Early the next morning, Li Chang'an headed out at dawn toward the outskirts of Spirit City, where the caravan from the Hong Chamber of Commerce had already been waiting.
This time, he rode out on a fine steed—no ordinary horse, but a tamed hundred-year-old soul beast. Its speed and stamina were, needless to say, outstanding.
After passing through the city gates, he continued east for a short distance before spotting a caravan flying the flag of the Hong Chamber of Commerce.
Just as the intel had said, the caravan was small—very small, in fact. Only five wagons in total.
Three of them were four-wheeled freight wagons, clearly used for transporting cargo. Although the number of crates onboard wasn't many, they were tightly secured and looked quite unusual in terms of quality.
Of the other two wagons, one was finely crafted—undoubtedly prepared for the Young Madam of the Hong Chamber of Commerce. The last wagon was rather plain, carrying daily necessities for the journey.
After all, the distance from Spirit City to Heaven Dou City was long. Even with urgent travel, it would take around ten days, so daily essentials were absolutely necessary.
Li Chang'an had once wondered why merchant caravans didn't simply use storage-type soul devices to transport goods. But eventually, he figured it out.
Storage-type soul tools of this era were all unearthed from ancient ruins and couldn't be manufactured independently. As a result, they were extremely scarce. Even a major organization like the Hong Chamber of Commerce wouldn't use one unless the cargo was extremely valuable.
Moreover, most storage soul tools weren't that spacious to begin with. A capacity of twenty cubic meters was considered quite good, but still far from ideal for bulk transport.
When Li Chang'an rode his beloved BMW (nickname for his horse) up to the Hong Chamber of Commerce caravan, the first to notice him was a middle-aged man. Judging by the soul power aura emanating from him, he was a spirit master.
This man looked entirely ordinary—nothing about him stood out. And judging by the fact that he was only a spirit Elder at his age, it was clear that his path had already reached its end.
Li Chang'an also had soul power fluctuations, of course, but his control was impeccable. At most, others could tell he was a Spirit master—nothing more. His true level was entirely concealed.
The Spirit Hall had only informed the Hong Chamber of Commerce that a powerful individual would be assigned to escort them. Li Chang'an's specific identity had not been disclosed, and he had no intention of revealing it either—unless danger forced his hand.
Even so, the words "expert from Spirit Hall" were enough to inspire respect and awe. So when Li Chang'an arrived, the entire caravan came to greet him.
The middle-aged man clasped his hands and said respectfully, "Shou Tao greets the honored sir."
The other ten guards—ordinary men—also cupped their fists and bowed. To them, any spirit master from Spirit Hall was a towering figure, someone worthy of deep reverence, regardless of age.
Just then, the door of the finely adorned carriage opened, and two women stepped out, supporting each other.
One was clearly a maid, dressed in a light green gown, with an unremarkable appearance.
But the one she was assisting? Entirely different.
Li Chang'an could instantly tell that this woman was a married lady—likely in her mid-to-late twenties. She wore a red dress that barely reached her knees.
As she walked, the light fabric fluttered, occasionally lifting to reveal her snow-white thighs.
Her face was alluring—a classic oval shape with delicate features. Between her brows, a faint lotus pattern had been drawn. Every smile, every glance radiated seduction.
If Hu Liena's charm came from her martial soul, then this woman's allure was innate—woven into her very bones. It was artfully controlled, never excessive or cheap.
'A real schemer', Li Chang'an concluded with just a few glances. He instantly saw through her type: the kind of woman who could wreak havoc in a palace drama. One look from her eyes said it all.
She swayed her hips as she walked over, the curves of her waist moving like a serpent's. Supported by her maid, she raised her eyes to take in the young man before her and offered a charming smile.
'What a handsome young man!' she thought.
'What a vixen!' Li Chang'an thought.
Both silently judged the other.
"Honored sir," the woman said sweetly, "this humble woman, Bai Xue, offers her deepest thanks for your protection on this journey."
As she spoke, she gracefully performed a curtsey. Li Chang'an, still mounted on his horse, had a perfect angle to view the generous cleavage revealed when Bai Xue bent forward.
'Damn, that's a premium-grade view,' he couldn't help but think.
After completing the ritual, Bai Xue instructed Shou Tao and the others to obey Li Chang'an's commands during the journey. Then she swayed her hips and returned to the carriage.
Li Chang'an noticed that all the male guards, including Shou Tao, didn't look away until Bai Xue had disappeared behind the carriage curtains. Every one of them had a different flavor of lust in their eyes.
Not that he could blame them. Even Li Chang'an had to admit she was a tough one to resist. For them? They didn't stand a chance.
In truth, what made Bai Xue so irresistible to Li Chang'an wasn't just her looks, but that mature allure—a quality even someone like Hu Liena didn't possess.
---
"Alright, let's move out!" Li Chang'an gave the group a brief rundown and ordered the caravan to depart. After all, it was going to be a long journey—and with slow wagons at that...
Fortunately, there was an official road connecting Spirit City and Heaven Dou City, so while the road wasn't perfectly smooth, it was at least decent for travel.
Still, there were dangers. Bandits often operated on even official roads—especially in remote areas or at night.
"Brother Shou Tao, if I may ask—what exactly are you transporting this time?" Li Chang'an struck up a conversation during the ride, guiding his horse alongside the honest-looking man and lowering his voice slightly.
But Shou Tao was surprisingly principled. He shook his head firmly and offered an apologetic smile. "Apologies, honored sir. Our master gave strict orders—we can't disclose the cargo."
Li Chang'an didn't mind and continued, "Then how many escort missions like this have you done?"
Shou Tao thought for a moment before replying, "Including this one, it's my twentieth escort mission, sir."
'An old hand at this,' Li Chang'an mused silently.
"And have you ever encountered danger on these missions?" he asked again.
"Well... it's hard to say," Shou Tao replied, his expression a bit hesitant as he tried to find the right words.
"Sir, to be honest, there are definitely risks. I encountered bandits during my very first escort mission."
"Oh? What happened then?" Li Chang'an's interest was piqued. He needed some reference points—mental preparation was always useful.
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T/N:
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