It Looked Lively

"No wonder Miss Liu was not only highly skilled in martial arts, but also such a deft hand at grilling fish." The moment Su Qingyang emerged from seclusion, he saw Liu Qingni grilling fish. He walked over, sat beside her, and teased her.

"Mm, I used to spend time in the wilderness while carrying out missions. If I did not want to eat dry rations and cold cakes, I had to figure out how to grill meat myself."

Liu Qingni spoke softly. Beneath her veil, a faint gentleness touched her fair cheeks, along with a slight flush.

As she spoke, she took the cooked fish from the grill, placed it on a clean leaf, and handed it to Su Qingyang.

Su Qingyang accepted the fish, tore off a piece, and gently chewed it. His eyes lit up as he smiled sincerely. "It's delicious."

"I'm glad it suits your tastes, Young Master."

Liu Qingni added, "The blood energy from the stone chamber soared into the sky just now, even cleaving the lake apart for more than a dozen zhang. Young Master must have gained greatly from this cultivation session, no?"

Unable to suppress her curiosity, she secretly wondered whether Su Qingyang had broken through to the Blood Refining Grandmaster realm, reaching an unprecedented height on the path of tempering the body and blood energy!

Though she instinctively felt it was impossible, she still could not hold back the doubts in her heart.

"Not bad. Three Vajra Bodhi Fruits paired with premium Scarlet Blood Grass did indeed take my body and blood energy another step forward."

Su Qingyang saw through the doubts in Liu Qingni's heart at a glance and smiled faintly.

"Still, there were not enough heavenly treasures. I failed to take one more step forward."

That was the truth. If he were given another seven or eight stalks of premium Scarlet Blood Grass now, he could put on a live performance of breaking through in the middle of battle!

Liu Qingni fell silent, but her phoenix eyes were filled with amazement.

A grandmaster was already the pinnacle of the mortal world, yet Su Qingyang could advance even further within the grandmaster realm. Such talent had already surpassed the limits of her imagination.

She even began to suspect that the young man before her might be a reincarnated immortal or deity.

"Young Master need not worry. Once you reach the imperial capital and reclaim your identity as the Sixth Prince, the royal medicine gardens hold countless treasures. Every kind of heavenly material and earthly treasure can be found there. By then, you will not lack supreme treasures for tempering your blood energy."

Liu Qingni raised her eyes and comforted him.

Su Qingyang smiled softly. He was not in a hurry.

The road ahead in martial arts was vast and boundless. He had all the time in the world to walk it slowly. As for the scenery encountered along the way, it was all unique splendor found only upon the journey.

It was also indispensable tempering on the path of cultivation.

"Miss Liu, how far are we from the imperial capital?" Su Qingyang suddenly asked as he ate the grilled fish.

"With the speed of the Dragon Horse and Flame-Mane Warhorse, we should arrive in roughly two more days. We still need to pass through Azure Province on the way, after which we can reach Central Province."

After carefully calculating, Liu Qingni answered,

"Once we reach Central Province, we will be safe. No matter how rampant Lovesickness Tower may be, they would never dare openly set an ambush and carry out an assassination in Central Province."

"Good..."

Half a day later, within Azure Province.

Azure Province's territory was vast and boundless, its land area fully half again as large as Cloud Prefecture's.

Travelers came and went without end. Merchants from every province, martial artists of the jianghu, and scholars hurrying along the road all converged here. The bustling breath of mortal life surged like a tide, presenting a scene of flourishing prosperity.

Because of this, an extraordinarily lively marketplace had arisen here!

At this moment, Su Qingyang and Liu Qingni led their horses into the marketplace.

One Dragon Horse and one Blazing Warhorse were truly eye-catching. Countless passersby along the way repeatedly turned to look, their gazes all falling upon the two exotic mounts.

"It looks quite lively!" Su Qingyang surveyed the entire marketplace and suddenly smiled at Liu Qingni.

Liu Qingni, however, had no mind to relax. Her delicate brows furrowed slightly as she watched the shops with vigilance.

They would enter Azure Province from here. After that, they would be like a tide returning to the sea, completely disappearing into the vast Azure Province.

"Honored guests! Fresh, tender tofu pudding—sweet or savory, we have both! Would you like a bowl?"

"Please come in, you two! Our humble shop has fine wine and delicious dishes, mountain delicacies and wild game, everything you could want!"

"..."

As Su Qingyang and Liu Qingni gradually ventured deeper, stall owners everywhere called out their wares with enthusiasm, drawing many surrounding customers over.

Just then!

A noodle shop on the street corner caught Liu Qingni's attention.

Several imposing, dark-skinned men with ruddy complexions were gathered in front of the noodle shop.

The men were extremely tall, each standing a head taller than the young man before them. At a glance, they were clearly local thugs who had spent years fighting and killing, using their strength to bully the weak.

They had the young man cornered. One of them burst into laughter and patted the young man's cheek. "Brat of the Chen family, shouldn't you be paying back the silver your dead father owed?"

The young man's face flushed red. Afraid and anxious, he explained in a low voice, "Master Hu, when Father was still alive, he agreed with you that he had borrowed ten taels of silver and would repay sixteen taels after one year."

"There is still nearly half a year left. Isn't this a little early?"

"Hm?" The big man's expression darkened, and a vicious gleam flashed in his eyes.

The young man panicked and hurriedly added, "Master Hu, I am not trying to default on the debt. It is only that I truly do not have enough silver on hand right now. Once I gather the money, I will definitely come to your door and repay it in full at once!"

The young man was pleading bitterly when the thick, grease-stained cloth curtain at the back of the noodle shop was lifted slightly.

A delicate little face quietly peeked out.

The girl was still young, with a slender frame and a waxy yellow complexion that showed signs of malnutrition. Yet her brows and eyes were exquisitely beautiful, unable to conceal the peerless beauty she had been born with.

At this moment!

Her almond-shaped eyes brimmed with terror as she looked anxiously at her brother, who was being surrounded.

More and more passersby gathered to watch. Quite a few local residents whispered among themselves, discussing the matter in low voices.