Chapter 51

Chen Yan left the commercial street and hailed a ride-share car to head home.

On the ride, he scrolled through his phone and discovered that videos from Luoyunzhai had already been uploaded to the local feed on a popular app, with views rapidly accumulating.

Luoyunzhai had instantly become a top trend in this local industry.

But this surge of attention? No one wanted it.

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Chen Yan returned to the villa district at the foot of General Mountain, entered the compound, and walked to his own villa’s front gate.

He reached out to enter the gate’s password, had just typed three digits, when a series of beeps sounded—and the gate swung open from inside.

Standing inside the gate was a thin, short old man.

Chen Yan froze for a second, then blurted out: “Who the hell are you?”

The old man looked at Chen Yan: “I’m the household steward. And you are…”

Steward?

Chen Yan blinked, instinctively stepping back and glancing left and right.

No mistake—he was at the right house.

His confidence surged; he shoved the gate open and stepped inside: “What steward? What steward?

This is my house! How the hell did I end up with a steward and I didn’t even know?!”

The old man immediately bowed with a respectful smile: “Ah, Young Master has returned! Please, come in, come in!”

He stepped aside to make way.

Chen Yan stared, dumbfounded.

Wait, what? Young Master? What nonsense is this?!

“What are you talking about?

Wait no—I’m definitely coming in, this is my house!

Don’t you dare run, old man! Don’t you dare run! Tell me who you are! How did you even get into someone else’s house? How did you get into my home?!”

Chen Yan lunged forward, grabbed the old man’s arm, and held on tight.

At that moment, the front door of the main villa in the courtyard opened. Chen Yan saw a figure standing at the threshold, watching him from afar—and then a sweet, clear voice reached his ears:

“Chen Yan, don’t bother him. I’m the one who appointed him as steward.”

Huh?

Who is this?

Chen Yan narrowed his eyes.

Breaking and entering during daylight? An accomplice?

Shuā!

In an instant, the figure blurred—leaping over ten meters in a single motion and landing right in front of him!

Holy shit!! A master?!

Chen Yan’s eyes narrowed—he reacted instantly, releasing the old man and stepping back.

Rivals? Does Luoyunzhai have masters?

Or are they from Hong Kong?!

His first thought: Run!

Run first, figure it out later!

He’d learned some spells, but only for how many days? If someone had come to settle a grudge, he wasn’t Superman!

He activated the Command: Dun Zi Jue—bent his body and retreated rapidly…

Then, his neck was seized.

Next, his feet left the ground—he was lifted straight up to face level.

“Don’t run,” the girl narrowed her eyes. “I’ve been looking for you. Don’t force me to make you suffer.”

Chen Yan swallowed hard.

His first thought: Huh? This thug… is really good-looking?

·

The old man was kicked by the girl back into the pool—Chen Yan only then noticed his backyard swimming pool had been filled with water.

“Stay in there. Don’t come out unless I call you,” the girl said coldly.

The old man plunged into the water—and instantly transformed into a giant tortoise the size of a millstone, sinking swiftly to the pool’s corner, motionless.

Chen Yan stared, wide-eyed.

A spirit cultivator?

·

The girl dragged Chen Yan to the center of the courtyard and dropped him to the ground.

Chen Yan felt his neck release—he gasped for air, but his mind raced, scanning the surroundings for an opening.

The girl glanced at him and said coldly: “Stop thinking. Stay still.”

She reached out—and two bamboo chairs flew across the yard, landing before them.

Chen Yan grew even more wary—was that the Kong Zi Jue?

He hadn’t even learned that yet!

“Sit,” the girl ordered, face stern.

Chen Yan looked at the girl before him—and felt a bizarre sense of absurdity.

This girl—how to put it?

She was trying hard to look intimidating, forcing a cold, serious expression.

But her natural voice? Sweet, clear, with a faint nasal lilt.

It was a Tianshengde squeaky voice—pure, unforced.

No matter how hard she tried to sound stern, it only came off as cutesy, like she was pouting.

But her one-step-ten-meter movement, her ability to break his Dun Zi Jue with a gesture, and now summoning chairs with a wave—these were effortless, clearly far beyond his skill.

Most importantly—that giant turtle in the pool!!

That was a real, genuine spirit cultivator!!

Chen Yan’s heart tightened.

Following the principle of “wise men don’t fight when outmatched,” he sat down quietly.

The girl watched him sit—and secretly, she too felt nervous—not from fear, but because the matter she needed to discuss was hard to bring up.

Mainly… it was embarrassing.

After a few seconds of hesitation, she cleared her throat: “Your name is Chen Yan, twenty-two years old, from the Chen family—correct?”

“...Yes.” Chen Yan blinked.

“I visited the old master’s residence in this realm. You lived with him, correct?” She reached into her chest pocket, pulled out something, and slowly unrolled it.

It was a photo—black and white.

In it, the old grandma beamed, radiant and proud.

Chen Yan’s face darkened—he exploded: “You stole my grandmother’s portrait?!”

“You, uh, calm down,” the girl shook her head. “The Venerable isn’t dead. Why are you so upset?”

He leapt up from his chair in a flash, furious: “You stole my grandmother’s portrait?!”

“You, uh, don’t get so worked up,” the girl said, shaking her head. “What portrait? The Venerable hasn’t died—why are you angry?”

The Old Grandma had just gone to take up her post underground.

So technically, this photo was still a memorial portrait.

Chen Yan’s anger stalled—he sat back down, stunned.

The girl waved her hand: “Photo matches, identity matches—no mistake.”

She rolled the portrait back up and handed it to Chen Yan.

Chen Yan took it automatically, then blinked: “Who… who are you?”

She rolled up the portrait again and held it out to Chen Yan.

The girl exhaled—finally, she’d reached the point. She’d been struggling to start.

“I’m Gu. From the Gu family. Remember my name: Gu Qingyi.”

The girl seemed to exhale in relief—finally, they’d gotten to the point; she hadn’t known how to bring it up.

It was a nice name—like a main female lead from a novel…

But not something a sane person in real life would pick!

The name’s quite pleasant—sort of like a main female character from a novel…

Chen Yan’s mind stirred. He fixed his gaze on the girl.

She was lying.

Ever since sitting down, Chen Yan had been using his Heavenly Eye Qi-Viewing Technique to observe her.

The Heavenly Eye sees qi and discerns fate. As she spoke her name—“Gu Qingyi”—her qi flickered slightly, her destiny’s flow showing a flaw.

Since sitting down, Chen Yan had been using his Heavenly Eye Qi-Viewing Technique to observe the girl.

The Heavenly Eye can observe qi and discern people. Under Chen Yan’s gaze, the girl was stating her name; when she spoke the three characters “Gu Qingyi,” her primordial qi subtly stirred, and her destiny’s flow showed a slight flaw.

Is this name fake?

“What I’m about to tell you is something extremely, extremely important—important for both you and me—so…” Gu Xiaoniang continued with a stern face: “You might think it’s absurd, but…”

“Wait a minute.” Chen Yan cut in directly.

“What’s wrong?” Gu Xiaoniang frowned at Chen Yan, annoyed at being interrupted.

“You said what you’re going to tell me is important, so you obviously expect me to believe what you’re about to say, right?”

“Mm-hmm.”

“Then you shouldn’t be lying,” Chen Yan shook his head. “You should know I’ve studied magic—I can read qi and judge people. When you just said your name, you weren’t telling the truth.”

“…“ Gu Xiaoniang’s face flushed slightly—but clearly not from shyness.

Rather…

“Don’t you dare ask!” Her eyes burned with irritation. “My real name was given to me by my family—I hate it! When I grew up, I chose my own name: Gu Qingyi!”

I’ve used Gu Qingyi everywhere I’ve traveled! My real name is none of your business.

I am Gu Qingyi, and Gu Qingyi is me!”

Hmm… why’s she getting so worked up?

Chen Yan couldn’t help smiling at the sight of her.

This little girl with her high-pitched voice looked utterly powerless when angry—yet somehow, it made her even cuter.

“But if you can’t even tell the truth in your first introduction, how can I believe anything else you say?”

“I don’t need you to believe me sincerely!”

“Huh?”

Gu Xiaoniang narrowed her eyes. “If you don’t believe me, I’ll beat you until you do.”

Chen Yan: “…”

He sensed a hint of lethal intent in her gaze—she wasn’t lying.

He quickly sat up straight and spoke politely: “My apologies for my rudeness just now. Please continue.”

Gu Qingyi huffed, then went on: “Since you follow the Venerable and your name is Chen Yan, you must be the Chen family member I’m looking for. I…”

“Wait a second,” Chen Yan raised his hand again. “The Venerable you mentioned—is that my old grandma? Why do you call her ‘Venerable’?”

“Because the elder holds the rank of Venerable,” Gu Qingyi blinked, then explained: “In the Domains, the highest rank is the Celestial Venerable; beneath that is the Terrestrial Venerable; beneath that are the Minor Venerables.

Aside from the Celestial and Terrestrial Venerables, who rarely show themselves, the thirty-six Minor Venerables are already the pinnacle of power.

Since the elder holds a position among the thirty-six Minor Venerables, she must be addressed as ‘Venerable.’”

Chen Yan frowned.

He knew his grandma was powerful—after all, she’d made both the Black and White Elders kneel and kowtow.

But what were these “Minor Venerables,” “Venerables,” and “Domains”? What even were they?

“The Venerable came from the Domains and raised you…” Gu Qingyi continued.

“Wait again,” Chen Yan interrupted once more. “What exactly is this ‘Domain’? Is it the Immortal Realm? The Heavenly Realm?”

“…“ Gu Xiaoniang’s eye twitched. She took a deep breath. “The Domain is just the Domain—a place outside this world. To you, it’s another world.”

She paused, then added patiently: “I’m not from your world either. I’m from the Domain.”

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【Today’s two chapters don’t advance the plot much—they mainly use this meeting to establish some setting and background. But this part can’t be skipped; at least the next million words will rest on this foundation. I’ll finish this section quickly and try to make it engaging so readers won’t find it dull.】

【As usual, I’m not begging for monthly votes—just a few recommendation votes would be great.】

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