The Matchmaking Gathering No One Could Escape

Red Medicine Valley.

Only after Zhou Chun and the others followed Wang Family Patriarch Wang Zhixiong into the Wang Family residence did they learn that the Zhou Family was actually the last family to arrive.

The Mu Family of Biyun Mountain, the Sun Family of Golden Maple Ridge, and the He Family of Green Bamboo Mountain had all arrived at the Wang Family residence a day earlier.

Now that the Zhou Family had also arrived, all Five Great Families were finally present.

"This Daoist martial arts competition jointly hosted by our Five Great Families is a rare grand occasion in recent years. For this event, my Wang Family also invited quite a few Foundation Establishment cultivators from within and beyond Misty Prefecture to observe. The various fellow Daoists have already begun mingling. Fellow Daoist Zhou, why don't you accompany me to meet them?"

Outside a courtyard deep within the Wang Family residence, Wang Zhixiong smiled as he extended a hand toward Zhou Daoyi, making an inviting gesture.

Afterward, he looked at the Zhou Family Qi Refining cultivators accompanying Zhou Chun and smiled. "It also happens to give these juniors some time to get acquainted and build relationships."

Hearing this, Zhou Daoyi first nodded, then turned to the group of Zhou Family cultivators behind him. "You heard Fellow Daoist Wang. Go with the two Wang Family fellow Daoists and meet cultivators from the other families. Remember, don't cause trouble. Understood?"

"Yes, Patriarch."

The group answered in unison, then followed the two Wang Family Qi Refining cultivators beside Wang Zhixiong toward another courtyard.

When the Zhou Family members arrived outside a courtyard called Dan Gui Courtyard, they heard waves of cheers and applause from within.

Seeing this, they exchanged glances before filing into the courtyard.

The courtyard was planted with numerous osmanthus trees. Dozens of male and female cultivators were either sitting on stone stools or reclining against tree trunks, all gazing toward one spot in the middle, as though some sort of activity was being held there.

After leading the Zhou Family group inside, the Wang Family cultivator in charge immediately clapped his hands and called out, "Come, come, everyone, pause for a moment and come welcome our fellow Daoists from the Zhou Family."

At his words, the cultivators in the courtyard turned their gazes toward the Zhou Family group.

"I'm Zhou Jiacheng. Greetings, fellow Daoists."

"Zhou Jiapeng. Greetings, fellow Daoists."

"Zhou Zhengkang. Greetings, fellow Daoists."

Facing the gazes of the cultivators in the courtyard, the Zhou Family cultivators clasped their hands and introduced themselves one after another, taking the initiative to start the conversation.

The cultivators from the various families, who had initially been sizing up the Zhou Family group, could only announce their own names as well to avoid appearing discourteous, even though many of them had already done this more than once.

Once everyone had introduced themselves, the Wang Family cultivators, as hosts, invited Zhou Chun and the other Zhou Family cultivators to find seats and join their activity.

It turned out that before the Zhou Family cultivators arrived, these people had been competing to see who could cast spells the fastest, testing who could cast the greatest number of First-grade Low-tier spells and First-grade Mid-tier spells within the time it took a hundred breaths.

To make the competition more interesting, someone had also taken bets and opened a gambling pool, attracting the others to wager Spirit Coins.

Moreover, half of the final proceeds from the gambling pool would be given to the winner.

This caused the cultivators present to participate in droves, and many people signed up for the competition.

After learning about the activity, quite a few Zhou Family cultivators were tempted as well and followed suit.

Of course, those qualified to participate in this sort of activity were basically cultivators like Zhou Jiapeng from the Elite Group.

As for young cultivators like Zhou Chun from the Youth Group, they could only watch the excitement.

"Thirteenth Brother, aren't you going to place a bet and have some fun?"

Under an osmanthus tree, Zhou Chun stood with his arms folded, watching two cultivators compete in the courtyard. Suddenly, Zhou Zhengyong walked over and softly brought up the matter of betting.

"Gambling has always harmed people. I never gamble!"

Zhou Chun shook his head and answered Zhou Zhengyong in a low voice.

Hearing this, Zhou Zhengyong grinned. "A small gamble lifts the spirits, while a big gamble harms the body. I know that much, so I only wagered three Spirit Coins for fun. If I lose, so be it!"

Zhou Chun did not know whether he truly thought that way, but although the two had a good relationship, it was not his place to lecture the other on how to conduct himself.

Thus, he merely shook his head and said, "Brother Yong, as long as you understand that yourself. Anyway, your younger brother won't be gambling."

"If you don't want to play, then don't. Have you seen those ladies over there? I asked around—they're all unmarried. Why don't you accompany your elder brother over there and give it a try? What if it works out?"

As Zhou Zhengyong spoke, he winked suggestively at Zhou Chun.

Unlike Zhou Chun, most of the other Zhou Family cultivators did not reject the idea of finding a dual-cultivation partner. In fact, they were quite proactive about it.

For cultivators, men and women becoming Daoist partners and jointly cultivating the dual-cultivation path was also a way to rely on external aid to improve their cultivation.

When Zhou Chun had previously chosen a secret technique on the second floor of the Zhou Family Book Repository, he had even seen a dual-cultivation secret technique.

If a man and woman cultivated that sort of dual-cultivation secret technique together, their cultivation speed would be somewhat faster than under normal circumstances.

Therefore, for a cultivator like Zhou Zhengyong, who was twenty-seven or twenty-eight, to develop an interest in seeking a dual-cultivation partner after seeing female cultivators from other families with good backgrounds, cultivation, and looks was perfectly normal.

However, he had the desire but not the courage, and had to drag Zhou Chun along to bolster his nerve.

As for why he wanted to bring Zhou Chun, it was naturally because Zhou Chun was handsome, dashing, and heroic, making it less likely for female cultivators to dislike or reject him.

To be honest, Zhou Chun had never imagined that after transmigrating, he would actually become a handsome man with movie-star looks.

Thus, when Zhou Zhengyong treated him as a tool, he felt both helpless and amused.

The problem was that this was not something he could easily refuse.

Putting aside his friendship with Zhou Zhengyong, getting acquainted with other cultivators was not a bad thing in itself.

More importantly, although he had no intention of seeking a dual-cultivation partner at present, there was no need for him to dodge every female cultivator he encountered.

If he refused, Zhou Zhengyong was such a loudmouth that he might spread the matter around one day. Wouldn't people then start wondering whether there was something wrong with his sexual orientation?

At this point, he could only clear his throat twice before saying, "Ahem, of course it's fine to go meet fellow Daoists from the other families. But whether you can attract the ladies' interest will depend on your own ability, Brother Yong."

Seeing him agree, Zhou Zhengyong immediately nodded enthusiastically. "Of course. I've prepared a secret weapon."

A secret weapon?

Zhou Chun could not help looking him over, but he did not see anything new on him.

Still, those words piqued his curiosity.

He then followed Zhou Zhengyong toward the osmanthus tree where the several female cultivators were gathered.

When they had come within about five yards of the women, the female cultivators noticed them and looked over. Seeing that Zhou Zhengyong had no intention of speaking, Zhou Chun could only clasp his hands and greet them first. "Greetings, fellow Daoists. I'm Zhou Zhengchun, and this is my clan brother, Zhou Zhengyong."

After a slight pause, he smiled at the women. "Would the two of us be permitted to stay for a while and chat with you fellow Daoists?"

Although he said this, he was actually extremely nervous.

To be honest, Zhou Chun had a shadow hanging over him when it came to situations like this.

In his previous life, he had been rejected many times, to the point that he eventually gave up trying altogether.

But the result this time made him confident from then on.

As soon as he finished speaking, the female cultivators all smiled.

One of them, a female cultivator wearing a water-blue long dress, immediately raised a hand and beckoned. "Of course. Fellow Daoist Zhou, please sit. As it happens, we sisters would also like to ask the Zhou Family fellow Daoists for some guidance on the Dao of Beast Taming!"

So being handsome really did come with special treatment?

Or were the female cultivators of this world simply more understanding?

As Zhou Chun took the opportunity to sit down, he was filled with endless emotion.

He looked at the four female cultivators across from him.

In terms of looks and figures, every one of them was absolutely first-rate by the standards of his previous life. They could have casually gained a million followers by livestreaming without even using beauty filters.

Women like these had only been fit for admiring from afar in his previous life. Getting them to face him in person and treat him with a smile had been virtually impossible.

"Fellow Daoist Zhou looks quite young. May I ask how old you are?"

"I heard that the Zhou Family of Nine Peaks Ridge raises many kinds of spirit beasts. I've always wanted to raise a fox-type Spirit Pet. Could Fellow Daoist Zhou find a way to help me?"

"I raise a Flame Cat Spirit Pet. Unfortunately, after keeping it for many years, it has remained a First-grade Mid-tier Demonic Beast. Fellow Daoist Zhou, do you know how to help it advance and break through?"

Just as Zhou Chun sat down and was sighing inwardly, the female cultivators in front of him began firing all sorts of questions at him.

This seemed to bring him back to a familiar routine.

The difference was that in the past, people had asked, Have you bought a house? Have you bought a car? Did you pay for the house in full? Is the car a BBA?

Compared with those soul-crushing questions, the ones before him now were much easier to answer.

After steadying himself, he immediately replied with a smile, "I'm twenty-four this year, and I've been walking the path of cultivation for fourteen years."

"As for this fellow Daoist's request, I'm afraid I can't help. The Zhou Family has no plans to sell Spirit Pets to outsiders at present. However, I can keep an eye out for you. If I receive any news in the future, I'll inform you promptly."

"As for this fellow Daoist's question, I'll need to examine your Flame Cat's condition and learn how you raised it before I can offer you any advice."

Thus, while answering the female cultivators' questions, Zhou Chun gradually asked questions of his own and helped Zhou Zhengyong find out more about the women's circumstances.