"That's good. I'm relieved, too. I'll contact Soft Feather later and tell her not to worry, so she won't come running to H City." Northern River's Loose Cultivator sent that reply afterward.
Song Shuhang felt that Northern River's Loose Cultivator seemed to be online almost twenty-four hours a day. He had no idea how the man had such boundless energy. Could it be that the other party's sleeping schedule happened to be the same as his? That was why he ran into Northern River's Loose Cultivator every time he logged on.
No, that wasn't right... When Song Shuhang was online, he was online. When Song Shuhang went offline, he was still there, because every time Shuhang logged on, he saw chat records left behind by Northern River's Loose Cultivator.
The man was practically a Saint Seiya of the internet, as if he truly never needed to sleep.
Song Shuhang couldn't help worrying. With so many people dying suddenly from staying up all night these days, would Northern River's Loose Cultivator suddenly drop dead one day if he kept this up?
I should make a note of this, too... When I'm about to leave the group, I'll give him a good talking-to.
Shuhang dragged the chat window's scrollbar farther down.
After Su Clan's Seven finished speaking, he said goodbye and went offline.
Next, at around five in the morning, Medicine Master came online. He sent a picture, then added a question mark after it.
It was a picture of a plant Shuhang had never seen before.
The plant grew in a winding shape, like a coiling dragon. A row of barbs pointed backward along its tip, while its roots and stalk were purplish-black. It was a very peculiar plant, possessing tremendous ornamental value.
"Poison Dragon Grass? Medicine Master, do you need it again? Didn't you cultivate some not long ago?" Northern River's Loose Cultivator was once again the first to reply.
"Experiment. They all died." Medicine Master sent an annoyed emoji. Besides, that batch of Poison Dragon Grass hadn't been of very good quality.
"Alright. If I manage to get some, I'll contact you. Anyone else who sees it will definitely notify you, too." Northern River's Loose Cultivator replied.
"I need it alive," Medicine Master added.
Poison Dragon Grass... Just hearing the name, it doesn't sound like a benevolent plant. Is it also used to refine pills? Could it poison someone to death? Song Shuhang felt a little worried. He had the feeling that everyone in the group was very good at courting disaster.
Wait, something seemed off.
Song Shuhang's hand froze. He dragged the chat window upward to Su Clan's Seven's reply and read it again.
"Just a few... well, dozens of ordinary people who didn't know their place were knocked unconscious by Little Sixteen. No one died."
That sentence gave Shuhang an odd feeling. It naturally reminded him of those delinquents who had been wiped out by a crowd...
Was this still a coincidence? If all of this was a coincidence, then there had been far too many coincidences lately!
"Perhaps I should look at it from another angle. Maybe it isn't a coincidence, but simply that I'm overthinking things."
"People are always like this. Once they become suspicious of something, they forcibly knead together many unrelated matters. It's like suspecting someone of stealing your money—you'll pin all sorts of things on that person, and the more you look at them, the more they resemble the culprit."
He felt that his current mindset was probably the same as suspecting someone of being a thief.
He couldn't think about it anymore. If he did, he might go berserk like the people in the group. Song Shuhang stretched and prepared to go for a run.
They said the whole day's work depended on getting an early start, after all. Moreover, he felt that his constitution had declined. The slight cough left over from the cold he'd had more than ten days ago still hadn't completely disappeared, and he coughed a couple of times every so often. It was miserable!
Thus, in a burst of enthusiasm, he decided to run fifteen hundred meters in the morning to exercise.
His goal was to keep up morning runs for a month!
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At this time, Jiangnan Region Airport.
A long-haired woman whose hair reached her waist walked out of the airport, pulling a huge suitcase behind her. Her skin was fair, and she was tall with long legs. She wore a white T-shirt on top and denim shorts below, with her slender legs in sneakers. She looked youthful and radiant.
However, the long-haired woman was currently gazing at the enormous airport with a troubled expression. She muttered, "I hate places this big. It's so easy to get lost."
Then, she took out her phone and began fiddling with it.
＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊
After his morning run had left him drenched in sweat, Song Shuhang felt refreshed in a way he hadn't for a long time.
He passed by the cafeteria and bought steamed buns and soy milk for breakfast. Once his hurried breathing had steadied, he returned to the dormitory.
It was Sunday, and he still had the entire day ahead of him. What should he do?
"Should I go mooch off some more books?" Shuhang thought as he gnawed on a steamed bun.
He casually switched on the computer and logged onto the campus network. Since he was rather concerned about the delinquents being attacked and knocked unconscious, he had been keeping a close eye on the situation.
However, there were still no follow-up reports on the campus network about the delinquents being wiped out in one blow. The poor delinquents were still lying in the hospital like corpses, and not one of them showed any sign of waking up.
Thus, there was no way to find out what person or thing had beaten them into this state.
According to the students who had gone to visit them, even while unconscious, the delinquents would occasionally let out anguished groans. Since there were so many of them, the hospital had placed them in a giant ward. The groans of nearly seventy or eighty people filled the room—the sight was almost too beautiful, and the tragedy was utterly inhumane.
"If they were only knocked unconscious, they shouldn't still be unconscious after an entire day and night, should they? Could these delinquents have been beaten into a vegetative state?" Shuhang thought.
While his mind wandered, he opened the group chat with his other hand.
Several new messages had appeared in the group while he was running and eating.
Soft Feather of Spirit Butterfly Island (online via mobile): "Senior Northern River, I've arrived at Jiangnan Region Airport. Does Senior A-Qi need help over there?"
Northern River's Loose Cultivator was, as expected, online. He quickly replied, "Soft Feather, you're online! A-Qi already found Little Sixteen early this morning and left H City. You don't need to worry about them. You can go straight to J City and take care of your own business."
"As long as they're fine." Soft Feather replied, then added, "Has Senior A-Qi already left H City?"
"Yes, he left early this morning." Northern River's Loose Cultivator then asked, "Did you have something you wanted to find A-Qi for?"
Soft Feather sighed. "Actually... I was hoping to meet up with Senior A-Qi. If possible, it would be even better if someone could accompany me to J City. I'm not very familiar with H City, Jiangnan Region, or J City. I'm afraid I won't find my destination."
"What place are you going to? Phones nowadays all have a function called navigation, and it's very useful. I have to say, modern people have invented many things that are both convenient and practical." Northern River's Loose Cultivator enthusiastically introduced it. Many people in the group weren't very familiar with modern things, but Northern River's Loose Cultivator could be considered a modern expert.
Hey, hey, is your style really alright? Isn't this a gathering place for classical xianxia chuunibyou patients? Shouldn't you be recommending ancient maps or something? Or perhaps a location-finding magical treasure? Something even more high-end would be acceptable—a teleportation portal, for instance. But phone navigation was the one thing Shuhang couldn't accept.
"I tried it, but the place I want to go isn't listed in the navigation," Soft Feather said gloomily.
She naturally knew how to use navigation. In fact, she was only a little over twenty-five this year, and in certain aspects she was no different from modern young people. She simply knew more about the knowledge of the truly real world than young people nowadays.
"Also, my sense of direction is a little poor. Even with navigation, I might not necessarily find the destination," Soft Feather added.
Northern River's Loose Cultivator consoled her, "It's fine. Once you reach the Fifth-Grade Realm and can use Qi-Driven Flight, you'll be standing high and seeing far, so you won't have to worry about getting lost. As for now, you can take a taxi. Generally, as long as you have a place name, the taxi driver can take you there. But be careful not to get into an unlicensed cab."
"Thank you, Senior. I'll give it a try." Soft Feather was grateful. Without someone reminding her, she had almost forgotten that taxis were such a convenient means of transportation.
Northern River's Loose Cultivator added, "Soft Feather, where are you going? If you really can't find it, I can ask whether there are any fellow Daoists nearby who might be able to lend you a hand."
"It's a place in J City called Luoxin District. There should be an ancient temple there called Ghost Lantern Temple. That's the temple I'm going to!" Soft Feather quickly replied.
"Alright, I know it. I'll ask around for you. I'll contact you if I hear anything." Northern River's Loose Cultivator replied.
"Senior, I'm deeply grateful!" Soft Feather sent a smiling face. "I'm going to find a taxi."
Jiangnan Region Airport
The long-haired, long-legged beauty dragged her huge suitcase and hurried toward the airport's taxi stand. Her radiant figure made the passing men stare with their eyes wide.
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