"You didn't send me any letter?" Luna Lian sounded incredulous. "Second Brother! Your hunch was actually right!"
Lily Bai: "What hunch?"
Luna Lian said, "I just got a letter from you, asking me to come out and meet at the gate. I was about to go, but Second Brother said he had a bad feeling about it and told me to check with you first. Turns out he was right!"
Lily Bai raised an eyebrow. "From now on, we should probably listen to him! He's a future Oracle, you know!"
"So who sent the letter? Why pretend to be you?"
Lily Bai smiled. "I know exactly who sent it. Here's what you do..."
After ending the Messenger Charm, Lily Bai returned to Sean Shaw's side and found the Azure Dragon Lord still hiding there, waiting in invisibility.
"I've figured out what's going on," Lily Bai said.
"What is it?"
"The Azure Dragon Lord wants to kidnap Luna," Lily Bai said confidently. "I'm guessing he wants to trade her to Father for Fiendbloom."
"Ha!" Sean Shaw laughed wickedly. "Guess we didn't have to lift a finger—everything just fell into place!"
......
Soon, Luna Lian stepped out of the Spirit Alliance.
She looked around, as if searching for someone.
Suddenly, the Azure Dragon Lord struck out at Luna.
But Luna seemed to know exactly where he was—not only did she dodge his attack, she also fired a talisman with pinpoint accuracy, forcing the Azure Dragon Lord to reveal himself.
"Huh? Azure Dragon Lord!" Luna exclaimed. "What are you doing?"
The Azure Dragon Lord said nothing, continuing his attack and trying to knock her down, while simultaneously casting out the Immortal Binding Rope.
But out of nowhere, a heavy blow landed squarely on his back.
The Azure Dragon Lord staggered, almost falling from midair, and coughed up a mouthful of blood.
Quentin Lian appeared, expressionless, and bound him before hauling him into the Spirit Alliance.
Then he ordered, "Wash his face thoroughly! What kind of petty crook dares to impersonate the Azure Dragon Lord and cause trouble in the Spirit Alliance?"
Ryan Lu dumped a bucket of water over his head and scrubbed so hard he nearly rubbed off the Azure Dragon Lord's face. Then, looking puzzled, he said, "Father! I think he really is the Azure Dragon Lord! There's no disguise!"
"Impossible! The dignified Dragon Lord would never stoop so low. He must've used some transformation spell! Give him a dose of the revert-to-true-form pill! I want to see what kind of monster he really is!"
"Enough, Quentin Lian!" the Azure Dragon Lord barked, face dark. "It's really me!"
"Are you really the Azure Dragon Lord?" Quentin Lian asked.
"It's me!" The Azure Dragon Lord declared, full of righteous indignation. "I didn't mean to hurt her! You refused to save my son, so I wanted to kidnap your daughter and trade her for some Fiendbloom!"
"The dignified Dragon Lord! Saying kidnapping and extortion like it's perfectly reasonable!" Ryan Lu sneered. "Where's your shame?"
The Azure Dragon Lord didn't argue, his expression turning tragic. "If you ever have a son of your own, and you have to watch him become like this, you might do even worse than I did!"
Quentin Lian raised an eyebrow. "Looks like you're really desperate for Leo Li!"
"Quentin Lian, I'm begging you, okay?" The Azure Dragon Lord stepped forward. "I'll kneel to you! Please, save Leo Li!"
"Who wants you to kneel?" Quentin Lian sneered. "You killed my daughter and still expect me to save him? What kind of person do you think I am?"
"Then tell me what it'll take for you to save him," the Azure Dragon Lord said. "Name your price!"