"Does Ye Bai also know how to set up formations?" Qin Moyu asked, somewhat puzzled. "But I've never seen you set up any formations before."
"It wasn't me, this was... given to me by someone else." Shen Yebai clearly didn't want to say more, his expression exactly the same as when he mentioned giving the box to someone else that day.
Qin Moyu had no intention of getting to the bottom of it; she simply found it amazing. As if she had thought of something, she said, "Being able to change your appearance at will is quite convenient, but I don't know which one is your true appearance. Maybe your previous appearance was also a disguise."
After Qin Moyu finished speaking, he laughed self-deprecatingly. Shen Yebai was not like him, who created Yu Lin for the sake of the Red Lotus Karmic Fire. How could an ordinary person have so many aliases? So he didn't think about it too deeply at all.
However, when Qin Moyu casually mentioned it, Shen Yebai's body stiffened, and there was a guilty look in his eyes as if his secret had been exposed. Fortunately, it was dark here, and Qin Moyu did not notice it.
Chapter Thirty-Two: The Person Behind It All – Shen, Who Never Existed…
The two finalized their disguises, and Shen Yebai continued to lead the way.
Although the house didn't look big from the outside, the secret passage was winding and twisting. Shen Yebai explained to Qin Moyu the reason: "We didn't really enter the secret passage. In fact, it's a formation. Only by following a fixed route can we enter and find the real Yunqi Tower."
"But this is too much trouble. If someone doesn't lead the way, we won't be able to find it at all." Qin Moyu was dumbfounded by following Shen Yebai's winding path. To some extent, Yunqilou is also a business. If it wants to grow bigger and stronger, it should have as many customers as possible. Why does it seem like they can't wait for others to come?
“Because this is the Eastern Continent,” Shen Yebai said. “Yunqi Tower is still wary of the power of the major families and sects, and dares not be too ostentatious. If it were the Southwest Continent, Yunqi Tower would be as open and aboveboard as Tengwang Pavilion.”
As the saying goes, even a mighty dragon can't defeat a local snake. It's normal for Yunqi Tower in Dongzhou to keep a low profile, and Qin Moyu expressed his understanding.
But what Qin Moyu didn't know was that Shen Yebai was hiding something else.
For example, although this place is a way to enter Yunqi Tower, the passage he is leading Qin Moyu through is not for "customers" but for "his own people," which makes it even more complicated.
As I walked, the view suddenly opened up before me, revealing a bustling hall filled with people in disguise.
The hall was divided into three parts. On the far left was a door with a curtain, and a man wearing a straw hat was guarding the entrance. In the middle was the largest area, where the most people gathered, which resembled a reception area, with reward notices posted on the wall. On the right was a passageway, which seemed to lead to another room, from which shouts and cheers could be heard from time to time.
"The far left is the underground auction house, where there are many shady things." Shen Yebai stood next to Qin Moyu, lowered his head slightly, and whispered in Qin Moyu's ear to explain.
"The middle is where you receive and assign tasks—Yunqi Tower's power is entirely due to this method. As long as there are people here to post and accept tasks, Yunqi Tower can stand firm."
"The right side is the arena, but it's actually a place where people fight to the death. It's where Yunqi Tower runs a gambling den for people's amusement."
Looking at everything before him, Qin Moyu felt that sense of déjà vu again.
Underground auction houses, mission postings, bloody casinos and arenas... these incredibly familiar settings are like someone bringing a novel into reality.
In the past, Qin Moyu might have wanted to visit the underground auction house and the arena to broaden his horizons, but now he wasn't in the mood for that; all he wanted to do was find Fen Gong.
"I'll go and gather information," Shen Yebai said in a low voice.
Qin Moyu nodded and said, "Then I'll wait for you up ahead."
With people coming and going all around, it would be too conspicuous for Qin Moyu to stand alone. It would be better to squeeze with the others to the front desk, pretend to be looking at the task, and hide in plain sight.
Shen Yebai understood this principle, so he agreed and left.
Qin Moyu followed the crowd to the front desk, where all sorts of bounties were displayed on the wall, ranging from small items for finding lost objects and exploring, to large-scale murders for revenge.
Wait... this is...
Qin Moyu suddenly saw a familiar name in the bounty list—Yu Lin.
The bounty was quite high, and looking into the corner, the person who posted the task was none other than Mo Yuan.
Mo Yuan had actually been thinking about him all along.
Qin Moyu was somewhat surprised. It seemed that the box was indeed very important to the main villain, perhaps because he coveted the legacy of his predecessor.
However, since Qin Moyu hasn't used the Red Lotus Karmic Fire since leaving Tengwang Pavilion, Yu Lin is essentially missing, so the bounty has remained in effect.
Qin Moyu suddenly remembered that night, not only Fen Gong came, but also Mo Yuan. Was he related to his master's death?
After all, to some extent, Fen Gong was Mo Yuan's subordinate.
But this was just Qin Moyu's guess, and Mo Yuan had saved her that day. If Mo Yuan didn't know she was Yu Lin, he wouldn't have had any reason to come looking for her. Mo Yuan shouldn't be as petty as Fen Gong.
Qin Moyu thought this way, but once the seed of doubt was planted, it was not so easy to eliminate.
...
Shen Yebai went to the underground auction house on the far left, but was stopped as soon as he reached the entrance.
“Now is not the time for the auction to open.” The man wearing a straw hat stepped forward and blocked the entrance.
"It's me." Shen Yebai raised his head, revealing Mo Yuan's face.
The guard was startled when he saw him and quickly stepped aside, saying, "I'm sorry, I didn't know who you were..."
Shen Yebai raised his hand to stop his apology and said in a deep voice, "Where are Yue Wenfu and Fen Gong?"
Yue Wenfu was that hoarse, weathered man in a straw hat, but whose exposed hands looked very young.
"Lord Yue has led his men out, and Young Master Fen... I'm not sure about that, it seems he went to Xizhou."
"Xizhou? Why would I go there?" Shen Yebai frowned, waved away the guards, and entered the auction house himself.
Because it was the wrong time, the auction house was empty and there was no one in sight, but Shen Yebai knew that Zuo Shu was here.
Sure enough, Shen Yebai saw her in the private room where Zuo Shu usually stayed.
Zuo Mei, dressed in a light blue dress with her long hair tied up and gentle features, was making tea in the private room.
Upon seeing Shen Yebai arrive, she put down her tea set and gracefully bowed, saying, "Young Master, what brings you here?"