The next day.
Alliance Headquarters.
"What? Yiyi actually lost?"
"Unbelievable... Wang Yun used to adore Yiyi so much. How did things fall apart later?"
"Who defeated Yiyi? Su Muwan?"
"No... According to the footage from the scene, it was Su Muwan's subordinate, Qin Luo."
A group of people gathered around a long table, staring in shock at a pink ∞ badge placed on it.
This meant that Yiyi was no longer a Transcendent and thus had no right to stay here.
Only a Transcendent could defeat another Transcendent.
Everyone exchanged glances.
"Does this mean... Qin Luo is also a Transcendent?"
Two Transcendents in Jiang City?
This was unprecedented.
Jing Er frowned and said, "That can't be right. I've met Qin Luo before. He's only at the Peak Realm."
"Peak Realm? Since when does someone at the Peak Realm possess a Domain? And one that covered the entire Jiang City?"
"Exactly... And to defeat Yiyi... That's clearly not something a Peak Realm cultivator could achieve."
Li Mingyuan leaned back in his chair, silently observing the footage from the scene.
Domain...
Qin Luo also has a Domain?
But his aura wasn't even at the Return to Simplicity level.
Why was that?
Could it be...
Li Mingyuan's eyes sharpened. He swiped through the holographic projection and said gravely, "No, you're all wrong."
"The one who defeated Yiyi wasn't Qin Luo, but... Su Muwan!!"
Everyone: !!!
What? It was Su Muwan?
They looked at Li Mingyuan in astonishment.
If nothing else, Li Mingyuan, as the head of the Research Department, was one of the smartest among them.
So they had no choice but to believe him!
"Mingyuan, what do you mean?"
"Look at the footage."
Li Mingyuan swiped, and everyone turned their attention to it.
In the final moments, Su Muwan's figure appeared.
She had clearly come for Qin Luo.
"You can see that Su Muwan arrived at the last moment."
"From Qin Luo and Yiyi's earlier conversation, we know that Su Muwan had already figured out our purpose the moment we stepped into the headquarters."
"So I conclude that Su Muwan knew our goal was the Bronze Cauldron!"
At this, Wang Xiaohua timidly raised her hand and asked, "Uh... but Su Muwan didn't show up during the fight. She only appeared at the end. What does that prove?"
"No, no, you're all missing the point."
Li Mingyuan shook his head, his expression serious. "You think Su Muwan is that simple because you've never truly interacted with her."
"Jing Er and I have met Su Muwan, so we know what kind of person she really is."
"All of this was likely part of her plan!!"
As he spoke, he recalled the first time he had seen Su Muwan.
She... was enveloped in an aura of malice, her presence overwhelming. The deep, unfathomable sense of dread she exuded was something he had only felt in the presence of the Leader.
Jing Er also seemed to recall their trip to Jiang City. Back then, it was Qin Luo who did most of the talking, but the final decision always rested with Su Muwan.
And she...
Jing Er shrank her neck slightly, a hint of gravity in her eyes. "That woman is terrifying."
Back then, she had only dared to glance at Su Muwan once, afraid that the malice radiating from her would affect her mind.
Everyone fell silent at this.
Was she really that terrifying?
Ye Zhidie swallowed hard and forced a smile. "Come on, is she really as scary as you're making her out to be?"
"Yes, and I can confidently confirm one thing!"
Li Mingyuan nodded, then declared with certainty, "She deliberately created the illusion that Qin Luo defeated Yiyi!"
"Why would she do that?"
"Because she wanted to stir up trouble!"
"Stir up trouble!?"
Everyone was stunned. What did that mean?
Seeing that everyone was starting to grasp the severity of the situation, Li Mingyuan explained, "After meeting Su Muwan, I went through all her past battle records."
"Finally, I came to a conclusion."
He tapped the table, looking around at the attentive group, and said gravely, "She's a meticulous schemer who loves playing the role of a puppet master, manipulating others to do her bidding!"
"She enjoys the thrill of controlling the entire situation!"
"And Qin Luo!"
With that,
Whoosh—!
A large image of Qin Luo appeared before everyone.
Li Mingyuan pointed at Qin Luo and said, "This guy has been by Su Muwan's side for less than four months, yet he's already become her favorite subordinate."
"Why do you think that is?"
Wang Xiaohua thought for a moment, her face turning slightly red as she looked at Qin Luo. "Because he's handsome?"
"No."
"Because he's good at housework?"
"No."
"Because he's a great cook?"
"No, no."
"Because he's very considerate?"
"No. Can't you think a little deeper?"
Li Mingyuan was exasperated with his teammates. He took a deep breath and said solemnly, "Because he's... the most useful!"
"He's the most convenient pawn Su Muwan has found so far!"
"Looking at Su Muwan's battles, it's always this subordinate who makes the first move."
"You think he's just fulfilling his duties as a subordinate?"
"Wrong!"
"In reality! Su Muwan is the one pulling the strings from behind the scenes!! Qin Luo is nothing more than a pawn in Su Muwan's hands!"
"And Su Muwan! She's likely playing a much larger game, one that even includes our Alliance Headquarters in her plans!"
Sss—!
Everyone gasped in shock.
It was said that Transcendents were no ordinary beings, but this...
Su Muwan! She might just be an extremely dangerous Transcendent!
"Can someone like that even be recruited?"
"That's something we'll have to wait for the Leader to decide."
Everyone began discussing. In their eyes, a Transcendent like Su Muwan was too dangerous and should be eliminated as soon as possible.
But they knew the Leader's tendencies. As long as a Transcendent was willing to join the Alliance, no matter who they were, they would be welcomed with open arms.
This mission was undoubtedly a failure.
"Tch, that's why I hate dealing with troublesome Transcendents. Their systems are always so overpowered."
"Right? How does a Peak Realm cultivator defeat a Domain Realm one? Who can make sense of that?"
"Sigh, we'll just have to wait for the Leader to finish his seclusion."
"Who knows what Su Muwan is plotting now."
"By the way, where's Wang Yun?"
"Oh, he said he found true love in Jiang City and will be back later."
"??"
...
...
Su Family Villa.
Living Room.
"Huh? Miss, what did you say? You want to go on a trip?"
Qin Luo, wearing a shark apron, looked at Su Muwan in surprise as she clamored about wanting to go out and have fun early in the morning.
"Mm-hmm! I want to go to Cherry Blossom City!!"
Su Muwan's eyes sparkled as she pointed at the TV program.
【Detective Corgi Tour Performance!! Premiering in District 11 of Cherry Blossom City! Audience members will receive exclusive Corgi merchandise!】