145: eerie figure

Jiang Yan was suddenly startled. He looked up at Chu Qinhui and, from his serious and solemn expression, realized that his words were not a joke. After a moment of silence, he whispered softly,

"Yan... does not know what to do."

Chu Qinhui opened his palm, and the glowing "spirit opening page" appeared in his hand.

"I can perform the Spirit Opening for you and provide you with a Source Beast, allowing you to become a Contract Master.

The Chu Family has a caravan heading to other towns soon. You can join them to gain some experience first. Whether you can achieve something in the future will depend on your own abilities."

Jiang Yan's hands tightened slightly, a hint of longing appearing in his eyes. "I am willing to follow the Young Master's instructions."

Chu Qinhui nodded slightly. He knew that for a young man of this age, who could resist the temptation of becoming a Contract Master?

What he promised Jiang Yan was nothing to the current Chu Family. As for whether the young man before him would become a talent, he didn't particularly care.

He only did these things because he didn't want his wife to regret again one day in the future, just like how she had never seen her elder brother again since she married into the family.

At three o'clock in the afternoon, Jiang Yan appeared outside the gate of the Chu Family courtyard.

He looked back at the Chu Family Residence with a complex expression.

He walked silently down the mountain, his mind filled with complex emotions; after two or three months, his goal had finally been achieved.

If he only wanted to repay a debt of gratitude, he wouldn't have needed to deliver purple iris flowers so frequently—there were plenty of other flowers in the mountains—but he deliberately chose the purple iris flower, which had a very obvious implication, just to attract Jiang Nian's attention.

He wanted her to know that she still had a nephew like him. Having learned from his grandfather that his aunt and his father had the best relationship, he wanted to use himself as a Breakthrough point to evoke the last bit of pity in Jiang Nian's heart.

However, some accidents seemed to have occurred. Aunt Jiang Nian appeared ready to make a clean break with the past. Instead, it was this uncle-in-law who called him over, performed the Spirit Opening for him, and gave him a Source Beast.

Regardless of the process, his goal was finally completely accomplished today.

Only, he wasn't as happy as he had imagined he would be; his footsteps felt heavy with every step.

When he reached the foot of the mountain, he laughed self-mockingly. Whether people called him a social climber or a petty person, he was no different from those people who had exploited his aunt years ago.

He had to seize any opportunity he could find. Only by becoming a Contract Master and climbing this great tree that was the Chu Family could he have even a slight chance at revenge.

Then there were the Villagers of Ziyuan Village. Clearly, his Jiang family was the greatest benefactor of Ziyuan Village, yet now they suffered from subtle exclusion.

Now, there was a chance to make them all pay the price. He had etched what he owed his aunt into his heart; in the future, even if he had to risk his life, he would be his aunt's support in the Chu Family.

Jiang Yan turned back, looked at the Chu Family Residence on the mountain peak, bowed deeply once more, and then strode back toward Ziyuan Village... Chu Shengfan looked at the three Origin Rune Stones placed on his desk by the young man before him, noting that his face seemed slightly weary.

It was still early, and there weren't many patients. Those who did come were mostly there for internal injuries.

This was already the fourth consecutive day the boy had come. Every day, he brought either three or four Origin Rune Stones, as if he sent the money here as soon as he earned it.

Chu Shengfan smiled and shook his head. "You can wait until you've saved up enough money to send it all at once. I'll be stationed here for another twenty days or so, so there's no need to rush."

The boy gave Chu Shengfan a reserved smile. "I already feel ashamed for the overdue medical fees. I thought that as I earn money, I should pay back a little at a time."

The boy's gaze fell upon the Snow Shadow Cat nearby. Seeing that the fur around its wounds had grown quite a bit, it was clear that its recent diet was good; the ample energy had caused its fur to grow much faster.

He didn't say it, but he kept it in his heart: the doctor who treated this Snow Shadow Cat was his true benefactor.

The boy stayed for only a moment before hurrying away from Wanmin Pharmacy again.

Fewer patients came today than yesterday, so Chu Shengfan and the Myriad Flower Butterfly Spirit had a much easier time.

After night fell, Chu Shengfan carried the Snow Shadow Cat back to the small courtyard as usual.

Even at night, the streets remained brightly lit and crowded with pedestrians, which was a very big difference from the town.

After staying in this prosperity for a long time, one would increasingly feel that the small village was so backward and desolate.

While Chu Shengfan was admiring the scenery on both sides of the street and choosing which shop's spirit food to buy and take back, he suddenly felt a figure bump into him, and then felt as if something had been added to his arms.

At the other end of the street, a commotion broke out. Several strong men, followed by a few canine Source Beasts, were charging through the street.

"Out of the way! The Wu Family is conducting business, everyone step back!"

While shouting, those Guards rushed through the crowd.

Chu Shengfan didn't have time to see what had been stuffed into his arms. Seeing the charging Guards and the wolf-dog Source Beasts, he could only turn sideways and dodge toward the edge of the street.

After those people passed, Chu Shengfan heard the discussions of the people nearby.

"It looks like the Wu Family is trying to catch someone?"

"No, this Wu Family is too arrogant. They don't report to the authorities and actually catch people on the street themselves?"

"Don't you see what kind of Noble Family the Wu Family is? Sixth-grade Zhongding Nobility. Even if they act this recklessly, Noble Families of equal rank won't easily provoke them over such small matters."

Chu Shengfan frowned as he listened. He hid the object in his arms with his sleeve and took a quiet look.

It was a fruit about the size of a palm, with green skin and a long, thin stem, covered in white specks. Chu Shengfan quietly sensed it, but there were no special energy fluctuations.

Chu Shengfan looked back in the direction the group had left. He had a hunch that the person the Wu Family was chasing was likely because of this fruit.

However, for some reason, that mysterious figure had stuffed this fruit into his arms. He hadn't seen the person's face clearly at the time, only remembering that the person had a pair of particularly bright eyes.

Chu Shengfan scratched his head with some worry. To him, the item in his arms was now a hot potato, and he didn't know where best to discard it.

Chu Shengfan glanced at the road back to the small courtyard, then turned and walked in another direction.

He specifically chose to walk through remote, quiet alleys until he reached a place where almost no figures could be seen and the surrounding courtyard gates were all tightly closed.

Chu Shengfan took out the fruit, found a corner, and was just about to set it down.

However, a young man's voice came from nearby. "This is a precious human fruit, and yet you want to throw it away without hesitation?"

Chu Shengfan turned to look. A strange figure, shrouded in misty phantom light and appearing to have many different faces, appeared not far away.

His entire body was changing every second, and only that pair of particularly bright eyes remained stable amidst the transformations.

Furthermore, the aura on his body was unfathomable; Chu Shengfan couldn't detect what Realm he was in at all.

The hair on Chu Shengfan's body stood on end. The person before him brought too great a threat. He extended his palm and held the fruit out toward the man.

"This is the item Your Excellency placed on me. It is now returned to its original owner."