Friendship Gone Wrong

When Zhou Heng appeared, the four people opposite immediately assumed a wary stance, subtly shielding the youth at the center.

Zhou Heng smiled and said, "I mean no harm!"

These four were all young men around twenty years old. The youth at the center pressed his hand down, signaling that it was fine, and said, "Brother, do you know the way?"

Not knowing the way and still daring to enter the mountains?

Zhou Heng recalled his first time entering the Heaven-Leveling Mountain Range—hadn't he also not known the way? He couldn't help but smile again and said, "I do know it!"

The four all showed delight. The youth at the center spoke again: "We originally brought a Star-Sky Instrument, but halfway we ran into a demon donkey, and it snatched everything away!"

When the topic of being robbed by a donkey came up, the other three all wore expressions of shame and anger—clearly, this was a very embarrassing matter.

The Star-Sky Instrument was a valuable map indicator. By combining celestial phenomena with maps and using formation sensing, it could pinpoint a person's location, making it impossible to get lost even in deep mountains or vast deserts.

No wonder these four dared to venture into the Heaven-Leveling Mountain Range without knowing the way—with the Star-Sky Instrument, they had no fear of losing their path. They just hadn't expected to get robbed.

"That despicable donkey—" Zhou Heng couldn't help twitching the corner of his mouth.

"Brother, have you also suffered a loss at that demon donkey's hooves?"

"You could say that!" Zhou Heng nodded. That black donkey had ambushed him several times, and he'd even taken a hoof to the chest.

Sharing this common grievance, the four immediately united in enmity, greatly closing the distance between them and Zhou Heng.

"Brother, can you lead us out of here? We need to get to Fengyu City!" another youth said.

Zhou Heng hesitated slightly. He had planned to go into the Heaven-Leveling Mountain Range to earn money. Taking these people to Fengyu City would waste at least four days round trip. Four days was acceptable—he might as well help them out.

He nodded and said, "Alright!"

The four young men all cheered, as if they had met a great savior.

Zhou Heng led them back the way they came. Since they were all young, communication was easy, and they soon exchanged names.

The youth who seemed to be the leader among the four was called Zhu Zhihe, and the other three were Liu Yan, Yu Zhenye, and Wan Liang. As for where they came from, they didn't say, and Zhou Heng had no interest in digging deeper.

When the topic of that demon donkey came up, Zhu Zhihe and the others were all indignant.

It turned out that when they first encountered the black donkey, they were utterly stunned by its ability to speak. When the black donkey bragged about being a divine beast of heaven and earth, none of them doubted it. They treated that despicable donkey with great reverence and even carried it along the way.

But a donkey is a donkey, and the black donkey soon showed its true colors. After realizing they had been tricked, Zhu Zhihe and the others wished they could skin that despicable donkey alive. However, they never expected the black donkey to be so formidable and ruthless. After giving them a thorough beating, it stripped them clean.

It was already a mercy that they still had their clothes!

"Brothers, now that you have nothing on you, why are you still going to Fengyu City?" Zhou Heng asked.

"Huh, aren't you from Fengyu City? Don't you know that Miss Zixing is coming to Fengyu City?" Liu Yan cut in with a question.

"Miss Zixing?"

"Hey hey hey, don't tell us you don't even know who Miss Zixing is!" The four all stared at Zhou Heng with strange looks.

"I really don't know!"

"Brother, I think you've spent all your time on cultivation!" Zhu Zhihe shook his head repeatedly. "Life shouldn't be wasted on dull, boring training. You have to enjoy yourself! Cultivation? Take it slow!"

Zhou Heng didn't argue, just smiled faintly. These four must have impressive backgrounds—each of them was around twenty years old and already at the Ninth Layer of Body Refining.

Although having such cultivation at this age was not uncommon in the Nine Spirits Sect—there were at least twenty or thirty such people—every one of them had achieved it through hard work and diligent practice. These four clearly weren't dedicated to the martial path, yet their cultivation could still keep up with the best of their peers. That could only mean they had deep backing.

—If you could eat Gathering Essence Pills every day, then spending just half an hour on cultivation daily would yield three times the results of someone who trained relentlessly without them!

Poverty studies literature, wealth practices martial arts. Cultivation was extremely dependent on resources. Having them and not having them was like the difference between heaven and earth—no amount of effort could make up for it.

"When it comes to Miss Zixing—" Zhu Zhihe and the other three immediately wore dazed, infatuated expressions.

"She is a star in the sky, beautiful and pure!"

"She is a pearl in the sea, dazzling and brilliant!"

"Her dance is unmatched, intoxicating to the soul!"

"Her song lingers around the rafters, never fading for three days!"

Zhou Heng laughed heartily and said, "It's a waste that the four of you aren't poets!"

Zhu Zhihe patted Zhou Heng on the shoulder and said, "Miss Zixing is recognized as the number one beauty in the entire Hancang Kingdom. One look at her can add three years to your life!"

Zhou Heng just smiled wryly. He had never dabbled in romance, so he didn't find stunning beauties particularly remarkable. In his eyes, they weren't even as appealing as a batch of medicinal bath ingredients for the Bright Jade Art.

"Brat, I refuse to believe you can resist Miss Zixing's charm!" Zhu Zhihe and the others all looked at Zhou Heng with disbelief.

These four had good hearts!

Though they had only just met, some people could know each other for a lifetime and never understand each other's hearts, while others could become fast friends at first sight. Zhu Zhihe and his companions were straightforward people, and Zhou Heng felt a strong sense of camaraderie from them.

Martial artists devoted themselves to the martial path, as if only the thought of growing stronger remained in their hearts, and everything else could be ignored.

Within the sect, this all turned into fierce competition. Everyone wanted to step on others to climb higher, leaving no room for friendship.

That night, they hunted a wild boar and ate their fill. Zhu Zhihe and the others deliberately stirred up trouble, telling Zhou Heng all sorts of romantic tales in great detail. But since Zhou Heng had never experienced matters between men and women, he only half-understood. Though an indescribable restlessness stirred within him, he suppressed it with ease.

On the other hand, Zhu Zhihe and his companions worked themselves into a flushed frenzy, tossing and turning all night without being able to sleep. When they woke up the next day, all of them had bloodshot eyes.

Two days later, they emerged from the forest and set foot on the official road. Zhou Heng checked the direction and led the four toward Fengyu City.

When they reached Fengyu City, Zhu Zhihe and the others absolutely refused to let Zhou Heng leave. They dragged him along, saying he didn't need to worry about money—they would take care of it.

Zhou Heng had never made friends before, but seeing that the four of them were genuinely sincere, he found it hard to refuse and had to agree. As for why he was entering the Heaven-Leveling Mountain Range, Zhu Zhihe and the others had naturally asked long ago, which was why they had said he didn't need to worry about money.

Of course, Zhou Heng would never speak of the Cold Pool of the Absolute Valley.

But after being dragged to a tavern by those four rascals, Zhou Heng immediately regretted it!

"Young master, let me feed you some wine!" Inside the private room, a sixteen-year-old girl with a flower-like face puckered her bright red lips and leaned toward Zhou Heng, pestering him for the umpteenth time.

"Hahaha!" Zhu Zhihe and the other three laughed mischievously. Each of them had a beautiful woman by their side, enjoying their service with unrestrained abandon.

This was no ordinary tavern—it was the Apricot Spring Pavilion, the top establishment for romantic entertainment in Fengyu City. The girls here accompanied guests in drinking and sleeping, but the prices were shockingly high. An ordinary family's entire year's income was barely enough for a single visit here.

What bad judgment in friends!

Zhou Heng shook his head repeatedly. Still, Zhu Zhihe and the others didn't go too far—they only took small liberties and maintained some decorum.

"Zhou Heng, I just found out that Miss Zixing won't arrive in Fengyu City for another day. Today, we eat and drink well, and tomorrow, big brother will take you to see what true beauty looks like!" Zhu Zhihe laughed loudly.

Pat pat pat. Just then, the door was knocked on, and a waiter pushed it open, his face full of flattery. "Gentlemen, my apologies, but an honored guest has arrived and specifically requested that Miss Chunhe and the others come over! I'll arrange new companions for you gentlemen!"

"What!" Liu Yan immediately jumped up, pointing at the waiter's nose. "Are you blind? Do you think we're easy to bully?"

"I wouldn't dare! I wouldn't dare!" The waiter shook his head frantically. He was only at the Third Layer of Body Refining and couldn't withstand Liu Yan's peak Ninth Layer of Body Refining aura. His legs went weak with fear. "That honored guest is Young Master Jin, the young master of White Jade Valley. I can't afford to offend him!"

"And we're people you can afford to offend?" Liu Yan said coldly. In that moment, his playboy demeanor vanished, replaced by an air of authority.

"I can't afford to offend! I can't afford to offend!" The waiter quickly shook his head.

"Get lost!"

"Yes! Yes!" The waiter turned and fled.

"Come, come, let's keep drinking!" Liu Yan sat back down, raising his cup in invitation.

Young Master Jin? Could it be Jin Xiuming?

Zhou Heng thought to himself. He had long marked White Jade Valley for elimination, so he had no fear of confronting them. But seeing the unconcerned expressions on Zhu Zhihe and the others, it wasn't arrogance born of ignorance—it was genuine deep backing that allowed them to dismiss it entirely.

What kind of background could make someone disregard even White Jade Valley?

The five accompanying beauties, however, trembled in fear. They were rootless duckweed, and even a slightly larger wave could send them into eternal ruin.

Bang!

With a heavy crash, the door opened again—only this time, it had been pushed open before; now, it was kicked open.

A young man in brocade clothes strode in, followed by four lackeys, each with their noses practically pointing at the sky, radiating arrogance.

"So you're the trash fighting this young master for women?" The brocade-clad youth held a folding fan in his right hand, pointing it one by one at Zhu Zhihe and the others. When he reached Zhou Heng, he froze. "You bastard!"

Zhou Heng smiled faintly. What a small world—this brocade-clad youth was none other than Jin Xiuming!

"Brother, you know him?" Zhu Zhihe, always one for trouble, immediately spoke up. "Don't tell me—did you steal his girl last time too?"

What a blind cat stumbling upon a dead mouse!

Jin Xiuming's face twisted into a vicious snarl. He waved his hand and said, "Today, this young master is going to have the five of you carried out horizontally!"

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