First Arrival in Green Mountain Town

It was late at night.

Lu Heng's little room was brightly lit.

Ya Fei placed the Storage Ring she had prepared long ago on the table, then began stuffing things into it.

"These are three changes of clothes. They're all made of durable material, and I had the cuffs tightened so they won't get in your way."

"This is dried meat and flatbread, enough to last half a month. The Magical Beast Mountain Range is damp, so making a fire won't be easy. Don't keep thinking about roasting meat—it could attract magical beasts."

"This is antidote powder, this is insect-repellent powder, and this is for stopping bleeding..."

Ya Fei kept chattering as she relentlessly stuffed items into the Storage Ring.

That low-grade Storage Ring, with only a few cubic meters of space, was crammed so full by her that not even the tiniest gap remained.

Lu Heng sat by the bed, watching Ya Fei's busy back. His heart felt warm, yet he also found it rather amusing.

"Sister Ya Fei, I'm going out to train, not moving house."

Lu Heng could not help speaking up.

"Looking at you, anyone would think I'm heading into the Magical Beast Mountain Range for a year or two."

"What do you know?"

Ya Fei did not even turn around. She was holding a bottle of the auction house's finest Healing Pills and stuffing it inside.

"It's better to have too much than too little when traveling. What if you get hurt? What if you get lost? What if..."

"There are no what-ifs."

Lu Heng walked over and pressed down on Ya Fei's still-busy hand.

Ya Fei stopped moving, turned around, and her eyes reddened slightly again.

"It's all in there."

Ya Fei handed the Storage Ring to Lu Heng, her voice somewhat low.

"There's also a map. I had someone get me the most detailed version available, with all the places where high-level magical beasts appear marked on it.

You... don't push yourself too hard."

Lu Heng accepted the Storage Ring, still warm from Ya Fei's body heat, slipped it onto his finger, and solemnly nodded.

"Get some sleep early. We have to get up early tomorrow."

Ya Fei straightened his collar. Her fingertips lingered briefly at his collarbone, as though she wanted to say something, but in the end, she said nothing.

"I'm going back."

With that, Ya Fei turned and headed for the door as if fleeing.

The next morning.

The sky had only just begun to brighten, and the air still carried the lingering chill of the night.

At the back entrance of the Miteer Auction House, an inconspicuous carriage was waiting.

Ya Fei stood beside the carriage. Today, she had changed back into her red brocade robe, her makeup immaculate, once again the flawless chief auctioneer.

Only the faint shadows beneath her eyes revealed that she had not slept well the night before.

Lu Heng carried a small bundle on his back. The truth was that everything was in his Storage Ring; the bundle was merely for show. He stood before Ya Fei.

"All right, there's always a parting after seeing someone off for a thousand miles." Lu Heng waved casually. "Sister Ya Fei, don't see me off any farther. You're making it look like a final farewell."

Ya Fei pressed her red lips together without speaking. She merely reached out, straightened his slightly crooked collar, then carefully checked the belt at his waist once more.

"Remember to take the Yuan-Nurturing Powder on time."

Lu Heng reminded her.

"When I come back, I'll check your cultivation. If you still haven't broken through to Dou Zhe, just see how I laugh at you."

"Take care of yourself." Ya Fei glared at him, her eyes slightly red.

"Go early and come back early."

Lu Heng nodded and turned to board the carriage.

With one foot on the step, he suddenly stopped.

As though he had made some momentous decision, Lu Heng abruptly turned around and rushed back to Ya Fei in a few quick strides.

Before Ya Fei could react, she felt her waist tighten as his small body wrapped around her.

Then, a warm, soft touch landed on her cheek.

"Smack."

A light sound rang out.

Lu Heng swiftly kissed the lips that had haunted countless men's dreams. He kissed her so hard that it actually made a sound.

Ya Fei went completely rigid, her mind blank. Her peach-blossom eyes widened round, her face full of disbelief.

"Sister Ya Fei, wait for me to come back!"

Before Ya Fei could recover, the culprit had already fled, scrambling onto the carriage in a few bounds.

"Driver, go! Go!"

The driver cracked his whip, and the carriage kicked up a cloud of dust as it raced through the morning streets as though fleeing for its life.

Ya Fei was left standing there alone as the morning wind tousled her hair.

Ya Fei blankly raised a hand and touched the lips that had just been kissed. Lu Heng's warmth seemed to still linger there.

"You little brat..."

Only after quite a while did Ya Fei finally come back to herself.

Two alluring crimson flushes quickly bloomed across her fair, lovely face, spreading all the way to her ears.

Ya Fei bit her lip and watched the direction in which the carriage had vanished. The corners of her mouth slowly lifted into a sweet smile.

"You already know how to take advantage of your sister at such a young age... Just wait until you come back. I'll break your legs."

Though her words were fierce, her peach-blossom eyes were filled with tenderness on the verge of overflowing.

Green Mountain Town was not particularly far from Wutan City. At Lu Heng's pace as a Dou Zhe, the journey would take around three days.

As for the carriage, not long after leaving Wutan City, Lu Heng had told the driver to return.

Lu Heng had never planned to travel by carriage. On one hand, a carriage was slower than traveling on his own; on the other, the journey itself was good training for the use and control of Dou Qi.

If Sister Ya Fei had not arranged a carriage, Lu Heng would not have ridden in one.

After three days of travel, Lu Heng finally arrived at Green Mountain Town.

Green Mountain Town was also known as Monster Town.

Lu Heng raised his head and looked ahead.

The town before him was not particularly large. Both sides of its streets were lined with uniform bluestone buildings, giving it a rugged air.

People came and went along the streets, most of them mercenaries carrying swords and sabers on their backs, with murderous auras about them.

Some bore wounds, while others carried freshly skinned beast hides in their hands. They shouted loudly, radiating a primal wildness.

Lu Heng muttered to himself.

"So this is Green Mountain Town. I wonder whether Xiao Yi Xian is at the Ten Thousand Medicine Pavilion at this point."

Although Lu Heng did not yet have a way to resolve Xiao Yi Xian's Woe Poison Physique, he was quite confident that he could solve it without relying on Yao Chen's method.

No matter what, if he had the chance to get acquainted with her, that would naturally be wonderful.

However, after Lu Heng had taken only a few steps into Green Mountain Town, he sensed that something was wrong.

There were always eyes watching him.

Lu Heng wore a black robe, an utterly ordinary sight in Green Mountain Town. There were even people in the town who wore masks, bamboo hats, and other items to conceal their identities.

Lu Heng frowned and looked down at himself. His height really was a disadvantage.

Over the years, Sister Ya Fei had found every possible way to get him medicinal meals and tonics. Coupled with the nourishment of Dou Qi, his body had shot up quickly. Though he was not even eleven yet, he was already around 1.67 meters tall.

Back on Earth, that would definitely count as well-developed, perhaps even tall.

But this was the Dou Qi Continent, especially a place packed with mercenaries.

The grown men here ate magical beast meat and trained in tough external arts. Most were over 1.8 meters tall, while those who specialized in defensive Dou Techniques were often over two meters.

Lu Heng's 1.67-meter frame looked especially thin beneath that loose black robe.

He sighed inwardly and could not help recalling another novel he had read in his previous life, Douluo Continent.

The eleven- and twelve-year-olds over there all looked like overdeveloped models. 1.78 meters was standard, and 1.89 meters was commonplace.

Why was it that, when it came to me, the Dou Qi Continent's food standards and Dou Qi couldn't keep up with the spirit power hormones over there?

Lu Heng grumbled inwardly, but he ignored those gazes and continued deeper into town, preparing to visit the Ten Thousand Medicine Pavilion.