The waiting ti wasn’t long… It didn’t feel like much ti had passed before Luo Qiu and Su Zijun erged one after the other from the small grove ahead.
Luo Qiu looked the sa as always, while Su Zijun had a dark expression the whole way back.
“Master,” Miss Maid imdiately walked over, glancing intentionally or unintentionally at Su Zijun—but Su Zijun didn’t seem to notice the gaze.
“Has Miss Qin woken up yet?”
“Not yet, but it should be soon.”
Luo Qiu nodded. Then he noticed that ever since his return, Jessica’s gaze had been fixed on him without wavering.
He looked at her and saw her lips slightly move, as if wanting to say sothing. Luo Qiu gently shook his head. Jessica paused, then nodded slightly and quietly moved to stand beside Su Zijun.
Unexpectedly, Su Zijun suddenly said, “I’ll be moving on my own for a while. In the anti, you stick with this guy… don’t worry, you’ll be perfectly safe. Your job is to act as my locator, so even if you’re on the verge of death, don’t lose track of yourself!”
“Master?” Jessica blinked in confusion.
But Su Zijun didn’t say anything else—just a few leaps, and she vanished into the vast forest.
Luo Qiu walked over to Jessica and said softly, “Can we talk for a mont, Miss Jessica?”
Jessica hesitated but finally nodded. This ti, they didn’t head into the grove—just stood casually beneath a tree.
Jessica spoke first, looking at Luo Qiu with a mix of curiosity, surprise, and resignation. She smiled slightly, and the complexity in her eyes faded away with that smile, leaving only a trace of nostalgia.
She said, “Co to think of it, the last ti I saw you was also the first… you were wearing a clown mask back then.”
“That was just to avoid unnecessary trouble,” Luo Qiu said calmly. “No need for it now… So, when did you figure it out?”
Jessica looked confused.
Luo Qiu recalled, “You gave two letters at the start. The terms of that deal changed later, but what made curious was—why were you so sure I would carry out the second letter’s request? At that ti, you couldn’t have seen through the mask’s disguise… but you already knew it was ?”
“Wow, so there are things you don’t know after all?” Jessica blinked playfully.
Luo Qiu shook his head. “There’s a lot I don’t know… and if we knew everything, there’d be less to look forward to, right?”
“Funny… Ye Yan once said the sa thing,” Jessica said softly.
Luo Qiu said nothing. The man she ntioned had indeed influenced his path greatly.
“Can you tell … is he doing okay?” Jessica looked at Luo Qiu expectantly. “Maybe I can buy—”
But before she could finish, Luo Qiu interrupted gently, “He’s doing fine. Don’t worry.”
“I see…” Jessica murmured, dazed. She leaned against the tree, head down, as if deep in thought.
Luo Qiu didn’t disturb her. He was always patient.
“Perfu,” Jessica suddenly said. Seeing Luo Qiu’s puzzled expression, she smiled. “You’re wondering how I found out it was you, right? It was the scent of your perfu.”
“Perfu?”
Jessica nodded. “n are usually not great with this stuff, but for won, it stands out. To be honest, I once snuck into your room and planted a bug… you probably know why, no need for to explain. I slled that sa perfu in your room. Later, when I t you at the club, I slled it again.”
Luo Qiu paused. “Just based on that?”
Jessica glanced at Miss Maid behind Luo Qiu and smiled. “n… the perfu’s called ‘Blackberry Muse.’ It’s from a French brand, and yours seems to be the ultra-rare special edition—fewer than 100 bottles exist worldwide. The scent is very unique. I ca across it once during a case, so I rembered it. To co across such a rare perfu multiple tis in one city? Of course I got suspicious. Even I was surprised by my own thoughts back then.”
Luo Qiu didn’t use perfu… So there was only one explanation—the scent must’ve rubbed off from You Ye.
“I see,” Luo Qiu smiled. It was a “flaw” that wasn’t really a flaw.
“But,” Jessica added with a wink, “a woman’s perfu is like a mark. A man who slls like a woman’s perfu is basically ‘claid.’ Smart won won’t go near. That Miss of yours suits you quite well.”
“Miss Su Zijun asked us to protect you properly before she left,” Luo Qiu changed the subject smoothly, so naturally that Jessica almost felt like their prior conversation had never happened.
Jessica sighed and gave a bitter smile. “That topic switch… you really learned that from Ye Yan. He was the sa. Anyway, I guess I’ll be relying on you from now on.”
“It’s no trouble,” Luo Qiu said with a shake of his head.
Recalling the ti Miss Maid treated her injuries, Jessica added, “Don’t worry. I won’t tell Ye Yan anything about you. I won’t ask questions either… Everyone has secrets they want to keep.”
“Thank you.” Luo Qiu nodded.
Jessica whispered, “Actually, I should be the one thanking you… It’s late, but still—thank you for the Christmas present.”
Luo Qiu suddenly said, “Sothing seems to have changed in you. It’s allowing your power to evolve further, while your body is adapting to handle it… That might be a good thing.”
Jessica opened her mouth to reply.
But Luo Qiu acted as if he hadn’t said anything and turned to walk away… because Qin Chuyu had just woken up.
Jessica lowered her head, recalling Luo Qiu’s words, and murmured with a complex expression, “A good thing… but I’m not human anymore…”
…
Qin Chuyu had probably already learned a few things from You Ye.
This woman seed cold to the bone—she didn’t ntion anything about her ti unconscious or the change of clothes.
She simply looked at Luo Qiu and brought up the Green Lotus Sword Song beside her. She asked directly, “Tell how to awaken the sword spirit in the Green Lotus Sword Song. What price must I pay?”
“It’s that important to you?” Luo Qiu asked.
“It concerns the whereabouts of my master,” Qin Chuyu nodded without hiding anything—she knew hiding would be useless. If he wanted to know, he would know.
As soone who had already made a deal, she was well aware of what he could do.
Luo Qiu thought for a mont, then said, “Then why not just purchase the information about your master? That would be more efficient.”
“Awakening the sword spirit is enough.” Qin Chuyu looked at Luo Qiu with calm dignity, though her gaze trembled slightly.
“I see.” Luo Qiu nodded and reached out his hand.
Qin Chuyu was clearly swayed. After so hesitation, she grasped the sword hilt and handed it over, saying, “Be careful, it—”
But as soon as Luo Qiu took the Green Lotus Sword Song, the sword remained quiet and still. Qin Chuyu was visibly stunned.
“Don’t worry, Miss Qin. I won’t damage it,” Luo Qiu said casually as he once again examined the unusually obedient sword.
Qin Chuyu clearly didn’t an that. She thought Luo Qiu might’ve misunderstood... she had simply wanted to warn him. The Green Lotus Sword Song could harm people—but what surprised her was how quiet and docile it now appeared.
“There really is a dormant soul inside,” Luo Qiu said, gently running his fingers along the sword’s blade. After a while, he continued, “Based on your current state, Miss Qin, there are two ways to awaken it. One is for us to directly awaken it. The other is for you to do it yourself.”
“What do I need to do?” Qin Chuyu obviously preferred to awaken it herself.
Luo Qiu looked at her and said slowly, “Miss Qin, you should understand our rules.”
Qin Chuyu didn’t speak. She simply nodded, then reached for her ear—she had always worn a pearl earring, though only on one side.
She removed the earring and said calmly, “This contains everything I’ve collected over the years. See if it’s enough.”
She placed the earring in Luo Qiu’s palm. After sensing its contents, he said, “Indeed, it’s quite rich... Now then, Miss Qin, what would you like to trade from it?”
“Anything. Your choice.”
“Then I’ll just take sothing at random.” Luo Qiu nodded.
At that mont, an old parchnt scroll appeared in front of Qin Chuyu. Without hesitation, she pressed her handprint onto it.
“The soul inside this sword is incomplete,” Luo Qiu finally said. “If you want to awaken it, the solution we offer is: First, you must train your Green Lotus Sword Scripture to the ninth stage. Second, you must recover the missing part of the soul. Once both are fulfilled, it can awaken.”
“Incomplete?” Qin Chuyu’s expression shifted slightly, then she muttered in realization, “No wonder... no matter how I tried, I couldn’t connect with it...”
Luo Qiu handed the earring back to her.
After inspecting it carefully, Qin Chuyu noticed that about one-fifth of the stored contents were gone. She couldn’t help but glance at Luo Qiu again—he had only taken duplicates; anything unique remained untouched.
She quietly put the earring back on, sat cross-legged with the Green Lotus Sword Song across her lap, and closed her eyes. Soon, she entered a ditative state, her consciousness seemingly detached from her surroundings.
“Why didn’t she choose the more direct option?” Jessica walked over, curious.
Luo Qiu looked at Qin Chuyu. A falling leaf landed on her shoulder, but it didn’t disturb her concentration. With a flick of his fingers, he sent the leaf gently to the ground and softly said, “Probably because... she’s afraid.”
“Afraid?”
“Afraid of knowing the truth.”
...
Before long, Da Zhe returned smoothly with Daoist Baijie and Wang Hu.
What gave Luo Qiu a slight headache was that Daoist Baijie, the client requesting this service, insisted on staying until the end—and Wang Hu also insisted on staying by his side.
Su Zijun had gone off solo, leaving Jessica as a tracking anchor.
As for Qin Chuyu, she didn’t look like she’d be leaving anyti soon either. She probably still hoped to find more clues about her master here.
Since this deal had no binding force and only ti limits, Luo Qiu realized sothing frustrating: the progress of this transaction was currently... zero.
“This is getting a little tricky.”
Looking at the suddenly expanding group, Luo Qiu furrowed his brows.
He couldn’t help but feel like he was being taken advantage of—for food and shelter.
...
...
The journey felt aimless—and the group remained mostly silent.
Aside from Luo Pianxian occasionally saying a few words, everyone else stayed quiet.
The City Lord of Fengdu, true to his na, didn’t speak at all along the way.
Long Xiruo led like a guide, frequently stopping mid-walk to stand still for a while before continuing. With each pause and restart, her expression grew more serious.
Luo Pianxian felt that Sister Dragon seed tired—her complexion was noticeably pale.
Before they knew it, the towering mountain peak, which had seed so distant, was already close. But just then, Long Xiruo stopped again.
She lowered her head and looked ahead—they were now on a small hillside.
Seeing Long Xiruo frowning in silence, unlike her previous stops, Luo Pianxian couldn’t help but ask, “Sister Dragon, what’s wrong?”
“Sothing’s not right... this place is wrong.” Long Xiruo muttered to herself, “There should be a crack here... leading straight underground.”
“A crack?” Luo Pianxian blinked and looked down. The slope below was a flat surface.
“Should be?” Unexpectedly, Fengdu’s City Lord, Xiao Shengmo, suddenly spoke. “From Lord Long’s tone, could it be that you’ve been here before? What else do you know?”
Long Xiruo instinctively looked at Xiao Shengmo. The pale-faced middle-aged man was now eyeing her coldly.
【Target Spotted】
At that mont, a sudden beam of light shot straight down from above, targeting Long Xiruo and the group.
(End of Chapter)
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