Since moving to the East District, Chen Ping has rarely appeared on the street where Ning Mansion is located.
Even if I occasionally go to Sunset Forest, I will deliberately take a detour.
Now that I'm back, things have changed.
The houses on both sides of the street have changed. The bluestone slabs that have been cleared of snow are no longer familiar with moss. The smell in the air feels more turbid. The sharp sword marks on the stone wall silently describe everything that happened here...
Chen Ping looked at the familiar yet unfamiliar environment here, and walked to the door of Ning Mansion unknowingly.
Only to find that the door of the house was open, and occasionally people came in and out.
After asking, I found out that they all came to Ning Mansion to inquire about news.
It's like this almost every day these days.
To this end, the Ning Mansion has opened a special courtyard to receive visiting casual cultivators, and at two fixed times every day, a dedicated person will come out to explain specific matters to the casual cultivators and accept their consultations.
'this...'
'...It's become a fixed pattern. '
At this moment, there were about a dozen stragglers sitting together in twos and threes chatting in the courtyard.
Chen Ping followed the crowd and sat down in the yard.
"Fellow Taoist, who is...? Fellow Taoist Chen?" As soon as Chen Ping sat down, an old cultivator came over and struck up a conversation.
Chen Ping looked at the other person, he looked familiar, but he didn't know where he had seen him before.
do not know:
"Fellow Taoist, do you recognize me?"
The old cultivator didn't mind that Chen Ping didn't recognize him, and said with a smile:
"Speaking of which, I have to thank Fellow Daoist Chen for his life-saving grace in the past. If Fellow Daoist Chen hadn't taken action when the city wall was repaired, this monk would have been in trouble long ago. Naturally, I recognize Fellow Daoist Chen."
…So that’s it… Chen Ping suddenly realized:
"You're welcome, fellow Taoist, I'm just protecting myself, it's not worth mentioning."
So that’s what happened.
But I still don’t remember what the other person looks like.
"Talk about the past, Fellow Daoist Chen may have also talked with this monk. This monk once made a living in a magic weapon shop. After the business withered, he had no choice but to leave a few days ago." The old cultivator added.
After saying this, Chen Ping actually remembered it.
Just say it looks familiar.
"It turns out to be the guy from the magic weapon shop. Nice to meet you." Chen Ping returned the favor with a hand-clasp.
As soon as the topic was opened, the two started chatting during the boring waiting period.
Of course, it was mainly the old cultivators who were talking.
Chen Ping mainly listens and rarely talks about his own affairs. When asked occasionally, he just ignores it or changes the subject.
The old cultivator didn't mind. In addition, the Ning Mansion sent some tea. Although it was not spiritual tea, it would quench the thirst. The old cultivator was talking about it all over the place.
Talk about how colorful and gorgeous the world outside Lianyuncheng is.
When the old cultivator was young, he was ambitious and just wanted to see the outside world. He traveled around with the caravan and stayed in many cities. Most of them earned travel capital by working in magic weapon shops. He never wanted to make it in Lianyun City. This made him extremely emotional.
"Look, what a good magic sword I have. In which city don't six or seven middle-grade spiritual stones sell each sword? Look at Lianyun City today, one medium-grade spiritual stone can buy one. You can even buy one with eighty or ninety low-grade spiritual stones. It would be strange if you don't close the shop." The old cultivator was angry.
After word of the retreat plan spread, weapons were recently reduced in price, and the magic weapon shop eventually closed its doors.
The journey is long, and there are not a lot of camels like caravans. These bulky things are cumbersome to carry, so one handle is enough.
The number of magical artifacts remains unchanged, but the population of Lianyung City is drastically decreasing, and the supply of magical artifacts has long exceeded demand.
Sell-offs are inevitable.
Chen Ping said curiously:
"Are the prices of magic weapons in cities outside the same as those in Lianyuncheng in the past?"
When it comes to things outside, the old cultivator is even more proud:
"It's pretty much the same. Even in those cities that are good at refining weapons, a low-grade magic weapon requires four or five medium-grade spiritual stones. How is it like today's Lianyun City?"
Chen Ping silently wrote down this information, and when he wanted to inquire more about the situation outside Lianyuncheng, the conversation in the yard suddenly stopped.
You can hear needles dropping in the yard.
Chen Ping turned around and immediately understood the reason.
I saw the seventh lady in a white robe with cyan patterns coming in from outside and happened to pass by the outer courtyard.
When the beast wave struck, the seventh lady was recovering from injuries in Ning Mansion. After the beast wave, they have been trapped in Lianyung City.
She rarely goes out and is almost invisible to others.
It is said that because without the Qingyun Sect's means, the seventh lady's foundation has never been healed and she has been living in seclusion. His face is still a little pale now.
When Chen Ping looked at her, the seventh lady just turned around, caught a glimpse of Chen Ping, paused for a moment, said nothing, looked back, and then entered the inner palace.
As soon as this shock passed, a group of old perverts started chatting again.
When the words "genius", "girl", "beautiful" and "sect" are combined together, there will never be a shortage of topics.
"..."
"Fellow Daoist Chen? You didn't even say a word when you came? Please come in, please come in." When Manager Wang came out and asked everyone to wait a moment, he saw Chen Ping and greeted him politely.
Chen Ping stood up and returned the courtesy:
"Manager Wang, long time no see."
The last time they met, Manager Wang and the senior cultivator of the Ning Mansion went to Chen Ping's house and invited Chen Ping to rejoin the position of guest minister of the Ning Mansion.
Almost a year has passed in the blink of an eye.
"Who says it's not the case? Please come inside, we are all old acquaintances, let's catch up on old times inside." Manager Wang smiled and pulled Chen Ping towards the house.
When he re-entered the inner palace, Chen Ping didn't recognize the faces of many servants and guests.
But there are still some old friends who are still working as servants. When they saw Chen Ping coming back, they all greeted him politely.
They had all heard about the battle at Chen Ping City Wall, and were quite moved. Of course, some people secretly scolded Chen Ping for being an old scumbag...with such a defensive power, he kept himself secretive in Ning Mansion and deliberately pretended to be weak.
Chen Ping was actually quite unjust. He was the real deal at first.
After sitting down in a warm pavilion, after waiting for a while, the head of Ning Mansion came over.
Chen Ping was somewhat surprised that the head of the Ning Mansion could come out. Although he worked in the Ning Mansion back then, he rarely communicated with the head of the Ning family.
Both parties could not help but exchange polite greetings.
After some pleasantries, Chen Ping got straight to the point:
"Senior Ning, the first reason I came here this time is to find out whether your plan to leave the city is as rumored in the city. It would be best if I could be lucky enough to see your route map for leaving the city. Secondly, I also want to Ask for the specific time of your departure."
The head of the Ning family smiled and said:
"The plans circulating in the city are mostly true. If Fellow Daoist Chen wants the sketch of the route, he can take it. It is not something that needs to be kept secret. Many fellow Daoists have asked for it."
"But to be honest, we drew this route based on a little information. It may change at any time during the actual journey, and it cannot be taken seriously."
"As for the departure time, we will set off after the ice melts in spring. When spring comes, it is most convenient for forest migration when the vegetation is not deep."
"..."
The head of the Ning family then introduced some details and asked Steward Wang to bring a book of sketches. Chen Ping’s doubts and questions were all answered.
At the end, the head of the Ning family invited:
"That's probably the case. How about it? Fellow Daoist Chen, would you like to go north out of the city with us?"
He knew Chen Ping's defensive power.
The journey out this time is dangerous, and more combat power means more protection.
Every stage of Qi training deserves attention.
What's more, Chen Ping once worked in Ning Mansion and has no problem with his character. Don’t worry about unforeseen circumstances along the way.
"I'll think about it again." Chen Ping put away the road map and hesitated for the time being.
"There's no rush, just give me an accurate letter a few days before departure. I'll wait for news from fellow Daoist Chen." The head of the Ning family said boldly, and asked his servants to bring some spiritual tea to Chen Ping, and then said:
"The route of our house is north, long and fast. It is not suitable for the early stage of Qi training, and it will be difficult for them to persist. But for the later stage of Qi training, this route is acceptable. Even if Daoyou Chen has not reached the late stage of Qi training, I am afraid it will be Are you hovering on the edge too?"
Before Chen Ping could reply, the head of the Ning family continued:
"As for the route to Liu Mansion, it is a little shorter and is suitable for gambling in the early stages of Qi training. However, the possibility of encountering high-level monsters is equally high, but it is not worth the risk for monks in the later stages of Qi training."
"Fellow Daoist Chen is a smart man. No matter how much I say, I won't say more. I believe Daoyou Chen has his own judgment."
"..."
Chen Ping has naturally considered these things, which is why he chose to come to Ning Mansion first today.
However, he did not immediately reply to the Ning family leader.
Think about it and talk about it.
"..."
The two parties chatted for a while, and then the head of the Ning family left. Manager Wang led Chen Ping out of the inner palace.
When they walked to the outer courtyard, a group of monks were still sitting there, waiting for people from the Ning Mansion to come over and answer their questions.
Go out, leave.
Not far from the street, I saw Chen Ping coming out, and a figure flashed past.
