Chapter 7: Does the Shopkeeper Have 500 Years of Cultivation?

Chapter 7: Chapter 7: Does the Shopkeeper Have 500 Years of Cultivation?

Hua Buwan first went to the front of the grocery store and pulled down the rolling metal gate, shutting out the pedestrians on the street.

She then walked under the first-floor stairs, pulled out a red plastic stool, and placed it in front of the counter. After grabbing two bottles of snow pear juice with rock sugar from the fridge, she looked at Ling Qianjun, who hadn’t moved a single step. "Have a seat first."

Ling Qianjun didn’t understand what Hua Buwan was trying to do. However, he was burning with questions of his own, so he sat on the red stool without a second thought. It was his first time seeing such a lightweight and brightly colored stool, and he couldn’t help but steal a few extra glances out of sheer curiosity.

Hua Buwan handed him the snow pear juice. "My treat." Saying this, she picked up the other bottle, twisted off the cap, and took a sip first.

But she quickly noticed Ling Qianjun staring at her a bit too intently, only to realize that his gaze was actually fixed on the bottle in her hand.

She told herself, "Oh, the ancestor has never seen this drink before and just can’t help but stare. I need to stay calm."

"This bottle... you can open it just by twisting?" Ling Qianjun couldn’t believe his eyes. Back with his family, he had karate-chopped the bottle cap off. If they ever found out the truth... he wanted the ground to swallow him whole.

"Huh?" Hua Buwan twisted the cap again to show him. "Yeah, just a gentle twist is enough. Didn’t you just buy a few bottles of water? Haven’t you drank them yet? You didn’t know how to open them?"

Realizing her oversight, Hua Buwan added with a hint of chagrin, "Sorry about that. You didn’t ask, so I didn’t say anything." Mainly because she hadn’t known he was an ancient ancestor back then; she had thought he was a ghost, so explaining how a bottle worked hadn’t even crossed her mind.

"Right, we haven’t drank them yet." Ling Qianjun had absolutely no intention of mentioning his bottle-chopping stunt to Hua Buwan, so he played along. In reality, they had already finished all the water.

Imitating the motion Hua Buwan had demonstrated, he twisted the cap a few times. When he realized how effortlessly the cap came off, he felt a mix of delight and utter embarrassment.

The beverage felt ice-cold in his hand. He took a cautious sip. The refreshing chill went straight to his core, instantly lifting his spirits! It was wonderfully sweet! This was his first time tasting such delicious snow pear juice with rock sugar!

GLUG GLUG GLUG. He tilted his head back and drained it in one go, staring at the empty bottle with total satisfaction.

Only then did Hua Buwan get down to business. "Dongxuan Country, Ling Qianjun."

"Present!" Ling Qianjun immediately sat up bolt straight.

Hua Buwan was speechless. She was pretty sure she knew what this ancestor did for a living now.

"Are you in the military? Why are you in such a miserable state? Did you lose a battle, or..." Hua Buwan quickly looked him up and down and asked directly.

Ling Qianjun hesitated for a moment, then figured there was no harm in letting the Demon know. With her boundless magic, she would find out sooner or later anyway.

"Yes, I am indeed in the military. I am the Standard Third Rank General of the Northern Expedition of Dongxuan Country. However, I was framed by treacherous officials, and my entire family has been exiled to Lingnan. This is our third day on the road.

"Shopkeeper, how many years have you been in this forest? Since you can take on human form, you must have at least five hundred years of cultivation, right?"

Hearing the first half of Ling Qianjun’s response, Hua Buwan formulated a plan.

Exile? She was very familiar with this trope. Having read plenty of web novels, she knew that exiles lacked absolutely everything on their journey. That meant the trade between them could last for a very long time.

As for being framed by treacherous officials, that was just his side of the story. To see if it was true... She silently picked up her phone to check historical records. A quick search left her completely shocked.

Ling Qianjun’s entire family had suffered a horrific and tragic end!

Before she could read the details, his later words fully registered. Take on human form? Five hundred years of cultivation?!

It turned out this ancient ancestor actually thought she was a Demon.

She thought, "That won’t do. Animals aren’t allowed to become Demons after the founding of the nation!"