Chapter 129: Money-Grubbing Miser!

Seeing that Zhao Qianxue was resolute, Su Ji'an stopped trying to dissuade her. Before she departed, however, he gave her one final instruction: never to show her face in public. She was to let the players handle all operational matters. By staying behind the scenes, she could avoid ninety-nine percent of all trouble. If anything went wrong, the players would take the fall.

Purchasing a courtyard in Hanshan City would be cheaper than renting a storefront, much like it was in Yingdu City. With several branches already opened, Su Ji'an had previously set aside a portion of the earned spirit stones for Zhao Qianxue.

Finding himself with nothing to do, Su Ji'an wandered through the village. Suddenly, he saw Li Ling'er running toward him with a look of extreme urgency.

Su Ji'an was taken aback. "What's the matter? Did your house burn down?"

Every time he saw this little girl, trouble seemed to follow. Could she have a constitution that attracted disaster?

Li Ling'er quickly reached him, breathless and frantic. "Your house is the one that burned down! It’s Aunt Li—something seems to have happened to her. I heard a scream from her house just now, so I rushed in to check, but Aunt Li had already vanished without a trace."

Su Ji'an was even more surprised. "If that’s the case, why aren't you finding your father to mobilize the whole village to look for her? Why come to me?"

He had no interest in playing detective; meddling in such affairs was simply a sign of having too much time on his hands.

Li Ling'er quickly explained, "My father hasn't returned yet, and he didn't tell me anything before he left. You were the first person who came to mind."

Su Ji'an thought for a moment and began to offer advice. "I'm no deity; coming to me is useless. While the scoundrel who abducted Aunt Li hasn't gone far, you should hurry and get the rest of the village to search the nearby area while there's still time."

It was likely that someone with peculiar tastes had snatched her. He had seen Aunt Li before... Though the situation was bizarre, he couldn't think of a better explanation. Who would be bored enough to kidnap an unremarkable village woman?

Hearing this, Li Ling'er stopped hesitating and immediately turned to run through the village, spreading the news. Before long, the simple-hearted villagers of Lingxiu began searching in separate groups. Li Ling'er, anxious for Aunt Li's safety, joined the search party as well. Su Ji'an, however, did not join in the commotion.

An hour later, a system notification caught his attention. These days, with the growing number of players, system updates arrived with increasing frequency, though most were of little use. Still, Su Ji'an dared not miss a single one, lest he overlook a crucial piece of information and regret it later.

[Player "Key Immortal" discovered Li Ling'er nearby and approached out of curiosity to ask questions. Before he could speak, a strange gust of wind swept through the woods; Li Ling'er was taken away, and Key Immortal was killed on the spot.]

[Player "Key Immortal" has died. Would you like to spend 1,000 spirit points to resurrect them?]

"Hmm?" Su Ji'an paused. This development was completely unexpected. Li Ling'er being taken was definitely linked to Aunt Li's disappearance. Clearly, the culprit was likely the same person. But he still couldn't fathom why a cultivator would kidnap a village woman. Even a bloodthirsty demon wouldn't do something so tedious and unrewarding without a conflict of interest. A normal villain would simply slaughter the village out of spite, or perhaps act like the Black Mountain Old Demon.

Just then, before Su Ji'an could decide how to respond, several notifications popped up in his mind.

[Option 1: Remain indifferent and watch the situation from the sidelines.]
[Reward: Your strength will slightly increase.]

[Option 2: Join the culprit and express that their actions are deeply to your liking.]
[Reward: Immediately unlock the ability to eavesdrop on others' thoughts.]

[Option 3: You have known each other for a while; rescue Li Ling'er. A mere Nascent Soul cultivator is nothing to worry about.]
[Reward: Unlock the Ultimate Version of the Daoist Companion Mode.]

Deeply to his liking? Pfft, what a rat. Does a person like that deserve to be his peer?

As for whether to watch from the sidelines or save Li Ling'er, there was no need to hesitate. The stupid system had already said it was a mere Nascent Soul cultivator; this was practically a gift. Still, the old rule applied: despise the enemy in your heart, but be cautious in your actions.

Furthermore, the Ultimate Version of the Daoist Companion Mode was something he desperately needed. Of his three existing modes, the Daoist Companion one always felt like it was lacking something. If it still proved useless, he would simply switch modes later.

[Reward Obtained: Ultimate Version of the Daoist Companion Mode unlocked.]
[Details of Ultimate Version: You can bind one additional Daoist companion for free. Every subsequent binding limit requires 200,000 spirit points to unlock.]
[Cultivation Transfer Function enabled: With mutual consent, you may transfer your own cultivation to the other person. Each person may only perform this transfer once.]
[Unbinding Function enabled: With mutual consent, you may spend 50,000 spirit points to dissolve the relationship.]

Su Ji'an: "..."

That’s alright, I suppose... It’s just that the system is a bit of a rip-off—200,000 spirit points to unlock one slot? Is it diamond-encrusted? Besides, it’s just like summoning players from the heavens; the results are completely random. Who knows what kind of "cow or horse" (useless person) might be summoned? In that case, the unbinding function would certainly prove its worth.

Money-grubber! Su Ji'an grumbled inwardly. Although the cultivation transfer function sounded good, it required the other party's consent. He thought of He Hansu... better forget it. That woman probably wanted to eat him alive. Her injuries had largely recovered as of last night.

Su Ji'an checked the Daoist companion tracking function... sure enough, she was already on her way. She would probably arrive before nightfall. The little girl was coming to offer him her cultivation; once he bound her and watched over her training, she would surely make great progress under his tutelage.

[A free Daoist companion binding opportunity has been issued. Please select from the following options.]
[Li Ling'er]
[Luo Shuxian]
[Shen Qingyan]

Su Ji'an raised an eyebrow. "What kind of random characters are these?" Last time, at least there was the Heavenly Empress He Hansu—though her strength in the Heavenly Realm might be mediocre, it was still far beyond that of lower-realm cultivators. Li Ling'er was out of the question. Luo Shuxian... the name sounded familiar, but he couldn't recall exactly where he had heard it. He would ask Zhao Qianxue when she returned tonight; perhaps she knew who this person was.

As for the last one, Shen Qingyan, he knew her all too well. He had long suspected that Shen Qing'er was Shen Qingyan—could it be that this Shen Qingyan was actually someone else?

Su Ji'an pondered for a moment. No rush to choose; the names at the bottom weren't necessarily the most powerful. He would leave the Daoist companion issue for later; for now, he needed to finish off the scoundrel who had abducted Li Ling'er.