Qianzhang Mushroom—in the game Hua Jian played in her previous life, it was about as rare as a regular red item on the grid: rare, but not all that rare.
It really was a treasure you might come across while walking a path through the Forest, and the Black-Clad Woman would have a hard time suspecting anything about it.
Those righteous sect types were all such stubborn blockheads. Even when fighting over treasures, they still cared about saving face; they’d never stoop to using fakes to trick people.
Holding her jade shovel, she slowly approached the colorful mushroom. The closer she got, the dizzier she felt, and her breathing grew labored.
As expected of a rare spiritual item— this Protective Miasma really was extraordinary, she thought to herself.
Qianzhang Mushroom, as the name implied, was a spiritual item capable of releasing a thousand kinds of miasma.
It was an essential ingredient in refining high-grade poisons or antidotes.
For cultivators at the Spirit Master level, harvesting Qianzhang Mushroom was a highly dangerous challenge.
Many unlucky cultivators who failed ended up as fertilizer for the spiritual item.
As for the Black-Clad Woman… after taking a single swing at the Qianzhang Mushroom with her shovel, she was blasted in the face by a spray of colorful miasma erupting from the soil, and fell straight back to the ground.
“Junior Sister!” Seeing this, the Black-Clad Man rushed forward. He couldn’t just stand by and watch his Junior Sister die of poisoning inside the Secret Realm.
Using his Spiritual Power to disperse the colorful miasma, he was just about to help her up when he noticed that the Qianzhang Mushroom looked a little odd.
Why did this mushroom look so dim, so lacking in spiritual luster? Was this really how a rare spiritual item should appear?
A terrible thought sprouted in his mind. Could this actually be a trap…?
A chill crawled up his spine. He looked warily around, trying to spot any potential ambusher, but after several glances, he found no clues.
Am I overthinking things? With that, he withdrew his gaze.
Whoosh!
Smack!
Just as he looked away, several thick, bowl-sized tough vines burst from the ground and, faster than lightning, coiled around his neck and limbs.
A slender, colorful vine crawled onto his face and sprayed colorful miasma at him.
Three breaths later, the wary Black-Clad Man toppled stiffly to the ground, just like his Junior Sister.
……
“All done!”
Hua Jian clapped her hands and cheerfully dashed out from her hiding spot, quickly rummaging through the belongings of these two unlucky souls under the cover of the mist.
The Black-Clad Man was paralyzed, but still retained a trace of consciousness.
Eyes wide, he watched as a shadowy figure drifted out from the depths of the Forest and started rifling through his Junior Sister’s things.
That person… even stripped his Junior Sister’s clothes! Just what did they intend to do?!
“Trash Storage Pouch, trash weapon… Pseudo-Spirit Robe? Not as valuable as a proper Spiritual Garment, but I can still sell it for some Spirit Stones…” Hua Jian wasn’t interested in anything else— she was just here to make money.
After stripping the Black-Clad Woman, who was now completely unconscious, she hurried over to the man.
Seeing that he was still glaring at her with dead-fish eyes, looking as if he’d die with his eyes open in indignation, Hua Jian felt a twinge of pity.
Sigh, how tragic. How pitiful.
Staring like that must be exhausting. Let me help you close your eyes for good.
A vine coiled around the man’s throat, squeezing until his eyes rolled back.
Combined with the constant spray of miasma from the slender, colorful vine, the man completely lost consciousness in just a few breaths.
Seeing the man finally close his eyes in peace, Hua Jian nodded in satisfaction and expertly stripped him of anything valuable.
The same Pseudo-Spirit Robe as the woman, and two Storage Pouches?
“One’s sealed with a Divine Sense Seal, but the other isn’t… Oh, found it in the Secret Realm, huh.”
Hua Jian didn’t look too closely. After all, you couldn’t hang around the scene after doing something shady. Now was the time to run!
She put the Bait Mushroom back into her Storage Pouch, formed a hand seal, and turned into a wisp of colorful fragrance, vanishing into the woods.
…Did I forget something?
Oh well, if I forgot it, it probably wasn’t important. No need to worry.
……
Very soon, Hua Jian realized what it was she’d forgotten.
She’d forgotten that she wasn’t acting solo anymore.
Halfway through her escape, she noticed a glaring streak of Thunderlight following behind her. The feeling was simply indescribable.
“Stop! Can’t you use a quieter Escape Technique? Flying around with thunder crackling everywhere is basically provoking the entire Secret Realm!”
Seeing Hua Jian stop ahead, Linglong withdrew her Thunderlight and landed behind Hua Jian.
“This is the only one I know.” She answered calmly.
Escape Technique was a high-level spell not everyone could master, and hers complemented her own Cultivation Method perfectly— there was no need to waste effort learning another.
As for the downside of being too loud… to her, it wasn’t a downside at all.
“You… Sigh, can’t you just let me go? How could a small fry like me deserve to be followed by a great Saintess like you?” Hua Jian wanted to curse, but thinking of the difference in strength, she decided to reason instead.
Linglong rested her right hand on her chin, a trace of hesitation appearing on her otherwise expressionless face.
After about three heartbeats, Linglong gave her answer.
“It’s interesting to follow you.”
“Thanks for not calling me black-hearted again!” Hua Jian picked up a stone and tossed it at Linglong.
That reason was as casual as a joke! Couldn’t this Saintess go do her own business?
Thunderlight shattered the stone. Linglong’s expression remained unchanged, as if nothing in the world could faze her. “You’re welcome.”
Miss Saintess looked innocent and honest, like someone who’d never lie, but this time, she was deliberately hiding the truth.
After all, she was following Hua Jian not only because it was interesting, but also because she’d taken a liking to her.
But words like that—she couldn’t say them to Hua Jian just yet.
Wow, this person is really infuriating! Hua Jian glared at Linglong, her colorful eyes almost blazing with fire.
“One hundred Spirit Stones.” Linglong raised a finger.
“Huh?” Hua Jian was confused.
“If you let me follow you, I’ll share my things with you, and after we leave the Secret Realm, I’ll pay you one hundred Spirit Stones as compensation.”
Hua Jian swallowed hard. She really wanted to smack Linglong’s hand down and tell her she wasn’t so easily bought.
I, Hua Jian, am a proud and upright girl— how could I bow for just Five Spirit Stones…
Linglong changed from one finger to two.
For ten times that much… well, maybe that’s not so bad…
Seeing Hua Jian still hesitating, Linglong raised a third finger.
“That’s enough, that’s enough— two hundred is plenty. If you offer three hundred Spirit Stones, I’ll start thinking you want to buy my body!” Hua Jian quickly lunged forward and pressed down Linglong’s third finger.
If she kept getting windfalls like this, she really would start to feel uneasy.
What? You ask if she ever feels uneasy about robbing people?
Of course not— those are Hua Jian’s hard-earned spoils, not some random windfall.
Oh she hasn’t even started pining for you yet, and already talking about buying bodies. With that hinted dragon lust, don’t even think of escaping.