CHAPTER 382: CHAPTER 132: ENCOUNTER ON THE SNOW MOUNTAIN

"...Thank you." Chen Yan felt a bit awkward, but he remembered a topic and asked, "I’m curious about something... That coffee with vodka here, is it really a specialty of Mao Country? Do you have this kind of coffee back in Mao Country?"

"No, no, no, that’s not a specialty of Mao Country." Mao shook her head, "That’s a specialty of alcoholics. Not everyone in Mao Country is an alcoholic."

"Uh, you seem to be enjoying it a lot."

"Because I’m an alcoholic." Mao laughed.

Saying this, Mao gave Chen Yan a deliberately special look, "So, this handsome gentleman from Dragon Country, are you interested in treating an alcoholic to a drink?"

Chen Yan looked speechless at this Mao.

Hmm, no doubt about it, did she just hit on me?

But to be honest, it felt a bit flattering.

It’s not like I haven’t been hit on by women before.

Chu Keqing once openly threw herself at me... But that was for a special reason.

Chu Keqing admired my identity as a cultivator, that persona as a reclusive sage, and the image of divine abilities I repeatedly projected...

And this Mao, is she purely into my looks?

Wow, does that mean I’m not bad-looking after all!

Glancing at the time on his phone, Chen Yan sighed, "I believe you’re an alcoholic now... Normal people don’t drink at ten in the morning."

"How about it? Treat me to a drink?" Mao smiled, revealing her white teeth.

Chen Yan scrutinized this Mao—she shouldn’t be the kind of woman in a special profession luring customers.

Though she spoke boldly, it was the kind of boldness and cheerfulness of a hot-tempered personality—not the sort of vibe one gets from someone in a dubious profession.

Moreover...

Chen Yan’s gaze fell on Mao’s wrist, which had a Cartier women’s watch.

Someone who can afford such an accessory likely isn’t some shady lady.

Even if she were, she’d be of a high caliber, not resorting to soliciting customers in a café.

Chen Yan thought for a bit, then called the waiter over, "Bring this lady your finest serving of vodka."

Then he took out his phone, allowing the waiter to scan it.

Once the waiter had scanned it, Chen Yan adjusted his belongings and stood up.

"Please enjoy this drink at your leisure; I won’t be joining."

Mao looked at Chen Yan, her eyes a bit puzzled, "You don’t..."

"You asked me to treat you to a drink, and I did." Chen Yan smiled, "Excuse me."

With that, he walked away very straightforwardly.

Mao watched Chen Yan’s back, her eyes and mouth forming an O shape.

·

Chen Yan wasn’t pretending to be serious.

But creatures like Mao are best admired from afar—preferably just from afar.

It’s said that Mao women, due to racial differences, mostly have body odor, coarser hair, and less smooth skin.

The photos of Mao women seen online are all heavily edited, with who knows how many layers of skin retouched.

Real Mao women, though not as bad as having "heart-protecting fur a hand’s width wide," still...

In any case, Chen Yan politely declined.

·

Chen Yan returned to his room, simply lay down on the bed, pulled out his phone to browse some short videos, then opened an app to find himself a novel to read.

Not being a fan of skiing, there really wasn’t much else of interest in this place.

Chen Yan didn’t like skiing; the reason was simple: he just believed that a perfectly fine person shouldn’t seek out the cold in icy lands.

Even when he traveled, he preferred finding comfortable activities for himself, not things that were self-torturing or challenged limits.

Purely personal preference, not imposed on others.

Chen Yan always felt that as long as it didn’t violate morals or laws, everyone has the right to live their preferred lifestyle—criticizing others for it is just foolish.

Spent the morning reading in his room, then went to the restaurant at noon for an authentic Three Eastern States meal.

A dish of chicken stewed with porcini mushrooms left Chen Yan raving—recalling the goods delivery he encountered the day before must have been for the hotel.

In the afternoon, he returned to his room to meditate, channeling his Primordial Qi a few times.

In the evening, Chen Yan regretted it... While staying at this resort had a great view, it was also extremely boring.

Flipping through the hotel’s brochure, he saw there was a bar, and Chen Yan headed out once more.

The bar was on the hotel’s ground floor, and there was a performance in the evening, rumored to be cross-talk.

When Chen Yan walked in, the performance hadn’t started yet. He found a seat and ordered a beer, then noticed not far away, about five or six meters away, at another table, sat the same Mao he had met earlier that morning.

She clearly saw Chen Yan too and raised her glass to him in acknowledgment.

Chen Yan raised his bottle from afar, effectively greeting Mao.

This woman was dressed rather provocatively that evening, in this cold weather, she was actually wearing a dress!

Okay, even if the indoors were heated, who travels in such weather in a dress.

However... Chen Yan’s gaze shifted slightly, glancing at Mao’s bare legs under her dress.

Alright, maybe not all Mao women are that hairy?

The performance had barely started for a few minutes when Chen Yan left.

He was disappointed; there wasn’t any cross-talk performance that night but instead, a band supposedly from Mao Country.

What’s the point of that?

To listen to this kind of music, you could just open an app and listen to your heart’s content.

Having come all this way, watching cross-talk live would have been more interesting.

Chen Yan left the bar, planning to return to his room.

Just as he entered the elevator and before the elevator doors closed, a hand reached in, causing the slowly closing doors to reopen upon sensing it.

Mao walked in from outside, saw Chen Yan, and showed a curious smile.

"Heading back to your room too?"

"Yes." Chen Yan nodded.

"Why?"

"I wanted to watch cross-talk, but there’s none tonight," Chen Yan said honestly.

"You’re quite interesting." Mao nodded at Chen Yan.

What’s interesting?

Chen Yan muttered to himself, "Not being eager is interesting?"

However, when the elevator stopped at the sixth floor, and Chen Yan got out, he realized Mao followed him out—only then did he realize she hadn’t pressed any floor button after entering the elevator.

Exiting the elevator area, Chen Yan stopped mid-corridor, turned slightly to scrutinize Mao.

Mao was startled momentarily but quickly caught on, pulling out a room card to show, "You’re not misunderstanding anything, are you? I just happen to be staying on this floor too."

Chen Yan nodded but still didn’t move, instead stepping aside to let Mao walk ahead of him.

A moment later, watching Mao open a door diagonally across his room, Chen Yan felt a bit strange.

Mao looked at Chen Yan’s room and smiled, "Seems like quite a coincidence, interesting Dragon Country man."

"Mm, goodnight." Chen Yan nodded, opened his room door, entered, and shut it.

He felt something was off somehow.

He’s not someone who overly flatters himself... He wasn’t handsome to the level where a foreign beauty would actively flirt with him.

Feeling a bit puzzled, as soon as Chen Yan entered the bathroom to splash his face, the room’s doorbell rang.

Walking to the door, Chen Yan peered through the peephole and then, with a frown, opened the door a sliver, positioning himself in the doorway.

Outside, Mao stood in her cool and sexy dress, shoulders exposed, long legs showing, smiling at Chen Yan, "Invite me in for a bit?"

Chen Yan’s gaze remained calm, "Sorry, it’s not convenient."

Mao was equally poised, "You should be alone, right? Morning at the café, and evening at the bar, you were alone both times. What’s inconvenient about it?"

"...I’m planning to rest." Chen Yan shook his head.

Instead of appearing dejected at being turned down, Mao’s smile brightened, "Is it because I’m not attractive enough?"

"Sorry, my wife is quite fierce, thanks for the invite." Chen Yan closed the door.

Outside, Mao stood in the hallway, looking at the closed door, then chuckled gently, turned, and left.

Chen Yan felt increasingly weirdness inside.

As the saying goes, "offering kindness without reason is either to boil an egg... ahem! Or ulterior motives!"

Could it be a honey trap set by immortals?

Or perhaps a ploy to lure him abroad for kidney harvesting?

Whatever, ignoring it would be fine.

Chen Yan shook his head.

Later that night, he read a bit more of his novel in bed and then, seeing it nearing twelve o’clock, turned off the light to sleep.

·

In the middle of the night, asleep in his dreams, Chen Yan suddenly opened his eyes in the dark!

It was an extremely subtle sound, but for a cultivator like Chen Yan, it couldn’t escape his ears—even in deep sleep.

He heard it clearly, in the darkness, his room door lock was being turned, bit by bit...

Someone was stealthily trying to open his room door!

·