Su Zhiyun was panting as she struggled to keep up with the pace.
Upon hearing those words, she abruptly stopped.
“No!”
“Who wants your Spiritual Energy! Stay away from me!”
Even though he was from the same hometown, Su Zhiyun still felt Jiu Baiyun had ulterior motives.
Moreover, although the Breathing Method contained in the stone bead he’d given her had been verified as safe by the System, Su Zhiyun remained suspicious.
In the novels she’d read in her previous life, she’d seen plenty of transmigrators getting stabbed in the back by their fellow hometown folks.
After all, which transmigrator would be nice to someone just because they shared the same origin?
Especially in a world like this, self-interest was the norm.
Just as she didn’t believe Jiu Baiyun would help others, she also didn’t believe he was doing this for her own good.
Jiu Baiyun was taken aback by her intense reaction.
Watching Su Zhiyun stubbornly wipe the sweat from her brow, grit her teeth, and speed up—clearly operating on an “I’d rather drop dead than owe you anything” mentality—he could only helplessly shrug.
“Fine, fine. My bad for opening my mouth.”
He muttered to himself, too lazy to argue further.
He wasn’t her nursemaid; he didn’t have to look out for her every step of the way.
He just quietly adjusted his pace to ensure that although Su Zhiyun was struggling, she wouldn’t completely fall behind.
The mountain wind carried the afternoon heat, bringing a faint coolness to her sweaty back—but mostly just exhaustion.
Su Zhiyun felt as if her legs were filled with lead.
Every step became excruciatingly heavy.
Her throat burned dry, and her breathing grew scorching hot.
She cursed the System over and over in her mind.
If only this damn System had more uses, she wouldn’t have to work so hard!
The shared bicycle she’d barely obtained by completing a System quest was completely unusable on these rough mountain roads.
Sometimes she really wanted to throw this useless System away—it couldn’t offer the slightest convenience.
But then again, without the System, she wouldn’t have survived this long.
So she gave up that thought, looking rather dejected.
Jiu Baiyun, on the other hand, remained relaxed, even having the leisure to observe his surroundings.
He noticed that although Su Zhiyun was physically exhausted, her sense of direction was surprisingly good.
She seemed very familiar with this mountain path leading to Qingshi Town, showing no signs of getting lost.
Looks like she’d been “wandering” in this world for quite some time… or perhaps her “Golden Finger” had navigation capabilities?
Jiu Baiyun mused silently.
Time passed amid silence and heavy breathing.
The sun gradually slanted westward, casting long shadows of the forest across the path.
When the crude earth-and-stone outline of Qingshi Town’s wall finally appeared at the end of the mountain trail, Su Zhiyun let out a sigh of relief.
If they weren’t in a hurry, walking with breaks would have been rather pleasant.
But the problem was, they were pressed for time.
“Huff… huff… Finally… finally made it…”
She leaned against a rock by the roadside, gasping for air, feeling as if her lungs were about to burst.
Jiu Baiyun looked up at the sky and frowned slightly.
“Don’t celebrate too early. Hurry up. We don’t want the town gate closed before we’re done shopping.”
The rammed-earth and stone wall of Qingshi Town cast long shadows in the evening glow.
At the gate, figures were sparse—a few guards in worn leather armor lounged lazily against the archway.
A heavy, oppressive atmosphere hung in the air.
Clearly, news of the fall of Nanfeng City had put Qingshi Town on edge.
“Like I need you to tell me!” Su Zhiyun snapped back irritably. She forced herself upright, struggling to regulate her breathing and calm her racing heart.
Then she wiped the sweat from her forehead, took the lead, and strode toward the town gate.
Her steps were still a bit unsteady, but her goal was clear.
The guards’ eyes swept over them several times, lingering a few extra seconds on Su Zhiyun’s delicate face and her outfit, which stood out starkly from the local villagers’ attire.
Su Zhiyun frowned slightly, displeased with being stared at, but she couldn’t be bothered to make an issue of it right now.
Once inside the town, the scene caught Su Zhiyun somewhat off guard.
It was completely different from the last time she’d been here.
Few pedestrians lined the streets.
Many shops had already closed and locked their doors early.
The few that remained open looked practically deserted.
The vendors were long gone, leaving only empty street corners and scattered debris.
A sense of desolation and tension shrouded the town.
The occasional passerby hurried along, eyes darting, as if afraid of being targeted.
Jiu Baiyun, however, didn’t seem surprised.
He’d seen similar scenes many times before, merely sighing to himself.
“Tsk, so the fall of Nanfeng City had this big an impact?”
Then he turned his attention to Su Zhiyun.
He’d never been to Qingshi Town and wasn’t familiar with the place, so he had no idea where to buy incense.
“The incense shop… I remember there’s an old store around the corner up ahead.”
Su Zhiyun oriented herself, speaking in a very low voice, pointing toward a narrower alley ahead.
She’d been here a few times and had a decent grasp of the town’s layout.
Jiu Baiyun nodded, heading first in the direction she’d indicated.
Su Zhiyun quickly followed.
Most shops on both sides had their doors tightly shut.
Newly nailed planks and reinforced iron bars were visible everywhere.
“Turn left up ahead. That place: Chen’s Incense and Candle…”
Spotting a familiar stretch of road, Su Zhiyun pointed again.
Jiu Baiyun gave a slight nod, not slowing his steps.
As they rounded the corner, a small storefront with a half-open door came into view.
A faded sign reading “Chen’s Incense and Candle” hung crookedly.
An old shopkeeper with graying hair, dressed in a washed-out gray cloth jacket, sat behind the counter, squinting as he leisurely wiped a bronze incense burner.
Hearing the sound at the door, he looked up.
“And what might you two be needing?”
Su Zhiyun stepped forward immediately, speaking before Jiu Baiyun could.
Her voice was crisp, with a hint of familiarity.
“Shopkeeper, we need incense—the stick kind for worship.”
“Ah, stick incense. Yes, yes.”
The old shopkeeper nodded, slowly dragging out several rattan baskets of various sizes from under the counter, each neatly stacked with bundles of incense wrapped in red or yellow paper.
“Which kind would the young lady like? There’s ordinary cypress incense—strong fragrance; sandalwood—mellow and long-lasting, but pricier; and there’s stuff with agarwood added, even more expensive, top grade…”
He gestured to different baskets as he spoke.
Su Zhiyun leaned in for a look, picked up a bundle of sandalwood incense, sniffed it carefully, and nodded.
“This one’s good. Nice, authentic scent.”
Then she glanced at Jiu Baiyun, her eyes asking for his opinion.
After all, this was for the shrine; she couldn’t make the call entirely on her own.
Jiu Baiyun didn’t know much about incense, but he remembered that the one A Ran usually used seemed to have this kind of mellow, not-too-harsh smoke, so he nodded.
“Mm. This will do. How much do we need?”
With his approval, Su Zhiyun immediately said to the shopkeeper, “Shopkeeper, this sandalwood incense… we need…”
She paused, quickly calculating the quantity A Ran had mentioned.
“Enough for at least half a month. The shrine needs incense burning every day—that’s a lot.”
The old shopkeeper let out an “Aiyah,” and began counting with practiced hands.
“For a shrine, huh… Then we’d better stock up more. Each bundle of this sandalwood has fifty sticks. Based on how much you said… well, let’s start with ten bundles? Five hundred sticks—if you use sparingly, that should last a little over half a month.”
He spoke while taking out ten bundles of sandalwood incense, each neatly wrapped in yellow paper, piling them on the counter.
“Fine, ten bundles.”
Su Zhiyun agreed readily.
“That’ll be a hundred and twenty coppers.”
The old shopkeeper announced the price.
Just as Jiu Baiyun was about to reach for his money pouch, Su Zhiyun got there first, pulling a small string of copper coins from an inconspicuous cloth pouch at her waist.
She carefully counted out a hundred and twenty coins, placing them one by one on the counter with a clear clinking sound.
Jiu Baiyun’s hand, halfway extended, stopped.
He raised an eyebrow, watching Su Zhiyun pay.
It wasn’t that he cared about the money, but he found her determination to be first at everything—especially paying before him—a little amusing.
After paying, Su Zhiyun confirmed the count was correct, then took the initiative to pick up all ten bundles of incense.
The bundles weren’t heavy, but they were bulky.
Cradling them against her chest made her look rather awkward.
“Give them to me.”
Jiu Baiyun reached out, offering to take some of the load.
But Su Zhiyun immediately sidestepped, hugging the incense like precious treasure, and said firmly, “No! I can carry them myself!”
She wasn’t about to owe him any favors, especially over something this trivial.
Jiu Baiyun withdrew his hand, shrugging nonchalantly.
“Fine, you carry them. Let’s go. It’s almost dark.”
Without looking at her again, he turned and walked out of the incense shop first.
Su Zhiyun, clutching the incense, hurried after him, carefully adjusting the bundles in her arms to make sure they wouldn’t come undone.
Outside the shop, the setting sun had already dyed half the sky red.
Jiu Baiyun looked up at the sky, furrowed his brow, and unconsciously quickened his pace.
Su Zhiyun also felt the pressure of time.
Without bothering to complain about how the incense bundles dug into her arms, she kept close behind.
The two of them, one ahead and one behind, walked quickly toward the town exit.