The moment Ye Yunfei finished speaking, the expressions of the three individuals — the stall-keeping young man, the pink-dressed young lady, and her maidservant — all changed drastically.
"How do you know who I am?"
The young lady in the pink dress stared at Ye Yunfei with her beautiful eyes, her tone filled with disbelief.
"You there! What do you mean by that! You slander me, saying I'm trying to cheat people? Fine, then this sword is no longer for sale!"
Hearing Ye Yunfei's words, the young man first started in shock, his face fluctuating through several emotions before settling into an aggrieved expression after a few breaths. He then simply stowed away the Heavenly Phoenix Sword.
Ye Yunfei responded to neither of them, only offering a faint smile.
"Master, how did you know the identities of those two young ladies? Could they be the acquaintances you mentioned?" Hu Miao asked curiously.
"They both practice the Longevity Palace's Longevity Art, and the young lady has reached quite an accomplished level in it. Within Longevity Palace, I doubt there is any other female disciple of her generation who could match her. Furthermore, the only one likely referred to as 'Young Lady' within Longevity Palace would be their Palace Lord's daughter."
Ye Yunfei replied with a smile.
In his previous life, Ye Yunfei had heard about how the Young Lady of Longevity Palace, accompanied by her personal maidservant, had snuck out. As a result, Longevity Palace dispatched many experts to search everywhere for their Young Lady's whereabouts.
Noticing the aura of the Longevity Art on the pink-dressed young lady and considering the behavior of the two women, he naturally guessed their identities.
"Rou'er, let's quickly buy that sword and leave here!"
The pink-dressed young lady whispered to her maidservant, beginning to feel wary of Ye Yunfei.
She had indeed sneaked out of her home with her maidservant, traveling around for fun. They had only passed by Yueying City by chance and, hearing about the treasure street, entered out of curiosity.
She never expected someone would see through her identity now.
"How much for the Heavenly Phoenix Sword? We'll take it," Rou'er said to the young man.
"I'm sorry, ladies. I'm not selling this sword anymore," the young man said. "I don't want anyone accusing me of cheating."
"We trust you," the pink-dressed young lady said.
"You're wasting your breath," Ye Yunfei interjected calmly. "Now that he knows who you are, he won't sell it to you. Miracle Hand Situ Kong'er, while he excels at every form of swindling and trickery, is also extremely prudent. He knows exactly who he can afford to provoke and who he cannot."
At Ye Yunfei's words, the young man's face drastically changed again, and he took a step back. "You..."
"What? You're that oft-thieving Miracle Hand Situ Kong'er?"
Hearing Ye Yunfei, the young lady and her maidservant both cried out in shock, looking at the young man with incredulous gazes.
Miracle Hand Situ Kong'er had a bit of a reputation within the Central Divine Land, and many had heard his moniker. It was said that once, Situ Kong'er even dared to steal from a Heavenly God Palace elder! As a result, Heavenly God Palace dispatched experts to hunt him, leaving him scrambling and fleeing. No one knew how that affair finally ended.
After that incident, the title 'Miracle Hand Situ Kong'er' became known throughout the Central Divine Land.
"You... you're vicious!"
The young man's gaze fell on Ye Yunfei, his expression shifting violently. Then, with a vicious glare, he swept his sleeve, collecting all the items from his street-side stall, and turned to leave.
"Young Lady, it seems he really is Miracle Hand Situ Kong'er! We almost fell for his trick!" The maidservant immediately grasped the situation.
"Yes," the young lady nodded.
Although inexperienced and relatively naive, these two were not foolish. They now understood the young man had indeed been trying to swindle them.
"Hmph! Miracle Hand Situ Kong'er, I'll remember you! Once I get back, I'll tell the Palace Lord about what happened today and let the Palace Lord get revenge for us!" Rou'er said indignantly, thinking about how she had nearly lost a huge sum.
"Good gracious, ladies, I haven't actually cheated you yet, have I? Please don't slander me like that," Situ Kong'er blurted out anxiously.
Longevity Palace was a superpower of the Central Divine Land. If the Palace Lord himself were to take note of him, the trouble would be immense. Situ Kong'er had already been hunted by Heavenly God Palace experts in the past and did not wish to provoke Longevity Palace now.
Having said this, he rushed into the flow of pedestrians in the street and instantly vanished from sight.
"Hey? He got away so fast! Young Lady, can you see where he went?" Rou'er exclaimed in surprise.
"Do you want to know where he is? Watch carefully."
With a laugh, Ye Yunfei strode forward. His movement speed was astonishingly fast, and in the blink of an eye, he was before an old woman leaning on a cane, her steps shaky, her appearance delicate, looking as if a mere breeze could blow her over.
"Brother Situ, you can't escape my eyes," Ye Yunfei said, smiling at the old woman.
"You've mistaken me for someone else! This old granny doesn't look like that fellow at all!" Rou'er exclaimed upon seeing this.
The moment Rou'er finished speaking, the old woman's expression changed drastically. "Boy, get away from me!" she shouted angrily.
As the words left her mouth, the old woman's figure flashed, plunging into the crowd not far away and disappearing without a trace once more.
"If you want to see the show, follow my master," Hu Miao said with a smile, moving forward to follow.
"Young Lady, let's go take a look too," Rou'er said, her curiosity piqued, as she pulled her mistress by the hand.
"Rou'er, you and your meddling ways!" the young lady grumbled.
Nonetheless, although Rou'er was her maidservant, they shared a bond as close as sisters, having grown up together, accustomed to jokes and fun.
A moment later, Ye Yunfei stopped before a palace-attired young woman.
"Brother Situ, your Seventy-Two Transformations are truly entertaining," Ye Yunfei said, looking at the young palace-attired woman with a smile.
"What Brother Situ? I don't know you. In broad daylight with so many people watching, please don't harass me!" the young palace-attired woman retreated a step, wearing a wary expression and scolding sharply.
"I recognize your aura. You can't hide from me," Ye Yunfei said, then reached out to grab the young woman.
"Help! Molestation!"
The young woman's flowery countenance lost its color as she retreated repeatedly, screaming loudly. Her cries attracted the attention of the surrounding crowd, and some martial artists even wore angry expressions, preparing to lend a hand.
"Young Lady, is he really harassing a woman?" Rou'er, who had caught up with her mistress, couldn't help but wear a skeptical expression upon seeing this.
Hu Miao covered her mouth, stifling a laugh.
After a few steps back, the young palace-attired woman swayed and vanished directly, as if evaporated into thin air.
"So it really was that fellow again! What bizarre movement skills!" Only then did Rou'er understand that the young woman had indeed been Situ Kong'er.
"Brother Situ, you don't need to hide from me. I actually bear you no ill will. I know some secrets about your Miracle Hand Gate — secrets even you aren't aware of. Would you like to hear them?"
This time, Ye Yunfei quickened his pace, arriving before a stall selling candied hawthorn skewers and speaking to a four- or five-year-old girl with porcelain doll-like features and her hair tied in two pigtails straight up into the sky.
This little girl had been eating a stick of candied hawthorn, but she suddenly stopped upon hearing Ye Yunfei.
"That can't be right? Is this adorable little girl really that fellow?" Rou'er stared at the small face full of innocence, her voice laced with doubt.
"How could it be possible? You know about our Miracle Hand Gate's existence? And you know secrets about our sect?"
The little girl's expression was one of sheer astonishment, as if she had seen a ghost, her eyes fixed on Ye Yunfei.