Chapter 133: Bai Yulou

Niu Youdao and Yuan Fang had already retired for the night. Everyone had turned in earlier than usual today. They were setting out tomorrow and needed to conserve their strength.

“Retired” only meant that the two were sitting cross-legged in meditation, cultivating.

With the aid of Spirit Essence Pills, Yuan Fang could clearly feel his cultivation advancing faster.

The reason was simple. While cultivating, he could absorb not only the spiritual qi of Heaven and earth but also the spiritual qi contained within the Spirit Essence Pills. It would have been strange if his progress had not accelerated.

Niu Youdao’s progress was faster still. Other people absorbed spiritual qi and transformed it into their own source power. He, however, was directly assimilating Dong Guo Haoran’s source power into himself.

After breaking through to the Foundation Establishment Realm, he had clearly felt the speed at which he assimilated Dong Guo Haoran’s source power increase dramatically. By now, over the course of this journey, he had completely refined the remaining half of the third Transmission Protective Talisman into his own power and had already begun refining the fourth.

Compared with the Qi Refinement Realm, where refining two Transmission Protective Talismans had been enough to bring him to the peak, Niu Youdao had already realized that the Foundation Establishment Realm had a vastly greater capacity. That was hardly surprising. It would have been strange if it were comparable to Qi Refinement.

The problem was that, by his rough estimate, he did not know whether refining the thirty Transmission Protective Talismans still remaining inside him would be enough to bring him to the late Foundation Establishment Realm. Reaching the middle Foundation Establishment Realm should not be a problem.

Dong Guo Haoran had once been a Golden Core Realm expert. Unfortunately, he had already been gravely wounded when he transmitted his cultivation, and his losses had been too severe for him to pass on the entirety of a Golden Core Realm cultivator’s power.

Then again, if Dong Guo Haoran’s cultivation had still been intact, that would have meant nothing was wrong with him in the first place, and there probably would never have been any transmission of cultivation.

Such were the affairs of the world: where there was gain, there was loss. Nothing more.

Knock, knock.

Someone rapped on the door.

The two men sitting cross-legged on separate couches facing one another opened their eyes at the same time. Who would be knocking this late at night?

They did not let the person in directly. Yuan Fang got down, went to the door to see who it was, then came back and reported, “Master Dao, it’s one of the inn attendants. I saw him beside the counter in the main hall before. He says he has business with you.”

“Oh. Invite him in.” Niu Youdao nodded.

Under ordinary circumstances, he did not believe anyone would dare cause trouble inside the Inviting Moon Inn.

Yuan Fang went back, opened the door again, and let the attendant inside.

The visitor was Old Dog.

After learning that this guest had met the City Master earlier that day, Old Dog was especially courteous. He bowed and nodded repeatedly. “Honored guest, our innkeeper invites you over.”

“The innkeeper?” Niu Youdao recalled his dealings with the man earlier and smiled. “May I ask what he wants with me?”

Old Dog smiled. “It isn’t any kind of summons. The innkeeper says he would like to invite you for tea.”

“Tea?” Niu Youdao paused.

Inviting him to tea out of nowhere? He did not believe it. There was certainly something else involved.

He lowered his legs from the couch, stood, tugged his clothes into order, and chuckled. “When the host invites, how could a guest refuse?” He gestured that they should go.

Yuan Fang immediately followed.

Unexpectedly, Old Dog held out a hand to stop him and apologized, “The innkeeper specifically said he was inviting this honored guest alone.”

“Oh.” Niu Youdao’s eyes flickered. Then he smiled again. “Fine. You stay here.” He waved Yuan Fang back.

Yuan Fang immediately fetched Niu Youdao’s sword and offered it to him so he would at least have something for self-defense.

Niu Youdao casually pushed it back and shook his head before leaving just as he was.

He understood perfectly well that if the innkeeper truly wanted to deal with him inside the Inviting Moon Inn, carrying a sword would make no difference. Better to go openly and without pretense.

Old Dog led him out of the room and all the way to the top floor of the inn, where he knocked on the innkeeper’s door.

When Niu Youdao entered, he found the innkeeper already seated and boiling tea. The two exchanged smiles. The innkeeper waved Old Dog away, then gestured to the seat opposite him and invited Niu Youdao to sit.

Niu Youdao looked around the room. The furnishings were simple. He judged that this was merely where the other man stayed while working, not his true home.

After sitting down, Niu Youdao smiled. “Innkeeper, may I ask what guidance you have for me?”

The innkeeper pointed toward the little tea stove. The water had not yet boiled. “Tea.”

The two looked at one another and smiled, both knowing perfectly well that tea was only an excuse.

Niu Youdao cupped his hands. “I still don’t know the innkeeper’s honorable name.”

The fair-skinned innkeeper stroked his beard. “Bai Yulou. Anyone who spends much time in this city ought to know it.”

Niu Youdao lightly clapped his hands in admiration. “A fine name. A fine name indeed!”

Bai Yulou chuckled. “May I ask which sect Brother Xuanyuan belongs to?”

Niu Youdao shook his head. “Nothing more than an independent cultivator wandering the four seas.”

“An independent cultivator?” Bai Yulou smiled without warmth. “You casually give away one hundred thousand gold coins without even blinking. That hardly looks like the bearing of an independent cultivator. Even I must admit I fall short of such generosity.”

He clearly did not believe the claim. What he did next made that even more obvious.

Bai Yulou took out ten gold drafts and pushed them straight across the table toward Niu Youdao.

Since the man refused to reveal his true background, Bai Yulou no longer dared keep the money.

He still could not understand how he had let himself become so bewitched earlier that he actually accepted it. After thinking it through, he realized that a few hundred or a thousand gold coins would not have tempted him. Even ten or twenty thousand would have left him capable of thinking rationally. But the other man’s hand had simply been too heavy.

One hundred thousand gold coins, all at once. Caught by surprise, Bai Yulou had failed to resist.

Niu Youdao looked surprised. “Innkeeper, what is the meaning of this?”

Bai Yulou said, “The gift is too heavy. I’m nothing more than an innkeeper and can’t do much for you. I would feel ashamed accepting it. I can’t afford to take it.”

Niu Youdao replied calmly, “A man rides the jianghu road through wind and rain alike. What matters is the road one walks and the friends one makes. I only hope for fewer stumbling blocks along the way. I never intended to ask anything in return, and I have never made a habit of deliberately burdening my friends. Innkeeper, you are thinking too much. If you find the money too hot to hold and suspect someone is plotting something improper, that is easily solved.”

He circulated his spiritual power, reached out, and seized the scalding teapot directly from the stove.

Then he gathered up the one hundred thousand gold coins in drafts and made as though to throw them into the charcoal brazier.

Damn!

The corner of Bai Yulou’s mouth twitched. He hurriedly reached out and caught Niu Youdao’s wrist. The two looked at one another. Niu Youdao slowly lowered the teapot back onto the stove.

Bai Yulou gradually released his wrist and sighed. “Just take it back, Brother. Wouldn’t it be a pity to burn one hundred thousand gold coins like this? How many independent cultivators outside exhaust themselves for the sake of such a sum?”

He truly had to concede defeat to this man. One hundred thousand gold coins, and he was willing to burn them without hesitation.

Niu Youdao placed the drafts back on the table and pushed them toward Bai Yulou again, leaving the other man to decide what to do with them.

Bai Yulou did not touch them. Instead, he asked mildly, “Brother, do you have some friendship with the Liuxian Sect?”

He had begun probing Niu Youdao’s intentions.

“The Liuxian Sect?” Niu Youdao paused.

He initially thought Bai Yulou might have uncovered his identity and was inwardly surprised.

He had not actually dealt with many people from the cultivation world so far. He had believed no one in Star-Plucking City would recognize him. It seemed the power behind Star-Plucking City was indeed formidable, far beyond what he had imagined.

Given the opportunity, he would have to learn more about the network behind this place. A trace of concern rose in him.

Could the Liuxian Sect also be one of the forces under Luo Qiu?

He asked, “Innkeeper, you mean the Liuxian Sect of the State of Yan?”

Bai Yulou said, “As far as I know, there is only one sect beneath Heaven called the Liuxian Sect.”

Niu Youdao said, “Then I am the ignorant one. As for the Liuxian Sect, friendship would be too strong a word. Enmity, perhaps.”

He still did not intend to reveal his background.

“Enmity?” Bai Yulou looked up, seeming to understand something.

The tea on the stove had begun to boil. He lifted the pot and poured a cup for each of them. “What happened?”

From the other man’s reaction, Niu Youdao realized he might have overthought things.

He said slowly, “Nothing much. A few Liuxian Sect disciples died by my hand, that’s all. Why did the innkeeper suddenly bring up the Liuxian Sect?”

Bai Yulou had more or less figured it out.

He offered a mild warning. “Brother, you may want to be careful with the people around you.”

Niu Youdao’s eyes narrowed. “What do you mean?”

“Two Liuxian Sect men have checked into the inn,” Bai Yulou said. “Huang Engui and Cui Yuan. Both work at the Liuxian Sect shop here in the city.”

Niu Youdao immediately lifted his cup toward Bai Yulou in acknowledgment, waiting for the rest.

Bai Yulou raised his own cup slightly in return and took a shallow sip. “Star-Plucking City occupies a detached position. Some matters are not the inn’s concern, and by rights I should not say too much. But since you made the City Master happy today, I’ll say a little more.”

“You know Lei Zongkang, I assume. You even ate dinner together tonight. Since the Liuxian Sect men checked into the inn, Lei Zongkang has secretly met them twice. Once during the day, and once not long after your evening meal. I don’t know the specific details. That is all I have at present.”

With the teacup held near his lips, Niu Youdao slowly sipped.

Strange lights flickered through his eyes as he considered the matter.

Once his thoughts settled, he came back to himself. He lifted the cup in both hands, then tipped back his head and drained it in one swallow, expressing his thanks.

Bai Yulou raised his own cup and took a small sip in acknowledgment.

Niu Youdao took the pot and refilled Bai Yulou’s cup. “I will remember this favor. If an opportunity ever comes, I will repay it generously. Whether or not the innkeeper regards me as a friend, I keep my word, and I will never create trouble for a friend.”

“Tonight, if anyone on my side meets with the Liuxian Sect again, would the innkeeper have an attendant send a jar of wine to my room? If that would be inconvenient, forget I said anything.”

Bai Yulou neither agreed nor refused. He simply lifted his tea and drank slowly.

That itself was an answer.

Niu Youdao did not press the matter. He changed the subject instead. “This tea is quite good...”

The two chatted casually for a while.

At last Niu Youdao rose, cupped his hands, and took his leave. “I will be leaving Star-Plucking City tomorrow, so allow me to bid farewell in advance.”

Bai Yulou lifted his teacup slightly. “I won’t see you out.”

Niu Youdao nodded and turned away.

Bai Yulou glanced sideways at the ten gold drafts lying on the table. He smiled faintly and muttered, “Interesting fellow.”

The door opened.

Old Dog entered and immediately noticed the ten large-denomination gold drafts on the table. Surprised, he asked, “What’s this?”

Bai Yulou shook his head with a chuckle. “I saw that he pleased the City Master today, so I casually gave him a warning. Who would have guessed he actually has a feud with the Liuxian Sect? He tossed down one hundred thousand gold coins in thanks.”

“Ah!” Old Dog clicked his tongue and shook his head. “That bastard certainly spends freely!”

Bai Yulou picked out five of the drafts and pushed them over. “We stumbled into a little windfall. Everyone has been working hard. Take these and divide them among the brothers.”

Old Dog did not stand on ceremony. Grinning, he took them. “Then I’ll thank you on everyone’s behalf.”

“Mind your own work.” Bai Yulou waved him away.

Only after Old Dog left cheerfully did Bai Yulou pick up the five gold drafts remaining on the table. He flicked them lightly and sighed. The whole amount should have gone into his own pocket. In the blink of an eye, half was gone.

Still, after handling the windfall this way, there would be no future trouble. Even if the chief steward learned of it, Bai Yulou would have nothing to fear.

He tucked the remaining five drafts away with perfect peace of mind. Even the tea seemed to taste noticeably better afterward.

[End of Chapter 133]