The gentle breeze brushed against his hair.
Fish in the pond occasionally poked their heads out of the water, their mouths slightly open, staring longingly at the bread in Chen Yu's hand. For a long time, they hadn't managed to get a single bite.
Leaning against a stone pillar, Chen Yu remained motionless, as if in deep meditation.
He muttered the same sentence over and over.
“What does it mean?”
His brow remained furrowed, Chen Yu ceaselessly pondering, unable to find the answer he sought.
“Hey!”
Suddenly, a little demon with a mischievous grin appeared behind Chen Yu, her eyes bright as she played a prank.
Although such childish pranks could never truly startle Chen Yu, he would usually feign fright to elicit the little demon’s giggles.
At this moment, his mind was consumed by his thoughts, and he paid no attention.
He remained with a furrowed brow, as if unaware of the little demon’s presence.
“Hey, what are you doing?!”
The prank unsuccessful, the little demon, slightly displeased, pouted and walked in front of Chen Yu. As if throwing a tantrum, she snatched the bread from his hand and tossed it into the pond.
The fish, who had been waiting expectantly for several hours, saw their coveted bread finally fall into the water.
With all their might, the fish in the pond flapped their tails to snatch the fallen bread, stirring up countless splashes and leaving circles of overlapping ripples on the pond.
Only when the bread in his hand was snatched away did Chen Yu belatedly look towards the little demon.
“Sister Ba, tell me… what does ‘不可为大，为次方安’ mean?”
Ever since he bought provisions and returned to the city, separating from Mi Mu and the others, Chen Yu’s mind had been replaying the scene of their parting like a slideshow.
He tried his best to recall the scene, analyzing Mi Mu’s demeanor.
He hoped to capture some details from her subtle expressions.
However, no matter how many times Chen Yu replayed the scene he had witnessed, he could only feel that Mi Mu’s expression was very ordinary. She was truly like a mouthpiece, repeating what City Lord Mi Ye had told her. As for the inner workings and the deeper meaning behind it, she actually didn't know.
If Mi Mu could simply be a mouthpiece and relay Mi Ye’s words, so be it.
Chen Yu absolutely could not do the same!
The fact that Mi Ye had deliberately instructed Mi Mu to say these words must have a hidden meaning, otherwise, what purpose would her words serve?
She was likely conveying some kind of signal.
The little demon, who had been frowning and preparing to get angry at Chen Yu, also froze. Her small head was filled with great confusion.
“What are you talking about?”
How would she know what “不可为大，为次方安” meant, such a nonsensical phrase?
If Chen Yu consulted her on ancient history in the underground caves, or minor cultivation problems, or even city management and administration, she could offer some guidance.
Was Chen Yu misunderstanding her by speaking in riddles?
Did she have that kind of brain?
She, the Great Demon, had dominated the underground caves for millions of years, relying on her pure bloodline and unparalleled strength. Being sufficiently powerful, she was too lazy to ponder such trivialities.
If anyone dared to speak to her in riddles, she could soar ninety thousand miles into the sky.
She would personally visit the riddle-teller, grab them by the neck, point at their head, and demand to know the meaning of the riddle.
Having never developed a habit of solving riddles since childhood, she was completely inept at them.
“Are you in trouble again?” the little demon asked, crossing her arms and frowning slightly. “Ever since you didn’t sleep that night, I felt something was off with you. Now you’re directly speaking in riddles to me. Do you know how much I hate this? In the past, I would have torn the mouths off people who spoke in riddles to me.”
The little demon glared fiercely, and Chen Yu smiled wryly, shrugging.
“You can’t blame me for this. I’m also a riddle solver.”
Riddles were truly hateful. The person who posed the riddle appeared profound, while the person trying to solve it would lose all their hair.
It was just that the strength of Fengqi City did not allow it.
If he possessed enough military might to crush Mi Ye, he would also want to emulate the little demon, lead his soldiers to her city gates, break down the doors, enter her mansion, and pull her out of bed, holding her chin to question the meaning of her words.
The problem was, he didn't have that capability.
In terms of strength, Count Mi Ye's Mielu City didn't need to take Fengqi City seriously. Even if Chen Yu was unwilling a million times over, he had to solve the riddle.
He lightly bumped the back of his head against the stone pillar, subconsciously reaching for breadcrumbs to feed the fish.
Realizing his hands were empty, he then remembered that the little demon had already thrown all his bread away. Forcing himself, he lifted his weary eyelids and rose from the stone railing, approaching the stone table to pour himself a cup of cool tea to sober up.
“Do you know Atoks?”
“Who?!” The little demon, who had been gazing at the fish in the pond, suddenly turned her head, her dark eyes filled with mist. “Why are you mentioning him?”
“Know him?”
“The ancient demon god of the demon race. How could I possibly know him? I’ve only heard of him. As for you, you don’t even know how many countries there are in the underground caves, how can you know about Atoks?”
“Read it in a book.”
Sipping the cool tea, Chen Yu pointed his thumb towards his bedroom behind him.
“How can there be books about ancient demon gods in the Human Empire?” the little demon’s eyes clearly showed disbelief. She frowned and said with a solemn tone, “Ancient demon gods can be considered matters of ancient times. Even among the demon race, they exist only as myths. The Human Empire has constantly been in friction with the demon race, so there’s no reason for them to collect books about demon gods. Let alone a small country like the Tatu Kingdom, which didn’t even exist when I was alive and has only existed for a thousand years. How can it have books about ancient demon gods?”
“How should I know?”
Chen Yu shrugged and poured another cup of cool tea, nodding towards the study behind him.
“If you don’t believe me, go and see.”
The little demon, her eyes full of suspicion, rolled her eyes wildly.
Read books?!
She hated nothing more than poring over difficult and obscure ancient texts. She didn't like it in the past, and she hated it even more now.
Having her read books was less enjoyable than letting her chop down a few monsters.
She was also quite puzzled as to why Chen Yu enjoyed reading so much. More importantly, he couldn’t even recognize all the characters in the books, sometimes having to ask her about them or consult reference books. Even so, he could still read with great interest under the candlelight.
“You won’t look even when I ask you to.” Chen Yu finished his cool tea in one gulp and placed the cup on the table, whispering in a deep voice.
“Yale, you should know him too, right?”
“The Beast God of the Beastmen race,” the little demon blurted out without hesitation. “He’s as famous as Atoks. Serpent body with a tiger’s head, scaled feet. They are from the same era.”
“So that’s how it is.”
After nodding slightly, Chen Yu tapped his fingers rhythmically on the table.
“What exactly is wrong with you?” Seeing that Chen Yu had fallen silent and was pretending to be profound again, the little demon pounced on Chen Yu, grabbing his face. “Tell me what you’re thinking. I’m dying of curiosity. Hurry up and tell me what’s on your mind.”
*Slurp!*
Chen Yu suddenly kissed the little demon’s face. The little demon, who was leaning on him and grabbing his face, froze completely. Her large eyes were filled with disbelief as she looked at Chen Yu.
“You… you… you…”
“What’s wrong, shy?” Chen Yu grinned. The little demon wiped her warm cheek with her small hand, her little face flushed like a ripe apple. “Are you trying to die?!”
She threw a punch at Chen Yu, and the little demon instantly floated out of the City Lord’s mansion.
Seeing her leave, Chen Yu finally breathed a sigh of relief.
I’m sorry!
If it weren’t absolutely necessary, Chen Yu wouldn’t have done this. Although the little demon wasn’t very sharp-witted, her intuition had always been very keen.
Especially regarding Chen Yu’s unusual behavior, she could keenly pick up on it.
When she pounced on him just now, Chen Yu was certain she had captured some detail. If she had continued to question him, he might have actually revealed something to the little demon.
He couldn't say it.
He was merely an outsider invited to the underground caves. Without obtaining the Tiger Tally, he was, in fact, an insignificant figure in the entire underground world. Yet, his heart harbored too many secrets.
Any single secret was enough to shake the underground world.
Chen Yu didn’t want to hide anything from the little demon. If he could tell her, he certainly wouldn’t conceal anything from her. However, the burdens he carried now, even he himself didn’t fully understand. To reveal them rashly would also be a burden for the little demon.
Although she laughed and played every day, the stories she held in her heart were much heavier than Chen Yu’s.
Under such circumstances, Chen Yu thought it best not to add any more pressure to her. He would bear it himself as long as he could.
If he couldn’t bear it, their grand alliance would likely…
“Hold on!”
Chen Yu patted his cheeks. Mi Mu’s words echoed in his mind again.
For Chen Yu, the most important thing at the moment was to unravel Mi Ye’s riddle. She could be considered Chen Yu’s most direct and impactful enemy at present.
*Ding—*
*Ding ding ding—*
One short, three long. This was a video call.
Glancing at his wristwatch, Chen Yu saw a familiar person initiating a video call and directly accepted it. He leaned his face onto the stone table and spoke weakly.
“Hello.”
“What’s wrong? Were you ravaged by so many girls last night? You look so wilted.” Jiang Yaqing, wrapped in a fur coat and wearing a fluffy snow fox scarf, stood in the snow, rubbing her hands and exhaling onto them. “Wake up, don’t be so listless.”
“Ravaged by girls? Ravaged by you?” Chen Yu pouted.
“I wish I could ravage you. Why don’t you come here, and we can have some fun?” If it were in the past, Jiang Yaqing would have been embarrassed and angry upon hearing such words, but now she joked with Chen Yu without reservation. “I really don’t know what you do all day, you look like you’ve been drained.”
“You’re not in my position now.”
“What position?”
“Currently, I command a town, and I also have a major city with a territory spanning seven thousand miles. Within my territory, there are thousands of cities, but unfortunately, they are all rebelliously inclined,” Chen Yu sighed, exhaling with a look of regret. “If you were in my position, wouldn’t you be worried?”
“Tsk tsk tsk, is it that miserable?”
Jiang Yaqing tightened her snow fox scarf, exhaling as she rubbed her hands. Mist hung on her curved eyelashes, leaving a layer of frost, making her look like a snow goddess, standing in this ice and snow, like a queen in the ice and snow.
Although Chen Yu’s initial thought was of an elf, for some reason, his heart changed its mind in the end.
She looked very cute, but why did she give off the impression of an ice queen?
“You never show up without a reason. What do you need me for?” Chen Yu whispered, leaning on the table. Jiang Yaqing frowned with disdain. “Have you no shame? Who is the one who never shows up without a reason between us? Haven’t I talked to you normally before? But every time you look for me, you always have something to ask.”
“Do I?”
Chen Yu widened his eyes, pretending not to know. Jiang Yaqing snorted disdainfully.
“You know yourself whether you do or not. What kind of person you are, Yu Pu and I know very well. But you are indeed useful. I heard you helped Yu Pu capture a city.”
“You know about this? Yu Pu is in close contact with you.”
“We’re not like you, the busy person, who is too busy to even look at the group chat every day, even though you started this group in the first place.” Jiang Yaqing rolled her eyes and pouted. “But, this time, I do have something I want to ask you.”
“You want me to help you capture a city too?” Chen Yu grinned subconsciously. Jiang Yaqing shook her head slightly.
“I’m planning to establish myself here in the Endless Ice Domain. We are worlds apart, so I won’t trouble you with city sieges. I just want to ask something…”
“Do you know Princess Ilia of the Mermaid Kingdom?”