Chapter 217: Chapter 198: Mirror
Outside the Library Pavilion in the City Lord’s Mansion of Black Tortoise City, under a giant phoenix tree,
an old man in tattered clothes was leisurely lying on a rocking chair under the tree, eyes slightly closed, looking drowsy.
Suddenly!
A crisp sound of footsteps came from afar.
The old man opened his eyes after hearing this noise and sighed lightly.
Then he slowly got up from the rocking chair and quickly looked towards the visitor, saying:
"Ah, it’s Vice City Lord An."
After cupping his hands in greeting, the old man continued to ask:
"I wonder what brings Vice City Lord An here this time?"
Looking at this seemingly frail old man in front of him, Andre dared not show the slightest carelessness, saying:
"Old City Lord, long time no see!"
The old man, hearing this, stroked his beard and lamented:
"I’m not doing well, I’m getting old."
It was clear that the old man’s words and deeds were indeed full of old age, much like any other elderly person in the twilight of their years.
Some things can be faked, but such a demeanor cannot be feigned.
Seeing this, Andre laughed and teased:
"You don’t look old at all."
The old man smiled slightly and then looked at Andre:
"Vice City Lord An didn’t come here just to joke with a dying man like me, did you?"
Andre nodded, his face full of compliments, saying:
"The Old City Lord indeed sees things clearly."
Then Andre looked towards the old building with a plaque reading ’Library Pavilion’ and said:
"I’ve encountered a problem in my cultivation that I find hard to break through, so I came to the Library Pavilion to look for methods, hoping it could help me."
"Oh?"
The old man said with apparent seriousness:
"In that case, I remembered a book that might help Vice City Lord An with your breakthrough."
"Please wait here for a moment; I’ll go retrieve it."
Saying this, the old man was about to turn and walk towards the Library Pavilion.
At this moment, Andre said:
"How can I trouble the Old City Lord with such a small matter? I’ll do it myself."
Having said that, he strode towards the door of the Library Pavilion.
But at this moment, the old man, as if like a ghost, appeared in front of Andre, directly grasping Andre’s arm with a withered hand, and his voice sounded in Andre’s ear at the same time:
"Does Vice City Lord An not know that only those who possess the Black Tortoise Seal are allowed in here, and no one else is permitted?"
Andre’s face showed a chuckle as he said:
"I am, after all, the Vice City Lord, and with the City Lord not present, where in the City Lord’s Mansion am I not allowed to go?"
"Besides, I’ll leave immediately after retrieving what I need, without troubling the Old City Lord. What do you think?"
Andre seemed to smile casually, but the seized arm flared with red flames, as if it wanted to burn the old man’s hand together.
Meanwhile, his body instinctively leaned forward, making a movement as if he wanted to step forward.
However, at this moment, the old man let Andre exert force, holding Andre’s arm motionlessly, saying:
"Why must Vice City Lord An be hasty at this moment?"
"If you want to enter, it’s not impossible."
"As long as these old bones of mine are accounted for here, or if you bring the Black Tortoise Seal, you may come and go as you please, and no one can stop you."
"What do you say?"
After exerting all his strength and still unable to break free from the old man’s grip, the flames on Andre’s arm instantly vanished without a trace.
Andre still maintained a friendly smile on his face, saying:
"Sorry, I was being impulsive."
As if nothing had happened, Andre expressed his apology to the old man, saying:
"After hearing the Old City Lord’s words just now, I seem to have had a bit of insight, so I will go back to cultivate."
The old man released Andre’s arm, stood at the entrance of the Library Pavilion, cupped his hands, and said:
"Then I preemptively wish Vice City Lord An success in reaching the Seventh Transformation."
Andre, as if unaffected, smiled and said:
"Thank you for the Old City Lord’s kind words; then I shall take my leave."
The old man waved his hand and said:
"Go on."
Andre replied, then turned and left.
The old man stood there until long after Andre left, then slowly took out a handkerchief from his bosom and covered his mouth, coughing softly.
After a while, the old man looked at the handkerchief in front of him and observed the bright red mark on it, shaking his head with a sigh:
"Getting old."
Without any visible action, the handkerchief disappeared from his hand.
Then he walked back to the rocking chair and lay down again.
As the rocking chair continued to sway back and forth, the old man’s eyes once again began to narrow slightly, maintaining his original drowsy state.
Everything here returned to its initial calm.
On the other side, having returned to his residence, Andre’s face no longer showed any trace of a smile, appearing quite somber.
"The Black Tortoise Seal, huh?"
Previously, this Black Tortoise Seal was always carried by Aiborn, leaving no opportunity for me to make a move.
Yet now, he had given it to a Chosen One who was only at the Second Transformation. Isn’t taking the Black Tortoise Seal from this Chosen One much quicker than waiting for that old man to die?
Perhaps remembering something pleasant, Andre’s face broke into an excited smile.
......
While Andre headed to the Library Pavilion, Lin Yi was at the gate of the City Lord’s Mansion.
Upon clearly seeing the woman’s appearance before him, Lin Yi looked as if he had seen a ghost, wide-eyed:
"You..."
Lin Yi pointed at the woman in front of him and couldn’t utter a single word for a long while.
If Lin Yi remembered correctly, in his previous life, he only saw this woman two years later, right?
After Mingmen Yue’Er held the top spot on the Beauty Ranking for two years, a female player named ’Jing’ suddenly appeared, instantly replacing Mingmen Yue’Er as the number one beauty on the Beauty Ranking.
In the previous life as an underdog, Lin Yi was quite familiar with this kind of gossip news.
This event caused quite a stir at the time, leading Lin Yi to specifically check the forums to verify her appearance.
Turns out, she was indeed incredibly beautiful.
But speaking of this, as a qualified onlooker, Lin Yi had absolutely no inappropriate thoughts, merely curiosity.
What surprised Lin Yi the most wasn’t that she entered the game two years early, but that she seemed to be here specially waiting for him?
In Lin Yi’s impression, there seemed to be no intersection between him and her, right?
Or maybe he was mistaken, and she just happened to pass by here?
Lin Yi didn’t have much time to think about it, because the woman named Jing, seeing Lin Yi’s surprised look towards her, couldn’t help but curiously ask:
"Do you seem to know me?"
Hearing this, Lin Yi quickly came to his senses and smiled gently:
"I suddenly thought of something and got a bit distracted, sorry."
If he had told her that he had seen her in his previous life, would she think he was crazy!
Then Lin Yi couldn’t help but ask his doubts:
"Are you waiting here for me?"
What surprised Lin Yi was that the other party directly nodded, saying:
"I want to join your mercenary group, is that okay?"
She was indeed waiting for him, and Lin Yi was momentarily taken aback.
If it were anyone else making this request, Lin Yi would generally decline immediately.
Because as of now, Lin Yi indeed had no plans to expand his mercenary group, or perhaps it could be said he hadn’t met anyone who satisfied him yet.
For people with ulterior motives, Lin Yi would rather leave the position in the mercenary group vacant than fill it with someone who might disrupt the atmosphere.
However, strangely, facing this woman, Lin Yi didn’t immediately refuse but rather curiously asked:
"Why do you want to join my mercenary group?"
Unexpectedly, to Lin Yi’s question, the woman gave a playful answer:
"If I say it’s to help you, would you believe it?"