He hurriedly looked at Xiao Chen. "Let me get this straight."

"You’re saying that on your way back from the Marketplace just now, a flash of golden light suddenly appeared, and then there was a Secret Manual on the ground?"

"Right."

"He was so fast that you couldn’t get a clear look at his face?"

"Right."

"And besides this Secret Manual, he didn’t leave anything else? No one was chasing him?"

"No."

Xiao Chen’s face was a mask of confusion. "He left this Secret Manual for no reason. I don’t know what to make of it."

"I opened it and it looked like some kind of Demon Technique, so I came straight here to give it to you, Mei."

He spoke with such sincerity, it was as if he were telling the truth.

Mei Yong was baffled. "Strange. Who on earth would do something like this?"

"Let me think. To step forward and expose the Divine Fire Sect’s Demon Technique at a time like this... he must have a grudge against the Divine Fire Sect. At the same time, he must be a righteous man of noble character."

"Being able to get his hands on this Secret Manual means he must be an incredibly powerful Cultivator, most likely at the Great Perfection of Foundation Establishment." 𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

"And on top of that, he’s skilled in the Golden Escape Technique."

Mei Yong slapped his thigh. "I know! It’s the Golden Light Wanderer from Quanzhou!"

"Wait a minute, Mei."

Now it was Xiao Chen’s turn to be baffled. "How come I never knew the Golden Light Wanderer was from Quanzhou? Didn’t he only appear once in Yellow Wind Valley?"

Mei Yong replied matter-of-factly, "You wouldn’t know. I’ve already asked around, and it’s not just our Li State that has no Foundation Establishment Cultivators practicing the Golden Escape Technique."

"I’ve never heard of anyone like that in Hezhou, either."

"Only Quanzhou has ever had rumors about the Golden Escape Technique. You can’t find that Technique anywhere else."

Xiao Chen thought for a moment. ’He’s right. I really did buy this *Vertical Earth Golden Light* manual at a Black Market held by Cultivators from Quanzhou. And it’s true I haven’t seen any other Golden Escape Techniques anywhere else.’

Mei Yong continued his deduction. "Think about it. Where did the Golden Light Wanderer first appear? It was at the Quanzhou cultivators’ gathering in Yellow Wind Valley."

"He was forced into exile by the Divine Fire Sect, so he must harbor a deep grudge. That’s why he decided to publicly release their Secret Manual to get revenge."

"Besides, it’s the only thing that makes sense."

"Otherwise, why would he do something like this? It’s a thankless task, with no fame or fortune to be gained."

"I’m almost certain that the Golden Light Wanderer is the one who delivered this Secret Manual to us."

He made such a logical, well-reasoned case that Xiao Chen, were he not the perpetrator himself, would have almost been convinced.

Still, he nodded. "Uh, Mei, I think you’re right."

「Two days passed in a flash as word spread about the Golden Light Wanderer distributing the Divine Fire Sect’s Cultivation Technique.」

Xiao Chen went to the Chen Family Mansion again to state that he had made up his mind to go to Hezhou.

Elder Chen seemed to have expected this outcome and didn’t try to persuade him further.

Instead, he pulled him down to sit and began to talk about Hezhou.

"I recall you haven’t really left the Sect much. In all these years, you’ve only been to Shattered Stone Valley that one time. You’ve spent the rest of your time within the Sect’s territory."

"It’s actually a good thing that you want to go out and see the world. Gaining more experience as a young man will help your future cultivation."

"But let me ask you, how much do you know about Hezhou right now?"

Xiao Chen answered honestly, "I’ve read the Demon Extermination Hall’s intelligence reports on Hezhou."

Those reports were considered public information, so the other Sect Elders could naturally view them as well.

Hearing this, Elder Chen understood. "Don’t be fooled by their surface similarities. Hezhou might seem a lot like Li State—just a bit larger and also home to three major Sects."

"But in reality, Hezhou is completely different from our Li State in many ways."

"They have many fine things from the Central Domain and the Eastern Domain over there. It’s just that the journey is long and Li State is barren, so those things rarely make their way here."

Xiao Chen was already well aware of the distance.

When he read Scarface’s diary, he learned that even with the speed of a cultivator at the Great Perfection of Qi Refining, it had taken them over a month, nearly two, to travel from Hezhou to Li State.

He had later specifically checked a map and found a vast Gobi Desert, utterly devoid of Spiritual Qi, lying between Li State and Hezhou.

The first time he saw it, Xiao Chen had been quite surprised.

The Gobi Desert’s east-west width was comparable to that of Li State, and its north-south length was even greater, nearly matching Hezhou’s.

It was hard to imagine that such a massive area didn’t contain a single Spirit Vein.

As a result, no Cultivators were willing to settle there. This meant no one was around to drive away wandering Demon Beasts, making it impossible for mortals to survive and turning it into a complete Wilderness.

But then again, that distance wasn’t particularly far for a Foundation Establishment Cultivator.

’So the key part of that sentence must be "Li State is barren."’

Xiao Chen asked directly, "Is Hezhou much wealthier than we are here?"

Elder Chen replied seriously, "Yes. A lot."

"They have more Cultivators, and their legacies are more complex and sophisticated."

Chen Tianfeng, who was standing to the side, chimed in to confirm, "The Lingyuan Sect’s Artifact Refining techniques are indeed more diverse. After all, they have a greater abundance of all kinds of Spiritual Materials over there."

Elder Chen also said, "I’ve been to Hezhou twice myself, back in the day. Their level of Alchemy is truly better, and the variety of Elixirs is much greater."

"If you get the chance, you could try to learn their Alchemy."

"If you can manage to learn even a fraction of their true teachings, you’ll benefit from it for years to come."

Hearing this, Xiao Chen nodded and committed the information to memory. "I understand. If the opportunity arises, I will exchange insights on Alchemy with my peers in Hezhou."