231: Chapter 231 First Arrival in Cangya County

The guards at the city gate wore uniform dark red leather armor, inspecting the flow of people entering the city.

When it was Ye Tian's turn, the guard looked at his "Ningyuan Eighth Stage" cultivation, then glanced at the small golden-haired monkey curiously looking around on his shoulder. Without asking more, he waved his hand and let them pass.

In their eyes, a Martial Artist of Ye Tian's cultivation level could be slapped to death in droves within the city.

And Hou Xiaojie's Ningyuan Realm cultivation attracted even less attention.

As soon as they entered the city gate, a lively atmosphere rushed towards them.

The streets were slightly narrower than in Liuli City, but shops stood on both sides, banners fluttered, and the sounds of hawking, laughter, and carriages were endless.

The air was mixed with the scents of medicinal herbs, spices, leather, and various snacks.

The pedestrians were also diverse, including Martial Artists wearing swords, Disciples in various Sect uniforms, and ordinary merchants and commoners.

"Sugar figurine! Senior Brother, I want to eat that!"

Hou Xiaojie had sharp eyes and was immediately attracted by a sugar figurine stall.

Ye Tian smiled, took out money, and bought one for him and the Mini Dragon Ape each.

The Mini Dragon Ape held the sugar figurine, which was bigger than its Face, with its two small paws and licked it happily, causing passersby to look over and laugh.

Ye Tian walked while keeping an eye on the inns on both sides of the street.

They needed to find a place to settle down.

Continuous travel, coupled with previous battles and Breakthroughs, meant that although his cultivation had improved, he also needed to relax mentally.

Finally, on a relatively quiet street, he chose an inn named "Tingsong Residence".

The inn had an elegant environment, with several old pine trees in the courtyard, and the price was reasonable.

Ye Tian requested two superior rooms, put down his luggage, and instructed the waiter to send some hot water and food to the rooms.

After settling down, it was already dusk.

Ye Tian said to Hou Xiaojie: "Let's go out for a stroll, find a place to eat, and pick up some information along the way."

"Alright, Senior Brother!" Hou Xiaojie had been impatient for a long time.

The two people and one ape left the inn and walked leisurely on the street.

The night in Cangya County was even livelier than the day; many restaurants and teahouses lit lanterns, and the noise was deafening.

Ye Tian noticed that there were significantly more young people with weapons and not-weak auras on the street than in Liuli City. Moreover, many people's clothing was not of the local style; it seemed they were all Prodigies from various places attracted by the "Ancient Sword Mansion Ruins".

He took Hou Xiaojie into a teahouse that looked very popular, named "Baiwei Zhai".

The teahouse was divided into two floors; the ground floor hall was full of people, with all kinds of people, drinking tea, eating snacks, and talking loudly, creating a lively atmosphere.

Ye Tian found a relatively quiet corner by the window and sat down, ordering a pot of local "Red Rock Tea" and a few signature tea snacks.

The Mini Dragon Ape had no interest in tea and was busy gnawing on a bag of jerky Ye Tian had bought for it.

"Have you heard? The day before yesterday, 'Jinghong Sword' Jing Wutian defeated the Houtu Sect's True Disciple Yue Shan in three moves at the city west arena! That Yue Shan is at the True Martial Fourth Level Peak!"

Hearing the name Yue Shan, Ye Tian's heart stirred slightly.

He still remembered that when he participated in the Secret Realm, there were people from the Houtu Sect.

One of them, named Yue Zhong, had even fought him and had considerable strength.

This person named Yue Shan was likely related to that Yue Zhong.

"Tsk tsk, Jing Wutian is probably not far from the True Martial Sixth Stage, right? As expected of the leader of our Cangya County's younger generation!"

"Leader? That's not necessarily true! 'Soul-Severing Spear' Sikong Changhe killed a third-order Middle Stage 'Green Scaled Python' alone in the Zhangyu Forest last month; his strength is likely not below Jing Wutian's!"

"And there's 'Thousand-Faced Poison Fairy' Ye Yiyi, elusive and unpredictable, her poison techniques are impossible to guard against. I heard that a few days ago, some blind guy tried to harass her, and ended up itching all over in the middle of the street, scratching himself until he was a bloody mess!"

"Zhao Chengzhi's 'Hunyuan Sword' has both offense and defense, rarely meeting an opponent…"

"If you ask me, the one you absolutely cannot provoke is 'Miracle Hand Fairy' Bai Zhiyun. Her medical skills are divine, and who knows how many experts owe her favors!"

The discussion from a nearby table of seemingly local Martial Artists clearly reached Ye Tian's ears.

"Five Heroes of Cangya…" Ye Tian silently noted these names.

It seems the local young Geniuses of Cangya County have considerable strength, especially that Jing Wutian, who is probably close to the level of Liuli Sect's True Disciples.

This made him look forward even more to exploring the upcoming Ancient Sword Mansion Ruins.

At this moment, another voice rang out, with a hint of showing off: "Hey, what you all are talking about is just on the surface. I heard that the Ancient Sword Mansion Ruins area hasn't been peaceful lately. A few days ago at night, someone saw seven-colored light soaring into the sky from the direction of Jianming Peak, lasting for a full incense stick's time! Maybe some strange treasure is about to be born!"

"Seven-colored light? Really? It seems the Restriction on the outskirts of the ruins has loosened quite a bit…"

"Sigh, it's a pity. The core area of the ruins has been jointly sealed off by the Governor's Mansion and several major Sects, saying that it can only be opened when the 'sword manor key order' are all gathered, and idlers cannot enter at all."

"sword manor key order?"

Ye Tian's heart stirred. This should be the key to entering the core area.

Just as he wanted to listen more, an unharmonious voice came from the side.

"Hey! You kid over there!"

Ye Tian turned his head and saw three young men in luxurious clothes sitting at the next table. The leader had a frivolous look, with a cultivation around the Ninth Stage of Condensing Essence, and the two beside him were at the seventh or eighth stage of Ningyuan.

The one who spoke was the leader. He was looking at Ye Tian askance, his gaze sweeping especially over the Mini Dragon Ape on Ye Tian's shoulder and the bag of jerky on the table.

"I'm talking to you! The rustic one!"

The young man in luxurious clothes pointed his chin at Ye Tian, "This monkey of yours looks good. I, your young master, have taken a fancy to it. Name your price!"

Hou Xiaojie was furious upon hearing this and was about to stand up, but was stopped by Ye Tian's gaze.

Ye Tian drank his tea unhurriedly, not even looking at the man, and said calmly, "Not for sale."

"Hey!"

The young man in luxurious clothes didn't expect a "poor wretch" at the Ningyuan Eighth Stage to dare to speak to him like this. He immediately felt he had lost Face in front of his companions and raised his voice, "Kid, do you know who I am? Have you heard of 'Duobao Pavilion'? I am the young master of Duobao Pavilion, Qian Duobao! Be sensible, give this little beast to me, and you won't lack benefits! Otherwise…"

Before he could finish speaking, the two lackeys beside him rubbed their hands in coordination.

The teahouse suddenly quieted down a lot. Many people looked over, showing expressions of watching a good show.

"It's Young Master Qian from Duobao Pavilion…"

"This Qian Duobao is a famous playboy, relying on his family's wealth to often bully outsiders."

"That kid with the monkey is going to be unlucky. Ningyuan Eighth Stage against Ninth, and he has a burden with him; he's likely to suffer."

Ye Tian still didn't look up and poured himself another cup of tea, his tone flat: "I said it, not for sale. Besides, it is my partner, not a beast."

Qian Duobao was completely enraged by Ye Tian's indifferent attitude and stood up, slamming the table: "You refuse a toast only to drink a forfeit! Ah Da, Ah Er, teach him a lesson for me and grab that monkey!"

"Yes, Young Master!"

The two lackeys responded and walked towards Ye Tian with evil grins.

Hou Xiaojie nervously gripped his sword hilt, while the Mini Dragon Ape stopped chewing the jerky, raised its head, and looked at the two approaching people curiously with its big eyes, seemingly not understanding what was happening.

Just as the two lackeys reached out to grab the Mini Dragon Ape,

"Ooh!"

The Mini Dragon Ape seemed to think these two were going to steal its jerky, so it let out an unhappy cry and casually waved its small paw forward!

"Puff puff!" Two pale flames flashed by!

"Ah! My eyebrows!"

"Ouch! My hair!"

The two lackeys screamed simultaneously, covering their Faces and retreating several steps!

One of them had half of his eyebrows burned off, and the other had a tuft of hair on his forehead turned into charcoal, emitting blue smoke, looking extremely disheveled!

A burst of irrepressible laughter erupted in the teahouse!

Qian Duobao was also stunned. He hadn't seen what happened at all; how did his two subordinates suffer?

Ye Tian finally put down his teacup and slowly raised his head, looking at Qian Duobao with a calm gaze: "Keep your dogs in check. If you cause trouble again, it won't just be eyebrows that get burned."

His voice was not loud, but it carried an invisible pressure. Especially those eyes, which were cold enough to make one's hair stand on end.

Qian Duobao couldn't help but shiver under Ye Tian's gaze, but in front of everyone, he couldn't back down: "You… you dare to make a move? Aren't you afraid my father will find someone…"

"Get lost." Ye Tian only replied with one word.

At the same time, he channeled his True Essence, releasing a trace of aura that instantly pressed down on Qian Duobao!

Qian Duobao felt a chill rush from the soles of his feet straight to his crown, as if he were being stared at by some terrifying Vicious Beast, scaring him into shivering all over. The rest of his words were stuck in his throat, and his Face turned pale instantly!

"You… you wait!" Qian Duobao dropped a harsh threat, not caring about the two lackeys still wailing, and ran out of the teahouse with his tail between his legs, looking dejected.

The two lackeys also hurriedly followed.

The teahouse was quiet for a moment, then erupted into even louder laughter.

"Hahaha, Qian Duobao kicked an iron plate this time!"

"What is that kid's background? He doesn't look simple, and that monkey is quite wicked!"

"Probably a Disciple from some Sect out for training; he might even have hidden his cultivation."

The crisis resolved, Hou Xiaojie breathed a sigh of relief and looked at Ye Tian with admiration: "Senior Brother, you are truly amazing! You scared him away with just one word!"

Ye Tian smiled and didn't speak.

Dealing with such a playboy who bullies others by relying on his power, using words is useless; only using strength to intimidate is most effective.

He didn't want to cause too much trouble before gathering information.

Then Ye Tian summoned the teahouse waiter, tossed him a few Low-Grade Spirit Stones, and asked: "Young man, let me ask you something. I heard the Ancient Sword Mansion Ruins outside the city have been quite lively recently. I wonder what this 'sword manor key order' is about? If an ordinary person wants to go in and take a look, is there any way?"

The waiter took the Spirit Stones, beamed with joy, and lowered his voice: "Guest, you asked the right person! This sword manor key order is said to be the key to opening the core area of the ruins. There are five in total, scattered in various places. Currently known, the Governor's Mansion has one, and our local 'Jing Family' seems to have one. As for the other three, it's unknown who has them."

He looked around and lowered his voice even more: "As for the way… Guest, it's not that I'm meddlesome, but that core area is really not something an ordinary person can enter. It is guarded extremely strictly. Without the key order, or without the order from several major Sects and the Governor's Mansion, you can't get close at all. A few days ago, some stubborn Loose Cultivators wanted to force their way in, but they were beaten into serious injuries and thrown out… If you are interested, Guest, you can wander around the outer area. I heard that occasionally you can pick up some scattered items left behind by Senior Cultivators there."

"Many thanks." Ye Tian nodded, knowing what to do.

The core area couldn't be entered, but the outskirts should also be worth exploring.

The key order… it seems he has to find a way to get one, or find an opportunity to sneak in.

Settling the bill, Ye Tian left Baiwei Zhai with the unsatisfied Hou Xiaojie and the Mini Dragon Ape, which had finished its jerky and started to yawn.

Walking on the road back to the inn, with the lights just coming on, the night view of Cangya County had a unique charm.

But Ye Tian's thoughts had already flown to the Ancient Sword Mansion Ruins outside the city.

Ye Tian pondered silently, "Tomorrow, I'll first go to the outskirts of the ruins to check the situation. The waters of this Cangya County seem to be quite deep."