Chapter 535: You Sold the Merchant Caravan? |
The two of them quickly arrived at the merchant caravan's location.
"Excuse me, young man, are you about to set off?"
After approaching, Ning Qi looked at a worker in front of him and inquired.
"Yes, who are you?"
The worker nodded in affirmation, eyeing Ning Qi curiously.
"Could you do us a favor and give us a ride?"
Ning Qi smiled. "We won't ride for free; we have spirit stones."
"Then wait a moment, I'll ask my master!"
The worker nodded, then told Ning Qi to wait here.
"Master, does this family seem... normal?"
The Pill Spirit looked ahead and couldn't help but ask.
"It doesn't matter. Money makes the world go round."
"If I pay spirit stones, they won't refuse."
Ning Qi shrugged, then also looked forward.
After the worker spoke a few words with a middle-aged man, he hurried back.
"Young master, my shopkeeper wants to see you."
Upon returning, the worker said to Ning Qi.
As he spoke, he casually pointed towards the middle-aged man ahead.
"Alright!"
Ning Qi didn't hesitate either. After agreeing, he said, "Lead the way!"
"Please!"
The worker made a gesture of invitation, then led the way for Ning Qi.
Soon, they reached the middle-aged man.
"You want to travel with us?"
The middle-aged man looked at Ning Qi, his face revealing no expression.
"Exactly. I wonder how many spirit stones are required?"
Ning Qi nodded. To avoid trouble, he directly asked the price.
"Five spirit stones, and I'll take you to the next city."
The middle-aged man thought for a moment, extending his palm as he said, "The journey takes two days. You'll be under our protection. Charging you five is not too much."
"Good, no problem!"
"Then let's set off!"
Ning Qi nodded, then directly took out five spirit stones and handed them to the middle-aged man.
"Good! Go to the carriage at the back and find any seat."
"We're setting off now!"
After receiving the spirit stones, the middle-aged man arranged, "Little Liu Zi, you take him there, don't let him get lost!"
"Yes."
The worker from earlier agreed, then waved to Ning Qi. "Young master, follow me."
"Please!"
Ning Qi responded, then followed Little Liu Zi.
They soon arrived in front of a carriage.
"Young master, there are two or three other people inside, just like you!"
"They're also hitching a ride."
Little Liu Zi explained to Ning Qi, "We have many carriages, two or three are idle, perfect for letting you folks hitch a ride."
"Good, thank you very much then!"
Ning Qi cupped his fists, then directly entered the carriage.
He discovered there were indeed three people sitting inside.
Two young men and one young woman.
Judging by their attire, they were likely from the same family or sect.
"I told you earlier, you should have bought a carriage to travel on your own."
"Now look, they've arranged for more people to come in."
The young woman spoke with a hint of disdain.
"Junior Sister, what's there to fear? More people makes it livelier!"
One of the young men laughed and comforted her. "And here's someone new to get to know. What's not to like?"
"Hmph!"
The young woman snorted angrily, then began to close her eyes and meditate.
"Master, we've encountered another one. Should we check the almanac before going out?"
Seeing this, the Pill Spirit couldn't help but sigh.
"What comes, comes. We'll rest and ignore them!"
Ning Qi simply leaned back against the inner wall of the carriage.
He adopted a leisurely posture.
This, however, made the young woman even more disgusted.
Nevertheless, she didn't say anything, just sulked on the side.
"Brother, where are you from, and where are you headed?"
The young man from earlier asked curiously.
"The Myriad Swords Sect."
Hearing this, Ning Qi responded indifferently.
"Oh? The Myriad Swords Sect?"
The other young man, upon hearing his words, couldn't help but widen his eyes.
He scrutinized Ning Qi.
"You're a Myriad Swords Sect disciple?"
The first young man suppressed the restlessness in his heart and couldn't help but ask.
"No."
Ning Qi shook his head, answering quite frankly.
"No? Then are you going to join?"
"Let me give you some advice, getting into the Myriad Swords Sect is very difficult!"
"You might not even pass their trial!"
The young woman couldn't help but speak up to remind him.
Her words carried a hint of contempt.
However, Ning Qi didn't care at all.
Instead, he maintained an air of nonchalance.
This made the young woman feel rather bored.
"Brother, what my junior sister said is true."
"Instead of that, why not come to our sect!"
"Maybe you have the aptitude and can join!"
The man looked at Ning Qi, smiling as he said, "I can be your recommender."
"However, this recommendation requires... greasing some wheels. You'll need to pay a bit of a price."
"Unnecessary, I'm not interested."
Ning Qi directly cut him off. "I'm going to the Myriad Swords Sect not for the trial."
"I'm going to find someone!"
Here, Ning Qi finally told the truth.
"Find someone? You have a friend in the Myriad Swords Sect?"
Hearing his words, the young woman's eyes lit up.
This seemingly ordinary person actually knew someone from the Myriad Swords Sect.
"Yes."
Ning Qi nodded, smiling. "So, I'm visiting a friend, not taking a trial."
He emphasized once again what he was going to do.
"So that's how it is."
Hearing his words, the man had a sudden realization.
However, all of them couldn't help but cast admiring looks at Ning Qi.
To be friends with someone from the Myriad Swords Sect meant his strength was definitely not ordinary.
"The convoy is moving!"
Feeling the jolt, the young woman lifted the carriage curtain and looked outside.
She saw their merchant caravan had already started moving.
Ning Qi continued to sit leisurely in the carriage, enjoying this rare opportunity.
During this time, he also slowly circulated his cultivation technique to regulate his breathing.
Allowing the Immortal-Demonic Power and physical strength he had consumed these past days to begin recovering.
Time flew by. After traveling for a while, the sun was already high in the sky.
"When will we get there? This speed is way too slow!"
Feeling the carriage's pace, the young woman was already getting drowsy.
"Junior Sister, hold on a little longer."
"Once we reach the city, we'll be safe."
"We can also use the teleportation array."
The two senior brothers kept comforting the young woman.
"Fine, it seems that's the only way!"
The young woman sighed, glanced at Ning Qi who was meditating with closed eyes beside her.
Then, imitating him, she leaned against the side and also began to meditate with closed eyes.
The carriage continued to jolt along.
After another stretch of time, the scorching heat of the blazing sun gradually became less noticeable.
This made even Ning Qi feel a bit curious.
He lifted the carriage curtain and looked outside.
He discovered they had entered a dense forest.
The difference was, there was an official road here wide enough for people to pass through.
Clearly, this was a necessary route.
"Everyone, rest here for half an hour!"
Right at that moment, someone shouted from afar.
"Ah, finally we can rest."
"This place isn't bad, good for cooling off."
"And we can eat some rations too!"
Immediately after, voices of discussion came from the carriages behind.
Ning Qi could sense many people had already gotten off the carriages.
He also stepped down from the carriage.
Only then did he have the chance to observe the surroundings.
It was an ancient forest.
Ancient trees were everywhere, along with some massive rocks.
This official road stretched far into the distance.
"Master, this place is really nice."
The Pill Spirit stood on his shoulder, looking outward.
Here, the mountains were clear and the waters beautiful, birds sang and flowers were fragrant, Immortal Energy abundant.
Walking on the road here made one feel refreshed and joyful.
"This place is indeed nice. Let's find a spot to sit for a while!"
"My body is getting stiff from sitting in the carriage."
Ning Qi nodded, then stretched.
He took the Pill Spirit and headed towards a large bluestone slab.
Upon reaching it, Ning Qi directly sat down.
"Master, look, isn't that that girl's convoy?"
The Pill Spirit suddenly pointed at the convoy behind them and said.
Ning Qi opened his eyes and looked back.
He saw the previous Commander leading his team over.
"Yes."
He nodded, couldn't help but smile. "Talk about a small world, bumping into them even here."
"Haha, Master, I think it's fate, right?"
The Pill Spirit laughed, then added, "But we still have the most fate with Miss Xu."
"Alright, we don't need to pay them any mind."
Ning Qi simply lay down directly, starting to enjoy this rare, beautiful moment.
"We'll rest here for a while. Everyone, get off the carriages."
"Go do what you need to do!"
After a while, the Commander's voice sounded again.
Soon, a cacophony of noise followed.
People got off the carriages one after another.
"Isn't this our coachman? Why is he here?"
Some of the guards noticed Ning Qi.
"Yeah, why aren't you driving the carriage, running off here?"
"The young lady is looking for you."
"..."
Several guards came over and spoke one after another.
"I'm just hitching a ride, I didn't sell myself to you."
Ning Qi glanced at the few men and said, "If you want a coachman, there are plenty in town."
"Hey, watch your tone!"
Princess Xiangxiang's voice quickly came from afar.
Clearly, she had also heard that Ning Qi was found.
That's why she came straight over.
Especially upon seeing Ning Qi, a look of delight immediately appeared on her pretty face.
It was like something she had lost had been found again.
"How I speak is none of your damn business?"
Ning Qi curled his lip. "I'm not a coachman now."
"Kid, watch your mouth!"
"How dare you speak to our young lady like that?"
Several guards immediately became displeased and began to rebuke him.
"You'd better get lost and not provoke me!"
Ning Qi was originally in a good mood, planning to rest here.
But being disturbed by these few people, he immediately became displeased.
"I want you to be my coachman."
Princess Xiangxiang looked at Ning Qi, then looked towards the merchant caravan ahead. "You must have come here to do odd jobs. I'll buy you from them!"
"Let's see how you can escape my grasp then."
"Go ahead then, I'll wait."
Ning Qi sneered disdainfully, then lay back down again.
"Hmph!"
Princess Xiangxiang gave a delicate snort, then commanded, "You few, go ask about the situation."
"No matter how much they paid for him, I'll pay ten times the price to buy him!"
"Yes!"
"..."
Several guards respectfully accepted the order, then headed towards the middle-aged man of the merchant caravan.
They chatted with the middle-aged man for a few moments, then walked back.
"Well? Is it settled?"
Princess Xiangxiang saw the men returning and asked happily.
"Young lady, this kid isn't doing odd jobs. He paid spirit stones to ride with the caravan."
"Yes, their shopkeeper can't do anything about it either."
"..."
The guards explained helplessly one after another.
"So?"
Ning Qi smiled, then said, "Go on, we're not on the same path. You walk your broad, bright road, and I'll cross my single-plank bridge."
"Let's keep to our own business and not disturb my rest anymore."
"You!"
"I'll remember you! When I get back, I'll make you pay!"
Princess Xiangxiang had no choice. She could only leave behind a fierce threat and stomp away angrily.
Seeing this, several guards also followed and left.
"Kid, if you've offended someone, don't sit with us."
The two young men from earlier also saw the situation with Ning Qi.
Seeing Princess Xiangxiang leave, they spoke displeasedly.
"Whether I offend people or not, what's it to you?"
Ning Qi glanced at the two men and said disdainfully, "Just mind your own business. Better not meddle in things that don't concern you."
"Hey, how are you talking?"
Hearing Ning Qi's words, the young woman immediately became displeased.
She had been unhappy since Ning Qi got on the carriage.
Now she finally found an opportunity to pick a fight.
"Can't be bothered to argue with you."
Ning Qi then closed his eyes and began to meditate.
No matter what the few said after that, he paid them no mind.
And so, the two convoys rested here together.
Gradually, Princess Xiangxiang's Commander started chatting with the shopkeeper here.
In the end, they seemed to be chatting quite happily.
Ning Qi didn't care about this either, just quietly meditated with closed eyes.
After a while, the middle-aged man walked over.
"Young man."
He looked at Ning Qi and spoke in a low voice.
"Shopkeeper, what can I do for you?"
Ning Qi sat up and looked at the middle-aged man, asking.
"It's like this. Our caravan, for the rest of the journey, has been bought by this lord."
"Before reaching the city, we are all his subordinates."
The middle-aged man looked at Ning Qi, then continued, "So, I'll return your spirit stones to you first."
"If you're willing to continue traveling with us, go talk to this lord."
"How many spirit stones it will be, that's a matter between you two."
"What?"
Hearing his words, Ning Qi couldn't help but frown.
Only now did he realize what had just happened.
So, they had directly bought this merchant caravan.
To be precise, they had bought the remainder of their journey.
Which meant his spirit stones were wasted.
"Ah, you sold the caravan? What about us?"
"Yeah, this is too irresponsible!"
The few senior brothers from earlier, hearing their conversation, followed up with complaints.
"Everyone, don't worry, you can still hitch a ride."
The middle-aged man pressed his hands down towards the few men, signaling them not to worry.
"That's more like it."
Only then did the few men relax and stop making a fuss.
"So, what about you?"
Seeing the few men quiet down, the middle-aged man redirected his attention back to Ning Qi.