The howling wind blew fiercely, fluttering the clothes of the four companions, as well as the garments of many others around them.
On both sides of the cave, which were also the sides of the path ahead, many people were lying or sitting. They were scattered along the ground on both sides of the road, looking like beggars. However, their clothing showed they were not beggars. Some of them were injured, resembling wild beasts licking their wounds in the corner.
There was a tavern by the road, carved out from within the solid rock.
Carving out stone spaces within Kuilei City was not something just anyone could do. Without permission, no one was allowed to excavate freely. If any load bearing rock could not withstand the pressure, it could easily lead to a major disaster, potentially affecting the entire Kuilei City.
When Yu Qing and his companions passed the tavern, they glanced inside and found that there were barely any customers. The waiter by the table was so bored that he was dozing off.
At the end of the path, there were two more crevices in the rock, forming two separate roads branching to the left and right.
Inside Kuilei City, there were no proper roads in the traditional sense. The passages were all built along the rock crevices, so there were very few straight and long paths. Winding around, it could easily be described as a maze. However, it was different from a real maze because there were numerous exits.
Those unfamiliar with the routes could easily get lost here.
Since the group had just arrived and wanted to broaden their horizons, they casually chose a path to explore, not even knowing where they were heading.
Along the way, some areas were brightly lit, while others were dim and narrow. The larger the space, the brighter it was.
Before long, Yu Qing and his group arrived at a relatively large space. The slanted and pointed vaulted ceiling was over ten zhang high from the ground, inlaid with glowing fluorite stones.
There were also glowing lanterns around, as well as firelight reflected by mirrors. During the day, sunlight could be reflected in the same way.
Many places in Kuilei City used mirrors to reflect and gather light.
Upon entering this area, they felt that the spacious environment was quite lively. Besides people coming and going, there was a crowd gathered together, chattering away, though it was unclear what they were doing.
There were also several shops around, all carved into the giant rocks. Outside their doors hung beautiful lanterns.
All shops in Kuilei City belonged to the City Lord Manor. No shop or house belonged to outsiders. It could be said that the entire Kuilei City was private property, except for some special gifts from the owner.
While strolling, Yu Qing and his companions noticed the same thing as before. The shops were mostly empty and very deserted. The people outside were either walking back and forth or sitting and lying in the corners like beggars.
As the saying went, the consumption in the inns and shops here was beyond what ordinary people could afford. Most people who wanted to rest in Kuilei City had to do so in this manner.
Among the chattering crowd, a stubbled man who was talking eloquently suddenly shifted his gaze and stared at Yu Qing and his group. Seeing them looking around, he knew they were newcomers.
The stubbled man immediately pushed through the crowd and strode over, blocking the path of Yu Qing and the others. He asked, “Are you friends newcomers?”
The martial brothers instantly became vigilant. Nan Zhu asked, “Is there a problem?”
The stubbled man laughed and said, “How could there be a problem? I just saw that you look like newcomers, and your manner does not seem like you are here for sightseeing. I want to point out a clear path for you friends.”
Nan Zhu asked suspiciously, “What clear path?”
The stubbled man said, “Anyone who comes here, if not for sightseeing, is here to make money. Everyone knows the situation of Tianji Mountain. Trying to get rich by fighting alone here is very risky. Grouping together is the best choice.”
He pointed to the imposing scorpion pattern on his collar and said, “I am Cao Dingkun, the third master of the Scorpion Gang. I am honoured to meet you friends and sincerely invite you to join our sect so we can all get rich together!”
Hearing this, the martial brothers looked at each other in dismay. How could such a thing happen? The name of this gang sounded very vulgar. Did they just pull people in wherever they went?
The brothers were already on guard. Their first thought was to associate it with the Qiao Qieer incident, suspecting that someone was deliberately approaching them.
Nan Zhu immediately tested him, saying, “You do not even know who we are, yet you dare to invite us to join. Are you not afraid that we harbour ill intentions?”
The stubbled man, Cao Dingkun, laughed again and said, “It does not matter who you are. We will naturally get to know each other once we interact. We are all here to make money. Even if we harbour ill intentions, it is just for a little money. We can all harbour ill intentions together and get rich together.”
What kind of talk was this? Yu Qing spoke up to refuse, saying, “You might not be afraid of us, but we are afraid of you. We appreciate your good intentions, but it is better if we do not trouble each other.”
Cao Dingkun waved his hand and said, “Friend, if you are truly here to make money, do not be in a hurry to refuse.” After saying this, he looked around, leaned closer to the group, and whispered, “Our sect has found clues about the Qilin ginseng on Tianji Mountain. What we lack now is manpower. As long as we succeed, everyone who participates will get a share.”
Qilin ginseng? Yu Qing and the others were all shocked.
Although they had never heard of it, once a ginseng was named after an animal, it meant it had gained sentience and become a spirit. Since it was called Qilin ginseng, it meant the ginseng had transformed into the appearance of a Qilin. It had not understood the human way, but by a stroke of fate, it had understood the way of the Qilin.
What are humans? They are mere mortals.
What is a Qilin? It is a divine beast.
In this world, it is relatively easier for plant spirits to come into contact with humans and understand the human way.
To understand the way of a divine beast, perhaps only a place related to immortals could provide such a great opportunity.
It is already not easy for plants to gain sentience, let alone cultivate into spirits and take physical form. Moreover, the form taken was a ginseng known for its medicinal properties. Its medicinal value could probably no longer be described as a spiritual grass. It was likely at the level of an immortal grass, which might even be able to bring the dead back to life.
It was unclear how much it was worth, but it was definitely a sky high price. A single plant would surely be many times more expensive than the immortal peach tree they had created before.
However, upon second thought, the brothers felt that the words of the man were too absurd. How could someone casually broadcast such clues to random people? That was practically asking for death.
Seeing their disbelief, Cao Dingkun did not expect to recruit people so easily. He pulled out a stack of paper from his sleeve, took out four sheets in front of the four men, tore one sheet in half, gave one half to Nan Zhu, and kept the other half.
Then he tore three more sheets in succession, giving half a sheet each to Yu Qing, Mu Aotie, and Baili Xin.
Each piece of paper had the word Cao on it. Now, the four Cao characters were all torn in half.
After keeping the four halves, he said, “Rest assured, this is not forced, nor can it be forced. If you are interested in joining our sect to get rich together, come to the outside of exit number eighteen in the east when the Mao hour is half past tomorrow morning. You can use the half token in your hand to make contact. As long as the tokens match, you can join.”
The brothers all lowered their heads and stared at the half Cao character in their hands. They all had the same thought, feeling that this token and the method of joining were quite sloppy.
Earlier, the three brothers had suspected that someone was deliberately approaching them. Now they felt a bit ashamed of their thoughts. How could there be such a foolish approach and plan? It could not even fool a fool.
“Our sect allows freedom of coming and going. You can quit at any time afterwards. You also do not need to worry about an uneven distribution of profits. How to divide it and how much to divide will be clearly stated in advance. If anyone breaks their promise, the entire sect will attack them together.
I also want to remind you of one thing. If you have a lot of money on you, it is naturally no problem to stay in Kuilei City all the time. If you are short of money and want to stay outside the city or make gains on Tianji Mountain, you still need to group together to gain a foothold. When the time comes, everyone will be vigilant and guard each other. When encountering danger, with more manpower, we can all fight together.
My words end here. You can take your time to consider. I have something else to do over there, so I will not keep you company.”
After finishing his words, Cao Dingkun cupped his hands in farewell, took large strides away, and returned to the chattering crowd.
The brothers looked at each other again, not knowing whether to throw away the tokens in their hands.
Just as Yu Qing was about to call the others to leave, his gaze suddenly caught the waiter at the tavern door. The waiter was leaning against the door frame, holding a handful of melon seeds and cracking them. With one hand, he skillfully collected the seed shells, looking at them with a faint smile, clearly watching the fun.
Yu Qing immediately walked over, stood at the bottom of the steps, cupped his hands, and asked, “May I ask if you know that fellow just now?”
His attitude was very polite. No matter how lowly a waiter was, he was a proper local of Kuilei City and belonged to the local bullies. As newcomers, it was best not to offend him.
The waiter cracking melon seeds said indifferently, “There are at least a hundred sects coming in and out of Kuilei City. How could I know them all?”
A hundred? Nan Zhu and the others, who had also gathered around, were stunned. This was the first time they had heard of this.
They could not be blamed for their lack of knowledge. There were many things in the cultivation world. Just this Kuilei City alone had thousands of people and matters. How could they have heard of everything? Of course, they were indeed not very knowledgeable.
However, it was not hard to understand what was going on. Combined with what Cao Dingkun said, they were probably all grouping together to act on Tianji Mountain.
The waiter then teased, “Is that Scorpion Gang using the Qilin ginseng to attract you to join again?”
Hearing this, the group understood that this waiter definitely knew Cao Dingkun.
On the other side, Cao Dingkun, who was talking in the crowd, glanced over here. Seeing the group and the waiter looking at him from time to time, he knew he could no longer count on Yu Qing and the others to join.
Yu Qing immediately nodded and said, “You are perceptive. That is indeed the case. Could it be that the Qilin ginseng is fake?”
The waiter chuckled and said, “It is not fake. The legend of the Qilin ginseng has been around Tianji Mountain for some years. Many people have seen it. Whoever can find it and offer it to any supreme lord will surely receive a heavy reward. They will not need to do anything for the rest of their lives and can just retire comfortably.”
It was actually true. The brothers listened with their eyes shining.
After exchanging a few more polite words, they took their leave.
After walking a bit further away, Nan Zhu could not help but sigh emotionally a few times, “No wonder so many people take risks to come to this chaotic place to get rich. There are actually treasures we have never even heard of. It is said that wealth is sought in danger, and it truly does not deceive me.”
Yu Qing also sighed, “You never know until you come. Some things are just like this. It truly broadens our horizons.”
The waiter cracking melon seeds at the tavern door watched them leave, curled his lips, showing a strong tone of mockery.
The waiter wiping tables behind the door walked to the entrance, shook his towel, and muttered, “The Scorpion Gang fought with others before and suffered heavy casualties. They are anxious to recruit people for revenge. These few guys might not fall for the trap. Why did you have to add a few words? You have no grudge against them, so why do you want to trick them?”
The waiter cracking melon seeds said, “How is this a trick? Even a fool can see that there is something wrong with the Scorpion Gang. If they are not greedy, naturally nothing will happen to them. If they are truly blinded by greed and anxiety, they probably will not spend money to enter the city anyway. A few poor ghosts dying is just dying. It will not cause any loss to our Kuilei City.”