Chapter 253: Three Musketeers

Tiansang County.

A county comprises many cities, but apart from those inhabited by ordinary people, the most renowned in Tiansang County is undoubtedly its central hub, Tiansang City. This is a major city, capable of accommodating millions, even tens of millions, of residents. It serves as a vital center for Spirit Cultivators in Tiansang County, offering a place for their travels and transactions. For ordinary people, the cost of living here is dozens of times higher than in other cities! Furthermore, even gaining entry through the city gates requires paying with a rare, almost mythical, and extremely expensive item: Spirit Crystals! Spirit Cultivators, however, are an exception.

Xu Xiaoshou stopped at the city gate with his junior sister, craning his neck to look at the guard. "What did you say?"

"A residency permit!"

"What's a residency permit? Can't Spirit Cultivators just enter?"

"Ah, so you two are esteemed Spirit Cultivators. Could you please show some proof?"

Proof? Xu Xiaoshou extended his hand, intending to conjure flames, but then remembered his flames were invisible and colorless. He wanted to demonstrate his strength, but if he let the guard punch him, the guard would likely die on the spot.

"Should I use a sword?" Xu Xiaoshou hesitantly took out "Hidden Misery," startling Mu Zixi.

"No need, no need!" This isn't Tiansang Spirit Palace; most people here are ordinary. If you started swinging a sword, it would cause utter chaos! Realizing this, she quickly tugged on Xu Xiaoshou's sleeve. Her small hand crackled, and as vines swirled, she handed over two Spirit Crystals. The gate guard instantly bowed low in fright and ushered them inside.

"This way, please! This way!" To ordinary people, Spirit Cultivators hold a status akin to deities. Even in Tiansang City, most residents are common folk, and the guards usually don't deal with people of this caliber. Watching their retreating figures, the gate guards exchanged bewildered glances.

"Spirit Cultivators who can conjure wood... don't they usually float?"

"And aren't these the kind of people welcomed by those up above? Why are they walking?"

"Hmm, I don't know. Perhaps powerful individuals have their quirks!"

"Bah, shut up! This isn't something you should be discussing. Walls have ears, you know."

"Oh, right."

Xu Xiaoshou glanced up and clearly saw another checkpoint in the sky, manned by several individuals at the Origin Court realm. "Aha, so that's how it is..." But there was no benefit in overthinking it now; he simply looked straight ahead.

What he saw after entering the street was vastly different from inside the Spirit Palace. Tall buildings and pavilions stood shoulder to shoulder, and the calls of street vendors grew increasingly lively, filling the air with a long-missed sense of bustling life. Xu Xiaoshou shook his head, trying to clear away some of the noise. This was when the pain of his "Perception" ability became evident. This troublesome passive skill had no mute button; it couldn't be turned off. All sorts of miscellaneous information flooded his mind simultaneously, nearly causing his brain to explode.

"Disturbed, Passive Point, 1.""Disturbed, Passive Point, 1.""Disturbed, Passive Point, 1."

The info bar scrolled furiously, and Xu Xiaoshou felt a surge of pleasant surprise. However, seeing that the overall increase in passive points wasn't particularly fast, he paused. What was happening? With his current perception range, he should be able to perceive at least ten thousand people at once! But it only increased by dozens or a hundred at a time?

"Could it be that the emotional fluctuations of these ordinary people don't grant me passive points?" Xu Xiaoshou felt this was highly probable. Otherwise, if he used this bug to farm passive points, wouldn't he become invincible simply by staying among common folk for a month? "What a shame."

Even so, the hundred-fold frequency of passive points significantly boosted Xu Xiaoshou's reserves. His passive points quickly climbed from the original sixteen thousand to just over twenty thousand. The increase slowed down again, likely because he was gradually getting used to the noisy environment. Xu Xiaoshou glanced at the bottom of the info bar.

"Passive Points: 23333."

Never mind, he wouldn't bother with it. While satisfying to see the passive points increase, this method was purely a waste of time and meaningless.

Xu Xiaoshou stopped in front of a trading house. Mu Zixi bumped into him with a thump, almost bouncing off. Even so, the small hand holding the young man's sleeve didn't let go; she merely used her other hand to rub her head. She looked up at the sign above: Dajin Trading House!

"Xu Xiaoshou, weren't we going to the Alchemist Association?"

Xu Xiaoshou looked down at the little girl's hand gripping his sleeve, mumbled with his lips for a long moment, then finally spoke: "How old are you?"

Mu Zixi's small face flushed, and she remained silent.

"Shy?" Xu Xiaoshou raised an eyebrow. "Have you never seen so many people before?" Seeing the little girl's odd expression, Xu Xiaoshou was stunned. Had he really hit the mark? But that couldn't be! Although she looked small, she had lived for at least a decade. Never seen so many people... What a joke! Was she a shut-in for over ten years? Her first time out shopping?

Mu Zixi's expression was unreadable. To be honest, this truly was the first time in her memory she had seen so many people. Feeling a bit nervous was entirely normal.

"You still haven't answered my question..." She took her hand away from her bruised forehead, and mid-sentence, suddenly froze. Seeing the dark red blood on her hand, the little girl's face darkened. "Xu Xiaoshou, why am I bleeding!"

"Questioned, Passive Point, 1."

Xu Xiaoshou: "..." He spread his hands, expressionless. "How should I know? Maybe someone ambushed you?"

Seeing the little girl about to lose her temper, the young man spoke over her, scolding: "We're outside. Don't trust me so much, alright? Spirit energy body protection! You weren't so careless back at the Spirit Palace. How could you disengage this? Spirit energy body protection shouldn't be disengaged! If you disengage it, what can your tender, delicate body withstand from me? Can it endure 'Rebound' or 'Sharpness'? The Devouring Wood Body isn't an Innate Physique, sister!"

Mu Zixi's big eyes blinked rapidly. She suddenly grabbed Xu Xiaoshou's hand and drew her finger across his fingertip. It bled.

"What is this?" The little girl was shocked. Was this guy a human knife?

Xu Xiaoshou calmly withdrew his finger. "That's called 'Ten-Stage Sword Finger'."

Mu Zixi: "..." She didn't believe him at all, feeling she had uncovered Xu Xiaoshou's secret. She tried to wipe her hand on Xu Xiaoshou's forearm again.

Xu Xiaoshou caught her hand, his face darkening. "Self-harm is not advisable."

"What kind of spirit skill is this?" Mu Zixi found it incredibly strange.

The young man took a deep breath. "I told you, Ten-Stage Sword Finger!"

"Doubted, Passive Point, 1."

"Don't believe me?" Xu Xiaoshou held up his finger. With ordinary mental power attached, it instantly became incredibly sharp, so much so that even looking at it made one's eyes ache.

Mu Zixi rolled her eyes. "But your body also..."

"Ten-Stage Sword Body!"

"Doubted, Passive Point, 1."

"Alright!" Xu Xiaoshou gave up. "Sharpness, that's my passive skill, Sharpness!"

"Doubted, Passive Point, 1."

The young man pressed the girl's head down, exasperated. "What exactly do you want? You don't believe me when I lie, and you don't believe me when I tell the truth. What in the world is going on in that little head of yours?"

Mu Zixi: "..."

"Cursed, Passive Point, 1, 1, 1, 1..."

"Get in!" Xu Xiaoshou impatiently turned and walked straight towards Dajin Trading House.

"Alchemist Association!" Mu Zixi stood rooted to the spot.

Xu Xiaoshou clapped his hands, speechless. "Are you stupid? Elder Sang told you to return within a month, not to run back and forth in a single day. How long does it take to get a badge? A matter of minutes! How can that compare to the importance of shopping?"

Mu Zixi froze. "What you said makes sense." But... if I follow you, won't I really be stupid?

"Alchemist Association!" she insisted stubbornly.

"Fine, you go ahead." Xu Xiaoshou simply walked away, waving his hand. "Let's part ways. You go first, and I'll follow later."

Mu Zixi: "..." She glanced at the surging crowd behind her, wrinkled her dainty nose, and trotted after him.

"Xu Xiaoshou, why are we going to the trading house?"

"To buy clothes."

"Huh? Really? Are you buying clothes for me? Why didn't you say so earlier!"

"Wishful thinking. Not for you, but for a baby."

"A baby? Whose baby?"

"Mine."

"Xu Xiaoshou! When did you have a baby?" Mu Zixi looked horrified.

Xu Xiaoshou: "..." "Not the kind of baby you're thinking of!"

"Then what kind of baby?"

"Well... a child."

A child? Mu Zixi: ???

"Cursed, Passive Point, 1, 1, 1, 1..."

***

At the city gate.

There were three swordsmen. One held a sword, another carried a sword wheel with nine swords stuck in it on his back, and the third had no sword. The gate guards, seeing the strange attire of the three swordsmen, couldn't help but ask, "Spirit Cultivators?"

The green-robed swordsman without a sword replied, "No, we are not Spirit Cultivators. We are swordsmen, practitioners of ancient swordsmanship."

"Not Spirit Cultivators... Then show your residency permits."

"Residency permits? What are those?"

This question again... The guards exchanged glances, realizing something was off. Lately, there had been a constant stream of people who didn't know the rules. Was this their first time leaving home?

"Can you fly?" another guard asked, just to be sure.

"Yes!" The green-robed swordsman without a sword paused for a moment, then flew directly into the air.

They truly were Spirit Cultivators! The guards instantly became respectful, pointing upwards. "Spirit Cultivators, please go up to register, or if you prefer not to register, you can directly pay one Spirit Crystal..."

Before he could finish, the white-robed swordsman holding a sword, who had been silently standing at the very back, narrowed his eyes and raised an eyebrow. "Sword Intent?" Immediately after, the black-robed swordsman with nine swords, standing second, also narrowed his eyes and raised an eyebrow. "Sword Intent?" No sooner had he spoken than the green-robed swordsman without a sword, standing at the very front, also narrowed his eyes and raised an eyebrow. "Sword Intent?"

The gate guards were utterly dumbfounded. Was this a performance by a group of repeaters? Even their expressions were identical... And looking at their distinct appearances, they didn't seem like triplets!

After the swordsman without a sword spoke, he immediately turned and bowed, clasping his hands. "As expected of Senior Brother and Second Senior Brother, you are more alert than your junior brother."

Upon hearing this, the swordsman with nine swords also turned and bowed. "As expected of Senior Brother, you are more alert than your junior brother." He then turned and patted the shoulder of the swordsman without a sword. "Junior Brother, you're not bad either; you've made progress."

The swordsman holding a sword stepped forward, his lips slightly parted, his face twitching twice. He said gravely, "I told you, do not imitate my expressions or my words. Such an impertinent method will never allow you to grasp the essence of my Sword Intent!"

"I see, Second Junior Brother has been enlightened," the swordsman with nine swords said, suddenly enlightened.

"I see, Junior Brother has also been enlightened," the swordsman without a sword also said, suddenly enlightened.

The swordsman holding a sword: "..."

Gate guards: ???

What the hell was going on? Had three lunatics shown up? Their internal complaints were cut short as they heard the swordsman holding a sword, who had walked ahead, let out a low cry: "Go, find the Sword Intent!"

The three instantly vanished.

"Where'd they go!"

"Holy cow, they haven't paid for the Spirit Crystals yet, three of them!"

"Come back!"