Xu Wei had barely taken a few steps when she sensed the intimidating presence behind her, like thorns pricking her back. Startled, she stopped in her tracks.
At that moment, Chen Dengming's firm voice sounded in her ear again.
"Go on. I'll handle things here. Even if you have no faith in me, surely you have faith in the Luo Family? You're delivering a message to the Luo Family. Who would dare stop you?"
Xu Wei felt somewhat reassured, and warmth filled her heart. She immediately quickened her graceful steps and hurried away.
From afar, she heard Chen Dengming's voice.
"I know perfectly well this is Golden Character Workshop territory. Do you think I'm not part of Golden Character Workshop? I'm asking a mortal to deliver a message for me. Is that really such a big deal?"
"You're part of Golden Character Workshop?"
The crane-surnamed old man upstairs was taken aback. For the moment, he forgot all about Xu Wei, who had already left, and scrutinized Chen Dengming, gradually furrowing his brow.
Just then, a voice transmission reached the crane-surnamed old man's ear.
"I'm Chen Dengming. I wonder if you've heard of me, Fellow Daoist? I heard Workshop Master Xu once said that if I ever returned, he would reward me handsomely. Was that just empty talk?"
"Chen..."
The crane-surnamed old man's pupils contracted. He suddenly remembered the mortal who had slain a Hutong Street cultivator more than three months ago. His mind nearly short-circuited. Staring dumbfounded at Chen Dengming below, who was looking up with a faint smile, he felt that the two streaks of white at Chen Dengming's temples looked especially sinister.
"Are you really Chen Dengming?"
"Would anyone dare impersonate me, Chen, while I'm wanted on Hutong Street?"
The crane-surnamed old man let out a long breath, then frowned and glanced at Xu Wei's figure, which had long since disappeared around the street corner. He said gravely, "Fellow Daoist Chen, please come in and enjoy a cup of fragrant tea. I'll immediately inform the workshop master that you've returned. However, if Xu Wei is an old acquaintance of yours, I advise you not to meddle in this business."
"Oh?"
Chen Dengming looked surprised, then gave a thoughtful nod and stepped inside.
What trouble had Xu Wei gotten herself into? The other party hadn't told him just now, as if she didn't want him to know.
He had thought that since she was a mortal, even if she had gotten into trouble, it couldn't be anything serious. Perhaps he could help her out now.
After all, if it really were something serious, given a mortal's status in the Gathering Place, she would already be dead—or worse than dead.
But as things stood, Xu Wei was neither dead nor suffering some especially miserable fate. What could have happened that even a cultivator would warn him not to meddle? It was strange enough to make Chen Dengming wary and leave him wondering.
Still, he had dared to show himself this time because he had already planned ahead.
Even if there really was danger, at worst he could leave the Gathering Place again. Before planning how to advance, he had planned how to retreat. He already had a way to get out unscathed.
Half an incense stick later.
On the top floor of Zanhua Tower's fifth story.
Chen Dengming finally met Xu Ning, the master of Golden Character Workshop.
Even with his spiritual pressure restrained, the presence of this Qi Cultivation Sixth Level cultivator was astonishing, giving everyone around him a palpable sense of oppression.
In truth, this feeling came from the fact that high-level cultivators had greater control over the surrounding spiritual energy and could exert it over a wider area. They suppressed the low-level cultivators' control over the spiritual energy around them, naturally making them feel pressured.
Xu Ning, however, was a hearty man. His face was square, his nose straight and prominent, and he made a decent first impression. At least, he was especially warm when he saw Chen Dengming, laughing as he pulled him down into a seat and immediately praised him for his past service.
"Brother Chen, I never expected you to return after more than three months and give your older brother such a pleasant surprise! You were already brave enough to slay a Hutong Street cultivator when you were Xiantian. Now you're a cultivator yourself. Doesn't that make you even more formidable? Hahaha!"
"You flatter me, Workshop Master."
Chen Dengming knew how to play along. He was an old hand at trading compliments. A true man could bend and stretch, and he could get along anywhere. Smiling, he clasped his hands and said, "My meager skills aren't worth a finger of yours, Workshop Master. I'd say it was your imposing presence that cowed those people from Hutong Street, letting little Chen bask in a bit of glory alongside you."
"Hahaha! Brother Chen certainly knows how to talk. Come, have some tea!"
Xu Ning burst into laughter at his words. Chen Dengming seemed much more agreeable to him now, and he immediately raised his teacup.
He wasn't someone who liked hearing flattery, but as the saying went, everyone helped carry the sedan chair. Talking with someone who knew how to speak put one in a good mood.
The crane-surnamed old man and the other two cultivators, whose faces had been stern, also relaxed and even joined in the laughter.
They were all on the same side. The workshop master was laughing, so why should they keep frowning? Who would that offend?
They were all seasoned hands who had weathered the cultivation world. None of them were fools.
"I said that if you came back, Brother Chen, I, Xu Ning, would reward you handsomely. That wasn't empty talk. What do you want? Spirit Stones, cultivation techniques, magical artifacts, or something else? Just say the word."
"Workshop Master, you're too kind. It's only right for me to do my part for Golden Character Workshop. Though I took some risks, the danger can actually be disregarded now..."
They were all sharp-eyed people. The moment they heard Chen Dengming's words, they understood the subtext: Put the reward aside for now. What about resolving the wanted notice from Hutong Street?
"Don't worry, Brother Chen. I'll take care of the risk for you. You're a cultivator now. This is nothing!"
Xu Ning laughed heartily, inviting everyone to sit and drink tea as they exchanged pleasantries and probed one another over their cups.
Naturally, they asked about Chen Dengming's circumstances over the past few months and how he had managed to break through.
At the same time, they hadn't forgotten that Chen Dengming had once seemed connected to Eldest Miss Lüo of the Luo Family. That became their main concern.
"About Fairy Lüo..."
Chen Dengming furrowed his brow slightly, set down his teacup with a hiss, and glanced at Xu Ning, then at the other three. He hesitated before smiling.
"Workshop Master, Fairy Lüo has a distinguished status, after all."
Xu Ning gave a meaningful "Oh," glanced at the others, and waved his hand.
The others muttered to themselves, growing suspicious. They looked at Chen Dengming uncertainly, all wondering: Could this kid really have gotten that lucky and become connected to Eldest Miss Lüo?
"They've all left. You can talk now."
After Crane Falcon and the other cultivators had departed, Xu Ning looked at Chen Dengming and smiled.
Chen Dengming smiled back. "Workshop Master, with your intelligence, you've probably already guessed some of the answer."
Xu Ning studied Chen Dengming closely and clasped his hands together. "Does this have something to do with Eldest Miss Lüo's bounty?"
Chen Dengming raised his brows and nodded with a smile. "That's right! Fairy Lüo is looking for someone to help her refine a Golden Silkworm Gu. That person doesn't necessarily have to be me, but I can certainly help her.
"She was the one who brought me to this Gathering Place in the first place."
As he spoke, Chen Dengming placed his hand on the table. A hissing sound came from his sleeve, and a Snake Gu with blue-green scales and a red mark on its head slithered out, flicking its tongue as its icy, vertical pupils stared at Xu Ning.
"This is a Snake Gu I trained and refined with Gu medicine."
Xu Ning gave the Snake Gu a look. It was no more than an ordinary creature, yet it wasn't afraid of the spiritual pressure around him. Was that some peculiarity of cold-blooded animals? It seemed to have a few tricks.
He furrowed his brow. "If you're the person Eldest Miss Lüo is looking for, why didn't she send someone to find you directly?"
Chen Dengming put away the Snake Gu. "Probably because I'd already offended Hutong Street and fled the Gathering Place, and she didn't know about it.
"Or perhaps she found out but thought that once I saw the bounty notice, I'd naturally go to the Luo Family to find her. At the time, I was a mortal wanted by Hutong Street, with nowhere left to turn."
Xu Ning nodded slightly and leaned back in his chair. "It seems you still haven't gone to the Luo Family. Why come to the Gathering Place to find me now instead of going there?"
Chen Dengming took out several packets of Gu poison and smiled. "Don't worry, Workshop Master. Little Chen will go to the Luo Family, of course. In fact, I've already sent someone to deliver a message to them. But before I go, I'd like to find a powerful, trustworthy partner and go into business together."
"Oh?"
Xu Ning raised his brows, remembering the mortal woman Xu Wei that Crane Falcon had mentioned earlier. A little more admiration crept into his gaze as he looked at Chen Dengming.
Chen Dengming really did have courage and cunning.
He dared to sit down and discuss a partnership with Xu Ning despite being only at the Qi Refining First Layer. More importantly, he had already prepared an escape route. That made him both brave and resourceful, not some reckless fool.
Even if Xu Ning turned hostile or grew greedy, he would still have to consider Eldest Miss Lüo's presence.
If what Chen Dengming said was true and someone from the Luo Family came to take him away, how would Xu Ning explain himself to Eldest Miss Lüo after doing something to Chen Dengming?
Thinking even further, Chen Dengming might also worry that Xu Ning would turn around and sell him to Qian Yuan, or that Qian Yuan might come charging over as soon as he heard the news. With the Luo Family's deterrence, neither Xu Ning nor Qian Yuan would dare act recklessly against Chen Dengming.
Xu Ning had been preoccupied with Chen Dengming's connection to Eldest Miss Lüo, yet Chen Dengming had turned that very concern to his advantage and used it to negotiate terms. The key was that he understood when to advance and when to retreat, and kept calling himself "little Chen," giving Xu Ning plenty of face.
"Good, good!"
Xu Ning laughed, looking at Chen Dengming. "Go on, how do you want to cooperate? Since you're someone Eldest Miss Lüo thinks highly of, I, Old Xu, can make an exception and work with you."
The words were clearly a warning to Chen Dengming as well, indicating that Xu Ning was only willing to make an exception because of Eldest Miss Lüo. Otherwise, a mere cultivator at the Qi Refining First Layer wasn't qualified to sit down and discuss a partnership with him.
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