Noodle Shop Gossip, Ghost Market Again

"Miss, that person has already left," an old voice sounded.

It was an old woman.

She wore a grey robe and stood in the shadows of a corner.

She had been there the entire time, but Song Chengan had never noticed her.

Ye Jin put down the pipa in her hands and took a sip of tea.

"Have you found out the identity of that shaman?"

"It seems she's from one of the Six Demonic Sects, but we don't know which one."

"Never mind."

"It was our mistake; we intended to do business but ended up aiding a villain."

"Miss, this Song Chengan's comprehension seems quite good."

"Oh?" Ye Jin's interest was piqued.

"In Lingqiu County, someone can actually catch Granny's eye?"

Granny chuckled, "Miss, you're teasing this old woman again."

"This is about Song Chengan."

"First, his character."

"This man was originally a degenerate gambler, but he was able to turn over a new leaf in a single thought and has never set foot in a gambling house since."

"With such character and willpower, he surpasses many others."

"Among the younger generation in the Chen Kingdom today, there are only a handful with such character."

"But this man started cultivating too late," Ye Jin said. "He only began his path at thirty. Even with a resilient character, he's unlikely to achieve much."

The old woman said, "Starting to cultivate at thirty is indeed a bit late."

"By common sense, it's indeed difficult to achieve great things."

"But Miss seems to have forgotten someone."

"That person only learned the Way at eighty, yet he eventually became one of the most powerful sect leaders in the history of the Daoist sect."

"Most importantly, if Miss wants to find that high-grade True Qi of the Moon God Sect, this person could be a good help."

"That's true."

"This True Qi is the key to unlocking that Moon God Grotto-Heaven..."

Ye Jin nodded.

"Then let's lend a hand and get this person appointed as the Lingqiu Captain as soon as possible."

The old woman nodded.

"Miss, do you need me to deal with that Wu Cong...?" the old woman asked, making a throat-slitting gesture.

Ye Jin couldn't help but laugh.

"Granny, according to the information we have, Song Chengan was promoted to Demon Suppression Envoy with Wu Cong's support."

"You could say Wu Cong owes him a great debt of gratitude. If we kill Wu Cong, wouldn't we completely turn him into an enemy?"

"Besides, Granny, Wu Cong has lived a life without fault. It would be wrong on all accounts to let him be killed like this."

"Please don't resort to killing people so readily."

The old woman looked a bit sheepish. "I was just thinking of helping Miss obtain that Moon God True Qi faster."

"Headache."

"I don't know what secrets Lingqiu holds to attract the Moon God Sect's attention, and who was it that killed the Moon God Sect's leader back then?"

"Truly terrifying."

"This person was once one of the Ten Righteous Prodigies."

Inside the Void Heaven Mirror.

Three Illusionary Bodies were still practicing.

They were practicing the Fire Cloud Staff Technique, the Water Repelling Art, and the refinement of the Spirit Essence Pill.

Originally, there were four.

But the one practicing making paper cranes had completed its training and was absorbed by Song Chengan.

"The Fire Cloud Staff Technique and Water Repelling Art are still being practiced."

Song Chengan glanced over.

The Illusionary Body practicing the refinement of the Spirit Essence Pill had stopped all movement and sat cross-legged, lost in thought.

This meant its practice of the Spirit Essence Pill had concluded.

Let's create two more Illusionary Bodies!

Song Chengan's mind stirred.

Instantly, two Illusionary Bodies appeared.

As soon as one Illusionary Body appeared, a volcano materialized before him.

Then, he was seen sitting cross-legged beside the volcano, beginning to devour flames!

Once the flames were swallowed, a wisp of spiritual energy entwined with fire appeared within the Illusionary Body's meridians, starting to circulate through them.

But immediately, that meridian shattered.

A miraculous thing happened; in an instant, the broken meridian healed, and the Illusionary Body continued to devour flames, cultivating the Southern Bright Illusory Fire True Qi.

"Once this Illusionary Body finishes its deduction and I absorb its insights, I'll go find Earth Fire to practice this Southern Bright Illusory Fire True Qi."

Song Chengan looked at the other Illusionary Body.

He saw a table appear before that Illusionary Body. With a solemn expression, it held three copper coins, constantly tossing them.

Divination.

Song Chengan withdrew from the Void Heaven Mirror.

"I have two hundred Talisman Coins on me now. It's time to do some shopping."

Song Chengan took out his Ghost Token.

As his True Qi flowed in, a line of small text appeared.

"Three days later, at midnight, the well in the backyard of the haunted house west of the city."

"Three days?"

"I'll go grab a bowl of noodles first."

Song Chengan felt a bit hungry.

"Shopkeeper, one bowl of noodles, two taels of sliced beef, and a jar of wine."

"Coming right up!"

"Brother Song, please wait a moment!"

"Brother Song!"

"Brother Song!"

"Brother Song!"

As soon as Song Chengan entered.

A crowd of people greeted him.

The people were still the same.

Song Chengan was still Song Chengan.

It was just that Scholar Song had become Brother Song.

"Brother Song, did you take down another demon today?" Boss Shi raised his wine cup, toasting Song Chengan.

Song Chengan also raised his wine cup.

He smiled and said, "Boss Shi, your news is quite well-informed?"

"Heh heh, we all make a living down at the docks!"

"I heard Qi Feng turned into a monster after eating monster meat."

Song Chengan nodded. "He got the demon's flesh and blood from the Shaman."

"After eating it, he turned into a demon."

"Brother Song, I heard that eating the demon's flesh and blood grants immense strength, like a celestial being."

Song Chengan replied upon hearing this.

"Eating demon flesh and blood can indeed grant immense strength, but the price is becoming a demon forever."

"You gradually lose your intelligence and completely transform into a monster."

"Yeah, it's like being completely dead and becoming a new monster."

"What, you guys want to eat it?"

The man who asked quickly waved his hands.

"Then forget it."

"I heard that Qi Feng wasn't even considered human in the end."

"I don't want to become a monster."

Song Chengan shook his head.

No wonder the Demon Suppression Division never allowed demon flesh and blood to circulate among the populace.

Let's not even mention anything else, just the fact that eating demon flesh will cause one to become demonic...

How many wronged people are there in this world? If everyone started eating demon flesh, chaos would surely ensue.

"That Qi Feng was also an unfortunate soul."

Someone seemed to know Qi Feng.

"I didn't kill him."

"He took his own life in the end."

"Once you eat demon flesh, the demonic transformation is irreversible."

"Until you completely turn into a demon, into a monster that only knows how to kill."

"Something even more terrifying than ordinary demons, without fear, without intelligence, only knowing how to kill madly."

The atmosphere in the noodle shop grew heavy.

"Oh right, why haven't we seen Hu Lu?"

Song Chengan asked curiously.

He hadn't seen Hu Lu for some time.

As soon as he said that.

The noodle shop became lively again.

Boss Shi said, "It wasn't that long ago!"

"This guy made a joke about someone's deceased mother, so others made a joke about his son."

"This guy can't take it."

"He got angry and brought his son to the noodle shop, wanting everyone to shut up by publicly verifying paternity."

"And then what?"

Song Chengan asked.

This Hu Lu was truly a tiresome person. He liked to joke around, and then got angry when others said something back.

"The blood didn't match."

"Uh..."

Song Chengan was speechless.

"Brother Song, you don't know the whole story."

"Back then, when people talked about his son, it wasn't just idle gossip."

"It's because his wife has been involved with Wang San'er next door."

"Everyone saw it."

"We just thought his wife was having an affair with Wang San'er, but we never expected the son wasn't even his."

"So, are they fighting now?"

"No." Boss Shi shook his head.

"The guy did make a fuss when he went back."

"But his wife is also shrewish, and her family has some influence. She's now set on divorcing him and living with Wang San'er, but Hu Lu disagrees."

"To cast out her husband?"

Someone said, "That woman is truly bold."

"If all the fault lies with her, in our village, she'd be lucky if she wasn't drowned in a pig cage."

"That's true."

"But in the end, this world is about who has power."

"This woman's family has some influence, and Wang San'er follows Master Hu. How can Hu Lu possibly contend with them?"

"It's really her family's fault."

"Before this woman got married, she favored Wang San'er. But back then, Wang San'er was just a petty hoodlum, and her family looked down on him. They hastily chose the honest Hu Lu as their son-in-law."

"What's so good about Wang San'er? What he's doing now isn't exactly respectable either."

"That Black Tiger Gang is all about extortion and protection fees."

"While castration isn't a glorious profession, it at least provides food and shelter. With his family's support, life wouldn't be bad."

"A petty hoodlum is glib-tongued, good at coaxing people."

"This Hu Lu is very sharp-tongued, often saying things that infuriate people."

"That doesn't make sense." Song Chengan said after listening to them for a while, "According to what you're saying, isn't this woman trying to divorce him now to be with Wang San'er?"

"This woman has power, and the son isn't Hu Lu's. How can Hu Lu disagree with the divorce?"

"Could it be that they couldn't agree on the inheritance?"

Song Chengan was curious.

"It's because his woman is pregnant."

"Hu Lu is over forty now."

"If this woman leaves, he might have trouble finding another woman in this lifetime."

"His entire mind is focused on keeping this woman and the child in her belly."

"Is the child his?" someone asked.

The noodle shop fell silent at this question.

"Probably?"

"It can't be that neither of them is the father, right?"

"Forget it, let's not talk about Hu Lu anymore."

"Brother Song!"

As Song Chengan walked out of the noodle shop, he saw Hu Lu approaching.

There was some white hair on his head now.

His expression was haggard.

When he clasped his fists, his waist bent very low.

Song Chengan said nothing.

He merely nodded at him.

"What a mess."

Three days later.

The haunted house west of the city.

Song Chengan looked at the well in front of him and leaped down.

He needed to buy some materials for refining Spirit Essence Pills and a cauldron.

He decided to try refining pills for a while, and then once that Illusionary Body finished comprehending the Southern Bright Illusory Fire True Qi, he would go find Earth Fire and cultivate it.

Also.

Song Chengan felt he needed a movement technique.