Who's that?!
I have never heard of her before?!
Abhram felt that his master had a talent for lying.
Look at her straight face and look at that genuine expression!
He doubted that anyone would believe his master was so good at lying.
Even he felt that he would have been hoodwinked into believing all her lies If it were him, let alone these yet-to-wean little girls.
He had just woken up to hear his master lying so blatantly to this innocent girl and felt somewhat guilty on behalf of his shameless master.
But look at that culprit!
She just stood there straight ramrod without any hint of guilt or shame.
Abram's lips twitched as he couldn't help but mumble softly, " Master, you sure know how to act."
His mumble was so soft that it was faintly audible yet Jiang Ying Yue seemed to have an extraordinary hearing ability.
A soft yet threatening snort reverberated throughout the space startling the little fellow.
Abhram realized that he had been caught red-handed and trembled slightly on this discovery.
Feeling flustered he huffed and puffed as if trying hard to come up with something before suddenly turning his head to look somewhere else pretending to not know anything.
He didn't know anything!
He hadn't done anything!
He was innocent!
Yes, yes, he was innocent!
As long as he played innocent he would be innocent!
Seeing the boy's antics Jiang Ying Yue snorted once again, not willing to pay any more attention to him, and turned to continue listening to the girl who had been going on for a while.
".....Jiang Ying Yue never feared anyone and dared to challenge any strong opponent who came her way. She is just like her father brave and formidable....."
Though she had been listening quietly to the girl for a while Jiang Ying Yue failed to understand anything, she was starting to grow impatient as Tian Lan went on and on. The other two girls had the same look as well, their eyes slowly growing impatient.
For the first time, Jiang Ying Yur felt that her name sounded too annoying after hearing it repeatedly every two sentences.
Jiang Ying Yue this...Jiang Ying Yue that...
Alright, they understood this character was formidable!
But could anyone say how this was related to their trip?
Weren't they just talking about their teammates? How did they end up listening to Jiang Ying Yue's biography?
This was what Jiang Ying Yue and the other two thought.
Jiang Ying Yue looked up at the sky to see the sun was slowly moving towards the horizon and felt another wave of impatience.
It was getting late, she had to leave as early as possible or else her mother would soon find out about her disappearance and would come chasing after her.
"Em...Senior sister...." Finally not willing to hear any more of Jiang Ying Yue one of the girls called out to Tian Lan making her pause mid-sentence, " Senior sister, weren't you telling us about our team members? Can you tell us more? You know this is our first trip, so we are a bit nervous."
"Oh..." Realizing that she had lost her control over her mouth again Tian Lan looked a bit embarrassed.
But it couldn't be helped. After all, with the way she idolized Jiang Ying Yue, she would always find it hard to stop herself from praising her idol.
In modern terms, she was Jiang Ying Yue's fan girl.
Even after Jiang Ying Yue fell from the high pedestal, this fact didn't change.
Tian Lan still admired her deeply. So, whether she was high up on the clouds or living in the dust, Tian Lan never cared.
Tian Lan's admiration was beyond the boundary of fall and rise.
" Ahem...sorry, I got carried away." Tian Lan apologized giving a sheepish smile before telling the girls and Jiang Ying Yue about their team members.
She started with her two seniors who were leading the team and were also the strongest amongst them, then proceeded to other members, one after one.
Jiang Ying Yue didn't who they were just from their names but looking at the other two girls' increasingly relaxed expressions, she concluded that these people must be reliable though she didn't care.
To her as long as she had someone to show her the route anything was fine. Anyway, she didn't plan on relying on anyone for protection. Since she decided to venture into such dangerous places she must have some abilities.
It was getting late and they had a lot to prepare for their upcoming trip. After deciding to meet outside the Citygate early morning after three days the four of them were preparing to say their goodbyes when they felt someone approaching.
" Tian Lan, have you seen seniors?" A tall youth with an average appearance rushed over seemingly in a hurry as he asked this in a single breath.
Tian Lan looked confused at his hurried speech and asked promptly, " No. What happened? Why are you so rushed?"
".... It's nothing." softly mumbled the youth looking troubled and absent-minded. As he spoke his eyes darted around not meeting her gaze.
Tian Lan caught his strange behavior and furrowed her brows, " Deng Quan, what's wrong? If you have something to say then spill out the beans. Don't make us feel uneasy for no reason!"
Deng Quan, who had been hesitating heard her stern voice and understood her underlying warning. Since he had to say it anyway it didn't matter even if he said it earlier. He wanted to wait for two senior brothers, however, forget it.
" Tian Lan, it's like this...you see I have some urgent matters to attend to at home and won't be able to follow you guys to Beast Heaven mountain. So, can you inform the two senior brothers about this....I...I know it's not very appropriate of me but I can't help it." Deng Quan explained looking somewhat apologetic and waited for her response.
However, Tian Lan didn't even blink and kept staring deep into his eyes, which Deng Quan kept evading.
No one spoke.
On the bustling streets, they were surrounded by all kinds of noises and chatter but the air around them seemed to be still.
Deng Quan was feeling increasingly awkward on being subjected to Tian Lan's piercing gaze and wanted to make his move.
As he felt that a century had passed Deng Quan heard a voice, " Alright, I'll inform the seniors." Tian Lan spoke very lightly not looking a bit upset.
Looking at her calm expression Deng Quan felt a bit conflicted but in the end, he chose to suppress it and walked away.
Tian Lan stared at his back, her gaze filled with disappointment.
How could she not tell Deng Quan was lying to them?
Although she looked talkative and carefree she had a well-developed brain. So, she could tell what was going on.
"Don't mind him. I think we would be better without this kind of person." Jiang Ying Yue's lazy voice drifted breaking the awkward silence.
Tian Lan was stunned by her words before she broke into a kind smile as she nodded heavily, " Yes, such a disloyal person couldn't be trusted."
The other girls didn't say anything but somewhat understood the situation from reading between the lines.