Chapter 365 - A Carpet of Wares and an Ordinary Day

Chapter 365: Chapter 365 - A Carpet of Wares and an Ordinary Day

Su Bai looked over the seller’s carpet once more.

Nothing there attracted him as strongly as the cursed jade slip had. Still, several jars contained tea leaves whose condition made them unsuitable for a respectable tea shop.

He had noticed impurities among them during his earlier examination. With the Soul-Steeping Teacup now in his possession, they were worth taking back for a closer look.

The seller watched him with renewed anxiety.

Su Bai smiled beneath his mask.

"Pack everything up. I will buy the lot."

For a moment, the man seemed unable to understand him. His gaze dropped to the carpet, then returned to Su Bai.

"Everything?"

Su Bai nodded.

"Consider it thanks for the information."

The seller hurried to close the jars and secure the boxes. He wrapped the smaller artifacts carefully before gathering the carpet around them. His movements became increasingly energetic as he realized that the young man was waiting for him to finish.

Su Bai accepted the bundle and placed it inside his storage ring. Three High-Grade Spirit Stones appeared in his hand a moment later.

The seller reached for them, then stopped.

"Fellow Daoist, this is far too much."

His entire display might have fetched a few Mid-Grade Spirit Stones on a good day. He had been prepared to accept less if it meant bringing the encounter to a peaceful conclusion.

The stones before him were enough to make him question whether he had misunderstood the transaction again.

Su Bai placed them in his hands.

"The information was useful."

The man’s knees bent before Su Bai caught his arm.

"There is no need for that."

The seller straightened awkwardly and bowed instead. He held the stones with both hands, apparently unwilling to put them away until he had finished expressing his gratitude.

"If you travel near Radiant Sky Sect again, you can still trade there," Su Bai said. "There should be more visiting cultivators in the near future. You may find good business."

"I will remember it."

The man bowed again. This time, the movement carried considerably more enthusiasm than fear.

Su Bai released his arm and turned toward the street. Ning Shuang followed, although she glanced back at the empty space where the carpet had been.

"Generous as always, Brother Su."

"You only noticed now?"

She looked at him, then laughed softly.

Her own storage ring already held enough evidence to make the answer unnecessary.

Su Bai soon continued toward the tea stalls they had passed earlier.

He was already inside a city famous for tea, and he had finally acquired a treasure that made drinking it pleasant.

Leaving without buying some would be wasteful.

At the first shop, he asked to examine several varieties. The owner brought out small samples and explained their differences while Ning Shuang listened beside him.

Su Bai checked the leaves, asked a few questions about their preparation, and bought enough that the owner had to call an assistant to help pack them.

Some would go to Lu Canghai.

His master had spent enough time worrying about him recently to deserve something that could be enjoyed without first asking whether it might explode.

The rest would give Su Bai material for examining the teacup’s effects.

Different leaves and different steeping times might produce useful differences, and he preferred to have a sufficient supply before beginning.

Ning Shuang accepted a portion after he asked which variety she liked.

"You are buying enough to last a long time," she said while storing the package.

"That is the intention."

He had Spirit Stones sitting in storage with very little purpose beyond waiting for him to need them. Finding something he actually wanted to purchase felt surprisingly satisfying.

The next shop proved equally accommodating.

By the time they entered another section of the market, someone had apparently sent word ahead.

A merchant came forward with several containers already arranged for inspection and greeted the masked young man with an enthusiasm Su Bai found suspiciously familiar.

He looked at Ning Shuang.

She covered a smile with her sleeve.

"News travels quickly here."

"Apparently."

Su Bai examined the prepared selection anyway.

He soon learned that buying large quantities did not mean every shop would empty its shelves.

Several merchants politely explained how much they could spare while retaining enough for their regular customers. He accepted those limits without bargaining.

Jadeleaf City consumed its own tea as eagerly as it sold it, and the people arriving after him would expect to find something left.

Nevertheless, his purchases continued to attract attention.

By the time one merchant asked whether he would be visiting the neighboring street as well, Su Bai began to suspect that his route was becoming easier to follow than he had intended.

His hood and mask concealed his face reasonably well. They did little to conceal someone repeatedly asking for more leaves than a shopkeeper could comfortably carry.

Ning Shuang seemed to enjoy the entire process.

She knew which merchants offered fair prices and which displays were arranged mainly to impress newcomers.

Su Bai listened when she suggested another shop and included her in the conversation whenever a seller began explaining something unfamiliar.

No one asked why she walked beside him.

People looked at them with curiosity, and occasionally with the admiration reserved for customers whose spending required several assistants.

Ning Shuang found herself enjoying even that. She had become accustomed to measuring the attention of strangers for danger, but here she could pause beside a display simply because something interested her.

Su Bai would stop with her.

It was such a small thing that she had difficulty explaining why it pleased her.

They eventually chose another tea house where they could sit away from the market traffic.

Ning Shuang arranged a private room, and Su Bai waited until its restrictions were active before returning to the matters that had occupied them earlier.

"My sect will investigate what you told me."

She nodded. She had expected that much when she agreed to answer him.

"Be careful when you continue your surveys," he continued. "If the investigation reaches those settlements, the people directing your assignments may become suspicious. Do not give them a reason to connect it to you."

"I cannot simply abandon the mission."

"I know."

Su Bai looked toward the closed door before continuing.

"Keep your aura concealed when you can. If the righteous factions learn that mortals are in danger, there will be more people watching the demonic groups."

Ning Shuang’s hand settled against her storage ring.

The talismans and formation plates he had given her made his concern feel particularly tangible.

"I will be careful, Brother Su."

He nodded, satisfied that she understood.

While they waited for the attendant to return, Ning Shuang took out a fresh sheet of parchment.

She checked the Gu within her chest, then began drawing.

Su Bai initially watched without interrupting, but his attention sharpened when he recognized the arrangement of roads and settlements.

This map contained much more than the little drawing she had made with water.

She worked slowly where the terrain required care. At several places, she paused to recall a route before adding a note. Marks appeared around the settlements, accompanied by brief explanations.

Su Bai leaned closer.

"These are the places your group checked?"

"The ones I remember well enough to show you."

She added another annotation before continuing.

"I have marked where we found ground that met the conditions. These are the places where we left the symbol."

Su Bai looked over the parchment with growing appreciation. The information from their earlier conversation had given him a direction. This could allow someone investigating the matter to find the actual sites.

Ning Shuang finished the last note and let the ink settle.

"I thought this would be more useful than trying to describe every road."

"It is."

She looked up at him.

"Then consider it my thanks for today."

Su Bai glanced toward the tea packages resting beside her before returning his gaze to her face.

"For the tea?"

"For an ordinary day."

Her smile became a little self-conscious, but she continued before he could answer.

"I do not often get to walk around somewhere like this and simply enjoy it."

Su Bai’s expression softened. He accepted the parchment carefully and examined where the ink remained wet before preparing to store it.

Before he could give a reply, a knock sounded at the door.

"Esteemed customers," the attendant called, "there are three people downstairs asking to meet you. They say they are your sworn kin."

Su Bai’s hand stopped above the parchment.

Across the table, Ning Shuang looked toward the door.