Chapter 30: Going Home

Grey Wastes City’s night was even livelier than its day.

As a major city, it was already bustling with people, and now that the Demon Extermination Assembly was imminent, many Righteous Path sects had arrived, making the entire city boil with excitement.

Even ordinary folks had heard the news.

They gathered in small groups and took to the streets, hoping to run into some exalted master and be picked for a meteoric rise.

On both sides of the brightly lit streets, stalls of every kind were set up in neat rows.

Lin An and Lu Mingyue walked side by side on their way back.

The man was handsome, the woman beautiful—walking together, they naturally drew many looks.

Some glanced twice, others whispered among themselves.

But after a few moments, they all silently averted their eyes.

It wasn’t because of anything Lu Mingyue did, but because everyone could sense that there wasn’t that certain atmosphere between the two.

The woman’s face was expressionless, her gaze straight ahead, as if there was no one by her side at all.

The man seemed lost in thought, his pace neither fast nor slow, showing no hint of intimacy either.

On the same road, but not of the same mind.

Lin An had assumed they would fly back as usual, but to his surprise, Lu Mingyue had proactively suggested taking a walk.

Since she didn’t mind, Lin An naturally had no objection.

He pulled out the mask Qu Hongling had given him and slapped it onto his face.

‘Perfect.’

He wasn’t worried about being asked where the mask came from; besides, she probably wouldn’t ask anyway.

After spending this time together, he had more or less figured out Lu Mingyue’s temperament.

This woman truly didn’t care about anything—anything at all.

He supposed that even if someone found out about their cultivation sessions, she probably wouldn’t mind.

She just didn’t want unnecessary trouble.

If they really were discovered, he felt she would only say, with that same calm face: “It’s fine.”

“Heh…”

Lin An shook his head with a slightly helpless chuckle.

“Hm?”

Lu Mingyue turned to look at him.

“Nothing.”

A simple exchange that didn’t even qualify as conversation.

Lin An was about to ask Lu Mingyue about the Glazed Immortal Realm when she suddenly stopped, her eyes fixed on a small stall.

He followed her gaze.

It was a stall selling various small toys.

Lin An raised an eyebrow.

‘Odd. What does she want?’

He didn’t speak, just followed behind Lu Mingyue as she slowly walked over.

The stall owner was a kindly old woman.

Seeing them standing in front of her stall, she smiled warmly.

“Young lady, see something you like? Have this young gentleman buy it for you to make amends.”

Clearly, the old woman seemed to have misunderstood something.

Lin An smiled back at her but said nothing.

Instead, he observed Lu Mingyue’s expression while browsing the wares.

Because of the existence of spiritual energy in this world, productivity was surprisingly high.

These little toys were different in design from what Lin An remembered, but the purpose was the same—to bring joy.

Lu Mingyue stared for a moment, then pointed at a pinwheel-like toy.

She picked it up and blew on the blades, making the attached bell ring with a crisp ding-ling-ling.

Lu Mingyue held the toy, staring at it without blinking.

The old woman, however, stared unblinkingly at Lin An—the message was obvious: “Pay up, young man.”

Lin An: “…”

‘Fine, fine. For the first time ever, I’ll buy it for her.’

He paid, and they left the stall.

With Lu Mingyue’s cultivation, she could walk blindfolded without bumping into anyone.

She looked down at the pinwheel in her hand, not blowing on it, just staring blankly.

Lin An finally couldn’t help himself.

“Pavilion Master Lu, is there something wrong with this thing?”

He had deliberated over the phrasing.

He’d originally wanted to ask if she really liked it.

But the words died in his throat.

Like it?

Absolutely impossible.

So it had to be that this toy had something off about it.

Lu Mingyue didn’t answer immediately.

Instead, she raised her other hand and flicked the blades with her finger.

Ding-ling-ling.

The crisp bell was swallowed by the clamor of the street.

“Before I went up the mountain, my father once bought me one. But I broke it.”

Lin An couldn’t detect any emotion in her voice—or rather, there was no emotion at all.

“And them?”

“They are merely mortals.”

Six words said everything.

At that moment, Lin An suddenly thought of the beautiful woman waiting for him back home.

Though Aunt Yan showed no trace of age, she was still an ordinary person.

If one day he could truly cultivate, would there… also come a day like that?

Lin An didn’t know what sentiment Lu Mingyue had bought the pinwheel with, and he no longer had the mood to care.

His original plan was to find an opportunity to go home once he arrived at Grey Wastes City.

Now, this scene only made him want to return even more urgently.

“Pavilion Master Lu.”

“Hm?”

Lu Mingyue was still staring at the pinwheel.

“If there’s nothing urgent in the near future, I want to go home for a while. I’ll be back before the Demon Extermination Assembly ends… and before our next cultivation session.”

Lu Mingyue stopped walking and finally turned to look at him.

Just as she had stared at the pinwheel, she stared at Lin An without a word.

Being stared at expressionlessly by someone was a very stressful thing—especially by her.

But this time Lin An didn’t back down.

He stood his ground and looked back.

Passersby walked past them, casting curious glances, as if they were just a young couple having a tiff.

After a long moment, Lu Mingyue spoke softly: “You must go back?”

Lin An answered without hesitation: “I must go back.”

Lu Mingyue remained as indifferent as ever.

She lowered her head slightly, her eyes drifting left and right as if she was thinking, or as if she didn’t know what to say.

For some reason, watching her like this, Lin An inexplicably thought of a phrase: at a loss.

But was that possible? Most likely not.

“When will you leave?”

Lu Mingyue looked at him again.

Lin An stared into her eyes, trying to read something, but unfortunately, there was nothing.

“Right now.”

A surge of inexplicable irritation made him want to leave immediately, want to go home and see Aunt Yan right now.

“Travel… safely.”

With that, Lu Mingyue turned around, looked down at the pinwheel in her hand, and slowly walked away.

Watching her back, Lin An took a deep breath and slowly let it out, as if trying to drain the pent-up frustration in his chest.

The look in Ling Cang’s eyes flashed through his mind for a moment.

‘A simp? Maybe not. I’ve never tried to please Lu Mingyue. Between us, it’s always been a transaction.’

Still… he felt tired.

Human interaction is the exchange of hearts.

But did Lu Mingyue have a heart?

He didn’t know.

Maybe she did, but maybe she didn’t.

Just like the full moon hanging high in the night sky—cold, aloof, beautiful… and dead silent.

Lin An turned around and walked swiftly in the opposite direction.

After both had left, from behind a lantern stall not far away, a woman in a light green dress stepped out.

“What is Pavilion Master Lu’s connection with this junior disciple Lin?”

Shen Qishuang murmured to herself.

“Hmm, and his voice…”

Shen Qishuang looked in the direction Lin An had gone, then quickly gave chase.