Chapter 36: Qingfeng City

“What are you looking at me like?” After waiting for a while and seeing no reaction from them, Rod checked his own body and found nothing amiss. With a puzzled expression, he asked the two of them.
“You’ve broken through!” As if pulled back from his dazed state by Rod, Kiro looked at him complexly and said with a bitter smile.
From Rod’s change at that moment, Kiro could tell that he had indeed broken through. There was no mistaking that feeling. He also inwardly marveled at how amazing Rod was—able to break through under such circumstances! He was really careless, daring to do such things no matter what the situation. After all, that was the most vulnerable time for a person. If anyone had malicious intentions then, wouldn’t Rod have had no chance to resist?
“Hmph, just entered the ranks of advanced warriors—what’s so great about that?” Seeing that Rod didn’t respond to Kiro’s words, Alice spoke in an annoyed tone, though it sounded slightly resentful.
Alice’s gaze toward Rod was complicated. She secretly envied his luck—being able to break through under such conditions! Why didn’t she have such luck? Now that he had broken through, wouldn’t it be even harder for her to kill him?
Glancing at Alice, Rod remained silent. After lowering his head and pondering for a while, he said to Kiro, “Mm, I just broke through!”
“Advanced warrior?” Kiro looked at Rod, seemingly sensing his situation, and asked with a questioning tone.
Rod nodded in confirmation but stayed silent. Perhaps due to his mood, he was particularly quiet today.
Seeing Rod’s state, Kiro didn’t continue the conversation, and silence fell back in the car. Alice left with a resentful look. From childhood, she had always been the center of attention. This guy’s attitude toward her made her feel extremely uncomfortable.
“Hmm, where are Cambi and the others?” Rod acted as if he hadn’t noticed Alice’s gaze. Perhaps because he had been too preoccupied with the old man earlier, he had neglected to ask about Cambi and the others. Now that things had calmed down, he asked worriedly. He also inwardly smiled bitterly at himself for being able to ignore those people—his nerves seemed even more scattered now.

“Hmph, do you still remember your so-called friends? I thought you only cared about yourself and had already forgotten about their lives and deaths!” With a cold snort, Alice retorted sharply at once.
“Better shut your mouth, or I won’t hesitate to cut out your tongue!” Rod said coldly, casting a brief glance at Alice. He was truly fed up with this unreasonable guy. Of course, it was also partly because of his own carelessness that he felt embarrassed.
“They’re fine. They’ve left the dangerous place. Don’t worry—those guys aren’t after them, so they’ll be safe. As for the city lord’s mansion, Alice has already written to ask him to spare a few people. You can rest assured!” Kiro hurriedly interjected, knowing that if he stayed silent any longer, another tragedy might occur.
“Sparing them is one thing, but you? No way. Out of respect for our seniority, I won’t kill you. I’ll give you five days—after that, I’ll definitely kill you!” Alice said, her eyes blazing as she glared at Rod. This bastard had inflicted unbearable humiliation on her; what he had done was unforgivable.
“Whatever you want!” With a casual reply, he turned his head toward the window, ignoring Alice further. The slanting sunlight of the setting sun made him close his eyes involuntarily.
Pulling Alice along, Kiro inwardly groaned. How did he end up with two such hot-tempered people? Alice wasn’t like this before!
……
Opening his eyes again, he gazed at the setting sun, its pale red light hanging above the mountain peaks. His heart felt uneasy, filled with a sense of emptiness—was it longing, or something else? He wasn’t sure. That heavy feeling caused a dull pain in his chest.
Scenes from his past life flashed through his mind—the old man’s panting shouts, Cambi and the others’ loud noises and insults! Thinking of these, a faint, longing smile appeared on his lips as he unknowingly drowned in memories of the past.
A sudden rush of horse hooves and a jolt from the carriage pulled Rod back to reality. Looking at the somewhat deserted carriage, the night sky outside, and the colorful lights around, he suddenly realized that it was all just a memory.

That faint smile vanished instantly, replaced by a hint of helplessness and desolation. Isn’t that how people are? They don’t know how to cherish what they have until they lose it, only then do they realize they once had the best things. It is precisely this innate foolishness that leads to endless regret and sorrow in later days, filling the world with complaints and remorse. With a bitter smile, Rod realized he had somehow become such a person—more desolate and full of regret than when he first arrived in this world. “Qingfeng City! We’ve arrived!” Alice’s excited voice came to his ears. Rod was momentarily stunned before realizing that Blazing City was truly in the past; the present was now Qingfeng City. What about the future? Rod didn’t know, feeling a sense of confusion. The thought from earlier that morning surfaced again in his mind, and he nodded silently. He knew that his future might depend solely on his own efforts. Getting off the carriage, he looked around. Night had just fallen, and Qingfeng City was bathed in lights and festivity. The night market was particularly bustling, with cries of vendors, chatter, and melodious voices creating a unique atmosphere. Qingfeng City was considered a small town in the empire, similar to Blazing City. If not for its status as a transportation hub, it would likely remain an obscure little town known to few. But because it was an important hub for trade and transportation, it had undergone tremendous changes and become renowned for its prosperity. Here, there was nothing you couldn’t think of—only things you couldn’t afford. It was said that there was no lack of goods, only a lack of money. Although this was his first time leaving Blazing City to see the outside world since arriving here, Rod felt no interest at all at the sight, which was so different from Blazing City. He believed he would have been shouting in excitement if this were in the past. Amidst such prosperity, one would expect joy and excitement, but Rod remained detached, giving it a brief glance before following Kiro and the others toward a restaurant ahead.

As for the people of Qingfeng City, they seemed unimpressed by the newcomers, perhaps because they had seen too many of them, so the appearance of mages didn’t seem particularly strange to them. Especially since Alice was wearing the green robe of a beginner mage, it made her appearance even more ordinary.

Listening to the chatter of the people ahead and seeing their excited expressions, Rod wasn’t interested at all!

However, nothing is fixed. Just as he was about to enter the restaurant, a flash of light suddenly appeared in Rod’s eyes, and his expression changed instantly.

“I’m going over there! If you’re tired, go in and rest first!”

Looking at a blacksmith shop across from him, Rod could see from afar the faint glow emanating from the weapons displayed inside. At that moment, he felt an urgent desire to have his own weapon. Although he possessed the sacred sword Xuanyuan, he had yet to see it even once, let alone use it.

Previously, he hadn’t been so eager for a weapon of his own because he hadn’t learned any sword techniques. But now it was different—he had already become an advanced warrior and learned his own techniques. More importantly, the series of events that had happened had made him realize just how important it was to find a weapon of his own.

With this desire fully ignited, his eyes lit up upon seeing the blacksmith shop, his longing being completely aroused.

Alice gave Rod a look filled with disgust and hatred, then took Anderson and walked away without paying any attention to him.

“If you’re going, wait and come with us. We’ve just arrived in Qingfeng City, and I believe everyone is still interested in exploring!” Kiro, who stayed behind, patted Rod’s shoulder and said calmly.

“And… your appearance isn’t very good. You’d better go in and change your clothes!” Kiro frowned helplessly at Rod’s ragged outfit, which not only looked unsightly but also emitted a faint smell.

After saying that, Kiro waited patiently for Rod, believing his words would persuade this stubborn man.

As Kiro waited patiently, silence lasted for an unknown length of time before Rod finally raised his head. Forcing a weak smile, he said with a pained tone, “I have no clothes and no money. Could you lend me some? I’ll go buy a set by myself. I won’t go in! To avoid getting into trouble with those two guys. You know my temper!” With that, he shamelessly stretched out his hand in front of Kiro, looking utterly confident.

At this, Kiro was completely speechless and didn’t know what to say!

After being stunned for a moment, he finally regained his composure and looked at Rod with a bitter smile, sighing. Instinctively, he took out a money bag from his pocket and handed it to Rod. “Here, take it. Be careful with it. Don’t run around randomly. Don’t forget you’re still in danger!”