Chapter 140: Liuyun Dao Palace (Yunhai Sect) Disciples, Hear My Command!

"A weapon... worth thousands of spiritual crystals?" Chen Feng harbored deep concerns about this development, for the Chen family's own commerce encompassed magical artifacts and weaponry.

Moreover, such provisions were among the fundamental pillars that secured a clan's dominion.

What intrigued him even more was the nature of the power hidden within that shop—power capable of enabling his usually indolent son to forge acquaintances with such eminent figures from the Liuyun Daoist Palace and the Cloud Ocean Sect.

Initially, he had merely assumed the little establishment was leveraging the backing of some influential patron to clash with Huo Chong and his cohorts, which precipitated the current state of affairs. He had even conducted a cursory investigation; upon discovering the shop was merely a place of entertainment, he had paid it no further heed.

Yet now, he began to perceive that matters might not be quite as he had surmised.

...

Having devoured the text three or four times in a single breath, Dong Qingli finally returned to her senses, her appetite for the tale still far from sated.

"This is truly divine!" Dong Qingli exclaimed in wonder. "How could such a place exist? Just who could have penned this book?!"

It would not have been surprising had the novelty lain solely within the premise, but it was starkly apparent that woven throughout the narrative was an entire world possessing its own distinct customs and heritage, where the people even held their respective faiths. This was the true marvel of it.

"I truly yearn to meet this author!" Dong Qingli drew a deep, shuddering breath, her emotions stirred by an inexplicable fervor that caused her full bosom to rise and fall in tandem. "I truly wish to ask how her mind is fashioned, to be capable of weaving such a tale."

Xiang Qinghe wore an expression of sheer awkwardness.

Zhang Wanyu likewise displayed a countenance fraught with hesitation, her mind turning the matter over and over, debating whether she ought to inform her mistress that this novel was inextricably linked to the very shop they were currently suppressing—that it might very well be a conspiracy born of that establishment.

To think they would employ such a stratagem to break the deadlock...!

Observing the expressions upon their faces, Dong Qingli inquired curiously, "What is the matter with the two of you now?"

"It is... it is nothing," Xiang Qinghe offered with a couple of soft coughs.

"If it is nothing, then all the better." Dong Qingli handed the official Diablo novel in her grasp to Xiang Qinghe, commanding, "Go and deliver this to Master Duan. Henceforth, our Qingfeng Mingyue Pavilion shall also recite this tale."

"...Ah?!" Xiang Qinghe was utterly dumbfounded.

Zhang Wanyu was similarly stupefied.

Was this not granting their adversary free publicity?

"What are you 'ah-ing' about?" Dong Qingli reclined upon her soft couch, her gaze coolly fixed upon the duo who now stood with bowed heads. These two had always been her capable subordinates, fully adept at managing the Qingfeng Mingyue Pavilion in perfect order even during her absences.

But of late...

Fixing them with a chilling stare, she demanded, "Do you have something you wish to say?"

"We dare not conceal the truth from the Eldest Miss," Xiang Qinghe spoke in haste, bowing low in obeisance. "As for this Diablo, we have heard it mentioned by those patrons who frequent the Origin Shop... It is highly probable that it was concocted by that very establishment as a..."

"Conspiracy!"

"..." Upon hearing these words, Dong Qingli felt as though a bolt of lightning had suddenly cleaved the clear sky above her head. The author of this novel, whom she had just admired and revered for such novelty, had transformed in the blink of an eye into her nemesis?

How could such a thing be?

How could a matter be so preposterous?

The very entity she had just lauded and praised to the high heavens was the enemy she was currently straining to crush into oblivion?

At this moment, Dong Qingli’s countenance shifted between faint, ironic amusement and icy rigor, her complexion cycling through a succession of stark hues.

"Eldest Miss!" Seeing that Dong Qingli still harbored a measure of hesitation, the pair urged in unison, "I propose we consign this volume to the flames! Henceforth, let us forbid the patrons of our pavilion from speaking of such matters, lest they be driven out entirely!"

"Driven out?" Dong Qingli’s laughter was light and airy, yet to the ears of her subordinates, it felt as though a mountain had come crashing down upon their souls.

"And then shall my Qingfeng Mingyue bar its gates to refuse all guests?" Dong Qingli asked, her voice turning frigid.

"..." The two were instantly struck dumb.

"To actually employ such a method...!" Dong Qingli ground her silver teeth until they creaked.

"Qinghe!" she barked. "Are you absolutely certain this Diablo was truly spawned by that shop?"

"I am eighty percent certain!" Xiang Qinghe asserted. "Do you not loathe that shop above all else? A dilapidated little place, yet it causes its patrons to come to our pavilion day in and day out, proclaiming that our snacks cannot compare to their delicacies. And then there was that drunken brawl last time..."

"Hmm?" Met with a sharp glare from Dong Qingli's almond eyes, he instantly sealed his lips, fortunate enough not to stir up a hornets' nest.

"Eldest Miss, it would be best for you to remain cautious! This is unquestionably a conspiracy by that small shop! Their sole intent is to lure you into the snare, thereby breaking free from our suppression!"

Unable to entirely suppress the surging impulse within her heart to rush into that small shop and experience the so-called virtual reality game, Dong Qingli remarked coldly, "If that is indeed the case, then perhaps their conspiracy has already succeeded."

"What?!" The two stared at Dong Qingli with blank, vacant eyes.

It had already succeeded?!

"Did you not always harbor a deep detestation for that small shop..." Xiang Qinghe’s heart skipped a beat, a dark premonition washing over him.

"I merely happen to admire this biographical novel, nothing more."

"We shall simply go and take a look. If there is a second volume, we shall purchase it and refrain from lingering in that place," Dong Qingli declared righteously. "Qinghe, Wanyu, which of you shall accompany me to that shop to investigate?"

Originally, owing to the incident of drunkenness that day, she had conceived a profound aversion toward everything associated with the Origin Shop. Yet now, her resolve seemed to have drifted from its moorings without her even realizing it.

"Come to think of it, there does not seem to be any blood feud between myself and that small shop, does there?" Recalling the past, it seemed she had merely thrown a tantrum out of sheer vexation...

"Wanyu, you shall go." Xiang Qinghe’s mind was already a chaotic tempest; the reality of the situation had utterly outpaced his calculations!

He felt only a tangled mess within his breast; the original arrangements and strategies had been thrown into complete disarray by this single stroke.

Everything was utterly upended!

"I can only hope the Eldest Miss truly intends merely to observe..." he comforted himself inwardly, though it was a notion he scarcely believed.

"Furthermore... prepare two silk veils! It would be troublesome indeed should anyone recognize us!"

...

"Father, this is the place!" Young Master Chen offered a placating smile as he stepped forward to push open the door.

"Cease your clamor!" Chen Feng threw him a harsh glare. "Keep your voice down!"

He was clad entirely in black attire, a bamboo conical hat perched upon his head, rendering his appearance exceedingly mysterious.

After all, he had allied himself with Huo Chong's faction and was presently engaged in a joint effort to suppress this small shop; it would be highly unseemly were he to be spotted by onlookers!

Narrowing his eyes, he cast a glance inside: it was somewhat deserted.

It appeared the suppression was yielding decent fruit, he noted with a silent nod of approval.

Given that Huo Chong led the entire Jiuhua merchant coalition in a unified boycott, the fact that this small shop had not yet collapsed was already a testament to its resilience in his estimation.

He maintained considerable faith in the collective might of the Southern Alliance Merchant Chamber and the Lingyun Academy; even An Huwei was currently laboring under immense pressure! Much less this insignificant little shop.

Just as this thought crossed his mind, he suddenly beheld the two ends of the street. From one direction came a middle-aged man adorned in a white robe and a lofty crown, possessing a somewhat affluent build, followed by a retinue of a hundred individuals, advancing with solemn dignity.

From the opposing side approached a middle-aged Daoist priest, clad in a black robe embroidered with white clouds, his hair streaked with silver, possessing the ethereal air of an immortal. He, too, led a following of a hundred men toward this very spot.

As the two leaders caught sight of one another, their steps halted, as though a tempest were brewing between them.

"You have come yet again?! Another collective training session?!"

"Is Fellow Daoist Ye not doing precisely the same?!"

"As I thought, there are still those who come to cause trouble for the shop." Chen Feng nodded subtly to himself.

In the very next instant, he heard a command ring out!

"Disciples of the Liuyun Daoist Palace (Cloud Ocean Sect), heed my words!"

"Secure the seats immediately!"

"???" Chen Feng failed completely to comprehend the situation.

Master Chen’s face darkened instantly as he hurriedly dragged and hauled his old man through the door, howling, “Xiaoyue! Activate! Put us on the machines!”

He completed the entire sequence of logging onto the computers at what was practically the fastest speed of his life!

.