Chapter 25: Great Song Jingshi

……

Four days later.

Two men and two women, appearing to be ordinary young people, followed a merchant caravan and arrived at Kaifeng Cheng, the Jingshi of the Great Song.

Looking at the towering, dark green city walls and the endless stream of carriages and people entering and exiting the city gates, the four of them breathed a sigh of relief almost simultaneously.

The journey had been smooth, and they had not encountered any trouble.

With the Great Song Emperor's hundredth birthday celebration, the Jingshi was naturally bustling; everywhere was filled with high-ranking officials and nobles who had come to offer their congratulations, as well as a large number of foreign delegations and cultivators from various Immortal Sects and families.

Although the city gates were guarded by the Forbidden Army, there were many people the Forbidden Army could not afford to offend, so the gate inspections were very lax.

Xu Chen and the other three did not want to reveal their identities for the time being, so after entering the city with the caravan, they did not go to the Imperial Palace to report, but instead found a relatively secluded small inn to stay at.

Jiu Shixiong casually tossed a large lump of silver to the innkeeper, instructed him to prepare four quiet, high-quality rooms, and asked him to help purchase some new clothes for the four of them.

The innkeeper was incredibly excited, knowing he had met a wealthy patron; he not only arranged for his wife and daughter to come and help clean and tidy the rooms, but also diligently called the owner of a clothing store to come and help take measurements in person.

After a flurry of activity to get settled, the four of them finished washing up and gathered together to discuss.

Jiu Shixiong looked at the Princess of Xiyun and said, "We have done what we promised you. Now that we have arrived at the Jingshi, you must arrange how to proceed yourself."

The Princess of Xiyun did not dare to force them, so she knelt and kowtowed, saying, "The great kindness and virtue of the three Immortal Masters and the Taiyuan Sect is something Zhao Qian will never forget. Although my father's case of being framed for treason has already been concluded under the pressure of the Pingxi King, I believe there are still some who will not believe it. I will secretly go to visit my father's former close friends; as long as they are willing to help and can first protect my mother and family, there will be room and time for a turnaround."

Jiu Shixiong said, "Have you considered that these people might have already been pressured or threatened by the Pingxi King to defect? Once you appear, you might fall into the hands of the Pingxi King."

Zhao Qian froze for a moment, her eyes reddened, and she shed tears, saying, "I am not familiar with the Jingshi, but there is no other way at the moment; I can only do this."

Jiu Shixiong pinched his chin and pondered for a moment, saying, "We are not familiar with the Jingshi either, and even less so with the many high-ranking officials and nobles. We are indeed powerless in this matter. It is fine for you to go and test the waters first. Also, regarding the Ziyang Sect and the Spirit Medicine, I hope you can keep your mouth shut. If there is an opportunity, we will mention this to the Emperor, but we cannot interfere with whether it succeeds or not."

Zhao Qian thanked them repeatedly, kowtowed to the three of them again, and then rose to leave the room. Not long after, she left the inn alone.

Watching the Princess of Xiyun disappear from his Divine Sense into the bustling crowd, Zhao Xuan shook her head with some reluctance and said, "I fear that once she goes, she will not return."

Jiu Shixiong lowered his voice and said, "We must be cautious about this matter. We must not let our compassion run wild; one careless move could really get us all dragged into this. If news of the Blood God Grass reaches the ears of other Immortal Sects, I fear this Emperor's birthday celebration will turn into a chaotic brawl."

Zhao Xuan naturally knew this, so these words were mainly spoken for Xu Chen to hear.

Xu Chen curled his lips and said, "Brother, put your heart at ease. I trust myself more than I trust you."

Jiu Shixiong's face turned red instantly; he laughed dryly and rubbed his hands, saying, "Since Junior Brother understands, I won't say any more. Now that we have arrived at the Jingshi, we must certainly go sightseeing, and at the same time, exchange ideas with Daoist Friends from other Immortal Sects. This is a rare opportunity."

Zhao Xuan also nodded with great interest and said, "That is indeed true. This is only my second time coming to the Jingshi; the last time I came was with Seventh Senior Sister and the others. Although the Jingshi is the capital of a mortal kingdom, there are actually quite a few practitioners among the common people. It is truly a place where hidden dragons and crouching tigers reside. There are several places for trading Immortal Treasures both inside and outside the city. There will likely be no shortage of good things this time."

Xu Chen became interested upon hearing this, but then hesitated and said, "Then what about the matter of the Princess of Xiyun? Are we just going to ignore it?"

Jiu Shixiong said sternly, "We must manage it, of course, but we cannot blindly intervene. We must wait and observe the changes in the situation; we can only step in if there is an opportunity. Besides, our main task is to safely deliver the Blood God Grass back to the sect; that is the top priority."

Zhao Xuan also nodded quickly and said, "Junior Brother, you have seen it too. The Pingxi King is powerful in the Great Song; even the Emperor is very wary of him. Furthermore, since he colluded with the Ziyang Sect to arrange for experts of the Zhenyuan Realm to intercept and seize the Blood God Grass, there might be hidden cards up his sleeve. We are currently weak and thin; even if we want to help, we need to find some helpers. We must not act rashly."

Xu Chen nodded. Although his experience was shallow and his training limited, and he was an outsider to the struggles between these mortal nobles and royalty, the things he had experienced in the short ten-plus days on the way to the Jingshi were more than in the previous ten-plus years. Moreover, having gone through a fierce battle—even if he was just a side character helping out—his mind had matured quickly.

They were naturally not afraid of dealing with ordinary mortal kingdom nobles like the Pingxi King, but if a large sect like the Ziyang Sect were involved, and it concerned a rare treasure like the Blood God Grass, the three of them—small shrimp in the cultivation world—would be wiped out in an instant. Even the Taiyuan Sect could not guarantee it would remain unscathed.

After all, the efficacy of this Spirit Medicine was too strong. For any sect, it was an irresistible temptation, and even for those cultivators who had been stuck at the Danyuan Late Stage for decades or even a century, waiting only for time to wear away their lives, they would fight to the death to participate in the snatching.

Because this was their only chance at longevity in a lifetime.

"Sigh, if only this Storage Bag from the Ziyang Sect could be opened!"

Jiu Shixiong could not help but sigh in frustration.

Zhao Xuan and Xu Chen also smiled bitterly, feeling helpless.

On this journey to the Jingshi, the three of them had taken turns studying these two Storage Bags. The Arrays inside were exceptionally complex and exquisite; without the secret techniques of the Ziyang Sect, they could not be opened at all.

Or rather, it required extremely powerful Divine Sense and Yuan Qi to break through the Soul restriction set by that cultivator.

According to the Divine Sense blockade of that black-robed Daoist, it would require at least a powerhouse at the True Essence Late Stage or even the Danyuan Realm to do so.

"Forget it, let's go. Let's go into the city to stroll around, have a good meal, and then go find some fellow Daoists from the Immortal Sects to exchange ideas."

The three of them left the inn together and were soon attracted by the prosperity and bustle of the Great Song Jingshi. Like mortals, they began to stroll, eat, and drink. If they saw something they liked, they would buy some.

Therefore, after not walking far, Jiu Shixiong bought a refined steel sword that was said to be able to cut iron like mud and carried it on his back. Xu Chen, for the convenience of carrying Xiao Huli, bought a cowhide satchel, and specifically bought a wooden bowl and a pile of dried fruits, biscuits, and snacks for Xiao Huli. Although Zhao Xuan was an Immortal maiden, she was also a woman; she was interested in silk scarves, hairpins, jewelry, and other ornaments, and bought quite a few items in total.

The three of them chatted and laughed while eating snacks and strolling. Xu Chen was dazzled by the dazzling array of signs on the street, and suddenly his eyes lit up as he pointed ahead and said in surprise, "Hey, there is actually someone selling Immortal Pills ahead!"

Jiu Shixiong curled his lips and said, "Bullshit Immortal Pills; it's just some quack doctors in the mortal world bragging."

Zhao Xuan also glanced at it and smiled, "Since we have nothing to do, let's take Junior Brother in to have a look. Don't even think about Immortal Pills, but we might be able to get one or two ordinary herbs that are still useful. We can refine some Mortal Pills later to use as travel expenses."

Jiu Shixiong smiled, "That works too. Like Qingshui Pill and Peiyuan Pill, although they are Mortal Pills, they are still very tempting to the imperial court and mortal rogue cultivator families, and can be exchanged for quite a few things."

Thus, the three of them soon entered the pill shop. However, just as Jiu Shixiong and Zhao Xuan had said, they smelled a rich herbal fragrance upon entering. But when their Divine Sense swept over, the pills inside the medicine cabinets, which looked luxurious in porcelain and Jade Bottles, actually had no trace of Spirit Qi. Although the pills were ordinary, the prices made Xu Chen gasp; each one was tens or even hundreds of taels of silver. Among them, a crystal-clear Jade Bottle was enshrined in the medicine cabinet in the very center of the hall; inside was a yellowish pill labeled "Peiyuan Pill," and the price was as high as one thousand taels of gold.

"Hiss~" Xu Chen could not help but gasp.

Although he was a cultivator and had long since left the mortal world, he had previously been nothing more than a lonely cowherd and a dung-picker. He rarely saw copper coins throughout the year, and as for gold and silver, he had only heard of them but never seen them. Only this time, when he went down the mountain, the Nanyang City Lord gave him a few hundred taels of silver as travel expenses, which allowed him to splurge along the way and satisfy his desire to spend money lavishly. But one thousand taels of gold, when converted, was ten thousand taels of silver, which was heavy enough to crush a cow.

Such a large sum of money, let alone a wealthy family, even a Prince and Noble would likely not be able to produce it easily.

"Brother, is this Peiyuan Pill actually this valuable?" Xu Chen asked with his mouth wide open in surprise, taking a long time to recover.

Jiu Shixiong smiled, "Otherwise? Although the Peiyuan Pill is not graded, it is known as the number one pill below Immortal Pills. A single pill can almost create a mortal expert at the Innate Realm. In the eyes of the mortal martial arts world, it is equivalent to an Immortal Pill. If one appears, people will definitely fight until they break each other's dog brains out."

Zhao Xuan also said from the side, "The preciousness of the Peiyuan Pill lies in the fact that the few herbs used are almost top-tier medicinal materials among mortal medicines, and it is very difficult to collect them all. Even one of the ingredients, the 'Three-Day Floating Life Grass,' already has the aura of a Spirit Medicine and can be used as an auxiliary ingredient in Spirit Pills. It is definitely valuable. Two years ago, Third Elder even specifically asked me to go down the mountain to look for it once, but I was unlucky and went to Xiling Gorge without finding it."

The three of them pointed at the Peiyuan Pill, attracting the attention of the medicine shopkeeper. Seeing that the three of them had an extraordinary aura, he hurriedly walked over, cupped his hands, and saluted, "Are the three of you looking to buy the Peiyuan Pill?"

Jiu Shixiong released and retracted his aura slightly and curled his lips, "What is there to buy when it comes to Mortal Pills."

Although the shopkeeper was not a cultivator, he had a foundation in martial arts. He instantly felt his soul shake violently, his legs went weak, and he almost knelt on the ground. He immediately knew that the three people in front of him were Immortal Masters, so he hurriedly and cautiously cupped his hands again, "This lowly one truly did not know that three Immortal Masters had arrived; please forgive me for the offense."

Jiu Shixiong waved his hand, "Those who do not know are not guilty. We are just strolling around and came in to take a look. Does your medicine shop have any Spirit Medicine for sale?"

The shopkeeper immediately smiled bitterly, "The Immortal Masters think too highly of us; how could a small shop like ours have Spirit Medicine."

"Then why do you dare to hang up a sign selling Immortal Pills?" Xu Chen interjected.

"That..." The shopkeeper kept wiping cold sweat with his sleeve and answered with a stiff scalp, "Immortal Masters, please forgive me. Most pill shops in the mortal world are like this. Our small shop at least has one Peiyuan Pill; other pill shops are even worse. They don't even have Qingshui Pill but still hang up signs selling Immortal Pills..."

Seeing the shopkeeper's terrified appearance, Xu Chen felt bored, so he said, "Brother, Senior Sister, let's go!"