Fellow Daoist! That scoundrel has written a new book again.

Chapter 543 Xiao Long Bao

No wonder Song Kezi was so successful in the Star-Picking Tower; he was so eloquent and persuasive.

Even though Zhu Wuyao knew his true colors, Song Kezi could still keep up the act. In front of people who didn't know the truth, his ingratiating and obsequious manner was probably very deceptive.

Unfortunately, no one here fell for his trick.

Zhu Wuyao, holding a banner, completely ignored his words and instead lifted Song Kezi off the table with her other hand, saying:

"Let's go set up a fortune-telling stall."

"Going again... We're all cultivators, we have plenty of money, can't we enjoy the life of mortals for once?"

Song Kezi reluctantly followed Zhu Wuyao and walked with her into the street, his eyes fixed on the banner that read "One divination for one coin," and began to ponder.

His intuition told him that Zhu Wuyao must have some ulterior motive for going out to tell fortunes every day.

But he hasn't figured it out yet.

Because of the low price, Zhu Wuyao quickly welcomed its first customer, a man with a worried look on his face, who seemed to be troubled by something.

Arriving before Zhu Wuyao, this legendary fortune teller, he seemed to have no hope and said:

"Master, I've remembered a divination."

"What is it?"

The man looked up at Zhu Wuyao and saw that, as a fortune teller, she couldn't even say what he wanted to know. He couldn't help but sigh inwardly—you really do get what you pay for.

A fortune teller who only charges one penny is basically useless.

However, he didn't have high expectations. Everyone in the world knew that only the top fortune tellers were in the Star-Picking Tower, but as a mortal, how could he possibly have the chance to see the true face of a fortune teller?

He was about to speak.

Song Kezi, however, was silently observing the man's expression. He was not only good at analyzing people's hearts, but also quite knowledgeable about human nature.

With a quick thought, she could guess most of what he was thinking, and immediately interrupted the man, saying to Zhu Wuyao:

"Don't do any calculations for him. This guy doesn't trust you at all and actually wants you to help him find his sweetheart."

Then, looking at the man, she said with a grin, "Your man... he ran off with someone else!"

The man was taken aback and quickly stepped forward, waving his hands. He looked around, both embarrassed and angry, and said, "Stop talking nonsense! Stop talking nonsense!"

Song Kezi took a step back behind Zhu Wuyao, stood at attention, and said without any fear:

"Ha! It's your honor that my junior sister is willing to cast a divination for you. You'd be better off kneeling down and kowtowing to express your gratitude than dawdling here. If you don't want your divination done, then get out of my way. Don't block my path. I think you should give up on finding him. Why don't you just go with him—ah! Ouch, ouch, ouch..."

Just before Song Kezi was about to utter some "curses," Zhu Wuyao grabbed his shoulder, and the spiritual power surging from his palm made Song Kezi break out in a cold sweat from the pain.

He quickly feigned weakness and begged for mercy, his previous arrogant demeanor vanishing instantly, and he reverted to a humble and submissive appearance.

The man's face turned pale and then red; he had never expected to be subjected to such an insult.

Frozen in place, she pointed at Song Kezi, gritting her teeth, too angry to utter a single word.

Just as he was about to leave in anger, he saw the fortune teller hold him down and force him to bow and apologize.

Zhu Wuyao asked, "Do you still want your fortune told?"

The man angrily turned and left, leaving only his back view.

Song Kezi was released, and he rubbed his neck, inwardly wishing he could tear Zhu Wuyao to pieces and feed him to the dogs, but on the surface he smiled and said:

"Junior sister, he's cursing you in his heart. How could you treat me like this for an outsider? I'm so heartbroken. Can you buy me some xiaolongbao (soup dumplings)? I promise I won't say anything like that again!"

"What are you thinking about?"

"Ah, I was thinking, if I made you into a xiaolongbao (soup dumpling), one would cost one coin~"

Zhu Wuyao glanced at him, said nothing, and instead found a corner to put away the banners and took Song Kezi to the stall selling xiaolongbao (soup dumplings).

Seeing Song Kezi enjoying his meal so much, Lingbi was a little puzzled and asked:

Why did you reward him?

Zhu Wuyao quietly looked at Song Kezi, who occasionally raised his eyes, seemingly with a hint of provocation, and deliberately ate with great relish.

Upon hearing the spirit brush's question, Zhu Wuyao countered in his divine sense:

"You once said that he was filled with malice, yet he was prone to doing evil and reaping good results, right?"

Lingbi replied, "But he acted purely out of malice. There was no coincidence that he unintentionally uttered a prophetic meaning with malicious intent..."

There's none?

"Although it sounds vicious, isn't it a great deal to obtain something that grants life by sacrificing only a part of one's limbs?"

"Huh?" The Spirit Pen seemed to pause for a moment, then said, "Although I can't fully understand humans, what you just said... well, doesn't it seem a bit... illogical?"

Zhu Wuyao looked at Song Kezi and sighed deeply.

He was so startled he almost dropped his steamed bun.

The most difficult part of this matter is that the items promised by the divination master seem to be unaffected by the divination master's methods, so the divination cannot be performed, and prophecies and the like... perhaps they cannot be affected either?

Otherwise, simply sacrificing a part of one's limbs, like the Buddha in his previous life cutting off his own flesh to feed an eagle, would be enough to obtain something that grants one's life—a truly great deal.

The voice of the spirit pen rang in my consciousness once more:

"I've assessed the situation, and if that's all there is to it, to get something that grants your life is really a great deal!"

"Considering everything you've been through along the way, if what Song Kezi said does come true, it's definitely a very rewarding approach!"

The things promised in life are inevitably accompanied by regret, pain, and remorse.

When Zhu Wuyao so easily promised his own destiny, nothing heart-wrenching happened.

Unlike Gu Yiguan, who only realized what "loss and missed opportunity" meant when he discovered that it was a life-altering object.

She was fortunate enough to have reviewed her past experiences in the Wishing Well Secret Realm, carefully analyzing the details, and managed to find the item that had granted her life.

So what didn't come to you when you were given your destiny or knew your destiny, might come to you when you receive your destiny.

Her gaze toward Song Kezi grew increasingly profound, sincerely hoping that his words would come true, so as not to waste the two baskets of xiaolongbao she had prepared today.

Even if it's not a part of the limbs, but a more important part, it doesn't matter.

Based on experience, obtaining the life-granting item will only injure her, not kill her. Since that's the case, as long as she can exchange for the life-granting item, she can become as powerful as Sect Leader Fang, and in some situations, invincible... Thinking about this, Zhu Wuyao slowly curled the corners of her mouth.

"Clatter—"

Song Kezi's steamed buns fell to the ground. Under Zhu Wuyao's smiling gaze, he felt uneasy and somewhat apprehensive. He forced a smile and said:

"You eat too, you eat too..."

Wishing Wuyao a joyful mood, with an invincible future seemingly unfolding before him, he picked up a xiaolongbao (soup dumpling) and said:

"Don't waste food. In this world, many people can't even afford to eat."

Song Kezi quickly responded, crawled under the table to pick up the small steamed buns that had fallen to the ground, and swallowed them in small bites while looking up at her face.