Chapter 73 Farewell to the First Publication on Jinjiang
Yao Sisi stood there stunned in the room. She felt sorry for Lanlan because she had no mother, and she also felt that Lanlan was working so hard to raise money in order to exchange for a magic weapon. Her conscience was whipped repeatedly in that instant.
“She’s so young, I shouldn’t have let her help.”
At this moment, the effects of the elixir had taken hold. Lanlan, who was on the bed, happened to hear this. She turned her head and saw her beautiful older sister there. She was stunned for a moment before speaking, "It's not my fault, sister. I went because I was greedy for spirit stones. Please don't blame yourself." Then she looked at the young boy in the room with a somewhat reproachful gaze.
"Ning Xiu, didn't I tell you not to let your sister know? Why did you bring her here behind my back!"
Ning Xiu was tongue-tied and didn't speak, so Yao Sisi replied for him, "It was my sister who noticed something was wrong with his expression and secretly followed him because she was worried. Luckily I came, otherwise, with your injuries so severe, it would have been so dangerous. If it were an ordinary mortal, they wouldn't be able to save him by now."
Lanlan was very disappointed. She asked, "Sister, am I particularly useless?"
Yao Sisi: "No, Lanlan is an exceptionally outstanding child I have ever met."
Lanlan's wound was slowly healing, and her complexion had improved a lot. She picked up the small bag beside her pillow and asked, "Sister, is there anything else you need me to tell your friends?"
Yao Si thought for a moment, then shook her head. She didn't want to affect Ri Jiu's thinking, and she wasn't sure if he would come back. She only knew that if he came, he would definitely look for her, and there was a strand of her hair on the small bag, which he could sense with his secret method.
"I don't have anything to say, but this little bag can't be put in the storage bag, otherwise he won't be able to sense it. If... if no one comes to retrieve the contents within a year, then the seal on the little bag will automatically break, and the contents will be yours!"
Lanlan: "Okay, I understand, sister. I'll wait patiently. Did you give me a very expensive pill, sister?"
Yao Sisi: "If you have money, why don't you buy medicine first instead of buying magical artifacts from me? Which is more important, the magical artifacts or your life?"
Lanlan: "I've taken the medicine, it's just that it's taking a little longer to work. Besides, I promised my sister, how could I back out at the last minute..."
Yao Sisi: "Take a look at your magic weapon, do you like it or not!"
At this moment, Ning Xiu handed her a magical artifact from his storage bag. It was a small lotus flower, about the size of a palm, snow-white and very beautiful. Lanlan couldn't take her eyes off it from the moment he took it out, and she was so excited that she almost got out of bed.
Wow! So beautiful.
She struggled to look away from the magical artifact and gazed at Yao Sisi with admiration: "Sister, you're amazing!"
A little embarrassed by the child's sincere praise, Yao Sisi quickly waved her hand and said, "I'm just...so-so—"
...
When Yao Sisi returned to the courtyard, she saw that Qi Mu and Liu Yuan had already begun clearing out their inventory. They were preparing to sell these items in preparation for their departure.
She touched her nose and said with difficulty, "That..."
Qi Mu looked at her, her eyes questioning.
Yao Sisi said somewhat shyly, "I met two children who seemed a little pitiful, and I wanted to take them with me..."
Qi Mu paused, remaining silent, but Liu Yuan spoke for him: "Fellow Daoist went out to pick up someone?"
Yao Sisi: "How can this be considered picking someone up? It's not like I was unconscious and your young master picked me up. The child is perfectly healthy..."
Qi Mu: "Does Sisi want to take on a disciple?"
Yao Sisi: "No, I feel sorry for them living here without parents. I feel bad if I have troubled them with something and the little guy gets hurt because of it."
Qi Mu: "How badly were you injured? Are you healed now?"
Yao Sisi flattered, "Our young master is so kind and beautiful inside and out. He asked about the injury right away, but it's already healed."
Liu Yuan rolled her eyes behind his back. All he knew was to flatter his young master until the man had no choice but to comply.
Qi Mu: "Whether it's a boy or a girl, you'll treat them and take them with you."
Seeing that he had relented, Yao Sisi didn't quite understand why he had asked about the gender, but she still answered honestly, "The patient is a girl, someone you know, our first client, the little girl I gave her the storage bag..."
Qi Mu breathed a sigh of relief, fearing that she might have saved some teenager and that things would get complicated if feelings developed between them.
He realized he was incredibly stingy; his heart had been pounding the whole time he heard her say those things.
"Go ahead and bring them if you want! But I've recently bought a lot of materials, and I might not have enough spirit stones if I bring two people."
Yao Sisi: "Don't worry, I have some here. Besides, how could I let you pay for the people I need to add at the last minute!"
Qi Mu: "Now it's hard to tell what's yours and what's mine. How can we calculate these things when we've never lived together?"
Yao Sisi scratched her head: "That depends on the situation!"
Qi Mu looked at her, "You haven't told them about taking them away yet, have you?"
Yao Sisi nodded: "I have to get your consent first. After all, I broke the contract at the last minute to bring two little guys with low cultivation levels. They're not pets, so how could I not discuss it with you? If you don't like them, I don't have to bring them. In short, meeting is fate, and fate is uncertain. I don't have to force them to stay. It's good to help them for a while."
She tilted her head and looked at Liu Yuan again, "Brother Liu Yuan, you can say so if you think it's troublesome. We are partners who have come together, and your opinion is just as important to me."
Liu Yuan: "???"
Equally important? You're putting me on the spot! How can he be compared to the young master? This Fellow Daoist Yao is truly annoying. He's always trampling on my beliefs.
“If you don’t mind, then I don’t mind. It’s just that I don’t want to be as important as you.”
Yao Sisi scratched her head: "Sorry, it just came out of habit. I'll be more careful next time."
Liu Yuan's expression softened; these words sounded very comforting.
Yao Sisi: "Then I'll go tell those two kids first."
When she returned to the dilapidated courtyard and told Lanlan and Ningxiu the news, what she thought would go smoothly turned into a disaster as soon as she opened her mouth.
Lanlan: "Sister, I'm not going. I want to stay here."
Seeing her say that, Ning Xiu replied, "Then I won't leave either."
Yao Sisi: "Hey? It's so dangerous here with no one to look after us. Wouldn't it be better to go to a major sect?"
Lanlan smiled and said, "Sister, it's not easy to get into a major sect. We don't have any skills or talents, and our cultivation and spiritual roots aren't outstanding. Going there would only waste your efforts and travel expenses, and we wouldn't be able to help you at all..."
It's better to stay here and wait patiently for my sister's friend.
Yao Sisi sighed, "Okay, I was oversimplifying things."
After she left, Lanlan asked Ningxiu, "Why didn't you go with her? It would be such a loss if it were because of me. You should explain this to your sister."
Ning Xiu stubbornly said, "We've depended on each other for so long. We'll find another opportunity to try our luck at other sects. Soon, the nearby sects will also be recruiting disciples. If we can't go to the big sects, there's nothing wrong with going to the small sects."
Lanlan rolled her eyes at him: "Who said I'm not going to a major sect!"
Ning Xiu paused, his expression easy to understand, meaning, "Didn't you just say that with such certainty?"
Lanlan: "I just love my sister so much. She touches my head and speaks to me gently, just like my mother. But I was too young to do anything for my mother back then, and I was just a burden. But now I must complete the task my sister gave me. When the time comes, I can go to find her with her friends, right? My sister doesn't know anyone else besides me, otherwise this task wouldn't have fallen to me. If I go with my sister, who will deliver the message? I don't trust anyone else to deliver the message!"
Ning Xiu pursed his lips into a thin line. His IQ was indeed not as high as Lan Lan's, and he couldn't even understand this. He just mumbled, "Then I'll go after her. You mustn't lie to me."
Lanlan: "Why would I lie to you? If you don't hurry up, I'll leave with my sister's friends and won't take you with me!"
Lanlan's courtyard was not far from Yao Sisi's, only two streets away. Cultivators are very fast, and by the time Ning Xiu caught up, Yao Sisi had just stepped into the courtyard and was greeting Qi Mu.
"I was really sad to be rejected by two kids. Am I just not good with children?"
When Qi Mu looked at her, he happened to see Xiao Weitou not far away. He was a handsome young boy with a cold and aloof demeanor, completely different from his own temperament. He didn't bother to answer Yao Sisi's question. His gaze was entirely on the boy, observing him discreetly. This boy was at the age when he was just beginning to experience romantic feelings, and his body was growing. The place where he originally lived was not like this. Instead, he lived among ordinary people. At this age, people were already engaged and discussing marriage. They could get married in two more years.
He wouldn't treat him like a child.
Only Sisi would think this is a little kid.
"Didn't Sisi say she was taking a girl with her? Then this one..."
Yao Sisi turned around following his gaze, also showing surprise. However, due to their positions, this surprise went unnoticed by Qi Mu, but it certainly caught Ning Xiu's eye.
He keenly sensed that the older brother in the center of the courtyard didn't like him very much. He wasn't good with words to begin with, and now, with his lips pursed, he was even more unable to open his mouth to ask her to take him with her. But if he didn't leave, Lanlan would leave again. He had never been to such a far place before, and a sense of fear arose inexplicably, fearing that he would never find her again.
Seeing that he opened his mouth but didn't make a sound, Yao Sisi asked, "What's wrong, Xiao Ningxiu? Is there something you need from your older sister?"
Ning Xiu's face turned bright red because he had previously said he wouldn't leave, and now his sudden change of heart seemed rude and irresponsible. The main problem was that he couldn't betray his friend's trust and couldn't tell her about Lanlan's plans.
"I……"
Qi Mu's gaze swept over the boy's flushed face, and a hint of displeasure rose in her heart, but she still very gently handed him a glass of water, "Take your time to talk about what's wrong, have some water first!"
Ning Xiu took the water with a tense body, but he still felt that this older brother did not like him. He did not understand why this older brother was like this. He had been to the stall before and saw that the older brother was very gentle and treated him no differently than others.
Could it be that he doesn't like having him with him? Well, for normal cultivators, they would only be a hindrance.
"I...I'll go back first."
I'm going to save up the money myself!
He handed the water back, bowing his head respectfully, yet his upright posture didn't make him appear humble. Seeing him about to leave, Yao Sisi quickly grabbed his arm, "You little rascal, why are you running away so soon after we arrived?"
How could Ning Xiu's cultivation level compare to Yao Sisi's? She wouldn't let go, so he couldn't leave at all. Only then did he clearly realize that this gentle older sister, whom his friends liked, was actually very powerful, and a sense of admiration arose in his heart.
Yao Sisi: "Let me guess? Could it be that Xiao Ningxiu is here to tell me that you've changed your mind?"
Ning Xiu's lips were pressed into a thin line, but his eyes revealed a hint of information, which Yao Sisi keenly noticed.
"Sigh, you young people are so thin-skinned and have such a strange sense of pride, but you also have an unyielding spirit. I won't laugh at you. Why are you running away? I didn't grow up all at once either. I was your age once too."
Ning Xiu's body relaxed, and his deep, youthful voice sounded somewhat dry: "I...I'm sorry, I...it wasn't that I didn't want to leave before, it's just..."
Yao Sisi guessed, "I understand. Lanlan tried to persuade you later, right? Why didn't you try to persuade her?"
Ning Xiu couldn't lie, and when asked the core question, he could only purse his lips and awkwardly remain silent.
Qi Mu watched their interaction quietly from a distance. Perhaps because he cared too much, his nerves were particularly sensitive, and he could sense the threat. Now he realized that the two of them were very simple, but he still had some hesitation in his heart. There was nothing wrong now, but what about later?
But what could he do? Could he stop her from making normal friends? He couldn't.
Besides, the person he likes is outstanding. Even if he can control her, can he control others from liking her?
This is an unsolvable problem.
Unless, of course, she also likes him, but she doesn't...
Qi Mu was somewhat bewildered. She had lived this long and learned a great deal, including about human relationships, but no one had ever taught her how to make a woman like her. Even her father had been abandoned by her mother…
He was like a moth drawn to flames, but not a pure moth. At least a moth doesn't care about gains or losses and rushes straight to the fire, while he only dared to get close to the fire. The firelight was reflected in his eyes but couldn't penetrate his heart.
...
Not far away, Yao Sisi said to Ning Xiu, "Now that little Ning Xiu is one of us, why don't you do something for your sister?"
Ning Xiu straightened his back and asked earnestly, "What does Sister want me to do?"
Yao Sisi was worried that he wouldn't fit in, so she simply gave him some tasks to help him integrate better: "When my sister and brothers first came to Maoling City, they were chased by a group of people who wanted to kill us and steal our treasures. Originally, I was going to find someone else to do this, but it was risky. I don't trust you to do it."
She beckoned to him, and Ning Xiu leaned in to listen. Yao Sisi glanced at the street outside and, seeing that no one was paying attention, whispered something to him. Ning Xiu nodded repeatedly. After the two finished their secret plan, Ning Xiu said, "Don't worry, sister. I've lived in this outer city for many years and know it very well."
The day finally arrived for Yao Sisi and the others to board the ship. The ship was enormous, comparable to a small city. She had never seen such a large spaceship in her entire life, not even in movies. Moreover, the ship was suspended in mid-air, which was truly magnificent.
Yao Sisi and the others stood in the square. The first batch of goods were all loaded onto the merchant ship first, while the passengers who followed the ship were just there. They would board the ship together after it was fully loaded. A long ladder was pulled down from the air. Those who did not have a flying artifact could stand on the ladder and it would automatically rise. Alternatively, passengers who did not want to stand on the ladder could fly up on their own.
None of Yao Sisi and the others had ever climbed a ladder like this before, so they were quite curious. In the end, they unanimously decided to use the ladder to get on the ship. The ladder was semi-transparent, and they didn't know what material it was made of. She wondered if she could make one herself if she had the material. However, making the ladder wasn't difficult, but the difficulty lay in its size. Large items required a certain level of spiritual energy from the craftsman, otherwise, the crafting would fail before it was finished due to insufficient spiritual energy.
She stopped thinking and chatted with the people around her, waiting for the time to be taken onto the ship.
In the distance, a little fox guards a cave. Deep within the cave lies a clear spring, within which grows a blood-red flower. At this moment, the flower is half-open, emitting a rich fragrance. The fox uses a magic array to lock in the fragrance and occasionally guards against enemies hidden in the shadows.
Half a month later, the flower that resembled a demon was in full bloom, its fragrance so strong that even the array could not conceal it. Ri Jiu, who had been guarding the cave entrance, had already gone through several battles. It bared its teeth, its tail was completely bristling, and upon closer inspection, its fur was dull and even sparse in some places, indicating that it had suffered many injuries.
"These flowers are for Sisi, I don't want them to be taken away by these beasts!"
Once the flower is fully formed, it curls its tail to detach the flower from the branch and flings it into its mouth. Finally, it runs through the jungle with the flower in its mouth. The moment the flower is plucked, it is as if time stands still and space is sealed off, and no fragrance can escape, just like an ordinary flower.
But only Ri Jiu knew just how hot the flower was. It tried to put it into its internal space but couldn't, unsure if the flower possessed spatial properties or if there was some other problem.
A little fox was seen running swiftly through the valley with a flower in its mouth. Only when it was sure it was safe did it transform into human form and hide the flower in its wide sleeves.
He tugged at his long hair and said with dissatisfaction, "It's lost its shine, it looks awful!"
Then his gaze turned to Maoling City, "Sisi, I've come to find you!"
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