Li Qiye gazed at the other side of the river. His eyes narrowed with enough acuity to see through everything.
“Storm, no storm, storm, no storm…” A soft whisper came about after he finished looking.
He turned and saw a girl standing in an inconspicuous part of the lake. She wore a simple, gray dress with an old iron sword tied to her back.
She wore no make-up and couldn’t be considered extremely beautiful. Nevertheless, there existed a graceful bearing and a pretty pair of eyes full of determination. This culminated in an unyielding aura.
Her hair was loosely tied to the back. As the wind fluttered by, some loose strands flitted on her face.
She was holding a flower and began taking off the petal while counting quietly: “Storm, no storm, storm, no storm…”
This was a sort of divination and it amused Li Qiye. He said: “There will be a storm today, and a big one at that, no need to test your luck.”
The girl isolated herself from the group so she was surprised to hear someone speaking to her. She became embarrassed since her silly act was exposed. She took one step back and quietly said with her head hanging low: “I’ll, I’ll come back tomorrow then.”
“I’m afraid it will last for a while.” He shook his head.
The girl looked over at the lake, overwhelmed with emotions – hesitation, helplessness, and unwillingness.
Li Qiye only smiled and didn’t say anything else.
The silence was interrupted by loud footsteps. Another group came to the shore with an oppressive aura, forcing everyone to make way for them.
They had the same uniform; weapon of choice was a longsword, clearly from the same sect. The leading member was a young woman, pretty and flirtatious with incredible curves. Moreover, her gown was an imperial one, showing off her noble status.
“People from Sword Grave System.” People were startled with whispers: “That’s Regional Princess Xia, a younger cousin of the Sword Sovereign.”
“Looks like the Sword Sovereign will come too then.” Even the older cultivators were surprised to see the woman.
This regional princess immediately looked around and noticed the girl who played with the flower petals earlier.
“Oh? Isn’t that the daughter of the Ling? You also came to Moneyfall, how unexpected.” She smiled and said.
The other girl wanted to leave after seeing this group but the princess had already spotted her.
“I’m only here to take a look.” She started with her head slightly drooping but eventually mustered enough courage to look straight at the princess. The girl was clearly afraid.
“The Ling Clan?” Some older cultivators looked at this girl right away.
“Moneyfall requires money every step of the way, looks like you have spent quite a lot.” The princess said with a mocking tone despite keeping up a friendly facade.
“I can handle it.” The girl spoke with little confidence.
“It’s not that simple.” The princess shook her head: “Where are you going? Perhaps we are going the same way.”
“I’m, I’m just looking around.” The girl avoided the princess’ eyes. It clear that she didn’t want to reveal her true intention.
The princess showed a bright smile: “Why not come with us then? Senior Brother Sword Sovereign will be coming too. Since we’re from the same system, we should work together.”
The girl’s expression changed after hearing about this Sword Sovereign and staggered backward. She tried her best to stay calm but her emotions betrayed her.
The princess naturally caught all of this. She told her men nearby: “Let’s go then, ask Miss Ling to come with us so it’ll be good when Senior Brother Sword Sovereign arrives.”
The men started walking over; the girl tried to run but it was too late.
The spectators could see the complexity of this situation. One older cultivator knew the story clearly and sighed: “What a shame about the Ling.”
Nevertheless, no one dared to say anything. Sword Grave was a very powerful system in Myriad Lineage.
“No need.” Suddenly, Li Qiye reached out with his hand and stopped the incoming group.
The group paused and took a good look at him before uttering coldly: “Brat, scram to be the side, this is Sword Grave’s business.”
“Run before I change my mind.” Li Qiye nonchalantly said.
The princess immediately stated: “Looks like our Miss Ling has been seducing men outside, no wonder why she dares to come here. With a man around, she doesn’t need to spend a single coin, and if that’s not enough, then two men…”
The girl turned red but couldn’t come up with a response.
“Keep on talking and I’ll cut your tongue.” Li Qiye threatened with a glare.
“How audacious!” The princess’ eyes showed murderous intent: “Brat, do you know who I am? Daring to talk like this…”
“Doesn’t matter, you’re just a fool.” Li Qiye interrupted her with haste.
“Ignorant fool!” Her group became furious. Some even unsheathed their weapons.
“Oh, a fight?” A straightforward laugh came about.
It was a youth dressed in green with a large burlap bag behind him, completely filled. He grew up to be quite dashing and always had a bright smile on.
“Conqueror Young Noble!” Many recognized him right away.
The experts near the princess recognized this youth as well and signaled for the group to come back.
“Conqueror, one of the three young nobles.” People naturally heard of his title before.
He was famous alongside Miracle and Coiling Dragon. However, Miracle was dead so there were actually only two young nobles now.
His appearance naturally surprised the crowd because he rarely left his sect.
“Conqueror Young Noble, your reputation precedes you.” The princess cupped her fist, remaining graceful and noble with a hint of amicability.
“Princess Xia, long time no see.” The young noble smiled: “I saw Sword Sovereign a while ago and even sold him a sword. Are you about to fight? Would you like to buy one as well?”
“No, we’re just about to leave.” The princess hurriedly said: “Come visit Sword Grave sometimes.”
“Very well.” The young noble became disappointed after hearing this.
The princess threw out many coins and a large wooden boat appeared on the river, taking in the money.
“Let’s go.” The princess jumped on the boat along with her group. She didn’t wish to trouble that girl any longer in order to keep certain things under wrap.
“How about you, would you like to buy a sword?” Conqueror asked with a bright smile right when Li Qiye wanted to cross.
Li Qiye glanced at the guy. This young noble was very enthusiastic and took down his bag. He opened it and revealed densely packed bamboo swords – very well made.
“These are good swords, personally carved by me. Would you like one, Brother? It’s good for self-protection.” The young noble marketed.
The spectators here weren’t surprised at all because Conqueror has always done this. He would try to sell his swords to all the big shots, many of whom would buy it just to make him happy.
The truth was that these bamboo swords were useless at their level.