Xu Mu drove to the Antique Market in the western district of Yang City.
This was the largest antique trading hub in the city—and in all of Northern Jiang as well.
Any treasures discovered elsewhere usually ended up here for resale.
Dai Xingluo, who loved antiques, was said to frequent this place.
Xu Mu, possessing his Divine Appraisal Mastery, decided this would be the perfect opportunity to "accidentally" run into her.
Inside the antique market, the streets bustled with activity—more lively than those outside.
Shops lined both sides of the road, but most vendors simply spread mats and displayed their wares on the ground.
"Hey buddy, looking for anything in particular? Everything I sell here is authentic—real deal stuff,"
a bespectacled, slightly chubby middle-aged man said cheerfully as Xu Mu paused at his stall.
Xu Mu said nothing. His eyes simply scanned over the goods.
With his Appraisal Mastery, he could instantly see that every single piece was fake.
It was like each object had a label above it, listing its material, age, and origin.
The oldest item among them was a porcelain vase—barely ten years old.
Hands in his pockets, Xu Mu kept strolling, not only to see if there were any genuine antiques but also to use his Divine Eye to scan the women passing by.
He had never seen Dai Xingluo before. The novel's description alone wasn't enough to identify her real appearance.
Then, at one stall, he noticed a jade pendant.
It was circular, carved with a dragon motif, and surprisingly well-preserved.
A Song Dynasty Chi-Dragon pendant—it could probably fetch over a hundred thousand yuan.
Just as Xu Mu approached, a woman appeared from the adjacent street and stopped at the same stall.
She wore a flowing hanfu dress. Her eyes were like clear springs—calm, emotionless.
Her long black hair fell elegantly over her shoulders, adorned with a delicate crabapple hairpin.
She was beautiful, her face refined in the old-style aesthetic of ancient China.
In earlier times, walking around dressed like this might've drawn ridicule.
But now, as national pride grew and traditional culture regained its place, such attire had become common—and admired.
Xu Mu gave her a quick glance with his Divine Eye—and froze.
Good heavens!
This woman… was the vicious supporting female?
You've got to be kidding me.
When he first read the story, he'd imagined this character as perhaps somewhat attractive—but definitely sharp-featured, sinister-looking, or cold.
He hadn't expected her to be a classical beauty!
Name: Dai Xingluo
Identity: Daughter of the Feng Family; Outer Sect Disciple of Heavenly Sword Sect
Favorability: 0
Fate Level: 3 (Max 10)
Xu Mu's brows rose. So she was a sect disciple too—no wonder, in the story, even though she was born of a concubine and her mother was dead, no one in the Dai Family dared provoke her.
That Fate Level was quite fitting.
Her background section matched what he remembered: in the end, she'd been killed by the Dragon King himself.
At the stall, Dai Xingluo rested her slender fingers on a jade pendant—not the one Xu Mu had his eye on.
Hers looked realistic and antique, but was actually a fake.
"How much for this one?" Dai Xingluo asked softly, her voice cultured and elegant.
Xu Mu couldn't believe this graceful young woman was supposed to be ruthless and venomous.
"Miss, you've got great taste. I bought that piece for thirty thousand—just trying to earn a small margin, so thirty-five thousand for you," the bald shopkeeper said eagerly.
Dai Xingluo studied the jade carefully, then nodded. "I'll take it."
The man beamed in delight.
"Wait!"
Xu Mu suddenly spoke. "Sister, thirty-five thousand is too much—let's not buy it."
Dai Xingluo turned her gaze toward him, eyes narrowing slightly.
Who was this man?
The shopkeeper glanced at Xu Mu—so they were together. He had thought they were separate customers.
"Handsome guy, this one's genuine—came from a rural family heirloom, at least from the Ming or Qing era."
He didn't want to lose the sale. The piece had cost him only three hundred yuan; even selling it for three thousand would be a huge profit.
"I don't care what era you claim—it's worth a thousand at best. If you won't take it, we're leaving."
Xu Mu's tone was flat.
"Are you kidding me? At least ten thousand!" The man held up one finger.
"Ten thousand's fine," Xu Mu said. "But throw in a little extra trinket—or no deal."
As he spoke, he scanned the stall, then picked up the Chi-Dragon pendant. "Give me this as a bonus. My sister happens to be born in the year of the dragon."
The vendor's eyes lit up. That one was even cheaper—he'd bought it for two hundred.
Though he was making a killing, he still pretended reluctance. "Add a little more, eh?"
"Sis, let's go," Xu Mu said, turning away.
"Alright, alright! Such a beautiful lady—I'll make an exception for her," the man said with mock exasperation.
"Sister, will you buy it?" Xu Mu asked with a smile.
"Shouldn't a brother buy it for his sister?" Dai Xingluo replied, smiling faintly.
Xu Mu narrowed his eyes slightly. There it is.
The vicious supporting female vibe had arrived.
"I forgot my wallet today," he said casually.
"Brother, you're so careless."
Dai Xingluo gave him a side glance, then scanned the code and paid.
But she only took the pendant she had chosen, leaving the Chi-Dragon piece behind as she turned to go.
[Favorability -1]
Xu Mu froze at the floating black text above her head.
What the hell?
He'd helped her, and she still lost favorability?
Dai Xingluo's expression remained calm, her eyes placid. She'd met plenty of men trying to strike up conversation—
but someone who tried to flirt and refused to pay? That was a first.
Watching her walk away, Xu Mu hurried after her. "Miss, the jade you're holding is from the Zhou Dynasty."
"Zhou? Western or Eastern Zhou?" she asked, curious.
"Last week's Zhou."
Xu Mu grinned. "I just couldn't stand seeing him scam you. Mine's the real one—probably from the Ming era. Cute, but a little naïve."
He placed the jade into her hand and strode off.
Dai Xingluo blinked, then let out a soft laugh.
It was the first time anyone had ever described her as "cute."
[Favorability +5]
She examined the pendant Xu Mu had given her. From craftsmanship to material, it was clearly low-grade.
So, he was just pretending to be impressive.
Shaking her head, Dai Xingluo continued down the street until she reached a shop called Ancient & Modern Treasures.
Inside were shelves of antiques—pottery, jade, calligraphy, and paintings.
As she stepped in, an elderly man in a Tang-style outfit, holding prayer beads, smiled warmly from behind the counter.
"Miss, did you find anything good this time?"
"No, just a decent jade pendant."
She handed him both pendants.
The old man examined them, rubbing them gently in his hand. Then his expression changed.
He hurried behind the counter, grabbed a magnifier, and studied one closely.
Finally, he smiled. "Miss, your eye for antiques grows sharper by the day. This is a Song Dynasty Chi-Dragon pendant—worth about two hundred thousand."
"Chi-Dragon?"
Dai Xingluo frowned. The pendant she picked hadn't had a dragon motif.
Stepping closer, she saw that the piece in his hand was actually the one Xu Mu had given her.
"What about the other one?" she asked.
"Junk," the old man said dismissively. "Machine-carved scrap—worth a few hundred at most."
Dai Xingluo's eyes widened slightly.
That man… was actually an expert?