Big Data Cultivation
/ Big Data Cultivation Chapter 767
Chapter 767: Chapter 767 Chaos and Order Chapter 767: Chapter 767 Chaos and Order Mu Fengtang did not accept the silver dollars from the other party, instead, he stuffed a Gold Sycee into his hands.
He said with a smile, “My apologies for the intrusion, given the old gentleman's poor health. I'm here to inquire about one thing, though. May I know where Dew Fragrance Water is sold? Could you kindly enlighten me?”
“It's but a trifle,” the butler declined the Gold Sycee, speaking earnestly, “If you truly wish to inquire about this matter, you might want to take a look at Mount Zhige in Zhige County, for you could find something… Your generous offer, I regret that I cannot accept. Otherwise, the old master wouldn't spare me.”
Deng Yifu was a man of the Jianghu; he had been offered bribes many times in the first half of his life, a practice he detested intensely.
Seeing that he refused, Mu Fengtang did not insist. He blinked and queried, “I am quite curious, why do others in this precious place keep such tight lips about this news?”
“Well…” the butler gave him a mysterious smile, “You will know once you go there.”
Mu Fengtang, seeing his response, refrained from asking further. Instead, he casually handed over three lighters, “This self-igniting fire is a small gift, mainly because it's convenient and easy to use. It's not worth much, just a token of my appreciation.”
He did not notice the expressions on the faces of the three people across from him were rather odd…
Having clarified that it was Zhige County, Mu Fengtang, along with his four companions, hurried on their way. To their surprise, they encountered quite a few people coming and going.
After resting in Zhige County City, the news about Mount Zhige started flowing in continuously.
So, he learned that there was indeed a large market town there, where a variety of supplies were abundant.
However, when he asked who the Mountain Master of Mount Zhige was, nobody would answer; they just looked at him as if he were a simpleton.
He wondered to himself just what kind of person could conduct business with the Tiantong Commercial Alliance and also silence others with fear?
In fact, Mu Fengtang had already summed up the situation in his mind: It was only natural for others to monopolize information to make a small fortune. What he could not fathom was why, even after arriving in Zhige, no one dared speak of the Mountain Master of Mount Zhige?
They set off early the next morning towards Mount Zhige.
Though Mu Fengtang claimed to travel with “not much” by way of wealth, he had a carriage pulled by two horses and two swift horses at his disposal.
The guards and the servants rode on horses, the old servant drove the carriage, and the Female Attendant and he sat inside the carriage.
By noon, two motorcycles and two tricycles suddenly emerged from the opposite side. Mu Fengtang's thoughts raced, “Self-propelled vehicles… Could it be that they are also from here?”
The automobile had also been a sensation in the Jianghu for a time, impervious to wind and rain and powerfully driven, but the people who could afford it were few and far between. These vehicles ran on a substance called “diesel,” which was extremely rare. It was said that it could only be purchased from the place where the vehicles were sold.
Strictly speaking, diesel was not particularly expensive, cheaper than keeping a fine steed, but it was difficult to store and transport. Anyone who owned a self-propelled vehicle needed to build a special storage facility at home.
In short, it was like when the Earth Realm first started promoting 4G technology; affording the smartphone was one thing, affording the data usage quite another.
As Mount Zhige drew nearer, a group of about a dozen fast horses appeared quite unexpectedly by the roadside. Someone called out loudly, “Hey old man, stop the carriage. What brings you to Zhige?”
Mu Fengtang poked his head out and saw that among them there were at least two Intermediate Level Martial Masters. He ordered the old servant to halt the carriage, grabbed his bow and arrows, and with a leap, he landed on the roof of the carriage, shouting, “Are you officials?”
If they admitted to being officials, he would demand to see their credentials. If they did not, he would simply engage them in combat.
Having traveled the Jianghu for a long time, Mu Fengtang acutely understood one truth: indeed, the initiative belongs to he who strikes first!
The two Intermediate Level Martial Masters exchanged a glance and laughed, “What if we are officials, and what if we are not?”
Mu Fengtang slowly drew his bow and spoke without expression, “If you're not officials, then clear off. I will only say this once, do not bring disaster upon your masters!”
“We are guards from Lord Beiyuan Mansion,” one Intermediate Level Martial Master replied with a smile, “Does that count as being an official?”
Upon hearing this, Mu Fengtang hesitated slightly. He knew there was still malice in their intent; otherwise, they would not have only mentioned “Lord Beiyuan Mansion” without even specifying the rank of the lord. The difference between a duke, a marquis, an earl, and a gentleman was significant.
Still, he steeled himself, “Throw your Waist Tokens on the ground, or else… death without mercy!”
“You're really going too far…” the Intermediate Level Martial Master spoke disgruntledly. But in the next moment, he spurred his horse and fled, stopping only half a mile away before shouting loudly, “We are guards of Lord Beiyuan. If you continue to trespass, don't blame us for killing!”
Just an out-of-favor earl! Mu Fengtang sighed with relief at their words. Raising his voice, he shouted back, “Does the Tiantong Commercial Alliance know about what you're doing?”
Upon hearing this, the people exchanged glances. An intermediate-level martial master cupped his hands towards Mu Fengtang without another word, turned his horse, and departed. The others spurred their horses to follow, leaving as quickly as the wind.
“How strange,” Mu Fengtang muttered under his breath. He then leaped back into his carriage and thought to himself that these people seemed to be aware of the Tiantong Commerce Alliance but if they knew of Tiantong, why would they dare to block the road with ill intent?
He pondered for a good while but couldn't figure it out, then he saw Uncle Dan, the guard who was scouting ahead, rein in his horse.
As the carriage drew near, they saw a large mansion not far off, with a horizontal plaque above the gate bearing the words “Tiantong.”
Mu Fengtang didn't even need to ask; by just looking at the scale and bearing of the place, he knew this was surely a foothold of the Tiantong Commerce Alliance.
Even though he used Tiantong's reputation to scare off the guards claiming to be from Lord Beiyuan Mansion, he really did not want to deal with the people from the Commerce Alliance–after all, he was there to poach the Alliance's business.
Besides, given the background of the Tiantong Commerce Alliance, it was not just that the descendants of the Mu Family shouldn't declare their name, even if they did, the people of the Da Limu Family wouldn't consider them much better than ordinary folks.
Not far from the Commerce Alliance's grand mansion were two smaller courtyards which also seemed to have some order about them; however, their scale was indeed very modest compared to the imposing grandeur of Tiantong's estate.
He could never have imagined that one of these courtyards belonged to the Wuyou Platform, and the other to the Crimson Phoenix Sect.
Not far ahead, there was a relatively small boundary monument. However, Uncle Dan, having wandered the martial world for many years, was particularly attentive to such items with symbols or hidden signs, and he spoke in a low voice, “Be careful; just ahead is the territory of Mount Zhige, marked by the landlord's symbol.”
Entering such a territory, there would usually be guards. However, what puzzled them was that there were no checkpoints here.
The next moment, Uncle Dan's teeth started to chatter, “Ascension… Ascension 'Ascension Phase, No Admittance Unless Invited'?”
“I see!” Mu Fengtang had an epiphany. He finally understood why people from Zhige County City behaved the way they did when mentioning this landlord–the term “Immortal” is a taboo in The Secular World, not to be mentioned lightly.
In fact, he could completely understand this sentiment. The Mu Family had also been fortunate enough to have contact with Immortals on several occasions. Such contact was always considered an ace up their sleeve by the Mu Family and was not shared with anyone.
Even with such contact, being neighbors with Cultivators was surely something to keep a secret. Should there be any favorable developments, proximity ensured priority–first to the water is first to the moon. If more outsiders came around, wouldn't the chance for opportunity decrease?
After lingering near the boundary monument for some time, they observed people coming and going, most of whom were intermediate and low-level martial artists, with a significant number of ordinary people as well. Compared to them, there were far fewer martial masters.
Uncle Dan stepped forward and handed a piece of silver to a middle-aged woman, hoping to find out if one could come and go freely here.
The woman, seemingly finding him agreeable, did not accept the silver but instead told him enthusiastically that the boundary monument held the answer, didn't it? As long as one was not a Cultivator from the Ascension Phase, they were free to come and go.
Uncle Dan was quite surprised, “Even those in the Qi Refinement Realm can come and go as they please?”
The woman glanced at him and said with a smile, “You're thinking too much. How could someone in the Qi Refinement Realm come across that so easily? Just follow the rules once inside. The patrolling guards here don't hesitate to kill.”
Uncle Dan wasn't young, but as a man of his age with the air of an intermediate-level martial master, he was especially favored by middle-aged women, and this one was no exception.
Consequently, she rambled on, mentioning matters such as the guard forces here being mostly from the Dongmu Family, Yuanguang Mi Family, and CheMa Trading Company Yu Family–of course, Lord Beiyuan Mansion also constituted a significant force.
For the Mu Family, the Tian Family and Mi Family were completely unfamiliar, while they had some recollection of the Yu Family, which was just a small clan that ran a trading company and had to respectfully pay homage at the docks of the Mu Family in Tianfeng County.
However, upon hearing of Lord Beiyuan Mansion, Mu Fengtang started to doubt the management skills of the landlord here.
It was quite clear that the guards from Lord Beiyuan Mansion wanted to control some commercial channels, which was why they questioned newcomers. Allowing the people from a minor earl's estate to run rampant suggested that the landlord here… wasn't paying much attention.
In fact, Mu Fengtang was quite skeptical that the real person in charge was not a Cultivator at all, but merely using the name of a Cultivator, putting up a sign saying “Ascension Phase, No Admittance Unless Invited,” intending to keep the troublemakers out.
It's no wonder he thought this way. After all, would Cultivators care about gold? They are interested in Spirit Stones!
Mu Fengtang had been wandering the martial world for years and had learned to reason out various logical or illogical phenomena.
After passing the boundary monument, they walked for five or six miles and suddenly came upon a large marketplace. At first glance, there seemed to be at least ten thousand people, a town of this population size being quite rare in Donghua Country.
Once inside, they discovered that there were indeed not a few martial masters around, and it could even be said that there were a fair number of them. However, most of the martial masters lived in their own community, and didn't come and go here often.
Mu Fengtang, who had his share of worldly experience, found a civilian home to stay in. The house was built of adobe, and it cost three silver taels a day for five people, including three meals. There was no extra charge.
In his heart, he knew… the price was a bit steep.
Chapter end
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