Chapter Thirty-Two: Surely You Haven’t Sold Your Own Body, Have You?

If it weren't for that wretched task, he would have had no interest in unraveling Gao Zhengde's schemes, and would simply have slapped him dead without a second thought.

Gao Zhengde suddenly grew anxious and agitated. "He is just like you, driven by profit. I satisfied his desires, he helped me pursue immortality. We've known each other for decades—he would never deceive me!"

Known each other? Was it really as he imagined?

Su Ji'an hesitated no longer. With a flicker of thought, he swiftly drew his flying sword and struck Gao Zhengde down without mercy.

"Naive fool! Pray that in your next life you learn some wisdom."

Now Gao Zhengde was dead beyond all hope of revival.

Su Ji'an summoned the Fire of Departure technique, reducing his opponent's corpse to ashes in a blink, then departed with peace of mind.

As for the guards outside the door, he paid them no heed—someone else would deal with them soon enough. Not just anyone was worthy of his Fire of Departure.

This Lingzhou City was no place to linger any longer. Su Ji'an’s mind was already set on leaving, for in the coming days, the righteous alliance would certainly come to investigate. This pressing threat was the main reason he dealt with Gao Zhengde so urgently.

But, truth be told, the efficiency of the righteous alliance was nothing to boast about.

...

Meanwhile, Ouyang Ke was already fleeing the city lord's manor at the fastest speed possible, when the familiar prompt sounded in his mind once again.

[Your task progress is now halfway complete. Please continue with the follow-up mission to investigate Xi Wang's whereabouts.]

Ouyang Ke paused, bewildered.

Was that all? He remembered doing almost nothing, just glimpsing a man locked away, and knowing nothing else.

He stopped thinking about it—it was, after all, a good thing.

Perhaps the so-called plot was precisely the man he saw, trapped and chained.

As for Xi Wang, mentioned in the follow-up task, he had only seen the name posted in city announcements. Regardless of the truth, so many days had passed that the person's whereabouts were surely unknown.

But he was in no hurry to complete the task, unwilling to leave this realm so soon.

There was no time limit, and he had developed a keen interest in the path of immortality.

If he didn’t seize this chance to learn about it, he would never have another opportunity when he returned to his original world.

"Thieving little rascal, I've finally caught you!"

Just as Ouyang Ke pondered, he felt a chill on his back, then his body grew lighter, and he was lifted off the ground.

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Ouyang Ke was startled, craning his head to see an old beggar behind him, whose foul stench nearly blinded him.

...

[Player Ouyang Ke has been abducted by the old beggar and forced to become his servant.]

Su Ji'an was taken aback—where had this old beggar appeared from?

He imagined... perhaps the beggar abducted Ouyang Ke for his handsome looks, leading to what happened next?

But clearly, things were not so simple. A common beggar could not possibly have the strength to abduct Ouyang Ke.

Indeed, beggars were among the most dangerous professions these days—anyone could be a hidden master in disguise.

So, does this mean his grand plan to plunder the Treasure Pavilion was about to fall through?

Su Ji'an’s mood soured instantly; he had hoped to make a fortune this time.

At this moment,

Su Ji'an arrived outside Zhao Qianxue's room, where the woman was idly reading romantic novels.

That was her only real hobby.

When Zhao Qianxue saw Su Ji'an push open the door, she immediately grew wary. In a flash, she drew her flying sword and hid a Great Transference Talisman in her palm, ready for action at the slightest provocation.

Su Ji'an smiled, "Your vigilance is commendable. Keep it up."

"You..." Zhao Qianxue found his voice familiar, but couldn't be sure.

"You're right—it’s me," Su Ji'an said, not inclined to tease her. He had long outgrown such low amusements.

Besides, the threat of the righteous alliance was imminent. How could he waste time on trivialities?

Zhao Qianxue breathed a sigh of relief. "Little Ji'an, how did you end up looking like this?"

"It’s only been a night—surely you haven’t sold your body? We haven’t sunk that low yet."

She seemed uncomfortable, her delicate brows furrowing.

Su Ji'an: "..."

Her train of thought was truly peculiar. He was at a loss for words.

He replied irritably, "Don’t talk nonsense. It’s the effect of the Shape-Shifting Pill. You should take one too—our real faces are not safe to display openly."

With that, he placed a handful of Shape-Shifting Pills in her hand.

Zhao Qianxue’s lips twitched. Su Ji'an had grown unexpectedly bold and assertive lately, and she still wasn’t used to it.

"We should leave soon."

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Su Ji'an watched Zhao Qianxue swallow the Shape-Shifting Pill, her appearance shifting in an instant to match his own unremarkable look. Only then did he feel secure enough to walk openly through Lingzhou City with her.

He considered it, feeling reluctant to leave just yet—if he didn’t rob the Treasure Pavilion this time, he would never be at ease.

But first, he needed to ascertain whether Ouyang Ke had a chance to escape.

If not, he would simply let it go.

Such matters were not for him to handle personally; prudence was the way, or else he might lose his life.

After a short while,

Su Ji'an brought Zhao Qianxue to an inn and casually rented an upper room, since he had no intention of staying long and saw no reason to waste money.

He had always been a thrifty man.

Just then, the system prompt sounded in Su Ji'an’s mind.

[Player Ouyang Ke has found fortune amid misfortune, his cultivation guided by the old beggar. Ouyang Ke gains great benefit.]

Su Ji'an paused—was this destiny?

According to the usual pattern, the old beggar was surely Ouyang Ke’s own personal mentor.

This was not a bad thing for Su Ji'an.

The player was not his enemy, and could not harm him in any way.

If the player did harbor ill intent, it would only lead to disaster.

Su Ji'an settled Zhao Qianxue in, then left the inn.

He was cut off from information—even the arrival of the righteous alliance’s reinforcements in Lingzhou City was unknown to him.

Suddenly, Su Ji'an had an idea: if the righteous alliance came to Lingzhou City to cause him trouble, and he simply left, wouldn’t that be letting them off too easily?

There’s a saying: endure for a moment and the storm passes.

But there’s another saying, even more apt: the longer you endure, the more resentful you become.

So, for peace of mind, he must make the righteous alliance suffer.

And nothing was more suitable than the strangeness beneath the city lord’s lake.

Let them tear into each other like dogs, and he needn’t fear being implicated.

But how to lure the righteous alliance into the lake? That required careful planning.

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