Although Dan Wuque had some doubts in her heart, she didn't say anything.
Su Bei looked seriously at his prodigal apprentice, then turned to Dan Wuque with a somewhat apologetic look.
Dan Wuque blinked, a stubborn cowlick on her head wobbling, and simply smiled at Su Bei.
Perhaps, in her heart, she hadn't quite grasped what was happening before her eyes.
So that's how it is... Xiao Ruoching thought. Although hard to accept, it's much better than knowing Master and Eighth Uncle went out alone... After all, on such a special day, it's inevitable to have fanciful thoughts. ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ NovᴇlFirᴇ.ɴet
Su Bei pulled over Xiao Ruoching, who had an unhappy expression almost written on her face. Despite her resistance, he patted her head with his large hand.
Then, the three of them flew towards the Sword Cleansing Pond.
Far off, they saw a delicate figure gently wiping fine sweat from her forehead. Though it was harsh winter and the pond water was frigid, a beautiful smile still graced her lips.
Seeing Su Bei suddenly appear before her, her eyes instantly revealed a hint of surprise. She set down the longsword in her hands, gently shook off the water droplets, and gestured to Su Bei.
"Elder Su, why have you come?"
Su Bei looked at the seemingly fragile woman who was actually very strong at heart, feeling a touch of gentleness stirring within him.
He walked over slowly, touched her head, and softly said, "It's the Upper Yuan Festival. I've come to take you to see the lanterns."
"And the opening ceremony is about to start! We must buy a beautiful dress for you, Sword Maiden. As the lead dancer, you must look gorgeous!"
The Sword Maiden looked somewhat shy for a moment, her eyes slightly dazed as she gazed at Su Bei.
The Upper Yuan Festival, huh? she thought. I don't know how long it's been since I last celebrated this festival. Apart from when Mother would take me to see lanterns and solve riddles, no one else has ever given me this kind of warm feeling.
The Sword Maiden clenched her small hands, timidly glanced at Xiao Ruoching who was following behind Su Bei, then nodded.
Cautiously, she followed behind Su Bei.
Outside the towering Han Baiyu Mountain Gate of the Sword Sect, a vast expanse of white snow lay.
Su Bei took a deep breath and smiled at the three women by his side.
"Master, where are we going?" Xiao Ruoching asked softly.
"Luoxue City!" Su Bei replied, patting the snowflakes off his clothes.
Then, their figures vanished.
Within the entire Twenty-One Provinces, Snow State was located towards the north, bordering North Mo. Luoxue City, being the largest city in Snow State, was naturally bustling with noise and excitement.
Looking at the city walls that resembled a canopy of ice and glaze, Su Bei sighed softly.
The Cataclysm of Ten Thousand Clans a thousand years ago had forced this city of Snow State to bear the weight of ages and endless frost. Eight hundred Sword Immortals had risen from Luoxue City, only for their bodies to later dissipate across the Twenty-One Provinces.
Luoxue City stood like an aged elder at the northern edge of the Twenty-One Provinces, bordering North Mo, as if it were the last spine that had braced the Twenty-One Provinces a thousand years ago.
All four were dressed as ordinary people, wearing large straw hats that obscured their faces, preventing them from looking too conspicuous. However, even though they masked their Spiritual Energy, their Immortal aura could not be completely hidden. They still stood out from the crowd, drawing people's gazes.
Once inside the city, the market became noticeably more prosperous. With the Upper Yuan Festival at hand, many additional peddlers lined the streets. Despite the cool breeze, they smiled at the passing customers.
Vaguely, one could hear the hawkers' cries:
"Selling—candied hawthorns..."
Dan Wuque, having trained in the Sword Sect for many years, reacted with visible confusion to the call for coal. She was extremely curious about all these novelties of the Mortal World. Whether seeing something new or old, she would stop at every turn, with the wide-eyed curiosity of a child.
"Senior Brother, look at this! It's incredible, the shadow even moves!"
"That's shadow puppetry."
"So that's what it's called, huh? Oh? What's this? It looks tasty."
Seeing Dan Wuque casually pick up something that looked like a candied date from a peddler's stall and pop it into her mouth, Su Bei hurried over to pay the vendor.
Since it was daytime, there weren't many fireworks or lanterns, but there was no lack of teahouses and pubs hosting riddle guessing games.
His prodigal apprentice clearly took an interest in solving riddles and pulled Su Bei towards a teahouse with a particularly peculiar appearance.
The Sword Maiden, her face flushed red, followed silently behind them.
Along the way, they saw quite a few people waving newspapers, shouting:
"Selling papers, selling papers! Wuhua Palace published a professional newspaper!"
"Wudaokou Newspaper! Buy one, get one free..."
"Yuan Da Yuan's heartfelt recommendation: The forbidden love between an Immortal and a Demoness!"
Su Bei frowned slightly. Are newspapers so abundant now that they're being sold on the streets? Weren't they incredibly hard to get before?
He walked over with a trace of curiosity and patted one of the men on the shoulder. The man's eyes lit up with joy as he eagerly said, "Sir, would you like to buy a newspaper? It's cheap..."
Su Bei took a newspaper, folded it, tucked it into his pocket, and then asked, "Strange, aren't these newspapers very popular? Why have you resorted to selling them on the streets? Weren't they nearly impossible to obtain before?"