Chapter 155: Golden Core Ruins, Valley of Ghosts and Divinity’s Supreme Elder (I)

"I'm older than you."

Uh...

"And my cultivation realm is also higher than yours."

Duan Feng gave a quiet chuckle as he watched Luo Chen's stunned expression. "So stop calling me Xiao Duan."

"Alright!" Luo Chen helplessly waved his hand and said, "Now that the Debate Platform is closed, what's your plan, Xiao Duan?"

Duan Feng's face froze, and seeing this, Feng Xia couldn’t help but laugh, her earlier worries momentarily forgotten. Left with no choice, Duan Feng decided it wasn’t worth the effort to correct Luo Chen’s way of addressing him.

He sighed and said, "What plan can I have? With or without the Debate Platform, life and cultivation go on. I'll just have to find another path."

Find another path?

Duan Feng actually had impressive skills in enchanted artifact repair, something Luo Chen was well aware of. Back then, the damaged edge of his jade blade had been repaired for free by Duan Feng.

Later, on his birthday, Duan Feng even gave Luo Chen a small guide on enchanted artifact maintenance as a gift. If Duan Feng were to open an enchanted artifact repair shop in Dahe Market, survival would certainly not be an issue.

However, opening a shop required startup capital, connections, and time to build a reputation and attract a client base. These were things Duan Feng didn’t have. It was easy to imagine that his future path would likely involve combat. He might even end up as a rogue cultivator, making a living by robbing and killing.

As a neighbor, Luo Chen didn’t want to see Duan Feng go down such a precarious path. He offered, "How about joining the Poshan Gang? Come to my Alchemy Hall and live a good life with me."

Hearing the invitation, Duan Feng was quite surprised but he hesitated and said, "Isn't that a bit inappropriate?"

"What’s inappropriate about it? I’m the top alchemist of the Poshan Gang. With me covering for you, no one can point fingers."

"I’ll need to think about it."

"Alright, think it over and let me know. When the time comes, Big Brother Qin, Sister-in-law Murong, and I will vouch for you together." Luo Chen didn’t press him further.

Inviting Duan Feng to join the Alchemy Hall was a spur-of-the-moment suggestion. On further reflection, it was actually quite a smart move. With his hard work over the past three months, the profits of the Alchemy Hall had soared, and Luo Chen’s share had increased accordingly.

But ultimately, the bulk of the profits from the pills was taken by Mi Shuhua and the Poshan Gang. Compared to such a powerful organization, Luo Chen’s individual power seemed insignificant.

However, if he could continuously increase his influence within the gang, he might eventually be able to renegotiate the profit distribution. Such things were not uncommon in the daily affairs of the Poshan Gang.

Back when Murong Qinglian and Qin Liangchen supported him fully, wasn’t it also to strengthen their network of allies? And when Luo Wudi was focused on establishing connections with the Snow Lotus Market, wasn’t it to help his friend at the ninth stage of Qi-Refining?

What Luo Chen was doing now was the same logic as when he had invited Gu Caiyi to join the Alchemy Hall.

Duan Feng was different from Gu Caiyi. He had a very straightforward mindset, focusing solely on improving his strength, whether it was his cultivation realm or his combat skills. His strength was formidable as well. Among the countless rogue cultivators in Dahe Market, he could easily rank in the top ten. Someone like him was relatively easier to manage.

Moreover, Luo Chen did not want to control him; he merely wanted to form a good relationship. Even if Duan Feng found a better opportunity in the future, he would still remember Luo Chen's kindness and might offer his help someday.

In the end, even if Duan Feng joined the Alchemy Hall, Luo Chen would not be the one paying his salary. It was the Poshan Gang that would cover it!

Though some of it came from the profits of the pills Luo Chen created. However, since Luo Chen could not directly benefit from it, he might as well use it as a favor to win over Duan Feng.

***

The sudden closure of the Debate Platform caused an uproar in Dahe Market.

The ripple effects were enormous!

First and foremost, as Luo Chen had anticipated, a large number of small businesses suffered near-devastating blows. Without the large crowds drawn by the Debate Platform, those overpriced trinkets suddenly became completely unsellable.

Fortunately, Luo Chen had anticipated this and promptly instructed Feng Xia and Yuan Xiaoyue to lower the prices.

What used to cost one spirit stone per cup of milk tea was now sold at two cups for one spirit stone. Moreover, they launched a new summer drink, iced spirit fruit tea, delicious and affordable. Yuan Xiaoyue followed suit, offering larger portions of snacks without increasing prices to stay competitive.

However, those who had not prepared in advance were out of luck. But Luo Chen had no time to concern himself with their fate; all he knew was that another significant issue was already starting to disrupt his daily travels.

"How many groups has it been?" Luo Chen asked, his expression dark as he looked down at the cultivators' remains, their bodies battered beyond recognition and their bones shattered.

Sensing the anger in his tone, Zhou Yuanli carefully responded, "The third group, and also the most skilled. This one had already reached the eighth stage of Qi-Refining."

"Even this kind of trash dares to rob me?" Luo Chen thought it utterly absurd.

Were they blind? He had two eighth-stage Qi-Refining cultivators as bodyguards in plain sight!

Zhou Yuanli offered a bitter smile. "This was no ordinary trash. The man had extensive combat experience and even an ace up his sleeve, a top-grade enchanted flying sword.

If it weren’t for the two scouts ahead who detected the ambush in advance, the sudden attack would have surely caught Luo Chen off guard."

Luo Chen took a deep breath, his gaze fixed on the direction of Fallen Phoenix Mountain in the inner city. "These reckless people must have been regulars on the Debate Platform, right?"

"That's right. Take today's target, for example—his name is Feng Yijian. He ranked ninety-seventh on the Dahe Elite Prodigy Board and was known for his impressive one-on-one combat prowess."

One-on-one? Too bad today was one-on-six.

On the surface, it seemed that only Luo Chen was only at the seventh stage of Qi-Refining, and Dongfang Liang was present, and neither of them had even taken action.

Just Zhou Yuanli and three other bodyguards were enough to obliterate him. Feng Yijian had barely managed to summon his top-grade enchanted flying sword before he was crushed.

Luo Chen rubbed his forehead. These robbery attempts were becoming increasingly frequent. With the closure of the Debate Platform, many of the Qi-Refining experts who had once flocked there suddenly found themselves without a purpose or destination.

Those from prominent families could still return to their clans and work for them. But the rogue cultivators from out of town—or even local ones—suddenly lost their livelihoods.

Unfortunately, they were all too accustomed to fighting.

Without a place to vent, no stable source of cultivation resources, and carrying valuable artifacts, it was only natural that their killing intent surged.

The outer district had nearly descended into complete chaos.

Some early and mid-stage rogue cultivators were utterly miserable, turning to Poshan Gang, Dajiang Gang, or Xuanyi Society in hopes of securing a sliver of protection.

As Poshan Gang’s chief alchemist, the wealthy Dan Chenzi—Luo Chen—naturally became a target for those rogue cultivators who lived by their swords.

Perhaps those at the ninth stage of Qi-Refining hesitated.

But the less experienced yet bold and skilled cultivators at the seventh or eighth stage had no such scruples. They had ambushed Luo Chen several times during his commutes. Sometimes they came in groups of three or five; other times, a lone assassin attempted to kill him. If this continued, it was only a matter of time before a ninth-stage cultivator personally tried their luck.

"They really think I’m a fat sheep waiting to be slaughtered!" Luo Chen cursed, signaling his men to clean up the battlefield.

A mid-grade enchanted robe had been damaged, and a storage bag shattered during the fight. Only a mid-grade enchanted artifact in his hand and a top-grade enchanted flying sword floating mid-air remained intact.

"Liu Qiang!" Luo Chen called out.

Liu Qiang looked up.

With a wave of Luo Chen’s hand, the flying sword hovered before Liu Qiang. "You performed well protecting me last time and were severely injured. This top-grade flying sword is your reward."

"You’re giving it to me?" Liu Qiang was momentarily stunned before his face lit up with joy.

He eagerly accepted it. A top-grade flying sword—it was worth at least two thousand spirit stones in the past.

With the recent chaos, artifact prices had risen, and purchasing one from Treasure Pavilion would cost no less than three thousand spirit stones.

"Hall Leader, you’re truly generous. Thank you for the reward." Liu Qiang said gratefully.

Luo Chen didn’t mind and handed the mid-grade enchanted artifact to Dongfang Liang, the weakest among them. He earned yet another round of gratitude.

The other three bodyguards didn’t complain either. In the previous ambushes, Luo Chen had kept the spirit stones and pills but distributed most of the other loot among them.

This time, it was simply Liu Qiang and Dongfang Liang’s turn.

Luo Chen’s actions seemed quite generous. But he had no choice. With the rise of murderous raiding cultivators, his security had become increasingly critical.

Among his five bodyguards, apart from Zhou Yuanli and Liu Qiang, the other three were once overlooked members of the gang.

They didn’t have high-quality enchanted artifacts.

To enhance their strength, Luo Chen decided to be magnanimous, offering rewards from the spoils.

"But when will such days finally come to an end!" Luo Chen sighed, feeling a tinge of resentment toward the Golden Core Adept.

Everything ultimately traced back to that person.

Unfortunately, the chaos Luo Chen hoped would settle showed no signs of abating.

Because an even greater turmoil had arrived. "An ancient relic has been discovered in the Ancient Plains Mountain Range—it’s confirmed to be a Golden Core Adept’s relic."

As soon as he arrived at Crescent Moon Valley, Luo Chen learned this news from Murong Qinglian and others.