Honest Person? Arriving at Hundred Herbs Valley! Medicine God Valley?

The great fire at Black Wind Stronghold burned for an entire night.

The towering flames dyed the night sky red, naturally drawing the attention of many in the surrounding area.

Some bold souls even crept closer to investigate.

They discovered the truth.

Soon, news of Black Wind Stronghold's destruction spread like wildfire, reaching the nearby cities.

"Have you heard?"

"Black Wind Stronghold was wiped out last night?"

"Really?"

"Of course it's true—the stronghold was burned to ashes, and every bandit inside is dead!"

"Haha! Wonderful, the heavens have finally opened their eyes!"

"Those beasts finally got what they deserved!"

"Who was so formidable? To destroy Black Wind Stronghold?"

"Their creditor Dai Xiongfeng is a Core Formation cultivator!"

"..." The next day.

Inside the tavern where Chen Changqing and Qing Yang were staying, diners buzzed with excited discussion.

Beyond that, cheers from the common folk could be heard from time to time outside the tavern.

After all, Black Wind Stronghold had plagued this region for years, committing murder, arson, and every evil deed imaginable.

The common people had long been too afraid to speak out, swallowing their anger in silence.

Now that Black Wind Stronghold had fallen overnight, it was naturally a cause for immense celebration.

Qing Yang and Chen Changqing were drinking wine inside the tavern.

"Hm?"

Hearing the chatter around him, Qing Yang's brow furrowed, and he instinctively glanced at Chen Changqing.

"Junior Brother, did you do this?"

Qing Yang's face was full of suspicion.

The day before, the Young Master of Black Wind Stronghold had clashed with them.

Chen Changqing had even beaten him publicly in front of everyone.

Who would have thought that, waking up this morning, they'd hear news of Black Wind Stronghold's destruction?

It was all too easy for Qing Yang to suspect Chen Changqing.

Hearing Qing Yang's question, Chen Changqing smiled calmly and said:

"Senior Brother."

"How could it be me?"

"I'm an honest man."

Seeing Chen Changqing deny it, Qing Yang gave a faint smile, though doubts churned in his mind.

In his view, the timing of Black Wind Stronghold's destruction was far too coincidental.

Just yesterday, Chen Changqing had clashed with the Young Master.

Today, Black Wind Stronghold was annihilated, the stronghold itself burned to the ground.

Moreover, although Chen Changqing was only at Foundation Establishment Late Stage, Qing Yang knew his true strength.

Back when he had just entered Foundation Establishment, he could already defeat Shi Tian, a Body Cultivator at Foundation Establishment Late Stage, and that opponent even possessed the Special Physique known as Stone Spirit Physique.

Now that Chen Changqing's cultivation had risen to Foundation Establishment Late Stage, his strength was even more unfathomable.

Killing a Core Formation cultivator was not beyond the realm of possibility.

Though he guessed that Black Wind Stronghold's destruction was connected to Chen Changqing, since Chen Changqing refused to admit it, Qing Yang didn't press further.

Besides, Black Wind Stronghold had long been steeped in evil.

Its destruction was, all things considered, a good thing.

After a moment's thought, Qing Yang snapped back to the present, smiled at Chen Changqing, and said:

"Junior Brother, we've rested enough."

"Let's go!"

With that, Qing Yang rose first and walked out of the tavern.

Chen Changqing's expression remained calm as he followed closely behind.

Time slipped by quietly.

Before he knew it, three days had passed.

At this moment, Chen Changqing followed Qing Yang to the foot of a towering, colossal mountain.

Gazing at it, the peak soared into the clouds, shrouded in mist.

Dimly, one could even see flickers of spiritual light, clearly marking it as a treasure land with exceptionally abundant spiritual energy.

"Junior Brother, past the mountain ahead lies Hundred Herbs Valley," Qing Yang said, looking toward the giant peak before them.

Chen Changqing nodded, not paying it much mind.

Then Qing Yang added, "Hundred Herbs Valley is under the jurisdiction of Medicine God Valley."

"To enter Hundred Herbs Valley, we need Medicine God Valley's permission."

"We have to go register and obtain approval."

Hearing this from Qing Yang, Chen Changqing was slightly surprised.

"Medicine God Valley?"

"I thought Hundred Herbs Valley was unclaimed land."

Qing Yang gave a wry smile and said, "How could it be unclaimed land?"

"Hundred Herbs Valley is filled with all kinds of heavenly treasures and earthly rarities. Such blessed lands are usually held by major powers."

"And Medicine God Valley, like our Mount Shu Sect, is one of the Ten Great Sacred Lands."

"Medicine God Valley specializes in the Dao of alchemy, with many alchemists within its gates."

"A force like that naturally attracts plenty of strong cultivators to work for them."

"After all, pills are indispensable to cultivators!"

With Qing Yang's explanation, Chen Changqing nodded in understanding.

He also realized that many cultivators, when breaking through a realm, could greatly increase their success rate with the aid of pills like Breakthrough Pills.

"Come on, let's head to the registration office!" Qing Yang called out to Chen Changqing and took the lead, darting forward.

Before long, the two arrived at the entrance to Hundred Herbs Valley.

Looking up, they saw a long line of people waiting to enter.

"So many people?" Chen Changqing was somewhat surprised, not expecting so many cultivators wanting to enter Hundred Herbs Valley.

Qing Yang explained with a smile, "Hundred Herbs Valley has always been famous."

"By opening it to the public, Medicine God Valley naturally draws crowds who come for its reputation."

"After all, anything you find inside, you can take away."

Chen Changqing nodded and didn't dwell on it.

He then lined up with Qing Yang.

After waiting a while, it was finally their turn to register.

Chen Changqing was a bit surprised—it seemed Hundred Herbs Valley's fame was indeed considerable.

"Shushan Disciple, entering the valley to seek herbs," Qing Yang said, then shot Chen Changqing a glance and took out his Shushan Inner Disciple Identity Token.

The Medicine God Valley reception staff checked both their identity tokens and began recording them in the register.

"Two Shushan Disciples."

"Six thousand Spirit Stones each, three days allowed in the valley."

When Chen Changqing heard what the Medicine God Valley reception staff said, his eyelids twitched.

"Six thousand Spirit Stones per person?" he thought to himself in shock.

He mused that the price was far too high.

After all, since Medicine God Valley dared to open Hundred Herbs Valley to the public...

It seemed that before this, the valley must have already been thoroughly ransacked.

If Hundred Herbs Valley truly had any good treasures, they would have long since fallen into Medicine God Valley's hands.

When people from other sects entered, they could only pick up the leftovers.

Even so, charging each person six thousand Spirit Stones was simply outrageous.

"This is nothing but violent profiteering!"

Chen Changqing sighed inwardly.

He mused that Medicine God Valley certainly knew how to do business—and it was the kind of business that raked in exorbitant profits.

Just as Chen Changqing was lost in thought, Qing Yang showed no sign of surprise.

Clearly, before coming to Hundred Herbs Valley, he had already done his homework and knew all about Medicine God Valley's rules.

Then, with a thought, Qing Yang directly took out Spirit Stones and handed them over.

Chen Changqing noticed this and muttered quietly:

"Earlier, Senior Brother Qing Yang came to me and said he was willing to offer a hundred Spirit Stones as compensation for this trip."

"Now, just to enter Hundred Herbs Valley, each person has to pay six thousand Spirit Stones."

"It seems all the Spirit Stones he had on him went toward this entry fee!"