"Then, Miss Bailu, how about giving me your heart?" Yun Fan teasingly uttered an extremely dangerous line.
"My heart?" Bailu was momentarily stunned before hurriedly covering her flat chest with her hands, her voice trembling slightly as she spoke, "I-I'm still young, only a few hundred years old... I c-can't do... that kind of thing yet."
"Oh? Still too young for 'that kind of thing'? Then may I ask, Miss Bailu, what exactly is 'that kind of thing' you're referring to?" Yun Fan chuckled as he stepped closer to Bailu. Unexpectedly, this little dragon girl knew quite a bit. Well, that made sense.
She was a member of the Vidyadhara, born with longevity. Moreover, as a healer of the Alchemy Commission, it was only natural for her to have a bit more "knowledge" in reserve.
"I-I... Don't come any closer! If you do, I'll scream—" Bailu was about to say "for help," but she suddenly noticed something strange about her surroundings.
The Golden Alley they were in should have been a bustling, dazzlingly luxurious place. Even if not packed shoulder-to-shoulder, there should at least have been a steady flow of people. Yet now, the vast Golden Alley was completely empty, as desolate as a ghost town.
"This is..." Bailu glanced around, her face showing a trace of fear. Though she didn't understand what was happening, she was certain it had something to do with the man before her.
"Finally noticed, huh?" Yun Fan smiled faintly and continued advancing toward her.
"Y-you stay back..." Bailu gulped, retreating with trembling steps.
And so, with every step Yun Fan took forward, Bailu took one back—until her back hit the wall, leaving her with nowhere else to go. Only then did Yun Fan stop.
Reaching out, he forced the trembling little Bailu to meet his gaze. Staring into the dragon girl's fearful eyes, Yun Fan slowly spoke: "Little Bailu, how about becoming my daughter?"
...…
The Divination Commission…
"Phew—" Fu Xuan let out a long breath as she stared at the mountain of documents before her. Her brush scratched across the paper, but after a while, she impatiently crumpled the sheet into a ball and tossed it into the wastebasket beside her.
A glance at the basket revealed it was already half-filled with similar discarded paper balls.
"What's going on with the Master Diviner?" A foxian diviner whispered to Huixing beside her, eyes brimming with curiosity.
Huixing shook her head. "I don't know. Rumor has it the Master Diviner personally went to visit Diviner Qingque earlier. When she returned, she'd already become like this."
"Diviner Qingque?" The foxian girl's eyes suddenly lit up as if she'd remembered something. "Oh! Could it be…?"
"What did you remember? Tell me!" Huixing urged.
"You're too young. This isn't something you should know."
Huixing: "???"
"I'm not young! By the standards of people from Planet Zarathustra, I'm already grandmother-aged! Hurry up and tell me!" Huixing puffed out her cheeks in indignant protest.
"Alright, alright. A couple of days ago when I went home, I saw Qingque with this really handsome…"
Later that afternoon…
A shocking piece of news spread like wildfire through the Divination Commission before uncontrollably sweeping across all six divisions of the Xianzhou.
[Breaking News! Master Diviner Fu Xuan of the Divination Commission and Diviner Qingque Locked in Love Rivalry! Fu Xuan Defeated in Conflict, Drowning Sorrows in Drink, Depressed and Miserable!]
"Just let me find out… who started this rumor!"
In the Seat of Divine Foresight, Fu Xuan stared at the forum post on Jing Yuan's phone, her silver teeth clenched and her pink eyes burning with fury.
"Fu Qing, calm down. Don't let anger harm your health," Jing Yuan said soothingly as he poured her a cup of tea, placing it before her with a faint smile.
But this time, the usually composed Master Diviner did not accept it. Instead, she frowned, her tone laced with suspicion. "General, you didn't call me here just to watch the spectacle, did you?"
"Ah," Jing Yuan's smile stiffened. "Hahaha, of course not. How could I be so idle?" He laughed awkwardly. In truth, he had summoned Fu Xuan partly because he'd been feeling bored lately—and because he'd stumbled upon this juicy rumor about her on the Xianzhou forums.
"You'd better not be." Fu Xuan's suspicion didn't lessen in the slightest. If anything, Jing Yuan's unnatural reaction only confirmed her suspicions. Still, she didn't press further—after all, the Master Diviner had no concrete evidence.
"Still, Fu Qing, I've heard about today's commotion. Ever since returning from your visit to that little Qingque, you've been distracted. Did something happen?" Jing Yuan's smile remained, but his tone grew serious.
"Well…" Fu Xuan pursed her lips.
"It's Qingque. That girl… I've just reached the Emanator level."
Jing Yuan: "???!!!"
"Fu Qing, are you serious?!" Even the unflappable Jing Yuan was shaken. He'd kept an eye on Qingque as well—after all, she was one of only two on the Xianzhou, and one of only three in the entire universe, to have embarked on the Path of Causality. And she'd only stepped onto this path about half a month ago. Now, she'd already reached Emanator level?!
"Ah, I see. So Fu Qing, you've been distracted because you couldn't quite accept Qingque reaching Emanator level?" Jing Yuan nodded in understanding.
"Hey! You didn't have to say it out loud!" Fu Xuan glared at him indignantly.
"Hahaha, my apologies." Jing Yuan rubbed his nose. "But speaking of which, how did Qingque manage it? An Emanator and a Pathstrider are on entirely different levels."
"I may have an idea about that."
"Oh? Please enlighten me, Fu Qing."
"Mm." Fu Xuan nodded slightly, her expression turning grave. "When I went to visit Qingque, I noticed she was no longer... untouched. Her leave of absence was likely to 'recover.' Moreover, she hasn't yet mastered the Emanator-level power within her, meaning she must have only recently advanced. Combined with the rumors circulating on the Xianzhou forums..."
Here, Fu Xuan paused, her intense gaze fixed on the now-deep-in-thought Jing Yuan.
After a long silence, the Divine Foresight's general finally spoke. "Are you referring to... the rumors about her spending a 'passionate night' with the 'Lord of Samsara'?"