After leaving the inner market town, Xu Feng began to calculate as he walked.
"I've already bought the spiritual rice; if I ration it, ten catties will last me a while. I've also checked out the talisman market, and the rates are pretty good. Plus, I unexpectedly stumbled upon a hidden opportunity—a Rank 1 Mid-Grade spiritual medicine that netted me quite a few spirit stones. But why do I keep feeling like there's something I forgot to do?"
Just as this thought crossed his mind, an enticing aroma suddenly drifted into his nose. Peering ahead, he realized the scent was coming from a restaurant by the side of the street.
At this sight, he suddenly slapped his forehead and realized with a start:
"Look at my memory! How could I completely forget about buying monster meat? I originally intended to buy the spiritual rice and the beast meat together, but when I found that spiritual medicine, I left the stall to avoid arousing suspicion, and in the process, I completely slipped my mind. Going without monster meat and having only spiritual rice won't do at all. I still need to go buy some."
With that, he turned around and headed back into the market town.
By now, evening had fallen, but the streets of the market town were far from dark; instead, they were brightly lit.
Every few paces along both sides of the road stood a wooden pole, each hanging a fist-sized source stone. These stones were usually by-products of spirit stone mines, extremely cheap—a single spirit stone could buy a whole pile of them—because, aside from glowing and emitting light, they had no other use whatsoever.
Following the street, he quickly found a shop selling monster meat. Stepping inside to inquire, he discovered that the prices here were slightly higher than those in the outer market.
However, for someone who had just raked in a massive haul of spirit stones today, a spirit stone or two didn't matter much anymore. So he spent ten spirit stones to buy ten catties of red-rumped pig meat, a Rank 1 Low-Grade monster meat.
"If I ration this meat, it will easily last me several months. Even though the price is a bit higher, the quality is also better. All things considered, I'm not really losing out."
Stowing the beast meat into his storage bag, he prepared to leave the market town once more.
Since night had fallen, however, it meant that the nightlife was about to begin.
Sure enough, as he walked down the street with his head down, he suddenly sensed someone appear right in front of him, blocking his path.
Startled, he jerked his head up and saw that the newcomer had not only cut off his way forward but also grabbed him by the sleeve. A heavy wave of heavy face powder and perfume immediately assaulted his nose, making him want to sneeze on the spot.
A female cultivator with heavy makeup, elaborately drawn eyebrows, and a purplish-red hairpin, dressed in rather skimpy attire, was currently tugging at him with a beaming smile.
"Greetings, fellow Daoist! Our Hundred Flowers Pavilion is holding a promotion today—buy one get one free, plus special discounts. Might the Daoist be interested in stepping inside for a bit of entertainment?"
Following the direction she pointed, Xu Feng saw a towering pavilion dozens of feet high, decked out in festive lanterns. A steady stream of cultivators was entering the doorway, and there were several other female cultivators just like her, stopping passersby and trying to invite them in for a good time.
Coupled with the "buy one get one free" offer the woman had just mentioned, his lower abdomen suddenly flared with heat for no apparent reason, as he suddenly understood what kind of establishment this was.
Still, he had no intention of getting involved in such nonsense. He still had lingering poison in his body that he hadn't cleared out—caused entirely by a lack of spirit stones to buy detoxifying pills—so where would he find the mood for this sort of frivolity?
Xu Feng cupped his fists in refusal and said:
"No need, fellow Daoist. My pockets are a bit tight today, so let's make it another day. I'll definitely visit next time!"
Without waiting for the female cultivator's continued sweet-toned persuasion, he strode away, disappearing down the street and not breathing a sigh of relief until he reached the gates of the market town.
"Good grief, so the Immortal Cultivation World has brothels too! I've certainly broadened my horizons today. I passed by that place two or three times during the day and even noticed the plaque for the Hundred Flowers Pavilion, but I never connected it to a brothel—I thought it was some kind of spiritual medicine shop."
At this, Xu Feng let out a dry chuckle. A fleeting, risqué image flashed through his mind before vanishing, and he resumed his brisk walk toward his residence with light steps.
Once he left the market town and stepped into the outer district, he began to exercise caution.
Unlike the inner district, there were no patrol guards roaming about at night here, so law and order were in utter chaos, with news of cultivators being waylaid and killed cropping up from time to time.
Fortunately, his luck was decent today. Quite a few cultivators had left the market town at the same time he did, and by trailing behind this large group, he didn't need to worry about safety for the time being.
As the journey lengthened, however, cultivators heading to different sectors successively branched off and left, and the group he was following gradually shrank in size.
In the end, only a male and a female cultivator were left traveling alongside him. Their cultivation levels were about the same as his—all at the Qi Refining 3rd Layer.
Just as the three of them were walking anxiously through a narrow alley, completely oblivious to a hidden presence trailing behind them, that person suddenly leaped forward and intercepted them right in their path.
"Who's there?"
Xu Feng demanded first, simultaneously slapping his storage bag to instantly summon a flying sword into his hand.
The other two reacted much more slowly. The female cultivator stood frozen as if frightened out of her wits, while the male cultivator similarly slapped his storage bag to produce a rusty long saber, pointing it tremblingly at the newcomer.
Blocking their path was a Qi Refining 5th Layer cultivator wearing a black gauze mask and tattered Daoist robes.
"Hehe, looks like I'm in luck today—I actually ran into three fat little lambs. Hand over everything you're carrying right now, and I'll let you leave alive."
They had run into a bandit!
Naturally, Xu Feng was unwilling. The spirit stones he had just gotten hadn't even warmed up yet; how could he willingly hand them over to someone else? Just as he was racking his brain for a way to escape—
The female cultivator standing beside him, who had all along displayed the cultivation of only the Qi Refining 3rd Layer and acted as though she were paralyzed with fear, suddenly began to surge with aura. In the blink of an eye, her strength climbed to match the bandit's, settling firmly at the Qi Refining 5th Layer.
"Halt, you petty thief! Surrender obediently and save yourself the trouble. To lure you into the trap, I've changed my identity several times over the past few days, and I've finally waited you out."
Xu Feng noticed that when the female cultivator's aura spiked, a flicker of panic did indeed cross the bandit's eyes. But upon realizing that her cultivation matched his own, the bandit's expression not only calmed down but even carried a hint of excitement.
Clearly, he mistook her for some wet-behind-the-ears novice who fancied herself punishing evil and promoting good.
Cultivators of this type were a bandit's absolute favorite, because such people usually possessed very deep pockets; killing just one could net him the equivalent of half a year's hard work.
"Ha! If you want me to surrender, you'll have to see if you have the skills for it!"
With a vicious look on his face, the bandit abruptly raised the saber-shaped dharma tool in his hand and slashed fiercely toward the spot where the female cultivator stood. A flash of red light swept across the blade, and a beam of saber qi shot straight out toward her.