Who let him join the Sword Sect?!

So familiar.

Even those little tricks of those unscrupulous merchants are exactly the same as back home.

Passing by the original Thousand Mechanism Pavilion's mountain gate, now the square of Thousand Mechanism Town, Bai Tao bought an unconventional pancake from Brother Monkey's pancake stall, which has been in business in Thousand Mechanism Town for about half a year now.

Bai Tao's pancake with milk and purple sweet potato filling...

Just one look would enrage traditional pancake purists.

But Bai Tao found it alright. She could drink poison like it was water; a mere oddly-flavored pancake was nothing to her.

The woman in white walking in front of Bai Tao turned to look at her without saying a word.

She carried a natural authoritative aura that demanded respect without a word, and the average person wouldn't endure being stared at by her.

But Bai Tao acted as if she hadn't noticed, stuffing the pancake, which seemed inedible to others, into her mouth in a few bites, then asked, "Miss, where are we going?"

"Let's go check over there," the woman in white said lightly.

Bai Tao looked in the direction the woman in white was pointing, at a six-story building.

Red walls, golden tiles, Fried Shide.

Originally five floors, another one was recently added, and there's talk they might build even higher.

Just as they entered the gates of Fried Shide, two melodious "welcome" greetings sounded in their ears, and two Cat Demon girls in cheongsam outfits welcomed the pair.

After the welcoming, one of the Cat Demon girls suddenly plucked up courage and asked, "Could you give me fifty Spirit Stones?"

Bai Tao, "?"

The woman in white's expression shifted slightly, but she wasn't angry. Instead, she turned and gestured for Bai Tao to hand her the Hundred Treasures Bag.

But Bai Tao ignored the woman and flipped her hand to take a pouch containing fifty Spirit Stones from the Hundred Treasures Bag, intending to hand it to the Cat Demon.

The Cat Demon looked at the pouch, her eyes slightly wet.

But before she could take it, a door labeled "Employee Passage" in the corridor suddenly opened. A swirl of black wind swept out, brushing along the wall as it passed Bai Tao and the woman, stopping in front of the Cat Demon girl asking for money.

It was a Spider Spirit wearing a Thousand Mechanism Pavilion uniform.

She grabbed the Cat Demon girl and then quietly apologized to Bai Tao and the woman before turning back into a black wind and returning via the employee passage.

The woman in white remained expressionless, as if she hadn't seen any of what had just occurred.

Bai Tao looked toward the other Cat Demon girl as if expecting an explanation.

But the girl simply wore a face of habitual calm, politely bowing again.

"Welcome~"

After this negligible incident, Bai Tao and the woman were led by another staff member to a service counter.

The polite staff member began introducing Bai Tao and the woman to Fried Shide's services, certain rules, the auction game with its massive betting spreads, and the exchange rate between tokens and Spirit Stones.

This game caught Bai Tao's interest immediately, but before she could speak, the woman in white interjected.

"Can we participate?"

"Sorry, fellow travelers, the auction is already halfway through, and we can't accept new participants. You'll have to wait for the next auction tomorrow," the staff member politely replied.

Bai Tao seemed a bit disappointed at this, but quickly remembered something, rummaged around, and handed a token to the staff member.

It was something given to her by Zhang Ze in Jing State, supposedly a VIP access or something, meant to be quite handy in Thousand Mechanism Town.

"How about with this?"

"Please follow me, valued guests." After verifying the token, the staff member led them to a Teleportation Array. A flash of white light, and they found themselves on the second floor.

...

In the VIP room.

The woman in white scanned the room with her Divine Sense, then waved her hand to set up a Barrier.

Once she confirmed that no one could spy on them, she turned to look at Bai Tao.

Her eyes were cold.

Bai Tao greeted this with a chilly expression, retreating a few steps, but the surrounding space had already been sealed by the woman in white, leaving her with nowhere to go.

Step by step, the woman in white approached Bai Tao, her expression shifting as her eyes narrowed.

When she was two steps away, the woman suddenly dropped to her knees with a thud, her demeanor changing as if sipping soup, and she clutched Bai Tao's leg, crying.

"There were too many people outside just now, but here where it's just us, let me say something from the heart…"

"Auntie! Just give me a bit more money, I promise I won't spend it recklessly! Seeing as I'm your eldest niece, can't you take pity on me just a little?"

"No!"

"Auntie..."

"Don't call me Auntie!"