Seeing Yuan Ming hesitate, Zhuo Lingling thought that the price was too high and that Yuan Ming was considering giving up. However, she didn’t want to let this business slip away for nothing. After thinking for a moment, she smiled and said, “Young Master Yuan, how many bottles of Jinhua Pill do you plan to buy?”

“Fifteen bottles,” Yuan Ming replied.

When Zhuo Lingling heard the number fifteen, her breathing became slightly faster. In her heart, she couldn’t help but think that this Young Master Yuan from the Central Plains was her benefactor!

In the previous transaction, she had already earned a lot of commission. Seeing another big deal, how could she let it slip away from her?

“Young Master Yuan, our Changxian Tower has always valued and treated customers like you. On behalf of our Changxian Tower, I present you with a Changxian Token. With this token, you can enjoy preferential treatment in any of our Changxian Tower shops and have priority purchasing rights for all the goods sold. In addition, you can also participate in the internal auctions held exclusively for special customers of our Changxian Tower,” Zhuo Lingling said in one breath, lowering her voice slightly with a mysterious tone.

Upon hearing this, Yuan Ming snapped back to his senses.

“In that case, it’s not in vain that I trust your tower,” Yuan Ming said calmly.

Zhuo Lingling was overjoyed to hear this and quickly took out a white jade token. She handed it over with both hands.

Yuan Ming took a look at it and found that one side of the token was engraved with the image of an ancient Taoist temple, while the other side had the words “Changxian Token” carved on it. The material was not particularly special, but it was exquisite enough.

Afterwards, he paid for the “Jinhua Pill” and left Changxian Tower under Zhuo Lingling’s respectful send-off.

After buying the medicine, he only had three hundred spirit stones left on him. It wasn’t a lot, but it wasn’t too little either. Yuan Ming planned to wander around the city and see if he could find anything interesting.

Most importantly, he wanted to see if he could help Xiying buy another artifact similar to the golden silk.

As he walked through the two markets, he noticed that the shops hadn’t changed much, but the stalls of the small vendors had changed a lot. The Xuanhua Zhenren who sold Qingxuan Incense in the past was no longer in his original location. Yuan Ming wondered where he had gone.

He wandered around until evening, but he didn’t come across anything he wanted to buy.

Feeling a sudden craving, Yuan Ming came to a famous restaurant in the south of the city called “Shanzhen Tower”.

This was the most famous restaurant in the entire Heiyan City. The ingredients used in their dishes were mostly spiritual herbs, spiritual materials, and rare wild beasts. Through the special cooking techniques of the chefs, the dishes often had some beneficial effects for cultivators.

But what really made it famous was its exquisite taste. After all, if you really wanted the beneficial effects, it would be more reliable to eat pills.

As soon as he entered the restaurant, a waiter immediately greeted him and led him to the second floor to a private room.

But as soon as Yuan Ming stepped onto the stairs, he saw a middle-aged man with a dignified appearance but a gentle expression.

“Huan Shi, my friend,” Yuan Ming exclaimed in surprise.

At the moment the man on the other side saw Yuan Ming, he was also extremely surprised and said, “Ha Gong, my friend?”

Huan Shi also recognized Yuan Ming at a glance.

“Do you two know each other?” the waiter hesitated and asked.

“Go and bring the ‘Baili Drunk’ that I stored here, and you don’t need to worry about anything else,” Huan Shi instructed before leading Yuan Ming back to his own private room.

There was another person in the private room, and it was Bai Ye.

Unlike his imposing appearance when they first met, he now had a furrowed brow and a clear look of worry on his face.

When Huan Shi led Yuan Ming back, Bai Ye’s face also showed surprise.

After some greetings and when the waiter brought the wine, and the dishes were ready on the table, Huan Shi got up and closed the door, taking out a “Soundproof Talisman” and sticking it on the door.

As the talisman lit up, the whole room was immediately enveloped in a faint white light that expanded.

“Ha Gong, did you come to Heiyan City today to take on another mission?” Huan Shi asked as he greeted Yuan Ming to eat while taking the initiative to speak.

“Just here to purchase some pills,” Yuan Ming shook his head and smiled.

Upon hearing this, both Bai Ye and Huan Shi looked at each other and couldn’t help but show surprise when they sensed the changes in Yuan Ming’s aura.

Huan Shi’s expression became complicated, and he asked, “Ha Gong, it hasn’t been three months since we parted ways. How did your cultivation and aura change so much?”

Yuan Ming was stunned when he heard this. Their relationship wasn’t particularly close, so under normal circumstances, they shouldn’t be so straightforward in asking about this matter.

But after thinking for a moment, he understood.

Huan Shi and Bai Ye must have thought that when they participated in the Snake King Valley mission more than two months ago, Yuan Ming deliberately concealed his true cultivation level. What was revealed today was his true realm.

“You don’t need to guess. After the battle in Snake King Valley, both my combat experience and cultivation insights have undergone significant changes. After returning, I immediately went into seclusion, otherwise I wouldn’t have made such great progress,” Yuan Ming said.

Upon hearing this, both of them felt that if Yuan Ming really had the ability to hide his cultivation level, he wouldn’t have revealed it this time.

“With such cultivation speed, Ha Gong, your talent is truly extraordinary. We are all far behind,” Huan Shi couldn’t help but sigh.

“Ha Gong, do you remember the proposal we made to you last time?” Bai Ye asked.

“What proposal?” Yuan Ming really had no recollection.

“Inviting you to join our Baiye Alliance and become our second vice leader,” Bai Ye said.

Huan Shi was somewhat surprised to hear this and glanced at Bai Ye.

Yuan Ming thought that there was indeed an invitation for him to join, but he didn’t remember being asked to be the vice leader.

“I understand the goodwill of the Alliance Leader, but as you should both know, I have a sect inheritance and cannot join your alliance,” Yuan Ming said with a hint of regret.

“In that case… it’s a pity,” Bai Ye sighed.”How is the situation of the Baiye Alliance now?” Yuan Ming asked as the topic was brought up.

Baiye and Huan Shi both showed a look of difficulty, but neither of them spoke first.

“Both of you, as the leaders of the alliance, are Foundation Establishment cultivators and conduct your business fairly and honestly. With such conduct, there’s no need to worry about your future prospects,” Yuan Ming comforted.

“During the last battle in the Snake King Valley, the Baiye Alliance suffered heavy losses, with all the core members who were brought along perishing there. Now, the remaining members are severely lacking in combat power. The situation is indeed dire,” Huan Shi sighed.

“If it weren’t for Brother Ha Gong’s willingness to exchange the snake pearl, we would have had a hard time completing the mission for Bailong Island. If the mission had failed, all the reputation we had accumulated would have been lost,” Baiye added.

“However, the young master of their island personally came, and as a result…” Huan Shi’s voice trailed off, not finishing his sentence.

What he left unsaid was the fact that the young master of Bailong Island had been killed.

Baiye, however, had no such reservations. “Because the young master was killed, Bailong Island is very wary of this mission. Even though we completed the task and received the due reward, we still fell out with Bailong Island.”

Upon hearing this, Yuan Ming finally understood the difficult situation the Baiye Alliance was in.

They had suffered heavy losses, lacked talent within the alliance, offended their client, and their reputation was damaged to a certain extent. It was a great loss indeed.

No wonder they were willing to offer Yuan Ming, a Qi Refining cultivator, the position of deputy leader of the alliance to win him over.

“Enough about these troubles. Today, we two brothers came here to drown our sorrows in wine and temporarily put aside these disturbing matters,” Huan Shi said with a wry smile, opening the jar of “Hundred Days Drunk” and pouring a cup for Yuan Ming.

The intoxicating aroma immediately filled the air, making Yuan Ming’s eyes light up.

“This wine has a rich and fragrant aroma, and a mellow taste. It’s truly a rare fine wine,” Yuan Ming praised after taking a small sip.

“Haha, Brother Ha Gong has a discerning palate. This is a fine wine that has been cellared for over a hundred years. The stock at ‘Mountain Delicacies’ is limited and it’s not usually for sale,” Huan Shi laughed.

“Then I must savor it,” Yuan Ming quickly took another big gulp.

The three of them toasted and drank, their spirits gradually rising.

“Big brother, I think we should just stop struggling. Since Po Xiao has the intention to recruit us, why don’t we just go? The compensation is quite generous, it’s not a loss,” Huan Shi gradually loosened up and spoke directly.

“Po Xiao only wants the strong. They explicitly recruit only you and me. They probably won’t want the Qi Refining members under us,” Baiye remained calm and shook his head.

“Let’s talk about it. Everything can be discussed. What’s wrong with being in the Qi Refining stage? Brother Ha Gong is also in the Qi Refining stage. I dare not underestimate him. Po Xiao does have high requirements, but this time they clearly want to expand on a large scale. I think it’s an opportunity,” Huan Shi shrugged and said.

Upon hearing this, Baiye fell into deep thought.

“Po Xiao is…” Yuan Ming hesitated to ask.

“It’s also a loose alliance, but much stronger than our Baiye. They always act mysteriously and their strength is unfathomable. So far, they have never failed in any mission they have taken,” Huan Shi explained.

Upon hearing this, Yuan Ming nodded thoughtfully.

“The key is that no one understands this organization. They don’t even know the number and composition of their members. They can only learn from some rumors that their style is unique and different from others,” Baiye also spoke.

“Oh, how unique?” Yuan Ming asked in confusion.

“It is said that they accept missions to hunt down vicious Foundation Establishment cultivators, as well as missions to help people find missing relatives. They even committed a shocking extermination case in the central part of Nanjiang… In short, no one can figure out the pattern of their mission selection,” Huan Shi answered.

Upon hearing this, Yuan Ming, like Baiye and the others, came to a consensus in his mind: “Po Xiao, this organization, is mysterious, powerful, has a unique style, and is difficult to distinguish between good and evil.”