Honkai Impact: Grandma Pine Sparrow is still chasing me!

Chapter 311 The Jade Pendant Appears Mysteriously

"Gentlemen, we'll be there soon."

It was already night when Bai Ji led everyone to the inn in Ruimu—although if they didn't look at the clock, Qiong and the others wouldn't be able to tell whether it was day or night.

Wow...this place is much more prosperous than our Langqiu!

Song Que looked around, her excitement evident. Although she claimed to be well-traveled and knowledgeable, this was truly her first time visiting Ruimu.

In her eyes, Ruimu was like a super night market that never closed. Wherever she went, there were always all kinds of shops on both sides of the street, and people came and went in an endless stream. How could she see such a scene in Langqiu?

Of course, if Song Que had to choose where to live, she would still choose Langqiu: even in a remote and impoverished place, it is still home.

"It is indeed a lively place..."

Unlike Song Que, Qiong's first reaction upon seeing the streets and buildings shrouded in light pollution was curiosity: With no distinction between day and night here, wouldn't the biological clocks of the Ruimu people be disrupted?

"Qiong, I heard there are fun things to do and delicious food here. How about we go out and explore later?"

Kiana, who was temporarily acting as a "girlfriend" shield, gently took Sora's hand—everyone except Sora and Kiana believed that if they weren't on the street, Kiana probably would have kissed her...

Kiana winked at Baiji and Songque, and after they indicated they understood, she added a sentence.

"Just the two of us."

Qiong felt something was amiss.

"That's not a good idea. I think it's better to act as a group."

Qiong wanted to politely refuse. Yes, he agreed to let Kiana pretend to be his girlfriend for a while, but that was to prevent possible harassment. What kind of thing is it to go shopping alone together?

Of course, if it's a paramecium with braided pigtails, then there's no problem.

Seeing that Qiong refused, Kiana once again used her round thighs and ample physics engine to squeeze Qiong.

"Honey, don't hesitate! Since we're already here, we should definitely take a good look around!"

"There's no need for just the two of us!"

Kiana smiled. "Very good, very good."

Surprisingly, Qiong didn't object to her calling her "darling," and under the subtle influence of time...

"But everyone has their own things to do, right?"

Having already received the signal, the sparrow understood immediately and nodded.

“Yes, yes, Nian Gao is right! We were just planning to go and check out the local specialties of Ruimu by ourselves, so we can resell them back to Langqiu and make a little money... Young Master Bai, who is always so busy, must also have things to do, right?”

Baiji: ...

What could he possibly be doing right now? His only major concern is checking on the progress of the Ten Arts War and waiting for news from the Lamp Organization... but that's alright, I suppose.

"Yes, I also have things to take care of, so I won't bother you any longer."

----------------

On a street in the dead of night, in front of a flower shop, a white-haired girl with a high ponytail is trying to drag the gray-haired boy who is with her into the shop.

"Qiong, shall we go inside and look at the flowers?"

"Kiana, I don't think we need to spend money on flowers that will wither soon... Wouldn't it be better to go get something to eat?"

Even though he agreed to the trip, Qiong didn't think the flower shop was an option. Even if he did choose it, he would rather let Kiana go in alone and he would look through the "Erythian Travel Guide" that Songque had given him before he left to plan where to find food and entertainment next.

"Idiot Sora."

Kiana rolled her eyes at Sora, who was still looking at the travel guide: What kind of reason is that? Because flowers wilt quickly and aren't as cost-effective as food, she doesn't buy flowers much? No wonder she can count on one hand the number of times Sora has bought flowers to give away…

Come to think of it, how many times has Qiong sent flowers?

After Wendy was knocked down and hospitalized, Sora visited her once; after Anna was "killed," Sora visited her once at the fake tombstone; on the day Aunt Himeko became the headmistress, Sora gave her a bouquet of roses because "pure and beautiful roses suit Himeko's temperament"; on the day of her engagement to Mei, Sora gave Mei a large bouquet of lilies and tulips with everyone's help (excluding her); and on their wedding day, Sora specially went to a flower shop called "Changxia" on a snow-covered planet to buy alien roses, saying it was meaningful... That's all.

It makes me so angry! Even when I was sick, I never received a single bouquet of flowers from Qiong Yi? All this guy knows is to send me fruit!

Is she really that much of a foodie? Would it kill you to send her a few bouquets of flowers?

Thinking of this, Kiana released Sora and walked straight to the shop owner.

"Boss, a bouquet of roses, please! Qiong, you pay."

"Kiana, are you sure the roses on Mars are called roses?"

"okay!"

"It's really called Rose?"

The shop owner sensed that the boy seemed a little... nervous? He seemed so nervous that he was rambling incoherently and speaking without thinking.

Ah, youth is wonderful.

--------------

"Welcome to Riem, the city where the gods dwell, known as the window to the world for the gods, the place closest to the divine. The gods' grace flows like a spring from Riem, nourishing all things through the roots of their blessings. The spring flows silently, quietly reaching its depths; the gods are silent, yet in their stillness they guide the way for humanity..."

This was also the first time that Song Que, traveling alone, had seen this travel guide for Elysium. After reading only the first paragraph of the section on Reimu, Song Que found it somewhat amusing: Did this tale of gods even exist? She had never witnessed a god manifest in her life—if gods truly could manifest, would there be any place for a fraudster like her to exist?

"Pilgrimage believers, why not draw water from the Shweh tree here to wash your hands? The radiance from the top of the tower shines equally on every inch of Shweh land and is reflected in the crystal-clear water. May this bring you a moment of coolness. The pilgrimage begins here... What? Sorry, I'm not a believer."

Let's not look at it anymore. Anyway, she won't tour Ruimu the way it's supposed to be in the guidebook. She just wants to use the map in the guidebook to find the meeting point.

It's time to make contact.

Song Que turned into a dimly lit alley, waiting for the contact from the Lamp Organization at the agreed time and place. Far from the bustling streets, the surroundings were eerily quiet... only her heartbeat was exceptionally clear in the silence.

After a while, a figure in a black cloak slowly emerged from the depths of the alley. Song Que clenched his fists warily until the shadowy figure drew near, revealing a face that was all too familiar.

"Hey, are you ready?"

The man asked in a low voice. Song Que shook his head.

"No, Songque, what do you mean?"

"We think we've really fallen for your trick. Yes, we don't care about right or wrong when we're doing this kind of work... but this isn't your average person. Stealing from the gods is like risking your life!"

The man looked bewildered, then became anxious.

No, sis, why are you changing your mind? At least give it a try first!

"We've come this far, you're not going to back out now, are you? Things aren't so easy to talk about now!"

"We don't care, the risk is too high, and the reward isn't enough!"

The man frowned, his anxious eyes taking on a fierce glint, but considering that Song Que was the only "brave" person who had accepted the order and come to Ruimu, he could only lower his voice to persuade her.

"Songque, this is a huge job I got through connections in the organization! If we succeed, we'll be rich! If you don't do it..."

The man bit his lip and uttered a harsh remark.

"This is such a good job, if you don't take it, there are plenty of others who will! Besides, if you breach the contract, our friendship will be over!"

Upon hearing this, Song Que hesitated for a moment. But...

Song Que crossed his arms, putting on a knowing look, as if he had seen through the lamp. At times like this, he had to stay calm.

"Stop trying to fool us with sentimentality. What legitimate team would give us this job? Who knows what kind of mess you guys are in internally, maybe you're starving and only pinning your hopes on us out of desperation!"

The man paused for a moment, then became somewhat exasperated. Didn't he know the notorious scoundrels of Amber Street? His words clearly said three words: more money!

Unfortunately, he was indeed at the mercy of Song Que. Although he wasn't starving, this outsourcing job was a real big deal. The entire organization was hoping that Bai Ji's business would make up for the economic losses caused by Zi Qiong's appearance!

“Song Que, don’t push your luck. This job is already quite well paid.”

The man's tone softened considerably, and Song Que knew he was about to compromise.

"What do you mean? You know this job is extremely risky; one wrong move and you could die... How about we just end our friendship and go our separate ways? We can always go back to Langqiu and work at the orphanage!"

The man fell silent, pacing back and forth. After a long while, he gritted his teeth:

"Alright, alright, I know you too well. I'll accept your price gouging, but tell me how much you want! Let's make it clear first, you have to do this job perfectly!"

Once the goal was achieved, the sparrow put on a completely different face.

"Hehe... That's more like it! No problem, no problem, let me think about it... Huh?"

Just as the excited sparrow was still pondering how much more money she would have to pay to dance on the Light Organization's bottom line, she suddenly felt something very heavy fall into her pocket.

"what?"

The sparrow reached into its pocket; the shape was...

"Jade tablet?"

Unbelievable! A jade pendant suddenly appeared out of her pocket?

"Wow, you even prepared the pass to go up the tower? No wonder you're the partner I've chosen!"

"That's right, hahaha..."

Confused, Song Que examined the jade token in front of her: it was golden all over, and there was no doubt that this was the jade token that only the participants of the Ten Arts War could obtain. However, she had come here because of Qiong, and this was not the same token as Qiong's. She couldn't possibly steal Qiong's jade token, could she?

A question arose in Song Que's heart: Where did this jade pendant come from?

Surely someone didn't just slip it into her pocket on purpose?