Su Bai smiled.
Given Lin Xiaoyue's careless nature, it was hardly surprising that she had left such a piece of undergarment forgotten inside her Storage Bag.
This woman was a complete cultivation maniac; apart from the sword dao, she cared about absolutely nothing else.
And it was precisely because she was so obsessed with the sword dao that she was... remarkably easy to gull.
Su Bai was a man of action who never dawdled.
He immediately descended the mountain, intending to make a trip to the antique market.
Lin Xiaoyue was no fool; trying to pull the wool over her eyes would take some genuine effort.
The antique market featured artisans who specialized in aging paper, capable of making fake antiques look almost indistinguishable from the real thing.
"That's a dead giveaway!"
"With no one to aid my Qingyun ambitions, I tread through the snow to the mountain peak!"
"This piece is fake at first glance; it needs time to age."
"This double-headed dildo looks to be in fine condition—must be an artifact from three thousand years ago."
The people dabbling in antiques here were an odd lot, spouting phrases Su Bai could barely make head or tail of.
As for things like double-headed dildos and silver penile rings, Su Bai declared that, as a pure seventy-year-old geezer, he had no earthly idea what such things were.
"I need some aged paper."
Though items of this sort were rarely purchased, they weren't entirely unheard of.
Many people who manufactured counterfeit antiques—especially those dealing in ancient calligraphy and paintings—had a use for this kind of aged paper.
The lame artisan running the small workshop cast a cold glance at Su Bai, then pulled a stack of paper from the cabinet and tossed it down in front of him.
"Five taels of silver, non-negotiable!"
Having descended the mountain dressed in worn, shabby clothes and looking every bit of his seventy or eighty years, Su Bai did not attract much attention.
Although the seller's attitude left much to be desired, Su Bai was old enough to have cultivated a calm and restrained temperament, sparing him the hotheaded impulses of a fiery youth.
Su Bai fished out five taels of silver and tossed them over, then produced another two taels and placed them on the table.
The lame artisan's eyes suddenly lit up.
"A tip for you!"
Su Bai added a warning, "Keep your mouth shut."
"Naturally! I've always been tight-lipped!"
At the sight of the two-tael tip, the lame artisan instantly shed his previous demeanor, his face breaking into a sycophantic smile as he nodded and bowed.
Such was the power of money!
Ever since Su Bai had acquired the Storage Bag given to him by Lin Xiaoyue, he was now quite a well-to-do man.
Casually tossing out a two-tael tip was no big deal to him.
"Respected elder, I also have some special writing brushes and ink to give you as a bonus. Write with my ink, and whatever you produce will naturally carry the traces of aging!"
Seeing how generous Su Bai was being, the lame artisan naturally wanted to secure a repeat customer, and thus offered the items quite generously as a freebie.
Su Bai took the brush and ink and walked out.
He headed straight for an inn, planning to fabricate a few fake sword manuals there.
"Old master, would you care for some company? We have some newly arrived exotic women here, quite pretty little things."
"No need."
Su Bai declined the inn waiter's kind offer.
Though he had now mastered the Vermilion Bird Subduing Demon Sword, his physical body had yet to be strengthened, leaving him with the frail and aged frame of a septuagenarian or octogenarian.
If he actually had a prostitute brought to him, there was no telling who would be wearing out whom.
His old bones simply couldn't take that kind of tossing about.
Su Bai had already comprehended the sword intent of the Vermilion Bird Subduing Demon Sword, and since the Fire Luan Swordsmanship was derived from it, he could naturally deduce a great many sword moves on his own.
He hadn't prepared an excessive amount—just three illustrated diagrams to fool Lin Xiaoyue with.
A single diagram had earned him so many good things; if he produced three, Su Bai was bound to make a fortune.
By this time, it was already dark. Su Bai had no intention of returning to the Qingyun Sect right away; since the night was already deep, he decided to stay at the inn for the night and set off at daybreak.He sat cross-legged on the bed, meditating and practicing the Qingyun Jue, the cultivation technique of the Qingyun Sect.
He had been practicing this technique for several decades, but due to his mediocre talent, he had never truly mastered the basics. However, after practicing for so many years, it had simply become a habit.
When midnight arrived, a sudden knocking sound came from outside the room.
"Young master, the night is long and deep. Might you open the door for a chat?"
The voice speaking from outside was that of a sweet, delicate young woman. Judging by her voice, she did not seem very old, yet her tone was so coquettish and alluring that it made one's entire body tingle.
"There is no young master here, only an old man."
Su Bai opened his eyes and replied coldly.
"An old man will do just as well... On such a lonely night, don't you want to find someone to confide in?"
The person outside seemed remarkably dedicated to her profession.
She was even willing to take on an old man.
Such dedication aroused Su Bai's curiosity. Could this woman be the exotic woman the inn waiter had mentioned during the day?
"The door is unlocked. Come in."
Su Bai permitted the visitor to enter.
The young woman pushed the door open and stepped into the room. Before Su Bai could clearly make out her face in the darkness, a strange fragrance washed over him, causing his mind to waver.
Under the moonlight, the young woman wore no makeup, yet her face was refined and elegant—she could truly be described as a peerless beauty.
Yet, despite such a pure and innocent face, her eyes were immensely captivating and soul-stirring.
Those jet-black eyes seemed to possess an infinite allure, capable of devouring a person's very soul.
It was just that her face was perhaps a bit too pale, carrying a somewhat sickly hue as if she had suffered severe injuries.
Yet this sickly pallor only added a touch of pitiful, heart-rending vulnerability to her charm.
Looking further down, she had a full bosom, a slender waist, and straight, well-proportioned, sturdy legs.
Her figure was quite exceptional.
Even an old-timer like Su Bai could not help but praise her inwardly.
"Why have you come here?"
Su Bai asked, feigning ignorance.
"This humble concubine is named Ziyun, a native of the Western Regions. I came here with my parents to do business, but after they fell ill and passed away, I was left all alone with no one to rely on. I earnestly beg the elder to take me in..."
Her eyes shifted and rippled, seeming as though they could speak.
Even a person of such resolute willpower as Su Bai could not help but feel a surge of pity.
"Since that is the case, come closer, and I will get you some silver."
Su Bai smiled faintly, revealing what he believed to be a kindly smile.
However, with his wrinkled face, the smile looked rather wretched.
The woman named Ziyun nodded, swaying her waist as she walked toward Su Bai.
She kept her head down, looking as though she were very shy, yet right then, a profound look of disgust flashed deep within her eyes, and the sneer lingering at the corners of her lips seemed to mock something.
As she drew closer, she unassumingly opened a small gourd in her hand. The gourd was less than the size of a palm, yet it gleamed with a jade-green luster, clearly no ordinary item.
The moment she closed in, a burst of black smoke suddenly spewed from the gourd, striking straight toward Su Bai's face.
Right at that instant!
Su Bai suddenly drew his long sword from his Storage Bag and slashed directly at the young woman!
The young woman attempted to withdraw, but she never expected Su Bai's swordsmanship to be exceptionally fast, cleaving straight down from the top of her head.
Weren't we supposed to be talking about money?
Why did he pull out a weapon instead?
And such a long one at that!
"Hmph, you little vixen, did you really think this old man couldn't see right through you!"
"I could tell at a single glance that you aren't human!"