Lighting Lanterns in the Mountains and Seas

Chapter 912 - 774: Striking at Just the Right Time

After explaining the situation to Lan She, Mulan Jin held the Mother-child Talisman that connects them, temporarily not returning it to Manxi.

Some things can be complex or simple, depending on how you look at them.

Is Lan She threatening him? Yes.

If the disciples of Thunder Sound Sect did save his daughter, does it deserve some reward?

His daughter is naturally precious; in some sense, any reward is justified.

In terms of value, giving up Shi Chun's life isn't a big deal for him.

He knows what kind of plan the other party has for Shi Chun, but he doesn't expose it. Shi Chun is a pawn he snatched from Life Prison; he can decide to kill or spare at will, everyone knows this.

Is handing over Shi Chun at this moment selling out the interests of the Heavenly Court? Yes!

Not only does he know this, but once Manxi learns Shi Chun is in Lan She's hands, he'll be aware, too.

Did he hand him over?

He gave Shi Chun certain autonomy; if Shi Chun fails and ends up in Lan She's hands, the blame is on him.

If Lan She can't capture Shi Chun, don't say I, Mulan Jin, haven't kept my promise.

By then, whether Shi Chun saves Mulan Qingqing is one matter; failing to save her is another. He'll only say two words to Lan She—"Release her!"

I've done what you said.

Lan She, if you're capable, try not releasing her!

Lan She, if you're capable, try harming even a hair on my daughter!

For someone at his level, distinctions between right and wrong aren't always crucial.

Manxi no longer interferes with Mulan Jin's affairs, occasionally glancing at the Commander, but his foundation is secured, so what more could he want?

The previous anxiety of being unable to find Dongguo Shou has vanished, leaving only focused dedication, striving for the best outcome.

In the Extreme Abyss, Shi Chun did not rush to leave to bury the Mother-child Talisman connecting with Lan She, but instead headed deeper into the abyss to speak privately with Wu Jinliang.

He didn't say much else, just informed Wu Jinliang about the unexpected situation due to Mulan Qingqing's mishap, as a form of briefing, lest an accident arises and they remain clueless.

Wu Jinliang couldn't help but exclaim, "What's Han Bao doing? Even with such strength, why does taking Mulan Qingqing alone lead to trouble? And this time he lost his life as well."

The tone carried a sense of disappointment, as he had learned the Mad Demon Transformation from Han Bao, forming a bond through shared experiences. Finally connecting with Han Jia Bu, he hoped Han Bao would later develop a higher Magic Skill for him to study, but Han Bao was gone. Such a pity.

He vaguely recalled early on, Han Bao acted dismissively, initially not regarding them seriously until shared experiences brought gradual camaraderie.

After cursing Han Bao, he cursed the Xuanji Token Master, "What is Mulan Jin doing? With Lan She explicitly demanding you, it's obvious he's after the safety route map of the Extreme Abyss directed towards Heavenly Court forces. I don't believe Mulan Jin is unaware; he's clearly selling out Heavenly Court interests for personal gain. If it backfires, we'll report him!"

Shi Chun chuckled, "Our status compared to his is worlds apart. If someone of his position feared we could report him, it'd be strange; then he wouldn't dare do such things. Anyway, it's settled; licking blood off the knife is not unheard of."

Wu Jinliang immediately rolled up his sleeves and cursed, "I'll go with you. Find a way to lure them onto the sea. I've learned Li Hongjiu's formidable skills thoroughly; watch how I take them down. Damn, I've long wanted to test them."

Shi Chun shook his head slightly, "It's useless. The Beiju side has already suffered enough from Li Hongjiu; they won't fall for the same trick twice. Besides, this time, they specifically require only me. With Mulan Qingqing in their hands, we have no bargaining rights. It's ultimately their call."

Wu Jinliang stared wide-eyed, "What? Isn't that just walking into a trap?"

Shi Chun: "I have no choice but to take this trip; otherwise, there's no choice left. Going offers a chance to act when the opportunity presents itself; staying behind results in either a fallout with Mulan Jin, potentially leading to imprisonment back in Life Prison or fleeing to the Netherworld to hide. I'm determined never to return to Life Prison; don't worry, with Qilin A San's help, escaping should be easy enough. If things don't work out, I'll escape promptly; worst comes to worst, we'll start anew in the Netherworld."

He hadn't yet attained the level of determination to sacrifice his life for saving Mulan Jin's daughter.

He often praised Mulan Qingqing as the most beautiful woman he'd seen; so what? Even if she were genuinely the most beautiful woman in the world, she wouldn't be worth risking his life.

Hearing this, Wu Jinliang felt considerably relieved, "Hey, Master, when can I experience A San too?"

He had always heard Shi Chun praise Qilin A San's speed but hadn't personally experienced it, leaving him intrigued.

No time for thrills now, Shi Chun replied, "We'll talk later; keep an eye out here, I'll go meet Lan She."

Wu Jinliang: "Really going alone?"

Shi Chun: "Do I have a choice?"

With that, he leapt onto A San, soared above, and sped away. The swift maneuvers left Wu Jinliang envious.

As they were about to leave the Extreme Abyss, Shi Chun retracted A San, surveyed the surroundings, occasionally consulting the Demon Realm map, and then waited.

Beiju Team, Lan She, pacing on the high platform, is waiting for news from Mulan Jin. To be honest, it's the first time dealing with someone of Mulan Jin's status like this, and he's somewhat anxious.

Heavenly Court Team, Mulan Jin, silent on the high platform, is waiting for news from Shi Chun, but no news has been received.

He's not in a hurry, and very patient.

No news, for him, is not necessarily a bad thing. It's not the first time he's dealt with Shi Chun. Given the usual behavior of that fellow, he wouldn't act without purpose. Clearly, he's preparing something. Having preparation is enough.

When night falls, the lurking Shi Chun finally leaves the Extreme Abyss, riding Wind Riding Scale, flying straight out.

On the way, he found a mountain top, hid half of the Mother-child Talisman on the highest peak, then immediately ran off, simultaneously sending a message to Mulan Jin, informing him of the talisman's location.

Looking at the message, Mulan Jin knew the fellow should be ready, subtly passed the location data to Beiju Commander Lan She.

Lan She quickly took out a map, found the approximate location, checked the terrain, then swiftly dispatched people nearby to retrieve the Mother-child Talisman.

Didn't wait too long, the operatives found the talisman, then rushed to the Command Center at top speed.

This wait was quite prolonged, nearly three two-hour periods later, the operatives finally delivered the item to the Command Center.

Lan She, having obtained the Mother-child Talisman, was overjoyed, immediately credited three tokens to the operative, and one token each to his companions.

All of these were done discreetly in secret, fearing spies under the platform might notice anything suspicious.

Holding the Mother-child Talisman, after a bit of deliberation, Lan She sent Shi Chun the first message: Shi Chun?

Shi Chun, who had already hidden back in the Extreme Abyss, replied: It's me, are you Beiju Commander Lan She?

Lan She responded: It's me, I'll indicate a location, you come directly.

Shi Chun replied: How do you prove you are Lan She?

Lan She replied: What, you don't trust the Xuanji Token Master?

He implied, should the Xuanji Token Master send you a message?

Shi Chun replied: Before entering the Demon Realm, I had no grievance with Commander Lan, I want to know why Commander Lan sent people to kill me?

This is one of his key reasons to contact the other party directly. He indeed bore no grievance with them, and there's no reason to be pursued right away, thus wanted to seize the opportunity to figure out who was behind the attempt on his life.

A clear shot is easy to dodge, but a hidden arrow is hard to avoid. This is no small matter!

Lan She ignored him, directly questioning: The Xuanji Token Master's words, do you listen or not?

Shi Chun replied: As a dying man, I just want to die with understanding, before death, to know who my enemy is, that's all. If the Commander doesn't feel it's necessary to inform, then I won't follow the Xuanji Token Master's words either, you may as well report to the Xuanji Token Master now.

In Lan She's mind, the words 'troublemaker' popped up. He truly wasn't polite, immediately took out the Mother-child Talisman linked with Manxi, and really reported directly to Mulan Jin.

Mulan Jin looked at the message, slightly raised his brow, found Shi Chun truly not easy to deal with. At this moment, he's still capable of such a move, wanting to take this chance to figure out the mastermind behind Beiju's pursuit, really squeezing oil from a stone.

However, he had to admit, the timing was right, precise and ruthless, hitting exactly at the weak spot, Lan She should not withstand it.

To be honest, he quite admired this problem-solving ability, the thought occasionally lingering in his mind surged again, after this ordeal, should he bring that fellow directly to the Stargazing Pavilion?

But thinking of that fellow's unclear relationship with his daughter, he disliked this, and thus suppressed the idea.

In short, he didn't evaluate the message further, directly replied: Personal grievances between you have nothing to do with me.

Seeing the message, Lan She was somewhat speechless, convinced he had met an expert. The Xuanji Token Master directly peeled the matter into another problem, could he grasp this issue to bargain with them? Felt learned.

Immediately no longer disturbed Mulan Jin, sent another message to Shi Chun: Told you, you wouldn't know true or false, you're looking for excuses, saying anything is useless.

Shi Chun swiftly replied: True or false, I can discern myself, as a dying man, I don't find excuses. Speak the mastermind, I'll attend the meeting.

Lan She felt tangled, what the mastermind privately told him, once exposed, the mastermind would surely know he leaked it.

However, weighing pros and cons, after much thought, he still messaged: Liang Mian, Mutual Market Junior Supervisor of Beiju.

This name isn't unfamiliar to Shi Chun, somewhat a romantic rival. For this, he pretended anger and forcibly slept with Xiang Laner, even now recalling it remains vivid, so fair and lovely.

Thus, upon hearing right away, knew it couldn't be wrong.

Turns out it's this bastard, Shi Chun couldn't help but chuckle in anger, very well, since you insist on dealing with me, I can only repay you.

It's simple reasoning, this person aims to end your life, such matters, can you expect them to only do it once and not attempt again? Can you bet, or dare to bet?

He was straightforward and directly responded: Commander Lan is forthright, I won't waste words, where's the meeting place, let's meet and discuss.