Volume One: Days in the Shantytown - The Toughest Syringe in History (Part Two)

When Immortals cultivated as a couple, husband and wife often shared a bed for thousands of years. It was impossible not to grow tired of the sight of each other. Dual cultivation was dual cultivation—how could they practice it without walking the great path of yin and yang? Mortals spoke of the three-year ache and the seven-year itch. After three years, or seven, familiarity dulled desire, and the frequency of married life plunged. Immortals could not let that happen. It was not merely a matter of physical need; the progress of their cultivation and the height of their realms depended on it!

So what could they do? Naturally, wives tried every means they could think of to kindle their husbands' desire. If the fire of dragon and tiger did not blaze, how could they cultivate together?

Sexy Lingerie seemed to be something new in the Immortal Realm. If wives appeared before their husbands wearing it, desires dulled by thousands of years of familiarity might burst forth! This was an enormous market, yet Luo Qian had never noticed it. He regretted that in silence and felt fortunate that Li Feier had inadvertently reminded him.

"Hahaha..." He seized the chance to give Li Feier a fierce hug, paying her back for always threatening him with violence. Then, before she could react, he hurriedly let go. "Ah!" Li Feier shrieked. Luo Qian spoke quickly. "Fei'er, you handled this well... Mm, I can give your Third Aunt a set of Sexy Lingerie for free, but you'll have to tell me her measurements."

Li Feier was so surprised by Luo Qian's rare generosity that she forgot his liberties a moment ago. She blinked. "This stuff comes in sizes?" Luo Qian froze. "Of course. Haven't you noticed yours are bigger than other people's?" He took his revenge with relish, gesturing in front of his chest with both hands.

Li Feier flushed scarlet and spat at him. "Pervert!" Luo Qian grinned. She always threatened him with violence, so he would fight back by being shameless. If he could do business like this, she was welcome to threaten him a few more times!

For all her scolding, Li Feier truly had not known such things came in sizes. She had been born in the Immortal Realm; of course she knew nothing about lingerie measurements.

Li Feier went back, blushing and bashful...

Zheng Daoguang stamped the ground beneath his feet. "This is the place." It was the battlefield of the final clash in the campaign against the demons. His deputy immediately called to the dozen or so Immortal officers around them. "Everyone knows what we're looking for? Begin. Chen Chong, stay here and see to the lord's safety." Chen Chong nodded and stood faithfully behind Zheng Daoguang.

The traces left by that day's battle were still faintly visible. The Eight Directions Heaven Formation had followed a bagua layout, and it was still possible to distinguish where each sect and each person had stood.

These Immortal officers were all capable subordinates who had served under Zheng Daoguang for years. They had spent many years with the Imperial Constabulary and were rich in experience. Spreading out, each took out an Immortal Artifact of his own devising and began investigating. These artifacts were merely crude tools they had made to aid their work. The Microscopic Mirror, for example, was rather like a magnifying glass, though many times more powerful.

Zheng Daoguang did not stand idle. He strolled into the Eight Directions Heaven Formation and carefully inspected the position where each Immortal had stood. His subordinates had already searched dozens of meters outward from the formation, leaving only Zheng Daoguang and Chen Chong at its center.

Zheng Daoguang was meticulous and let no detail escape him. Whenever he spotted something suspicious, he crouched to examine it himself. Chen Chong followed behind him and suddenly heard Zheng Daoguang give a soft sound of surprise as he crouched. Curious, Chen Chong leaned forward and saw the lord reaching toward a patch of ground. Alarmed, Chen Chong abandoned all thought of etiquette. He grabbed Zheng Daoguang from behind and hurled him away. "My lord, don't!"

A tremendous force surged through Zheng Daoguang. His hand missed the patch of ground by a hair's breadth, and he rolled awkwardly across the earth twice before coming to a stop. The deputy in the distance flew into a rage and rushed over, shouting, "Chen Chong, have you gone mad?" Chen Chong ignored him. He hurried forward, helped Zheng Daoguang up, and explained, "My lord, the danger left no time for formalities. Please forgive me. Look at this patch of ground. On the surface, it seems no different from the rest, but in fact..."

He had everyone withdraw a hundred meters, then sent a palmful of Immortal Essence into the patch of ground. The earth rippled like water, then exploded with a boom! Fortunately, Chen Chong was prepared. A barrier shaped like an overturned bowl confined the blast to a safe area. When the hidden thunder had passed, it left a pit more than ten meters deep!

"That was hidden thunder. Its structure is simple, but its power varies with the cultivation of whoever laid it. It might not have injured you, my lord, but being caught in the blast would still have been troublesome," Chen Chong said. Everyone had seen its power. Chen Chong had said "might not have injured you" to spare Zheng Daoguang embarrassment, but anyone could tell that with Zheng Daoguang's strength as a Fourth-Rank Immortal, he would have been gravely wounded if he survived at all.

Zheng Daoguang's expression changed. He patted Chen Chong lightly on the shoulder. "Well done, Chen Chong. You saved my life. I'll make a note of this merit." He looked around at the others. "Does anyone know which sect held this position that day?" Everyone thought for a moment before one Immortal officer said, "My lord, I remember it was the Blade Soldier Sect." Zheng Daoguang waved a hand. "To the Blade Soldier Sect!"

The deputy stepped forward. "My lord, what did you discover?" Zheng Daoguang nodded and said quietly, "Every position in the formation has clear footprints. That means everyone inside was channeling all their power to resist the demons. Only that pair of prints was so light the feet seemed to carry no weight at all. The person's cultivation must have been unfathomable! Yet he stood in a position assigned to an ordinary disciple. Don't you find that strange?"

Li Feier soon returned, fidgeting. "Boss, my Third Aunt says she doesn't know either." Luo Qian said helplessly, "Then what do we do? How about you measure her?" "How?"

Luo Qian took out a Measuring Cord and spent ages demonstrating: pass it under the arms, across the breasts... He only succeeded in making Li Feier blush so fiercely she dared not raise her head. How could she pay attention to his instructions under such circumstances? He explained for ages, but she still did not understand. Luo Qian snapped, "Raise your arms!"

Li Feier obediently lifted her arms. Luo Qian walked behind her and reached around her chest! She went dizzy on the spot, then abruptly came to her senses through the haze. How did I let that bastard take advantage of me again? Furious, she was about to lash out when Luo Qian called, "Did you see how it's done?"

Looking down, Li Feier found a Measuring Cord around her chest. "It can't be too tight or too loose. Measure it like this to get the right size." As Luo Qian spoke, he shifted the loop of cord so she could feel the proper fit. A strange sensation spread from her chest, setting her heart fluttering. She answered vaguely, and Luo Qian sent her back on her way.

This time, Luo Qian truly had not been thinking of anything improper. Li Feier's "stupidity" had simply exasperated him. Only after he had sent the big-breasted, scatterbrained girl out of his cave residence did it suddenly strike him: Such a fine chance for revenge—how did I let it slip away for nothing?

"Old Luo?" Du Lengning poked his head in furtively. Luo Qian could not help laughing. "Why do you look so sneaky?" Du Lengning gave him a peculiar grin and punched him hard on the shoulder. "Who knew, Old Luo? You really have a way with girls."

"What way? What are you talking about?" Luo Qian's heart sank. Sure enough, Du Lengning said, "Don't play innocent with me. I saw the whole thing—all that hugging and holding. That little girl's face was bright red when she left." "It wasn't what you think..." Du Lengning waved him off with an I understand expression. "You don't have to explain it to me!"

Then I won't explain. It's not as if she's Li Xuexiao, Luo Qian thought.

"Right, what did you come to see me about?" Luo Qian asked. Du Lengning dropped into a chair and poured himself a cup of tea. "What about? Nothing much. An old friend of my father's has an Immortal Beast that's fallen ill. He's searched everywhere for a famous physician, but it still hasn't improved. My father remembered our Medicine Shop and sent me to ask whether we had any medicine for it. We only carry a few kinds of pills—of course I know what we have. But I can't say that straight to my father, so I had to come over and let him see I'd made the effort."

Du Lengning was sipping his tea when he saw Luo Qian come over, lift the teapot, and drink straight from its spout. He looked down at his cup, sickened. "Tell me that's the first time you've done that." Luo Qian chuckled. "That's my personal teapot. Who told you to pour yourself a drink from it?"

Du Lengning shook his head and tossed out the tea. "You really make a man want to knock you out with one punch."

"Your father's old friend can't be all that impressive if he can't even cure his own Immortal Beast. Not that it matters. If it dies, he can always find another."

Du Lengning shook his head. "You've got it wrong. The old gentleman is famous throughout the Immortal Realm, but its renowned physicians treat people. Where would you find one who treats beasts? The fact that they didn't throw him out when he brought his beast to them was already a courtesy. More importantly, he's a Beast Cultivator. That immortal beast has been with him for nearly a thousand years, and a fifth of his strength rests on it. If it dies, his power will take a serious blow."

Luo Qian thought little of it and said casually, "It's sick? Give it a shot and some medicine." "A shot?" Du Lengning stared. Luo Qian remembered that they knew nothing about injections and explained them in detail. Du Lengning waved a hand. "It wouldn't work. That Immortal Beast is a Jadewater Qilin. Its hide and bones are so tough that ordinary Immortal Artifacts can't cut through them. A little needle would snap before it pierced the skin."

A thought stirred in Luo Qian's mind. Don't I have an exceptionally tough syringe? Should I give it a try? He glanced at Du Lengning. "Who exactly is this old friend of your father's?" "Zhao Xihe, an elder of the Vertical and Horizontal Sect." Luo Qian froze. "Zhao Xihe, one of the Immortal Realm's nine great Beast Cultivators?" "That's him."

Luo Qian began calculating. If I can gain the backing of a tree that mighty, it might help me enormously in the future. Besides, he's an elder of the Vertical and Horizontal Sect, the sixth-largest sect in the Immortal Realm. That could be good for business too.

"Come on. Take me to see him." Luo Qian pulled Du Lengning to his feet. Du Lengning blinked. "Old Luo, just because you've opened a Medicine Shop doesn't mean you're a doctor..." Luo Qian kept urging him on. "Hurry up. Can't I go and have a look?" Du Lengning muttered something as Luo Qian dragged him out of Toad Mountain.

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