Yun Jin had stirred up everyone's temper, then she just found herself a corner, sat down, and suddenly acted all quiet and well-behaved.
Everyone glared at her, half-expecting her to say something else annoying. But this time, she really did go silent. She even leaned against the wall, closed her eyes, and looked like she was about to take a nap.
At first, the captives actually felt a bit relieved. Then, after a while…
Nothing. No sound, no movement.
The carriage fell completely silent again. And weirdly enough, that made everyone uncomfortable.
This gloomy, lifeless carriage hadn't been lively for who knows how long. After Yun Jin's noisy antics earlier, it'd been the first time they'd felt any emotional fluctuation in ages. Now that it was quiet again, the sudden calm felt suffocating.
"Hey," the Elf girl finally called out.
No response.
She frowned. "I'm talking to you!"
Yun Jin rolled over and went right back to sleep.
The Elf girl's patience snapped. "Yun Jin! Your name's Yun Jin, right? I'm talking to you!" She marched over angrily.
Yun Jin lazily opened her eyes. "So what if you're talking to me? Do I have to answer you?"
The Elf girl's cheeks puffed up in anger. "I talked to you before!"
Yun Jin sighed. "Fine, fine. What do you wanna ask? Honestly, I just wanted to rest for once, but apparently that's impossible. You sure are chatty."
The Elf girl froze.
Everyone in the carriage froze.
Chatty? She called her chatty?
Was there anyone in the world more talkative than Yun Jin?
The Elf girl's face flushed red. She took several deep breaths before managing to speak again. "Were you caught too?"
Yun Jin shook her head. "Caught? Why would they catch me? They treat me really well. The people here even gave me a bunch of stuff."
The Elf girl blinked, completely lost. "You weren't captured? Then… why are you here?"
Yun Jin sat up straight. "When I first entered the city, I told them I was from a rare species. They gave me a special token that lets me eat and stay for free. Then a carriage showed up, so I just got in."
Silence.
Everyone stared at her, speechless.
What kind of godforsaken place did this "Must-Keep-Talking Tribe" come from?! A rare species that didn't bother hiding its identity—and even announced it?
"You… you idiot!" the Elf girl burst out. "The Shi Tribe's been capturing rare species everywhere! Everyone's trying to hide, and you just walked right into their hands?"
"Capturing?" Yun Jin raised a brow. "Why?"
The Elf girl looked frustrated. "Who knows! Everything was fine before, but about a decade ago, the Shi Tribe started rounding up rare species across Stone City. Several of our Elves have already been taken."
Yun Jin frowned. "They're that reckless? No one's stopping them? As far as I know, the Shi Tribe doesn't dominate the whole Nanlan Continent."
"That's true," another captive cut in. "So on the surface, they're not 'arresting' us. Their excuse is that they're inviting us to perform in the royal capital. After the performance, they say we'll get rewards."
"But every single rare species that goes to the royal capital for these 'performances'… never comes back."
The others started talking all at once.
"The Shi Tribe claims those people settled in the royal capital. But if that's true, why hasn't anyone seen them again?"
"After a few of those disappearances, no rare species volunteered anymore. So the Shi Tribe started using force!"
The Elf girl's voice trembled with anger. "I just accidentally showed my ears, and they injected me with some kind of drug that knocked me out instantly. When I woke up, I was already in this carriage."
Everyone else's stories were similar.
All of them had been exposed by accident—one small mistake, and they were dragged away.
Yun Jin figured she probably just seemed too calm and harmless, so they hadn't bothered drugging her.
"In short, this time, we're doomed," the Elf girl said bleakly.
Once you entered the royal capital, you vanished. Which, in their eyes, meant death. The scariest part was, no one knew how that death would come. Because every rare species that entered the royal capital… never returned. That mystery only deepened their fear.
"I see," Yun Jin said, nodding calmly.
Everyone stared at her in confusion.
"You didn't know the truth before. Now that you do, why aren't you scared?" the Elf girl asked.
Yun Jin blinked. "Because I'm super strong! A true powerhouse doesn't fear schemes."
The carriage fell silent for a few seconds. Then laughter broke out.
The Elf girl laughed until tears came out. Wiping her eyes, she said, "You're funny, I'll give you that."
Yun Jin looked a little helpless. "But I'm serious."
"If you're that strong, why are you stuck here with us?" the Elf girl asked, exasperated.
Even boasting should have limits!
Yun Jin answered honestly, "Because I was planning to go to the capital anyway. Since there's a free ride, I figured I'd just tag along."
The Elf girl sighed and patted her shoulder. "Alright, alright, stop lying to yourself. You've seen Mister Mirror, haven't you?"
Yun Jin nodded.
Just the mention of him made the Elf girl's expression tighten with fear, but she still whispered, "Then you should know better! He left his spiritual imprint in all our seas of consciousness. With just one thought, he can control us completely. Our spiritual power's sealed, and we've got a ticking bomb in our heads. There's no way out."
All that awaited them was death, though no one knew when it'd come.
"Mister Mirror, huh," Yun Jin said casually. "He did try to control me."
The Elf girl rolled her eyes. "That's what happens to everyone! We've all been controlled."
Yun Jin sighed. "Yeah, but he was too weak. His fragile spiritual power dared to enter my sea of consciousness, and before I even did anything, my mind automatically retaliated. It backfired, and I ended up controlling him instead. Honestly, I didn't mean to. I'm a peaceful person, you know? Never thought I'd have to do something like that."
Another long silence fell.
At first, they'd just thought Yun Jin was weird.
Now they were convinced she was crazy.
That Mister Mirror was a Mahayana-stage expert, someone who specialized in spiritual techniques. His mastery over mental power was far beyond ordinary cultivators of his realm. If Yun Jin had said they'd fought for hundreds of rounds and she barely won, maybe they'd believe it.
But automatic retaliation that turned into victory? And she enslaved him afterward?
Come on!
Not even a storyteller would dare make something up like that!
Who'd believe it?
Forget it.
No point wasting time arguing with a lunatic.