Becoming an immortal from a canal worker

In the afternoon, around 3 PM.

Shanyang City, Chunfeng Tower.

As a notorious den of iniquity in the east of the city, even in the afternoon, the building was filled with the strong smell of cheap cosmetics mixed with rich wine and meat.

Chen Ping carried the unconscious Yang Sen into the main hall.

Yang Sen's blood had already soaked half of Chen Ping's blue shirt, and the sticky, warm blood dripped down the hem of Chen Ping's clothes onto the gleaming floor.

The girls and their clients who were joking downstairs were so frightened by this scene that they immediately fell silent and moved aside.

Chen Ping didn't even lift his eyelids, and walked inside expressionlessly.

Upon seeing this, an old woman dressed in a floral silk jacket forced herself to come forward.

Suppressing the fear in her eyes, she flicked the handkerchief in her hand, forced a professional smile, and blocked Chen Ping's path: "Sir, our Chunfeng Pavilion is a gentle haven for listening to music and drinking wine. Bringing in such a 'red' item might spoil the festive atmosphere, wouldn't it?"

Chen Ping stopped and looked at her coldly: "I'm looking for Manager Li Yuan."

The old woman's eyes flickered, and she looked troubled: "Oh dear, Master Li is indeed resting upstairs today, but he booked a private room and instructed that no outside guests are allowed..."

"I'm also from the Tsing Yi Society," Chen Ping interrupted her. "I need to speak with the manager about something important."

Seeing that the old woman was still hesitating, Chen Ping freed his left hand, took out a piece of silver weighing about one tael from his pocket, and stuffed it directly into the old woman's hand.

The old woman's troubled expression vanished instantly after weighing the silver in her hand.

She deftly tucked the silver into her sleeve, glanced tremblingly at Yang Sen's mangled body on Chen Ping's back, and whispered, "Master, please come with me."

After climbing the creaking stairs to the second floor, the old woman led Chen Ping to the door of a private room at the end of the corridor.

She knocked cautiously on the door and called out, "Master Li, there's a man outside who claims to be from our Green Robe Society. He says he has something important to report to you."

The conversation that had been coming from inside the door stopped.

Just now, as Chen Ping was walking down the corridor, he vaguely overheard half a sentence: "The White Gang has been getting increasingly restless lately; they've even started extorting money from the river..."

"Come in." Li Yuan's voice came through the door.

The old woman breathed a sigh of relief and quickly bowed her head and withdrew.

Chen Ping pushed open the door and entered.

The private room was luxuriously decorated, with several exquisite dishes of wine and food on a round table, steaming hot.

Li Yuan sat in the main seat, dressed in a moon-white robe.

In the side view, Huang Ya, wearing a faded long gown, was slowly picking his teeth with a silver pick.

Upon seeing the bloodied figure on Chen Ping's back, Li Yuan paused slightly in his cup of wine.

Yellow Teeth's fingers, gripping the silver skewer, suddenly stiffened. Looking at the man's attire and the one-eyed figure on Chen Ping's back, his voice was filled with extreme shock, anger, and disbelief: "Yang Sen?! He's off duty today, how could he have been beaten up like this?!"

Chen Ping strode to the table and threw Yang Sen into an empty chair.

Yang Sen collapsed like a limp rag doll, his face deathly pale, his chest rising and falling weakly.

Chen Ping pulled out the blood-stained black wooden plaque from his pocket and casually tossed it onto the table with a soft thud: "I ran into him in the back alley of Chunfeng Tower. He was being chased by the White Gang."

Yellow Teeth glanced at the character "White" on the wooden sign, his eye twitched, and he gritted his teeth, asking, "Where are the people chasing us?"

"Killed him." Chen Ping's tone was flat. "Peak of the Flesh Refining Realm, I killed him with a single strike."

There was a moment of silence in the private room after these words were spoken.

The anger in Huangya's eyes suddenly froze.

He scanned Chen Ping up and down for two seconds.

In just six months, Red Flower Stick, who had just entered the Skin Refining Realm, killed a White Gang member at the peak of the Flesh Refining Realm in a street fight, despite being a much stronger opponent.

Has Chen Ping entered the Body Refinement Realm?

He took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the shock in his heart, and his mind started calculating rapidly again.

He turned to look at Li Yuan, his face grim: "Manager Li, the White Gang's reach has gone too far. They even dare to touch my trusted men. It seems our Green Robe Society's business in Shanyang City is going to be difficult."

Li Yuan put down his wine glass, his eyes turning cold: "The White Gang is increasingly disregarding us. Yellow Teeth, have someone take Yang Sen away first, get a doctor with a tight tongue to keep him alive, and when he wakes up, I want to know what the White Gang is really up to."

Yellow Teeth nodded, walked to the door, and waved.

Two trusted confidants who had been lying in wait immediately entered and swiftly dragged Yang Sen away.

The door closed again.

Li Yuan's gaze returned to Chen Ping, her fingers lightly tapping the table: "You did a good job. You've come today to keep your appointment?"

"Yes." Chen Ping nodded.

Li Yuan leaned forward slightly: "How's your practice of the 'Vast Ocean Saber Technique' coming along?"

"It has reached a minor level of success."

Huang Ya's emotions, which had just calmed down, were stirred up again. He looked at Chen Ping with obvious suspicion in his eyes.

Without saying a word, Chen Ping took two steps back and stood in the center of the private room.

He slowly raised his right hand and grasped the hilt of the broadsword behind his back.

"Yellow Teeth, step back." Li Yuan raised his hand.

Huang Ya silently moved his chair away and retreated to a position against the wall.

Chen Ping took a deep breath.

"Zheng—!"

The broadsword was not fully drawn; it was only pulled out an inch.

But in the instant the cold light flashed, an invisible aura suddenly filled the entire private room!

Huang Ya felt a tightness in his chest, his breathing became slightly labored, and a fine layer of coldness spread across his skin.

A look of horror flashed in his eyes; this was indeed the force of a sword.

"good!"

A glint flashed in Li Yuan's eyes, and he gave a thumbs-up.

Immediately afterwards, Li Yuan didn't even get up, but simply slammed the wine cup in front of him heavily onto the table.

"Buzz—!"

A terrifying aura, several times more violent than Chen Ping's, suddenly erupted from beneath Li Yuan's thin robe!

The sword aura that Chen Ping had just gathered couldn't withstand even a moment in the face of this power, and it instantly dissipated.

Chen Ping felt a slight tightness in his chest for a moment, and then instinctively pressed his broadsword back into its sheath.

With a soft "click," the oppressive atmosphere in the private room instantly dissipated.

Chen Ping loosened the hilt of his sword, his expression returning to calm.

Li Yuan clasped his hands on the table: "Half a year, you've reached the Lesser Completion stage. Chen Ping, you are indeed a genius on the path of martial arts."

Chen Ping remained unmoved: "I practiced day and night, and it was just a flash of inspiration, nothing more than luck."

Li Yuan smiled faintly, reached into his robe, pulled out five slightly worn parchment sheets, and pushed them to the edge of the table.

Chen Ping stepped forward.

Each parchment was stamped with a large, deep red seal, with the words "Lichuan Province Travel Permit" written on the front and the name written in tiny characters below.

Li Yuan said calmly, "These five travel permits are what we agreed on in our bet. The Lichuan Province governs five prefectures, including Huai'an, Yangzhou, and Jinnan. With these travel permits, you can travel freely within the province. They will come in handy if you travel far in the future."

Chen Ping carefully folded the travel permit and tucked it into his pocket, saying, "Thank you."

Li Yuan looked at Chen Ping and said indifferently, "Li Wenxiu and the child next to you are in Xifang City."

Upon hearing this, Chen Ping's pupils contracted slightly, and his heart skipped a beat.

If he loses the bet today, not only him, but also Li Wenxiu and Gouwa will probably be quietly eliminated by the Qingyi Society today.

"The bet is over, you don't need to worry about anything anymore." Li Yuan picked up his wine glass, took a small sip, and said, "Within the Green Robe Society, just mention my name, and no one will dare to touch you or the people around you."

"clear."

Li Yuan put down his wine glass and glanced at Huang Ya beside him: "Also, it seems Ghost Hand Zhang didn't provide enough resources as promised?"

Huang Ya immediately chimed in, a cold smile appearing on his face: "Tsk... There's a shortfall of a full five hundred taels of resources. Don't worry, Manager Li, I'll make sure to get it back for Chen Ping with interest in the next few days."

"Go ahead." Li Yuan waved his hand.

Chen Ping bowed and took his leave, then turned and walked out of the private room.

After descending from Chunfeng Tower, the sun was already setting in the west.

The afterglow of the setting sun shone on the muddy and dirty bluestone road, and the shops along the street were gradually closing up shop.

Chen Ping touched the five travel permits in his pocket and then pressed the hilt of the knife at his waist.

He determined the direction and strode towards Xifang Market.