The young Clerk Zhang hurried forward, lowering his voice conspiratorially. “I’ve heard all about it. That person from the Chen family… sigh, he’s truly bullying others too far! My Young Mistress is also very worried.”

Zhou Kai waved his hand dismissively. “A minor trouble, already resolved.”

“My Young Mistress would like to invite Alchemist Zhou over for a chat. She has booked a room at the ‘Welcoming Immortals Residence’ at the head of the market district…”

Zhou Kai raised an eyebrow slightly.

Previously, he had taken the initiative to visit her. Now that Wang Qiaoqiao needed something from him, she still expected him to go to her?

Times had changed.

To truly win over someone like Wang Qiaoqiao, one needed to show a little attitude.

“No need,” Zhou Kai interrupted Clerk Zhang. “Go back and tell your Young Mistress that she should come here tomorrow at noon to discuss matters.”

Clerk Zhang was taken aback. “Have our Young Mistress come here? But she has already rented a tea room at the Welcoming Immortals Residence…”

“Is there a problem?” Zhou Kai shot him a glance.

“No problem! No problem at all! I’ll go back and report to the Young Mistress right away!” Clerk Zhang felt a chill under Zhou Kai’s gaze and quickly agreed.

After the clerk left, Zhou Kai walked toward the neighboring courtyard belonging to Zhao Tieshan.

Chen Ziyi’s body tempering required a great deal of vitality. The meager stock in his own Storage Bag was likely just a drop in the bucket.

Knock, knock, knock.

Zhou Kai rapped on the courtyard gate.

After a moment, faint rustling sounds came from inside.

“Who is it… so early in the morning…” a woman’s voice called out languidly.

With a creak, the gate was pulled open a crack.

A Mortal woman peeked out. Her face was flushed, her hair disheveled, and her clothes were somewhat askew, as if hastily thrown on. She still carried the lingering scent of intimacy about her. She sized up Zhou Kai, her eyes and brows holding a hint of springtime allure.

Seeing it was an unfamiliar man, she immediately became wary. “Who are you looking for?”

“I am Zhou Kai from next door. I’m looking for Fellow Daoist Zhao; I have some matters to consult him about.”

Hearing this, the woman turned her head and called back into the house, “Master, there’s a cultivator named Zhou Kai at the gate…”

“Oh? It’s Fellow Daoist Zhou! Please, come in quickly!” Zhao Tieshan’s booming voice rang out from the inner courtyard.

Only then did the woman fully open the gate and step aside to let him pass, her attitude becoming more casual. “Oh, then come in. The Master is inside.”

Zhou Kai stepped through the gate into the courtyard.

As soon as he entered, a rich wave of Spirit Qi washed over him. It was comparable to Patriarch Chen Rulong’s cultivation ground back at the Chen family estate—perhaps even slightly denser.

Zhou Kai’s gaze shifted as he scanned the courtyard. In one corner sat several inconspicuous Array Stones emitting a faint spiritual glow. Clearly, an extremely effective Spirit Gathering Array was set up here.

It seemed this Fellow Daoist Zhao lived even more comfortably than he had imagined.

On the stone stools in the inner courtyard lay several sets of women’s clothing. It seemed he had indeed interrupted their activities.

Zhao Tieshan sat boldly on a stone stool. Several equally young and beautiful Mortal Concubines beside him were deftly serving spirit fruits and wine while quickly tidying up the “battlefield.”

However, Zhou Kai’s gaze was drawn elsewhere.

On Zhao Tieshan’s chest and arms were several circles of blood-stained bandages—clearly fresh wounds that had not yet healed.

“Hey there, Fellow Daoist Zhou!” Zhao Tieshan grinned broadly, seemingly unconcerned about his injuries. “Quick, have a seat! Cui’er, pour some wine for Fellow Daoist Zhou!”

“Fellow Daoist Zhao, you are…” Zhou Kai pointed at the bandages.

“Damn it! Bad luck!” Zhao Tieshan took a big gulp of wine and cursed angrily. “A few days ago, I went deep into Crouching Tiger Mountain to hunt some beasts for extra Spirit Stones. Who knew I’d run smack into three sects fighting!”

“Three sects?”

“That’s right! Calamity Abyss Valley, Heavenly Spring Sect, Lone Goose Palace—who knows what damn ruins they were fighting over! Golden Core cultivators clashing! Flying swords and magic treasures flying everywhere! What a spectacle!”

“I was originally keeping my distance, trying to detour around it. But then I got caught by some stray flying sword from who knows where! Damn it nearly stabbed my kidney!”

Zhao Tieshan patted his side with lingering fear. “If I hadn’t run fast and had some life-saving tricks up my sleeve, the grass on my grave would be three feet high by now!”

“What happened later? How did it end?” Zhou Kai pressed.

“Later? The commotion was too big!”

“I heard even the Nascent Soul old monsters from all three sects were alarmed in the end. They personally intervened to mediate before everyone retreated.”

Ruins?

Most likely, it was the place Shen Hanyi had discovered earlier. He hadn’t expected such a massive commotion that even Nascent Souls were alarmed. Could it be that within those ruins lay an opportunity even Nascent Souls valued?

If this news spread, all of the Crouching Tiger Mountain Market and even the surrounding regions would likely be thrown into turmoil.

Suppressing his thoughts, Zhou Kai showed an expression of admiration.

“Fellow Daoist truly has great fortune and fate to survive such a battle. Such strength and luck are truly admirable.”

“But speaking of which, Fellow Daoist lives with such clarity. With such beauties and fine wine for company—carefree and at ease—unlike me, who still has to toil for cultivation resources.”

After saying this, Zhou Kai glanced at the Mortal woman named Cui’er standing not far away.

Hearing this, Zhao Tieshan immediately laughed heartily. “Fellow Daoist speaks straight to my heart! Brother, you speak plainly!”

“Come on! Drink! Drink!”

“To be honest with you,” Zhao Tieshan continued after drinking with gusto, “I was also once a sect disciple. Back then, I was single-mindedly focused on reaching Foundation Establishment. But what happened? Twenty years wasted without even touching a hair of a Foundation Establishment Pill! My Spirit Root wasn’t good enough; my comprehension wasn’t enough. No matter how many resources I poured in, it was just noise!”

“Later, I figured it out—screw Foundation Establishment! This master isn’t serving anymore! So I left the sect outright, became a Loose Cultivator, earned some Spirit Stones, traded for fine wine, and kept a few lovely little ladies—living each day to the fullest! It’s a life worth dying for!”

“Oh? Which immortal sect did Fellow Daoist once study under?” Zhou Kai asked, following up naturally.

“Can’t call it studying under—just hanging around.” Zhao Tieshan chuckled. “I stayed in Calamity Abyss Valley for a few years.”

The two exchanged cups, chatting about interesting anecdotes from the Crouching Tiger Mountain Market, and the atmosphere gradually warmed up.

After three rounds of wine, Zhou Kai put down his cup, stating his purpose. “Fellow Daoist, truthfully, today I came hoping to exchange something with you.”

“Oh? See something worthless here? Just say!” Zhao Tieshan waved his hand grandly, acting generous.

“Fellow Daoist jests.” Zhou Kai took out a jade bottle from his Storage Bag and placed it on the stone table. “Here I have some Yang Locking Pills, hoping to exchange with Brother Zhao for some demon beast meat—preferably ones rich in vitality.”

Zhao Tieshan’s eyes immediately lit up!

Without another word, he directly started pulling items out of his own Storage Bag. Soon, the stone table was piled high with several large pieces of processed, clean demon beast meat emitting rich vitality power—hind leg meat from a striped fierce tiger, tenderloin from an iron-skinned wild ox—all piled onto the table.

“Is this enough? If not, I still have more in my Storage Bag.”

Zhou Kai glanced over them, satisfied heartily. These demon beast meats were of excellent quality and rich in surging vitality—enough for Chen Ziyi to consume for a period of time.

“Enough. Thank you, Fellow Daoist.” He nodded and collected the demon beast meat, then pushed the bottle of Yang Locking Pills over.

It was a transaction where both host and guest were thoroughly pleased.

Zhou Kai drank a few more cups with Zhao Tieshan, his gaze sweeping past the Spirit Gathering Array Stones in the corner.

“Fellow Daoist, speaking of which, the Spirit Gathering Array in your courtyard has truly excellent effects, far surpassing those finished Array Discs sold in the market. I wonder which array master arranged it? If you have connections, I also want to set one up for myself.”

“This?” Zhao Tieshan followed his gaze and chuckled. “Fellow Daoist has a good eye indeed. It’s not comparable to those common goods in the Crouching Tiger Mountain Market. This is Master Su’s handiwork.”

“I wonder where this master is located? Could you introduce me?”

“Master Su is not in Crouching Tiger Mountain. You need to go to Duanmu Bay to find him.”

“Duanmu Bay?”

“It’s normal that you don’t know.” Zhao Tieshan drank another mouthful and explained, “That place is west of Crouching Tiger Mountain, far from the market district. With our mid-stage Qi Condensation foot speed, walking along the mountain foot westward, it takes roughly ten days to reach.”

Saying this, he dipped his finger in wine and drew on the table. “Look, from here, go out and follow this mountain range… see, roughly at this position, there is a quite large flat land. That is Duanmu Bay.”

“It’s a desolate, godforsaken place, but it’s a mixed bag of Loose Cultivators—all sorts of people are there. Naturally, there’s a marketplace where you can find many good things rarely seen outside. You can also encounter plenty of trouble.”

“All Loose Cultivators?” Zhou Kai’s eyes flickered slightly. “That place probably isn’t peaceful, right? Robbery, murder, and treasure snatching are probably frequent?”

“Naturally!” Zhao Tieshan laughed unconcernedly. “Outside the scope of the marketplace, it’s a lawless place where the biggest fist is the hard truth! But…”

“Inside the marketplace, it’s relatively stable because there are… Calamity Abyss Valley disciples stationed there maintaining basic order. Ordinary people dare not cause too much trouble inside.”

Calamity Abyss Valley?

Why would Calamity Abyss Valley disciples be stationed at a remote Loose Cultivator gathering place?

Zhou Kai immediately developed a strong interest in this ‘Duanmu Bay.’

“Fellow Daoist Zhao,” he said, leaning forward slightly. “This Duanmu Bay sounds quite interesting. Could you elaborate further?”