Chapter 177: Chapter 148: The Sisters’ Quarrel, It’s Hard to Choose

The night in the Great Yan Capital City was exceptionally quiet.

Only those with exceptionally high Cultivation could detect the members of the Bright Lamp Bureau in their Brocade Clothing, their auras concealed as they moved across the dark eaves and tiles.

The Bright Lamp Bureau—its name signifying a bright lamp that could illuminate the Imperial Capital even in the dead of night—was a group of such night-walkers, ever vigilant against crisis.

Lu Mingyuan followed behind Luo Ying, weaving through streets, alleys, and various market districts.

He soon realized something was wrong. They were heading neither toward Prince Jin’s Mansion nor any of its associated businesses, nor to the location of the Capital City’s tunnels.

’Where in the world is she going?’

“Lord Ying, where are we headed?”

The two arrived at the entrance of a gambling den, where the guards looked so ferocious that no one dared approach.

The cool and aloof Luo Ying didn’t answer his question. Instead, she asked one of her own.

“Yang Erlang, you are working for me, are you not?”

Lu Mingyuan’s heart skipped a beat, but his expression remained unchanged. “Of course. I would never dare to be lax in the duties you’ve assigned me, my lord. I have been monitoring the Eldest Princess’s movements constantly. Within Prince Jin’s Mansion, I defer to you in all matters. Just give the word, and I will ensure Prince Jin’s Mansion is thrown into total chaos, raising the banner of rebellion until it crumbles to dust!”

Luo Ying said flatly, “Then tell me honestly. When you left, were you really going to buy clothes with the Eldest Princess?”

She had a mission to attend to before and couldn’t question him properly. Now was the time to discipline this subordinate of hers.

She had noticed something was amiss long ago.

She hadn’t been inside for long, yet his disappearance had lasted for quite some time. Then he just so happened to reappear right as she was heading to the palace. It was all far too convenient.

“You won’t mind if I perform a Soul Search on you, will you?”

The moment Luo Ying said this, Lu Mingyuan could no longer remain calm.

If she performed a Soul Search, the secret that he was a clone would be exposed. A Shadow Warrior was just a Puppet, after all. What Divine Soul did it have for her to search? She would only discover that there was something wrong with the Puppet.

Cold sweat beaded on Lu Mingyuan’s forehead. He cupped his fists. “My lord, if you wish to kill your subordinate, why go to such lengths?”

Luo Ying said nonchalantly, “Relax, I won’t force you. As long as you voluntarily open your Sea of Consciousness and your mind, the Soul Search won’t affect you too much. You are a Middle Fifth Grade Cultivator, after all. Your Divine Soul isn’t as weak as a Mortal’s. It won’t kill you. I know my limits; I won’t take your life.”

Hearing this, Lu Mingyuan was caught in a dilemma.

’If this keeps up,’ he thought, ’I’ll have no choice but to confess.’

Suddenly, Luo Ying placed a hand on her blade, her body turning toward a lavishly carved building across the way. Her expression was wary.

A figure in a long, gilded gown stood beside the balcony railing. Her bright smile graced a simple but ethereally beautiful face. Her gaze was charming and playful. It was the genuine Princess Jinwu, Luo Qiufu.

She stared at Lu Mingyuan, her eyes like autumn pools, dark and bright. “Are you trying to betray me? Have you forgotten who your master is?”

Lu Mingyuan sighed inwardly. The outcome he had dreaded most had come to pass.

When he accepted the Eldest Princess’s Jade Pendant, he had considered that he might one day face this situation. He just never expected it to happen so soon.

’This Jade Pendant of mine is definitely no simple object. It probably has some kind of tracking and navigation effect, which is how Luo Qiufu was able to pinpoint my location and find me so quickly.’

’These two are not easy to fool. Each one is sharper and more intelligent than the last.’

“Yang Erlang, don’t you have anything to say?”

After looking up and seeing Luo Qiufu, Luo Ying’s eyes burned as she turned to Lu Mingyuan and demanded an answer.

Lu Mingyuan nodded helplessly. “I do. Could you please not make things so difficult for your subordinate? This puts me in a very tough position.”

Hearing this, the Eldest Princess’s smile widened. She gave him a half-smile.

“Yang Erlang… so you’re Yang Jian. You really made me search for you. I couldn’t find a single Yang Jian in the entire Imperial Capital. So you were working under her. No wonder. That ’Yang Xian’ business was all a lie.”

“So the assassination attempt back then was something you staged yourselves, wasn’t it? You set up the whole scheme to frame the Seventh Prince, Lu Yunwan, using a Buddhist Sect Cultivator. I have to say, it was a brilliant plot. Even I’m impressed with you, and with Prince Jin’s Mansion.”

Lu Mingyuan hadn’t expected the Eldest Princess to have been following him and observing his movements all this time.

Now, Luo Qiufu had completely exposed his Yang Jian identity.

As far as he knew, the two sisters had a conflict—a major one. From their disagreements as children to their hatred as adults, and now their open and hidden struggles, neither seemed to wish the other well.

“Ying’Er, my dear sister, Yang Jian is my man. He accepted my Jade Pendant and has already promised to serve me.” Eldest Princess Luo Qiufu looked down on them, a cold smirk on her face. Her sweet smile was filled with confidence.

Luo Ying’s face was devoid of expression, her voice icy. “Who’s your sister? Luo Ying’Er died long ago. I am now the Shadow Scout.”

“A fine bird chooses the tree to nest in; a wise subject chooses the lord to serve. Some people are just too stingy. They want the horse to run without giving it any grass to eat. I’m different. I’m much more generous.”

Luo Qiufu said with a radiant smile, puffing out her chest, full of confidence.

Luo Ying hated that look on her. She first shot Lu Mingyuan a look that could skin him alive, then declared her sovereignty. “You want to use my man? You’re not qualified. Do you really think you can beat me as you are now?”

Luo Qiufu was perfectly calm, smiling faintly. “My dear sister, though my Cultivation is a step below yours and my Swordsmanship is indeed no match for you, don’t forget where we are. This is the Great Yan Imperial Capital, the Capital of the Great Yan Dynasty. As Princess Jinwu, from a vassal state of Great Yan, I enjoy special privileges here. How can a mud-legged commoner from a Prince Mansion like you compare?”

“With a single voice transmission, Cultivators from the Three Academies will arrive to protect me. Do you think you’re a match for that White-robed Celestial Master from the Thunder Pool Daoist Academy?”

Luo Ying turned her head and glared at Lu Mingyuan again, her brow furrowed. “You told her everything?”

Lu Mingyuan gave a bitter smile and cupped his hands in apology. “It was all beyond my control.”

Luo Ying clenched her fists, her eyes narrowing as she stared at Luo Qiufu, grinding her teeth. “You have the nerve to say that? If it weren’t for you, would the Golden Crow Country have fallen into such a predicament? Would it have become a vassal state of Great Yan? And you—you’re not even ashamed. You wear it like a badge of honor!”

These words brought up unbearable memories for Luo Qiufu. Her smile vanished, her eyes turning frigid. “My fault? And you bear no responsibility at all? If you hadn’t committed that grave crime, if news of your death on the battlefield hadn’t spread throughout the world, would the Golden Crow Country’s army have collapsed so utterly? Was all of that my fault alone?”

Seeing the two of them start to argue, Lu Mingyuan breathed a sigh of relief.

’Argue, go ahead and argue. Just don’t yell at me. Pretend I’m invisible.’

He was just a poor soul caught in the middle.

His relief didn’t last long before a voice cut through the air.

“Who will he follow? Why don’t you let Yang Jian decide for himself?”

Luo Qiufu stared at Lu Mingyuan, her half-smiling eyes seeming to say, ’Choose one.’

Lu Mingyuan froze. He cautiously glanced at Luo Ying beside him. Her vicious glare looked like it could flay a man’s skin from his bones.

He sighed, looked at Luo Ying, then at Luo Qiufu, and cupped his fists. “My lord, and Your Highness the Princess, your humble subordinate is actually a Tributor under Prince Jin’s Mansion. My loyalty is to Prince Jin…”

“Shut up!” the two women shouted in unison.

Lu Mingyuan’s lips moved, but he helplessly closed his mouth.

He was utterly powerless, caught in the middle, being fought over like a toy.

Just then, Luo Ying shot him a glare and sent a voice transmission: “What are you wasting your breath talking to her for? Let’s go!”

With that, Luo Ying pressed her hand onto Lu Mingyuan’s shoulder. In the blink of an eye, a yellow Talisman appeared between two of her fingers and instantly burned to ash.

The two of them dissolved into a ripple of water and vanished on the spot.

Seeing them disappear, a look of disappointment crossed Luo Qiufu’s face, but she quickly composed herself. Her tone turned gentle.

“Yang Jian, I won’t let you go.”

…

The pair reappeared in a tunnel beneath a brothel in the Imperial City. The ground was covered with the dense markings of a Teleportation Array.

Having landed safely and escaped the perilous situation, Lu Mingyuan felt he could still salvage things. He solemnly cupped his fists at Luo Ying.

“Your subordinate is completely loyal to you, my lord. I have no divided loyalties.”

Luo Ying whipped her head around and sneered, “Yang Erlang, do you take this Tributor for a fool? Do you think I’m some little girl you can easily deceive?”

This Yang Erlang had clearly promised his loyalty to her, yet he dared to be two-faced, cozying up to the Eldest Princess and playing both sides. He was utterly despicable.

Luo Ying snorted coldly. “If it weren’t for the fact that you still have some value, I would have killed you for real.”

If not for the manpower Yang Erlang controlled and his serviceable Cultivation, she would have certainly killed him based on this incident alone.

But for now, she still needed Yang Erlang’s help.

“Perhaps in your eyes, my lord, I am nothing but a shameless opportunist playing both sides, but I must say, it was all out of necessity,” Lu Mingyuan sighed.

“Regardless, your humble subordinate will help you overthrow Prince Jin’s Mansion. I will serve you with utmost loyalty and would not shrink from a thousand deaths.”

Hearing this, Luo Ying sensed the man’s sincerity. His tone was earnest, and the anger in her heart subsided slightly, but her expression remained icy as she commanded:

“Give me the Jade Pendant she gave you.”

“Here.”

Lu Mingyuan handed it over without a word.

Luo Ying grabbed the Jade Pendant. The Taoist Qi in her palm emitted a bright light, seeming to wash over the pendant continuously.

Ten breaths later.

She tossed the Jade Pendant back to Lu Mingyuan.

“My lord, what did you do…?”

“As I thought, there was a tracking Talisman inside the Jade Pendant. I’ve cleansed the original imprints from it. Only now is it truly an ownerless item. Take it.”

“Furthermore, this Tributor has inscribed a strand of Sword Qi within it. If you encounter danger, like at the grand banquet tonight, you can use this Sword Qi to escape peril. This way, it won’t be as that old woman said—that I don’t give you any grass to eat.”

“If a situation like this happens again, I will imprison your Divine Soul and turn you into one of my Puppets.”

Luo Ying’s frigid face was filled with warning.

“Yes, my lord!”

Lu Mingyuan quickly cupped his fists.

Luo Ying looked at his mask, but her thoughts were elsewhere.

’If he were turned into a Puppet, he would have no thoughts of his own. He would know only the word ’kill,’ which would make him no different from a useless cripple.’

’This Yang Erlang had better not disappoint me.’

Just as Lu Mingyuan thought he had weathered this crisis,

a disturbance came from his third clone, Zhao Gongming. It seemed someone was praying to his Golden Stone Statue. The source of the voice was…

“Senior Gongming, please help me!”

…

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep