Chapter 8: Chapter 7: Celestial Wind Listening Rain Tower
Thirteen Secret Dart boxes sat on the table. Chen Yuan locked the doors and windows before starting to open and inspect them one by one.
He had to admit, the scene was a bit like opening loot boxes in the games he used to play.
These small Secret Dart boxes mostly contained things like private letters. Chen Yuan even found a love letter.
But the contents were a bit too explosive, almost like a smut book.
’To be so bold on paper... who knows what kind of tricks they’d get up to in person.’
By the time Chen Yuan had opened the seventh Secret Dart box, he finally found a small porcelain bottle.
The bottle was made of high-quality Jun Kiln Ice-Cracked Porcelain, and the stopper was made of Thousand-Year-Old Fire Pine Wood, which prevented moisture and preserved the Elixir’s properties.
Below the bottle was the mark of the Medicine King Valley, along with the name of the Elixir inscribed in small characters: Nine-Turns Nourishing Essence Pill.
When Chen Yuan pulled out the stopper, a rich medicinal fragrance immediately wafted out. Just a small sniff was enough to instantly refresh his mind and spirit.
"This really is good stuff."
Chen Yuan exclaimed in admiration, but he didn’t rush to swallow the Elixir. Instead, he opened up the rest of the Secret Dart boxes as well.
When all thirteen Secret Dart boxes were open, he found that there were actually two more bottles of Elixirs from the Medicine King Valley.
One bottle was called Fire Dragon Pill. Its medicinal power was tyrannical and fierce. Consuming it could greatly enhance one’s strength for a short period, but the user’s Meridians would be seared by the medicinal power and would require a period of gentle nurturing to recover.
The other bottle was called Returning Essence Blood Coagulation Pill. It could rapidly heal internal and external injuries and was one of the Medicine King Valley’s treasured healing medicines.
’An unexpected harvest, indeed.’
Chen Yuan had suspected before that there might be more than one bottle of Elixir in these Secret Darts, and that the player in the original story might have missed some.
Now it seemed his suspicion was correct. All three bottles of Elixirs had been sent by the same owner.
This was clearly a setup for someone to use the Nine-Turns Nourishing Essence Pill to increase their strength, then use the Fire Dragon Pill to unleash their power in a life-or-death battle, and finally use the Returning Essence Blood Coagulation Pill to heal.
However, that person must have met with some accident. The Elixirs went unused, becoming a dead delivery, and ultimately ended up in Chen Yuan’s hands.
Putting the other two bottles of Elixirs away, Chen Yuan directly tossed the Nine-Turns Nourishing Essence Pill into his mouth and began to refine it by circulating his Inner Strength.
In truth, Chen Yuan hardly needed to refine it.
The quality of Elixirs from the Medicine King Valley was superb. The Nine-Turns Nourishing Essence Pill practically melted in his mouth, transforming into the purest medicinal energy and seeping into Chen Yuan’s Eight Extraordinary Meridians.
Guided by the Elixir, his originally faint Inner Strength began to surge wildly through his body. It even completed one full Circulation in a single minute.
And yet, such a rapid circulation of Inner Strength didn’t overwhelm Chen Yuan’s Meridians.
This medicinal energy was balanced and gentle. While accelerating the circulation and refinement of his Inner Strength, it also protected Chen Yuan’s Meridians, leaving no side effects.
It wasn’t until one hour later that the Circulation finally slowed, moving from rapid to gentle.
Two hours later, the medicinal power was completely refined. A thin layer of sweat covered Chen Yuan’s body as he let out a long breath.
But the air he exhaled was like an arrow, letting out a sharp, crisp sound in the room.
Although refining a single Nine-Turns Nourishing Essence Pill couldn’t let Chen Yuan step directly into the Blood Movement Realm, it did allow him to reach the Peak of Meridian Passage Realm. He was now just one breakthrough away from entering the Blood Movement Realm.
Before, the wisp of Inner Strength he had cultivated with the Cyan Wood Heart Method was like a thread in his body—pitifully weak.
Now, it was a whole lot thicker. When he circulated his Inner Strength, the burst of power was several times stronger than before.
Zhu Zhiping and Qin Yuancheng had been in the Meridian Passage Realm for years, but their Inner Strength was not as powerful as Chen Yuan’s was now.
This single Elixir was worth ten years of their bitter cultivation with the Cyan Wood Heart Method.
After a quick shower, Chen Yuan took out his notebook and flipped through it, his fingers tapping lightly on the table as he fell into thought.
’I desperately need a Cultivation Technique right now, but none of the beginner opportunities or easter eggs in Lianshan City are due to appear anytime soon.’
’But that’s fine. If the opportunity won’t come to me, I’ll just go find it myself.’
’The incident with Duan Mubai was a cautionary tale. I can’t follow the original plot to the letter.’
’Even if I perfectly replicate the original plot, it won’t matter. With a different person involved, the outcome could be completely different.’
’In that case, there’s no need for me to just follow the map. I can take the initiative.’
「The next morning」
Chen Yuan arrived at the Forget Sorrow Building.
A tavern like the Forget Sorrow Building was usually busiest at night; there really weren’t many people during the day.
A few hungover Jianghu People who had just woken up were startled by Chen Yuan. They were about to curse at him, but when they saw who it was, they swallowed their words.
This man had just gone on a killing spree in the Forget Sorrow Building not long ago. Who would be foolish enough to provoke him?
Chen Yuan called over a waiter who was still dozing off. "Where’s your lady boss?"
"The lady boss is upstairs. I’ll go get her right now."
Just then, a lazy, charming voice drifted down from upstairs. "Master Chen seems to have taken a liking to my Forget Sorrow Building?"
Chen Yuan looked up to see Wen Rou leaning on the railing with both hands, smiling at him.
She looked as if she had just woken up. Her dark hair was loosely tied in a falling-horse bun, with a golden hairpin stuck in it at an angle. Her pomegranate-red bodice was tied extremely low, revealing a sliver of her snowy-white bosom.
Although her face was free of makeup, it was flushed with a rosy hue, like a crabapple blossom drenched in morning dew.
The sight of the lady boss in this state made the hungover Jianghu People downstairs drool.
However, the most they could do was fantasize and maybe make a few lewd comments. No one dared to actually hit on the lady boss.
Because anyone who dared to do so would have their corpse turn up in the gutter of the alley behind the Forget Sorrow Building the next day.
"I haven’t taken a liking to the Forget Sorrow Building, but to you, lady boss."
Wen Rou covered her mouth and giggled. "Master Chen certainly has a way with words. Why don’t you come up for a bit?"
Chen Yuan nodded and went straight upstairs, following Wen Rou into her room.
The Jianghu People below couldn’t help but curse inwardly.
’Hussy!’
’She never lets us touch her, but the moment she sees the young and handsome Master Chen from the Celestial Wolf Gang, she invites him upstairs. Is she a cougar on the prowl?’
Upstairs, Wen Rou led Chen Yuan into her private chamber. The decor was surprisingly simple, a stark contrast to her personality.
Wen Rou poured Chen Yuan a cup of tea and asked with a smile, "My Forget Sorrow Building only entertains unseemly Jianghu People. What brings Master Chen here so early in the morning?"
"Like I said, I’m not here for the Forget Sorrow Building. I’m here for you, lady boss."
"Is a faded flower like myself, who has to show her face in public every day to run a tavern, truly worthy of the attention of the Celestial Wolf Gang’s Master Chen?"
Chen Yuan took a sip of tea and said coolly, "The lady boss of the Forget Sorrow Building is certainly not. But the person in charge of the Celestial Wind Listening Rain Tower in Lianshan City most certainly is."
The moment he said this, Wen Rou’s expression changed dramatically.
Her previous coquettish and charming aura vanished in an instant, replaced by one that was sharp and piercing.
The Celestial Wind Listening Rain Tower was the number one Wind Media Organization in the Jianghu, specializing in selling intelligence and gathering information.
From the Great Xia Nineteen Provinces to the Western Grasslands, the Great Desert, and even Overseas, the Celestial Wind Listening Rain Tower had its agents everywhere.
Nothing that happened in the Jianghu, big or small, could escape their eyes and ears.
Wen Rou was the person in charge of the Celestial Wind Listening Rain Tower in Lianshan City. The reason the Forget Sorrow Building had such reasonable prices, attracting so many low-level Jianghu People, was to make it easier to gather information.
In the original story, this Wen Rou was also a very important character who would often give the player quests.
"How did you find out, Master Chen?"
Wen Rou stared intently at Chen Yuan.
To ensure their own safety and to make gathering information easier, most of the Celestial Wind Listening Rain Tower’s strongholds were hidden.
Only in some major cities would they proactively establish branch towers to make it convenient for Jianghu People to buy and sell information.
Jianghu People in other places who wanted to buy information from the Celestial Wind Listening Rain Tower had to use a special Secret Technique to contact them.
Wen Rou had been in Lianshan City for so many years that not even Chen Yuan’s adoptive father, Jiang Kaitai, knew her identity. So how did Chen Yuan know?
"Does it matter? I only came here today to do some business with you, Boss Wen."
Wen Rou flashed a smile. "You’re right. I spoke out of turn. But I hope Master Chen will not reveal my identity. Otherwise, I will be punished by the Tower."
The Celestial Wind Listening Rain Tower had no enemies; it was a completely neutral Jianghu Force.
After all, everyone needed to gather various kinds of information, and for that, they needed the Celestial Wind Listening Rain Tower.
But at the same time, most factions didn’t have a very favorable impression of the Celestial Wind Listening Rain Tower, as they didn’t want their own intelligence to be obtained by them.
"Boss Wen, rest assured. I won’t make things difficult for you."
Chen Yuan tapped the table lightly and said, "Boss Wen is well-informed. I’d like to ask for your help in finding someone in Lianshan City."
"Your Celestial Wolf Gang controls half of Lianshan City, and you, Master Chen, are Master Jiang’s adopted son. You need to go through me to find someone in Lianshan City?"
The moment she said it, Wen Rou realized her mistake and lightly slapped her own cheek. "It was my fault for being nosy. Who is Master Chen looking for?"
Since Chen Yuan had sought her out, it naturally meant that the person he was looking for was either someone he couldn’t find through the Celestial Wolf Gang...
...or he didn’t want the Celestial Wolf Gang to know he was looking for this person.
The Celestial Wind Listening Rain Tower only sold information; it didn’t pry into its customers’ affairs. That was a basic rule.
She had only asked that question because she was flustered by Chen Yuan suddenly exposing her identity.
Otherwise, given her professionalism, she would have never said something so nosy.
"Zuo Xinglie, the ’Jiujiang Flood Dragon’ and Alliance Leader of the Lan Province’s Jiulong River Thirty-Six Waterway Alliance!"
Chen Yuan said in a low voice, "Of course, he’s definitely not using that name in Lianshan City. And he should have a little girl of about seven or eight with him."
Wen Rou’s eyes widened in utter shock.
"What!? Zuo Xinglie isn’t dead? And he’s right here in Lianshan City?"
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