So Real It Seems Fake

Qulin City.

The Young Lad had arrived early and taken his seat at the agreed meeting spot with Chu Xingchen.

When trouble came knocking, dodging it forever was never an option.

Moreover, uncovering what the Dark Crow Sect Leader was up to was equally important for them.

After a brief moment of contemplation, the Young Lad decisively chose—to go all in!

He split the mission into two parts: he would handle tracking the Dark Crow Sect Leader’s movements, while Corn could be reassigned to support Winter Melon.

As for how many people they could mobilize—well, that was entirely up to him. He could just round up a few useless lackeys to fill the numbers and send the rest to aid Winter Melon.

If the enemy’s real target turned out to be him instead…

The Young Lad had already made peace with it—he’d simply give his life if it came to that. As he always said, every endeavor carried risks.

The most crucial question was whether the benefits far outweighed those risks.

Suddenly, the Young Lad shifted his gaze toward the staircase.

There, the Evil Spirit Sect member who had previously posed as a young Taoist priest was leading an unfamiliar young man toward him.

At a single glance, the profound aura of Taoist essence radiating from the young man was unmistakable.

It seemed the Dark Crow Sect Leader didn’t have many capable hands at his disposal right now. If the Young Lad joined in, he might even get close to the core operations. If it were just menial tasks, they wouldn’t have sent a cultivator of this caliber to meet him.

Chu Xingchen walked over with Xie Lingyu in tow and, without a word, tossed a crudely carved black raven token onto the table—something that looked like a child’s handicraft yet not quite.

Before the Young Lad could react, Chu Xingchen scanned the surroundings and asked,

"Where are your men?"

Ignoring the question for now, the Young Lad reached for the black raven token on the table.

The moment his fingers touched it, he sensed a faint, eerie, and nauseating spiritual energy seeping from it.

He lifted the token, holding it up against the bright sunlight, then slowly channeled his spiritual energy into it. Following the agreed-upon method, he slightly altered the flow—and within moments, he clearly saw the ultimate anti-counterfeit mark hidden within: a half-dead raven.

The revolting spiritual energy was unmistakable, and the anti-counterfeit mark checked out.

The Young Lad narrowed his eyes, first examining the carving craftsmanship on the surface, then comparing it to the half-dead raven inside.

The craftsmanship seemed… improved compared to what he’d seen before. The raven in the anti-counterfeit mark, though its shape hadn’t changed much, looked oddly more refined, as if someone had finally developed a sense of aesthetics.

Even the material seemed upgraded—why did it look so much more premium now?

Frowning, the Young Lad studied this token that felt almost too real to be genuine.

Something about it gave him the impression—it was so authentic it felt fake.

The Dark Crow Sect Leader, a man he found utterly vile and repulsive… how could he have produced something that was vaguely… pleasing to the eye?

But the spiritual energy and the anti-counterfeit mark couldn’t be faked.

"Done inspecting?" Chu Xingchen frowned, cutting in impatiently to interrupt the Young Lad’s scrutiny.

He had to stop him—the longer the kid looked, the more his expression soured. Had he spotted the Taidao Sect’s forgery?

Just how reliable was the Taidao Sect anyway? They’d sworn even the Dark Crow Sect Leader himself wouldn’t be able to tell the difference.

Yet here they were, nearly exposed by some low-ranking underling before the real deal even showed up.

The Young Lad set the token back on the table.

Oh well. Maybe the previous tokens were just rushed jobs, and this one was a polished version made for urgent matters.

After all, that disgusting aura couldn’t be faked, and replicating the black raven token was no easy feat. Plus, there were no known leaks—counterfeiting should’ve been near impossible.

It wasn’t like the Eighteen Immortal Sects had nothing better to do than forge these for fun.

And right or wrong, he’d find out once he met the Dark Crow Sect Leader. The token could be fake, but he’d know if the man was real.

If the man turned out to be an impostor—well, same as before. He’d just give his life.

A gentle smile returned to the Young Lad’s face. "My apologies. With tensions running high lately, I had to be cautious. Hope you don’t mind."

Chu Xingchen ignored the pleasantries and repeated, "Where are your men?"

The Young Lad replied, "They’re already waiting outside. Would you like to see them, honored envoy?"

"Lead the way." Chu Xingchen stood, not even glancing back at the token on the table, and strode out.

This had been a test—one Chu Xingchen had prepared for by brushing up on Evil Spirit Sect customs beforehand.

The Dark Crow Token was both an order and a reward for the sect members undertaking the mission.

The bearer would keep it, not returning it until they needed a favor or some resource from the Dark Crow Sect Leader.

The Dark Crow Sect Leader was infamous among both orthodox and unorthodox cultivators for his policy of "I’ll take all the blame, but you better run fast if things go south."

Watching the two descend the stairs, the Young Lad slowly rose and pocketed the token.

Aside from its uncanny authenticity, nothing else seemed off.

He quickly followed, leading Chu Xingchen and Xie Lingyu toward the city gates at a leisurely pace.

Chu Xingchen didn’t rush him, walking calmly behind with an indifferent expression, though he discreetly transmitted a voice message to Xie Lingyu:

"How’s that for acting? Flawless, right?"

Xie Lingyu stiffened slightly at the message. High-level cultivators could easily detect the faint spiritual fluctuations of voice transmission—though eavesdropping required a far greater cultivation gap.

But transmitting messages right now… wasn’t that a bit too brazen? They’d just recruited this guy, and here they were, whispering behind his back moments later.

After a pause, Xie Lingyu hesitantly responded,

"Isn’t this risky? Won’t he grow suspicious?"

Chu Xingchen’s tone was unbothered. "He’d be suspicious either way. Acting bold and natural makes it more convincing."

Xie Lingyu understood instantly, glancing at Chu Xingchen before transmitting back,

"So all those times you were dead serious while spouting nonsense at me…?"

Catching the look, Chu Xingchen straightened his expression. "Don’t slander me. When have I ever spouted nonsense? Weren’t my words logical? You tell me."

This disciple was hopeless. Here he was, trying to impart wisdom, and not even a few steps in, she was already turning his own tricks against him.

"Back then, I was sure you were bluffing!" Xie Lingyu frowned.

"Lingyu, you really think I’m that kind of person?"

"You—"

At the front of the group, the Young Lad’s smile gradually faded.

What were these two discussing? Not only did they not bother hiding their voice transmissions, but the spiritual fluctuations were so frequent it was like they were bickering.

What could possibly have them arguing so intensely already?

Just what was the Dark Crow Sect Leader planning?

Whatever it was, the situation was far stranger than he’d imagined.