202: Chapter 202 Your Highness, You've Overstepped Your Boundaries

"Rest assured, His Highness the Heir. Since my master wishes to establish good relations with the Marquis Mansion, he naturally won't commit such a foolish act as burning bridges after crossing them.

What's more, Your Highness, you do not need to wait until you leave the Secret Realm to receive the antidote."

"What do you mean?" Chen Shanzhi raised an eyebrow.

"After the Secret Realm opens, someone will naturally contact Your Highness in secret within it."

"At that time, Your Highness only needs to tell that person the detailed plans of that witch Jiang Yingrao inside the Secret Realm, and you will receive the antidote on the spot."

Hearing this, a barely perceptible flicker of surprise flashed in the depths of Chen Shanzhi's eyes.

The Grand Elder's faction was merely a side branch vying for power within the White Lotus Sect.

Moreover, the Academy Secret Realm was guarded by successive Palace Masters and the immortal stele, so no one could trespass.

Only the younger generation of Prodigies who held slots could enter.

The Grand Elder's faction was, at best, nothing more than rats in the gutters within the capital.

They absolutely lacked the foundation and capability to send death soldiers into the Academy Secret Realm.

The only explanation was that Prince Qi was pulling the strings behind the scenes.

But why would Prince Qi go to such great lengths to deal with Jiang Yingrao and the White Lotus Sect?

Could it be solely to disrupt the White Lotus Sect's plans?

If it were merely to help the Grand Elder rise to power within the White Lotus Sect, Prince Qi would absolutely not have invested such a massive amount of capital.

The only possibility was that Prince Qi had obtained some information from certain channels.

He knew exactly what Jiang Yingrao was going into the Academy Secret Realm to retrieve.

Chen Shanzhi leaned back in his chair, seemingly struggling in agony, but his mind was racing like lightning.

Something was wrong. In the plot of the adult game he played in his past life, Jiang Yingrao's trip to the Sihai Academy Secret Realm was merely a simple favorability quest.

The original protagonist helped her obtain a secret treasure inside the Secret Realm, which caused their feelings to warm up, successfully unlocking subsequent intimate interactions.

But would a single fortuitous secret treasure be worth such a massive undertaking by Prince Qi?

That was absolutely impossible.

Judging by his previous experiences where reality differed from the original game's plot...

There must be some secret hidden within that Secret Realm that was never shown in the game!

These thoughts only lingered in Chen Shanzhi's mind for a brief instant.

A timely look of gnashing resentment appeared on his somewhat pale face, and he slapped his thigh hard:

“Fine, it's a deal! This Heir will trust you this once!

However, I hope you can keep your word. If you dare to play tricks on This Heir...

At worst, we will both go down together. Even if This Heir dies, I will drag you down with me!”

Seeing Chen Shanzhi agree, the middle-aged man clapped his hands and laughed.

“Haha, the His Highness the Heir is indeed straightforward.

Those who recognize the times are wise. Your Highness will understand in the future how brilliant today's decision was.”

With that, the middle-aged man took out an exquisite, long red wooden box from his sleeve and gently pushed it in front of Chen Shanzhi.

“Since we have reached a cooperation, we must naturally show our sincerity.

Inside are ten spirit-severing pills.”

Chen Shanzhi's eyes lit up, and he snatched the wooden box away so fast that he almost left an afterimage.

Without the slightest hesitation, he flicked his wrist slightly and stored the wooden box directly into the storage Waist Token at his waist.

Seeing this neat storage technique, the middle-aged man's eyes narrowed slightly, and he sneered inwardly.

“How many more of these Medicinal Pills do you have?”

Having put away the box, Chen Shanzhi suddenly leaned forward and lowered his voice greedily:

“This Heir has nothing else, but is so poor that only silver is left!

Name a price! This Heir will buy up all the spirit-severing pills in your hands. Silver is not an issue!”

The middle-aged man burst into laughter and shook his head. “His Highness the Heir, you are treating me too much like an outsider.

Since we are already allies, how could I accept Your Highness's silver for this life-saving medicine?”

“However...”

The middle-aged man paused, a somewhat helpless, bitter smile appearing on his face. “To tell you the truth, the herbs used for this spirit-severing pill are extremely difficult to find, and the refinement method is incredibly tedious.

I truly have no surplus in stock. Every five days, I can at most give Your Highness one pill to maintain its efficacy.”

Chen Shanzhi's face immediately darkened with displeasure, and he snorted heavily:

“One every five days? With you being so stingy, if the medicine is cut off one day, won't This Heir be in so much pain that I'll die?”

“Rest assured, Your Highness. As long as you do as we say, this medicine will never be cut off.”

“Then how should This Heir contact you to get the medicine later?” Chen Shanzhi asked with a frown. “I can't be running to this Zuixian Restaurant every day, can I? There are quite a few people keeping an eye on This Heir.”

The middle-aged man picked up his teacup and smiled mysteriously.

“Your Highness can rest completely assured. From now on, every five days, you only need to go to Yihong Pavilion as usual.

The madam there will secretly deliver the Medicinal Pill to Your Highness's hands.”

“What?”

Hearing this, Chen Shanzhi suddenly stood up, a look of shock appearing on his face.

“The madam of Yihong Pavilion... is also one of yours?”

This time, Chen Shanzhi was truly a bit shocked.

Because in the original game, this madam didn't have any issues whatsoever.

Looking at Chen Shanzhi's shocked expression, the middle-aged man merely nodded gently with an inscrutable look, the smile at the corner of his mouth growing more smug.

“Your Highness, the waters of the capital run deep.

What you see may not be true, and what you hear may not be real.”

Chen Shanzhi gritted his teeth and couldn't help but ask in a low, pressing voice, “What faction... are you actually?”

The smile on the middle-aged man's face slowly faded, and a hint of warning entered his tone.

“His Highness the Heir, you have crossed the line.

Knowing certain things will do Your Highness no good.

The more you know, the faster you die. Surely I do not need to teach Your Highness this principle?”

The atmosphere inside the private room instantly froze.

Chen Shanzhi's eye twitched slightly. He gritted his teeth somewhat resentfully, a look of fear appearing on his face.

Then, he snorted coldly and turned his head to the side.

“Hmph, This Heir was just asking casually. Since that's the case, This Heir understands.

As long as the medicine works, This Heir will naturally do what you want me to do!”

Having said that, he flicked his long sleeves and strode out of the private room with a dark face, slamming the door shut with a loud bang.

The middle-aged man sat in the private room, watching as Chen Shanzhi completely departed.

Only then did he slowly stand up, walk to the window, push open a crack, and look down.

He waited until he saw the carriage belonging to the Zhenguo Marquis Mansion slowly drive away from Zuixian Restaurant.

Only then did he turn back and drink the pot of somewhat cooled tea in one gulp.

Next, he fished out a slightly yellowed human skin mask from his robes and skillfully pressed it onto his face.

Then, with a slight shake of his true essence, he transformed into a somewhat hunched traveling merchant.

Pushing open the door, he went out silently, quickly blending into the bustling crowd on the long street.