novelapdf Chapter 116 Two-Stage Reversal
Chapter 116 Two-Stage Reversal
Chapter 116 Two-Stage Reversal
Upon arriving at the entrance of Lingbao Pavilion, Li Qingyi had already quietly restored his original handsome appearance using a fake human skin.
But the doubts about Mu Chunfeng's words and actions just now still lingered in his mind like dark clouds.
With a thought, a smear of blood appeared at his fingertips.
This is the blood pact between him and Mu Chunfeng.
He could strangle Mu Chunfeng right now if he wanted to.
The crimson light on his fingertips flickered for a moment before he finally abandoned the idea of immediately crushing Mu Chunfeng to death.
It wasn't out of trust, but rather because the bottle of Nine-Turn Rejuvenation Pill, worth two thousand contribution points, had just been consumed, and killing him now would be too wasteful.
Two thousand contribution points can't just go down the drain.
Given Mu Chunfeng's experience and caution, the possibility of him making so many basic mistakes is extremely low.
First, they were followed to the branch. Tingyu Pavilion is an expert in intelligence and covert operations. It is suspicious that the branch leader could be so easily found by the enemy.
Then he accurately stated an hour. How could someone who was seriously injured and on the verge of death, and had just woken up, be so precise? This seemed more like a pre-prepared explanation.
Then there was her obvious loss of composure in front of me, her panic when questioned, which was unlike Mu Chunfeng's usual composure.
Finally, how could a Qi Refining Level 5 cultivator still manage to hold on to life when facing a Qi Refining Level 7 cultivator?
"Four flaws in a row—"
Li Qingyi felt a chill run down her spine:
Could it be that some kind of surveillance device has been left inside the Tingyu Pavilion branch, or on Mu Chunfeng himself?
Was he subtly trying to convey a message to me?
Once you open your mind, many seemingly contradictory points seem to have a reasonable explanation.
Why was he the only one who survived? Perhaps it wasn't that the other side showed mercy, but rather that they deliberately spared his life to use him as a pawn for blackmail or to spread false information.
He was being controlled, which is why he had to cooperate with the enemies at Zhenyang Tower in this charade, but he left flaws in the details, hoping I would notice?
Thinking about it this way, Li Qingyi felt that it made sense.
But another question arises: how did Mu Chunfeng get involved with Zhenyang Tower?
Just then, a slightly timid, clear female voice interrupted his thoughts: "This immortal master, are you—are you going to enter the Spirit Treasure Pavilion? You've been standing at the door—"
When Li Qingyi came to her senses, she found herself blocking the entrance to Lingbao Pavilion.
The speaker was a young, unfamiliar maid, dressed in the uniform light green dresses worn by Lingbao Pavilion staff.
"Sorry, I got lost in thought."
Composing herself, Li Qingyi stepped into the bright and spacious hall of Lingbao Pavilion.
He walked confidently to an empty private room and sat down to wait.
Before long, Qi Tongwei entered the private room, walking slowly and deliberately. It was clear that he did not want to entertain Li Qingyi.
Li Qingyi smiled and said, "Elder Qi, it's been a long time."
Faced with this menacing figure, Qi Tongwei could only force a smile, cup his hands, and say, "Young Master Li, it's been a long time."
Li Qingyi seemed to have a mischievous thought and continued to tease, "Elder Qi, it seems you don't like me very much?"
I vividly remember Elder Qi's promise from a month ago: he would grant me the status of a guest elder of the Lingbao Pavilion. I wonder if that promise is still valid?
"Hahahahahaha!" Qi Tongwei laughed, inwardly wishing he could slap himself a few times.
Now, things have gotten complicated; I've become the designated person to deal with this plague god.
"I was blind back then and failed to recognize a true talent; I was reckless, so reckless!"
Qi Tongwei quickly waved his hand, adopting an extremely humble posture: "A young master who has already reached the half-step Foundation Establishment stage at such a young age, a banished immortal with a limitless future, how could my small Lingbao Pavilion branch accommodate such a true dragon as you?"
"It was my own ignorance and arrogance back then, young master, please don't take it to heart."
Seeing him like this, Li Qingyi was filled with mixed emotions.
However, just one month later, when the two met again, their status and position had completely reversed.
The elders of Lingbao Pavilion, whom he had to be careful to deal with before, are now so trembling in his presence.
Is this the most direct manifestation of strength, power, and status?
He composed himself, stopped joking, took out the eight golden talismans from his storage ring, and casually tossed them onto the tea table between the two of them.
"Same as always, spirit stones instead."
Qi Tongwei didn't even glance at the stack of talismans; he simply clapped his hands.
The new maid who had reminded Li Qingyi at the door immediately came in carrying a small jade plate with sixteen spirit stones neatly arranged on it.
She gently placed the jade plate beside Li Qingyi, then respectfully bowed her head and withdrew, not daring to look at him for a second.
"Elder Qi, won't you inspect the goods?"
Qi Tongwei smiled and said, "Young master, you are also a regular customer of our Lingbao Pavilion. Your reputation is excellent, and I trust you completely."
Moreover, given your status, young master, you would never deceive me over such a trivial matter.
Li Qingyi nodded, then suddenly remembered something and casually asked, "By the way, where's that Green Garden girl who used to entertain me? Why can't I see her today?"
Mentioning Lvyuan, Qi Tongwei sighed, a rare occurrence for him: "That girl Lvyuan asked for leave a couple of days ago, saying that her elderly mother at home was unwell and she was going back to visit her family."
Who would have thought that on the way back, they would be robbed and encounter an evil cultivator, whose life essence would be drained—
Upon hearing this, Li Qingyi frowned slightly.
He had a good impression of the capable and sweet-smiling maid, and upon hearing this tragic news, he couldn't help but feel a pang of regret.
Such a vibrant and lively woman, yet she met such a tragic end.
"A heretical cultivator?" Li Qingyi asked. "Do you know where this incident occurred?"
"Hmm—" Qi Tongwei looked on with a look of recollection, "The person who brought her body back said it was in the Luo family's territory."
Speaking of this, Qi Tongwei's regret deepened: "Alas, it's fate. If I had known she would be passing through there, I would never have let her go back alone."
Young master may not know this, but just a few days ago, a fierce battle broke out near Yuqing Mountain, which was said to have involved cultivators in the late stage of Qi Refining.
The Luo family was caught in the crossfire and suffered heavy losses.
Upon hearing this, Li Qingyi wondered to herself, "Could Mingwen be involved in some kind of resurrection technique?"
He immediately dismissed the idea, thinking it was impossible.
Even if such a technique truly exists in the cultivation world, it is definitely not something that a cultivator in the late stage of Qi Refining can master.
"Young Master Li?" Qi Tongwei called out softly when he saw him lost in thought again, a troubled look on his face: "If Young Master has no other instructions, I still have some miscellaneous matters to attend to in my chambers—"
Li Qingyi came to her senses, nodded, and was about to get up when she suddenly remembered the "Mysterious Water Yin Sha Formation" diagram she had seized from Tian Sha.
He doesn't need that thing for the time being, nor does he have time to study it, so it's better to exchange it for spirit stones.
"Wait a minute," he called out to Qi Tongwei, who was about to slip away.
Qi Tongwei stiffened, then slowly turned around. "Does Young Master Li have any further instructions?"
Li Qingyi took the "Mysterious Water Yin Sha Formation" out of her storage ring and tossed it onto the table. "Let's see how much this is worth?"
Qi Tongwei picked it up, took a deep breath, and said, "A mid-grade formation for the Qi Refining stage."
He said with difficulty, "Young master, the valuation of array formations requires a more professional approach."
May I take this item upstairs and ask the master in the pavilion who specializes in this field to examine it and give you a fair price?
""
"Can.
""
Upon hearing this, Qi Tongwei, holding the "Mysterious Water Yin Sha Formation," left the private room and headed upstairs.
In a small, elegantly furnished hall on the third floor, which was separate from the outside world, the head of the Lingbao Pavilion's Xuan Ce City branch, along with several elders who were usually rarely seen, were sitting together enjoying tea and discussing matters.
Upon seeing Qi and Wei enter, one of the plump elders immediately asked, "Old Qi, how did it go? Has that jinx been sent away?"
Qi Tongwei's lips twitched as he saw his colleague, who always tried to push him out to take the blame when something went wrong. "No," he said.
He placed the "Mysterious Water Yin Sha Formation" on the tea table in the middle of the table: "Li Qingyi brought this, saying he wanted to get an estimate. He also said that if the price doesn't satisfy him—"
1
He paused deliberately, then slowly added, "He said he'd tear down this place."
"This is outrageous!" The portly elder who had just asked the question slammed his hand on the table and stood up, his face full of anger. "He's a true disciple of Pavilion Master Tingyu! Not a true disciple of my Pavilion Master Lingbao!"
Qi Tongwei sneered, stepped aside to make way for the door, and gestured for him to enter: "Grand Secretary Liu is right! Or perhaps—"
Why don't you go down and reason with him yourself? Let him know that Lingbao Pavilion isn't a pushover!
Upon hearing this, Grand Secretary Liu felt as if he had been choked. His flushed face quickly faded, his arrogance vanished instantly, and he sat back down sheepishly.
The other elders and the head of the Xuan Ce City branch also wore expressions of utter disgust.
"You threatened me to take the blame, now let's see what you're going to do."
Qi Tongwei looked at the Pavilion Master and the other elders, who seemed frustrated yet forced to compromise.
The pent-up frustration in my heart dissipated almost entirely in an instant.
I just want to look up to the sky and shout "Awesome!"
"A mid-grade Qi Refining stage formation costs sixty spirit stones on the market. Give him seventy and get rid of this plague god quickly."
The pavilion master waved his hand, signaling Qi Tongwei to leave quickly.
Just then, the tall, thin elder, who hadn't said much until now, stroked his beard and hesitated, saying, "Master, seventy coins seems to be against the rules."
"Rules?" The Pavilion Master snorted. "Then go! Go downstairs right now and tell Li Qingyi the rules. Tell him that our Lingbao Pavilion's purchase price is only forty, not a penny more."
Do you think he'll talk to you about the rules, or will he just throw you out obediently?!
The tall, thin elder shrank his neck and waved his hands repeatedly: "Your subordinate misspoke, Your Excellency is wise, so proceed with seventy coins."
Qi Tongwei almost burst out laughing and hurriedly went to the storeroom to withdraw spirit stones.
Sitting in the private room, Li Qingyi was naturally unaware of what was happening upstairs; her mind was filled with thoughts of Zhenyang Tower and the Zhao family.
Before long, Qi Tongwei walked into the house carrying a full plate of spirit stones.
Li Qingyi was somewhat surprised; could this thing sell for so much money?
He expected that selling forty spirit stones would be quite good.
Qi Tongwei's expression tightened. "Young Master Li, the market price for a mid-grade Qi Refining formation is sixty spirit stones. The Pavilion Master tried to lower the price to forty, but I had to use a lot of persuasion to get it up to sixty for you."
As he spoke, he looked at Li Qingyi with trepidation, afraid that she might have noticed something.
Li Qingyi's mind was mostly elsewhere at the moment, and she didn't delve too deeply into the details.
After putting the unexpected spirit stones into his pocket, he thought for a moment and then took out two more spirit stones and handed them to Qi Tongwei.
"Thank you for your hard work, Elder Qi."
If Li Qingyi knew that Qi Tongwei was using her name and his infamous reputation to extort money from Lingbao Pavilion, she would probably be tempted to hang him up and whip him.
"No! No!" Qi Tongwei was so frightened that he backed away and waved his hands, shaking his head like a rattle drum.
"Serving you, young master, is my duty. How could I possibly accept any payment? You are too kind!"
How could he dare to accept it?
Having just stolen ten spirit stones, and feeling guilty, how could he dare to covet two more?
After some refusals, Li Qingyi had no choice but to put the spirit stones away, feeling that something was amiss.
"Something's not right with Qi Tongwei—"
But he still praised, "Elder Qi is truly an honest and kind man."
"You flatter me, you flatter me, young master!" Qi Tongwei bowed repeatedly, his smile growing even brighter.
Li Qingyi said no more and got up to leave the private room.
Through the crack in the wooden window of the private room, Qi Tongwei confirmed that Li Qingyi's figure had indeed disappeared outside the Lingbao Pavilion and showed no signs of returning. His tense nerves instantly relaxed.
He remained alone in the private room, glancing around to make sure no one was watching, before finally bursting into a pig-like laugh: "Hehe, Young Master Li, you truly are my lucky charm! This whole affair—"
He rubbed his hands together, calculating his extra income for the day, beaming with joy.
However, before he could finish speaking...
With a creak.
The door to the private room was gently pushed open from the outside.
Li Qingyi stood calmly at the door, her gaze indifferently fixed on Qi Tongwei.
"Elder Qi," Li Qingyi said with a smile, "What's making you so happy? Tell me so I can have a laugh too."
In that instant, Qi Tongwei was terrified, his mind went completely blank.