Chapter 158: 158. Chapter 156: A Bad Premonition

158. Chapter 156: A Bad Premonition

Since he knew he'd have to wait over a month before going to the Cultivation World, Ding Huan simply took out all ten crystal fragments on him and exchanged them for True Karma Coins.

The ten crystal fragments were exchanged for thirty thousand True Karma Coins.

After returning to the inn, Ding Huan sorted through the things in his backpack again.

Apart from some simple daily necessities, there was a pot and a few books on spirit herbs and minerals purchased from the Four Directions Continent.

These daily necessities were only to throw people off the scent—just to let people know that all his things were in the bag.

The books on spirit herbs and minerals from the Four Directions Continent weren't worth much here; any random book bought here would contain richer knowledge than what was in his bag.

Considering he might need to cook meals for a long time in the future, Ding Huan simply took out a pile of God-Bloom Crystals and placed them in the pot in his backpack.

This wasn't mere wishful thinking.

Back when Qi Xinyue was cooking the great horned owl meat in the Kunlun Mountains, she had used this very pot.

But the meat that came out was truly terrible to eat, with no flavor at all.

At that time Ding Huan already knew it was a problem with his pot—the pot was very likely absorbing the world's spiritual energy.

The spiritual energy from the horned owl meat had all been absorbed by the pot; it would be strange if what came out had any flavor.

Since that was the case, he took out the God-Bloom Crystals to let the pot absorb them on its own.

Once the pot was full of spiritual energy, using it to cook food might make things taste better.

After finishing all this, Ding Huan left the inn every day to gather information in Hecheng.

Lou Buzhi also didn't stay at the inn; no one knew where he had gone, and he too left early and returned late.

A week later, Ding Huan had a pretty good grasp of Hecheng.

Hecheng wasn't considered remote within the True Karma Empire; it was only a day's journey from the empire's capital, Dayecheng.

Of course, not on foot—there were dedicated vehicles.

Not to mention the Mortal World of the Triple Heaven Continent, even the True Karma Empire's development was very strange.

In the True Karma Empire, one group of people revered cultivation; they believed only cultivation held a way out and could ensure the empire's lasting peace and stability.

Another group believed they had to explore the laws of the universe, develop in accordance with those laws, and find means to synchronize with them, in order to ensure the people of the True Karma Empire could live and work in peace and contentment.

To put it bluntly, it was lighting up the tech tree.

This gave rise to a bizarre phenomenon: the True Karma Empire had both cultivators and technologists, and they didn't conflict with each other.

What pleased Ding Huan was that he didn't find a talisman brush magical artifact in Hecheng, but he did find a machine capable of gene extraction.

The trouble was, even the cheapest one cost over five hundred thousand True Karma Coins—he couldn't afford it.

As long as he had one, that was good; in the future he still needed to keep making other gene potions, and this kind of machine was very important to him.

As for talismans, Ding Huan also inquired at many market streets and merchant towers.

These things were sold in the Mortal World too, but one had to go to specialized cultivation-supply merchant towers, and the prices were steep.

Ding Huan mentally noted this path down—maybe in the future, when he had no money, he could go sell talismans.

As for the God-Bloom Crystals on him, Ding Huan had no plans to take them out for sale.

He felt the grade of the God-Bloom Crystals was higher than the crystal fragments he had obtained; if he took them out and got targeted by someone, that would be the end of him.

This place wasn't the Four Directions Continent.

On the Four Directions Continent, he might still have a chance to escape.

Someone like Sang Yuhe, whose strength could crush the entire Four Directions Continent, was only ordinary here.

Because people from the Mortal World couldn't casually go to the Cultivation World, but people from the Cultivation World could casually come to the Mortal World. If a strong expert really set their sights on him, escaping would be very hard.

Sighing, Ding Huan went to check the pot in his backpack.

After opening the backpack, Ding Huan was stunned—a whole pot of God-Bloom Crystals had been reduced to some ash residue.

This thing really could absorb God-Bloom Crystals.

Without hesitation, Ding Huan took out another pile of God-Bloom Crystals and tossed them into the pot, then sealed the backpack shut.

"Xiaotu…" Qi Xinyue's voice came from outside the door.

Ding Huan opened the door and let Qi Xinyue in.

"Xinyue, what's the matter?"

Seeing the troubled look on Qi Xinyue's face, Ding Huan knew she definitely had something going on.

Qi Xinyue hesitated, then said:

"Xiaotu, these past few days I've kept feeling uneasy, as if someone is searching for me."

Hearing this, Ding Huan was startled and quickly began divining.

Soon Ding Huan's expression turned ugly.

"Xiaotu, is something really going on?"

Seeing Ding Huan's expression wasn't looking good, Qi Xinyue quickly asked.

Ding Huan nodded:

"Yes, my divination shows you being taken away by someone."

"Then what should we do? Should we leave this place?" Qi Xinyue was greatly alarmed.

She had a vague inkling, but she didn't dare think it through.

Deep in her heart, she vaguely understood that she probably had no power to resist.

Ding Huan shook his head; no matter how he divined, no matter how they fled, it seemed they couldn't avoid it.

The main reason was that the results of his divination grew blurrier each time, indicating that someone far stronger than him had appeared within the scope of his divination.

"Xinyue, let's figure out a way to leave Hecheng right now, and then head to the Cultivation World."

Ding Huan made the decision resolutely.

Although he couldn't calculate where would be safe, he could sense that only by going to the Dao Cultivation World would he completely escape this outcome.

If they stayed in the Mortal World, they couldn't get away.

"Wait for me a moment. Let me go cancel the room first, then we'll leave as soon as Bu Zhi comes back."

After saying this, Ding Huan quickly went downstairs.

"Brother Huan…" The moment Ding Huan reached the bottom of the stairs, Lou Buzhi rushed into the inn.

Ding Huan looked at Lou Buzhi in confusion. Lou Buzhi looked rather miserable.

His hair was a tangled mess, and it seemed someone had slapped him across the face a couple of times.

"Did something happen?" Ding Huan asked.

"Yes, Brother Huan. Let's go to the tea room and talk." Lou Buzhi forced a smile.

The first floor of the Youshi Inn was the Xilou's tea room. The two only had to turn a corner and walk a few steps to reach it.

After they sat down in the tea room, Ding Huan pointed at Lou Buzhi's face:

"Who hit you? How did you end up this miserable?"

The slap marks were still visible on Lou Buzhi's face.

But he waved his hand dismissively, pretending it was nothing:

"It's nothing, just a small scuffle, all sorted out."

After pouring Lou Buzhi a cup of tea, Ding Huan said:

"Brother Buzhi, the fact that I can stay here with you means I haven't treated you as an outsider. After all, we came over on the same ship, so we're acquaintances.

If there's something you're hiding, small matters don't matter. But if it's something even you can't control, that wouldn't be good for us."

Ding Huan thought of his recent divination and Qi Qi Xinyue's perception, and felt these might be connected.

Lou Buzhi froze for a moment, then said awkwardly:

"Brother Huan, you know I just followed you here to Hecheng. I can't keep relying on you every day. These past few days I've been wandering around the city, seeing if there's any place hiring, wanting to find something to do."

Ding Huan felt quite moved hearing this. Old Six had been by his side for so long and never once thought about going to find work, nor ever felt it was wrong to eat and drink at his expense.

He didn't think Lou Buzhi was wrong either. If he were in Lou Buzhi's position, he would have gone to find work too.

"We'll talk about finding work later. First tell me how you got beaten."

Ding Huan asked again.

Lou Buzhi gave a self-deprecating laugh:

"I saw the City Patrol Guards recruiting members, so I went to sign up. My luck was pretty good—I got the last spot."

"Not bad. At least the City Patrol Guards are official, with some security."

Ding Huan was actually happy for Lou Buzhi for a moment.

If Lou Buzhi had something to do, then when they left there'd be no need to take Lou Buzhi along.

Lou Buzhi shook his head:

"No, that was just signing up. In two days I still have to take a series of assessments. Only after passing can I become a City Patrol Guard member.

Just at that moment, a guy who also wanted to become a City Patrol Guard hadn't managed to sign up. He wanted me to give him my spot, but I didn't agree."

"You didn't agree to give him your spot, so he hit you?"

Ding Huan suddenly wondered if he had some misunderstanding about the peace and order of Hecheng.

The unwillingness in Lou Buzhi's eyes flashed and vanished, and he could only let out a sigh:

"The spot was taken from me by them. One of them thought I was ungracious, so after taking the spot they still had to hit me."

"So arrogant?" Ding Huan looked at Lou Buzhi in disbelief.

This was more than arrogant—Lou Buzhi's spot had been snatched away, and on top of that they still had to hit him.

"The ones who took your spot—are they a skinny monkey, a monk, and a woman?" Ding Huan suddenly spoke up.

Lou Buzhi was stunned:

"Brother Huan, how did you know?"

Ding Huan sighed:

"I saw it."

He sighed because he was wondering—does Lou Buzhi really look that easy to bully?

The spot was snatched, he was beaten, and yet they still had the nerve to chase him all the way to the Youshi Inn.

"Kid, you sure can run, huh."

The speaker was that skinny monkey. He stared at Lou Buzhi and said mockingly, then after finishing, he glanced dismissively at Ding Huan.

Ding Huan was about to speak when he suddenly felt a chill run through his whole body, an extreme sense of discomfort welling up.

He glanced sideways and noticed a man who looked like a Shopkeeper standing not far outside the inn. This guy's aura was very strong.

Ding Huan was certain he was no match for this guy. This guy must already be at Foundation Establishment, or even late Foundation Establishment.

"What else do you want? I've already given you everything I have."

Lou Buzhi's tone carried fear and helpless anger.

"What do we want? You little punk don't know what's good for you. Think two slaps are the end of it? If you hadn't run, once your grandpa here vented his anger, I might have let you off.

But now, hurry up and kneel down to apologize, and pay ten thousand True Industry Coins as compensation."

The skinny monkey said with a chuckle.

Lou Buzhi retreated a few steps, completely at a loss.

The skinny monkey rushed over and slapped down at Lou Buzhi. Ding Huan could tell this skinny monkey was at most equivalent to an Earth-rank martial artist, and his strength should actually be inferior to Lou Buzhi's.

Lou Buzhi saw that if he dodged again, this slap would land on Ding Huan. Without another thought, he threw a punch straight at the skinny monkey.

Lou Buzhi's punch was far faster and more powerful than the skinny monkey's.

At this speed, before Skinny Monkey's slap could even reach Lou Buzhi, Lou Buzhi's punch would definitely have landed on Skinny Monkey.

The monk following beside Skinny Monkey clearly saw his companion was about to suffer, so he stepped forward and kicked straight at Lou Buzhi.

Ding Huan saw this kick and understood in his heart that this fellow's strength was absolutely equivalent to a peak ninth-grade genetic cultivator.

If Lou Buzhi took this kick solidly, he would probably lose most of his life.

At the same moment this fellow kicked out, Ding Huan also kicked out.

The two men's legs collided.

"Crack!" The monk's leg was directly broken by Ding Huan's kick, and his whole body flew backward.

Although Ding Huan's leg wasn't broken, he spat out a mouthful of fresh blood, then also flew backward.

Unlike the monk, Ding Huan's blood was deliberately vomited by himself, and his retreat was also intentional.

At this moment, he discovered that apart from one fellow outside the Rest Inn staring at him here—

At some unknown time, several more people had appeared at the Rest Inn's entrance, and these people's strength far surpassed his; they too were staring at him.

His cultivation was about the same as the monk's, so under normal circumstances there was no reason he could kick the monk flying, break the other's leg, and still come out unscathed.

Therefore he deliberately took an injury.

Also because he was injured, he didn't continue chasing forward to fight.

Ding Huan's intervention blocked the monk, and Lou Buzhi's punch smashed into Skinny Monkey's face.

The sound of bone fracturing set one's teeth on edge; Skinny Monkey's face was covered in fresh blood, and his vision was a blur, unable to make out anything.

"You're seeking death."

That woman saw Ding Huan kick the monk flying, and Lou Buzhi punch Skinny Monkey away, and couldn't help but charge at Ding Huan to fight.

Qi Qi Xinyue happened to walk into the Rest Inn at this moment; she personally saw Ding Huan spit blood, yet that woman still wanted to make a move on Ding Huan.

At this moment Qi Qi Xinyue didn't think at all; her whole body turned into a shadow and she kicked at the woman about to attack Ding Huan.

"Crack!" Once again came the sound of bone shattering.

The woman attacking Ding Huan had several ribs broken by Qi Qi Xinyue's full-power kick, and she fell sitting on the ground vomiting large mouthfuls of blood.

This woman's strength wasn't even as good as the monk's, while Qi Qi Xinyue had long since been a peak ninth-grade genetic cultivator.

Over this past year Qi Qi Xinyue hadn't cultivated at all, only settling down to consolidate her foundation, so her strength far exceeded the other's.

But Ding Huan's heart sank; he saw the man who looked like a Shopkeeper, who had been watching outside earlier, charge over, and from his appearance he meant to make a move on Qi Qi Xinyue.

The reason he had been holding back his strength all along was that he was wary of this fellow.