Free Web NovelLu Yibei spent about an hour, like a regular tourist, sampling various delicious snacks while roughly exploring the entire Bu Ye Street, memorizing the general layout of the area within a two-kilometer radius.
Eating was secondary; figuring out the terrain was key!
Bu Ye Street can be roughly divided into three streets: one main road, mostly operating in the catering industry, with everything from small pushcarts to large specialty restaurants covering thousands of square meters.
Two branch lines: one is relatively flat and lively, mostly featuring shops selling specialty cultural souvenirs, and at the end of the street there is a Jin Opera theater, performing "Fengyi Pavilion" tonight.
The other branch line, with a slightly rougher street, is the bar alley mentioned by Fu Xinyi; the first half of the street is lined with many small bars, and further in, it becomes deserted, with many guesthouses and inns open.
The three streets are separated by a large number of antique-style buildings, seemingly independent of each other, but at the same time, countless winding and narrow alleys connect them, weaving a complex network across the ground.
Lu Yibei stood at the fork of the three streets, a crispy baked bun in her mouth, slightly narrowing her eyes as she watched the ebb and flow of the crowd.
The prosperity here surprised her, who was already accustomed to the city becoming deserted after nightfall.
Stalls and shops filled the view, even the center of the street was almost occupied, shouts rose and fell, camera flashes flickered from time to time, and a muffled song drifted from the bar alley in the distance.
People were everywhere; a slight probe with spiritual perception revealed that about one to two out of every ten people were Psychic, a truly astonishing number.
Under the illumination of colorful neon signs, light and shadow cut people's faces and backs into strange and distorted shapes.
The clamor was like a swarm of snakes pouring out of their nests, with a small, stray snake occasionally twisting and drilling into her eardrum.
...
If I were Hu Chuan, having fled to Shizhou City for some reason and wanting to live anonymously, I would probably choose to hide here.
However, with so many Psychic here, it is also a place where information converges, making it just as easy to find someone's information. Lu Yibei thought.
The streets awakening under the night sky, the complex terrain woven by countless buildings, and the surging crowd... were enough to swallow a person's existence.
----
Meanwhile, inside the bar alley, in a very small, deserted bar with no customers.
"I'd like a drink, fifty-year-old Fenjiu as the base, with a smear of the bright moon and a wisp of clear wind."
Hearing the voice from outside the bar, the only bartender in the quiet bar looked up at the girl who had tied back her bangs with a delicate bow hairpin, and a smile appeared on his face, "Just a moment!"
Saying this, he bent down, rummaged through the cabinet for a while, took out an empty glass, placed it on the bar, and pushed it in front of the girl.
On the outer wall of the wine glass, the characters "Sixty-nine" were engraved.
"The bright moon is rare, the clear wind is fleeting, please enjoy it quickly, guest."
The girl took the empty glass, scanned a code with her phone to pay, walked around the bar, and went straight towards the small door next to the bar, which was hidden by a floor-length curtain, and disappeared.
----
Three-way intersection.
After pausing for a moment, Lu Yibei strode towards the bar alley, passing through small bars one after another, and soon found the sign for Moon Smearing, Wind Criticizing at a corner deep inside the bar alley.
The sign was very inconspicuous, just a square wooden plaque, and the characters "Moon Smearing, Wind Criticizing" engraved on it were already somewhat blurred.
It was a very small storefront; looking in from the entrance, the layout inside the quiet bar was completely visible, with some worn-out billiard tables placed in the center of the bar; no one was playing, but they occupied a large area, and a few scattered bar tables were arranged around the billiard tables.
Soothing music echoed, the smell of alcohol mixed with a faint scent of tobacco wafted in the air, there were no customers in the quiet bar, and the only bartender was sitting behind the bar fiddling with his phone.
Lu Yibei's gaze lingered for a moment on the floor-length curtain door next to the bar, then she walked forward, recalling the information she had gotten from Fu Xinyi, and ordered a drink that was not on the menu.
"Excuse me, I'd like a special blend, fifty-year-old Fenjiu as the base, with a smear of the bright moon and a wisp of clear wind."
Hearing this, the bartender bent down as usual, took an empty wine glass, and pushed it in front of her; the characters "Seventy-one" were engraved on the outer wall.
Does this mean that seventy Psychic have already been here before me? Lu Yibei saw the small characters on the wine glass, and this thought flashed through her mind.
"The bright moon is rare, the clear wind is fleeting, please enjoy it quickly, guest."
Although she had known from Fu Xinyi that this special blend always came with only an empty glass.
But looking at the empty glass, Lu Yibei couldn't help but ask, "Excuse me, has no one ever reported you to the consumer association for selling drinks like this?"
The bartender, "..."
"Looking at your reaction, you probably haven't been reported," Lu Yibei pouted. "Does this business make money? Do you accept investments? What happens if the secret code is leaked? Do you need to change the code regularly?"
She was very envious of this no-cost business, thinking that if conditions allowed, she would set one [N O V E L I G H T] up herself after returning to Hua City.
Anyway, the 24-hour convenience stores Du Sixian set up were very successful, so perhaps setting up a secret trading place would be no problem either.
In the future, with more Psychic and urban legend besieging Gu Qianqian, business should be good; thinking this way, it might even develop into a one-stop industry!
The bartender, "..."
Seeing the bartender remain silent and slowly raise his hand, seemingly about to take back the glass, Lu Yibei quickly held the glass in her hand and pointed to the curtain door not far away, "Is it in there?"
Thinking about it, that makes sense. It might involve their business secrets, so it's reasonable not to tell me? Lu Yibei thought.
"Yes," the bartender coldly spat out one word.
"Alright, then I won't disturb you any further!"
Lu Yibei responded, said no more, walked around the bar, lifted the curtain, and the moment the curtain was lifted, accompanied by noise, a chaotic wave of Spiritual Energy suddenly struck.
Passing through the curtain door, her eyes slightly adjusted to the light, and Lu Yibei saw a large room with warm lighting and many fabric sofas, where many people were sitting scattered around; some concealed their appearance with masks or hoods, while others carelessly exposed their features.
In their hands, they all held a wine glass, filled with more than half a glass of liquid, a small cluster of bright light floated within the liquid, and a few wisps of light green energy hovered and drifted around.
From time to time, those guests gathered in twos and threes, raised their glasses and lightly clinked them; with a soft "clink," the light cluster in the glass immediately shone brightly, and the light green energy soared upwards, enveloping them.
Under the shroud of moonlight and clear wind, their figures were reduced to blurred outlines, and their voices were completely isolated by the clear wind.
Lu Yibei lowered her head and glanced at the glass in her hand, slightly furrowing her brow.
Why is mine still empty?
This makes me feel somewhat out of place!
In a place like this, attracting too much attention is not a good thing.
While she was thinking, the sound of flowing water attracted her attention.
Following the sound, she looked.
She saw a large, ancient-style wine jar suspended from the ceiling in a corner of the room; clear liquid poured down from the wine jar, and the moment it was about to touch the ground, it disappeared as if swallowed by the void.
The pouring liquid formed a huge water curtain, releasing a rich and mellow aroma of wine.
On the water curtain, exactly seventy lines of small characters were neatly arranged.
【Three · Hucheng Gan Ningxia · Seeking a B Level mutated urban legend core, urban legend type not limited】
【Twenty-two · Tiecheng Wang Taibao · Selling a C-level Spiritual Energy item, 120g gold, or equivalent.】
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【Forty-three · Killing, negotiable.】
【Sixty-nine · Seeking three chi of cloud paper, a serving of dandelion extract, and also seeking someone, details negotiable.】
...
Lu Yibei roughly scanned the text on the water curtain, gained a general understanding, and pondered secretly.
The way this place operates seems somewhat similar to the urban legend bounty Website; the shopkeeper posts information on behalf of others, and visitors trade freely.
However, the bounty information published on the urban legend bounty Website has a strict review mechanism, and members of the Monster Story Chat Group also pay attention to whether there is fraudulent behavior during transactions, but there is none here.
Whether a transaction is reliable is entirely up to the guests to judge; if one is not careful, they might be deceived, or their information recorded, and murder and robbery are possible...
That's why the demands on the water curtain appear sometimes anonymously and sometimes with real names written down; those who are anonymous are mostly worried about being targeted by greedy people, while those who write their real names are confident in their own strength and reputation.
This place is amazing! In this world, there can't be anyone who doesn't even know how to cheat and deceive, right?
I can't wait to publish information! Lu Yibei thought.
The thought of wanting to publish information and the general content of the information she wanted to publish had just flashed through her mind, and the next moment she felt the wine glass in her hand become slightly heavier.
Looking down, she saw that her wine glass had somehow acquired half a glass of liquid, and a small cluster of light with faint green energy swirling around it was rising and falling in the liquid.
Seeing this, Lu Yibei was startled, then looked up at the water curtain again, and saw that the small characters on the water curtain had become seventy-one lines.
The last line read 【Seventy-one · Hua City Gu Qianqian · Seeking someone, details negotiable】
After the battle in Taoyuan, coupled with rumors of many Psychic and urban legend going to Hua City to besiege the Bloody Demon who devours urban legend, only to return without success, the name of the Bloody Demon who devours urban legend was much more resounding in the streets than that of the Huacheng Monster King Disaster, and seeing the three words "Gu Qianqian" appear immediately attracted a lot of attention.
The moment that line of small characters appeared, the surroundings suddenly fell silent for a second or two, and many figures froze in place.
It was as if when steaming in a bathhouse, a big shot covered in ghost tattoos suddenly walked in, making them dare not act rashly.
Lu Yibei clearly felt more than a dozen gazes, either speculative, fearful, or full of malice, cast from various corners of the room, locking onto her.
----
In the dimly lit area.
A pair of slightly lazy beautiful eyes glanced at the line of small characters on the water curtain that caused the stir, were stunned for a second or two, and then shook her head.
Although Moon Smearing, Wind Criticizing does not have a rule against receiving urban legend guests.
But as a notorious Witch Breed urban legend, daring to swagger into a gathering place for Psychic within Shizhou City is simply too arrogant and presumptuous.
"Let's stick to the price we agreed on for the cloud paper and dandelion extract! Also, who are you looking for?"
Hearing this, Hua Sang turned her head to glance at the man with a pointed mouth and sunken cheeks, slightly furrowing her brow.
Sensing the wariness in her eyes, the man quickly changed his words, "Oh, don't mind me, I just asked casually. If it's not someone particularly important, I'll give you a piece of information for free."
"..." Hua Sang hesitated and said, "Do you have any information on Jade-faced Peach Fan Wu Yutang?"
----
Standing in front of the curtain door, Lu Yibei felt as if the air was filled with flammable and explosive gas, ready to detonate violently at any moment.
...
Ah, this... Heaven can testify, although I disguised myself as Gu Qianqian, I really didn't intend to trick Gu Qianqian this time; I had clearly made up my mind to keep a low profile.
I just roughly thought about the information I wanted to post, and before I had organized my words, it just put it up for me directly. I wasn't prepared at all, okay?
Although I just briefly thought about using Gu Qianqian's notoriety to avoid trouble, this water curtain is a bit too smart; it doesn't consider the user's feelings at all... Tsk, give me my money back!
Lu Yibei complained, and quietly found a seat in the corner and sat down, silently waiting for someone to come forward and trade with her.
Since things had come to this, there was nothing she could do. freewёbnoνel.com
She could only act as Gu Qianqian and try her best not to cause her trouble.
Hmm, I'll try my best! Lu Yibei thought.
However...
The guests who came and went, either feared the name of the "Bloody Demon who devours urban legend" or already had a grudge against "Gu Qianqian"; she waited for nearly half an hour, and no one came forward to clink glasses with her.
Just as she thought she might lose the admission fee of one gram of gold for nothing tonight, someone finally came up to her and clinked glasses with her.
"Clink!"
With a soft sound, the bright moonlight enveloped Lu Yibei and the newcomer, and as the clear wind swirled, the clamor in her ears faded.
The surroundings became quiet, and Lu Yibei looked up, finding a man in a black robe in front of her; the man wore a hood, and the brim was pulled down, hiding his entire face in shadow.
He stood quietly in front of Lu Yibei, waiting for her to discuss the details of the transaction, giving off a subtly uncomfortable feeling.
It was as if an invisible pair of hands wanted to strip her clothes... Lu Yibei frowned, and also remained silent, but quietly took out Lingtai Pure Karma and held it in her hand.
The moment she took out Lingtai Pure Karma, she distinctly felt the sword body tremble slightly.
Lingtai Pure Karma seems very excited?
Is it because of the person in front of her? Lu Yibei thought.
Before she could figure out the reason for Lingtai Pure Karma's abnormality, the black-robed man in front of her, seeing that she hadn't spoken for a long time, glanced at the broken sword in her hand and said in a hoarse, low voice, "I have something here that might help you."
"Item?"
"Yes, a magical item that can help you solve many problems. If you like it, I can sell it to you at a low price. Would you like to see it?"
Lu Yibei thought seriously for a moment, and said expressionlessly, "No!"
What kind of thing do you want to show me? I'm clearly looking for a person, not an item, okay?
And you can sell it to me at a low price?
Is there such a good thing in the world? Lu Yibei thought.
In her opinion, the description "can help you solve many problems" sounded very problematic. If she had an item that could help a stranger solve many problems, it would absolutely not be sold at a low price; she would even raise the price and drain that person's wallet dry.
She wouldn't believe in such a thing as pie falling from the sky; she believed only things thrown from high altitudes would fall from the sky!
"..." The black-robed man saw that Lu Yibei was no longer talking to him and seemed to have no intention of trading with him, so he shrugged and quietly walked away.
Seeing the black-robed man leave safely after interacting with Lu Yibei gave other guests considerable courage, and soon Lu Yibei welcomed her second trader.
"Excuse, excuse me, who are you looking for?"
The person who came was a girl wearing round-rimmed glasses and freckles on her face; she seemed very scared, speaking timidly and not daring to look Lu Yibei in the eyes.
"I want to find twenty underage urban legend to roast and eat," Lu Yibei said lightly.
The girl, "???"
"Just kidding, don't run, don't run!" Seeing the girl's face instantly turn pale and almost run away, Lu Yibei quickly changed her words, "Actually, the person I'm looking for is someone named Hu Chuan..."
