Snow Reed leaned slightly toward Han Yu, holding a small cup of tea with both hands.
"Your tea," she said softly.
He took it. "Thank you."
Their fingers brushed briefly.
Snow Reed studied his face, careful, subtle.
"You are not from around here," she said lightly.
"No," Han Yu replied, now wearing his false identity like a second skin. "My name is Chen Xiu. I travel."
"Travel where?" she asked.
"To deliver a message," he said casually. "To a city not too far from here."
Her brows lifted slightly. "A messenger?"
"Yes."
She looked him up and down again, this time more carefully.
"You are at the Core Condensation Realm," she said quietly. "A cultivator like you being used as a messenger. That message must be very important."
Han Yu smiled faintly. "Or the pay is simply very good."
Snow Reed laughed softly, covering her lips with her fingers. "You are an interesting man, Chen Xiu."
He took a sip of tea. "I am a very simple man. I go where the money tells me to go."
