Chapter 58 The Crown Prince's "Scent of Rouge" and the Hypocrite's "Harp Sound"
In a secluded upscale teahouse in Tiandou City.
Inside the private room, the air was filled with the fragrance of sandalwood. This was Xue Qinghe's usual secret hideout for winning people over, and it was extremely soundproof. At this moment, the Crown Prince, known for his virtue, sat upright behind the tea table. His hands, as smooth as jade, were steadily pouring tea, but a hint of coldness was hidden deep in his eyes.
Ye Feng sat opposite him in an extremely unrefined manner. He crossed his legs, leaned the Thousand Chance Umbrella against the table, and toyed with the exquisite porcelain cup filled with Biluochun tea in his hand, as if he had come not to see the Crown Prince, but to see a drinking buddy who owed him money.
"Brother Ye Feng," Xue Qinghe spoke first, his voice gentle and mellow, revealing no flaw. "Just now at the entrance of Yuexuan, you seemed to... have something in your words?" "I wonder where this 'woman's fragrance' came from on a grown man like me?"
Ye Feng put down his teacup with a soft sound. He leaned forward, his eyes, which seemed to see through the documents, staring intently at Xue Qinghe's neck—the weakest point of the disguised soul tool.
"Your Highness, let's not beat around the bush." Ye Feng's lips curled into a playful smile. "When did the Heaven Dou Royal Family's 'Swan Martial Soul' acquire divine attributes?" "Just now, in that moment of your emotional fluctuation, what I smelled wasn't the scent of rouge, but... the smell of roasted wings. Oh no, it was the divine radiance of a six-winged angel."
Crack. A crack appeared in the teacup in Xue Qinghe's hand. The air in the room instantly froze, and the once gentle Crown Prince's aura changed drastically. An extremely sharp, noble, and unapproachable pressure subtly locked onto Ye Feng. Since he had been exposed, there was only one option—to kill him to silence him.
"Do you know what you're saying?" Xue Qinghe's voice changed, no longer the deliberately gentle one, but cold and arrogant, carrying a cold indifference that looked down on all living beings. "In this room, no one has ever been able to take my secret away alive. Not even you, a Shura who returned from the City of Slaughter."
Two Soul Douluo-level auras were faintly visible outside the door; they were clearly Elders Serpent Spear and Porcupine.
Despite the threat of death, Ye Feng smiled. He casually picked up the Thousand Chance Umbrella and gently tapped the ground. "Don't be nervous, Your Highness... oh no, Your Highness." "If I wanted to expose you, I would have shouted it out on the street just now. Why bother having tea with you?" "I'm a very pragmatic person. I have no interest in who becomes emperor, nor in maintaining world peace." "I'm only interested in... rare metals."
Xue Qinghe's killing intent paused slightly. "A deal?"
"That's right, a trade." Ye Feng pulled out a list from his pocket and slammed it on the table. "Deep Sea Silver Mother, Cold Heart Iron Essence, Plate Crystal Gold… These things can't be bought on the market; they're only found in the treasuries of the two great empires or the Spirit Hall's vaults." "I want these. In exchange, I'll not only keep quiet, but I can also… lend you a hand at certain times."
Xue Qinghe picked up the list and glanced at it, his brow furrowing slightly. These were all top-grade forging materials, each gram priceless. This kid has quite the appetite. "Why should I trust you?" Xue Qinghe sneered. "Only the dead are truly trustworthy."
"I can help you deal with Tang San," Ye Feng said, surprising everyone. He leaned forward again, this time less than ten centimeters from Xue Qinghe's face. He could even feel the other's slightly rapid breathing.
"Your Highness, you must have sensed it, right?" "That guy named Tang San and you... are naturally incompatible." "He is a remnant of the Clear Sky Sect, and a mortal enemy of your Spirit Hall. And he is currently trying to infiltrate Yuexuan, to use Tang Yuehua's network of connections to whitewash himself and win over the nobles of the Heaven Dou Empire." "This is a variable for your 'grand plan'."
Xue Qinghe fell silent. Ye Feng had touched a nerve. She did indeed sense a repulsive aura emanating from Tang San, the domineering presence unique to the Clear Sky Hammer, utterly incompatible with the holiness of an angel.
"What do you want to do?" Xue Qinghe asked.
"It's simple." Ye Feng stood up and stretched. "I'll help you suppress him, destroy his reputation, and even… cripple his Dao heart." "And you, you'll be responsible for gathering the materials for me." "By the way…" Ye Feng suddenly leaned close to Xue Qinghe's ear and took a deep breath. The gesture was frivolous, bold, and full of aggression.
"You!" Xue Qinghe (Qian Renxue) trembled, experiencing a strange feeling she had never felt in her twenty years. No one had ever dared to get so close to her, much less treat her with such a "teasing" attitude. She instinctively wanted to raise her hand and slap this lecherous man to death, but found that Ye Feng had already retreated to the doorway.
"This is the true scent of a woman, much better than those cheap rouges." Ye Feng, with his back to her, waved the list in his hand. "I want the first batch of materials delivered to my residence within three days." "Goodbye, beautiful snake."
Watching Ye Feng's disappearing figure, Xue Qinghe's fingers gripped the teacup tightly until it crumbled into powder. Beneath her handsome facade, her usually calm heart was stirred for the first time by violent ripples. Shame, anger, and a hint of… indescribable trembling. "Ye Feng… you're playing with fire."
...
Moon Pavilion, the top-floor hall.
The melodious sound of a harp was echoing. But if you listened carefully, you could detect a subtle hint of violence and bloodshed in the music.
Tang San, dressed in an elegant silver robe, sat before the guqin, his hands gently caressing the strings. He was struggling to suppress his inner bloodlust. His experiences on Hell Road had made his Killing God Domain extremely unstable. The slightest provocation would cause his eyes to turn bloodshot. Tang Yuehua (Tang San's aunt, the head of Yuexuan) stood beside him, her brows furrowed. "Little San, your heart is still not at peace." "Your music contains images of war and carnage, mountains of corpses and seas of blood. This is not in accordance with Yuexuan's 'noble etiquette'."
"Aunt, I…" Tang San stopped what he was doing and took a deep breath. "Those experiences were too unforgettable, and it's hard for me to forget them in a short time." "But I will try my best. I want to become an elegant controller, not a beast controlled by killing."
Just then, the door was pushed open. "Elegant? You dare to use that word?" A harsh voice shattered the elegant atmosphere.
Ye Feng strode in, without anyone else following behind. Upon seeing Ye Feng, Tang San's slightly calmed state of mind instantly shattered, and a chilling killing intent overflowed uncontrollably, causing a string on the guqin in front of him to snap.
"Looks like I was right." Ye Feng looked at the broken string with a mocking expression. "Tang San, your so-called learning of etiquette is nothing more than putting a wolf in sheep's clothing. You are still that bloodthirsty beast, only you have learned how to eat people with a knife and fork."
"Ye Feng! This is Yuexuan, not a place for you to run wild!" Tang San suddenly stood up, his Purple Demon Eyes glaring at Ye Feng. Tang Yuehua also stepped forward, exuding an elegant and noble aura, trying to calm the situation: "Sir, Yuexuan only welcomes guests who know proper etiquette. Please leave."
"Etiquette?" Ye Feng turned to look at Tang Yuehua, his eyes clear and unaffected by her aristocratic air. "Master, true etiquette is respect from the heart and strong self-control," he said, "not something that can be faked by playing a few tunes or wearing a few silk clothes."
Ye Feng pointed at Tang San, his tone full of contempt: "In the City of Slaughter, to save energy, he kicked his seriously injured teammate into a pack of wolves (Note: This is Ye Feng's exaggerated psychological warfare, or Tang San may have coldly watched others die). After coming out, he comes here pretending to play the zither and cultivate his mind." "That's not elegance, that's hypocrisy."
"You're slandering me!" Tang San trembled with rage. Although he was ruthless in the City of Slaughter, he would never stoop to such a vile act; Ye Feng was defaming his reputation.
"Whether it's slander or not, you know it in your heart." Ye Feng suddenly moved. He twirled the Thousand Chance Umbrella in his hand, but it didn't deform; it remained just an ordinary stick. "Come on, let me see if the etiquette you've learned these past few days can help you block my attack."
"Battle Mage Low-Tier Skill - Falling Blossom Palm!" Ye Feng held the umbrella in one hand, his palm unleashing soul power (actually pure qi). A powerful shockwave slammed into Tang San's chest.
Tang San instinctively wanted to retaliate with his Clear Sky Hammer, but remembering that this was Yuexuan, he couldn't resort to violence. He could only forcefully circulate his Mysterious Heaven Skill, drawing circles with his hands, attempting to neutralize the attack with "Controlling the Crane and Capturing the Dragon." But he forgot that his mind was in turmoil. When the mind is in turmoil, the qi is in turmoil.
Bang! Ye Feng's palm strike seemed ordinary, but it actually contained an extremely subtle hidden force (the kind of blow-away effect in Glory). Tang San's defense was instantly broken, and he slid backward in a sorry state, knocking over the zither table behind him. The precious zither fell to the ground and shattered into pieces.
"Is this your achievement?" Ye Feng withdrew his hand, not even a tuck of his clothes. "You can't even manage the most basic emotional control. Tang San, you're still a long way from being a 'master'."
Outside the Moon Pavilion, Yu Xiaogang was once again proven wrong.
After the farce ended, Ye Feng swaggered out of Yuexuan. Although Tang San was furious, he dared not chase after him under Tang Yuehua's suppression, and could only rage helplessly inside, continuing to be consumed by the backlash of murderous intent.
Just as he stepped outside, he encountered Yu Xiaogang, who was pacing back and forth at the door. The master stood with his hands behind his back, his brows furrowed, seemingly deep in thought about some profound theory. Upon seeing Ye Feng emerge, his expression darkened.
"Ye Feng, are you interfering with Xiao San's cultivation again?" Yu Xiaogang said in a lecturing tone. "You need to know that the Killing God Domain is a double-edged sword. Xiao San is currently on the righteous path, cleansing his soul through music. Your interference is harming him!" "A brute like you who only knows how to kill has no idea what a 'perfect' state of mind is."
Ye Feng stopped and looked at the middle-aged man who only knew how to talk. "Perfection?" "Master, your so-called perfection is just teaching Tang San to hide his killing intent and become a hypocritical, sanctimonious man?"
Yu Xiaogang angrily retorted, "That's control! That's sublimation!"
"Control?" Ye Feng sneered, then suddenly snapped his fingers. Instantly, a killing intent ten times purer and a hundred times colder than Tang San's erupted from his body. That tangible killing intent instantly lowered the surrounding temperature to freezing, and the roadside flowers and plants withered immediately. Yu Xiaogang, merely a level twenty-nine Great Soul Master, turned deathly pale under this terrifying pressure, his legs went weak, and he collapsed to the ground!
"You…" Yu Xiaogang looked at Ye Feng in horror.
The next second. Snap. Ye Feng snapped his fingers again. The murderous aura that filled the sky vanished without a trace, as if it had never existed. Ye Feng wore a sunny smile, like a friendly boy next door.
"See that? That's what you call control." Ye Feng looked down at Yu Xiaogang, who was slumped on the ground, his eyes filled with pity. "No need to play the piano, no need to pretend." "It's like a switch, you can turn it on when you want, and turn it off when you want." "This comes from absolute confidence and powerful mental strength."
"And your disciple is still relying on external things (the music) to suppress his inner turmoil. What does that show?" "It shows that his heart is empty." "And you, who taught such a disciple..." Ye Feng bent down and patted the dust off Yu Xiaogang's shoulder. "...Even more empty."
"Stop spouting your 'there are no useless spirit souls' theory." "Admit it, Yu Xiaogang." "You've lived your whole life relying on women (Bibi Dong, Liu Erlong) and your disciple (Tang San)." "Without Tang San, you'd be nothing in this spirit master world."
After uttering these hurtful words, Ye Feng ignored Yu Xiaogang, whose face was ashen and who was trembling all over, and hummed a little tune as he strode away.
Late at night, in Ye Feng's temporary workshop.
The room was brightly lit. The table was piled high with spoils brought back from the City of Slaughter, as well as... the first batch of rare metals sent by Xue Qinghe. It must be said that although Qian Renxue was seething with hatred, she was extremely efficient. Several pieces of chilling Coldheart Iron Essence and a fist-sized piece of Deep Sea Silver lay quietly in a box.
Ye Feng sat at his workbench, focused on modifying the Thousand Manifestations Umbrella. He carefully embedded the inner core of the Ten-Headed Fiery Sun Serpent into the energy slot at the handle of the umbrella. The original physical structure, propelled by gunpowder, was being transformed into a more advanced "soul-guided energy transmission system."
"Energy circuit... connected." "Cooling system... enhanced." "Form unlocked..."
Fine beads of sweat appeared on Ye Feng's forehead. This was an extremely meticulous task that allowed no room for error.
Just then, a warm towel gently wiped his forehead. Ye Feng turned his head and saw Shui Bing'er's serene and gentle face. She didn't speak, but stood quietly to the side, holding a bowl of freshly brewed calming soup. She was wearing a simple light blue nightgown, her long hair draped over her shoulders, looking less sharp on the battlefield and more gentle and domestic.
"Still not asleep?" Ye Feng's voice softened. "You're busy, so I can't sleep either." Shui Bing'er put down the soup bowl and naturally helped Ye Feng tidy up the scattered parts on the table. "Although I don't understand mechanics, I can help you pass things."
Watching her skillful movements, Ye Feng felt a surge of warmth in his heart. In this world filled with scheming and killing, only in this small team, by Shui Bing'er's side, could he feel a true sense of peace. Compared to Qian Renxue's thorny allure, Shui Bing'er was more like a safe haven.
"Bing'er." "Hmm?" Shui Bing'er looked up.
"The new form of the Thousand Chance Umbrella is almost complete." Ye Feng picked up the Thousand Chance Umbrella, its body faintly glowing with a red aura. "After this upgrade, we will no longer be passively taking hits." "I will create a set of exclusive 'Glory Armor' for each of you."
Shui Bing'er smiled slightly, a smile as gentle as melting snow. "I believe in you, Captain." "No matter what you do, even if it means going against the whole world, I'll stand behind you." She stepped forward and gently took Ye Feng's hands, which were slightly rough from holding tools for a long time. "Just... don't overwork yourself."
Ye Feng took her hand in his, feeling its delicate coolness. Their eyes met, and an ambiguous atmosphere of mutual dependence filled the air. There were no passionate kisses, no explicit confessions. This quiet companionship alone was more steadfast than any vow.
Buzz—! Just then, the Thousand-Machine Umbrella suddenly emitted a clear, melodious buzz. A beam of red light shot into the sky, illuminating the entire room. The inner core of the Ten-Headed Fiery Sun Serpent had perfectly fused.
Ye Feng's eyes lit up. He released his grip, holding the umbrella with one hand, and swung it sharply. The Thousand Manifestations Umbrella instantly unfolded, transforming from its original canopy into a massive shield with sharp, serrated edges. At the center of the shield, an energy trough radiated intense heat.
"Thousand Manifestations Umbrella, Sixth Form: Knight's Shield (with a Sun Reflection Damage effect)!" "And... derivative form: Heavy Cannon!"
The shield folded rapidly, instantly transforming into an exaggeratedly designed handheld cannon, its muzzle gathering a dark red energy sphere. This was no longer gunpowder, but pure energy compression—the Gunner's skill, Laser Cannon (Modified Version).
"Success." Ye Feng took a deep breath, the fatigue in his eyes vanished, replaced by a fervent fighting spirit. "Tang San, isn't your Clear Sky Hammer pretty tough?" "Next time we meet, I'll use this cannon to teach you what 'caliber is justice' really means."
Shui Bing'er looked at the spirited Ye Feng with eyes full of admiration and tenderness. But this heartwarming scene did not last long.
"Captain!" The door was flung open. Zhu Zhuqing rushed in, her face frosty, clutching a letter. "Something's happened." "Someone just delivered this letter; it's for you." "It's signed... by Titan of the Power Clan."
Ye Feng took the letter, glanced at it, and sneered. "Heh, the younger one can't beat you, so the older one comes out to settle scores?" "Titan? That loyal lackey of Tang Hao?" The letter was simple: Tomorrow at noon, at the Power Clan's martial arts arena, to decide both skill and life or death. If you dare not come, get out of Heaven Dou City.
"It seems that although Tang San is learning etiquette, the dog behind him is eager to bite." The letter in Ye Feng's hand instantly turned to ashes under the scorching sun energy.
"Reply to him." Ye Feng picked up the Thousand Chance Umbrella, which had just been upgraded and was still radiating an aura of destruction. "I will be there on time tomorrow at noon." "Since the Power Clan wants to be the first to act, then I'll use them... as a sacrifice for the umbrella!"
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