Preparing to Leave for Qingshan Town

"Come, Mei'er, sit down and eat. You must be starving. And stop calling me Second Elder—just call me Grandpa. It'll feel more intimate."

Xiao Ying warmly welcomed Xiao Mei to the table, making Xiao Jin's mouth twitch. Who exactly was your grandson? Xiao Mei's little face flushed as well, and she felt somewhat at a loss. Xiao Ying was simply too enthusiastic.

Soon, Xiao Jin and Xiao Mei finished dinner and chatted idly. At that moment, Xiao Ying walked over. "Stinky brat, why haven't you taken Mei'er to the guest room yet? Look at the time."

Xiao Jin stood and headed for the door. "Come with me, little sister. I'll take you to rest." Xiao Mei also rose, bid Xiao Ying farewell, her face still rosy. Xiao Ying had just told her to call him Grandpa so they would feel closer, leaving her little face burning red. She was far too embarrassed to call him Grandpa.

"Second Elder, Mei'er is going to rest. You should turn in early too." With that, she ran off without looking back.

Xiao Mei caught up to Xiao Jin, who was leading the way, and walked beside him. "Don't take my grandfather's words seriously. He's been lonely by himself for too long, and this is the first time I've brought a girl home, so he was especially enthusiastic toward you. He may have frightened you. Don't mind it."

"It's fine. I can tell Second Elder cares about you very much."

Xiao Jin neither agreed nor disagreed. Xiao Mei followed him at an unhurried pace, pondering how to get Xiao Jin to tell her the method for rapidly increasing Dou Qi. She had not truly come here as a guest.

"I know why you came. I can tell you the secret—I can even give you the item directly—but I have one condition. As long as you agree, I'll tell you how to rapidly increase your Dou Qi and give you the pill that can quickly raise it." Xiao Jin suddenly stopped and looked at Xiao Mei.

"Brother Xiao Jin, tell me. As long as I can do it, I'll definitely agree." Xiao Mei was overjoyed. She had thought she would need to pester Xiao Jin for quite some time to learn the method, perhaps even let him take a little advantage of her before he revealed the secret.

She had not expected Xiao Jin to be willing to give her the item outright. As for one condition, as long as it was not too excessive, she was willing to do it. At that thought, Xiao Mei became a little uneasy again, afraid Xiao Jin might make some vulgar and shameless demand.

"I want you to come visit my home more often when you have time. I can tell Grandpa likes you very much. If you come around more, Grandpa will be very happy."

"Ah, that's all?" Xiao Mei stared at Xiao Jin in astonishment. She had thought he would propose some excessive condition, but it was only such a small matter. She secretly felt relieved, yet a little disappointed too. Wasn't she pretty? Given such an opportunity, why had he not made some excessive demand?

"What, are you a little disappointed? Shall I change the condition? How about you kiss me?" Xiao Jin teased.

Xiao Mei's face turned red again. "Brother Xiao Jin, you're bullying me." She quickened her pace ahead. "Then are you agreeing to the first condition or the second?"

Xiao Jin hurried after her and continued teasing her. Although he could not do anything now, that did not stop him from flirting with her. She was such a beautiful girl—if nothing else, indulging his mouth was still nice.

"Brother Xiao Jin, I agree to the first condition." A faint blush still lingered on Xiao Mei's face.

"I thought you'd agree to the second condition. Your brother here is a little disappointed. Isn't the second condition better? I'm so handsome, and you wouldn't be losing out. You'd even get what you want for free. Why not?"

Xiao Mei could not help laughing at Xiao Jin's narcissistic expression. Xiao Jin could only be considered delicate-looking, not stunningly handsome. His temperament was decent, and he gave off a refreshing feeling. His only standout feature was his bright eyes, which carried a sense of depth.

"What are you laughing at? Isn't your brother handsome?" Xiao Jin continued narcissistically. "Brother is very handsome. This little sister has already agreed to Brother's condition. Can Brother give Little Sister the pill now?"

Xiao Mei could barely wait. After all, she had been stuck at the eighth stage of Dou Qi for nearly a year.

"Little Sister truly is impatient." Xiao Jin took out a first-grade Qi Gathering Pill from the System Space and handed it to Xiao Mei.

"This is a first-grade Qi Gathering Pill that I obtained by chance. As for its effect, it naturally increases Dou Qi quickly."

He had bought this Qi Gathering Pill from the System Mall for ten thousand Breakthrough Points. His Breakthrough Points had returned to 0 again. It seemed he needed to make a trip to Qingshan Town soon. Now that he could fly, a round trip would not take much time anyway.

After handing the Qi Gathering Pill to Xiao Mei, Xiao Jin led her to the guest room and left without looking back. Watching Xiao Jin's departing figure, then looking at the pill in her hand, Xiao Mei was somewhat dazed.

She had assumed Xiao Jin would be like other simps, clinging to her and rambling on about this and that, unwilling to leave. She had even been considering what excuse to use to make him go away, yet Xiao Jin had left on his own.

"Am I really that lacking in charm? He left without even saying a few more words." Xiao Mei was a little unhappy. Women were like this: she had clearly wanted him to leave on his own, but when he left without looking back, she became unhappy instead, feeling as though she had been slighted. Xiao Mei returned to her room and locked the door. She prepared to take the Qi Gathering Pill and break through to the ninth stage of Dou Qi.

The next day, Xiao Jin got up early and headed to the Marketplace. All the marketplaces in Wutan City now belonged to the Xiao Family. After all, the Jia Lie Family had been exterminated, while the Obba Family no longer had any experts above the Dou Master level. How could they compete with the Xiao Family?

Even the Obba Family's marketplaces had been sold to the Xiao Family at a low price. Otherwise, they would not have been able to hold onto such a large business. Sooner or later, it would have brought disaster upon their family. Obba Pa gritted his teeth and sold the family's three marketplaces to the Xiao Family for the dirt-cheap price of two hundred thousand gold coins.

Xiao Jin wandered around the Marketplace. He had come this time to purchase a detailed map of the surrounding area. He had transmigrated here, and the original owner of this body had never left Wutan City, so naturally he had no idea where Qingshan Town was.

Xiao Jin made a full round of the Marketplace but failed to find a detailed map. They all only showed rough locations, and Xiao Jin found them lacking. He could only head toward the Mite'er Auction House, believing that Mite'er would surely have a more detailed map.

When he arrived at the Mite'er Auction House, the guards at the entrance did not stop him and let him through directly. The maids inside did not step forward to greet him either; they immediately went to report to Ya Fei. Before long, Ya Fei arrived in the main hall and rolled her eyes at Xiao Jin.

"Stinky brat, why are you here again? Don't tell me you're here to ask about cooperation again." Ya Fei wore a red qipao today, radiating dazzling charm from head to toe.

Looking at the alluring Ya Fei, Xiao Jin involuntarily thought of yesterday's kiss and unconsciously licked his lips. Ya Fei happened to see it, and she could not help recalling yesterday's scene as well. Her face flushed scarlet.

"I missed you, Sister, so I came especially to see you," Xiao Jin said shamelessly. "Cut it out. Tell me what you're here for. If you don't, I'm leaving." Ya Fei naturally did not believe Xiao Jin's nonsense. If he said he missed her, she believed it. But if he said he had come specifically to find her because he missed her, she found it a little hard to believe. After all, they had met only yesterday.

"Sister, do you have a detailed map of the Jia Ma Empire here?" Xiao Jin's expression turned serious. "What do you need a map for? Are you going on a long journey?" Rather than answer Xiao Jin's question, Ya Fei asked with concern.

"Sister knows that I'm short on gold coins. I recently heard that a Strongman's Cave Mansion had appeared in Qingshan Town, so I'm planning to take a look. I don't know the way, and there aren't any detailed maps outside, so I could only come ask Sister for help."