Chapter 9

That night, Sun Sheng relaxed and had a good sleep. The cultivation of the past few days had kept his nerves taut, and he needed to relieve some stress. Even with the most arduous cultivation, there must be a balance; only then can the results be significant.

The next morning, the white fatty came to find Sun Sheng early. This fatty was indeed efficient, having completed the task Sun Sheng had given him so quickly. He handed Sun Sheng a map that looked like a "ghost drawing," clearly marking which shops sold which spiritual medicines, in great detail.

At noon, Sun Sheng changed his clothes and took out a silver ticket from the bottom of a chest by his bed. It clearly stated "three thousand jade bolts," which was Sun Sheng's private savings.

Jade bolts were a universal currency, used in any country and even in major sects. Three thousand jade bolts was not a small amount, enough to bring several years of prosperity to an ordinary family.

Back in the day, Sun Sheng was also a genius of the Bai family, with a significant status. This was the private savings he had left from that period, unknown to anyone. Over the past two years, Sun Sheng had lived a frugal life, even a very hard one, and he had not touched this three thousand jade bolts, all for today's preparation.

He walked out of his house, leaving the ox at home to watch the house, and then walked alone toward the city.

...

Mufeng City was as bustling as ever, with people coming and going, and the streets filled with traffic. Whether rich or poor, everyone was busy.

On the streets, people of high status rode in carriages, noble young ladies strolled through shops with their attendants, and small merchants set up their stalls, calling out to passersby.

Sun Sheng walked through the crowd, looking at the "ghost drawing" map in his hand and smiled bitterly. Probably only someone who knew the white fatty well, like Sun Sheng, could understand this "ghost drawing." If others saw this "ghost drawing," they would probably go to the pharmacy to find a doctor to study it.

After two hours, Sun Sheng had visited over a dozen small shops selling spiritual medicines and successfully acquired some of the items he wanted, spending a considerable amount of money. Only two thousand jade bolts were left out of the three thousand.

Now, he only needed the most important few types of spiritual medicines, including third-grade spiritual medicines, which required over a dozen plants. If it weren't for Bai Zhanfei and Bai Yingying squandering the family's severance pay, Sun Sheng could have saved this expense. This was all his private savings, and once spent, they would be gone.

At this moment, a commotion arose on the street.

From a distance, people could see the crowd dispersing to the sides of the street, clearing the entire road.

A group of soldiers in iron armor, holding cold iron weapons, marched in from the distance, their formation neat and clearly well-trained. Each one was not weak, all at the stage of cultivating qi to strengthen their bodies.

"Guards from the City Lord's residence," Sun Sheng said in surprise, recognizing their uniforms, which were clearly from the City Lord's residence in Mufeng City.

The City Lord of Mufeng City was a person of great importance, second only to the emperor and above ten thousand others, a true local emperor. He held a significant position in the Chu Kingdom, and Mufeng City was actually a fief granted to him by the Chu Kingdom.

Sun Sheng had never met this City Lord, as he was very mysterious, known as the first expert of Mufeng City. Within an eight-thousand-li radius, he was renowned, but few had actually seen him. It was said that his strength had surpassed that of a qi gong master and was that of a Creation Realm expert.

Cultivating qi to strengthen the body was divided into nine stages. After successfully breaking through, one's qi gong skills would become divine, defined as a qi gong master.

Of course, this was a general statement. Not all qi gong practitioners who broke through the ninth stage of body strengthening were masters, as there were higher realms, known as the Creation Realm.

This was a more mysterious realm than the ninth stage of body strengthening, where one opened secret realms within the body, unlocking the body's treasures and gaining even greater power.

Only such people were qualified to be called grandmasters, the dragons among men, capable of doing things that ordinary people could not.

The City Lord of Mufeng City was such a person. As for his strength in the Creation Realm and how many secret realms he had opened, that was unknown, given how mysterious this City Lord was.

On the street, the soldiers marched in unison, solemn and clearly well-trained. They were escorting a carriage pulled by a white jade beast, with the City Lord's banner hanging on it and a white curtain, making it hard to see inside.

But faintly, one could see a graceful figure inside. Even though her face was unclear, her perfect curves and exquisite figure were clearly visible.

"How such a grand procession, who is it that the City Lord's guards are personally escorting, and using the City Lord's personal carriage?" someone in the crowd asked.

"Indeed, this is no simple matter. Could it be the City Lord's woman?" someone nearby whispered in agreement.

"Don't talk nonsense. Do you know who is in the carriage? It's the City Lord's eldest daughter, Long Yinxue, a disciple of a major sect and a prodigy. She's back to visit her family."

"What? Long Yinxue, I heard she was taken in by the Sword Sect three years ago. The first beauty of Mufeng City is back. Hehehe, the young masters in the city have been eagerly waiting for her return."

Some people were discussing this with great interest.

At this moment, Sun Sheng stood at the front of the crowd, near the center of the street. Hearing these words, he was momentarily lost in thought.

"Long Yinxue..." Sun Sheng's lips curled into a bitter smile.

He had interacted with this girl when he was young. Back then, he was the first genius of Mufeng City and naturally associated with high-ranking figures. His first meeting with Long Yinxue was rather absurd, actually in a brothel.

At that time, Sun Sheng and Long Yinxue's older brother, Long Yuefei, were good friends. Long Yuefei was seven years older than him, and Long Yinxue was about three years younger than her brother, but at that time, she was a fourteen-year-old girl, already a graceful and elegant young lady, admired by many young masters in Mufeng City.

Back then, Long Yuefei secretly took the teenage Sun Sheng to a brothel. Although he was well-developed for his age, he was caught by Long Yinxue, who had followed them in, trying to drag her brother away. However, she accidentally entered the room where Sun Sheng was.

At that moment, Sun Sheng was almost undressed by a woman in the brothel, almost naked. Long Yinxue burst in, seeing everything, and stormed out in anger.

Fortunately, Long Yinxue's sudden intrusion saved Sun Sheng from a disaster. Otherwise, his first time would have been in that place.

Afterward, Sun Sheng's reputation as the first genius of Mufeng City spread, and when Long Yinxue saw him again, she scolded him as a "lecher" and never had a good impression of him.

Later, an incident occurred. Long Yuefei went to Qingluan Mountain and was killed by a powerful spirit. The young man who had taken him to the brothel met a tragic end. In the same year, Long Yinxue was taken away by the Sword Sect and became a disciple.

The Sword Sect, like the Ziyang Sect, was a major sect, emphasizing the use of qi gong in conjunction with powerful sword techniques, controlling swords with qi, capable of moving mountains and filling seas, flying through the air and diving into the earth. Although different from the Ziyang Sect, its strength was on par with it.

Sun Sheng was lost in thought, hearing Long Yinxue's name and thinking of his deceased friend Long Yuefei, he stood dazed on the street.

"Get out of the way!"

At this moment, a cold voice shouted, and a young man in iron armor walked over, with sharp eyebrows and bright eyes, looking very handsome and heroic, but not very old, holding a cold iron spear.

He was a captain of the City Lord's guards and had some fame in Mufeng City. At a young age, he had deep and unfathomable qi gong skills and was considered a genius among the young generation in Mufeng City. His name was Pan Yue.

Sun Sheng came to his senses, glanced at the guard captain, and narrowed his eyes.

The two made eye contact, and Pan Yue was slightly taken aback because he recognized Sun Sheng. After all, Sun Sheng was once a genius of Mufeng City, and many people knew him.

"Hmm? The prodigy of the Bai family, it's you. How dare you be so insolent? Have you become a waste and lost your mind? What are you standing here for? Get out of the way, or you'll be killed nine times over for blocking the path of the young lady!" Pan Yue shouted loudly, using his qi gong, his voice like a rolling thunder.

His shout drew the attention of many people around, and some immediately recognized Sun Sheng, as he was once very famous, even known to commoners.

"It really is the prodigy of the Bai family. I heard he was expelled from the Bai family and left with nothing."

"Ah, the genius of the past, a fallen phoenix is worse than a chicken. This young man was once as famous as Long Yinxue, but now, one is high and mighty, and the other is poor and humble."

"Genius or not, there is always a day of decline. He was too brilliant in the past, and it's only natural that he would have such a day."

Many people in the crowd whispered, some with mocking looks. No matter how talented he was, it was all in the past. Now, he dared to block Long Yinxue's carriage on the street, truly inviting humiliation. Did he still think he could speak to a princess like Long Yinxue?

"Brat, who gave you the nerve to block the young lady's carriage? This is a grave offense. I suspect you have ulterior motives. Even if I kill you on the street, who would stand up for you?" Pan Yue sneered, first accusing Sun Sheng of a serious crime, planting a false charge.

Pan Yue felt a great sense of satisfaction. The former genius was now cowering before him. Was there anything more satisfying than this? In the past, Sun Sheng, at a young age, had a reputation that overshadowed his, which had long annoyed Pan Yue. Now, he would not miss this opportunity to mock Sun Sheng.