Dual Cultivation God Returns

While returning to the inn with Cai Yin and Yuanfen the day before, a stranger Wu Long never met signaled him from afar, and as he approached, discreetly passed him a note.

Thus, after his morning with Liang Yuhan and his beauties, he left them to have their separate, women-only talk, while he went out, crossing the bridge to the more remote district of the city, and from there, crossed over even further to the more shady districts until he arrived in the area which locals normally tried to avoid coming close to.

There, arriving at a certain street, he spotted a signboard with the same logo as was on the note he received, a smile appearing on his lips as he entered the long and narrow alley and from there through maze-like passages of haphazardly built together structures, through several stores, kitchens, and what seemed to be foul-smelling living spaces, entered a bar.

The bar was dark even in daytime, as there were no windows, and it was dimly lit on top of that, with only a handful of lanterns most of which illuminated the bartender's counter, avoiding to shed light on the small cheaply built tables.

The air, filled with heavy smoke carried the smell of not only tobacco but also minor illegal substances, as well as alcohol.

It wasn't quiet, but not loud either. Rather, the room was full of subtle, monotone noise of people conversing in low voices, with occasional chuckle or snicker here and there.

Wu Long ignored the suspicious gazes, going toward one specific table and sitting down.

The man opposite him had a smug look on his face.

"Yeah... I'll still say you're not fooling anyone here", Wu Long sighed as he sat back in a relaxed pose and interlocked his arms on his chest, almost sorry to say it. For a moment, there was even hesitation in his eyes, but he chose to not try to sugarcoat it after all.

"Tsk, bullshit", Chen Hui's smug smile turned into a frustrated expression.

Wu Long shrugged.

"Ugh", Chen Hui took a cursory look around the room, which seemingly didn't really pay attention to the two of them, but couldn't shake off the feeling that Wu long didn't have any reason to deceive him.

"I suppose you didn't just summon me to demonstrate that you really are one of the 'locals' here, in fact I really hope, for your own sake, that's not why I'm here", Wu Long said as a talisman slid onto the table in front of Chen Hui, seemingly moving on its own.

"Pshh, what do you take me for?", Chen Hui made an insulted expression, but after a short pause still asked with a hopeful look, "Is it really that hopeless? Maybe at least half the bar thinks I'm-..."

Wu Long covered his face with his palm, letting out a heavy sigh.

"Alright, alright, fine... sheesh, talk about impatient...", Chen Hui raised his hands, and then leaning in, continued in a more serious tone, "It seems your appearance sparked a conflict between two of His Highness' close advisers, who hold opposed views on the approach he should take"

"Let me guess, both urge caution, but one's for a careful and diplomatic approach to find out what I know and want, and the other's for a forceful approach to seize and interrogate me", Wu Long spoke, not particularly surprised.

"How did you know? Don't tell me-...", captain Chen's eyes became round.

"No, I don't have spies in the palace and I didn't do anything otherwise to spy. It's just one of the likely scenarios", Wu Long shook his head, interrupting the wild thoughts.

"Ah... well, in any case, depending on the situation, things might take a dangerous turn for you", Chen Hui sighed, and then added.

"I appreciate your concern", Wu Long smiled, since the Imperial Guard was basically telling him to run before things could turn ugly, as there might not be a chance to run after a certain point.

The latter looked at him for a minute in thought, and then sighed, "You're not one to back down huh... well, I did think so, but still, if you get sucked into this game, it would be too late to turn back"

"It's already too late", Wu Long chuckled, "It was late from the moment I stepped onto the wooden floor of the sky port, because that's when I stepped onto the game board, and no player misses when a new piece appears on the board"

"...", Chen Hui looked into Wu Long's eyes, taken aback at the calm and cold, almost disinterested gaze coupled with a smile that seemed to be tinged with amusement. It was as if this whole situation that he considered extremely serious, with very real and high stakes, was a trivial one for this man.

He started getting a feeling, that this stranger was far more dangerous and unfathomable than he gave him credit for. Which was particularly unnerving, since he already considered him a powerful force to contend with.

They spoke a little longer, as Chen Hui commented on Wu Long's actions in respect to the Rou and Kai families, which were apparently already noted by the various factions within the palace. Both families were fairly minor, but no detail was too small when it came to the battle of successors.

Wu Long only vaguely soothed the worries of the captain, asserting that he really wasn't trying to make any power moves and was just looking out for his personal interests.

---

Wu Long walked with Nie Xiwang and Sui Luxiao through the street of the Kai Family's stores and workshops, attracting even more attention than last time. If Nie Xiwang and Sui Luxiao separately made a big impression on whoever saw them, walking together they created an unforgettable sight.

Sui Luxiao asked to join them this time, but unlike Nie Xiwang, her interest lied not in the weapons themselves. What she was interested in was the mood and atmosphere of the arms and armor market of the city. Her attentive eyes instantly saw through the current trends of purchases, consumer attitudes, price ranges and so on.

After they reached the workshop, they were immediately escorted to a private VIP room instead of the main hall, to which Kai Huoshi arrived just a bit later with a nervous and excited expression.

"Master Wu, you have arrived!", Young Master Kai exclaimed right off the bat, belatedly noticing and cupping his fist in greeting toward the two beauties, and then after making sure to activate the sound isolation array in the room with hurry, spoke in a slightly feverish manner, his eyes lit on fire, "The technique you gave me... i-it is... I cannot believe you gave away such a supreme treasure and still expect me to receive payment on top of that... I-... this-..."

Wu Long raised his hand with a smile to let the young man catch his breath as it looked like he ran here as fast as he could.

"Ah~ sorry... I... it's just so...", Kai Huoshi belatedly realized his breathing was ragged and with light embarrassment tried to explain himself, eventually giving up and taking a few deep breaths to calm down.

"You've done well to learn the technique I gave you so fast and it seems quite successfully", Wu Long nodded, as his eyes flashed with profound patterns, and then extended his hand, "Let me see the work first, we'll talk as I examine it"

"Ah, of course, m-my apologies...", Kai Huoshi's ears twitched at the request, once again, belatedly realizing he didn't start this meeting at all like he hoped it would go, and taking out a spatial ring handed it to Wu Long, adding, "I-it's too heavy for even me, so..."

Wu Long took out the ruler from the spatial ring, making Young Master Kai gasp in shock at the ease with which he handled it.

"Impressive", Wu Long nodded as he inspected the work, satisfied at what he saw. It was not exceptional, or above his expectations, and there were flaws, but it was still a very well done work, and more importantly, it showed Kai Huoshi's potential in the future.

It might seem that a ruler was simply a hunk of metal roughly put into shape, but in reality it required skill and attention like any other weapon.

The distribution of weight, balance, and structural integrity throughout the blade, as well as Spiritual Qi compatibility and pathways, all of these details had to be considered in order for this weapon to truly show its potential.

Wu Long then sat down on the sofa that Nie Xiwang and Sui Luxiao were sitting on, as the two beauties joined in examining the ruler.

Young Master Kai's eyes lit up as he heard that single word of praise, somehow feeling it was not that easy to receive this evaluation from this man. At this point, he finally calmed a bit down, and respectfully sat down opposite Wu Long and his beauties, waiting for them to finish inspecting the weapon.