The rag picking sister turned out to be a weapon refiner

After everyone left, Tan Luo looked at Hu Xingtong, his tone still gentle, and instructed: "Xingtong, when you go down the mountain this time, remember to look after your junior brothers and sisters. They are both impulsive and stubborn, and may not understand some things clearly. Your senior brothers and sisters are much older than the three of you, so they may not be able to do everything. I think you are the only one who can be a little more reliable."

Hu Xingtong seemed to have noticed something about Tan Luo's instructions, and he did not find it strange. The cultivators who practiced the way of life must have their own special qualities, so Hu Xingtong still took on this task.

He bowed respectfully to his master. Seeing this, Tan Luo waved his hand and turned into a wisp of green smoke and left.

After watching his master's departing back and making sure that he had left, Hu Xingtong got up and went back to the house, ready to continue improving his own courtyard and planning his next trip down the mountain.

Three days later...

After bidding farewell to Master Tan Luo, a group of people led by Sun Ze and Han Qianyu secretly left Fanyun Sect. After all, these five people were Tan Luo's direct disciples. If someone with ulterior motives told the news to the ears of the demons, they would surely be killed.

On the way, several people thought about the itinerary arrangements for this trip, and decided that the main places for training would be Lu Han Mountain and Wuji Volcano in Li Country and the Far North. Because there were only ten years left before the sect competition that was held once every hundred years, during this period, several people had to steadily improve their strength, and also had to win the championship for Fanyun Sect on the day of the sect competition, so as to obtain a place in the Tianhun Secret Realm for the sect after the competition. Therefore, the choice of location was mainly based on the bitter and cold places where strength could be improved.

Of course, Liguo is an exception. The reason I went to Liguo was because of Xiao Yuheng's words, "Why don't you visit my country?"

……

"Everyone, do you want to visit my country?" Xiao Yuheng was a little nervous. He hadn't been home for a long time and wanted to go back to see his family.

Hu Xingtong looked at Xiao Yuheng, then at Tan Yuruo who was playing with snakes beside them. She seemed to have forgotten the relationship between the two during her years of seclusion.

"Xiao Wuzi, during the time I was in seclusion, did Tan Yuruo try to assassinate Xiao Yuheng?" Hu Xingtong contacted the system to inquire about the stories he missed during his seclusion.

[Yes, Tan Yuruo had tried to poison Xiao Yuheng before, but Xiao Yuheng was very cautious and avoided it. Another time, Tan Yuruo relied on her cultivation being half a level higher than Xiao Yuheng and wanted to kill him directly, but your master intervened and stopped her.]

"How did my master know?" In Hu Xingtong's impression, Tan Luo seemed to be an immortal who was detached from the mundane world. He couldn't understand why Tan Luo took action in time to stop Tan Yuruo, and he couldn't understand how Tan Luo made Tan Yuruo stop taking action temporarily.

[I forgot to tell you, Tan Yuruo actually planned to give up the mission.]

"Why? Did Master do something?"

[Yes, your master did intervene, but not much, for two reasons. First, because Tan Yuruo was an orphan, she felt that the atmosphere between the four of you was very good, which was also good for her. She didn't want to give up this harmonious relationship because of the mission. Second, your master told her that you could solve Xiao Yuheng's identity problem so that she wouldn't have to worry about it.]

"What the hell? My master said I can solve it, how can I solve it? No, how did he know I was going to solve this problem?"

"This...could it be because your master calculated it through practicing the Way of Life?" the system said tentatively, its uncertainty making Hu Xingtong reluctantly believe it.

"Third Junior Sister?" Seeing Hu Xingtong's dazed look and not responding for a long time, Sun Ze waved his hand in front of her and called out.

"Huh?" Hu Xingtong, who had come to his senses, looked at the inquiring expressions of the four people in front of him and asked curiously, "What's wrong?"

Sun Ze shook his head and replied, "Nothing, I just wanted to ask you if you have any opinions about leaving the country?"

Hearing this, Hu Xingtong looked in the direction of Xiao Yuheng, who was looking at him eagerly. Although there was no movement or obvious expression, Hu Xingtong still felt a strong sense of expectation from him.

Looking at the direction of Tan Yuruo again, the latter raised her head at some point, and the look she gave him was filled with expectation and doubt, as if she was unsure whether she could help her.

Hu Xingtong retracted his gaze, looked at Sun Ze and Han Qianyu, raised a big smile, and replied naturally: "Go, I also want to see what the country where Fourth Junior Brother grew up is like."

After he finished speaking, Hu Xingtong clearly heard the low chuckle coming from Xiao Yuheng, and also felt Tan Yuruo's sigh of relief.

……

The territory of Li Country is very large, with ten major cities alone. Under each major city there are dozens of small cities, and under the small cities there are countless counties and towns. It is so large in scale that it can be said to be prosperous.

At this time, several people were in Xiacheng, which was on the border of the country. According to Xiao Yuheng, Xiacheng was a border town with abundant fish and rice. Because it was close to the river, the people here mainly ate fish and rice. In addition, many lantern festivals and temple exhibitions were held here during holidays. At this moment, several people just happened to catch up with the annual lantern festival here.

As night falls, Xiacheng is illuminated by a dazzling array of lights, transforming it into a fairyland. Lanterns of all shapes and sizes hang high on both sides of the streets. There are traditional round lanterns, painted with auspicious images of dragons and phoenixes, symbolizing prosperity and abundance year after year; there are also whimsical animal lanterns, so lifelike they draw children to watch. The air is filled with the aroma of food, and the cries of vendors echo in the air, creating a bustling atmosphere.

Hu Xingtong and his group weaved through the crowd, taking in the long-lost bustle and excitement. Xiao Yuheng was clearly very familiar with the place; he introduced the various local snacks to everyone while constantly reminding them to be safe. Tan Yuruo seemed a bit excited. She held Han Qianyu's hand, pointing to the distant scenery and asking questions, her eyes gleaming with curiosity and yearning for the unknown world.

"Look over there, that's the 'Fish Leaping Over the Dragon Gate' light set that's unique to our country. It symbolizes that students can leap over the dragon gate and get their names on the list of successful candidates." Xiao Yuheng pointed to a large light set not far away and introduced it. The light set had the river as its background, and a huge carp was struggling to leap out of the water, as if it could transform into a dragon and rush into the sky in the next second.

Hu Xingtong was moved by the implication of this. She turned to look at Sun Ze and Han Qianyu beside her and said with a smile, "Brothers and sisters, it seems that this trip will not only allow us to enjoy the beautiful scenery, but also to share in the good fortune of 'leaping over the dragon gate'."

Sun Ze smiled slightly, with a hint of tenderness in his eyes: "Yes, I hope we can all gain something from this trip."

[Xingxing, open your scanning eye. There are a lot of interesting things around here.] The sudden prompt from the system made Hu Xingtong stop in his tracks. He looked at the mask stand beside him, picked up a fox mask, and put it on. He looked at Han Qianyu and Tan Yuruo nonchalantly and asked, "Senior Sister, Junior Sister, do you like it?"

The two men looked at her when they heard the sound. The girl's fair face was covered by the fox mask, so they couldn't tell whether it was beautiful or not. They could only simply comment on the workmanship of the mask.

"Sure." Han Qianyu chose a pertinent answer and turned to pay the bill with the vendor naturally.

"Senior sister, it looks great on you. I want one too." After praising, Tan Yuruo stopped Han Qianyu's hand that was about to pay the bill. At the same time, Xiao Yuheng and the other two also came over. After thinking for a while, Xiao Yuheng took a white mask from the stall and put it on his face. He said to Han Qianyu, "Second senior sister, since you are here with me, there is no reason for you to have fun at your own expense. If you like anything, just choose it and I will pay for it." Xiao Yuheng was very generous, and the few of them had no reason to refuse. So they stopped being polite and each chose a mask they liked and put it on their face. This inexplicably created a sense of mystery for them.

Among the few people, Hu Xingtong just smiled faintly. She chose the mask to hide her identity. After wearing the mask, she would not pay too much attention to her abnormality, and others would not notice her appearance because of the special color of the scanning eye. This protected herself and made it easier to act.

So, without anyone noticing, Hu Xingtong silently turned on the Scanning Eye. However, what she didn't notice was that her eyes did not change color due to the opening of the Scanning Eye.

Along the way, aided by his scanning eye, Hu Xingtong discovered many inconspicuous little finds, such as ancient jade and spiritual artifacts hidden in vendors' stalls, and forgotten pieces of stone and wood imbued with innate energy in corners. To collect these treasures, Hu Xingtong could only act quietly, carefully seizing every opportunity, whether it was distracting his fellow practitioners while chatting with them, or taking advantage of crowded situations to quickly pocket seemingly ordinary yet extraordinary items and leave money behind, or simply bending down to pick up pieces of stone and wood from the ground when others weren't noticing. Every action had to be extremely covert to avoid arousing suspicion.

In this bustling market, a myriad of sounds intertwined, creating a unique atmosphere. While enjoying the pleasure of stealing and scavenging, Hu Xingtong remained vigilant to her surroundings, lest she attract the attention of the onlookers. Fortunately, thanks to her clever choice of a fox mask, even when she occasionally needed to stray from the group to pick up a precious item, it didn't seem too out of place.

Of course, she was so engrossed in her activities that she didn't realize that her actions had already been noticed by her companions. The four of them just didn't understand what she was doing, so they didn't disturb her and just observed her silently.

As time went by, Hu Xingtong had quietly collected quite a few treasures, many of which he could use in his own refining or system refinement.

As the night deepened, the Lantern Festival reached its climax. People released their Kongming lanterns, each one carrying wishes and dreams, slowly rising into the sky, adorning the night sky with a dazzling brilliance. Hu Xingtong also bought a Kongming lantern, carefully writing her wish on it before gently releasing it. Watching it soar higher and higher until it disappeared into the night sky, she felt an inexplicable surge of emotion and anticipation.

"I hope that each of our wishes can come true." Hu Xingtong said softly, his voice was soft but full of determination.

"I definitely will." Xiao Yuheng, Tan Yuruo and Han Qianyu all echoed, and the four of them unconsciously clasped their hands together, as if at this moment, they were not only fellow brothers and sisters, but also each other's strongest support.

It was late at night, but the Lantern Festival in Xiacheng was still in full swing. Hu Xingtong and his companions continued to move forward amidst the dim lights. Perhaps many years from now, this journey would become an unforgettable memory in their lives.