199: Chapter 199 An Unexpected Hideout

"An aura? How long ago?"

"Exactly three months ago, which matches the time he left the Immortal City."

"I see..."

Huang Jinglong nodded and was about to say something.

Several more groups of people entered from outside.

Shopkeeper Qian of the Talisman Tower reported that the Spirit Talisman Workshop had reopened in the last few days after a brief period of closure and reorganization.

Upon questioning the shop assistants and talisman masters, none had seen the original owner of the Spirit Talisman Workshop again. The communication talismans left in their hands had also lost their effectiveness due to the excessive distance.

On the other side.

The Wilderness Patrol Department outside the Immortal City also stated that after repeated investigations, there were no other signs of Xu Changsheng except for that Phoenix Fall Cliff.

"Immortal Master, I, Qian, am willing to guarantee with my entire fortune that Xu Changsheng has definitely left the Immortal City."

"Immortal Master, we of the Guard Department have searched every inch of the hundred miles outside Yellow Ox Immortal City and confirmed that Xu Changsheng is long gone from the city. He might not even be in the State of Chu anymore!"

"Immortal Master, our Task Hall received the full mission bounty returned by Xu Changsheng today. It was sent from Kuaiji City in the State of Yue's cultivation world. Xu Changsheng has likely gone to the State of Yue."

"Immortal Master, the Auction House hasn't seen any bidders suspected to be Xu Changsheng either. He must have truly left the Immortal City. If he were still in the city, unless he no longer wanted to Cultivate,"

"Otherwise, he would surely come in person or send someone to bid on Tier 2 Medicinal Pills or Spiritual Artifacts. However, I haven't noticed anything unusual these past few months."

All their voices converged, and to Huang Jinglong, it sounded like they were speaking in unison.

It was as if they had become old friends with Xu Changsheng and knew his every move and location perfectly.

Even though Huang Jinglong was powerful and held the high position of City Lord, nominally the superior of these Juniors,

He knew very well in his heart.

If it weren't for sufficient profit, these people would never tie themselves to the giant ship that was Yellow Ox Immortal City; they could jump ship at any moment.

Therefore, he did not directly refute them.

Even though he knew.

Shopkeeper Qian wanted to swallow up the Spirit Talisman Workshop's assets as quickly as possible.

The Task Hall wanted to clear all the missions left by Xu Changsheng and declare that he had left Yellow Ox Immortal City so the hall could return to normal operations.

Otherwise, there would always be people looking for a free ride, loitering in the hall and waiting for the sucker missions posted by Xu Changsheng.

The Auction House wanted to auction off a bottle of Azure Wood Spiritual Liquid and a Wood-Protecting Talisman, two items used as bait to lure out Xu Changsheng.

Each time, their own people would win the bid and then quietly let the sale fail. Doing this not only wasted a lot of transaction fees but also damaged the Auction House's reputation.

As for the Guard Department and the Wilderness Patrol Department, it went without saying.

To root out Xu Changsheng, these two had been searching day and night. The guards within the departments were already exhausted, and complaints were heard everywhere.

Thinking of this,

Even though he still had some lingering doubts, Huang Jinglong had to let the matter of Xu Changsheng go.

If he kept making them search, he didn't know if the person would be found, but the Immortal City would likely be lost first.

"I understand."

Huang Jinglong nodded heavily.

"Starting from midnight tonight, all missions related to searching for Xu Changsheng will cease. You may also use your own methods to eliminate his influence."

"Good! The Immortal Master is mighty."

"Thank you, Immortal Master!"

Praise and thanks flowed incessantly.

Watching his subordinates cup their fists and withdraw one by one, Yellow Ox's doubts rose again.

"Where on earth could this Xu Changsheng be?"

He shook his head.

"Forget it."

Whether or not Xu Changsheng had truly left didn't actually affect him much. As long as the man didn't show his face in public, the Bone Fiend Sect would have no excuse.

He sighed softly.

He walked slowly forward. As his last foot stepped out of the hall, all the candles inside were extinguished.

...

However, what they didn't know was that Xu Changsheng's hiding place wasn't that bizarre.

It was even right under their noses.

At this moment,

behind the hall, in the courtyard complex Huang Jinglong had arranged for his Disciples,

a few residences with blue bricks and gray tiles were scattered about.

Inside the courtyard, water gurgled, and rockeries stood serenely.

A cold moon shone down, coating the roof ridges with a thin layer of frost.

A few strands of dim yellow candlelight peeked through the window lattices, flickering slightly in the night wind.

The shadows of a few slender bamboos were cast upon the wall, sparse and scattered like a light ink painting.

The old banyan tree in the center of the yard stood silently, the moonlight filtering through its leaves breaking into shards of silvery white scattered across the damp blue-brick ground.

Occasionally, the chirping of insects drifted from afar, faint and lingering.

Even among Huang Jinglong's Personal Disciples, not everyone could live in this Disciple courtyard.

After all, this place was situated directly atop a Tier 3 Spiritual Vein.

The abundance of Spiritual Qi was enough to satisfy a Foundation Establishment Cultivator's needs to advance to a False Core or even a Golden Core; using it for ordinary cultivation would be a waste of heavenly resources.

Even a long-standing senior Disciple like Fourth Disciple did not have the qualifications.

Only Jin Chuan, the head Disciple,

Huang Shaotian, his own son,

and...

Chu Linger, who was deeply favored by True Person Hong Zao.

These three had their own residences in the courtyard; the rest were empty and uninhabited.

Huang Jinglong was extremely concerned about the safety of these Disciples and had added two layers of protective Restrictions to their residences.

One was a Tier 3 Formation for fending off enemies, and the other was a Tier 3 Spirit-Tripping Rope for alerting them to powerful foes.

However,

although the Restrictions were added by him, he could not peer into every room or inspect every blade of grass here.

Furthermore, because Jin Chuan was a Golden Core Cultivator like himself, and Huang Shaotian and Chu Linger were under the protection of True Person Hong Zao,

they had each made slight personal modifications to the Formation's activation and the Spirit-Tripping Rope's incantations.

Of course, he didn't want to check; these three were his most core confidants and were within the City Lord's Mansion. If anything unusual happened, he would know immediately.

Chu Linger's residence was submerged in a quiet darkness, with the window paper emitting a faint, pale yellow candlelight.

Moonlight like water poured down from behind sparse clouds, plating the silhouettes of the blue tiles with a cold silver edge.

Two blurred figures appeared indistinctly behind the window frame.

After just a few breaths, they vanished without a trace, attracting no one's attention.

But if one were to step inside, Huang Jinglong would surely be shocked.

Before an antique tea table, a tall figure sat cross-legged on a prayer mat, hands resting on his legs, his face looking utterly ordinary.

Who else could it be but Xu Changsheng?

This place was only thirty feet away from the hall where Huang Jinglong had summoned everyone.

Huang Jinglong would never have imagined

that Xu Changsheng, whom he had searched for everywhere to no avail, was actually right next door!

Slowly raising his hand, he performed a Great Cycle circulation.

He whispered, "As expected of a Tier 3 Spiritual Vein. The Spiritual Qi is so abundant, it's inexhaustible."

At this time,

Chu Linger happened to walk down the wooden stairs. Hearing this, a look of joy appeared on her face.

"Since Master likes it here so much, why not just stay here forever?"