"Liu Mei?"
"Gentle beauty like a willow tree and the elegance of plum blossoms?"
Su Qingyue's clone, also known as Liu Mei, nodded. She let go of her embrace around Mu Chen, stepped forward, and began explaining in a cheerful and lively tone.
The reason she chose that name was because her first cultivation had taken place beneath a willow tree, and the plum blossom was the first flower that had made her feel beautiful.
Mu Chen let out a soft laugh. Liu Mei acted just like a seventeen-year-old girl from a story. Compared to Su Qingyue, the two clearly had completely opposite personalities.
Even so, Liu Mei was still Su Qingyue's clone. Her attitude might be more spoiled and childish, but when it came to cultivation knowledge, she was the same as Su Qingyue.
"Since you are a part of Su Qingyue, you should know the answer to the question I'm about to ask."
"What is it, Brother Mu Chen?"
She called me... Brother?
"It's about The Grand Temple of Mu. Do you know anything about them?"
"Why is Brother Mu Chen asking that?"
"There are many sects in Baiyin City opening disciple recruitment. But one of them isn't a sect, it's a temple."
"I don't know what makes them different from a sect," Mu Chen added.
"It's simple, Brother Mu Chen. The Grand Temple is usually led by a sacred lady."
"A sacred lady?"
"Not only that, for certain temples, they have specific requirements for their disciples. It could be based on gender or cultivation path."
Liu Mei stepped closer, her eyes sharpening as she wrapped her arms around Mu Chen from the front. Her face was now right in front of his.
"You're not interested in those hypocritical women, right?"
"No," Mu Chen answered.
"That's good. I knew Brother Mu Chen would only pay attention to me."
The girl leaned in and kissed Mu Chen on the cheek. Mu Chen was a little startled, but since Su Qingyue always teased him and acted affectionately with him, he was starting to get used to things like this.
"The Grand Temple of Mu is led by the Sacred Lady of Mu."
"You don't know her real name?" Mu Chen asked.
Liu Mei shook her head, "No one knows. She only wants to be called like that."
Mu Chen nodded. There was not much information he had gotten. Still, he did not care much about the Grand Temple of Mu.
He had only asked because one of their temple disciples had saved him from that old swindler in the city. Other than that, Mu Chen had no interest in them at all.
"So, what should we do now, Brother Mu Chen?"
"The room rental period is about to end. We need to leave the city and look for Hengyue Sect."
"Don't worry, Brother Mu Chen. I know where their sect is."
The man nodded. After reaching an agreement, the two of them stepped out of the Spiritual Qi Vein of Baiyin City.
The gate guards were even more shocked. The man who had cultivated in Room 13, whose rental period had already ended, was walking out with a cultivation base that had increased drastically.
"What did he do? Did he absorb all the spiritual qi in this place's vein?" the woman exclaimed in shock.
"And what's with his friend's cultivation base? Wasn't she still at Core Formation yesterday? Why is she now at Qi Condensation?"
Mu Chen and Liu Mei walked side by side, with Liu Mei constantly holding his hand. Her attention shifted left and right toward the streets of the city.
There was a lot of food and snacks along the road. Mu Chen had no interest in any of it, but Liu Mei was different.
"There's sugar candy over there."
"Look, Brother Mu Chen. Does this necklace look good on me?"
"Let's have our relationship fortune told by that old man!"
Mu Chen was overwhelmed.
Liu Mei dragged him around to enjoy everything in the city, draining quite a lot of taels from Mu Chen's bag of holding.
But it proved something.
The attitude Liu Mei showed was relaxed and cheerful, another side of Su Qingyue.
Throughout her life, Su Qingyue had always been bound by norms, rules, and the elegance of a jade beauty.
She could not act bluntly and casually. Every action she took had to be graceful and honorable.
By inheriting the same consciousness, Liu Mei did not need to be bound by sect norms and the elegance expected of a jade beauty.
That was because Su Qingyue had already fulfilled all of that.
With Liu Mei, Mu Chen felt like he was seeing the side of Su Qingyue that had long been locked tightly behind the dignity of a jade beauty.
"You're really going to finish all of that?" Mu Chen asked in shock.
Liu Mei's right hand held sugar candy, cotton candy, and candied fruit. In her left hand, there were sesame sticks, dried meat, and roasted long beans. All of them were snacks.
Mu Chen had spent at least seventy taels just to let Liu Mei enjoy everything along Baiyin City's main street, not including accessories like necklaces and bracelets.
"Do you want some, Brother Mu Chen?"
"I'm on a glucose diet."
"What diet? What's that? A new cultivation method?"
Mu Chen cleared his throat lightly, "Something like that."
"Then teach me later."
"Of course... although you probably won't need it."
They continued walking along the city's main street. Mu Chen noticed many sect cultivators looking at him strangely.
Aside from his status as a wandering cultivator, Liu Mei seemed completely unashamed to show affection in public.
To them, it was probably an uncomfortable sight. But Mu Chen had no choice. Su Qingyue would feel whatever Liu Mei felt.
If Liu Mei was happy, Su Qingyue would be happy too.
If Liu Mei was angry, then Su Qingyue would be angry as well.
That could end badly for Mu Chen.
They arrived at the city's western gate, standing beside a horse carriage usually used to transport passengers, in this case mortals.
"Where are you two headed?" the carriage driver asked.
"About that..."
Mu Chen turned toward Liu Mei, who was busy eating the sweets in her hand.
When Liu Mei noticed him looking, she swallowed what was in her mouth and spoke to the carriage driver.
"Xianyin City."
"Xianyin? That's a three-day journey. Are you sure you'll be alright?"
"Yes."
Liu Mei whispered to Mu Chen, "I don't want any other passengers."
"Huh? But this carriage is public transportation."
"I don't care. I only want it to be the two of us," Liu Mei complained.
Mu Chen let out a sigh. He was beginning to realize and experience just how troublesome and exhausting this spoiled version of Su Qingyue was.
Heavens... give me strength.
"How is it, Daoist?" the carriage driver asked.
"I'll give you five thousand taels, but don't take any other passengers except us."
He took out five brown pouches, each containing one thousand taels.
The carriage driver clearly did not refuse, even though the transportation fee from Baiyin City to Xianyin City was only five hundred taels.
"Of course. Thank you for your generosity, daoist."
Mu Chen and Liu Mei stepped into the horse carriage. After both of them got in, the driver began urging the horses forward and left Baiyin City.
The carriage was not very comfortable compared to cars on Earth. However, it was the only mode of transportation this world had.
What about the flying swords commonly used by cultivators? They could not use them because neither of them was a Foundation Establishment cultivator.
Qi Condensation cultivators did not have the ability to control qi well enough for flying swords. So whether they liked it or not, they had to take the horse carriage.
"Brother Mu Chen. I'm sleepy. Let me sleep on your lap."
"Wait, at least..."
Liu Mei immediately fell fast asleep from being too full, and several snacks in her hands dropped onto the wooden floor of the carriage.
Mu Chen sighed, opened the small window, and asked the driver something.
"Do you have a blanket?" Mu Chen asked.
"Yes. It's under the seat. Please get some rest, Daoist. The journey will be long and exhausting."