Mu Chenyuan finally sat down at the table shared by Jiang Qiao and Li Wentian. She couldn't help but marvel at the teapot's tracking ability; it truly was top-tier.
Back at the auction house, she had been so terrified of losing the trail of the bidder in seat number thirty-two that she had chased him out, demanding they meet again at the next auction in seven days. Later, she managed to borrow a peculiar teapot from someone. Anyone whose spiritual energy was drawn into the teapot would be marked, allowing their subsequent movements to be traced. However, if the bidder in seat thirty-two never touched the Spirit Stone carousel, the trail would go cold.
By mapping out the trajectory of all the spiritual energy she had tracked, Mu Chenyuan found a cluster that had lingered at the auction house’s seat thirty-two for a significant amount of time. She had indeed found the path taken by the bidder in seat thirty-two. Further deduction revealed that the bidder and she were both disciples of the Canglan Sect, and that both had exited the Black Market via the passage in the sect's water pool. Unfortunately, the tracking spell had a limited duration; once it expired, the target's spiritual signature would vanish. Before long, the energy belonging to seat thirty-two faded, and the tracker could no longer display a path.
Waking up the next morning feeling discouraged, Mu Chenyuan decided to drown her sorrows in food. Yet, as she ate, she felt a sudden, inexplicable impulse to check the tracking cursor. With no real expectations, she looked—and found the cursor emitting a faint shimmer, indicating that the bidder in seat thirty-two was currently in the cafeteria!
...
Although Li Wentian was a bit surprised, his desire to strike up a conversation never wavered. "Hey, Junior Sister, having a bun too? Today's are shiitake and vegetable, they're not bad, though I prefer the meat buns from the day before yesterday."
"..." The junior sister chewed, chewed, chewed, and chewed, but offered no response.
Jiang Qiao picked up his tray and stood up. "Well, that’s that. Senior Brother Li, I’m heading off."
"You calling me 'Senior Brother' so suddenly—I'm not really used to it, Junior Brother." Li Wentian's face crinkled like a piece of wet rice paper as he waved at Jiang Qiao. "See you around!"
Suddenly, the junior sister swallowed her food with extreme speed and said to Jiang Qiao, "Please, stay a moment."
Jiang Qiao turned around to find a recruitment flyer thrust in front of him. "The conditions for our Zhenbao Society are written here. We very much look forward to your joining us."
Zhenbao Society? Did such a club-like organization really exist within the sect?
As Jiang Qiao reached out to take the flyer, the junior sister let go. A strange gust of wind caught the small piece of paper, blowing it half a meter away, and both of them bent down to retrieve it. As Jiang Qiao reached out, his knuckles inadvertently brushed against the junior sister's. Perhaps due to the dryness of the air, a distinct "crackling" sound of static electricity flared between them.
Almost at the exact moment of contact, the system suddenly stirred:
【System Prompt: Luck +0.1】
? Luck? If not for the system prompt, he would have nearly forgotten that he had also gained Luck back at the Black Market.
He immediately asked the system in his mind.
【System, what does Luck mean? Is it useful?】
【System: The host's current Luck is 0.2. Accumulating 100 points will allow you to avoid being killed by the female lead once.】
To think such a good thing existed. So, the person he had bumped into at the Black Market must have been Mu Chenyuan. If the timing of the system prompt just now was any indication, touching the junior sister increased his Luck. Wouldn't that mean if he just kept at it—farming the points until he reached 100—he could survive until the final plot point when the Demon Sect emerged from seclusion?
In the time it took for Jiang Qiao to freeze in his shock, Mu Chenyuan had already picked up the recruitment flyer. "You can take a look. Are you interested?"
"Ah, yes."
Jiang Qiao finally took the flyer, his hand itching to find a way to touch Mu Chenyuan again, though he needed to devise a more plausible physical interaction. He reached out and lightly tapped the junior sister’s shoulder.
【System Prompt: Today’s Luck absorption (0.1/0.1) has reached its limit. You may continue tomorrow. The limit for Luck absorption can be increased at a later stage.】
So, it was a daily check-in mechanism.
"What is it? Is there another question?" Mu Chenyuan looked at Jiang Qiao, her face expressionless, the silk ribbon tangled in her hair swaying gently.
"Are there any special benefits to joining the Zhenbao Society? It’s not clearly written on this flyer."
Jiang Qiao quickly scanned the contents. The so-called Zhenbao Society was dedicated to gathering treasures from around the world, evaluating artifacts and masterworks, and holding monthly gatherings where members could display the treasures they had recently acquired to their fellow members.
"There are benefits. There’s a gathering tonight on the painted boat. If you’re free, you can come and take a look." Mu Chenyuan smiled, then leaned in close to Jiang Qiao and threatened in a low voice: "You went to the Black Market before. I still have the handprint you left when you bought those pills. You wouldn't want the Sect Master to know you violated sect rules to enter that forbidden place, would you?"
Jiang Qiao’s heart tightened. Only he and Li Wentian knew about his trip to the Black Market to buy pills; how did Mu Chenyuan find out? It didn't look like Li Wentian was close to her, so the chances of him selling him out seemed slim. It appeared this supposed "background character" was not as simple as she seemed.
"Junior Sister is joking. Of course that wasn't me; how would I have the skill for something like that?" Whether she believed him or not was one thing; what he said was another. However, if he were to attend the Zhenbao Society gathering, he didn't have anything in his possession that could be called a "treasure."
Mu Chenyuan then stepped back, widening the distance between them, and offered a polite smile: "Senior Brother, you will definitely come to the painted boat tonight, won't you?"
Without waiting for Jiang Qiao’s reply, she turned and left.
Since she had said as much, how could he not go? Going to the Black Market was forbidden in the sect; the more people who knew, the worse it would be for him. Besides, this was an opportunity to get closer to Mu Chenyuan. The Luck mechanic was there, and while it was hard to collect, it could save his life. To get closer to Mu Chenyuan later on, it would be best to get to know her and build a good relationship.
"Senior Brother Li, did you tell anyone else about where we went yesterday?"
"Why would I tell anyone? Do I want to be locked in the Confinement Tower, or do I want to be expelled from the sect? If you ask me, you’re the lucky one, kid. Mu Chenyuan doesn't even know me well, yet she talked to you first. Could it be you really have a way with women? First there was Mu Qinggan, and now Mu Chenyuan..."
Hearing this, Jiang Qiao let down his guard a little, though he still felt he should remain cautious. Although he could pick up the pills from the Black Market tomorrow and soon resolve the issue of Mu Qinggan’s affinity, the effects of their symbiosis pact had already worn off. In a way, Li Wentian was no longer on the same path as him.
"If I had such good fortune with the ladies, I’d wake up laughing in my dreams."
"You're mocking me? You actually consider the former to be good fortune?"
"I’m certainly not mocking you, but since you don't think the former was good fortune, then you’re admitting the latter is?"
Li Wentian lamented that he didn't have any melon seeds on hand. Jiang Qiao couldn't be bothered to explain himself to Li Wentian, so he waved his hand and slowly walked out of the cafeteria.
Seeing Jiang Qiao leave, Li Wentian looked through the cafeteria window at the lush, green, full-bodied tangerines hanging on the trees outside, and let out a soft sigh.