Chapter 101: Qi Yu

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(Second Update)
"...heard of it occasionally, but never witnessed it personally."
After a brief moment of surprise, Fang Junmei smiled and replied.
The old clan leader chuckled softly and said, "Di Hu and a few others, when they went out to gather herbs, came back telling me they had actually seen quite a few immortals. They saw them treading on multicolored clouds, flying off towards the horizon."
After speaking, he clicked his tongue and continued, "When I was young, I also saw one or two, but the number the others saw was clearly much greater. Could it be that those immortals were having a gathering?"
His face showed a look of longing.
"When was that? Which direction did they go?"
Upon hearing this, Fang Junmei’s eyes finally glimmered with sharp light. The sudden increase in cultivators was definitely unusual.
The old clan leader thought for a moment and said, "That was last year, mostly heading southeast and due west."
Fang Junmei nodded slightly.
Southeast—that was the direction of the Bloodstone Forest, wasn’t it?
As for due west, the only place Fang Junmei could think of was a place called Divine Eagle Cliff. It was said to be the only public market in the wild jungle, selling mostly cultivation resources unique to the untamed wilderness.
Because it was located deep in the wild jungle, many cultivators from Wanman Mountain would definitely go there, along with some local scattered cultivators—a place full of chaos and mixed characters. Some outsiders came too, but not many; most were strange, sinister cultivators.
Before setting off, the Wayfarer Daoist had advised Fang Junmei not to wander there without urgent reason to avoid triggering conflicts between good and evil.
"I'm old and seldom go out nowadays. If the Divine Physician wants to know more, I can call over the boldest and farthest-traveling young ones from the clan to answer you."
The old clan leader was also enthusiastic.
Fang Junmei did not refuse and nodded.
The old clan leader left first, and Fang Junmei began to ponder alone.
If he couldn’t get useful information here, should he go to Divine Eagle Cliff or not?

...

Rustling sounds—
Soon, the old clan leader led seven or eight young men inside. Knowing that the Gu technique could be unlocked, they all seemed more spirited, even their steps quickened.
"Greetings, Divine Physician."
"Greetings, sir."
Everyone entered and bowed.
Fang Junmei waved his hand to signal them to rise and began to converse with them.
They exchanged words, sharing all their observations from the mountain. Fang Junmei carefully considered each detail. His well-shaped eyebrows twitched slightly, drawing a shy, admiring glance from the only female clan member among them. In these southern jungles, women often loved passionately and were prone to love at first sight.
Fang Junmei hadn’t noticed yet, but the old clan leader, a shrewd man, was already bright-eyed, thinking about ways to keep this Divine Physician in the clan.
"Divine Physician, if you insist on going deep into the mountain to gather herbs, I suggest you wait about half a year."
Among them, a refined young man with clear, wise eyes suddenly spoke.
"Why is that?"
Fang Junmei’s heart stirred.
The refined youth said, "From my observations, after August each year, the powerful monsters deep in those distant mountains seem to decrease significantly, as if they had suffered some misfortune before that period."

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Fang Junmei nodded thoughtfully.
That was the very piece of information he needed!
This trip to Golden Light Village was worthwhile!
If there was no mistake, those unfortunate beasts must have been taken away and eaten by that horse. Now that he knew when the monsters appeared, the next steps would be much easier. There was no need to go to Divine Eagle Cliff after all.
"Excellent. Are there any other abnormalities?"
Fang Junmei praised and asked.
They continued to discuss and share for over half an hour. Seeing no other abnormalities, Fang Junmei dismissed them.

...

From that day, Di Hu was given special care and various supplements.
Fang Junmei visited daily and clearly felt Di Hu’s life energy stabilizing, gradually restored by the nourishing herbs. The vital energy once absorbed by the human-race Thousand Mechanism Gu after its death was disappearing.
After three days, Fang Junmei finally administered medicine throughout the entire village to remove the human-race Thousand Mechanism Gu from everyone.
Though no one felt anything unusual immediately after, with Di Hu’s recovery as evidence, everyone felt hopeful and rejoiced, growing more grateful and respectful toward Fang Junmei.
The old clan leader promised many benefits to keep Fang Junmei in Golden Light Village forever, even offering the choice of unmarried young women from the clan, which left Fang Junmei speechless.
Several days later, seeing the clan members recovering, Fang Junmei’s mind was made up. One deep night, he quietly left with Bi Fengzi.
After departing, Fang Junmei found a secluded valley, struck Bi Fengzi down with a sword, and burned the body to ashes!
Xiao ** didn’t count, but Bi Fengzi was the first cultivator Fang Junmei had truly slain.
After Bi Fengzi’s death, his storage pouch naturally became Fang Junmei’s.
If he had lived, no one could open his storage pouch without overwhelming spiritual force to destroy the imprint inside, but since he was dead, any cultivator could open it.
"This guy’s got quite a stash."
Fang Junmei smiled and praised.
Inside were hundreds of thousands of mid-grade Fire Spirit Stones. Bi Fengzi was probably a fire-element cultivator. Most of the spirit stones gifted by the River Daoist had already been used, so these replenished his supply, though they still needed to be exchanged for sword spirit stones.
Besides the Blood-colored Flying Needles, there were some lesser magical treasures and artifacts, all rather sinister in appearance.
There were many bottles and jars, mostly materials from beast bodies—some quite disgusting. Among them was a bottle containing the human-race Thousand Mechanism Gu. One such Gu meant one life. Seeing the nearly thousand of them densely packed, Fang Junmei for the first time felt he had been too lenient with Bi Fengzi.
There were also many pills, but Fang Junmei didn’t recognize most and dared not take them at random.
After sorting in a quiet place, he planned to burn or discard what he didn’t need but thought Song Shede might like them as a gift, so he saved them to present later. Then he continued on his way toward the distant mountains where more beasts roamed, seeking traces of the horse.
At this moment, Fang Junmei did not know that although he had cleaned up thoroughly, the matter was far from over.

...

Wanman Mountain.
Someone awoke from meditation and opened the door.
Before him at the cliff’s edge was a terrifying sight of blood-colored vines intertwining. As if sensing his presence, the vines began to sway.
The cultivator who came out was a young man dressed in a pure white robe, tall and graceful, like a jade tree in the wind, but his long, slightly narrowed eyes looked somewhat effeminate and eerie. His thin lips bore a hint of cold cruelty.
This man was named Qi Yu, at the early stage of Dao Embryo. Among the younger generation of Wanman Mountain, he was one of the most famous cultivators—a gentlemanly appearance concealing a ruthless, twisted, and cunning heart.

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Without a sound, he walked to the cliff’s edge, extending his slender white hand to stroke the blood-colored vines while lifting his head to gaze upward with a dark, brooding look.
Wanman Mountain was different from the Peach Blossom Sword Sect. The higher one’s status, the stronger one’s power and contribution, the higher the location of their cave residence—clear and stratified. The mountain’s founders used this method to motivate future generations to strive in cultivation.
Qi Yu’s cave residence was not low even among his Dao Embryo peers, but his ambition was immense. He still wanted to climb higher, all the way to the top!
After staring deeply toward the highest point, Qi Yu withdrew his gaze and swiftly descended.
He left the mountain, exited the sect, and headed northeast.
More than half a month later, Qi Yu arrived at the market located at Divine Eagle Cliff.
This market was bustling with people coming and going.
Qi Yu’s arrival attracted many eyes, but few dared speak of him. He was a lone wolf and ignored others, walking a few steps before entering a shop.
The shopkeeper seemed to know why he had come and invited him into a private back room.
"Shopkeeper Liu, has the item I requested arrived?"
After entering the room and sitting down, Qi Yu asked.
The middle-aged, stout shopkeeper Liu, rubbing his hands awkwardly, replied, "Brother Qi, forgive me, but the item you want is really difficult to get. Even among us evil cultivators, few dare to do it now."
"So—you want to raise the price?"
Qi Yu’s eyes cut into him like a blade, sharp and cold. Though the other’s cultivation was a small realm higher, Qi Yu was not afraid, both because of his own strength and backing.
"Brother, you’re being too formal. I, Liu, would never ask for more money on the spot!"
Liu showed a helpless smile.
"Then what’s the matter? You told me last time someone was sent to do it."
Qi Yu’s voice was low and serious.
Liu said, "Indeed someone was sent, but that guy hasn’t returned. There was a message a few months ago, but now there’s nothing at all."
Qi Yu’s eyes narrowed sharply.
If the message suddenly stopped, there was only one likely explanation.
"...Not to hide it from you, Brother Qi, that person was also a fellow Wanman Mountain cultivator named Bi Fengzi."
Liu hesitated before saying this.
"You sent our Wanman Mountain man to do this? If it’s found out and traced back to me, my sect won’t let me off easily. If I could act easily, I would have done it myself."
More coldness filled Qi Yu’s gaze.
"Not my fault."
Liu said innocently, "Your sect brother was brave and ruthless. I don’t know how he got wind of my fee, but he kept pestering me to take the job. He even threatened me secretly, so I had no choice."
After hearing this, Qi Yu snorted coldly and asked, "Did he mention where to find the mortal to raise the human-race Thousand Mechanism Gu?"
"Although he never mentioned it, the direction he left for was there."
Liu pointed in a direction.
Seeing this, Qi Yu stood up without further delay and walked out of the room.

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