Chapter 532: She Is a Princess |
Ning Qi climbed into the carriage, then took the reins.
He fell in with the escort, cracking the whip to urge the horses on.
They set off.
At first, the convoy moved along smoothly.
They encountered nothing unusual on the road.
"Master, this is so much fun!"
"I think that squad leader ahead must be fairly strong."
"Still, they're a long way from True Immortal."
"For us, they're just ordinary people."
"Hmm, whatever. It's a good chance to rest."
"We'll stick with the convoy, and once we reach the city, we'll use teleportation to leave."
"I've been so tired lately!"
"Hardly any chance to relax."
Ning Qi agreed with a sound, then looked ahead. "This convoy's not bad, lots of people. It should be lively."
"Yeah, I wonder if Miss Xu will be so touched when she sees us that she'll fall apart!"
Hearing Ning Qi, the Pill Spirit suddenly added, "And the kitty. He must miss us too!"
"When we left, we didn't even have time to say goodbye."
"When we arrive, we must greet her properly."
"Don't let her think we've forgotten her."
Ning Qi nodded, then looked ahead. "The mortal realm environment here is good, the Immortal Energy is abundant."
"Indeed, it's a fine place to cultivate."
"Master, in this environment, people's hearts are different!"
"Not like when we were on Mount Buzhou, where intrigue was everywhere!"
The Pill Spirit sighed repeatedly. "This place is better."
"Then you can stay here with her!"
Ning Qi smiled.
"No, it's too quiet here, boring!"
"I still like following Master!"
"Exploring the Cosmic Sea!"
The Pill Spirit shook his head vigorously.
At this moment he sat on Ning Qi's shoulder.
But since his power far exceeded these mortals, none of them could perceive his existence.
Even their two-person conversation was invisible to everyone else.
"Hey!"
Just then, a girl's voice came from inside a carriage.
"Miss!"
Ning Qi knew at once this must be the young lady in the carriage.
He smiled in reply, curious what she would do.
"You, coachman, why don't you say a word? I thought you were mute!"
A displeased voice sounded from the carriage.
"Miss, I'm only a driver. I dare not chat with you, miss."
Ning Qi was amused by her but held back a smile and offered a meek defense.
"This young lady commands you to speak to me!"
The lady in the carriage pouted angrily.
"Miss, what would you like to talk about? I'm a simple country man, I know nothing!"
Ning Qi had no intention of idle chatter.
He could only dodge by claiming a lowly identity.
"Everyone, we'll stop at the next town for an hour's rest."
"Speed up, everyone!"
At that moment, a guard rode over.
He quickly passed by their spot.
"Great! We're going to the town. There's fun to be had!"
The girl instantly brightened. "Hey, hurry up, overtake them!"
"Miss, we can't, there are supply wagons ahead. If we disrupt them it will cause trouble!"
Ning Qi shook his head and refused her demand.
"I'm your mistress! I'm your master! If you don't obey me, I'll make you pay!"
The girl in the carriage grew displeased.
She threw aside the curtain, revealing a lively-looking girl.
Her outfit was practical, not the delicate finery of a noble lady.
Her face was an attractive oval, with large eyes like they could hold the stars.
Her beautiful gaze stared at Ning Qi indignantly. "My word is imperial edict. How dare you disobey!"
"Miss, I'll go ask the leader. Please wait."
Seeing this, Ning Qi felt helpless and decided to use the escort leader as a convenient shield.
"Ask about what?"
Just then, the guard returned and overheard him.
"Sir, the young lady wants to go out herself. I asked the leader if the carriage could go ahead a bit."
Ning Qi hurried to explain.
"Go ahead, go!"
"When you get to the town, just wait for us!"
The guard pointed ahead and said, "But don't cause trouble. If the young lady has any issues, use him as a test subject!"
"Yes, sir!"
After receiving orders, the guard called a few men and stealthily followed behind.
At the same time, Ning Qi urged the carriage to speed forward.
"This is fun!"
The girl's hand lifted the curtain again, dancing about with excitement.
"Coachman, is this speed okay?"
Ning Qi asked with a smile.
"It's fine. You're much better than the last coachman!"
Pleased by his compliment, the girl repeatedly praised him. "When we return, I will reward you richly."
"Thank you, miss!"
Ning Qi thanked her, then drove on.
The road was smooth.
They reached the town steadily.
From a distance the town already looked bustling.
Caravans came and went without end.
Many shops were calling out to the crowds.
"Miss, we've arrived at the town!"
"Do we wait for them, or go in ourselves?"
Ning Qi glanced back and asked the girl in the carriage.
"Of course we go in first. Why wait? They're just a bunch of boring people!"
The girl said. "Listen to me, we'll go in first!"
"I want to play and eat good food!"
"I've been cooped up all this way!"
"Alright!"
Ning Qi readily agreed and drove them into town.
Stalls and hawkers filled every street, cries and shouts mixing together.
There were wrestling rings and street performers.
Everything one could imagine made the place even more lively.
"Great, stop the carriage, I want to go play!"
The girl could no longer contain herself and demanded to get down.
"Miss, let me bring the carriage to an inn first, then we'll go play!"
"It'll be a nuisance to drag the carriage around!"
Ning Qi reminded her with a grin.
"You stay and keep watch. I'll go play myself!"
The girl slapped Ning Qi heartily. "Quick, stop!"
"Alright!"
Ning Qi had no choice but to halt.
While stopping, he told the Pill Spirit, "Go ahead, escort her. I'll find a place to park the carriage."
"Okay!"
The Pill Spirit agreed and jumped onto the girl's shoulder.
But his power was limited—he couldn't make her perceive that someone sat on her shoulder.
Ning Qi then led the carriage to an inn.
"Hey, boy, is there a place to stable the horses?"
Ning Qi didn't dismount, he asked the innkeeper.
"Yes! I'll take them for you."
The innkeeper agreed and came to help.
"Alright, I'm off to stroll with my mistress!"
"Also feed the horses while you're at it!"
Ning Qi leapt down and left.
"Got it!"
The innkeeper replied, and Ning Qi followed the aura left by the Pill Spirit until he found the girl.
She was watching a troupe of street performers with delight.
"Nice!"
Clapping at something entertaining.
"Master."
The Pill Spirit greeted Ning Qi with a smile. "This is indeed fun."
Ning Qi watched the performers with interest. "Not bad."
"Hey, go tip them!"
The girl saw Ning Qi and ordered him to hand over a tip.
"Huh? Tip? I have no silver!"
Ning Qi spread his hands.
He was only a coachman—how could he tip? Not to mention using spirit stones; ordinary people here probably wouldn't recognize them.
"Forget it, give them these spirit stones!"
Before Ning Qi could protest, the girl had already produced two spirit stones and handed them over for him to give as tips.
"Alright!"
The Pill Spirit was somewhat surprised, but comforted by the region's abundant Immortal Energy; spirit stones here were not odd.
He stepped forward and dropped the spirit stones into the performer's bronze bowl.
"Clang!"
A clear sound rang out.
"Spirit stones?"
"Big spender!"
"Truly wealthy!"
...A flurry of commentary erupted.
"Thank you, young hero."
Voices of thanks came promptly.
"No need! These were given by my young lady!"
Ning Qi was quick to clarify so the man would not mistake him for the benefactor.
"Thank you, miss!"
Hearing that, the man turned to bow to the girl.
"No need for thanks!"
The girl lifted a hand and, satisfied by Ning Qi's arrival, said, "From now on you'll be my personal coachman."
"Someone who knows how to speak and work."
"Hmph, you think you can use him? My master certainly won't!"
The Pill Spirit snorted reluctantly. If Ning Qi became her coachman, his status would drop again. Naturally, the Pill Spirit wasn't thrilled.
"Thank you, miss!"
Ning Qi instead kept thanking her profusely, feigning gratitude.
"Enough, let's go!"
Having seen enough, the girl turned and beckoned Ning Qi to follow.
"Yes!"
He answered and followed close behind.
They walked toward a crowded area and soon reached a wrestling ring.
On the platform someone was grappling—one youth had been knocked down by a burly man.
"Any takers?"
After his victory, the burly man looked down at the crowd with a grin. "No one wants this fifty spirit stone prize?"
"It's simple. If I lose, you keep the spirit stones. If you lose, you give me ten spirit stones!"
"No way, that man is too strong!"
"I won't go up for that!"
"Can't run an arena without skill!"
The crowd murmured; nobody dared take on the challenger.
"I'll go!"
The girl couldn't stand it and, with a word, leapt onto the stage.
Her eyes met the burly man with a look of scorn.
"Brat, what do you think you're doing?" the man asked.
"Doing what? What do you think?" she shot back.
"You set up the ring. I'm not here just to play with you!"
She had long since taken a disliking to him and gave him no respect.
"Oh?"
"You're sure you want to step up?"
The burly man surveyed her with amusement, clearly underestimating her.
"Come on then, show me what you've got!"
The girl curled a finger toward him, full of disdain.
"Everyone sees, it's not me bullying her!"
"She came up on her own!"
Seeing this, the burly man didn't get angry. He explained to the onlookers.
"Cut the nonsense, fight!"
She bit her lip, unable to hold back.
With a shout she charged.
"Stinky brat, you're acting cocky!"
The man watched her approach with playfulness.
He formed his hands into claws and clawed hard at her face.
"Tsk tsk, pretty vicious!"
He snorted and stepped forward with contempt, pushing out a palm.
"Hmph, behold my power!"
She gave a coquettish snort, then suddenly swiped at him with a claw.
"Whoosh!"
The man felt the chilling force of her attack.
One hand moved reflexively, sweeping toward her waist.
Had it landed, her waist might have been broken.
"!"
But the girl had clearly prepared.
Seeing the attack close in, she flipped over and vaulted, landing upside down in midair.
One hand slammed down hard onto the burly man's scalp.
"Smack!"
A sharp sound rang out.
She used the momentum to spring back, keeping five to six zhang distance between them.
"You're supposed to be tough, how could you get hit?"
She smiled at him.
"Hmph, brat, don't think a few tricks will win you this fight."
"I'm holding back because you're a girl!"
The burly man snorted coldly and said, "I'll give you another chance."
"Otherwise, you'll get none."
"Then you better go all out—no holding back!"
"Let me see what you can really do!"
She curled her finger again and challenged him with a grin. "Stop with the empty talk, fight for real!"
"Hmph, sharp tongue, looking for a beating!"
The burly man snorted and stomped both feet.
"Bang!"
He launched forward like a ferocious beast.
His hands flickered with spiritual energy, forming streaks of light.