Mortal: Traveling Between Two Realms with Mei Ning to Pick Up Trash

Over the next few days, Zhou Yu's days became extremely regular.

Every morning, I would go to that shop to pick up the goods, deliver them to various corners of the city, get a receipt, collect spirit stones, go back to have lunch with Mei Ning and Mei Feng at noon, and in the afternoon I would either cultivate or go out for a stroll.

As he became more familiar with the delivery routes, the streets and alleys of Tianxing City became clearer and clearer in Zhou Yu's mind.

Wen Siyue did not reappear, and the contact jade talisman remained unresponsive. Zhou Yu even suspected that the Miaoyin Sect had forgotten about him, but he didn't pay much attention. Perhaps they had just made a casual arrangement, and maybe they would need him someday.

On the fifth day, the middle-aged man gave Zhou Yu a red ring.

"A ring of permanence," he said, "remember to pledge your love with your blood."

Zhou Yu took it and dripped a drop of blood onto it.

"Miss Wen asked me to tell you," the middle-aged man unusually spoke a few more words, "that she might need to see you in a while."

Zhou Yu nodded and went out the door.

……

After delivering the items and returning to the inn, it was nearly noon.

Mei Ning and Mei Feng had already gotten ready and were waiting for him in the lobby. Mei Feng was wearing a new robe today.

"The monster material market!" he exclaimed excitedly upon seeing Zhou Yu. "We're definitely going to find some good stuff today!"

The three of them left the inn.

The monster material market is located south of Tianxing City, about half an hour's walk from where they lived. The further south they went, the narrower the streets became, and the air began to fill with a certain smell—the flesh, bones, and blood of monsters mixed together, which didn't smell very good.

The market is bigger than Zhou Yu imagined.

It wasn't a fixed area; it was an open-air area densely packed with stalls.

Most of the stall owners are independent cultivators, some at the Qi Refining stage and others at the Foundation Establishment stage.

"Let's split up and explore?" Mei Feng rubbed his hands together. "Shall we meet back here in an hour?"

Mei Ning nodded, and the three of them dispersed.

Zhou Yu walked slowly along the stall, his eyes scanning over each piece of material. He didn't know much about monster materials and didn't recognize many of them, so he could only rely on the stall owner's introduction and his intuition to make a judgment.

However, after browsing around, Zhou Yu still didn't find anything he needed, so he didn't look at it that carefully.

As Zhou Yu walked, he thought to himself that there seemed to be many monster remains in the world opposite the calligraphy brush, but he wondered what level they were.

Zhou Yu stopped in his tracks very quickly.

Two people appeared ahead, the one in the lead wearing a dark blue brocade robe.

Giant Shark Sect, Elder Wan.

Zhou Yu narrowed his eyes and quietly moved a few steps away.

But the other party seemed to be heading in their direction.

"Hey, isn't this the kid from Lingbao shop the other day?"

The person next to Elder Wan said with a smile.

Zhou Yu's heart sank for a moment, but then he smiled, cupped his hands, and said, "Greetings, Elder Wan."

Elder Wan's gaze fell on Zhou Yu, and a smile appeared on his lips.

"Fifth level of Qi Refining," he said slowly. "Haven't seen you for a few days, but you haven't made much progress."

Zhou Yu maintained his cupped-hands posture, his smile unchanged, "Elder Wan has a good memory, he still remembers this junior."

The man next to Elder Wan spoke up again, his tone sarcastic, "That day at the Spirit Treasure Shop, you were quite arrogant, relying on the backing of the Myriad Sounds Sect. How come you're all alone today?"

Zhou Yu's eyes flickered slightly, but he remained calm and said, "What happened that day was because I blocked Elder Wan's path. I apologize for any offense I may have caused."

Elder Wan snorted but didn't say anything.

The stall owners and customers around also noticed the commotion and looked over. It wasn't unusual for a Foundation Establishment elder to make things difficult for a Qi Refining junior, but it wasn't honorable either. Several stall owners frowned.

Elder Wan didn't maintain his high and mighty demeanor as he looked down at Zhou Yu. "Kid, seeing how cooperative you are, I won't make things difficult for you."

He glanced at Zhou Yu again. "Kid, you're not from the Myriad Sounds Sect, are you? A rogue cultivator, interested in doing me a favor?"

Zhou Yu's expression shifted slightly. "This junior's abilities are limited, and I'm afraid I'll delay your affairs, senior."

"Um?!"

Zhou Yu changed the subject, "But it's only within my ability. Senior, please feel free to ask, and I will do my best."

Elder Wan chuckled.

"Alright, that's good," Elder Wan then approached Zhou Yu and whispered, "Kid, I won't beat around the bush with you. The Giant Shark Sect is short-handed, especially someone as clever as you. You'll get plenty of spirit stones for doing things for us."

Elder Wan patted Zhou Yu on the shoulder.

Then he took out a black token and threw it to Zhou Yu, "Here you go, this is my Giant Shark Sect's credentials. Take it to the Giant Shark Sect's stronghold in the south of the city, and someone will tell you what to do."

Zhou Yu caught the token.

"Thank you, Elder Wan."

Then Elder Wan left with his men.

Zhou Yu looked at the other person's back. Elder Wan, Giant Shark Sect.

However, after glancing at the token of the Myriad Sounds Sect, he wondered if he was now a double agent.

He needed to think carefully about going to the outpost in the south of the city. He didn't believe that someone would recruit him out of nowhere; there was probably something wrong with it.

Elder Wan is a member of the Giant Shark Sect and is also at the Foundation Establishment stage; it's not good to involve Mei Ning and the others.

We'll make further plans once this matter is settled.

……

Return to the meeting point.

Mei Ning and Mei Feng had arrived. Mei Feng was holding several pieces of ore of different colors, looking like he had found a treasure. Mei Ning stood to the side, her hands empty.

"Finished shopping?" Mei Feng asked Zhou Yu as he approached, putting the ore into his storage bag. "How was it? Did you find anything good?"

"I bought a few bottles of monster blood," Zhou Yu said.

"That's it?" Mei Feng frowned. "You've been shopping for almost half an hour and only bought a few bottles of blood?"

Zhou Yu smiled but didn't say anything more.

The three walked out of the market, and Mei Feng was still rambling on about the few pieces of ore he had found, saying that he would have them appraised when he got back, because they might be rare items.

"Look at this," he said, holding up a dark red ore in front of Zhou Yu. "It's shimmering with spiritual energy. I suspect it's Crimson Flame Iron. If it is, it'll be worth a fortune."

Zhou Yu glanced at it; the ore had a rough surface and a dark color, but he didn't know much about ores and couldn't tell if it was real or fake, so he just gave a casual reply.

"Hmm, looks good."

Mei Feng put the piece away with satisfaction and began talking about the next one.

Mei Ning walked quietly beside Zhou Yu, seemingly lost in thought. She glanced at Zhou Yu from the side.

Zhou Yu noticed her gaze and smiled.

"What's wrong?"

Mei Ning shook her head and smiled slightly.

"It's nothing."

……

Back at the inn.

The three went upstairs. Mei Feng went into the room, placed the ore on the table, squatted down beside it, and muttered something under his breath.

"This one is definitely Crimson Iron... This one looks like Lapis Lazuli, but the color is a bit off..."

After chatting for a few minutes, the group returned to their respective rooms.

As usual, Mei Feng's snoring started in the evening.

Zhou Yu lay in bed, thinking about what had happened that day.

I'll go check out the south side of the city after I finish delivering the goods tomorrow. I wonder what Giant Shark Gate is planning to do?

The next day.

Zhou Yu got up early.

We left the inn.

Tianxing City was the same as always in the early morning. Zhou Yu followed the route and arrived at the shop.

The middle-aged man continued to look at the jade slip.

Zhou Yu didn't have much interaction with the other party, and over the past few days, they had each gained a certain level of understanding of each other.

Zhou Yu went behind the counter to get the package and then left the store.

The delivery process was the same as usual: knocking on the door, exchanging the code, getting the receipt, running around to three different places, and it was almost noon again.

Zhou Yu did not return to the shop, but stood by the roadside for a while before taking out a black token from his storage bag.

South of the city, the Giant Shark Gate stronghold.

He hesitated for a few moments, then headed south of the city.

The layout of Tianxing City's south and north is quite different. The north side is mostly shops and inns, while the south side is somewhat chaotic, with warehouses, workshops, and residences crammed together.

After asking around and making several turns, Zhou Yu finally found an inconspicuous stone building.

The building was not tall, only two stories high. A black chess piece hung at the entrance, and a gray-clad man with late-stage Qi Refining cultivation stood there.

Zhou Yu stepped forward.

The man in gray glanced at him, then at his cultivation level, a hint of disdain in his eyes.

"What do you do?"

Zhou Yu took out a black token and handed it over.

The man in gray took the token, glanced at it, and showed no expression.

He returned the token to Zhou Yu and stepped aside to make way for him.

"Go in, second floor, third room on the left."

Zhou Yu put away the token, pushed open the door, and went inside.

The stone building looked more spacious inside than outside. On the first floor was a large hall where several people were sitting, drinking tea and chatting. They glanced back at Zhou Yu, then turned back to their respective places.

Zhou Yu went up to the second floor.

The corridor was a bit dimly lit, and although the doors on both sides were closed, the soundproofing didn't seem very good; you could hear people talking inside. When I reached my destination, I knocked on the door.

"Come in."

It was a woman's voice.

Zhou Yu pushed the door open and went in.

The room was small, with a table and two chairs. Behind the table sat a woman in her thirties, with an ordinary appearance, wearing a black dress, and at the late stage of Qi Refining.

The woman looked up at Zhou Yu, her gaze lingering on him for a moment.

"Did Elder Wan send you?"

"Yes." Zhou Yu cupped his hands in greeting.

The woman nodded, took a jade slip from the table, and placed it on the table.

"Elder Wan told me about you, and specifically instructed you to take on this job," the woman said calmly.

Then she pushed the jade slip to Zhou Yu.

Zhou Yu picked up the jade slip and took a look.

"This is a location marker," the woman said. "In four days, the Great Shark Gate will send people to intercept a shipment. You'll go with them."

Zhou Yu frowned slightly. "Intercept? The delivery person?"

The woman gave a cold laugh but didn't say anything.

"Understood." Zhou Yu nodded.

Interception, murder, and robbery are commonplace in the cultivation world.

"However, I have a question."

"explain."

"My cultivation level is low, only at the fifth level of Qi Refining. I'm afraid going there would only delay the sect's progress."

The woman glanced at Zhou Yu, a slight smile playing on her lips.

"You don't need to worry about it, just go. Everything will be arranged inside."

Zhou Yu remained silent for a moment.

"OK."

Zhou Yu cupped his hands in a respectful gesture, then turned and left.

On the way back to the inn, Zhou Yu went over the events of the day.

The Giant Shark Sect sent him to make an estimate just to take advantage of his status as a rogue cultivator, so that even if someone investigated afterward, they wouldn't be able to trace it back to the Giant Shark Sect.

If I don't go, I'll offend the Giant Shark Sect. If I still want to stay in Tianxing City, I can't run away either. If I leave Tianxing City, I'm afraid obtaining resources will be extremely difficult. It's hard to find such a convenient place in the Inner Star Sea.

There is also the Mystic Sound Gate.

They said they would contact me in a while, but they didn't say how long "a while" would be. If I went to see Wen Siyue now, it would be like exposing the Giant Shark Sect. If I offended the Giant Shark Sect, given the current situation of the Miaoyin Sect, I probably wouldn't be able to protect myself.

Mei Ning is going back tomorrow, so I'd better not tell her and the others about these things.

In that case, I won't go back with them. I'll deal with these matters first and then make further plans.

Ultimately, it comes down to our inferior strength. If we acquire enough resources in Tianxing City, we will go into seclusion.

Zhou Yu took a deep breath and quickened his pace.