Returning to the present time — Meng Qi remained composed, but with a slight movement of her left pinky finger, a small, delicate sphere was already held in her palm — it was one of the six-realm artifacts she had recently purchased from the Tianhai Pavilion.
Their location now was the central area of Jingyue City, the liveliest place with many passersby coming and going. Perhaps because they lived in Jingyue City and enjoyed the protection of the world’s top spell sect, the residents of the city loved to watch a spectacle. In just a short time, a crowd had gathered, surrounding the scene with curious onlookers.
Meng Qi glanced around. Wei Yuanzhong remained calmly standing in place, completely unconcerned. After all, she was just a Nascent Soul cultivator from a minor sect. Even if she could produce some artifacts, they would be at most in the fourth realm or even the fifth realm — far from enough to warrant his attention.
As Meng Qi finally began to act, Wei Yuanzhong’s gaze flickered slightly. With a soft ‘crack,’ a mist suddenly surged from her hand and quickly spread, concealing everything in its vicinity.
Wei Yuanzhong still had the same relaxed smile on his face even as the thick mist surrounded him. A small trick produced by a fifth realm artifact had no way to block the vision of a Spirit Severing cultivator, and he was willing to give Meng Qi a face by letting her take a few steps before chasing after her quietly. In retrospect, he truly held no enmity towards this girl. Regardless of Meng Qi’s background and cultivation level, she had obtained the recognition of the great Lin Yan, the last profound rank medical cultivator in the world, and this achievement was something that had to be respected… Huh?!
The thick mist expanded too rapidly, and in no time, it had already enveloped everything around the restaurant, including the streets and alleys. Wei Yuanzhong hadn’t even finished his thought about giving Meng Qi a bit of leniency when the mist had already devoured him as if it were a tidal wave.
In that instant, not only did the thick mist block Wei Yuanzhong’s vision, but it also sealed off his spiritual sense. Wei Yuanzhong couldn’t see anything, and he couldn’t sense where Meng Qi was at this moment.
“What is this…” He belatedly reacted, “That girl is holding a sixth realm artifact!” Wei Yuanzhong truly hadn’t expected that Meng Qi, a cultivator from a minor sect like Qingfeng Valley who had just reached the Nascent Soul stage, would possess a sixth realm artifact. It was unbelievable. Even he couldn’t produce a sixth realm artifact himself, and even his natal weapon was currently only in the fifth realm.
Startled, Wei Yuanzhong quickly rushed toward the location where he remembered Meng Qi was. He knew that she definitely wouldn’t just stand there waiting for him to catch her, yet he still had a glimmer of hope. In the blink of an eye, Wei Yuanzhong had arrived at the spot where Meng Qi had been standing just moments ago. There was actually someone there, and he was overjoyed. Without a second thought, he hurriedly grasped the person’s wrist.
“Ah!” the person he grabbed exclaimed, their voice trembling with a hint of panic. “It’s you!” Wei Yuanzhong recognized the voice and couldn’t hide his disappointment. “Where’s Meng Qi?”
The person he had grabbed was none other than Lu Qingran. She had no idea what had just happened. When the thick mist suddenly appeared, her instinct had been to run towards Meng Qi. However, the mist had spread too rapidly and she soon couldn’t see anything, and even her spiritual sense seemed to be sealed off. Something had also tripped her up, causing her to stumble forward several steps. Just as she regained her balance, someone grabbed her wrist.
As soon as he realized he had grabbed the wrong person, Wei Yuanzhong released Lu Qingran and continued to search for Meng Qi.
Meng Qi! It was Meng Qi again! Lu Qingran bit her lower lip lightly, and her eyes welled up with tears. Why had Meng Qi, her former junior sister, suddenly become the center of attention for everyone? Those male cultivators who couldn’t help but be amazed by her appearance in the past now seemed to only know about Meng Qi.
Clearly, Meng Qi was still the same old Meng Qi, the dull and silent one, with unimpressive cultivation talent. Lu Qingran was not reconciled — her talent was clearly better! She hadn’t even spent much time on cultivation — she had merely received a set of cultivation techniques that were slightly better than what she had at Qingfeng Valley and casually practiced them, and yet here she was, already a Nascent Soul cultivator. She knew very well that she wasn’t inferior to Meng Qi in any way.
“Where’s Meng Qi?” Wei Yuanzhong asked sharply as he faced the boundless mist. “I… I don’t know,” Lu Qingran meekly muttered, her voice trembling. “I was just standing in place when… when someone pushed me, and then they ran far away behind me.” Her face turned hot instantly, but the thick mist still hadn’t dissipated, and no one could see her current expression. “Perhaps… that might be Junior Sister Meng.”
As Lu Qingran finished her sentence, the dense mist gradually began to dissipate. Her surroundings cleared up again, and the onlookers, who were quite sharp-eyed, quickly noticed that two people were missing.
More importantly, they were the two crucial figures: Meng Qi and the young man who had been thrown off the building by Wei Yuanzhong. Their figures were nowhere to be seen, as if they had disappeared into the thick fog.
Wei Yuanzhong looked around. The area was the busiest part of Jingyue City, with many passersby and crisscrossing paths that extended in all directions. If Meng Qi had blended into the crowd, it would be challenging to locate her.
“Why are you running away?” Wei Yuanzhong was helpless, saying, “I don’t have any ill intentions.” He mumbled to himself for a moment before finally glancing at Lu Qingran again, “You can go.”
“Huh?” Lu Qingran looked at him, bewildered.
“I said, you can go,” Wei Yuanzhong repeated. Then, paying no further attention to Lu Qingran, he turned around and re-entered the restaurant.
“But… but I…” Lu Qingran couldn’t finish her sentence, as Wei Yuanzhong had already entered the restaurant. She stood blankly on the busy street, utterly stunned.
Did he just let her leave like this without a second thought?
Was, was it because she was completely worthless now?
Was Wei Yuanzhong’s initial intention to save her, keep her by his side, and bring her to Jingyue City, all because of Junior Sister Meng Qi?
Lu Qingran became more and more stunned. She had never been so confused before. Everyone around her was a stranger, and they might give her a second glance when passing by, but no one would stop for her. They were all just strangers who had nothing to do with her. And those people who had been related to her before, one by one, had already left, growing more distant, and they wouldn’t look back at her again.
No, wait! Lu Qingran suddenly realized, what about the male cultivator who was willing to protect her, even though he was only at the Qi Condensation stage? Where had he gone?
Lu Qingran looked around, but she couldn’t see the man’s figure anywhere. For a moment, she was feeling totally helpless. This place was a crossroads, and yet… she didn’t know where to go.
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