Xu Chang'an dared not look into his wife's calm eyes, and explained softly: "This time, the sect is welcoming the Eight Directions Light Guests. As an Inner Disciple at Three Officials Rock, I can't leave immediately. Three months, I'll definitely return in three months."
"..."
Yun Qian said nothing, savoring the plain noodle soup in front of her.
Xu Chang'an felt guilty in his heart and stayed silent.
The days at home were beautiful but extremely short-lived. Soon it was time to say goodbye. Xu Chang'an didn't need to pack any luggage, he only changed into a black and white robe.
Although the courtyard at home was spacious, it had no plants, making it seem rather desolate.
"I have to go." Xu Chang'an looked at his wife unwillingly.
Yun Qian nodded and thought for a moment before asking: "Do you really want to cultivate immortality?"
Xu Chang'an was taken aback, then nodded seriously and said: "I must become an Inner Sect Disciple of Chaoyun Sect."
As long as he smoothly dealt with the demon and obtained the Source Opening Pill, he was confident he would succeed in the next Martial Arts Gathering and enter the Inner Sect.
"Hmm."
Yun Qian came over, tidied Xu Chang'an's collar and said: "Be careful, don't get hurt."
Xu Chang'an took a deep breath, nodded, and then pushed open the red lacquered wooden door.
He turned back and said: "The house is empty. If you like, you can plant something."
"Got it." Yun Qian nodded, watched Xu Chang'an disappear at the end of the street.
Just as she turned to go back inside, the door next to her suddenly opened. A little girl in her teens poked her head out, looking at Yun Qian with fascination.
The little girl was a cultivator.
Due to the Chaoyun Sect's welcoming of guests from all directions, she had been waiting for the day the Chaoyun Sect opened its gates and accidentally saw this overly beautiful sister. She liked her immensely at first sight.
So she used some tricks to move next door to Yun Qian and Xu Chang'an's small courtyard, and after investigating, learned that this pair was well-known in Beisang City as the "young husband and older wife."
The little girl jumped out and said to Yun Qian: "Sister, he just came back and is leaving again?"
Yun Qian looked at the little girl who had just moved in next door and nodded.
"Did sister make breakfast for him as I said?"
Yun Qian looked at her fair, slender fingers and shook her head: "Next time, I can't wield a knife."
"That's why sister always acts like this and can't keep a man. That's why he's indifferent to home."
The little girl thought to herself, having grown up in Hehuan Sect, she understood men the best.
Yun Qian's slender fingers gently clenched in one place, she looked at the little girl, suddenly asked: "Cultivating immortality... is it good?"
The little girl was stunned, then said: "People in the city all know Ms. Yun's husband is an Outer Sect Steward of Chaoyun Sect. Many people envy him, so cultivating... must be a good thing."
"I understand."
Yun Qian's gaze fell in the direction Xu Chang'an had left, her eyes closing slightly.
She returned to the room, smelling the remaining scent of the youth in the room, her fingertips drawing a straight line on the bed.
If her husband likes it, she can't always stop him.
"..."
After leaving home, Xu Chang'an gathered his True Qi and instantly became a fleeting shadow. In less than a quarter of an hour, he exited the city, swiftly climbing the mountain along the winding path.
The mountain's soil was soft, each of Xu Chang'an's steps left a deep footprint on the ground, but as he flew dozens of meters away, the footprints slowly vanished, appearing as if no one had ever passed by.
"The Jade Scroll says the Tiger Demon is in this area."
Xu Chang'an took out the Jade Scroll again to confirm the target Tiger Demon's location.
At this moment, his body was covered with a faint layer of white light, concealing most of his aura.
Holding his breath, Xu Chang'an wielded a standard longsword and walked deeper into the forest.
According to the intelligence provided by his senior sister, the Tiger Demon he, a Qi Cultivation Realm Outer Disciple, could deal with wouldn't be hidden too deeply. Indeed, Xu Chang'an hadn't walked far before he found a mountain cave in the forest.
The two-meter-high cave exuded a sinister aura, its entrance draped with thick vines.
Hmm?
Xu Chang'an suddenly stopped, the sides were densely wooded, the dappled sunlight pierced through, casting puzzlement in his eyes.
"Something's off."
Xu Chang'an had previously taken on demon-slaying tasks downhill, but most of the demons he could handle only had a trace of Demon Qi. After being infected by the Demon Qi, their safety awareness was even worse than ordinary wild animals, with barely any consciousness, leaving chaos and a dense demon stench in their wake.
Looking at the current environment, aside from the cave being sinister, the surroundings showed no sign of being damaged whatsoever. He hadn't encountered any Demon Qi along the way.
Either there were no demons here, or the information from his senior sister was wrong. This demon had surpassed the range a Qi Cultivation Stage could handle. The greatest likelihood was that the demon residing here wasn't a stray.
Now with the Chaoyun Sect's gate open welcoming guests from all directions, perhaps it was some immortal sect disciple's mount or pet placed here.
Xu Chang'an, an Outer Sect Steward of Chaoyun Sect, wasn't a reckless person, so he decided to return to the sect and report to his senior sister.
After noticing the anomaly, he didn't hesitate and turned to leave.
Yet, before taking two steps, a sudden, emotionless voice from the system sounded in Xu Chang'an's mind.
[Seal detected loosened, energy absorbed successfully, system unnamed initializing.]
The cold mechanical voice froze his expression.
It was his first time hearing his system speak beyond warnings and delivering Celestial Dao Points.
Seal loosened?
Energy absorbed?
What does it mean?
[Initialization successful, binding host: Xu Chang'an]
[Mission "Kill Cyan-eyed Tiger" released, please check on your own.]
Xu Chang'an was stunned.
Cyan-eyed Tiger?
It's referring to... this task target, isn't it?
Xu Chang'an's heart shook, he stopped, took a deep breath.
It was his first time encountering a mission since awakening the system a year ago.
Xu Chang'an turned to look at the cave, then awkwardly opened the mission panel, where the task goal and rewards were prominently displayed.
Cyan-eyed Tiger: Qi Cultivation Third Layer.
Mission deadline: A quarter of an hour, failure if overdue.
Mission reward: Celestial Dao Mall updated, three random items added.
"..."
Sunlight pierced through the ancient woods, falling on Xu Chang'an's rigid expression, his gaze glued to the mission rewards.
"Mall... update, three random items added."
Xu Chang'an's gaze slid sideways, eyeing his Celestial Dao Points, which took ages just to count the zeros.
With his wealth, he should be able to buy everything once updated.
No transmigrator would refuse a golden finger, Xu Chang'an was no exception.
So he decided to give his useless system another chance.
"Isn't this a coincidence? The Cyan-eyed Tiger was already my task target, one target, two rewards." Xu Chang'an smirked: "Profitable."