âI say, you there miss. I can see your palm lines are getting dark, an omen of bad things to come. Would you care for this humble person to divine your future?
âAnd but donât be afraidâŠI am from a noble background as an accurate fate diviner. They call me the âRight Hand of the God of Fateâ, some might call me âMiserâ, butâŠrest assured, allow me to take a look at your palm firstâŠâ
It was the first sentence that caught Bai Yunfeiâs attention, but it was the latter part that caused him to pay closer attention to the speaker.
He was a young man dressed in a coarse robe of gray. His hair was tied behind his head, but only at the top so the rest of his hair splayed wildly whenever the wind blew. Handsome, but somewhat arrogant, the man looked quite laidback at a glance. At the current moment he was staring curiously at the palm of a young woman, a finger to his chin as he thought âprofuselyâ about it.
Bai Yunfei exclaimed in surpriseâthis was a person he met several times before. The mysterious Nalan Yin!
âWhatâs wrong, Yunfei?â
Noticing Bai Yunfeiâs expression, Zheng Kai turned his head to look at the same direction as him.
âSaw someone I know, Iâm going to say hello.â
Turning around, Bai Yunfei weaved through the throngs of people between him and Nalan Yin. âLong time no see, brother Nalan.â
Having been so engrossed in the palm he was reading, it took Nalan Yin a second to understand he was being spoken to. âYouâreâŠâ He gasped, âYouâre Bai Yunfei!!â
âYou still remember me I see,â Bai Yunfei smiled, âI didnât think weâd meet each other hereâŠâ
The signpost behind Nalan Yin had only one word on it; âFortunetellingâ. Strangely enough, Bai Yunfei began to realize somethingâthe way Nalan Yin was dressed and spoke was exactly the same as the first time the two first met. Was this really the same person he met in Redfire City all those years ago?
Thatâd be a big joke if he was since âswindlersâ of the world would never be a Late-stage Soul King.
âHow could I not? Youâre the hot topic of the whole world!â Nalan Yin laughed as he finished up his reading of the womanâs palm. He flashed a smile to her before bidding farewell.
âBrother NalanâŠâ Bai Yunfei spoke the moment she was gone, âWhat is thisâŠ?â
âThis?â Laughed Nalan Yin, âWellâŠitâs a hobby of mine, a hobby I like very much.â
âYunfei, who is thisâŠ?â
Tang Xinyun and the others had caught up with Bai Yunfei now. Zheng Kai was still giving Nalan Yin a curious glance as he whispered to Bai Yunfei.
âThis is Nalan Yin.â Bai Yunfei introduced, âBrother Nalan, this is my wife, Tang Xinyun. And these are my friends, Zheng Kai, Mo XiaoxuanâŠâ
âAh, the young miss of the Tang and the second son of the ZhengâŠâ Nalan Yin quirked an eyebrow, âThis one is Nalan Yin, a pleasure to meet you all.â
âItâs nice to meet you, brother Nalan.â Still curious, Zheng Kai gave Nalan Yin a polite bow.
Once he was done greeting everyone, Nalan Yin turned back to face Bai Yunfei. âIt feels like it was just yesterday since we saw each other in the Soulbeast Forest. Allow myself to give my heartfelt admiration and congratulations for your breakthrough into the Emperors, brother BaiâŠâ
âYouâre not doing too badly for yourself, brother Nalan. Becoming a Soul Emperor wonât be too far in your future.â\nNalan Yin appeared at the sight of the Extreme King Pill struggle when Li Chengfeng did. The two managed to secure just as much of the Extreme King Pills to allow them an easy breakthrough to become Soul Kings, but their rate of progression after that was alarming to see.
âIâm just a mere opportunistâŠitâs you who we should be talking about! Haha, destroying the entire Beast Taming School? Respect isnât even half of what I feel! I presume you went to the Tomb of the Emperor Beasts to become a Soul Emperor?â
âOh? How did you know that?â
âJust a guess.â Nalan Yin smiled myseriously. âHow was it like? Was it easy breaking through in there?â
âAhâŠitâs a place containing all the dead class eight soulbeasts and their inheritances, but thatâs about itâŠâ Bai Yunfei answered, confused why Nalan Yin would ask. âOh, if I recall correctly, your contracted soulbeast partner is the renowned divinebeast Zhi Tian, correct? You must be heading into the Tomb of the Emperor Beasts soon yourself?â
âWhat? You knew?!â Nalan Yin gasped.
âMy friend, Li Chengfeng, is a student of the Fate School. He told me that he saw you and your soulbeast partner during the Extreme King Pill struggle.â
âHim?! You know him?!â
âFrom a very long time ago, I saw him very recently, in fact. He told meâŠyouâre the disciple of Ling Yin the Wanderer, right?â
Mysterious didnât even begin to describe Nalan Yin. Bai Yunfei always thought he was a student of the Fate School due to the strange soul armament he had, but it turned out that wasnât the case. Li Chengfeng told Bai Yunfei when they met that Nalan Yin was just the disciple of Ling Yin, one of the most powerful wandering soul cultivators on the continent. Ling Yin the Wanderer. A powerful soul cultivator that once had ties with the Fate School, hence him being able to wield the energy of fate.
To make matters even more strange, Nalan Yinâs soulbeast partner was the extremely rare âomniscient divinebeastâ that could wield the power of fate. Li Chengfeng and Ge Geyun once traveled to the Soulbeast Forest to contract with the divinebeast, but they failed since they didnât know Nalan Yin was already partnered with him.
âDivinebeastâ was simply a title given to the soulbeasts of the ancient past. Nalan Yinâs companion, âZhi Tianâ, was a class seven soulbeast, but not even class eight soulbeasts would give him disrepect due to his title.
âIt is as you say.â Nalan Yin nodded. âSo you knew him after allâŠhe must be a Late-stage Soul King by now, Zhi Tian told me that Li Chengfeng is a brilliant geniusâŠâ
Bai Yunfei laughed. âTo tell you the truth, Li Chengfeng is already an Early-stage Soul Emperor.â
âWhat?!â Nalan Yin cried, âHeâs already a Soul Emperor?! But how!!â
âHonestly, my friendâs talent for training is practically unmatchedâŠâ
âIâŠâ Nalan Yin looked unsteady. âYouâre all monstersâŠâ He whispered under his breath.
âHm?â He snapped back up suddenly as if sensing a disturbance in the air. Bowing to everyone, he smiled. âSo sorry for the impromptu departure, but there is something I must do right now. Until next time!â
Bewildered by this, Bai Yunfei took a second before he nodded. âUntilâŠuntil next time.â
Sealing the table into his ring and hoisting his signboard onto his shoulder, Nalan Yin took off into the distance.
He stopped a few seconds later, âBrother Zheng Kai, since it was fate that brought us to meet, allow me to say somethingâI saw some dark lines on your forehead. A disaster is around the corner for you, Iâm afraid. The signs of bloodshed are there, and also the sign of a mighty struggle between life and death. Youâd best be very carefulâŠâ
Zheng Kai replied, confused. But before he could ask about anything else, Nalan Yin was already gone into the crowdâŠ