Once he was done, Cao Yun realized he still had a few days before the martial art exhibition in the Yun residence. Thus, he could walk around the city and use this time to get other things ready. It had been a while since he had gone to see Hongyu and he wanted to make sure that everything was okay. Besides, Yong Ke was out of town and would probably only be back by the time Cao Yun was ready to act. And Yun Ping was obviously busy with his family.
Apart from cultivating, Cao Yun had almost nothing to do. Right now, his preparations had to wait until he could figure out precisely where Gu Song's laboratory was. Despite his best efforts, there were array formations preventing him from clearly isolating either Xue Rui or Gu Song's presence. He could feel faint traces of Evil Qi that were seeping through those array formations as Evil Qi was corrosive and hard to contain or control. However, he could not tell exactly where they were. Of course, with Dian Mo's help and knowledge, he could take down some of those array formations. But that would defeat his purpose since his goal was to be discreet about it.
In fact, he had thought about it as a last resort. Maybe if he broke down every single array formation around the Xue estate, this would reveal Gu Song's presence. At the very least, it would give a reason for others to intervene. General Yun might even pretend that he thought this was an attack on the city, hence justifying his intervention. But then Cao Yun was faced with the same problem. If Gu Song was killed or captured, he would lose his source of information.
If the Imperial City got to him, Cao Yun would never obtain his answers. But even if someone else captured him, Gu Song probably had seals in him like many demonic cultivators and everything he was looking for would be consumed. Apart from Cao Yun, no one in Qingyun City could unravel those seals. But Cao Yun would have a hard time explaining how he could do it. Anyway, this would be a last resort indeed.
Cao Yun was thinking about that while he was walking toward the outskirt of the city. He directly went to the stables where Hongyu was.
Hongyu was very happy where she was as she could roam freely most of the times. She even could go hunting whenever she wanted to. Slowly, her fifth core was also taking form. Of course, it would be months or even years before it was fully developed and it could completely balance out the evil core. But it was slowly putting it under check. Thanks to Cao Yun's attention and this fifth core, her evil core was now very calm. The fact that she had no reason to use it was also helping a lot.
In a situation of crisis, if she had to try and use the Evil Qi in her evil core, she would suffer the consequences. But as long as she was letting it rest, it was not a danger for her anymore. It had been a long time since she had been forced to consume her own blood essence to keep it from harming her. However this was still a dormant threat in her body and it weighed on her mind as much as it did Cao Yun.
When the young man came to visit her, she was overjoyed and accepted everything he did to her for she knew it was for her own good. Extracting some tiny drops of blood from her, Cao Yun tried to meddle with it using his newly acquired expertise. As his blood cultivation was progressing, he had a deeper knowledge of demonic beasts as well. After all, their cultivation was closer to the demon cultivation rather than the human one. Using his fire and his Rune of Fire in combination with the intent of the Drop of Wrath, he tried to refine those drops of blood. In the end, he realized that the effect was limited but Hongyu's blood was a bit more resilient and could resist the flow of Evil Qi around her evil core. In other words, he was on the right track.
After spending some more time with Hongyu to make sure that everything was fine with her, he even flew on her back for some leisure. For now, everything he had put in motion seemed to go well. But soon, he would have to go faster. Until now, he had just made sure that all the information he had gotten was true and accurate and that all the pieces were in place. The main point of his current actions was to attract Gu Song's attention in a specific way. There was also the matter of discovering exactly where he was of course. Cang Yin might be useful for that even though he didn't entirely trust her. In fact, he barely trusted her but she had a good incentive to help him right now. However, he had to think of other means to get that piece of intel.
In order to think, Cao Yun decided to take some time for himself and went back to the Red Realm's Banquet Hall.
-
As was his habit, Cao Yun walked into the Red Realm's Banquet Hall with his head high. Unlike what he could look like as Cao Yun, as Guai Mo, he truly looked like a haughty alchemist. Some of the servers were even a bit afraid of him. Offending such a character was a death sentence of sorts for them. Even the slightest remark from him and nobody would ever hire them anywhere. Since they were servers, it meant that their cultivation was weak or nonexistent. Sadly, not everyone could become a great cultivator. Many simply didn't get the resources or the time. And others were wounded, or had bodies that were harder to cultivate. For example, Ren Chao's physique had made his cultivation slower all his life.
The paradox was that the servers working here to gain enough resources to cultivate couldn't find the time to do so because they had to keep working. In the end, it became easier to just ignore their aspirations and live their everyday life to the fullest. With some pills and enough funds, they might even live almost two centuries. This wasn't bad. For young people, this was plenty of time after all.
The head waiter immediately recognized Guai Mo and bowed toward him.
"Venerable alchemist, your usual table is ready. I'll call for Liu Jiang to serve you right away."
With just a small nod of his head, Cao Yun answered and kept walking toward his table. Since the incident with Xue Rui, no one dared to cause a scene with Guai Mo. The feud between the two was a bit too much for just anyone to interfere. Even those who wanted to have good relations with the Xue family didn't want to antagonize a Human alchemist either.
For a few minutes, he drank with the beautiful Liu Jiang at his side. She was delighted by his visit. Not only could she earn a lot with this customer, she wasn't afraid that he would make a move on her. As he was enjoying his liquor, the beautiful server began to detail the new dishes the cooks had imagined since his last visit. Before he could place an order though, someone entered the restaurant and caught Cao Yun's attention. This man was Jiahe Ruo, accompanied by the same two bodyguards he had seen him with in the Governor's residence.
As noble families within the Imperial City were both very close to power and in perpetual danger, they were always conniving to ensure their safety and that they would keep their influence and power. Even if Jiahe Ruo was not in the Imperial City right now, he still had this mentality and Cao Yun could see it in his eyes right away. He hadn't come in the Red Realm's Banquet Hall just to dine, he had come for him. As soon as their gazes met, Jiahe Ruo walked toward Cao Yun without paying any mind to everything else. The head waiter who was about to welcome him understood this very quickly and bowed politely without speaking a word.
"Fellow cultivator, my name is Jiahe Ruo. This is an honor to meet you. I've heard so much about your greatness. You will surely become a king among alchemists of your generation. You might even open a new page of the history of alchemy in the Hongchen Kingdom. After Spirit Masters Xiao and Hua, there will be Spirit Master Guai."
"Mister Jiahe, you praise me a bit too much. For now, I am but a Human alchemist. It will still take me a few years before becoming a Heaven alchemist. But, please, take a seat, I was about to order some delicacies."
Jiahe Ruo was a bit astonished. The way Cao Yun was speaking, it was already a matter of fact that he would become a Heaven alchemist. And it almost sounded like he was going to go even higher after that. Although his words were not too overbearing, Jiahe Ruo understood immediately why people claimed that he was a bit too arrogant. Thankfully, he seemed to know what he could say and what he should keep quiet. This was a good quality to have, especially when engaged in politics. And whether Guai Mo knew it or not, he had been engaged in a political game since the day he had stepped foot in this city.
"Oh, Brother Guai, thank you for your generous offer. But since I disturb you, it is only natural for me to invite you. Order whatever you desire."
"Are you sure about this, Mister Jiahe? I wouldn't want to cost you too much..."
"Don't worry, Brother. I can stomach a lot!"
Cao Yun had the air of someone trying to be considerate but Jiahe Ruo almost took that as an insult. Of course, as an alchemist, Cao Yun had a lot of money, but surely the Governor's son could also pay for a single diner. Well, Cao Yun had learned to never refuse a gift. He had no qualm with Jiahe Ruo, so he had offered him an opportunity to rescind his so generous offer. Since he had decided otherwise, Cao Yun would not hold back at all. Besides, he could somewhat guess what this self-important character was after. Because Cao Yun had a poor image of his father, he had to admit that it was also tainting his son. But he had never heard anything too negative about him. From what he had discovered, Jiahe Ruo was not a particularly distasteful fellow at all.
"Well, since Mister Jiahe is so generous, it would be insulting to reject your kind offer. Miss Liu, all your suggestions were very enticing I must say. In order to celebrate my first meeting Mister Jiahe, I will order every dish you suggested."
Jiahe Ruo was quite pleased with this answer. In fact, he was even proud of himself at the moment. Of course, he was playing a long political game but everyone in his position was. After all, Cao Yun knew that both Sect Leader Xuan and Matriarch Huang were also playing politics with him. But he could still tell that Sect Leader Xuan had more sincerity. Right now, Jiahe Ruo had very little sincerity. To be fair, they had just met. Maybe this meal would be the occasion to test his sincerity.
"Are you sure, esteemed guest?"
Liu Jiang was a bit hesitant, but she also had a favorable opinion of Jiahe Ruo and she tried to spare him.
"What are you talking about?! My friend finds your suggestions appetizing, what more do you need?"
Jiahe Ruo was in a good mood so he only teased the young waiter jokingly. But she knew better than to make him repeat himself. As such, she quickly stopped protesting. But she knew that poor Jiahe Ruo was in for a surprise. As the son of the Governor, he had some funds, but he was nowhere as rich as that prodigal Guai Mo. The alchemist had already thrown away a string of a thousand coins, the equivalent of an entire tael of gold, just for her because she had waited on him.
No one knew that the True Essence pills rumors were talking about had all been refined and sold by Cao Yun. Since he had already refined a few of them, he was set for a long time. Even if he stopped producing them, and he had little to no reason to do so as long as he didn't flood the market, he would still receive a huge amount of money. A single tael of gold was nothing. Before the Alchemy Conference, he was certain he could win dozens of Yuanbao, if not hundreds of them. For Cao Yun, money was not a problem any longer.
Besides, he had to admit that he had grown fond of the dishes served in that restaurant. Maybe he should also visit the restaurants of the Imperial City when he went for the Alchemy Conference. Because he was used to traveling a lot and being trapped in other worlds, Cao Yun was also used to eating unsavory food. At first, he had come to this restaurant for other purposes, but in the end, delicacies were such a treat, he simply could not pass on them now that he had some free time.
Even the kitchen was surprised by the order. He had decided to take every single item she had suggested, that would be a lot. All of a sudden, the kitchen got even busier than usual. Guai Mo was known by all and they certainly didn't want to disappoint him. While the kitchen personnel was working with all the might they could muster, Jiahe Ruo was discussing some matters with Cao Yun.
"Brother Guai, I heard that you've had some trouble with Brother Xue. Listen, I know that he can be a bit difficult to reason with. But I implore Brother to be patient with him. Recently, he's been under a lot of stress. I'm convinced that if we put you two together in the same room, I could help you mend your relation. There is no reason for any grudge or enmity. You are both alchemists of our great Hongchen Kingdom. And the upcoming competition will determine who the better alchemist is. There is no need to blow this competition out of proportion, right? I'm sure Brother Guai is certain of his victory, so forming a grudge with Brother Xue is ridiculous, right?"
"Mister Jiahe, this is a rare occurrence for me, but I will prevent you from being ridiculed. I have no intention of mending my relationship with Xue Rui. There is no relationship between me and him. He is just a stepping stone on my path, nothing more. Since you're being so generous with me today, I'll do you a huge favor. No matter what benefits you think you might gain from Xue Rui, you won't. Cut him loose as soon as you can if you know what's good for you."