Chen Xuan'an nodded firmly and said in a rigid tone, "If you don't tell me, I'll find out one day."
The girl was silent for a moment before forcing out a single sentence: "Let's hope so!"
Chen Xuan'an did not reply. The girl remained quiet, a look of sorrow on her pretty face that couldn't help but tug at one's heartstrings.
She drove absentmindedly, soon leaving the city behind. The ride was bumpy, and inside the car, aside from the sound of breathing, there was only the roar of the engine.
The most terrifying thing in the world is a sudden silence in the air—a heavy, suffocating stillness that leaves one restless and irritable. Gazing at the pleasant scenery outside the window, Chen Xuan'an felt no inclination to appreciate it. When he turned his head, he inadvertently caught sight of the crystal-clear tears welling at the corners of the girl's eyes. It was a pitiful sight that made him yearn to pull her into his arms and comfort her.
Yet, remembering her fierce temper, Chen Xuan'an could only suppress the impulse within him, staring at her blankly.
After a long while, perhaps feeling a bit self-conscious or perhaps angry, the girl said with a blank expression, "Have you seen enough? Am I beautiful?"
Hearing this, he spoke without thinking: "No, not yet. Beautiful—not just ordinarily beautiful."
As soon as the words left his mouth, Chen Xuan'an snapped back to reality and lowered his head in embarrassment. Still, he couldn't entirely blame himself; the truth was that she was stunning, with a tall, slender figure, delicate eyebrows, large brown eyes, a slightly upturned nose, and a cherry mouth.
It was easy to lose oneself completely in her charm. At first, he had been too busy arguing with her to look closely, but now, upon a proper inspection, she was nothing short of heavenly.
Her beauty possessed a tranquil quality; even amid combat, she never appeared coarse, but rather carried a dashing and heroic grace.
The girl gave Chen Xuan'an a speechless side-glance, then silently returned her focus to driving.
Instantly, the atmosphere inside the car turned intensely awkward, and Chen Xuan'an turned his head to look out the window.
At that moment, Chen Xuan'an wished he could dig a hole in the ground and crawl straight into it. It was damn-well humiliating! On second thought, though, it wasn't too outrageous—after all, any normal man would have reacted the same way, perhaps even worse. Thinking along these lines made Chen Xuan'an feel a little better.
After quite some time, Chen Xuan'an tried to speak several times, only to stop himself, hesitating and fidgeting for ages before finally gathering the courage to ask with genuine concern, "What's wrong? You look so preoccupied. Can you tell me about it?"
The girl gently shook her head, forcing a faint smile as she said, "It's nothing."
Looking at her smile, which was uglier than crying, Chen Xuan'an couldn't help but offer comfort. "Actually, you can trust me. Even though I don't remember anything you've told me, I feel like you're a good person and wouldn't lie to me."
The girl looked at him with great amusement, casting a playful glance as she asked, "How can you be sure I'm not lying to you? Didn't you just say you didn't believe what I told you?"
Instantly, Chen Xuan'an's face flushed as red as a monkey's backside, and he wished once more for a hole to crawl into. He chuckled awkwardly, "You have no reason to lie to me, because with your strength, you could easily wipe me out. But you didn't."
The corners of her lips curled up slightly as she drawled, "There's another possibility."
She didn't continue. Chen Xuan'an froze for a moment, a sudden thought striking him that instantly filled him with tension. He gripped his seatbelt tightly and asked with a chilling gaze, "What do you want me to do? Let me tell you, if you want me to do anything illegal, I won't do it! You can give up on that idea right now!"
She burst into laughter, her face beaming as she said, "What are you imagining? I happen to be an upright person and a retired veteran—we don't do illegal things here."
Hearing this, Chen Xuan'an let out a sigh of relief. To be honest, he really had been afraid she would force him into illegal activities; given her skill level, ten of him wouldn't be enough to put up a fight. Still, Chen Xuan'an cared about his pride, so he put on a brave face and remarked, "Let's hope so."
A slight smile touched the corner of the girl's mouth before she slowly continued, "I know you're very lost right now, unsure of what you'll be facing next. I can't say anything else, but I can tell you responsibly: the road ahead of you won't be easy."
Chen Xuan'an replied noncommittally, "I certainly am curious about where you're taking me. Actually, I've already guessed. Combined with what you told me earlier, I realize that what I have to do is no simple matter. I suppose you must be from Yayue Pavilion, right?" He looked at the girl with complete earnestness.
She neither admitted nor denied it, asking with mild curiosity, "What makes you think that?"
Chen Xuan'an shook his head with a wry smile. "You told me as much yourself. At first, you wouldn't say where you were taking me or who you were; I didn't even know your name. Yet you were extremely familiar with me, while I'm certain I don't know you. Then you happened to bring up that old fogey Dongfang Zhi, and just now you said, 'He was right after all.' Clearly, the two of you know each other. And since you've mentioned that Dongfang Zhi is the First Elder of Yayue Pavilion, it follows that you must also be a member of Yayue Pavilion—and not of low standing either, at least at the elder level."
The girl gave Chen Xuan'an an approving look and smiled. "That's right, I am from Yayue Pavilion. But you got one thing wrong: I'm no mere elder. I am the Deputy Pavilion Master of Yayue Pavilion."
Chen Xuan'an didn't look surprised upon hearing this. She had essentially given away all these clues herself; he had only been probing. After all, for an expert like her—who claimed she wouldn't talk one second and then revealed all this the next—unless she was a complete fool, she would know he'd figure it out.
Once he processed this, his mind cleared up considerably, prompting him to ask in confusion, "So, are you taking me to the Yayue Pavilion headquarters?"
Instead of answering his question, the girl countered, "What makes you say that?"
Chen Xuan'an took a deep breath. "You're the Deputy Pavilion Master of Yayue Pavilion, so you wouldn't be taking me to a branch. Furthermore, my current strength is weak—or rather, nonexistent. Branches generally aren't as powerful as headquarters, and if you want me to grow strong, it can only happen through training at the Yayue Pavilion headquarters. A branch wouldn't be able to meet your expectations. After all, you sacrificed quite a few people just to protect me, so..."
Chen Xuan'an didn't finish his sentence. There was no need; she understood the rest. The girl said solemnly, "That's right. We certainly didn't misjudge you—you didn't let her down. Even though you're weak right now, it doesn't mean you'll stay weak forever. I believe you will grow strong.
"Let's make a proper introduction. I am Wu Jiahui, the Deputy Pavilion Master of Yayue Pavilion."
Chen Xuan'an nodded to show he understood, then asked, "Is the test over?"
"Yes, it's over," Wu Jiahui replied.
Speechless and wearing a displeased expression, Chen Xuan'an muttered, "So if I hadn't passed your test, I wouldn't have been worthy of knowing your name?"
Wu Jiahui cast a sidelong glance at him and drawled, "I suppose... roughly speaking, yes!"
Good grief! Chen Xuan'an mentally threw his hands up in defeat, utterly speechless, and retorted with a sour look, "What did you just say? What do you mean by 'suppose' and 'roughly speaking'?"
Wu Jiahui rolled her eyes, her face full of disdain as she retorted, "Pfft, do you think I wanted to test you? If it weren't for their orders, I wouldn't have wasted so much time."
Chen Xuan'an frowned and muttered to himself, "Them? Meaning more than one person. An order? Hiss... an order—could it be the military? No, no, Yayue Pavilion doesn't belong to any state institution, and it's even less likely to have ties with the military. Then who on earth could give orders to the Deputy Pavilion Master of Yayue Pavilion, a person beneath only one and above tens of thousands?"
The only person who could give orders to Wu Jiahui was the elusive Pavilion Master of Yayue Pavilion. No matter how you looked at it, she was the Deputy Pavilion Master; apart from the Pavilion Master, absolutely no one else had the authority to command her.
What Chen Xuan'an didn't know, however, was that Wu Jiahui possessed a mysterious secondary identity as a member of a secret covert unit—a fact known only to the Pavilion Master, Dongfang Zhi, and a select few others.
Just as Chen Xuan'an was deep in thought, puzzled by the mystery, Wu Jiahui glanced at the rearview mirror and said calmly, "Sit tight. We're being followed."