Edited by RED

Upon hearing what Qian Yin had just said, Xu Qi blanked out for a moment and grabbed her, flashing into the room he recuperated in. He realized Black Tortoise and Xu Xiaomei were in this room, too.

He didn’t pay attention to the both of them, however, and asked Qian Yin with a grave expression, “You said there’s something wrong with Di Ke’er; what made you say so?”

Black Tortoise and Xu Xiaomei exchanged glances at hearing this. A hint of doubt appeared in their eyes as they turned to look at Qian Yin, awaiting her response.

Seeing as there wasn’t anyone untrustworthy in the room, she sighed and said, “Young Master, I was the one with the most contact with Di Ke’er ever since you saved her back then. I would obviously realize her abnormal behavior.

“This time, she suddenly returned from Firesoul, and she probably didn’t expect you to appear here all of a sudden. Perhaps you might feel that she was pleasantly surprised at seeing you, but I discovered that she looked a little flustered. After spending so many years with her, I know that she would only show such a reaction when she’s scared,” Qian Yin explained.

Xu Qi nodded intently. It was indeed as Qian Yin said; ever since he saved Di Ke’er and brought her back to the Godsward Villa, it was Qian Yin who had spent the most time with her. However, coming to the conclusion that there was a problem with Di Ke’er with just a glance was a little too sloppy.

After thinking for a moment, Xu Qi said, “Qian Yin, I agree with what you said, but we can’t suspect her on such a vague basis, can we? Isn’t it a little too hasty to come to this conclusion with just that?”

Qian Yin shook her head and replied, “Young Master, if it was only her gaze that seemed weird, I wouldn’t have reported this to you. Today, I saw her sneaking out and meeting with a mysterious black-clothed person.”

“A mysterious black-clothed person?! Are you serious, Qian Yin? This isn’t a matter to joke about,” Xu Qi exclaimed in shock.

“Young Master, do you not understand me well enough after all this years?” Qian Yin asked, seemingly a little unhappy at Xu Qi doubting her. Obviously, she was displeased that her Young Master wouldn’t believe in her.

Xu Qi hurriedly said, “No, you’ve misunderstood. It’s not that I don’t believe you, but I feel that this is a little unthinkable. Di Ke’er had been with us for so many years, and I’ve observed her carefully, too. I’m sure she’s rather reliable. That was why I let you assign tasks to her. She never came into contact with anyone else over these years, either. That was why I thought it was unthinkable when you spoke of this all of a sudden.”

Qian Yin nodded in agreement, saying, “I know, right, Young Master? I didn’t dare to believe my own eyes when I saw her reaction, too. After all, we’ve been together for so many years, and I had always looked up to her as my elder sister.”

Xu Xiaomei slowly walked over to Xu Qi and Qian Yin, saying, “This Di Ke’er you mentioned about reminded me of something. On the night when she first came to see you, she snuck out once, returning in the middle of the night. Moreover, she seemed to be acting very carefully when she came back. I didn’t mention it since I gathered that you were close.”

Originally, Xu Qi was still unsure whether Qian Yin’s suspicions were meaningful. However, his heart sank upon hearing Xu Xiaomei’s account. Could there truly be a problem with Di Ke’er, and did she sneak out to give out information on them?

However, thinking back on Di Ke’er’s gentle smile, he wasn’t of the opinion that she would betray them. Xu Qi turned towards Black Tortoise and asked, “Uncle, what are your opinions on this matter?”

Seeing as Xu Qi didn’t get riled up from Xu Xiaomei and Qian Yin’s words and he even asked for his opinion, Black Tortoise nodded in satisfaction and said, “Damn brat, are you not convinced that Miss would betray you?”

Xu Qi nodded. He looked at Qian Yin and Xu Xiaomei, saying, “Right. She was saved by me back then, and never had any outside contact all these years. I understand her character. Truthfully speaking, I’m not convinced.”

“Ai, you’re still young. It’s good that you’re calm about this. All humans will change over time. You should listen to what Snakey and Miss Qian said, and make the necessary precautions. Since you don’t wish to wrong Miss Di, observe her for the time being. However, you should always keep an eye out on future matters. As the saying from that side goes, one shouldn’t have the mind to harm others, but one must always be mindful of others,” Black Tortoise smiled.

Xu Qi nodded and said to Qian Yin, “Don’t tell anyone about this matter, not even Qian Yun. You know her temperament.”

Qian Yin nodded. Usually, she didn’t dare to tell Qian Yun some important matters. That sister of hers had a short temper and was never able to keep secrets. If she became aware Di Ke’er was possibly a traitor, Qian Yun was likely to confront her directly.

Xu Qi furrowed his brow and thought about the matters that happened after he came to the capital. He felt that there were too many things he couldn’t understand, and it seemed like something was missing in the destruction of the Fan Clan.

Suddenly, the image of a person surfaced in Xu Qi’s mind. It was no wonder he felt something was missing. Despite causing such a huge commotion in the Fan Clan, the Sire, Lian Chengwei, never made an appearance. Not only that, he didn’t intervene in this matter, either. It didn’t seem to make any sense.

“Damn brat, your troubles seems to be coming non-stop. It looks like I have to get back to seclusion as soon as possible to neutralize the poison in me, or I might not be able to help you when needed. Though, I have to remind you of one thing. If you encounter the person who snatched Fan Yilun away, you must remember to abstain from confronting him. That person’s strength is too much,” Black Tortoise said, interrupting Xu Qi’s thoughts.

Xu Qi hurriedly nodded at Black Tortoise. He had been busy with the matter with the Fan Clan these last couple of days, and the fact that the Black Tortoise was still poisoned slipped his mind. He quickly formed a seal with his hand, sending Black Tortoise back to the Four Divinities Cavern. After all, the Black Tortoise regaining his strength was Xu Qi’s greatest insurance. Having insufficient strength was truly troublesome.

Qian Yin wanted to speak out when she saw Xu Qi creasing his brow, but she stopped herself from doing so.

Seeing this, Xu Xiaomei asked straightforwardly, “Do you have something to say?”

Xu Qi shifted his attention to Qian Yin at hearing this. She had a grave expression on her face, leaving Xu Qi a little puzzled.

Qian Yin sighed and said, “Young Master, I know that you’re not afraid of the Undying School, but injuring their Young School Master, and even declaring war on them, made our Xu Clan’s current situation even worse. Before this, we had already thoroughly offended the Imperial Void Valley, and the four Nightwatchers were met with trouble in Firesoul, being pursued by the Shadow Wind Sect and the Monarchy Pavilion. Now that the Undying School is added to the mix, we’re stuck having to deal with four of the top schools simultaneously. The Constellation Guards were injured, too. I’m really worried.”

Xu Qi’s heart trembled just as Qian Yin finished her piece. He actually hadn’t realized how many enemies he’d made before the attentive Qian Yin pointed it out.

Even the courageous Xu Xiaomei showed a rare furrow of her brow on realizing the situation, saying, “Young Master, what Qian Yin said was right. Although we aren’t afraid of any cultivation school, Uncle’s poison is still restricting him from taking action. Most of the Constellation Guards were injured, too. While we have Aunt Wen’s forces from the Luo Xiang House, they just experienced a rebellion within their ranks, after all, and their strength was greatly reduced. It’s imperative for us to heal the Constellation Guards as soon as possible. We would have a better chance if our immediate threat, the Undying School, sent their men after us.”

Xu Qi sighed inwardly. He had placed all his attention on Cai Xiaoxiao over these two days and didn’t consider any of this, forcing them to remind him before he realized the underlying issues. As the Patriarch of the Xu Clan, he truly wasn’t doing a good job.

“Thank you for your reminders. My considerations were lacking. First, let’s think of a way to heal the Constellation Guards’ injuries,” Xu Qi said, feeling guilty.

After saying this, Xu Qi left the room and headed straight to the room the Constellation Guards were residing in. Xu Xiaomei and Qian Yin exchanged glances and quickly followed behind Xu Qi.

Soon, the three of them arrived at their destination. At this moment, Wen Xiang and the men from Luo Xiang House were feeding the Constellation Guards some medicine.

Guilt was pricking Wen Xiang as she looked at the injured Constellation Guards. After all, she was the person who caused their injuries. If she had gone easier on them, their injuries wouldn’t be as severe. Though, she had no idea they were her biological nephew’s men at the time. In the end, it was futile to think about all this.

Although the Constellation Guards were severely injured, they still showed slight smiles to the men from Luo Xiang House. They were feeling weak, yet they would joke around with them from time to time. This was something the Constellation Guards had learned from Xu Qi over all these years. Since the Luo Xiang House was one of their own and they were required to get along with them in the long term, they had to forget about the past grudges and let bygones be bygones.

Everyone in the room stopped whatever they were doing upon realizing Xu Qi and the two girls had entered. They looked to Xu Qi and greeted him, “Young Master!”

“Alright, you don’t have to be so serious. Continue what you were doing from before. I’m only here to check on your injuries, to see if there is a way to quickly heal you. We’re at a time where we desperately need men,” Xu Qi said, forcing a smile onto his face.

Wen Xiang creased her brow slightly at seeing the smile on Xu Qi’s face. She put down the medicinal bowl in her hand and slowly walked to Xu Qi’s side, whispering, “Qi’er, you just said that we’re in desperate need of men, is there some trouble?”

Seeing as this aunt of his seemed to have seen through his mind, Xu Qi smiled and said, “Aunt, this isn’t..”

Just as Xu Qi was about to tell Wen Xiang about the situation, Xu Chen’s voice suddenly rang out, interrupting him. “Young Master, I caught someone sneaking around. There was another one, but he was being stubborn and uncooperative; I killed him with a palm strike.”

Everyone in the room turned to look outside at hearing this. Xu Chen was carrying a half-dead man by the collar. The man’s face was covered in blood stains, obviously beaten up by Xu Chen.

Xu Chen came to the door and threw this man onto the ground, reporting, “Young Master, I interrogated this guy briefly and he told me that they were sent here by Lian Chengwei.”

Xu Qi let out a cold humph at hearing this. He looked at the man lying on the floor and snorted, “I have yet to get even with him for the debt from three years ago, and here he is, looking for trouble with me! So what if he is the ruler of Mirrorlink?! Since he wants to mess with me, I’ll tango with him!”