On Marketplace Street, Su Xuan held Lu Zhiyi’s hand in one hand and several bags of food in the other, a look of total resignation on his face.
It had been exactly two hours since they arrived at Marketplace Street. Although the street was now much quieter than before, a large number of the once-crowded stalls had already closed.
However, Lu Zhiyi was like a dog off its leash. Her eyes lit up at the sight of food, and she dragged him around as if she didn’t know the meaning of exhaustion.
It seemed that no matter which world it was, once a woman started shopping, there was no stopping her.
Su Xuan felt as if he had returned to his past life, accompanying his girlfriend while shopping. He looked helpless, somewhat regretting his decision for today.
“Master, I think… Senior Sister might be a little scared… It’s not that she’s ungrateful, it’s just…”
As they walked, Lu Zhiyi seemed to remember something. She held her food and spoke hesitantly.
“It’s fine. She’ll get used to it slowly.”
Su Xuan rubbed her head, assuming she was explaining why Lin Zhiwei had been consistently cold toward him. He spoke softly.
In truth, he hadn’t expected Lin Zhiwei to have a good impression of him anyway. It was actually quite good that she had hit a bottleneck in her sword practice.
“Mhm! Master is the best!”
Lu Zhiyi stole two glances at him. Seeing that he didn’t look angry, she licked her candied haws and squinted with a smile.
“Master, you must be tired. There’s a teahouse ahead. Let’s go rest for a bit before we continue shopping!”
After saying that, she pulled Su Xuan toward the teahouse.
‘There’s a second half?’
Su Xuan originally wanted to head back quickly, but then he turned and saw the large banyan tree next to the teahouse.
Right, that Red Broken Sword was under that tree.
Getting his hands on that broken sword would be beneficial regardless of whether it was to limit Lin Zhiwei’s future development or to have a handy weapon for himself.
For now, he would scout the area. It wouldn’t be good if he ran into other Loose Cultivators while digging later.
After pondering for a moment, he gave in to Lu Zhiyi and followed her inside.
Perhaps due to the ongoing expansion efforts these past few days, the usually bustling teahouse was now empty. There wasn’t a soul in sight.
Su Xuan ordered two cups of the most ordinary spiritual tea and a plate of pastries. It only cost him ten spiritual crystals. He found a table near the banyan tree and sat down.
He carefully observed the banyan tree outside the teahouse. The branches were lush, but the leaves were sparse. A few pedestrians walked by occasionally, paying no attention to it.
‘I probably can’t dig during the day. I’ll have to come back secretly at night.’
He nodded inwardly, wondering where to start digging.
“Master, aren’t you hungry? This is delicious!”
Lu Zhiyi’s mouth was stuffed full, making her speech somewhat muffled. Seeing that he wasn’t moving, she picked up a piece and handed it over.
Su Xuan had no interest in pastries and was about to take it casually when two people entered the teahouse.
“Shopkeeper, bring your finest spiritual tea, some spiritual fruit preserves, and a large plate of your best lean jerky!”
A lecherous and wretched voice rang out — it was Shangguan Xiushen.
After speaking, he flatteringly cleared the way for the person behind him.
Soon, a young man with a powdered face and a somewhat feminine air walked in slowly, waving a flashy folding fan.
When he turned and saw Su Xuan, a flash of contempt crossed his face as if he remembered something. He was about to head to a private room upstairs, but then he turned and saw Lu Zhiyi, who was currently stuffed like a hamster beside Su Xuan.
Suddenly, the young man’s eyes lit up.
Leading Shangguan Xiushen behind him, he walked straight toward Su Xuan and sat down across from them.
“Fellow Cultivator, we meet again.”
He held up his tea and cupped his hands. His left hand was raised in an orchid finger gesture, looking incredibly effeminate.
“Do you need something, Fellow Cultivator?”
Su Xuan frowned, his tone neither hot nor cold. Looking at the person’s face, he felt an odd sense of familiarity.
“I am Shangguan Yu. Might I ask if this is your maid or…”
She looked at Lu Zhiyi with narrowed eyes and spoke.
“Shangguan Yu?”
Su Xuan was slightly stunned when he heard those three words. Wasn’t that the name of the Feng Aotian character in the game?
In the game, she had already taken control of the Marketplace. She was constantly surrounded by various beautiful girls, like a bouquet of lilies.
Later, when the protagonist met Lu Zhiyi again, she had always been by her side.
Although she didn’t appear often, every time she did, she was intimate with Lu Zhiyi. She had even instigated Lu Zhiyi to be ruthless and show no mercy, which had made his teeth itch with hatred.
Now that he looked at her, that combination of heroism and femininity was exactly the same as in the game!
‘Now she’s going to try and steal from me?’
“Not for sale.”
Su Xuan naturally knew what she was planning. He didn’t waste any words and spoke bluntly.
“May I ask…”
The hand Shangguan Yu used to hold the teacup froze. The words she originally intended to say were stuck in her throat.
“Wh — why?”
A look of confusion appeared on her habitually arrogant face.
“Because I don’t sell Zhiwei to men. Is that reason enough?”
Su Xuan sneered inwardly, shooting her down again.
Based on his understanding, Shangguan Yu considered herself a man in her heart.
Sure enough, Shangguan Yu’s face flushed between red and white. She hesitated several times but still couldn’t bring herself to say that she was a woman.
She looked at Lu Zhiyi with a sense of reluctance. It wasn’t just because of her good looks; it was more about her aptitude and skeletal structure.
Although she looked ordinary on the surface, with her sensitivity to spiritual energy as one at the Foundation Establishment stage, she could see a small vortex spinning wildly above the girl’s head. She was cultivating at every moment.
She was definitely a rare genius!
Actually, Shangguan Yu’s purpose for coming this time was twofold. One was to take back the Marketplace from her second uncle. More importantly, she needed to scout for talent, especially Cultivators with high aptitude and talented Alchemists.
As the eldest young lady of the family, she had reached the age for an arranged marriage. Some of the old geezers in the clan had already entertained the idea. If she couldn’t demonstrate her ability and build her own foundation, she would likely be married off to some foul man before long.
That was something she absolutely could not accept.
However, the man in front of her was truly difficult to communicate with.
She was really loath to let Lu Zhiyi go, but she didn’t know how to speak to Su Xuan. She hesitated for a moment.
“Master, let’s… let’s go. Let’s go back.”
Lu Zhiyi spoke timidly. Seeing the intense gaze of the feminine young man, she figured he was likely another bad person like the ones before.
“Farewell!”
Su Xuan pulled Lu Zhiyi, cupped his hands to them, then turned and walked out.
Looking at his disciple who followed him obediently with some crumbs still on her cheeks, he felt more and more satisfied.
Compared to Lin Zhiwei’s ambition, Lu Zhiyi was as well-behaved as a cat.
She didn’t even have any thoughts about cultivating. All she did was eat and sleep. She hadn’t even entered the sect’s ranks yet.
Even if…
He glanced back at Shangguan Yu.
Even if a Feng Aotian encountered her, she probably wouldn’t have many thoughts about a mortal who didn’t cultivate at all. She would likely forget about it in a couple of days.
Thinking of this, he let out a sigh of relief and prepared to take Lu Zhiyi back.
But as she swallowed the last piece of pastry, her entire body suddenly froze.
“Master… I…”
Lu Zhiyi looked bewildered, not knowing what was happening. She stared blankly at Su Xuan.
Amidst her confusion, a powerful surge of Spiritual Power suddenly erupted from within her body!