Inn Night Talk

Medicine King Valley is located in the Southern Ridge, at the junction of Central Plains Southwestern Branch and the Southern Borderlands border. To reach it, one must first cross a nearly 300-mile-long canyon to exit the Central Province Mountain Range, and then traverse a 500-mile-long plain before entering the Southern Ridge.

"Everyone, stay alert!" Tie Jingang looked at the group. "Once we leave Tongda Town, we're out of the Hundred Rivers Sect's territory, and we could be attacked by bandits at any time!"

"Bandits? Haven't we already encountered them before?" one student questioned.

"Ahem..." Tie Jingang coughed twice. "What I mean is, what happened before was just small-scale fighting. The bandits in the future might be even more ferocious! We must not let our guard down."

That being said, the Hundred Rivers Sect is not the only sect in the Central Province Mountain Range. In addition to Tongda Town, there are also towns at the entrances and exits on the north, east, south, and west sides of the mountains. After all, these are important transportation routes, and the huge flow of people has formed towns that have supported the nearby sects.

Even the mountain strongholds that were originally bandits have discovered over the years that collecting protection money and entry fees from towns is much more comfortable than robbing, killing, and stealing. Many large strongholds have used this as an opportunity to retire from banditry, stop being robbers, and even start to own businesses in nearby towns, transitioning into legitimate sects.

Therefore, the Central Province Mountain Range Crisscross five hundred miles, with five towns and countless small villages. Besides the Hundred Rivers Sect, there are four other sects that are not small. In order to ensure the flow of tourists to the mountains, these martial arts sects work hard to maintain the security of their territories. Ordinary bandits find it difficult to find employment here.

After several days of trekking, the escort team finally arrived at Shannan Town at the southern end of the mountain range.

They encountered no further attacks along the way, and the students began to relax, chatting and laughing all the way. Even though Teacher Tie repeatedly warned them, the atmosphere began to shift towards that of an autumn outing.

At the entrance to the town, officials were inspecting goods and collecting tolls. It was better for the locals to handle these matters. After some negotiation, Li Xinyu managed to get through at a fairly fair price.

"Once you leave here, you've officially entered the Central Plains. Compared to the transportation costs of taking a detour, most merchants are more willing to spend some money on 'greasing the wheels'," Lu Fei explained to Luo Jun. "It's not just here; other towns also charge tolls. And the prices aren't low. The government only takes a portion; they have to give a third to the sects stationed nearby."

"For example, in the mountains east of Shannan Town, there is Clear Breeze Stronghold. It is said that decades ago they were a powerful band of mountain bandits, but they later reformed and started doing legitimate business. They also provided protection for Shannan Town and colluded with the government."

"Everyone says there's collusion between officials and businessmen, but here it's actually collusion between officials and bandits?" Luo Jun exclaimed in astonishment.

"There's no way around it, this is the Martial World after all, and strictly speaking, Clear Breeze Stronghold can no longer be considered bandits." Lu Fei shook his head with a smile. "After so many years of development, although we can't be called a famous sect, we are still a force in the martial arts world, and people from all over the country have to give us some face."

"I've heard that Clear Breeze Stronghold has three leaders, all top-notch experts. The first and second leaders are quite old; they're usually either in charge of the village or dealing with other Martial World practitioners, so they're rarely seen. The Third Head is mainly in charge of the town's business. He's skilled with a silver spear and often operates in the town. If you run into him, you have to be very polite; after all, he's the local tyrant..."

"There are so many intricacies..." Luo Jun nodded, then suddenly asked curiously, "Is there a toll for Tongda Town? I don't recall ever paying one?"

Lu Fei looked at Luo Jun with an expression as if he were an idiot. "Tongda Town is Hundred Rivers Sect's territory. Why would you pay money in your own home?"

Luo Jun slapped his forehead, realizing he had forgotten about that.

Compared to Tongda Town, which attracts visitors from all directions, Shannan Town, although also very prosperous, is much smaller in scale, with a permanent population of only about 10,000. There are not enough guesthouses with enough vacant rooms to book the entire place. The group of fifty people eventually split into three groups and stayed in three different guesthouses.

"Don't wander around tonight." Before the group dispersed, Tie Jingang gave one last instruction. "The security here is not like in Tongda Town. Although Clear Breeze Stronghold is in charge, they are ultimately bandits, and their style of doing things is rather reckless. You are new here, and it's easy for you to get into trouble. Once you reach your respective inns, follow your Senior Brother's instructions!"

There were five people in the Martial Uncle: the martial arts master, the Senior Brother, and the senior sisters. Tie Jingang led one team by himself, while the other four split into two groups, each leading a team. Luo Jun's group was led by Senior Brother Song from the Martial Combat Faction and Senior Sister Deng from the Spell Faction.

Being away from home, things had to be kept low-key, and the accommodations were significantly less comfortable. The room was shared by four people, so Luo Jun, Lu Fei, Zhao Jian, and Xu Yiming ended up in one room.

Next door were Ling Xin, Lao Miao Miao, and two girls.

Yes, I don't know if it's a coincidence, but Luo Jun and Ling Xin, along with Senior Sister Miao, were assigned to the same group.

Even without a leader, this group is quite Combat Power... Luo Jun thought to himself. Ling Xin goes without saying, Lao Miao Miao is also among the top students in this group, and there's also Lu Fei. Apart from lacking Martial World experience, these people are no less capable than their senior Senior Brother and sisters, and may even be stronger!

However, the team leaders Senior Brother Song and Senior Sister Deng, were less capable and experienced than the other two Senior Brother. I wonder if this arrangement was intentional.

We checked in a bit late today, and by the time we finished dinner, it was already dark. Everyone went back to their rooms to rest, but in Luo Jun's room, a few of his buddies were lying down chatting.

Young men in their early twenties, full of Blood Qi, mostly talk about girls, aside from things like cultivation, sports, and Game.

"Hey? Do you guys think Ling Xin has a crush on me?"

Somewhat abruptly, Zhao Jian suddenly blurted out this sentence.

"Huh?!" The other three exclaimed in unison, expressing their disbelief.

"You..." Xu Yiming looked at his classmate. "I have a relative who is a psychologist. I'll have him take a look at you when we get back to the Main World."

"What do you mean?" Zhao Jian retorted angrily, "I'm not joking!"

"What gives you such confidence?" Lu Fei also found it unbelievable. "That's Golden Edge Witch, a member of the Ling Family clan, a genius that ranks among the top in Zhendan and even the entire world... To be honest, in terms of real strength, she could probably crush ninety percent of the teachers in the academy. I'm already surprised that she's even here..."

"Maybe she's after me." Zhao Jian stroked his chin and nodded seriously. "Although I don't remember ever having any contact with her."

"I feel like a psychologist can't save you anymore," Xu Yiming sighed. "You'll need to find a psychiatrist..."

"Keep your voice down..." Luo Jun shushed him, pointing to the wall. "They're right next door. This brick wall might not be able to block our whispers. What if a golden light bursts through the wall while we're talking, and we're all finished off!"

"No... didn't any of you notice?" Zhao Jian asked incredulously. "She kept glancing in my direction the whole way. I've made eye contact with her so many times without even realizing it. And every time we met, she would turn her head away shortly after. She must be shy!"

"Now that you mention it..." Xu Yiming stroked his chin, recalling, "I think I made eye contact with her too..."

"Me too..." Lu Fei recalled and nodded.

"You all discovered it?" Zhao Jian asked in surprise, "Now you believe me, right?"

"Believe you my foot!" Xu Yiming said, "So, they might be watching me too!"

"Impossible, absolutely impossible!" Zhao Jian flexed his dark biceps and said firmly, "She was absolutely captivated by my masculine charm..."

"I think the chances of seeing Lu Fei are much higher than seeing you..." Xu Yiming said, counting on his fingers, "Tell me, in terms of strength, looks, or even your so-called masculine charm, in what way do you compare to Lu Fei?"

"Don't drag me into this..." Lu Fei hurriedly waved his hand, "I'm not worthy to be associated with the Ling Family's clan..."

"Um..." While the three were arguing, Luo Jun quietly raised his hand. "I feel like she might be looking at me..."

"You?" The group looked at Luo Jun.

Luo Jun nodded. "Actually, Ling Xin and I were high school classmates; we knew each other before we even entered university..."

"Huh?!" the group exclaimed in surprise. "Why didn't you say so sooner?"

"Why didn't you ask earlier?" Luo Jun shrugged. "Besides, I barely spoke to her in high school, and we weren't that close... But we were classmates after all, and she's so capable, so she probably did me some favors..."

"I remember now..." Lu Fei stroked his chin. "Back in Tongda Town, she did indeed block the flying silver for you!"

"Right?" Luo Jun smiled. "And I heard—and I mean just heard— that Ling Xin seems to have someone she cares about... I don't know who it is, but they've probably known each other for a long time..."

As he spoke, he looked at Zhao Jian and said, "I remember you're from Chai City, right? Have you been to Ningdong before?"

Zhao Jian shook his head.

"What about Lingyun Island? Aside from this Savage Wilderness internship, have you been there before?"

"No, not at all..."

"Then forget about it." Luo Jun shrugged. "It's hopeless. Go wash up and go to bed."

"How could you do this..." Zhao Jian said with a look of resentment and grievance, "How... how could you ruin the dreams of a young and handsome boy!"

"You're still green on the outside..." Xu Yiming sarcastically remarked, "At most, you're just a head of garlic!"

"Hahaha..." The people inside burst into laughter when suddenly a loud bang shook the entire inn.

"What's wrong?" Zhao Jian instinctively gripped the blanket tighter and looked next door. "Could it be... that Golden Edge Witch really overheard our conversation?"

"It's not from that side!" Lu Fei's expression turned serious. "It's coming from outside!"

No sooner had the words left his mouth than a flame shot into the sky outside the window, followed by a deafening explosion!

(End of this chapter)