Chapter 369: Jiang Qing
Xu Zhi did not travel with the rest of the group; instead, she headed to the settlement a step ahead of them.
The settlement of the Lost wasn’t a place anyone could just casually enter. An entry fee was required.
Moreover, even after paying the toll, outsiders were only allowed to move within a designated perimeter and were prohibited from entering the living quarters of the Lost Ones.
As an extraordinary creature, Xiaozhen would naturally be spotted by the territory’s patrol personnel. Therefore, Xu Zhi didn’t make it hide. Instead, she had Xiaozhen perch on her shoulder, letting others mistakenly assume it was her contracted extraordinary creature.
After paying the entry fee and entering the territory, Xu Zhi carefully surveyed the area. Before it was lost, this place must have been a villa district. The buildings were relatively low, the distance between the villas was quite spacious, and it covered a vast area. Compared to a normal residential neighborhood in the outside world, significantly more buildings here had been preserved completely intact.
The trading area was designated in what used to be the sales center. The building here had likely been renovated and rebuilt, making it hard to discern its original appearance. Xu Zhi only guessed its former purpose based on its taller floors and its completely different architectural style compared to the surrounding villas.
Right outside the trading area, Xu Zhi could see a constant stream of people going in and out.
Even though this was just the outermost and weakest settlement, it still had a sizable population. Coupled with the continuous influx of Extraordinaries, the trading area was fairly bustling.
Xu Zhi pushed the door open and walked in, finding the place reasonably orderly. However, with just a casual glance around, she unexpectedly spotted a familiar face.
Jiang Qing.
As if sensing her gaze, the acquaintance happened to turn around and spot her. Instantly, her pretty little face turned pale.
Xu Zhi: ?
What was going on? It wasn’t like she had beaten her so badly it left psychological trauma, making her terrified just at the sight of her, right?
A hint of confusion flashed through Xu Zhi’s mind, and she simply decided to walk over toward Jiang Qing.
“What a coincidence. We meet again.”
Her tone was relaxed, but upon hearing this, Jiang Qing let out a strange, bitter smile. “Coincidence.”
Xu Zhi frowned. “You don’t want to see me? Why the long face?”
She had expected Jiang Qing to be polite and offer some pleasantries like, How could that be? But unexpectedly, the other girl gave a serious nod. “Yes, I don’t want to see you here.”
“…Because I beat you up in the arena?”
“No.” Jiang Qing shook her head, but she still didn’t explain the real reason.
“You’re so young…” Xu Zhi leaned forward slightly, getting a bit closer to Jiang Qing. “…Why do you talk in riddles?”
She took a gentle sniff. Aside from the scent of Jiang Qing’s hair or perfume, there was another faint, far more enticing “fragrance” coming from somewhere deeper within.
Calling it a fragrance might not be entirely accurate. Strictly speaking, it was a scent that evoked a sense of “ravenousness” and “craving” in her.
How bizarre. Wasn’t this a sensation that only the [Grail] could invoke?
As Xu Zhi leaned in, Jiang Qing’s face visibly paled a degree further. A hint of panic surfaced in her golden irises, and her body slightly stiffened, as if a fierce beast was approaching her.
After confirming that the sensation she felt back in the arena wasn’t a misconception, Xu Zhi leaned back, only to see this reaction. She found it even more peculiar.
Jiang Qing wasn’t some sheltered flower grown in a greenhouse. How could she become so trembling and fearful just from taking a beating in the arena?
She definitely knew something, but she had no intention of saying it.
Pondering over this, Xu Zhi made a decision in her heart. With a casual tone, she said to Jiang Qing, “Don’t be so scared. I’m not planning on doing anything to you for now.”
As her words fell, she noticed Jiang Qing’s expression waver.
As expected, she truly was afraid of her.
But Xu Zhi didn’t say anything more. Instead, she turned and walked toward the trading area.
Watching her retreating figure, Jiang Qing let out a quiet sigh of relief behind her.
If possible, she really didn’t want to see Xu Zhi in the Lost Lands; she even wanted to turn back immediately. But… she still had a mission to complete and couldn’t just leave. Moreover, she was of the [Lantern] aspect. If she fled to escape right now, she would likely fail any future trials within the Mansus.
Walking away, Xu Zhi extended a finger to gently stroke Xiaozhen’s feathers. Immediately, as if receiving a signal, the gyrfalcon locked its eagle eyes deeply onto Jiang Qing, etching her appearance into its mind.
Afterwards, Xu Zhi traded all the useless cores Xiaozhen had brought back for those of three aspects: [Moth], [Lantern], and [Winter].
Because of the large volume she exchanged, she noticed she had drawn quite a bit of attention. But this was the Lost Lands. Xu Zhi didn’t care about attracting attention, nor did she care if anyone tried to play dirty.
Who knows, she might even earn an unexpected windfall from it.
After exchanging the cores and stepping out of the trading area, Xiaozhen suddenly took to the sky. Xu Zhi waited for a moment before Xiaozhen flew back, rubbing against her affectionately as it landed on her shoulder.
“Is that so? She left.”
“Let’s go. We’ll follow and take a look.”
Upon leaving the settlement, Xu Zhi distinctly sensed that someone was following her—and it was more than one person.
Wealth stirs the hearts of men. Besides, the cores she had brought out to trade were no small fortune.
Most Extraordinaries came to the Lost Lands not only to pursue greater strength but also to acquire more resources. Right now, Xu Zhi was all alone. Even if they guessed she possessed some skill, there would still be desperados eager to try their luck.
Jiang Qing’s aura didn’t feel much different from when they were in the league tournament, yet she was heading deeper into the Lost Lands. The area further ahead was not a domain that the Long-lived could step into. Furthermore, unless one had reached the Named rank, it would be extremely difficult to resist the temptations of the Lost Lands.
Why was she still pressing forward?
Was she looking for something?
As a few possibilities flashed through her mind, Xu Zhi unhurriedly walked in the direction Xiaozhen indicated.
She was giving the people tailing her a chance.
As the settlement gradually vanished from sight and they left the patrol range of the Lost Ones, the pursuers seemingly felt that making a move now wasn’t secure enough. They needed to wait until Xu Zhi relaxed her guard a bit more.
But Xu Zhi was unwilling to wait any longer. She glanced back without any hesitation, not bothering to conceal the fact that she knew she was being followed. Under the effect of her [Eye of Secrets], the figures of the three people behind her had nowhere to hide.
The moment the pursuers realized what Xu Zhi’s action meant, they immediately intended to reveal themselves and strike. However, no matter how fast they were, they couldn’t be faster than Xiaozhen, and certainly not faster than Xu Zhi’s [Moth].
Almost the exact instant Xu Zhi looked at them, the gyrfalcon’s razor-sharp talons had already descended upon one of their heads. Following closely behind was a moth that appeared to be flying very slowly, its wings flapping at a leisurely pace.
Even though it was a moment of life-and-death crisis, the remaining two actually stalled the moment they saw the moth. It was as if their thoughts were disrupted in that split second, leaving only the sight of this gracefully fluttering gray moth before their eyes.
The next second, they could see nothing at all.
“Third-tier Long-lived, and you dare to come out and rob people with just this?”
Xiaozhen shook the blood clean from its talons, snatched the silver ring of the Named among them, and brought it back to Xu Zhi.
This was evidently a bracelet inscribed with spatial circuits, and inside it lay the entire net worth of all three individuals.
