This is a massive iron cage, large enough for ten people to sit side-by-side.
Outside the cage stand five burly men clad in uniform robes. Each of them possesses a strength of at least two-star King rank, tasked specifically with guarding the slave pens and preventing any escape.
Inside the iron cage, Mu Qingqing looks at the people before her, her face as serene as ever, showing no fear or panic.
Elder Han, within the crystal space, sends a telepathic message to Mu Qingqing, his voice tinged with annoyance, "Little girl, I warned you to be careful earlier. You always seem to know things I don't, so why did you make such a mistake this time?"
"Slave trading has always been prevalent in Jingchen Kingdom. You should have been more vigilant upon seeing the merchant ships of Jingchen Kingdom."
Hearing Elder Han's reprimand, Mu Qingqing actually smiles and replies, "I know all of that. I just wanted to come in here to find someone."
"Find whom?" Elder Han asks, a hint of confusion in his voice.
Mu Qingqing points to an old man lying on a pile of hay inside the cage, scratching his backside as he sleeps.
"Him? Little girl, don't tell me you deliberately got yourself captured just to find this slave?" Elder Han's tone is one of extreme helplessness, as if he cannot comprehend her actions.
Mu Qingqing smiles, ignoring Elder Han. She walks forward and pats the old man's body, saying with a grin, "Old gambler, wake up."
However, the old man merely turns over, presenting his back to Mu Qingqing, seemingly unwilling to acknowledge her.
"Little girl, you can't be kidding me. He's completely ignoring you. Do you really know him?"
"This... I know him, but he doesn't know me." Mu Qingqing gives an awkward smile. From the very beginning, her boarding this ship was solely to find this old man.
In the original novel, this old man is Dao Yuanming, the Dean of the Four Symbols Academy. She remembers that at this point in time, Dao Yuanming is supposed to have a wager with Emperor Ming. The condition of their bet is that Dao Yuanming must conceal his cultivation, blend into a slave ship, and reach Jingchen Kingdom safely without using his true essence. If he succeeds, he wins. Such a peculiar bet is something only Dao Yuanming, the old gambler, would engage in.
Seeing Dao Yuanming still in a deep slumber, resembling a sleeping pig, Mu Qingqing reveals a sly smile. She squats down and feigns surprise, "Oh my, isn't this Dao, the Dean of the Four Symbols Academy..."
Before Mu Qingqing can finish speaking, Dao Yuanming leaps up with a carp-like flip, reaching out to cover Mu Qingqing's mouth. But Mu Qingqing had anticipated this, and the moment his hand extended, she had already retreated, dodging his grab.
Dao Yuanming pauses for a moment. "This kid actually has some skill to dodge my grab." His surprised gaze scans Mu Qingqing, while Mu Qingqing takes the opportunity to stick out her tongue at him.
"Kid, don't go around shouting. I am not the Dean of the Four Symbols Academy!" Dao Yuanming, thick-skinned as ever, shows no embarrassment. Instead, he tries to bluster his way out of it with a straight face. Internally, he thinks cheekily: As long as this kid doesn't reveal my name, I won't be recognized, and I can still win this bet.
Mu Qingqing, of course, can see his thoughts. She smiles and pretends to be innocent, "Sorry, old grandfather, I might have mistaken you. You are not Dao..."
"Alright, stop acting. You knew who I was long ago, didn't you?" Dao Yuanming, seeing Mu Qingqing continue to feign ignorance, can't help but say. Mu Qingqing, now that she's revealed, smiles without speaking.
Dao Yuanming, having been recognized, feels a sense of boredom. He asks, "Kid, did that fellow Shen Wei send you to play a trick on me?" "This Shen Wei, I just gambled away his Golden Flood Dragon with someone, and he actually tracked me down and deliberately made me lose this bet. How utterly boring."
Hearing Dao Yuanming's complaints, Mu Qingqing can't help but chuckle. However, she still says, "Dean, I wasn't sent by Emperor Ming to trick you. I just happened to board this ship."
"Really?" Dao Yuanming casts a suspicious glance at Mu Qingqing and asks. Mu Qingqing nods.
The next second, Dao Yuanming displays a mischievous grin, leaning closer to Mu Qingqing and whispering, "Kid, since you're not here to trick me, why don't you do me a small favor? Don't worry, I certainly won't mistreat you."
Mu Qingqing raises an eyebrow upon hearing this and asks, "The small favor you're talking about, isn't it asking me to pretend I don't know you, so you can win your bet with Emperor Ming?"
"How did you know?" Dao Yuanming exclaims in surprise, asking instinctively. This young man before him, whom he's met for the first time, seems to understand him so well.
"Little fellow, who exactly are you? And you've been calling me Dean all along. As far as I know, no one in Zhongzhou knows I'm the Dean of the Four Symbols Academy." Dao Yuanming looks at Mu Qingqing and asks with a serious expression.
Mu Qingqing shrugs, rolling her eyes at Dao Yuanming, "How can you even say that? It's a good thing you still remember you're the Dean of the Four Symbols Academy." "You didn't even bother to return for major events like the blood ghost chaos in the Tiankeng Secret Realm and the Eastern Continent Grand Competition, leaving everything to Vice Dean Liu Yuanhao. You're a truly unqualified Dean!"
Hearing this, Dao Yuanming sheepishly scratches his head. "This... this Dean actually had important matters to attend to in Zhongzhou, making it inconvenient to return. Moreover, those matters could be handled by Liu Yuanhao; I didn't need to intervene."
"The important matters you're talking about are gambling everywhere and eventually having to freeload off your good friend Emperor Ming?" Mu Qingqing unceremoniously pierces through Dao Yuanming's lie.
"Uh, how do you know so much, kid?" Dao Yuanming asks, somewhat astonished. Mu Qingqing shrugs.
"Wait, you just mentioned Vice Dean Liu Yuanhao, and you've been calling me Dean. Could it be... you're a student of the Four Symbols Academy?" Dao Yuanming suddenly seems to have heard something incredible, his eyes wide with disbelief as he stares at Mu Qingqing.
"Dean, I am a student of the Vermilion Bird Courtyard, Xin Ci," Mu Qingqing says with a smile to Dao Yuanming.
Upon hearing this, Dao Yuanming can't help but angrily tap Mu Qingqing's head. "Kid, don't lie to me. If you were truly a student of the Four Symbols Academy, you would only be at the King realm and dare to travel to Zhongzhou alone. Do you know how dangerous Zhongzhou is?"
"Dean, if you can come, why can't I?" Mu Qingqing asks plaintively, covering her head.
"You're not like me, kid. I am at the Saint Emperor realm, while you are merely a one-star King. While your talent is good, you're still too young. You should return to the Four Symbols Academy quickly to avoid any danger. I won't have time to save you then." Dao Yuanming advises, shaking his head with a sigh. He believes this young man is too young and too weak to venture into Zhongzhou yet.