After Lu Tianzi, Nanlan Qianxue, and Beiwei Jinguo left Elder Ximo's residence, they swiftly returned to the inn that they were putting up at.
During the short journey back, there were many tis that Beiwei Jinguo had wanted to ask Lu Tianzi about his background, but he simply could not think of the right words to say.
"Brother Jinguo doesn't have to worry too much about us," Lu Tianzi naturally noticed Beiwei Jinguo's uneasiness. "I might have acted against them just now, but that is because they provoked us first. On the other hand, there is no reason for to harm you. If anything, I would still have to rely on you to being into the Healer's et in a week's ti!"
In his eyes, Beiwei Jinguo must have been shocked to realise how strong he was.
If he were Beiwei Jinguo right now, he would be most worried about his powerful companion possibly turning on him. That was why Lu Tianzi tried to ease Beiwei Jinguo's concerns.
"Oh, I'm not worried about that at all," Beiwei Jinguo waved it off. "As for the Healer's et, just leave it to ! But then again, just how strong are you exactly, Brother Tianzi? In fact, is it possible to teach a move or two?"
"Eh?" Lu Tianzi could not help but feel surprised by how lightly Beiwei Jinguo was taking things.
From the looks of it, he seed to have overthought the matter.
Indeed, it did not matter to Beiwei Jinguo if Lu Tianzi was at the Essence Condensation realm or at the Origin Core realm. Either way, Beiwei Jinguo would have been powerless to resist if Lu Tianzi had any intentions to harm him.
Instead, Beiwei Jinguo was visibly more excited now that he learnt that his companion was actually an Origin Core realm martial artist. That was especially after seeing Lu Tianzi fend off the combined attack from Elder Guo and Elder Nanjue with relative ease, even making the elders of the Healer Circle act in deference to him.
This showed that at the very least, Lu Tianzi was probably stronger than any of the three elders present earlier!
"I don't need anything special, just sothing that could beat anyone in my cultivation level will do!" Beiwei Jinguo's eyes were shining by now. "Is Sister Qianxue an Origin Core realm martial artist as well then? Wait, co to think of it, why were you acting all starstruck when you t the Iron Claw Brigade back then?"
"Haha" Lu Tianzi laughed dryly. "So many things have happened today, and everyone must be tired. Let's have a good rest before we continue exploring the markets tomorrow. What do you say about that, Qianxue?"
"Sounds good," Nanlan Qianxue nodded with a smile.
"Suddenly?" Beiwei Jinguo could not help but feel slightly disappointed. "All right then, let's chat again tomorrow."
Even if Beiwei Jinguo wanted to refuse, it was impossible for him to do so. Before he knew it, Lu Tianzi and Nanlan Qianxue had already entered their respective rooms and closed the doors behind them.
He could only return to his room with a heart full of anticipation for the coming of dawn.
While the trio had turned in early for the night, the sa could not be said for most others here on Wondertrap Mountain.
As the bright moon crept higher into the sky, the open markets continued bustling with activity. With the passing of the day, more and more people began to arrive on Wondertrap Mountain, and the streets only grew progressively busier.
In the centre of a wide restaurant room, a round table was filled with nurous plates of delicacies. The scent from the food perated through the air, capable of whetting even the appetites of those who already had their fill.
Six n sat around the table and chatted.
Not far away, a group of beautiful young ladies were dancing to the lodious tune of a zither. All of them were slim and curvaceous, with skin as smooth as silk and as flawless as porcelain.
Even so, the six n seed to not notice their presence at all, their attention completely focused on the topic at hand.
If Lu Tianzi was here, he would have been able to recognise three of these n. They were none other than the three elders whom he had encountered earlier, Elder Ximo, Elder Guo, as well as Elder Nanjue.
Apart from them, the other three n all looked to be in their late sixties, and their heads were full of white hair.
"An Overlord has arrived?" one of the other three n rubbed his chin in contemplation. "But why didn't she show her presence to us? Are you sure she is an Overlord?"
"Elder Nanta's words make sense," another man added. "There is no reason for an Overlord to maintain a low profile after arriving. Surely she knows that if she just made her presence known, she would be able to enjoy all sorts of benefits and special privileges."
"Those are my thoughts exactly, Elder Xiqing," Elder Nanta nodded before turning back towards Elder Ximo.
Elder Ximo let out a helpless sigh. "I have already told you the things that led to my conjecture. If you still have doubts on whether she really is an Overlord, why don't Elder Xiqing and Elder Nanta ascertain it and let us know?"
"" Elder Xiqing and Elder Nanta glanced at each other hesitantly before falling silent.
How were they supposed to ascertain such a thing?
Go up to the other party and ask politely?
What a joke!
If the other party had a short fuse and was angered sohow, they could kiss goodbye to their beautiful lives!
"Ahem!" the last of the six n cleared his throat loudly to break the awkward silence. "This is a serious matter. Let us deal with that only after gathering more information. We will be relying on you for that, Elder Ximo."
"You can leave that to , Elder Beilan," Elder Ximo nodded.
"You have my gratitude," Elder Beilan answered. "In any case, for Elder Beichang's student to travel all the way here, this Beiwei Jinguo must have a certain level of confidence in himself. After all, Elder Beichang's proficiency in the poison arts was not beneath any of ours to begin with. After he left to pursue a high level of poison arts, who knew what level he managed to attain in the end?"
"Elder Beilan has a point, I guess we can only find out through his student during the Healers' et," Elder Guo agreed. "For all we know, he might even prove to be a challenge for Chong'er."
"Considering the fact that Beiwei Jinguo is only at the Essence Building realm, that is quite unlikely to happen," Elder Ximo shook his head. "But no matter what we say, everything shall be revealed in a week's ti. Let's just wait and see."
***
The night ca and went.
Before they knew it, the sun had risen once more, shining warm rays of light upon the scenic Wondertrap Mountain.
"Good morning, honoured guest!" the innkeeper took a deep bow the mont Lu Tianzi opened the door.
"Hmm?" Lu Tianzi narrowed his eyes in suspicion.
Why was the innkeeper standing outside his room?
"Please proceed downstairs to enjoy a sumptuous breakfast on us, your companions are already enjoying the food!" the innkeeper kept on a wide smile as he spoke.
"Understood," Lu Tianzi was still slightly confused, but decided to head down nevertheless.
"Over here, Brother Tianzi!" Beiwei Jinguo waved excitedly when he spotted Lu Tianzi walking down the stairs.
Lu Tianzi glanced over and imdiately understood the situation.
Beiwei Jinguo and Nanlan Qianxue were seated at a wide round table, its surface filled with nurous dishes of food. The seating arrangent was spacious as well, though it was only because the seats that were originally nearer to their table had been removed from the dining area of the inn altogether.
Still, the most eye catching thing there was neither the food nor the additional space.
It was a man whose white hair was tied in a neat braid, seated at the sa table as them.
Elder Ximo.
With an esteed elder from the Healer Circle visiting them this early, it was no wonder that the innkeeper suddenly beca this respectful and eager to serve!
As for removing tables from the dining area just to make things more comfortable for them, Lu Tianzi did not know if it was Elder Ximo's idea or if it was just the innkeeper trying to put up a good show.
Either way, it was a solid testant to how much influence Elder Ximo held.
"Elder Ximo?" Lu Tianzi casually walked over. "Why are you here this early?"
"Sir Tianzi!" Elder Ximo imdiately got to his feet and clasped his fist in greeting. "You ntioned yesterday that you have overexerted yourself a little, so I am here to pass you this. Hopefully it will be of help to you."
Elder Ximo pulled out a small porcelain bottle from his spatial ring, handing it over to Lu Tianzi.
"This is?" Lu Tianzi examined the small bottle in his hands curiously.
It was small enough to fit in his palm, which ant that the contents within must not be of a huge amount either.
"This is a bottle of Bronze Shark Oil," Elder Ximo answered with a smile. "After applying it at your temples, it will help soothen the flow of Essence energy within your inner world for the next twenty-four hours, perfect as an aide during recovery."
"Bronze Shark Oil!" the innkeeper exclaid in surprise from behind Lu Tianzi, only to scurry off when he noticed Elder Ximo's irritated gaze.
Elder Ximo naturally realised that the innkeeper had followed behind Lu Tianzi.
He did not mind if the innkeeper was just sticking around to make sure that their needs were all well taken care of, but he certainly did not appreciate the innkeeper butting into their conversation.
Elder Ximo quickly continued speaking, "I am not sure about other things, but when it cos to dicinal items, our Healer Circle would not pale in comparison even to the major influences of the central regions. Even if you don't use it now, I can assure you that the Bronze Shark Oil will certainly be of help in the future."
"Then I shall thank Elder Ximo for the kind gesture," Lu Tianzi stowed it away in his spatial ring.
Both of them understood that Lu Tianzi had been completely fine all along. But since Elder Ximo wanted to use this as an excuse to visit with gifts, Lu Tianzi would gladly accept it.
After which, they took their ti to enjoy the sumptuous breakfast.
Apparently, Lu Tianzi was not the only person who received a gift from Elder Ximo.
Beiwei Jinguo received so rare poison plant parts that could be used for poison concoctions, and Nanlan Qianxue received three bottles of concentrated poison, accompanied by three pills that were the antidote to it.
The poison contained within these three bottles was concocted by Elder Ximo himself, which he proudly nad the Nine Revelations Toxin. According to him, the lethality was so great that it could take down even a Ninth Cycle Origin Core realm martial artist if applied directly.
Lu Tianzi was especially surprised to hear that.
He believed that Elder Ximo should be exaggerating a little. But even then, for the Nine Revelations Toxin to be able to harm a Ninth Cycle Origin Core realm martial artist, the materials used in its concoction must have been extrely precious.
To present such a precious gift to Nanlan Qianxue, it appeared that Elder Ximo might even be valuing her more than himself!
Lu Tianzi shook off this thought imdiately.
Perhaps he was overthinking things again, and Elder Ximo simply believed the Nine Revelations Toxin to be the most suitable gift for Nanlan Qianxue for whatever reason.
As they enjoyed the al, Elder Ximo once again asked them to visit him at his residence the next day.
Despite Lu Tianzi's initial declination, Elder Ximo continued to try and persuade him otherwise. It was only after Elder Ximo ntioned that he could share more about the upcoming Healers' et that Lu Tianzi finally agreed.
By the ti Elder Ximo left, Beiwei Jinguo felt like he had found a newfound drive.
His teacher had always been his role model, a perfect existence with capabilities that constantly remained far beyond his reach. However, throughout the years, Beiwei Jinguo might have learnt a lot from his teacher, but not much about him.
In fact, Beiwei Jinguo had never given much thought to learning about his teacher's past. That was, until his teacher's untily decease.
This was sothing that he had deeply regretted as well.
Thus, being able to speak to his teacher's friend like this was quite a surreal feeling to him.
It was as though the heavens had given him a second chance to learn more about his teacher, and to gain a better understanding of the person who had made him who he was today.
Now, more than ever, Beiwei Jinguo was filled with great determination in his heart.
And all of this drive and determination was being directed towards the upcoming Healers' et.
It was the perfect platform for him right now, and Beiwei Jinguo wanted to grasp this rare opportunity to do his teacher proud.
Depending on just his poison arts alone, he wanted to shock the world in a spectacular fashion. From a person whom nobody even knew of, Beiwei Jinguo wanted to make sure everyone knew of his na by the end of the Healers' et.
By claiming the top spot at the Healers' et, he could prove to the world that his teacher's poison arts heritage was the greatest of all!
Still, things were bound to turn out slightly different from what Beiwei Jinguo had expected.
Beiwei Jinguo would never have expected that even prior to the Healers' et, his na would already begin spreading like wildfire, topping the watchlist of every single participant here on Wondertrap Mountain!
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