Heavenly River Water Mansion, Geng District, Imperial Goods Pavilion.
“You want Yellow Bud Rice?” Le Yang’an looked at Chen Mu with some difficulty.
“As you can see, my Imperial Goods Pavilion mainly deals in Elixir Pills and Exotic Beast Materials. They don’t take up space and have high value.”
“Although Yellow Bud Rice is a necessity, it takes up too much space, so…” Le Yang’an shrugged.
Chen Mu felt somewhat disappointed.
He had mastered the Qi Absorbing Technique, and just like mastering the Dragon Slaying Skill, he couldn’t help but itch to get his hands on some Yellow Bud Rice to refine the Essence of the Five Grains.
He didn’t plan to sell it for money, he just wanted to store about a hundred and eighty pounds of it in his Five Ghosts Bag.
This stuff could almost be seen as a semi-finished Fasting Pill, small in size, high in energy, and very suitable as a reserve food to carry with him.
“There are three large grain stores in the Geng District, why don’t you go there to buy some?” Le Yang’an looked at Chen Mu, puzzled.
“I need quite a bit, afraid that I might get ripped off.”
A hundred and eighty pounds of the Essence of the Five Grains would require at least seven or eight thousand pounds of Yellow Bud Rice as raw material.
If someone got curious and checked it out, finding out that he could refine the Essence of the Five Grains, it might just cause a minor stir.
He hated trouble!
Le Yang’an’s eyebrow rose, “If it’s a bulk purchase, I might be able to help and procure some.”
Chen Mu’s spirits immediately lifted.
“Then procure some.”
“I will have to charge a fee for acting as an intermediary,” Le Yang’an clarified in advance.
“No problem!” Chen Mu was full of confidence. Possessing over thirty thousand White Jade Coins, he wasn’t worried about his cut.
“Then, would five hundred thousand pounds be enough?” Le Yang’an asked.
“Cough, cough, cough… less, less.”
“Oh, I was worried it might not be enough. Fine, you name the amount,” Le Yang’an said.
Chen Mu thought seriously, “How about five thousand pounds?”
Le Yang’an just looked at him gently without speaking.
Chen Mu also felt embarrassed.
The main problem was that his idea of bulk and others’ ideas of bulk were measured differently.
“I’d better go buy it at the grain store.” Chen Mu smiled sheepishly and ran off dejectedly.
…
“Is it just because the amount of goods I want is small?” Chen Mu muttered to himself as he walked down the bustling main street of the Geng District.
“Wait until I produce the Essence of the Five Grains, and show it off to scare you!”
“If only Jie Jia was here,” Chen Mu thought fondly.
That old man didn’t care about the amount of money; as long as there was profit, he would do it.
“Le boss’s business sense is really lacking.”
Idly strolling, Chen Mu arrived at the Baizhen Tower.
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By the window on the second floor, Chen Mu sat behind a square table, casually observing the hustle and bustle on the Geng District streets through the window while slowly chewing on the boiled fish slices.
“The chef at Baizhen Tower is indeed more skilled than those at Red Sleeve Square.”
“The texture is just right, the flavors are well balanced, nicely done!”
As he was secretly analyzing the ingredients used in the dish, a sudden loud noise erupted from the south side of the Water Mansion.
Rumbling…
A continuous tremor came through, causing ripples in the dishes and soup on the table.
What’s happening?!
Chen Mu abruptly got up and went to the window, straining his eyes towards the direction of the explosion.
Sounds of chaos reached him faintly, indicating that the commotion was coming from the southeast part of the Geng District.
Some impatient onlookers had already jumped out of the windows, flipping up to the top of the Baizhen Tower.
On the street below, many people also climbed onto the high buildings on both sides of the street to watch.
“Has the Water Mansion ever had such a disturbance before?” Chen Mu grabbed a waiter rushing by.
“Never before,” the waiter also seemed uncertain and disturbed.
Chen Mu let go of him, frowning deeply.
At that moment, three streaks of light flew overhead, heading straight for the southeast of the Geng District.
“Those are the guests of the Mansion Lord!”
“Now it’s getting good…”
“Looks like it’s not a minor incident…”
Discussion quietly reached Chen Mu’s ears; the trouble was in the Geng District, and he dared not head back. His only choice was to wait patiently in the Baizhen Tower.
An hour later.
The three streaks of light once again flew past overhead.
Has it been handled?
Chen Mu felt a surge of relief.
Soon, bits of news began to spread.
“It’s the Dragon Gate at entry number twelve in the Geng District that has collapsed.”
“The river water backflowed, flooding many areas.”
“How could it have collapsed just like that? Could someone have sabotaged it?”
“The guests of the Mansion Lord say it was due to decay over the years, resulting in the degradation of the Talisman.”
“The gatekeepers are going to be in trouble…”
“Serves them right! Such a big mistake deserves to be punished.”
With the Truthful Listening Technique fitted to his ears, Chen Mu patiently listened in, and couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief.
It wasn’t an outbreak of war or conflict, which was a relief.
The Dragon Gate entrance is the gateway to the Heavenly River Water Mansion, and there are a total of twelve.
Constructed by Talismans with Exotic Force, Ling Boats could enter the water but couldn’t pass through.
“Thank goodness it was only a Dragon Gate collapse. If the Water Mansion itself had collapsed…” Chen Mu suddenly shuddered at the thought.
The depths of the Tongtian River are unfathomable.
Emerging from the Heavenly River Water Mansion and looking up, it was completely pitch black, without a trace of daylight in sight.
If one were to fall into these waters…
It must not happen, it must not.
“Such a large property, the Lord of the Heavenly River would never allow anything to go wrong with the Water Mansion.”
With the collapse of the Dragon Gate incident, the other side would certainly check and fix the Water Mansion in a timely manner.
Chen Mu’s heart, which had just begun to tense, slowly eased.
“It’s the Lord of the Heavenly River who should be concerned,” he mused.
“If the sky falls, there will be tall ones watching over, no need to panic!”
Chen Mu then sat down, continuing to listen to the discussions around him while leisurely enjoying the delicacies of the Eight Treasures Tower.
…
The next day.
Geng District, Building No. 9 of the Tongtian Tower, Floor 62.
“Water Avoidance Technique? It should be available,” Mo Wuzhou said curiously, looking at Chen Mu, “Junior Brother Chen, why are you not focusing on the Five Elements Qi Absorption Technique and are thinking of cultivating such a minorly useful spell?”
Five Elements Qi Absorption Technique?
Chen Mu glanced at his Second Rank Qi Absorbing Technique and the limit state of his Five Grains Talisman.
Does that thing even need to be figured out?
Just be a bit more diligent, like me, and isn’t that enough!
“Oh, is Junior Brother worried about the collapse of the Water Mansion’s Dragon Gate?” Before Chen Mu could reply, Mo Wuzhou seemed to realize something.
“Junior Brother is overthinking it.”
“The Heavenly River Water Mansion has existed for countless years; it’s normal for minor malfunctions to occur occasionally, but a large-scale destruction is absolutely impossible.”
“But what if?” Chen Mu wasn’t reassured.
“If Junior Brother continues to worry, you can go buy a Water Avoidance Bead,” suggested Mo Wuzhou.
A Water Avoidance Bead?
A magic artifact for water avoidance?
I will check out the Imperial Goods Pavilion later.
“I still would like to practice the Water Avoidance Technique,” Chen Mu insisted, handing Mo Wuzhou a small gray cloth bag, “Here is one hundred White Jade Coins. If it’s not enough, just let me know, Senior Brother.”
Magic artifacts are good, but what if you lose them? It is better to have more skills than be caught unprepared, so it’s best to learn more spells.
“Alright,” Mo Wuzhou shrugged, “I’ll ask for you when our mentor comes out of seclusion.”
Chen Mu immediately breathed a sigh of relief and hastily thanked him with a bow.
Peng Yue Mountain was occupied by the snow demon Qing Liu; even the master of the Scripture Transmission Institute, Fu Zi, was captured.
Fortunately, Song Wujie in the Oversight Courtyard had duplicates.
“One’s energy is limited, learning too many secret techniques can dilute one’s focus,” Mo Wuzhou couldn’t help but say in the end.
“Compared to the Daoist Bone geniuses of the Upper Court, our starting point is already lower.”
“So it’s best not to be distracted.”
“You need to find one path, and then practice it diligently. Only then can you make rapid and vigorous progress!”
“Senior Brother is absolutely right!” Chen Mu said with a face full of emotion.
Reflecting on his journey so far, his heart resonated with the sentiments.
“I owe my current level of cultivation to a focused goal and diligent practice,” Chen Mu said earnestly.
“Is… is that so?” Mo Wuzhou looked at him with a strange expression.
He couldn’t help feeling that something was slightly amiss.
…
Returning to the inn.
Chen Mu immediately ran into a few familiar figures carrying large and small packages.
The people nodded slightly at Chen Mu and then hurried off.
“What’s going on?” Chen Mu approached the corner and joined Old Hao Shang Huan at their table.
“The rent has gone up, can’t afford to stay anymore,” Old Hao said, shaking his head with a look of misery.
Price hikes?
What’s this about?
“I don’t know what Lord Jiao is thinking, raising the price is one thing, but doubling it all at once! Who can bear that?” Shang Huan also shook his head.
“And they…” Chen Mu pointed towards the retreating figures.
“They plan to live in Heavenly River District above here.”
“Although it lacks Earth Spirit Vital Energy, the cost of living is lower there.”
“It’s not far from the Water Mansion, and there are regular Ling Boats back and forth, with a monthly pass costing only one White Jade Coin.”
“After all, it’s just a place to sleep. They can still come here to work during the day,” explained Old Hao Shang Huan, word by word.
Chen Mu had a moment of realization.
This is just like the commuters of a metropolis in a previous lifetime.
Rent’s too expensive, so one could only rent or buy a place in a neighboring city and commute to work every day.
“Does this have something to do with the collapse of the Dragon Gate yesterday?” Chen Mu wondered.
“They say there’s a need for major repairs in the Water Mansion, hence the tax increase. And then we are the unfortunate ones,” sighed Old Hao.
“At this rate, I’m considering moving to Heavenly River District myself.”
“What a fine Dragon Gate of the Water Mansion it was; how could it just break like that.”
“Indeed,” Chen Mu couldn’t help but nod his head.
He thought Yunzhou would be more stable than Da Liang.
Yet over these three years, it has been constantly troubled.
Times are tough indeed.