Wait a minute, where is my master?

At the door,

The young Taoist suddenly stopped, turned around, and said to the Old Dean, "Brother Yan, if there's any news about that disciple of yours, please let me know."

He had this nagging feeling that there was something fishy about the whole affair.

Although Jin Xu hadn't linked it to the Demon Sect's Third Elder, his instincts still prompted him to mention it.

"Sure, once Yuner locates the kid with the Life Lamp, I'll send the message to you, Brother Jin."

Though uncertain of the young Taoist's intentions, such a trivial matter was something the Old Dean naturally wouldn't dismiss.

Having received an affirmative answer, Jin Xu nodded slightly and left the Wutong Building with the two women.

On the streets.

The sounds of people were loud and the atmosphere lively.

There was no indication that any disaster had occurred in the city the day before.

As the trio left the grand entrance of Wutong Building and stepped onto the street, they quickly caused a significant stir among the crowd.

"Look quick, that's the young Taoist who set fire to the Demon Cultivators yesterday!"

"Yes, yes, that's him; I recognize his mask and Taoist robe."

"What's so impressive about burning Demon Cultivators? It's his Golden Thunderbolt that's truly fearsome. He even opened up a fountain right at the entrance to Qingmu Secret Realm. From now on, the people in our city won't have to carry water from the spring on the mountain outside the city."

"Yeah, and I heard from the nephew of my next-door neighbor's uncle that he has relatives studying at the academy. They sneaked a taste of the water yesterday. They say it tingles slightly on the lips and can cure all sorts of diseases, even has effects on virility..."

Cultivators whispered and communicated telepathically amongst themselves, regardless of their method of communication,

All their words nevertheless flew unerringly to Jin Xu's ears.

"Virility? Rumors in the Nine Provinces Realm spread that fast? And what's this about water with a tingling sensation? Hiss, it wouldn't be the remnants of Golden Thunderbolt from my Hand Palm Thunder, would it!"

The young Taoist's face remained expressionless, but his inner thoughts were tumultuous.

Of course, even if he had expressions, nobody would be able to see them since he was wearing a mask.

"My lord, where are we headed now?"

Yaoer asked after following Jin Xu for a while.

"We're heading to Shangjing City. This time we won't be flying ourselves, we'll take the Transmission Array."

Jin Xu replied while quickly walking towards the location of the Transmission Array, following a path he discerned using his Spiritual Sense to cover the entire city.

"My lord, aren't we going to visit Brother Jiang before we leave? I think he can't make meat dishes now, and I'm confident I can beat him!"

Yaoer revealed her true intent with nowhere else to turn.

"... Brother Jiang's daughter is still young, and it will be at least a few years before she knows her own mind. You should practice more so that you can be more confident. It's not too late for us to challenge him next year. Moreover, Xu Qian is still blinded, so we need to go and cure him first."

Jin Xu coaxed his demon pet like pacifying a child, then quickened his pace.

"Um, what you said seems to make some sense, my lord."

Yaoer nodded in agreement, glancing at Little White with his swollen cheeks, and temporarily abandoned the idea of challenging Jiang Xiulan.

After a short time,

The trio arrived at the location of the Transmission Array.

Jin Xu looked up, surveying the towering platform before him, but before he could take a good look, the nearby cultivators approached.

"Excuse me, Taoist, but are you intending to use the Transmission Array?"

The cultivator was very polite, unsure if it was because he recognized the young Taoist or for some other reason.

"Yes, the three of us."

Jin Xu indicated himself and the two behind him.

"I'm terribly sorry, Taoist. Due to the Demon Cultivator's mischief yesterday that damaged the City Protection Array, this Transmission Array has also been affected. It will need at least seven days of repairs before it can be activated."

If you're not in a hurry, you might want to try our Heavenly Horse mounts.

Heavenly Horse mounts are fast, smooth, and every major city in the Nine Provinces Realm has a station.

A thousand kilometers will only cost three mid-grade Spirit Stones!"

As the Cultivator spoke, he suddenly started advertising.

Behind him, someone dressed similarly to him emerged from nowhere, leading a horse covered in green scales with a pair of flesh wings on its back, walking briskly over.

Jin Xu thought to himself, "??? They even do direct sales?"

"Go away, go away. Didn't I tell you, soliciting near the Teleportation Array is prohibited, why are you still here!"

Before the little Taoist could react, a scholar-dressed cultivator came down from the platform and herded the horse-leading duo away.

"Eh, eh, eh, alright, alright, we're going."

The horse-leading duo's attitude was very humble, whether out of fear or the principle that amicability breeds wealth, after agreeing several times in a low voice. They then whispered to Jin Xu, "Honored guest, if you wish to ride our Heavenly Horse, just contact us using this jade token."

As he spoke, he tried to sneakily pass a jade token to the little Taoist.

However, his attempt was not successful.

Little White, upon hearing the other party's words, leapt out from behind Jin Xu and revealed its true form.

"We have one at home!"

The enormous Snow Wolf appeared below the high platform, speaking human language to reject the offered jade token. After speaking, it even turned its head towards the little Taoist and said, "Right, temple master?"

This time, it was the horse-leading duo's turn to be dumbfounded.

The scholar-dressed cultivator on the platform was also taken aback, then leaped down from the platform, worried that a conflict might arise.

"...Little White, turn back first."

With immense speechlessness, Jin Xu stepped forward, patted the soft fur of the husky, and then said to the horse-leading duo, "The two of you, my home indeed has its own mount. We came here just to use the Teleportation Array, so you should save this jade token for cultivators who need it."

Having said that, the little Taoist no longer paid attention to the two people who walked away dejectedly.

He turned to look at the scholar who had jumped down from the platform and courteously asked, "Are you the cultivator in charge of this Teleportation Array?"

"That is correct, Taoist Jin has seen through me!"

Clearly, the scholar recognized Jin Xu, and it was very possible he could be one of Old Dean's disciples or grand-disciples.

After the scholar greeted him, he apologetically continued, "Taoist Jin, though those two were indeed soliciting customers, the damage to the Teleportation Array is not their fabrication. Indeed, the Teleportation Array requires seven days before it can be activated again."

Upon hearing this, Jin Xu's brows beneath the mask lightly furrowed. His Spiritual Sense instantly covered the high platform, discovering that indeed, many cultivators were there with various compasses and spiritual materials, fiddling with something.

Knowing that the other party was not lying, the little Taoist let out a slight sigh. He thought to himself that he might just not be fated with this Teleportation Array.

Every time he gets to a city's array, it has to break down.

Thus, the idea of using the Teleportation Array to rush to Shangjing City was abandoned.

He decided to fly there on his own using levitation.

...

Inside Qingmu City.

An inconspicuous alleyway entrance.

The horse-leading duo strolled over leisurely.

Their expressions were normal, but the horse was gone.

They arrived at the end of the alley, pushed open the door to a small courtyard on the left, and after closing the door behind them without any rush.

They approached the millstone in the center of the yard and casually activated a formation to conceal their presence.

"How did it go, was the bait sent out?"

As the formation rose, a figure drifted out from a room on the eastern side of the courtyard.

"No, it failed."

"Failed? Why?"

"Because that little Taoist's mount wouldn't allow it..."

"Hmm!?"