Chen Chang'an's Bizarre Moves

"Don't look at me, don't you look at me."

"It wasn't me who broke it—it was him!"

Seeing Yun Zhilan's gaze, Shen Yunfei hurriedly distanced himself from the blame.

Him?

Yun Zhilan turned her attention to Chen Chang'an once more, her expression growing serious.

Though the testing stele in Skypride City was only of the basic level, it wasn't something just anyone could shatter.

As a member of the Yun family, Yun Zhilan knew more about the testing steles than most.

To break the limits of a basic testing stele at an age under thirty thousand years?

Just what kind of background did this man have?

How could someone like him have remained unheard of until now?

Yun Zhilan wasn’t one to be overly proud, but she did hold a quiet confidence in her own talent and strength. Yet, standing before Chen Chang'an now, she felt herself shrinking in comparison.

So this man was truly a monster? No wonder he could nurture a disciple like Yun Qingluan.

A monstrous disciple, and an equally monstrous master!

Was her knowledge of the Profound Heaven Domain lacking, or were they simply not from this domain at all?

"Are you here for the Skypride Rankings as well?" Yun Zhilan noticed, to her own surprise, a hint of nervousness in her voice.

"Mm. My cultivation is a bit low, my resources a bit scarce—just looking to secure some investments," Chen Chang'an replied with a faint smile.

Yun Zhilan didn’t believe a word of it. Someone who could shatter a testing stele couldn’t possibly have low cultivation.

He was playing the fool, hiding his true strength. His real power had to be at least at the peak of the Celestial Immortal realm.

And that was a conservative estimate—after all, breaking the limits of a basic testing stele required nothing less.

He might even be a… Immortal King!

At the thought, Yun Zhilan felt her breath hitch.

An Immortal King under thirty thousand years old? Could he be one of the top-ranked geniuses on the Skypride Grand List?

"You must be joking, brother."

"With your strength, how could your cultivation be low or your resources scarce?"

"If I had to guess, you’re here mainly to accompany your disciple for the Skypride Rankings, aren’t you?" Yun Zhilan said with a smile.

Seeing she didn’t believe him, Chen Chang'an didn’t bother explaining further. Instead, he asked, "You know who those people outside are, don’t you?"

"And which factions have decent reputations and conduct—you’d know that too, right?"

Yun Zhilan nodded. That much, she did know.

"Good. Stay here for a while longer—I need a small favor from you."

A small favor?

What did he mean?

Though confused, Yun Zhilan agreed. But what happened next made everything clear.

Chen Chang'an welcomed every faction that came to "invest" in Yun Qingluan, accepting them all without hesitation.

But Yun Zhilan noticed he treated them differently—for those with questionable morals, he demanded exorbitant prices.

One after another, over a dozen factions came seeking to ally with Yun Qingluan, and by the end, each had paid a hefty price.

After all, with Yun Qingluan’s limitless potential, they believed the greater the investment, the greater the future returns.

"Did you write it all down?"

Once the others had left, Chen Chang'an turned to Yun Zhilan.

"I did. But why did you want me to record it?" she asked, puzzled.

"No reason. Just keeping a list."

"Qingluan, remember these names. You don’t owe them anything in return."

"Since their conduct is questionable anyway, might as well take advantage of them."

"Consider it helping them accumulate virtue. Doing good deeds shouldn’t come with expectations of repayment, right?"

Yun Qingluan was stunned. This was a thing?

"Master, isn’t this… a little inappropriate?" she asked hesitantly.

"It is. But your master isn’t exactly a good person either."

"Just so you know, I won’t teach you anything virtuous. Scared?" Chen Chang'an grinned.

"Not at all!" Yun Qingluan shook her head. She knew Chen Chang'an wasn’t truly wicked at heart—otherwise, he wouldn’t have saved her back then, even offering up the Dragon Source.

Meanwhile, Yun Zhilan stood there, utterly dumbfounded. She’d never imagined such a tactic.

Geniuses on the Skypride Rankings had always rejected factions with poor reputations or ill intentions.

But taking resources and then ghosting them? This was her first time seeing it.

At that moment, Yun Zhilan felt like she’d glimpsed a whole new world. Damn, this move… was brilliant!

Free resources, zero obligations—after all, before these geniuses grew strong, the investors would be more worried about their survival than anything else.

And once they did grow powerful? What could those factions even do? Would they dare speak up?

Sure, it wasn’t the most honorable approach, but against dishonorable people, it was downright poetic.

"Feels like I’ve missed out on so many resources."

"Ugh, why didn’t I think of this before?"

Due to her Yun family status, Yun Zhilan had rarely accepted outside investments, and even then, only after discussions with her elders.

"By the way, why haven’t the Wu and Meng families shown up?"

Chen Chang'an had some history with the Meng family and had been looking forward to squeezing them dry. Yet, they hadn’t even appeared.

"I’m not sure about the Wu family, but as for the Mengs…"

"Miss Yun’s surname alone is reason enough for them to stay away," Yun Zhilan said coldly.

So the rift between the Meng and Yun families ran that deep? They’d pass up a genius just because of her name?

"If they’re not trying to recruit her, they’re probably planning to eliminate her before she grows."

Chen Chang'an understood perfectly—the Mengs wouldn’t tolerate Yun Qingluan’s rise, especially if they assumed she was a Yun family descendant.

Otherwise, their own standing would be at risk.

"The Mengs wouldn’t dare go too far within Skypride City."

"But once outside? That’s another story," Yun Zhilan muttered, frowning.

Fighting was allowed in Skypride City, but one rule was absolute—no harming Skypride Rankings members.

But that protection ended at the city gates.

"So they won’t make a move inside the city?"

"How boring."

"Seems like no one else is coming."

"Tomorrow, let’s head to the Skypride Tower and see what’s happening."