"Y-Young Master, is it really all right for us to do this?"
As they walked, Yu Dashan kept a wary eye on their surroundings and asked in a low voice.
He was terribly uneasy about pretending to be a direct descendant of a Qi Refining Realm family. What if someone saw through them?
"Quiet. Just watch over your Young Master."
Yu Ershan snapped haughtily.
He had no more experience than Yu Dashan at pretending to be a direct descendant of a Qi Refining Realm family. But he had spent the past few days observing such people. Setting their cultivation aside, some things were still obvious at a glance.
Because of their upbringing and perspective, the descendants of Qi Refining Realm families rarely acted like bullies or caused trouble for their families without reason. But no matter how hard they tried, they couldn't hide that air of confidence.
Put simply, they had backing and weren't afraid of trouble. In other words: I won't start trouble, but you'd better not start any with me.
Meanwhile, ordinary people with no connections who had scraped together a few Spirit Stones to buy cultivation resources were often timid and reluctant to part with their money.
The difference between the two was plain as day.
To make themselves look the part, Yu Ershan had even spent a whole Spirit Stone on new outfits for both of them.
Naturally, most of it had gone toward his own clothes. After all, he was the Young Master, while Yu Dashan was his guard.
Though spending that Spirit Stone had made Yu Ershan's heart ache, it was worth it compared to being targeted and getting into a whole string of troubles.
Still, even after they had successfully bought the Blood Replenishing Pill and Tendon Strengthening Bone Strengthening Grass, the matter wasn't over.
The key was getting back to Area D safely and returning home.
Yu Ershan's solution was simple: borrow someone else's clout.
He glanced at the figure quietly following them in the distance and knew that half his plan had already worked.
The other party was clearly unsure of his identity but unwilling to give up, so they planned to observe him discreetly—at least long enough to figure out which family he belonged to. That way, if they ran into him again, they wouldn't be completely in the dark.
Yu Ershan led Yu Dashan back to the place where Miss Xiaoxiao's family was staying. He handed over a New Moon Coin and explained why they had come.
Perhaps because he had changed his clothes, and because the guard wasn't the same man as last time, the other party couldn't immediately pin down his identity and invited him into the "compound."
The houses in Area B looked much like those in Area D, but they were clearly taller and larger.
And since a Qi Refining Realm cultivator belonged to Miss Xiaoxiao's family, they received different treatment. Nearly half a row of houses belonged to her family.
With the road blocked off at both ends, the area formed a simple compound entirely belonging to her family. They had people stationed there, and outsiders couldn't get in without permission.
From a distance, the person following them saw Yu Ershan lead Yu Dashan inside and realized this had to be where a Qi Refining Realm family was staying.
After all, if there wasn't a Qi Refining Realm cultivator in the family, who would dare block off the road like that?
A quick inquiry nearby told him which family owned that row of houses.
His lingering doubts disappeared at once, and he turned around and left without a second thought.
Now that he knew who the other party was, they had already returned "home." Why keep following them—just to get caught and beaten for information?
"What are you doing here?"
Once inside, Yu Ershan saw the middle-aged man who had brought him the Spirit Stones at Ox Ridge Settlement last time. The man recognized him at a glance and immediately asked with a frown.
At the same time, he looked Yu Ershan up and down. He seemed to guess what had happened, and a trace of distaste crossed his face.
"Sorry to bother you. I know Miss Xiaoxiao isn't here, and I didn't come to trouble her. I bought some resources earlier and got followed, so I had no choice but to seek shelter here. I hope you'll forgive me."
Yu Ershan didn't hide why he had come. He spoke with a hint of embarrassment.
The middle-aged man was clearly taken aback. But after a moment's thought, he understood what had happened.
He had personally delivered the Spirit Stones to Yu Ershan, so he knew that once Yu Ershan had the money, he would buy resources in the Blessed Land. Being targeted was only to be expected.
Still, he hadn't expected Yu Ershan to come up with such a solution, and his expression softened a little.
Before joining the Qiu Family and becoming a follower of Qiu Xiaoxiao, he had also spent a long time scraping by. He understood all too well how hard life was for ordinary people.
From the Qiu Family's perspective, someone as insignificant as Yu Ershan daring to borrow their family's clout should be punished severely. But he wasn't the head of the Qiu Family, and he knew how Miss Xiaoxiao felt about Yu Ershan.
Compared to Yu Ershan meeting with misfortune and disrupting Miss Xiaoxiao's cultivation, borrowing a little clout to keep himself safe wasn't a big deal.
More importantly, Yu Ershan's little bit of cleverness—and the way he had just admitted the truth without hesitation—had changed the man's impression of him somewhat.
"Since you've bought your resources, go back and focus on your cultivation. In the future, try not to come here unless you have a reason."
The middle-aged man spoke stiffly.
"All right. We'll leave now."
Yu Ershan answered at once.
They had been there long enough. He had more or less accomplished what he came for.
"Wait."
The middle-aged man stopped Yu Ershan and continued in a dry voice, "Before Miss Xiaoxiao left, she told me to pass on a message if you came. For the next little while, stay home and keep your nose clean. No matter who comes looking for you or what they promise, don't agree to anything.
"You can stay here for another half hour."
With that, the middle-aged man turned and left.
"Cold on the outside, warm on the inside."
That was Yu Ershan's assessment of him.
But when he thought about it, it made sense. Miss Xiaoxiao had asked him to bring a hundred Spirit Stones to Yu Ershan, which was proof enough that the man could be trusted and was close to her.
Even descendants of Qi Refining Realm families couldn't have everything they wanted.
A family had to pass its legacy down through generation after generation, and it had no shortage of descendants. The resources needed to cultivate all those people amounted to an enormous sum.
There was no way to divide everything equally. There had to be ranks and distinctions.
To get resources, you had to compete with your talent, your connections, and your strength.
So every family ended up divided into one small circle after another.
It couldn't be helped. There were only so many resources. If you didn't compete, you would get less, and your cultivation would suffer.
From what Yu Ershan knew of Miss Xiaoxiao, she probably belonged to the family's inner circle.
Naturally, people gathered around her and formed a small circle. The middle-aged man he had just met was most likely one of her followers.
As her follower, he naturally had to protect his mistress's interests.
The man had probably thought Yu Ershan was just a pretty face, good for nothing but his looks. It was only natural that he disliked him.
The fact that he hadn't thrown them out and had even let them stay for another half hour was already generous.
Most importantly, he had passed on Miss Xiaoxiao's message. That mattered just as much to Yu Ershan.
"Second Brother, I'm sorry you had to go through this."
Yu Dashan patted his younger brother's shoulder, looking heartbroken.
In his eyes, his younger brother had swallowed his pride and gone to ask for shelter, all for his sake.
Knowing his younger brother, he was bound to feel awful about it.
So he secretly swore that he wouldn't let his brother's sacrifice go to waste. He would complete his second Blood Change as soon as possible.
"Don't worry. One day, I'll make sure you can marry in style—"
"Shut up!"
The moment Yu Dashan started speaking, Yu Ershan knew he wouldn't say anything decent. As it turned out, he was right.
If they hadn't been where they were, Yu Ershan would have slapped Yu Dashan's mouth bloody.
Yu Dashan saw Yu Ershan's dark expression and the fire in his eyes, and wisely clamped his mouth shut.
His younger brother had already done so much for him. As the older brother, he should let him have his way.
The two stayed there for half an hour before taking their leave. They took a long detour and slipped back home to the Area D settlement.
Only then did they both let out a breath of relief.
The first step of the plan had gone smoothly. Next came the second.
But Yu Ershan was thinking about what Miss Xiaoxiao had asked the middle-aged man to tell him.
Before you continue