Listen to My Advice, Leave Here Quickly

"Y-You've got the guts, then don't run."

Han Xuanwu's expression froze at that. He actually did not dare make a move. After viciously throwing out that line, he sat back down with an unwilling look on his face, his tiger-like eyes fixed fiercely on Zhao Sheng.

Heaven Pillar Mountain had several taboos, one of which was that fighting was absolutely forbidden at trading meets. Otherwise... Zhao Sheng seemingly casually glanced at a young man in the crowd wearing a purple Daoist robe. That man was an inner disciple of the Purple Sun Sect, responsible for presiding over today's trading meet.

Zhao Sheng had been getting by in Heaven Pillar Mountain for over twenty years. Though he was not even an immortal cultivator, his reputation was far from small.

Audacious beyond measure, cunning and ruthless, the foremost master of Wingsuit Flying, killing a Qi Refining Late Stage cultivator while at the innate realm, escaping from the hands of a Foundation Establishment cultivator... these were all his labels.

Thus, several Herb Gatherers who knew him greeted him one after another, and Zhao Sheng repeatedly returned their greetings with cupped fists.

After finding a spot with many acquaintances and sitting down, he turned to greet the Flowery Monk beside him, Lu Dayou. "Brother Lu, I hope you've been well. And everyone else..."

As he spoke, Zhao Sheng glanced over and saw that several more people were missing from Lu Dayou's group. His brow furrowed.

Those absent were most likely doomed.

Gathering spirit herbs was never easy. On sheer cliffs and precipices, one had to beware at every moment of fierce winds and thick fog, while also guarding against poisonous insects, birds of prey, savage beasts, and the like that might suddenly dart out. One careless misstep, and the result would be a death so complete that not even bones remained.

Besides, how could Heaven Pillar Mountain possibly be a place solely for gathering herbs?

Lu Dayou saw through his thoughts, but as a seasoned old hand at Qi Refining, he had long since taken life and death lightly. He merely laughed heartily and changed the subject. "Brother Gongsun, where have you been making your fortune lately? Going alone is truly dangerous. Why not join my team? That way, everyone can look out for one another."

Ever since Zhao Sheng had pioneered the Wingsuit Flying method, he had become a hot commodity among many small herb-gathering teams.

Wingsuit Flying was simply too useful. After many Qi Refining Early Stage cultivators learned it, their chances of survival rose in a straight line.

Thus, while earning a large sum in "tuition fees," Zhao Sheng's reputation grew with each passing day.

"Haha, I appreciate Brother Lu's kindness. But I've grown used to being idle and alone these past years. I'm not quite accustomed to acting together with others." Zhao Sheng laughed it off and tactfully declined the recruitment.

Immortal cultivators were arrogant and conceited, and they had always looked down upon innate martial artists. Though Zhao Sheng's reputation was considerable, he could not be an exception.

If he joined Lu Dayou's team, perhaps one day he would get stabbed in the back by his own people.

After all, Zhao here was quite "fat" indeed!

Lu Dayou tried persuading him a few more times. Seeing that Zhao Sheng kept evading left and right, he finally lost patience, his face turning cold as he stopped paying him any attention.

Cough, cough!

After a while, perhaps seeing that no one else was coming, the Purple Sun Sect disciple suddenly coughed twice and stood up.

The area around the bonfire immediately fell silent, and everyone looked toward him.

The man swept his gaze over the crowd before speaking. "The time is about right. Let tonight's trading meet begin. The old rules: first, no fighting; second, once goods leave one's hands, neither party may regret the transaction; third, beyond the ten-li safety boundary, each person's life and death are left to fate.

"Also, anyone with needs may exchange with me. Spirit Stones, Dharma artifacts, Dao Talismans, pills—anything goes."

With that, he sat back down.

The trading meet began. Some Herb Gatherers gradually approached the Purple Sun Sect disciple, exchanging spirit herbs for the items they needed.

The other Herb Gatherers skillfully spread out bundles and laid out assorted odds and ends: various spirit herbs that had been air-dried or carefully preserved, damaged Dharma artifacts and blades, dried meat, water flasks, unknown ores, severed remains of demon beasts, claws, fangs, and so on.

Zhao Sheng did the same.

He unfastened the straps from his back, dumped everything from his pack onto the ground in one go, then spread it all out piece by piece.

Three century-old Vermillion Fruits, a roll of Mountain-Piercing Iron Armor hide, an Azure Ganoderma as large as a face, two White Ganoderma stalks tender as jade, a small bronze knife, and a folded blue Daoist robe.

These were his gains from the past month, but they were not the most important things.

Zhao Sheng hesitated again and again before finally taking a round jade pendant from his robes. It was crystal-clear and translucent, emanating a soft white glow.

The instant it appeared, it immediately drew the attention of those around him.

"A First-Grade Protective Jade Pendant!" someone cried out.

"Fuck, did Gongsun Sheng ambush another sect disciple again?"

"Hmph, Old Thief Gongsun relies on his peerless lightness skill and loves nothing more than sneaking up behind people to club them over the head. If his ability to flee for his life weren't so strong, someone would've caught him long ago and skinned him alive, pulled out his tendons!"

Zhao Sheng paid no heed to the surrounding discussion. By then, someone had already been unable to hold back and stepped forward to ask how he wished to exchange the protective jade pendant.

"I'll only trade it for spirit pills that raise cultivation, such as Yellow Sprout Pills and Azure Jade Powder."

Facing the man, Zhao Sheng raised his voice slightly on purpose, making sure the others could hear.

The man gave an awkward laugh upon hearing this. "Brother Gongsun, you're only an innate martial artist. These immortal cultivation pills are useless to you. How about changing your terms? I have a bottle of Spring Return Pills and a bottle of Innate Pills. What do you think?"

"My apologies. I won't trade for anything else." Zhao Sheng refused without the slightest hesitation.

"Hmph!" The man grumbled as he left.

But the next person to come over gave Zhao Sheng quite a headache.

Han Xuanwu spread his feet apart and squatted opposite him, staring blankly at Zhao Sheng with wide eyes without saying a word.

"Brother Han, is this really necessary? I truly didn't hold anything back. If you can't master Cloud Dragon Nine Transformations, it's because your physique doesn't suit it—it isn't my problem." Zhao Sheng's expression was utterly sincere.

He had a good impression of Han Xuanwu. The man valued Jianghu loyalty, acted openly and honorably, and, most importantly, never discriminated against mortal martial artists.

Moreover, Zhao Sheng was telling the truth. Without a physique Light as a Swallow, an ordinary person could at most cover seven or eight zhang in a single step even at the peak, rather than being like him—able to cross ten zhang in one step and traverse empty air.

Han Xuanwu remained silent. Old Thief Gongsun's reputation among the Herb Gatherers was practically rotten through and through. Not a single word out of his mouth could be trusted.

Moreover, Cloud Dragon Nine Transformations must have some other secret to it. Otherwise, as a martial arts prodigy, there was no way he could fail to master it.

Seeing that the other man intended to keep pestering him without end, Zhao Sheng was about to offer a few more words of persuasion.

Suddenly, his nose twitched sharply several times, catching an exceedingly faint yet peculiar scent.

Zhao Sheng's expression changed slightly. He quietly glanced around, but saw nothing unusual. The trading was in full swing, yet the strange odor in the air was gradually growing stronger.

Ever since reaching the innate limit last year, his sense of smell had suddenly become extraordinarily sharp. He could distinguish the complex scents in the air one by one, and could even smell traces that immortal cultivators themselves could not detect.

He called this supernatural ability Spirit Sniff—also known as a dog's nose.

Over the past few years, he had escaped death time and again, relying heavily on this ability.

"Take my advice and leave this place as soon as possible."

Using sound transmission, Zhao Sheng warned Han Xuanwu. Then, with nimble hands and feet, he gathered the items on the ground back into his backpack.