Ch. 101 - The Protagonist Came From Afar

The scorching sun hung high in the sky, and the weaver's chirping echoed in the forest.

In the blink of an eye, spring turned to summer.

Dragon House was originally a hot area, but now that the flaming spiritual energy was flooding the mountains, not to mention ordinary people, even many local cultivators almost fainted from heat stroke because of this hot environment.

"Ah, it's so hot."

On the mountain road to Duchun City, a soft cry came from a two-horse carriage that was moving slowly.

The female cultivator with long silver-moon hair was currently holding a round fan in her hand and lifted her skirt to fan herself with the other, just like those ordinary people on the street. This gesture didn't match her peach-like face at all.

The lavender-haired female cultivator sitting next to her glanced at her, took out a handkerchief to wipe the sweat on her forehead, and said with a look of disgust, "If you feel hot, you can go back to the Black Star Sect immediately. I didn't ask you to follow me, but you did it anyway, huh!"

"Hey~" Feng Yu Die quickly put down her skirt and behaved nicely. "It's not... If Sister Pei is not there, isn't it boring to stay in the sect? And I can also protect you."

"Who wants your protection?!"

"But in case we meet a gangster..."

Xiao Yunluo rolled her eyes at her. "This is not about hunting monsters or catching criminals. Immortal Master Li is residing around the Dragon House. Not even a single monster can be seen, let alone a bad person. I'm just here to wish him a happy birthday."

"Okay... Now that I'm here, Sister Xiao, just think of me as your little sidekick. I can mix tea and pour water."

Xiao Yunluo let out a long sigh, lifted the curtain of the carriage window, and looked at the Dragon Immortal Mansion standing in the clouds on the Dragon Mountain in the distance.

About half a month ago, Mr. Qi came to her and said that Li Feng, the master of the Dragon Mountain, would celebrate his 1,200th anniversary.

Because Li Feng and her mother were bosom friends and supported the Dragon Mountain together, they were considered a relatively important immortal force in the Western Region. That's why she went to celebrate his birthday on her mother's behalf.

Of course, this was only one of the reasons.

After all, the Dragons' Convention was one of the major events in the Western Region, and now, it coincided with Li Feng's 1,200th birthday. The guests would include the young masters or elders of almost all the Immortal Sects in the Western Region.

Xiao Yunluo came to celebrate his birthday on behalf of the Black Star Sect this time. Coincidentally, It also allowed her to become familiar with the elders or young masters of each sect and build up relations.

After looking at the Dragon House in the distance, Xiao Yunluo glanced at Feng Yu Die and suddenly let out a long sigh.

How she now wished that the person beside her was Ye Anping, sigh...

If she and Ye Anping had come here, they could have gone shopping together when they reached Duchun City at the foot of the mountain. Moreover, at the Dragons' Convention banquet, she could also use her status as the Young Lady of the Black Star Sect to help the little Hundred Lotus Sect's Young Master.

After that, Ye Anping would definitely find her reliable and fall in love with her or something...

Fantasizing about this, Xiao Yunluo blushed, and she gently rubbed her two embroidered shoes.

"Ah, it's so hot. If only Sister Pei were here."

Hearing Pei Lianxue's name, Xiao Yunluo instantly felt a basin of cold water being poured on her head, and she immediately came to her senses.

Right...

Lianxue also liked Ye Anping, and they have grown up together since childhood.

But on second thought, if Ye Anping wanted to become a cultivator couple with Lianxue, then they would have done it a long time ago.

Since the two still maintained a brother-and-sister relationship, it was probably because they grew up together, which led to Ye Anping being completely unaware of Lianxue's feelings.

At least Lianxue was easy to fool and naive when it came to relationships.

If she thought about it, it seemed that she could not just watch Ye Anping fall into the arms of others.

"Well, there's still a chance..."

"Huh? What chance?" Feng Yu Die asked, tilting her head.

Xiao Yunluo glanced at her. "To fan yourself."

"Oh..."

...

After a while, the carriage drove through the gate of Duchun City.

The heat waves in Duchun City continued unabated, and most commoners wandering the streets were now topless. Even many cultivators seemed unable to stand the extremely hot energy and sat slumped in the shade, tugging at their collars.

Xiao Yunluo held a paper fan and slowly walked down the street. Feng Yu Die kept squeezing under her umbrella, making her feel annoyed and helpless. Unfortunately, Feng Yu Die's silver hair was too eye-catching, and it was hard to kick her away.

"Isn't it hot?! If you want an umbrella, go buy one yourself."

"Those umbrellas are too expensive. I don't want to be swindled." Feng Yu Die pointed to an umbrella stall on the street.

Looking in the direction she pointed, Xiao Yunluo saw a sign in front of the stall-- 'Shading Cool Umbrellas, Thirty Spirit Stones.'

Xiao Yunluo frowned slightly and looked at the sign in front of the herbal tea stall next to her-- 'Relief from Heatstroke Herbal Tea, Ten Spirit Stones a Bowl.'

This price was already astronomical.

Feng Yu Die also complained. "This is really... The merchants in this city are simply profiteers. The prices of all things needed to escape the summer heat have increased tenfold. Cultivators aside, the commoners here are doomed to suffer."

Xiao Yunluo agreed in her heart, but when she was about to move on, Feng Yu Die ran directly to the umbrella stall.

"Hey! Boss, is your umbrella made of spirit stones? Why is it so expensive?"

The boss, hid under the shade of a tree, glanced at her and waved his hand, saying, "Cultivator, eh? If you like it, buy it. If you don't buy it, get lost."

"Hiss---" Feng Yu Die put her hands on her hips. "I'm your senior after all. Can't you speak more politely?"

The boss saw that her cultivation skills started to come out, so he became a little more 'polite': "Okay, if the young lady wants to buy it, buy it. If you don't like it, go away. Our boss said that cultivators must pay the price according to the brand. For commoners, it's the original price, one spirit stone for an item, and the same goes for the tea stall opposite."

"Eh?"

Feng Yu Die was slightly startled. It was the first time she had heard such a thing, and she asked, "You only make money from cultivators, not from commoners?"

"Yes, all tea stalls and umbrella shops in this city are run by the Dragon Slayer Society. After the young master came back, he told us it's a bad thing to make money from ordinary people, but making money from cultivators is an accumulation of virtue and is beneficial to the way of the heart."

Feng Yu Die originally argued with this profiteer from a moral perspective, but now he had taken the moral high ground.

The boss seemed to get carried away and continued, "Since the young master of our Dragon Slayer Society came back, all the other chambers of commerce in Duchun City, like Green Peak Society, have been beaten to pieces by him. Not to mention his wide network of connections, there is also a senior in the late stage of Foundation Building..."

"Excuse me!!!"

Feng Yu Die lowered her head and returned to Xiao Yunluo dejectedly.

"What's wrong?"

"In their Dragon Slayer Society, cultivators pay fifty times the price, while commoners pay the original price."

Xiao Yunluo frowned and murmured, "The Dragon Slayer Society is quite original... but that's right, commoners and cultivators live together here in the Dragon House. Life is not easy for ordinary people, and most cultivators don't think highly of them."

Xiao Yunluo shrugged slightly and then left with Feng Yu Die, but after walking one more street, they saw a teenager squatting in front of the alley, munching on a steamed bun.

If he was just a beggar, they wouldn't have specifically stopped. The point was that the young man was a third or fourth-level Qi Refining cultivator, and although his clothes were dirty, it was obvious that the fabric was quite good.

How could a young cultivator at the third level of Qi Refining be in such a miserable state...

Xiao Yunluo had no intention of striking up a conversation, but Feng Yu Die was particularly curious, so she stepped forward and asked, "Hey, what's wrong with you? You're a cultivator and on top so well-dressed, why are you squatting here like a beggar?"

The teenager who was approached by Feng Yu Die sniffed and raised his head. He was stunned for a moment by the looks of Feng Yu Die and Xiao Yunluo, but he soon came back to his senses. "Ladies, I... I have been replaced!"

"Replaced?"

"Yes! I am the Young Master of the Jiang Mansion, and my name is Jiang Yu. My father passed away, and when I was coming back, I was robbed by two people on the way. The jade token and letter that proved my identity were taken away."

Xiao Yunluo nodded and asked with suspicion, "Then, why don't you go back to talk to them? No one in your family knows you?"

"I left home seven years ago to practice cultivation, and..." He picked up the steamed bun in his hand and said with tears, "I went to Jiang Mansion before, but..."

"What was the result?"

"I was about to explain. When the two servants at the door heard the first sentence, they directly threw some steamed buns at me and drove me away, saying that I'm already the seven hundred and thirty-seventh person who tried to impersonate Young Master Jiang."

Feng Yu Die was stupefied and turned to look at Xiao Yunluo. Seeing that she also looked confused, she asked again, "Then... can't you prove your identity? For example, tell them your father's birthday, or something that only you would know."

"I told them!! I reported my father's date of birth, but the two servants said that the people who came before to pretend also reported it, and a few people even said that my father had a mole on his butt!...I...

Feng Yu Die was speechless. After a moment of silence, she raised her eyebrows and asked, "...Seven hundred and thirty-seven people know that your father has a mole on his butt?"

"I don't even know if my father has a mole on his butt... Who would know about this except my mother and my father himself?!"

"...But why do so many people want to impersonate you?"

"Many of them are commoners. Because they can get free steamed buns and herbal tea by pretending to be me, so many people come to the gate of the Jiang Mansion. You can go take a look. There is still a queue in front of the Jiang Mansion..."

"Hmm..." Feng Yu Die looked at him, rubbed her chin, thinking for a while, then asked again, "Are you really the Young Master of the Jiang House?"

"Really! I swear!! If I lie, may the lightning strike me dead!"

"Then... How about this? This girl and I are both disciples of the Black Star Sect." Feng Yu Die grinned and said, "We will help you prove your identity, but after the matter is done... "

She raised her eyebrows and gestured a double "OK."

Jiang Yu hesitated for a split second, realized that she meant "money", and hastily agreed: "Alright!! As long as you two help me prove my identity, I can give you no matter how much you want..."

However, before he finished speaking, Xiao Yunluo quickly reached out, grabbed Feng Yu Die by the back of her collar, and dragged her away.

"Hey?!"

"Mind your own business."

"Ah? Sister Xiao, there's a profit! There's a profit to be made~ We just need to show our identity badges. The little Jiang Mansion won't ignore the Black Star Sect disciples, right?"

Xiao Yunluo rolled her eyes and said, "The identity badge of a disciple of the Black Star Sect is not omnipotent. Moreover, this is someone else's family matter, and I'm not even sure whether he is the Young Master of the Jiang Mansion. Who knows how this will end?"

"If he is fake, we'll just turn around and leave. But if he is real, then we'll get some spirit stones for free."

"Then, you help him if you want. You can come and find him yourself later. Don't drag me in."

Feng Yu Die thought and shouted to Jiang Yu, who was sitting in the same place. "Young Master, please wait for me. I will come to you when I have time. We will discuss the details then..."

Looking at Feng Yu Die being dragged away, hope rekindled in Jiang Yu's eyes. Originally, he had wanted to go back to his master directly, but he had not yet learned how to maneuver a sword. It would take at least five months to go back and forth, and by then, it would be too late.

But now, there was this idle cultivator, willing to speak out for him, and she was a disciple of the Black Star Sect, no less.

He couldn't believe it! That bastard pretending to be him won't dare to offend the Black Star Sect, right?

"Heh!"

Jiang Yu smiled, then stuffed the steamed bun in his mouth and started eating.

"Huh? It's quite delicious..."

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