Qian Qinghe, Your Disguise Is Not Very Good

Qian Qinghe withdrew her gaze.

"You're quite open-minded."

"Even if I weren't, it wouldn't change other people's secrets."

The two first headed to the residence arranged by the Worship Hall.

It was an Independent Courtyard near the foot of the mountain.

The courtyard was not particularly luxurious, but it was spacious, with training grounds in both the front and back. There was even a complete forge in the rear courtyard, equipped with a furnace, an anvil, and all manner of metalworking tools.

Chu Lie had already arrived.

He stood inside the forge, inspecting the tools one by one, unable to hide his satisfaction.

"This furnace is better than the one in Bluestone Town!"

"The bellows are a Soul Tool too. Just inject a little Soul Power, and they'll blow air on their own."

"And this anvil has at least thirty percent black iron mixed into it."

Only halfway through speaking did Chu Lie notice Qian Qinghe beside Chu Jin.

"Who is this?"

"Qian Qinghe."

Qian Qinghe took the initiative to speak. "The Grand Worshipper asked me to help Chu Jin familiarize himself with Spirit City."

Chu Lie sized her up a few times.

Her clothes were luxurious, her temperament gentle, and she could call Qian Daoliu grandfather. Her status was certainly not low.

Chu Lie's attitude immediately became much more polite.

"Then I'll have to trouble you, Young Master Qinghe."

"Uncle Chu, there's no need to be so polite."

Qian Qinghe did not look down on Chu Lie for being a blacksmith, and her form of address was perfectly natural.

Chu Lie's first impression of her was clearly quite good.

After Chu Jin set down his luggage, the two continued on to Spirit City's materials market.

The materials market occupied three entire long streets.

The shops lining both sides of the streets were filled with Soul Beast hides, bones, blood, medicinal herbs, ores, and Soul Tool components. Many of the materials gave off distinct Soul Power fluctuations, making them far more valuable than the ordinary ores found in Bluestone Town.

The moment Xiao Jin entered the street, it raised its head.

Its nose twitched repeatedly.

To the left came the scent of dragon-attributed Soul Beast bones.

To the right were Light Stones.

And ahead were fire-attributed crystal cores.

Its eyes grew brighter and brighter. Its claws unconsciously tightened around Chu Jin's shoulder as its body leaned more than halfway forward.

Chu Jin grabbed one of its hind legs.

"Xiao Jin."

"Today, you can only look."

Xiao Jin turned to look at him, its eyes filled with disbelief.

Guang Ling had clearly said that once they reached Spirit City, it could eat materials as it pleased.

So why could it only look now that they had entered the materials market?

Qian Qinghe was amused by its expression.

"It can understand?"

"It can understand simple words."

"Then it really wants to eat?"

Xiao Jin immediately turned its head and nodded vigorously at Qian Qinghe.

Qian Qinghe's smile deepened.

"What do you want to buy?"

Chu Jin took out his materials list.

"Low-grade light-attributed ores, as many varieties as possible. I also need some powder from subdragon Soul Beast bones. Buy small amounts of fire and lightning materials for testing."

Qian Qinghe took the list and flipped through several pages.

"The Worship Hall's materials storehouse should have all of these."

"Those are the Worship Hall's resources."

"You're already a core disciple. Nurturing your Martial Soul is the Worship Hall's responsibility in the first place."

Chu Jin shook his head.

"I can use what's needed for normal cultivation."

"There are many kinds of experimental materials, and many may not prove effective in the end. I'll use my own money first. Once their value is confirmed, the Worship Hall can provide them steadily."

Qian Qinghe looked at him for a few breaths.

"How much money do you have?"

"Steward Ma gave me a reward of one hundred Gold Soul Coins, and Appraiser Zhou Mingyuan gave me another two hundred."

"Three hundred Gold Soul Coins?"

Qian Qinghe glanced at the shops on both sides of the street.

"That's enough for ordinary materials, but if you come across high-quality dragon materials, you might not even be able to afford a single piece."

Chu Jin remained perfectly calm.

"I'll buy what I can afford first."

The two entered the first ore shop.

The shopkeeper recognized Qian Qinghe at a glance and hurriedly came to receive them personally.

Chu Jin did not buy large chunks of ore. He only selected more than a dozen fist-sized samples. There was very little of each material, all meant to observe the changes after Xiao Jin consumed them for the first time.

The shopkeeper had originally wanted to recommend some expensive high-grade ores.

After seeing Chu Jin's method of purchasing, a hint of seriousness appeared in his eyes.

This was clearly not some ordinary child buying things at random.

More than a hundred Gold Soul Coins were quickly spent.

Xiao Jin stared at the Soul Tool filled with ores, drool nearly spilling from the corner of its mouth.

Chu Jin did not feed it immediately.

"We'll test them one by one after we get back."

Xiao Jin's head instantly drooped.

After leaving the shop, Qian Qinghe led Chu Jin toward the Spirit City Library.

They passed through a crowded street along the way.

An elderly woman with a head full of white hair was carrying a vegetable basket when someone bumped into her from the side. Her body swayed, and the money pouch at her waist vanished at the same time.

The one who stole it was a teenage boy.

He was small and quick. The moment he succeeded, he immediately slipped into the crowd.

The elderly woman only discovered that her money pouch was missing after taking several steps. She anxiously searched everywhere.

"That's her living expenses for an entire month."

Qian Qinghe had guards secretly following her the entire time.

Just as she was about to send them a message to handle it, Xiao Jin vanished from Chu Jin's shoulder.

A golden figure darted through the crowd close to the ground.

The thief thought no one had noticed him. He had only just turned into a nearby alley when Xiao Jin sprang out from behind a wooden crate and rammed its head into his knee.

The boy lost his balance and crashed heavily to the ground.

The money pouch rolled out of his clothes.

Xiao Jin snatched it up in its mouth and turned to run.

The boy wanted to chase after it.

But Chu Jin was already standing at the entrance to the alley.

He had not brought his three-hundred-pound heavy halberd with him, yet merely his stance and the faint pressure emanating from his Double Pupils were enough to stop the boy in his tracks.

"Do you want to take it back?"

The boy's expression changed several times before he finally lowered his head.

"My little sister is sick."

"There's no money at home."

Chu Jin did not believe him immediately.

Double Pupils could observe Soul Power and the body, but they could not reveal whether every word a person spoke was true or false.

Qian Qinghe raised a hand and summoned one of the hidden guards.

The situation was quickly investigated.

The boy did indeed have a sick younger sister at home.

But most of the money he had stolen lately had been spent at gambling houses, with only a small portion used to buy medicine for his sister.

Chu Jin did not continue listening to his explanation.

"Send him to the Spirit City Security Team."

"Handle him according to the city's rules."

The guards took the boy away.

Xiao Jin carried the money pouch back to the elderly woman.

When the old woman saw her recovered money, she was so excited that she repeatedly thanked them. She took out several Silver Soul Coins from the pouch and tried to hand them to Chu Jin.

Chu Jin only took one.

The elderly woman was stunned.

"Child, take more."

"Xiao Jin helped you catch him."

Chu Jin shook the Silver Soul Coin in his hand.

"This is its food money for today."

Xiao Jin immediately raised its head, looking as though it had rendered a great service.

The elderly woman was amused and thanked them repeatedly again.

After leaving the street, Qian Qinghe asked, "Why did you only take one?"

"She doesn't have much money."

"You could have taken none at all."

"Xiao Jin did the work."

Chu Jin stroked Xiao Jin on his shoulder.

"It deserves a reward."

Xiao Jin nodded hard.

As Qian Qinghe looked at the person and beast, she suddenly felt that the way they interacted was quite special.

Chu Jin did not treat Xiao Jin simply as a Martial Soul.

It was more like he treated it as a companion that needed to be nurtured.

That afternoon, the two returned to their residence.

Just as Chu Jin was about to enter the courtyard, Qian Qinghe suddenly called out to him.

"Chu Jin."

"Hm?"

Qian Qinghe asked casually, "What do you think I look like?"

Chu Jin turned around.

His Double Pupils were not activated.

Before him, Qian Qinghe had handsome features, fair skin, and a gentle nobility between her brows that did not quite match her age.

Judging by appearance alone, she was indeed exceptionally outstanding.

But Chu Jin had already seen the Soul Power and body outline beneath her disguise.

"Pretty good."

Qian Qinghe relaxed slightly.

"Just pretty good?"

"Your disguise is mediocre."

The smile on Qian Qinghe's face instantly froze.

Chu Jin had already pushed open the courtyard gate and walked inside.

Xiao Jin lay on his shoulder and glanced back at Qian Qinghe, who stood outside the gate.

It tilted its head.

It seemed unable to understand why this person had suddenly gone blank and stood there without moving.