“Alright, eat it while it’s hot.” Shang Xia said when the three piping hot bowls of dumplings were served. He took the lead and picked up his utensils.
Chewing on the juicy meat wrapped in a slightly chewy but still soft layer of dumpling skin, the fragrance of the soup lingered in his mouth. Narrowing his eyes a little, Shang Xia recalled the scene when he entered the city earlier.
At the city gates, Shang Xia could basically confirm that the strange divine sense came from a cultivator of the Azure Spiritual World. It scanned through the four young martial artists who came from the Ji Continent, and after careful deduction, Shang Xia realized that at least one of them was a cultivator of the Azure Spiritual World too.
If not for his special divine sense that could merge with the world, his disguise would have been seen through by the owner of the strange divine sense right away!
The owner of the divine sense and the four young martial artists weren’t the only ones who didn’t discover Shang Xia’s true identity. The young lady was also unable to see through Shang Xia’s cultivation level.
They might not have discovered his identity, but Shang Xia saw through all of them! There was even an urge burning in his heart to kill the cultivator from the Azure Spiritual World.
If they were at the entrance of the Tongyou City, Shang Xia wouldn’t hesitate to start a bloodbath. The problem was that he was currently in the Changfeng City. Moreover, he was lost in the Thousand Leaf Mountain Range after suffering from the ambush. He concluded that Kou Chongxue was also attacked, and he couldn’t be sure of the current situation in the You Continent. As such, he couldn’t move about recklessly.
There was also another reason Shang Xia didn’t make his move. There were three experts who were sent to ambush him. Who could be sure that there weren’t more hiding in the You Continent? It wouldn’t be a smart move to expose his identity at that moment.
His decision to remain passive was quickly proven to be correct. As the city standing between the Ji Continent and the You Continent, the Changfeng City was also the only other city in the You Continent other than the Tongyou City. It might be controlled by the city lord, but the four great clans of the Tongyou City naturally had their affairs in order there.
As he walked through the city, he discovered that many warehouses and storefronts were being silently observed by different people/
Shang Xia didn’t know if they were truly the members of the four great clans in the Tongyou City, or other experts. He couldn’t be sure if they were targeting him too. All he knew was that he shouldn’t reveal himself at that moment.
Luckily he had remained in the wilderness for quite some time. His facial features were basically covered by his newly grown beard and mustache, and his appearance was a lot more weathered than before. No one would be able to recognize him as the young master of the prestigious Shang Clan if they weren’t familiar with him. In their eyes, he was nothing more than an ordinary hunter.
It seemed as though he would have to lie low for quite some time in the Changfeng City. At the very least, he couldn’t do anything before he verified the current situation in the You Continent.
It didn’t take long for him to devour the bowl of dumplings and two sesame cakes.
The young lady and the little kid weren't lagging far behind him either. By the time he placed his chopsticks down, the young lady had emptied her bowl of dumplings. The little girl also managed to finish half a bowl of dumplings and half a sesame cake.
“How much is it?” Shang Xia wiped his mouth before taking out a piece of silver essence.
“Twelve copper boards!” The owner approached his table with a cloth in hand and a smile on his face.
“What?” Shang Xia stared at the owner of the stall in shock.
With a strange look on his face, the owner stared at Shang Xia before explaining, “A bowl of dumplings and soup cost two copper boards. A sesame cake is one copper board each. You had six of them, and it cost twelve copper boards in total. This…”
Seeing how the young lady and little kid were turning to stare at him, Shang Xia was still unable to hide his state of shock. “How is it so cheap?”
Widening his eyes in shock, the stall owner chuckled in amusement, “I’m just running a small business over here… I can’t possibly overcharge my customers!”
“Alright. Get me another eight sesame cakes to go. Let’s make it a nice number.” Shang Xia said while tossing a piece of silver essence over.
Whistling happily, he grabbed another eight sesame cakes. Along with those the little girl left, the owner packed them all up before handing them to Shang Xia with his change of four copper plates.
Speaking of which, Shang Xia understood how the currency system worked in the Azure Origin World. A piece of silver essence was worth a hundred copper boards. Copper plates were larger in size compared to a copper board, and one of them was worth twenty copper boards.
Weighing the copper plates in his hand, Shang Xia smiled. It was indeed his first time using copper boards and copper plates as his method of payment.
As the young master of the Shang Clan, he mainly dealt in silver essence. There was also the rare occasion where golden coins were used.
The amount he paid was barely worth anything in his eyes. At that moment, he had close to three hundred pieces of silver essence in his Embroidered Cloud Case. It was the payment he extorted from Yu Changjin when he came over to ask for the talismans to cure the disciple of his institution. However, the copper boards and copper plates in his hand held a more significant meaning as he made them all through his hunt in the Thousand Leaf Mountain Range.
After receiving his change, Shang Xia got to his feet and the young lady quickly picked up the little girl to follow him.
They looked much better after eating the piping hot bowl of dumplings. As he strolled down the street, the little girl’s voice rang from behind. “Uncle, where are you going?”
“Winter in the You Continent is really unforgiving. You won’t survive for long in your clothes. I’ll bring you to get some.” Shang Xia said without even turning around.
“It’s alright. You can get a set for Yuanyuan. I’ll do fine…” The young lady finally revealed her true voice and it sounded clear and melodious as it entered Shang Xia’s ears.
Turning around, Shang Xia’s gaze landed on the little girl and he chuckled. “Yuanyuan… You have a nice name, hahaha.”
Widening her eyes, the little girl’s smile extended across her face. “Thank you, uncle!”
Shang Xia turned around and saw a clothing store. He laughed happily, “Alright, we’re here. Let’s go take a look!”
When they emerged from the shop, the little girl was wrapped in a puffy red jacket. Coupled with her round face, she looked like a cute swollen red snowman.
The young lady didn’t leave empty handed like she wanted to. A jade green jacket hugged her body, and it protected her from the cold without compromising her figure.
Shang Xia noticed a long time ago that she had been injecting her inner qi into the little girl’s body to keep the kid warm. It was like he said. They wouldn’t last long without warmer clothes.
As the little girl had eaten her fill and she was comfortable in her new jacket, she no longer wanted to remain in her mother’s embrace. She squirmed her way out and the young lady had no choice but to let her walk on her own. She jumped happily around the young lady and Shang Xia as her laughter quickly lightened up the mood.
By the time they reached the end of the street, she had her fill of osmanthus cakes, cotton candy, fried dough sticks, and she was gnawing on a stick of candied hawthorn.
Shang Xia looked at the young lady before chuckling in amusement. “This looks like her first time trying these stuff…”
Grunting softly, the young lady lowered her head in embarrassment.
“Looks like you’re going to remain in the city for some time.” Shang Xia mentioned casually.
Glancing at Shang Xia, the young lady lowered her head once again and sighed, “Yes.”
“You don’t have any money on you… Do you have any skills you can use to earn some?” Shang Xia asked.
“No…” The young lady whispered softly after hesitating for a long time.
Nodding slowly, Shang Xia no longer harped on the matter. He led the way to a property broker and requested to rent a small courtyard.
The broker moved quickly. It didn’t take long for him to locate a suitable property for Shang Xia. Before long, the three of them followed behind the broker to take a look at the place.
The courtyard was clearly made for a small family. It faced the south, avoiding any direct sunlight in the day, and there was a main room along with two smaller rooms beside it. There were two fruit trees in the courtyard, and there was also a well covered in bluestone.
Looking through the property, Shang Xia felt that it was quiet enough and decided to rent it out.
“It’s three silver essence for a month.” The broker threw out a price that Shang Xia was unfamiliar with. After all, he wasn’t well-versed in the property prices of the Changfeng City.
Taking out the money he had left in his sleeves, Shang Xia didn’t know if he should bring out more from his Embroidered Cloud Case to rent the courtyard for a longer period of time.
When the broker saw Shang Xia’s reaction, he thought that Shang Xia was hesitating due to the price. He couldn’t help but explain, “It might be a little more expensive, but you can’t blame us! In the past few months, there were many outsiders who came to our city. The prices of every single property increased by a huge amount! If you don’t think it’s worth it, you can always look for another place.”
Shang Xia chuckled softly. “I didn’t say that I won’t rent.”
Counting out three silver essence, he handed it over to the broker. While doing so, he made a casual offhand comment. “I haven’t been here for a while and the city became so crowded. I wonder where these people came from? Could they be the original inhabitants of the You Continent?”
Shaking his head, the broker sighed, “Previously, the original inhabitants of the You Continent had already returned. Nowadays, they seem to be cultivators from the Ji Continent. They might not be throwing their weight around, but it’s obvious that they look down on people of the You Continent like us.”
Since he paid for the courtyard and got the information he wanted, he decided to send the broker away.
Turning back to the mother and daughter duo, he decided to bring them out to get some supplies. Spending all the money he had left from the sale he made earlier in the day, they brought back several bags full of items.
Shang Xia lit a fire in his room and it finally regained its warmth. The little kid poked at the sweet potatoes that Shang Xia had thrown in the fire earlier and started drooling.
Shang Xia laughed happily when he saw her actions. However, he turned around to look at the young lady who arrived behind him.
“Why don’t you ask about our identities?” That had been the question she was dying to ask since they entered the city.
Shang Xia’s gaze returned to the kid and he chuckled, “Why should I ask? Even if I did, will you tell me?”
“No.” The young lady remained silent for some time before muttering.
“Haha. It’s quite alright. Little Yuanyuan is pretty cute!” Shang Xia burst out laughing when he saw her comical expression as she ‘cooked’ the sweet potatoes.
Walking beside Shang Xia, the young lady stared at the little girl as her expression finally thawed. She whispered, “Yuanyuan hasn’t been this happy in a long time. It has also been long since she experienced such peace… Thank you!”
Glancing at her from the corner of his eye, he muttered, “You chose this for her.”
Shaking her head slowly, she turned to walk towards her door. When she arrived, she turned around to look at Shang Xia. “I’m called Hai Min. Don’t forget my name if anyone asks. What should I call you?”
“You can call me Shang Xia. I come from an ordinary family of hunters.” Shang Xia spoke without turning to look at her.
“Alright. Yuanyuan shall now be called Shang Yuanyuan for now. She’s the daughter of an ordinary hunter.” Leaving the room, she sighed, “I’ll prepare dinner now.”
Perhaps it was because of the long journey they experienced, the two of them chose to turn in early after dinner.
Shang Xia went to one of the side rooms and he started to circulate his inner qi. He didn’t forget to cover the entire courtyard with his divine sense in case anything went wrong. After some time, he discovered that Hai Min had left her room silently.