Volume 1 Chapter 148

Volume 1 + Chapter 148: No Ivory Ever Comes From A Dog’s Mouth

Thinking this far, Long Aotian subconsciously paused for a moment, his steps slowing to a brief halt.

Originally, he had planned to return to that shabby shelter, remain there for a while longer, bury his head and patiently wait for the right moment to arrive, all while quietly observing how the situation unfolded. However, all of a sudden, an inexplicable impulse surged up within him.

That intense urge compelled him to change direction, his pace unconsciously quickening, as if he had suddenly decided to pay a visit to the Church.

He knew very well that if he could see Vivian, there might still be room for a breakthrough.

After all, the chubby man had already been taken away by the Church. Logically speaking, with the Church’s immense power and resources, they should be able to uncover at least some clues.

As this thought crossed his mind, a faint sense of anticipation arose in Long Aotian’s heart. For reasons unknown, his restless unease only grew stronger. He could barely suppress the impulse anymore, and so he instinctively picked up his pace, heading straight toward the Church.

At this moment, Vivian had just exited the bank, carrying a large, heavy sack of gold coins in her hands. A trace of irritation lingered on her face as she hurried along, moving so fast that her figure almost blurred into overlapping afterimages.

Her heart was filled with urgency. The weight of the coins forced her to exert extra effort, and had it not been for that heavy bag of gold, she would have already wanted to leap into the air and flee this place as quickly as possible, far away from all those annoying troubles.

However, as she rushed forward, the corner of her eye caught sight of a figure she deeply despised.

That appearance made her stop dead in her tracks.

Long Aotian.

That detestable bastard had actually shown up here.

She instinctively halted, her brows knitting tightly in an instant, forming a deep crease. A wave of inexplicable nausea surged up inside her, as if she had swallowed an unwelcome fly, utterly sickening.

Her mind immediately filled with questions: “Zhang Bo? Why is this guy here?”

The anger in her chest threatened to erupt at any moment, yet she forcibly suppressed it.

Almost instinctively, Vivian lowered her head, hoping to use the crowd as cover to quietly detour around that loathsome figure.

She thought that if she could avoid this unnecessary encounter, it would be for the best.

Yet fate seemed intent on toying with her. Just as she prepared to leave swiftly, the flow of people on the street suddenly thinned, and the open space ahead made her movements far more conspicuous.

Worse still, the bag of gold coins in her hands was heavy and eye-catching, like a glaring warning signal, wherever she went, all eyes followed.

Her figure and face were already far from low-key, and with a sack of glittering gold added on top of that, remaining unnoticed was nothing short of a fantasy.

“Vivian!”

Just as her heart tightened and she tried to quicken her pace, a familiar voice rang out from behind her, followed by that utterly detestable face. Long Aotian rushed toward her without hesitation, beaming broadly, his smile so ingratiating it made one uncomfortable.

“What a coincidence! I was just looking for you! What’s in that bag of yours? It looks really heavy, let me help you carry it!”

As he spoke, he leaned in closer, the fawning smile on his face dripping like honey, oozing an unsettling sense of ill intent. Vivian could almost feel his malicious gaze crawling over her.

“No need. I’ve got things to do. Don’t block my way.”

Vivian frowned deeply. Toward the Long Aotian standing before her, she felt not the slightest trace of goodwill.

That man who once constantly egged her on to throw everything away and chase vanity, now, all that remained in Vivian’s heart toward him was hatred.

Her emotions had long since turned ice-cold, even descending into profound loathing. The person who once showered her with sweet words had become an indelible stain in her heart.

Yet Long Aotian clearly had no intention of letting her go so easily. He followed her tirelessly, sticking close no matter how much she quickened her pace, always managing to block her path with infuriating precision.

That behavior was no different from those vile little hooligans who loved bullying female classmates at school, ill-intentioned, wearing expressions full of frivolity and contempt.

The two of them tangled back and forth like this, the air of the entire street seeming to soak in that unpleasant tension.

Amid this chaos, the sack of gold coins in Vivian’s hands suddenly slipped. Gleaming coins spilled across the ground, clinking crisply as they scattered, instantly drawing everyone’s attention.

A glint of greed flashed in Long Aotian’s eyes. At the sight of those coins, his eyes practically lit up.

“Damn, that’s a lot of gold! What is it this time, more clothes, jewelry, and cosmetics?”

He spoke with open mockery and disdain. “I told you ages ago, girls should buy less of that stuff. Consumerism is a trap, it’s not something to mess around with.”

Before the words had even fully left his mouth, he bent down with practiced ease, picked up several coins, and casually slipped them into his pocket, a smug grin spreading across his face.

Seeing Long Aotian’s self-satisfied behavior, Vivian felt as though she were about to explode with rage. Yet this scoundrel always seemed able to produce endless excuses and justifications, leaving her with no easy way to refute him.

Her fury reached its peak, but she still took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the urge to strike him.

After all, now was not the time to act. This was the imperial capital, getting into a street altercation would likely land her in serious trouble.

Moreover, Vivian had little confidence that she could defeat this despicable man. Long Aotian had always been ruthless and calculating; if it truly came to blows, she would probably not be his match.

More importantly, she had far more pressing matters to attend to at the moment. If she is delayed here, it might already be too late.

She stared at Long Aotian in silence for a moment, then finally spoke coldly, “Give the money back to me, then get lost. Get as far away as you can.”

“I won’t just take your money for nothing. I can give you a piece of important information, do you want to hear it?”

Long Aotian cut her off, the corner of his mouth lifting into a crafty smile.

As he spoke, he blew lightly on the coins in his hand, brought them up to his ear, and gently shook them, savoring the pleasant jingle. A sense of satisfaction welled up in his heart, as though he were enjoying a moment of triumph.

“You’ll never spit out anything good with that dog mouth of yours!”

With a flick of her will, several coins instantly flew out of Long Aotian’s pocket and dropped neatly back into Vivian’s sack.

“Keep this up and I’m calling for help!”

Vivian threatened him. Only then did Long Aotian finally put away his flippant demeanor, raising both hands high.

“I surrender, I surrender. Saintess, I really do have important information. I came to make a deal with you.”

“I know you’re still angry with me, but this information itself is innocent, right?”

As he spoke, Long Aotian spread his hands toward Vivian, gesturing for her to give him two gold coins.

But Vivian couldn’t be bothered with him at all. She walked straight past him, heading toward the real estate agency.

All the while, she didn’t forget to mutter curses under her breath…

“Psycho. Get lost! Save that trick for scamming children!”

[Translator’s Note: Starting this Chapter, I replace Dragon-Pride Protagonist with Long Aotian and Holy Maiden with Saintess. Both terms were used by the Previous Translator, and I kept it in the past Chapters in order to not confuse the Readers, but I changed my mind because the new terms better suited the Novel.]