Bai Shengyi had only walked for a quarter of an hour on the road before she encountered five brawls and three pickpocketing incidents. In all of these, the victims were cultivators who had recently ascended, and most of them were alone. Even if they suffered a loss, they could only endure it in silence.
This was because as long as they weren't beaten to death within the city, the city management would not intervene. After all, in the cultivation world, strength was paramount. If you needed someone to help you today after being beaten and robbed, would you expect them to protect you constantly tomorrow if you were killed or insulted?
Bai Shengyi's appearance was stunning, her sparkling eyes carrying a frosty coolness like flying snow. Her crimson attire stood out vibrantly against the many green and white robes, attracting numerous gazes as she walked.
Before long, someone approached her.
The approach was extremely cliché, but the man's lips curved slightly, his smile genuine and appearing exceedingly amiable. "Fairy, you look unfamiliar. Could it be that you have just ascended?"
"And you are?" Bai Shengyi asked.
The other person smiled. "I am Wen Bùtíng, and I am also Wang Liang City's information broker. If there's anything Fairy wishes to know, you can ask me."
As Wen Bùtíng spoke, his smile grew more sincere. He had just seen that the Seventh Young Master from Yun Shen Zhou had spoken to this female cultivator.
To be able to establish a connection with the Seventh Young Master of Yun Shen Zhou upon ascending, this female cultivator was likely not ordinary.
"Senior Immortal Wen is too kind," Bai Shengyi said politely, cupping her hands. She smiled sweetly, "I do have something to ask Senior Immortal Wen. Do you know anywhere I can exchange for some immortal stones commonly used in the immortal realm?"
Wen Bùtíng was not surprised at all that Bai Shengyi knew about exchanging immortal stones. He smiled and said, "Then you have come to the right person. Wang Liang City is unlike other cities; there is only one place where spiritual stones can be exchanged for immortal stones. Follow me."
Wen Bùtíng always spoke with a smile, acted straightforwardly, and was meticulous in his thoughts. Before long, he and Bai Shengyi were addressing each other as fellow daoists.
He intended to foster a good relationship with Bai Shengyi. After taking her to exchange immortal stones, he tentatively asked, "I see Fellow Daoist Bai carrying a pill furnace and herbs. Could it be that Fellow Daoist Bai is an alchemist?"
Bai Shengyi nodded. A trace of worry flashed across her brow, and she sighed softly before quickly suppressing the gloom, appearing to muster her spirits as she spoke to Wen Bùtíng.
"Yes."
Wen Bùtíng said naturally, "Fellow Daoist Bai, have you encountered any difficulties? If you trust me, you can tell me about it. I will do my best to help if I can."
He thought to himself that this was truly a stroke of luck, finding an opportunity to get closer to her so quickly.
Wen Bùtíng mused that if he could help with this, perhaps he could inquire about Fellow Daoist Bai's relationship with the Seventh Young Master of Yun Shen Zhou. He heard that the expedition from Yun Shen Zhou to the Vast Universe Secret Realm had not yet been finalized, and he wondered if he might have a chance to join by leveraging the Seventh Young Master's influence.
Bai Shengyi was unaware of how much Wen Bùtíng had been thinking in such a short time.
Seeing Wen Bùtíng inquire, she sighed again and said helplessly, "It's nothing else, really. Daoist Wen, as you know, the advancement of us alchemists is different from ordinary cultivators. It requires refining pills with a large amount of spiritual herbs. But I ascended alone, and the spiritual stones I have can only be exchanged for this small amount of immortal stones. Where can I find so many medicinal ingredients to refine pills and cultivate? I have the skill of alchemy but cannot turn it into immortal stones, isn't that making me anxious!"
In truth, Bai Shengyi had left most of the top-grade spiritual stones and spirit marrow for the Qing Meng Vine as snacks.
But Wen Bùtíng didn't know this. He recalled the scattered mid-grade and high-grade spiritual stones Bai Shengyi had taken out and fell silent for a moment.
Honestly, besides Sword Cultivators, he hadn't seen any ascended cultivator as poor as her.
"Daoist Wen, are there any places where I can sell elixirs? I don't ask for much; I just hope they won't mind that I'm a low-level cultivator who just ascended, and that I don't need to pay a deposit. Just immediate buying and selling would be fine..." Bai Shengyi stared at Wen Bùtíng with pleading eyes.
The Reincarnation Brush remarked, "Ew, your expression is too scary."
"I used fifty years of my acting skills, how can it be scary!" Bai Shengyi retorted.
The Reincarnation Brush scoffed, "Don't forget, you're not fifty yet."
Although fifty years had passed between returning to Shen Qi from Lu Rong, because Bai Shengyi herself had not experienced those fifty years, she was actually only twenty-nine years old.
This was an extremely young age in the entire cultivation world. However, because she had comprehended the rules of time and had traversed the vast river of time, her temporal aura was enigmatic. Thus, outsiders could only perceive her approximate age, such as below a hundred or below a thousand years, but they did not know her true age.
While bickering with the Reincarnation Brush, Bai Shengyi pitiably added, "Oh, and about selling things, Wang Liang City won't take a cut, will it?"
She clutched her storage bag and sighed mournfully.
Wen Bùtíng's brow twitched at her sigh. Years of intuition made him feel something was amiss, yet he couldn't pinpoint what.
He couldn't help but size up Bai Shengyi again.
Her temperament was outstanding, her cultivation was solid, she had spoken with Young Master Yun Qi, and she had just ascended... It indeed matched the information he had previously gathered; there was nothing unusual.
Wen Bùtíng relaxed his mind and pondered for a moment. "There is such a place, and Wang Liang City does not take a commission, it's just—"
"Then Daoist Wen, quickly take me there!"
Before he could finish, Bai Shengyi said excitedly.
"It's just very dangerous. It's a lawless zone situated between Wang Liang City and Yun Xia City, which is under Yun Shen Zhou's jurisdiction. If something happens to you there, no one will save you," Wen Bùtíng insisted on finishing his sentence.
It was practically saying there would be a risk to her life.
Upon hearing his words, Bai Shengyi understood that this was the place she was looking for, and her eyes lit up.
However, she maintained a distressed expression. "Where in the cultivation world is there no danger? Fortune favors the bold. I have no choice. Please trouble Daoist Wen to take me there. Don't worry, Daoist Wen, you don't need to accompany me. I will still compensate you for your guidance."
"Fellow Daoist Bai, you are too polite! What do you take me for, Wen Bùtíng!" Wen Bùtíng immediately said, "I want to befriend you because I think highly of you, not for your immortal stones."
As he spoke, he led Bai Shengyi toward the location. However, as they walked, Wen Bùtíng noticed that they happened to encounter the Seventh Young Master Yun several more times on the road.
This was quite unusual. The Yun family members rarely came to Wang Liang City to avoid causing misunderstandings with Ying Wu Zhou. Why was this Seventh Young Master Yun not in Yun Xia City but wandering around Wang Liang City?
Wen Bùtíng thought about it, and his gaze gradually fell on Bai Shengyi. He saw that Bai Shengyi had just raised her head and was smiling, "What are you looking at?"
The clear gaze seemed to flash with a coldness for a moment. Just as Wen Bùtíng was about to look closely, that coldness vanished as if it were flowers in a mirror or the moon in water, nonexistent.
"Nothing, we're here."
Wen Bùtíng stopped walking, and Bai Shengyi followed suit. She saw ordinary mountains and roads around them, with no apparent abnormalities, and knew that there must be an opened space or a barrier here.
She made no move but instead observed Wen Bùtíng's actions. She saw Wen Bùtíng take a rectangular token from his waist and casually toss it into the air. Silently, a door appeared before them, slowly opening.
"This token is the pass for entry. You can get one after you go in. Let's go, we're entering— Who goes there!"
Wen Bùtíng shouted loudly and turned to see a violent gust of wind sweep towards Bai Shengyi!
"Fellow Daoist Bai, quickly dodge!"