Chapter 2685: We Have the Upper Hand

“What makes you say that, master?” Qiu Honglei was confused. After what happened earlier, she didn’t harbor any hopes.

Yan Xuehen appeared to be unfazed by the mundane, and for many years, she had been uninterested in romantic relationships. On top of that, she was Chu Chuyan’s master. It was unthinkable for there to be anything between her and Zu An.

“Think about it. You were there for ten minutes, but it felt like an instant to you. No one else could have affected your senses under Ah Zu’s watch. Only he himself is capable of that.” Yun Jianyue’s eyes flickered with a brilliant light.

“Does Ah Zu wield such an ability?” Qiu Honglei was baffled. She had been unconscious for so long that she had no idea what abilities Ah Zu currently wielded.

“He has mentioned many times that he’s the god of this world, and that there’s nothing he’s incapable of.” Yun Jianyue started getting excited halfway through her sentence as if she had discovered uncharted territory.

“Master, you’re saying...” Qiu Honglei quickly guessed what her master was driving at.

“Indeed. Why would Ah Zu warp your senses if they were innocent? Thinking back, it felt unnatural how distant they seemed,” Yun Jianyue sneered.

“Sect Master Yan is cold-natured; she avoids physical contact with men. Ah Zu is a gentleman, so it would make sense for him to observe propriety,” Qiu Honglei pointed out.

“What poison did that fellow feed you to make you think that he’s a gentleman?” Yun Jianyue huffed. “Besides, it’s not as if he's never hugged that ice sculpture before. Do they need to maintain such a distance between each other?”

“They hugged before?” Qiu Honglei was stunned.

“Of course! He hugged me with one hand and her with the other.” Yun Jianyue had a dangerous look in her eyes.

Why didn’t I think about that earlier? If he dares to lay his hands on me, there’s no reason he wouldn’t dare lay his hands on that ice sculpture!

She had been too convinced that nothing could happen between him and that ice sculpture beforer, but that fellow’s flirting skills surpassed common sense. He could very well have his way of dealing with Yan Xuehen.

“Ah?” Qiu Honglei was baffled.

A man in the world actually simultaneously held my master and Sect Master Yan in his arms?

“Have you forgotten about it? It was when we had a showdown against Zhao Han in that dungeon. Zu An held us both in his arms, but things were urgent back then, so I didn’t think too deeply into it. There could have been something between them then.” As she spoke, Yun Jianyue got increasingly excited. “Think about it. That ice sculpture is someone who would rather die than violate propriety. I should have known when she allowed Ah Zu to touch her!”

Qiu Honglei was baffled.

Hold on, you've already been sharing a husband since then?

She still found it hard to believe that the lofty Yan Xuehen would get together with Zu An. “This is all your conjecture. We don’t have any proof.”

“That’s disappointing.” Yun Jianyue paced around the room with a vexed heart.

“Master, are you sure your ability is that potent? Sect Master Yan looked completely unfazed earlier.” Qiu Honglei was still reeling from the awkwardness of barging into their room earlier.

“If that fellow helped her, it would have been easy enough for the ice sculpture to overcome this crisis. How dare that fellow collude with the ice sculpture to deceive me? Doesn’t that mean he cherishes the ice sculpture more than me?” The furious Yan Jianyue suddenly looked deflated, and her face turned pale.

Qiu Honglei was horrified. “What’s wrong, master? Did your injuries relapse? I’ll look for Ah Zu right away!”

She was about to rush to the neighboring room when her master grabbed her.

“I’m fine. It’s just that... I've fought with that ice sculpture all my life, but I still lost to her in the end. And it was a crushing defeat.” Yun Jianyue looked forlorn, as if her life had lost all meaning.

Do I have to prostrate myself to that ice sculpture in the future?

The thought of having to serve tea to the other party made her feel so terrible that she would rather die. Qiu Honglei was already a step behind Chu Chuyan, with the latter claiming the title of Zu An’s official wife. If she lost to the ice sculpture too, that would spell a complete loss for them both, master and disciple!

Yun Jianyue felt so awful that she wanted to hug her disciple and cry, but she was worried the ice sculpture would overhear and make fun of them.

Qiu Honglei knew about the rivalry between her master and Yan Xuehen, so she could immediately guess how her master was feeling. She chuckled. “Master, you don’t need to be so pessimistic. Things aren’t as bad as you think.”

“What do you mean?” Yun Jianyue grabbed Qiu Honglei’s arm like a drowning man clutching onto a straw of hope.

Qiu Honglei laughed on the inside.

My master usually puts on a domineering front, commanding deference from the world. Yet she seems like a fragile-hearted girl here.

“Think about it, master. While it’s true Ah Zu didn’t tell you about his relationship with Sect Master Yan, he also didn’t tell Sect Master Yan about his relationship with you.”

Yun Jianyue’s eyes lit up. “Indeed! That ice sculpture would have used that to mock me if she knew about my relationship with Ah Zu! You’re right. That ice sculpture definitely doesn’t know about my relationship with Ah Zu!”

Seeing her master had regained her fighting spirit, Qiu Honglei continued, “Ah Zu chose to withhold the truth from both parties, which shows that he isn’t biased. Rather, now that we've figured out the truth about Sect Master Yan while the latter is still kept in the dark, we have the upper hand!”

The more Qiu Honglei spoke, the angrier she felt.

She puts on a holier-than-thou attitude as if the secular world is beneath her, yet she turns out to be a bitch who steals her disciple’s man.

She snuck a glance at her master and secretly apologized for inflicting collateral damage on her.

My master is from the Devil Sect, so it’s understandable for her to do that. But Sect Master Yan is the leader of the orthodox sects, and she often preaches kindness, morality, and propriety. Doesn’t she feel ashamed at all?

Yun Jianyue burst into laughter. “Well said, my good disciple! We have the upper hand now!”

She excitedly hugged her disciple and kissed her. “I didn’t raise you all these years in vain! That ice sculpture’s precious disciple isn’t around to help her. As long as we join hands, she won’t be a match for us!”

Qiu Honglei looked perplexed. Her master had taught her many seduction skills, and they had once boasted that either of them could easily make any man in the world fall head over heels for them. And yet, they now had to join hands to fight for a man.

Yun Jianyue suddenly thought about something and harrumphed. “Hmph! What’s Ah Zu thinking by keeping both sides in the dark? Does he intend to use this information asymmetry to keep us fighting while he reaps the benefits of both sides?” That thought irked her.

Qiu Honglei gave the matter some thought before shaking her head. “Ah Zu isn’t that kind of person. He probably doesn’t know how to approach this matter. The world knows you've been fighting with that Yan woman for a lifetime now. If he revealed the truth, it would be one thing for us since we’re from the Devil Sect, but that Yan woman, who prides herself on being the leader of the orthodox sects, might end her life out of shame.”

𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

Yun Jianyue’s eyes lit up. “That’s not a bad idea. Let’s hash it out with that ice sculpture. Let’s see if she can keep up her act!”

Qiu Honglei anxiously stopped her. “We mustn’t do that! If something happens to that Yan woman, Ah Zu will blame us. Taking a step back, what if she simply denies it? We don’t have any evidence, and with her stellar reputation, the world is more likely to believe her than us.”

Yun Jianyue frowned. “You’re right. She's kept up that pretense for so long that it's given her a lot of credibility. The whole world has fallen for her stink act.”

She scoffed, “Our Devil Sect is known for our seduction arts, but I think that ice sculpture’s skills surpass ours. Look at how she's charmed the entire world!”

Qiu Honglei agreed too. The master and disciple continued grumbling about Yan Xuehen for a long time before both of them let out a sigh.

“What should we do next?” Qiu Honglei asked.

Yun Jianyue pondered before replying, “After today’s incident, that ice sculpture and Ah Zu will be guarded against us. We won’t be able to find evidence ourselves.”

“Should we ask Aunt Yuqing for help?” Qiu Honglei asked.

Yun Jianyue shook her head. “That won’t do. She’s my little sister. They'ill be guarded against her, too.”

She spent a moment in thought before asking, “What about Miss Pei?”