It was an hour before dawn completely disappeared when Lu Feng’s eyes snapped open. He opened his eyes to the sight of his well arranged room which now held a bag at a corner which contained all they’d purchased at the Shopping District the previous day.
He rose out of bed and stretched, feeling relieved that the sun was yet to completely bath Silver Jade City in all of its warm glory. That was when the pain he’d forgotten about revealed itself.
His forehead throbbed mildly, reminding him of what had transpired the previous day at the shopping District.
He’d slammed his head into Zhao Wang’s face which had caused the mediocre cultivator to pass out.
Rubbing his forehead and nodding, Lu Feng grinned. "That was definitely worth it.’
Then he began moving almost immediately after noticing a certain panel that he’d constantly been seeing since the previous day.
[22:10:34...]
He had less than a day to complete the mission given to him by his system. "That’s strange."
Had he not been given the mission at noon the previous day?
"Why am I missing more than twenty-four hours when it isn’t even noon yet?" Lu Feng asked himself with a frown. Had the day been longer than normal or had something else happened that he didn’t know about?
The system wasted no time clarifying what had transpired by providing him with another panel.
Ding!
The notification was instant.
[Host has failed to acknowledge the mission given to host!]
[Punishment: -8 Hours from mission deadline!]
His eyes widened slowly as the realization dawned on him. He had indeed ignored the mission for the whole of the day, prioritizing their supplies over the mission he’d been assigned by the system.
It made him understand one fact. The system held more importance if he didn’t want to bear a risk he had no idea was lurking behind the shadows.
A sigh escaped his mouth as he nodded in acknowledgement. He wouldn’t overlook the system a second time.
He moved toward the bag containing their supplies and took a few minutes to take inventory of everything within it. He also took out of the daggers they’d gotten and placed it aside even as he placed every other item back into the bag.
After packing everything back into the bag, he stared at the dagger for a moment before picking it up and hiding it within the confines of his robe.
Without another moment of delay, he headed for the door, opened it, and headed outside.
Knowing fully well that Han Lin wouldn’t want to be disturbed yet, Ly Feng went out on a walk.
He greeted the innkeeper who was at the reception, cleaning a small glass cup with a semi permanent smile etched onto his face.
He had no idea where he was going but he knew he needed a walk to clear his head. However, once Han Lin was ready to move, he knew where they would be heading. The Slave Markets.
He couldn’t delay it any further as he didn’t want to risk shortening the time frame once again. Worse, there could be a penalty for failing to complete the mission that he wasn’t aware of yet.
The walk was a short one, ending around thirty minutes as he only took a walk through the street where the Inn was located. He went back and forth which took around half an hour because of his pace and then headed back inside the Inn.
As he ascended the stairs to the floor they were currently staying at, he heard a familiar voice. "Young Master, are you awake?"
A small smile found its way to his face. ’And I almost left her behind? Hell no!’
He quietly walked up to her as she knocked again, repeating the question she’d just asked.
Then he answered from the side. "Yes, Han Lin. I’m awake."
She turned to him with eyes wide. She was obviously surprised to see him up early and more than that, he wasn’t inside of his room this early.
"You’re up and about already, Young Master?" She inquired while trying to mask her surprise.
Lu Feng took a moment to answer, briefly observing Han Lin and the small basket she was holding. Inside of it were small hot buns—he could tell they were hot from the steam coming off them—and a small kettle of hot liquid.
"Indeed. Today’s a busy day for us, isn’t it?" He replied as he got even closer. "Is that tea?"
Han Lin answered with a nod and Lu Feng smiled as he held the door handle leading into his room.
They both entered the room and as they settled on the chairs, Han Lin placed the basket of hot steaming buns on the table in his room and they began eating.
Han Lin paused as the buns came close to her mouth though. "Are you that eager to leave the city?"
She knew he was eager to leave already but seeing him awake even before her, told her how big of a deal it really was.
She could count the number of times Lu Feng had woken up before her in the last three years after all.
Nodding, he answered, clarifying his reason for having woken up early. "I am really eager to leave but that’s not exactly why I’m up. We’re heading to the Slave Markets like I said yesterday and I wanted us to go early so we wouldn’t miss what we’re going for."
Han Lin raised a brow as she chewed on the steam bun. "A female slave, right?"
Lu Feng sighed. He didn’t know how to explain to her yet but he simply nodded. "Not exactly a female slave but I guess you can call it that. In truth, I’m going to look for a slave with a certain potential."
Han Lin became intrigued. "What sort of potential would you require from a slave?"
Lu Feng simply smiled and brought another steam bun close to his mouth. "Potential to topple the heavens."