Chapter 82: Bargaining with a Tiger for Its Skin

Unlike Zhao Xuhe and Lu Yuanchun, Luo Wuya was not a man driven by lust, so from beginning to end, he had only been using his spiritual sense to secretly observe the scene.

Even so, when he saw the woman who had been as cold and pure as a snow lotus at the banquet now lying defeated on the bed with her robes disheveled like a trampled flower, delicate tear tracks still visible on her exquisite face, that intense contrast still made him feel a slight stir of something unusual.

"Junior Sister Yu."

Luo Wuya took a deep breath, then waved his large hand; a brilliant light enveloped Yu Suzhen, easing the awkward atmosphere between them.

Luo Wuya clearly saw a trace of relief and gratitude appear on Yu Suzhen's face.

However, soon her expression turned to helplessness and self-mockery: "I didn't expect to make a fool of myself before Senior Brother. Please, Senior Brother, do not spread this matter."

"Junior Sister Yu worries too much."

Luo Wuya sighed; having observed from the sidelines the entire time, although he did not know the details, he understood that Yu Suzhen had most likely been coerced by Lu Yuanchun.

"I will keep this secret for you, Junior Sister."

"Thank you, Senior Brother..."

At these words, Yu Suzhen's beautiful face appeared even more bitter, her lovely eyes turning red with tears like pear blossoms bathed in rain, and in her glances seemed to brew a thousand sorrows and ten thousand grievances.

Soon, Luo Wuya asked about the cause and effect.

"So that is how it is... Junior Sister Yu originally shared mutual affection with Junior Brother Zhao, but later, when Junior Brother Zhao was accepted as a disciple by Peak Master Senior Butian, Junior Brother Lu obstructed and made things difficult from the sidelines; for Junior Brother Zhao's sake, you went to reason with him, only to be schemed against by him, losing your chastity and leaving yourself open to blackmail, thus falling to this plight."

Luo Wuya looked at Yu Suzhen and sighed.

As the second senior brother of the Sanhe Society, he naturally knew that Zhao Xuhe was now the designated son-in-law of Peak Master Senior Butian; how could he possibly form a Daoist partnership with an outsider?

Undoubtedly, Yu Suzhen had definitely been deceived in her feelings.

At the same time, Yu Suzhen propped herself up with effort and said in a low voice, "Senior Brother, it is late; I need to rest. Please do not take offense."

"I understand."

Luo Wuya nodded; he naturally perceived Yu Suzhen's predicament and wished to help, yet he did not want to be dragged into this muddy water, so he could only sigh.

"This Luo takes his leave."

Having said this, he turned and departed.

Only after he left did Yu Suzhen slowly rise, seal her cave dwelling, and let the grief and sorrow on her face rapidly recede, replaced by complete indifference.

"... his should suffice."

Zhao Xuhe, Lu Yuanchun, Luo Wuya—these were the three big fish Yu Suzhen had targeted during this period, for which she had specially arranged three different strategies.

针对不同不同的人，套路也不同。 (Different people required different strategies.)

For instance, with Zhao Xuhe, Yu Suzhen had determined he was inherently a romantic, so she deliberately pretended to fall in love with him, willingly becoming his secret lover.

As for Lu Yuanchun, Yu Suzhen, after many probes, realized he had long harbored secret jealousy that Zhao Xuhe had gained the favor of their master, Peak Master Senior Butian; thus, she deliberately approached him posing as Zhao Xuhe's Daoist partner—one wanting to strike, the other willing to receive—so naturally, they smoothly became entangled.

As for Luo Wuya, Yu Suzhen's strategy was different again.

After all, Luo Wuya differed from the previous two; with his Qi Refining realm perfected and his sights set on Foundation Establishment, women were, if not exactly red powder skeletons to him, nearly so.

What such a person pursued was emotional value.

To put it plainly, it was persuading a courtesan to retire from her trade; if Luo Wuya was truly obsessed with this notion, then he had taken the bait, and Yu Suzhen naturally had ways to control him.

If he was not obsessed and truly intended to stay out of it, that was fine too; after all, he was merely a spare tire, and Yu Suzhen would not pester him. Her pond of fish was vast, lacking not for this one big catch; all previous efforts could simply be considered building a good karmic connection, which might yield surprising results in time.

Tailor the medicine to the illness, serve the dish according to the guest.

This was Yu Suzhen's self-cultivation as a superhuman; and these were only the big fish—besides them, she also kept many small fish who were utterly devoted to her.

If not for this, how could her cultivation progress have been so rapid, advancing a thousand li in a single day?

"Remarkable, truly remarkable."

Inside Skeleton Mountain, even Lu Yang could not help but marvel that Yu Suzhen possessed unique talents and had forged a new path; continuing like this, she might truly surpass all other disciples.

"It is just a pity that her movements are still too large."

Lu Yang formed a hand seal with one hand; behind him, a halo of light rotated, reflecting countless possible events, all of which pointed to only one result—

"What are you doing?"

In an instant, the suddenly响起的声音 startled Yu Suzhen so severely that she whipped her head around, and even Lu Yang, though prepared, swallowed hard.

A young man wearing a black-and-white Daoist robe, with crane-white hair and a youthful face, possessing an immortal bearing and Daoist bones, had appeared without warning inside Yu Suzhen's cave dwelling; his face bore a kindly smile, yet his eyes were ice-cold, his gaze fixing straight upon Yu Suzhen as if he could see through the human heart.

In that instant, Yu Suzhen's beautiful face froze in place.

Not only that, but even her thoughts, her mental activities, and even her feelings of fear were all frozen solid, as if she had instantly turned into a cold, hard stone statue.

This was merely the aftermath.

For at this moment, the person Peak Master Senior Butian was looking at was not her; the spiritual sense attached to his gaze was truly locked onto Lu Yang, who stood behind her!

"Which Daoist friend dares to scheme against my disciple?"

"From where did you obtain the Heaven-Stealing Art?"

Facing Peak Master Senior Butian's interrogation, Lu Yang remained perfectly calm, not surprised by his appearance, after all, Zhao Xuhe and Lu Yuanchun were both his disciples.

Moreover, the Heaven-Stealing Art was something Lu Yang himself had obtained from Zhao Xuhe in his previous life.

Yet such a miraculous secret technique—where had Zhao Xuhe obtained it? Considering the dual-cultivation nature of this art, the answer was self-evident.

It was actually created by Peak Master Senior Butian himself!

Therefore, ever since he began crafting Yu Suzhen into this Daughter of Destiny, Lu Yang had prepared to be discovered by Peak Master Senior Butian and have him come knocking.

Of course, Lu Yang himself could not possibly meet Peak Master Senior Butian in person.

So he could only let Yu Suzhen suffer first, using her as bait to lure Peak Master Senior Butian out, and then meet Peak Master Senior Butian through her agency.

"... trivial trick, letting Senior laugh at me."

With a thought, Lu Yang activated the Heaven-Stealing Art, directly taking control of Yu Suzhen's body, and said with a light laugh, "I merely wish to discuss a transaction with Senior."

"... t is you?"

Before Lu Yang's voice had faded, Peak Master Senior Butian raised an eyebrow: "That day, it was not Hong Yun, but you who secretly seized the karmic inheritance of True Person Panlong?"

Immediately after, Peak Master Senior Butian showed no anger; instead, he smiled: "Interesting."

"On what basis do you propose a transaction with me?"

"On the basis of Senior's blood relative."

Lu Yang said calmly, "Senior Brother Chen was saved by me and now still has a sliver of hope for rebirth; surely Senior does not wish to see your son's soul scatter and perish?"

"Chen Xinan!?"

At these words, Peak Master Senior Butian's expression changed instantly.

He immediately began to deduce cause and effect, and soon, Liu Xin, who had lost the protection of the divine talisman, was unearthed by him.

However, no matter how he calculated the heavenly secrets, he could never obtain further information, nor could he ascertain Chen Chen Xinan's current state.

This made Peak Master Senior Butian even more curious; after all, being able to block his divination of heavenly secrets indicated that either a Foundation Establishment True Person stood behind the other party, or they possessed a rare treasure of heavenly secrets... Yet regardless of which it was, for this person to dare threaten him showed audacity that knew no bounds.

Truly worthy of being a disciple of my Holy Sect!

"... peak."

After a moment, Peak Master Senior Butian finally spoke: "What do you want in exchange for returning Chen Xinan? A Foundation Establishment rare treasure? Or a great divine power..."

"None of those."

Lu Yang shook his head: "I plan to have Yu Suzhen use the Heaven-Stealing Art to drain Xiao Shiye, but I need a Senior to shield Yu Suzhen from the karmic consequences."

"... h?"

At these words, Peak Master Senior Butian's expression finally changed noticeably; he looked at Lu Yang with interest: "You wish to scheme against Hong Yun?"

Lu Yang smiled: "Correct!"

Xiao Shiye was Daoist Hong Yun's bait; if Yu Suzhen rashly drained him, she would definitely be discovered, and by himself, Lu Yang could not conceal the heavenly secrets.

Therefore, to snatch food from a tiger's mouth, the only method was to cooperate with a Foundation Establishment True Person, and Peak Master Senior Butian was undoubtedly the most suitable candidate, both because Chen Chen Xinan served as a hostage and because Peak Master Senior Butian's relationship with Daoist Hong Yun was clearly poor.

Of course, Lu Yang was also very clear about the risks of cooperating with Peak Master Senior Butian.

One careless move, and cooperation could turn into black eating black.

This was bargaining with a tiger for its skin!

(End of Chapter)