Mr. Tao and his two companions walked inside.
On the way, they saw many storefronts.
It felt different here compared to overseas. This place was full of ordinary non-cultivators.
Everything felt lively.
âItâs hard to imagine that near the Astronomical Academy, thereâs still a place like thisâŚâ Mr. Zhu sighed.
âI feel like the things over there are pretty delicious. Should we try them?â Tang Ya asked.
âLetâs go buy some. Iâm sure theyâre good.â Mr. Tao smiled.
âAuntie Qiao, should we eat something delicious? Iâve been eating noodles for months, and there are pancakes over there. Letâs go try them,â said Bi Zhu.
âAlright. Iâll buy it for you,â said Qiao Yi.
âNo. Let me go. Iâll pick something delicious,â Bi Zhu said with a smile.
They went to the pancake stall right when Tang Ya did so.
In front of the stall, Bi Zhu looked at Tang Ya and said with a smile, âSenior, you donât seem to be from around here.â
Bi Zhu displayed an early-stage Golden Core Realm, while Tang Ya was in the late stage of the Primordial Spirit Realm.
âYeah, Iâm from out of town.â Tang Ya nodded. âI feel like you are a bit⌠dangerous. Are you hiding your cultivation realm?â
âWhy would you say that?â Bi Zhu asked in shock.
âBecause many people like to hide their cultivation realm here and beat around the bush. They often speak in riddles. Do you like riddles?â Tang Ya asked.
âI am very straightforward. I never speak in riddles.â Bi Zhu smiled.
âI donât like that either. They always say Iâm too straightforward, and Iâll suffer because of it sooner or later,â Tang Ya said.
âJust because you donât like riddles doesnât mean you arenât smart. It has nothing to do with whether you suffer,â said Bi Zhu.
Tang Ya looked surprised. âExactly! They just donât understand.â The two of them talked for a long while.
After buying the pancakes, they reluctantly parted ways.
Bi Zhu walked away with Qiao Yi.
âDo you intend to use her for something, Princess?â asked Qiao Yi.
âNo. I just met her and felt a connection with her. So, I was talking with her. Sheâs interesting,â said Bi Zhu. She ate the pancake.
Without thinking much, she went straight outside to find the one with the Heavenly Dao Foundation Establishment.
Meanwhile, Tang Ya met up with the others. âI just met a very powerful person, and we had a great chat. She also hates it when people speak in riddles and donât give a straight answer. I told her Iâm like that too.â
Mr. Zhu nodded.
Mr. Tao smiled. âItâs not easy to find someone you can talk to. Who is she?â
âI donât know. After talking for a while, we each went our separate ways,â Tang Ya said.
Mr. Tao nodded. He didnât say much and led the people inside.
Jiang Hao invited the swordsman for a drink.
After that, the swordsman led him deeper into the ancient city.
Although they proceeded deeper, the number of people didnât decrease. They increased instead.
âThis is where the sages lived. Thatâs why there are so many people. Everyone wants to come here and pay their respects. The place is special. I heard from some friends that they havenât faced any hardships since they came here. So, they come here every month and burn incense and offerings. Those who stay behind and start a business here are even more respected.â
Jiang Hao nodded. This place was the former site of the Astronomical Academy. There must be some powerful force at play here that ordinary people couldnât understand.
A blessing left by an immortal sect was more than enough to shelter these people.
âSo, that traitor⌠people hate him. No one bothers to clean that place where his stone tablet is,â said the middle-aged swordsman.
Jiang Hao could understand, but he was curious about the traitor. âWhatâs his name?â
âI donât know.â The middle-aged swordsman shook his head. âIt seems like no one here knows his name. Even if they knew it, they wouldnât speak of him. The people want others to know he was a traitor, but they donât want others to remember him or his name.â
âWhy?â Jiang Hao was surprised.
âBecause they want him to disappear from history. If his name is passed down, wouldnât it be easy for the traitor to be remembered?â The middle-aged swordsman laughed. âAnyway, thatâs what I heard.â
For a while, Jiang Hao didnât know if it was right to do that or not.
He nodded to show that he was paying attention.
After a short time, the three of them arrived in an alley close to the statue of the sage.
âThis is it.â The middle-aged swordsman sighed. âThe affinity with immortals is hard to find. What do you think it feels like for an immortal to stand this high? In this lifetime, if I can at least fly, I wonât have lived my life in vain.â
âIf you do that, do you think your ambitions will also be higher?â Jiang Hao asked.
He saw that the place was mentioned pretty nicely. He wasnât sure how it would be inside.
âYes,â said the middle-aged swordsman firmly. âI am a greedy person. How about you?â
âMy ambitions?â Jiang Hao thought for a moment. âI just want to live a peaceful life.â
Hong Yuye glanced at Jiang Hao but didnât say anything.
âIs your life not peaceful right now?â asked the middle-aged swordsman.
Jiang Hao sighed wearily. âI canât help it. Everything happens out of my control.â
In this world, many people had it worse than him. He couldnât even help them.
Although he had no worries about food and a roof over his head, he still lived in constant danger.
He always had to struggle.
âHmm⌠Why is it so clean here?â The middle-aged man was a bit surprised.
He found that this place had been cleaned recently.
âMaybe someone was here.â Jiang Hao frowned.
He did feel that there were people inside.
âBut who would suddenly come to clean a place that is dedicated to a traitor?â said the middle-aged man in confusion.
âLetâs go in and find out,â Jiang Hao said calmly.
They walked inside. The place was indeed clean moments before. Jiang Hao had a bad feeling about it.
Someone had seized the chance to clean it, and with that, the reward of bubbles.
They saw a young woman standing in front of the stone tomb and wiping away at the stone tablet. She was halfway done.
This stone monument radiated a majestic aura.
The dirt on it was thick. There would surely be many rewards for cleaning it.
Jiang Hao had missed his chance. He felt uneasy.
There were two men with the woman. It was Mr. Tao and his companions. Jiang Hao had seen them before.
âAre you also here to try your luck?â asked Mr. Tao as he looked at the new people who had arrived.
Although this place was the traitorâs location, people would always try their luck here if there was something to be gained.
They would silently and secretly try to get the gains. If not, they would pretend to scorn the traitor.
Thereâs nothing to lose either way.
âCleaning it this⌠You might have to face some challenges from others,â said the middle-aged man.
âWell⌠You never know unless you try. Do you want to give it a try?â Mr. Tao asked politely.
Jiang Hao was eager to try, but Hong Yuye moved to his side.
Jiang Hao was worried about the white bubbles. If he only obtained white bubbles, others would naturally detect it.
His heart sank.
In the past, he would have gone for it one way or another.
He decided to let it go.
âForget itâŚâ He sighed..