He Shu had actually thought that his plan was perfect. It was unexpected, but he could only blame bad luck for this sudden turn of events. Still, he could not help but let out a sigh of relief over the fact that Bai Qian would not have to suffer as he had expected.
From a distance, Xie Wu silently watched everything play out, excitement flickering in the depths of his eyes. He did not know if Xuan Qi’s actions had anything to do with the two names that he had provided, but Xie Wu did know He Shu well. The man had to be feeling frustrated and awkward at this moment, and the worse He Shu felt, the happier Xie Wu felt. It was a petty sort of revenge.
Bai Qian eventually arrived, as she had agreed to visit Tu Ke on this particular day.
Everyone bowed to Bai Qian, including He Shu.
When he saw Bai Qian gently walk by, He Shu's eyes grew feverish. His heart should have broken on this day, but because of Xuan Qi, that plan had failed. He Shu could not say if this was good or bad; all he knew was that he felt relieved.
Bai Qian's arrival escalated the situation, and many important people started paying attention to Fortune Star.
While He Ran was irritated that Lu Yin had ruined her plan, she also wanted to see how Bai Qian would react.
Bai Qian had always been quite low-key in the Transcendent Universe, as her personality was almost the complete opposite of He Ran’s, who had been born in the Transcendent Universe and raised to rule the universe from childhood. Even people who could use black energy converters like Uncle Mo had to be respectful towards the woman. After all, He Ran had helped raise Uncle Mo up, and she was even the reason why he had managed to obtain a black energy converter.
On the other hand, Bai Qian came from a foreign universe. This was unprecedented, but while it stunned many, her origins were also regarded as a source of innovation and change. Even the Junior Sovereign was attracted to the woman.
He Ran was a perfect woman, and she seemed to be the epitome of femininity.
As for Bai Qian, she was a different kind of woman. She had the mien of a warrior queen who lived for herself and sought to endlessly improve herself. Her presence emanated a heroic aura, as well as peerless wisdom. She was both talented and fearless, and her qualities had won the support of many people. However, Bai Qian’s supporters had slowly disappeared after all the years of pressure from He Ran, and Bai Qian only had a few people left now, and those few who remained were slowly disappearing.
Bai Qian would not do anything to Tu Ke, but since Tu Ke was facing a Bureau investigation, which not even He Ran could interfere with, she wanted to see how Bai Qian would respond.
"This is the third time we’ve met, but each time we meet, you are completely different," Bai Qian commented indifferently to Lu Yin when she saw him.
Tu Ke emerged from his home and moved behind Bai Qian. He whispered to her, "Madam, there is no need to waste time speaking with him. I am no spy, and I do not fear any investigation from the Bureau."
Bai Qian calmly stared at Lu Yin, who slowly replied, "You always seem so emotionless. I really can't comprehend how someone like you can compete with Sister Ran. Why do you believe that you can stand equal to her?"
"Xuan Qi, the internal affairs of my universe have nothing to do with you! You are being too presumptuous!" Tu Ke shouted.
He Shu’s head rose, and he replied, "Tu Ke, Xuan Qi calls my sister ‘Sister Ran,’ and she has also acknowledged him as her little brother. He is no outsider."
Tu Ke turned to stared at He Shu. "You’re also behind what’s happening here. You want me to fall just like Tu Ying! Well, I'm different from that loser! No one can force me out from the Ruling Council!"
Lu Yin thought that this was too funny, as the man’s confidence actually stemmed from He Ran. While the man appeared to support Bai Qian, he was secretly on He Ran’s side. Given the two’s cooperation and secrets, even if everyone else was forced to step down from the Ruling Council, Tu Ke would remain.
Bai Qian looked over at He Shu and said, "Explain to me what’s happening here."
He Shu shrugged helplessly. "We have nothing to do with any of this, as the Bureau is the one taking action."
Lu Yin interjected at this point, "Tu Ke is suspected of being a spy due to information that the Bureau has obtained. Of course, he is not the only one who’s been implicated, and there are many others as well, but he has the highest position. Naturally, we need to keep an eye on him before going after any of the others so that he doesn’t have an opportunity to escape."
"Are you saying that you are not certain that Tu Ke is a spy?" Bai Qian affirmed.
Lu Yin replied, "If we were, you wouldn’t even be able to see him."
"How likely is it that he is a spy?" Bai Qian continued.
Lu Yin considered the question for a moment. "10%."
Bai Qian grew increasingly cold towards Lu Yin. "Do you realize how much negative influence your actions have on Tu Ke?"
Lu Yin retorted, "In that case, do you realize what will happen to humanity if he is a spy?"
The two stared at each other, neither willing to back down to the other.
Tu Ke was furious, but Xuan Qi was not an easy person to deal with either.
Bai Qian glanced around. Everyone was gazing at her with open respect. Regardless of if she won or lost to He Ran in their competition, it would not make any difference to most of the people in the Transcendent Universe. In fact, most people would not even know who won, so to most people, looking at Bai Qian was no different from looking at He Ran.
"Speaking of influence, don't you think you should be considering someone else’s?" Bai Qian said suddenly.
Lu Yin was confused by the question. "Who are you talking about?"
Bai Qian stared at Lu Yin. "You."
Lu Yin was caught off guard. "Me?"
Bai Qian remained calm.
"What are you talking about, my influence?" Lu Yin could not understand the direction the conversation had gone in.
Bai Qian ridiculed him, "You don't know?"
Lu Yin glanced over at He Shu.
He Shu appeared rather unhappy, but he whispered to Xuan Qi, "There are rumors going around that the reason why Monarch Luo is so certain that Luo Qian was in the Ziyou Realm and that the You family is behind Monarch Mu’s disappearance is because he received the information from you."
Lu Yin's eyes went wide. What was going on? Was he being suspected as the one behind the information leak? Had someone been spying on him? No, that was impossible.
"From your reaction, you really didn’t know. You should worry about the You family first, as if you anger them, you’ll be forced to return to the Voidforce Universe. Things are spiraling out of your control here," Bai Qian coldly stated.
He Shu and the others believed that the woman was mocking Lu Yin, but he knew that she was actually trying to help him think of a way out of his current situation. These rumors might prove to be a minor issue, but they could also become a major problem. Bai Qian was genuinely concerned about Lu Yin, as he was her greatest ally.
Lu Yin was rather confused. How could these rumors have started? Did someone genuinely suspect that he was behind the information that had been leaked to Monarch Luo? He refused to believe that. There was no way that someone had been spying on him.
Could the You family have started the rumors? They were the only ones who had been suspicious of him this whole time. Also, they were infamous for not using logic or evidence, but rather relied solely on their own suspicions and the final results to decide what was true.
When He Shu saw Xuan Qi fall silent and be genuinely caught off guard by the rumors, He Shu felt proud. He Ran was the mastermind behind the rumors, and she had instigated them to undermine and ruin Xuan Qi. It appeared that she was already succeeding.
He Shu whispered, "Don't worry too much about this. There’s just some rumors that there might be a spy who leaked the information, and your ability to capture spies is clear to all. It’s only natural that the Aeternals don’t want you to remain in the Transcendent Universe and hunt down their spies."
Lu Yin looked over at He Shu. Could He Ran be behind the rumors?
If no one had been spying on Lu Yin, and no one suspected that he was a spy either, then there was only one possibility behind these rumors: someone was trying to ruin Xuan Qi’s reputation. The people with the greatest motivation to do that were He Ran and the You family, but the You family most likely would not do anything like this. They had already decided that Xuan Qi was suspicious, so there was no reason for them to spread rumors. Rather, they would have simply dealt with Xuan Qi directly, long before these rumors had started to surface. After all, they had no explanation for Luo Lao’er’s presence in the Ziyou Realm.
That meant that He Ran was the only possible suspect behind the rumors.