Chapter 7: News
Early the next morning.
Ji Yuan, having no plans to go out, began eating eggs at home early in the morning.
Unlike the three eggs from the past few days, starting today, it was time to increase the portions.
Eating six Spiritual Eggs a day was actually a challenge to digest and absorb.
However, just after he finished absorbing the essence of two Spiritual Eggs, someone knocked on his courtyard gate.
He instinctively touched the Lightning Strike Talisman on his chest.
After confirming it was intact, he went to open the door.
The one knocking was Old Huang again.
Unlike before, today Old Huang greeted Ji Yuan with a few more smiles on his face. "Little Brother Ji is cultivating again."
Ji brat had now become Little Brother Ji.
"Yes. Does Old Master Huang have any business with me?"
Ji Yuan still maintained his usual calm and composed attitude.
"Not really..." Seeing that Ji Yuan had no intention of inviting him in, Old Huang quickly added, "It's just something related to your parents."
"My father and mother?"
Ji Yuan showed a trace of surprise, but it disappeared in an instant as his voice suddenly changed. "What? My father and mother?!"
Old Huang entered the house and immediately began glancing around.
Ji Yuan had already operated the Panel, temporarily disabling the effect of the Fish Pond.
Fortunately, the Panel came with a built-in "switch."
Otherwise, if a Spiritual Fish suddenly evolved in front of an outsider, it would have been hard to explain.
As for the Chicken Coop, there was no issue since Ji Yuan had already collected today’s six Spiritual Eggs.
Unexpectedly, however, these six Green-Yellow Chickens still caught Old Huang's attention.
"You sure have quite a few chickens here."
"Yes, my master likes eating roasted Green-Yellow Chicken. The meat is tender and delicious, so I raised a few more."
Since he had already put up the tiger skin as a facade, Ji Yuan didn’t mind pulling it even bigger.
"Oh, I see... Little Brother Ji, may I ask who your master is?"
Old Huang couldn’t help but ask again.
"Didn’t Old Master Huang say there’s news about my parents?"
Ji Yuan didn’t answer but instead asked back.
"Oh, right, look at me getting old and forgetful."
Old Huang chuckled and moved into the inner room.
After sitting down and pondering for a while, he finally said, "I saw the Willow Leaf Boat."
The magical fishing vessel of Ji Yuan’s father, Ji Qingyun, was named Willow Leaf Boat.
"Where?!"
"In Luo Tong's hands. He said he bought it from Liu the Leper."
Luo Tong was a dealer who sold Spiritual Pigs in Zengtou Market—in simple terms, a pig seller.
Ji Yuan would have to go to him if he wanted to buy Spiritual Pigs.
Ji Yuan also remembered that Luo Tong had a fairly good relationship with his late father.
Whenever Ji Yuan saw him, he would address him as Uncle Luo.
But how did the Willow Leaf Boat, which had been lost in the Yunyu Marshlands, end up in the hands of Liu the Leper?
Either Liu the Leper had found it by chance, or... he had killed and robbed for it!
As if noticing the change in Ji Yuan’s expression, Old Huang quickly waved his hands and explained, "I just happened to see it, nothing more. Little Brother Ji, don’t overthink it."
"Don’t worry, I understand. Thank you, Old Master Huang."
Ji Yuan calmly nodded at him.
"Alright, you stay here and focus on your cultivation. I still have some business in Zengtou Market, so I’ll be off now."
After sending Old Huang to the door and watching him head toward Zengtou Market, Ji Yuan returned home and immediately reactivated the Fish Pond effect.
As for going to Liu the Leper to demand an explanation—honestly, Ji Yuan had no such plans for now.
Liu the Leper was already in the Mid Qi Refining Stage, and besides, he had a web of complicated connections in Zengtou Market, even rumored to have ties with the Qin family.
Even if Ji Yuan wanted revenge, he was powerless at the moment.
It was better to focus entirely on increasing his strength first.
Therefore, Ji Yuan merely memorized the information that Old Huang had shared without taking any further action.
…
After arriving at Zengtou Market, Old Huang, familiar with the area, weaved through several alleys before stopping in front of a courtyard with white walls and blue tiles.
He knocked on the door.
A slightly impatient voice came from inside the courtyard.
"Who is it?"
"It’s me, Old Huang."
The door opened, revealing a middle-aged man with disheveled hair and a face full of pockmarks. "Old Huang? Why are you here?"
"Let’s talk inside."
A while later, inside the main hall, Old Huang drank a cup of tea in one gulp, let out a long breath, and said:
"Something has happened with Ji Qingyun."
"Ji Qingyun? What, that dog’s come back to life or something?"
Liu the Leper sneered.
Back then, he had shattered Ji Qingyun’s head with a Water Arrow Technique. He didn’t believe anyone could survive that.
"It’s not Ji Qingyun, it’s his surviving son, Ji Yuan!"
Lowering his voice, Old Huang continued, "Just the other day, he was about to be kicked out of Zengtou Market, but he unexpectedly caught a Spiritual Fish."
"Quite lucky." Liu the Leper nodded.
"Just yesterday, he sold a Stone-Armored Grouper at the Fish Market… and it was one that hadn’t lost even a single piece of its armor."
"He has that kind of skill?!"
Liu the Leper couldn’t sit still anymore.
"No, I dug a bit deeper and learned a little more."
"What did you learn? Spit it out, old man. Don’t forget, you’re the one who sold me Ji Qingyun’s location back then, and you took my Spirit Stones for it."
Liu the Leper spoke impatiently.
A trace of regret flashed in Old Huang’s eyes, but he still said, "Ji Yuan… has taken a master, and that master is at least a Mid Qi Refining or even Late Qi Refining expert."
Hearing this, Liu the Leper immediately calmed down. After a moment of silence, he looked up at Old Huang and sneered:
"You want to eliminate him for good but are too afraid to offend someone, so you want to use me to kill Ji Yuan again."
"That…"
Having his intentions exposed, Old Huang felt embarrassed but knew he couldn’t admit it.
"How could that be? I… I’m just worried that if Ji Yuan finds out something, and if he gets his master involved, we’ll be in trouble."
Old Huang didn’t doubt that Ji Yuan had a master.
Without someone backing him, how could he have gotten those Spiritual Fish?
"We did everything covertly. He won’t find out."
Liu the Leper shook his head and added, "Besides, there’s something big about to happen at Maple Leaf Island in the northeast. I need to head over there first to see if I can score some benefits."
"As for that brat Ji Yuan… we’ll deal with him after things at Maple Leaf Island are settled."
"Maple Leaf Island? What’s going on over there? I’ve noticed quite a few fishermen heading there lately, even after several have already died."
Old Huang quickly asked.
Liu the Leper glanced at him and said, "It’ll be public knowledge in a couple of days anyway, so I might as well tell you now."
"There’s an Immortal Mansion on Maple Leaf Island… the Immortal Mansion of a deceased Foundation Establishment cultivator."
"What?!"
Old Huang was shocked.
An Immortal Mansion left behind by a Foundation Establishment cultivator—if he could grab even a little benefit from that, he wouldn’t have to worry for the next few years.
He might even find an opportunity to break through his cultivation.
"Well, I’ll take my leave first."
Just as Old Huang was about to leave, Liu the Leper called out to his back, "Old Huang, you didn’t tell Ji Yuan about Ji Qingyun’s death again, did you?"
Old Huang didn’t dare turn around.
"How could I have?"
"Right, don’t forget, you were the one who approached me first, and you got your share of the benefits afterward."
Liu the Leper reminded him.
"Don’t worry, I know."
It wasn’t until Old Huang had completely left that Liu the Leper sneered, "What a joke. You think you’re qualified to play 'death to the fellow cultivator, life to the poor daoist' with me?"
Walking back home, Old Huang also felt the weight on his heart.
He had originally planned to let Liu the Leper take the lead again, but it seemed that Liu the Leper wasn’t so easily manipulated… Truly, there wasn’t a single fool among those who had made a name for themselves in Zengtou Market.
Fine then, if Liu the Leper wasn’t in a hurry, he wouldn’t be either.
At this moment, Old Huang had only one thing in his mind—the Foundation Establishment Immortal Mansion!