Tactile Clues, Qianfeng Merchant Association

Body Tempering Realm martial artists only need to polish their martial arts to temper their own blood and qi, thereby raising their cultivation.

Once one steps into the Houtian realm, true qi is born within the blood and qi, and a cultivation method with a true qi circulation route becomes necessary.

Otherwise, relying solely on practicing martial arts to temper blood and qi, and then condensing true qi, would undoubtedly slow down the progress considerably.

Even if he had the system, allowing him to directly raise his cultivation realm by slaying demons and monsters, without a method to govern the true qi within his body, his actual combat strength would be greatly diminished.

Therefore, Lu Yang urgently needed a cultivation method.

Martial arts cultivation methods were sold in various martial arts schools and merchant guilds in Black Mountain County.

Even the most common, low-grade ones came at a steep price.

Based on Lu Yang's meager monthly salary as a constable over the past year, it was only enough to keep him well-fed and well-drunk, not even enough to buy the medicinal herbs needed for body tempering.

Now that he was a captain, with a higher salary and some extra perks, the situation would naturally improve a lot.

But to buy a cultivation method with that money, even the most inferior kind, it would take at least a year or two.

As for the Demon Treasure before him, if sold, it would surely fetch a good price.

Using that money to buy a low-grade cultivation method should be enough.

Lu Yang said, "Town Chief Niu, name a price. If it's fair, I'll sell this Demon Treasure."

Niu Hanshan was overjoyed.

"I know that the Black Mountain County Yamen, the Heavenly Fragrance Pavilion, and several major clans in the county town all have long-term contracts to purchase Demon Treasures."

"According to the rules, a Demon Treasure the size of a soybean costs one hundred taels."

"This Demon Treasure of yours, Captain Lu, is worth eight or nine soybeans. How about this—I'll take a loss and give you one thousand taels?"

Niu Hanshan said with some pain.

Although the Niu Family was a major clan in the town, shelling out a thousand taels at once clearly hurt their reserves.

"Deal."

Lu Yang immediately sealed the deal.

After that, they drank a few more rounds before quickly dispersing.

The next day, Lu Yang received the silver notes, and the group bid farewell to Niu Hanshan, beginning their return journey.

"Captain," Wang Fang said, "Demon Treasures are such rare items that they've always had a price but no market in our Black Mountain County. The standard price is a hundred taels, but on the Black Market, a soybean-sized Demon Treasure can sell for a hundred and forty or fifty taels."

"That Niu Hanshan clearly wanted to take advantage, yet he put on an act like he was the one losing out. Why did you still sell to him?"

"Yeah, Brother Yang," Zhao Hu said, "now that you've stepped into the Houtian realm with true qi enhancement, if you sprint at full speed, you could be back in Black Mountain in half a day at most. There was no need to deal with that old fox."

Lu Yang's ability to kill three Leopard Demons without injury naturally sparked their speculation.

After some thought, Lu Yang didn't hide too much, simply attributing it to a breakthrough in the heat of battle, which naturally drew a round of praise from the others.

They might have had their own guesses about how Lu Yang had advanced so quickly, but most chalked it up to the strange fruit he'd mentioned and his exceptional talent.

After all, when faced with something incomprehensible, the brain tends to rationalize it into something understandable—what people call filling in the gaps.

Lu Yang was happy to let them think that, and only said, "Niushi Town is one of the few major towns around Black Mountain County after all. We'll inevitably have dealings with them in the future. No need to offend a local power over a bit of silver."

"Besides, that Demon Treasure was sizable. Once swallowed, it'll be enough for Niu Hanshan to step into the Houtian realm. If a Demonic Calamity breaks out in Niushi Town again later, Niu Hanshan can handle it himself, saving us a lot of trouble."

Wang Fang's face lit up with realization, and he said sincerely, "That's true. That battle the day before was truly perilous. For us constables, the less we have to go out, the better."

What Lu Yang was actually thinking was that since news of their support for Niushi Fort had leaked, after they killed those four Black Panthers, there was no guarantee that other monsters who'd gotten wind of it wouldn't ambush them on the way back.

Carrying the Demon Treasure made him a bright lantern, bound to attract who knew how many monsters.

Swapping it for silver notes made things much easier.

As long as he didn't follow the planned route back, even if monsters set up ambushes in advance, it would be hard for them to find just a few people across a radius of hundreds of li.

The return journey remained uneventful. After arriving back in Black Mountain County, everyone went their separate ways.

As the captain, Lu Yang went to the Constable Office and met the County Lieutenant.

Seeing Lu Yang return safely, County Lieutenant Lu Jue's face showed a hint of a smile.

"Lu Yang, how were things over at Niushi Town?" Lu Jue asked.

Lu Yang said, "I am honored to have fulfilled my duty. The Demonic Calamity has been quelled."

A smile spread across Lu Jue's face. "You did well. You haven't disgraced the reputation of our Black Mountain County Yamen. You must be tired; you may go."

But Lu Yang remained standing there, not leaving, his expression somewhat hesitant.

Lu Jue frowned slightly and asked, "What, is there something else?"

After thinking it over, Lu Yang briefly recounted his earlier experience, then said, "My Lord, I suspect that someone in Black Mountain County is colluding with the monsters in the mountains!"

Lu Jue's eyes flickered, and he leaned forward, his voice low:

"Oh? Do you have any evidence for that?"

Lu Yang said, "The town head of Niushi Town said the message they received was that at least three 'Black Skins' had appeared there, but the information we got was that there was only one..."

Upon hearing this, Lu Jue pondered for a moment, then slowly said, "If that's the case, then there's no doubt there's a mole among us."

With that, he looked at Lu Yang again and asked, "Since you've brought this up, do you have anyone in mind as a suspect?"

Lu Yang hesitated. "This... this subordinate is dull-witted."

Lu Jue stared at Lu Yang for a few seconds before saying, "Here's what you do—keep an eye on those major clans in the city and see if they make any moves."

Lu Yang cupped his hands. "This subordinate accepts the order."

Like Lu Jue, the suspects he had in mind were also those major clans in Black Mountain County.

Someone without enough standing, even if they wanted to collude with the Demon Race, would likely just be devoured as fresh blood by them.

Only those major clans in the city had the opportunity to get involved in the various affairs inside and outside Black Mountain County, and thus pass information to the Demon Race.

Therefore, Lu Yang had no objection to County Lieutenant Lu Jue's arrangement and soon took his leave.

However, before officially starting the investigation, Lu Yang planned to first find himself a cultivation method.

"A subpar cultivation method costs only one or two hundred taels. I could easily get one from any martial arts school in Black Mountain County. With my current wealth, buying one wouldn't be hard."

"The downside is that a subpar method can only cultivate up to the peak of the Houtian realm. After breaking through to the Xiantian realm, I'd have to switch methods again."

Lu Yang thought to himself.

It was common for martial artists to switch cultivation methods, and it wasn't difficult.

Yes, but during the process, one would inevitably lose a few tenths of their true qi.

After switching methods, a martial artist's cultivation would inevitably drop, requiring time to cultivate back up.

Lu Yang's original intention was to exchange for a Yellow-grade cultivation method.

For one thing, compared to a subpar method, a Yellow-grade method could hold more true qi in the body, granting a greater boost in combat power.

For another, it would avoid the future loss of true qi and the wasted time of re-cultivation.

The problem was that the thousand taels of silver he had on hand were more than enough for a subpar method, but barely enough for a Yellow-grade one.

Even the lowest-grade Low-grade Yellow method cost at least a thousand taels, and he might not even get his wish.

"A few days ago, when I was promoted to constable, the congratulatory gifts from those colleagues should add up to another one or two hundred taels."

"I'll try my luck. If it really doesn't work, I'll go to a martial arts school and exchange for a subpar method to make do for now."

A quarter of an hour later, Lu Yang arrived outside a shop.

On the shop's plaque were engraved four gilded characters: 'Qianfeng Merchant Association.'

Lu Yang hesitated for a moment, then still stepped inside.

The Qianfeng Merchant Association was spread throughout Great Jun, with shops in every city at the county level and above. Their background was mysterious, and their foundation was deep.

Here, as long as you had enough money, you could buy anything you wanted.

As soon as he entered the shop, a woman with a lovely face and a seductive figure walked toward him.