Pedestrians bustled to and fro along the road back to the inner city.
The two bodyguards followed closely behind, shadowing his every step and doing their utmost to protect Luo Chen's safety.
That earlier encounter had truly made their hearts leap into their throats, keeping them on edge the entire time.
Little did they know that Luo Chen, striding ahead with a bold, vigorous gait, was the one breathing the biggest sigh of relief in his heart.
The sword hanging over his head had finally drawn back an inch today!
Today's meeting with Gao Tingyuan had been unexpected, yet completely within reason.
Ever since Luo Chen had planned to see Fu Xiuxiu and Old Daoist Chen off, he had foreseen this possibility and secretly prepared several contingencies for it.
From his demeanor to his tone of voice, down to when to yield and when to stand firm—everything had been staged to appear riddled with flaws, yet thoroughly plausible!
Back when he learned from Wang Yuan that Gao Tingyuan's dantian was damaged and his qi sea ruptured, he knew this confrontation was bound to happen sooner or later.
Yet he hadn't wanted their meeting to occur under circumstances where he was forced into a corner.
Hence, he took today's bold gamble—deliberately walking straight into the tiger's den.
On the surface, he had been invited up, but hadn't Luo Chen willingly walked right into their midst?
Of course, Luo Chen had never interacted with Gao Tingyuan directly and had no real grasp of the man's personality.
Even if he had inquired about him from time to time, now that the man's path of cultivation was severed, there was no telling whether his temperament had turned even more extreme.
Therefore, he had arranged several fallback plans for today's trip.
First, before coming to Lancang Pier, he had casually mentioned his itinerary to Sikong Shoujia.
If Sikong Shoujia knew, it meant Foundation Establishment cultivator Mi Shuhua knew as well.
Given how precious he was to Mi Shuhua at the moment, the man would never allow anything to happen to him.
Even if Gao Tingyuan tried to seize him by force, Mi Shuhua would certainly step in immediately to protect him.
Second, the moment he arrived here, he had gone to see Wang Yuan first.
If Gao Tingyuan threw caution to the wind and attacked him in Qingjiang Restaurant, Wang Yuan would arrive in no time.
Luo Chen held a somewhat "blind" faith in his elder brother.
As long as Foundation Establishment cultivators stayed out of it, probably no one in Dahe Market could match Wang Yuan, a dual cultivator of spell and body.
On the Dao Discussion Platform's Prodigy Roll, the name sitting at the very top of Dahe Market's Qi Refinement realm was still Wang Yuan, after all.
Of course, Luo Chen hadn't pinned all his hopes on others either.
Having sparred with Qin Liangchen so many times, he was thoroughly familiar with the combat methods of late-stage Qi Refinement cultivators.
If he remained on constant guard, even if the other party launched a sudden surprise attack, he was confident he could survive the initial onslaught.
In terms of offense, he might fall short, with only a Great Perfection Fireball Art to serve as his trump card.
However, when it came to running away?
If Luo Chen dared claim first, no other Qi Refinement cultivator would dare claim second.
Grandmaster-level Carefree Wandering, Grandmaster-level Wind Riding Technique, plus high-grade magic artifact Cloud Treading Boots.
If he wanted to leave, Gao Tingyuan would never be able to keep him.
Only after thoroughly weighing all these factors had he dared accept the invitation, intending to bluff his way through the past events as best he could.
As for whether Gao Tingyuan truly believed him, Luo Chen didn't care anymore.
To put it plainly, he was no longer who he used to be—no longer a helpless, insignificant rogue cultivator.
He was the master of the Pill Hall, one of the Mountain Breaker Gang's nine halls.
In the future, he would bring an endless stream of profits to the Mountain Breaker Gang.
For now, the Mountain Breaker Gang had already invested a substantial amount of resources into him.
Before they recouped the cost of those resources, whoever dared lay a hand on him was making an enemy of Mi Shuhua, and an enemy of the Mountain Breaker Gang!
"Now that I've got a backing organization, your boy's walking with wind in his step!"
At the city gate, Luo Chen smiled and waved goodbye to the two bodyguards.
They were probably anxious to see Mi Shuhua and report today's events in detail.
Better that they went early!
In matters like this, having a big shot handle the loose ends was the only way to truly put his mind at ease.
***
"The two Gao brothers?"
Mi Shuhua muttered, then asked offhandedly, "In your view, was it Luo Chen?"
Recalling the mouthful of wine Luo Chen had spat out, Liu Qiang hesitated.
Zhou Yuanli, however, had already spoken up. "That isn't important."
"Heh-heh, indeed, it isn't important. Just the life or death of a mid-stage Qi Refinement cultivator, after all." Mi Shuhua smiled faintly and took a slow sip of hot tea from his cup.
After swallowing the spiritual tea, he frowned slightly.
"Still, it would be best if this kind of incident doesn't happen again."
He had already made up his mind: he needed to drop a word to Wang Haichao and have him keep a tight leash on his subordinates.
After the big ruckus between the two gangs earlier, their relations had finally eased with great difficulty.
He had secured a waterway, but he hadn't taken without giving, having established several other cooperative arrangements with Wang Haichao.
In the future, ties between the two gangs would likely grow even sweeter.
If Gao Tingyuan ended up cutting off his source of wealth, no one's face would look pretty.
"You two, be more vigilant in your protective duties."
"This is a voice transmission jade token containing a strand of my spiritual sense. If you encounter an insurmountable foe, activate it immediately to notify me."
"Nothing must happen to Luo Chen!"
Zhou Yuanli nodded solemnly and received the jade token with the utmost care.
***
Closing the door, boiling spring water, and brewing a pot of bitter tea.
Luo Chen sat down at his desk, feeling completely relaxed, and took out the item Old Daoist Chen had thrust into his hands upon parting.
A piece of gauze—faint gray and translucent, light as nothing.
Without a close look, one might not even notice its presence.
"That old man has been stingy his entire life, yet he actually gave me a gift before leaving."
"Let's see what it is."
Luo Chen smiled and unfolded the gauze. It looked unremarkable, bearing only a few bizarre patterns.
They somewhat resembled talisman runes, yet not quite.
"A talisman drawn on cloth?"
Curious, Luo Chen instinctively infused a wisp of spiritual power into it.
Stimulated by spiritual power, the strange patterns began squirming slowly like earthworms.
At the same time, an incantation detailing the circulation of spiritual power came into view.
Startled, Luo Chen read on intently.
Roughly half an incense stick's time later, Luo Chen set down the gray gauze with a complicated look.
"Fellow Daoist Chen, you basically handed me the very tool you made your living with."
Recorded on the cloth was a spell called the Breath Concealment Spiritual Art.
Once learned and cast, it allowed a cultivator to conceal their aura.
This aura encompassed not merely body scent, but also vigorous blood vitality, spiritual power fluctuations, and more.
If the spell reached Major Accomplishment, one could even adjust their spiritual power fluctuations at will to mask their cultivation realm.
Such concealment could only be seen through by someone an entire major realm higher.
Cultivators of the same realm, even if they cast the Spiritual Eye Art, would be unable to discern his specific cultivation base from his spiritual power fluctuations.
One could say that if the Breath Concealment Spiritual Art reached Major Accomplishment, whether for day-to-day interactions or venturing out into the wild, it would be extraordinarily useful.
Luo Chen was actually no stranger to this spell.
For the Qi-Concealing Talismans Old Daoist Chen usually sold were derived precisely from this spell.
However, Old Daoist Chen's talent for spells was mediocre; after years of hard practice, he had only reached the Minor Accomplishment stage.
Precisely because of this, the Qi-Concealing Talismans he crafted could only mask blood vitality, scent, and a slight amount of spiritual power fluctuation.
If Old Daoist Chen had mastered the Breath Concealment Spiritual Art to Major Accomplishment, the price of his Qi-Concealing Talismans could have at least doubled!
His talent was lacking, but Luo Chen's aptitude for spells was quite impressive.
With his several Tier 1 spells, he had achieved basic mastery entirely on his own, without relying on achievement points at all.
Furthermore, with the system's support, Luo Chen was entirely capable of training this Breath Concealment Spiritual Art to Major Accomplishment—or even surpassing the master!
"Quite a generous gift. Treating you to that feast at Zhongding House was well worth it after all."
Luo Chen smiled faintly and unfolded the gray gauze once more.
He silently recited the incantation from it over and over in his mind.
Once it was thoroughly ingrained in his memory, he set about practicing it.
"First, form a spiritual power seed outside the dantian..."
Chapter 86