Chapter 1688: Little White and Erya

Everyone was stunned.

This was the Immortal Treasures Pavilion, and she called down a meteor shower on them?

Was this girl crazy?!

Mu Xinghe was shocked. He quickly stopped Mu Xingchen, and his voice trembled as he shouted, "What are you doing?!"

Mu Xingchen glared back, eyes burning with fury. "Buuurn!"

Mu Xinghe was utterly dumbfounded.

Not far away, hidden in the shadows, Li Shang was closely watching Ye Guan's expression. When he saw Ye Guan smile, Li Shang quickly withdrew his gaze and made a small hand gesture.

Soon after, an elderly man in ornate robes came running toward Mu Xinghe and Mu Xingchen.

Seeing that, several people nearby instantly changed expressions because this robed elder was a General Manager of the Immortal Treasure Pavilion.

The elder jogged up to them with a kind smile. "Young Master Mu, Young Lady Mu, welcome to the Immortal Treasures Pavilion. To avoid unnecessary trouble, I'll personally accompany you from here on out. How does that sound?"

Mu Xinghe quickly said, "Sir, my sister got a bit carried away just now. We sincerely apologize..."

The robed elder smiled. "No trouble, no trouble at all."

Mu Xinghe breathed a sigh of relief. Glancing around, he cupped his fists and said, "Everyone, my sister and I are here today for some business. I'll invite you all to visit the Stellar Civilization another time. Please excuse us for now."

Seeing him offer a gracious way out, everyone else let out a breath and smiled, cupping their fists in return, agreeing to meet again another time.

Mu Xinghe pulled the still-fuming Mu Xingchen along as they followed the elder away.

On the way, Mu Xinghe whispered, "Girl, I know they're annoying, but you can't just throw all courtesy out the window like that. You'll offend people."

Mu Xingchen huffed. "The more you try to please them, the more they'll push their luck."

Mu Xinghe revealed a bitter smile. "That may be true, but you still have to leave room for diplomacy. Don't burn bridges."

Mu Xingchen stayed silent.

Mu Xinghe asked, "Are you mad?"

Mu Xingchen said nothing, and her face was blank.

"Honestly, I also find them irritating, and I know what they're really after. But this is the way of the world, everything revolves around profit..." He looked at her and smiled. "But you don't need to worry about that. Just focus on cultivating. I'll handle the messy stuff. As long as you're happy, it's all worth it."

Suddenly, Mu Xingchen said, "Brother, I understand what you're saying. But have you considered something? Right now, because of Big Brother, our Stellar Civilization is basking in glory.

"If we, as siblings, don't show strength and resolve when dealing with these opportunists, then the other clansmen in our civilization will follow their example.

"They'll collude with outsiders, use your name and even the name of the Immortal Treasures Pavilion to do evil... If that happens, our entire civilization is doomed."

Mu Xinghe's brows furrowed deeply.

Mu Xingchen continued, "Brother, this is not something we can be soft on. We must take a firm stance not just for the outsiders to see, but for our own clansmen. There can be no room for compromise. As for offending people... as long as we're strong enough, it doesn't matter. Even if we offend them, they'll just find a way to justify it to themselves."

Mu Xinghe looked at her in shock...

Even the elder walking respectfully beside them glanced at her in surprise.

Mu Xingchen added, "If we're weak, like in the past, no matter how low we bow, no one will even look at us. We can play political games, but we cannot rely on the prestige of the Pavilion or our brother to do so. If we want lasting support from the Pavilion and our brother, we must always stay self-aware."

Mu Xinghe stared at her, shocked. "Girl... you..."

He was stunned. This younger sister of his had always seemed a little airheaded, but now she was speaking with such clarity and depth.

Had she just been pretending all along? Holy crap.

His back went cold. Among the major families, there were always those who stayed low-key and passive. Until one day they suddenly revealed their true nature and could even kill their own brothers and fathers...

Mu Xingchen suddenly asked, "Brother, with how much the Pavilion and our eldest brother have helped our civilization, how can we ever repay this favor?"

Mu Xinghe went silent.

How to repay?

Even ten lifetimes wouldn't be enough!

Because the Pavilion lacked nothing...

Mu Xinghe gave a bitter smile. "How do we repay them? Sell ourselves? Not even enough."

Mu Xingchen's face suddenly turned red. She looked down, a little bashful. "Brother, what are you saying... I'm still too young to marry... I need to grow up first..."

With that, she turned and ran off, flustered.

Mu Xinghe stood there, dumbfounded.

What did I say?! What did I say?!

The robed elder was speechless.

***

Meanwhile, Ye Guan and Fu Wu arrived at the ninth floor. The entire floor was a restaurant, divided into two sections. Regular and member areas. Few knew there was actually a third section, a single private room in the best spot in the entire restaurant.

That room was always kept empty, reserved for Qin Guan, though she had never once visited.

Naturally, Ye Guan was led into that room. The restaurant's manager, a fat old man, nearly fell to his knees in shock when he saw Ye Guan and Fu Wu, until Li Shang stopped him with a glance.

Li Shang personally led Ye Guan into the private room reserved for Qin Guan. The decor was completely different from the rest, modeled after the Milky Way's style. The walls were adorned with authentic, ancient landscape paintings from the Milky Way.

Outside, the fat manager stood trembling. To him, Li Shang was the boss of his boss's boss, a figure to be revered.

Li Shang said nothing to him. He simply entered the room with two menus. He respectfully handed one to Ye Guan. "Young Master, these are dishes from the Milky Way. Please see what you'd like."

Then, he handed the other menu to Fu Wu.

Ye Guan opened it, and his eyes lit up. "Mapo tofu, spicy chicken, pickled fish... you have all these?"

Li Shang nodded. "We do."

Ye Guan smiled. "You've put a lot of thought into this."

He looked at Fu Wu. "What do you want to eat?"

Fu Wu looked carefully at the menu, then at Ye Guan. "Have you tried all of these?"

Ye Guan nodded. "Most of them. The Milky Way is a fun place. Great food. I miss it."

Fu Wu nodded. Then, she closed the menu and handed it back. "One of everything. But in small portions."

Li Shang replied, "Of course."

He took the menus and looked at Ye Guan again. Ye Guan smiled. "Yeah, one of each."

Li Shang bowed slightly. "Understood."

He exited respectfully.

Outside, the fat manager asked nervously, "Manager Shang... we've also prepared a private room and drinks for you..."

Li Shang gave him a cold glance and said nothing.

The fat man immediately broke into a cold sweat and bowed deeply before running off.

Li Shang stood at the door, his back still bowed.

Inside the private room.

Ye Guan looked left, where a huge floor-to-ceiling window revealed the starry sky and the Ascension Battles Road.

Ye Guan asked, "Miss Fu Wu, have you walked the Ascension Battles Road?"

Fu Wu nodded. "Yes."

Ye Guan looked at her. "Can you describe it?"

Fu Wu thought for a moment, then replied, "Unknown beings. Unknown laws. Unknown Dao..."

Her expression turned serious.

Ye Guan was silent for a moment, then smiled. "I'm going to try it myself tomorrow."

Fu Wu nodded.

After a short chat, the food arrived, each dish in small portions.

Ye Guan picked up his chopsticks, smiling. "Try some, Miss Fu Wu."

Fu Wu glanced at him, nodded, and picked up her chopsticks. She tasted the pickled fish, paused, then took another bite.

Ye Guan laughed, "Tasty, right?"

Fu Wu nodded.

Ye Guan smiled faintly. "You came here to reach the end of the Ascension Battles Road, too, didn't you?"

Fu Wu looked at him and nodded.

Ye Guan leaned back in his chair, eyes on the Ascension Battles Road. His smile slowly faded.

Fu Wu looked at him and said, "You're not alone."

Ye Guan turned to her.

Fu Wu met his gaze. "We face it together. If we live, we live together. If we die, we die together."

Ye Guan was silent for a long moment, then smiled. "We'll all be fine."

Fu Wu nodded.

***.

Just then, a little girl in strange clothes entered the Immortal Treasures Pavilion. She wore ripped jeans and a white t-shirt, with a candied hawthorn in her mouth and a cocky swagger.

A fluffy white creature sat on her shoulder, and her big eyes were darting around.

The girl looked up at the luxurious mall and sighed. "That brat's loaded. I kinda wanna rob him."

The little creature waved its tiny paw, as if protesting.

The girl nodded seriously. "You're right. What's his is ours. He has so much money, he'll never use it all, we gotta help him spend it."

She looked at the creature again. "When we apply for a loan later, you do the stamp. Your credit's better than mine. Those people don't trust me anymore..."