Chapter 91: Chapter 91: A Master’s Night Visit

The next day, Li Ping summoned a steward from the Meng family.

He asked the steward to find separate apprenticeships for the two boys, Yan Hengchuan and Ji Shu Xuan.

As a Tier Two artisan and a Foundation Establishment Cultivator, and especially since Li Ping was on good terms with the Meng family’s Foundation Establishment Cultivators, he had enough standing for such a request. The Meng family steward agreed immediately.

After some hesitation the previous night, the two boys had decided they wanted to learn the skills of a spirit chef and a spirit wine brewer.

Li Ping let them choose as they wished.

Daoist Ji, worried about the two, went along with them.

Li Ping thought for a moment, then instructed Bai Lin to go with them as well and help the boys rent a place to live near their new workplaces.

Of course, he was well aware of the principle that jade must be carved to be of value.

Therefore, he wouldn’t provide the two boys with much help in the way of Spirit Stones for now. He would only pay their first three months of rent, gift them a certain amount of Pills to advance their cultivation each year, and periodically guide them in their practice.

Only once their tempers were smoothed, their cultivation had improved, and they had matured into steady young men.

Only then would Li Ping provide a sum of Spirit Stones to help each of them open their own shop, allowing them to showcase their skills.

He didn’t lack Spirit Stones, but if he arranged everything for the two boys and sheltered them from the trials of the world, raising two innocent little rabbits, he would truly be doing them a disservice.

...

「At the stroke of midnight.」

In a secret chamber within the Spirit Treasure Pavilion, the woman known as Miaorou sat cross-legged, her expression fluctuating between light and shadow.

Ever since she and Yan Kun had stolen the Fierce Arrowhead Eagle’s egg and gone their separate ways, Yan Kun had not come to find her.

Even the Spirit Beast Pouch containing the Fierce Arrowhead Eagle egg was still in her possession; he had never come to retrieve it.

However, Yan Kun, who held the main Celestial Secret Mirror, could contact her at will, but she had no way of contacting him. Thus, she had no idea what had happened.

Logically, with the Fierce Arrowhead Eagle egg still in her hands, it was impossible that Yan Kun would leave the Immortal City without seeking her out.

’Could something have happened to him?’ The thought suddenly surfaced in her mind, and Miaorou was startled by her own idea.

But as soon as she considered the possibility, her heart sank. After all, given the special relationship between her master and Yan Kun, if something had happened to him, her master might punish her for it.

TAP!

But just then, a light knock came from the back door—it was the exact signal she had arranged with Yan Kun.

Knowing Yan Kun wasn’t dead, Miaorou let out a sigh of relief, yet at the same time, she felt a trace of disappointment.

She walked to the door and, without much thought, opened it directly.

But the moment she actually opened the door and saw who was outside—

A chill shot through her, as if a basin of ice-cold water had been dumped over her head. She froze on the spot, her mind blank, a cold sweat breaking out on her forehead as the hairs on her body stood on end in terror.

Because... standing outside the door was not Yan Kun, but a tall female cultivator wearing a veil. She watched Miaorou coolly as she opened the door. A small, foot-long green snake was coiled on her shoulder, occasionally flicking its tongue and hissing!

It was none other than the master of the Immortal City, the Core Formation Cultivator Fenglan Master, who had come calling with her spirit beast, Little Green Dragon.

Seeing Miaorou’s stupefied expression, Fenglan Master nodded slightly. "It seems I haven’t found the wrong person."

After studying the Celestial Secret Mirror, she had finally used Senior Brother Xu’s psychic Flying Sword to instantly sever the restriction. It happened so fast that the mirror’s self-destruct restriction didn’t have time to react. Although the Celestial Secret Mirror did self-destruct in the end, in the brief moment before its destruction, she had managed to see fragmented chat logs within it.

Thus, she followed the trail of clues right to her door.

"Let’s talk inside." Fenglan Master gestured inward. With that, she stepped into the room herself.

Only then did Miaorou snap out of her daze, hurriedly stepping aside.

Fenglan Master walked slowly into the room. Miaorou glanced at the empty doorway, then, just as she had when meeting with Yan Kun, she grit her teeth and shut the door firmly.

Faced with two Core Formation-level combatants, and still within the Immortal City, attempting to flee would be a dead end.

She thought to herself, ’Fenglan Master didn’t kill me on sight. That means I still have a chance to live. I’ll take the gamble!’

The two went into the secret chamber. Fenglan Master sat down in a chair as if she were the master of the house, while Miaorou stood beside her with her hands clasped, like a handmaiden.

Fenglan Master said coolly, "Fellow Daoist Miao, according to the information I have, you were originally a Loose Cultivator from the Qi Kingdom. During a night of chaos in a market square, your dao companion was killed. After collecting his body, you vanished without a trace. When you reappeared in the Chi Kingdom, you were already a Foundation Establishment Cultivator. Am I correct?"

Miaorou nodded respectfully. "Your insight is profound, Master."

A hint of appreciation appeared in Fenglan Master’s eyes, clearly pleased with Miaorou’s perceptiveness. She then asked, "What happened during that intervening time, and how did Fellow Daoist Miao become a disciple of the Blood Shadow Sect? I wonder if you would be so kind as to tell me."

Although it was phrased as a question, Fenglan Master’s tone was unquestionable, leaving Miaorou no room to refuse.

"I..." Miaorou hesitated for a moment before nodding. "Since you ask, Master, Miaorou dare not hide anything."

Immediately, she began to recount her experiences in detail.

On the night of the chaos in the market, her usually honest dao companion had become agitated and restless. Murmuring, "This might be the only chance in my life," he had transformed into a masked bandit, rushing into the market for a "zero-dollar shopping spree," trying to get rich overnight.

No matter how she tried to persuade him, she couldn’t stop him, and could only stay home alone, worried and afraid.

When dawn broke and the chaos subsided, she saw her dao companion again... his corpse.

After a fit of bitter weeping, she could only collect his body for burial. But as she was burying her dao companion, dressed in mourning clothes, she happened to be spotted by a passing Core Formation Cultivator from the Blood Shadow Sect.

The Core Formation Cultivator was overcome by his brutish nature and forcibly took her right there, in front of her dao companion’s grave.

After that, she became that Core Formation Cultivator’s concubine.

After cultivating to the Late-stage Qi Refining realm, she was favored and granted a Foundation Establishment Pill, with which she luckily succeeded in reaching Foundation Establishment.

Later, on the orders of that Blood Shadow Sect Core Formation Cultivator, she concealed her identity and joined the Sword Washing Pool, becoming an Honored Guest Elder. She arrived in the Immortal City to manage the Spirit Treasure Pavilion’s business and simultaneously gather intelligence on the city.

...

After finishing her story, Miaorou didn’t dare to look at Fenglan Master’s expression. She lowered her head, quietly awaiting judgment.

"Was it the uncle and nephew pair, Yan Liming and Yan Kun?" As Fenglan Master nodded, a flash of disgust involuntarily crossed her eyes.

This disgust was not directed at Miaorou, but at the Yan uncle and nephew.

Yan Liming’s strength was only that of an Early-stage Core Formation Cultivator, but his evil reputation surpassed even those of some old demons at the Late-stage Core Formation. He was an out-and-out devil.

The number of depraved acts he had committed was simply countless.

His nephew, whom he had gained by cuckolding his own brother, had a style quite similar to his own.

Fenglan Master believed that there seemed to be some truth to Miaorou’s words.

But she had likely concealed a great deal as well. For example, Miaorou claimed to know nothing about what happened to Lin Yue, saying Yan Kun acted alone. Fenglan Master didn’t believe that; she suspected Miaorou had provided intelligence support.

’But if it was Yan Kun, then who was it that killed him and delivered his belongings to the Immortal City?’ Having identified one of the hidden figures, Fenglan Master was now faced with a new puzzle.

Yan Kun was a Late-stage Foundation Establishment Cultivator. Besides herself, who in the Immortal City was his match?

She silently guessed, ’Perhaps it was a passing fellow Daoist who wished to remain anonymous.’

Numerous thoughts flashed through her mind. Fenglan Master looked at Miaorou. "Fellow Daoist Miao, I need you to do me a favor."

...

After Yan Hengchuan and Ji Shu Xuan’s apprenticeships and lodgings were arranged, Daoist Ji hastily prepared to return to the Jiang Kingdom, seemingly worried about the situation back home.

What Li Ping found strange was that when Daoist Ji announced his intention to leave, he specifically reminded Li Ping that it would be best to return to the Jiang Kingdom soon to pay respects to Yan Guikai.

He said that when the time came, he had some matters to discuss with Li Ping.

Li Ping guessed that perhaps Daoist Ji had run into trouble and hoped he would return to the Jiang Kingdom to lend a hand.

In fact, he had already planned to make a trip back to the Jiang Kingdom after killing the Demon Cultivator.

But now, the Immortal City’s auction was about to begin, and after that, Zhang Tie still needed to attempt his breakthrough to Foundation Establishment.

If he were to set off, he would have to wait until after Zhang Tie’s breakthrough attempt at the very least.

Thinking of this, he said with a smile, "Brother Ji, I also have to return to the Jiang Kingdom in a while. Why don’t you stay in the Immortal City a bit longer? You can just take my Flying Ship back then."

Daoist Ji hesitated slightly upon hearing this.

Li Ping continued to persuade him, "Coincidentally, the Immortal City’s auction will be starting in a few days. Don’t you want to witness such a grand event, Brother Ji? Besides, when I pilot my Flying Ship, the speed is leagues beyond that of a merchant caravan. If you wait for me, you might even get back to the Jiang Kingdom before they do."

Only then did Daoist Ji nod with a smile. "Very well. This old man can take the opportunity to witness the splendor of the City of Loose Cultivators!"

Having persuaded Daoist Ji to stay, a smile appeared in Li Ping’s eyes.

To his resignation, however, although Daoist Ji stayed, he was unwilling to continue imposing on Li Ping at Immortal Peach Mountain and went to stay at his grandson’s new residence instead.

...

「Soon, the day of the Immortal City’s auction arrived.」

Old Man Lin and Zhang Tie were waiting at the foot of Immortal Peach Mountain early in the morning. When they saw Li Ping’s figure appear, they hurried over.

The two greeted him with smiles, "Fellow Daoist Li!" and "Big Brother!"

Li Ping returned their smiles, and the three of them walked toward the auction house together. When they reached the entrance, Li Ping spotted Daoist Ji outside.

He quickly went over to greet Daoist Ji, and then the four of them entered the auction house together.

Facing the auction house’s reception steward, Li Ping presented the VIP Token he had acquired from the Meng family long ago. The steward immediately led them respectfully to a VIP box on the second floor.

Not long after the four of them sat down, the reception steward returned with a platter of Spirit Fruits before quietly excusing himself.

In truth, he hadn’t gone far, but was waiting quietly outside the door to attend to their needs.

Li Ping gazed down from above.

The auction hall was semicircular, with an interior diameter of about thirty zhang.

Directly in front was a square platform raised several chi off the ground—the auction stage.

Beyond the square auction stage were rows of ordinary seats, rising in tiers. And at the highest point, on the outer edge of the second floor, were the VIP boxes where Li Ping and his group were situated.

From within the VIP box, one could look down upon the central auction stage and the teeming crowd of Loose Cultivators below.

It could be said that the view was excellent, and it gave one a feeling of being high above the rest.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.