En Route

The mountains were high and the waters long, the trees verdant and lush.

Li Qi carried a large backpack, his heart aching as he weighed his coin pouch.

He had started with nine hundred and ninety-two coins, and now only two hundred and thirty-one remained.

In exchange, he had this large backpack.

It contained many things.

The backpack itself was not cheap.

There was oil-paper for rain protection, preserved rice cakes, and some dried salted meat.

A large canvas sheet, which could be folded into a large bundle for carrying things in the wild, or rolled up to serve as a handy short rope, could also be used as a blanket, and it was wear-resistant and fireproof.

Two wood cleavers, a small whetstone; in case of trouble in the wilderness, at least he had some sharp tools. They could also be used to chop through vines blocking the path, or to chop wood for a fire.

Some fire starters, two flint and steel sets; needless to say, for starting fires. Normally, he'd use the flint and steel, but in a critical moment, he had fire starters that ignited with a flick.

There was also wound healing powder, insect repellent, and some essential medicines – necessities for wilderness survival.

A bolt of linen cloth, some small knives, a spatula, iron heads for farming tools, and such. He brought these to pose as a traveling merchant, hoping to sell some in villages to recoup his expenses.

He was poor; he had to earn what he could.

Besides these, there were many other small items, which he wouldn't list one by one.

In summary, Li Qi had made thorough preparations for the upcoming long journey.

Moreover, he had spent a fortune, a full sixty coins, to buy Shen Shuibi a new set of clothes.

Her previous outfit, with a veil and a white, hollowed-out top, had matched Young Master Zhu's style, but with him, she looked like a walking target about to be robbed.

So, he had bought her a set of linen clothes for women. Now, she just looked like a pretty village girl.

A bit too pretty, though. What normal villager could raise such a beauty?

After all, in ordinary villages or among gang members like Li Qi, the female members of the family, even if naturally beautiful, usually had to work and manage the household.

No matter how good natural looks were, if someone spent their childhood doing laundry, cooking, pounding rice, and chopping wood daily, even the most naturally beautiful person would end up looking like a farm wife – stout, with rough skin, and not very attractive.

But honestly, people of Li Qi's class actually preferred that kind of wife.

Because they were familiar with all sorts of tasks, were quick workers, had strong bodies, didn't get sick easily, could work in the fields, or help their husbands with heavy labor. They were good at managing the household's livelihood, and that's the kind of wife you needed to live life.

If you kept a beautiful woman at home, one with soft skin, a petite figure, and a delicate disposition, even if she didn't cause trouble, the mere fact that she couldn't do any work would be a huge burden on the family.

They couldn't afford it.

If she were willing to share the burden with her husband, after at most two years of work, she would end up like any other farm wife – stout, her beauty faded.

Therefore, even in her linen clothes, Shen Shuibi could still be easily identified as someone out of the ordinary.

But none of that mattered. After all, Li Qi felt he shouldn't be considered ordinary anymore; he should be able to handle it, as long as she wasn't too conspicuous.

Walking on the road, Li Qi looked at Shen Shuibi, who walked beside him in light attire, carrying no luggage, carefree, as if on an outing, leading the way.

This reminded him of their conversation when they set out.

At that time, Li Qi had asked, "Miss Shen, how do you know the direction? Where is Lady Luofu?"

"I just have a feeling~. I've been by Lady Luofu's side since I was little. Wherever she is, I know the moment I open my eyes. As long as I follow my feeling, I'm sure I'll find her!" Shen Shuibi said confidently, clenching her small fist.

Honestly, Li Qi found it highly unreliable.

But there was nothing he could do. This was a world with spirits and monsters; maybe it actually worked.

And so... a journey, with neither a known destination nor a planned itinerary, began.

The two walked along, Li Qi carrying the large backpack containing all their belongings, while Shen Shuibi carried nothing, wearing her new clothes, hands empty, just walking forward.

Initially, Li Qi had strongly questioned her approach.

But after two days of walking, Li Qi realized that she seemingly didn't need any luggage.

Shen Shuibi could remain spotless; even when walking in the wild, she never got dirty, didn't sweat, and had no odor. Even if she fell and got covered in dust, when she got up from the ground with a pained expression, the dust would naturally slide off her, not sticking to her skin at all.

Moreover, she didn't need to eat!

Yes, according to her, she was an Innate Variant, not an ordinary demon that had achieved sentience through cultivation. Therefore, she didn't need to eat ordinary food; she only needed to dine on the wind and dew, absorbing different kinds of qi.

Because of this, she didn't need to excrete, didn't need to sweat, and if she wanted to, she could even go without breathing. Breathing, for her, was merely a means of sustenance.

No need to bathe, no sweat, always clean, always beautiful.

What the hell... an anime beautiful girl?

She was that low-maintenance?

In short, taking her along on the journey placed no logistical burden whatsoever. She could walk on her own and even moved quite quickly.

Good, very good.

The two of them trekked through the desolate mountains and wilderness for three days.

On this day, around noon, Li Qi needed to rest, make some lunch, replenish his energy, and take a break.

Shen Shuibi was very understanding. Not everyone could be as energetic and fragrant as her without eating or bathing, so she waited patiently by his side.

After three days together, the initial awkwardness between the two had faded. However, Shen Shuibi was usually a woman of few words, and Li Qi was the one who initiated conversations to pass the time on their journey. So, now that Li Qi had gone to fetch water and cook, she remained silent, gazing into the distance.

She hadn't lied to Li Qi; she truly didn't know the Empress's exact location. However, the little rabbit could vaguely sense the Empress's direction.

It was just... after walking for three days, she hadn't felt any significant change in the distance.

This meant that the distance covered in the past three days was negligible compared to the distance to the Empress.

She hadn't told Li Qi this because she feared he would no longer be willing to search for the Empress with her if she did.

He found walking mountain paths very arduous, unlike herself.

They had traveled over two hundred li in these three days, but if they wanted to find the Empress, they would likely have to travel tens of thousands of li.

If the Empress didn't move, it might take them a year or even longer.

"Sigh..." she sighed. At this pace, it would take a very long time.

If only they had a horse.

Unfortunately, Li Qi was very poor and couldn't afford one. A horse would cost twenty to thirty gold coins. Although Shen Shuibi didn't think it was that expensive, Li Qi definitely couldn't afford it.

As she thought this, she suddenly stood up.

Ahead... was that the neighing of a horse?