Chapter 184 Rain Bell (Part Two) "He targeted me first."...
Fireflies rose up, illuminating the man's dark eyes and reflecting a faint, cool light.
Shen Qi looked surprised and exclaimed, "Wei Changzai?"
The magic array was activated just now; it should have only brought the two of them in. How come there's one more?
...unless he was nearby at the time.
Upon considering this possibility, Shen Qi's expression also became strange. This person had followed him here; could there be some kind of conspiracy involved?
Shen Qi whispered, "Should we work together to knock him unconscious here?"
Lin Feiran's gaze fell on Wei Changzai, and she pondered for a moment. No matter why he was here, it was not appropriate for him to follow them.
When Wei Changzai saw that she was silent, but her left shoulder was slightly slumped and her brows were slightly furrowed, he knew that she wanted to make a move. His gaze paused, and he couldn't quite describe the feeling in his heart. He just lowered his eyes and fiddled with the compass in his hand.
He didn't explain, but before Lin Feiran set off, a strange Bagua diagram appeared on the compass.
The characters shimmered faintly, and the mythical beast head on the compass rotated, quickly pointing to the southeast.
Then, he slowly raised his eyes to look at Lin Feiran, still remaining silent, as if he was waiting for her to speak first.
Shen Qi, who had already stepped aside, saw Lin Feiran take another half step back and asked, "Aren't you going to make a move?"
“He possesses a treasure for locating the Holy Palace. With this, we can keep track of the Holy Palace Empress’s whereabouts.”
Lin Feiran began to explain, but the next moment, a flash of azure lightning streaked through the dark room. In the blink of an eye, she had moved to Wei Changzai's side, reached out with her right hand, and snatched the All-Encompassing Compass in a swift motion.
Wei Changzai was slightly taken aback, his phoenix eyes widening considerably: "You know how to steal?"
His tone was one of surprise, as if he had witnessed something rare in the world and couldn't help but look closely, his eyes and brows full of inquiry and curiosity.
"..."
Lin Feiran was speechless for a moment. He glanced at him and made a hand gesture. The beast head on the compass started to rotate again, but it only swayed in the east and southeast, and could not be accurately oriented.
The Myriad Compass is indeed a treasure of Daohe Palace, but Zhang Chunhe has never cared about such material possessions. If Wei Changzai and Ji Changying need it, he will readily give it to them.
Therefore, Lin Feiran also knew the method of manipulation, but now...
She pondered for a moment, then glanced at Shen Qi and asked, "Do you have any pills made by the Holy Palace Lady?"
Shen Qi shook his head: "She used to give people flowers... but I haven't seen her in a long time."
Searching for someone within a magic array is different from searching in the outside world. Here, spiritual energy is abundant, and a wisp of spiritual energy is required for accurate tracking. Otherwise, even a compass will be of no use.
Lin Feiran had not expected to use the Myriad Compass, so she had not prepared in advance. She turned her head and saw that Wei Changzai was still standing not far away, surrounded by fireflies, a greenish glow.
I don't know where they caught the fireflies.
“I have it,” he said. “I can show you the way; just use me.”
Lin Feiran remained noncommittal, simply placing the compass on a vaguely outlined table beside him. He then took out a mortal-repairing stone from his mustard seed bag and slammed it into the ground. Instantly, the dark room was brightly lit, and the faint array patterns appeared and disappeared, only to quickly dim again.
For a magic array, every pebble or every book can become a channel for spiritual energy connection. By embedding a mortal stone, the traces of these spiritual energy flows can be revealed without causing damage or alarming others.
In this way, we can start by analyzing the array patterns and break through them.
The most important thing right now is this magic array.
As soon as Lin Feiran set off, even more fireflies were released around them, enough to illuminate the entire secret room.
Shen Qi looked over in surprise and saw Wei Changzai constantly taking fireflies out of his mustard seed bag, as if he were plundering some bushes.
He finally couldn't help but speak up: "Fellow Daoist Wei, you could actually use a Flowing Light Technique."
Shen Qi's tone was not as humble and reasonable as usual; instead, it was somewhat indifferent, as if he was speaking to him out of necessity.
Wei Changzai glanced at him, then looked away and continued working. For a moment, only Lin Feiran was seriously trying to decipher the formation in the room.
Having suffered from a lack of understanding of formations before, she later studied classic texts on formations during her cultivation. However, there were many mysteries involved, and her current level of skill was insufficient to break Bai Lu's formation.
If the Golden Wave Sword Spirit were here, she would surely be able to offer some guidance, but since she is alone now, she has no choice but to calm down and face the situation.
Lin Feiran turned her head and looked around. This dark room seemed to be a study. There were many books and a strong academic atmosphere, but there were also many exquisite wooden toys on the table, which were quite childlike.
This was a book that was about to be bound. The inscription in the lower right corner read "Gen Gan". Lin Feiran flipped through a few pages and looked surprised.
This is actually a book on magic arrays that is about to be published. Since the Sage of Genqian has been dead for a long time, it is certainly not his compilation. It is self-evident who did it.
Wei Changzai and Shen Qi gathered around, only to see Lin Feiran frown slightly, hurriedly turning to the last page, only to find a fragment at the end of a chapter, clearly not the last volume.
She went back to the book, where every page described the construction and explanation of formations; judging from the table of contents, there were hundreds of them.
Lin Feiran immediately turned to look at the study. The Bufan Stone had entered, its hidden light flowing, similar to a type called "Dry Mountain," yet not entirely the same.
She immediately realized, "The solution is in these books. Judging from the table of contents, the solution to this magic array should be in the second volume. Quickly check if the second volume is in the study."
Shen Qi was already waiting to the side. As soon as Lin Feiran finished speaking, he immediately went to the bookshelf to look for something. Wei Changzai silently withdrew his gaze and also turned around to look through the books.
Having studied at the Imperial Academy for many years, Shen Qi was quite adept at finding books. He flipped through them very quickly and soon moved to the vicinity of Wei Changzai. He paused and said somewhat coldly, "Excuse me."
Wei Changzai was also looking through the documents. Upon hearing this, he first glanced at Lin Feiran, then turned to look at Shen Qi. After a moment of silence, he actually stepped aside.
However, Shen Qi had a different method of searching by following the clues. After a while, he wandered over again. Because he was a little anxious and had a prejudice against Wei Changzai, he only said "excuse me" and squeezed forward to look through the pages.
After repeating this several times, Wei Changzai finally stopped and said bluntly.
"You're targeting me, why?"
Shen Qi also glanced at Lin Feiran quickly. She was completely unaware of the commotion and was searching very carefully.
He was of course aware that the two had once been engaged, but it was later inexplicably dissolved. Rumors circulated that Wei Changzai had fallen in love with someone else, which puzzled Shen Qi greatly, and he also felt a jealousy that he was unwilling to show to others.
He was certainly feeling down at that moment, but what he felt most strongly was his dislike and contempt for Wei Changzai.
If he were the one to be engaged, he would surely be the happiest disciple in the Imperial Academy.
"A gentleman values righteousness and affection. It's only natural that she would target someone as fickle as you. You are utterly unworthy of her!"
This was the most vicious thing Shen Qi could say, but it didn't bother Wei Changzai, who had grown up in the mud and snow.
"I am not a gentleman," Wei Changzai admitted readily. "There's no point in being a villain."
He didn't understand where Shen Qi's anger came from, but he understood the last sentence. So his eyes flickered, and just as he raised his hand, it was pressed down by a scroll that reached out from the side.
He turned his head and met Lin Feiran's calm gaze: "If you want to make a move, then I can only make a move against you first, and then look for the book."
Wei Changzai withdrew his hand, lowered his gaze, and stated as if stating a fact: "He targeted me first."
“But he’s absolutely right. I don’t think it’s targeting me.” Lin Feiran said calmly. “Chen Qi, just look on the left side.”
Shen Qi felt a little embarrassed and uneasy after Lin Feiran overheard his sarcastic remarks, but seeing that she didn't seem to blame him, he breathed a slight sigh of relief and turned to look for her.
Lin Feiran withdrew his hand, took two steps away, squatted down and searched through the bookshelf. Wei Changzai followed, looked at the other side, and suddenly said.
"Manman, do you know where I came from?"
Lin Feiran gave him a strange look, then silently took two steps away.
But Wei Changzai's voice still reached my ears: "You've read almost all the books in Daohe Palace, but have you ever seen any records about Master Yuqing?"
Master Yuqing is none other than the well-known Taoist Sanbu.
Lin Feiran finally spoke: "Why are you asking this?"
Wei Changzai glanced sideways, his tone unusually gentle: "I feel something's not right."
He squatted down beside Lin Feiran and told her about the notebook without reservation, which made Lin Feiran frown slightly.
“You met him at Dongpingcang? But didn’t you see Zhang Chunhe in a small village near Youfang Town? Dongpingcang is in the east, while Youfang Town is in the north.”
Wei Changzai nodded: "I even thought I remembered wrong, but I wouldn't lie to you, so I must have come from Youfang Town."
After saying that, he handed the image-recording bead to Lin Feiran, then squatted down to the side, holding the firefly, and waited quietly.
Lin Feiran originally didn't want to get involved in Wei Changzai's affairs, but what he said was too strange, and she had a vague feeling that something was wrong, so she picked up the notes and started reading.
She flipped through the pages quite quickly and soon noticed something else amiss.
Chronological journals are usually reserved for important figures, but Zhang Chunhe gave her and Qiu Tong a separate page, which was really strange.
There is another passage that records Zhang Chunhe's first encounter with Ji Changying. At first glance, it seems quite ordinary, but the ending reveals a hint of strangeness.
[In the 37th year of Pingchuan, on the fifth day of the sixth month, a heavy snow fell. I met a young man at the foot of Sanqing Mountain. He was quick-witted, intelligent, and had a pure heart. I had long admired Daohe's name, so I traveled over mountains and rivers to come here, hoping only to become a disciple of the palace.]
Although he was different, he could still be accepted as a disciple. Thus, they formed a bond through drawing an array, becoming master and disciple, thus living up to their master's reputation for teaching without discrimination and upholding the principles of harmony.
Lin Feiran looked at this sentence repeatedly, puzzled.
Wei Changzai then asked, "Manman, have you seen Master Yuqing in other books?"
Lin Feiran then came to her senses. After thinking for a moment, she said, "I once saw in a notebook that the Three Diviners Daoist passed away a long time ago. At that time, you had not yet gone up the mountain."
However, I only heard about your origins from you when I was a child, and perhaps you were wrong back then.
Lin Feiran was already shrouded in a fog of confusion, and now with Wei Chang's involvement, she felt even more uneasy.
She didn't know where Wei Changzai came from, since her source of information was him, so she couldn't determine the truth of the matter.
She pondered for a moment, then looked up and said, "There is someone who definitely knows where you came from. I can ask for you, or you can ask them yourself."
Wei Changzai was somewhat puzzled: "Are you talking about the other elders in Daohe Palace?"
Lin Feiran shook his head: "I mean, Qiu Tong."
Wei Changzai paused, lowered his eyes for a moment, and then said, "How could she know?"
Lin Feiran didn't intend to explain the reason to him. She simply smiled, stood up, and looked down at him.
“A person destined for greatness always has something special about them that they cannot share with outsiders. I can’t help you with this, but she knows. Go ask her; I think she’ll be happy.”
Qiu Tong is currently trying to find a way to temporarily restore her uncle's sanity. During their last conversation, Lin Feiran knew that she was acting alone and was finding it difficult to manage everything. If someone could help her, it would be much easier for her to do things.
Upon hearing this, Wei Changzai remained silent, then looked up at her with quiet focus, her gaze flickering slightly in the fireflies.
She was pushing him out.
"I found the second volume!" Shen Qi rushed over, carrying a scroll of ancient text. He only caught half of what was said and asked, puzzled, "What's wrong? Why are you so happy?"
Lin Feiran reached out and took the book, turning the pages with focused attention. He casually remarked, "A gentleman is good at helping others achieve their goals. If it can help a good match, it's a good thing, and of course, it's something to be happy about."
Wei Changzai's expression was unreadable. Upon hearing these words, his hand holding the bookshelf tightened slightly, his eyelashes trembled, and his lips pressed together. A sense of bewilderment and fear of being abandoned arose in his heart, but more than anything, there was a hidden pain.
He would rather Lin Feiran say this in a sarcastic tone like Shen Qi than have her react so calmly.
This was even something she said casually while chatting with someone.
Wei Changzai had never felt shame, but at this moment, under her gaze, he felt a profound sense of shame for the first time. He did not want to be exposed to Lin Feiran's frank gaze.
He quickly withdrew his gaze, stood up, and although the two of them had already found the classics, his eyes were still wandering around the bookshelves, but he couldn't find a single spot to focus on.
In one glance, he saw the first volume. His gaze seemed to finally find its way back to the shore. He quickly pulled out the spine of the book and held it in his hand.
The shadow of the book trembled slightly, carrying a subtle, almost imperceptible tremor.
"I've found a solution." Lin Feiran's voice entered my ears, as calm as before.
"It's time to talk about the All-Encompassing Compass."
Author's Note: Red envelopes will be dropped in this chapter.
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