Yin Yan took Yu Zhen to the supermarket and very obediently started helping Yu Zhen buy daily necessities.

For Yin Yan, whose common sense about life came entirely from the original owner's memories, his shopping method also followed the original owner's consistent principle. It was even more exaggerated than the original owner's because he had once been the Master of a Sect—he only bought the best and most expensive things, not even glancing at anything slightly inferior.

The supermarket in the villa district was nothing like other budget chain supermarkets. It was full of expensive imported goods, and you could definitely find high-quality items if you wanted them. Finally, Yu Zhen couldn't watch anymore. When Yin Yan was about to grab a super expensive bottle of shampoo, he decisively grabbed his arm and said anxiously, "You don't need to buy this. What Mom said just now was in anger. How could the house be lacking daily necessities? Don't grab any more."

Yin Yan turned his head to look at him and asked, "We're not buying it?"

"No, no, we're not buying it. Are you still hungry? Let's go eat."

Yu Zhen remembered that he had been kicked out halfway through his meal and must still be hungry.

Yin Yan withdrew his hand, looked at him quietly for a few seconds, and suddenly said, "I want to eat food you cooked."

Yu Zhen: "???"

Food he cooked? How? The supermarket doesn't have a kitchen. Are they supposed to go home and cook? Yin Yan would probably get another earful from Chou Feiqian, who was still fuming.

Half an hour later, Yin Yan parked the car in front of a high-end apartment building with an elevator, separated from the villa district by a commercial area and two parks. He led Yu Zhen, along with a pile of ingredients bought from the supermarket, inside with practiced ease.

The elevator went straight to the top floor, opening directly into the apartment. After he entered the password to open the door, a stylishly decorated duplex apartment appeared before them.

"The kitchen is over there. The cleaning service comes regularly, so you can use the cookware inside directly."

Yin Yan casually pointed in the direction of the kitchen, then took off his jacket and leaned back comfortably on the sofa, looking at Yu Zhen without speaking.

Yu Zhen: "...Wait a moment."

The utensils in the kitchen were very new, obviously having been left untouched since the renovations were completed. No one had used them. Upon closer inspection, you could still see the pristine traces left from the decoration in the corners.

This was a new house that no one had lived in yet.

Yu Zhen retracted his gaze, placed the supermarket bags on the counter, first familiarized himself with the kitchen utensils, put a kettle on to boil water, and then began to prepare the ingredients.

The time was a bit awkward, neither early nor late. The two of them had already eaten half a meal before, so neither was particularly hungry. Therefore, Yu Zhen simply made a pot of mixed noodles and stir-fried some shrimp as a side dish. The portion wasn't large, so they wouldn't be too full to eat dinner later.

They were all easy things to prepare. Before long, Yu Zhen came out with the food, placed it directly on the coffee table in front of Yin Yan, handed over the bowl and chopsticks, and said, "Just make do with this for now. Don't eat too much, or you won't be able to eat dinner tonight."

Yin Yan was still in the same position as when he had left. Hearing this, he nodded. Only after Yu Zhen sat down in the single armchair to the side did he change his posture and reach for his chopsticks. However, he didn't eat, but instead called out, "Xu Wu."

A white furball appeared out of thin air on the coffee table. It then slowly unfurled its body, stood up, stretched lazily, and then catwalked over to Yu Zhen. It turned, and with a sweep of its tail, a small, carved wooden box appeared on the table.

"Inside are some Spirit Lotus Seeds collected from a Cultivator's immortal cave. They contain Spiritual Qi. If you want to continue growing flowers, you can use them as fertilizer. It will be twice as effective with half the effort."

Xu Wu meowed at Yu Zhen, and with another sweep of its tail, a slightly larger, solid wooden box appeared next to the carved one.

"Inside this is Xirang. It can grow all things and is inexhaustible."

Xu Wu hopped onto the carved wooden box and continued to flick its tail.

"Boundless Water, to help plants grow."

"Qiankun Revolving Vessel, a beginner-level Magic Tool. The space inside is about one mu. You can put it here. I traded pearls for this house, so no one else will enter. You can rest assured."

One box after another. Only after Yin Yan had finished speaking did he pick up a shrimp with his chopsticks and say, "I'll trade these things for this meal."

Xu Wu let out a "meow~", nimbly jumped down from the wooden box, walked lightly to the edge of the plate, snatched a shrimp from it, and began to eat contentedly, flicking its tail.

Yu Zhen was dumbfounded, staring blankly at the wooden boxes and this master-and-pet duo. His mouth opened and closed, but he didn't know what to say.

A single meal in exchange for these things that sounded so incredible... no matter how he thought about it, it wasn't an equal trade.

Yin Yan probably said that so he wouldn't feel pressured, but...

"The noodles are getting cold." As Yin Yan said this, he picked up another shrimp and brought it to Yu Zhen's lips, touching them lightly. "Open your mouth."

Yu Zhen reflexively opened his mouth. The shrimp entered, his tongue touched the chopsticks, and a savory fragrance filled his senses.

"My soul cannot repair itself on its own; it can only be fully nourished by your cultivation. In other words, half of all the merit and cultivation you obtain will automatically be transferred to me. I'm sorry for being a burden to you."

Yin Yan pulled back his chopsticks, his eyes downcast. His expression was still calm, but his aura had become somber.

"You're not a burden."

Yu Zhen hastily swallowed the shrimp and quickly spoke, clumsily trying to comfort him, "You're very powerful. If it weren't for you, I would have died long ago."

"If it weren't for you, my soul would have long since scattered." Yin Yan looked at him again, pointed to the wooden boxes, then gestured to the ring on his hand and said, "Our fates are intertwined. There is no distinction between you and me."

No distinction between you and me.

Yu Zhen met his gaze. The unease he felt from being in an unfamiliar environment gradually disappeared, and he felt grounded once more.

'No distinction between you and me...' He repeated this sentence silently and also picked up his chopsticks.

It was true. In this world now, only the person in front of him was left for him to depend on.

After finishing the noodles, under Yin Yan's guidance, Yu Zhen forced out a bit of the Golden Light of Merit he had accumulated from encountering ghosts. He bound it to the Qiankun Revolving Vessel, and after activating it, he sprinkled in the Xirang. Then, a one-mu square field that only he could see appeared before his eyes.

"I need to buy some tools, and something to regulate the temperature. The lotus seeds need to be germinated first."

When talking about something he was good at, Yu Zhen's tone became much more confident and cheerful, and there was even a faint smile on his face.

Yin Yan looked at his side profile, hummed a low "en," and said, "We'll go buy them tomorrow."

"Then for the rest of the day, let's go cultivate," Yu Zhen suddenly turned his head to look at him and proactively suggested.

Yin Yan was momentarily stunned, a rare occurrence. However, because he was always expressionless, from Yu Zhen's perspective, he had simply taken a little longer to reply.

"You want to cultivate?"

"Yes." Yu Zhen nodded, suppressing the instinctive fear of encountering ghosts that rose in his heart. He tried his best to look calm and said, "You helped me, so of course, I have to help you too!"

After saying that, he felt it wasn't quite right and added, "Of course, it's to help myself too."

Yin Yan looked at him, then stepped back, and back again, before turning and walking away.

"..."

The smile on Yu Zhen's face vanished. He watched him numbly and asked, "Where are you going?"

"To wash the dishes."

"..." But the bowls were clearly in the dishwasher!

A corner of the park, by the small lake.

"Th-then I'm going," Yu Zhen said, his voice trembling. His face was deathly pale, filled with the tragic air of a hero marching to his death.

Yin Yan sat on a bench by the lake watching him and said, "Go on. I'll be here watching you."

He was the one who suggested it, so he had to bite the bullet, even if he was scared!

Yu Zhen took a deep breath, turned, and with his brows furrowed and eyes narrowed, he strode into the small grove by the lake. Sure enough, he saw many ropes hanging sporadically from the bare branches of the trees. A pale, bluish-faced corpse was hanging from each rope. He was so scared his heart nearly stopped.

'As... as expected of the famous "Suicide Forest,"' there were "corpses" everywhere he looked.

As if sensing the arrival of a "companion," the "corpses" all raised their heads in unison and then smiled sinisterly. "Aiya, it's a half-ghost. It even has merit and Spiritual Qi. It must be very nourishing to eat."

The branches swayed. The sharp, twisted laughter of the ghosts, accompanied by a gust of yin wind, rushed straight at his face. Yu Zhen's cry of alarm was stuck in his throat. He shut his eyes tightly and silently recited the incantation Yin Yan had taught him, while simultaneously forcing out all the Golden Light of Merit from his body without restraint.

"Poor little thing, let me eat you—Ah—!"

The yin wind swirled wildly around him, and his body temperature dropped rapidly. After a sharp shriek that almost pierced his eardrums, the yin wind subsided, and the rustling sound of the frantically shaking branches gradually weakened.

Crack.

Something cracked.

Yu Zhen clenched his cold fingers and tentatively opened his eyes. Seeing that the ropes and the pale, bluish "corpses" were no longer in the woods, he relaxed, and his legs went so weak he almost collapsed to the ground.

Ghosts that could roam in a city with a Dragon Vein were indeed on a different level from the minor ones in H Province.

All his accumulated Golden Light of Merit had been released, and without the Yin Yan-brand human hand-warmer by his side, the coldness flooded him again. Yu Zhen shivered and rubbed his arms, but he didn't turn back. Instead, he moved his stiff legs and began to search the area.

The grove in this park was a famous Suicide Forest in the area. People came here to hang themselves every year, so the accumulated yin energy was particularly dense. Coupled with its proximity to the lake, it had already formed a soul-luring Boundary Lure.

If it were left unchecked, a major incident would happen sooner or later.

Yin Yan had brought him straight here, targeting the Boundary Lure and the large amount of merit that could be obtained after breaking it.

"Where is it, where is it..."

The Boundary Lure is as small as a bean, crimson like blood, and invisible to anyone but a ghost body. It appears after being broken and will attract living creatures to gnaw on it... Yin Yan's words spun in his mind. He kept muttering to himself to prevent his thoughts from freezing over from the cold. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a squirrel leap down from a tree and rush towards a rock. He quickly turned and went forward to shoo it away.

"Don't eat it, you'll die if you eat it!"

The startled squirrel ran off. He squatted down and moved the rock, and sure enough, behind it, he found a tiny, blood-red bean. It was extremely cold to the touch. He quickly picked it up and strode towards the bench by the lake.

'So cold, my internal organs feel like they're about to freeze.'

There seemed to be more people by the lake than before, but Yu Zhen couldn't pay them any mind. His sight was fixed only on Yin Yan, who was standing sideways by the bench.

Perhaps hearing his footsteps, Yin Yan, who was talking to someone, turned to look over. Seeing him running closer, he opened his arms very naturally.

Yu Zhen dove headfirst into his embrace.

Thump.

Their bodies collided with a soft thud. Yu Zhen burrowed into his arms, holding him tightly, and nuzzled his head against his chest and shoulder.

Everyone around the bench was stunned. The refined-looking man who had been talking to Yin Yan glanced at their "impassioned" embrace, raised a hand to adjust his glasses to hide his awkwardness, and cleared his throat before asking, "Um, Yin Yan, this is...?"

Yin Yan soothingly ruffled Yu Zhen's hair, turned his head to the refined man, and introduced, "My lover, Yu Zhen. Forgive my rudeness, he's a bit clingy."

The coldness having subsided a little, Yu Zhen, who had just peeked out from his embrace: "???"

Clingy? Who?