So what exactly was going on? Why were Yun Xuechang and her party gathered at the inn? Why did they run into Hua Yan there?
This matter must be traced back to early this morning.
……
“099, quickly locate Mother’s position. She should be far away by now, right?”
In the guest room, Hua Xiangrong, who was sitting cross-legged on the bed, quietly opened one eye.
“Reporting to Host, Hua Yan has already left our current area. According to detection, she is heading toward the East Market of the city.”
“Great! She’s finally gone!”
The pink-haired girl immediately rolled out of bed and stretched comfortably.
“What about the female lead? Where is she now?”
Hua Xiangrong continued to ask while rummaging through the contents of her small embroidered satchel — this bag was something she had pestered Hua Yuheng to make for her back in Hundred Flowers Valley.
“The female lead and her party members have also arrived at the North Gate of Fulong City.”
099 answered in her mind as it searched for the female lead’s location, unable to help but praise, “Wow, Host, you’re amazing! You actually managed to make us arrive in Fulong City on the same day as the female lead!”
One must know that when Hua Xiangrong was in the transmigration space, she had specifically requested to be reincarnated into the middle of the novel’s plot — 099 had been somewhat confused at the time. After all, it was common sense that the earlier one reincarnated, the more advantageous it would be. However, Hua Xiangrong’s goal from beginning to end was the specific point where the female lead’s party came to Great Chu for the Evil Purging mission, all so that Hua Yan would bring her along for an “accidental encounter” with the female lead and her companions in Fulong City.
“Heh heh, naturally!”
Hua Xiangrong stood with hands on hips, proudly raising her small chin.
“With you helping me calculate Mother’s flying boat speed and the distance from Hundred Flowers Valley to Fulong City, plus me acting cute with Great-Grandmother to adjust the departure to the most suitable date, and finally me shouting that I wanted to play in a mortal town for a day halfway through… wasn’t our time difference with the female lead perfectly calibrated?”
“This way, it’s only logical that we would arrive in Fulong City at the same time as the female lead!”
“And on the first day in this big city, Mother will definitely go out to gather information to find the female lead’s whereabouts and complete the task Great-Grandmother gave her. That’s the perfect opportunity for us to make our move!”
“Yes, yes! To make Hua Yan feel at ease leaving you alone at the inn today, Host, you’ve been cultivating diligently these past few days and acting like a good child in front of her. You’ve really worked hard!” 099 added excitedly.
“Oh, that’s nothing!” Hua Xiangrong waved a small hand, looking righteous. “After all, all of this is for the sake of setting up the female lead… er, I mean, for the sake of saving this cultivation world!”
‘What you wanted to say just now was definitely not about saving the world!’
Ignoring 099’s commentary, Hua Xiangrong carefully checked the contents of her bag once more, slung it over her shoulder, and ran out with a series of quick steps.
“Let’s go! Time for an adventure!”
—
“Ugh, this Fulong City branch of the Heavenly Mystery Pavilion is doing a terrible job!”
In the busy market in the north of the city, a black-haired girl carrying a large crate on her back emerged from a street shop, shaking her head and sighing. “They don’t even understand the basics of ‘reducing materials to increase efficiency.’ Saying it out loud is a disgrace to our Heavenly Mystery Pavilion!”
“Um, Fellow Daoist Qu, I think cutting corners doesn’t seem like a good thing…” The green-haired female cultivator, whose hair was styled with a side braid, waved goodbye to the shopkeeper and quickly caught up with her.
“How is it not a good thing?” Qu Linglong argued persuasively. “By saving materials, costs are lowered. When costs are lowered, profits are higher. When profits are higher, our Heavenly Mystery Pavilion can put more effort into missions like this Evil Purging!”
She spread her hands, looking pained. “This is all for the sake of all living beings!”
“R-Really?” Lin Qianqian was a bit dazed by the explanation, her fingers unconsciously twirling a strand of her hair. “But why do I feel like something isn’t right? And Fellow Daoist Qu, I remember that for this Evil Purging mission, your Heavenly Mystery Pavilion didn’t actually send many people…”
“Didn’t we provide the supplies?” Qu Linglong said righteously, immediately shifting the target. “Those mechanical golems, spiritual power shells, and flying ships were all sold to you at a discount! How can you say we didn’t help? Fellow Daoist Yun, don’t you agree?”
“I guess… that’s true?” Lin Qianqian became even more hesitant and turned to her side. “Senior Sister, what do you think?”
“…”
The side was empty; no one answered.
“Wait, Senior Sister?”
Lin Qianqian’s heart skipped a beat, and she quickly looked around.
But in the bustling crowd, that white-clothed, white-haired figure who should have stood out like a crane among chickens was nowhere to be seen.
“Could it be — ” both of them shouted at once.
” — that Senior Sister is lost again?!”
—
West City Market.
‘Sure enough, seeing that man’s posture while riding his sword, I guessed he must have some unique flying sword techniques. Fortunately, I caught up to him and paid some Spirit Stones to get a clear answer.’
On the bustling street, an exceptionally beautiful woman with white hair and white clothes, carrying a long sword on her back, was walking leisurely. She seemed surrounded by a celestial aura, her face cold and detached, ignoring the stunned gazes around her.
‘Wrapping oneself and the sword in flames while riding to achieve a tactic of self-sacrifice to overcome the enemy? According to that man, this move is mostly just to “look cool”?’
‘Hmm… this technique seems more suitable for a Buddhist physical cultivator. But if one is a physical cultivator, why use a sword?’
She couldn’t quite figure it out.
Standing in the middle of the street, Yun Xuechang took out a Jade Slip and solemnly recorded this sword technique into her “To Be Studied” list before looking up again.
Wait…
Where was this?
Looking at the completely unfamiliar street scenery around her, the white-haired girl blinked her beautiful red eyes.
‘I seem to have lost my junior sister and the others again?’
Just as she was about to take out her transmission Jade Slip to ask Lin Qianqian and Qu Linglong for their location, an old man passed in front of her. On his shoulder, he carried a straw pole stuck with bright red candied hawthorns.
!
A white stray hair on top of the girl’s head stood straight up, and she immediately turned and followed him.
…
“Fairy, this is my family’s ancestral sword technique! I don’t pass it on to others easily!”
In front of a floor stall, an eloquent middle-aged man held a tattered booklet, boasting with spit flying everywhere.
“I see. Since it is an ancestral item, I will not buy it.”
Yun Xuechang looked at him and nodded seriously, holding a skewer of candied hawthorns with half of it already eaten.
“Hey! Wait, wait, wait!”
The middle-aged man quickly reached out to stop her.
‘Tsk, seeing how interested she was and her extraordinary appearance, I thought she was some wealthy lady I could fleece for a fortune.’
The man grumbled inwardly but put on a flattering smile. “What I meant was, Fairy, we can still negotiate the price! How about this? I’ll take a loss — 500 low-grade Spirit Stones. What do you think, Fairy?”
“No need. Since it is an ancestral item, it should be kept safely.” The white-haired girl’s voice was ethereal and clear, like water hitting stone. “Or have you encountered some difficulty and must sell your ancestral secret manual just to survive?”
“Yes! Exactly! That’s it!”
“Then I will not take advantage of you.”
Yun Xuechang took another bite of a candied hawthorn, her cheeks bulging slightly. Her voice was a bit muffled. “I will still pay the 700 you originally mentioned. Use it to live a good life.”
“Huh? Oh… okay…”
Now the middle-aged man was completely stunned. He thought this Fairy wanted to bargain and find an excuse to leave, but who would have thought someone would actually believe his “ancestral manual” nonsense?
Looking at the perfect but motionless cold face before him, although he was a bit hesitant, he eventually gritted his teeth.
“Fine, then it’s a de — “
“Wait!”
A childish voice suddenly interrupted their transaction.
Both of them turned their heads simultaneously to see a little girl with pink hair and pink eyes, her hair tied in twin buns and an embroidered bag on her back. She stood with her hands on her hips, glaring at them angrily.
“Mother!”
Hua Xiangrong walked up to Yun Xuechang in a few steps and naturally tucked her small hand into the woman’s palm.
“Why are you buying sword manuals at a street stall again?”
She looked up, her tone full of helplessness. “Haven’t I told you many times? Most of these are scams!”