Young Prime Minister, a Hermit

Chapter 208

Hidden in the shadows of the city tower, I carefully observed the array that Liu Cenfeng had casually set up. After only a minute, I felt dizzy and my mind seemed to be spinning with several Tai Chi diagrams. I was greatly alarmed. I knew he must have used some kind of illusion to prevent me from knowing how to break the array unless I went inside it myself.

On the twenty-seventh day, I instructed Qin Li to be extremely careful with the formation. Qin Li nodded cautiously and ordered a sentry to investigate. The sentry returned safely, reporting that he had not found anything unusual. My doubts, however, deepened.

By the twenty-eighth day, still unable to devise a way to break the formation, Qin Li suggested that he lead the troops in a direct assault. I hesitated for a long time, unable to think of a better solution, and finally nodded in agreement.

Qin Li led 500 Li Luo soldiers and 2,000 elite troops into the formation set up by Liu Cenfeng. A moment later, sand and dust filled the air and clouds covered the sky. When the smoke cleared, Qin Li and his men were nowhere to be seen, as if they had vanished into thin air.

Looking at Liu Cenfeng across from me, calmly smiling as he drank, I felt an indescribable shock. I vaguely understood that Qin Li and the others were trapped in this seemingly calm but turbulent formation.

On the twenty-ninth day, with no other choice, I finally led my troops into this strange formation myself. Just before entering the formation, I looked up and saw Liu Cenfeng's smug and eerie smile, which then gradually disappeared into the rising smoke.

Once inside the formation, I realized it was a stone formation capable of manipulating minds and confusing the senses. It was based on stones, with people driving the formation. To break the formation, one must first find the stone supporting the entire formation; once that fulcrum breaks, the formation will crumble.

I was accompanied by only a few dozen people, all elites from the Asura Dark Camp. Lin Xuan and Buying protected me on either side, Qin Wu and Shen Hong led the way, and Qi Luo led the army behind. Everyone remained on high alert and moved slowly according to my instructions.

I was walking using the Qimen Steps, and I don't know how long I walked, when suddenly I heard several shrill screams. I stopped abruptly and shouted, "Qin Li, are you nearby?"

The area was shrouded in smoke, making it difficult to see clearly. I panicked, fearing something had happened to Qin Li, and called out a few more times. Finally, Qin Li's joyful voice came from the left front: "Young Master, we're here!"

A sense of relief washed over me, and I was about to head in his direction when I suddenly heard Lin Xuan and Qi Luo cry out in alarm, "Young Master, be careful!!"

Before I could even understand what they were telling me to be careful about, I felt my body go limp and slowly collapsed.

When I woke up, I was greeted by a yellow and white brocade curtain, and a soft cotton quilt covered me. I sat up, rubbing my slightly aching head, and was momentarily disoriented, wondering if I was in ancient times or the modern era, and what had just happened.

"Are you awake?" A deep, gentle voice reached my ears.

I abruptly looked up, surprised yet as I expected, and met a pair of azure eyes. Then, a handsome face that could eclipse the heavens and earth came into view.

I took a slow, deep breath, looked out at the bright light, and asked, "What day is it today?"

Liu Cenfeng, holding a small, delicate white porcelain cup, walked to the bedside and sat down, smiling leisurely: "Lin Yu, you're not still thinking about winning, are you?" As he spoke, he gently stroked my face with his fingers.

I turned my head away from his hand, refusing to look at him. He laughed, "It's alright to tell you. Today is the last day of our bet, just past noon. If you want to win, you only have one hour left."

“However…” He reached out and grabbed my chin, forcing me to turn my head to look at him. A bright smile was on his handsome and charming face. “What can I do? You are in my hands now. Even if you want to win, it’s just wishful thinking.”

I slapped his hand away forcefully and asked coldly, "Where are Qin Li and the others?"

Liu Cenfeng nonchalantly withdrew his hand, which I had slapped red, and said with a faint smile, "Let's go, I'll take you to see them. I'll make sure you lose convincingly."

Eager to see Qin Li and the others, I hurriedly threw off the covers and jumped down. I hadn't taken more than a few steps when Liu Cenfeng grabbed me, threw a robe at me, and said coldly, "Don't forget, you are a woman. No matter how long you pretend to be a man, you are still a woman."

I looked down and realized I was only wearing an undergarment; my outer robe was probably covered in mud and had been discarded. Because of the heat, I wasn't wearing anything underneath except for my corset. Feeling a little embarrassed, I put on the thin white robe and said, "Thank you."

Liu Cenfeng led me a short distance before pushing open the door to a room. I followed him in and was surprised to see Lin Xuan, Qin Li, Qin Wu, Qi Luo, and others there. However, they were all slumped on chairs or beds, clearly poisoned by a drug similar to muscular dystrophy.

Upon seeing me enter, they all beamed with joy: "Young Master!!"

I breathed a sigh of relief and nodded, about to speak. But Liu Cenfeng suddenly walked up to me and said calmly, "Lin Yu, you lost this bet."

I turned to look out the window. It was just past 1:00 PM, which meant it was almost 4:00 PM. I silently clenched my fists and remained silent.

With a leisurely, provocative smile, Liu Cenfeng scanned the angry faces of everyone in the room and sneered, "I hope that one day you will tell Feng Yihan everything you have seen today without missing a single detail."

Hearing Yihan's name startled me, and my muscles tensed involuntarily. Liu Cenfeng suddenly grabbed my shoulders, forcing me to turn around and face him.

A wicked smile still lingered on his lips, but something incredibly heavy seemed to have settled in his azure eyes, accumulating little by little into an ocean as he gazed intently at me: "Lin Yu, the condition I want you to agree to is..."

Liu Cenfeng's voice was always as pure as ice and snow, with a soft magnetism, an indescribable sexy allure, tempting one to fall, while he himself could look down upon your destruction like an angel. But at this moment, he gripped my hands slightly tighter, his voice even containing a hint of hoarseness and trembling. That trembling was as if he, too, was accompanying me in my fall and destruction.

He said slowly, "Lin Yu, I want you for this lifetime and the next..."

"Report! Report! Report!" Disorganized footsteps and frantic cries came from outside the door, growing louder as they approached. "Grand Tutor Liu, it's terrible! It's terrible!! The Fengyin Army is attacking! The city has fallen! The city is about to fall—"

I was suddenly jolted awake from those deep blue eyes, like a whirlpool in the ocean. Hearing this, I couldn't help but be overjoyed and blurted out, "That kid Soku finally made it!"

Liu Cenfeng abruptly released me, staring incredulously at the door before turning back to me, almost gritting his teeth as he said, "What—did—you—do—?!"

I rubbed my shoulder, which was sore from being gripped, and said, "I didn't do anything. Fifteen days ago, I just had Soku lead the Izumo navy along the North Sea to circle around to the rear of Luocheng. When the time was right, we launched an attack."

Liu Cenfeng was stunned, then his face turned pale, filled with shock: "Fifteen days ago? You mean fifteen days ago?!"

I nodded silently, a bitter smile playing on my lips. Although this feint was a pre-planned strategy, I never imagined Liu Cenfeng would be so cunning. To divert his attention, I sacrificed so many soldiers, even losing myself and my trusted confidants; it almost all came to naught.

Liu Cenfeng looked at me intently, and in just a few seconds, he regained his composure: "Was this a strategy you had planned from the beginning? Getting bogged down in a fierce battle, arguing with Qin Li, and even risking your life in the Heavenly Net Formation were all bait you laid beforehand?"

I looked away, my gaze sweeping over the delighted crowd, and nodded again.

The messenger finally rushed to the door, screaming "Grand Tutor Liu!" and was about to speak when Liu Cenfeng suddenly roared coldly, "Get out!!"

The messenger was so frightened that he fell to the ground, trembling. Liu Cenfeng didn't even glance at him, but suddenly grabbed my arm, lifted me up, and with a swift movement, leaped straight away.

The wind whistled past my ears. I kept asking Liu Cenfeng what he wanted, but he just ignored me with a cold face, his feet moving at lightning speed. In a moment, the two of us arrived at the place where we had made the bet at Fuxia Slope.

I patted my chest and coughed repeatedly, the wind making my chest ache slightly.

Suddenly, I heard Liu Cenfeng say, "Why are you risking everything to win this battle?"

I coughed as I looked up, bewildered, at his unfathomable, icy face, momentarily unable to comprehend what he was saying.

Liu Cenfeng frowned, a cold smile curling at the corner of his mouth: "Qin Luo, what a Qin Luo. I never thought that Shen Tu of our Tianxingliu Sword Sect would fall into your hands."

I thought of Mu Shuangshuang and Yi Han, and I was speechless. I could only brush off my sleeves and turn my head to pretend to look at the scenery around me.

Liu Cenfeng suddenly laughed and said, "Lin Yu, can you tell me exactly where I lost?"

Hearing this, I frowned slightly, turned to look at him, and gazed into his deep blue eyes. I said with a sneer, "Liu Cenfeng, from beginning to end, you never truly wanted to defend Luo City. You focused all your attention on me. You gambled with the entire city, yet you staked all your money on me. How could you not lose?"