Everyone’s eyes immediately focused on Hua Jian. Was her mouth a bit too prophetic?
She had only just mentioned that the fiancé might show up, and now it had actually happened.
It was hard not to be suspicious.
“What are you all looking at me for? Can’t a blind cat run into a dead rat once in a while?”
Hua Jian felt a bit flustered under their collective gaze.
Normal stares were fine, but the way they were looking at her as if she were some kind of mystic was truly difficult to endure.
‘I, Hua Jian, am really not a mystic. I’m just using my extensive experience reading novels to predict the plot. Who knew things would be this coincidental?’
“You wouldn’t happen to have some inside information, would you!” the young Cultivator who had been the first to cause trouble for Hua Jian shouted.
Otherwise, how could everything happen exactly according to her prediction the moment she voiced it?
“If I had inside information, why would I still be standing here? Why wouldn’t I be at the scene waiting to watch the show?”
Hua Jian’s words jolted the crowd awake. Reminded by her, the onlookers realized there was something far more important to do right now: go watch the drama.
A Fairy’s fiancé had come looking for her—wasn’t that a perfect spectacle? It would be a waste not to take a bite of such a juicy piece of gossip!
Fairy Caiyue’s reputation in Ascension City was by no means small.
After all the previous cultivators on the Genius List were recruited into the Saint Sect, she had firmly held the top position on the list for months.
Everyone took it for granted that she would, at the very least, become a Neimen Disciple of the Saint Sect.
And now, her fiancé had come to her door. What would the two of them say? They were so looking forward to it!
Some of the onlookers, having realized this, began to quietly slip away, racing toward Fairy Caiyue’s current residence.
The remaining Cultivators who hadn’t caught on were soon reminded by the others and immediately understood, running out after them.
In the blink of an eye, only a few people were left in the once-bustling square.
“Aren’t you going?” Hua Jian glanced at the young Cultivator who was standing there, torn.
The young man’s face turned beet red. After a moment of difficult deliberation, he stomped his foot in frustration and threw out a harsh parting word.
“You just wait! If you’ve got the guts, stay right here and don’t run!”
With that, he also turned and followed the large crowd to watch the drama.
Hua Jian was left speechless. ‘Is there something wrong with that guy’s brain?’ She truly didn’t know how she had offended him to make him target her so persistently.
It couldn’t be just because she had said the Fairy’s name didn’t sound good, could it? Had she been bitten by a brainless fan?
But this Fairy Caiyue wasn’t some particularly famous existence. She was just the most powerful Heavenly Talent on the surface in Ascension City this year. To put it more bluntly, wasn’t she just the top student in a preschool class?
Moreover, she had taken the top spot before the true Talented Ones had even appeared. Hua Jian didn’t think she would be any worse than this Fairy Caiyue.
“Sigh, I don’t get it.” Hua Jian turned her head toward the Arena, only to find that it was as deserted as her side.
Shiqi was standing by the Arena, clutching her sword with an expression that looked as if she had eaten something disgusting.
The people on the stage had finally finished fighting, and just as she was about to step up, everyone had run away. Who could she even complain to?
“Should we go watch the drama too?” Hua Jian asked as she walked over to Shiqi’s side.
Shiqi probably wouldn’t find an opponent here anyway. Since that was the case, they might as well follow the trend and grab a slice of gossip.
“Fine.” Shiqi huffed with some annoyance. “These guys are way too idle. Do they really love watching spectacles that much?”
“It’s human nature to join in the fun, especially when the spectacle involves the top-ranked Fairy Caiyue on the Genius List… By the way, Shiqi, have you ever fought Fairy Caiyue? Is she really that powerful?”
At the mention of this, Shiqi shook her head helplessly. She had only been in Ascension City for two days; she hadn’t had the chance to fight a celebrity like Fairy Caiyue.
There were as many people wanting to challenge Fairy Caiyue and knock her off the top of the Genius List as there were carp crossing a river. If Fairy Caiyue accepted every challenge, how would she have time for Training?
Therefore, this Fairy would only accept challenges from opponents ranked near the top of the list. If one wanted her to fight, they had to climb into the top five first.
“She certainly puts on airs. How exactly are the rankings on the Genius List determined?”
“I heard it’s based on cultivation level and actual combat records. Someone constantly tracks the battles of the Talented Ones and then ranks them. That’s why Fairy Caiyue is selective with her challenges. If she avoided fighting entirely, she would quickly drop down the list.”
Shiqi’s understanding of the Genius List wasn’t very deep either. She only knew that fighting powerful opponents would raise one’s rank. She had apparently been noticed by the public after defeating several formidable opponents.
And Fairy Caiyue, who had been able to stand tall at the top of the list for so long, was naturally no fraud.
Her strength was indeed great, and she had remained undefeated in her encounters with other geniuses on the list.
Without such a fierce record, she wouldn’t be able to hold that position.
Cultivators naturally admired the strong. Since Fairy Caiyue was powerful and reasonably beautiful, she naturally had many followers.
Now that her fiancé had come to her door, there were even more people eager to watch.
“But do you know where she lives?” Shiqi asked, puzzled. She didn’t know Fairy Caiyue’s residence. Hua Jian said they should watch the excitement, but where would they even start?
“Since we’re going to watch a spectacle, we obviously head toward the place that’s the most crowded.” Hua Jian indicated that the problem was easy to solve. The two of them would just fly into the sky and see where the most people were gathered.
The biggest event in the Outer City of Ascension City today was definitely the grievance and drama between Fairy Caiyue and her fiancé.
Hua Jian couldn’t think of anything else that could compare.
The two stepped onto their Flying Swords and rose into the air. Sure enough, they saw an area with an exceptionally high concentration of people.
“That seems to be a very famous Inn in the Outer City!” Shiqi didn’t know too much about Ascension City; besides the areas she frequently visited, her knowledge of other places was limited to this.
However, this information was enough. With so many people gathered at an Inn, it was almost certainly where Fairy Caiyue was staying.
There was nothing more to say. Let’s go!
The place wasn’t far from their current location. After a short while, the two successfully arrived at their destination.
Then, they discovered a major problem: there were simply too many people. They couldn’t squeeze in at all.
From their current position, they couldn’t see any of the drama; they could only see the backs of people’s heads.
“I underestimated it. I didn’t expect there to be so many people…” Even Hua Jian had to admit her miscalculation.
Who could have guessed Fairy Caiyue had so much influence? It seemed half of Ascension City had been disturbed by this event.
With this kind of foot traffic, even if Hua Jian let the Spiritual Civet go all out, she wouldn’t be able to push everyone away.
The two looked at each other. Given the current situation, there was only one way to get in: pull out their swords and cut down everyone blocking the path.
That was obviously impossible, so they could only wait at the very edge of the crowd.
But as soon as they landed, Hua Jian couldn’t help but press her forehead and let out a sigh. “I can’t see a thing!”
The street ahead was completely packed with a sea of people, making it impossible to pass. She couldn’t even see the general outline of the Inn, let alone what was happening inside.
“We’re too late. Should we head back first?”
Hua Jian was tempted, but just as she was about to nod, a slightly puzzled voice came from behind her.
“Little girl, may I ask what is happening up ahead? Why are so many people blocking the way?”
Turning toward the source of the voice, a beautiful young girl wearing a moon-white dress entered Hua Jian’s vision.
She was standing on her tiptoes, looking at the distant crowd with a face full of confusion.
Her right hand held a small pastry box stamped with the name of a shop. It seemed to be a bakery.
She probably returned from buying something only to find the road blocked.
“You don’t know? Fairy Caiyue’s fiancé has come to demand an explanation!” Hua Jian, who loved stirring up trouble, replied in an exaggerated tone.
“What?!” The girl gasped. “A fiancé?”
“That’s right. Didn’t Fairy Caiyue run away from her wedding? Now her fiancé has tracked her down for an explanation. All these people are here to watch the show.”
The girl’s expression slowly turned strange. “What does that have to do with them?”
Hua Jian tilted her head slightly, thinking this young lady was truly quite naive.
Did one need a reason to watch a spectacle? As long as there was drama to see, that was enough.
“Maybe they want to hear Fairy Caiyue’s fiancé shout ‘Thirty Years East, Thirty Years West, do not bully the poor young man.’ Everyone loves the plot where a poor boy is rejected by a rich young lady and then rises up to slap her in the face.”
“Huh? But how could something like that happen in reality?” The girl shook her head repeatedly.
Hua Jian sighed and looked at the girl with sympathetic eyes.
‘Too young. She doesn’t know how sinister society is. Let Teacher Hua teach this naive child a lesson!’
“As the saying goes, every cause has an effect. This Fairy Caiyue ran away from her marriage and came to Ascension City. Now that her fiancé has chased her here, what else could it be for? He certainly didn’t come just to wish Fairy Caiyue a peaceful breakup, right?”
The girl nodded in a daze. That did make sense.
A fiancé who had been abandoned would definitely come with ill intentions!
“Since he was abandoned, he must harbor deep resentment, probably stabbing a straw doll of Fairy Caiyue every day. Do you think he wouldn’t know how powerful she is?”
The girl continued to nod. This also made sense. Before coming, he would have surely done his research. He wouldn’t just rush in blindly to cause trouble.
If that were the case, it wouldn’t be hard to deal with.
“Since he knows Fairy Caiyue is powerful and still dares to come to her door with such fanfare, wanting everyone in the city to know about it… do you think he wants to resolve this peacefully?”
If he wanted to solve the problem normally, a secret visit would have sufficed. No one would have paid much attention.
But the fiancé hadn’t done that. Instead, he made a grand show of it so that everyone would know. His sinister intentions were as clear as day!
“Then wouldn’t… wouldn’t Fairy Caiyue be in big trouble?” The girl looked at Hua Jian with a worried expression. “Little sister, do you have a way to solve the problem Fairy Caiyue is facing?”
‘Huh?’ Hua Jian scratched her head. She was just a spectator; what problem could she solve?
Besides, the matter between Fairy Caiyue and her fiancé had absolutely nothing to do with her. She would have to be crazy to get involved in this mess.
“I’m just here to watch the show. How would I know how to solve Fairy Caiyue’s problem?”
“But hearing your words, little sister, you truly are brilliant and perceptive…” The girl praised Hua Jian without blinking.
This string of compliments made Hua Jian feel quite comfortable. Seeing how sensible the young lady was, her eyes rolled as she came up with a good idea.
Solving Fairy Caiyue’s problem wasn’t actually that difficult. After all, she had only run away from a marriage, and there were many excuses one could use for that.
“As long as Fairy Caiyue insists that she ran away only to pursue a better future, that’s all that matters. As for what kind of person her fiancé is, that’s irrelevant.”
Hua Jian raised a finger and said seriously, “The key is to not let people think she ran away because she looked down on her fiancé.”
She had to let people know that Fairy Caiyue’s flight was about the situation, not the person. No matter who the fiancé was, she would have run.
She had to package herself as a victim of an arranged marriage, throw the blame squarely onto the fiancé, and portray him as the great villain who was shackled to her future.
With the current moral standards of Cultivators, if Fairy Caiyue spoke like that, she would definitely win everyone’s sympathy and stand on the moral high ground!
“But why are you asking all this? Could it be that you’re on good terms with Fairy Caiyue and want to give her advice? Then I think you’re asking a bit too late. By now, they’ve probably already finished arguing inside, and the fiancé is about to shout ‘do not bully the poor young man.'”
The girl shook her head very solemnly, then took a step forward and firmly grasped Hua Jian’s hands.
“Eh?”
“It’s not late at all!”
Hua Jian blinked. ‘How do you know it’s not late at all?’
At that moment, Shiqi, who had been offline for a long time, finally reconnected. After staring at the ornament in the girl’s hair for a while, she recalled some descriptions of Fairy Caiyue she had heard.
The one most frequently mentioned was that Fairy Caiyue liked to wear a silver moon-shaped ornament in her hair.
And the ornament on this girl’s head was indeed a silver crescent moon.
“Hua Jian… she seems to be Fairy Caiyue,” Shiqi whispered as a reminder.
“Huh?!”
Hua Jian gasped. ‘It couldn’t be such a coincidence, could it?’
She looked at the girl in front of her, hoping she would shake her head or offer a denial—saying she was actually just Fairy Caiyue’s friend or perhaps her Little Maid.
But that was just her wishful thinking. Under her highly expectant gaze, the girl nodded a bit shyly.
“My name is Ji Caiyue. Actually, I don’t like the title ‘Fairy Caiyue’ either, but everyone calls me that, and there’s nothing I can do about it…”
The light in Hua Jian’s eyes gradually faded. Her intuition told her that as a Chuan Yue Zhe, she was likely about to be dragged into another troublesome mess.
Now, Ji Caiyue was looking at her as if she were a great savior, counting on her to help.