No one could have anticipated the Imperial Fighting Team's invitation. Chen An had been eager to face them, but now he was having second thoughts. Looking at the children's condition, there was no need to put them through another match.
Everyone had improved, and their opponents were an elite team. They could win, but it wouldn't be as easy as their match against Shrek.
Compared with the original story, Shrek had now lost the Hell White Tiger, the Martial Soul Fusion Skill, and Ning Rongrong, whose support would have boosted the attackers. Their strength had been greatly diminished, and they were perfectly countered.
Thinking about it, this would make for a good trial. He decided to stick with his original plan and accept the challenge, though he would tell them that evening. He'd treat this match as their return bout.
With that decided, Chen An wrote a reply to Di Ao, instructing him to promote the match properly and raise the ticket prices. He could advertise it as the elite team's final battle of this generation.
He had a stake in the arena now, so he might as well claim the benefits. Who knew? One day, the Suotuo City Arena might be turned into a Phantom Star training ground.
"I wonder what they're up to."
After finishing his reply, Chen An released the messenger pigeon. There was no need to go to the arena in person just to explain such a small matter. The room was empty, the floor was empty, and Zhu Zhuqing and the others weren't by his side. Neither were his students.
He felt like going out for a walk. Ever since he'd taken on students, he hadn't had the chance to spend time like this.
Was he worried about the students? There was no need. Dragon Duke had rushed over just now to hand things over, and he'd already given them all the necessary instructions.
"I'll go for a walk. It's been ages."
At his level, he could follow his heart without crossing the line. Right now, he just wanted to explore Suotuo City like an ordinary person.
He'd lived in Suotuo City for years, but he'd never done this before. Once the idea came to him, Chen An acted on it. He concealed his aura, tidied up his appearance, then used one of the dark arts of Southeast Asia to alter his looks. It wasn't flawless, but anyone who didn't know him particularly well would fail to recognize him.
Walking down the street, he felt utterly unremarkable, though his state of mind was entirely different. In the past, he'd always hurried along. When had he ever had the leisure to admire the sights?
"This style is pretty unusual, too."
The architectural styles of cities across the continent tended to resemble those of their respective empires. But in a border town like Suotuo City, the distinct artistic styles of the three great powers clashed.
"A clothing shop?"
As he walked, he came to a shop that made custom clothes and stopped in front of it. He suddenly remembered that he still hadn't ordered matching school uniforms for his students.
There were relatively few shops selling ready-made clothes in Suotuo City compared with those offering custom tailoring. The technology for weaving fabric hadn't yet fully reached the commercial market in this world.
"Welcome!"
Although Chen An had changed his appearance, he was still dressed normally.
The shopkeeper's attitude seemed decent, and he liked the clothing designs he saw, so he explained his requirements in detail. Once he'd confirmed they could make what he wanted, he promptly placed an order and paid the deposit.
When it came to shopping, he was no different from most men: if something seemed suitable, he bought it right away. No hemming and hawing.
"Another thing taken care of." When he left the shop, he felt considerably more relaxed.
Suotuo City was huge, and its infrastructure was well developed, but there wasn't much in the way of entertainment. After walking around, aside from the residential districts, he'd seen little more than basic service areas.
He'd looked all around, but nothing was new. It was the same few things over and over, and it all felt a little dull.
Apart from spotting malt candy for sale when he passed through the market and buying two sticks, there was hardly anything fun to do.
"Suotuo Great Herb Shop?"
At last, he saw something a little different. As the name suggested, herb shops sold medicinal herbs and pills.
It was the largest shop in the whole city. Everywhere else sold only ready-made pills for emergencies. After all, healing-type Soul Masters were rare, and high-level healers rarer still.
Most Soul Masters found it hard to recruit a healer when forming a team for an excursion. That was why pills remained so popular.
"They really do sell herbs here. The quality's just a little lacking."
Without hesitation, Chen An went inside to have a look. He had plenty of seeds in his storage ring, but not a very wide variety. There weren't enough to provide for all the teachers and students.
The clerk kept showing him herbs, some untreated and others already processed, but he gave the same assessment each time.
"Sir, you..." Since he was never satisfied, the clerk kept bringing out new ones and was getting annoyed.
She thought Chen An was deliberately making trouble and wanted to warn him.
"Uh, I'll keep showing you what we have."
Chen An moved, and the clerk's expression changed at once.
When she'd questioned him, Chen An had taken out a bag of Gold Soul Coins and the proof Ning Fengzhi had given him.
At the time, he'd thought Ning Fengzhi had gone to unnecessary trouble. Now, though, he saw how damn useful that thing was.
"Sir, this is all we have in stock. If none of it meets your standards, then..." The clerk trailed off, at a loss for words.
According to the shop's rules, she would have loved to throw him out. But she couldn't—not when he had proof of his status as a Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect guest.
"Auntie, what was so urgent that you called me down?"
A young woman in a plain robe came down from the second floor. Judging by the clerk's respectful demeanor, she held a very high position here.
"Miss, it's like this: this honored guest of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect isn't satisfied with the herbs downstairs. He wants living, untreated herbs."
They addressed each other by their respective positions, as if the young woman's status were high enough to make their blood relationship irrelevant.
The young woman looked Chen An over. Then, parting her lips slightly, she said in a clear voice, "All right. Leave this to me. Sir, please come with me."
Her words were soft and her voice pleasant, but Chen An could hear loneliness and melancholy beneath them.
"All right."
They went up to the second floor. The herbs here were even rarer, but the young woman led him to a guest room. She first made him some tea, then spoke.
"My name is Ye Lingling. What kind of herbs are you looking for, sir?" she asked with a smile. The clerk had already briefed her.
Chen An was momentarily speechless. He hadn't expected to run into Ye Lingling here, but for now, he decided not to let on that he knew her.
"I'm looking for unusual herbs—ones with unconventional effects. Do you have anything like that?"
His request was vague, but he was serious. That really was why he'd come here. Meeting Ye Lingling had been unexpected, and he hadn't known that this place belonged to the Ye Family.
"If that's what you're looking for, then we do have some. Please wait a moment." Ye Lingling thought carefully, then stood and left the room.
While he waited, Chen An thought about Ye Lingling. There was no doubt that she had the backing of her family. The Nine-Heart Begonia was incredibly powerful, and the fact that it was passed down through only one person per generation meant there had to be an affiliated family behind it—not to mention a family that had developed naturally over time.
It might not be as powerful as the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, but with the Nine-Heart Begonia, it was more than capable of supporting the growth of a family. The family might be subject to the royal family, but that all depended on how they handled things.
"No matter how many Soul Rings she has, does her Martial Soul only have this one healing effect? It's passed down through only one person per generation? Then that child's loneliness and melancholy must be connected to the nature of her Martial Soul," Chen An murmured.
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