Chapter 17: Solidifying Spirit Grass (II)

The guidance of the Soul Seal Plate was pointing to the southeast. Sui Ning and Xie Changzhou had been flying on their swords for nearly a whole day.

As they approached the area, the Soul Seal Plate in Sui Ning’s arms suddenly glowed brightly and reacted particularly strongly.

Sui Ning looked at Xie Changzhou, her face showing obvious joy. “Jianzun, we’re getting close.”

This was a slightly desolate city. Because of its remote location, the population inside the city was not large.

As soon as the two of them stepped into the city, Sui Ning looked around, and her eyes were full of happiness.

She had been reading books for a month, and this was her first time out shopping.

The antique buildings on the street, the stone road paved with blue bricks, and the vendors on both sides were enthusiastically hawking their wares.

Excitedly, Sui Ning walked up to Xie Changzhou, and two dimples appeared on her face. “Jianzun, where are we?”

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“Ykpp Lkdtdkdt, esd’v czyxl uswaplzq. Zsw’hl yzalyeu blzrle xl y zsv. Nlv’p vyjl swa vkxl yde qkde kv.”

Dkl Ubydtgbsw bye y nzlya yde lzltydv qynl; bkp czynj byka oyp vkle wr kd y bktb fyel nasod. Mbl pvaydep sq byka vbyv bwdt esod olal qzwvvlakdt kd vbl okde, yde bkp tygl oyp tldvzl yde nsxryppksdyvl.

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System: [Can your adjectives be a bit more advanced? After all, you have received nine years of compulsory education.]

Sui Ning ignored the system’s sarcasm.

The sky was gradually getting dark, and the pedestrians on the street were hurrying home.

Sui Ning stood in front of a unique loft building. Most buildings in Nanjing City were square-shaped; even the inns were mostly two-story buildings. Only this building was four stories high.

She tilted her head and tried to identify the plaque hanging above.

“Zhanke Fengqing?”

Something seemed a bit off.

The system was speechless: [That’s Qingfeng Guesthouse. In ancient times, plaques were written from right to left!]

Sui Ning praised: “Wow, you’re amazing, System!”

The system: […… You’ve been to high school, haven’t you?]

Sui Ning turned around and looked at Xie Changzhou behind her, asking softly, “Jianzun, let’s stay at this inn.”

It was already late, and they needed to find a place to rest.

Xie Changzhou nodded slightly, his voice clear: “Okay.”

The inn was luxuriously decorated, and the bright wall lamps were hanging high, making the entire lobby as bright as day.

A woman stood at the counter, her black and red gauze skirt outlining her slender waist and making her skin appear extremely fair. She wore a veil that obscured her face, but her eyebrows and eyes were especially charming.

When Sui Ning looked at her, the woman’s eyes were watery and seemed to have a hint of laughter, and her every movement was full of charm.

Sui Ning: “System, she’s so beautiful……”

The system: [I agree.]

Each person’s gaze was fixed on the woman, with the somewhat powerless feeling of an eunuch wandering in a brothel.

Xie Changzhou shook his head, and a hint of a smile could be seen in his blue eyes.

It seems that Sui Ning likes to stare at beautiful women?

In the Xianyou Secret Realm and now, he couldn’t help but find it amusing.

Xie Changzhou stepped forward with a calm and serene gaze. “Shopkeeper, we’ll take two rooms as close together as possible.”

Qi Niang’s seductive phoenix eyes looked at Xie Changzhou with a teasing hint, her voice lazy and charming. “Alright, sir.”

She turned around and took out her account book to calculate, “One room is one hundred spiritual stones per day. How many days will you be staying?”

Sui Ning stepped forward; her eyes curved as she looked at Qi Niang. “We’ll stay for seven days for now, but we’ll see how things go.”

“That will be one thousand four hundred spiritual stones.” Qi Niang tilted her head and exhaled a fragrant scent.

Xie Changzhou took out the spiritual stones from his bag and placed them on the counter. Qi Niang handed two keys, but she gave them to Sui Ning.

Sui Ning happily accepted them, and whether intentionally or not, Qi Niang’s fingers lightly brushed over Sui Ning’s hand, and she even poked it with her fingertip.

Sui Ning looked up and met Qi Niang’s charming eyes. Her eyes were like silk with flickering waves.

Sui Ning: Beautiful big sister, I made it!

System: [Why is the tone starting to shift?]

Seeing Sui Ning’s fixed gaze on Qi Niang, Xie Changzhou sighed inwardly and turned away, his clear voice drifting back.

“Miss Ningning, let’s go,” said someone.

Ningning quickly caught up, but she didn’t forget to turn around and wink mischievously at Qi Niang, “Bye, boss lady.”

Qi Niang chuckled and tilted her head slightly. Her lazy and soft voice said, “Little girl, sweet dreams.”

***

It was just getting slightly cool outside when Sui Ning rushed to Xie Changzhou’s doorstep in a panic.

She knocked on the door forcefully, her tone urgent: “Jianzun, wake up; I have an urgent matter.”

In no time, the door was opened, and Xie Changzhou was dressed neatly, looking nothing like someone who had just woken up.

He had a gentle expression and didn’t show any impatience, still in a good mood as he asked her, “What’s the matter?”

Sui Ning quickly presented the Soul Seal Plate, saying, “Jianzun, the Soul Seal Plate had some activity early this morning. The Solidifying Spirit Grass has appeared.”

Xie Changzhou’s gaze sharpened, and Sui Ning continued, “But the location of the herb keeps changing, and the image shown on the Soul Seal Plate is very weak.”

“And just now, its breath disappeared without a trace. No matter how much I urged the Soul Seal Plate, there was no response.”

Xie Changzhou looked at her intently and asked, “Where was the last place that the Solidifying Spirit Grass disappeared?”

Sui Ning quickly replied, “About fifty miles from here.”

Without thinking twice, the two immediately rode their swords towards the place where the Solidifying Spirit Grass had last disappeared.

The place where the Solidifying Spirit Grass disappeared was already outside the city, with few people around.

Sui Ning infused her spiritual energy to manipulate the Soul Seal Pate, attempting to sense the aura of the Solidifying Spirit Grass again, but there was no response at all.

Her brows furrowed, and she increased the input of spiritual energy without hesitation. After a while, the pointer on the Soul Seal Plate trembled and turned for a moment.

Even though it was only a brief moment, both of them saw it clearly.

In the northeast direction!

Sui Ning was overjoyed. “Jianzun, there’s a reaction!”

Xie Changzhou nodded slightly and said gently, “Miss Ningning, you’ve worked hard.”

The northeast direction was already getting farther and farther from Nanjing City. Sui Ning and Xie Changzhou flew on their swords for who knows how long, but they didn’t even catch a glimpse of a figure, let alone the Solidifying Spirit Grass.

Sui Ning became anxious. “Jianzun, let me try again.”

“Help! Get away!”

Just as she was about to summon the Soul Seal Plate for another attempt, a cry for help came from below. It was the desperate voice of a woman.

Xie Changzhou’s eyebrows furrowed slightly, his expression suddenly turning cold. He directly commanded his sword to go to the source of the sound, and Sui Ning quickly followed.

As they approached, Sui Ning noticed that the woman in distress was dressed in bridal attire, and her appearance was exceptionally beautiful.

She wore a fiery red dress, with skin fairer than snow and delicate features adorned with exquisite makeup. It was undeniably a stunning face, but innocence and panic were evident in her eyes and brows.

It was a beauty with a striking contrast that captivated one’s gaze.

When the woman saw Xie Changzhou and Sui Ning, she hurriedly rushed towards them, her voice trembling with fear. “Please save me!”

On the other side were several men dressed in dark red short jackets, presumably the bridegroom’s party.

Upon seeing Xie Changzhou and Sui Ning’s extraordinary temperaments, they realized that these were not ordinary people, so they dared not act recklessly.

A person leading the group loudly said, “Two heroes, we are just sending our young lady off to get married. Please don’t stop us.”

The woman looked over to Sui Ning, her face full of panic. “It’s not like that; I don’t want to get married!”

The woman tightly grabbed Sui Ning’s sleeve, her beautiful eyes full of pleading: “They forced me to be a stand-in bride. It was supposed to be my eldest sister getting married, but she died. They want to send me off to a ghost marriage.”

“Miss, please help me. I already have someone I love; I can’t die.”

The people sending the bride immediately rebuked her loudly: “Miss, please don’t speak nonsense about ghost marriages and stand-in brides. This marriage was always meant to be yours.”

After speaking, they ignored her and tried to grab her. The woman was frightened and quickly hid behind Sui Ning.

“Please help me; I’m not lying.” Her voice was already filled with tears, and her face was stained with tears.

Sui Ning felt a bit sorry for her and was about to speak up to stop those people, but a clear and melodious voice spoke up before her.

“Gentlemen, this young lady does not wish to get married. Furthermore, ghost marriages are illegal. Please leave.”

Xie Changzhou’s face was still gentle and elegant, but his words were firm and resolute. His tall and sturdy figure blocked Sui Ning and the woman behind her.

The people sending the bride exchanged glances and suddenly pulled out their knives and rushed towards Xie Changzhou and his group.

Sui Ning shook her head helplessly and smiled gently at the woman behind her, who was worried and nervous, indicating that she did not need to worry.

Sure enough, those people stopped at arm’s length from Xie Changzhou, their raised knives seemingly intercepted by an invisible barrier. Their faces were fierce, and their foreheads were strained with veins.

Xie Changzhou stood with his hands behind his back, his expression calm as ever, and his glassy eyes filled with indifference and compassion.

“I kindly ask that you all refrain from making any more mistakes. You will not be taking this young lady with you today.”

As soon as he spoke, the invisible barrier seemed to burst, sending several people flying into the trees.

The group struggled to their feet, clutching their chests, and stared at Xie Changzhou for a while before fiercely declaring, “Second Miss, you can’t escape.”

They glared at Xie Changzhou for a while longer before reluctantly realizing that they could not take their young lady home with them today. They could only turn and flee.

The young lady cowered behind Sui Ning and let out a soft whimper. Sui Ning quickly took her hand to comfort her.

The wedding party had already left, and the young lady forcibly suppressed her sobs and thanked the two saviors. “Thank you both.”

Sui Ning waved her hand and was about to speak when suddenly her expression froze. She looked at the woman with a subtle change in her eyes.

After a moment of thought, she tentatively asked, “Miss, do you have a place to go now?”

The woman was taken aback, and a hint of sadness flashed across her beautiful face. Her dark lashes fell as she spoke in a dejected tone: “No, I can’t go home; I don’t have any friends, and I haven’t decided where to go.”

Sui Ning’s lips curled up. “Would you like to come with us, Miss?”

The woman looked surprised, and Sui Ning quickly explained, “I mean no offense. My senior brother and I are out on business. We are disciples of the Limitless Sword Sect. If you have nowhere else to go, we can take you to your desired destination after we finish our business.”

Xie Changzhou, who was forced to be Sui Ning’s senior brother, raised his gentle gaze towards her. Sui Ning met his eyes and nodded lightly. 

Xie Changzhou also nodded slightly, trusting Sui Ning’s judgment.

The woman was overjoyed; her beautiful eyes were filled with happiness and relief. “I’m willing! Thank you both!”

Sui Ning’s black eyes curled into a smile, a hint of pride hidden within.

As she glanced at Xie Changzhou, her face lit up with a mischievous smile, revealing two dimples.

Xie Changzhou was slightly stunned, and his heart seemed to skip a beat for a moment.