Chapter 26
Chapter 26
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 26
Chapter Title: Third Level of Qi Refining
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"Fellow Daoist, wait a moment."
Just as Chen Jianghe entered the port, someone called out to him.
It was a burly, dark-skinned, honest-looking middle-aged man who, while calling out, was also waving mysteriously.
A familiar face!
Chen Jianghe's mind couldn't help but drift back seven years. It was during the fish hibernation period when he had come to the port to buy daily necessities, and it was this very man who had stopped him.
The man had said he wanted to introduce him to a short-term job at the Lan Clan, working as a temporary spirit farmer.
Fortunately, he hadn't gone. Otherwise, he would have surely been among the more than one hundred fishery farmers who perished.
Chen Jianghe merely paused his steps but didn't walk toward the middle-aged man. His gaze swept the surroundings, and sure enough, behind a flagpole, he spotted that skinny young man.
Back then, he had felt that the young man was a shill, part of a trap set for him.
It seemed they had a different scheme today.
Unmoved, he lifted his foot and continued walking forward.
The middle-aged man quickly caught up, coming to a position an arm's length behind Chen Jianghe, and whispered, "Fellow Daoist, are you thinking of leaving the Yun Clan? I have a safe way to get to Qinghe Market City."
"Fellow Daoist, I hope the past seven years have treated you well."
Chen Jianghe offered a faint smile, his tone flat as he offered the greeting.
Hearing this, the middle-aged man studied Chen Jianghe's appearance again, his brow furrowing.
He seemed to be searching his memory for this face.
Seeing that the middle-aged man seemed to have forgotten him, Chen Jianghe quickened his pace and left. There was no need to wait for the man to remember.
The man had nearly led him into a death trap. Was he supposed to reminisce with him?
"Big Brother, what did he say? Is he willing to go to Qinghe Market City?" The skinny young man who had been hiding behind the flagpole trotted over.
In seven years, this young man had also gradually entered middle age, with quite a few new wrinkles at the corners of his eyes.
"I remember now. He's that kid who refused to go work for the Lan Clan as a spirit farmer."
The middle-aged man watched Chen Jianghe's retreating back. "Seven years have passed, and he's actually still alive. What a cautious kid, content with mediocrity."
Chen Jianghe had left a deep impression on the middle-aged man. It was just that after seven years, while his features hadn't changed, his demeanor had. The immaturity was gone, replaced by a calm and steady presence.
"It's that coward?!" The young man's face showed astonishment. "So much has happened, and he's still alive. He really is timid as a mouse."
...
Yuelai Inn.
A private room on the second floor, overlooking the street.
This year it was Chen Jianghe's turn to pay for the drinks, so he hadn't delayed along the way, hoping to be the first to arrive.
But when he got to the room, he found that Yu Daniu was already there, looking as if he had been waiting for some time.
"Daniu, you're so early."
Chen Jianghe walked over with a cheerful smile and sat down next to Yu Daniu.
"I just got here myself," Yu Daniu said honestly. "By the way, Brother Jianghe, did you run into those brokers at the port who were offering a way to Qinghe Market City?"
"I did. They said they had a safe route to Qinghe Market City. I don't believe them, and I don't want to leave anyway."
Chen Jianghe smiled. "What? Did you meet them too?"
Yu Daniu nodded, his expression turning serious. "I found out that they're not proper brokers at all. They're human traffickers. I heard they were the ones responsible for recruiting so many short-term spirit farmers for the Lan Clan back then."
"Daniu, tell Peiyao and Fairy Miaoyun this later. Don't speak of it outside. Just stay far away from them, and whatever you do, don't make enemies of them."
These people don't act alone; they likely have an organization behind the scenes. Otherwise, the fishery farmers would have dealt with them long ago.
As they were speaking, Zhou Miaoyun and Gao Peiyao walked into the private room.
Chen Jianghe gave Yu Daniu a look. The latter understood and recounted what he knew about the men at the port, who appeared to be brokers but were actually human traffickers, to Zhou Miaoyun and Gao Peiyao.
"How despicable."
Gao Peiyao frowned, her delicate brows knitting together as she gnashed her teeth and cursed.
Upon hearing Yu Daniu's words, Zhou Miaoyun's expression didn't change, as if she had long been aware of such darkness.
Only after the food and spirit wine were served did Yu Daniu notice the change in the fluctuating spiritual power emanating from Gao Peiyao.
"Little Sister Peiyao, you broke through!"
"Mm," Gao Peiyao nodded lightly.
"I'm afraid it'll still take me another four or five years." Yu Daniu's words were tinged with envy, but a trace of desolation flickered in his eyes.
Chen Jianghe watched this exchange, lowered his head to pick up some food with his chopsticks, and said nothing.
He had sensed the change in Gao Peiyao the moment she and Zhou Miaoyun entered.
Gao Peiyao had a four-element pseudo-spiritual root and the inheritance left by Old Gao. It wasn't surprising for her to break through to the third level of Qi Refining at seventeen.
A five-element miscellaneous spiritual root constitution required a year to expel the pill toxins from a Spirit Nurturing Pill. For a four-element pseudo-spiritual root, the time was likely shorter.
Perhaps Gao Peiyao had bought a Spirit Accumulating Pill instead?
Chen Jianghe didn't dwell on it.
He was different from Yu Daniu. He had used the two spirit stones Gao Peiyao had sponsored him with to buy Spirit Nurturing Pills.
This meant he had two more years of cultivation progress than Yu Daniu.
Now, he could afford another Spirit Nurturing Pill. After taking it, he would be able to break through to the third level of Qi Refining.
This would put him nearly four years of cultivation ahead of Yu Daniu.
The meal progressed, and the drinks flowed.
They exchanged the news each had gathered and discussed the problems they had encountered in their cultivation.
When it came to news, since everyone else stayed within their own farming waters and didn't dare venture to the port often, it was Yu Daniu who did all the talking.
At this moment, Yu Daniu's value to their little alliance was on full display.
However, Chen Jianghe noticed that Zhou Miaoyun still looked at Yu Daniu with a hint of disdain.
With no talent, just gathering information, he couldn't establish a long-term beneficial relationship.
Once the Yun Clan stabilized, no one would need Yu Daniu to gather information anymore.
As for cultivation problems.
It was basically Chen Jianghe and the other two asking Zhou Miaoyun for advice, as she was, after all, at the fourth level of Qi Refining.
After two hours, the small gathering came to an end.
Zhou Miaoyun and Gao Peiyao left together.
Chen Jianghe needed to go to the market fair to buy a Spirit Nurturing Pill, so he didn't leave with Yu Daniu either.
Arriving at the market fair.
He was greeted by a bustling scene, likely because Port Two and Port Three were both temporarily closed.
All the stall owners had moved to Port One.
There were over a hundred stalls, and one had even appeared selling magical artifacts, which attracted many guest retainers and high-level fishery farmers.
Chen Jianghe went to the crowded magical artifact stall, stood on his tiptoes to get a look from a distance, and immediately lost interest upon seeing the prices marked on the wooden plaques.
He browsed for a while longer but lost his enthusiasm.
Three new stalls selling medicinal pills had appeared at the market fair. Chen Jianghe went straight to the woman's stall and bought one Spirit Nurturing Pill.
He returned to his fishing boat and hung up the "Do Not Disturb" sign.
Chen Jianghe sat cross-legged, opened the wooden box, took out the Spirit Nurturing Pill, and swallowed it. A warm current flowed into his abdomen, then transformed into thousands of gentle streams that spread throughout his body.
He immediately activated the Guiyuan True Water Art to absorb the scattered medicinal power, refining it into spiritual power to enhance his cultivation.
Six hours later.
"Finally, the third level of Qi Refining."
Chen Jianghe slowly opened his eyes and exhaled a breath of turbid air.