The Rise of the Divine Oracle

Chapter 104 - Blackmail

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Yuxio has been having a crappy day. Her grandmaster has been avoiding her and in her world: a day spent without seeing his magnificent face is a day wasted. So far, this day has been a waste. She was sent to Cloud Recesses by Jiang Clan Leader to help heal Wuxian. So, she was basically needed one day a week while the rest she spent either training or stalking the golden-haired man. She sometimes enjoys the occasional pranks on his young disciples but Lan Clan members are so stiff and don't appreciate her humorous efforts.

She was on her way to see what Lan Ran was up to and hopefully fish out information about Wuxian's whereabouts. After all, Ran was his assistant and Yuxio couldn't wait one more day to see him during his healing session.

She stood in front of Ran's door, ready to knock on the door when she heard shouting from inside. For a Lan Clan member, this kind of behavior is considered unbecoming. She got curious and instead put her ear to the door and started listening.

Lan Ran was pacing like a caged cat. She couldn't believe how unlucky she was to be shackled to a man like the finder.

Ran took a deep breath then asked with a calm voice: "Tell me again in detail what happened."

Liwei sighs loudly: "I told you! Since I cannot leave Cloud Recesses until the elders are convinced that I will not just run away and abandon you, I sent a bunch of my followers to finish a job."

Ran: "This is the same job Zewu Jun and Treasure Wei asked you to complete the last time around."

Liwei nods: "Correct."

Ran pinches the space between her eyes in frustration: "Do you not trust your followers?"

Liwei shakes his head: "They're smart and I trained them well."

Ran sighs: "Is the mission hard and requires your expertise in some way?"

Liwei: "No.. not in particular.."

Ran throws her hands in the air in frustration: "THEN WHY? Why do you want to leave in a haste when your followers are more than capable of fulfilling the task by themselves? Do you know how much trouble we're both in? It might not matter to you but I was this close to being kicked out of Lan Clan because of the stunt we pulled!" She puts her fingers so close together to emphasize her point.

Ran sits down with a huff: "My parents and sister are all dead. The only family I have left is Hweiru. If I get kicked out of Lan Clan, I cannot see her freely or be involved in her life. I know you wish for nothing more than to leave, but this is my life. This is my home. We have to stay together or we will be forced to leave together."

Liwei groans: "I know that! I'm not as dumb as you claim me to be. The task Treasure Wei trusted me with was not trivial. Even if I trust my followers, they don't know the full picture. I was privy to the secrets of his visions and I'm unable to share it with them. They might not see what needs to be seen due to lack of information."

Ran closes her eyes in defeat: "So.. you either stay and save me or leave to save the future?"

Liwei moves closer to the distressed woman: "It's not an easy choice but a clear one."

Ran sighs: "I must have sinned gravely in my past lives.."

Liwei: "What if we appeal to the elders? Or Zewu Jun? He seems like a reasonable man who has influence around here."

Ran shakes her head: "They have so much on their plate. This is trivial to them."

Liwei was surprised by her comment: "You don't think that your future is worth fighting for?"