Weier City was not large, but it was quite prosperous.

Caravans constantly entered and exited, forming long lines at the city gates.

Small bridges arched over flowing streams throughout the city. Boatmen could be seen poling their vessels by from time to time. Paired with the constant drizzle, it created the atmosphere of a southern river town.

Lü Zhong had changed into a common long robe and altered his appearance slightly. He now looked like an ordinary young master, sampling novel street snacks along the way.

He was heading toward the Juyuan Inn in the city center, which was where the village chief of Water Summoning Village was currently staying.

Just as he finished a serving of qingtuan at a stall, Lü Zhong let out a soft sound of surprise. He noticed a group of cultivators had arrived at the neighboring stall. Their cultivation levels seemed quite high; they were at least at the Mid-stage Qi Refining realm.

The black-clothed woman leading them was even at the Qi Refining Seventh Layer.

Their appearance was highly unusual!

Shidong Country was extremely poor in Spiritual Qi, and Spiritual Objects were few and far between. Even basic Pills were difficult to find. Cultivators who lingered in such a place were typically those who believed their path to the Dao was severed, or those who had lost all hope for Longevity. They would choose to return to the Mortal Realm to raise a family, spending their final years as wealthy patriarchs surrounded by wives and concubines.

But this group of cultivators still carried a sharp, ambitious air. They clearly had other motives.

Silently, he cast a Malice Detection spell. Lü Zhong found that they weren’t after him.

’It’s best to mind my own business...’

Seeing that no warning signs arose in his mind, Lü Zhong stopped paying constant attention to them. He merely checked on them occasionally with his Divine Sense to keep the situation under control, then went back to eating his warm qingtuan, one bite at a time.

This was the perfect season to eat qingtuan.

Qingtuan were made from mugwort and glutinous rice flour.

They were oily green like jade, chewy yet soft, and fragrantly aromatic—rich but not greasy.

After being steamed, the outer skin was a tender, vibrant green. The red bean paste filling was sweet without being cloying, carrying a faint scent of mugwort that made them fragrant, chewy, and delicious.

However, his favorite was the kind filled with bamboo shoots and minced meat.

Savory, fragrant, and refreshing, you could even taste the flavor of the bamboo shoots. It was far more delicious than the red bean paste version.

He ate ten plates in one go, nearly frightening the stall owner. After all, her qingtuan were large and generously filled; an ordinary strong man could eat three plates at most. Little did she know that for Lü Zhong, who cultivated the Spiritual Universe Dharma Body, digesting such a small amount of food was a trivial matter he could accomplish with a single cycle of his energy.

He casually left an ingot of silver and departed, fully satisfied.

The Juyuan Inn was located on the city’s main road. Lü Zhong didn’t even need to ask for directions; he just followed the street and found it easily.

Standing at the entrance, he sized up the inn.

The inn was a three-story wooden building, a head taller than the adjacent shops, with a width spanning about six storefronts. Numerous tall, strong horses were already tied to the hitching posts at the side. Combined with the constant flow of people in and out, it was clear that business was booming.

As he stepped inside, an attendant with a long towel draped over his shoulder immediately came to greet him.

"Welcome, sir. Are you here to stay the night, or are you looking for someone?"

Lü Zhong smiled faintly. The attendant was quite perceptive to have seen his purpose at a glance, though it helped that he hadn’t bothered to hide his expression.

He smiled and said, "I’m looking for someone. Is Xu Changfu still here?"

Hearing that he was looking for Xu Changfu, the attendant subtly sized Lü Zhong up. Then, in Lü Zhong’s blind spot, he secretly made a furtive gesture to someone behind him.

Of course, Lü Zhong saw all of this.

After all, Divine Sense was incredibly useful.

’Interesting. What’s all this about?’

He found it secretly amusing, but this time he controlled his expression to avoid being seen through and tipping them off.

After relaying the message, the attendant immediately looked up, a sycophantic, professional smile on his face. He replied respectfully, "So you’re here for Master Xu, sir. The old master is still in Heaven-Two. Please, follow me."

The two of them went up the stairs and soon arrived on the inn’s third floor.

Unlike the two floors below, the landing here was guarded by two burly men in tight-fitting clothes.

Lü Zhong sensed them carefully and realized they were skilled martial artists of the jianghu, the kind who had achieved a certain mastery. In the Mortal Realm, they would be considered Dark Force experts. He hadn’t expected to find them serving as mere guards.

He had only taken two steps before he stopped. Looking at the closed doors on his left and right, he smiled. "Alright, no need to hide in there. Everyone, come on out!" 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞

"Sir, you..." The attendant forced a smile, about to offer an explanation.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

Doors were violently smashed open. Several large men in black rushed out, their figures unnaturally tall. They wore black-veiled Conical Hats and thudded across the floorboards as they silently moved to surround Lü Zhong.

Behind him, the two Dark Force experts also made their move.

From the looks of it, they clearly intended to surround and kill Lü Zhong right here.

Lü Zhong, however, was not nervous.

He casually flicked the two skewers from the candied hawthorns he had finished eating. The skewers shot out with the force of bolts from a Bed Crossbow, easily piercing the foreheads of the two Dark Force experts. It was as simple as crushing two ants.

At that moment, the large men in black charged.

Lü Zhong’s expression turned serious. After all, these large men were all Refining Corpses.

’Refining Corpses... It seems the matter in Water Summoning Village is more complicated than just some Side Sect Independent Cultivators...’ As the thought raced through his mind, he relied on the Giant Strength granted by his Spiritual Universe Dharma Body to knock down the large men, one by one, with his bare fists.

He then went to each one and twisted its neck, rendering them unable to move again.

Having done this, Lü Zhong’s gaze shifted to a specific spot on the third floor. He sneered, "Friend Daoist inside, shouldn’t you show yourself? Or... do you need me to personally invite you out?"