Chapter 378 - 373: Chaotic Huailai City

Incredibly, Du Youqian reached his destination—Huailai City of the Eastern Domain—without a single incident.

Du Youqian stopped in Huailai City.

It wasn’t to rest and recuperate.

It was because... there was no path forward.

According to his intelligence, Master Luo Fan lived in seclusion in a place called Starry Valley. However, between Huailai City and Starry Valley lay a vast territory inhabited by the Demon Race.

Moreover, these were "Wild Demons," not "Familiar Demons."

The so-called "Wild Demons" were those whose relationship with humanity was cold at best, and more often, outright hostile.

There was no trade, no communication. Encounters almost invariably led to a fight to the death.

Even a Core Formation Master would find it nearly impossible to cross the region unscathed without intimate knowledge of the area.

Even flying over was out of the question, as one of the two Demon Race clans in the area was a flying species: the Red-crowned Sand Storks.

So, Du Youqian had to stay in Huailai City for a while to find a safe route to Starry Valley.

Huailai City was a famous Immortal City, considered one of the most significant cities in the entire Eastern Domain.

Unlike the Western and Northern Domains, which consisted of little more than endless desert and scattered oases, the Eastern and Southern Domains of the Endless Desert Sea had spent the last several thousand years attempting to reclaim land from the sands.

With Nascent Soul Masters garrisoning them, and the occasional intervention of a Divinity Transformation Ancestor, city after city had risen from the Endless Desert Sea, despite the immense difficulty.

By now, the cities of the Eastern Domain were scattered like stars, forming a network of nodes that held dominion over the entire region.

Each Immortal City required a minimum of three Core Formation Masters to garrison it. Only then could they use arrays to fend off the encroaching sandstorms.

If even one was missing, the Immortal City would slowly succumb to the erosion of the sandstorms, eventually being buried and destroyed.

As for Huailai City, it was a large-scale Immortal City, garrisoned by two Nascent Soul Elder Monsters.

Of course, the reason the Demon Race clans outside the city remained "Wild Demons" and dared to defy the Human Race was that they, too, had Tier Four Transformed Demon Kings capable of contending with Nascent Soul Masters.

After paying the one-Spiritual-Jade entry fee, Du Youqian received a temporary "Testament." He had to wear it at all times within Huailai City, or he would be attacked by the City Defense Array.

While wearing it, the City Lord’s Mansion could locate him at any time, and even eavesdrop on him.

Du Youqian, however, wasn’t concerned.

He wasn’t planning on doing anything shady in Huailai City. He was just staying temporarily; once he gathered the information he needed, he would leave.

"A pot of Spirit Wine and three of your house specialties," Du Youqian ordered wearily in a restaurant.

His current appearance was that of a rugged ruffian: a short, full beard, a Dharma Robe that looked tattered but was powerfully enchanted for defense, and his hair tied in a wild topknot.

His face was still streaked with grime from the desert winds.

This perfectly matched the Eastern Domain’s stereotype of a cultivator from the Western Domain.

Cultivators and Mortals lived intermingled within the Immortal City.

This restaurant catered to both Mortals and Cultivators.

The floors from the third and up were for Cultivators; Mortals were confined to the lower two.

Du Youqian was now sitting on the fourth floor, the level for Foundation Establishment Cultivators.

While ordering his food, he extended his Divine Sense, keeping it at the level of a Perfect Foundation Establishment Cultivator, and began to gather information.

The persona he had adopted was Pang Long, a mid-level officer from a gang that had been wiped out by the Zouma Gang.

Ostensibly, he was at the Foundation Establishment Late Stage, but in reality, he had hidden his strength and was a Perfect Foundation Establishment Cultivator.

If someone were to see through this identity and investigate further, they would discover he was actually the Vice Gang Leader of that same destroyed gang, with a Golden Core Early Stage Cultivation...

Du Youqian hadn’t layered these identities one inside the other like nesting dolls just for fun.

It was mainly because he didn’t want to attract trouble.

In the Endless Desert Sea, while the Eastern and Southern Domains were far more prosperous than their western and northern counterparts, the law of the jungle still reigned supreme, and conflict was constant.

While his Foundation Establishment strength would prevent him from drawing too much attention, he might encounter situations he couldn’t handle.

In such a moment, revealing his identity as a desperate Core Formation Early Stage Cultivator—like a stray dog—was far better than exposing his true status as the leader of a major power.

If his identity as the "Sect Leader of the Four Principles Sect" were ever exposed, Du Youqian would find it impossible to move freely here; spies would follow his every step.

The Spirit Wine was ordinary, and its taste was nothing special.

The food was even more mediocre.

However, Du Youqian could stomach coarse fare just as well as he could savor the most exquisite delicacies.

He played the part of a cultivator who had been braving the elements for a long time, putting on an expression of pure enjoyment.

Over the course of the meal, he used his powerful Divine Sense to learn a great deal about the recent rumors and happenings in Huailai City.

After finishing his meal, Du Youqian called the waiter over to settle the bill, but the waiter said with an apologetic smile, "Immortal Master, your bill has already been paid for you."

Du Youqian’s brows furrowed.

In truth, he already knew; he had locked onto the person who paid his bill long ago.

But the character he was playing hadn’t had a proper meal in a long time. While a Foundation Establishment Late Stage Cultivator didn’t have a strong need for food, it was only natural for someone who had finally reached a safe place and could enjoy a hot meal and fine wine to become lost in the moment and neglect his surroundings.

Du Youqian’s gaze swept the room, finally landing on a Foundation Establishment Cultivator with a handlebar mustache, dressed in a long white robe.

When their eyes met, the man nodded and smiled.

Du Youqian feigned surprise, pretending he had just realized this was the man who had paid his bill. He said with displeasure, "Friend, we’ve never met. Why would you pay my bill?"

"HA HA!" the man laughed heartily. "I simply saw that you seemed like a hero down on his luck and felt a sense of camaraderie. If I’ve caused you any displeasure, my friend, then I apologize!"

Seeing his sincere attitude, Du Youqian smiled. "You treated me to food and drink, my friend. What’s there to be unhappy about? It’s just that I’m new to this fine city and can’t help being a bit cautious. Please, don’t take it the wrong way."

As they spoke, he had already secretly deployed the Divine Sense of a Golden Core Cultivator to capture the fluctuations in the man’s thoughts.

’A strange feeling rose within him.’

’The man was after his body?’

’He wants to sell me?’

’Is Huailai City this lawless?!’

’Abducting and selling a Foundation Establishment Cultivator in broad daylight, in a bustling restaurant... Is there no justice? Is there no law?!’

However, Du Youqian had no intention of turning hostile. Instead, he decided to play along, feigning interest while humoring the man.

Because... he had learned from the man’s thoughts that this organization sold cultivators to the Qianshan Sect in the northeast, a sect from the Demon Dao faction that had a Nascent Soul Master.

Those who were trafficked were, of course, sent to be used as materials by Demon Cultivators.

And most importantly, the Qianshan Sect was right next to Starry Valley!

Du Youqian changed his plan in an instant. He would pretend to be trafficked and let this organization transport him across the vast territory of the Demon Race.

’It wouldn’t be a good look if word got out, but it’s "Pang Long" who will lose face, not Du Youqian. What does it have to do with me?’

Of course, even if he was going to pretend to be deceived, he couldn’t fall for it right away.

After all, he was playing the part of someone a little dense, not a complete idiot.

The man couldn’t possibly expect to trick and traffic a Foundation Establishment expert with just a few words.

He’d have to offer some real bait.

’How can you catch a fish without any bait?’

’Was he hoping to catch a fool with a straight hook?’

The bait this trafficker, "Ye Kai," used to lure Du Youqian was an ancient cultivator’s cave-dwelling.

"That cave-dwelling must have been left behind by a Core Formation Master, and one who was an expert in Spirit Plant Art and Alchemy at that. I only did a cursory search of the outer areas and found a medicinal garden. Inside, there were two thousand-year-old Spirit Grasses, dozens of several-hundred-year-old ones, and even a few bottles of Elixirs that have started to lose their potency."

To make his story more convincing, Ye Kai led Du Youqian from the restaurant to a courtyard he had rented, where he showed him the Spirit Grass and Elixirs.

Du Youqian knew, of course, that they were fakes. But he pretended to be overcome with greed, while still maintaining a sliver of caution, refusing to immediately agree to join the exploration.

’This also fit the typical profile of a Western Domain cultivator: had a brain, but not much of one.’

’They tend to lose their heads when faced with a big score.’

After a few days of this back-and-forth, Du Youqian finally relented and agreed to join the expedition to the cave-dwelling.

The final push came when he "coincidentally" met another cultivator from the Western Domain. Though they’d never met, this man claimed to have also lost his master and was now dirt poor. He didn’t want to become a common thug for some major power, so he was hoping to explore the cave-dwelling and try his luck.

If he got lucky, he could make it big.

If his luck was bad and he died in the cave, well, that would solve all his problems too.

Anyone trying to make it in the Western Domain who didn’t have that kind of resolve might as well cripple their own Cultivation and go back to being a Mortal.

Of course, all of this was just part of the act.

In reality, he was just a shill hired by Ye Kai...