Chapter Forty-Four: Audacious Beyond Measure

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Standing off to the side.

After listening for quite some time and finally piecing together the entire story, Wei Fan’s expression gradually became more and more peculiar.

He pointed at He Song before him, then gestured in the direction of the Spirit Herb Pavilion. Back and forth, several times.

With an incredulous look that seemed to question whether He Song was playing a joke on him, Wei Fan finally managed to unravel the whole sequence of events.

“I was just wondering—since you’re always so cautious—how you could have made such an enemy. Turns out, a well-meaning friend ended up causing trouble, and that’s how you ended up offending that Chen Zhou.”

Suppressing his laughter, Wei Fan spoke, though the mirth in his eyes was impossible to conceal.

Such a calamity, undeserved and random—anyone in his position would be utterly baffled.

Chen Zhou, having his spiritual field suddenly reclaimed, would now need to travel between two places every day to perform the Rain of Spirit technique, wasting much more time from now on.

But as for He Song, since the field had been “gifted” to him by a friend for special favors, there was no way he could return it to Chen Zhou.

Both parties had their grievances, and there was no going back to how things were.

Thus, the enmity between He Song and Chen Zhou was now firmly set.

One was a fourth-level Qi Refining rogue cultivator.

The other, a fourth-level Qi Refining cultivator from the Immortal Market.

It was obvious at a glance who would be stronger in a fight.

He Song, knowing he stood no chance, had come to Wei Fan to seek a solution to this predicament.

The fighting prowess of a cultivator from the Immortal Market was simply no match for that of a rogue cultivator.

If Chen Zhou truly wanted revenge, He Song would have to be on his guard at all times.

Yet, one can be a thief for a thousand days, but there is no such thing as defending against a thief for a thousand days.

If He Song ever let his guard down, even for a moment—

Well, it might just be the end of him.

Given his cautious nature, He Song would never give Chen Zhou such an opportunity.

No matter how reluctant, he would have to strike first.

Having realized all this, Wei Fan glanced at He Song with a teasing glint in his eyes.

“Though this disaster is none of your own making, since you’ve come to me, you must already have a plan. Why not share it? If it’s feasible, I wouldn’t mind lending a hand.”

Now certain that He Song’s life wasn’t in immediate danger, Wei Fan relaxed a bit and handed him a cup of tea.

Wei Fan’s gaze flickered thoughtfully. After so many years of friendship, he could practically guess what He Song was about to say.

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Still, even knowing this, he wanted to hear He Song say it himself.

After all, this was the first time He Song had ever come to him for help.

Three years ago, that time, it was Wei Fan who offered first—not He Song who asked.

“I’d like to ask you to look into it. If this Chen Zhou bears no thoughts of revenge and is meek by nature, then we’ll let things be. But if not... then I must trouble you, Brother Wei.”

“When the time comes, I’ll have a friend at the Spirit Herb Pavilion strike his name from the list of spiritual field laborers, turning him back into a mere rogue cultivator. Only then will it be time for you to act.”

Accepting the cup of tea, He Song set it aside and, without a pause, revealed what was on his mind.

Even now, He Song could not be sure if Chen Zhou was truly timid or only pretending.

So he could only trouble Wei Fan to investigate.

If Chen Zhou was indeed as cowardly as he appeared, and bore no thought of vengeance, then sparing his life would be no great matter.

But if his cowardice was but a façade, or if he harbored thoughts of revenge, then He Song could only ask Wei Fan to strike first.

At the same time, if action truly was needed, He Song would have Zhao Lin help strike Chen Zhou’s name from the list of spiritual field laborers.

In this way, Chen Zhou would no longer be a cultivator attached to the Immortal Market, but a wandering rogue.

It was strictly forbidden for cultivators of the Immortal Market to kill one another; if caught, the offender would be stripped of cultivation and expelled.

But if a cultivator from the Immortal Market killed a rogue cultivator, as long as it wasn’t within the Market’s bounds, no one would interfere.

Even if the law enforcement knew you were responsible, they would turn a blind eye.

In the cultivation world, the strong prey upon the weak.

The Market’s law enforcement only guaranteed safety within its walls and among its own ranks.

As for rogue cultivators, no one cared how many died outside.

Every year, countless rogue cultivators perished in the wild; the loss of one or two more was of no consequence.

He Song had already prepared everything before coming to Wei Fan.

Now, all that remained was to wait for the results of Wei Fan’s investigation before moving forward.

“Ah, you’re still too cautious, my friend. If it were me, the moment I sensed anything amiss, that Chen Zhou would already be dead at my hand,” Wei Fan replied, clearly disagreeing.

He had expected He Song to simply ask him to kill Chen Zhou outright, swiftly and decisively.

But to his surprise, He Song wanted him to investigate first and then act only after Chen Zhou’s name was struck from the register.

This... was too much trouble.

While this method minimized the risk of killing the innocent or inviting trouble afterward, it was excessively cautious.

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But thinking it over, Wei Fan let it go.

Wasn’t this just how his friend had always been?

If He Song were no longer cautious, then he would no longer be himself.

“Please rest here for a while. I’ll head to the Spirit Registry Pavilion, find out where Chen Zhou lives, and then investigate. Wait for my return.”

As he spoke, Wei Fan rose to leave, but soon paused.

He turned back to He Song, hesitated, then handed him several defensive talismans.

“Take these for now. I’m worried Chen Zhou might be bold enough to come after you here.”

Only after He Song accepted the talismans did Wei Fan depart, reassured.

In the courtyard pavilion.

Watching Wei Fan’s departing figure, and then glancing at the stack of defensive talismans in his hand, He Song could only shake his head in resignation.

At a glance, he recognized these as the same high-grade defensive talismans Wei Fan had bought for his own protection three years ago.

He never thought they would go unused then, only to end up in his own hands now.

Shaking his head, He Song decided that once Wei Fan returned, he would give these talismans back.

After all, only late-stage Qi Refining cultivators like Wei Fan could truly draw out their power; it would be a waste to use them himself.

Spirit Registry Pavilion.

After leaving his courtyard, Wei Fan made his way briskly to the Spirit Registry Pavilion.

He ignored the respectful bows of the cultivators around him and headed straight for the ledger containing the records of all Immortal Market cultivators’ residences.

Taking the ledger up to the second floor, Wei Fan began scanning through the entries.

“He Song, currently residing at No. 13, Chuan Yun Street, District B, Market Periphery.”

“Su Jin, currently residing at No. 31, Chong Feng Street, District A, Market Periphery.”

“Chen Zhou, currently residing at No. 7, Mo Xiang Street, District D, Market Periphery.”

...

As his gaze swept over the names and addresses, Wei Fan’s eyes finally halted on the entry for Chen Zhou.

“Chen Zhou, No. 7, Mo Xiang Street, District D.”