Fifth Elder drew in a sharp breath. On this effect alone, one could easily claim Pure Yang True Fire was ranked first among all one hundred and eight True Fires.
Each of the one hundred and eight True Fires had distinct properties. Some flames were weak in destructive force and couldn't even burn a mortal to death, yet were remarkably effective at scorching through space; some were intensely powerful but volatile and prone to exploding; and others bypassed the physical body entirely to burn only the soul. Because of such differences, it was hard to declare any True Fire superior to the rest, making it impossible to rank them first or second.
But if you said your True Fire could enhance virility—
Fifth Elder couldn't speak for others, but he would cast his vote for Pure Yang True Fire.
"Let me study it and see if your Pure Yang True Fire can be stabilized into a fire seed."
"And your Three-Flavor True Fire—I'll study that too."
Fifth Elder asked for samples of Lu Yang's and Meng Jingzhou's True Fires, intending to find a way to forge them into fire seeds that burned continuously. Otherwise, if Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou had to stand beside the grill channeling spiritual energy to kindle it every time, what was the point of having an automatic barbecue rack?
"The best approach would be to combine the two flames," Fifth Elder murmured in contemplation, never expecting to run into such a technical challenge the moment he arrived in Yanjiang Commandery.
"Flames can be combined?" Qin Yanyan asked in surprise. She had never heard of such a concept before.
Fifth Elder didn't even look up. "Of course. Historically, people have fused two, three, or even more flames together to hurl at enemies. The power was astonishing—a remarkably effective technique for punching above one's weight class."
"Alright, all of you out. Let me research this in peace." Fifth Elder shooed the four of them out like chicks.
***
Three powerful cultivators descended upon Yanjiang Commandery. Concealing their auras, they blended into the crowd disguised as traveling merchants passing through.
"My Lord, according to the map, this should be Yanjiang Commandery."
"Mhm. Let's find a place first."
The three entered a private dining room in a restaurant, set up an array to ward off detection, and only then felt at ease shedding their disguises.
The visitors were none other than Shi Huagu, Vice Cult Master of the Nine Nether Cult, and two of his subordinates. One of those subordinates was the Soul Formation stage cultivator who had delivered Qin Haoran's promissory note to Shi Huagu—surnamed Huo, given name Huashen.
His parents had named him Huo Huashen in hopes that he would reach the Soul Formation stage.
Shi Huagu parted the room's window curtains. From the angle of the window, he had an unobstructed view of the Try Again Barbecue Shop across the street.
Night had already fallen, and business at the barbecue shop was booming, with a long line stretching out the door.
"So many people?" Shi Huagu was surprised. If this barbecue shop was a contact post for the Heavenly Court Cult, shouldn't they keep as low a profile as possible?
Were they playing reverse psychology, or was this a show of strength—demonstrating that the Heavenly Court Cult had no fear of the righteous path detecting them?
Retracting his gaze, he scanned his two subordinates.
"Our Cult Master assigned me a mission for this trip to Yanjiang Commandery. As you have likely guessed, it is to test the depth of this Heavenly Court Cult. If there is potential for cooperation, I have been authorized to exercise the Cult Master's authority and formalize a cooperative agreement on his behalf."
"You two are my trusted confidants. I trust your work not to slip up."
"Huo Huashen, you were the first to make contact with the Heavenly Court Cult."
"Zhou Shan, you have studied ancient history extensively and know more about it than anyone else in our cult."
"My Lord, should we make contact with the Heavenly Court Cult right now?"
Shi Huagu shook his head. "No hurry. We will observe for a while first. The two of you go investigate the background of this barbecue shop and see if there is anything suspicious."
"Understood!"
The two responded in unison and vanished from the private room.
Before long, Shi Huagu stepped out of the room, only for the waiter to present the bill. "Honored guest, your two companions have both departed, so regarding the tab..."
Shi Huagu's face darkened. Shouldn't subordinates be fighting over the privilege of picking up the bill for him?
***
During their investigation, Huo Huashen made small talk: "Zhou Shan, everyone says you're the most knowledgeable about ancient history. Has the archaeological community made any new progress in researching the ancient era lately?"
Zhou Shan nodded. "Major progress, related to an immortal."
"What is it?"
Zhou Shan looked around furtively, acting mysterious. Seeing that no one was nearby, he sent a voice transmission: "It's just grapevine gossip I picked up, not necessarily true."
"Don't worry, I can judge for myself."
"In the ancient era, there was an immortal named Immortal Ying Tian. He was suave and dashing, scattering his seed everywhere and getting countless women pregnant!"
Huo Huashen leaned his head back slightly. "Truly?!"
Zhou Shan continued, "According to my analysis, there is an eighty percent chance this is true. Think about it: he was an immortal who had reached the end of the cultivation path. With nothing better to do, it makes complete sense he would have such a hobby."
Huo Huashen nodded, finding Zhou Shan's deduction deeply reasonable. "No wonder everyone says you're the most knowledgeable about ancient history."
"You flatter me," Zhou Shan chuckled with reserved pride.
"Enough chat, let's complete His Lordship's task first."
***
"My Lord, according to our investigation, there are indeed a few peculiarities about this barbecue shop."
"The owner of the Try Again Barbecue Shop is surnamed Lu, real name unknown. Customers like to call him Shopkeeper Lu or Little Shopkeeper Lu."
"Four months ago, Shopkeeper Lu bought out this property and opened the barbecue shop. Thanks to delicious meats that were tender, juicy, and rivaled the work of a spiritual chef, it received widespread acclaim."
"Anyone else with business this brisk would have opened a chain long ago, yet this shop has never shown any intention of opening branches."
Shi Huagu nodded. "That makes sense. After all, this is a stronghold of the Heavenly Court Cult. The Heavenly Court Cult is resurfacing in the world; blindly expanding restaurants would be putting the cart before the horse."
"Furthermore, the barbecue shop maintains an excellent relationship with the local yamen. They frequently assist the authorities in capturing escaped convicts, for which the local government has awarded them several brocade banners."
"Showing goodwill toward the righteous path under a cover identity avoids a great deal of trouble. Yanjiang Commandery cultivators generally possess low cultivations, the highest being merely at the Golden Core stage. It would be impossible for them to see through the Heavenly Court Cult's disguise."
"We also discovered that the entire Yanjiang Branch of the former Immortal Cult once dined at this barbecue shop."
Shi Huagu lowered his head in thought. "It is possible the Heavenly Court Cult wished to use the Yanjiang Branch to establish contact with the Immortal Cult's upper echelon, but before they could, the branch was wiped out by the Dao Seeking Sect. A pity."
"According to our analysis, four months ago, Shopkeeper Lu's apparent cultivation was early Foundation Establishment. We cannot be sure whether that was a concealed cultivation or if he truly was at early Foundation Establishment back then and only recently broke through to the Golden Core stage."
"That is unimportant."
"Additionally, the barbecue shop remained closed for three whole months, only reopening within the past half month. Furthermore, they launched a brand-new product line—the virility-enhancing series. Once released, it caused a sensation throughout the commandery."
"Based on our investigation into the local brothels, customer traffic has noticeably surged, so the virility effect appears genuine."
"Customers have also reported that the barbecue tastes even better than it did three months ago."
"Reopened only within the past half month? It seems this is merely a temporary base, reopened by the Heavenly Court Cult specifically to grant us an opportunity to make contact."
"Not telling us their true base's location shows they still lack trust in us."
"Very well. Since there is nothing suspicious about this barbecue shop, let us pay it a visit and test just how deep these waters run!"
Chapter 325