CHAPTER 579: CHAPTER 358 IT’S STILL EARLY FOR FASHION_2

Li Meilin didn’t know where she should take the laundry, so she simply wandered around the castle, searching for someone she could question. After walking for a while, she found another maid busy cleaning the floor in front of her.

"Good afternoon," Li Meilin said softly as she approached the young maid in front of her. Although she was in disguise, Li Meilin worried about being seen, so her heart was racing. Qi was flowing through her meridians, ready to channel into the woman if needed.

The maid raised her head from the floor, her eyes filled with confusion. "I’m cleaning the floor. This is my punishment for being late. No one is allowed to speak to me," the maid whispered with a trembling voice. "You should hurry; otherwise, Lady Hu will catch you!"

Hearing this, Li Meilin frowned. It turned out gathering information was harder than she had imagined, but she wouldn’t give up so easily. Before the maid in front of her could react, she was knocked unconscious by a small dose of invisible force, and Li Meilin dragged her into a room filled with brooms, buckets, and other cleaning tools.

As she waited for the maid to regain consciousness, Li Meilin’s mood soured. Talking to the maid wouldn’t necessarily give her the answers she sought. Either way, the woman would tell her what she needed to know. The only other option was to kill her and hide the body in a place it wouldn’t be found. If she were discovered, a Water Element Mage might be able to connect the murder to something she couldn’t afford to expose if she hoped to leave this place freely.

With a sigh, Li Meilin’s emotions grew heavier. But for the Xibi Empire, she was willing to do anything to get the correct answers. Finally, the maid woke up. Her eyes were filled with terror, her entire body trembling. Li Meilin tied her to a chair, stepped behind the maid, and pressed a Wuwei Blade against her neck.

"Why are so many Lords and guards coming to the Capital now?" Li Meilin growled, her voice altered by Qi to shift from that of a woman to that of a man. She debated whether she should spare the maid’s life.

"I don’t know," the captive maid cried out in a low voice. "No one tells me anything," she continued, her voice gradually becoming louder, filled with indignation as though she felt deeply wronged. Hearing this, Li Meilin gritted her teeth. Her eyes bore into the maid in front of her. How could someone be so useless?

"Tell me why you think they are here," she roared again, her tone brimming with impatience. The maid didn’t take long to respond, her trembling lips and shaking body betraying her fear. "It must be a secret meeting for Lords," the maid stammered in a terrified voice. "A secret meeting to decide what they will do about the Divine Region."

"What do you mean?" Li Meilin frowned, her expression darkening as the maid’s shock grew even more palpable. "The Divine Region has been home to beasts for years, but there are too many of them. How can we survive in such a small Kingdom? They must be working hard to find new land—new places to live and build villages for all of us," the maid answered honestly, clearly terrified, revealing everything she knew. This left Li Meilin’s heart cold. Could the Lords be interested in taking over other parts of the continent? But why had they never acted before?

Before letting out a long sigh, Li Meilin pondered deeply and decided that while killing the maid would be the safest course, it would also bring greater risks later. Instead, she struck the back of the maid’s neck with her hand, rendering her unconscious, then slowly slipped out of the room, gambling that the maid wouldn’t be able to tie this incident to Li Meilin. Once more, she sighed with resignation.

Li Meilin didn’t change her disguise; instead, she left the castle. In the city, she collected various candies and snacks before making her way to the campsite outside the city walls. When she arrived at the campsite with her assortment of treats, her face was lit with a radiant smile.

"Hello," she said, blinking as she approached a muscular guard who resembled some kind of fox-like beast. "I wonder if I might tempt you with some candy?" she asked curiously, pulling out a tray filled with various snacks and sweets, delicacies that people didn’t often get to enjoy.

But who was Li Meilin? She was the Senior Observer of the Siban Empire delegation. This meant she had possession of gifts meant to be presented upon their arrival at the Capital; however, Li Meilin had not handed over these items to Wan Qiao. Instead, she had kept them for herself. Now, she was using some of them to purchase information, hoping the soldiers would be more forthcoming than the maid. The military guards were more likely to know what was going on.

The first guard she questioned knew nothing, but as she delved deeper into the ranks, bits of information began to surface.

"Yes, as soon as Lady Wan Qiao’s delegation arrives, we’ll be leaving. As for what’s being discussed, we don’t know; the guards won’t tell us anything."

"We had to wake up at midnight to leave, and if we’re going to war, this can only mean one thing—it’s a secret about who we’re going to attack!"

"Although some say it’s war, I highly doubt it. We’ve lived in the Divine Domain for thousands of years. Starting a war out of nowhere benefits no one. I believe they’re here to discuss rights over the beasts. They’re very likely planning to give that title to my Lord."