Although the inner area had fewer people than the outer section, the items sold at the stalls were clearly much better than those in the outer market.
Jiang Qing continued searching stall by stall. Just as she was getting into the swing of things, a clear, cheerful laugh suddenly came from ahead.
"Oh, isn't this Miss Jiang? Ha, I never expected to run into you here. What a coincidence!"
Frowning slightly, Jiang Qing looked toward the source of the sound. Amidst the crowd, a gorgeously dressed young man was walking over, holding a folding fan and striking a flamboyant pose.
The young man was around seventeen or eighteen, quite handsome, though his complexion was somewhat pale. A pair of eyes stared intently and passionately at the graceful young maiden not far away, brimming with a sense of absolute determination.
Gazing at the beaming and handsome young man, Jiang Qing furrowed her delicate brows slightly. "It's him?"
According to the original owner's memories, Jiang Qing knew the newcomer was Li Rui, the young master of the Li Family.
Both the Li Family and the Jiang Family were immortal-cultivating families in Xiaguang City, and their strengths were on par with each other.
In the past, this fellow frequently harassed the original owner. To avoid him, the original owner had been too terrified to even step onto the street. She hadn't expected to run into him upon coming out today.
Jiang Qing frowned slightly, ignored his shouting, and turned to leave.
"Miss Jiang?"
Seeing Jiang Qing turn around, a look of panic flashed across Li Rui's pale face. He immediately quickened his pace and finally stepped forward to block her path.
Intercepted by him, Jiang Qing had no choice but to stop. Her long, narrow phoenix eyes narrowed slightly as she gazed at him coldly.
"Move!" Jiang Qing said coldly.
With his pale complexion and unsteady gait, this person looked at first glance like a dissolute playboy who spent all his time mingling with women. If she hadn't lacked the strength to beat him, she would have slapped him across the face long ago.
Her current body was only thirteen years old and not even of age yet. She wondered if these ancients had something wrong with their heads.
"Miss Jiang..." Pinioned by the maiden's autumn-water-bright eyes, the young man, who had spent years wandering among beauties, found his breathing growing somewhat ragged. His usual glib tongue seemed to have lost its function at this moment.
Disgusted to the point of nausea, Jiang Qing glanced up at the top of his head. Sure enough, Li Rui's system panel quickly appeared.
Name: Li Rui (cannon fodder destined to ascend all the way)
Cultivation: Qi Condensation 5th Layer
Destiny Grid: Mortal Demeanor (Gray), Die a Violent Death (Gray)
Life Script: Due to pursuing the male lead, he is eventually killed by the male lead in a counterattack.
Recent Turn of Events: Today, because of flirting with you, he will happen to run into the male lead, causing a conflict between both sides. As a result, he will harbor a grudge against the male lead, thereby planting the seeds of disaster.
After seeing the other's panel, Jiang Qing was startled.
Good grief, the male lead is in this vicinity?
Jiang Qing looked all around—front, back, left, and right—but didn't see anyone.
Never mind, running away is the best policy. If she didn't run, a disaster scene was about to happen right here.
She certainly didn't want to become the fuse for the conflict between Li Rui and the male lead.
"What is Miss Jiang looking at?" Seeing the other person turning her head this and that way as if searching for someone, Li Rui asked.
"If you don't want to die, get out of the way right now." Seeing this guy still blocking her, Jiang Qing frowned and scolded.
"Ha, Miss Jiang has quite a temper. I wonder where I've offended you? Please enlighten me." Completely unaware that danger was descending, Li Rui continued to block Jiang Qing and chattered endlessly!
At that moment, out of the corner of her eye, Jiang Qing spotted Qin Lingtian's figure actually walking in this direction. Her anxiety grew even more intense.
Seeing this guy still blocking her, Jiang Qing's temper flared instantly. Dammit, can't you understand human speech or what?
"Move! If you want to die, don't drag me down with you." With that, regardless of Li Rui's expression, Jiang Qing kicked out hard, spun around, and bolted.
That speed looked as though a dog were nipping at her heels.
Jiang Qing's kick sent Li Rui stumbling back several steps before he managed to regain his footing.
"Sigh... Miss Jiang..."
Li Rui patted the dust off his clothes while still making sure to search for Jiang Qing's departing figure.
Over in a certain corner, Qin Lingtian, who was heading in this direction, paused in his tracks. He glanced in the direction Jiang Qing had fled, and finally dropped his gaze onto Li Rui.
Giving Li Rui a bone-chilling look, Qin Lingtian turned and walked away.
Totally unaware that he had just taken a stroll through the gates of Hell, Li Rui saw that Jiang Qing had long since vanished and swaggered back to browsing the market.
Meanwhile, Jiang Qing, who had successfully averted a disaster scene, patted her chest with lingering fear.
She wasn't afraid of the male lead; rather, she was afraid that after the male lead killed Li Rui, the Li Family would pin the blame on her. If that happened, the trouble would be enormous.
She was not the male lead and lacked his heaven-defying fortune, which allowed him to turn every danger into safety.
"Fortunately, I have a cheat that lets me see other people's fate trajectories in advance. While seizing opportunities, I can also steer clear of danger for myself."
Confirming that Qin Lingtian had completely left, Jiang Qing emerged from the corner. The black iron piece wasn't in her hands yet; she still had to look for it.
This time she didn't go anywhere else, walking directly to the spot where Qin Lingtian had lingered earlier.
She wasn't afraid that the item would be taken by someone else beforehand, because the system showed that it would take several more days before Qin Lingtian acquired it.
Sure enough, she found the item she was looking for at an old man's stall. She wasn't sure if it was the right one, but the appearance matched closely.
Never mind, buy it first and figure it out later.
Picking up the piece of black iron, Jiang Qing smiled and said, "Old mister, I think this thing is quite interesting. How much for it?"
The old man glanced sideways at the black iron piece in Jiang Qing's hand and hesitated for a moment before saying, "If you want it, just give me two low-grade spirit stones."
It was a useless item anyway, better than throwing it away.
Actually, the old man had obtained this black iron piece by chance, and after studying it for a long time without discovering anything special, he had brought it out to sell.
Seeing the old man agree, Jiang Qing secretly breathed a sigh of relief and then readily handed over the spirit stones.
Once she got the item, Jiang Qing went to a shop specializing in medicinal pills and bought a few bottles of Rejuvenation Pills.
Those were quite effective for treating injuries, so keeping some on hand was a good precaution.
In addition, she bought some self-defense talismans. Her current cultivation was too low, and she had no means of fighting; talismans suited her very well.
There were Fireball Talismans, Vajra Talismans, and Lightning Spirit Talismans—all relatively high-power talismans, five of each. She didn't know much about talismans, so these were recommended to her by the shop assistant.
Rejuvenation Pills and talismans were quite expensive, costing her several hundred low-grade spirit stones. If she hadn't obtained that storage bag from the back mountain of the Jiang Family, she probably couldn't have afforded such spending.
Finally, Jiang Qing bought a few large wooden barrels, some jade boxes, and various other sundries at the market.
The reason she wanted to buy wooden barrels was to prepare for the opportunity located in the Black Wind Forest outside the city.
She hadn't forgotten that Qin Lingtian's last unclaimed opportunity was a pool of century-old spiritual milk situated halfway up a gourd-shaped peak in the Black Wind Forest outside the city.
There were still about ten days left. Her cultivation was currently too low, and there were ferocious beasts outside the city. No rush; she needed to prepare properly first.
With most of her purchases completed, she didn't linger in the market and instead set off to leave.
She didn't return to her original inn, opting for a different one instead. She certainly didn't want someone kicking her door open again while she was in the middle of a good cultivation session.