at him with a grin and said, "The secret of my Revered Master's background was what I got in exchange for Xiao Shiyu's request to pretend to be her Dao Companion."

"But if I have to put my identity as the Young Sect Master of Taiqing on the line, pretend to be her fiancé, and offend Medicine King Valley, that's a different price entirely!"

His eyes darted around as he held up three fingers and smirked craftily. "How about this: Let me have a thirty percent stake in Duobao Pavilion's business in Youzhou?"

Xiao Shiyu, listening from the side, was dumbfounded. "Chen Yan! You guy, you dare to commit highway robbery?"

Tsk~ It's business. Isn't it all about asking for the moon and settling for the earth?

Chen Yan smirked and pulled back one finger. "Or twenty percent is fine too?"

Seeing that Pavilion Master Xiao Linfan seemed unmoved, he pulled back another finger and said indignantly, "Damn! Ten percent, I can't go any lower!"

"You can't expect me to work for free, right?"

Xiao Shiyu stomped her foot in anger. "Chen Yan! You've gone too far!"

But Pavilion Master Xiao Linfan looked at him and laughed out loud.

"Interesting! Interesting!"

He looked at Chen Yan, a flash of admiration in his eyes.

"Little friend is indeed a talent."

He paused, and his tone suddenly shifted.

"If you are willing to truly be Shiyu's fiancé, never mind thirty percent—it wouldn't be impossible to give you the entirety of Duobao Pavilion!"

Holy crap!

This old geezer actually wants to trap me with a 'white wolf' scheme?

Chen Yan's expression changed drastically.

He clearly felt a bone-chilling coldness suddenly emanate from his Revered Master.

Turning his head, he saw his Revered Master pressing her red lips together, her cold eyes filled with frost.

"Cough... Pavilion Master Xiao, you're joking, right?"

He immediately shrunk his neck and stopped speaking.

Pavilion Master Xiao Linfan gave him a meaningful look, then glanced at Leng Qingshuang and smiled:

"Rest assured, I naturally won't let little friend Chen suffer a loss. I can promise to provide all intelligence regarding the Feng Clan's ancestral land free of charge!"

Chen Yan and Leng Qingshuang exchanged a look. "Deal!"

A deal was struck in a bizarre atmosphere.

Under Xiao Shiyu's arrangement, the Revered Master and disciple also stayed at Duobao Pavilion.

During the night.

Leng Qingshuang sat quietly by the window, the moonlight spilling over her, coating her silhouette in a layer of silver light.

Chen Yan walked over and sat down beside her.

"Revered Master, what are you thinking about?"

Leng Qingshuang turned her head, her eyes slightly red.

"I was thinking, if my mother hadn't tried to save me back then, could she have escaped with her life?"

"If Revered Master hadn't gone looking for me, would he have avoided forcing a breakthrough, which led to his eventual failure in Undergoing Tribulation and his death?"

Chen Yan felt a pang in his heart looking at her.

He reached out and tightly grasped Leng Qingshuang's slender fingers, interlacing them with his own. He whispered:

"Revered Master, you were never a burden to anyone."

His voice was very soft, yet it carried an unquestionable firmness.

"The destruction of the Feng Clan was the fault of those beasts in the Tongtian Alliance; Grandmaster taking you in was also his choice."

"To Grandmaster, being able to accompany you as you grew during his final years was perhaps the happiest thing in his life."

Leng Qingshuang stared blankly at Chen Yan.

Under the moonlight, the Rebellious Disciple's eyes were startlingly bright.

"To me..."

Chen Yan took a deep breath, his gaze burning.

"Revered Master is the most important person in this world."

"Worth everyone protecting you."