Chapter 79

After a satisfying meal, Tang Jie suggested that everyone wander around the streets freely and buy anything they wanted to take back. This proposal was met with unanimous support. Shopping was an important part of the trip, and as long as it wasn't mandatory, everyone was quite willing.

They agreed on a meeting time and place, and then dispersed. Naturally, Tang Jie walked with Wei Tianchong, but halfway through, he excused himself to buy a vase and left on his own.

Away from the group, Tang Jie strolled alone on the street, seemingly enjoying the flowers, while a small head peeked out from his chest, looking around. Without the other students around, Xiao Yiyi could finally come out for a breath of fresh air.

Looking at the outside world, Yiyi's eyes sparkled: "Wow, it's so big out here... so beautiful!"

Tang Jie smiled and whispered, "Yes, the outside world is vast and beautiful... be careful, don't stick your head out too much."

He gently pushed Yiyi's head back into his clothes. Fortunately, the ancient clothes were loose, so she wasn't suffocated.

Crouching in the clothes, Yiyi pouted, "Can't I come out? I really want to go out and see, big brother, they're already gone, right?"

Tang Jie stopped by the roadside, looking at the distant scenery, and answered as if talking to himself, "They are gone, but not necessarily all of them."

"Hidden ones?" Yiyi understood somewhat, looking around furtively and asking softly, "Is someone following us?"

Having been with Tang Jie for so long, the little girl gradually realized the dangers around him. Although Tang Jie never formally told Yiyi about the secrets, he never deliberately hid them either. Even a naive little girl gradually understood some things in such a situation.

"Maybe," Tang Jie replied.

"You don't know?" Yiyi was surprised.

Tang Jie shook his head, "How could I know? I just started cultivating, and to deal with Zhuang Shen, I can only learn combat techniques. Those sent to deal with me are either powerful cultivators or well-trained secret agents. If I could easily spot them, that would be funny. I just think that if I were the Heavenly Palace, I wouldn't let this opportunity pass if I were in my shoes."

"Then why did you separate from the other students? Aren't you afraid they'll catch you?"

"I want to know if they are going to catch me, just follow me, or ignore me. If I don't give them the chance, how can I know their actions? Without knowing their actions, how can I respond?"

"Is that so... but isn't it too risky?" The little girl, perched on the collar like a kitten, propped up her chin with her hand, pretending to be mature and thoughtful.

Tang Jie laughed, "Do you think I brought you along for no reason? If they really come to catch me, I'll throw you and run. You have to cover for me, okay?"

"Ugh!" Yiyi shouted, but Tang Jie quickly covered her mouth with his finger.

Yiyi struggled, her small hands flailing, but her strength was weak, and it only tickled Tang Jie.

"Alright, alright, I won't tease you. This is Wanshui City, not Xiyue Academy or the Heavenly Palace. If they make a move, I'll just stir up trouble and drag it out. Then the masters will arrive. Your illusionary array might not work, but dragging time is your specialty. Besides, I have my own preparations, so there's no need to worry."

"Hmph, why didn't you say so earlier!" Yiyi turned her head away, angry.

Tang Jie patted her head, "Don't be mad, dear. No matter what they do, we need to find out before they act. This is their opportunity, and mine too."

"How do we find out?" Yiyi asked softly.

"That's where you come in."

Strolling through the streets of Wanshui City, Tang Jie wandered through alleys and eventually entered a shop selling magical artifacts. He left after a while and continued to wander around.

After a while, a man entered the shop and saw the shop assistant sitting at the counter.

The man walked over and said, "Shopkeeper, I have a question."

The assistant glanced at the man and then continued to play with the abacus.

The man took out a silver ingot and handed it over, "Was there a young man who entered here just now?"

The assistant looked at the silver, took it, and then slowly said, "Yes, a young man did come, so what?"

"Did he sell you anything?" the man asked quickly.

"Sell something?" The assistant shook his head in surprise, "No, he just looked around."

"Just looked around?"

"Yes, he said he wanted to buy a magical sword, but from his appearance, he clearly couldn't afford it," the assistant said disdainfully.

As an assistant, he wouldn't show contempt to customers in person, but behind their backs, it was hard to hide.

Unfortunately, the man wasn't satisfied and asked, "Did he try to sell you a storage bag or a magical sword?"

"Storage bag? Magical sword? Are you joking? That young man could have those?" The assistant looked at him disdainfully.

The man was disappointed and had to take out another silver ingot and hand it to the assistant, "You know what to say and what not to say."

The assistant, with the silver, smiled, "Rest assured, I understand."

The man sighed and left.

As soon as he left, Tang Jie turned around and came back, bowing to the assistant, "I'm sorry, I was just looking at things and accidentally left a flower here."

He pointed to a corner where a small white flower lay quietly.

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"A middle-aged man in purple? Not from the Free and Easy Society?" Tang Jie felt a great pity but then understood, "In this situation, there's no need to send the hidden agents in the Free and Easy Society, as it might expose them. But this suggests they are only investigating, not trying to capture me. So, Gu Changqing has learned from his mistakes and doesn't want to act rashly anymore? If so, he probably sent someone to Anyang, which would take at least four to five months... great, this gives me time to improve myself. But that guy following us is really annoying; with him around, I can't do anything."

He muttered to himself, analyzing Gu Changqing's actions just as Gu Changqing analyzed his.

"Yes, yes," the little girl nodded, pretending to understand, though she didn't really get it.

"Fortunately, there's a way," Tang Jie smiled.

He whispered, pretending to look at the scenery and glanced around. Sure enough, he found the middle-aged man in purple, walking slowly in the distance. If not for Yiyi's reminder, he wouldn't have noticed that the seemingly wealthy man was a spy from the Heavenly Palace.

Tang Jie sneered inwardly and pretended to walk past.

The man saw Tang Jie coming and didn't panic, just walked past him in the crowd.

Unexpectedly, Tang Jie suddenly stopped him, "Sir, could you tell me how to get to Zhongyi Street?"

The man in purple was taken aback, "This... I'm not quite sure."

"Is that so, then I'll bother you no more," Tang Jie smiled and walked away, looking for someone else to ask.

The man in purple watched as his target asked for directions and walked away, unsure of what to do.

He wanted to follow, but they had already met face to face. If he continued to follow, even a fool would know he was being tailed.

Uncertain, Tang Jie disappeared into the crowd, leaving the man stomping his feet in frustration. He thought about sending a message to Gu Changqing for help, but knowing he had failed, he feared being scolded. After some thought, he decided that Tang Jie was just a suspect. According to the shopkeeper, he couldn't even afford a magical sword, so there should be no problem. He reported "no abnormalities" and dealt with it.

Tang Jie, after several turns, saw that the man in purple wasn't following and smiled. He continued to the next street.

He first went to an empty alley, changed out of his white clothes, darkened his face with mud, and messed up his hair. Then he walked out, making sure no one was paying attention, and confidently entered a shop.

The shopkeeper, seeing a ragged youth enter, was impatient and tried to shoo him out, but the youth spoke boldly, "Call your boss, I have a deal to make."

"Brat, what deal could you have?" the assistant said irritably.

The youth held up a bag, "Open your eyes and see what I have."

"Storage bag?" The assistant's eyes widened, and he carefully examined it, then his expression changed, "Sir, please wait, I'll call the boss."

This storage bag was what Tang Jie had obtained from killing Zhuang Shen and Min Dong.

Tang Jie had gained a lot from killing these two, but unfortunately, only the pills, talismans, and storage bag could be sold without obvious marks. The pills and talismans were kept for his own use, leaving the storage bag as the only item he could sell.

As for the other items, after studying the Heavenly Palace armor, Tang Jie used the "Soldier" technique to refine Min Dong's short sword and the armor, along with the purple fire sword, obtaining three grains of gold sand.

The three grains of gold sand merged into one larger grain.

As for the array diagram and the Immortal Binding Rope, he was reluctant to refine them, and the Demon Refining Token couldn't be refined. Tang Jie planned to keep them for his own use, but only when no one was around.

The boss soon came out, saw the storage bag, and nodded, "Good, it's a storage bag, but it's a bit small."

Tang Jie, pretending to be a tough youth, shouted, "Old man, don't think I don't know. I've checked, this storage bag is worth at least six spirit stones!"

The boss chuckled, "Six spirit stones is the selling price, but I can't buy it. If you want to sell, I can give you three."

"No way!" Tang Jie snatched the storage bag, "I've checked, it can sell for at least 4,500 coins on the market!"

"That's true, but the source of your storage bag might not be clean, right?" the boss smiled.

"Um..." Tang Jie pretended to be caught, somewhat angry, "It's none of your business. I didn't steal or rob it. I found it on the street!"

The boss laughed again, "Whether you found it or stole it, I won't hold it against you. But without a clear source, there's a problem. How about this, I'll give you 3.5 spirit stones for the storage bag and promise not to reveal who sold it. What do you say?"

Tang Jie pretended to hesitate, "Are you sure? If someone asks..."

"The old man will say I didn't receive any storage bags today. This one was received long ago," the boss said firmly.

Tang Jie gritted his teeth and finally nodded, "Alright, 3.5 spirit stones, you got a good deal."

"Mutual benefit," the boss smiled, "If you have any other goods, you can come to me."

A storage bag worth six spirit stones, bought for 3.5, made the boss quite happy.

"I will," Tang Jie smiled, feeling more at ease with the boss's words.

Though the storage bag was good, it wasn't something he could