Chapter 167: Chapter 142: Revisiting an Old Haunt (Part 2)

Whether it was catching Spirit Fish or snakes, Zou Feng had always gone to great lengths to hide his movements. Besides the few people he trusted, the less anyone knew of his whereabouts, the better.

Attending Yuwen Shuo’s treacherous banquet had been a public appearance, but all the top experts in Yuan Guang County were present. The Ten Directions Sect wasn’t foolish enough to attempt an assassination then.

In short, the Ten Directions Sect hadn’t had a good opportunity to assassinate him recently.

But now, Zou Feng was deliberately giving them one, with Li Tianrui as the inside man to pass along the information.

He figured that even if Fang Jingchuan didn’t act, Lu Sen—whose name was on the List of Gods—most likely wouldn’t miss this chance.

Of course, he could be wrong. It might not be Lu Sen, but an insistent Fang Jingchuan, dragging his still-unhealed body to finish the job.

But that wasn’t a major issue. A Gang Qi Realm expert who hadn’t fully recovered, tormented daily by the side effects of his own Cultivation… Fang Jingchuan would be lucky to use even seventy percent of his full strength.

So, even if Zou Feng couldn’t win the fight, there was no way Fang Jingchuan could stop him if he decided to flee with all his might.

Especially with the Celestial Essence Sword Sect’s stronghold right there in the Inner City.

After feigning a casual stroll for a while, Zou Feng finally arrived at a surprising destination: the Hengyu Building.

It was the lowest-class brothel in Yuan Guang County, but it had also been the perfect place for Zou Feng to cover his tracks back when he was a Household Slave at the Yang Mansion.

For Zou Feng, the Hengyu Building was certainly a place full of memories…

Just a moment ago, while drinking at the Dragon Gate Boat, he had pretended to get carried away and casually mentioned this place, expressing a fond nostalgia for it.

He’d let the information slip, ensuring Li Tianrui, who was nearby, would overhear.

Then, he’d called over Zhao Tianhu, an old acquaintance from the Yang Mansion, and departed in a hurry…

If Li Tianrui couldn’t figure out his most likely destination after all that, then he was useless to both the Ten Directions Sect and the Hongxing Gang.

And once the Ten Directions Sect learned he was alone at the Hengyu Building, they would almost certainly act immediately.

This was no longer a personal vendetta. He was one of the leaders organizing the Rebel Army—even if Yuwen Shuo had forced him into it. Regardless, his involvement threatened the Ten Directions Sect’s future survival. It would be stranger if they *didn’t* try to assassinate him.

Upon entering the Hengyu Building, the familiar Madam sashayed over to greet him, her every movement radiating a practiced charm.

As Zou Feng was in a light disguise, the Madam didn’t seem to recognize him as the General Leader of the Hongxing Gang, who had recently been making waves in Yuan Guang County.

And even if she did, the Madam was far too shrewd. Seeing his disguise, she would know he didn’t want his identity revealed and would naturally play dumb.

“Bring out your most expensive girl!”

Zou Feng acted as if he were finally fulfilling a wish from his destitute past, at last indulging in the extravagance he’d always dreamed of.

After all, he used to only be able to afford the cheapest, “older” girls.

This was also part of the act, to convince the Ten Directions Sect that he had snuck here merely to visit a brothel.

The reasons for the disguise were twofold: first, for safety, and second, to keep certain people from knowing he still had a taste for… this.

Hearing this, the Madam froze for a second. She couldn’t resist taking another, closer look at Zou Feng.

“Didn’t you hear me?” Zou Feng prompted impatiently.

The Madam finally snapped out of it, her expression changing dramatically.

Evidently, her eye for people was quite sharp; she had recognized Zou Feng.

A former Household Slave of the Yang Mansion, now the General Leader of the Hongxing Gang. He used to be a regular here—how could she not remember him?

“R-Right away! Ru Yan—!”

Though she’d recognized him, she immediately feigned ignorance and began to shout at the top of her lungs.

’Ru Yan again?!’

Zou Feng shook his head with a laugh. Such a coincidence wasn’t all that strange. Most women in these brothels used stage names, and names like Ru Yan, meaning “like smoke,” were incredibly common.

Before the Madam’s voice faded, “Ru Yan” came “floating” down from the second floor with a dazzling smile.

She had come so quickly because she’d discerned from the Madam’s tone that the guest was someone extraordinary.

The Madam’s calls had their own nuances, a secret code that only her girls could understand.

She knew instantly that this was a V.I.P. among V.I.P.s; otherwise, the Madam would never have shrieked like a crowing rooster.

Furthermore, this Ru Yan had clearly practiced martial arts; otherwise, she wouldn’t have been able to simply leap down from the second floor.

“My love!” As soon as she landed, she threw herself into Zou Feng’s arms like a wife welcoming her husband home.

To be fair, this “Ru Yan” was quite exceptional in every respect.

Even in a low-class brothel, the most expensive girl always served to keep up appearances.

Still, the difference between her and Liu Xian’Er of the Furong Pavilion was quite apparent.

Zou Feng nodded in satisfaction. He had the Madam arrange a girl for Zhao Tianhu, then went upstairs with his arm around Ru Yan.

Once in the room, they drank some more wine to set the mood, after which Ru Yan offered to dance for him.

The dance was, of course, highly indecent. As she moved to the rhythm, her clothes began to fall away, piece by piece.

Fortunately, Zou Feng was a man who could practically treat Celestial Immortal Joy Powder like a meal. Such mundane temptations no longer fazed him in the slightest.

He pretended to be captivated all the same, and soon they were entangled…

’But I definitely can’t actually do anything right now. If the Ten Directions Sect shows up, they won’t miss a perfect opportunity like this to strike.’

So, Zou Feng used his Great Universal Hand, plunging Ru Yan into an illusion of carnal pleasure.

He then lowered the bed curtains, obscuring the true goings-on from view.

To make the act more convincing, however, Zou Feng moved away from the entranced Ru Yan and started doing push-ups beside her on the bed.

’He found it rather amusing himself. If the Ten Directions Sect doesn’t show up after all this, I’m going to look like a complete idiot.’

The thought had barely crossed his mind when the air in the room began to smell strange.

As an expert in poisons, Zou Feng immediately recognized it: a colorless, odorless poison gas was being pumped into the room.

The Ten Directions Sect had never cared for the so-called honor of the Jianghu; they would stop at nothing to kill their targets.

In response, Zou Feng silently took out a homemade Antitoxic Pill and placed it in Ru Yan’s mouth.

As for himself, he took a deep breath of the poison gas. His conclusion: ’Not strong enough!’

Currently, while everyone in Yuan Guang County knew the General Leader of the Hongxing Gang practiced a Poison Skill, no one had any concrete idea of what Realm his Cultivation had reached or how deep his understanding of the Poison Dao went.

The Ten Directions Sect had made its name with Evil Pills, so they were naturally confident in their own poisons. They couldn’t believe a self-taught Poison Cultivator from some backwater town could be more proficient in the Poison Dao than they were.

The poison gas continued to fill the room for a while. Zou Feng decided to feign being overcome, and all “activity” from the bed ceased, just as it had for Ru Yan.

A moment later, the door opened, and a man dressed as a brothel attendant swaggered inside.

He didn’t make a single sound.

After closing the door, the attendant spoke in a coarse, grating voice, “Sir, your Hangover Tea has arrived!”

After waiting a moment with no response, the attendant slowly approached the bed.

He appeared to move slowly, yet after only two steps, he was beside the bed as if he had used Shrinking Inches.

Before the man could make another move, Zou Feng sat bolt upright. “Are you perhaps Lu Commander?” he asked.

In the Ten Directions Sect, Seventh Grade Martial Artists were typically granted the title of “Commander.”

Coupled with the fact that Lu Sen’s name was on the List of Gods as someone who wanted him dead, Zou Feng made the inquiry as a test.

If he was right, it would unnerve his opponent and add to his own mystique.

Hearing this, the man did indeed falter for a moment, but he immediately struck out, his finger jabbing toward Zou Feng’s throat like a bolt of lightning.

Zou Feng caught the man’s finger. “Lu Commander,” he said quickly, “we’re grasshoppers on the same rope now. Why don’t we have a proper talk?”

“Compared to me, the one you *really* want to kill is Yuwen Shuo, isn’t it?”

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