"So during the Inner Court Disciple Examination, I fought the Jade Frog for the second time, and I—"
"Young Master, I’m back with the tea." Feng Yuxiang returned to the living room an hour after she left to make tea, but since Yuan was too absorbed in telling Meixiu his experience with the game, he didn’t notice how much time had passed.
It was the same for Meixiu, who was simply too absorbed in Yuan’s story and his liveliness that made her forget about the passage of time.
"Thank you, Feng Feng," Yuan said to her as she poured the tea for them.
"Hm? What kind of tea is this? It’s all red." Yuan asked her after picking up the teacup and noticing the red water that resembled watered-down blood.
"It’s tea made from a valuable type of herb that can boost one’s mental strength. People call it Crimson Lotus Tea." Feng Yuxiang said.
Yuan proceeded to take a sip of this Crimson Lotus Tea after blowing it a few times.
"Oh? It’s sweet." Yuan mumbled in a surprised voice afterward, and he chugged the entire cup a moment later.
Ding!
[You have gained the following effect from consuming Crimson Lotus Tea]
[Mental Strength +1,500]
Meixiu also gained the same stats after drinking the tea.
"Feng Feng, I drank a tea called Phoenix Blossom Tea before and it increased my Soul Strength. Is there a limit to how much benefit one can obtain from drinking tea or consuming treasures in general?" Yuan asked her afterward.
Feng Yuxiang nodded, "Of course there is a limit, Young Master. If one can obtain strength from drinking the same tea every day, there wouldn’t be so many cultivators risking their lives in the cultivation world."
"When it comes to treasures that can be consumed, especially teas, there is a limit to how much benefit one can gain before their body stops benefitting from that specific treasure no matter how much more they consume."
"Most treasures will only work once before one can no longer benefit from them. As for treasures that can benefit you multiple times, they are too few and far between." Feng Yuxiang explained to him.
"I see..." Yuan mumbled.
"Anyways, I would still drink this tea even if I don’t gain anything from it." Yuan extended his cup and continued, "Can I get another cup?"
"Of course you can." Feng Yuxiang poured him another cup.
Sometime later, Meixiu said, "Yuan, I have created an auction request for the Frozen Jade Zither, but it still needs to be verified. The staff asked me to give them my closest city so they can meet up and look at the treasure."
Yuan nodded and turned to ask Feng Yuxiang, "Where’s the nearest city?"
"That would be Long Chen City, which was obviously named after the Dragon Essence Temple’s Founder. And it’s about 20 miles from this place." Feng Yuxiang said.
"I see... Since there’s still some time left before the Mystic Realm, let’s try to sell the treasure." Yuan said to Meixiu.
"Wait a second, Young Master. What are you trying to sell? The Frozen Jade Zither?" Feng Yuxiang asked him.
Yuan nodded, "That’s right. I don’t really have a need for it since I already have the Soul Ensnaring Zither."
"Why? Do you need money for something?"
"Yes."
"If you want, I can give you some..." Feng Yuxiang said, even reaching for her spatial ring.
"It’s fine, Feng Feng. I can just sell the zither. And you should already know by now that I don’t like having everything handed to me without giving any effort myself."
"I understand..." Feng Yuxiang nodded in a somewhat dejected manner.
"I need to let the Seniors know that I’ll be leaving the sect before I actually leave."
A few moments later, Yuan called Elder Xuan with his communication jade slip.
"Hello? Disciple Yuan?"
"Senior Xuan, I would like to leave the sect for a bit."
"Leaving the sect? Where are you going? The Mystic Realm is just three days away!"
"I have some business at Long Chen City with my friend. It shouldn’t take long— probably a couple of hours."
"Oh, if it’s just Long Chen City, go ahead. I would accompany you, but I am extremely busy right now and the other elders as well so you’ll have to go alone. The Dragon Essence Temple is also closely associated with Long Chen City so there shouldn’t be any problems if you go there, especially if you’re wearing the sect’s uniform. However, if anything happens, don’t be afraid to use the life-saving treasures we gave you." Elder Xuan said to him.
"I understand. Thank you, Senior Xuan."
"Stay safe."
After hanging up, Yuan said to Meixiu, "You can tell them to meet us in Long Chen City."
Meixiu nodded her head before logging off and going to her laptop.
[Long Chen City.]
Ding!
A response quickly returned ten seconds later.
[We can be at the northern gates within half an hour. Are you able to make it there within that time?]
[Yes.]
[Then we will see you there in half an hour.]
"I’m going online to meet the client!" The staff said after closing the chat.
"Do you want us to come with you just in case?"
"No, I can do this by myself. I’m not going to let you guys take my credits."
"Hahaha! I bet you it’s going to be a troll, anyways!"
"You can keep the credits! If you meet Player Yuan, don’t forget to ask for his autograph! Hahaha!"
Despite his co-workers laughing at him, the man who accepted Meixiu’s auction request went to the gaming room that was located at the same building he worked at.
"Luckily for me, I didn’t leave Long Chen City after failing to learn more about Player Yuan at the Dragon Essence Temple." The man sighed to himself before lying on one of the ten available beds there and wearing the helmet on his head.
"Let’s hope this won’t be a waste of time..." he sighed before pressing the power button and entering the game.