"Don't be in such a rush to refuse!"
Seeing that the self-proclaimed porter opposite wore a moved expression, the middle-aged man with the goat-beard laughed. "I know that all of you lone travelers prefer freedom and dislike joining factions and being bound.
Yet you are also well aware that without aligning with a faction, it is impossible to obtain resources.
Just like when you eliminate a fugitive and come to our Demon Suppressing Division to claim the bounty; this is also cooperation and does not conflict.
However, if you join, the resources and benefits you receive will be even greater.
Compared to lineages and sects, I believe our Demon Suppressing Division's system is more suited to freedom-loving lone travelers like you!"
As he spoke, he pulled a manual from his chest and handed it toward Chu Ge, saying, "The relevant benefits and treatment are written in great detail inside. You can take it with you to read, and should you have any thoughts in the future, the doors of our Jiangcheng Prefecture Demon Suppressing Division are always open to you, Your Excellency.
By the way, my name is Feng Shan, and unworthily enough, I am one of the external affairs stewards of this Demon Suppressing Division. You can come directly to me next time."
He then pulled a waist token from his chest.
Feng Shan. It seems I saw this name on the Blood Ranking.
Chu Ge's heart stirred. After a moment of thought, he decided to accept it first.
After all, his identity as a porter was fabricated out of thin air.
Joining the Demon Suppressing Division might require undergoing all sorts of investigations, and once anything strange was discovered, it would inevitably invite trouble.
Therefore, he had not actually considered joining the Demon Suppressing Division under the guise of a porter.
Even so, the related benefits and perks were still worth a look.
As for Feng Shan's waist token, that would be even more useful.
Right at that moment, attendants entered the hall one after another, each carrying a tray in their hands.
"This is the reward you deserve."
Feng Shan introduced with his hands clasped behind his back, "For slaying Soul Chasing Old Man and Dark Poison Child, according to the rewards for a Great Zhou Class D Fugitive, you are entitled to four Exotic Power Crystals, two bottles of Qi and Blood Pills, and two Level 1 Spirit Material Vouchers from Spirit Treasure Pavilion.
These items are quite valuable. As you should know, a single Exotic Power Crystal is already worth a thousand taels of gold on the market."
Chu Ge felt a bit dazed inwardly, though his expression remained very calm. This was truly his first time hearing of it, and he had not expected them to be so exorbitantly expensive.
"Since you eliminated Soul Chasing Old Man, you can also be considered to have indirectly saved the people of Linyuan City. Our Jiangcheng Prefecture Demon Suppressing Division will additionally grant you an extra reward of two Exotic Power Crystals."
Feng Shan paused his words, then continued, "Should you join the Demon Suppressing Division, you will also be awarded cumulative merit rewards, which will remain valid in the future. All of these can be entered into your file."
"Good!"
Chu Ge nodded, yet gave no response regarding joining the Demon Suppressing Division, instead gathering up all the rewards completely.
Looking at the six Exotic Power Crystals packed into a small pouch, Chu Ge felt a sense of inner emotion.
The lives of two Blood Ranking experts, once ended, were worth only this light little bag of things.
The personal fortunes, martial arts, and other accumulations of these two individuals amounted to far more than this.
Therefore, people only have value while they are alive. I must steady myself and not act recklessly if I am to have a chance to reach the pinnacle of martial arts, unravel the truth of transmigration, and solve the mystery of the Dragon Clock...
After collecting his items, Chu Ge left the Demon Suppressing Division directly.
Outside, the old woman saw his figure, yet dared not put on a sullen face, nodding and bowing as she sent him off.
When he walked out to the street, several waves of people from families within the city actually came forward to extend invitations.
Among them were also people from the Yun lineage and the Lin lineage.
Chu Ge accepted the relevant invitations and stated that he would consider them later before departing. Like the Prairie Fire Saber, he stepped into the bustling, crowded shopping district, his figure quickly disappearing into the alley's end.
A short while later.
In a small alley filled with the fragrance of tea, Chu Ge wore a dragon-seawater small-eagle waistcoat, a jade-and-red-leather-inlaid belt around his waist, and a silver crown binding his hair. Looking dashing and debonair, he walked out of the alley carrying a parcel.
Passersby in the alleyway saw this lord's attire and stalwart physique, knowing he was either wealthy or noble and not someone to be trifled with, and all averted their gazes.
"P-Pole, where are we going now?"
Inside the parcel, Xiao Qian poked her head out cautiously, contacting Chu Ge through her tentacles touching his skin to transmit her voice.
Chu Ge pressed her little head back down, saying, "Send a letter, then stroll around the market to see if this prefecture city has any good antique objects available for treasure-hunting, or if we can acquire a few tails of Spirit Fish!"
Compared to Linyuan City, the prefecture city not only had a larger population and more experts, but the abundance of supplies was naturally much greater as well.
Chu Ge looked forward to acquiring some decent antique objects or Spirit Fish.
The Red Scale Claw Fish bloodline he had inherited within his arm was now diluted to the point where it was only enough to be used one more time.
If he could buy another Red Scale Claw Fish, that would still be quite nice.
As for antique objects... it seems that compared to Exotic Power Crystals, refining exotic power is still somewhat more cost-effective. If one is lucky, it only takes six thousand taels of silver to refine one hundred and twenty wisps of exotic power, whereas a single Exotic Power Crystal requires a thousand taels of gold, and is priceless even then.
The only trouble is that antique objects are hard to acquire; they aren't as direct as Exotic Power Crystals, the refining speed is slower, and I am also unclear on the prices of antique objects in this prefecture city.
Harboring all sorts of thoughts, Chu Ge soon arrived at the prefecture city's post office.
Yet at that very moment, he vaguely sensed as though a gaze was fixing upon him, instantly causing a trace of alertness to rise in his heart.
Hmm? Who is it?
Without changing his expression, Chu Ge came to a halt, feigning interest in teasing the myna bird at the post office entrance. With a seemingly casual sweep of his gaze, he spotted a familiar figure.
The person who introduced the factions within the prefecture city to me last time...
Chu Ge felt a slight inward surprise, thinking that some expert from the Demon Suppressing Division had targeted him, only for it to be a mere lackey.
He merely swept his gaze lightly past without alarming the other party, still stepping inside the post office.
Then he took out the letter addressed to his elder sister in Hidden Water Sect, and after registering it, he leisurely walked out of the post office and left.
An hour later.
Beside a third-floor window of a teahouse across from the post office, Chu Ge watched with a calm gaze as the scholar who had previously observed him in secret entered the post office.
Not long after, this person walked out from the post office again, glanced left and right, and departed swiftly.
This person... is strange. They aren't simply someone recruiting clients for the Lin lineage; they've been eyeing me since the very first day I arrived in the prefecture city.
Could it be that they know my identity? But I've always stayed in Linyuan City, keeping a low profile and concealing my capacities while making no enemies. Could it be because of my eldest sister, Chu Feixue?
Chu Ge pondered silently for a long while, feeling he had guessed some of the reasons.
He dismissed the notion of going shopping at the market.
He took a bamboo hat out from his parcel to put on, donned a Grey Squirrel Carved Green Cloak, and then propped open a Lady Lantern, holding it in his hand as he swiftly went downstairs.
With the Lady Lantern providing early warnings, he was not afraid of being counter-tracked in secret.
These tracking individuals still possessed some methods and might have learned relevant tracking martial arts.
Earlier, if he hadn't been worried about being tracked by people from the Demon Suppressing Division and thus kept his guard up early on, he might not have even detected the other party amidst the surging crowds.
At present, however, he intended to see precisely who this person watching him in secret was working for, and what their purpose might be.
Soon, Chu Ge trailed far behind that person through numerous twists and turns, gradually arriving at the prefecture city's affluent residential district.
Finally, watching the person enter a vast expanse of high walls and deep courtyards spanning over a dozen acres within the city, he stopped far away, his gaze lingering on the broad and imposing plaque above the estate's grand gates—Lin Mansion!
As expected, it's the Lin lineage, one of the five great lineages of the prefecture city.
A trace of comprehension and deep thought flashed in Chu Ge's eyes.
When this person introduced the factions of the five great lineages in the city to him yesterday, he had heaped praise upon the Lin lineage, giving Chu Ge his initial suspicions.
Now it was verified all the more.
Yet the question was, why would the Lin lineage target him, a newly arrived country-gentleman of wealth?
Chu Ge drew an invitation letter from his chest.
This was respectfully presented to him by a Lin lineage functionary today after he left the Demon Suppressing Division disguised as a porter.
If his speculations were correct, the letter he mailed to his eldest sister, Chu Feixue, probably had already fallen into the hands of the person who observed him by now.
Otherwise, the other party would have had no need to risk exposure by entering the post office.
It seems I will have to use Wang Xiuyun's connections to re-send the letter to my eldest sister and ask her what on earth is going on with this Lin lineage...
Chu Ge dismissed the thought of entering the Lin Mansion under the guise of a porter at this moment.
Although it would be entirely reasonable, and the Lin lineage might even warmly receive a porter who was a Blood Ranking expert.
Still, he was unwilling to place himself in a dangerous situation before figuring out the situation.
The waters of the prefecture city were far deeper than that little backwater of Linyuan City.
Including the Lin lineage now, he had to pretend ignorance so as not to startle the snake in the grass.
Originally, he had planned to stay in the prefecture city for a few days and, if there was no way to join the Demon Suppressing Division, set out to see his eldest sister in Hidden Water Sect and find a new path.
Yet this current situation left him somewhat baffled, causing him to decide to bide his time and investigate first to avoid running into trouble before even leaving the city and reaching Hidden Water Sect.
After all, although Hidden Water Sect's mountain gate was not considered overly far, it was still a six-hundred-li journey, and what might happen along the way was hard to say.
Right away, he first returned to the inn, directly sacrificing all six Exotic Power Crystals into the Dragon Clock to transform them into seven hundred and twenty wisps of exotic power.
Coupled with the two hundred-plus wisps of exotic power he had stored himself, he now possessed over nine hundred wisps of exotic power all at once.
Yet at that exact moment, a line of digits suddenly popped up within the heart of the Dragon Clock's bell.
Chu Ge was startled, thinking he had misread it. Upon looking closely, he discovered it was correct.
At the center of the Dragon Clock, a numerical value representing '1000' was prominently marked.
What does this mean? Could this black bell want me to hand over one thousand wisps of exotic power?
Chu Ge sat in a daze. He did not possess a thousand wisps of exotic power right now, after all.
Even so, with a bit of effort, he could still manage to produce them.
However, this state of the Dragon Clock left him baffled.
Could it be that after providing one thousand wisps of exotic power, certain functions of the Dragon Clock can be enhanced—for instance, increasing the speed at which items are refined?
The Dragon Clock's item refinement speed was very slow, something Chu Ge had always wanted to improve, yet he could find no method to do so. He had not expected it to stir into action this time.
Come to think of it, it was quite shameful; over the past three years, the total amount of exotic power he had accumulated definitely exceeded a thousand wisps.
Yet he had almost always used it up as soon as he accumulated some, and the consumption speed was also extremely fast, keeping him perpetually stretched for resources.
This time, however, it was the first time he had come close to a thousand wisps of exotic power, and perhaps this was the reason the Dragon Clock had stirred.
Before you continue