Chapter 44

Lu Ping and his three companions left, and the other students from Xiakeng Academy also quickly set off in groups. Although last night's incident had nothing to do with them, it still made the atmosphere somewhat tense. No one knew if similar events would occur on the way. The initial excitement of exploring the mountains was gone, and they hurriedly set off, mainly to avoid the group from the City Lord's residence. Even those students who usually enjoyed being around Wei Tianqi didn't want to invite trouble.

They walked the mountain path for a whole day, all on edge, but fortunately, no further trouble occurred. By dusk, the students had gradually made their way out of the mountain pass, marking the end of their journey through Xiakeng Mountain. The scene before them suddenly opened up, no longer the familiar slopes and strange rocks, but a vast, endless plain. A broad and straight road extended from the mountain pass, leading far into the distance. Those who had never left Xiakeng District were amazed; just a few glances at the road seemed to ease the fatigue of a day's mountain trek.

"Let's go!"

Many students were intrigued by the straight and smooth road. They didn't stop at the mountain pass but continued along the road, seemingly intent on traveling through the night.

"What should we do?" Mo Lin plopped down on the ground as soon as they exited the mountain pass. After a day of mountain walking, he was exhausted. Besides, he wasn't a naive Xiakeng Mountain native who would be captivated by a road like this.

"You decide," Xi Fan said, as he hadn't walked the path himself. It was quite inconvenient to use a wheelchair on the mountain road, so for most of the journey, Lu Ping and Su Tang had carried him and his wheelchair. Now, they both seemed unaffected.

"Why isn't there a carriage here?" Su Tang looked around. Since few people entered or left Xiakeng Mountain daily, no carriage drivers would do business here. Apart from a signpost indicating the mountain pass leading to Xiakeng District, there was nothing else.

"Let's go a bit further. There's a small town ahead, and it would be better to stay there for the night." A Xiakeng student approached them and said this before hurrying away. His companions became unusually tense, constantly glancing back at the mountain pass, and later, they kept complaining to him.

After last night's incident, many Xiakeng students had developed a liking for Lu Ping and Su Tang. However, since they had offended Wei Tianqi, no one dared to get too close to them, fearing retribution. The student who spoke to Lu Ping and his group did so only because he saw no Wei family members around. But even after returning, he was immediately scolded by his companions. There were no Wei family members here, but there were plenty of people who wanted to curry favor with them. If someone with ulterior motives saw and reported to the Wei family, who knew what trouble might arise.

Seeing their attitude, Lu Ping and Su Tang held back their thanks and simply smiled, not taking it to heart.

"So, are you going to sleep here or go to the town?" The two turned to look at Mo Lin, who had just been sitting on the ground and was now lying flat.

"The town... the town... Oh, Wangshan Town." Mo Lin seemed to remember something, made a determined expression, and jumped up: "Let's go, to Wangshan Town. The shrimp porridge at the shop on the east side of the street is excellent. I'll take you there."

With that, he strode off, leaving Lu Ping and Su Tang looking at each other in surprise.

"How can he be so obsessed with food!" Su Tang exclaimed.

"It's the power of the Pivot Spirit!" Xi Fan said.

"I've seen many who are proficient in the Pivot Spirit, but few are as much of a foodie as him," Su Tang said, pushing Xi Fan along behind.

"Apparently, it's also a form of cultivation for the Pivot Spirit," Xi Fan said.

"Then this cultivation is really convenient," Su Tang remarked.

The four continued on their way. With the motivation of food, Mo Lin, who rarely complained, managed to walk all the way to Wangshan Town without a single complaint.

"Shrimp porridge, shrimp porridge!" He shouted as they entered the town. Lu Ping and the others followed him helplessly, and he led them to a small shop on the east side of the street. Seeing the large banner with the word "Porridge" fluttering in the wind, Mo Lin looked determined.

"Quick, help me over..." Mo Lin's face looked like he was about to kneel. His strength had finally reached its limit, his legs trembling, but his resolve to eat porridge remained unshaken.

Lu Ping reluctantly helped him up, and the four headed towards the shop.

The other three, though not particularly outstanding in the Air Spirit, were at the First or Second Heaven level, with senses far sharper than ordinary people. As they approached the porridge shop, they noticed a strong smell of alcohol growing stronger.

"What a strong smell of alcohol!" Xi Fan sniffed.

"What's going on?" Mo Lin's expression was already confused. His Air Spirit was at the Second Heaven level, stronger than Su Tang's and Xi Fan's, and he could accurately identify the source of the alcohol smell, which was undoubtedly from the shop. This made him look up at the banner again, confirming that it indeed read "Porridge."

The four, puzzled, approached the shop and saw a woman sitting at a table near the door. Her long hair was disheveled, her face flushed, and there were six empty bottles on the table, with a seventh in her right hand, which she was drinking from. She slapped the table and called out, "Is my porridge ready yet?"

"Coming, coming!" someone in the shop hurriedly replied.

"Wow!" The four outside were stunned. Their Surge Spirit levels were good, so they could see the bottles on the woman's table without getting closer. These weren't the light malt wines that Xiakeng students drank for fun but strong grain-based spirits. Malt wine usually has an alcohol content of about 4%, while the strong spirits the woman was drinking typically have an alcohol content of around 50%. An ordinary person would be drunk after a few ounces and would need to lean against a wall after a pint. But this woman had six empty bottles on the table, which was six pints, and was still drinking from a seventh. She could still call out for porridge with a strong voice, which was truly terrifying.

"Is this... the power of the Pivot Spirit?" Xi Fan asked Mo Lin, still shaken. He specialized in the Essence Spirit, which emphasizes control over emotions, so alcohol was a big taboo for him.

"Is she a legendary wine sack?" Mo Lin muttered.

"You made that up, right?" Su Tang said.

"No, there is such a power! Ask him if you don't believe me," Mo Lin said, looking at Lu Ping. Lu Ping's ability to leave the poison in the bowl when he drank porridge made Mo Lin think he could do the same with the intoxicating elements in alcohol.

"Those are two different things, right?" Lu Ping said.

"Don't be so serious!" Mo Lin said.

Their conversation was low, clearly not wanting to be overheard, but the woman, who had already drunk about six and a half pints of strong spirits, not only had a strong voice but also very sharp hearing. She suddenly slapped the table and glared at the four.

"What do you kids know? Using abilities to drink is a waste of good alcohol," the woman scolded them.

"Huh?"

The four were stunned.

This woman could hear them and knew about "abilities," so she must be a cultivator.

"What level is she?"

This is what every cultivator of the Spirit Force would instinctively do when encountering another cultivator. But the four looked at each other in confusion.

"Can't sense it..."

Not sensing it doesn't mean they couldn't sense anything; it means the other person had a level, but they couldn't determine it. In most cases, this meant the other person's level was far above theirs. For example, they couldn't sense Wei Ming's level, indicating he was quite powerful.

"Hey, Wei Ming!"

Lu Ping suddenly said. They had just thought of Wei Ming, and he appeared, stepping into the porridge shop from a side door, frowning and looking disgusted. "Why is there such a strong smell of alcohol?"

As he spoke, his gaze turned to the woman, who didn't even glance at him.

"Here's your porridge!" At that moment, the shop owner personally brought a bowl of porridge from the kitchen and placed it on the woman's table. The strong smell of alcohol and the mess of empty bottles didn't seem to bother him at all.

But Wei Ming was very unhappy and quickly stood in front of the owner. "With such a strong smell of alcohol, how can we eat?"

"If you can't eat, please leave slowly," the owner smiled and gestured for Wei Ming to leave.

Wei Ming's frown deepened, but he was furious inside. In Xiakeng District, no one would dare speak to him like this, but this was now in Zhiling District. Even if the shop owner had heard of the twelve Wei families of the City Lord's residence, he wouldn't have thought the person in front of him was Wei Ming, the second-ranked among the twelve Wei families.

Wei Ming decided to teach him a lesson; his mood had been bad all day.

He raised his arm to strike, but before he could lift it an inch, his wrist was grabbed by the woman sitting at the table, her face flushed and eyes half-closed from drinking.

"Why are young people today so disrespectful?" the woman muttered to herself. Wei Ming was surprised and tried to break free, but the force he used to break free seemed to be redirected back at him.

Wei Ming flew out of the porridge shop, through the front door, and landed on the street, rolling around. He looked up, dazed, and saw the four surprised faces of Lu Ping and his companions.

But the four seemed more interested in the woman, turning to look at her with even more astonishment.

No one saw her stand up, and no one saw her make any movement, but she was now standing outside the shop, holding the bowl of porridge.

"Can't you eat porridge because of the smell of alcohol?" she asked, looking at Wei Ming on the ground.

Wei Ming was also stunned. If he hadn't realized the woman's strength by now, he wouldn't be worthy of being a strategist for the City Lord's residence.

"There's no smell of alcohol here, open your mouth," the woman said.

"What do you think you're—"

Before Wei Ming could finish, the woman tilted the bowl, and the scalding hot shrimp porridge was poured directly into his mouth and face.

"I'm inviting you to have porridge, no need to thank me," the woman said. In an instant, the bowl was empty, and she casually tossed it to the shop owner, who caught it. She raised her wine bottle in a salute to the owner, glanced at Lu Ping and his companions, and left with a swaying gait.

(Unexpectedly, this chapter took so long... I'll write one more tonight and continue during the day! Hopefully, this chapter is substantial enough, right?)

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