However, Cang Yinyue merely glanced indifferently at Li Musheng, saying nothing.
A moment of silence hung in the air. Finally, she spoke, somewhat reluctantly: "Don't worry, whether you are the true Seventh Prince or not, I will do my best to ensure your safety."
Li Musheng shrugged and chuckled, "That's not what I meant. I just feel that if I enthusiastically travel all the way to Shangyang City, only to find out I'm not a prince, wouldn't that be a bit awkward?"
Hearing this, Cang Yinyue snorted coldly: "I understand what you mean. If I truly made a mistake, I will compensate you with another hundred taels of silver, considering it your travel expenses for this trip."
Li Musheng immediately grinned, extending a thumb in praise: "Miss Cang is generous, truly worthy of being a master from the Covert Intelligence Department."
Cang Yinyue's face remained stern. With her arms crossed, she said, "Don't assume that because you've entered the Innate Martial Realm, you can be careless. An Innate master can certainly move unhindered in Shun'an City, but in the entire Great Li Dynasty, you are hardly worth mentioning."
She then sighed softly: "I know you must have had some fortuitous encounter, otherwise a small martial arts school in Shun'an City, even if it exhausted all its wealth, would struggle to produce an Innate master."
"But there are always mountains beyond mountains, and people beyond people. When you arrive in Shangyang City, you will realize that there are always astonishingly brilliant geniuses in this world, people whose achievements you can hardly hope to match."
Li Musheng poked the bonfire with a wooden stick, making the flames burn brighter. He asked, "Like who?"
"I've never left Shun'an City, and I don't know much about the outside world. Miss Cang can tell me more; I love hearing about these things."
Cang Yinyue shook her head, a cold chuckle escaping her lips: "It's useless for me to tell you more. You'll understand when you see it with your own eyes."
"However, what I can tell you is that the 'Seventh Prince' currently imprisoned in the celestial prison is a being of unparalleled talent. Not only does he possess the ability to govern the world, but his martial arts talent is also beyond the reach of countless others. Before this incident, he was even one of the most promising princes to ascend to the position of Crown Prince."
Hearing this, Li Musheng was momentarily stunned, then said with some regret: "That's truly unfortunate. Such an excellent talent being imprisoned is definitely a loss for the Great Li Dynasty."
Cang Yinyue glanced at Li Musheng, an inexplicable flicker of irritation in her eyes. She suddenly said sharply: "In my eyes, you are the true Seventh Prince. If he is released, how will you find your place then?"
"Those things were originally yours, and he has taken everything for twenty years. How many twenty years do you have to lose?"
At this point, Cang Yinyue seemed to realize her emotions were running high. She paused and said, "Bringing you back to Shangyang City is merely my duty. As for everything after that, it's up to you. Otherwise, in that place called the imperial capital, you might be devoured until not even your bones remain."
Li Musheng looked at Cang Yinyue, who had inexplicably become angry, and frowned. Why is this girl getting so worked up? He didn't even say he was going to let himself be slaughtered.
But upon closer thought, Li Musheng realized she didn't actually mean him any harm.
At this moment, after her outburst, Cang Yinyue simply closed her eyes, no longer paying attention to Li Musheng.
Seeing this, Li Musheng mumbled inwardly: She vowed to believe I'm the Seventh Prince, but this is her attitude? Is this how she treats a prince of the Great Li Dynasty?
Thinking, he reached into his embrace, and suddenly asked: "Miss Cang, did you go to the Yu family martial arts school during that half an incense stick's time you were gone today in Shun'an City?"
Hearing this, Cang Yinyue's eyes snapped open, and she looked at Li Musheng sharply: "You followed me?"
But quickly, she shook her head again, muttering to herself: "Impossible. If you had followed, I would have noticed."
Li Musheng spread his hands and said, "I didn't follow you, but I guessed you must have gone to the Yu family martial arts school and retrieved the item the Zhahe Seven Thieves were after from Old Man Yu."
"How can you tell?" Cang Yinyue asked.
"Because before today, you not only followed me, but you also followed the Zhahe Seven Thieves, so you knew what their objective was." Li Musheng reached into his embrace and pulled out a small, six-sided, carved brown wooden box, curiously playing with it in his hand. "If you didn't care about the item in Old Man Yu's hand, then you wouldn't have taken that half an incense stick of time. Since you did, it means this item must be quite important in your eyes."
At this moment, Cang Yinyue's face had already changed. She reached into her own bundle, but the item that had been there was gone. Cang Yinyue slowly straightened up from leaning against the large tree, Li Musheng's bonfire reflected in her phoenix-like eyes.
"When did you steal it?" Cang Yinyue's voice was calm as she spoke. As her words fell, her slender figure vanished into the twilight. In the dim light, only a swift gust of wind passed, making the burning bonfire sway uncontrollably.
When Cang Yinyue reappeared, she was already behind Li Musheng. One hand reached for the six-sided wooden box in Li Musheng's hand, while the other was raised high, her jade-white palm forming a 'hand-knife' as it chopped towards the back of Li Musheng's neck.
"You wouldn't be trying to knock me out and then tie me up to take me to Shangyang City, would you?" Li Musheng's voice rang in Cang Yinyue's ear.
Her pupils immediately widened. Only then did she realize with shock that all her movements had frozen in mid-air; she was somehow completely unable to move.
"You... how did you do that?" Cang Yinyue opened her mouth, finding that she could speak.
"Just an acupoint sealing technique. Who told you to suddenly appear and startle me?" Li Musheng chuckled, looking at Cang Yinyue who was now inches away. A thought struck him, and he suddenly reached out to lift the veil from her face.
"Don't!" Cang Yinyue exclaimed, trying to stop him.
But Li Musheng didn't stop his hand. He said: "Don't be so feudal and rigid in your thinking. A beautiful face is a gift from the heavens; you should learn to share it. What's the point of hiding it and secretly looking at it yourself?"
However, as Li Musheng lifted Cang Yinyue's veil halfway, he quickly put it back on. At this moment, Cang Yinyue's eyes were bloodshot, staring at Li Musheng with intense anger.
"Oh, look, you're getting angry. Can't I just not look?" Li Musheng carefully put the veil back on her, then withdrew his hand. However, a subtle hint of remorse flickered imperceptibly in his eyes.
His gaze lingered on the bonfire for a while, then Li Musheng continued to fiddle with the wooden box in his hand.
At this moment, Cang Yinyue closed her eyes, then slowly opened them again, taking a deep breath before asking: "What acupoint sealing technique was that just now? Why was it so fast?"
Li Musheng replied without turning his head: "This is called the Sunflower Acupoint Sealing Hand, but you probably haven't heard of it, because it's a martial art I created myself."