Fang Xuan stood on the street of a small town on the border of the Northern Plains, cradling his sword.
He had already "asked" clearly about the Martial Alliance and the Snow Wolf Dynasty in the back alley of the restaurant.
Simply put, about a month ago, the Snow Wolf Dynasty provoked a mysterious sword cultivator and was nearly wiped out overnight.
The leader of the Northern Plains' greatest power, the Martial Alliance, also seemed to have suffered a great loss and was rumored to be in secluded meditation to recover from his injuries until now.
Who else could it be but his Senior Sister, who, thinking he had been snatched away by his family, was so consumed with rage that she likely took it out on others?
The item Senior Sister wanted was said to be at the Martial Alliance headquarters.
There were likely three or four Tribulation Crossing old monsters stationed in the Martial Alliance; it would probably be a bit difficult for Senior Sister to deal with them alone.
He had to go and help Senior Sister take the item.
There was no special reason; Senior Sister wanted it, so he would get it.
...
Across the street, a merchant caravan of considerable size was organizing its goods, their banners embroidered with the name "Li."
Several cultivators looking like guards were shouting: "Hiring escorts! Hiring escorts!"
"The journey to the Northern Plains main city is long, and monster sightings are frequent!"
"Fellow Daoists below the Foundation Establishment stage should not bother trying, lest you throw your lives away for nothing!"
Fang Xuan rubbed his chin.
The Northern Plains was vast, and this was indeed his first time here.
Although his divine sense was powerful, finding his way... cough, as a dignified Transformation Realm cultivator, how could he admit he was a bit directionally challenged? It definitely wasn't that.
It was just that the terrain of the Northern Plains was complex and the climate harsh; what if he went the wrong way and delayed the time to find Senior Sister?
...
He sauntered over and stood before the person who appeared to be the manager.
The manager looked up to size him up.
He looked like a youth, cradling an unremarkable black sword with his right hand wrapped in white cloth; his clothes were not luxurious, but his aura was clean, and his face was excessively handsome.
His presence... well, he seemed to be intentionally restraining it, making it hard to see through, but since he dared to answer the call, he should be at least at the middle-stage or late-stage Foundation Establishment, right?
Perhaps he was an elite disciple from some major sect out for experience.
"Good, good! Little brother, register your name here. We will rely on you for safety on the road! The Li family will provide a generous reward once we reach Northern Plains City!"
The manager warmly handed over a jade slip.
Fang Xuan casually left the alias "Xuan Qi" on it, and thus he joined the merchant caravan.
...
The caravan set off, grandly driving into the vast snowy plains.
The world was a uniform white, vast and desolate, completely different from the scenery of the Central Plains and the Southern Wilderness.
Fang Xuan sat on the outside of the carriage, holding a wine skin in his hand.
He took another sip.
It tasted terrible.
He suddenly missed how Senior Sister looked in the small courtyard, her face slightly flushed as she took small sips of the fruit wine she brewed herself.
At that time, the sunlight was perfect, and Senior Sister's eyes were bright...
"Senior is drinking Shaodaozi, right? Is this your first time in the Northern Plains?"
The young master of the Li family approached, dressed like a young noble from the Southern Wilderness, and bowed to Fang Xuan first.
"Mm," Fang Xuan grunted in response.
The young man was grinning, full of curiosity about this senior who looked very young and handsome.
"Is Senior from the Central Plains? Is the Central Plains especially prosperous? Is the spiritual energy particularly dense? I heard the cultivators there are all incredibly powerful."
Fang Xuan glanced at him and didn't deny it: "It's alright."
"What is Senior's cultivation level?" the Li family young master asked.
He always felt that Fang Xuan's strength should not be simple.
But he couldn't quite put it into words; it was just a feeling that as this "Xuan Qi" sat there cradling his sword, he seemed to blend into the surrounding wind and snow, yet faintly possessed an aura that made one not dare to offend him.
Fang Xuan took another sip of wine and wiped the corner of his mouth: "Do you really want to know?"
The Li family young master nodded: "Mm-hmm..."
Fang Xuan set down the wine skin and said slowly: "Transformation Realm."
Then, the Li family young master's mouth hung so wide open that an egg could have fit inside...
...
The caravan trudged through the wind and snow for three days.
During these three days, Fang Xuan spent most of his time with his eyes closed, regulating his breath.
The heavy injuries in his body were already seventy to eighty percent healed; the severed meridians were basically reconnected, and his depleted dantian was filled once more.
He had even turned misfortune into a blessing, as it was now more condensed and expansive.
His cultivation was stable at the Transformation Realm middle-stage.
If he wanted to break through to the late-stage through normal cultivation, it would likely take quite a long time.
Although the spirit buns given by the system could increase his level without bottlenecks, the quantity was too small; the spirit buns converted from the daily bits of training value were a mere drop in the bucket.
If he wanted to improve rapidly, he still had to rely on... his cute Senior Sister.
He also had to save up some spirit buns so that when the time came, he could have Senior Sister assist him in a special training ritual to earn more training value.
Then he could use those to feed himself to the Tribulation Crossing stage without any bottlenecks.
If he wanted the system to be more useful, he had to upgrade it quickly.
Now that his relationship with Senior Sister was so... deep, next time they could try some even more unconventional... cough, more system-recognized methods, so upgrading shouldn't be difficult.
Ultimately, it was all for the sake of cultivation!
It definitely wasn't some strange hobby...
...
Three days later, the outline of Northern Plains City appeared on the horizon.
The caravan arrived at the post station outside the city for final rest and handovers.
Fang Xuan's figure flashed, and he entered the city.
...
Northern Plains City, Martial Alliance headquarters.
A Martial Alliance disciple sized him up; seeing that he was young and cradling an unremarkable black sword, his tone was relatively polite.
"You want to join the Martial Alliance?"
"Not join, but take over."
To help Senior Sister infiltrate the internal ranks, he would naturally take the fastest path.
The disciple: "???"
"Under whom did you study, and what is your cultivation?"
"A rogue cultivator, nameless, Transformation Realm..."
...
At the same time, tens of thousands of miles away from Northern Plains City, deep within a mountain range covered in ice and snow.
Inside a temporarily carved ice cave.
A blush instantly stained Ning Xian's small face, spreading all the way to her ears, and her lower abdomen felt slightly warm.
That wicked Junior Brother actually... actually carved the mark in such a place!
But... this mark was left by Junior Brother, so she... was reluctant to erase it.
Every time she felt the mark heat up, knowing he was likely looking for her, that empty place in her heart felt as if it were being gently filled by something, tart and aching yet with a hint of secret sweetness.
When she was sensed again, she would just hide in the space for a bit...
Anyway, she had left Junior Brother and walked away alone; he must be very angry and wouldn't come looking for her...
...
Once she settled the matter with the Martial Alliance, she would return to the Central Plains to see her Junior Brother one last time and secretly give him all the items.
She would then deal with those three lingering immortals herself to prevent the people of the Upper Realm from spying; she had to ensure Junior Brother had no such background before going to the Upper Realm.
Only then could he successfully join a holy land.
Furthermore, she couldn't be too obvious when giving him things.
For example, if a huge piece of top-grade spirit medicine suddenly fell from the sky, that wouldn't do.
At the very least, he should find many top-grade spirit medicines on the ground.
Junior Brother should be happy when he sees those things.
He looks very handsome when he smiles...
She thought while hugging her legs, her lips unconsciously curling upward...
In front of her, Fang Xuan's smiling face really did appear...
She blinked; had she been away from Junior Brother for so long that she was starting to hallucinate?
"Senior Sister?" Fang Xuan leaned over and spoke, smiling brightly...
Ning Xian was so startled she trembled, her legs going weak.
"Ah... um..."
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