Chapter 353: Better Than Intimidation, Rose Holy Emblem

The night in Yangjiao Town was very quiet.

So quiet that Xia Nan, who had grown accustomed to the noisy environment of the Baishanque Tavern, felt somewhat uncomfortable.

But regardless, a stable environment for rest was always a good thing.

It allowed Xia Nan to sleep a little longer than usual.

Falling asleep in the first half of the night, seven hours were enough to fully restore his physical energy.

When he woke up, it was still early morning.

Seizing the time, he put on his clothes, took the equipment and items he needed, left the inn, and went to a remote, rarely visited forest near the town that he had scouted in advance to conduct his daily training.

Considering the special situation in the town and the temporarily altered action plan due to the pastel gem's ability to provide energy to the 【Dream-Weaving Corridor】.

Xia Nan slightly modified his training routine, increasing the proportion of technique training to conserve as much physical strength as possible.

The 【Gravity Etching】, which he had originally trained with almost every six hours in River Valley Town, was now only used in the late night or early morning, ensuring three full charges during the day to cope with potential combat.

【Spinning Slash】 for warm-up, 【Tooth Hunt】 to loosen the body—even though both combat techniques were already maxed out, they still occupied a significant portion of the training plan, combined with basic sword practice and advanced 【Gravity Control】 combat techniques...

When Xia Nan finished his daily training, found a small stream on the way to wash his body, and returned to the town with wet, pitch-black hair, the sky was just beginning to brighten.

The townspeople were also up early; the streets, which had been empty when he left for training, were now filled with busy residents starting their day.

Even the owner of "Cashmere Rust Nail," that middle-aged man with a round face, was up early, standing behind the counter tidying up his plates and glasses.

Seeing this, Xia Nan felt a sudden urge.

He walked up, sat directly at the bar, and asked for breakfast.

Located on the border of the province, far from large towns, the economy relied almost entirely on taxes from passing adventurers and merchants.

Even though it was the highest-rated inn in Yangjiao Town, the variety of food was only average.

Fortunately, the prices were relatively affordable.

A large plate of dark rye bread, a glass of lemonade, a bowl of thick stew made with onions, beans, and local vegetables, two eggs, a small piece of cheese, and three finger-length strips of smoked meat.

Oh, and he finally asked the owner for a few fully ripe honey tangerines, their color as orange-red as the sunset.

All of this added up to just over 1 gold coin, only slightly more expensive than the basket of honey tangerines Xia Nan had bought yesterday.

Compared to the Baishanque Tavern, it was already as affordable as it could get.

The taste was also generally above average.

Even the coarsest rye bread became a rare delicacy with the addition of the Iron Anvil honey Xia Nan specifically applied.

Meanwhile, throughout the meal, facing the tavern owner who remained slightly wary of him due to yesterday's experience, Xia Nan didn't say a single extra word, just focused on eating.

Until he had cleared the plates on the table and noticed the tavern owner, whose body had been slightly tense, relax a little.

Only then, while peeling an orange, did he use a seemingly casual tone to deploy the "exquisite" rhetoric he had prepared for a long time last night.

"Boss, it's a bit too boring here after nightfall." Xia Nan tried to make his tone sound like a complaint born of boredom. "Isn't there any lively place in town?"

Knowing his identity as an adventurer, and given the world's stereotypes about people in that line of work, asking such a question could be considered perfectly normal.

The owner didn't think much of it, even showing a hint of a smile: "Sigh, it's a small rural place, what kind of entertainment could there be? Everyone is busy with their own work in the fields, and those who have the time and energy to come to my tavern for a drink after a busy day are few and far between."

"Understood, understood."

Hearing this, Xia Nan nodded and stuffed the peeled orange into his mouth.

While enjoying the burst of sweet fruit fragrance on his tongue, he followed the script prepared last night to steer the conversation toward the honey tangerines.

"Speaking of which, your oranges here are indeed good; the taste is much better than what I ate in the Pan Yun Province before."

"It's a gift from the Goddess," the owner replied.

"The yield shouldn't be low, right? Have you considered selling them externally to give the town another source of income?"

"Of course I've considered it. In fact, the shops in town basically have partnerships with the orchards." The tavern owner glanced at the honey tangerine in Xia Nan's hand. "However, although they are called a 'specialty,' this kind of orange is not uncommon in the Subin Province, and the ones further south taste even better. There's just no market for them."

Seeing the conversation gradually moving in the direction he hoped, Xia Nan changed the subject, adding a tone of curiosity:

"But I've been walking around for the past two days and found that there don't seem to be any other industries in town? Unlike the towns I passed before, which had mining and specialty handicrafts, does your income mainly come from fields and passing merchants?"

Seeming to hear a keyword, the tavern owner's glass-wiping motion paused imperceptibly before returning to normal, and he chuckled:

"That's right, it's just a small place, what kind of industry could there be?"

"Farming steadily and living a simple life is good enough."

Sensing the details in the other party's demeanor and actions, knowing the conversation had reached a critical juncture, Xia Nan decided to press his advantage.

He leaned forward slightly, lowered his voice, and applied invisible pressure:

"Speaking of which, I've been to many places, but to be honest, it's rare to see a place like your Yangjiao Town where the overall atmosphere is so... well, calm."

"It feels like everyone has no desires, which is very rare."

The tavern owner frowned, put down the glass he had finished wiping, and his smile faded: "Guest, the residents of our town are honest people with no bad intentions."

"Of course!" Knowing the other party was on guard, Xia Nan waved the honey tangerine in his hand and laughed, "Don't misunderstand, I'm complimenting you."

However, perhaps because yesterday's overly abrupt inquiry had already made this tavern owner, who was suspected of being deeply influenced by the pastel gem, suspicious of Xia Nan.

Now that the topic was slightly touched upon, he became wary again, returning to that cold, polite, and distant attitude.

No matter how much Xia Nan asked, he only replied with short, meaningless words.

"That shouldn't be..."

Returning to his room on the second floor of the inn, feeling somewhat puzzled, Xia Nan felt more and more that "conversation" was a science.

Even if his perception was high and he could clearly detect changes in the other party's demeanor and emotions, if he couldn't grasp the timing and tone of his words, it was all in vain.

But since it was still early, there were many ways to gather information.

A small setback wouldn't make him lose confidence.

After resting in his room for a while, seeing the sky brighten outside, Xia Nan, fully dressed, walked out of the inn again.

But this time, his target was not the uninhabited forest on the outskirts of the town, but a location closer to the center of the town.

... ===== CHAPTER 354 =====