Cloud Dream Marsh, Yuan Zihe was punting a small boat, drifting amidst the tranquil waters of the lake.

Compared to the raging sea, the waves within Cloud Dream Marsh also lived up to the word "tranquil."

As the sun climbed higher, Yuan Zihe lacked a sense of direction; silently, a clump of seagrass poked out from the water, climbed aboard the boat, and slipped into the saltwater that had been prepared for it.

This water, it had salt added.

As a saltwater sea beast, the seagrass had suffered greatly while roving through Cloud Dream Marsh.

After soaking for a while, it finally felt revitalized.

"Master is wonderful."

Having the saltwater prepared in advance showed just how attentive her master was.

Yuan Zihe smiled faintly, accepting the seagrass’s compliment, and whispered softly, "Do you have any news?"

The seagrass was skilled at gathering intelligence; its greatest talent lay in disguise, plus it could plant its own offshoots, placing them across an area for surveillance.

Who would ever suspect an innocent blade of grass?

Thanks to this, she was able to arrange for the seagrass in Ziyang City to successfully gather news about Lin Yun.

Speaking of Lin Yun, Yuan Zihe felt rather helpless.

She had set out a month earlier, even prepared a persona, but upon arriving in the Central Plains, Lin Yun was nowhere to be found.

She had no choice but to wait for the rabbit, placing the seagrass’s offshoots in places Lin Yun might appear.

Such waiting lasted a month.

Although she didn’t gather any news about Lin Yun, she didn’t waste her time; she quickly learned the ways of the Central Plains people, thoroughly preparing for her disguise.

Everything was ready; all that was missing was Lin Yun.

Yet Lin Yun just wouldn’t show up. Just when she finally found a clue, she arrived at Cloud Dream Marsh. This marsh was so vast that searching for someone was extremely difficult.

Fortunately, she still had the seagrass.

"Fifteen hundred miles to the south of here, there’s a man and two women. It’s highly likely that they are the ones."

"Excellent, I’ve finally found you!"

Yuan Zihe had been prepared to give up when, at this last moment, the seagrass brought back good news.

"It seems my brother’s information also wasn’t wrong; wherever this Lin Yun goes, he’s always accompanied by women. Surely he’s a lascivious fellow. I wonder how someone like him cultivates his path. However, having a weakness makes him easier to deal with."

Yuan Zihe had great confidence in her own looks, but if she were to approach him solely based on her beauty, and Lin Yun forcefully made a move, it could result in some mishap.

Yuan Zihe was ready to assume the worst about Lin Yun. Although the recent intelligence suggested he wasn’t a completely bad person—in fact, he seemed to be quite a caring and decent young man—what if?

After all, she was so attractive.

Looking at her reflection in the lake water, Yuan Zihe thought confidently to herself.

Nevertheless, a man likely wouldn’t think about forcing her at the beginning. It was more advantageous for her to leave Lin Yun wanting, unable to satisfy his desire immediately, yet with some effort, he could. That was most beneficial to her.

The first step was making contact with Lin Yun.

During this time, Yuan Zihe had rehearsed the scenario of meeting Lin Yun many times and had also designed her own identity.

She created a persona for herself as a fisher girl from a village in East Sea, originally making a living near Haizhou, then fleeing to the inland to escape war, only to encounter more turmoil and become separated from her parents.

Lin Yun was, after all, from the Reputable Sect, also known as a man of the Righteous Path, who would likely sympathize with her plight, and then, perhaps seeing her pitiful yet beautiful, might offer to help her find her parents. It was possible.

If not, Yuan Zihe had a contingency plan.

She had constructed her identity with a twist—an attractive girl like her, how could she be just an ordinary fisher girl? She possessed a special identity. If she could pique Lin Yun’s curiosity and get him to unravel her mysterious veil, then her plan to steal would proceed much more smoothly.

With that, Yuan Zihe rowed her boat, drifting towards Lin Yun’s direction. To avoid arousing his suspicion, she began acting her part 500 miles away.

She abandoned the basket soaked with seagrass, letting the seagrass remain in the water beforehand.

Although fifteen hundred miles was a long way, with her control over water, the boat sailed smoothly with the wind, not slow in speed.

As evening fell, Yuan Zihe arrived at the location the seagrass described.

By the water’s edge, she saw only a lady dressed in green.

This woman bore a face of melancholy, seemingly troubled by something.

With her appearance and demeanor, she was clearly more than mortal. Yuan Zihe knew that this must be one of the two women accompanying Lin Yun.

She didn’t know why the woman was there alone, but starting with her was also a good choice.

It’s much more difficult for women to interact with one another than with men.

Yuan Zihe punted the boat closer, and as she got near, the Green Snake also saw her. Though she didn’t speak, her eyes were full of wariness.

Her sister and Lin Yun were "cultivating," and aside from the possibility of unexpected consequences resulting from an interruption in their cultivation, the thought of someone overhearing Bai Jiaojiao’s embarrassingly intimate sounds was absolutely intolerable to anyone but her.

Let me be the guardian of my sister’s glory!

Therefore, as soon as Yuan Zihe got a little closer, she felt the piercing stare of a fierce beast.

Yuan Zihe’s own cultivation level was not weak. Although she could not compare to Yuan Zidan, members of the Yuan Clan naturally progressed rapidly in their cultivation due to their short lifespan, and she was considered talented and intelligent.

At a young age, she had already achieved the Celestial Knowing Realm.

However, in front of Green Snake, she felt a chill down her spine.

The Green Snake had not yet broken through the realm, but the True Dragon’s aura of command still had the power to intimidate mortals.

Yuan Zihe knew she could no longer carelessly proceed, so she said cautiously, "Sister, I’m just a passerby who happened to be traveling through this area and encountered nightfall. Could you be so kind as to let me rest here for one more night?"

Yuan Zihe had originally wanted to ask for lodging, but given the Green Snake’s attitude before she even opened her mouth, to ask for shelter now would seem like she could not read the room and was being overly bold.

She now showed some reverence, which was also based on the kind of response that her carefully thought-out persona would have.

Although she did not want to cause any trouble, she still managed to hold herself with dignity.

The Green Snake scrutinized Yuan Zihe and said coldly, "This is the place where my sister and brother-in-law are in seclusion. Please leave."

It was clear that the Green Snake was not willing to give face, not even willing to let her stay here.

"Fairy Sister, I have heard that there are monster lurks in the waterways ahead, and if it were daytime, I would not be afraid, but now at night, with my minor cultivation level, I fear falling victim to the monsters’ ambush. Please, Sister, show me a way to live," she begged.

Yuan Zihe had already lowered her stance quite a bit with these words, and after explaining the situation, she thought that it surely wouldn’t be unreasonable to just ask to stay one night, right?

"Are you sure there really are water monsters?"

The Green Snake felt somewhat puzzled.

Even she had felt a chill from the dragon’s roar yesterday, which resonated within a thousand miles. Any creature with a spirit that heard it wouldn’t dare to linger in the area, except for those cunning spirits who wished to pay homage to the True Dragon.

But they certainly wouldn’t dare cause trouble in these waters; Bai Jiaojiao’s dragon roar was akin to marking her territory.

Bai Jiaojiao could hunt and kill, but others could not. Otherwise, it would be a provocation to Bai Jiaojiao’s dragon might.

"Yes, when I came here before, I heard people saying that last night, something roared so fiercely here that it shook the heavens and earth, warning me not to come this way. But I had an unavoidable reason to come," she said.

Yuan Zihe inwardly smirked; ah, this was her attention to detail. Since Lin Yun was here to breakthrough, there might be some disturbance in Cloud Dream Marsh, so she had taken the time to ask nearby villages if there had been any strange occurrences, and indeed she heard about a beast’s roar the previous night.

And now, it just came in handy.

The Green Snake truly did not doubt her; based on Yuan Zihe’s words, she imagined the beast others spoke of.

Who could it be, if not her own sister?

"Rest assured and proceed on your way, you won’t encounter any water monsters or strange beasts around here," assured the Green Snake.

Yuan Zihe was frustrated by the Green Snake’s stubbornness, yet she too could choose to stubbornly refuse to leave.

She put on a pitiful expression and pleaded, "Sister, please have mercy. I’ve been separated from my family, and all I want is to survive to find them. I promise, I won’t disturb your sister and brother-in-law’s seclusion."

Logically, with her acting so pitifully, anyone with a semblance of humanity would feel compassion, right?

Unfortunately...

The Green Snake was not human, she wasn’t even human to begin with, but a snake.

The phrase "cold-blooded and merciless" was made for her.

Though it was a human subjective misconception, the Green Snake indeed was unfeeling. Apart from deep loyalty towards her two sisters, she did not care about anything else in the world.

So, it was of no concern to her that Yuan Zihe merely said she was separated from her family; even if Yuan Zihe claimed her entire family was dead, she would feel no sympathy for her.

"I only have one thing to say, leave, and you can live, stay, and you will die."

Cold_Indifference.jpg.

Yuan Zihe: "..."

How can someone be so unyielding?

Does this person not have a heart?

Yuan Zihe was speechless on the spot, somewhat at a loss for what to do.

It shows that no matter how well you prepare or how many strategies you have, they’re nothing against sheer stubbornness.

Yuan Zihe did not know what to do for a moment; she had already shown her face, and appearing again might arouse Lin Yun’s suspicions.

And if she used a disguise, it would just create another potential flaw for no reason.

Besides, if the disguise wasn’t attractive, it wouldn’t capitalize on her own beauty, and if it was too attractive, she feared Lin Yun wouldn’t believe it was real. One check might easily expose her.

But just as she was caught between a rock and a hard place, a clear voice came from not far away.

"What’s happened here?"

First the voice was heard, and the next second, the person stood before her.

What kind of movement technique was that, so dashing!

Yuan Zihe couldn’t help but admire inwardly; then, her gaze landed on Lin Yun.

In this world, there was such a handsome and extraordinary man!

For a moment, Yuan Zihe was somewhat dumbstruck.

She had originally thought Yuan Zidan was the most handsome man, having seen many men in the Central Plains and none surpassing Yuan Zidan.

But now, she saw one.

In the past, with only descriptions of Lin Yun from the Seagrass, she had no clear image in her heart. Seeing Lin Yun so unexpectedly, she realized the rumors were true.

Yuan Zihe stared dumbly at Lin Yun, almost forgetting she was here undercover. 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

However, her reaction actually decreased Lin Yun’s suspicion towards her a bit.

This was a normal woman, not a well-trained spy or something similar.

After all, to lose one’s composure at the sight of my handsome face was all too normal...