“Alright,”
Li Hao, during the exchange of glances, felt as if he was being seen through, stirring a strange feeling in his heart. He withdrew his gaze and nodded.
Previously in Liangzhou, he had encountered this old tea vendor, who claimed that business was good in Liangzhou. Li Hao hadn’t uncovered anything, so he let it be.
Now, encountering him again in Qingzhou, Li Hao, even if numb, sensed that something was amiss. However, what astonished him was that although he wasn’t earnestly probing, when he tried to discreetly sense the man, he couldn’t detect any aura at all.
The same was true for the young girl.
Compared to the tea vendor, the girl’s attire was obviously much more casual. Her outfit, though not extravagant, was by no means shabby, and the color coordination and demeanor suggested that even if she wore rough hemp clothes, she would still stand out like a snow lotus in the mortal world, refreshing and extraordinary, easily attracting attention in a crowd.
She definitely was not the daughter of a country tenant farmer. After all, with wind and sun exposure, how could one’s skin remain so fair and tender?
“Old gentleman, this tea is crisp and refreshing; it’s quite good.”
Li Hao commented as he sipped his tea.
The tea vendor chuckled lightly: “This is clean spring water, naturally fragrant.”
The word “clean” in his statement seemed to carry a slightly emphasized tone.
Li Hao’s eyes flickered subtly; the old man had neither the aura of demons nor a murderous vibe. Although strange, he seemed not to be a villain.
Let it be… He was too lazy to delve deeper. In wandering the world, not everything needed to be scrutinized thoroughly.
As the tea vendor went back to his stall to knead dough for steamed buns, the young girl dressed in aquamarine clothes, with a confident yet lively stride, came over and sat down at Li Hao’s table.
Wearing a natural and comfortable smile, she said, “Sir, Qingzhou City recently had a gathering of monsters. Weren’t you scared?”
“If you all aren’t scared, why should I be?” Li Hao glanced at her and continued to taste his tea.
“We are scared too, but now that the monsters have been dealt with, we dare to set up our stall,” the girl laughed.
“The monsters have just been cleared out, and you dare to set up a stall; that’s quite bold.”
“Grandfather always said, ‘Fortune is found in danger. In business, you must compete with heaven, earth, and people. The timid can never succeed.'”
“That’s rather high-strung, isn’t it?”
“Of course.”
The girl lifted her delicate finger, pointing upwards: “You have to observe the weather; coming out in wind and rain means losses. You also have to watch people. Even with a small business, as long as there’s profit, there will be competition, right?”
“That’s true.”
Li Hao finished a cup of tea and nodded in agreement.
Yet what kind of heaven, people, and profit she referred to was debatable.
After some idle chat, the unfamiliarity at the tea table seemed to dissipate quite a bit. The girl asked with a smile:
“My name is Ying Xiaoxiao, ‘Ying’ as in ‘destined by fate,’ and ‘Xiaoxiao’ as in ‘carefree.’ How may I address you?”
“You may call me Haotian.”
Li Hao looked intently at her.
That look was to gauge her reaction.
If it were anyone normal, a random alias would suffice.
Upon hearing Li Hao’s name, the girl didn’t react much but simply continued: “And what’s your last name?”
“I have no last name.” Find more chapters on empire
“How can someone have no last name?” Ying Xiaoxiao laughed.
Seeing her natural expression and calm eyes, Li Hao smiled slightly and said:
“Even without a last name, I can still live this life well.”
If he really had to claim a surname, it could be Li, but that was his surname from a past life. Since he had died and come to this place, it was also a farewell to his past life.
Born in this world, he would use the name of this world.
Hearing Li Hao’s words, Ying Xiaoxiao slightly froze, and the smile on her face slowly faded.
“Here comes the dumplings, be careful, they’re hot.”
At that moment, the tea stand owner came over with the steamer, billowing with hot steam.
“You try and see, my grandfather’s cooking skills are very good.”
Ying Xiaoxiao immediately said, her bright eyes filled with anticipation, as if waiting for Li Hao’s review after tasting.
Li Hao smiled, “I’ve already experienced it.”
He picked up the chopsticks from the holder, aligned them on the table, and then started eating, “The taste hasn’t changed, it’s good.”
“As long as the guest likes it.”
The tea stand elder laughed.
Li Hao nodded and ate the dumplings while drinking tea.
He ordered a portion for the Candle Flame God and had the elder pack another portion to go, so he could let Xiyan try it later.
After he had eaten and drunk his fill, he looked at the girl who had been sitting across the table and sizing him up. Getting up and scattering a couple of silver coins, he said, “Perhaps we shall meet again if fate wills it, I hope I can still taste such delicious dumplings.”
The tea stand owner accepted the silver, casually wiped the table, and smiled, “If the guest visits often, you can have them anytime.”
Li Hao smiled, waved goodbye, and then headed along the main road.
Meanwhile, the other few people at the tea stand had also nearly finished eating and left on horseback, heading towards Qingzhou City.
The tea stand was now left with only the grandfather and granddaughter. The tea stand elder, watching the direction of Li Hao’s departure, sighed softly,
“This is a young hero, who would have thought that even in this place where divine power is sparse, such a monster could emerge…”
“Otherwise, how could he have received the favor of the Saint Realm, he does have a Saint’s mark on him.”
Ying Xiaoxiao gazed thoughtfully, murmuring softly.
The tea stand elder was startled, then took another look, soon shaking his head with a sigh,
“I don’t know what the situation is, this boy resembles a child I once knew. That child was also a monster, but seemed to be slightly less so than him, and their names appeared to be the same. What’s odd is that the aura and appearance have completely changed.”
“Oh?”
Ying Xiaoxiao said with interest, “Are you talking about the one from Heavenly Gate Pass?”
“That’s right.”
“We went there to see, but the person wasn’t there, only an incarnation, which seems to have dissipated as well.”
Ying Xiaoxiao’s eyes flickered, saying, “Since their names are the same and their ages similar, do you think it might be some kind of transformation like a rebirth, but even more thorough than rebirth, leading to the change in aura?”
The tea stand elder thought for a moment, then said, “That’s indeed possible, but such a feat is difficult to accomplish, unless someone from the Saint Realm intervenes. On one’s own… I can’t think of any Cultivation Technique that would do that, even if one’s Divine Soul were to take over another body, the Divine Soul would still carry the original aura.”
Hearing him say this, Ying Xiaoxiao immediately decided, “Then let’s go see what the situation is.”
The tea stand elder was stunned and hastily said, “Miss, it’s not advisable. He already sensed something was not right by your being here.”
“But he didn’t take action, which suggests he’s not the kind to meddle in others’ affairs.”
Ying Xiaoxiao said with a smile on her face, “Besides, even if he does, it doesn’t matter, we are not afraid of him; we are merely curious. We have already collected the resentment from the killings in Qingzhou City, it’s time for us to leave.”
The tea stand elder gave a wry smile, knowing that the young lady was whimsical and hard to persuade. He had no choice but to say,
“Although he recognized that we are out of the ordinary, we still need to maintain good appearances, we cannot make it difficult for him.”
“That works as well, especially since there have been claims of people impersonating our name in the Great Wilderness Heaven, slaughtering the scions of the Ancient Holy Clan. So let us also impersonate the Ancient Holy Clan for a bit of fun.”
Ying Xiaoxiao said with a laugh, “That makes sense, doesn’t it?”
Sensible… The tea stand elder gave a bitter smile and glanced at her. Which scion of the Ancient Holy Clan could compare to you, miss?
At that moment, when there was no one around, the tea stand elder made a sweeping motion with his hand and stowed the tea stand into his sleeve. The elder and the young girl too disappeared from this main road.