Tomb Raiding: They Heard My Inner Thoughts

This novel is purely for entertainment. Best read without overthinking it.

In Republican-era Changsha, the night was as dark as ink, but it could not conceal the city's undercurrents.

Ling Xi wore a moon-white qipao with a subtle pattern, draped in a matching fringed shawl. Her dark hair was pinned up with a simple jade hairpin. She stood tall and straight as bamboo, her face cool and pale as snow.

She sat in a corner of the side hall during an Old Nine Gates gathering. Her fingertips seemed to idly brush a plain bronze bell around her wrist, but in truth, she was locked in an intense exchange with the System inside her mind.

[System: Host's phoenix bloodline awakening is at 0.1%. Beginner mission “First Meeting with the Nine Gates” issued: Meet at least three key figures. Reward: 50 points, 0.05% awakening.]

(Three? Isn't everyone in this room a key figure?)

A string of red text appeared before Zhang Qishan and the other members of the Nine Gates. It was unmistakably Ling Xi's inner monologue.

Though shocked, the group had weathered many storms. Their hearts were in turmoil, but they kept their faces expressionless, as if they hadn't seen the words.

Ling Xi rolled her eyes inwardly, but kept a serene expression as her gaze slowly swept across those present: Zhang Qishan, seated in the place of honor, radiating authority without even having to show his anger.

Beside him were the handsome and refined Er Yuehong, whose worry was hard to conceal, and his gentle wife, Yatou, as well as the calculating Ninth Master Xie.

There was the menacing Hei Bei Laoliu, and the bewitchingly alluring Huo Xiangu… Seeing these characters from the books in person filled her with excitement and nervousness.