Three days later.
Su Mo left early in the morning and met Ye Qingyi downstairs.
He was dressed in a fresh-looking athletic outfit—a white T-shirt paired with beige trousers—and had even added a baseball cap for good measure.
“Why aren’t you wearing a skirt? I bought you so many the other day. They’ll just sit there unused,” Ye Qingyi teased with a mischievous grin.
Su Mo sighed. Who knew what had gotten into her? Out of nowhere, she had ordered a bunch of skirts online for him.
Sure, every single one was beautiful, and he did like them—but liking how they looked on someone else and actually wearing them himself were two entirely different things.
“We’re going on a mission, not a date. What’s the point of wearing a skirt?” he retorted.
Ye Qingyi blinked, her face lighting up with expectation. “So, by that logic, if we were going on a date, you would wear one?”
Su Mo gave her a look—the kind reserved for overly imaginative kindergarteners.
Since their last mission, neither Su Mo nor Ye Qingyi had taken on any new assignments, opting instead to rest and recover.
The reason was simple: Su Mo’s “monthly visitor” had arrived again.
An awkward, humiliating ordeal.
Here he was, a full-grown man, utterly defeated by… a little blood. It made him admire women all the more. (Thumbs up.)
This new mission didn’t seem as dangerous as the last, but it was far from simple. The objective was to deal with a group of rogue supernaturals causing trouble.
According to the mission briefing, the culprits included one E-rank Awakened, two E-rank Qi Condensation cultivators, and several F-rank Body Tempering cultivators.
Ye Qingyi had mentioned that her cultivation had already broken through to Qi Condensation, and her awakened ability had reached E-rank right from the start. With that in mind, Su Mo was confident the two of them could handle it alone.
Once outside the university gates, Su Mo flagged down a taxi and headed straight for Jingnan’s Junkyard Market.
Strangely enough, many of the recent supernatural disturbances had occurred in Jingnan. It was as if the place was hiding some dark secret.
At first glance, the market seemed perfectly normal. Vendors had opened shop early, and a few early-rising customers were already browsing.
But the intel suggested this was the hideout of a criminal group that had been extorting vendors under the guise of “protection fees,” occasionally resorting to outright robbery. The North Star Division had tried to wipe them out several times but failed.
Recently, they had robbed an out-of-town merchant who’d come to do business in the market, then vanished without a trace.
It wasn’t that they were particularly powerful—just that their intel was too good. They always seemed to slip away right before North Star’s raids.
“I think there’s a leak. Someone’s tipping them off about North Star’s movements,” Su Mo concluded.
Ye Qingyi nodded in agreement. “If that’s the case, we’re probably wasting our time here.”
“Not necessarily.” Su Mo smirked mysteriously and, under Ye Qingyi’s puzzled gaze, strolled over to a nearby steamed bun stall.
The stall was right at the market entrance, with access to multiple streets—prime real estate.
At first, Ye Qingyi thought Su Mo was just hungry, but what happened next left her stunned.
With deliberate nonchalance, Su Mo sauntered into the shop, eyeing the owner sideways. “Your performance lately hasn’t been great. Maybe you don’t belong here anymore.”
The owner stared at him blankly, as if processing the words, before stammering, “B-but I just paid the protection fee…”
Su Mo kept his face expressionless. “That’s not the point. The point is, I’m a little short on cash right now.”
The owner’s face fell. “W-we agreed on once a month! It hasn’t even been a week—” He cut himself off as Su Mo’s expression darkened, quickly sliding over a steaming basket of buns.
“Please, enjoy these first.”
He even ladled out a bowl of congee.
But the owner’s submissive attitude didn’t soften Su Mo’s act. If anything, he pressed harder. “Hurry up. I’ve got important business.”
He stuffed his face with buns while doing his best to look like an arrogant thug.
The owner didn’t cave immediately, though. He kept pleading, trying to talk his way out—but all the while, his eyes kept flickering toward Su Mo’s face, something calculating hidden beneath the surface.
Halfway through his meal, Su Mo suddenly stood, locking eyes with the owner in silence.
The man shrank back. “Is… is there something wrong with the buns?”
Su Mo’s stern expression melted into a grin. He patted the owner’s shoulder. “Not bad. Solid nerves. No wonder they picked you.”
The owner’s eyes darted slightly. “I-I don’t know what you mean.”
“Sure you don’t.” Su Mo paid for the meal and turned to leave.
The moment his back was turned, the owner’s gaze turned icy—a stark contrast to his earlier cowering, as if he was ready to kill.
“Oh, one more thing.” Su Mo spun back around, his voice calm but piercing. “If you can’t act, don’t force it. Wouldn’t it be easier if we were all honest?”
The owner’s expression darkened. “How did you figure me out?”
Su Mo chuckled. “Well, now I have. You just told me.”
The owner nearly choked on his own rage. Who the hell does this kid think he is?
“Young people shouldn’t be so cocky. It’s a quick way to fall flat on your face,” the owner warned, his voice dripping with menace.
Su Mo laughed—genuinely, this time.
He didn’t try to arrest the man or anything. Instead, he decided to give him a chance.
The owner hesitated briefly before agreeing to cooperate. As per their arrangement, he would lead Su Mo to the gang’s leader—the real power behind the operation.
“What about your friend? Will they be joining us?” the owner probed.
Su Mo gave him a sidelong glance. “That depends on you.”
“If they’re with you, of course they’re welcome. But too many people might make the others suspicious. Maybe it’s better if they stay behind… just in case.”
Su Mo wasn’t naive enough to take his words at face value. “You’re not trying to split us up so you can pick us off one by one, are you?”
The owner waved his hands frantically. “Of course not! I’m just a lookout. I wouldn’t dare mess with supernaturals.”
Su Mo’s eyes narrowed. “How did you know I’m a supernatural?”
“Given their strength, only a supernatural would dare come here alone.” The owner’s reply was flawless.
After some deliberation, Su Mo decided to go by himself. But as he walked away, the white jade ring on his finger had quietly disappeared.