Chapter 14: First Attempt

“Miss Jade Fairy, I’m your fan!”

This was the first thing Lu Yan said upon seeing Ji Xingyao.

Still dazed from having her performance contract terminated by the mall, Ji Xingyao didn’t even register what was happening before Lu Yan stuffed a photograph into her hands.

She instinctively looked at it—it was a photo from one of her stage performances three years ago.

In the picture, she wore a short skirt and high boots, her beautiful face beaming with an infectious smile. Her whole figure radiated youthful confidence and vitality. Just standing on stage, she was the center of everyone’s attention.

Back then, she had been one of the most popular online idols across the internet. An entertainment company had even approached her with an offer to help her debut in the entertainment industry.

Unfortunately, due to various incidents and the rapid evolution of online trends, she eventually lost her former glory.

In truth, if she had been willing to lower her head, there might have been a chance to secure resources and make a comeback.

But she refused to bow. Now, she was just a washed-up internet celebrity who couldn’t even maintain small-time commercial performances like this.

With her right hand trembling slightly as she held the photo, Ji Xingyao looked at the young man before her.

He looked to be in his early twenties, with handsome features and baby-smooth skin. His attire was plain, but it couldn’t conceal the calm and otherworldly aura around him.

She blinked in a daze, feeling an odd sense of familiarity, as though she’d seen this young man somewhere before. But no matter how she tried, she couldn’t recall when or where.

And yet, the gentle smile on his lips filled her with an inexplicable sense of warmth and trust, making her lower her guard.

“How did you get in here?”

Lu Yan pointed toward the lounge door and raised a finger to his lips, whispering,
“Don’t tell them—I snuck in.”

Ji Xingyao couldn’t help but giggle. The frustration of having her contract canceled eased a little in that moment.

Back when she was at the height of her popularity, it wasn’t uncommon for overzealous fans to sneak into lounges after performances to ask for autographs or photos. At the time, she found such antics quite annoying.

But now that her fame had faded, those fans had all but disappeared.

So encountering Lu Yan sneaking in this way sparked a bit of curiosity.

Tilting her head slightly, letting a few strands of hair fall gracefully across her shoulders, Ji Xingyao curiously shook the photo in her hand.

“Where did this come from?”

“I took it myself.”

“Which performance was this?”

“East Star City Stadium.”

“Which song do you like the most?”

“Your original—Seeking Immortality.”

What she didn’t know was that Lu Yan had actually “borrowed” the photo from a Ji Xingyao fan standing near the stage earlier. As compensation, he had given the fan a thousand yuan.

Afterward, Lu Yan had even looked up the event details online to ensure he wouldn’t slip up under questioning.

After a brief exchange, Ji Xingyao confirmed that Lu Yan truly was one of her fans.

Had this been back when she was still popular, she might not have cared.

But at this low point in her career, she could sense from their conversation that Lu Yan was a genuine fan—and the strange sense of familiarity between them made her wonder if she had actually seen him at one of her past performances.

All these factors led her to view him far more favorably.

“Hand it over!”

Ji Xingyao extended her right hand toward him.

“What?”

Lu Yan was slightly confused.

“Didn’t you want my autograph? I’m asking for your pen.”

Lu Yan froze for a moment, then awkwardly patted his empty pockets and said with a wry smile,
“I forgot to bring one.”

Ji Xingyao rolled her eyes at him and was just about to speak, when she saw Lu Yan reach a hand toward the hair beside her ear.

“There’s one right here, isn’t there?”

A second later, Lu Yan pulled out a black pen from behind her hair.

Staring at the smiling young man before her, Ji Xingyao realized he had just performed a simple magic trick.

“Hmph! Give it here!”

Snorting and casting him a glare, she took the pen and signed her name on the photo.

She handed the pen and the photo back to Lu Yan, but he only accepted the photo.

“This pen…”

“This pen belonged to Miss Jade Fairy in the first place. I only borrowed it. Now I’m returning it to its rightful owner.”

Flashing a content smile, Lu Yan said softly,

“I’ll be looking forward to our next meeting.”

With those parting words, he turned and left, leaving Ji Xingyao alone in the lounge.

She frowned slightly as she stared at his departing back, muttering in displeasure,

“I thought he was an interesting fan. Didn’t expect him to act so frivolously.”

As she spoke, she raised her hand, intending to throw the pen into the trash.

But just as she moved, she sensed something was off. When she opened her palm, she found that the pen had somehow turned into several strands of long hair.

“What the…”

Ji Xingyao’s eyes widened in shock. She couldn’t suppress the surprise in her heart.

She had just signed her name with that pen—it had clearly been a real pen. How could it suddenly turn into hair?

Thinking back on Lu Yan’s actions, she instinctively reached toward her ear. Her fingers could feel the uneven edge of trimmed strands, which seemed to perfectly match the ones in her hand.

“Was that really just a magic trick…?”

Outside the mall, Lu Yan looked down at the photo in his hand. It bore no signature, and he quietly slipped it into his storage pouch.

Recalling Ji Xingyao’s expression as he left, Lu Yan smiled faintly.

“She should’ve noticed it by now.”

He opened his right hand, revealing the ashes of a First-Rank Low-Grade Illusion Talisman.

Clearly, the pen had been nothing more than an illusion conjured by that talisman.

But in a modern world where supernatural phenomena didn’t exist, Ji Xingyao would have no way of associating the incident with actual cultivation spells. She would likely chalk it up to some unusual magic trick.

And that was all Lu Yan needed—to leave a lasting impression.

The moment he realized he could obtain opportunity through Ji Xingyao, Lu Yan had made up his mind.

Approaching her couldn’t be done too quickly, nor could he form a friendship too soon.

After all, Jade Fairy in the Xianxia version was a True Inheritor of the Azure Elm Sect—a noble genius cultivator. For someone like her to befriend a mere First Layer Qi Refining cultivator like Lu Yan would draw too much attention.

So Lu Yan had carefully crafted his identity:

A curious fan.

A humble admirer who had left an impression on Jade Fairy.

With such a persona, he could gradually earn favor.

As someone from Bamboo Grove Market, Lu Yan was already under Jade Fairy’s protection. Admiring her was perfectly natural. If luck allowed Ji Xingyao to remember him, it wouldn’t seem strange at all.

On the surface, such a small impression seemed useless. But considering Jade Fairy’s status, just a word from her could determine the fate of the entire market. If she remembered him and casually mentioned his name, that alone could become Lu Yan’s life-saving charm in the Xianxia version.

With that identity, he could walk through Bamboo Grove Market without fear.

Thinking of this, Lu Yan couldn’t help but sigh.

“In the end, my strength is still too low. I have no choice but to rely on methods like this.”

“If I were at the peak of Qi Refining—or even in the Foundation Establishment Realm—no one would question it if I became close friends with Ji Xingyao.”

“This time was just an initial test. When the next Xianxia version comes, I’ll be able to confirm how things play out.”

“For now… it’s time to prepare for the next world update!”

(End of Chapter)