"Oh..."
Zhang Kui's interest was piqued at once.
In this world, demons and spirits are usually divided into two categories.
The first is the organized kind.
They seem to have existed since ancient times, often entrenched in famous mountains and great rivers, or treacherous places, shrouded in mystery. Humans cannot set foot there, deeming them Forbidden Lands.
For example, within the Qian Dynasty, there is a popular saying in the Jianghu: "Three Mountains, Four Caves, and Five Water Mansions," which means these places are off-limits to living people.
The Dead Man's Cave, where the "General's Tomb" is located, is one of them.
Then there are those scattered beings hidden among humans; some are eradicated shortly after they are born, while others group together.
After all, demons and evil spirits aren't a monolithic force, and sometimes their conflicts are extremely bloody.
Could it be that they stumbled upon a small lair?
Hearing this, Yu Gaishan became anxious. No matter what kind of evil spirit this was, his son was apparently already a target.
"Taoist Zhang, I am willing to offer a hefty reward for you to eliminate this scourge!"
Zhang Kui stroked his chin,
"No rush, let's find a place to discuss in detail."
The Yu Mansion was in chaos by now—the front courtyard was filled with Jianghu people discussing fervently, family members were terrified in the back courtyard, and even a few enclosing walls seemed about to collapse.
Yu Gaishan ordered the fat steward to manage these matters, then found a secluded room where the "Lustful Young Master" also took a seat.
"I am Chen Wushuang, meeting Taoist Zhang for the first time."
He had changed into a new set of clothes, speaking with humility and courtesy, completely devoid of the previous domineering aura.
But it made sense, considering he was entrusted with authority by a prominent martial arts family, it was rare to see someone with such a handsome face going around ridiculing others.
Under the gazes of several people, he spoke eloquently:
"You may all know that this region is rich in Jade Flowers. Since 8 years ago, whenever they bloom, a young girl arrives gracefully, bestowing a 'Bitter Heart Pill' with a wave of her hand, extending life by over a decade."
"Although some alchemy masters can create better things, most are monopolized by the Court, making this 'Bitter Heart Pill' highly sought after by Jianghu people, leading to bloodshed."
"This girl seems very fond of music, so several major sects secretly agreed to first drive away irrelevant individuals, then have each family perform music and dance at selected locations, relying on fate, forbidding any private conflicts."
Chen Wushuang showed a bitter smile,
"Unfortunately, the place where this demon was seen two days ago is our Celestial Eagle Manor's chosen 'Golden Wind Tower'.
Saying this, he stood up, bowed, and clasped his hands,
"Taoist Zhang, I have an unreasonable request. My father is elderly, and this time Celestial Eagle Manor is determined to claim the 'Bitter Heart Pill'. To avoid any accidents, we ask for your discreet handling of this matter. Celestial Eagle Manor is willing to present a Xunfeng Eagle."
"Xunfeng Eagle!"
Aside, Liu Mao'Er exclaimed, hurriedly explaining to Zhang Kui, "This Xunfeng Eagle is a treasure of the Celestial Eagle Manor, with only one born every few years, and once mature, it can tear leopards apart."
"Haha, how could I refuse such an offer..."
Zhang Kui felt a tickle in his heart,
"Deal!"
......
Golden Wind Tower, the largest brothel at Sishui Crossing.
This place caters to merchants from both north and south, as well as Jianghu wanderers. Compared to the poetry-reciting and elegance-praising brothels of larger cities, its style is much more straightforward—clearly marked prices and swift transactions...
However, it had changed a lot by now. The previous chaotic and raucous atmosphere, teeming with wealthy guests drinking and gambling, was completely gone. Instead, light gauze curtains and elegant floral arrangements filled the place, with scholars and students talking about poetry and music, markedly elevating its class.
On the stage in the front hall, covered with a woolen carpet, there was a woman in white, sitting and playing the zither. Her skin was fair as snow, her long hair like ink, her face beautiful with a cold yet gentle allure.
The zither's soothing melody was accompanied by her gentle singing,
"At leisure night's serenity, bright moon upon the hall, the gentle breeze stirs my robe, raising the silk curtains high, with a cup of fine wine, no need for company..."
Many in the audience stared blankly with intoxicated looks; even the waiters serving drinks stood dazed with trays in hand.
Across the hall, on the opposite second-floor private room, Zhang Kui, now dressed like a wealthy patron, sat with his legs crossed on an armchair. Next to him, the former star courtesan of Golden Wind Tower, Lian Xiang, fed him wine or grapes from time to time.
Zhang Kui was equally captivated, inwardly applauding.
No wonder the 'Lustful Young Master' Chen Wushuang was determined to get his way; according to him, the girl on stage was a renowned courtesan, Ling Yanchen, invited from the Capital City at great expense. Her talents in both singing and appearance were unrivaled, usually hard for ordinary people to have the chance to meet.
Truly extraordinary.
Lian Xiang glanced, feeling a bit jealous. Her eyes rolled, and with a jade hand, she caressed down his chest, looking alarmed as her expression turned sultry.
"Master Kui, may I serve you tonight?"
Zhang Kui chuckled, pulling her hand away,
"Too bad, I'm practicing the Child Skill."
Lian Xiang pouted, casting a sidelong glance at the stage,
"Perhaps you have other thoughts, not fancying the likes of us ordinary beauties."
Zhang Kui laughed heartily, chugging a mouthful of wine,
"Even the sweetest meat is tasteless if not obtainable. Come on, tell me again about that night."
As he spoke, a piece of silver slipped into her perfumed hands.
Lian Xiang happily retrieved the silver and stuffed it into her small pouch, "That night, Young Master Wenchang and several others were exchanging poems; I was in charge of pouring tea and wine. They all left shortly after nightfall, but speaking of it, there was something odd about a black-robed scholar that night..."
Listening to Lian Xiang's recounting, Zhang Kui's eyes narrowed, deep in thought.
After accepting Chen Wushuang's invitation, he disguised himself as a Jianghu patron and immersed himself in the Golden Wind Tower, staying there day and night.
It was during the renovations, after Chen Wushuang had rented the place, that he discovered someone spying at night, initially assuming it was a rival causing trouble. After throwing a flying knife at the intruder, leaving only some mud on the knife, the person vanished.
Unfortunately, after several days of searching every corner of the brothel and spending several nights there afterwards, Zhang Kui found no trace of any demon.
However, he did uncover something unexpected.
He discovered that Yu Wenchang had visited Golden Wind Tower a few days before being possessed.
A wealthy scholar visiting a brothel wasn't uncommon.
But coinciding with the sighting of an evil spirit made it too much of a coincidence.
Zhang Kui stroked his chin,
"What did the black-robed scholar look like?"
Lian Xiang furrowed her brow in recollection,
"He was thin and pale, as if ill. Oh, right, he sat far away, but when I went over to pour wine, I vaguely smelled a stench?"
"What kind of stench?"
"It was like... like the smell of rotten mud in a ditch!"
A hint of a smile formed at the corner of Zhang Kui's mouth.
Then he hurried back to the Yu Mansion, instructing Yu Gaishan to gather everyone who drank with Yu Wenchang that night.
It's a pity that the black-robed scholar Ling Xiang mentioned wasn't among them. Everyone expressed that they had never seen this person and just assumed he was a friend of someone else.
Zhang Kui looked at Yu Wenchang,
"I'm very curious, why did the evil spirits target you alone while the others are fine?"
The weak Yu Wenchang wore a bitter smile,
"Daoist, I am just as confused and feel quite wronged."
The clues had once again run dry.
Having no other choice, Zhang Kui could only first complete Chen Wushuang's commission. After the "Jade Flower Society" ended, he would resume the investigation.
You ask why someone cultivating immortality needs to earn money?
Even though the system is fancy, in order to quickly accumulate Tao cultivation, one must definitely learn alchemy skills, which would indeed require spending money like water.
...
On April 3rd, the day the jade flowers bloom.
At this time, the Sishui Crossing street was crowded with tourists, bustling with excitement. Not only were there no longer any wandering Jianghu adventurers wielding weapons, but even the city scoundrels had hidden themselves away.
It was somewhat reminiscent of a future real estate bidding ring, with Celestial Eagle Manor, Lingxiao Temple, and Slaughter Blade Sect, the largest Jianghu factions nearby, clearing the area together to create a scene of peaceful competition.
You ask, where is the fairness?
Heh,
Jianghu may have its code of conduct, but it often values whose blade is the quickest.
However, for the common people, it was indeed a grand event.
Every household competed in performances, the people clapped and watched, and peddlers took the opportunity to do business, making it as lively as a temple fair. In recent years, even towns from around came to join the fun.
Outside the Golden Wind Tower, a stage was set up with acrobatics and musical performances, creating a scene of liveliness, surrounded by a crowd cheering constantly.
On the second-floor box window seat, Li Dong'Er, childlike in spirit, clapped and cheered from time to time.
At the table beside her, Chen Wushuang, impressed and convinced, raised his glass of wine, "Taoist Zhang, your proposal was indeed clever. Now, it's secure."
Zhang Kui clinked his cup with a hearty laugh,
"This is what's called hype. Even if Ling Yanchen's musical talents are unparalleled, it should draw that mysterious woman here, right? With such excitement, the evil spirits are unlikely to appear, and we can't just take your precious eagle for free."
"Taoist Zhang, you're joking…"
Chen Wushuang smiled with joy, "The Xunfeng Eagle must first meet its master at its unveiling. Please, Daoist, come to Celestial Eagle Manor as a guest in two months."
"No problem, no problem."
Zhang Kui happily drank a bowl of wine.
…
The sky gradually darkened, yet Sishui Crossing was still brightly illuminated, and outside the Golden Wind Tower, rows of windproof lanterns were hung, brightly lighting up the surroundings.
The Courtesan Ling Yanchen had already moved to the high platform outside, her silk veil drifting, her white clothes as pure as snow, her slender fingers strumming the qin, singing a long song to the moon.
She seemed just like a fairy who had descended to the mortal realm.
The area was densely packed with people, each lifting their heads with fascination, afraid to disturb this exquisite scene.
"Silver Sword Young Master" Chen Wushuang was so nervous that his hands were sweaty, frequently glancing around.
He had invested greatly this time, but as long as he obtained the "Bitter Heart Pill", extending his father's life for another decade and stabilizing internal and external threats would make it all worthwhile.
Zhang Kui also sat in the pavilion, watching while glancing left and right.
To be honest, he was also quite curious about this mysterious woman.
The "Bitter Heart Pill", a pill capable of extending life, could not be refined by ordinary people.
Along the way, he had met many wandering Daoists and monks, but they were either Jianghu people or knew only basic talismans and chanting, their Tao cultivation truly insignificant.
With so many demons in the world,
how could the human realm maintain its foothold?
What was the true state of the cultivation realm?
He very much wanted to find a fellow practitioner to communicate with.
In this scene, the Courtesan Ling Yanchen was gradually entering the state, gazing at the bright moon, her eyes full of enchantment and sadness.
"Life is fleeting, the heavens and earth are everlasting, for a hundred years, who says longevity, longing to ascend as an immortal…"
As the song ended, the whole place fell silent,
as if the echoes were still drifting with the night wind…
Suddenly, a gentle voice came from the night sky,
"What a beautiful song, music, and a beautiful woman!"
Everyone looked up,
only to see a woman had appeared at the top of the high flagpole at some unknown time, dressed in fluttering white robes, her face veiled, standing as if she were on flat ground under the bright moon.
"Immortal Lady…"
Many ignorant commoners beside her quickly knelt down and kowtowed.
The woman, stylishly graceful, waved and threw something.
On stage, the Courtesan Ling Yanchen suddenly found something in her hand, a small, delicate brocade box the size of a palm.
A gust of wind sounded nearby, and Chen Wushuang had appeared on the high platform. Ling Yanchen smiled faintly and handed the brocade box over.
Chen Wushuang hurriedly accepted it, put it into his chest, and breathed a sigh of relief. When he looked up again, there was no one on top of the flagpole.
He clasped his fists towards the night sky,
"Thank you, Fairy, for bestowing the pill!"
Having achieved their goal, Ling Yanchen stopped playing, although the townspeople were somewhat disappointed, but fortunately, Chen Wushuang was in a good mood and ordered the acrobatics troupe to continue performing.
He hurried back to the private box,
"Eh, where did Taoist Zhang go?"
At this time, on top of a distant residential roof.
The woman in white who had just appeared out of nowhere turned around to look behind her and asked indifferently:
"Why are you following me?"
Zhang Kui picked up his gourd and took a swig of wine,
"What a pity…"
The woman asked:
"Pity what?"
Zhang Kui chuckled,
"I thought I might meet a fellow practitioner, but I instantly realized you're not human…"