The instant Xu Yan saw that figure, his expression darkened. To avoid being noticed, he quickly turned around and headed in another direction as though nothing had happened.
In the center of Heavenly River Market, inside the lavish hall of a Pill Workshop, an elderly man in fine robes stood with a ruddy face, holding a jade bottle as he explained its contents to three cultivators who had entered the Pill Workshop.
Before long, each of the three cultivators bought a bottle, leaving the old man wreathed in smiles.
This old man was none other than Wu Hua. Ever since he had reneged on his wager with Xu Yan that day, he had lost his credibility among the rogue cultivators. No one dared ask him to refine pills anymore, and even those posting commissions specifically barred him from accepting them.
Left with no other choice, Wu Hua had come to Heavenly River Market half a year earlier. With his credentials as a first-tier, mid-grade alchemist, he had successfully secured a position as the manager of the first floor of this Pill Workshop.
Whenever he thought of how he had fled Ascendant City, where he had spent decades building his business, Wu Hua hated the black-robed cultivator responsible to the very marrow of his bones.
He had also carefully considered his decision to join this Pill Workshop, intending to take revenge on that black-robed cultivator in the future.
The owner behind this Pill Workshop was a Foundation Establishment elder of the Spirit Sword Sect. Wu Hua had joined to forge a connection with the sect, hoping to borrow that elder's influence and add another bargaining chip to his quest for revenge.
At that thought, venomous resentment filled Wu Hua's face as he stared fixedly in the direction of Ascendant City.