Lin Xiao quietly listened to the conversation between Yuan Qing and Jiang Youfu, all the while munching on the roasted beans that Jiang Youfu had prepared.
Jiang Youfu, seemingly oblivious, tilted his head and said, "But just because your master won't take you back, doesn't mean you can't return to Tianxuan Sect, right?"
"That's true," Yuan Qing nodded, "But after what happened, my master—being the person he is—would probably find everything I do displeasing. He'd likely prefer never to see me again. Even if I were to stay in Tianxuan Sect, life would be difficult, and I definitely couldn't seek another master. No one would be willing to risk offending my master for a disciple like me."
Jiang Youfu listened carefully, finally understanding the complexities involved, but understanding didn't mean acceptance. He shook his head in disappointment. "I didn't expect big sects to be like this."
Lin Xiao, who had been silently listening, was surprised. He had initially thought that Yuan Qing's efforts to reconnect with his former sect and clear his name were all part of a plan to return to Tianxuan Sect.
But it turned out Yuan Qing had already seen through the situation and had no intention of going back.
So Lin Xiao asked, "What are your plans after that?"
Yuan Qing was silent for a moment before he responded, "If I can clear my name, I plan to go home and help my sister."
"Your sister?" Lin Xiao asked.
Yuan Qing nodded, "Yes. To be honest, I'm the adopted son of the head of the Yuan family. After my parents passed away, it was the head's wife who took me in and raised me. The Yuan family has been incredibly kind to me, and I owe them everything. My sister, Yuan Zhiyun, is the heir to the Yuan family. Though I've been in Tianxuan Sect, I've heard that things have been tough for her at home. Now that I can't return to the sect, I hope to go back and support her."
Yuan Zhiyun…
Lin Xiao scratched his head, trying to remember. Oh, yes, the one with the Heart Stone in her storage bag.
But he didn't need that anymore.
Suddenly, Lin Xiao remembered something he had seen on the Yuan family's message board and said to Yuan Qing, "I noticed that the Yuan family seems to be searching for an Icefield Spirit. They've been trying to acquire one for quite some time, but haven't had any luck. Your sister even went to the Icefield Secret Realm last year, likely to find it."
Lin Xiao couldn't offer much more help, but providing information was something he could do. He wasn't going to give Yuan Qing an Icefield Spirit, especially since Liao Pantao wouldn't approve.
Upon hearing this, Yuan Qing's expression became serious as he frowned in thought. He was evidently aware of the Icefield Spirit's significance.
"If my sister personally went to search for an Icefield Spirit… Could it be the family head…?" Yuan Qing muttered to himself, though Lin Xiao's sharp ears caught every word.
Seeing that Yuan Qing was unaware of the situation, Lin Xiao couldn't help but think that the Yuan family must have been considerate towards Yuan Qing. Normally, if a family needed something they couldn't obtain locally, they would reach out to their disciples in major sects for assistance. The fact that they hadn't involved Yuan Qing suggested they didn't want to disrupt his life in the sect or burden him.
Recalling more of what he had heard about the Icefield Secret Realm, Lin Xiao continued, "Oh, I also heard that the family head personally went to the secret realm's entrance last year to bring your sister back."
Lin Xiao then recounted what he knew about last year's events in the Icefield Secret Realm.
Yuan Qing remembered hearing some rumors within the sect about people getting trapped in the Icefield Secret Realm, but his family hadn't mentioned anything about it in their letters, nor had they told him that Yuan Zhiyun was among those trapped.
However, this information suggested that the situation might not be as dire for the family head. If the family head had been in urgent need of an Icefield Spirit, he wouldn't have had the energy to personally retrieve someone from the secret realm.
This led Yuan Qing to consider the possibility that it was the Yuan family's ancestor who was in trouble. If that were the case, it explained why the Yuan family was so desperate to acquire an Icefield Spirit.
It must have been a dire situation indeed.
After a long period of contemplation, Yuan Qing looked up at Lin Xiao and said, "Thank you, Lin Daoyou, for the information. I'll inquire with my fellow sect members tomorrow to see if there are any leads on an Icefield Spirit."
Seeing Yuan Qing deep in thought, with furrowed brows and heavy concerns, Lin Xiao and Jiang Youfu didn't stay long. They simply said goodnight and went into the inner room.
There, they found Liao Pantao soaking his feet and sipping tea, so they squeezed in beside him and snatched some of his tea to drink.
The next morning, the three of them went out again.
Since there was no competition for the Fu Masters that day, Lin Xiao and Jiang Youfu headed out of the city once more.
They had had a fruitful few days. Though they weren't making a fortune, Lin Xiao believed that if they sold everything except what they kept for their sect's breeding grounds, they'd still make a decent profit.
However, they hadn't sold any of the beasts they had captured yet. They still had many days left in Banshang City, and selling too many at once might attract unwanted attention.
Selling them off in small amounts would take too much time.
Fortunately, the storage space provided by the system was limitless, so they weren't in a rush.
The only problem was that they had been capturing beasts without feeding them, and many of the low-level ones in the storage space were starting to get hungry. Some were just a bit weak, while others had noticeably lost weight.
The system's storage space was designed only for storage, not for feeding the creatures within.
To prevent these beasts from starving to death, Lin Xiao and Jiang Youfu had to go out and gather food for them.
In fact, when Lin Xiao first learned that the beasts in the storage space could be fed, he had asked the system, "Can't I just raise them in here, then?"
The system seemed taken aback by the suggestion, remaining silent for a moment.
Several breaths later, it responded in a mechanical voice, "To prevent the host from slacking off and exploiting loopholes, the storage space will now have a limited opening period of three months. Please complete your mission promptly."
Lin Xiao finally understood the phrase, "shooting yourself in the foot." After a moment of silence, he pitifully suggested, "I take back what I just said and thought. Can we pretend none of that happened and go back to how things were two minutes ago? I promise I won't slack off!"
The system was silent for a few more seconds.
In those seconds, although the system made no sound or reaction, Lin Xiao somehow felt it was giving him a cold snort.
Finally, the system replied in its usual mechanical tone, "Agreed."
Even without any emotion, Lin Xiao could somehow sense the cold indifference in the response.