Chapter 8: The Seventh Imperial Prince

However, Cang Yin Yue merely glanced indifferently in Li Musheng's direction and said nothing.

Silence hung in the air for a moment; finally, she still spoke, albeit reluctantly:

"Rest assured, whether you are the true Seventh Imperial Prince or not, I will do my utmost to guarantee your safety."

Li Musheng shrugged and smiled, saying:

"That is not what I meant. I just feel that I ran all the way to Shangyang City, only to find out I am not an Imperial Prince; isn't that somewhat awkward?"

Hearing this, Cang Yin Yue let out a cold snort:

"I understand what you mean. If I truly made a mistake, I will compensate you with one hundred taels of silver as travel expenses for this trip."

Li Musheng immediately smiled broadly, extended his thumb, and praised:

"Miss Cang is generous; no wonder you are an expert of the Secret Intelligence Bureau."

Cang Yin Yue kept a stiff face, crossed her arms, and said:

"Do not think that because you have entered the Pre-Heaven Realm of martial arts, you can be careless. While a Pre-Heaven expert can indeed roam unimpeded in Shun'an City, in the entire Great Li, you are nothing to mention."

Speaking thus, she sighed lightly:

"I know you must have some opportunities on your person; otherwise, a small martial arts hall in Shun'an City, even exhausting all its family wealth, could hardly cultivate a Pre-Heaven expert."

"But there are always higher mountains beyond mountains, and better people beyond people. Once you reach Shangyang City, you will know that there are always geniuses of astonishing brilliance in this world, whose backs you can hardly even look at."

Li Musheng poked the firewood with a stick, making the bonfire before him burn brighter, and asked:

"For example?"

"I have never left Shun'an City and know little about outside matters; Miss Cang can tell me more. I love hearing all of this."

Cang Yin Yue, however, shook her head and sneered:

"There is no point in me telling you much; you will understand when you see it with your own eyes."

"However, what I can tell you is that the 'Seventh Imperial Prince' currently imprisoned in the Heavenly Prison is a being of heavenly talent. He not only possesses talents for governing the world, but his martial arts aptitude makes countless people trail far behind. Before this incident occurred, he was even one of the Imperial Princes with the highest hope of ascending to the position of Crown Prince."

Hearing this, Li Musheng was stunned, then said regretfully:

"That is truly a pity. Such an outstanding talent locked in the Heavenly Prison is absolutely a loss for the Great Li Dynasty."

Cang Yin Yue glanced at Li Musheng, a flash of inexplicable anger passing through her gaze; suddenly, she spoke sharply:

"In my eyes, you are the true Seventh Imperial Prince. If he is released, how will you then position yourself?"

"Those things originally belonged to you; he has stolen all of this for twenty years. How many more twenty years do you have to lose?"

Speaking thus, Cang Yin Yue seemed to realize her emotions were somewhat agitated; she paused, then said:

"Bringing you back to Shangyang City is merely my duty. As for everything after that, you must rely on yourself; otherwise, in the Imperial Capital, you will likely be eaten until not even a bone fragment remains."

Li Musheng looked at Cang Yin Yue, who had suddenly become angry for some reason, and frowned.

Why was this Miss getting more and more worked up the more she spoke?

He hadn't said he intended to let others butcher him, had he?

But thinking carefully, Li Musheng realized the other party actually held no ill will.

At this moment, after speaking for a while, Cang Yin Yue simply closed her eyes directly and ignored Li Musheng no more.

Seeing this, Li Musheng muttered inwardly:

"You solemnly claimed to believe I am the Seventh Imperial Prince, yet this is the attitude? Is this how one treats a Great Li Imperial Prince?"

Thinking thus, he reached into his bosom, then suddenly spoke:

"Did Miss Cang go to the Yu Family Martial Arts Hall during that half-incense-stick time you left Shun'an City today?"

Hearing this, Cang Yin Yue suddenly opened her eyes wide, her gaze sharp as she looked at Li Musheng:

"Were you following me?"

But quickly, she shook her head again and muttered to herself:

"Impossible. If you had followed up, I could not have failed to notice."

Li Musheng spread his hands and said:

"I did not follow you, but I guessed you must have gone to the Yu Family Martial Arts Hall and obtained from that old man Yu the item the Zhahe Seven Thieves wanted."

"How do you know?" Cang Yin Yue asked.

"Because before today, you not only followed me, you also followed the Zhahe Seven Thieves, so you know what their purpose is."

Li Musheng reached into his bosom, felt around, and pulled out a brown wooden box carved on six sides, holding it in his hand and playing with it curiously.

"If you did not care about the item in old man Yu's hands, naturally there would not have been that half-incense-stick time. Since that time existed, it means this item must be quite important in your eyes."

At this moment, Cang Yin Yue's expression had already changed. She reached toward her bundle; the object that originally existed there was now completely gone.

Cang Yin Yue, who had been leaning against a large tree, gradually straightened her body; the bonfire before Li Musheng was reflected in her pair of phoenix eyes.

"When did you steal it?" Cang Yin Yue asked, her voice calm.

As her words fell, her entire slender figure vanished from the twilight.

Under the dim light, only a gust of hurried wind swept past, blowing the burning bonfire to sway incessantly.

When Cang Yin Yue revealed her figure again, she had already appeared behind Li Musheng.

One hand reached for the six-sided wooden box in Li Musheng's hand, while the other was raised high; her palm, pale and white as jade, transformed into a hand-blade, chopping toward the back of Li Musheng's neck.

"You wouldn't be planning to knock me unconscious and then tie me up to take me to Shangyang City, would you?"

Li Musheng's voice sounded beside Cang Yin Yue's ear.

Her pupils instantly widened; only then did she shockingly realize that all her movements were suspended in mid-air, and she somehow could not move at all.

"You... how did you do this?"

Cang Yin Yue opened her mouth and found she could still speak.

"Just an acupoint technique. Who told you to appear suddenly and scare me?"

Li Musheng chuckled, looking at Cang Yin Yue who was now within arm's reach; his heart stirred, and he suddenly reached out to remove the veil on the other party's face.

"No!"

Cang Yin Yue's voice came out hurriedly, stopping him.

But Li Musheng did not stop his hand, saying:

"Don't be so feudal and backward. Good looks are a gift from heaven; you must learn to share. Hiding and covering up—what's the point of secretly looking at yourself all the time?"

However, when Li Musheng had lifted Cang Yin Yue's veil halfway, he quickly put it back on her.

At this moment, Cang Yin Yue's eyes were already red, her gaze fixed on Li Musheng with boundless anger.

"Sigh, look, you're getting upset. I won't look anymore, okay?"

After carefully adjusting the veil on the other person, Li Musheng withdrew his hand.

Yet, a trace of shame still appeared imperceptibly in his eyes.

His gaze lingered on the bonfire before him for a moment, then Li Musheng continued to fiddle with the wooden box in his hands, head bowed.

At this time, Cang Yin Yue closed her eyes, then slowly opened them again, took a deep breath, and asked:

"What acupoint technique was that just now? Why was it so fast?"

Li Musheng replied without turning his head:

"This is called the Sunflower Acupoint Hand. But you probably haven't heard of it, because this Wu Gong is one I created myself."

(End of this chapter)