Chapter 169: Chapter 169: Thunder Knight
The real reason for their popularity, to put it plainly, was simply that Cultivators had nowhere else to vent their pent-up frustration and fear, so they sought out such places.
Besides these, places among Immortal Cultivators similar to gambling dens also saw a lot of traffic.
Finally, there was one place that became surprisingly popular, much to Jiang Xu’s surprise.
Spiritual Food Shops.
Perhaps it was because most people tend to relieve stress by binge eating.
Plus, the specially prepared Spiritual Food was indeed a delicacy of the highest order.
While its popularity was unexpected, it was also reasonable.
Furthermore, due to the unique nature of Spiritual Food Shops, many Cultivators would dine and drink Spirit Wine there.
As they drank, they would get drunk and naturally start divulging rumors and gossip.
Perhaps some of this information could prove to be very useful.
...
Jiang Xu now arrived at a newly opened Spiritual Food Shop.
It was called the Spiritual Essence Restaurant.
For the past three years, Jiang Xu had been holed up in his underground immortal cave, subsisting solely on Grain Avoidance Pills. His mouth was so bland he felt he’d almost forgotten what real food tasted like.
Now that he was out, he had to treat himself to a proper meal no matter what.
As soon as he entered the restaurant, an attendant with a Qi Cultivation Middle Stage cultivation base came forward to greet him. When the attendant used his Spiritual Eye Technique and found he couldn’t discern Jiang Xu’s cultivation level, his demeanor immediately became respectful.
"Senior, are you dining alone?"
"Of course. If I were half a person, wouldn’t you be scared to death?"
The attendant stared blankly for a moment before the corner of his eye twitched, finally understanding Jiang Xu’s joke.
"Hahaha, you’re quite humorous, Senior. Would you prefer a table in the main hall or a private room?"
"A random spot in the main hall will be fine."
"Right away!"
The attendant eagerly led Jiang Xu to a table, handed him a menu, and began his introduction.
"Senior, as you can see, we are located near the Endless Forest, so our Demon Beast Meat is all top-grade and delivered fresh. The Tier One Lower Grade Demon Beast Meat is the cheapest. The most expensive is the Tier Two Demon Beast Meat, but that is a specially supplied item and not generally for sale."
"We have seven different varieties of Spirit Rice. The rarest is the Sea Spring Rice, grown in a neighboring country of the Great Qi, but it’s also a specially supplied item."
"As for our various pastries and wines, such as the Immortal Spirit Jade Dew Cake, Purple Sky Cloud Mist Tea, and Monkey Spirit Brew, these are not special supplies. You may choose as you wish, Senior."
Jiang Xu looked at the menu. Everything sounded mouth-watering and whetted his appetite, so he casually chose a few items.
After taking down the order, the attendant headed to the back kitchen.
Jiang Xu sipped the complimentary tea. After using his Spiritual Eye Technique to confirm there were no other Foundation Establishment Cultivators nearby, he spread his Divine Sense to gather intelligence from the surrounding people.
Divine Sense truly was a powerful tool only available to Foundation Establishment Cultivators.
Even if those Qi Cultivation Cultivators had set up Sound Insulation Shields, they couldn’t block the prying of Divine Sense.
The main hall was quite crowded.
Jiang Xu had deliberately chosen a table near the center, allowing him to envelop most of the people in the hall within his range.
Once he had them covered, Jiang Xu began to collect the intelligence flowing through the hall.
After filtering out the obvious drunken boasts, Jiang Xu gradually formed a preliminary understanding of the current situation.
The war was clearly still in the intense, early stages of conflict.
Both sides were escalating their commitment to the war effort.
For now, however, the fighting was mostly comprised of expulsion battles within Dinghai State, the home territory of the Righteous Cultivators.
In other words, they were still resisting the invasion of the Demonic Cultivators from Canglang State.
The basic situation was that the Golden Core Cultivators were restraining themselves from interfering.
Even small-scale battles were limited to one-on-one duels.
This was because Golden Core Cultivators were considered strategic-level weapons and could not be deployed lightly.
If they all joined the fray and began to fight with true killing intent, all the Golden Core Cultivators would eventually be drawn into the battle. The resulting environmental devastation would be far too great, and Dinghai State itself would be the ultimate victim.
The Demon Dao’s goal in invading was to re-establish a presence in Dinghai State, so naturally, they didn’t want this outcome.
And the Righteous Cultivators, of course, would not want to destroy their own homeland.
Thus, the war was now primarily fought by Qi Cultivation Cultivators, with Foundation Establishment Cultivators also fully engaged in the conflict.
Some busybodies had singled out certain Qi Cultivation and Foundation Establishment Cultivators with brilliant combat records and created rankings like the "Top Ten Prodigies of the Righteous Dao" and the "Top Ten Villains of the Demon Dao."
The rankings were based on publicly known achievements, so some hidden experts weren’t included. They could only be taken as a reference and didn’t represent the absolute truth.
"Hey, have you heard? That strange new prodigy from the Profound Origin Sect—the Foundation Establishment Cultivator who’s a Body Cultivator but fights like a Sword Cultivator—has apparently gone to challenge that Young Master Ghost from the Netherworld Mansion."
At one table, several Qi Cultivation Late Stage Cultivators were discussing the latest gossip over drinks.
Immortal Cultivators were not beings who had severed all emotions and desires; they had feelings just like mortals. Sure enough, a person nearby grew interested and chimed in.
"Yeah, I heard they call him the Thunder Knight. Sounds so strange. He’s clearly a Sword Cultivator, but he calls himself a ’Knight.’ Makes him sound like a mortal."
"You don’t get it. He says he’s not a Sword Cultivator, just a Body Cultivator who uses a sword, which is why he calls himself a ’Knight.’ Hey, don’t interrupt! I heard that this Thunder Knight has already defeated two of the Demon Sect’s ’Top Ten Villains.’ Heh, if he wins again this time, the Demon Dao won’t have any face left!"
"No kidding. After all, Thunder Skills are famously the ultimate counter to the Demon Dao. I just don’t know how a Body Cultivator learned Thunder Skills... But it seems the Thunder Knight’s hatred for the Demon Dao is a bit too intense, don’t you think? He’s known for fighting them with reckless abandon. Isn’t he afraid some shameless Golden Core Demon Cultivator will come after him?"
"What’s there to be afraid of? I heard he has a Golden Core Cultivator protecting him, too. Still, I’ve never heard the reason why he hates the Demon Dao so much."
"That Young Master Ghost from the Netherworld Mansion is no pushover. If the Thunder Knight really thinks he can win just because he knows a few Thunder Skills, he’s in for a rude awakening!" One of the men at the table was clearly familiar with Young Master Ghost and spoke with great apprehension.
"Heh, they’re both at the Foundation Establishment Cultivation level. How could you and I possibly comprehend their Magical Combat? Come on, drink up, drink up!"
Then came another round of clinking glasses and boisterous drinking, a truly merry scene.
As Jiang Xu listened, a thought struck him.
’Thunder Knight? A Body Cultivator who’s also a Sword Cultivator? A Body Cultivator who knows Thunder Skills? Isn’t that obviously Zong Ziqi?! Has Zong Ziqi reached the Foundation Establishment Cultivation level so quickly?’
’Then again, it makes sense. I’m about to reach Foundation Establishment myself. He reached the Qi Cultivation Late Stage so much earlier than me; it’s about time for him.’
’But why does he hate the Demon Dao so much? Could it be...?’
Jiang Xu had a faint premonition.
’He wouldn’t think that I was killed by that Demonic Cultivator, Elder Demon Su, and that’s why he hates the Demon Dao so much, would he?’
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