Since the heavy rain stopped early, the two Hummers drove into Xizhou City well ahead of schedule. This time, Zhang Yang completely abandoned the idea of staying overnight in Xizhou, deciding instead to push straight through to Jingxiang City for a rest.

Having the prior experience of driving to the Long Family Plain with Long Feng and the others, Zhang Yang was much more familiar with the road conditions this time, eliminating a lot of time-wasting detours.

This way, they could completely reach the urban area of Jingxiang before nightfall.

By the time the vehicles pulled into Jingxiang City, Mi Xue had already reserved the presidential suite at the best five-star hotel in the area.

Yan Yefei and his wife, Li Juan, had only recently resumed their cultivation, and their internal energy levels were the lowest among the group, making them comparatively more fatigued. After parking the vehicles in the hotel lot, they eagerly headed to the presidential suite Mi Xue had booked for them, ready for a shower and rest.

Mi Xue, having just broken through to the middle stage of the second layer of internal energy, was unusually excited. This was her first journey traveling out with Zhang Yang, and she certainly wasn't willing to retreat to the room early. So, after dropping their luggage off, she dragged Zhang Yang out, determined to explore the night market.

Qiao Yihong and Qu Meilan had no desire to act as third wheels to Zhang Yang and Mi Xue, so they opted to stay in the hotel to focus on their cultivation.

Zhui Feng had been cooped up in the car all day and certainly didn't want to stay put. Zhang Yang decided to bring Zhui Feng along to keep Mi Xue company on their stroll.

Lightning and Wuying were also full of energy at this point. With Zhui Feng accompanying them, the two little ones immediately began a game of cat and mouse around the horse. Wuying, being a treasure-seeking mouse by nature, kept darting around while Lightning chased after him. Zhui Feng didn't mind the antics of these two youngsters and happily followed behind Zhang Yang and Mi Xue.

Jingxiang City itself was the most prosperous city in Hubei Province outside of the capital. It served as the heavy industry base for the province. Its population was second only to E’kou, the provincial capital. Although it was nighttime, the streets were thronged with people, bustling and vibrant, truly giving the feeling of a major metropolis.

The last time, Long Feng and Long Cheng had accompanied Zhang Yang, and on that occasion, Zhang Yang had managed to acquire quite a few good items at the shops here. Bringing Mi Xue this time meant they naturally had to enjoy the pleasures of shopping to the fullest.

Taking Zhui Feng out on the street was indeed spectacular. Along the way, many people turned their heads frequently to stare at Zhang Yang and Mi Xue, their eyes full of wonder. In this day and age, it was rare to see someone leading a horse down the street, especially a handsome couple like Zhang Yang and Mi Xue, with a magnificent, snow-white steed like Zhui Feng following behind.

Didn't every person harbor childhood dreams of riding with a beauty in a sweeping gallop? The sight of Zhui Feng instantly conjured images in their minds of charging across the plains, holding a beloved close while racing on a white horse—a feeling that was exhilarating just to imagine.

Leading Zhui Feng proved too conspicuous. Zhang Yang decided to let the horse take Wuying and Lightning to a deserted area outside the city limits for a walk on their own. After all, given Zhui Feng’s speed, it would only take them a few minutes to travel there and back.

Once they departed, Zhang Yang accompanied Mi Xue to a large night market near the hotel. Even though it was late, there were still a considerable number of tourists and passersby.

On a street lined entirely with stalls selling trinkets, Mi Xue looked left and right, completely captivated by the dazzling array of small novelties. She fluttered about like a butterfly, flying from one end to the other, picking up and examining anything that looked pretty or fun.

By the time they finished walking, Zhang Yang’s hands were already laden with several bags, and Mi Xue had swapped out several hair ornaments.

Although the items here weren't expensive, they were undeniably exquisite, making Mi Xue appear even more spirited and adorable now.

"Zhang Yang, don't you think I look cute wearing this?"

Mi Xue spotted a pair of rabbit ears, put them on, and then made a deliberately cute face for Zhang Yang to see.

Zhang Yang smiled as he looked at Mi Xue. She was truly too lovely at this moment; the usual Mi Xue rarely acted so spoiled.

"Sir, your girlfriend is truly beautiful; she looks even more so wearing that!"

The stall owner selling the accessories was quite adept with words. Regardless of whether Mi Xue planned to buy it, he first complimented Zhang Yang. However, his words were spoken sincerely; when Mi Xue put on those rabbit ears, he had stared at her dreamily for a moment. If his wife hadn't secretly pinched him nearby, he probably wouldn't have snapped out of it even now.

"Jee-jee-jee!"

Just then, Wuying suddenly appeared in the night market, found Zhang Yang, scrambled onto his shoulder, and began shouting loudly!

"Where did that rat come from!"

Wuying’s sudden appearance startled the stall owner, who immediately cried out.

Zhang Yang froze for a second. Wuying should have been playing with Lightning and Zhui Feng in the outskirts of Jingxiang City. For it to suddenly seek him out here meant something serious must have happened!

After listening to Wuying’s explanation, Zhang Yang instantly understood what had occurred. He grabbed Mi Xue, who was completely bewildered, and without concern for the onlookers’ surprise, immediately left the bustling night market.

It turned out that Wuying, Lightning, and Zhui Feng were heading to a deserted area outside the city to have some real fun. But before they even reached the outskirts, Wuying stopped and began chirping insistently.

Lightning and Zhui Feng knew that anything capable of catching Wuying’s attention had to be something good. They immediately followed Wuying down a narrow alleyway to a smaller night market—one that was only a fraction of the size of the main market Zhang Yang had just visited. There, Wuying had spotted the treasure that had caught its attention.

However, even though this market was small, it still had a fair number of people. Since Wuying, Lightning, and Zhui Feng couldn't simply walk up and take the treasure, Wuying instructed Lightning and Zhui Feng to wait outside, keep an eye on the item at the stall, while Wuying went specifically to find Zhang Yang.

After leaving the crowd, Zhang Yang immediately increased his pace, pulling Mi Xue along as he followed Wuying toward the smaller night market.

Before long, Zhang Yang and Mi Xue arrived outside this market. Lightning and Zhui Feng were nearby, and they immediately trotted over when they saw them approach.

Zhang Yang paused. This was just a small night market selling ceramics and jade, and there weren't many people around now. Many stalls were already packing up, and only a few vendors remained open.

Following Wuying’s direction, Zhang Yang led Mi Xue toward a corner pavilion in the market.

When Zhang Yang and Mi Xue appeared in this small market, they instantly attracted the gaze of most of the people present, especially the vendors who hadn't packed up yet; their eyes gleamed brightly.

Zhang Yang and Mi Xue carried an unusual aura, and the presence of the white horse behind them clearly signaled they were wealthy outsiders. These vendors clearly intended to take advantage of Zhang Yang's unfamiliarity and extort a large sum of money from him.

"Boss, take a look at this. The prices for my jade are the fairest in this entire area!"

"Boss, you should look at mine instead. The jade I have here would match the beautiful lady beside you perfectly!"

"Boss, come take a look at mine..."

As Zhang Yang and Mi Xue walked by, many vendors proactively stepped out, trying to lure Zhang Yang in to view their jade pieces.

It wasn't that these vendors were behaving unusually welcoming toward Zhang Yang; it was simply that this small market often encountered out-of-town travelers who didn't know the trade and were subsequently fleeced.

Just yesterday, two peculiar tourists had come here. They took a liking to a piece of forged Hetian jade. Seeing how enamored the tourists were with the stone, the vendor—whose cost for the jade was only about ten yuan—demanded three thousand. In the end, after haggling, it sold for two thousand two hundred.

Seeing Zhang Yang and Mi Xue appear today, they were naturally ecstatic. Everyone hoped to encounter another naive tourist and make a huge profit.

However, Zhang Yang didn't spare a single glance at the stalls lining the path. He held Mi Xue’s hand and walked straight toward the stall Wuying had indicated.

"Jee-jee-jee!"

Wuying and Lightning had both hidden inside Zhang Yang's canvas bag. Upon reaching the stall, Wuying poked its head out and chirped immediately; the treasure it had detected was right here.

Mi Xue knew that Zhang Yang had come here because of Wuying’s unusual behavior. Now, she too widened her eyes, scrutinizing every item at this jade stall, trying to guess which piece of jade had attracted Wuying’s notice.

"My esteemed guests, look here. Everything I sell is the most authentic Xinjiang Hetian jade, personally sourced from near the Kunlun Mountains. I guarantee you get exactly what you pay for!"

The owner of this stall was a man in his mid-thirties, as thin as a monkey. Seeing Zhang Yang and Mi Xue stop in front of his display, he became instantly animated, plastering a smile on his face as he introduced his wares. His small eyes darted rapidly within their sockets, clearly indicating that in his mind, he had already devised a plan to fleece these unwitting fat sheep who had delivered themselves to his doorstep!

Zhang Yang bent down, carefully examining the many jade pieces displayed on the man's stand. All the stones placed there were counterfeit, low-grade material; indeed, many of the pieces seemed to be made entirely of some type of plastic, barely qualifying as stone at all. Such jade ornaments would be worth at most a few to ten yuan each.

"This is it!"

Zhang Yang’s eyes suddenly widened. He had finally found the treasure that had captured Wuying’s attention. He reached out and picked up the stone, roughly the size of a palm, from a corner of the stand. It was an inky-blue stone shaped vaguely like an eagle's claw, deeply concave in the middle, where a large patch of green moss was clinging to the surface.

The monkey-thin stall owner was momentarily stunned. He hadn't expected this customer to single out the rock he had casually picked up a few days prior while restocking near the Kunlun Mountains. At the time, he had only brought it back because it looked nice, treating it as a paperweight placed on the corner of his stall. He never imagined a customer would be interested in this particular stone.

Only Zhang Yang knew in his heart that what truly drew Wuying's notice was not the stone itself, but the emerald-green moss nestled within the stone's hollow!

That moss was the real treasure!