The two of them left the Blacksmith Association. The afternoon sun over Heaven Dou City was just right, and shops lined both sides of the street as people streamed past.
Xiao Mu bought a stick of candied hawthorn from a street vendor and handed it to Na'er. She took it and bit into it, her cheeks puffing out as she mumbled that it was delicious.
They strolled along, eating as they went. They stopped by a grilled-squid stall, where Na'er ate ten skewers.
They paused at an old man's stall selling sugar figurines, and Xiao Mu bought Na'er a dragon-shaped one. At a ring-toss stall, Xiao Mu didn't even use a Soul Skill. He casually tossed three rings and landed all three, turning the vendor's face green.
How could anyone hit the mark every single time?
As they walked, a huge building rose from the clusters of buildings at the far end of the street. It was entirely white, its spire reaching into the clouds. Countless translucent crystals were embedded in its walls, gleaming softly in the sunlight.
A vast plaza surrounded its base, complete with fountains, flower beds, neatly trimmed shrubs, and Soul Masters in Spirit Pagoda uniforms coming and going.
The Heaven Dou City Spirit Pagoda.
Xiao Mu glanced at his Communication Soul Tool. The connection had already been forcibly cut off.
It was like being thrown back into prehistoric times.
"Since we're here, let's go buy a Soul Spirit."
Na'er stuffed the last squid skewer into her mouth and wiped the sauce from the corner of her lips. "Why are we buying a Soul Spirit, Brother? Are you at level forty?"
"No." Xiao Mu tossed the bamboo skewer into a roadside trash can and dusted off his hands. "Let's just go in and take a look first."
The two of them crossed the plaza and entered the Spirit Pagoda's lobby. A blast of cool air greeted them, and the clamor outside was shut away behind the doors. The lobby's ceiling soared dozens of meters overhead, with a huge crystal chandelier hanging from the dome. The marble floor was polished enough to reflect their figures.
People hurried back and forth through the lobby. Soul Masters in Spirit Pagoda uniforms rushed toward the areas beyond the lobby.
As expected, the mural in the lobby depicted a man.
He was none other than the Spirit Pagoda's founding patriarch, Spirit Ice Douluo Huo Yuhao.
Xiao Mu stopped in front of the mural. He felt the artist had missed the subject's essence. It would have looked better with a dog's tail added.
Xiao Mu walked up to the counter and tapped the surface with his fingers.
"I want to buy a Soul Spirit."
The Spirit Transmitter behind the counter looked up. He was a man in his thirties, wearing gold-rimmed glasses and a professional smile. He tapped twice on his keyboard, and a window popped up on the screen. Then his smile froze.
"Sorry, the system's been malfunctioning for the past few days, so we can't process any transactions."
"System malfunction?" Xiao Mu leaned against the counter. "The Spirit Pagoda's system breaks down just like that?"
"It really is a system malfunction." The Spirit Transmitter adjusted his glasses. "It's not that we won't sell one; we can't. You can come back in a few days."
"If East Sea could sell them, would I have come all the way here?"
The Spirit Transmitter's smile was starting to crack. Why was this kid so difficult?
Xiao Mu was about to say more when a familiar voice came from behind him.
"Xiao Mu?"
At the sound, Xiao Mu turned around. Gu Yue stood beside a pillar in the lobby, a stack of documents in her arms. She was still wearing her Spirit Pagoda uniform.
She looked at Xiao Mu and Na'er, momentarily stunned. She clearly hadn't expected to run into them there.
Na'er was just as surprised to see Gu Yue. "Gu Yue, you skipped school!"
Gu Yue's mouth twitched.
Skipped school?
She'd been working hard at the Spirit Pagoda, studying how Artificial Soul Spirits were made, poring over documents until the middle of the night every day, and Na'er made it sound like she'd skipped school.
She took a deep breath and decided not to argue with Na'er about it.
Xiao Mu spoke first. "Gu Yue, what are you doing here?"
"I was about to ask you the same thing." Gu Yue gathered the documents more securely in her arms. "Shouldn't you be at the academy?"
"I got permission to take leave," Xiao Mu said.
"Eighty-two days of it." Gu Yue raised an eyebrow.
"You remember that clearly." Xiao Mu looked at the Spirit Pagoda uniform she was wearing. "So, you joined the Spirit Pagoda?"
Gu Yue glanced down at her uniform. There was no point hiding it, so she nodded.
"That's right. I joined the Spirit Pagoda."
Na'er blinked beside them. So it wasn't skipping school after all, even though school was pretty boring.
"Perfect timing." Xiao Mu leaned against the counter and tipped his chin toward Gu Yue. "I want to buy a Soul Spirit."
Gu Yue frowned and shifted the documents to her other hand. "Not for the next few days. The system's malfunctioning."
"The system's malfunctioning?" Xiao Mu asked, pretending to be surprised.
"That's right." Gu Yue nodded. "The Soul Spirit trading system at Spirit Pagoda Headquarters started having problems a few days ago. The technical department is still investigating the cause. Anyway, all Soul Spirit transactions are suspended for now, whether you're in Heaven Dou City or Eastsea City. It's the same everywhere."
Xiao Mu knew perfectly well why the system had malfunctioned.
After all, he'd been the one who'd wiped them all out. He was the culprit. But he didn't let anything show on his face; he only shrugged.
"I still want to buy one."
Gu Yue watched him for two seconds. Her eyes were calm and still, but she couldn't shake the feeling that he was plotting something.
"What exactly are you trying to do?" she asked.
"Buy a Soul Spirit," Xiao Mu said. "Legally, properly, and with money."
Just then, the sound of heels clicking unhurriedly against the marble floor came from the far end of the corridor.
Leng Yaozhu walked over from deeper inside the lobby. Her red hair fell smoothly to her waist, and her crimson eyes were warm, her bearing dignified. She wore a modified ivory-white qipao, its collar and cuffs trimmed with crimson feather patterns. The hem fell below her knees, swaying gently as she walked. A matching shawl rested over her forearms, drifting lightly with each step like two clouds brushed by a breeze.
She stopped beside Gu Yue, her crimson gaze passing over Xiao Mu and Na'er before settling on Gu Yue.
"Why did it take you so long to get the documents?"
Gu Yue instinctively straightened a little. "Teacher, I ran into some friends. These are my classmates, Xiao Mu and Na'er."
Leng Yaozhu's gaze returned to Xiao Mu. She sized him up. He was still growing into his height, but he looked entirely at ease in the Spirit Pagoda's lobby, and showed no sign of backing down under her gaze.
"So you're Xiao Mu."
"That's right, pretty lady," Xiao Mu said sweetly.
Leng Yaozhu didn't mind the way he addressed her. Women liked being called young.
Her red lips curved slightly. "What a sweet-talker."
Na'er peeked out from behind Xiao Mu, blinking. She followed his lead and called out, "Big sister."
Leng Yaozhu glanced at her. Silver hair, silver eyes, and about the same age as Xiao Mu.
"Hello."
Watching them, Gu Yue looked puzzled. She could understand Na'er, but why had Xiao Mu suddenly turned into a sweet-talker too? Was he really tailoring his approach to whoever he was talking to? Was he doing it on purpose?
Wait. Xiao Mu had called her teacher "big sister." Wasn't that putting her one generation below him?
He was here to mess with her!