Chapter 25 The Gift of the Knife She always managed to provoke his anger with ease…

As dawn broke, the mountain mist lingered and did not dissipate.

Perhaps due to exhaustion, or perhaps due to the treatment from the merman, Xiao Jiang slept soundly for once. She slept so deeply that she didn't hear the approaching footsteps outside the courtyard.

Then there were a few knocks on the door.

Xiao Jiang opened her eyes, but it was quiet outside. After a while, a hesitant knocking sounded at the door.

"Jiang Yuhuo, open the door for me."

The clear, bright voice that belonged to a spoiled young man belonged to Qin Yuqi.

Xiao Jiang rubbed her eyes and got up. She was no longer sleepy, but she didn't want to talk to him and hoped he would be sensible and leave quickly.

In the bathtub on the side, Xiao Hai still had his eyes closed, his brows furrowed. He didn't open his eyes even when she approached, as if he hadn't woken up yet.

Xiao Jiang checked his temperature; it was warm to the touch, slightly warmer than his usual icy temperature. She assumed he was just as tired as she was.

The knocking on the door continued. Xiao Hai's eyelids twitched slightly, and Xiao Jiang immediately felt a surge of anger.

Seeing that no one responded, Qin Yuqi was about to knock again when the door opened a crack.

Jiang Yuhuo lowered his brows, revealing a fierce and menacing look, his cheeks puffed out in anger, and his lips tightly pursed.

Qin Yuqi felt that her eyes were like they wanted to kill him, but every time he saw her, he would feel happy involuntarily.

He feigned anger and said, "Why did it take you so long to open the door? You didn't sleep until now, did you? Look at what time it is outside."

It's still early, and it's not even light outside yet!

Xiao Jiang took a deep breath to suppress the urge to beat him up. Too lazy to argue with him, she lowered her voice and said through the crack in the door, "Go away, I don't want to see you."

"Wait!" Qin Yuqi quickly grabbed the door to stop her from closing it. "I've come all this way to pay you a visit. How can you be so rude? You can't treat me like this. I was just trying to be nice, so I'm returning the favor..."

Unlike her, Qin Yuqi did not deliberately lower his voice; his words were exceptionally loud in the quiet morning.

Xiao Jiang was afraid that if he continued talking, he would wake up Xiao Hai inside the house, so before he could finish speaking, she grabbed Qin Yuqi and rushed him outside, only stopping when she had taken him quite a distance away from the courtyard.

Qin Yuqi did not resist and obediently let Xiao Jiang hold her arm. Although she walked very fast, she never let go of him. Thinking this, he felt that being held was not bad.

Xiao Jiang forcefully shook off Qin Yuqi's hand. The annoyance of being woken up, the impatience with Qin Yuqi's arrogant attitude, and the anger that had been building up for days all erupted at this moment.

She questioned in a low voice, "What exactly do you want? You're the one who barged into someone else's house early in the morning for no reason, how dare you accuse me?"

“I hate your arrogance. You and that Jia guy next to you are just as despicable! You trespass on other people's homes, act recklessly on their land, and never care about the trouble you cause. Father is missing, and the sons of the Muye and Gujiu families are dead, all because you insisted on digging the mine. Just last night, Liuchong almost died in the mine. If you want ore, just take it. Why do you have to set up those deadly traps inside?!”

She didn't mention that she had almost died inside yesterday; she just glared angrily at the richly dressed young man from out of town. "I don't know what you did to the mine, but I do know that you've ruined the lives of the people of Liyue Village!"

Qin Yuqi stared at his sleeve that had been flung open. The once smooth and ironed brocade was now wrinkled. His hands unconsciously clenched the wrinkles, and he was at a loss as to how to respond to her barrage of questions.

He thought that after what happened at the inn, they were already friends.

But she just said that she was an uninvited intruder and that she hated him.

For a moment, he felt a surge of grievance, his nose stung, and his eyes burned.

But he quickly calmed down.

Who does she think she is? Does it matter whether she likes or dislikes her?

There are countless girls in Zhaoming City waiting for him to even glance at them. Why should he let this barbarian humiliate him?

Qin Yuqi opened his bloodshot eyes wide and threw the gift he had chosen after countless attempts at picking it out in front of her.

He didn't sleep well all night, and couldn't even wait until dawn, just wanting to deliver the gift to her as soon as possible.

He smashed the wooden box on the ground, revealing the silk lining inside. A short, jet-black knife slid out from the silk. He had thought that only such a gift could win her favor, so he treasured it and carefully put it away. But now the knife lay on the muddy ground.

Qin Yuqi glanced at it, recalling the restless night he had spent tossing and turning, and now he just found it laughable.

He scoffed, "Have I been too good to you, making you think you have the right to criticize me?"

"Jiang Yuhuo, from now on, I will never look for you again, nor will I ever glance at you again!"

Before he finished speaking, Qin Yuqi turned and left.

After taking a few steps, he remembered something, stopped, and turned his back to Xiao Jiang, saying, "I know you hate me, you've always been like this, but don't pin everything on me. Those people who had accidents in the mines, including your father, no one forced them into the mines. I told you long ago, no one wants to see accidents happen in the mines."

"Stop!" Xiao Jiang's voice came from behind. "Take your things with you."

Qin Yuqi stopped, but didn't turn around. "This was originally meant for you. If you don't like it, just throw it away."

The black dagger lay at Xiao Jiang's feet. Its color was as calm as ink, with a line of dark blue luster at the edge. The blade had no superfluous decorations, except for two characters engraved on the hilt that Xiao Jiang could not understand.

Xiao Jiang was silent for a moment, then said, "Do you dare say that the illusions in the mine have nothing to do with you?"

Qin Yuqi turned around in confusion, "Illusion?"

Seeing the genuine doubt in his eyes, Xiao Jiang stared intently into them and asked again, "You really don't know?"

"How could there be such a thing in the mine? I go there every day. If there really is illusion magic, how could I not know?" Qin Yuqi believed he had a clear conscience and did not avoid Xiao Jiang's gaze at all.

"Okay, then do you dare to come with me?"

"Go then, what do I have to be afraid of!"

On the way to the mine, the two did not exchange another word.

Xiao Jiang walked ahead, and Qin Yuqi silently followed her, still holding the short knife he hadn't given her.

He felt a pang of regret for so easily obeying her orders, which made his anger seem cheap.

If it weren't for the expectation that once they entered the mine, he could clear his name and she would apologize to him, Qin Yuqi's pride would have made him stay far away from her immediately.

Although it was early, the outline of the sunrise was gradually appearing from the east. When the two arrived at the mine entrance, it was as deserted as it had been at night.

Qin Yuqi was puzzled. Usually, even if work hadn't started, workers would be arriving around this time. Why was it so deserted?

Xiao Jiang was unaware of their schedule and naturally didn't notice Qin Yuqi's confusion. He lit a torch and, based on his experience from the previous night, gathered several pieces of firewood to prepare.

"Take this and follow me." She handed a torch to Qin Yuqi and walked ahead. She only wanted to confirm their relationship with the illusion with him and didn't want anything to happen to him here.

Qin Yuqi took the torch, but at the same time grabbed her hand and walked to the front. "No need, I know this place better than you do."

Xiao Jiang didn't insist anymore; even in the back, she was still able to protect him.

However, Qin Yuqi had been holding her hand and forgot to let go, which limited her quick reaction. As soon as they entered the narrow mine tunnel, Xiao Jiang broke free from his hand.

Qin Yuqi immediately turned to look at her, but saw that she was only looking around and didn't pay any attention to him at all, so he turned back angrily.

The mine looked just like any other day; there was no sign of the illusion she had mentioned.

"Jiang Yuhuo, what about the illusion you mentioned? Isn't this just an excuse you made up to deceive me?"

"Who would cast an illusion in a secluded mine? I was so stupid to believe such a clumsy lie!"

Xiao Jiang didn't rush to refute her. During the day, the mine was still brightly lit, which masked the faint glow of the ore, making it extremely inconspicuous. Xiao Jiang continued walking deeper into the mine for a while before finally spotting a faint blue light in a corner.

The only commonality she could think of between the two illusions was that both Liu Chong'er and Wu Hu had touched this blue ore in the cave. Although she didn't know if the illusion's trigger was related to the ore's location, she was certain the ore was the key to unlocking the illusion. If the location was wrong, she could just keep prying her way along until she found the right one.

Seeing that Xiao Jiang ignored him, Qin Yuqi didn't give up and tried to chat with her. "Jiang Yuhuo, do you want to know why we came here?"

Xiao Jiang paused slightly as he picked at the ore.

"You've always thought we had ulterior motives towards Liyue Village, but that's not true. Whether it's Liyue Village or any other village, all we want are these ores." Qin Yuqi casually peeled off a small piece of ore, pinching a bit of its dark blue color between his fingertips.

"What do you want these stones for?" Xiao Jiang was already holding a handful, but she couldn't see anything about them and didn't know what use they were except for emitting a faint light.

Qin Yuqi suddenly smiled. "Do you know magic?"

"Why are you asking me that?" Xiao Jiang asked warily.

"It's nothing, just asking. You haven't left Liyue Village, so you don't know. In Dayong, there are many people who practice magic." Qin Yuqi tossed the ore between his fingers into the air, then quickly caught it and held it firmly in his palm. "These people think they can transcend the world and do whatever they want just because they have some trivial skills. For those who don't listen, of course, we need to master something that can make them fear us."

"You mean these ores?"

"Of course, it's not just about ore, but you're not wrong either. I'll tell you this without hesitation: weapons made from this blue crystal can break all spells, making cultivators just like mortals in its presence."

Qin Yuqi glanced at her and smiled smugly, “However, the forging technique of blue crystal is only mastered by Dayong. Only the best craftsmen in Dayong can refine it into a weapon. Even if you own the entire mine, it is nothing more than a shining stone to you. So, how about you submit to Dayong? Once you enter Dayong's territory, Liyue Village will usher in an unprecedented golden age.”

Qin Yuqi kept looking at her, hoping to see surprise or longing in those strange eyes.

But Xiao Jiang simply asked in return, "And what about you?"

"What about me?"

Do you know magic?

"...I am skilled in martial arts."

"So, you don't know magic?"

"...I have not studied it."

Why not practice it?

Qin Yuqi gritted his teeth and said in a deep voice, "...Cultivation requires talent."

"So, you don't have the talent for cultivation?"

The boy, somewhat embarrassed and angry, shouted, "Do you really need to emphasize that I have no talent for cultivation?! I told you I'm good at martial arts!"

"I'm just telling the truth, why are you angry? You said it yourself, many people would do that!" Xiao Jiang also raised her voice, unable to understand why he got angry so easily.

"Okay, I can't, but you can?"

"I don't know how. The people of Liyue Village don't know how either, unlike you in Dayong."

The mine suddenly fell silent, except for the sound of someone taking a deep breath.

"I'm not going. This young master will not keep you company." Qin Yuqi threw down the torch and strode out. He didn't want to see this person again.

She could always easily provoke his anger, making him furious and like a fool. All his manners, eloquence, and even martial arts skills were useless in front of her, making him no different from any other young lad in Zhaoming City.

She was so hateful that Qin Yuqi was so focused on walking back that he didn't notice the blue ore around him becoming increasingly dense, and that the brightly lit exit was still just as far away as he had walked for a long time. Qin Yuqi suddenly looked back and realized that he had been standing still the whole time.

Xiao Jiang caught up with him from behind, "You can't get out, right? Now you should believe me."

She didn't tell him what he should believe, but he understood what she meant.

Illusion.