Chapter 122: Returning to Dark Moon City Again

“You’re back?” As soon as he returned to the lake, he heard the girl’s greeting. The sun was setting, and he saw her standing by the lake with her pants rolled up, letting the cool water wash over her. Her face was slightly sweaty, making it look rosy, and under the sunset light, she appeared especially charming. Rod’s heart skipped a beat at the sight.
He nodded slightly to show he understood. Over the past two days, he had returned once to bring her some food and check on things before leaving. He hadn’t noticed that she was doing well here and seemed to have adapted well to the environment!
After putting away the food he had brought, Rod left and went downstream to find a clean place to wash up. Two days of fighting had left him physically and mentally exhausted. Under the sunset, feeling the cool water on his body, he finally relaxed completely, feeling incredibly refreshed.
With the sweat washed off, he immediately felt energized. When he returned to the lake, the girl had already gone back to their temporary shelter, sitting on a rock. Her silhouette stretched long under the remaining sunlight. Rod was so captivated by her back that he hesitated to pull her back.
“Where were you?” Sensing someone behind her, the girl turned around and smiled sweetly at Rod before asking.
“Nothing. Let’s get ready. We should rest well tonight and head back to Dark Moon City tomorrow. Your family will worry if they don’t see you!” With a sigh, Rod didn’t know why he always felt so soft-hearted around this girl. He really didn’t know when he had become such a sentimental person.
In silence, the two had their first meal together. By now, darkness had covered the land, and the sky was pitch black. The summer sky was always full of stars, especially on such a clear night. The stars and moon illuminated the entire land in a bright white light. The sound of cicadas in the surroundings was extremely soothing.

Feeling such an atmosphere, looking at the starry sky, enjoying the cool breeze that blew from time to time, listening to the chirping of cicadas and the rustling of leaves, Rod couldn’t help but miss the life he had in Fire City! Back then, although he argued with the old man every day, it was the happiest time he’d ever had. With Kambi and the other brothers, along with the warmth brought by the old man, he hadn’t enjoyed such nights and tranquility in a long time. Other than fighting, he was always training, and Rod felt like he was turning into a fighting machine.

“Have you gained anything these past two days?” At some point, the girl also came to Rod’s side and asked curiously.

The forest hadn’t been peaceful these past two days; she could sense it, especially today, as two powerful energies were clashing. She could clearly feel it, and unless something went wrong, it must have been done by the man before her. She was very curious about what this man was doing and what he wanted. The longer she spent with him, the less she understood him. It seemed as though there was a veil over him, making it hard to see through.

“Gained a little something—I can’t just go in empty-handed!” Turning to look at the girl, Rod replied indifferently. He had gotten used to this kind of life.

“Hehe, my name is Lucy. What about you? We’ve been together for so long—surely you don’t still not know my name. You’re not stingy, are you?” Walking over and sitting down next to Rod, the girl said with a smile.

“Rod~!” Looking at the girl beside him, he couldn’t figure out what she was thinking. Was she really that naive? Didn’t she know she was being kidnapped? And yet she stayed so close to him. Didn’t she realize that telling a stranger her name could bring her a lot of trouble?

“Rod, you’re not from the dragon clan, are you?” Getting the answer she wanted, Lucy’s face once again showed a gentle smile, which made people feel relieved.

Rod froze slightly, his gaze turning cold toward Lucy, but it quickly returned to its usual indifference. It didn’t matter. His identity would be revealed sooner or later; it didn’t matter whether she knew or not!

“Knowing too much won’t benefit you! Remember, curiosity kills the cat!” Still, Rod replied indifferently.

“Alright, it’s getting late. Go rest early. We’ll set off tomorrow morning!” With a sigh, she stood up and walked toward the lake. “You can stay there tonight. Don’t worry, I won’t do anything!”

Watching Rod gradually walk away, Lucy pouted and stamped her foot in dissatisfaction before turning to head back. She wasn’t worried that Rod would hurt her—if he had wanted to, he would have had plenty of chances these past few days without having to wait until now. Yet she felt uneasy; the feeling of being the center of attention vanished, replaced by others’ disregard and coldness. Such a shift was hard for a girl like her to adjust to. She, who had always been confident in her appearance, felt powerless and doubtful for the first time after meeting Rod.

“Hmph, what’s the big deal? Sooner or later, I’m making you apologize!” The more she thought about it, the angrier Lucy became, cursing fiercely.

Rod, of course, heard everything happening behind him. After reaching the divine level, his abilities had improved in every aspect, including his hearing, which was now impeccable—no sound could escape his attention. He simply smiled faintly at Lucy’s words and ignored them. It was just a little girl throwing a tantrum. If he had to pay attention to such trivial matters, he couldn’t handle anything else.

……

“Hey, Brother Rod, should we be leaving now?” It was still dawn, and Rod was in the midst of his training when he heard Lucy calling out. At the same time, he sensed her approaching.

Frowning slightly, he reluctantly drew back his combat energy into his dantian, exhaled a puff of air, and opened his eyes. Lucy was already by his side. The sky was still gray. He couldn’t understand why she came here so early.

“Leaving now?” Rod asked, looking at her in confusion.

“Yeah, it’s time to go. Today is the trade fair day. You’ll regret being late. It’s perfect to leave now!” Looking toward Dark Moon City, Lucy said excitedly. It seemed the trade fair held great appeal for her.

A night of training had restored Rod to 90% of his original strength. He got up, tidied himself up a bit, and stowed away his Furnishing Heaven skill. “Lead the way!” With that, he watched Lucy. Clearly, having this familiar person around made it unnecessary to wander around aimlessly—it was much more convenient.

The two of them, one in front and one behind, quickly arrived in front of Dark Moon City. By then, the sky had finally fully lit up. However, the scene before them shocked Rod secretly. It seemed Lucy was right—starting early wasn’t a bad idea. Even though they had set off so early, the city already appeared prosperous. People were coming and going in great numbers, with cries and shouts filling the air. It was clear that seventy or eighty percent of the people there were there for the trade fair.

Led by Lucy, they soon reached the city entrance. Using their identity cards, they entered smoothly. What greeted them were the respectful expressions of the guards and Lucy’s puzzled look. She surely couldn’t be unaware of the Dragon Clan’s identity cards. She began to speculate about Rod’s identity again, her suspicions growing even stronger.

“Come on, over there! Hurry up, or we might not get a good spot!” Lucy urged anxiously, holding Rod’s hand. The city was already crowded with noise and people. It was hard to understand what kind of event this trade fair was that could attract so many people.

Yet, feeling Lucy’s delicate little hand, Rod felt both comfort and something strange!

“Today is the annual trade fair. Normally, there aren’t this many people. The monthly trade fairs have even fewer attendees. Only the annual fair can draw so many people, and only then do good things appear—hence the large crowd!” Seeming to sense Rod’s confusion, Lucy turned around and explained carefully.

Navigating skillfully through the crowd, they crossed the main streets and turned down a side alley, soon arriving in front of a magnificent building with red walls and black tiles. It was a two-story structure covering at least a hundred acres, one of the largest buildings in Dark Moon City.

By now, the area in front of the building was already packed with people waiting to enter.

“Brother Rod, hurry! Give me your identity card. I’ll go get the entry tickets over there. Quick, we can’t let others get them first!” Lucy said anxiously, still holding Rod’s hand. It seemed the situation was indeed urgent.

Without hesitation, Rod took out the identity card given to him by Sognar and handed it to Lucy. In the next moment, Lucy’s petite frame amazed everyone—she was incredibly agile. Rod thought even if he used all his strength, he couldn’t match her speed at that moment!

Looking at the crowd around him, Rod felt a bit uncertain. With so many people, the competition would surely be fierce. An annual trade conference? What good things might appear there? At the same time, he was worried about his magic bag, wondering if its contents were enough to exchange for what he needed! He didn’t dare think about the fact that he had no right to compete—he was nowhere near the level of those powerful families! His possessions weren’t even worth a fraction of theirs!
As for the other items? Compared to those wealthy families, he seemed insignificant. Frowning, he sighed inwardly—sooner or later, even he would face poverty. Being tormented by money seemed not to be the first time. Sighing again, he realized that after all this time, he still had nothing!