Immortal Refiner

”Stop the carriage!”

Upon hearing a topic that the people on the street were eagerly discussing, Li Qing’s heart suddenly jolted. He immediately called for the carriage to stop, wanting to listen further.

”It’s a clumsy attempt at using others to do the dirty work. I think the Black Demon Gang Leader, seeing no hope for revenge, fabricated this story.”

”But if those old and muddle-headed martial arts masters hear this rumor, they might really be tempted to go and investigate Sun Qi.”

”Becoming an immortal and achieving eternal life—every dynasty has had emperors fantasizing about such things, but what was the final result?”

”Exactly! Even emperors couldn’t obtain the method to become immortals. How could the Lei Family possibly have it?”

”...”

Clearly, this was the hottest news in Qingzhou recently, spreading through every street and alley, becoming common knowledge.

However, the vast majority of the populace remained skeptical and disbelieving, thinking it was just the Black Demon Gang Leader’s ploy to use others to eliminate his enemies.

Yet, one thing made some people ponder deeply: Sun Qi, the Number One Sword of Qingzhou, who had slaughtered the entire family of the Black Demon Gang Leader, had still not come forward to explain himself.

”Let’s continue. Find an inn to stay at.”

Only when Li Qing’s voice leisurely came from inside the carriage did it slowly start moving again.

An opportunity to become an immortal? A method to cultivate immortality?

At this moment, these phrases kept echoing in Li Qing’s mind.

Could it be that the treasure the Lei Family was robbed of by the Black Demon Gang was related to something as mysterious as this?

No wonder the two major forces had fought so fiercely, almost to the death.

Suddenly, Li Qing recalled something.

Back in the World of Eternal Night, when he and the Righteous Gang besieged the Yan Family, Master Yan, in a moment of crisis, pulled out a yellow paper that resembled a Taoist talisman.

That talisman emitted a strong golden light, enveloping Master Yan completely. The death warriors raised by Tian Long of the Righteous Gang couldn’t do anything to him; he was practically invulnerable.

If it weren’t for the fact that the Golden Light Shield soon shattered, Master Yan would not have died so easily.

”Could that have been an immortal technique?”

”And Tianliang Mountain—even in that era of extreme food scarcity, the Yan Family still maintained regular offerings to Tianliang Mountain...”

Li Qing silently muttered to himself, deeply engraving this matter in his heart.

The secrets hidden in the World of Eternal Night were far more profound than he had imagined. It seemed he would need to find an opportunity to investigate further!

As for the opportunity to become an immortal currently in Sun Qi’s hands, whether it was real or not, Li Qing had no intention of entertaining any thoughts about it.

For one thing, Sun Qi was, after all, the Number One Sword of Qingzhou, a master at the Inner Strength level.

Even if it were real, Li Qing, who was only at the Outer Strength level, knew he had no right to compete for such an opportunity.

”Ah, in the end, it’s still because my strength is insufficient!”

Li Qing put these thoughts aside, focusing only on quickly resolving matters in Qingzhou, fulfilling his Master’s instructions, and then returning to quietly train and grow stronger!

Soon, the carriage stopped in front of a grand inn.

Surprisingly, it was the Dragon Gate Inn once again!

This thing turned out to be a chain brand, which left Li Qing stunned for quite a while. He thought to himself, no wonder the shop assistant earlier said that whether it was the Lei Family or the Black Demon Gang, they all had to give face to the Dragon Gate Inn.

In Qingzhou, a place notorious for its chaos and fierce folk customs, it was impossible to expand a business to this scale without some real strength!

Although it was a bit expensive, staying here was reassuring, and Li Qing was still quite satisfied as he booked two fine rooms.

Not long after checking in, Li Qing began to inquire about information under the pretext of looking for a distant relative.

”Shop assistant, let me ask you, are there any families with the surname Gu in the city?”

Li Qing held a few copper coins in his hand, looking playfully at the shop assistant who was clearly eager for them.

”Oh dear, sir, you’ve really stumped me. There are so many households in the city, how could I possibly know them all? But there are definitely people with the surname Gu.”

That made sense, so Li Qing changed his approach: ”Then where should I go if I want to inquire about this?”

In order to earn those few copper coins as a tip, the shop assistant put in all his effort.

”The simplest way is to check the household registry at the county office, though you might have to pay a bit more to the officials there.”

”But if you have more clues, you could find one of the local informants in the city. Their fees aren’t high.”

After hearing these two options, Li Qing pondered for a moment, then nodded in satisfaction and tossed two copper coins to the shop assistant.

Li Qing wasn’t keen on dealing with the officials at the county office. Unless absolutely necessary, it was best to avoid contact with them.

”Let me think... Master once mentioned that he was sent to the frontier military camp because he offended the local magistrate back then.”

”That must have been at least ten or twenty years ago, right? I wonder if that magistrate has been transferred since.”

With that, Li Qing summarized a few distinctive characteristics.

Surname Gu, possibly a blacksmith by trade, might have offended the magistrate ten or twenty years ago, and was later sent to the military camp to atone for his crimes and earn merit.

With these points, it should be enough.

Without further ado, Li Qing directly sought out a well-known informant in the city.

In Chongning County, inside an old house.

Knock, knock, knock!

”Coming, coming!”

A brisk voice came from inside the house, followed by a middle-aged man in his thirties or forties with thinning hair.

”Oh, what would you like to inquire about, sir? The news about the Number One Sword of Qingzhou is quite hot right now, and I have firsthand information!” He Baosheng asked with a smile.

Li Qing spoke directly, ”I want to ask you about someone.”

”Please come in! I can confidently say that as long as someone has lived in Chongning for more than a year in the past thirty years, I can definitely help you find them!” He Baosheng declared with certainty.

So confident? It seems I’ve come to the right place.

Although the house was a bit old, some of the furnishings inside were quite clean, and several carrier pigeons could be seen in the courtyard, a testament to his professionalism.

He Baosheng brought over a steaming cup of tea, but Li Qing only glanced at it, showing no intention of drinking. He said:

”The person I’m looking for has the surname Gu, might have been a blacksmith, and later offended the magistrate and was sent to the frontier to serve in the military to atone for his crimes.”

”To be more precise, I’m looking for his family. I wonder if they’re still in the city?”

At this point, the conversation had already become quite clear.

He Baosheng pondered for a moment, then nodded and said, ”Sir, please wait a moment. The person you’re referring to seems familiar, but I still need to confirm some details.”

After a considerable amount of time had passed, He Baosheng finally emerged from the room, a confident smile on his face.

”The person you’re looking for, is his name Gu Tianxing?”

(End of the Chapter)

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