Chapter 353: The Name of Crane Longevity

"I, I didn't mean that, it's just that this..."

"Oh? Then explain specifically, what do you mean?"

Qingteng felt the Crown Prince's malicious gaze lingering on her neck and shivered involuntarily.

Ren Yidao would absolutely not deal a lethal blow; Qingteng did not believe he would be that impulsive in Demon Emperor City.

But what about outside of that?

If he were to do the same thing to her as he did to Luzhi, wouldn't it be just as humiliating?

After thinking it over, she gave an awkward, light laugh and nodded with difficulty:

"... I'll drink."

Once these words were spoken, the malice on Ren Yidao melted away like ice, turning into a trickling spring.

"That's good, drink slowly then."

Qingteng's mouth twitched, but she dared not play any tricks, so she could only aggrievedly hold the wine cup while sitting cross-legged to the side, lightly touching it with the tip of her slender tongue.

With one touch, her entire body would shake violently due to the stimulation.

One touch, one shake.

One touch, one shake...

Ren Yidao, meanwhile, watched the scene with appreciation and picked up two bites of food to eat.

It really makes the meal go down well!

He suddenly understood why such dross as drinking-table culture existed.

Nothing else, it just really makes the meal go down well.

How much you drink, or whether you like to drink, is not important.

"Why is wine good? Because it tastes bad."

What is important is that you will make the reactions he wants to see under his control.

Expressing agreement with obviously absurd behavior, and doing things you clearly don't want to do despite your reluctance, is the core meaning of submitting to power.

The "good drinking capacity" highly praised in drinking-table culture often means obeying the order to drink regardless of the harm to one's body.

"It is merely... a form of domestication."

Ren Yidao savored the true meaning of drinking-table culture while observing the decor of Drunken Immortal Pavilion.

"A knockoff?"

Ren Yidao observed the surroundings, then quietly lowered his eyes, staring at the magnificent reflection in his cup.

"Why do I feel like it's not quite right?"

Dishes can be imitated, decor can be copied, and the atmosphere can be learned.

But... to be able to learn the essence 100% in every single aspect is a bit exaggerated, right?

Is this food-loving Demon Race predecessor really such a talented person who is proficient in everything?

Even if he could ensure it was identical back then, a thousand years have passed; can it still be the same as it was, just like the Drunken Immortal Pavilion in the Human Realm?

"The situation behind this Demon Emperor City is not peaceful at all."

The Demon Race has already been pushed to this point, yet they still cannot be of one mind.

No, or rather, it is precisely because they have reached such a desperate stage that some people have developed other ideas.

They do not want to sink to the bottom of the sea with this dilapidated, broken ship, so they are secretly looking for other ways out.

The Imperial Preceptor, the Anti-Demon Emperor Party, the Neutral Party, Drunken Immortal Pavilion...

They are one more arrogant than the next.

However, having said that.

He had only just arrived in Demon Emperor City for such a short time, and he had already discovered so many problems.

Has my dear Demon Emperor sister, Lady Huang Huang, not noticed anything at all?

"Well, she must have noticed, otherwise she wouldn't have thrown me out as a smokescreen to act as bait to lure others into the trap."

Huhu is just the hook for the fishing enforcement, dressing up to attract those guys hiding in the holes to bite.

"Although I am indeed used for this purpose, have you all been starved for too long? Why are you biting at everything?"

The reaction is a bit too intense, isn't it?

And Ren Yidao also saw the person behind the scenes as he had hoped.

The person who arrived was dressed as a Daoist with a transcendent air, carrying a white jade horsetail whisk on his arm.

He looked like a middle-aged man, yet he had white hair and white eyebrows, with long longevity eyebrows drooping down, and a thin, pale beard over three feet long—the very image of an old immortal.

Ren Yidao looked at the newcomer and froze for a full half-second.

It was not because he recognized the other party, nor was he intimidated by the other party's aura.

It was because he had not seen such formal Daoist attire for a long time.

Come to think of it, it is quite interesting; although the Divine Path Sect that Ren Yidao came from is nominally a Daoist sect, most of the disciples have their own personalities.

Each peak has its own preferred clothing, and they don't care much about attire... especially not about what others are wearing.

This leads to everyone not wearing Daoist attire unless it is an extremely formal occasion, and they basically don't look like practitioners of the Dao when out and about.

To put it nicely, it's called not being bound by trifles; to put it bluntly... it's bizarre, and they wear anything.

If you want, you can just drape a curtain over yourself, and no one will care.

And it's not just the juniors; the Senior Uncle generation is the same, having all come up that way.

Take Luoyue Peak for example: when Jing Yueqin had black hair, she wore red robes, and when she had red hair, she wore black robes, focusing on matching her hair color.

Jian Xinxin is already considered quite disciplined, but his black clothes are in the style of his past life as a prince, though it's hard for people to tell because they are pure black.

Plus, there are many paths of cultivation in the world, and practitioners of the Dao are not very common; having spent time wandering the Eastern Wasteland and then going overseas, Ren Yidao had not seen such a proper Daoist for a long time.

Unexpectedly, one could actually see such formal Daoist attire in this heavily guarded territory of the Demon Race.

Ren Yidao watched this True Person He approach with a face full of smiles, and he also stood up with a smile to welcome him:

"Is the one who has come True Person He?"

"I dare not accept such a title! I dare not!"

"Your Highness the Crown Prince is too polite. This poor Daoist is merely a lowly Daoist, how could I dare to call myself a True Person in your presence." True Person He, however, did not take the bait, and politely cupped his hands in a salute: "Your Highness should just call me a lay practitioner."

"True Person, there is no need for such formalities, please take a seat." Ren Yidao did not return the gesture with Daoist etiquette, but simply nodded: "Can the True Person guess why I have invited you here?"

"That, naturally, I do not know." True Person He chuckled as he sat down, as if the two had been familiar with each other for many years, and laughed softly: "However, I guess that Your Highness must have encountered some difficulties."

Seeing that his reaction did not seem feigned, Ren Yidao knew that when Qingteng went to find and invite True Person He, she must not have relayed his original words, so he decided to play along:

"The True Person is indeed as divinely perceptive as Qingteng said. That is correct, I have invited the True Person here today because I truly have a matter to request help with."

"I have just entered Demon Emperor City and am unfamiliar with the entanglements within the city; in less than a day, I have already felt several crises."

"To tell you the truth, although my current situation appears stable, I am clear that one wrong step will lead to falling into an abyss."

Watching Ren Yidao helplessly knit his brows, True Person He's brows twitched, and he asked:

"Then, does Your Highness mean that you want this poor Daoist to help you analyze the current situation?"

True Person He held a transcendent status in Demon Emperor City; having him do this analysis was, it must be said, quite clever.

But on the surface, True Person He still put on a troubled look, and with a pained expression said:

"This... this poor Daoist is a person who cultivates the Dao and does not understand worldly affairs. I fear this matter..."

He needs more money.

But what True Person He did not expect was that Ren Yidao would directly negate it, shaking his head:

"No, True Person, you are overthinking it."

True Person He:?

"I am clear that the True Person is a person who cultivates the Dao and should not be dragged into our disputes; that would ruin the True Person's Dao Heart. I will not let the True Person take such a risk."

True Person He: No, you can do that!

He did not expect that he hadn't managed to manipulate the other party, but instead had been made uncomfortable by them.

And Ren Yidao, as if he did not understand True Person He's hesitant expression, said earnestly:

"I have heard that the True Person is skilled in divination. Inviting you here today is to ask the True Person to cast a divination for me?"

Divination?

This, this is also not bad.

Although True Person He felt a slight regret, he quickly adjusted his emotions, nodded, and said:

"That is naturally no problem. However, this poor Daoist must state beforehand: divination involves the Heavenly Dao, so even for Your Highness, this poor Daoist must collect a small reward."

"That is only right and proper." Ren Yidao understood, nodding: "Naturally, I will not let the True Person suffer a loss."

True Person He took a Crane Feather from his sleeve and placed it in mid-air, then took a Bone Chopstick from the table and stood it upright on the feather, asking:

"Then, what does Your Highness wish to calculate this time?"

"Just... my fate here in Demon Emperor City, how is it? Is there any difficulty?"

"Naturally, there is some difficulty, but since it is requested by Your Highness, then this poor Daoist will dare to try." True Person He smiled: "It is just that, if it cannot be calculated, I hope Your Highness will not blame this poor Daoist."

"It does not matter, the True Person may try."

"Then, may Your Highness provide your birth date and time to this poor Daoist?"

"That, I fear, is not possible."

Ren Yidao refused flatly, shaking his head: "The True Person may not know, but although I have a Bloodline Ancestral Return, when I was born, I was merely a common beast. My spiritual intelligence had not yet opened, and I simply cannot remember things from the time of my birth."

Hearing this, Qingteng, who was holding the Realgar Wine and sipping it on the side, was stunned.

Ah?

She never imagined that this Crown Prince would have such a past.

Even more unable to comprehend, how could such a powerful bloodline come from two common beasts!?

This!

Is this possible?

In her shock, Qingteng did not notice her tongue sticking out, and it dipped straight into the Realgar Wine, soaking through completely.

"Ah— ptooey ptooey ptooey!"

She let out a painful, dry howl, her eyes filled with hot tears, and she almost crushed the cup directly.

But worrying that Ren Yidao would make her replace it with a full one, Qingteng could only tearfully continue holding the wine cup.

This wine caused her negligible damage, but it was truly too awful to drink...

And True Person He likewise did not expect to receive such an answer.

"This..."

He had been thinking of taking the opportunity to get the other party's birth date and time to facilitate his later plans, but the person didn't even know it.

True Person He could tell that Ren Yidao was sincere when he said this, without a hint of lying.

But regarding his explanation, True Person He actually did not believe it.

A common beast, how is that possible?

With a bloodline so rich, his parents would absolutely not be ordinary common beasts.

Absolutely impossible!

But since the other party was so certain, and now was not a good opportunity to help the other party trace their roots, True Person He had to change his approach:

"Then... Your Highness only needs to tell this poor Daoist your name."

"Oh?"

Ren Yidao smiled and said naturally:

"My name is Yan Zhentian."

That's right, the very same Sword God Yan Zhentian who is most skilled at using a kitchen knife!

"Shaking Heaven and Earth, Your Highness's name... is quite imposing!"

True Person He offered a compliment, but then shook his head and said lightly: "It is just that I hope Your Highness will not continue to test this poor Daoist."

"Although the name Yan Zhentian is good, it has not a shred of Causality with Your Highness; this much, this poor Daoist can still see."

Ren Yidao smiled.

He shook his head and then nodded, without a shred of embarrassment at being exposed, and said candidly:

"I had thought that with True Person's methods, even a fake name could be easily calculated."

True Person He smiled without a word.

True divination does not actually require such trouble; one only needs to provide some personal items, but he certainly would not easily let such a good opportunity pass.

Ren Yidao spread his hands helplessly and said honestly:

"Alright, actually, after I took human form, I gave myself a name: surname Hu, given name Hu Wanwan."

This was reasonable.

Not only for the Red Fox bloodline, but the most common surnames for the Demon Race of the fox lineage are "Hu" and "Hu".

As for the strange reduplicated word "Wanwan" at the end... it could only be attributed to a little demon who had just taken human form having no culture back then.

Furthermore, this name had a quite profound Causality with the person before him, so it should be his true name without a doubt.

And just as True Person He was about to act, he was stopped by Ren Yidao:

"Wait, since I have already reported my name, shouldn't the True Person also inform me of your name?"

True Person He was stunned for a moment, then nodded easily.

"That is certainly no problem." He dipped his finger in the wine and wrote on the table: "This poor Daoist comes from the Crane clan; for generations, we have used Crane as our surname, and my given name is simply Shou."

"He Shou."

While Ren Yidao was raising an eyebrow and pondering this name, True Person He had already begun to perform calculations.

He pinched a seal with his fingers, muttered words under his breath, his eyes flashing with an eerie light, and the speed at which the Crane Feather vibrated grew faster and faster.

But just as that Crane Feather was about to provide a revelation, the Bone Chopstick upon it suddenly developed fine cracks, and in the next instant, it shattered with a boom!

Crack!

Not only that, but after the Bone Chopstick shattered, it reconverged into the shape of a azure dragon, emitting a hateful dragon roar.

【I will kill you!!!】

Regarding this, True Person He reacted extremely quickly, acting directly to destroy it before the little dragon could open its eyes.

Boom!

"Whew!"

After everything calmed down, True Person He, with sweat on his forehead, let out a long breath and looked at Ren Yidao with his face twitching:

"Your Highness... have you ever had a feud with the Long Gong?"

Ren Yidao blinked and decisively shook his head: "That's not the case; I have never heard of any Long Gong."

After speaking, Ren Yidao took several green fruits from his bosom and pushed them in front of True Person He.

"Come, True Person, try these. I found them in a snake cave on the seabed; the taste is quite good."

"This is..."

He Shou looked at the Sea Lotus Fruit, which only the Four Seas Dragon Palace would specifically designate forbidden grounds to cultivate, and the corner of his mouth twitched.

You've been caught red-handed, and you still say you don't know it!

At the same time, on the edge of the East Sea.

Ao Zhun, who was hiding his body within a thunderstorm, suddenly had his brow twitch and let out a long howl toward Heaven.

"Who is it?"

"Who is spying on me!!?"

Such great audacity!

Someone actually wants to use Causality to plot against me!!?

"Get out here!"

And just at the moment Ao Zhun was distracted, a red light silently tore through the long sky and pierced toward his left eye.

"Roar!!!"