novelapdf Chapter 546 Wanted! The 8th Elder was overjoyed!
Chapter 546 Wanted! The 8th Elder was overjoyed!
"Grown in the mountains," Chen Fan replied casually, putting down his teacup and taking his leave. "If I need more in the future, I'll come again."
Manager Qian and Manager Sun exchanged a glance, and decided not to ask any more questions, so they personally escorted Chen Fan to the door.
After leaving Baicaotang, Chen Fan did not rush back to the inn, but continued walking along the main street for a while.
At the end of the main street of the imperial city, there is a restaurant called "Zui Xian Lou". It is five stories high and a row of big red lanterns hangs at the entrance. The lights are bright and the sounds of string and bamboo instruments and laughter can be heard from afar.
He had heard Qin Dao mention this restaurant in Huangzhou City before, saying it was the most well-informed place in the capital, a gathering place for all sorts of people, and that as long as you were willing to spend spirit stones, you could find out any kind of information.
The main hall of Zuixianlou was extremely spacious, with no fewer than fifty tables, and it was already packed with people.
The waiters were all cultivators at the late stage of Qi Refining, carrying wine and dishes as they moved swiftly through the crowd.
Chen Fan glanced around, then went straight up to the second floor without lingering in the lobby.
The second floor is much quieter than the lobby, with screens separating each table, and the prices are naturally much higher than on the first floor.
He sat down by the window, ordered a pot of spiritual wine and a few side dishes, and silently spread his divine sense out.
The surrounding chatter flooded into my mind like a tidal wave.
"Have you heard? Yesterday, Dugu Jian from Youzhou cleaved a small mountain in two outside the city with a single sword strike, saying he was testing his newly acquired sword intent!"
"That's nothing. The day before yesterday, Lei Zhentian from Yunzhou got into a conflict with people from Jianzhou at the post station. He shattered the protective array in their courtyard with a single palm strike of lightning, and they almost started fighting before it even started."
"Tsk, these old monsters at the peak of the Nascent Soul stage are like gods fighting. By the way, have you heard? The rules for the national competition have been changed this year. The Nascent Soul group and the disciple group are thrown into the Ten Thousand Demon Valley together. This is going to be quite a show."
"The Valley of Ten Thousand Demons is a very strange place. It is said that a demon king in the middle stage of the Nascent Soul realm is suppressed deep inside the valley. The restrictions set up by the royal family can only trap it for a hundred years, and they have to be reinforced every hundred years. As long as the candidates don't do anything stupid and break into the core of the restrictions, they will be fine."
"Who says otherwise? But I heard that someone from the Wang family is also participating in the selection this year. In Youzhou, there's a Nascent Soul group named Wang Teng. He's said to be a direct descendant of the Wang family, with a mid-Nascent Soul cultivation level, and his fire magic is incredibly skillful."
……
Chen Fan paused slightly in the hand holding the wine glass.
Wang family.
The royal family of Yu the Great was the head of the eight great families.
The eight major families of Tiannan Star are closely linked, and their influence extends throughout the four major cultivation kingdoms.
Wang Xuan's direct descendant, Wang Zhennan, was at the early stage of the Nascent Soul realm. He had blocked Wang Xuan outside the sealed land for three days and three nights.
Now, in this grand imperial competition, we've unexpectedly run into the Wang family again.
He didn't turn around, but merely turned his divine sense slightly toward the person who spoke.
The two rogue cultivators at the Core Formation stage were sitting two tables to his left and in front of him, drinking and chatting.
"The Wang family has been at the height of its power in recent years. I heard that their patriarch has already gone into seclusion to break through to the mid-stage of the Nascent Soul realm. Wang Teng's participation in the national competition this time is clearly aimed at winning a prize, so that he can secure an official position in the Great Yu court."
"Does the Wang family even need to seek official positions? The eight great families have deep-rooted influence in the Great Yu Cultivation Kingdom. They have several Nascent Soul Ancestors alone. They can shake the ground with just a stomp of their feet."
"You don't know, but the Wang family hasn't been having an easy time lately." The rogue cultivator lowered his voice, but it still didn't escape Chen Fan's ears. "I heard they were chasing someone in the Desolate State, but not only did they fail to catch him, they also lost several Nascent Soul cultivators. Even the Deity Transformation Ancestor had to personally intervene. Tsk tsk, I wonder who this person is that could make all eight major families suffer such a huge loss at the same time."
"Who's that? A eunuch, I guess!" Another rogue cultivator chuckled, his voice even lower.
"Didn't you see the wanted poster? It's a joint manhunt issued by the eight great families in Tiannan, with a reward of 100,000 mid-grade spirit stones. They want him alive or dead. I've seen the portrait; it's a pale-faced, beardless old eunuch, a Nascent Soul cultivator, named Chen... Chen Fan? Yes, Chen Fan. It's said he escaped from the sealed land, and he's ruthless. Even Wang Xuan, the direct descendant of the Wang family, died at his hands."
"One hundred thousand mid-grade spirit stones! My god, that's enough for me to cultivate to the Great Perfection of the Core Formation stage. What a pity, we can't afford to mess with Nascent Soul stage monsters."
"Who can argue with that? But with the eight great families jointly offering a bounty, the entire Tiannan Star is searching for him. Even if he had three heads and six arms, he couldn't hide for long. I heard that the eight great families have already deployed sentries in all the teleportation arrays on Tiannan Star. As soon as he dares to show his face, a Nascent Soul Ancestor will immediately take action to capture him."
"The Nascent Soul Ancestor has made a move? Then he's doomed. No matter how strong a Nascent Soul cultivator is, there's no way he can escape from a Nascent Soul cultivator."
……
Chen Fan expressionlessly downed the spirit wine in his cup.
One hundred thousand mid-grade spirit stones.
The eight major families were quite willing to invest.
To put on such a grand show for a Nascent Soul cultivator like him is quite a show of respect.
He put down his wine glass, listened for a while longer, and after confirming that there was no more news about himself, he got up, paid the bill, and left Zuixianlou.
It was late at night when we returned to the inn.
Chen Fan changed out of his disguise and returned to his original appearance as Chen Mu, sitting cross-legged on the wooden bed in the side room.
Bamboo shadows sway outside the window, and moonlight spills across the ground like scattered silver.
The Wang family also came.
Wang Teng, a mid-stage Nascent Soul cultivator and a direct descendant of the Wang family, is participating in the selection in Youzhou, indicating that the Wang family's influence in the Great Yu Cultivation Kingdom is greater than he anticipated.
However, in the chaotic battles among candidates from various states within the Valley of Ten Thousand Demons, it's perfectly normal for a few people to die.
When a Nascent Soul cultivator dies in the mouth of a demon beast, no one can find fault with it.
As for the wanted notices from the Eight Great Families, as long as he continues to act under the identity of Chen Mu, he should not be exposed in the short term.
The only thing to be careful of is that there are many people and eyes in the Valley of Ten Thousand Demons. If you really encounter the Wang family, you must fight quickly and decisively, and not give them a chance to send a message for help.
Chen Fan went through these thoughts in his mind, then stopped thinking about them, closed his eyes, and began to regulate his breathing.
Meanwhile, in a secret room on the top floor of the Baicaotang Imperial City branch.
Manager Sun was holding a communication jade talisman and respectfully infusing it with spiritual power.
A moment later, a voice, aged yet sharp, came from the other end of the jade talisman: "What is it?"
"Reporting to the Eighteenth Elder, this evening someone came to the shop to sell a large quantity of spiritual plants: 200,000 catties of spiritual rice, 150,000 catties of radishes, and 100,000 catties of sweet potatoes. All of them are of grade two or above, and 30% of them are grade three jade crystal rice."
There was a moment of silence on the other end of the jade talisman, then the voice suddenly rose three digits: "Spirit rice? Radish? Sweet potato?"
"Exactly."
"What do you look like? What's your name? What's your cultivation level?"
"The visitor claimed to be a rogue cultivator from the mountains. He had a sallow complexion and was at the late Foundation Establishment stage. However, I suspect he was hiding his true cultivation level because he showed no fear when facing a Nascent Soul cultivator and his composure was unlike that of a rogue Foundation Establishment cultivator," Manager Sun reported truthfully.
There was another silence on the other end of the jade talisman, followed by an uncontrollable laugh. The laughter grew louder and louder until it was almost like someone slapping their thigh in laughter.
"Hahaha! It's him! He's not dead! My little darling's spirit rice is secured!" The Eighteenth Elder's laughter made the communication jade talisman tremble.
"Pass down the order: this man is a distinguished guest of my Hundred Herbs Hall. Next time he visits, he must be treated with the utmost courtesy and without the slightest neglect. Furthermore, if he reappears, immediately inform me; I wish to speak with him personally!"
Manager Sun was stunned for a moment. He had never seen the Eighteenth Elder, who was known for his stern face, lose his composure like this.
But the elder's words were orders, and he dared not ask any more questions, so he could only repeatedly agree.
After the light of the communication jade talisman dimmed, Manager Sun wiped the sweat from his forehead, quickly walked out of the secret room, and conveyed the order to all the managers of the branch.