Page 45

The last time Wen Xu and Bian Chunchou entered Langyuan City, they had been penniless. Only by relying on their title as first place in the Preliminary Trial had they barely managed to stay in the city and cultivate. Now that they had joined Yonglu Mountain, things were naturally no longer what they once were.

All three wore Yonglu Mountain disciples' plaques at their waists. Though the highest cultivation among them was only the Qi Refining Ninth Layer, the treatment they received upon entering the city was already completely different.

"It seems Listening Crane Manor is up ahead. I asked around about it before—it's a famously wealthy household in Langyuan City. Unfortunately, it seems no one from the main branch can cultivate. One of the collateral branches, however, produced a Three-Spirit Root cultivator. I heard that person achieved Foundation Establishment last year."

Bian Chunchou had always been skilled at gathering information, even collecting rumors of uncertain truth. "These pills were probably bought for that Foundation Establishment cultivator. Such a huge bag of pills—no wonder the Pill Peak elder was willing to spend contribution points specifically to hire someone to deliver them straight to the door."

If not for Wen Xu's storage ring, carrying such a bag of pills on them would inevitably have drawn the attention of people with ill intentions.

It was also after seeing so many pills that Bian Chunchou immediately adjusted the order of their tasks: deliver the pills first, dig up the herbs next, and investigate the strange pregnancy incident last.

"Please wait a moment, three Immortal Masters. I'll report to the manor lord at once."

The lord of Listening Crane Manor was named He Gan. He was already fifty-six years old this year, but the cultivation world was rich in spiritual energy and pills were widespread. So long as one had money, even those unable to cultivate could take some pills that prolonged life and preserved health.

He Gan looked only a little over forty, though the weariness on his face was obvious. He seemed to have run into some trouble. Yet even so, with cultivators visiting his door, even if some heaven-shaking disaster had occurred in his home, he still had to come out and receive them.

Not only that, he had to entertain them lavishly. Of course, He Gan was more than willing to do so. After all, these three Immortal Masters came from Yonglu Mountain. If he could befriend even one of them, Listening Crane Manor would reap endless benefits.

After all, these three were all inner disciples of Yonglu Mountain. His eyes were sharp, and with a single glance, he recognized the disciples' plaques that only inner disciples could wear.

Unfortunately, one of the three seemed to have poor eyesight, while the knife-bearing one simply could not understand human speech. The one who could understand human speech was far too slippery, with the result that he failed even to offer them his tribute.

"That was close, that was close. Good thing we slipped away quickly, or we'd have ended up taking on an extra task."

Only after they had gone quite a distance did Bian Chunchou pat his chest and speak. "Didn't you see Manor Lord He's expression just now? He must have run into trouble."

Chen Zui said, "Did he? He couldn't beat us anyway."

"He did. I smelled it—Manor Lord He carried a heavy medicinal scent. Either he himself was seriously ill, or someone close to him was seriously ill. Otherwise, he couldn't have picked up such a strong smell of medicine." Perhaps not all those pills had been meant for that Foundation Establishment cultivator from the collateral branch.

"Now that you mention it, I think I smelled it too. Good thing we got away quickly. Come on, let's eat first. Tonight, we'll go dig herbs. I heard the roads in Yueyu Forest aren't easy to travel, so we might need to head over early."

Wen Xu: ...Chunchou was good at everything except that he cared far too much about food.

The three of them were still in the Qi Refining Stage, so naturally they had not yet abstained from grain. But according to Bian Chunchou, even if he reached Foundation Establishment, he would never choose to abstain from food. Cultivators were people too. If life lacked delicious food, then what was the point of living so long? Was he supposed to watch others eat good food while he could only swallow his saliva wildly?

"My mother said that cultivators should keep work in their eyes, punish evil and uphold justice. Since that's the case, why didn't we listen to Manor Lord He's request?" After the three sat down and ordered their dishes, Chen Zui suddenly asked in confusion.

Bian Chunchou scratched his head. As expected of the blockhead personally certified by Wen Xu. "Your mother truly worried herself sick over you. You must treat her well and honor her properly in the future."

Chen Zui said, "...You didn't answer my question."

"Uh, well, Wen Xu, you handle it. I'm going to eat dry-pot chicken!" Wuwuwu, even chickens in the cultivation world tasted three times better. No wonder they grew up breathing spiritual energy! I love them so much.

Actually, if he did not become a talisman cultivator, he could consider becoming a culinary cultivator. That sounded quite wonderful too.

Chen Zui looked at Wen Xu. Wen Xu took a booklet from his storage ring and tossed it over. "I think you'll need this."

"What is this?"

"A little guide on how cultivators should conduct themselves while away from home. Take Manor Lord He just now, for example. If he truly had some urgent trouble that only cultivators could resolve, the first thing he would do would be to post a task and ask cultivators to come to his door and solve the problem. But he didn't. Clearly, the trouble he encountered either wasn't urgent, or wasn't legitimate enough."

"Since that's the case, there's no need for the three of us Qi Refining Stage cultivators to get involved. Listening Crane Manor has operated in Langyuan City for many years, so they surely have cultivators they know well. Even if those ties aren't deep, they're still better than us three, right?"

Chen Zui understood. "You're right."

"Furthermore, instead of asking those cultivators for help, he hesitated in front of us three newly initiated Qi Refining Stage cultivators. Either it really was too difficult to speak of, or he wanted to drag us into the game. If the matter grew serious, we would inevitably have to seek help from our elders."

Chen Zui half-understood as he flipped through the guidebook in his hands. "So in the future, should we ignore this kind of situation every time?"

"It depends on the circumstances, but... as long as it isn't a matter of life and death, don't rush." Since they were going to act together, Wen Xu naturally did not want Chen Zui dragging them down. "When matters are handled slowly, they become whole. Remember these four words. When you can't make up your mind, delay a little. If you still can't decide, send a Communication Talisman to ask for help."

"What if the Communication Talisman can't be used?"

Bian Chunchou lifted his head from the earthen-pot chicken. "Then do as the booklet tells you. Wen Xu's brain works better than yours anyway."

Chen Zui was convinced. "That makes sense. I'll memorize this booklet."

Wen Xu: ...That worked too.

With Bian Chunchou's hearty appetite around, Wen Xu and Chen Zui could not help picking up their chopsticks as well. The three ate until their bellies were round before finally heading toward Yueyu Forest.

In truth, Yueyu Forest had once been called "Prisonbreak Forest." It lay near a mine under the jurisdiction of the local authorities, and all criminals in the city sentenced to hard labor were taken there to mine. One day, that group of miners escaped prison together and fled into Prisonbreak Forest, where they suddenly died trapped for no reason. When the searching officers found them the next day, every one of them had died violently on the spot, their blood drained dry.