Bai Ye pondered for a moment and said, "Lead the way."
The other party's words were quite tactful, but from Bai Ye's perspective, it could be interpreted as the other party not wanting to see him, but if Bai Ye insisted, they could arrange a meeting.
What was there to hesitate about?
Of course, he had to meet them!
It was like walking down the street and suddenly someone ran out to stuff ten thousand yuan into your hand, then told you: "Take it, it's for you to spend. You don't have to pay anything, I'm not after your body, nor do I want to harvest your organs."
Could you believe that?
Anyone with a bit of intelligence wouldn't immediately cheer and celebrate their windfall. Instead, they would ponder the other person's ulterior motives.
The woman nodded and extended her hand, "Please follow me."
The woman led the way and soon brought Bai Ye into a teahouse, then into a private room.
"Mr. Bai, please wait a moment."
There was no one in the private room. After Bai Ye nodded, he sat directly on the sofa. As he watched the woman close the door, Bai Ye leaned back on the sofa, propped himself up, and looked at the ceiling.
Who would be looking for him?
Gao Ming?
That was unlikely. If Gao Ming wanted to support him, he would have done so directly. He knew Bai Ye was going to the beast-taming region and was going out to sea.
Besides, Gao Ming was an old acquaintance; there was no need for such mystique.
Someone from the Canglong Association?
That was a possibility, but Bai Ye quickly dismissed it.
Xue Cheng had tried to recruit Bai Ye. Bai Ye thought it was normal for his skills to be sought after. The problem was that he had killed Xue Cheng.
He had also killed all the members of the Canglong Association who were with Xue Cheng, leaving no survivors.
In other words, the Canglong Association should have received news of the failure in the virtual game's forbidden zone. However, since everyone from Xue Cheng's side was dead, the Canglong Association shouldn't know about Bai Ye's existence.
At most, they would know that a powerful expert from the Evil Spirit Group had killed all their people. They might not even know what Bai Ye looked like.
They also wouldn't know how strong Bai Ye was, only that he was capable of killing Xue Cheng and Wang Ling.
Given this, how could they possibly find Bai Ye?
But besides these two, who else would be looking for Bai Ye?
Yimi?
That fellow was a possibility. He wondered how Yimi was doing in the Canglong Association.
Bai Ye was quite looking forward to Yimi, his pawn, being useful.
Just then, the door was opened, and Bai Ye heard the clinking of ceramics.
Bai Ye paid it no mind, assuming it was a server bringing tea sets. He continued to ponder.
But Bai Ye soon realized that the person had no intention of leaving the room. They began to wash the teacups, heat water, and prepare to make tea.
Bai Ye couldn't help but sit up straighter, lowering his head from its tilted position.
"Hm?"
It was a woman, but she wasn't dressed as a server. She wore a red robe and was kneeling beside him, arranging the teacups on the tea table.
Then, as if sensing Bai Ye's gaze, the woman slowly turned her head.
A very beautiful face, exceptionally beautiful.
It had a pure aura, with delicate and small features, yet there was a hint of captivating allure in her eyes.
Was this the legendary combination of pure and alluring?
Among the women Bai Ye knew, only one seemed to fit this description and possessed such beauty.
Bai Ye looked at Hua Zhixiao and said, "I really didn't expect it to be you."
Hua Zhixiao picked up the teapot to pour tea for Bai Ye and smiled, "Thanks to you, I was able to leave the Flower Street."
Bai Ye said, "It seems it wasn't as simple as just leaving the Flower Street."
Hua Zhixiao replied, "There are some unfortunate sisters in the Flower Street. Since I can help them, I will help them. Moreover, they can also help me."
Bai Ye nodded, "So, the reason you appear before me now is that you feel you have something to repay me with, other than your body?"
"No, I wouldn't dare." Hua Zhixiao hesitated for a moment, "Perhaps I can offer a little help."
Bai Ye asked, "Do you think I need a little help?"
Hua Zhixiao replied, "Then what do you need?"
Bai Ye picked up his teacup and said, "The Canglong Association and the Evil Spirit Group."
Hua Zhixiao blinked, then said, "Okay, I understand what you mean."
Huh?
You understand what?
Bai Ye had just blurted it out because Hua Zhixiao had asked him what he needed, and he had thought of the escalating conflict between the Canglong Association and the Evil Spirit Group, wondering when the war would break out.
So, Bai Ye himself didn't even know what he meant by his words. What did she understand?
But Hua Zhixiao looked very demure and didn't ask for further clarification or offer any explanation, leaving Bai Ye unsure how to proceed.
Hua Zhixiao asked, "Are you going out to sea?"
Bai Ye nodded, "Yes, are you familiar with the maritime region?"
"A little," Hua Zhixiao replied. "I've been in this area recently, and more than half of the dangerous zones and forbidden areas in this region are at sea.
"Furthermore, I have a few people working for me now, so I generally know what's happening in this area."
"Oh?" Bai Ye asked, "Was the Canglong Association always capturing beast-taming creatures here before?"
Hua Zhixiao said, "Are you asking about Liu Shiyue? He was indeed here recently, but he left about ten days ago. He left by sea, passing through the Sand Kingdom, and entered a region of anomalous abilities, heading towards Impel Down.
"Next, if nothing unexpected happens, Liu Shiyue should be planning a prison break to rescue a native pirate named Ace from the Impel Down prison. However, Ace is not on the pirates' side; he's on the navy's side, or he might have people on both sides.
"If nothing unexpected happens, Liu Shiyue's target is a Devil Fruit called the Mera Mera no Mi. The so-called Devil Fruits are items produced in a region of anomalous abilities. The Mera Mera no Mi is a very high-level Devil Fruit, reaching golden quality.
"But this might just be his minimum objective. The pirate named Ace belongs to the Whitebeard Pirates. Whitebeard is the captain of one of the four major pirate groups in that region and possesses the Gura Gura no Mi, which is even more powerful."
"Of course, if Liu Shiyue has people on both sides, he might also be aiming for the Devil Fruits of the three Marine Admirals: the Pika Pika no Mi, the Magu Magu no Mi, and the Hie Hie no Mi are also extremely powerful Devil Fruits..."
As Hua Zhixiao spoke, she suddenly became shy, a blush appearing on her face, and she involuntarily lowered her head.
"What are you looking at?"
"Looking at you!"
Hua Zhixiao, perhaps misunderstanding Bai Ye's words, blushed even more.
Of course, Bai Ye was indeed looking at Hua Zhixiao.
This woman...
She truly astonished Bai Ye!
Even Gao Ming didn't know the details that Hua Zhixiao was providing.
Gao Ming's side was only keeping an eye on Liu Shiyue; they were completely unaware of the specifics.
For a moment, a thought flashed through Bai Ye's mind: As expected of the leader of the Flower Street.
...