"How is it? Any news?"
The woman was visibly injured, her face and lips somewhat pale.
Shopkeeper Wu let out a sigh and shook his head slightly. "I send men to check every day, but none of the locations have the secret marks left by the Incense Master."
The woman gritted her teeth. "Could he have..."
"Impossible!" Shopkeeper Wu said in a heavy voice. "With the Incense Master's martial arts and sorcery, as long as he isn't surrounded by experts from the Taixuan Orthodox Sect, where under heaven could he not go?
"Besides, he has the Cockscomb Snake God protecting him. No matter how many blade bandits there are on that mountain, he could slaughter them clean in a single night.
"He's likely just delayed by something."
"What you say makes sense." The woman nodded, yet worry still filled her eyes. "Ever since the Cult Leader failed to advance, the cult has fragmented into factions. Several Incense Masters have harbored disloyal thoughts. If this continues, I fear we will be picked off one by one by the imperial court."
With a determined gaze, Shopkeeper Wu shook his head. "Hmph, let them run loose for a while longer. As long as our Incense Master succeeds in advancing, he can unite the Divine Cult and purge the traitors!
"Lately, turmoil is bound to erupt in Xianyang City. And then there's that traitor Chu Shan, who sent a pack of beggars scurrying everywhere. He must have caught wind of something. Stay here in peace, and whatever you do, don't go outside."
The woman nodded and then asked, "Something went wrong in Chang'an, and now Yuan Qu is covetously eyeing us from the side. Is this incense hall going to fall?"
"Don't worry." A savage glint flashed across Shopkeeper Wu's eyes. "Originally, this old man was at his wit's end, but now the jianghu of Xianyang City is about to plunge into chaos. It's the perfect chance to fish in troubled waters!"
...
As night deepened, candlelight shone brightly inside the side room of Wendao Hall.
"Come, down the hatch!"
Sha Lifei raised his bowl of wine, gulped it down in two or three mouthfuls, wiped his mouth, and clicked his tongue in admiration. "That man Wu is truly wealthy, willing to bring out aged Xifeng vintage wine like this."
Wang Daoxuan took a sip as well, squinting as he remarked, "Indeed. Sour without astringency, sweet without cloying, bitter without sticking, spicy without stinging the throat, and fragrant without overpowering—truly the 'Five Perfections.'"
Having triumphed in the ring today, Li Yan was naturally in high spirits. He tore off a bite of chicken drumstick, clinked bowls with the other two, and said with a chuckle, "Don't worry. Once the business in Xianyang is settled, we can take on jobs with peace of mind. Eating fine food and drinking strong liquor in the future won't be a problem at all!"
"I was just waiting to hear you say that!" Sha Lifei laughed heartily and picked up the wine jar to fill his bowl again. "I'll finish this one; you two drink as you please."
Whatever excuses he gave, he was simply craving the liquor and wanted to drink more.
"Look at your lack of ambition." Li Yan chuckled, then turned toward Wang Daoxuan. "Daoist, you have practiced spirit preservation for a long time. You should have the opportunity to build your second-story tower, right? I wonder how much money that requires?"
Wang Daoxuan was taken aback and hurriedly shook his head. "The pressing matter right now is to perform the ritual for your tower building, lest your preserved spirit disperses and all your effort goes to waste."
Li Yan naturally could not mention that he possessed the Daluo Dharma Body and had no such worries, so he replied solemnly, "I'm still young; there's no rush. Besides, in our current situation, having your cultivation advance further is the best choice.
"I'm still a layman regarding many things. Even if I build a tower, cultivating sorcery won't happen overnight. It's better for you to go first, Daoist."
A flicker of emotion touched Wang Daoxuan's eyes. Seeing this, he no longer declined, saying in a low voice, "The items required for the rituals of the first two stories can all be purchased with silver.
"However, starting from the third story, heavenly spirit earthly treasures become indispensable. During the ritual, different treasures grant different enhancements to divine abilities.
"This old Daoist specializes in surveying feng shui. If I can find Earth Marrow, it will greatly aid my ability to discern feng shui topography. If I can find Cloud Moss, the power of my incantations can be elevated.
"Neither of these two items is extraordinarily rare. People among the Xuanmen dharma lineages in Chang'an City sell them, though the prices are exorbitant. But if we can hire someone skilled in treasure seeking to assist, the price can be cut in half, though it will take time to search."
"Why think so far ahead?" Sha Lifei waved his large hand. "When the time comes, we'll pull off a few big jobs and let both of you build your towers at the same time. Wouldn't that be wonderful?
"By the way, how much does it cost to build a tower? Is five hundred taels enough?"
Wang Daoxuan chuckled wryly. "To build the first story, besides purchasing dharma instruments, one must also rent a spiritual aperture on Mount Taibai. To put it conservatively, it will cost at least a thousand taels."
"A... thousand taels?" Sha Lifei was instantly dumbfounded.
"Indeed," Wang Daoxuan sighed. "These things are nothing to orthodox Xuanmen sects and established dharma lineages, but for smaller folk traditions, preparations must begin from the very start. Otherwise, even if an appropriate disciple is found, the dharma cannot be transmitted.
"Many lineages have been severed because of this..."
Right at that moment, Li Yan's brows knitted slightly, and he signaled the two to be quiet.
Ever since his spirit preservation, his divine ability had been brought under control. Usually kept closed with the Yin Mudra, he could not smell those peculiar odors, yet his sense of smell remained extraordinary.
He could smell several foul stenches appearing outside the courtyard wall.
He remembered this smell: the stench of sweat mixed with spoiled food, along with the fishy musk of venomous vermin.
It was those members of the Beggars' Gang from the mass graves!
To think that before the Zhou family's retaliation arrived, these fellows would come knocking on their door first.
Li Yan whispered a few instructions to the two, then slowly opened the door and stepped out into the courtyard with Sha Lifei.
He picked up several pieces of broken brick beside the flowerbed, while Sha Lifei planted his hands on his hips, took a deep breath, and shouted in fury, "What scoundrels dare creep around here? Take this!"
The moment the words left his mouth, Li Yan hurled the broken bricks over the courtyard wall.
Muffled grunts instantly sounded from outside.
They were indeed several vicious beggars from the Xianyang mass graves.
Having heard that Li Yan was gravely injured, they had seized the night to launch a sneak attack.
This was an impromptu move by these vicious beggars, undertaken without informing their chief, Master Shan, all because the man Li Yan had killed that day was their sworn brother.
Naturally, they had also been exceptionally cautious.
Two of them were skilled in driving venomous snakes and vermin, carrying cloth sacks filled with black snakes and scorpions from the mass graves.
They never expected that the moment they approached, Li Yan would discover them.
Bloodied by the flying bricks, their ferocity was ignited. Throwing caution to the wind, they ripped open the sacks, intending to fling the venomous snakes and scorpions into the courtyard. Though separated by the wall, Li Yan deduced what they were trying to do from the smell. Sneering inward, he immediately pressed his hand against his saber hilt.
With a single thought of spirit preservation, the Three Powers Demon-Suppressing Coins hanging from his saber hilt tassel swayed.
Back at the mass graves, he had learned the weakness of these creatures. Because they were tainted with yin-evil qi, they were equally terrified of all manner of evil-suppressing items.
Sure enough, the scorpions and venomous vermin inside the bags instantly went wild.
Just as one vicious beggar untied his sack, a venomous snake shot out and bit him straight on the nose.
The other fared no better; a massive venomous scorpion scurried out and struck his hand directly. The cloth sack dropped to the ground, and the remaining scorpions scattered, crawling everywhere.
"Ah—!"
"Run, quickly!"
Cries of agony rang out. Enduring the pain, the vicious beggars turned on their heels and fled.
At Li Yan's signal, Sha Lifei did not chase after them. Instead, he stood in the courtyard and laughed boisterously. "A bunch of petty scoundrels dare make trouble for your Grandpa Sha? Serves you right!"
With that, the three prepared to return to the room.
They knew this was merely a minor interlude.
Though the Beggars' Gang had numbers, it was a mixed bag of good and bad. Those who actually took action were only the core members.
Furthermore, they possessed a major hidden vulnerability: the beggar den itself.
Among the ordinary beggars were many pitiable souls, including young beggars who had been kidnapped and deliberately maimed through live human harvesting, forced to beg daily and beaten at the slightest provocation, living lives worse than death.
If too many core members died, those heavily abused beggars would likely turn on them immediately.
The only thing they needed to do now was preserve themselves as best as possible before this storm subsided.
However, before stepping inside, Li Yan turned his head back, lost in thought.
"What is it? Someone else coming?"
"Nothing. Someone is just more impatient than I imagined..."
...
In a dark alley, footsteps scrambled in disarray.
Stumbling as they fled, the beggars fished out pitch-black antivenom pills from their clothes and shoved them into their mouths.
They grumbled at each other without pause.
"Didn't you say that Sha Lifei was just a useless sack of straw?"
"Everyone said so! I never fought him before..."
"Stop arguing! Find a place to rest first so the poison doesn't reach our hearts..."
However, just as they exited the alley, four or five men suddenly lunged from both sides. Holding long staves, they dropped low and swept them viciously.
*Crack, crack, crack!*
Crisp snaps accompanied the sound of splintering bone. The vicious beggars collapsed to the ground with wails of agony, clutching their legs and howling, "Mercy, Grandpas! We won't dare do it again!"
"Grandpas, stop! We're from the Beggars' Gang!"
"Beggars' Gang?"
From the darkness, a middle-aged man slowly stepped forward. He had dark skin, a full beard, wore a sheepskin vest, and had a long whip tucked into his waist.
Looking at the beggars, he smacked his lips. "Since when did people from the Beggars' Gang become lackeys for the Zhou family?"
"Speak!"
Before the beggars could make any excuses, the black-clad men charged forward, raining a barrage of slaps down on their faces.
Beaten black and blue, the beggars realized they had encountered ruthless characters and had no choice but to recount everything about the incident at the mass graves in full detail.
"So that's how it is." The man in the sheepskin vest scoffed. "That kid played sick, making us think he was a cowardly weakling, but he turns out to be a troublemaker as well.
"Take them back. Send a calling card to the Beggars' Gang tomorrow and tell them that if they want to live, stay far away from Xianyang during this period!"
"Understood, Chief."
The black-clad men stepped forward at once, dragging the Beggars' Gang members away like dead dogs.
In the darkness, the voice of the man in the sheepskin vest sounded:
"Go, inform Senior Zhang that the fish didn't bite the hook..."
...
In this world, some always rejoice while others lament.
Just as Li Yan and his companions were drinking wine and eating meat, a cloud of gloom hung over the Zhou family.
Inside the manor's wing room, candlelight burned bright.
Zhou Bai lay on the bed, wrapped head to toe in bandages and splints. His face was flushed, his eyes tightly shut, and the pungent stench of medicinal herbs permeated the air.
At this moment, all of the Zhou family's Eight Great Vajras were present in the room.
Wang Yao, who was skilled in medicine, released Zhou Bai's pulse with a frown and shook his head slightly. "His life is temporarily preserved, but his internal organs are damaged, and his bones and sinews are snapped. I fear it will be difficult for him to practice martial arts in the future..."
Upon hearing this, Zhou Peide's expression turned grim.
His knuckles popped as he clenched his fists. Suddenly turning around, he leaped forward, seized Yuan Qu by the throat, and slammed him against the wall, snarling, "Yuan, what did you do to Zhou Bai before the match?!"
Choked until his face flushed crimson, Yuan Qu was just about to speak when an aged voice rang out from outside:
"Why rough him up? It was my order."
The others were startled and hurriedly turned around, clasping their hands in salute:
"Greetings, Master!"
Chapter 50