Staking Out and Calling at the Door (Please Bookmark)

Green Forest Market.

Fang Xing prepared a meal and ate alone.

Though the cooks on Chuying Star were skilled, their ingredients were vastly inferior to those here.

For the sake of his Martial Arts, he tried to eat at Green Forest Market whenever possible.

He only occasionally ordered takeout from Chuying Star to satisfy his cravings.

Of course, to keep up appearances, he also had to stock some daily necessities at his home on Chuying Star from time to time, then bring them all here to destroy.

As he was holding a large bowl and shoveling down rice, a string of bell-like laughter reached his ears. A fragrant breeze swept past as Hua Fei Yue approached gracefully. "Young Master..."

She wore a well-tailored pink dress that displayed her proud breasts and peach-like hips, yet her expression was exceedingly proper, giving her the air of a respectable woman.

Combined with the seductive allure of her figure, however, it created a uniquely contradictory charm.

Simply put, she made people want to commit crimes!

Nearby, Yu Xia, the Demon Hunter next door who was heading out, saw this scene and stared wide-eyed.

"You're here... There's no food for you. Did you bring the Spirit Stones?"

Fang Xing quickly finished his bowl of Spirit Rice and asked.

"I brought them."

Hua Fei Yue gave a sweet laugh, swayed gracefully into the room, and casually shut the door behind her.

"Hiss..."

Outside, Yu Xia reluctantly looked away and sucked in a cold breath. "Brother Fang is truly extraordinary. He can actually make such a beauty throw herself at him?"

Then he thought of himself. He was quite handsome too, eight feet tall and valiant-looking. Why had no female Cultivator taken a fancy to him?

Comparing oneself to others truly could make one furious!

He let out a long breath, preparing to head to Listening Rain Pavilion for some proper criticism.

"Young Master, all three Snake Orchid Fruits, one Golden Dragon Ginseng, and three Jade Bone Flowers have been sold, earning a total of thirteen Spirit Stones and eight Spirit Sands... Apart from that, thirteen Vermillion Dragon Grass plants remain unsold. The market used to buy Vermillion Dragon Grass at high prices, but it seems the craze has passed. Should we lower the price?"

Hua Fei Yue sat upright and began reporting the accounts.

"The price of Vermillion Dragon Grass has dropped?"

Fang Xing was somewhat surprised, but this was something he could learn with a little inquiry. Hua Fei Yue had no reason to deceive him.

"Perhaps some faction was developing a new pill formula, or discovered that Vermillion Dragon Grass could be used to feed Demon Beasts or had some other application, so they needed large quantities for testing. Then the experiment probably failed?"

Hua Fei Yue tucked several strands of hair behind her ear. Such things were actually quite common.

"All right..."

After considering it for a moment, Fang Xing took one Low-Grade Spirit Stone and four Spirit Sands from the small pile Hua Fei Yue had given him, then handed them back to her. "This is what you've earned..."

Though he had to give Hua Fei Yue a cut, having someone run errands for him was convenient, and it still earned more than selling everything directly to shops. Naturally, Fang Xing was willing to pay.

"Thank you, Young Master!"

Hua Fei Yue played with the Low-Grade Spirit Stone, which was about the size of an ordinary die, and her eyes curved into crescents with delight.

For martial artists, earning Spirit Stones in the market was already quite difficult, much less for someone in her circumstances.

With such a livelihood, who knew how many Innate experts would envy her!

The more so, the less she minded letting Fang Xing take a little advantage of her. She wanted to keep this business firmly in her hands.

"Mhm. I like fair deals. As long as you manage things sincerely, you needn't worry about anything on my end..."

Fang Xing gave her another warning before returning to his room and bringing out a wooden box. "These are this batch's medicinal herbs..."

Hua Fei Yue's eyes lit up. She opened the box and began carefully counting through the items one by one.

This was what Fang Xing liked about her: she understood propriety and handled business as business.

If she thought she could sell him a little flesh, offer him a few perks, act like some benefits girl, and then slack off at work or even try to pocket things for herself, she was sorely underestimating him.

After a while, Hua Fei Yue completed her careful appraisal. "These herbs should sell for around sixteen Low-Grade Spirit Stones..."

She found it highly strange. What sort of channel did this young master possess? Could a team of Herb Gatherers be secretly supporting him? Otherwise, how could he have so many fine medicinal herbs every few days?

Even so, the joy on her face gradually faded, replaced by a trace of gravity.

"What? Is there trouble?"

Noticing this, Fang Xing immediately asked.

More than ten Low-Grade Spirit Stones every three days meant roughly a hundred a month. The profits were indeed somewhat substantial.

Ordinarily, even a Qi Refining Early Stage Cultivator would be in danger with such an income. A Qi Refining Middle Stage Cultivator could barely manage it for a short time, but not for long.

Only a Qi Refining Late Stage expert could truly hold onto it!

This was after he had secretly limited the production of medicinal herbs. Yet even so, trouble had arisen.

"It's only a little surveillance. The Qingxuan Sect's Law Enforcement Team keeps order in the market, so there shouldn't be much of a problem... What you need to worry about is your channel outside the market, especially during exchanges."

Hua Fei Yue reminded him.

"I understand..."

Fang Xing nodded silently. He knew he might have caught the attention of some interested parties, so he would need to be extra careful when leaving the market in the future.

Those attracted by such minor profits probably aren't experts...

He sneered inwardly. I don't even need to disguise myself when leaving the market... Let them come test the sharpness of my blade!

As for the possibility of an upset?

With the Three Treasures—the Electric Baton, Protective Suit, and Laser Gun—even Qi Refining Completion Cultivators could not truly threaten him. Naturally, he had nothing to fear.

Fang Xing even considered not using them, instead deliberately baiting his enemies to gain more real combat experience!

After Hua Fei Yue left, Fang Xing brought up the surveillance feeds, a faint smile appearing on his face. "Sure enough, someone's tailing her..."

The area around his residence was naturally covered by a dense network of surveillance devices, with security even tighter than the temporary camps outside.

Many seemingly harmless birds, beetles, and even earthworms... formed a tightly woven network together.

Unless a Foundation Establishment Stage Cultivator was watching with Divine Sense, they would generally reveal some flaw.

At that moment, there were actually three separate groups on the screen!

"A business worth around a hundred Spirit Stones a month is enough to attract this many people?"

Fang Xing glanced over them, sinking into deep thought before issuing an order.

A thin Cultivator with ordinary features, the kind who would be impossible to distinguish once thrown into a crowd, watched Hua Fei Yue return home and nodded. "She only associates with these people?"

He turned and left, never noticing a mosquito-sized Drone drifting along in the wind behind him...

On the roof of a shack, a bright-eyed Spirit Bird watched Hua Fei Yue's residence, then cast a puzzled glance to the side.

At some point, a yellow oriole had appeared on the eaves.

For some reason, when the Spirit Bird saw the lifeless eyes of that yellow oriole, it suddenly shuddered. It hurriedly flapped its wings and flew high into the air.

The yellow oriole tilted its head, then took flight as well, following behind the Spirit Bird.

"Three groups... One lacks any real sophistication. It should be some gang from the Slum Area..."

Gangs ran rampant in the Slum Area. Every one of them dreamed of becoming a behemoth like the Black Tiger Gang, but most were wiped out within a few months.

Then even more gangs sprang up like cockroaches, impossible to eradicate.

"For such a small gang, having a Qi Refining Late Stage gang leader would already be impressive..."

"These are the sort most likely to have their eyes on my business."

Fang Xing stroked his chin, then turned to another group. The Black Tiger Gang? One of Green Forest Market's three major factions, and they care about this tiny business of mine? No... The Black Tiger Gang is quite large. It has several Qi Refining Completion Cultivators. Perhaps this is merely a private job by one of its stewards or elders? Or perhaps... they have another reason for watching Hua Fei Yue?

To be honest, Fang Xing had initially thought Chen Yi had only provoked Fu Qing. But now, he no longer dared to be certain.

Fu Qing was merely a Qi Refining Late Stage Cultivator. He could not mobilize so many Black Tiger Gang members!

There really is something more to this! Unfortunately, the surveillance I deployed back then could only observe from afar most of the time. It couldn't record every word and every subtle movement in detail... Otherwise, I would surely have discovered something.

He felt a slight regret, then watched as the yellow oriole following the Spirit Bird slowly landed atop a shack.

Before long, the shack opposite it suddenly opened, and a middle-aged Cultivator stepped outside.

The Spirit Bird landed on his shoulder, chirping incessantly.

The middle-aged Cultivator took several pills from his robe and fed them to his Spirit Beast. A thoughtful expression appeared on his face.

Then he actually headed toward the Ding Character District.

Shack Number Fifty-Seven.

"He's here."

Fang Xing left the underground surveillance room and walked thoughtfully into the living room.

Almost as soon as he arrived, he heard a knock at the door.

Knock, knock!

The knocking was neither hurried nor slow, revealing the visitor's immense confidence.

"Who is it?"

Fang Xing asked deliberately.

"An old acquaintance has come calling. I hope Fellow Daoist will grant me an audience!"

The middle-aged Cultivator spoke. His voice was unexpectedly aged, carrying a hint of familiarity.

Fang Xing opened the door, and the middle-aged Cultivator immediately slipped inside.

"Who are you?"

A trace of confusion appeared on Fang Xing's face, but he was not worried.

He had never blindly trusted the market's rules, so he always wore his Nano Suit whenever he was here.

Besides, when a Cultivator and a martial artist came into close quarters, it was never the latter who needed to worry.

The middle-aged Cultivator smiled slightly and wiped his hand across his face.

A layer of green light flashed.

In an instant, his face shifted and changed, settling into an aged appearance.

"It's you, Chen Yi?!"

Fang Xing looked astonished. "Fellow Daoist Chen and I have only met once. Why have you come to find me?"

"Alas... Back in Five Scorpion Valley, because of a momentary lapse in judgment, this old man grew estranged from several sworn brothers... Looking back now, I truly regret it deeply."

Chen Yi's face was filled with bitterness. "But this old man had difficulties he could not speak of. Earlier, I heard that Fellow Daoist aided my Fifth Sister's orphaned family, then later took in my Second Sister. I came especially to offer my thanks..."

Offer thanks? You're not here to silence me?

Fang Xing mocked inwardly.

Yet he keenly sensed that Chen Yi seemed more dangerous than before.

He was not a Cultivator and possessed no Spirit Eye Technique to clearly discern the level of another's cultivation technique. He only had a martial artist's instincts!

But he trusted those instincts!

Wasn't Chen Yi a Qi Refining Middle Stage Cultivator? Even if he was at the sixth level of Qi Refining, he shouldn't make me feel danger... Unless he recently broke through into the Qi Refining Late Stage?

Fang Xing's heart stirred slightly. That was an astonishing possibility.

After all, most Cultivators in the market had poor Spiritual Roots. Some were even trapped at a bottleneck for their entire lives.

Chen Yi had struggled for half his life and could only keep company with Innate Martial Artists, calling them sworn brothers. That showed not only that his aptitude was poor, but that his opportunities were nothing remarkable either. He might have remained at the Qi Refining Middle Stage until his death!

What true cultivation Genius would be willing to associate with martial artists?

But nothing was absolute!

At such an advanced age, he had still broken through the bottleneck from the Qi Refining Middle Stage to the Qi Refining Late Stage. Clearly, he had encountered a great opportunity!