Staggered System Tasks (2)

Du Shuang noticed Lin Qianshuang’s troubled expression and wanted to advise her to reconsider and abandon this unrealistic plan.

Lin Qianshuang spoke first, “I’ve already decided to pay my respects to the Tianshu City Lord. Would you please help me prepare the carriage?”

The woman held the jade pendant, her face calm, exuding confidence.

Though Du Shuang was worried that her friend would face difficulties before the Tianshu City Lord, Lin Qianshuang’s determination was unwavering, so she couldn’t stop her and went to prepare the carriage.

“Thank you, Du Shuang,” Lin Qianshuang expressed her gratitude, lifted the carriage curtain, and stepped inside. She had changed into an elegant white robe, her black hair tied up with a crown, and a large purple-black birthmark, concealed by a veil, covered half her face.

If one ignored the disfigured face, she appeared like a handsome young man.

Du Shuang glanced at Xiao Lanle, who was asleep behind Lin Qianshuang in the carriage, and reminded, “When you see the City Lord, show her the jade pendant. You don’t need to reveal your identity; she’ll understand your purpose from the jade pendant.”

Lin Qianshuang nodded in agreement and lowered the carriage curtain.

Taking advantage of the peaceful journey, she checked the favorability task interface in the system. The favorability value under Xiao Lanle’s avatar had unknowingly increased by another 20%.

Xiao Lanle’s favorability had now reached 50%, halfway through the progress bar.

Lin Qianshuang was a little surprised. She looked at Xiao Lanle, whose head was tilted against the carriage, wondering how she hadn’t noticed the steady rise in her junior sister’s affection.

Her eyes flickered, recalling their time in the library.

Back then, Xiao Lanle had held her hand, patiently guiding her through the key points and annotations in the book, explaining everything thoroughly.

Lin Qianshuang mentally berated herself for her slowness. Even a fool could see that Xiao Lanle’s willingness to help indicated a significant decrease in her prejudice.

She couldn’t help but smile with delight. Xiao Lanle had categorized her as a fellow senior sister, not just a passing acquaintance.

If they continued to get along and Xiao Lanle’s heart demon was cured, maybe they could even become close friends who shared everything.

During their time together, Lin Qianshuang had begun to understand Xiao Lanle’s personality. She might be sharp-tongued, but she was not a bad person. If she truly considered someone trustworthy, she would treat them like a friend.

In the original story, Lin Qianshuang admired Xiao Lanle’s personality and appearance. Being appreciated and befriended by her was a pleasant thing.

The carriage stopped, signifying their arrival at Tianshu Palace.

Lin Qianshuang lifted the curtain and looked out. A palace floated above a silver plate, adorned with intricate carvings of the twelve zodiac signs. The star tracks were interlaced with astrological symbols and destinies, and gears were driven by an unseen force. Pale golden orbs of light collided along the tracks, disappearing each time they landed on the silver plate. As they vanished, the sundial in front of Tianshu Palace moved one space.

It seemed the Tianshu City Lord had a keen interest in astrology.

Lin Qianshuang cradled Xiao Lanle in her arms as they admired the spectacular exterior of Tianshu Palace. Seeing the guide cultivator urging them forward, she quickly quickened her pace to catch up.

Upon entering Tianshu Palace, Lin Qianshuang lowered her head and walked forward as instructed, following the city lord’s rule that no one within the palace could look up. The exquisite brocade beneath her feet, embroidered with the totems of the ten ancient mythical beasts, stretched towards the front.

Before she could fully appreciate the intricate needlework, she was pulled down and forced to kneel. She lowered her head, faintly catching a whiff of deep-sea ambergris. Gazing at the brocade edges, inlaid with agate, jade, and emerald, she silently marveled at the grandeur and luxury of the palace. Indeed, the Tianshu City Lord, who controlled the light and dark trade of the cultivation realm, had built a palace worthy of his power.

“You are the one who came to see me, are you not? What do you seek?”

A voice, youthful yet mature, echoed from above.

Lin Qianshuang recalled Xu Zheng’s words about the Tianshu City Lord being a young child, and a wave of disbelief washed over her. Could it really be a child?

Perhaps it was because she had met Mu Weiyin a hundred years earlier than Liang Jingxuan, when he was still a child?

Lin Qianshuang felt a surge of disbelief, but she followed Du Shuang’s instructions and presented her jade pendant, saying, “Respected City Lord, I’ve heard that you possess the most comprehensive secret spells in the cultivation world. My sister has a heart demon that she cannot overcome, and it will inevitably hinder her cultivation path. Could you please offer some guidance, City Lord?”

A casual cultivator took the jade pendant from her hand, ascended the steps, and presented it to the small, round hand that extended from behind the curtain.

After a moment, the jade pendant returned to Lin Qianshuang, and the Tianshu City Lord spoke, “You are under my command, and your position as Jia Liu makes you one of the most skilled individuals in Yixiang Tower. You seek my guidance, but have you considered what you can offer in exchange?”

Lin Qianshuang lowered her head, her disguised, low male voice echoing clearly in the air, “City Lord, my sister possesses the Shark Pearl, a gift seemingly bestowed by you. I have nothing of value to offer in exchange. If you insist, I have only my brute strength and crude martial arts skills. I can only pledge my life to serve you.”

“This woman is the one with the Shark Pearl?”

The Tianshu City Lord behind the curtain seemed to be agitated, and the sound of movement and the lifting of the curtain could be faintly heard.

Lin Qianshuang lowered her head, her gaze falling upon a pair of dark purple brocade boots embroidered with gold thread. A small hand, belonging to the Tianshu City Lord, reached out and gently touched Xiao Lanle’s arm.

“The Shark Pearl’s calculations won’t be wrong. The destined cultivation partners appointed by this City Lord are her, and even though she is a woman, the City Lord is quite satisfied with her appearance.”

Lin Qianshuang secretly raised her head to glance at the scene before her. A domineering girl in purple stood before Xiao Lanle, pretending to be an adult, using her middle and index fingers to lift Xiao Lanle’s chin and examine her face.

The chubby-cheeked girl in purple looked very cute. It was amusing to see such a young child making flirtatious moves to tease Xiao Lanle. Lin Qianshuang chuckled but quickly realized her mistake and suppressed her laughter.

“Is the appearance of this City Lord funny?”

The girl in purple walked arrogantly to Lin Qianshuang and explained, “Once the City Lord and the destined person become cultivation partners, they can break through the cultivation threshold and grow into adults. However, your sister is still too weak at the moment, so it would be detrimental if the City Lord were to cultivate with her now.”

Lin Qianshuang saw the girl’s face clearly. Though her features were still developing, they were symmetrical and refined, with a three-petaled spiritual seal on her forehead that emanated an indescribable aura of immortality. She was short in stature but possessed an extraordinary temperament, hinting at the nascent beauty she would one day become.

No wonder Liang Jingxuan was treated differently by Mu Weiyin after obtaining the Shark Pearl. It turned out there was a deeper reason behind it.

Lin Qianshuang’s mouth twitched. The idea of Mu Weiyin and the Shark Pearl holder forming a Daoist couple solely to break through their cultivation bottleneck and grow up gave her a disturbing sense of being cultivated as a Cauldron.

The automatic pairing startled Lin Qianshuang, but she thought, this might not be so bad. All the male lead’s advantages were bestowed upon Xiao Lanle. With Mu Weiyin’s assistance, Xiao Lanle’s quest to become the leader of the Immortal Alliance would be significantly easier.

However, Xiao Lanle seemed to be uncomfortable with romantic relationships.

Lin Qianshuang felt a pang of worry. She wondered how Xiao Lanle would react if she learned that she had been chosen as a Daoist companion by the Lord of Tianshu City.

Mu Weiyin’s small hand rested on Xiao Lanle’s head, sensing her condition. After a short while, she materialized a spell on a piece of paper, using her spiritual energy to propel it into Lin Qianshuang’s palm. “Jieyu,” she said, “The note I’ve given you contains the method of dream interpretation. You are skilled in the qin, so inject this method into the music. Every three days, cast a spell on Xiao Lanle, and you will be able to enter her inner demons. After a month, her heart demon will gradually dissipate, and you can enter her nightmare to observe the demonic obstacles and take the opportunity to remove them.”

Lin Qianshuang accepted the note, listening to Mu Weiyin’s instructions. She quickly apologized, “This girl is indeed the daughter of the head of the Penglai Immortal Sect. Since the city lord has recognized her, please forgive me for my deception.”

Mu Weiyin curled her lips and said, “No problem. But Jieyu, you promised this City Lord that you would work for me, and I will remember that promise firmly.”

She walked up the steps and sat back on the city lord’s throne, towering over Lin Qianshuang. “I’ve heard that you have a reputation for being a chivalrous person in the cultivation world, and you enjoy taking assassination contracts. So, I, the City Lord, will give you a chance. Remove the three people on this list from the world, and as long as you kill them, the position of Yixiang Tower’s Lord will be yours.”

Lin Qianshuang took the list from the cultivator’s hand, glanced at it, and felt a bit confused.

The first name was her own, Lin Qianshuang, with the added note “noble daughter of the Dongling Lin family’s main clan.”

The second name was Xiao Shen, the head of the Penglai Immortal Sect.

The third name was Chen Xi, the current head of the Chen family.

Except for the third name, which she didn’t recognize, the first two were herself and the leader of the Penglai Immortal Sect.

Lin Qianshuang couldn’t understand why her name was on Mu Weiyin’s assassination list. Perhaps it had something to do with Senior Sister Bai Yueguang being framed and killed, or with Zheng Yan’s death.

[Ding dong! Congratulations, host, for unlocking target character (Mu Weiyin)! Your first task is unlocked. Complete the mission of killing the Penglai Immortal Sect leader, and you will gain 50% favorability from the target character (Mu Weiyin). Go for it!]