With a series of brisk footsteps, someone spoke up.
"Has it been confirmed that they have no issues?" Mo Ge asked.
"Yes, Commander Mo. It has been confirmed that they are all ordinary citizens."
"Then let them all pass!" Mo Ge glanced sideways at the ragged crowd, who looked lost and bewildered.
"Many thanks, My Lord!" As they were cleared to pass, Mo Ge's actions actually won their gratitude.
[Host, it's time for you to make your move.]
Lowering her head, Yi Yan accidentally stumbled and was pushed slightly by someone, her hand instinctively tearing the sleeve of the person next to her.
"Audacious! How dare you show disrespect to Commander Mo!" shouted several mages from the Light Faction.
Having his clothes torn in public by the person right in front of him, Mo Ge felt a twinge of annoyance. But when he saw the face beneath the black robe clearly, his expression shifted slightly. The girl's delicate face was breathtakingly exquisite.
"Why are you among these people?" Mo Ge questioned.
"Commander Mo, is there something wrong with this girl? Let us arrest her!"
"Who are you? Why should I answer your questions?" Yi Yan tilted her head and asked with curiosity.
"You are..."
"Commander Mo, this... you know this girl..."
"Of course. Little Yi Yan is the last surviving wandering bloodline of the Yi Clan," said the female lead Lis, walking out of the tent with a gentle smile.
"What? Which Yi Clan?"
"It couldn't be *that* Yi Clan, could it?!"
"That Yi Clan... the ancient family recognized throughout the magical world as possessing immense magical power. But didn't the entire Yi Clan perish long ago while fighting the Demon Dragon? To think that bloodline still lingers in this world!"
The news that someone from the Yi Clan was still alive left many of the mages present utterly shocked.
"Indeed, Yi Yan is indeed the last bloodline of the Yi Clan. But unfortunately, she has not inherited the ancient legacy of the Yi Clan. You should all be able to see right through her magic," Mo Ge said calmly.
"What's this? So it's just that! I thought that bearing the surname Yi meant she'd have some great abilities. Turns out she's just a stray little mage."
Some who had initially looked upon her favorably now sneered in mockery.
[Host, their true colors change faster than flipping a page.]
Pay no attention to them... such nonsense cannot actually harm us.
"Quiet! Within the Light Faction, we propagate positive energy, not these petty remarks that kick people when they're down," Mo Ge explained righteously.
"Commander Mo is right. We have learned our lesson," a group of people fawned, bowing repeatedly.
[Host, the male lead is truly the male lead—he really knows how to put on a righteous front and fool people.]
Well then, shall I add a little something to spice things up? In any case, I have no intention of walking through the rest of this path following the original host's innocence and timid nature.
Enjoy the show, Ni Tian System.
"Whatever. Say whatever you want. Mouths grow on your own faces, so what you choose to say is none of anyone else's business. A bunch of cowardly, incompetent—cough, cough!" If Yi Yan stayed silent, she could easily pass for a pretty, fragile vase just waiting to be bullied.
Yet the moment this little mouth opened and started talking, she was practically a bundle of dynamite or a lit fuse.
"What did you say, little girl?"
"Do you want us to give you a taste of hardship?"
"You think just because your surname is Yi, you'll be safe and sound?"
"What? I offer you a suggestion, and since you dare not accept it, it flies you into a rage. Is this the fine quality possessed by the Light Magic Faction? Cough, cough, cough!"
"You... little brat..."
"Oh, right. You have to follow the Commander's teachings. So even if you're upset inside and angry, you'd better swallow it down. Otherwise, wouldn't you be wasting the Commander's painstaking efforts to teach you? Cough, cough."
"Commander... for her to humiliate us like this is simply too vicious."
"Mm! I know! But..." Before Mo Ge could finish, Lis stepped in to smooth things over.
"Everyone, please don't be angry with little Yi Yan anymore. She's still young, and youthful impulsiveness is inevitable."
This was clearly the Commander showing favoritism... yet several mages refused to let the matter drop because of Lis's words, continuing to demand of Mo Ge that the girl with the surname Yi be expelled from the Light Magic Faction.
Mo Ge was just about to seize upon an excuse to bring the matter to a swift close.
"Do you really plan to go through with that? None of you have checked the seal of the Demon Dragon recently—that seal has already begun to loosen. My surname is Yi; I was deliberately abandoned by the Yi Clan since childhood and have wandered outside ever since. Though I ultimately did not inherit the legacy of the Yi Clan, I still possess other means to prevent the Demon Dragon from breaking the seal ahead of time."
As soon as Yi Yan uttered those words, panic rippled through all the mages, and they began to argue in a chaotic chatter.
"Impossible! You're lying to us."
"That's right, the Demon Dragon was already dealt with by your Yi Clan—"
"Dealt with by what? Handled? How laughable. If the Yi Clan truly had that kind of ability, why did their entire clan perish yet still leave behind this sliver of my bloodline? Aren't any of you curious to investigate the reason behind that?" Yi Yan let out a dry, mocking chuckle.
Nearby, Mo Ge was expending a vast amount of magic, trying to verify whether Yi Yan's words were factual or merely alarmist sensationalism.
[Host, won't the male lead see right through this lie you've spun?]
Didn't the plot feature this exact scenario? Back then, the Yi Clan sacrificed their entire clan to protect the entire magical world, preventing the Demon Dragon from emerging into the world.
Preventing it is not the same as destroying it! So the Demon Dragon wasn't completely wiped out by the Yi Clan; it was simply sealed away forever!
As for that formidable fellow during the original host's era—at the very end, when his life hung by a thread, he shattered the Demon Dragon's seal on his own. Yet somehow, he managed to control the Demon Dragon and even convert its power into his own.
Then he cast a mysterious curse upon the male lead Mo Ge. But in the end, that formidable fellow... even after the female lead helped the male lead lift the curse... still fell to defeat.
[But, Host, you've already changed the entire course of the plot. You saved him. So will he still...]
I originally thought he wouldn't. But thinking about it now, perhaps he still will. Ni Tian System, have you noticed anything strange about that young man who hasn't left yet?
[Host, his shadow is... that servant of darkness!]
Indeed. From earlier until now, every move I've made and every word I've spoken has been heard and seen by that formidable fellow!
[Host, then he's definitely going to release the Demon Dragon ahead of schedule!]
"She is not lying! But I must once again sense the forbidden domain of the Yi Clan—has the Demon Dragon's sealing ground truly run into trouble?"
As Mo Ge's words fell, panic gripped the mages of the Light Magic Faction.
"Everyone, please remain calm and quiet down. Do not disturb the Commander. Let the Commander sense whether the situation is truly as little Yi Yan described," Lis consoled the crowd from the side.
Yet Lis's gaze remained fixed intently upon Yi Yan, whose expression was as calm and untroubled as still water.
Yi Yan simply met Lis's gaze with a nonchalant, faint smile.
This left Lis completely bewildered. She was beginning to fail to understand the fragile girl before her—how had her personality suddenly become so bizarre and unfamiliar?
She clearly wasn't like this before; she used to be someone she could easily manipulate.