Want the Master to kneel and wash her feet!
The little girl’s expectations ultimately fell flat.
She sat restrained opposite Chen Ye, a large and a small pair of feet soaked in a copper basin.
Zhiwei huddled in the corner, mending cloth shoes.
The stitches were as dense as usual, her complexion as pale as before, still somewhat awkward.
"So comfortable—"
Chen Ye sighed contentedly, indeed, soaking feet in hot water is comfortable before sleep.
The little girl yawned exaggeratedly,
although she dared not move her feet, fearing they would touch the Master’s stinky feet if they did.
But the warmth spreading from the soles was truly real.
For mortals, it’s a usual pleasure.
But for Qing Jun, it was an experience she never had.
However...
She clearly wanted the Master to wash her, how did it become washing together?
The wind sounded more urgent at midnight, rustling loudly.
Occasionally a cold wind would pass through the door, making the flame flicker, causing the two girls to shrink.
Without experiencing warmth, they wouldn’t feel the cold wind freezing, having long become accustomed.
But once immersed in warmth, the sudden cold wind felt especially icy.
"So cold!" Qing Jun’s bare feet just left the water, toes curling into a pink ball from the cold.
"Go warm up in the bed, you two sleep on the bed tonight."
Chen Ye glanced at the straw mat on the ground.
It was where the two apprentices used to sleep, but he wouldn’t let them sleep on the ground now.
Saying so, Chen Ye wrapped the white furred ball in a quilt, tossing her onto the couch.
The little girl couldn’t help but roll around on the bed.
So soft!
At least several layers of quilts were padded underneath, with coals burning under the kang bed.
Much more comfortable than sleeping on the ground!
The older girl saw Chen Ye looking at her, as if about to toss her onto the bed without a word.
Immediately, she silently took off her outer garment and climbed into bed proactively.
"Sister!"
The little girl impatiently hugged her sister’s dry body.
A warm bed, and sister to hold onto!
Qing Jun felt indescribably satisfied.
But soon, seeing her sister’s trembling eyelashes, she suddenly had an epiphany.
Only then did she realize—what if Master also comes to bed?!
So,
The two little ones holding each other nervously, wrapped in the quilt, curled into small bundles.
A black and a white little head leaned together, only exposing four eyes blinking at Chen Ye.
Chen Ye, seeing this, chuckled silently.
He got up and closed the wooden door tightly.
Blocking the door with a rack, he then sat cross-legged on the straw mat where his apprentices used to sleep.
...
The next morning.
Chen Ye, with dark circles, rubbed his eyes and stood up from the ground.
The first half of the night was okay, he slept soundly by the fire pit.
But come the latter half, the flames extinguished, freezing him awake.
On the bed, the two apprentices were sleeping sweetly, forehead against forehead, cuddled together.
They looked quite lacking in a sense of security.
Chen Ye pushed the door open.
The road was empty, the entire shanty town silver-clad, without its usual squalor.
Lead-grey clouds loomed over the sky, oppressive and dull.
Next door on the right, a skinny man was busily cleaning the house.
Previously, only the left house had been occupied by Taoist Zhang, and the right had been empty for a full year since the previous occupant was killed in a magical battle.
The new neighbor, seeing Chen Ye come out, stopped cleaning, clasped his hands and smiled:
"Greetings, Taoist friend. I am new to Yunxi District, and hope Taoist friend can guide me in the future."
Chen Ye returned the gesture: "You are too kind, Taoist friend. Though simple, this shanty town is quite peaceful."
He glanced at the bloodstains on the man’s body, his expression tensing.
The skinny man noticed, laughingly opening the door:
"Don’t misunderstand, Taoist friend. On my way to Yunxi District yesterday, I killed a demon beast in passing. This is just the demon beast’s blood."
Inside the empty room, a snake sprawled on the table, entirely emerald like jade, with hard scales.
This was a First Tier demon beast, a Jade-Scaled Snake!
Far more troublesome than ordinary beasts, usually requiring four to five Mid-Stage Qi Cultivation cultivators working together to kill.
Chen Ye secretly clicked his tongue, it seemed this new neighbor was quite formidable.
The two chatted briefly, introducing themselves to each other.
The skinny man’s name was Hee Qi, appearing around forty years old, from Moon Rhinoceros Lake Market.
He usually made a living by hunting demons, not revealing his cultivation, but Chen Ye estimated he was at least on the Sixth Layer of Qi Cultivation, or even Late Period.
"I didn’t expect Taoist Friend Chen to be a Spirit Plant Master! If I gather Spiritual Medicine from the Three Thousand Great Mountains in the future, I may seek Taoist friend’s help." Hee Qi was amiable, not stingy with praise.
Chen Ye knew this was merely a polite remark.
A true Spirit Plant Master would at least have the Three Spirit Plant Skills cultivated to Great Success.
Capable of independently developing a Spirit Field.
In the market, Spirit Plant Masters were considered prominent figures.
They could even join Lingyin Sect, acting as disciples in the Outer Sect, responsible for overseeing Spirit Fields.
Though just overseeing Spirit Fields, their status was higher than Li Qiuyun who patrolled the shanty town before.
In other words, Spirit Plant Masters are strategic talents.
For major sects like Lingyin,
obtaining Spiritual Medicine isn’t reliant on disciples picking in the Three Thousand Great Mountains, but on Spirit Plant Masters within the sect cultivating and planting continuously.
This is how stable reserves and resource loops are established.
"No, no, I only know a bit of Spirit Plant Technique. But you, Taoist friend, being able to hunt a Jade-Scaled Snake, your magical battle skills are unmatched in this shanty town!" Chen Ye sincerely praised.
Facing such a big demon snake, to be frank, he felt weak just looking at it.
Hee Qi sighed: "Taoist Friend Chen is a dignified person, knowing Spirit Plant Technique, while I, a loose cultivator without skills, can only fight for resources to cultivate. It’s tough!"
Seeing Hee Qi’s modesty, Chen Ye quickly lowered his stature and complimented him again, the skinny man’s smile growing genuine.
After much effort, the mutual flattery finally ended.
"Master..."
Qing Jun timidly poked out half her head to peek.
Seeing Chen Ye talking to a stranger, she quickly shrank back.
"Is that your disciple? I didn’t expect Taoist friend to be accompanying a child." Hee Qi was caught off guard, his gaze softening, sincerely saying,
"To be honest, I already have a family in Moon Rhinoceros Lake, with a child under my knee. This time, taking advantage of the heavy snow, I came to the Three Thousand Great Mountains to hunt some demon beasts, earning Spirit Stones for my child’s future cultivation."
Hearing this, Chen Ye understood.
No wonder someone of Hee Qi’s cultivation would stay in the shanty town, it was merely a short-term stop.
Keep in mind, renting in Yunxi District starts at a half-year minimum, and isn’t cheap.
Many short-term residents prefer staying in the shanty town.
With common ground, the two felt as if they’d met after a long separation, chatting for a long time about raising children.
Before parting, Hee Qi even offered two pounds of demon snake meat, which despite Chen Ye’s many refusals, he couldn’t ultimately resist.
"This person is quite nice, though fond of mutual flattery and quietly showing off..."
Chen Ye examined the crystalline demon snake meat in his hand.
A pound sells for around fifty Spiritual Sand in Yunxi District.
He estimated that Jade-Scaled Snake weighed forty pounds or so, just the meat could sell for over twenty Spirit Stones.
"Demon Hunting cultivators, truly well-off, a Spirit Stone given just like that."
Chen Ye sighed, he guessed it was thanks to Qing Jun, stirring Hee Qi’s emotions, leading him to gift two pounds of demon snake meat.
In this large shanty town, probably only he had such young children with him.