I run a casino in the immortal realm.

There are two brokerage shops in the southern part of Sujiafang, one at the entrance of the alley and the other at the end.

The storefront at the alley entrance is large, with a sign that reads "Fu Lai Ju," and there are seven or eight people queuing up in front of it.

The one at the end of the alley was much smaller, with only half a wooden door and a faded wooden sign that read "Tongda Brokerage". There was no one at the door.

Zheng Yifei chose Tongda Brokerage.

The logic is simple: a dental clinic with slow business needs customers more, so prices are easier to negotiate and service is more attentive.

He knew this all too well from his past life when looking for a house: the less popular the agency, the more effort they put in; popular agencies have many listings, but they don't take you seriously at all.

Pushing open half of the wooden door, one finds a shop less than two zhang wide inside, with a row of wooden cabinets against the wall, piled high with bamboo slips and paper books of varying heights.

Behind the counter sat an old man in his fifties, thin and with a goatee, wearing a faded blue cloth robe, who was writing something down in a notebook with a brush.

Qi Refining Level 2.

An old man at the second level of Qi Refining runs a dental clinic. In this place, he has completely given up his talent for cultivation and makes a living by relying on his skills and connections.

"Boss, I'm looking to rent a place."

The old man raised his head, his cloudy eyes scanning Zheng Yifei from head to toe. He was dressed in coarse cloth and short turbans, not very old, and only at the fourth level of Qi Refining. He was just an ordinary rogue cultivator, a common sight in Sujiafang City.

"What price range?"

"The monthly rent should not exceed twenty spirit stones, and it would be best to have a private courtyard, not a shared courtyard with sleeping quarters."

The old man put down his brush, pulled out a thick booklet from under the counter, and flipped through a few pages.

"The agency fee is ten spirit stones, and I'll show you three places. The fee is non-refundable if the deal doesn't go through."

The commission of ten spirit stones was not low, but that was the rule in this business. Zheng Yifei did not haggle and took out the spirit stones and slapped them on the counter.

The old man tucked the spirit stones into his sleeve with a movement far more agile than someone at the second level of Qi Refining. He then took out three slips of paper from the booklet and spread them out on the counter.

"The first place is in Ping'an Lane in the East District. It has two rooms and a stove, no yard, and the monthly rent is five spirit stones. The surrounding environment is so-so, but it's next to a blacksmith shop, so it's noisy during the day."

"The second place is on Liuhe Street in the South District. It has three rooms with a small courtyard. The monthly rent is twelve spirit stones. The location is good. It's just around the corner from the medicine street, so it's convenient for shopping. The only problem is that the house is a bit old. The roof was just repaired last year."

"The third place."

The old man tapped the third slip of paper, changing the wording slightly: "Wutong Lane, West District, two main rooms and one side room, with a separate courtyard and a spirit spring well in the courtyard. The monthly rent is ten spirit stones, one month's deposit and three months' rent in advance."

Zheng Yifei's gaze fell on the three characters "Lingquan Well".

"The Spirit Spring Well?"

"You should know that Sujiafang Market is built on a first-grade high-level spiritual vein."

The branches extending from the spiritual vein vary in depth. In the shallower areas, digging a well will yield spiritual spring water. Although the concentration of spiritual energy cannot compare to a proper spirit-gathering array, meditating and cultivating in the courtyard is one or two times faster than outside.

The old man tapped the note with his pen: "The location of Wutong Lane isn't great. It's in the western part of the district and far from the city center, so it's only ten spirit stones. If you were to move to the central district, you couldn't get the same layout for less than thirty spirit stones."

This price could rent half a street in Heishanfang Market, but it's considered mid-to-low range in Sujiafang Market.

Zheng Yifei didn't hesitate: "Look at the third place."

The old man put away the other two slips of paper and led him out the door.

After walking for about 15 minutes, Wutong Lane is located on the edge of the western district. The lane is not long, and several sycamore trees with a trunk as thick as half a person's embrace are planted on both sides, and the leaves cover most of the lane.

Seven or eight families lived in the alley, their doors tightly shut, and occasionally the buzzing sound of spiritual energy circulating during meditation could be heard.

Quiet. Remote.

There's only one alleyway in and out, which is good because it's quiet, but bad because it's not easy to get around.

Zheng Yifei stood at the alley entrance and observed silently for a moment. At the end of the alley stood a crooked sycamore tree, its canopy extending beyond the courtyard wall; it could provide leverage if one were to climb over the wall.

The rooftops on the left and right sides of the alley are less than 10 feet apart in height; a Qi Refining Level 4 practitioner could easily climb them.

We have enough escape routes.

The old man led him to a wooden door with peeling paint in the middle of the alley, took out his key, and unlocked it.

The courtyard was small, square, about seventy or eighty square meters, with stone slabs paving the ground and a few clumps of wild grass growing in the corner.

There are two brick and tile houses directly opposite, and a side room on the left. The roof is still relatively intact, and several first-order insect-proof array patterns can be vaguely seen on the walls.

On the right side of the courtyard, there is a stone well.

Zheng Yifei walked to the well, leaned over the edge and looked inside. The well water was clear, about two zhang deep, and a very thin layer of spiritual mist floated on the surface.

He reached into the well, and a warm, moist spiritual energy seeped into his meridians through his palm. Although it was faint, it was indeed spiritual spring water.

Drinking this spiritual spring water regularly can nourish the meridians.

In Black Mountain Market, no one had ever even heard of this thing. The first-grade low-level spiritual veins there could barely feed the spiritual rice, let alone have the capacity to cultivate a spiritual spring.

"How is it?"

The old man leaned against the door frame and asked.

"One month's deposit and three months' rent in advance, forty spirit stones, rent it."

"You're so straightforward."

Zheng Yifei took out forty spirit stones from his inner bag, counted them twice, and handed them to the old man.

After examining the spirit stone, the old man took out a thin, paper-like contract from his sleeve, which already bore the seal of the brokerage firm.

"Write your name here and put your fingerprint on it. The minimum lease term is three months. Give me ten days' notice before you terminate the lease. You can use the Spirit Spring Well, but you are not allowed to sell the Spirit Spring Water. This is a rule of the Su family."

Zheng Yifei wrote the two characters "Zheng Fei" and pressed his fingerprint. The old man left a key, took the spirit stone and the contract, and left.

Once the door closed, he was left all alone in the courtyard.

Zheng Yifei bolted the courtyard gate, walked around the yard, and checked the airtightness of all the windows and walls. A brick in the back window of the side room was loose; he pushed it a few times, noted it down, and went back to find something to plug it.

In the inner room of the main house, against the east wall, there is an empty niche, just the right size to fit a hidden compartment—used to store spirit stones and masks.

I've sorted out where I'll be staying.

Then we need to add some daily necessities, such as bedding, pots and pans, rice, flour and cooking oil.

Having loved food in his past life, and especially enjoying cooking himself, Zheng Yifei plans to cook for himself since he intends to live here long-term.

I bought all my daily necessities on the nearest street.

After lunch, Zheng Yifei left Wutong Lane and walked along the main street toward the central district.

The Wanbaolou in Sujiafang Market is more than five times larger than the one in Heishan Market.

The three-story stone building, with two stone lions at the entrance, and the three large characters "Wanbaolou" on the signboard gleaming with spiritual light, looks as grand as a small sect.

The first floor sells daily necessities—talismans, spiritual herbs, low-grade pills, and refining materials.

Zheng Yifei had a clear goal and went straight to the counter upon entering.

"Shopkeeper, how much is the Spirit Gathering Array Plate?"

The middle-aged man behind the counter raised his eyelids slightly: "What grade?"

"Tier 1, High Grade".

Previously, I was using a low-grade first-tier array plate, but now that I'm trying to break through to the fifth level of Qi Refining, that array plate isn't enough.

"Three hundred low-grade spirit stones."

I can't afford it today, it costs 300 yuan.

"Do you have the 'Breath Convergence Technique'?"

The shopkeeper took a scroll of bamboo slips from the shelf behind him and placed it on the counter.

"The Concealing Breath Technique is a concealment technique that can be cultivated during the Qi Refining stage. After mastering it, one can autonomously conceal their aura to any low level without relying on a concealing breath talisman. When cultivated to its full potential, it can shield one from the divine sense detection of Foundation Establishment cultivators. Two hundred spirit stones."

This is what Zheng Yifei truly wants.

The Concealing Breath Talisman is a consumable item; each talisman can only be used once. Each talisman costs three to five spirit coins, which sounds cheap, but he uses at least two every day—one at the gambling den and one at home.

Over time, this adds up to a considerable expense. More importantly, there's a risk that the talisman will be exposed. I almost had a disaster because of this in Black Mountain Market before.

If you learn the "Breath Concealment Technique," it's like completely patching up a flaw that could be exposed at any time.

However, it costs two hundred spirit stones, which I still can't afford today.

"I'll think about it some more."

He turned and left Wanbaolou, standing on the stone steps. The things here were too expensive; he would come back tomorrow.