At this moment, the uncle Aymu called Xie Qingmo got up from the ground, his face still bearing Aymu's two footprints.
"Aymu, is this what you meant…?"
Xie Qingmo pointed at Li Xuan, his expression indescribably complex.
Disappointment, helplessness, regret… all sorts of emotions intertwined on his charming face, making even a cat want to step on him a few times.
From their previous conversation, Li Xuan could easily tell that Xie Qingmo was dissatisfied with some of Aymu's decisions.
And this decision seemed to have a very important impact on Aymu.
Connecting this with what happened when Li Xuan recently came to find Aymu, he couldn't help but draw his own conclusion.
"Could it be that the previous transaction made this person dissatisfied?"
"But Aymu and I were clear about the price; neither of us lost out, right?"
The deeds and land titles of Hu Yu House in exchange for the two beans Aymu procured should be considered a reasonable transaction.
After all, according to Aymu, those two beans were artificially cultivated, so their value should be lower than normal heavenly treasures, and what Li Xuan wanted was the less valuable, Yin Yang attribute-balanced type.
Furthermore, Aymu urgently needed the deeds and land titles of Hu Yu House at the time, so she certainly wouldn't have been at a loss.
"I want to see what this is all about."
Li Xuan was still hoping to get closer to the forces behind Aymu; such misunderstandings were not good.
Li Xuan sized up Xie Qingmo, sensing abundant True Qi within him, estimating him to be at least a Fifth-Rank expert.
Ever since mastering Yin Yang True Qi, Li Xuan's perception had further improved, making him especially sensitive to energies like True Qi.
Coupled with Xie Qingmo's discovery of him and his attempt to attract him, he was definitely an expert skilled in using True Qi.
"Not bad, not bad, the quality is good."
Li Xuan was very satisfied with the strength of the forces behind Aymu.
After all, if they were too weak, they wouldn't be qualified to be a fallback option for their Three Little Ones.
While Li Xuan was observing Xie Qingmo, Xie Qingmo was also carefully observing Li Xuan.
However, in Xie Qingmo's eyes, Li Xuan's appearance was not much different from an ordinary black cat; only his fur looked exceptionally smooth.
But this only proved that Li Xuan had an owner who meticulously cared for him, far from proving the descriptions Aymu had told him.
"How could such an ordinary house cat be a Saint Beast?"
The more Xie Qingmo thought about it, the angrier he got. He decided to write a letter when he got back, asking Aymu's master to personally come and severely discipline this disobedient girl.
He couldn't control Aymu anymore!
"Alright, alright, so this is the Saint Beast you spoke of, right?"
"Are you really planning to present this little cat then?"
"I'm telling you, you're not only harming this innocent little life, but also yourself!"
Xie Qingmo's veins throbbed as he angrily criticized Aymu.
"Present me? Present me where?"
Li Xuan was startled, glancing sideways at Aymu.
Aymu's originally hazy eyes immediately cleared, then a cold glint flashed, and she righteously said to Xie Qingmo:
"Bold!"
"How dare you be disrespectful to Saint Beast Adult?"
"Hurry and apologize to Saint Beast Adult."
As Aymu spoke, she pushed Li Xuan, whom she was holding in her palms, forward, directly in front of Xie Qingmo.
Li Xuan and Xie Qingmo faced each other at close quarters, staring at each other with wide eyes.
Li Xuan blinked, unsure what to say in such an awkward atmosphere.
Xie Qingmo remained silent, nodded, and then took two steps back, his thin lips tightly pressed together.
"When your master comes, I'll see if you still dare to pull this stunt."
With that, Xie Qingmo intended to flick his sleeves and leave.
"Hey, why are you calling my master?"
"From such a distance, her old bones can't handle the trouble."
Aymu immediately cowered and quickly went to stop Xie Qingmo.
However, she was holding Li Xuan in her hands and couldn't free her other hands. Anxiously, she lifted a graceful long leg, extended a nimble jade foot, and instantly clamped onto Xie Qingmo's sleeve, trying her best to hold him back.
"Elder Xie, I was just joking. Why are you taking it so seriously?"
Aymu argued.
"Let go of my foot!"
Xie Qingmo angrily flung his sleeve, directly shaking off Aymu's jade foot, then pointed at his nose and cursed:
"It's my sister who spoiled you since childhood. Look at what you've become now!"
"Are the important duties of the sect something to joke about?"
"Is your future something to joke about?"
"If you mess around like this, how much will it cost us to get you out of trouble?"
Xie Qingmo was clearly full of pent-up anger, scolding Aymu relentlessly.
"Master didn't spoil me," Aymu muttered softly, holding Li Xuan, but she was clearly much more timid.
She knew Xie Qingmo cared about her, but Aymu didn't regret her decision.
She genuinely believed that Li Xuan was the Saint Beast prophesied by the sect elders.
Of course, everyone had their own interpretation of that vague prophecy.
However, when Li Xuan first appeared before Aymu, her interpretation of the prophecy became increasingly clear.
Xie Qingmo had been scolding for a long time and was finally hoarse.
Aymu promptly handed him a cup of tea. Seeing the cup of tea in front of him, Xie Qingmo ungraciously took it and drank it without thinking to quench his thirst.
But after drinking, he realized that Aymu was still holding Li Xuan, and the tea had been handed to him by Aymu with her foot.
The belated Xie Qingmo gagged, then disgustedly threw the cup back on the table and quickly took out a handkerchief to wipe his hands.
"Put the cat down immediately and stop touching me with your foot."
Xie Qingmo glared at Aymu and said.
"This…"
Aymu showed hesitation, then respectfully asked Li Xuan:
"Saint Beast Adult, may Aymu place you on the table first?"
Li Xuan had long been fed up with Aymu's strange attitude, so he directly jumped out of her hand and onto the table.
But when he looked back, Aymu was pouting, her face showing a hurt expression, looking pitiful.
"This guy…"
Li Xuan shook his head, not paying too much attention.
After all, Aymu had never been quite normal.
Li Xuan could only assume that the pressure of being a courtesan was too great.
Seeing that Aymu and Xie Qingmo had been chatting for a long time without getting to the point, Li Xuan immediately used his tail to write words in the air, asking:
"What exactly is this Saint Beast you're talking about?"
"And what kind of organization are you?"
"You're not all strange people, are you?"
Due to Aymu and Xie Qingmo's behavior, Li Xuan also showed his reasonable suspicion.
"They don't seem very reliable," Li Xuan felt a headache coming on.
As Li Xuan wagged his tail, Xie Qingmo's expression gradually became horrified, his eyes instinctively widening.
Aymu, seeing the changes in Xie Qingmo's expression, immediately smiled triumphantly.
"Hmph, I told you to underestimate me. When you understand the special nature of Adult Li Xuan, I'll see what you have to say."
Aymu crossed her arms, stood aside, and said nothing, ready to watch the show.
"You, you can actually write!?"
Xie Qingmo could no longer contain himself and exclaimed directly.
Li Xuan looked at him, seeing a bumpkin who had never seen the world, his face full of impatience.
Seeing Li Xuan's lively expression, Xie Qingmo immediately understood that Li Xuan's intelligence was beyond his imagination.
He immediately turned to Aymu and questioned, "Why didn't you say so earlier?"
"Seeing is believing, after all."
"And my pale words simply cannot describe even one ten-thousandth of Saint Beast Adult's greatness!"
Aymu said triumphantly, her gaze towards Li Xuan full of reverence.
Li Xuan finally understood; Aymu was trying to trick others by first tricking herself into believing it.
"Alright, alright, stop with the useless talk."
Li Xuan's tail swayed from side to side, his face full of helplessness.
"Let's talk about something practical. How about starting with a formal self-introduction?"
Li Xuan lay on the table, leisurely tucking his little paws, and looked at Aymu and Xie Qingmo.
"Sit down, let's have a good chat."
Li Xuan took the initiative, patting the table and inviting the two to sit down.
Aymu readily obeyed, sitting in the closest seat to Li Xuan, her eyes fixed on Li Xuan without a moment's pause.
"Mmm, so cute…"
On the other side, Xie Qingmo also cautiously sat down.
Although he still didn't believe in Li Xuan, he had absolute trust in Aymu.
Although Xie Qingmo spoke ill of Aymu, at critical moments, he still trusted this direct disciple of his sister.
After all, she was a child he had watched grow up, almost like a niece.
Xie Qingmo looked at Li Xuan, then turned to Aymu and asked:
"Aymu, you haven't revealed your identity yet, have you?"
Aymu nodded, then said somewhat shyly:
"I never had a chance to be frank, so it's been delayed until now."
"Saint Beast Adult, you won't blame me, will you?"
Aymu fluttered her big eyes, sending innocent starlight towards Li Xuan.
Li Xuan couldn't stand it anymore and said to Aymu:
"You can just call me Li Xuan; don't always use 'Adult' and 'Adult'."
"And about that 'Saint Beast' thing, I never agreed to anything."
"After all, I'm not just any cat."
Li Xuan wrote seriously.
"Okay, Saint Beast Adult," Aymu replied with a smile, not at all annoyed.
Li Xuan rolled his eyes, not bothering to argue with Aymu.
Compared to Aymu, Xie Qingmo seemed much more serious, and perhaps more information about their faction could be obtained from him.
"So, is your name Adult Li Xuan?"
Li Xuan's small face wrinkled up, looking at Xie Qingmo in exasperation.
Goodness, like master, like disciple, right?
"I am Xie Qingmo, Aymu's elder. It is truly a great honor to meet Adult Li Xuan today."
Li Xuan raised a paw and covered his head, a headache forming.
He finally understood why some constables, when questioning, would repeatedly ask those few simple questions.
"What's your surname? What's your name? Where are you from? Where are you going? How many people in your family? How many acres per person? How many cattle in the fields? Speak, speak, speak!"
Li Xuan wished he could give Xie Qingmo the same interrogation.
Perhaps Xie Qingmo also noticed Li Xuan's impatience, so he cleared his throat and got to the point:
"Adult Li Xuan, we are followers of the Holy Fire Sect from the Western Regions. We hope we can become eternal friends in the future."
Xie Qingmo sat, gently stroking his chest with his right hand, nodding slightly, bowing to Li Xuan.
This gesture was very similar to the one Aymu used towards Li Xuan.
It seemed to be a ritual of their sect.
"The Holy Fire Sect of the Western Regions," Li Xuan muttered to himself.
After revealing his origins, Xie Qingmo sighed softly, then said to Aymu:
"Aymu, since you have made your decision, explain our situation clearly to Adult Li Xuan."
"This is also a necessary courtesy."
Listening, Li Xuan always felt a sense of resignation in Xie Qingmo's words.
"Okay," Aymu agreed, her expression noticeably nervous.
Then she looked at Li Xuan and said sincerely:
"Saint—Adult Li Xuan, my name is Aymu, and this is indeed my real name."
"But I also have another identity: I am a Saintess Candidate of the Holy Fire Sect. The current Saintess of the Holy Fire Sect is my master."
Li Xuan had long guessed that Aymu's identity was extraordinary, but he hadn't expected it to be this extraordinary—she was even a Saintess Candidate of a sect.
Regardless of the Holy Fire Sect's standing, being chosen as a Saintess Candidate meant she was an extremely important figure within the sect.
"Then why did you come to Hu Yu House and become a courtesan?"
Li Xuan asked, puzzled.
For a Saintess of a sect to debase herself like this was truly baffling.
As a result, Aymu's face flushed red, and she said shyly:
"I came to Great Xing this time with a mission; it's one of the Saintess Candidate trials."
"Moreover, Adult Li Xuan, although I am the courtesan queen of Hu Yu House, I am still a virgin. I merely dance here."
Xie Qingmo looked at Aymu with a face full of question marks, thinking:
"Why are you telling a cat this?"
Li Xuan had similar feelings.
"This guy is really hard to figure out."
For the first time, Li Xuan felt someone was so unfathomable to him.
"A Saintess Candidate trial?"
Li Xuan decided to change the subject first.
"There isn't just one Saintess Candidate in the Holy Fire Sect."
Xie Qingmo interjected at the right time. If Aymu continued to say startling things a few more times, Li Xuan might be scared away.
Now that the deed was done, Xie Qingmo could only try his best to avoid such a bad situation from happening.
"Currently, there are three Saintess Candidates in the sect, and one must be chosen as the final successor to the Saintess."
"The Saintess holds a special position, sometimes even more powerful than the Sect Master, so the selection is extremely rigorous."
"Aymu came to Great Xing this time to take over Hu Yu House and also to clear up past accounts."
"The original Zhou Mama here was a believer of our sect, but she betrayed us midway and privately embezzled sect assets."
"Aymu's trial is to solve this problem."
Hearing this, Li Xuan's heart stirred, recalling the large amount of assets he had obtained from Zhou Mama.
"I knew it; how did Zhou Mama, running a brothel, get so much money?"
"Turns out she embezzled from the Holy Fire Sect!"