"What's going on? Did that Japanese chick just lose it?" Ryan Ling looked genuinely surprised. Ever since he captured Chiharu Mitsui last time, she'd been totally chill—never anything like this.
Plus, this Japanese woman had a trait—once she recognized you as her master, she'd never waver. Unless you gave her an order, she'd never dare make a move on her own.
"No idea. I can't sense anything weird about Sansha Island right now either!" Even the Ghost Elder inside him was baffled.
"Is it possible that Sansha Island really has the aura of a Huaxia true dragon, and Chiharu Mitsui, being a foreigner, sensed it and that's why she freaked out?" Ryan guessed.
"Your theory's got a bit too much revolutionary optimism, but hey, it's not impossible!" The Ghost Elder chuckled.
"Whatever, since we're here, let's just settle in and see what happens!" Ryan didn't overthink it. Chiharu Mitsui went nuts for a bit, then snapped right back to normal. Ryan didn't dig deeper, but he made a mental note—clearly, her outburst had some special cause.
Soon, Ryan followed Huifen and arrived at her house. Since Huifen was injured and there was no man at home, Ryan helped out with whatever heavy chores he could.
Huifen and Granny Sha slaughtered chickens and fish to cook a feast for Ryan, while little Xiaoru obediently ran to the nearby shop and bought several bottles of local fruit wine, planning to properly reward Ryan tonight.
"Huifen, this is some top-notch healing salve. Make sure you apply it regularly—I'm guessing you'll be fully healed in three days, tops!" Ryan squeezed out some Heavenwood sap. This stuff was basically a holy medicine for wounds; put it on and you'd recover fast.
"Thanks, brother!" Huifen's cheeks turned a little red. She remembered how Ryan had seen her naked earlier and felt a bit embarrassed. Even though she was older, she couldn't help being a little shy.
"It's nothing, just remember to apply it!" Ryan scratched his head. With his sensitivity, he immediately picked up on Huifen's thoughts. Seeing her flushed face, he quickly walked away.
I've already got too many women in my life—if I end up hitting on Sis Huifen, that's just asking for karma to smack me down!
But just as he turned to go out for a walk and clear his head, he suddenly saw several people standing outside the door. At the front was a woman in tight clothes, her aura solid and strong—clearly not ordinary—and her companions looked just as impressive.
Ryan's brow furrowed. Had those Hong Kong nobles really tracked him down this fast?
But on second thought, that couldn't be right. He and Huifen's family had only just walked in the door, and on the way, Ryan had used a secret technique to mask all traces of their presence. Even if someone did find them, it should've taken a while.
"Who are you people?" Ryan steadied himself and asked warily.
"Sorry, landlord, do you have any rooms for rent here?" the woman asked quickly.
"You want to rent a room? There are plenty of hotels on Sansha Island, and you've got a whole group—are all of you staying?" Ryan pressed.
"You've misunderstood, landlord. It's just me renting. Please don't ask why—I'm willing to pay triple the hotel rate if you'll agree!" The woman finished speaking and, with a glance, sent all her companions away at once.
Ryan grew even more suspicious, but then Huifen walked over. The woman spotted her and, as if knowing Ryan wasn't the decision-maker, hurriedly brushed past him and went straight to Huifen.
"Sis Huifen, I'd like to rent a room from you—the highest one you've got, no matter how small. Price is no issue, here's ten thousand!" The woman said, shoving the cash into Huifen's hand.
"Miss, you want to rent my place? It's pretty run-down, and the top room is just a storeroom. Plus, the roof gets blasted by the sun—it's super hot up there, and there's no AC!" Huifen, ever the honest islander, hurried to explain the situation.
"It's fine, I'm only staying a few days. I don't mind the heat. Take the money—and if it's not enough, I'll give you another stack!" The woman said, pulling out another ten thousand and handing it to Huifen.
Huifen was stunned. This was basically someone forcing money on her—how could she dare accept it?
"Miss, why exactly do you want to rent this place? And for such a high price?" Ryan asked, curiosity piqued.
"Sir, as I said before, you'd better not ask. I mean no harm and won't trouble you at all—I'm only staying three days!" The woman grew anxious, pulling out yet another wad of cash and thrusting it at Huifen, her voice more pleading: "Sis, please, just three days! I'll leave after that, I promise I won't cause any trouble!"
Seeing how desperate she was, Huifen—true to island hospitality—quickly welcomed her in: "Alright, this place is pretty shabby and not many people come by. If you want to stay, go ahead. But I won't take your money—it's tough being away from home, let me help you out!"
"Sis, aren't you going to ask her more..." Ryan said, still uneasy.
"Ugh, you're so annoying! Sis already agreed, so why are you still asking? Girls have their secrets, okay?" The woman was clearly fed up with Ryan's questions, her temper flaring.
"Exactly, brother—such a pretty girl can't mean any harm. If we can help her, let's help!" Huifen said, already leading the stranger upstairs.
Ryan shook his head. Honest people stayed honest their whole lives. Wasn't Vivian Huo beautiful too? But her heart was vicious.
"Ryan, if she wants to stay, let her. Sure, we've made it to Sansha Island and we're close to where the Dragon Scale pointed, but finding the real dragon is still a long shot. The vast sea—tracking it down is like searching for a needle in a haystack. Still, I get the feeling this mysterious woman could be a breakthrough!" The Ghost Elder said urgently from within.
"Did you sense something?" Ryan knew finding the true dragon was the top priority on Sansha Island, but the search was a challenge. He had the Dragon Scale to guide him, but unless the dragon was nearby, it couldn't do much.
"A little, yes. This woman doesn't seem like a bad person; there's a righteous energy about her, and she's strong—at least Earth-Tier Void Realm. Her followers were all Profound-Tier Void Realm. A group like that showing up on tiny Sansha Island means something big is going down, and it might be tied to the true dragon!" The Ghost Elder finished, and Ryan nodded slightly.
"There's another important reason!" The Ghost Elder paused. "She's not bad-looking, you know. Maybe you should consider it!"
"Consider my ass! I'm so sick of pretty girls, I could puke!" Ryan shot a glare at the system and hurried inside.
After some discussion, the woman insisted on taking the storeroom on the top floor. She was stubborn about handing Sis Huifen thirty thousand, and Huifen, unable to refuse, finally accepted.
Dinner was supposed to be just Ryan as the guest, but now there was a beautiful stranger too. Sis Huifen's family didn't mind at all—they kept piling food onto her plate, and little Xiaoru kept asking her to pick her up. Before long, Ryan, the actual guest, was all but forgotten.
The whole meal, Ryan didn't say a single word to her.
She was clearly wary of Ryan. After dinner, Ryan only managed to get two facts: her name was Cindy Nang, and she was from Yan Capital, the northern capital of Huaxia.
Night fell again. Counting the days, it had been three since he'd left Jinling. Though he'd made it to Sansha Island, there wasn't even a shadow of the true dragon yet.
Whether he'd find it or not was still anyone's guess.
Just then, Ryan's room door was suddenly knocked on.
"Who is it?" Ryan called out.
"It's me, Cindy Nang!" came a clear voice from outside.
"It's so late—what do you want? I'm already in bed!" Ryan didn't want to deal with her, not knowing her background and honestly tired of getting involved with beautiful women.
Sleep? Are you kidding me? It's only eight—what are you, a grandpa? I'm melting up here! Open up and let me crash your AC!
Ryan was speechless. So she couldn't stand the heat and just wanted to use his air conditioner!
"Open up, or I'm going to be drenched!" Cindy Nang said, nearly kicking the door down.
"Alright, you win!" Ryan didn't want to disturb Sis Huifen's family, so he quickly opened the door. Sure enough, Cindy Nang was drenched in sweat—her hair, face, neck all slick, her clothes stuck to her skin, and her pink bra clearly visible.
"It's so cool in here!" Cindy Nang said, and started taking off her underwear...