Seeing that Nero had already made up his mind, March gave up on trying to come up with a more reliable disguise.
After all, what's more important than the kid being happy?
After that, the group started wandering around Changletian, hoping to find some kind of clue.
The four of them walked around Changletian Plaza twice, but didn't notice anything special.
So they followed the stairs upward to the second floor.
As soon as they stepped past the final stair, they saw quite a few card tables set up casually. Many people were sitting around them, one table, two tables, three tables, playing Imperial Jade Tiles.
The current situation on the Xianzhou was indeed tense, but it hadn't reached the point where ordinary people felt that everyone was in danger.
Besides, some people have a more optimistic and easygoing outlook on life. Sometimes even if a great disaster is about to arrive, they would still want to enjoy themselves first.
If you ask them what they'll do afterward, you'll probably just get the answer, 'whatever happens, happens'.
The four of them walked and stopped as they went, observing whether there was anything suspicious while also taking in the customs and atmosphere of the Xianzhou.
When they passed a small stall, Nero happily ran over and bought seven small tiger pillows, saying he'd take them back and put them on the train so everyone could have one.
The tiger pillows were a bit troublesome to carry, so Nero asked Black Cutter to help deliver them to the Sleepless Earl first to store them there.
This Black Cutter could actually be considered quite a terrifying demonic sword. If it were allowed to develop freely, it might eventually become a disaster for an entire corner of the universe.
But ever since it started following Nero, the thing had been extremely obedient, practically like a devoted bootlicker.
Of course that was meant as praise. If Argenti saw the current Black Cutter, he would probably praise it as well, praising it for finally turning from a bad sword into a good sword.
After wandering around some more, Nero's eyes shifted, and he sharply caught sight of a rather suspicious fellow.
That person was wearing green clothes and had pointed ears. He should be a Vidyadhara, though it was unclear whether he was just unemployed or working at the Alchemy Commission.
The guy's demeanor was rather secretive. His eyes darted left and right. Although he tried to hide it well, under Nero's sharp vision it was full of flaws, giving off the feeling of someone with a guilty conscience.
If it were someone else looking, they might not notice anything.
But Nero's eyesight was extraordinary. He could even tell how many hairs Pom-Pom had shed.
To describe the difference between Nero's eyesight and other people's, one sentence explained it perfectly.
If Nero were asked to evaluate someone's disguise, the kid would probably say it casually, with a slightly disgusted tone, "Worse acting than Mr. Cold Feet."
Most people might use the Fool as a standard or example when judging something.
But Nero used the Fool as the minimum standard.
Of course, that wasn't the most important part. Even if Nero couldn't tell, he could still make a phone call and call someone over.
After all, when it comes to things like this, who could compare to that Lord of Joy?
After noticing this strange person, Nero stopped walking and then pulled his companions to a halt as well.
Then he casually glanced toward that person, pretending to be very interested.
At critical moments, the Nameless were very reliable. Noticing Nero's movement, after his reminder they also spotted the guy. Then they naturally started acting along with it, pretending to be very interested as well while casually drifting closer.
Sometimes they approached, sometimes they moved away.
During their conversation they occasionally mentioned their admiration and envy of the long lifespan of the Xianzhou people.
But they deliberately never went over.
With this push and pull, the guy's heart started itching.
After all, the exploration squad's performance was meant entirely for that Vidyadhara kid to see.
It was like a sexy beauty constantly teasing someone, while the suspicious Vidyadhara was like a single man who had been hungry for years.
He wanted to walk over.
But it was as if invisible shackles held him back, preventing him from moving freely, leaving him only able to watch.
The more he watched, the more anxious he became.
Finally, he caught an opportunity.
After finally getting a little closer again, the suspicious Vidyadhara couldn't hold back anymore and stepped forward, directly stopping the four members of the exploration squad.
His gaze swept over them before finally landing on the green-headed fish-man who had been the first to look toward him.
He smiled, rubbed his palms together, looking like a top-tier salesman eager to close a deal.
"Guests from afar, please wait a moment. Do you long for immortality?"
As soon as the question came out, March subconsciously wanted to respond. But in the end, the beautiful girl used her powerful self-control to hold herself back.
This was a rather critical moment, and Nero was in disguise.
March's brain ran at high speed, and the final conclusion she reached was that it would be better if she didn't speak.
If she accidentally let something slip and aroused suspicion, that wouldn't be good.
After all, Miss Qingzu had said earlier that the spies she sent out might have already been discovered.
At this moment, Mr. Yang slightly organized his thoughts and was just about to speak when he heard Stelle, without even thinking, say directly, "I long for power!"
The Vidyadhara across from them immediately fell silent.
This made Mr. Yang feel a little anxious. He was just about to explain things for Stelle.
But then he heard the Vidyadhara say, "I understand! You mean you long for immortality, right? After all, eternal life is also a kind of power!"
Mr. Yang let out a breath of relief, thinking to himself, 'Luckily, he found an excuse for it himself.'
But before he could fully relax, he heard the second great general (Nero) say, "I long for worthy opponents!"
The Vidyadhara fell silent again.
So Mr. Yang's nerves tightened once more.
After quickly organizing his words in his mind, Mr. Yang prepared to explain things for Nero.
However, before he could speak, he heard the Vidyadhara say again, "Oh! I get it, I get it! What you mean is that you also long for immortality, right?"
"After all, if you live long enough, you'll meet many people. And if you meet enough people, eventually you'll encounter the opponent you're looking for!"
Mr. Yang's racing heart and hanging nerves returned to their original place again, 'Luckily, he convinced himself.'
Mr. Yang frowned slightly, his mood extremely complicated.
He felt like he had just been riding a roller coaster. One moment he was suddenly lifted high up, the next he was plunging straight down.
Compared to that, this was far more thrilling than a roller coaster.
'So this was what it felt like when Dan Heng usually spent time with the other three kids?'
Mr. Yang's already high evaluation of Dan Heng rose even further.
When the Astral Express' "two generals" joined forces, it was truly no simple matter.
"So then, judging from what you said, you can provide a way to obtain immortality?"
Looking at the Vidyadhara, Nero spoke while habitually starting to roll up his sleeves.
Ever since returning to the Xianzhou and wearing that white Taoist robe every day, this had already become his habitual motion before taking action.
After all, on the Xianzhou there weren't many things that required him to jump and slash directly. Sparring with Yanqing too often had also become a bit boring, so he didn't even start fights with jumping slashes anymore.
The Vidyadhara didn't pay attention to Nero's preparatory motion that looked like he was getting ready to slap someone. Instead, he said, "I do indeed have a way to offer outworlders a chance at immortality…"
After saying that, he paused, glanced around sneakily to both sides, then lowered his voice.
"But if you're interested, it's better if we keep our voices down while talking. On the Xianzhou, this isn't exactly a respectable topic."
March glanced at the clean white palm Nero had exposed, then looked at the Vidyadhara, showing a bit of sympathy.
'Who knows how long you'll be able to hold on?'
'Even that huge thing like Black Cutter can be lifted and played with in one hand by Nero. His grip strength definitely isn't small.'
'Before this he was slapping Mara-struck Cloud Knights one after another. When the time comes, how many slaps will you be able to endure?'