First Steps into Nether River

Heavenly Pivot District, southeast corner.

A group of people were blocking the entrance to the old house.

"Three days have passed. Where are the people you chose? Who will be the one to plant the Gu?"

Tang Zhan gritted his teeth in hatred and said, enunciating each word clearly:

"I need to see the child first."

"Hehe, that's not up to you. The sect leader said that if no one is willing to plant the Gu, he will keep the two children. A virgin boy and a virgin girl—they are excellent tonics."

The gaunt man who was leading the group said in a sinister tone.

"Brother Zhan, I'm in trouble, I'll go."

Xu Meiniang had tears in her eyes and looked much more haggard than before.

She felt a surge of resentment; if it weren't for her negligence, she wouldn't have lost her child.

"It has nothing to do with you. It's because I didn't clean up the mess when I was investigating the Blood Gu Sect that they started targeting me."

"What a loving couple! But I don't have time to watch your acting. Give me a straight answer on who's going."

The gaunt man was clearly getting impatient.

"I'll go."

Tang Zhan stepped forward, but several voice transmissions came from behind him.

"Brother Tang, don't be impulsive. You still have to take care of Meiniang."

"Tiezhu is right. Why don't I do it? This old man doesn't have many years left to live anyway. Trading it for two little kids is a good deal."

"Where are you going? Do you really think they'll let Ping An and Lening go? That's a bottomless pit. We'll fight them to the death if necessary."

"No, if we fight, Ping An and Lening will truly have no chance of survival."

Just as everyone was discussing, a calm voice suddenly came from above.

"What do you think of me, fellow Daoist?"

Everyone looked up and saw a man dressed in a black robe with a long sword on his back standing in mid-air.

However, after seeing the appearance of the newcomer, Tang Zhan and the others were overjoyed.

"Brother Qin, you're back!"

"Brother Qin!"

The gaunt man was terrified; the person before him was standing on thin air.

"Foundation Establishment cultivator!"

Qin Fei didn't waste any words with them. Suddenly, his long sword flew out from behind him, and with a flash of cold light, more than ten people on the field were instantly beheaded.

For a moment, only the gaunt man remained, stunned in place.

"I'll go with you, fellow Daoist, you don't have any objections, do you?"

The gaunt man was terrified. He nodded blankly, then shook his head violently.

"Please spare my life, senior! I was only following orders."

He immediately bowed down, not caring even if his head bled from kowtowing.

Qin Fei ignored him and simply said:

"I said I want to go with you, don't you understand?"

The gaunt man was completely dumbfounded. This Foundation Establishment cultivator in front of him wasn't going to plant Gu worms at all; he was clearly going to cause trouble.

If he were to take this person back, wouldn't the sect leader skin him alive?

But if they don't agree, they won't even be able to get past this hurdle.

The gaunt man sighed inwardly and could only obediently nod.

Qin Fei then revealed a satisfied expression, and looked at Tang Zhan and the others, transmitting his voice:

"Please wait at home, everyone. I will go and bring Ping An and Lening back."

For some reason, the moment they saw Qin Fei, everyone had a feeling:

It's alright now.

After the two left, they looked at each other in bewilderment.

"I didn't expect that kid Qin would actually break through to the Foundation Establishment. No, I should call him Senior Qin from now on."

"I knew Qin Fei could do it. We need to hurry. Lately, I've been getting a feeling that he shouldn't be far from reaching the Qi Refining Ninth Layer."

"I hope Brother Qin has a safe journey and returns home safely with his two children."

Qin Fei, carrying the gaunt man, flew through the air.

The surrounding scenery kept receding, and the entire outline of Repel the North City came into view, which was extremely impressive.

The gaunt man had no interest in appreciating the scenery; he was drenched in cold sweat.

"Senior, I had no choice in the matter. Just ignore me and let it go. It really has nothing to do with me."

Little did he know that the group of people who had always been submissive would actually have Foundation Establishment Realm senior backing them up.

Otherwise, even if he had a hundred lives, he wouldn't dare to come and offend them.

"Lead the way."

Qin Fei's voice came through, its calmness chilling.

The gaunt man dared not delay and could only concentrate on giving directions.

An hour later, the two appeared on a wide street.

Strangely, the long street was deserted.

"Is that the Nether River District there?"

"That's right, senior, our Blood Gu Sect is among them."

Looking around, the architectural style suddenly changes.

On one side are towering palaces and magnificent buildings, while on the other side is a gloomy, dilapidated ghost building.

This is the border between Heavenly Pivot District and Nether River District. The straight street clearly marks the boundary between the two districts.

Qin Fei landed on the ground, and his aura suddenly dropped, only stopping when he reached the Qi Refining Seventh Layer.

"Lead the way."

The gaunt man secretly groaned, but dared not disobey.

As soon as you enter, a wasteland atmosphere hits you.

The nearby Rogue Cultivator looked over with gloomy expressions, as if they were checking if the two of them had anything valuable on them.

"I've heard that the Nether River District is a lawless land where murder and robbery happen almost daily. Is that true?"

"Senior is truly well-informed. The Nether River District is indeed more chaotic than the other two districts. True Lord Nether River said that this is the territory of the Evil Cultivator, and as long as they don't collude with the Barbarian Tribe, they can cause as much trouble as they want."

The gaunt man's face lit up with adoration when True Lord Nether River was mentioned.

But the thought of her situation instantly made her feel dejected again.

Just then, a group of cultivators dressed in white and carrying copper bells suddenly appeared and blocked their way.

The gaunt man glanced at Qin Fei furtively, then his expression darkened. He took out a token and tossed it over.

"The Blood Gu Sect is conducting its operations; all bystanders must immediately retreat!"

Upon hearing the name of the Blood Gu Sect, the white-robed cultivators' expressions changed drastically, and they quickly made way for them.

The gaunt man was not surprised and walked straight ahead.

After escaping the group of cultivators, he quickly went to Qin Fei's side and forced a smile that looked more like a grimace.

"Senior, please go first."

Along the way, they encountered several groups of cultivators who tried to block their path, but as soon as the Blood Gu Sect's token was displayed, no one dared to stop them.

Qin Fei showed a hint of interest and said calmly:

"Who are those people? Why are they blocking our way?"

"They're all bullies who prey on the weak and fear the strong. They usually collect tolls. I wasn't wearing the Blood Gu Sect's attire, otherwise they wouldn't have dared to stop me."

Qin Fei thought to himself, "Just as I thought," and then chuckled softly.

"It seems your Blood Gu Sect has quite a reputation. I heard the sect leader is an Evil Cultivator in the Foundation Establishment Early Stage. Could it be because of him?"

"Senior, you flatter me. The Sect Master does indeed have a considerable reputation in the Nether River District."

At this point, the gaunt man's heart stirred, and he continued:

"Our sect leader's Daoist name is Blood Gu Rogue Person. He is a generous and open-minded person who loves to make friends with fellow cultivators. Senior, what happened before was a misunderstanding. Perhaps you will hit it off with each other at first sight!"

A cold glint flashed in Qin Fei's eyes.

The so-called "planting of Gu" refers to implanting Gu worms into a cultivator's body and feeding them with their Essence Blood.

Within a few days, the cultivator's life Essence Blood, their physical body emptied, and they will eventually become a withered skeleton.

Qin Fei had no objection to this kind of thing. Whether it was a Gu cultivator or Devil Cultivator, everyone had their own way of cultivation. It was just a matter of the strong preying on the weak.

But if the poison is planted on someone close to him, then we have to talk about that.

"I didn't expect your sect leader to be such a hospitable person. I'll definitely make sure to get to know him better later."