The Spring Transformation Pill is already a high-grade elixir, and it is very rare even among the immortal sects that the Fu family treats as honored guests.
"Okay." Han Tao rubbed his fingertips together gently by his side, his expression unchanged. "I'll go with you."
After saying that, he added, "The people from Xuantian Sect will stay in Yunhan City for ten days. During this time, do not go out alone, especially when buying or selling spirit pills."
As soon as he finished speaking, Fu Mingxu looked up at him, raised an eyebrow, and asked, "You knew? Han Zhengzhi found out?"
While living in the Fu family, he was always portrayed as someone who couldn't cultivate. At first, some people would often laugh at him and make sarcastic remarks. But as time went on, coupled with his indifferent expression, everyone lost interest.
This has led to the fact that no one knows about the unimaginable fact that someone can refine pills despite having no cultivation or spiritual power.
Han Tao's lips moved, but he didn't refute her; he just nodded.
He certainly knew these things, but he couldn't go into the specific reasons.
Fu Mingxu assumed that Han Zhengzhi had investigated everyone who entered the City Lord's Mansion so thoroughly, but he didn't care. After all, when Han Zhengzhi offered to treat Han Tao, his ability to refine pills and make medicines would be impossible to hide.
"Judging by the timing, my friend just returned from Lanlin today, and he might have that Spirit Orchid on him." He raised his head, and his black hair fell down to his neck and shoulders with the movement, shimmering like soft jade in the sunlight, extremely eye-catching.
With a slight twitch of his fingers, Han Tao took two steps forward without making a sound, passing by him, and said, "Together."
Fu Mingxu nodded without objecting, and the two of them left the folded space together and headed out of the City Lord's Mansion. Their black and blue robes occasionally brushed against each other as they walked, and people would often look at them curiously.
All those stares, as if looking at a rare species, fell on Fu Mingxu. Noticing the uneasy look on his face, Han Tao glanced at the hiding crowd.
Fu Mingxu finally arrived at the entrance of the City Lord's Mansion with ease; he only needed to walk a few more steps to get out.
"Wait a moment." He stopped and skillfully took out a veil from his storage bag, letting the white veil cover his face, leaving only half of his fair chin visible. "Many people from the Fu family have seen me before, so I'm just trying to avoid causing any trouble."
Han Tao was not necessarily out of the question, but what Fu Mingxu did not expect was that some troubles could not be hidden by wearing a veil.
A note from the author:
The dragon's tail is so big, it can't fit in one pot, haha. Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants with nutrient solution between 23:16:47 on 2022-02-24 and 11:31:57 on 2022-02-25!
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
Chapter 8
Perhaps because so much had happened last night, Fu Mingxu felt that Yunhan City was even more bustling than before when he stepped out of the City Lord's Mansion.
In fact, since the Dragon Clan took over Yunhan City, life there has been much more stable than in the neighboring cities due to their powerful military strength. However, since the battle between immortals and demons left the city lord in a coma, the people here have become restless, especially the two largest families, the Fu and Shen families.
Fu Mingxu remembered that when they learned that Fu Shanqing would be sent to the City Lord's Mansion to bring good luck, the Shen family members openly and secretly mocked him a lot, which made Fu Shanqing furious.
After leaving the city lord's mansion and arriving at the main street of the city, Fu Mingxu, wearing a veiled hat, did attract a lot of attention, but when their probing gazes fell on the tall and upright person next to him, they all withdrew.
In fact, to avoid attracting attention or prying from others, as he requested, the unique golden eyes of the Hantao Dragon Clan had already been covered with a magical artifact.
Even with a veil, the white gauze fluttering in the wind occasionally revealed half of her fair chin and delicate profile. Coupled with Fu Mingxu's undeniable and captivating charm, it was enough to attract the attention of others.
In particular, there were an unusually large number of people on the main street today.
Han Tao lagged behind, and Fu Mingxu followed half a step behind. He looked back at those gazes without any politeness, his narrowed eyes filled with a sharp and fierce light. The aura of a dragon's superior was chilling.
Unbeknownst to them, a vacuum zone was formed wherever the two went.
Fu Mingxu, who was focused on the orchid flower, did not notice these things. He turned into an alleyway on the main street, quickened his pace when he saw a thick banyan tree, and then stopped in front of a shop.
Compared to the shops on the main street with their prominent signs and bustling customers, the shop in front of me was simply shabby and deserted.
Even the customers weren't as leisurely as those in the shops outside; instead, they hurried along, heads down, barely glancing at each other.
“You can wait for me outside.” Fu Mingxu stopped in front of the shop. He lifted the white veil, glanced inside, nodded to the shop assistant by the counter, and then said to Han Tao, “I know the owner of this shop, but she doesn’t like outsiders to come along easily.”
Actually, he didn't know how to introduce Han Tao's identity to his friend. Of course, his friend's shop did only serve acquaintances.
Han Tao had no doubts. The dark eyes beneath the disguise of the magic weapon shone with a restrained brilliance, as if they could steal one's soul.
Fu Mingxu habitually kept his distance and looked him in the eye, unaware of the expression in his eyes.
"Okay." Han Tao stopped under the banyan tree, his voice low. "I'll wait for you."
Fu Mingxu suddenly felt a little awkward, but then he remembered that they were just waiting for him to bring the Orchid Flower, so he didn't think much of it.
Sure enough, before Han Tao could finish speaking, he continued, "Here are spirit stones, take them."
Buying Orchid Soul Flowers naturally requires spirit stones, so he didn't think much of it, casually took the spirit stone bag, and nodded: "Okay, then wait for me."
Sunlight filtered through the lush canopy of the banyan tree, casting dappled patterns that fell upon his already handsome features, making it seem as if a galaxy shimmered within them.
After he entered the shop, Han Tao became much gentler.
He watched the shop close after Fu Mingxu went in for a few moments, then turned and looked towards the corner of the wall.
The corner of the wall was right under a banyan tree, and the already scarce light was completely blocked by the tree canopy. When Han Tao looked over, the dim shadow suddenly moved, as if something was crawling out from inside.
Han Tao took in all the changes in the shadows without the slightest surprise or fear. He calmly watched as the movement in the shadows accelerated, and then it suddenly rose from the ground, transforming into a human form in an instant.
The humanoid figure was also dressed in black. Although its features were somewhat similar to his, when combined, it looked quite ordinary and wouldn't attract much attention in a crowd.
Dark energy lingered in the alley, and the birds that had been chirping merrily in the banyan tree suddenly fell silent, as if something terrifying had appeared.
"Shadow." Han Tao's expression showed a moment of surprise, but he quickly regained his composure.
“Master.” The humanoid figure named Shadow knelt respectfully on one knee. His face showed no joy or sorrow, and his voice was as if there was sand stuck in his throat, extremely awkward. “You have finally called me.”
Han Tao looked down at him: "My cultivation is completely destroyed, I need your help."
Without a single question, Ying looked up and said, "I am the master's shadow."
Born from his shadow, possessing independent thinking and self-awareness.
Every species has a shadow, but there is no record of anyone's shadow forming a "human".
Whether it's the form in which this "person" was created, or the fact that it requires demonic energy to awaken him, everything seems to be hinting at something unusual.
Han Tao had always known of his existence, but this was the first time he had awakened him.
A shadow can hide in any shadowy place in the world, like a barrier that will never betray you.
"Go to the Demon Realm," Han Tao said slowly, looking up towards the northwest. "Capture You Shu, alive, and bring him back."
He wanted to know if the demons were truly behind it all. He also needed to know why, despite his destroyed cultivation, he hadn't fallen to demonic possession and could still use demonic energy.
The shadow didn't look up, its voice rough: "Yes."
As soon as he finished speaking, his shadow disappeared into the shadows without a sound, as if he had never existed.
The birdsong resumed in an instant, and footsteps echoed in the alley. The shadows of the trees swayed, and conversations continued; it was as if nothing strange had ever happened in this space.
After an incense stick had burned, the shop door opened, and Fu Mingxu, who had successfully obtained the Orchid Soul Flower, stood by the counter and spoke with the shop owner, who was also his good friend Shen Ange.
"An Ge, thank you so much this time." With the white veil of his hat lifted to his cheeks, Fu Mingxu said apologetically to her, "I didn't leave you any pills this time, but I'll give you one once I've refined the Yang Soul Pill."
As soon as he finished speaking, Shen Ange perked up, her voice low but filled with barely suppressed excitement: "Really?"
Fu Mingxu nodded confidently. Shen Ange gave him all five Orchid Soul Flowers she had obtained this time. He estimated his pill-producing rate and calculated the market conversion rate, so it wouldn't be difficult for him to spare one for her.
"Do you have enough alchemy fire?" Shen Ange had no doubt about his alchemy skills, but she felt sorry that he couldn't cultivate, so he couldn't fuse with spiritual fire and could only use consumable alchemy fire.
“That’s enough, you don’t need to worry.” Fu Mingxu thought of the City Lord’s Mansion’s resources and felt that the pill fire should be fine. As he spoke, he glanced at the spot where Han Tao had stood earlier and frowned slightly.
Why is nobody here?
Shen Ange was in a great mood after receiving an affirmative answer. Noticing his actions, she laughed and said, "Did you see the pervert who used to follow you?"
Fu Mingxu was taken aback, then realized what she was talking about, and immediately chuckled: "I told you you were too nervous. There's no pervert following me. I'm always very careful when I go out."
"Besides, if someone were really following me, I have no cultivation, and I would probably have been ambushed long ago."
Seeing his indifferent and disbelieving look, Shen Ange pouted, her pretty face full of helplessness: "It's always good to be careful. I was worried when I came back today and heard that you were married into the city lord's mansion to ward off bad luck. Fortunately, you said that the city lord has woken up. Although I have never met him, I have heard about his deeds in the war between immortals and demons. Now that you two have reached an agreement, I can rest assured."
Shen Ange wouldn't laugh at him for marrying into the family to bring good luck. In her opinion, being able to leave the Fu family and enter the city lord's mansion was actually a good thing for Fu Mingxu.
As long as he helps the city lord restore his cultivation in the future, with this "favor" and the city lord's mansion's reputation, he will be safe even if his "unconventional" talent for alchemy and medicine becomes known.
Once she becomes powerful and has her own territory, her friends can do what they like behind her back.
Shen Ange would never tease him about the marriage to bring him good luck, nor had she ever thought about what would happen between him and the city lord in the future.
Rather than seeing them as "husband and wife," she felt it was more of a mutually beneficial arrangement where each person helped the other.
Fu Mingxu had no idea that Shen Ange had thought so much in such a short time. He smiled and said easily, "I know."
As the two were talking, a servant ran up from the back of the shop and said to them, "Manager, the medicinal herbs that Young Master Fu requested have been prepared."
“Okay, I’ll go get it with you.” Besides the Orchid Flower, he used his spirit stones to buy some ordinary medicinal herbs.
Seeing his manager nod, the servant swallowed the words "brought it for Young Master Fu" and turned to lead the way.
Looking at his handsome and upright back, Shen Ange sighed softly countless times, "If only he could cultivate."
Fu Mingxu had been here countless times, so she didn't have to worry about him making mistakes when getting the herbs. She rested on the counter, waiting for customers while idly counting the leaves falling to the ground outside the shop.
However, when she saw the tall figure not far away, she suddenly straightened up, her almond-shaped eyes wide open.
This is outrageous! She actually saw the pervert who had stalked Fu Mingxu before!
Even though it was only from one side, her tall and imposing figure was very familiar to her.
To protect her friend, and also to avoid scaring him, Shen Ange had considered secretly dealing with the pervert who was following him. She had once followed him from a distance, and one time she actually caught him. At that time, the two were not close, and just as she was about to make a move, the pervert disappeared, and she returned empty-handed.
She tried to find him again, but strangely, she didn't find him for a long time. In the end, she thought that her appearance that time had scared the pervert away.
To my utter surprise, this pervert has reappeared!
She subtly shifted her gaze, took a step, and prepared to tell Fu Mingxu not to come out for the time being, as she would go and meet him first.
She hadn't taken two steps when a sickeningly loud voice came from the shop entrance: "Shen Ange, I didn't expect you to actually come back!"
Shen Ange felt nauseous at the sound of that voice. As soon as she turned around, Fu Haoren's face appeared in front of her.
"What kind of expression is that?" Fu Haoren caught sight of the obvious disgust on her face and was immediately enraged. His voice became even sharper. "Don't forget, the head of the Shen family has already betrothed you to me!"
It would have been better if this hadn't been mentioned, because the mere mention of it made Shen Ange furious. She immediately retorted without any politeness, "Our master doesn't know you're a eunuch!"
Upon hearing this, the air in the shop seemed to freeze.
Fu Mingxu had just come out with the medicinal herbs when he saw Fu Haoren's furious expression.
A note from the author:
Shen Ange (in the early stages): I'll protect my friends from now on.