416: Let’s just say whether we helped or not?

"Then it would be disrespectful not to accept."

Golden Blade Envoys Wu Mang chuckled as he accepted the wine pot, and smoothly brushed Tang Huanhuan's small hand.

Although her skin was slightly rough, that special temperament was something other women didn't possess, and it was extremely attractive.

Tang Huanhuan's smile remained unchanged, allowing him to take liberties. Even if Wu Mang were to ask her to accompany him now, Tang Huanhuan felt she could consider it.

If she could rely on such a powerful figure, within this Fu City, she wouldn't exactly be able to walk sideways, but she certainly wouldn't be someone ordinary people could provoke.

Wu Mang represented not just himself, but also the Junior Lord of Fate of Tai Chang Palace behind him.

Unfortunately, Tai Chang Palace never formed factions, and its Junior Lord of Fate, Li Wuxing, was famously self-disciplined, which meant his subordinates didn't dare to go too far.

However, because Wu Mang loved wine, and by chance learned there was a wine shop here, he gradually became acquainted with Tang Huanhuan, and intentionally or unintentionally offered her protection, which was why the wine shop could operate peacefully.

Otherwise, with Tang Huanhuan's mere Foundation Establishment cultivation and her beauty, how could she run a business peacefully?

There were quite a few large and small gangs in Fu City.

Tang Huanhuan often returned the favor. After pulling her hand back, she smiled and said, "This humble girl happened to acquire a hundred-year Spirit Medicine the other day. After a few more days, I'll brew a pot of good wine and send it to you."

"Oh? Good! Then this old man will eagerly await your fine wine."

Wu Mang's eyes lit up. He had only two passions in his life. The first, naturally, was fine wine.

A pot of wine from the Hua family, drinking alone without kin. With good wine flowing down the throat, even drinking alone is fragrant.

The second was beautiful women.

With a charming smile and beautiful, sparkling eyes. With a beauty in one's arms, every frown and smile is captivating.

And coincidentally, Tang Huanhuan was not only beautiful but also brewed excellent wine, making her a match made in heaven for him.

But unfortunately, he was married and had a fierce wife. He dared not marry again. Even though he was a dignified Golden Blade Envoys, he was extremely afraid of his wife.

Moreover, his children were grown and completely sided with their mother. Wu Mang had indeed considered divorcing his wife, but after much deliberation, he felt that breaking up his family for a woman was truly not worth it, so he let it go.

"Alas, I'm off~"

Wu Mang waved his hand and left.

Tang Huanhuan's smile gradually faded, and she returned to the wine vat to rest.

If Wu Mang were willing to marry her, she would actually be willing, even if it meant having another son, but unfortunately...

The one she liked didn't like her, and the one who liked her, she didn't like.

Tang Huanhuan closed her eyes to rest, her Cultivation Technique circulating within her body, refining Spiritual Qi bit by bit.

She was now at the Mid Stage of Foundation Establishment, a remarkably fast pace. From the time she obtained the Cultivation Technique until now, it had only been four or five years, and Tang Huanhuan had broken through from Refining Essence all the way through Inner Energy, Heavenly Human, and directly to the Mid Stage of Foundation Establishment.

Over the years, she had resorted to trickery, deception, murder, and plunder, committing all sorts of evil deeds, to painstakingly cultivate to this point. Recalling the hardships along the way and comparing them to her current cultivation, she felt it was all worth it.

But as her cultivation grew higher, the difficulty of Breakthrough also increased. She didn't know when she would be able to Break through to the Late Stage of Foundation Establishment—perhaps a year, perhaps ten years, or perhaps never in this lifetime...

"I wonder if my Fourth Brother has reached Foundation Establishment yet..."

...

At the same time, Xu Sanyan was carving Formation patterns beneath the city wall when suddenly, the secret realm fruit behind him glowed faintly, and a person tumbled out from within.

"Ouch!"

Lin Fan clutched his waist, wailing, his face pale.

"How did you end up like this?"

Xu Sanyan looked at him, seeing him as if he had kidney deficiency, and felt a bit displeased. This kid's addiction was even greater than his; he shouldn't die on a woman's belly.

Lin Fan miserably pulled Xu Sanyan's sleeve, on the verge of tears, saying, "Saint... Big Brother, I've finally come out. You don't know, I haven't worn clothes these past few days. That crazy woman almost drained me dry!"

Xu Sanyan frowned, but his focus wasn't there. "You mean you've been in the cave all these days?"

"Yes."

"Then you didn't have a chance to get Soul Crystal, did you?"

"That's right." Lin Fan hadn't yet realized the seriousness of the situation.

"Then why did you come out? Go back!"

Xu Sanyan, without explanation, shoved him back into the Secret Realm. Before he left, he instructed, "Remember, your mission is Soul Crystal. Don't just indulge in pleasure."

Lin Fan's heart was ashen, and hearing this made tears well up in his eyes. "Big Brother, I wasn't indulging in pleasure, I was forced!"

Xu Sanyan didn't care what he said; not bringing back Soul Crystal was simply unacceptable.

After sending him away, he turned back to continue carving Formation patterns. One of the four directions of the city wall was mostly completed, and it would be roughly done in another ten days.

As he became more proficient, his speed also gradually increased. Previously, he estimated it would take about a hundred days to complete the Formation patterns, but now it seemed it wouldn't take that long; fifty or sixty days should be enough.

Meanwhile, Magistrate Yu Huaisheng had also received a new mission: to collect essence blood.

He was more cautious than Chang Yulian in his work, only seeking out dying elders and neglected vagrants and beggars. Such people, even if they disappeared, were rarely inquired about.

Xu Sanyan lowered his finger and looked up at the faintly visible patterns on the city wall. Countless Formation patterns intertwined, forming a profound image.

As time passed, the Formation patterns gradually seeped into the city wall. The first few Formation patterns he carved were almost invisible, and in a few more days, the changes would completely disappear.

He hadn't lied to Li Wuxing; this Formation indeed had the effect of regulating Feng Shui. The Soul-Gathering Life-Preserving Grand Formation encompassed myriad things, and activating it in different ways would produce different effects.

This effect was merely a smokescreen. Once the entire Formation was set up, merely reversing the Grand Array would reveal its true power.

Xu Sanyan increasingly looked forward to that day.

At this moment, an attendant ran over to deliver a message, "Young Master Liang, County Magistrate has requested your presence."

Xu Sanyan nodded with a benevolent smile, "Alright, you go ahead first. I'll be there shortly."

To maintain his persona, Xu Sanyan often wore a smile. He had crafted himself into an enthusiastic, upright, straightforward, and helpful young hero, a type of person most likely to inspire goodwill.

Therefore, he had to constantly pay attention to his expressions and words.

Actually, he didn't need to be too deliberate. It was well-known that his personality was not much different from his persona; he was particularly eager to help others.

Just look at how many people he had helped along the way.

Just in Qi Country, he helped Tang Huanhuan obtain a Cultivation Technique. After his adoptive father Wu Jue died, he remained loyal, helping to care for his adoptive mother, safeguarding the Wu family's assets, and even curing his son's illness along the way.

Later, he married Yang Qiyuan and helped Prince Rui seize the throne. When Prince Rui unfortunately died, he devoted himself to caring for his mother-in-law and governing the country, working tirelessly and suffering immensely. Those days truly saw him growing thinner by the day.

Later, when he came to Central Continent, he was even more benevolent, and he did good deeds regardless of race. Even for Xun An Cai of the Yao Race, he helped her obtain the position of Clan Chief, subsequently eliminating the Bear Clan and the Snake Clan.

He had done too many good deeds to enumerate them all, some of which he could barely recall.

As the saying goes, 'Man proposes, God disposes.' He had managed to achieve things to this extent; who could say he was not benevolent and righteous?

Of course, don't ask how he helped; just say whether he helped or not, right?