Chapter 55: Reconciliation

“That guy who became a vegetable? Oh, oh, oh! I remember now!”

“Hey, him? What a jinx. Peng, why are you bringing him up?”

Yang Peng wrapped his arm around a woman, raising his wine glass as he said, “Him? Doesn’t he have an older brother? The one who’s supposed to be the destined owner of the Immortal Spirit Flood Dragon.”

“So what about his brother?”

“His brother got together with Miss Mu from the Mu Family. The Mu Family really values this rising star and even wants him to take over their business.”

“The difference between those brothers is huge.”

“Haha, right? I still remember that Yunxian — clumsy, withdrawn, and insecure. He could barely talk to anyone. Even if he were still alive today, I doubt he’d amount to anything.”

“Hey, the guy’s gone, have some respect.”

“What, am I supposed to be scared he’ll come back as a ghost and bite me? I don’t buy that.”

Truly, how cold-hearted.

I listened with a bitter smile to my old classmates’ chatter.

Even if I was a bit withdrawn back then and didn’t join any cliques, did I really deserve to be belittled this much?

“By the way, his brother married into that Mu Family… Don’t tell me it’s the Mu Family I’m thinking of?” one classmate asked nervously. “Tianhai Mu Family?”

“That’s the one. Seventeen years ago, the Head of the Mu Family and the Mu Family Madam died in a car accident, and the Little Princess went missing. That super-rich family—Tianhai Mu Family.”

“Right, and there’s a rumor that the Head’s death was connected to the new son-in-law… Could that be true?”

“Who knows.”

Inside the room, a group of men and women gossiped eagerly, all talking at once about the strange happenings among the upper-class dragon families.

“Shh, listen to me,” suddenly, a classmate lowered her voice mysteriously, “My aunt works as a doctor at Kangcheng Hospital. She saw the Head of the Mu Family and Yunxian with her own eyes back then.”

“What? Yunxian was involved in this too?”

“Yeah. Yunxian and the Mu couple were sent to the hospital together. The car that killed the Head of the Mu Family was the same one that hit Yunxian. The two crash sites were just half a street apart.”

“…That poor kid, what was he doing on that street anyway…”

“This whole thing is fishy. They say Yunxian’s brother was already seeing a member of the Mu Family’s branch at the time. And while taking care of Yunxian, his brother would often use the excuse of going to the wrong room to sneak into the Mu couple’s ward…

According to the doctors back then, the Mu couple actually had a chance to survive. But ever since that man started visiting, things took a sharp turn for the worse, and both of them died.”

“Oh my god, could it really be like I’m thinking?”

“It’s exactly what you’re thinking—the man killed the Mu couple, and Yunxian was just his pawn to get close to them. That fool was nothing but a chess piece, even in death.”

“To be a pawn and take down two heads of a powerful family—he’s left his mark in this life.”

“But if it was that obvious, didn’t anyone investigate afterwards?”

“Investigate? The previous Head died in an accident, the Little Princess was too young, and the Mu Family changed hands that very night. The new Head was probably the mastermind. Why would he investigate himself?”

“Tsk… That’s so dark, way too dark.”

With that, the topic ended, and a clever lackey quickly shifted the spotlight to Yang Peng:

“Peng, you’re still the best. You made it on your own merit and never took any shady shortcuts. In the end, you even ended up with our Class Belle… Cheers to Peng!”

“Haha, thanks.”

Huh? This flashy one is the Class Belle?

I was stunned.

I don’t look down on people gaining confidence through cosmetic surgery, but this Class Belle… she’s not even the same person anymore! It’s like she used disguise magic or something!

When I was young and naïve, I even had a crush on her.

Oh, right. No wonder Yang Peng keeps mocking me here—I used to be his love rival.

“What a shame Yunxian isn’t here, that lovesick fool. He can’t see this.” Yang Peng proudly hugged the Class Belle. “Otherwise, I’d love for him to see how sweet and obedient my Xiao Tian is… Hah, a man needs a successful career to win a woman’s heart.”

You just won’t stop, will you?

Since that’s how it is…

“Who says I can’t see?”

[Mirror Shadow Technique, Enhanced Version]

Using a little trick from the Magic Continent, my figure began to blur and ripple.

Physically, nothing inside me changed at all. But in the eyes of others, I’d become Yunxian from seventeen years ago.

Just a simple illusion.

I swaggered right into the room.

At first, they didn’t recognize me—after all, so many years had passed, it was impressive enough if they remembered my name.

Until I snapped my fingers to get their attention.

I looked up.

Revealed that youthful face, unchanged for seventeen years.

The private room instantly fell silent as death.

A bunch of chopsticks clattered to the floor, but nobody seemed to notice.

“G-ghost… ghost… ghost… ghost aaahhh!”

Screams of terror rose one after another.

“Heh.”

I pulled over a chair and sat down at the table.

Right next to Yang Peng.

“A class reunion and you didn’t invite me? That’s not very nice of you all.”

I tilted my head, grinning eerily at Yang Peng.

Yang Peng’s hand shook so hard he almost spilled his drink.

“Relax, I’m not a ghost. I’m not dead.”

I poured myself a drink, unconcerned.

The atmosphere was, of course, painfully awkward.

One moment, they were badmouthing me; the next, I caught them red-handed. The embarrassment in the room was so thick you could scrape it off the floor.

“Good to know you’re alright. You never kept in touch all these years.”

Seeing I wasn’t a ghost and was willing to talk, Yang Peng’s fear vanished.

“Yunxian, where have you been all these years?” he asked, acting all casual.

“Nowhere special.”

My lukewarm reply clearly irked Yang Peng.

Remembering how he’d just lost his composure in front of everyone, his annoyance only grew.

—In this little circle of classmates, everyone always looked up to me, gave me respect and a little fear. How dare Yunxian not show me any face?

His thoughts were written all over his face. I could read him in a glance.

Suddenly, Yang Peng had an idea. He hooked the woman’s chin in his arms:

“Yunxian, this is Xiao Tian. You remember her, right?”

“Didn’t recognize her, she’s changed too much,” I replied earnestly.

The woman’s face twitched in anger… Well, it was all chemicals, so it couldn’t really twitch.

Is he being sarcastic? He must be!

“Haha, that’s right. I remember you even wrote Xiao Tian a love letter back then.”

“I did. I was young and foolish,” I admitted calmly.

He was clearly trying to disgust me, showing off his prize like a victor.

Hah, mortals.

“I’ve already married Xiao Tian. And you, you never even showed up at the wedding… Don’t tell me, you didn’t dare face her?” Yang Peng pressed on.

Laughter erupted around us.

I raised an eyebrow, just about to answer.

“There you are.”

Suddenly, a clear and ethereal voice called from outside the private room, as melodious as the song of an immortal.

Everyone instinctively looked over.

In an instant, men and women alike stared in a daze at the woman at the door, as if their souls had left their bodies, infatuated drool hanging from their lips.

“She’s so beautiful…”

And so dignified.

The butler’s uniform did nothing to diminish her feminine charm; if anything, it only made her seem even more noble and elegant.

Her long hair cascaded down, blending handsomeness and beauty in perfect harmony, igniting a primal longing in everyone, whether man or woman.

She was a girl whose beauty no filter could capture, far surpassing any woman they’d ever seen.

That so-called Class Belle? In front of her, she wasn’t even worth a fart—not even worthy to tie her shoelaces!

And at this very moment.

This lofty, goddess-like, utterly perfect being— Cluru— walked straight toward me.

Without hesitation.

She nestled into my arms.