Two Pieces of News

“Hey, hey, hey! Stop acting like a spoiled brat. The mere thought of you being a burly man in your past life makes me want to puke.”

Xie Yuyan immediately made a retching gesture, watching Bai Zhihua tumble around on the chair.

Upon hearing this, Bai Zhihua instantly sat upright, adopting a remarkably serious demeanor.

“How boring. Alright, out with it. What do you two want to ask?”

“Considering we were brothers in a past life, I’ll give you a fifty percent discount.”

Bai Zhihua began to address the matter properly.

Hearing that Bai Zhihua still intended to charge them, both their faces immediately fell.

“Seriously, do we really need to pay just to ask a question between us?”

“Isn’t that being a stranger?” Yan Yun grumbled.

Bai Zhihua’s delicate face tilted upwards.

“There’s nothing to be done about it.”

“Free is simply not an option; this is a rule set by my master.”

“Divulging heavenly secrets incurs karmic retribution, you know.”

“Oh, speaking of which, hey, Third Sister, there’s something I might need to apologize to you for.”

Bai Zhihua suddenly recalled something, glancing at Yan Yun with an embarrassed expression.

Yan Yun immediately looked bewildered.

After all, this was their first meeting, yet Bai Zhihua was offering an apology.

“An apology? What could you possibly have done to wrong me?” Yan Yun asked curiously.

Bai Zhihua immediately raised both hands, tapping two fingers together repeatedly, her face etched with an awkward smile.

“Well, I, uh, sold a secret about you to someone else.”

“But let me clarify, at the time, I was purely doing it for the money, and I had no idea that you were the Heavenly Poison Maiden’s successor.” Bai Zhihua explained.

Yan Yun remained somewhat confused.

Bai Zhihua immediately elaborated on the matter in meticulous detail.

Firstly, Bai Zhihua’s master, Hundred Scholars, was an exceptionally mysterious and reclusive expert, privy to countless secrets from ancient times to the present.

Hundred Scholars collaborated with Qianjin Pavilion, which was responsible for finding clients for him, specializing in various information transactions.

Three years ago, prior to the discovery of Yan Lingyun’s matter, the Pavilion Master of Qianjin Pavilion in Qifeng City had requested Bai Zhihua’s master to investigate Yan Yun.

Subsequently, Hundred Scholars instructed Bai Zhihua to relay the information she possessed to Jin Meng.

This ultimately led to the Lin family’s machinations involving Yan Lingyun.

After listening to Bai Zhihua’s explanation, Yan Yun’s face twitched uncontrollably.

“So this is how it happened? No wonder I kept wondering how the Lin family knew about the Yan family’s connection to the Heavenly Poison Maiden.”

“It turns out you and your master were behind it all, Fourth Brother, Fourth Brother, your big brother was almost killed by you and your master!”

Yan Yun was truly at a loss for words.

Seeing Yan Yun’s darkened face, Bai Zhihua couldn’t help but shrink her head back.

“Me? You can’t blame us for this!”

Bai Zhihua thought for a moment, then gritted her teeth and offered, “How about this, I’ll tell you one secret for free as compensation.”

Upon hearing the mention of ‘free,’ Yan Yun’s eyes swirled, yet she maintained an unsatisfied expression.

Seeing Yan Yun’s persistent dissatisfaction, Bai Zhihua pondered for a long while before finally sighing deeply and speaking again.

“Alright, consider me unlucky today for having crossed paths with a nemesis like you. I’ll answer two questions for free; go ahead and ask.”

Only then did Yan Yun nod, a look of satisfaction gracing her features.

“Now that’s more like it! We’re brothers, after all. How can you get away with screwing over your brother and then just trying to dismiss it with one freebie?”

“Enough with the chatter, hurry up and ask,” Bai Zhihua urged, arms crossed.

Yan Yun chuckled mischievously.

“Alright, my first question: I want to know if my ancestor, the Heavenly Poison Maiden, is truly dead. If she is, where is her burial ground?”

Yan Yun’s smile vanished as she posed her first question with utmost seriousness.

This question caused Bai Zhihua to pause in surprise.

“Hold on a moment.”

Bai Zhihua asked Yan Yun to wait, then swiftly rummaged through her storage artifact, quickly retrieving a scroll.

She unrolled the scroll and quickly scanned its contents.

“Approximately a thousand years ago, the Heavenly Poison Maiden was pursued by powerful cultivators from the Upper Realm. She fled into the Star Ocean on the Tianchen Continent, where several Divine Fire Realm experts combined their strength in a single attack, striking her into the Nine Nether Abyss within the Star Ocean.”

“Since then, her whereabouts have been unknown.”

“That’s all the information I have.”

Having finished reading the scroll’s contents, Bai Zhihua put it away.

Yan Yun was somewhat perplexed.

“Star Ocean? Nine Nether Abyss? Where are those places?”

Bai Zhihua casually replied, “The Star Ocean currently falls within the Heavenly Dao Alliance’s sphere of influence. It’s an archipelago nation located south of the Tianchen Continent.”

“As for the Nine Nether Abyss, it’s an extremely perilous area within the Star Ocean.”

Yan Yun immediately committed this information to memory.

“So, in other words, my ancestor isn’t necessarily dead?”

“That’s hard to say.”

“Your ancestor was struck into the Nine Nether Abyss by the combined attack of four Divine Fire Realm experts at that time.”

“Even if she didn’t die instantly, severe injuries were certain.”

“Falling into the Nine Nether Abyss, a place undoubtedly among the most dangerous and mysterious regions on the Tianchen Continent, means that if she didn’t perish then, she would surely have succumbed to old age by now.” Bai Zhihua stated.

Yan Yun fell silent.

Her first action was to inwardly question Yan Lingyun, who resided within her:

“Ancestor, do you think your true body could still be alive?”

Yan Lingyun was silent for a moment before shaking her head.

“Most likely, it wouldn’t have survived.”

“However, that’s fine too. If my main body is dead, as long as my soul slowly grows stronger, I can eventually revive in its place.”

Upon hearing this, Yan Yun said nothing further, but instead proceeded to ask her next question.

“Alright, for my second question, tell me if the Lin family possesses any deeply hidden secrets.”

“You know I intend to deal with the Lin family.”

This question clearly put Bai Zhihua in a dilemma, as it was evidently a difficult one to answer.

Nevertheless, she steeled her heart, pulled a scroll from her person, and tossed it to Yan Yun.

“Here, take a look for yourself.”

“Once you’ve read this, my debt to you will be settled.” Bai Zhihua declared beforehand.

Yan Yun chuckled softly, then unrolled the scroll and glanced at its contents.

With that single glance, her expression shifted to one of profound surprise.

“This? Your master can even obtain information like this?”

Yan Yun looked at Bai Zhihua, her face filled with disbelief.

That Bai Zhihua’s master could acquire information about Yan Lingyun didn’t particularly astound her.

After all, Yan Lingyun had been a renowned figure from a millennium ago, and as long as she had existed, traces of her would surely remain.

However, the information Bai Zhihua provided about the Lin family was both utterly current and exceptionally clandestine.

Bai Zhihua let out a soft laugh.

“I can only say this: no matter how secretive an act, once it’s done, it’s incredibly difficult to hide it completely.”

“Furthermore, my master cultivates heavenly divination arts; he can foresee and calculate.”

“And with the connections of Qianjin Pavilion, my master is aware of everything happening across the entire Tianchen Continent.”

Upon hearing this, Yan Yun’s immediate thought was that this Hundred Scholars was certainly no ordinary cultivator.

Anyone daring to conduct such business without formidable abilities would have long since been killed.

“Understood, Fourth Brother, thank you.”

“With this information, dealing with the Lin family will be incredibly straightforward.” Yan Yun expressed her gratitude.

Bai Zhihua, however, sighed repeatedly.

“Sigh! Originally, meeting an old acquaintance in a foreign land brought me great joy.”

“But giving you two pieces of information for free like this… my heart is practically bleeding.”

Yan Yun pondered for a moment, then retrieved a pouch of spirit stones from her person.

“Take these.”

“Consider the first piece of information your gift, and the second, something I’ve purchased.”

“I believe this information is worth this price; see if it’s sufficient.”

After Bai Zhihua accepted the pouch and opened it for a look, her previously downcast expression instantly transformed into a beaming smile.

“More than enough, more than enough! This is just about the right price!”

“Third Sister, I absolutely adore you! At least now I won’t be scolded by my master.”

With these words, Bai Zhihua lunged forward, pouncing on Yan Yun, wrapping her arms around Yan Yun’s neck, and rubbing her head against her.

Yan Yun looked at the person before her, her face etched with utter disdain.

“Ugh, how disgusting, Fourth Brother!”

“Did you also fall to femininity, you creep?”

“Don’t you know it’s shameful to act cute?”

Bai Zhihua immediately leaped backward, returning to her original spot.

“Hmph! You have no sense of humor.”

“My gender has already changed, so why should this lady still care about her past life?”

“Anyway, no one besides you two knows what I was like in my past life.”

“Right, I’m warning both of you: don’t you dare casually reveal my identity!” Bai Zhihua threatened fiercely.

Yan Yun and Xie Yuyan exchanged a glance.

“Well, that depends on our mood.”

“If we’re in a bad mood, and we happen to meet an acquaintance later, we’ll immediately spill the beans about you turning into a loli.” Xie Yuyan chuckled wickedly.

Seeing their response, Bai Zhihua also dropped her polite facade.

“Is that so? Don’t forget, if I wanted to dig into your backgrounds, I could even find out the color of your underwear.”

“Let’s see who’ll be more uncomfortable then.”

At this, Yan Yun and Xie Yuyan promptly shut their mouths.

“Alright, that’s enough for now.”

“We still have to continue our shopping.”

“Fourth Brother, would you like to join us?”

Yan Yun asked, rising to her feet.

Bai Zhihua had just agreed, but then suddenly remembered something, and an expression of helplessness instantly reappeared on her face.

“Not for now. It’s working hours at the moment.”

“You two go ahead and shop.”

“Oh, right, here’s this for you. If anything comes up, feel free to contact me at any time.”

“But let me be clear: revealing heavenly secrets shortens one’s lifespan, so if you want to ask questions, half price is the absolute minimum.”

Yan Yun and Xie Yuyan were left between laughter and tears.

“We know, we know. Even close brothers settle their accounts clearly; we understand that principle.”

“Then we’ll be heading off.”

Yan Yun and Xie Yuyan bid Bai Zhihua farewell, then stood up, opened the door, and exited the room.

Bai Zhihua, however, gazed wistfully after them.

“I’ll be here these next few days, remember to come find me!”

“Contact me anytime! If I have some free time, I’ll also come visit you two!” Bai Zhihua shouted loudly, watching the departing pair.

From her eyes, it was clear she desperately wanted to join Yan Yun and Xie Yuyan for some fun, but for some reason, she couldn’t leave at the moment.

The two nodded back at her, quickly disappearing from Bai Zhihua’s sight.

“Ugh! You old geezer, when are you coming back, huh…” Bai Zhihua complained feebly, slumping onto the table.

Her posture strikingly resembled that of a reluctant worker forced to clock in, unwilling but compelled to remain at her post.