Chapter Ninety-Five: The Unexpected S-Rank Quest

After listening to the guide for quite a while, Huafeng had gained a rough understanding of some of Chengdu’s most famous sights. Some he had already seen in books, while others were only recently learned of. Though every place was described in great detail, there was likely no time to visit them all one by one.

Just as the guide finished speaking and was preparing to return to his lodgings for a rest, Huafeng was thinking about how he might follow him, and how he might uncover what the man had been up to lately. This creature looked harmless enough on the surface, yet no one really knew what he was scheming inside. Huafeng and Yunmeng did not go so far as to think of him in terms of “outsiders with different hearts,” but seeing him gather dozens of free-travel tourists from all over the country, it hardly seemed likely he was doing it merely to experience life.

“Brother Huafeng,” Yunmeng asked quietly, “why don’t we pretend to go along with his plan and hide our strength? We can join the tour group, get close to that guide, and see what his real purpose is.”

“Hmm... all right. Let’s register now. Hopefully we’ll uncover something different.” After paying by card, Huafeng led Yunmeng straight toward the guide.

“Excuse me... please wait.” Huafeng called out to the guide, who was dressed in a gaudy outfit and looked to be in his thirties, with a bristling beard and a sun hat. “I’d like to join your tour group!”

“Hm...?” The guide hesitated a little. “Are you sure you want to join? Just the two of you?”

“That’s right, just the two of us. You just introduced so many of Chengdu’s famous historical sites, so we’d like to go see them ourselves.” Yunmeng stepped forward and took over the conversation.

“In that case, sure. Since it’s just two people, I’ll give you a discount. Three days in Chengdu for five thousand. Paying by card or cash?”

The guide was rather straightforward. Looking at Huafeng and Yunmeng’s appearance, he probably took them for an ordinary couple traveling casually in Chengdu, so he no longer hesitated.

“By card.” Huafeng took out the platinum card from the Huaxia Bank he carried with him. Inside were his savings from recent years, as well as the spending money Shen Qiu had been sending him every month, now totaling five million. Money, after all, was useful in any era.

“Congratulations to the two of you for joining our Skystep Travel Group. These are your identity cards. The hotel we’ve rented is just ahead, and you can use these credentials to check in. Tomorrow morning at seven, we’ll meet in the hotel lobby. See you tomorrow!” After saying this, the guide headed off on his own toward a hotel not far ahead called Night Return.

Huafeng and Yunmeng followed at an unhurried pace and entered the Night Return Hotel. After check-in was completed by a young Sichuan girl with quick, deft movements, Huafeng took their room key card and went up to Room 512. Even now, the lively Sichuan-accented welcome still rang in his ears: Welcome to the Night Return Hotel. We wish you a pleasant stay.

By eight o’clock, night had already fallen. The plan Huafeng and Yunmeng had made to stroll through the night market had been forced to a halt.