#2756 - The taste of the world
Jun Wuxie and Mo Qingli strolled along unhurriedly, enjoying the leisurely pace.
They knew the Yi family members following them were anxious and wanted to keep them that way.
Mainly, he noticed Mo Qingli seemed somewhat interested in certain novelties.
Apart from matters related to cultivation, it was rare for anything to pique her interest.
Her current behavior indicated that her state of mind was gradually changing.
This was a change Jun Wuxie was happy to see.
Mo Qingli needed this change, subconsciously, imperceptibly, gradually transforming.
Only in this way could she truly comprehend the essence of the Supreme Forgetfulness Record in the future, break through its limits, and forge her own path.
Passing by a sugar figurine stall, Jun Wuxie smiled when he saw her glance at it more than once.
He pulled Mo Qingli to the stall and bought a plum blossom sugar figurine.
When he handed the plum blossom-shaped sugar figurine to Mo Qingli, she couldn't help but be stunned.
She thought Jun Wuxie was going to buy it for himself, but he had actually bought it for her.
"What are you spacing out for? Take it."
"Oh."
Mo Qingli snapped back to reality, took the sugar figurine from his hand, and looked at it curiously.
"Have you never seen a sugar figurine before?"
Seeing her curious expression, Jun Wuxie felt amused and a little inexplicably touched.
Mo Qingli had lived for tens of thousands of years, yet she had never even seen a sugar figurine.
Everything worldly, all the affairs of the mortal realm, had been far removed from her during these long years.
In this life, is staying away from the mortal world really the right path?
Would such a life truly be happy and meaningful?
In fact, apart from Emperor Realm experts, who can truly stay away from the mortal world?
One's heart is actually the mortal world.
Below the Emperor Realm, no one can completely detach their state of mind, so the mortal world always exists within the heart.
Mo Qingli was a special case.
To be precise, the cultivation technique she practiced was special.
The Supreme Forgetfulness Record severed the seven emotions and six desires of the world.
Her state of mind wasn't truly detached in the real sense, but rather the cultivation technique had severed and isolated her from the mortal world.
However, that didn't mean there was no trace of mortal desires deep within her heart; it was just that she couldn't perceive them, nor could they affect her.
Even Emperor Realm experts don't all choose to transcend the mortal world.
Like Aunt You and Qingxue.
From the moment they met him, they no longer pursued that detached state of mind.
Their hearts were already full of mortal desires.
But this didn't have any negative impact on them; on the contrary, it made their state of mind more resilient and determined than before.
"Perhaps I have, perhaps I haven't, but it doesn't affect me."
Mo Qingli shook her head, indicating that she had only passed by cities in the past and had never stayed within them.
She was either in training grounds or in the sect, and she had never paid attention to matters unrelated to cultivation.
"Why a plum blossom?"
She looked at Jun Wuxie curiously with her ice-like, crystal-clear eyes.
"Proud and aloof, it suits your temperament and image."
"Qingli shouldn't be aloof in front of Jun Wuxie, right?"
She looked puzzled; in her opinion, she had already behaved very docilely in front of Jun Wuxie.
"Of course, compared to how you are in front of others, it's much better.
Try it quickly and see how it tastes."
"Oh."
Hearing this, Mo Qingli opened her mouth and bit off a petal of the sugar figurine.
"Wait, that's not how you eat a sugar figurine."
Jun Wuxie said with a smile, "You don't bite into a sugar figurine; biting into it has no soul."
"Ah? How do you eat it then?"
"Lick it, lick it with your tongue."
"Like this?"
Mo Qingli paused slightly, then parted her red lips and gently slid her pink tongue over a petal of the sugar figurine.
Jun Wuxie's eyes twitched as he watched.
This action actually had an indescribable charm.
He was surprised.
Mo Qingli cultivated the Supreme Forgetfulness Record and was as cold as an eternal iceberg.
He didn't expect that her casual action of licking the sugar figurine would be so alluring.
It was a very contradictory feeling.
A desireless expression, a pure and serene face, yet between her lips and tongue, she displayed an indescribable charm.
"So sweet."
This was the evaluation given subconsciously by Mo Qingli.
As she spoke, a faint smile appeared between her brows and eyes.
Although it was difficult to detect, Jun Wuxie still noticed it.
This expression was probably something she hadn't even noticed herself; it was a reaction from the deepest part of her heart, a subconscious response.
"This is the taste of the mortal world.
Sour, sweet, bitter, spicy, joys and sorrows, all are flavors of the mortal world."
Mo Qingli, who was tasting the sugar figurine, stared at him blankly, lost in thought for several breaths before snapping back to reality.
A thoughtful look appeared in her eyes, clearly digesting Jun Wuxie's words.
Suddenly, as if awakened, she reflexively threw the sugar figurine in her hand to the ground.
The people passing by looked at her in surprise.
The sound of the sugar figurine shattering on the ground, as well as the surprised gazes, made Mo Qingli suddenly realize something, and she hurriedly squatted down to pick it up, her movements slightly flustered.
"It's all broken, it's dirty on the ground, what are you picking it up for?"
Jun Wuxie stopped her.
"I'm sorry…"
Mo Qingli looked up at him, her face full of apology, and a hint of unease deep in her eyes.
"It's just a sugar figurine, it's fine if you threw it away, it's not a big deal.
If you want one, I'll buy you another one."
"I… I don't want it…"
Mo Qingli lowered her eyes and said softly.
"Alright, let's go, let's take another look around."
Jun Wuxie pulled her up, then let go of her hand and was about to continue forward.
But Mo Qingli gently shook her head, "Let's not look around, let's just go do the mission, we've already delayed long enough."
Jun Wuxie didn't say anything, just nodded, and then continued forward, heading towards the outside of the city.
For the first mission target, he chose the wealthy merchant Qi Mansion outside the city.
After all, there were three tails following behind, and they had to be dealt with before he could complete the mission with peace of mind.
Otherwise, being watched in the dark would inevitably expose a lot of information.
He was afraid that the three of them would move too quickly and send the information back to the Yi family before he could deal with them.
On the way to the outside of the city, Mo Qingli silently followed beside him.
For a long time, she didn't say anything, and her expression was somewhat different from before.
Just like that, they arrived outside the city.
Gradually, there was no one around.
Jun Wuxie suddenly said, "Following me for so long, why do you still put so much pressure on yourself?"
"Jun Wuxie, are you not angry?"
"It's just a sugar figurine, why would I be angry?"
"But that sugar figurine was bought for me by you, yet I threw it on the ground.
I didn't do it on purpose, I…"
Mo Qingli wanted to explain, but she didn't know how to explain her state of mind at the time.
"I understand your reaction at the time, you're just not used to your own changes, it was just a conditioned reflex, how could I be angry because of that?
Am I such a petty person?"
"Of course you're not, Jun Wuxie, in my heart, you are the most magnificent man in the world, with the ambition to swallow mountains and rivers and the capacity to embrace the universe."
"Then what are you struggling with, making things difficult for yourself?
Don't blame yourself, don't put this matter to heart anymore."
"Okay, Jun Wuxie, have you eaten sugar figurines before?"
"Yes, of course I have, I ate them when I was very young."
"Oh."
Mo Qingli no longer spoke, and Jun Wuxie clearly felt that her mood had improved a lot and had completely returned to normal.
He couldn't help but laugh inwardly, women's minds are just sensitive and complex.
Even a woman like Mo Qingli can hardly escape this rule.
After all, women are naturally different from men in terms of physiology, and physiological differences are destined to lead to psychological differences.
Qi Mansion was in a small town near the imperial city.
That small town was near the mine mountain and was a newly built town, only a little over a thousand years old.
The Qi family also rose to prominence only a little over a thousand years ago.
That small town was originally a wilderness more than a thousand years ago.
There was originally no town there.
It was precisely because the Qi family mined the veins that people began to live and gather in that area.
At first, it was miners and their families.
Later, people who bought ore came, and more and more people gradually formed a small town of considerable size.
It was only a little over a thousand miles from the imperial city, and there was a wide official road built, so it was not considered remote, and from time to time, one could see two or three pedestrians on the road.
Halfway through, Jun Wuxie and Mo Qingli suddenly turned into a small path next to the official road.
This path led to a nearby mountain range.
That mountain range was not large, only two hundred miles in circumference, but the terrain inside was complex, the mountains were steep, and strange peaks and ridges stood tall.
The Yi family's retainers who were following far behind saw them enter the small road, and a sneer appeared on their faces.
At first, they thought that Yuan Chu and Su Qingqian were going to the New Mine Town.
If that were the case, it wasn't to say that they couldn't find an opportunity, but at least it would be more troublesome and they would need to wait for the right time.
On this official road, two or three pedestrians could always be seen, and directly taking action would cause outrage, and the matter would be spread.
Unless all the passing pedestrians were killed.
But in that case, things would be even bigger and would not be a wise choice.
Unexpectedly, things took a turn for the better.
The two targets actually turned into the mountain path at this time.
That small road led to the mountains, and the further they went, the more remote it became, and there was no one around.
"Yuan Chu, Su Qingqian, you are courting death!"
"It's just a pity that Yuan Chu deserves to die, but Su Qingqian, that woman, was wasted.
She was quite beautiful, a top-tier beauty, but killing her like that, I feel a bit reluctant. But she had to die, alas."
That Changsheng Realm retainer sighed; the three were communicating with their divine senses.
They followed all the way, gradually moving away from the main road, and finally entered the mountain range.
The mountains here were very peculiar, all small hills, and very steep. The mountains rose straight up from the ground, and whether at the foot of the mountains or on the mountainsides, the vegetation was very lush, and the trees were verdant.
After entering, it was like entering a primeval forest, and people were completely concealed by the forest.
After the Yi family retainers followed in, they followed and followed, and suddenly discovered that the target was gone, vanished.
They had been locking onto the target, and also locking onto the target's aura, following all the way.
But suddenly, the target seemed to have evaporated into thin air, and even their aura had disappeared without a trace.
What's going on?
The three Yi family retainers looked surprised, feeling astonished. Could it be that there was a special field here that affected their divine sense perception?
They looked at each other, and then began to search nearby.
How could two living people suddenly disappear?
It must be due to the influence of some field!
Such a perfect opportunity must not be missed.
As long as they were found and killed, the task would be completed.
"Are the three of you looking for us?"
Just as the three Yi family retainers were searching around, a calm voice suddenly rang out in the mountain forest.
The three were immediately startled, and all looked towards the direction from which the voice came, their pupils constricting.
"When did you discover we were following you?"
The three Yi family retainers couldn't help but feel somewhat embarrassed and angry.
They were actually discovered?
They prided themselves on being well-hidden, maintaining a distance while following, and had been very cautious.
They didn't expect that they would still be discovered by the target!
"Coincidentally, we knew it the moment we stepped out of the mountain gate.
By the way, your level of tracking is really terrible."
"Impossible!"
The strongest of the three Yi family retainers, the one who had just entered the Eternal Life Realm, had twitching facial muscles and eyes as cold as knives.
"We were lurking in a place more than a hundred miles away from the Jinyun Immortal Sect.
With your cultivation, there is no way you could have detected our existence!"
The three found it hard to accept this fact.
