Not... Is This Right?

"What's a bathhouse doing here?"

At the center of Cangyun City, Mo Shang stared at the bathhouse before him, a head full of question marks.

"Uh, weren't we here to find my master? What are we doing here? Taking a little break first?" Gu Qingzhou was just as bewildered.

"Sword Uncle's inside. Every time he comes to Cangyun City, he heads straight here..."

Liu Ruyan shrugged helplessly. After she finished speaking, she walked right in.

Mo Shang and the other two exchanged glances, then followed her inside.

Led by Liu Ruyan, they soon arrived outside a private room. From how easily she found her way, it was clear this wasn't her first time coming here to look for someone.

When they pushed open the door, a faint medicinal fragrance drifted into their noses. Five reclining chairs stood in the room, each with a bucket of warm water mixed with medicinal herbs in front of it.

Sword Thirteen was lounging in one of the chairs, soaking his feet. Sensing their arrival, he raised his eyelids and smiled. "You're all here. Take a seat and rest for a bit."

Mo Shang's mouth twitched at the sight. If his cultivation hadn't still been intact, he would have wondered whether he'd somehow traveled back to Blue Star...

"Well, Old Deng, you sure know how to enjoy yourself. No wonder you ran off so quickly earlier..."

Gu Qingzhou didn't bother with pleasantries. He found a seat and stretched out in it.

Liu Ruyan also looked entirely unsurprised. She found a seat and sat down.

Mo Shang and Jiang Shuyu exchanged a glance, both seeing confusion in the other's eyes.

Mo Shang was confused about why a fantasy world had a bathhouse, while Jiang Shuyu was confused about what everyone was doing.

"Seriously, is this right?" Mo Shang muttered.

Other sect elders took their juniors to secret realms and the like to find opportunities. But this guy had arranged for them to soak their feet...

"Old Mo, Miss Jiang, aren't you coming?" Seeing them standing there, Gu Qingzhou called out to them.

"Coming..."

Following the principle that if you can't beat them, join them, Mo Shang pulled Jiang Shuyu down beside him.

Before long, all five of them were stretched out in their chairs, relaxing in perfect harmony.

One thing worth mentioning: the water had plenty of precious medicinal herbs mixed in, and soaking their feet in it felt pretty nice...

Once everyone had settled in, Sword Thirteen spoke again, taking his time. "Tomorrow's grand competition will gather countless young talents, but there are only two you need to watch out for: the Holy Son of the Heavenly Mystery Sect and the Holy Maiden of the Ten Thousand Flowers Sect."

"The Holy Maiden of the Ten Thousand Flowers Sect? Guo Jingjing?" Hearing the familiar name of the Ten Thousand Flowers Sect, Gu Qingzhou remembered meeting Guo Jingjing on the street earlier.

"So you've met her. What did you think? Pretty, wasn't she?" Sword Thirteen nodded slightly and raised an eyebrow at Gu Qingzhou.

"Uh, she was pretty..." Gu Qingzhou's mouth twitched. She was beautiful, but her voice had an utterly chaste quality to it.

"Not only did we meet her, Old Gu caught her eye, too..." Mo Shang chimed in with a grin.

"Well, I didn't expect you to be so popular, kid. You really are my disciple..." Sword Thirteen raised an eyebrow, looking at Gu Qingzhou in surprise.

"Oh, my dear master, why don't we change the subject? Tell us about the Holy Son of the Heavenly Mystery Sect instead?" Gu Qingzhou's mouth twitched as he spoke again.

"Oh, certainly, my dear disciple. Let's talk about the Holy Son of the Heavenly Mystery Sect..."

Sword Thirteen answered, but quickly realized something was off. "Wait, why are we talking like this?"

"Don't sweat the small stuff, Old Deng. Just get on with it."

"The current Holy Son of the Heavenly Mystery Sect is hailed as a once-in-ten-thousand-years genius, a peerless talent the sect hasn't seen in ages. He's cultivated for two and a half years, and his strength has already reached the Spirit Condensation Realm..."

As he spoke, Sword Thirteen thought of something and looked at Jiang Shuyu beside him. "Wait, we have one of those here, too..."

"A peerless genius? That's just the bare minimum for getting in my way." Gu Qingzhou paid Sword Thirteen's words no mind.

"Agreed." Mo Shang nodded emphatically.

A peerless genius seen once in ten thousand years? That was still just a genius. Gu Qingzhou, on the other hand, was a bona fide cheat-code user!

The heavens are a grand stage. No cheats? Don't bother showing up. Weak cheats? Don't bother, either!

"Heh. It's nice to be young..." Sword Thirteen chuckled and said no more.

After soaking their feet, Sword Thirteen led them out of the bathhouse and into an inn.

The innkeeper greeted them with a smile as soon as he saw them. "Honored guests, are you here for a meal or a room?"

"Five rooms." Sword Thirteen spoke calmly and placed a pouch of spirit stones on the counter.

"I'm sorry, honored guest, but we only have four rooms left. Would that be..." Hearing Sword Thirteen's request, the innkeeper looked apologetic.

"Then four will do." Sword Thirteen didn't seem to mind and nodded.

"Right away." The innkeeper didn't hesitate. He promptly took out four room tokens and set them on the counter.

"Work it out among yourselves."

Sword Thirteen picked up one of the tokens and headed straight upstairs, leaving the others staring at one another.

"I'm taking a room by myself." Gu Qingzhou was quick to grab a token, then vanished in an instant.

"Uh, Senior Sister Liu, you and Shuyu..." Mo Shang asked, stunned, turning to Liu Ruyan.

"I'm used to being alone."

Before he could finish, Liu Ruyan gave Mo Shang a playful smile, picked up another token, and vanished just as quickly as Gu Qingzhou.

"Let's go."

After the two of them left, Jiang Shuyu picked up the remaining token and smiled at Mo Shang. She slipped her arm through his.

"Ah, is this right?"

Mo Shang still seemed unable to process what had happened. In a daze, he followed her upstairs and stopped outside a room.

Jiang Shuyu lightly pinched the token between her fingers. A glimmer of spiritual light flashed across it, and the barrier formation at the door dissipated. The door slowly opened on its own.

The room was simply and elegantly furnished. A large bed stood by the window, and a celadon oil lamp rested on the table. Moonlight spilled in by the window, lending the room a quiet, tranquil air.

They entered and closed the door behind them. Neither said a word; only their breathing could be heard in the room.

After a while, Mo Shang came back to himself and cleared his throat. "Ahem. Well, we should get some rest..."

"All right."

Jiang Shuyu nodded lightly and walked behind the screen. A moment later, the faint rustle of clothing came from behind it.

When she came back out, she had changed into a light, simple white robe, her long hair loosely pinned up...

Jiang Shuyu looked less cool and distant than usual. A faint blush colored her breathtakingly beautiful cheeks, adding a different kind of charm.

The sight left Mo Shang staring, frozen in place.

"Do you like it?" Jiang Shuyu brushed the loose hair away from her cheek and asked softly, looking a little nervous.

"Ah, i-it looks good." Jiang Shuyu's voice brought Mo Shang back to himself, and he answered awkwardly.

It was the first time he'd seen Jiang Shuyu like this...