Very stiff.

Fan Wubing felt that since Fu Manman started walking with him, she had become very stiff.

She kept her head down, walking forward without a word, not even glancing at the streets on either side, completely unlike someone here to seek fortune.

Could it be because of me?

Fan Wubing coughed and called out to Fu Manman,

"Hey, Manman, are you okay?"

Fu Manman immediately stopped, stood still, and after a moment, stiffly turned her head and asked softly,

"What did you call me?"

Wow, this is classic social anxiety! Girl, how did you become like this?

After all, Fan Wubing was an adult, at least in essence. He didn't have that kind of childish temperament, so he said directly,

"Almost ten years ago, on your way to the Eternal Immortal Sect, you were attacked and rested at the Fan Family for a day. We met then, right?"

The matter that Fu Manman had been agonizing over for the past few days was instantly, without warning, easily resolved. She said in a daze,

"So, you still remember me."

Fan Wubing laughed and said,

"I thought you wouldn't remember me."

"How could I forget!" Fu Manman said loudly, then quickly shrank her neck and, with nowhere to place her hands, tightly pressed them to her sides, "I remember."

"Then relax a bit, it's a reunion of old friends after all."

"Okay."

Even though she said so, Fu Manman still remained stiff. Not only was she stiff in front of Fan Wubing, but she was also stiff with the locals of Nanlai City.

Whenever someone talked to her, she immediately became flustered and didn't know what to say.

After some observation, Fan Wubing confirmed that she was a severe social anxiety patient.

He couldn't understand why such a good girl had turned so silly in her cultivation practices. After all, she was a princess of a country...

…

"Manman, don't always stare at your toes. This is a blessed land; look around, and you'll have a better chance of finding your own fortune."

In Fan Wubing's eyes, although fortune was everywhere, he wasn't in a hurry to take it.

The character "yuan" in fortune suggests it involves fate; it's not something you can force. However, this rule doesn't apply to Fan Wubing because he has the "Tongue's Desire" and the Unwarranted Qi Creation Skill.

The former can truly disregard rules or fate, and swallow it whole, but it only converts into a Blood Bar regardless of what it swallows.

As for the Unwarranted Qi Creation Skill, it benefits from the dynasty's dragon qi, can absorb the qi of nature, and to some extent, forcibly seize fortune.

However, Fan Wubing was more interested in figuring out what exactly this Peach Blossom Spring was about.

There's no rush for now, they have a month. It's only the first day, so they should carefully explore this place. Once they've understood it thoroughly, they can catch everything in one net.

Fan Wubing's "collector's obsession" as a player kicked in, wanting to dig up all the fortune like uprooting a field.

Just like when he feels uncomfortable seeing a red dot on the game interface.

Whenever Fu Manman talks to a stranger, she gets nervous, but Fan Wubing... should no longer count as a stranger. Her voice got a bit louder, and her tone steadied,

"I also don't know how to find fortune. Maybe, as I walk, fortune will come to me."

"That's a privilege only the son of fate could have."

"What?"

"Nothing."

Fan Wubing led her to a small shop selling various trinkets and said,

"Take a look, is there anything unusual in there?"

Fu Manman carefully examined. She did have some skill, immediately noticing an old, worn inkstone. Then, she seemed transformed and asked very seriously,

"Boss, how much for this inkstone?"

Seeing they were outsiders, the boss smiled and said,

"Not much, ninety cents."

Ninety cents was very little for a cultivator. But because of this, Fu Manman was stunned. She didn't have any earthly money on her! So, she asked,

"Can I use a Spirit Stone?"

"Huh? What's that?" The boss had no idea what a Spirit Stone was.

Fan Wubing furrowed his brow slightly. Something wasn't right. If Nanlai City used to be part of the Imperial Dynasty, no matter how remote, it shouldn't be unfamiliar with Spirit Stones.

Recalling what they had seen on their way, it seemed that everything related to cultivation in this Nan'an City was either nonexistent or wiped out.

Fan Wubing paid on behalf of Fu Manman.

"Thank you."

"You're welcome."

Fan Wubing sank into thought.

Once the transaction was completed, as Fu Manman took the inkstone, a gust of qi surfaced in her mind. She immediately understood the inkstone's power and said at once,

"This inkstone contains a gentle literary aura, probably left by a Great Scholar. Since you discovered it, you should have it."

Fan Wubing shook his head,

"No. I only asked you to look at that stall. The fortune was something you found yourself. It's not easy to pick out such an inconspicuous inkstone from so many small items. The fact you chose it at first glance shows you are destined for it."

"But how did you know that stall had fortune?"

"I just said it casually; I didn't expect it really to have some. It seems this Nanlai City is filled with fortune."

"I see."

Fu Manman believed him and said no more.

The two walked through the streets and markets, passing many places where fortunes were nurtured. Fan Wubing didn't want Fu Manman to miss out on any fortunes because of him, so he occasionally hinted for her to actively seek them out.

He hinted quite cleverly, trying to make Fu Manman think she had discovered the fortunes herself.

By dusk, Fu Manman had gathered a lot, acquiring four types of fortunes. Although none were particularly significant, it was still a substantial harvest.

This ease made Fan Wubing a bit skeptical,

Is this really fortune?

However, Fu Manman wasn't very happy, slightly furrowing her brows and pressing her lips together without speaking.

"What's wrong with you?" Fan Wubing asked.

Fu Manman said softly,

"Am I jinxing you a bit, making you gain nothing all day long?"

"You're overthinking. If the time isn't right, no amount of effort will help; when it's right, wishes come true. My time just hasn't come yet."

Just then, a small girl with shabby clothes and smelling of fish bumped into Fu Manman.

"Sorry, sorry, sorry!" The little girl hurriedly bowed repeatedly, "Sorry for getting your clothes dirty."

Fu Manman, being socially anxious, didn't know what to do in such a situation and hurriedly bowed as well, saying,

"It's okay, it's okay."

The big and the small, thus bowed to each other.

Fan Wubing was dumbfounded,

"No need to go that far, Manman."

He said to the little girl,

"Little girl, it's alright. If the clothes are dirty, just wash them. It's getting late, you should hurry home."

The little girl's face was dirty, and she was holding a grass carp. She cautiously asked,

"Is it really okay?"

"Yes, it's okay." Fu Manman managed to smile.

As soon as she saw her smile, the little girl immediately said,

"Sister, you're crying and saying it's okay."

Fu Manman quickly replied,

"I was smiling, I was smiling."

Fan Wubing glanced at her and found that her smile indeed looked like she was crying. Not wanting to discourage her, he told the little girl,

"Little girl, it's really okay. If you delay any longer, this fish will—"

Before he could finish speaking, a young man in white came over, saying,

"I'll buy this fish!"

The white clothes were like snow. The young man, like a startling swan in the snow, had an extremely handsome face. He walked up, nodded and smiled at Fan Wubing and Fu Manman, then squatted down and gently said to the little girl,

"Can I buy this fish from you?"

The little girl drooped her head,

"But, this fish... I want to take it back for my mother to eat. She's sick, and the doctor said she needs to eat more fish."

"How about this, brother will pay a high price for it. You can use the money to buy better and bigger fish, how about that?"

The young man in white took out a string of copper coins, waving them in front of the little girl, making a pleasant "money" sound.

The little girl was somewhat troubled,

"But, all the fish at the market are sold out today, this is the last one. I want my mother to eat it."

"Little girl, look, this much money is enough for both you and your mother not to worry for a long time. How about not eating fish today and having something better instead?"

The little girl held the fish tightly in her arms,

"But mom needs to eat fish every day!"

The young man in white was at his wit's end and scratched his head, saying,

"Just for today doesn't work?"

The little girl shook her head and then quickly ran away.

Fan Wubing chuckled,

"Brother, are you sure you want to buy this fish?"

The young man in white immediately said seriously,

"Let's be clear first. I was the first to say I wanted this fish, so you can't fight me for it."

"We won't fight for it, just asking if you're sure you want to buy it."

"Who wouldn't buy a treasure?" The young man in white waved his hand, "Forget it, I won't argue with you. That little girl doesn't know what such an amount of money means, but her mother certainly does. I'll ask her mother directly, I'm sure I can buy it."

With that, he followed after her.

Fan Wubing squinted his eyes, thinking... Other fortunes were white, gold, or red, giving a sense of delight, yet this fish faintly showed black air, which grew increasingly thick over time.

"Manman, let's go take a look."

"Do you want to buy that fish too?"

"No... I'm more interested in that little girl."

"Huh?"

"...You know, I'm a decent person."

"..."

Thankfully, it was Fu Manman and not Luo Qingyao, or explanations would go on for a long time.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.