Chapter Sixty-One: Ye Liangchen

After leaving the reception room, Ye Yan felt as if a new world had opened before him. The old master’s guidance had given him a sense of sudden enlightenment. External environments, the five senses, and the dark emotions that arise when facing death—they could all be considered forms of absolute darkness. Which would prove useful, Ye Yan would have to discover for himself. Yet the old master had indeed offered him a new perspective.

Previously, Ye Yan had focused solely on external factors, never considering emotions or even the five senses.

“Should I try it later?”

Having found a possible solution, Ye Yan’s mood soared; even the sun above and the chirping insects and birds seemed pleasant to his ears.

“Bzz—”

Just as Ye Yan was pondering, his phone vibrated, pulling him abruptly back to reality. He glanced at the screen. The message was from Xu Si.

“Are you finished over there? The Luo Tian Grand Ceremony is about to start. I’ll take Baobao and Chu Lan to the back mountain first. Hurry up.”

“Alright,” Ye Yan replied.

Before putting down his phone, another thought struck him, and he hurriedly sent another message.

“By the way, talk to the organizers and change my participant name.”

“Change your name? What’s that for?” Xu Si replied instantly.

“What for?” Ye Yan was speechless. “Come on, you know exactly why. You may not care about your reputation, but I still do.”

Xu Si: “…”

His message seemed to sink into oblivion, and after a long pause, a new reply appeared.

“What should I change it to?”

“Grand Summoner ‘Ye Liangchen’.”

…

Back Mountain.

Before the sheer cliff.

Several taut ropes bridged the gap between the two sides of the path, dividing the front and back mountains into completely separate worlds.

Compared to the simplicity of the front mountain, here was where the eccentrics truly let themselves go.

On the ropes, Zhang Chulan climbed in reverse, resembling a wriggling grey caterpillar, using his well-developed gluteal muscles to inch toward the edge of the cliff, forming a stark contrast with those around him who openly showcased their abilities.

As Zhang Chulan struggled forward, a voice suddenly sounded beside him.

“Well, what a coincidence.”

Zhang Chulan turned his head and saw a figure suspended midair: black hair, black robes, and a bright red fox mask. The man waved at him.

The fox-masked man was floating, but rather than flying, he seemed to be dragged along by someone dressed like the Digimon ‘Garuda Beast’, flapping wings, pulling him through the air.

“What the… Who are you?”

Zhang Chulan was startled by the sudden appearance, nearly tumbling off the cliff. Fortunately, his strong glutes and core strength allowed him to steady himself.

“Chulan, my brother, how could you not recognize me? It’s me, Ye Liangchen.”

The fox-masked man blinked.

At first, Zhang Chulan was confused, but the voice sounded oddly familiar.

“You’re… Brother Yan?”

Zhang Chulan was dazed for a moment, but quickly realized who it was beside him.

Ye Yan was utterly flabbergasted. “Even with this get-up, you can still recognize me?”

“Your voice is familiar.”

Ye Yan was a bit surprised. “You can tell just from my voice?”

“Brother Yan, your voice is quite distinctive. I haven’t heard it that many times, but it sticks in my memory,” Zhang Chulan replied as he continued crawling.

“Is that so?” Ye Yan frowned. “How could I forget to buy a voice changer?”

If even someone not that familiar could recognize him by voice, he’d have a hard time hiding his identity from close acquaintances. He’d better keep quiet as much as possible, and if he ran into someone he knew, he’d have to stay silent. This Luo Tian Grand Ceremony—he must conceal his identity. His reputation could not be ruined here; Ye Yan silently reminded himself.

“Brother Yan, why are you dressed up like this?”

Looking at Ye Yan’s outfit, reminiscent of a classic villain or cultist from a novel, Zhang Chulan was puzzled.

“Don’t call me Brother Yan. You can call me Handsome Guy, or Grand Summoner ‘Ye Liangchen’. Just don’t use Ye Yan or Brother Yan.”

“It’ll expose my identity.”

Ye Yan spoke with utmost seriousness.

Zhang Chulan: “…”

Ye Liangchen?

Then I must be Dragon Proud Sky.

Who knew? You, with your thick eyebrows and honest face, are secretly a total anime geek?

Zhang Chulan was speechless. Though he thought so, he dared not say it aloud, fearing Ye Yan would take him out on the spot.

“You’ll be crawling till the end of time at this rate. Want a hand?”

Watching Zhang Chulan inch along like a worm, Ye Yan felt tired just looking at him.

“A hand? How?”

“Let me take you across,” Ye Yan said, giving a thumbs-up and pointing to Jin Erpeng, who was cosplaying as Garuda Beast behind him.

“No thanks, that would draw too much attention,” Zhang Chulan sighed helplessly.

Honestly, if not for hiding his abilities, he wouldn’t be doing this. The cliff posed no real challenge.

“And you don’t think this draws attention?” Ye Yan found Zhang Chulan’s actions baffling—after all, this was the eccentrics’ tournament. Everyone was showing off their skills, and only he crawled around like a caterpillar. How peculiar.

“Well, I don’t want to reveal my golden light or lightning techniques just yet.”

“Whatever you want.”

Zhang Chulan was set on his course, and Ye Yan didn’t bother persuading him further, instructing Jin Erpeng to fly to the opposite side of the cliff.

The moment they landed, Jin Erpeng, still in Garuda Beast cosplay, transformed into a puff of green smoke and flew back into the flag.

Not far away, Xu Si, cigarette dangling from his lips, chatted with Xu San. Feng Baobao crouched under a large tree, poking at an anthill with a branch.

Li Ziyuan stood nearby, taking pictures.

Ye Yan crept over furtively. Xu Si looked up.

“You’re here.”

Ye Yan: “???”

I didn’t say a word—how did you recognize me? How did you do it?

Ye Yan was stumped by Xu Si’s remark and after a moment, asked in confusion, “Is there something about me that gives me away? Can you all recognize me?”

“No, not really,” Xu Si shook his head. “But honestly, who else would dress like that and sneak over here? There’s no one else it could be.”

Ye Yan: …

That’s quite the giveaway after all.