The Min Household and the Black Jade
Even the shopkeeper, who had weathered many storms and witnessed the vicissitudes of life, sighed deeply when he spoke of this young master.
"This young master of the Min Household is pitiful. As I mentioned before, some people are Curse from birth. This young master is one of them. However, as soon as he was born, his body was covered with red markings. It is said that he almost scared the person who delivered him to faint."
As he spoke, a hint of melancholy in his expression, he said, "Those afflicted with the Curse, some might survive for two or three years, while others would probably die in less than a month. At the time, everyone who knew about this thought that the young master probably wouldn't live to be a month old, since being Curse was incredibly painful, and the young master was still just a child, so it was unlikely he could endure it. But who knew that he gritted his teeth and endured it for seven or eight years, until just a few days ago when he finally couldn't hold on any longer and began to lie in bed."
According to the shopkeeper, this young master of the Min Household has a good temperament. When he was still able to go out in his early years, although he had red marks on his face, he was not ashamed at all and would greet everyone with a smile.
It's fair to say that no one on the street where the Min Household disliked him.
"Even I, a humble servant, have received spiritual fruits from that young master," the shopkeeper chuckled again.
It was precisely because this young master was so lovable that those who had met him after his accident were all deeply saddened.
"This young master is highly regarded by the head of the Min Household. After he collapsed, the Min Household took out all the savings they had accumulated over the years, hoping to find a powerful cultivator to save their grandson. They even promised that whoever could save their grandson's life would have the Min Household's treasure trove, including the pair of black jade pieces, to choose from."
The rewards sound amazing, but this is Curse! Curse that has tormented the Hidden Nether Realm for thousands of years. If someone could truly break it, would the Hidden Nether Realm have fallen into such a state of ruin?
Therefore, even though the reward offered by the Min Household would be tempting to anyone, more than ten days have passed and no one has managed to claim it.
Some who tried to sneak in and take advantage of the situation were even thrown out by the Min Household after they were exposed.
The Min Household holds grudges. They let those who came to freeload off the young master off the hook, but anyone who dared to make a move on him was not only beaten up, but the Min Household also temporarily banned him from using the Teleportation Array.
They're left only to wander around the Spring Returns City, suffering the hardships of being homeless.
These punishments were neither too severe nor too lenient. So the city lord simply turned a blind eye and made no attempt to intervene.
Having recounted everything he knew, the shopkeeper reluctantly took a sip of the tea he had obtained from Jiang Zhuoxue: "That's the situation with the Min Household. As for the Yin Mountain Sect in Moonless City, I've never been there, so I only know superficial information."
"Oh my, your tea is truly delicious! I'm so lucky to have such a treat today." The shopkeeper took a sip of the spiritual tea and couldn't help but offer another compliment.
Knowing these inside stories, Jiang Zhuoxue couldn't help but feel fortunate that she had entered this shop. If it weren't for the well-informed shopkeeper, it would have taken her a lot of effort to find out about the Min Household.
Sang Ying also understood what was going on with the pair of black jade pieces from the Min Household. Jiang Zhuoxue was already very young when his horns were cut off. If we were to calculate his age in the Dragon Race, he would probably only be considered Human Race infant. Naturally, his horns wouldn't be very big.
As for the Dragon Race's oppressive aura, that might just be a way for him to protect himself.
After a moment's thought, Sang Ying turned her attention back to the shopkeeper. "We are very interested in the Min Household's black jade. Would you be so kind as to introduce us to it?"
Upon hearing this, the innkeeper quickly waved his hand. "Oh, no, no. I'm just a small innkeeper, I have absolutely no connection with the Min Household, how could I possibly help with introductions? But I can give you two directions, though."
They weren't too disappointed by this answer, after all, just as the innkeeper said, he was just an innkeeper and probably had no connection with the Min Household.
Having received this answer, the high-grade Spirit Stone in Jiang Zhuoxue's hands finally ended up in the shopkeeper's possession.
He hurriedly caught the Spirit Stone, then looked at the crystal-clear little thing from left to right, kissed it a few times affectionately, and then put it into his pocket.
"Would you two like to go now, or wait a while longer before going?" The shopkeeper was even more attentive than before.
Finally, Jiang Zhuoxue replied, "We just Spring Returns City today. Let us familiarize ourselves with the city first before we go to visit you."
After all, they couldn't just listen to the shopkeeper's side of the story; they needed to investigate further from multiple angles.
Whether the shopkeeper guessed what the two were thinking or not, he simply smiled and took his leave.
As soon as he left, Jiang Zhuoxue immediately busied herself in Sang Ying's room. When they left, Wen Miaoshu gave the two of them many array plates. Although Sang Ying herself knew arrays, she was naturally somewhat inferior to a proper array master like Wen Miaoshu.
Jiang Zhuoxue held a Storage Bag full of array plates, which enveloped the entire room in layers of arrays. If an array master came to see this, they would probably be amazed, wondering how someone could set up an array as if dressing up a house.
After he finished his work, the two tidied up a bit and prepared to go out and see the world they hadn't seen in so long.
The sky outside the inn was overcast. Seeing them about to leave, the innkeeper, who was behind the counter, gave them a special reminder: "You two should come back early tonight. There's a curfew here; if you return late, our inn may have to close."
He spoke earnestly, and although the two didn't understand why there was a curfew, they obediently remembered it.
This time, Sang Ying didn't bring Gu Shu with her. There wasn't much Spiritual Qi here, Gu Shu couldn't get any nourishment. Every little movement he made would deplete his own Spiritual Qi. He had finally achieved his current semi-transparent body, Sang Ying couldn't bear to see the little chubby boy disappear, so she left him at the inn to rest.
The two had a clear goal: to find out about the Min Household in the city.
Fortunately, this family was quite well-known in Spring Returns City, and they easily obtained the information they wanted from a few beggar children on the street.
They said almost exactly what the shopkeeper had said, the only difference being that the Min Household seemed to have invited a powerful figure who had temporarily suppressed the "Curse" of the Min Household's young master.
Upon hearing this news, Sang Ying felt neither worried nor delighted. Neither of them knew what this so-called Curse was. If they rashly went to the Min Household only to find themselves helpless, they might not only fail to forge a connection with them but also incur their enmity.
While pondering this question, Sang Ying didn't pay attention to her footing.
But at that moment, a small figure, caught off guard, bumped straight into her leg.
Sang Ying was alright, as she was a cultivator and had even practiced body tempering, but the child fell directly to the ground, losing his grip on the earthenware pot, which shattered on the spot, spilling out the fragrant soup inside.
"Are you alright?" Sang Ying and Jiang Zhuoxue quickly stepped forward to help him up, but the child didn't care about himself at all. He just looked down at the soup spilled all over the ground, pouted, and burst into tears on the spot.
A note from the author:
That's all for today. I'll start catching up on what I missed tomorrow!
See you tomorrow~