"This 'Senior Brother Shen' made Lian Xu immediately turn his head to look at Shen Jingxiao, while also asking the system: 'System, who is she?'"

The system made two crackling static sounds, its signal intermittent: [Her name is Yun Qing, and she's the granddaughter of a Yunxian Sect elder. In the original plot, after Shen Jingxiao's spiritual roots were crippled, his status in the Yunxian Sect became extremely awkward. It was Yun Qing who consistently protected him and helped him search for rare celestial treasures to repair his spiritual roots, eventually becoming one of Shen Jingxiao's harem members.]

Lian Xu remembered the Yunxian Sect, it was the very sect that had caused Shen Jingxiao's spiritual roots to be destroyed.

As for the latter part of the introduction, Lian Xu's face fell instantly after hearing it, and he directly yanked his hand away from Shen Jingxiao's.

Sensing that his palm had suddenly become empty, Shen Jingxiao immediately turned his head. Seeing Lian Xu's awkward expression, the corners of his lips couldn't help curving upward, and he unobtrusively reached out to support Lian Xu's lower back.

"I don't recall having a junior sister like you."

Shen Jingxiao held no favorable attitude toward Yun Qing, or rather, he would never hold a favorable attitude toward anyone from the Yunxian Sect.

Yun Qing's expression stiffened, and she forced a bitter smile: "Senior Brother, stop speaking in anger. After you left without saying goodbye, everyone in the Yunxian Sect was very worried about you."

"Worried that I didn't die completely, more like," Shen Jingxiao sneered. "And isn't my leaving the Yunxian Sect exactly what you all wanted?"

Yun Qing dug her fingernails into her palms, her face instantly taking on a wounded expression: "Senior Brother, your spiritual roots were crippled; it's completely normal for the grand ancestors not to accept it for a time. But I was genuinely worried about you and kept trying to find ways to help you return to the Yunxian Sect."

"Oh? What way?" Shen Jingxiao feigned curiosity.

A flash of calculation instantly crossed the depths of Yun Qing's eyes, and she spoke with hesitation: "Senior Brother, do you know about the Floating Bird City black market? Rumor has it that a Heaven-Connecting Token will appear in the inner grounds during this black market. As long as I can acquire the inner ground quota and offer it to the grand ancestors, I will definitely make my grandfather intercede for Senior Brother, allowing you to return to the Yunxian Sect."

A Heaven-Connecting Token?! Lian Xu's ears instantly perked up.

"Pfft." Beside them, Lian Weiwei couldn't help letting out a cold scoff. "Beat around the bush for all this time, and it turns out to be just for this? What kind of do-gooder are you trying to play, you didn't even dare lift a finger when you were being pestered by that pig for fear of tangling up the Yunxian Sect, yet here you are putting on airs with us."

Yun Qing's face instantly flushed crimson. Since her intentions had been seen through, she no longer bothered to keep up the act.

"What do you people know!" She instantly switched to an overbearing demeanor, lifting her chin with a hint of deliberate malice in her eyes. "Shen Jingxiao, you're nothing more than a waste with crippled spiritual roots now. Isn't it completely natural for the Yunxian Sect to expel you? Now I'm giving you a chance to go back. As long as you hand me the inner ground quota for the black market, I can pull strings for you. You know my grandfather is an elder of the Yunxian Sect; getting you in as an outer-court sweeping disciple is more than manageable."

"Unlike right now, where you can only scrape by living with another useless piece of trash."

Clearly, the other piece of trash in her mouth referred to Lian Xu.

Lian Xu caught the implication and looked at Shen Jingxiao: "Is her grandfather very impressive?"

"Not impressive at all," Shen Jingxiao answered truthfully. "When I was in the Yunxian Sect, he didn't even have the qualifications to see me."

Of course, he didn't have those qualifications now, either.

Lian Xu let out an "ah" of realization, turned to look at Yun Qing, and asked with sincere confusion: "You said Shen Jingxiao is trash, but your grandfather doesn't even qualify to see trash, does that mean he's even more trash than trash?"

Lian Xu's tone was far too sincere, so sincere that one couldn't even sense any mockery in it.

Yun Qing froze, her face instantly turning beet red as she stared at Lian Xu in disbelief.

"Nonsense!" Her voice turned sharp, turning red with fury upon hearing the two of them speak of her grandfather that way. "My grandfather is the most formidable person of all, and today I'm going to make you all see who the real trash is!"

She gnashed her teeth, the magical treasure in her hand glowing faintly as she prepared to charge at Shen Jingxiao the very next second.

Right at that moment, however, an ordinarily dressed person suddenly appeared by Yun Qing's side, murmuring a few words into her ear.

Yun Qing's expression shifted slightly. She shot a cold snort at the trio of Shen Jingxiao and declared, "Consider yourselves lucky."

With a dramatic sweep of her large sleeve, she spun around and quickly strode away.

"You're just going to let her leave like that?" Lian Weiwei looked toward Shen Jingxiao.

"No need to waste time," Shen Jingxiao answered calmly, taking Lian Xu's hand as he prepared to enter the city.

"Won't she go back to complain and snatch our token?" Lian Xu voiced a bit of worry instead.

"Then we'll just have to rely on Lianlian to protect her husband." Shen Jingxiao adopted a fragile tone, returning to normal only after earning himself a well-deserved glare. "Rest assured, she wants to earn merit in front of her grandfather and use this opportunity to become the Yunxian Sect's chief disciple; there's no way she'll split the news with anyone else. Besides, even if a fight really breaks out, we're not without the means to retaliate. Let's head into the city first."

Unfortunately, their carriage had been destroyed, leaving the three of them with no choice but to enter the city on foot. Fortunately, they weren't far from the city gates to begin with, and they made it inside within roughly half a cup of tea's time.

"It's so lively." This was Lian Xu's first time seeing so many people.

The main street was packed to the brim with crowds rubbing shoulders, so Shen Jingxiao pulled Lian Xu to the outer side, shielding him from the pedestrian flow.

Both Shen Jingxiao and Lian Weiwei had clear objectives; their very first priority after entering the city was to locate the tavern under the Jin Hai Commercial Guild.

Upon seeing the token produced by Lian Xu, the tavern manager's expression shifted slightly, and he immediately led the three of them to a premium suite on the upper floors, announcing that all food and lodging would be entirely free of charge.

"This token is this useful?" Lian Xu tucked the token back into his cosmos pouch, curiously inspecting the suite.

He was like a little kitten that had just stepped out of its nest, feeling curious about everything outside and unable to resist poking everything with his paws.

Shen Jingxiao simply watched Lian Xu pace back and forth around the room. The moment Lian Xu passed right in front of him, he stealthily hooked out a leg, successfully catching the little beauty as he tumbled right into his arms.

"Lianlian is so proactive, huh?" Shen Jingxiao lamented as he settled the person onto his lap.

Lian Xu: . . .

"Does Lianlian want to go out for a stroll?"

"I do," Lian Xu nodded.

Whatever Lian Xu wanted, Lian Xu got.

Before long, Lian Xu and Shen Jingxiao appeared on the bustling main street. In his hands, Lian Xu held a stick of candied haws, while behind him, Shen Jingxiao was laden with bags of all sizes.

Lian Xu's initial plan was to wander until sunset, but unfortunately his body didn't allow for it. To ensure he had enough energy for the black market at night, he even took an afternoon nap.

Deep into the night, Shen Jingxiao woke up the groggy, half-asleep Lian Xu, placed a mask over his face to conceal his appearance, and led him toward the black market.

The black market of Floating Bird City was divided into outer and inner grounds. The outer grounds sold relatively common items, occasionally yielding a rare find. The inner grounds were different; goods entering the inner grounds had to go through a screening process, and only after being confirmed as rare and precious could they be brought inside.

Correspondingly, anyone wishing to enter the inner grounds was required to hold a pass, which would be destroyed immediately after use.

Lian Xu fished three passes out of his pocket, and the guards let the three of them in only after verifying them.

The inner grounds had fewer people than the outer grounds, but the bustle was by no means inferior. Lian Xu had already seen several stalls surrounded by crowds of cultivators, all inquiring whether the items on display could be sold to them.

Yet the place with the greatest concentration of people was a shop at the very end of the inner grounds. Rumor had it that this shop was connected to the city lord's estate, and everything sold inside consisted of various high-grade celestial treasures.

The rumors regarding the Heaven-Connecting Token had also originated from this establishment.

"There are too many people. You wait here with my big brother; I'll go take a look and be right back."

Clad in a black cloak, Lian Weiwei wormed her way into the crowd in a few quick movements, emerging from the throng the space of a tea session later.

"Tch." Disappointment laced her tone, though it carried a hint of 'as expected': "Fake. It's actually just news about a Heaven-Connecting Token; whether it's true or not is anyone's guess."

Shen Jingxiao found this quite normal: "Expected it all along."

They had merely come to confirm it specifically to avoid missing any potential opportunities.

Only Lian Xu sensed that something wasn't quite right, and he gave Shen Jingxiao's sleeve a firm tug.

"Did you guys intend to come to Floating Bird City right from the very beginning?"

Lian Xu had looked at the map and remembered which cities one had to pass through to reach the Changming Sect. Pondering it slightly, he spoke with certainty.

"Were we never planning to go to the Changming Sect at all?"