Chapter Forty-Eight: The Commission

“Human Alliance?” Yuan Feixue murmured to himself.

Shi Qi said, “What are you spacing out for? Let’s go.”

With that, Shi Qi strode into the branch office of the Human Alliance.

As soon as they entered, they saw Ouyang Qun lying on a rocking chair in the courtyard, basking in the sun.

“Hey,” Ouyang Qun, recognizing Shi Qi, sat up and muttered, “You brat, why are you back again?”

“Just some business, just some business,” Shi Qi replied with a laugh.

“Heh, you rascal,” Ouyang Qun cursed, then lay back down, ignoring Shi Qi.

Shi Qi led Yuan Feixue into the inner hall, stopping before a bronze mirror.

“Go on,” Shi Qi said to Yuan Feixue.

“Go on... go on with what?” Yuan Feixue asked, bewildered.

“Apply for a bodyguard commission, of course.” Shi Qi channeled his true energy into the bronze mirror, which immediately gleamed with golden light and displayed a list of commissions.

Still confused, Yuan Feixue asked, “How do I do that?”

Shi Qi thought for a moment, then said, “Well... just write: from Yongzhou City to such-and-such place, how far it is, how many days, and for the reward... hmm, just put one immortal jade.”

Yuan Feixue was momentarily stunned. “What, one immortal jade?”

Shi Qi smacked Yuan Feixue on the back of the head. “Just write what I tell you to. Why so many questions?”

Rubbing his head, Yuan Feixue sullenly scribbled on the O-Tai bronze mirror, thinking to himself: Who’s the employer here, anyway? What kind of bodyguard is so domineering?

Soon, Yuan Feixue finished the commission, which appeared on the mirror:

Commission: Type: Bodyguard Mission
Mission Description: Escort the employer from Yongzhou City to Jiazi Mountain, a journey of 500 li, to be completed in three days, with a reward of one immortal jade.
Mission Time: Year 5320 of the State Calendar (this year), May 18
Mission Requirements: Cultivators at least at the Golden Core stage, two persons required, current (0/2)
Note: The employer assesses that during the journey, there is a high probability of attacks by Golden Core cultivators, and a small chance of attacks by Nascent Soul cultivators. Please consider your abilities carefully before accepting, lest your life be endangered. The Human Alliance is not responsible for any incidents arising from inadequate strength.
Friendly Reminder: The reward is vastly disproportionate to the mission content; proceed with caution.

Shi Qi was amazed. Goodness, this bronze mirror is smart enough to give friendly reminders.

As soon as the bodyguard mission was posted, Shi Qi accepted it without a word.

Yuan Feixue smiled at Shi Qi. “Thank you.”

Shi Qi replied, “Let’s go,” and turned to leave, with Su Xiaomu and Yuan Feixue following closely behind.

Why did Shi Qi agree so readily to Yuan Feixue’s request, and do so without expecting anything in return?

Was it because Yuan Feixue was so beautiful that Shi Qi was tempted beyond resistance?

Of course, that was impossible.

In truth, after hearing Yuan Feixue recount her story, Shi Qi was secretly moved. Yuan Feixue’s experiences were much like his own: both had met their benefactor and master at seven or eight years old and received their careful guidance ever since.

From the age of seven until now, Yuan Feixue had only her master as family. Shi Qi was no different—ever since he had been brought to the island by Master Egret, he had spent over a decade under the old man’s tutelage. Master Egret was both teacher and friend, and the only family Shi Qi had in this world. Though Shi Qi was curious about his own demonic origins, he felt that even if he discovered his true heritage and found his birth parents, he would never feel the same sense of belonging as he did with Master Egret.

Compared to himself, Yuan Feixue was even more unfortunate: she bore the burden of vengeance for her master, cultivating since childhood under the weight of hatred. Shi Qi understood that if she could not resolve the hatred in her heart, it would become a major obstacle on her path, a hurdle she might never overcome.

Perhaps this was why Shi Qi was willing to help Yuan Feixue—using the Human Alliance as a go-between meant she wouldn’t feel indebted to him.

Of course, it must be said, Yuan Feixue really was quite beautiful.

The three left the Human Alliance and returned to the inn, planning to set out for Jiazi Mountain at dawn to seek Yuan Feixue’s master.

Naturally, along the way, they bought several more packs of sour jujubes for Su Xiaomu.

Shi Qi thought to himself: Thankfully, I’m a cultivator—one immortal jade can be exchanged for hundreds of taels of silver. If I were an ordinary man, Su Xiaomu would have eaten me into poverty by now!

That night, while Su Xiaomu slept soundly, Yuan Feixue found herself restless and unable to sleep. She quietly left her room and went to Shi Qi’s door, knocking softly.

Shi Qi, who had been meditating and refining the Thousand Resilience Shield, heard the knock and called, “Come in.”

He stopped channeling energy into the shield and put it away in his storage pouch.

Yuan Feixue pushed the door open and entered Shi Qi’s room.

Seeing it was Yuan Feixue, Shi Qi was a little surprised. He gestured for her to sit, then left the bed to sit at the round table as well.

“Visiting so late at night—what’s the matter?” Shi Qi asked.

Yuan Feixue sighed. “Oh, it’s nothing. The night is long, I can’t sleep, and I have no heart for cultivation. I just wanted someone to talk to.”

Shi Qi nodded. “Alright, then talk.”

Yuan Feixue said, “I don’t even know what to say.”

...

They fell silent, the air between them growing still.

After a while.

Shi Qi said, “Um...”

Yuan Feixue echoed, “Um...”

“You go first,” Yuan Feixue said.

Shi Qi replied, “I was just going to say, the weather’s quite nice tonight.”

Yuan Feixue responded, “Ah, yes, not a cloud in the sky. It really is lovely.”

...

After another pause.

Yuan Feixue remarked, “The weather really is nice, isn’t it?”

Shi Qi agreed, “Yeah, it’s really nice.”

Once again they chatted awkwardly, but outside the window, someone was anything but content.

Squatting just beneath Shi Qi’s window sat a tiny dwarf. Though passersby walked by outside, none noticed him.

The dwarf was currently in a state of concealment, his true energy nearly halted, rendering him invisible beneath Shi Qi’s window.

The dwarf’s name was Shi Cai. He had suffered from some mysterious illness since childhood, leaving him stunted—no taller than a three-year-old child, though he was already over thirty and still looked like a child.

Despite his size and appearance, Shi Cai was remarkably skilled. With extraordinary talent for cultivation, he joined the Tianyuan Sect, mastering both burrowing and stealth techniques. Combined with his stature and childlike looks, he was a master of infiltration and intelligence gathering.

This time, Shi Cai had secretly accepted Yuan Chengtian’s invitation from Dianxing Manor without the Tianyuan Sect leader’s knowledge. After several days of investigation, he finally spotted Shi Qi and his companions leaving the Human Alliance earlier that day, and stealthily followed them to the inn.

Although Shi Cai excelled at stealth and tracking, he was not a fighter. Even with a late-stage Golden Core cultivation, his combat ability was inferior to that of an average early-stage Golden Core cultivator. Thus, his purpose in following Shi Qi was not assassination, but simply to track his whereabouts and find a way to report back to Yuan Chengtian.

Shi Cai had been lurking outside Shi Qi’s window, hoping to overhear some valuable information. But Shi Qi had spent the whole night in cultivation, and since Shi Cai had to use a secret art to stay hidden, his energy circulation was minimal, and he couldn’t pass the time with his own cultivation. Nor did he dare to sleep, for fear of losing track of his targets.

At last, Shi Cai’s patience was rewarded when Yuan Feixue knocked on the door. He perked up, listening intently inside, afraid to miss a thing—only to find that all he could hear was the pair’s awkward small talk, which infuriated him.

Just as Shi Cai was fuming, a big yellow dog suddenly squeezed through a hole in the courtyard wall, wandering over to Shi Qi’s window.

Shi Cai, deeply engrossed in eavesdropping, suddenly felt his trouser leg grow warm. He turned to find a large yellow dog lifting its hind leg, a stream of yellow liquid flowing from beneath its body—right onto Shi Cai’s pants.

“Damn beast!” Shi Cai dared not shout, so could only curse in his heart.

“Shoo, shoo!” Shi Cai waved his hand, chasing the dog off.

The yellow dog was bewildered—there was clearly nothing there, so what mysterious force had shoved it away? Was its stream of urine somehow too powerful?

Having chased off the dog, Shi Cai glued himself back to the window, intent on hearing what was being said inside.

Within the room.

Shi Qi saw that their conversation had come to a dead end, so he took a small box from his storage pouch. As he opened it, a fragrant aroma filled the room.

“That smells wonderful,” Yuan Feixue exclaimed. “Brother Shi, what is it?”

Shi Qi replied, “It’s tea leaves. Let me tell you, I stole these from my miserly master. I bet you’ve never tasted tea as fragrant and sweet as this.”

He pinched a few leaves from the box, closed it, and tossed it back into his pouch.

Shi Qi picked up the teapot from the table and muttered, “The water in here’s gone cold.”

He walked to the window, opened it, and poured the water out.

Right onto Shi Cai’s head!

“Damn it!” Shi Cai cursed silently. “Pouring water out the window! Don’t you have any manners?”

Shi Qi emptied the teapot, then summoned a stream of water to thoroughly rinse it inside and out.

Shi Cai grumbled inwardly, but dared not move a muscle for fear of being discovered, letting the cold water spill over his head. At last, Shi Qi finished cleaning the pot and shut the window.

Shi Cai hurriedly crept over to another window.

“I’ll change spots! Let’s see you drench me again!” he muttered to himself.

Shi Qi returned to the table, put the tea leaves in the pot, and summoned a stream of water to fill it. As he poured, he said to Yuan Feixue, “This fine tea must be brewed with cold water, steeped well... um, by the way, do you know any fire spells? Even the basics will do.”

Yuan Feixue blinked, then raised her jade hand, conjuring a small flame in her palm. Shi Qi held the teapot above her hand.

As a pure water-attribute cultivator, Shi Qi was unable to use any spells except those of the water element, so he had never learned even the simplest fire conjuring. Usually, he relied on basic talismans to make fire, but now with Yuan Feixue’s free labor, he wasn’t about to let the opportunity pass.

The real flame was fierce, and before long, the water in the pot was boiling, filling the room with fragrance.

“How wonderful it smells!” Yuan Feixue exclaimed in amazement.