Chapter 134: Chapter 123: The Strange Woman

Meanwhile, Niu Dazhuang had arrived at another tall mountain east of Luoxia City.

This mountain was called Danxia Peak, the secluded cultivation grounds of Luoxia City’s Third City Lord. Unlike Celestial Sound Mountain, where music played nonstop, Danxia Peak was exceptionally quiet. The area at its base had been designated a restricted zone, forbidding outsiders from approaching, making it feel utterly deserted.

Niu Dazhuang, of course, did not count as an outsider. He went straight to the mountainside, where plots of land had been cleared to create Medicinal Gardens for growing Spirit Medicines, which gave off a rich, fragrant aroma.

In the center of these gardens stood a bamboo building of modest size, looking quite unremarkable.

He ignored the rare Spirit Medicines all around him, walked to the front of the bamboo building, and bowed respectfully. "Disciple Niu Dazhuang pays his respects to Martial Aunt."

CREAK... 𝘧𝘳𝘦ℯ𝓌𝘦𝒷𝘯𝑜𝑣𝘦𝓁.𝒸𝘰𝓂

A light breeze swept by, and the door to the bamboo building opened on its own.

Niu Dazhuang lacked his usual rashness, appearing quite composed as he walked inside without a sideways glance.

The interior of the bamboo building was sparsely furnished. The center of the room was divided by a snow-white folding screen embroidered with a single, lifelike plum blossom branch.

The scene behind the screen was indistinct; only the silhouette of a figure sitting cross-legged on a bamboo bed could be vaguely seen.

Niu Dazhuang said respectfully, "Disciple offers his greetings to Martial Aunt."

"Why do you have time to visit me today? Could it be that your master wants to beg for some Pills from me again?" A somewhat cold voice, tinged with amusement, came from behind the screen.

Niu Dazhuang scratched his head. "Master is in seclusion recently. That’s not why I came."

"Oh? That’s a surprise. Tell me, then."

Now that the words were on the tip of his tongue, Niu Dazhuang hesitated. After a moment’s thought, he finally gritted his teeth and said, "Martial Aunt, down at the foot of the mountain today, I saw the people from the Song Clan who have come for the birthday celebration."

The moment he spoke, he felt the temperature in the room drop by several degrees. He couldn’t help but shiver, and a pang of regret hit him. He shouldn’t have brought this up.

The bamboo building fell silent. Through the screen, Niu Dazhuang couldn’t see her expression, but he was sure it wasn’t a pleasant one. It might even be quite ugly.

’Sigh, I really have a big mouth. Why did I have to bring this up with Martial Aunt? If Master finds out, I’m going to get a whipping for sure.’ Niu Dazhuang was filled with regret, feeling as if he’d been possessed to do something so foolish.

After a long while, the temperature in the room returned to normal. The voice reached Niu Dazhuang’s ears again, its tone unreadable. "Is that so? Has that old geezer from the Song Clan finally deigned to come down from his mountain?"

Niu Dazhuang carefully explained, "It wasn’t Clan Leader Song who came, but their newly appointed Young Clan Leader."

"Young Clan Leader? Song Luyan?" The woman’s voice finally wavered slightly. Though subtle, Niu Dazhuang caught it.

He gave a wry smile. "Martial Aunt, you seem to have forgotten. Song Luyan fell almost twenty years ago. The one who came this time is his only son—Song Changsheng."

The figure behind the screen fell silent again. After a long pause, she murmured in a nearly inaudible voice, "Has it really been that long..."

"And what kind of person is this Song Changsheng?" This question was directed at Niu Dazhuang.

Niu Dazhuang quickly told her everything he knew. "The first time I saw him was..."

After he finished, the figure behind the screen said flatly, "I understand. You may leave. I will not tell your master about this."

Niu Dazhuang’s face lit up. "Yes, Martial Aunt! Thank you!"

To be honest, he had regretted his big mouth for a while now, but a part of him felt that his Martial Aunt deserved to know, even if it meant getting a beating from his master.

’Thankfully, Martial Aunt still cares for me. I can avoid that beating after all.’

He hurried out of the bamboo building. The warm sunlight bathing his body made him feel at ease; the atmosphere inside the building had been truly unsettling.

’Master should be coming out of seclusion soon. I should head back. I still need to send someone to find out what the grand finale item at the auction is. I can’t believe I haven’t heard a single whisper about it beforehand.’ Niu Dazhuang muttered to himself as he prepared to head down the mountain.

He had only taken a few steps when a young woman appeared, walking toward him. She wore a light blue, waist-high long dress that accentuated her slender figure. Her skin was as smooth as jade, and her delicate face, free of any makeup, was breathtakingly beautiful.

Niu Dazhuang took one look and thought, ’Oh, this is not good.’ But it was too late to avoid her, so he had to brace himself and walk forward.

The woman also noticed the bull-like Niu Dazhuang. Her delicate brows furrowed slightly. "Senior Brother, what are you doing here?"

Niu Dazhuang felt a pang of guilt but forced a calm expression. "I just came out of seclusion, so I was taking a walk down the mountain. Since I was passing Danxia Mountain, I naturally had to come up and pay my respects to Martial Aunt."

The woman covered her mouth and chuckled. "Since when have you been so considerate, Senior Brother? You didn’t get into some trouble, did you?"

Being teased by his Junior Sister like this, Niu Dazhuang felt his face flush with embarrassment. He put on a stern expression and retorted, "You’ve got some nerve. Weren’t you in seclusion? What are you doing here?"

"Hmph, I’m not telling you." The woman wrinkled her small nose, and with a turn of her waist, she bypassed Niu Dazhuang and headed for the bamboo building.

Seeing that she didn’t mention ’that matter,’ Niu Dazhuang breathed a sigh of relief. He was about to leave when he heard her footsteps stop. "Senior Brother, with Master’s birthday banquet approaching, have any members of the Song Clan arrived? The Old Master has been mentioning them these past couple of days."

"How would I know? You’d better ask someone else. I have things to do, so I’m leaving." Niu Dazhuang laughed evasively and then hurried away, not waiting to hear what else she had to say.

His behavior made Zhuang Yuechan frown slightly, but she didn’t think much of it and continued straight toward the bamboo building...

Thanks to Song Xiantu’s tireless promotion, Song Changsheng had received a steady stream of Artifact Refining orders. At first, they were only for Tier One Top Grade artifacts. However, his skills were exquisite, and as word spread, more and more people sought him out, including even a Foundation Establishment Cultivator.

Although it was just a request to repair a Tier Two Low-Grade Artifact, the payment offered was far more generous than what he received for crafting Tier One top-grade artifacts.

One day, as dusk approached, Song Changsheng had just delivered a batch of magical artifacts when a woman dressed in black robes walked in, immediately capturing his attention.

She was observing the shop’s furnishings, and he was observing her.

She appeared to be around thirty years old. Her features weren’t stunning, but they were very pleasant and easy on the eyes.

However, it wasn’t her appearance that caught his eye, but her unfathomable Cultivation. He had pushed his Eye of Truth to its absolute limit, yet he couldn’t detect the slightest fluctuation of Spiritual Power from her. She seemed even more like a mortal than an actual mortal.

’But could she possibly be a mortal?’ Song Changsheng was quite sure his eyes weren’t failing him.

She didn’t speak, so he didn’t rashly break the silence, instead lowering his head and focusing on his work.

After about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, the woman finally spoke. "Who is Master Song? I would like to commission a magical artifact."

Song Changsheng raised an eyebrow. ’Someone of her caliber is looking for me to refine an artifact?’

Though puzzled, he still stepped forward to address her. "Senior, I am the Artifact Refiner here. May I ask what I should call you, and what kind of magical artifact you wish to have made?"

The woman turned and sized him up. "You can call me whatever you wish. I want to commission a flute, at the Tier Two Low Grade."

As she spoke, she took out a Qiankun Bag and placed it in front of Song Changsheng. "Here are the materials and the payment."

Song Changsheng was still pondering how to ’call her whatever he wished’ when her words brought a jolt of joy to his heart. ’A Tier Two Spiritual Artifact order has finally arrived!’

He hastily took the Qiankun Bag and opened it. His eyes went wide. Inside was a pile of rare materials, enough to craft not just a Tier Two Low-Grade artifact, but likely even a Tier Two Top Grade one.

This gave him a bit of a headache. ’If I fail the refinement, won’t I have to compensate her for these materials and go completely bankrupt?’

He felt a slight urge to refuse, but when he saw what the woman called her "payment," that thought instantly vanished.

In a corner of the Qiankun Bag was a huge pile of Spirit Stones—a rough estimate put it at no less than twenty thousand Low-Grade Spirit Stones. The sight made his eyes glaze over.

"I’ll take the order. I just need to know when you need it, Senior, and if you have any specific requirements." Song Changsheng looked up and found that she was still staring at him...