You're So Clever, but You Won't Listen to Advice. You're Making Things Difficult for Me

After seeing Zhao Xuan off, the smile on Nan Guan's round face gradually faded, and he fell into thought.

That man surnamed Lu is neither trustworthy nor untrustworthy.

The Reincarnated Spirit Physique to find Yao Liang, who had been dead for more than half a year, was somewhat outrageous. But it was precisely because it was so outrageous and strange that he believed it to some extent. However, he still had doubts about other aspects.

"Someone come here."

A thin, gray-clad man appeared silently in the doorway, standing with his head bowed, like a withered tree trunk.

Nan Guan said calmly, "Go and report today's events yourself—tell them that a fellow surnamed Lu came to White Dragon Pass, claiming to have a private deal with Yao Liang and possessing a ' Reincarnated Spirit Physique,' asking for thirty Primordial Pill."

"In addition."

Nan Guan paused for a moment, then said, "Send men to investigate the surrounding towns and villages to see which direction these two people came from."

He waved his hand, and the man in gray silently retreated.

After finishing his work, Nan Guan poured himself a cup of tea and muttered to himself with a slightly strange expression:

"He agreed to ten Primordial Pill. If this is true, then Yao Liang was quite the businessman in life, a promising talent who knew how to negotiate prices. It's a pity he's dead."

Suddenly, a series of hurried footsteps came from outside the door. A black-clad subordinate practically burst in, panting and pale.

"Deacon Nan! Something's gone wrong with the ceremony!"

The smile on Nan Guan's round face vanished completely in that instant.

He suddenly stood up, his plump body leaping out with extraordinary agility, like a startled falcon, his sleeves billowing in the wind, showing no trace of the weak and frail appearance he had shown before, who would break out in a sweat after just a few steps.

Day 1.

Yu Tunzhou stayed almost entirely in the secret room, with meals delivered to him three times a day, but he didn't touch a single bite. He only asked the messenger to tell Nan Guan to gather the Primordial Pill as soon as possible to complete the transaction.

The External Scenery was secretly monitoring them, so he refrained from making any rash moves and instead focused on cultivating in the secluded room.

At this moment, he sat cross-legged on the stone bed in a corner against the wall, his aura deep and restrained, his palms clasped together in front of his Dantian, and he focused most of his mind into his body.

A stream of fortune descended slowly from the Void almost every moment, like silk threads, warm and long, merging into his Dao Sprout Immortal Embryo.

He recently figured out the source of this inexplicable aura in the Void.

As expected, this should be the "benefits" of being listed on the Three Rankings. He had heard about it before, but before entering the Dragon Gate, he ranked fourth on the Dragon and Tiger Ranking and had never felt any so-called good fortune.

On his way here, he saw the newly released Three Rankings, and he was now not only at the top of the Dragon and Tiger Ranking List, but also on the Earth Ranking.

Whether it was due to being listed on both lists or the accumulation of this thing, it poured out all the luck from the past two years, including the Reserve Ranking, to nourish his Dao Sprout Immortal Embryo, making his connection with "Dao" even closer.

The bottleneck of the Middle Divine Ability Stage, which originally required several months of refinement to break through, has shown signs of loosening under the nourishment of this fortune.

The cultivation gap in the Divine Ability Realm is much larger than that in the Chain Forming Realm, but with this stroke of luck, his current cultivation speed has actually surpassed his previous Form Refinement cultivation.

No wonder martial artists from all schools and sects are vying for the top spots on these Three Rankings.

The following night.

Yu Tunzhou suddenly opened his eyes.

The Primordial Spirit power that had been subtly locking onto this place finally disappeared, and disappeared extremely quickly, as if its attention had been diverted by something more urgent.

Instead, the previously shrouded aura of immortals Immortals and Gods suddenly became turbulent, churning violently like a deep pool being boiled.

Only now did Yu Tunzhou realize that this aura was similar to the lofty and boundless Daoist charm he had felt in Dragon Gate, but it was also heavier and more turbid, as if it had been polluted by something.

Yu Tunzhou's eyes flickered; he knew the time had come.

He got up, walked to the door, and opened it directly.

Outside the door was a narrow passageway, with a lamp embedded in the walls every few steps on both sides.

The guards near the gate acted as if they hadn't seen him at all, and didn't even react when the gate was opened.

Yu Tunzhou's Nature Cultivation has reached the [Pure Land] perfection.

A pure mind transcends the limitations of the physical body; a pure mind creates a pure environment, enabling one to influence those around them.

The effects on the five senses of the few mere Form Refinement guards were as natural as breathing; even the one at the Divine Ability Realm remained completely unaffected.

As for External Scenery, the starting point for cultivating Nature Cultivation is Pure Land. Even if the other party is only at the first level of Purity of the Six Roots, he is not sure if he can deceive the other party's perception. Therefore, he did not take any risks before.

After roughly confirming the source of the Immortals and Gods aura, Yu Tunzhou began searching the area and soon arrived at a fork in the road.

The fluctuations of that Immortals and Gods aura grew clearer and clearer, pointing towards a stone staircase extending downwards deep within the passageway.

Just as Yu Tunzhou was about to step down, he suddenly looked to his right and saw several warriors from the merchant guild dragging something along as they walked quickly towards him.

He stepped back and watched as the warriors dragged two unconscious people past him, hurrying down the stone steps.

He looked in the direction the group had come from, then with a light step, he instantly crossed the road and arrived at its end, only to find that it was actually a prison, with many people inside dressed in the prison uniforms of the Great Yan.

Are these government prisoners?

Why were they imprisoned in the basement of the Five Rivers Chamber of Commerce branch?

Yu Tunzhou's gaze swept across the room and he saw some unconscious men and women in another cell. Judging from their clothing, they seemed to be disciples of some sect.

With a thought, he went to the cell, flicked his finger, and released the pressure points of the nearest man, waking him up.

The unconscious man's throat bobbed, his eyelashes trembled slightly, and it was unclear how long he had been unconscious. When he awoke, he was still dazed, barely managing to turn his face to the side, his gaze unfocused as he searched for a light source.

His gaze gradually focused on Yu Tunzhou's face. Fear and hatred flashed across his turbid eyes, but a light quickly appeared, like a trapped beast seeing a glimmer of hope.

"You... you're not..."

Yu Tunzhou crouched down and asked in a deep voice, "Which sect are you from, and how did you end up being imprisoned here?"

The man swallowed hard, as if grasping at a last straw, and spoke in a hoarse voice, "We are disciples of the Pine Mountain Sect. My name is Guo Feng. Originally, I was traveling down the mountain with five fellow disciples. In Green Willow City, we accepted a bounty from the Five Rivers Chamber of Commerce, saying that there were bandits roaming the area..."

His voice trembled slightly, but his speech quickened, as if he were afraid of being interrupted before he could finish:

"We thought it was a routine bandit suppression operation, but we were ambushed while trying to wipe out the roving bandits. When we woke up, we were imprisoned here. Every now and then, they feed us a kind of pill that leaves us feeling weak all over and unable to even circulate our Blood Qi..."

As he spoke, his previously restless and unfocused gaze gradually sharpened, fixing on Yu Tunzhou, as if he had remembered something even more unbearable for him.

"They... they are refining demonic pills!"

Guo Feng's voice suddenly rose, trembling almost to the point of collapse, his eyes bloodshot as he spoke.

"They used their junior sister to refine demon pills!"

"Hero, run! Don't worry about us! Our Blood Qi has been sealed by that elixir, and we're now weaker than ordinary people. We can't escape at all. You must leave here immediately and report to the authorities for help!"

"And... and the Five Rivers Chamber of Commerce! We accepted their bounty, they'll definitely send people to investigate! Oh, and Floating Hill Mountain! They're the leaders of the righteous path in the Eastern Wilderness, they'll never ignore such beastly acts of using humans to refine demonic pills!"

He grabbed Yu Tunzhou's trouser leg like a drowning man grasping at a piece of driftwood, and growled hoarsely:

"Hero, hurry! You must capture them all!"

Yu Tunzhou didn't answer immediately, but took a deep breath.

Using human lives to refine demonic pills?

That makes sense.

Now it seems this was a scheme orchestrated by the Five Rivers Chamber of Commerce of Commerce itself, aimed at capturing martial artists?

only...

Yu Tunzhou looked deeply at the man before him, but ultimately did not tell him the cruel truth.

The place he was in was the underground branch of the Five Rivers Chamber of Commerce...

Yu Tunzhou examined Guo Feng's body. The latter's foundation was not bad, reaching the level of Form Refinement Perfection, making him a formidable opponent even in the martial arts world.

But at this moment, all his vital Qi and Blood was condensed in his Dantian, as if it had been sealed off.

Yu Tunzhou his fingers, condensing a Limitless Gang Qi at his fingertip, and with extremely light force probed into Guo Feng's body, attempting to pry open the seal a crack.

But the next second, Guo Feng suddenly curled up, letting out a muffled groan that was suppressed to the extreme, and his whole body convulsed.

Seeing this, Yu Tunzhou stopped immediately and dared not try again.

Just then...

Yu Tunzhou suddenly turned around, looking towards the stone steps leading down, and sensed the strong aura of Immortals and Gods. His expression became solemn.

The real trouble here isn't about using people to refine demonic pills...

The true core is that increasingly clear aura of Immortals and Gods surging up from the depths of the earth!

These guys are actually making contact with ancient Immortals and Gods!

He originally thought that having External Scenery Second Layer set was a waste of its potential.

But looking at it now? It's utterly audacious!

He took a deep breath and looked at Guo Feng, whose convulsions had stopped:

"I can't save you right now. You stay here and try to wake up your companions while we wait for rescue."

Guo Feng took a long while to calm down before he could barely stop trembling. He nodded, his voice weak but filled with stubbornness:

"Reporting to the authorities... it's my junior sister..."

Yu Tunzhou remained silent, did not linger any longer, and turned to leave.

Just as he stepped onto the downward stone steps, a very subtle tremor suddenly came from the ground beneath his feet.

As he walked up the stone steps to the end, the increasingly clear noise and angry shouts reached his ears.

Below was a grand hall, even more expansive than expected, nearly a hundred feet in circumference, with a high-hanging dome.

"Useless! Hold your ground! If even one rune breaks, you'll all have to fill in the gap!"

Nan Guan stood ramrod straight, his plump body stern, his voice deep and urgent as he sternly reprimanded his subordinates.

On the ground in the center of the front hall, there were intricate array patterns engraved, with the patterns nested in layers, like countless concentric circles stacked together, and at the very center was a Void rift about ten feet wide.

The edges of the crack were irregular, like torn cloth. The depths of the crack were pitch black, yet a scorching red light surged out from within.

It flickered on and off, expanded and contracted, like a living creature breathing.

Above the rift, a figure hovered in the Void, pressing down with both palms, directly above the rift, desperately trying to suppress its expansion.

Zhao Xuan, who was stationed at the External Scenery, had fine beads of sweat on his forehead and a cold and solemn expression.

The Immortals and Gods aura that Yu Tunzhou sensed was surging from the depths of the rift.

It was lofty and vast, carrying an indescribable sense of heaviness, as if some extremely distant and profound being was casting its gaze upon this place across countless layers of Void.

The edges of the crack were constantly being stretched open by that aura, as if being repeatedly pushed from the inside, with each expansion being several times more violent than the last.

"What are you all standing there for!" Nan Guan's voice suddenly rose, "Get your hands dirty!"

At that moment, the crimson light surging deep within the rift suddenly surged, and an impact nearly twice as powerful as before erupted from within the rift, as if it had been violently struck from the inside.

The array patterns surrounding the rift dimmed for half a breath in the same instant, and even Zhao Xuan's hands, which were suspended above the rift, trembled slightly, being pushed upwards by the recoil force by half an inch.

"Suppress it!" Zhao Xuan shouted in a low voice.

The surrounding merchant guild warriors dared not delay and hurriedly sped up their work to repair the array patterns, barely managing to suppress the situation.

After a full incense stick's time, the cracks finally stabilized and gradually disappeared.

Nan Guan quickly stepped forward, took out a jade box from his pocket, and respectfully handed it over, saying, "Thank you for your hard work, Elder Zhao. We are so grateful to you again this time."

Zhao Xuan showed no politeness, took the jade box, and swallowed the pills inside in one gulp. Her originally pale face immediately became rosy, and her aura seemed even stronger than before.

Zhao Xuan's furrowed brows did not relax at all. He looked at Nan Guan with sharp eyes. "The other side is adapting to the rules of heaven and earth. Each test is more intense than the last. If this continues, I'm afraid I won't be able to control them. At the very least, we'll need to invite Quasi-Grandmaster who has mastered the Dharma Domain to be on the safe side."

Nan Guan's smile faltered slightly for a moment, then he sighed, "We can still make some adjustments in the first and second levels of the External Scenery, but in the third level, who isn't a pillar of a local power? Not to mention the Quasi-Grandmaster who have already mastered the Dharma Domain. Each family only has a handful of them on the surface, and if even one of them goes missing, it will inevitably alert other forces."

Once you reach the External Scenery Fourth Layer, these powerful individuals are like radishes in their designated places, and the higher you go, the more you need the support of a large power or clan.

Zhao Xuan suddenly said, "If we could bring in a martial artist who has mastered the [Nether Passage] technique, even if they are only at the Divine Ability Realm, they should be able to suppress them."

A rare, bitter smile appeared on Nan Guan's face, "Using Nether Passage against Nether Passage... that's just drinking poison to quench thirst."

Zhao Xuan did not deny it, and then fell silent.

In the quiet moment, Nan Guan suddenly spoke up, "Friend, you've been watching for so long, shouldn't you come out now?"

The hall fell silent.

Zhao Xuan suddenly looked up, his Primordial Spirit power sweeping in all directions like a tidal wave. He searched the stone walls, the dome, the stone steps entrance, and every shadowy spot carefully, but found nothing.

He gave Nan Guan a strange look, somewhat annoyed.

This guy is bluffing again!

In his words, there's no harm in bluffing anyway.

Nan Guan completely ignored Zhao Xuan's gaze. He stood still, his large body motionless, his voice neither loud nor soft, yet carrying a certain certainty:

"Brother Lu, you've been watching for so long, it's time for you to come out. If you come out now, our deal can continue. If you don't..."

He paused, and his usually smiling face was now replaced by a cold, hard, almost murderous expression.

"Then I can only assume you've chosen another path."

The air in the main hall seemed frozen; it was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

Zhao Xuan used his Primordial Spirit power to scan the surroundings for the second time. This time, he deliberately extended his perception further into the passageway above the stone steps, but there was still no one there.

Nan Guan, however, did not look away.

He gazed at the stone steps leading to the entrance, the confident look on his chubby face never fading, like a fox patiently waiting for a rabbit to peek out of its hole.

After an unknown amount of time, a very faint sound of a foot landing on the stone surface suddenly came from the shadows at the entrance of the stone steps.

Everyone's expression changed.

Someone actually infiltrated this place?!

Zhao Xuan's gaze became extremely deep at this moment.

At the entrance to the stone steps, a long shadow stretched out slowly from the darkness.

A figure emerged from the shadows.

Zhao Xuan narrowed her eyes slightly, confirming once again that the other party was only at the Early Divine Ability Stage, so it must be some kind of hidden divine weapon or talisman?

Yu Tunzhou looked at Nan Guan, his tone carrying a hint of genuine curiosity. "How did you discover me? Even the person behind you didn't notice my presence."

Nan Guan smiled again, a cunning and triumphant look on his round face. He laughed loudly, "If you had persisted a little longer, Brother Lu, I might have laughed out loud a couple of times, saying it was to make a joke for everyone and ease the tension!"

Yu Tunzhou suddenly realized, "Are you bluffing me?"

"Brother Lu, you jest. It was just a joke." Nan Guan was inexplicably in a good mood and said with a smile, "It's just a pity that Brother Lu saw something he shouldn't have seen. He can't leave now, but don't worry, since you brought me a Reincarnated Spirit Physique, I will definitely treat you well."

He waved his hand, signaling his men to capture Yu Tunzhou, while he himself stared at Yu Tunzhou with a smile, wanting to see if this man had any other tricks up his sleeve.

He had just given Zhao Xuan a Heavenly Yuan Replenishing Pill, and her condition had not only returned to its peak but had also improved somewhat.

It was precisely because of this object that a External Scenery Second Layer was willing to stay in this shady underground black market.

Even if Brother Lu has a backup plan, he is confident that he can win easily.

The difference between the External Scenery Second Layer and the Early Divine Ability Stage is immeasurable!

Yu Tunzhou was silent for a moment, then suddenly sighed and said, "Tell me, why are you so smart?"

Um?

A strong sense of unease inexplicably rose in Nan Guan's heart.

Before he could react, he heard several chilling sounds of bones cracking—

Those martial artists at the mid-to-late stage of Divine Ability powers who were ordered to step forward didn't even utter a sound before their heads were pressed into their chests by an invisible force, and they died on the spot!

Before Nan Guan could react...

Footsteps came from ahead.

The Yu Tunzhou and stepped out of the shadows into the light.

His shadow spread wildly like a living thing, and in an instant it covered the sky and the sun. It was as if a terrifying demon god was overflowing from his shadow, gradually covering the hundred-foot-tall hall and blocking out the light.

A pair of eyes that once looked down upon all living beings lowered, indifferent and lifeless, as if looking at a nest of ants digging their own graves.

"Didn't I warn you before? Did you really think you could stop me with just these few people?"

Yu Tunzhou's gaze swept over the two desiccated corpses in the corner, the array patterns in the center of the hall, and the "gateway" that Nan Guan and the others had finally managed to close after their tireless efforts.

The Immortals and Gods aura that had once filled him with such fear was now reduced to mere remnants.

"I never expected the Five Rivers Chamber of Commerce of Commerce to be so large-scale. Not only do they kidnap people and refine demonic pills, but they also dare to secretly summon ancient Immortals and Gods. It's simply outrageous..."

Finally, his gaze fell on Nan Guan, and he said softly:

"Clever yet stubborn, Brother Nan, should I praise your wit or your foolishness?"