Being too beautiful is also a problem

Hearing that, I involuntarily shuddered and swallowed hard, forcing a dry laugh as I looked at the old lady and tried to flatter her: "Ah… a python… very… uh… friendly."

Somehow, after she revealed her former identity, a sudden chill ran through me. Still, since I was already here, I didn't dare to turn and run.

The old woman handed me a worn gray dress. It reached all the way to the ankles, tied at the waist with a fabric belt, and the neckline was completely covered.

"I'm old, so I wear these kinds of clothes. You can wear it for now. It's a bit old, but still in good condition."

I took the clothes and went behind the house to find a place to change. I found a small bathroom and looked around to make sure no one was there before carefully undressing to bathe.

From the moment I woke up in this world, this was the first time I got to enjoy a refreshing bath. Moreover, my body didn't seem to be affected by whatever this world was, in fact, after bathing, my skin looked oddly fair and clean.

When I came out, I saw the old woman setting food on the table. My stomach was growling from hunger, so I rushed over to take a look.

There were three chipped porcelain plates on the table: two with boiled vegetables, and one with something I couldn't quite identify. I leaned in closer to see what it was.

Wait… did it just move? Looking more closely, I realized it was a plate of fuzzy caterpillars. My eyes twitched as I asked the old woman: "Why… are they still alive…?"

The old lady looked at me in surprise: "You can't eat these?"

"No… hic…"

"Then just have some of the vegetables instead."

I looked at the plate of caterpillars and felt dizzy. All my hunger vanished. I sat gloomily on the bed and looked around, then asked:

"Is this village far from the capital?"

The old woman, sitting on a chair and picking up caterpillars with her chopsticks, replied as she ate: "What are you saying? I don't understand. What's a capital?"

I rambled for a bit, trying to explain that the capital was the place where those phoenix-like birds lived.

"Oh… you mean the Imperial Capital?" she finally said.

The old woman spoke at length while eating, and I sat on the bed hugging a blanket, listening to her ramble. From her long-winded tale, I managed to piece together some key information.

The Imperial Capital was the most prosperous place. Only high-level animals, no, more accurately, wealthy animals, could live there. Their currency and means of trade was something called spirit stones. The more one cultivated, the more spirit stones they could gather. All trade was done using these spirit stones.

"So how does one get to the Imperial Capital?"

The old lady pointed to the ceiling and said: "It's up there."

Seeing my jaw drop, she chuckled and explained: "The Imperial Capital exists in a different space, no one can see it. But every full moon, a staircase appears from the sky, reaching down to the ground so people can go up or return from there."

The more I heard, the more excited I became. "Does it reach everywhere? Uh… how long does it take to get there, say, if someone wanted to go?"

"In the old days, when I was still strong, it only took me two months to get there."

Meeting this old lady really taught me a lot. If I hadn't met her, I probably wouldn't even know where to hide right now.

For now, I'll stay here and slowly figure out more about this strange world. I'll worry about the rest later.

That morning, I lay exhausted on the bed and fell asleep. I couldn't sleep well last nigh, the old lady slept right next to me, hugging me tightly and snoring like thunder. My eyes stayed wide open the whole night. Eventually, I passed out from sheer exhaustion, not even noticing where the old lady had gone.

By that time, the old woman had gone up to the county town and walked into a brothel, a place where women sold their charms. She walked straight into the main hall and asked to see the owner.

The county town wasn't far from the village. It was quite bustling, with people coming and going, shouting, and selling things. Villagers often brought vegetables to town to trade for other food.

After meeting an old man with squinting eyes and a sly-looking goatee, the old lady calmly said: "I want to sell a girl, beauty like a thousand fairies."

Humans in this world had evolved from animals, so their appearances weren't as attractive as in the human world. Most had dark, yellowish limbs, rough and bumpy faces, crooked teeth, and a faint body odor. It was rare to see anyone who looked genuinely pleasing to the eye.

Even the women in this brothel were mostly over six feet tall, with big limbs and rough skin, yellow or dark in color. Yet to the people here, they were already considered beautiful.

The goateed old man eyed her suspiciously and replied: "Beauty like a thousand fairies? Don't exaggerate… I won't believe you until I see her."

The old woman thought for a while and then said: "I'll trick her into coming here so you can see for yourself… if you agree, I want one thousand spirit stones."

The goateed man was so shocked he couldn't speak. No one had ever demanded that many spirit stones before. Furious, he threatened her: "Are you insane? What woman is worth that much? Throw her out!"

Before she could say another word, a few burly men grabbed her and threw her out the door. She fell hard onto the ground, her heart turning cold.

The truth was, after her evolution, she had taken on the form of an old woman, though she was still in her youthful years. But there was no way to make herself more beautiful after evolution, and without enough divine power to cultivate, she had no choice but to live alone in that shabby house.

But now, a chance had come. She had stumbled upon a treasure on the road. It would be a waste not to sell that girl for spirit stones to continue her cultivation. She had to find a way to lure the girl to the county town soon.