Li Yaner couldn't help but let out a big sigh,
"You see, you see, not a single person on this ship, except Grandma Gu, even treats you like a woman. If you keep this up, will you ever be able to get married?"
Gu Shi Yi just chuckled,
"Sis, don't worry... It's just that I haven't found the right person yet, but put a muscular hunk in front of me, and I'll immediately become demure and dainty!"
After saying that, she even posed with a cocked little finger, creating a charming silhouette. Dressed in just a thin nightgown, lounging on the bed, she actually managed to convey a certain... allure. Li Yaner sighed again, thinking to herself,
"Actually, our Shiyi, well, she's truly got a figure, with curves in all the right places. If she dressed up a bit and went out for a hook-up or something, she'd be a sure catch every time. It's just her... temperament...
Men meeting her only have two outcomes: either they hit it off and become buddies, or they go straight to the point and become bedfellows. There's no third option!
At that moment, Li Yaner was just muttering to herself, not realizing that one day, her words would come true!
Thus, the monotonous voyage passed by one month, but still half of the journey remained. Sixth Master Huang felt the restlessness from being on the ship for so long and decided to stop at the only small riverside town along the Five-Color River for a ten-day break before setting off again. Everyone was overjoyed and made plans to go ashore. Gu Shi Yi had long recovered from her injuries and was dragged ashore by those men.
"What... visit a brothel?"
Gu Shi Yi was dumbfounded, her face a picture of disbelief as she looked at Liu Er, who had his arm around her shoulder,
"What... do you take me for, brother?"
Liu Er was just as confused,
"Aren't we brothers?"
As they locked eyes, it took a moment before Liu Er finally remembered,
"Oh no, I forgot!"
Letting go as if struck by lightning, Liu Er scratched his head,
"That... I just remembered!"
It seemed like he had just now remembered that Gu Shi Yi was a woman. Gu Shi Yi rolled her eyes at him and walked away. Liu Er hurriedly followed and asked,
"Shiyi, where are you going?"
Gu Shi Yi answered,
"I'm just going to wander around, you guys go ahead!"
She waved her hand at Liu Er without looking back and left.
This small town, located on the Gobi Desert of Ten Thousand Sands State and by the bank of the Five-Color River, had sparse vegetation and was dry all year round. The river water was undrinkable, so it was not suitable for ordinary people to live in. However, 300 years ago, someone discovered a Spirit Mine here, and several well-known sects in Ten Thousand Sands State fought several brutal battles over it. Finally, the distribution of the Spirit Mine was decided by strength. Afterward, disciples from several sects built a small town to guard it, and gradually ordinary people moved in. Three hundred years later, this place had become a city inhabited by both ordinary people and Great cultivators.
The entire town was small, with a population of about a million people. The buildings were made from local materials; the yellow sand was calcined and turned into semi-transparent stone blocks, which were then shaped into bricks to construct houses. Thus, in the afternoon sun, the whole town would shine and shimmer, presenting a rather strange sight.
Actually, Gu Shi Yi was not against visiting brothels, but she had something else on her mind.
Having heard that this place was a mixed habitat for Great cultivators and ordinary people, an idea struck her,
"If that's the case, why not find someone knowledgeable to take a look at that finger..."
She appeared carefree on the outside, but she was pretty attentive. Yaner had been cuddling with the finger all the way, and although nothing strange had happened, that thing had come from an Exotic Beast, and who knew if it might have some side effects over time. It would be better to ask someone!
Gu Shi Yi was indeed doing her utmost for her close friend!
Gu Shi Yi walked slowly through the streets of glistening houses, noticing that apart from the blinding houses and the dustier ground, the rest of the town wasn't much different from other ordinary human cities. However, the pedestrian traffic here was particularly courteous, with people making way for each other from a distance of three feet, because the town housed many powerful Great cultivators. Ordinary people, neither spiritually keen nor able to recognize eminence, were afraid of accidentally offending some bad-tempered Great cultivator.
Although there were rules in the town prohibiting Great cultivators from harming ordinary people on a whim, everyone knew that Great cultivators had countless ways to cause harm undetected, leading to an effortless demise. So, the ordinary people in the town had cultivated the "good habit" of greeting everyone they met with a smile and treating them with utmost courtesy.