Chapter 3566: Lin Waner's Thoughts

Lin Waner saw An Chengxi still had concerns, and couldn't help but ask: "Lady Ye, could Meng Changsheng still have a way to leave the Blood Lake Hell?"

An Chengxi shook his head: "According to what that Daoist said, Meng Changsheng's primordial spirit after shedding his mortal body cannot leave the Blood Lake Hell even a step, but I still can't help worrying; Meng Changsheng has been planning for hundreds of years—surely he wouldn't let himself be this passive. I fear he still has another trump card."

Lin Waner suddenly thought of something and asked her: "Lady Ye, the ring I gave the Young Master—could there be something strange about it?! What if it could transport the Young Master to the Ten Thousand Great Mountains—what then?"

An Chengxi said: "It shouldn't. If it were strange, it couldn't have saved Chen'er's life the first time."

Speaking, An Chengxi explained again: "Senior, I've always felt that the ring's power is too heaven-defying—it can directly transport a living person before another person. Since it has this ability, the person who forged this ring could easily forge one that activates on its own, then freely transport themselves anywhere. This—could a cultivator with a thousand-year lifespan really make such a thing? If Meng Changsheng had this ability, he'd surely have found a way to extend his life by fifteen hundred years long ago. Even stepping back ten thousand steps, he wouldn't need to painstakingly lure Chen'er to the Ten Thousand Great Mountains—he could just forge a magical artifact, let it spread alongside the Nine Mysterious Heaven Scripture, and when it meets someone with the Ascending Dragon Pattern, directly transport them to the Ten Thousand Great Mountains for him to seize their body. Everything would be much simpler."

Lin Waner suddenly realized and agreed: "Lady Ye makes perfect sense. The ring can transport a living person a thousand li away—such power is truly unimaginable. Therefore, this should not be a magical artifact Meng Changsheng forged himself. More likely, he obtained it by chance, and he probably doesn't even know it has teleportation; otherwise, since he already decided to seize a body and be reborn, such a treasure would naturally be kept for his use after rebirth."

An Chengxi asked her: "Did your father ever mention Meng Changsheng's inheritance from back then?"

"Inheritance?" Lin Waner furrowed her brows and said: "My father did mention that Meng Changsheng had many miraculous magical artifacts, most of which he left in his own secret chamber. My father never had the thought to touch them, so after settling his affairs, he never thought to search for them."

An Chengxi nodded: "Meng Changsheng cultivated for a thousand years—his elixirs and artifacts must be countless. Yet your father and Wu Feiyan together only obtained two Eternal Verdant Pills and one ring. It seems these things were insignificant to Meng Changsheng; if he knew this ring was so miraculous, he would never have given it to your father."

Lin Waner sighed: "Based on this reasoning, the ring should have been forged by a cultivator stronger than him. My master obtained it by chance, but never understood its function."

Speaking of this, she furrowed her brows and muttered: "He told my father that this ring contains the secret to living a thousand years. Perhaps back then, he obtained the formula for the Hundred Reversals Thousand Returns Pill from this ring, achieving the breakthrough from five hundred to one thousand years of yang lifespan. After that, he has been in seclusion in the Ten Thousand Great Mountains, never encountering any real danger, so he never had the chance to explore more secrets of this ring."

An Chengxi agreed: "Your analysis makes perfect sense, Senior. Meng Changsheng accidentally obtained the ring, got the pill formula from it, and thought the ring had lost its function. Since he had already refined the Eternal Verdant Pill, to him, even if there were more left, it would be meaningless—giving it to your father and Wu Feiyan was like an adult giving each of two children a single bean candy. The pills became useless trash, the ring a useless rib—so he simply left them to your father and Wu Feiyan."

Lin Waner gave a bitter smile: "Now it seems he is not only vicious and ruthless, but also likely a miser."

After speaking, she waved her hand and smiled: "It doesn't matter anymore—as long as the ring harms no harm to the Young Master, that's enough."

An Chengxi nodded, smiling: "All we can say is that everything is due to fate and circumstance. He left the ring to your father as a bit of kindness to this disciple. Spreading the Nine Mysterious Prelude and the Nine Mysterious Heaven Scripture was his grand move for his own rebirth—like an assassin who, before going out to kill a target, sees a child fall at the door, helps them up, then draws his gun and kills several people. To him, that child and the target he killed are two independent entities, with no subjective connection."

Pausing, An Chengxi added: "I also ask Senior to remind Chen'er often—he must find a way to study just how many secrets this ring still holds."

"Lady, rest assured—I will often remind the Young Master." Lin Waner agreed without hesitation, then asked: "Lady Ye, what exactly is the identity of that Daoist you mentioned?"

An Chengxi shook his head: "I don't know either. He just appeared suddenly to remind me, without revealing any useful information. But he did tell me he stays in the Ten Thousand Great Mountains to find a way to break that deeply sinful Blood Lake Hell formation."

Lin Waner said with some relief: "This could also be considered a potential ally for the Young Master—perhaps he could someday offer some help."

"Yes." An Chengxi said: "Perhaps one day, Chen'er could also receive his guidance."

Lin Waner nodded, glanced at the time, and said: "Lady Ye, it's getting late—I should also prepare to return. A young lady like me staying inside this long—if someone with ill intent were paying attention, they might notice something."

Speaking, Lin Waner gave a self-deprecating laugh: "I'm always this timid and cautious—Lady Ye must be laughing at me."

An Chengxi felt no such thing about Lin Waner being timid—on the contrary, he said very seriously: "Senior's words are most prudent—nothing should be taken lightly. Countless people's lifeworks are ruined by one or two moments of carelessness. Senior, alone, let Wu Feiyan search desperately for over three hundred years without success—just this point makes me bow in admiration. To be able to meet you face to face today and speak openly is already a great fortune in my three lifetimes!"

Lin Waner smiled faintly, rose slowly, and bowed slightly: "Lady Ye, you flatter me."

An Chengxi and the several people around him saw Lin Waner rise and also quickly stood up, wearing expressions of respect.

Meanwhile, An Chengxi gathered his courage and said to Lin Waner: "Senior, I have one more request—I hope you will grant it."

Lin Waner nodded: "Lady Ye, please speak."

An Chengxi said with utmost reverence: "Currently, I still cannot meet Chen'er and my family. I hope that before I meet Chen'er, Senior will not mention our meeting to him."

Lin Waner agreed without hesitation: "Lady Ye, rest assured—we are both those who have hidden for a long time. I understand your feelings completely and will not utter a single word to the Young Master."

Lin Waner knew that family ties often affect a person's reason and judgment—this is true for An Chengxi, and even more so for Ye Chen.

Over these many years, she has raised so many children, and with most of them she shares a mother-son-like bond, yet she never speaks of it, never shows it, always keeping them at a distance in her heart. And for hundreds of years, she has maintained the ancient master-servant hierarchy with them—even old Zhang, old Sun, and Qiu Ying Shan, these elders who have entered their twilight years, still must bow and call her 'Miss' in her presence. This is the rule Lin Waner set for them, and also the safety distance she maintains between them and herself.

Hearing Lin Waner's ready agreement, she breathed a sigh of relief and felt grateful, then bowed to Lin Waner and said sincerely and respectfully: "Thank you, Senior, for granting my request!"

Lin Waner smiled and sighed: "Earlier, I divined for the Young Master—the omen showed half-life, half-death, with both the gate of life and gate of death controlled by one person. I could never figure out who this person was, but today I know—it is myself. Before coming, I hesitated whether to tell the Young Master my analysis results, but after much hesitation, I still decided to come first to investigate. Now it seems, at that step, I chose the gate of death."

An Chengxi couldn't help but sigh: "Senior's strategic planning and wisdom are extraordinary—if I could become allies with Senior, secretly helping Chen'er together, it would surely benefit Chen'er greatly. I don't know what Senior thinks?"

Lin Waner did not give a clear answer, but smiled: "After chatting with Lady Ye for so long, I can't turn back now. If the Young Master someday learns everything and blames me, I only ask Lady Ye to say a few good words for me—don't let the Young Master bear a grudge against me."

An Chengxi instantly understood, and at once grasped Lin Waner's heart.

In Lin Waner's heart, Wu Feiyan's life or death is no longer that important—she now cares only for Ye Chen; everything else is truly irrelevant.

At this moment, her heart is filled with myriad emotions, complex beyond words, but she soon came to her senses and said gratefully: "Thank you, Senior, for granting my request! Then Junior will leave a contact method with Senior—so in the future, if anything arises, we can keep each other informed."

Speaking, An Chengxi took out a phone and said to Lin Waner: "Senior, to avoid risks, I have removed both the front and rear cameras and the microphone, and also taken out the GPS module responsible for positioning—I can't make voice or video calls, but we can communicate by text."

"Good." Lin Waner smiled: "Lady Ye, let's just agree on a code with me—for example, what represents the Young Master, what represents Wu Feiyan and the Broken Clear Society."

An Chengxi said with a smile: "This—you should think of it, Senior."

Lin Waner let her playful heart run wild, laughing: "Then when I go back, I'll have someone buy a cat to keep in the courtyard—we'll call it Xiao Xiao. When you and I talk about Xiao Xiao, it means we're talking about the Young Master. The Broken Clear Society will be the stray cat group gathered near Zijin Mountain Villa, and Wu Feiyan will be called the Black Forest King."

"Black Forest King?" An Chengxi widened his eyes in surprise: "Could it be the character from that cartoon Chen'er watched as a child? It seems to be a very evil cat?"

"Exactly." Lin Waner nodded and laughed: "That's the one who always wears an eight-cornered hat—the evil cat!"

An Chengxi couldn't help but laugh out loud, looking at Lin Waner—his eyes actually gained a few more degrees of affection.

At this moment, the clever-to-the-point-of-demonic Lin Waner, in his eyes, truly became a lively, clever little girl…