Jiang Wu restrained his aura and blended in with the crowd entering and leaving the city. He saw several guards standing on both sides of the city gate. They looked ordinary but faintly emitted spiritual energy fluctuations.
He thought to himself that Xinghai City was indeed heavily guarded. As he approached the city gate, a guard reached out to stop him, his gaze piercing him. "What are you doing here?" Jiang Wu said with a smile, speaking in a foreign accent, "I heard there's a lot of spiritual herbs being traded in Xinghai City. My disciple's soul has been damaged, so I thought I'd try my luck and buy some to save his life." The guard was skeptical, but seeing nothing unusual about him, he waved him off.
Only after entering the city did Jiang Wu truly get a good look at the city's interior. Ancient buildings lay in a patchwork arrangement, and pedestrians crisscrossed the streets, many of them imbued with varying degrees of spiritual energy. In the distance, a towering tower rose above the clouds, its surrounding spiritual energy so dense it practically became tangible. Jiang Wu inquired and learned that the teleportation array leading to the city would open in ten days.
Afterwards, Jiang Wu followed Jiang Feng's instructions and found a seemingly clean and tidy inn, where he settled in. He walked into the inn's lobby, ordered some food casually, and sat down. While savoring the food, he listened to the people around him discussing various recent rumors and news in the cultivation world.
Before long, Jiang Feng and the others had indeed gathered some valuable intelligence from their casual conversation. They'd heard that the Tianxing Sect was diligently collecting all sorts of rare materials, apparently hoping to recreate Zhang Jie and Liu Jian's true forms through some mysterious method. This news caught Jiang Wu's attention, and he couldn't help but wonder what the Tianxing Sect was up to.
At this moment, another piece of news reached Jiang Wu's ears—recently, many cultivators in the outskirts of Xinghai City had mysteriously disappeared! This situation made the already turbulent world of cultivation even more confusing.
Just as Jiang Wu was lost in thought, a chubby man swaggered toward him. He unceremoniously plopped down on a nearby chair, shaking the table and chairs slightly. Jiang Feng took a closer look and thought to himself, "Oh no!" It turned out to be Fatty Qiu, the so-called divine fortune teller.
Jiang Wu quickly glanced at Fatty Qiu, a subtle hint of wariness in his eyes. However, Fatty Qiu seemed oblivious, his face still beaming with laughter. He then plopped down across from Jiang Wu and sat down, speaking to himself, "Hey, brother, you look quite unfamiliar. You must have just arrived in Xinghai City not long ago, right?" Jiang Wu merely nodded in response to Fatty Qiu's advances, clearly not intending to engage in further conversation.
Fatty Qiu, however, started to talk non-stop, as if he had opened a box of chatterboxes. "Brother, you may not know that although Xinghai City is a popular place for the spiritual herb trade, there are many dark secrets behind it. Near that tower, there's said to be a mysterious force secretly controlling the flow of high-level spiritual herbs."
Jiang Wu's heart moved, but he pretended to be indifferent and said, "Why are you telling me this, brother?" Fatty Qiu came closer and whispered, "I see that you are an honest man, brother. This city is dangerous, so it's always good to be more careful. And I know there is a place that may have the spiritual herb you want, but it's a bit spooky." Jiang Wu became interested and motioned for him to continue.
Fatty Qiu was about to speak when his expression suddenly changed. He lowered his voice and said, "Oh no, someone is following me. I'm leaving first, brother. I feel the scent of a friend of mine on you. I'll come find you another day." After that, he left in a hurry, leaving Jiang Wu with a puzzled look on his face. He felt that Xinghai City was becoming more and more mysterious.
After a while, Jiang Wu returned to the house, set up a simple formation and entered the space.
At this moment, Jiang Feng didn't dare to act rashly. He couldn't be sure if anyone had noticed his presence. If he left this place rashly, he would probably be doomed.
After some deep thought, Jiang Feng's thoughts gradually became clearer. The more he thought about it, the more he felt that the seemingly honest and simple Fatty Qiu was no ordinary person. This person was very likely suspicious of his identity and might be secretly investigating something. Thinking of this, Jiang Feng couldn't help but take a deep breath, secretly thanking himself for not acting impulsively.
Meanwhile, following Jiang Feng's earlier instructions, Jiang Wu had maintained a remarkably low profile for the past few days. He carefully navigated the bustling streets and alleys of Xinghai City, meticulously selecting and purchasing a collection of extremely rare spiritual herbs and precious medicines from the dazzling array of shops. Time slipped by quietly, and finally, the crucial day of activating the teleportation array arrived.
That morning, sunlight filtered through thin clouds, casting a hazy, scattering light across the landscape. Jiang Wu, dressed in a black robe and mask, walked steadily toward the teleportation array. Just as he was about to step inside, a familiar voice suddenly called out from behind: "Brother, wait for me!" Jiang Wu's heart trembled, and he quickly turned to see Fatty Qiu trotting towards him, panting heavily.
Seeing that the person coming was Fatty Qiu, Jiang Wu couldn't help but feel a little surprised. However, he still appeared calm and composed on the surface. He just asked calmly, "What do you mean, fellow Daoist?"
Fatty Qiu wiped the beads of sweat from his forehead with his hand and grinned as he said, "My fellow Daoist, I see that your figure and dress are exactly like a friend of mine! Especially that mask you wear all day long. It's a pity, my friend is such a jerk! One time, we went treasure hunting together, and he got a huge benefit, patted his butt and walked away, leaving me there alone to face all kinds of dangers. I was so scared all day. Oh, what a miserable life I have!"
Jiang Wu frowned and said nothing more. The two of them stepped onto the teleportation array together.
As everyone entered the teleportation array, a flood of spiritual energy poured into its base. Instantly, the ancient and complex runes on the array shone with dazzling light, and blue light slithered through each inscription like a nimble water snake. Then, the entire array vibrated violently, emitting a low humming sound, as if a long-dormant beast were awakening.
Walls of golden light slowly rose from the ground, quickly converging to form a massive energy shield, enveloping Jiang Wu and Fatty Qiu. The light grew increasingly intense, blinding them. Then, a powerful suction surged from beneath their feet, pulling at their bodies like an endless black hole.
Jiang Wu felt his body suddenly weightless, the scenery around him rapidly changing, transforming into streaks of light. He struggled to steady himself, only to find Fatty Qiu beside him also stumbling. Before he could process it, a wave of dizziness washed over him, and his vision suddenly went white. When his vision returned to normal, he had already arrived in Mingyue City!
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