The Side Character Who Wins by Doing Nothing

"Hiss... Not much useful information, but I sure spent a lot of Spirit Stones."

One piece of information cost ten low-grade spirit stones, and one Mid-grade Spirit Stone could buy a hundred. Today, Lu Sangjiu had spent a grand total of five Mid-grade Spirit Stones and several low-grade ones.

On top of that, she was completely exhausted. ’This job really isn’t easy.’

After she had sent everyone away, Lu Sangjiu stood up and stretched. Just as she was about to head back to the inn, she turned and saw that Zhao Fengnian still hadn’t left.

Seeing her look his way, Zhao Fengnian hesitated before speaking. "Actually, I have another piece of information... I just don’t know if I should tell you."

Lu Sangjiu had heard so much news all day that she had grown numb to it.

Hearing him now, she didn’t really hold out much hope.

Still, he had been bustling about with her all day. It would be too heartless of her to refuse him now when he just wanted to earn a little extra by sharing some information.

So, despite her lack of interest, she forced some enthusiasm into her voice and asked, "What is it? Please, go ahead, Zhao."

Zhao Fengnian asked hesitantly, "You must be a disciple from a Major Sect, right? Inquiring about all this news today... are you looking for a place to go on an adventure?"

He’d met many disciples from Major Sects before. Accustomed to a pampered life within their sects, they often came out looking for excitement.

After observing Lu Sangjiu all day, he thought she fit the profile of a Sect Disciple, which led to his guess.

His guess wasn’t far off the mark, so Lu Sangjiu nodded. "You have a sharp eye, Zhao. So... does what you have to say relate to this?"

Zhao Fengnian replied at once, "Of course, it’s related. I know a place that should qualify as one of the strange tales you’re looking for, but it’s extremely dangerous. If you’re by yourself, I’d rather not tell you."

The more he insisted, the more interested Lu Sangjiu became. "Don’t worry, Zhao. I’m no fool. If it’s truly that dangerous, I certainly won’t go alone."

"How about you tell me the situation first?"

Hearing this, Zhao Fengnian’s brow unfurrowed slightly. He nodded and said, "Alright... To be honest, the reason I know about this is because one of my brothers was lost in there."

The place Zhao Fengnian mentioned was called the Menghua Forest. The woods there were deep and dense, home to many demon beasts, making it a relatively dangerous area.

There were plenty of other places to hunt demon beasts, so most people were unwilling to risk their lives in that forest.

However, some demon beasts that people needed could only be found in the Menghua Forest, leaving them no choice but to form a party and brave the danger.

The friend Zhao Fengnian spoke of would occasionally team up with others to hunt demon beasts in the outer parts of Menghua Forest. He knew the area well, so there usually weren’t any problems.

But just a few days ago, he led a team into the Menghua Forest and discovered that the outer region, which was normally free of fog, was suddenly blanketed in a thick mist.

Under such conditions, no one dared to enter rashly, so they waited outside for a few days.

But the thick fog showed no signs of lifting. Growing impatient, Zhao Fengnian’s friend volunteered to go in with one other person to scout things out.

After the two of them entered, they never came back out.

The others waited for two days, but with no sign of the pair, they didn’t dare enter and hastily retreated.

One of them, who knew Zhao Fengnian, relayed the news to him.

As he finished, Zhao Fengnian sighed. "I only found out yesterday. I don’t even know if they’re still alive."

Lu Sangjiu asked, confused, "So, why do you consider this a strange tale?"

"Forgive my bluntness, but this just sounds like fog rolling into the mountains and some Cultivators going missing... Shouldn’t that be a fairly common occurrence?"

Zhao Fengnian shook his head. "If that were all, I certainly wouldn’t consider it a strange tale."

His expression turned serious. "After I found out yesterday, I went looking for a mutual friend of ours."

"He was in the middle of cultivating and hadn’t been paying attention to his Communication Talisman. It was only when I found him that he discovered my other friend had actually contacted him after entering the Menghua Forest."

"He told our mutual friend that he’d discovered traces of other Cultivators and suspected the fog was man-made."

"He couldn’t find his way out in the thick fog, so he said he would follow those traces and see where they led."

"He must have had a bad feeling, because he asked our friend to take care of his family if he didn’t make it back."

"After that, there was no further word from him."

After Zhao Fengnian finished, Lu Sangjiu nodded. "That does sound a bit strange... What kind of law-abiding person hides in the mountains?"

Zhao Fengnian nodded. "I suspect it might be some fugitive, or maybe even a Demon Cultivator, who fled there and is now hiding out in the Menghua Forest."

Lu Sangjiu remained noncommittal about his theory. She simply asked, "Didn’t you just tell me it was too dangerous to go? Why are you planning to form a team to go there now?"

Zhao Fengnian sighed. "He’s my brother. No matter how dangerous it is, I can’t just abandon him... What if he’s still alive? I might be his only hope for survival."

"You wouldn’t understand. We Loose Cultivators wander our whole lives. It’s not easy to make a few true friends."

His expression was complicated as he spoke, his face etched with a world-weariness that was hard not to be moved by.

Lu Sangjiu fell silent for a moment, then said, "In that case, why don’t I join your team?"

Surprise flashed across Zhao Fengnian’s face. "I told you how dangerous it is. Why would you...?"

Lu Sangjiu smiled, a profound look in her eyes. "Sometimes a person has to take a risk to get the outcome they desire, don’t they?"

Zhao Fengnian stared at her, stunned. An inexplicable, strange feeling washed over him.

But before he could dwell on it, Lu Sangjiu continued, "In any case, I’m very interested in this. If I don’t go with you, I’ll just have to cobble together another team, which would be a hassle."

Zhao Fengnian snapped out of it and said with a helpless sigh, "You’re just a young lady. Why are you so eager to rush into danger?"

"I have to warn you, I don’t even know if I’ll make it back alive myself. Are you still sure you want to go?"

Lu Sangjiu nodded. "Just tell me when you’re all leaving."

"Alright! Wait for me here the morning after tomorrow."

"Deal."

Lu Sangjiu and Zhao Fengnian exchanged Communication Talismans. Then, with a wave and a yawn, she turned and headed back to the inn.

As she walked, she took stock of what she had gained that day.

All things considered, it had been a lucky day. Besides the lead from Zhao Fengnian, she had also managed to learn about what was happening in Jinglin Town.

She’d heard that several Loose Cultivators had recently gone missing there one after another. A few disciples from the Joyful Union Sect happened to be in the vicinity, and when they went to investigate, they vanished too.

The incident caused a significant stir, and the Joyful Union Sect was now preparing to dispatch High-level cultivators to handle the situation.

Lu Sangjiu mused, ’This is probably related to Liu Xi’s capture...’

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