Peerless Bodyguard of a Stunning Beauty

Zhao Rong looked at the glistening golden plant inside the square box and asked Gulinnana, ”Young lady, is this flower by any chance the legendary Tianshan Snow Lotus?”

Xue Lianmei couldn’t believe it either. ”I’ve seen on TV since I was a child that the Snow Lotus should be white,” she said. ”But the one in your box... why is it golden? It’s even glowing.”

Before the two could finish, Gulinnana quickly shut the box. ”Those white Tianshan Snow Lotuses are the lowest, most worthless grade,” she said. ”But this golden one I have is the rarest and most valuable of them all. Not only can it be used in alchemy, but it can also suddenly sprout two legs and run away...”

Hearing that the Snow Lotus could run away like a ginseng doll, Zhao Rong’s eyes widened in surprise. ”You mean this type of Snow Lotus is sentient?” he asked Gulinnana.

Gulinnana smiled. ”The Tianshan Snow Lotus is a magical species. It’s both plant and animal. By day, it’s a blooming flower, but at night, it becomes a running beast...”

Hearing how magical the Snow Lotus was, Zhao Rong exclaimed in disbelief, ”Holy crap, no way! I always thought caterpillar fungus was the only thing that was part-insect, part-plant. Now I find out there’s this even crazier Tianshan Snow Lotus, which is part-animal, part-plant...”

Gulinnana suddenly adopted a cryptic tone. ”Now that I’ve shown you my Tianshan Snow Lotus, you believe me, right?”

Gulinnana finished speaking and thought, Now that I’ve shown them the Tianshan Snow Lotus, they should believe me. They’ll definitely follow me home to buy one.

To Gulinnana’s surprise, however, Zhao Rong and Xue Lianmei still shook their heads. They spoke in unison, ”Thank you for the kind offer. Why don’t we take your number? After we’ve looked around this bazaar and all the nearby markets, we’ll come find you.”

Seeing that the handsome man and beautiful woman still refused to follow her home to buy a Tianshan Snow Lotus after all her efforts, Gulinnana became angry. She warned them, ”I’m telling you two, if you don’t buy my Tianshan Snow Lotus today, you’ll regret it!”

With that, Gulinnana glared at Zhao Rong and Xue Lianmei before turning and storming off.

Watching her leave, Zhao Rong shrugged and said to Xue Lianmei, ”Alright, we finally got rid of that persistent woman. Now we can go check out the bazaar.”

Xue Lianmei also sighed in relief. ”I’ve seen greedy merchants, but never one as bizarre as her. It’s simple: you sell, I buy. If I don’t want to buy, can you really force me?”

With that, the pair walked side by side into the nearby Tianshan Snow Lotus bazaar.

As they entered, they were instantly captivated by a fragrance in the air, one they had never smelled before.

Zhao Rong took a long sniff of the wondrous scent. ”Holy crap,” he said to Xue Lianmei. ”I don’t know which lady is wearing this perfume, but it’s incredible. It’s intoxicating, irresistible... It makes you want to just... you know...”

Xue Lianmei reminded him, ”Zhao Rong, you can be so dense sometimes. That’s not perfume; it’s the scent of the Tianshan Snow Lotus. Haven’t you noticed? The fragrance isn’t pungent at all, it’s completely natural.”

Zhao Rong nodded, continuing deeper into the bazaar as he savored the aroma. ”You’re right,” he said. ”It smells like wildflowers, but also like rare mountain herbs, or even like the special fragrant plants in a royal garden...”

Just then, Xue Lianmei pointed to rows of stalls up ahead. ”Zhao Rong, look! There are so many shops selling Snow Lotus flowers over there...”

Zhao Rong looked up and was absolutely stunned. ”I can’t believe it,” he said. ”I always thought the Tianshan Snow Lotus was supposed to be an extremely rare, hard-to-harvest, and priceless flower. So why are there so many of them in this bazaar? Besides, they don’t look like they were picked wild in the mountains. They look more like they were artificially cultivated in a greenhouse.”

Xue Lianmei nodded in agreement. ”You’re absolutely right, Zhao Rong. With modern technology, all sorts of wild and precious medicinal herbs can be artificially cultivated now. But we’re looking for a wild, valuable Tianshan Snow Lotus, one that can be used to refine Five-Flower Powder.”

Just then, nearby vendors began hawking their wares.

A man with a bushy beard shouted, ”Come see, come see! Pure Tianshan Snow Lotuses! Perfect for decoration or for planting!”

A man in a leather jacket bellowed, ”Wild Tianshan Snow Lotuses, guaranteed! Don’t believe me? Have a taste! If it’s a fake, I’ll pay you back tenfold! One lie, and I owe you a million!”

A man with deep-set eyes called out, ”You get what you pay for! My Tianshan Snow Lotuses are the best in this whole bazaar. Anyone interested, come take a look! Quality and place of origin guaranteed!”

Zhao Rong and Xue Lianmei were taken aback by the scene. Looking at all the shops, Zhao Rong said, ”With so many places selling Snow Lotuses, how can we tell which one has the genuine article?”

Dazzled by the choices, Xue Lianmei said, ”I said before we should compare three shops before buying, but it looks like comparing ten won’t be enough here...”

Just then, Zhao Rong felt a tug on his back pocket. He spun around and saw a big-nosed man trying to steal his wallet. Zhao Rong grabbed the man’s wrist and snatched his wallet back. ”You thief! Stealing in broad daylight! I’m taking you to the police station!”

Caught red-handed, the pickpocket showed no fear. Instead, he grew bolder. ”Hey, outsider. You just got here and you’re already acting this tough? I was just borrowing a little cash. What’s the big deal?”

As he spoke, the thief reached for Zhao Rong’s pocket again, trying to pull out the wallet he had just put back.

Astonished by the thief’s blatant audacity, Zhao Rong said, ”I caught you red-handed, and instead of running, you’re trying to rob me again? You’ve got some real nerve.”

Xue Lianmei added, ”Back in Xijing City, a thief caught in the act would return the wallet and bolt. But here, not only does he not run, he starts robbing you openly...”

Seeing that Zhao Rong wasn’t giving up the wallet, the thief pulled a dagger from his belt. ”Listen up, you two outsiders. The name’s Yellow Hair, and I’m the local boss here. Everyone who sees me knows to hand over their wallet, no questions asked. You two not only refused, you’re talking back. Are you looking to die?”

With that, Yellow Hair whistled sharply.

Instantly, more than a dozen other thieves ran out from all corners of the bazaar, quickly surrounding Zhao Rong and Xue Lianmei.

Zhao Rong glanced at the thugs gathering around them and smiled. ”Well, well. I didn’t realize you were a whole gang.”

Xue Lianmei, however, was worried. ”Zhao Rong,” she whispered, ”maybe we should just give them some money to avoid trouble. After all, we’re new here; we just arrived today via Instant Teleportation. If we offend these local thugs, it could make our search for the Snow Lotus much harder.”

Seeing his cronies had arrived, Yellow Hair’s demands escalated. ”Hey, you! A minute ago, I just wanted your wallet, but you wouldn’t give it up. So now, in front of everyone, I’m not only going to take your wallet, I’m going to take the beauty next to you, too!”

Zhao Rong glanced around the circle of thieves, counting them. ”Only sixteen of you?” he said calmly. ”Back in the day, I used to fight over two hundred guys at once. You were probably still in middle school.

”So, I’ll warn you one last time. If you admit you’re wrong, swear to never steal again, and decide to become decent people, I’ll let all sixteen of you walk away. Otherwise, don’t blame me for what happens next.”

Zhao Rong’s words made the surrounding thieves burst out laughing.

The leader, Yellow Hair, laughed the loudest. ”I’ve been working this bazaar for more than ten years, targeting out-of-towners just like you. You really think you’re the one who’s going to stop me after all this time?”

A thug with green hair standing next to him grinned menacingly. ”Outsider, you look like a real pushover. Hand over your money and your woman if you don’t want to die. Otherwise, don’t blame me and my dozen brothers for getting rough.”

Another one with white hair, standing behind Green Hair, threatened him directly. ”Hey, outsider, see these Kukri knives in our hands? If you don’t give us the money and the girl, we’ll stick one right in your heart and end your life.”

When Xue Lianmei saw the vicious Kukri knives in their hands, she grew frightened. ”Zhao Rong, these guys look absolutely ferocious, and they’re all armed with machetes! Let’s just give them the money and get out of here...”

Facing more than a dozen knife-wielding thugs, Zhao Rong wasn’t the least bit afraid.

He said nonchalantly, ”Since you thieves refuse to repent, then today, I, Zhao Rong, will send you all to Western Heaven.”