Sargon followed them at a distance, keeping his presence hidden from the dancing girls while observing his surroundings.
[Interesting, there are a few structures around here that induce a sense of euphoria. It seems that's why if someone dares to take the first step, the environment leads them to the estate…]
However, Sargon, known as the Master of Structures, was not affected by the enticing illusions. He expanded his detection range to become aware of all hidden and apparent dangers.
But nothing came without a cost.
[Damn, I usually leave this stuff to Jia.]
This caused the consumption of his condensed spiritual energy beads to multiply. The cold, metallic eyes of the eagle on his cane glowed blue for a moment.
[I'll have to use some of my real power.]
Thus, he monitored everything within a few miles.
[Oh? I can see Jia. Is she buying a house? How quickly she gets along with that old homeowner. Hahaha, she really looks like a miserable person in those clothes.]
Then he tried to look at other neighborhoods.
[Nothing happening for now. But I can only see up to the entrance. No need to spend too much energy. This is enough.]
He then focused all his attention forward. Tangor's group had almost reached the estate grounds. Drunkenly singing the songs of the beautiful women around them, they staggered forward.
In front of them was a small bridge over a shallow stream; and just beyond that, a hedge intertwined with red flowers extended to the estate entrance. The intoxicating scent of women's perfume mixed with flavored drinks clearly emanated from the estate. From the half-open windows, half-naked women smiled at the group, and some shouted, shaking their silky hair.
Shouts and laughter filled the air. As glasses were raised, the lips of women and men puckered, and the sound of laughter penetrated the heart of every listener.
The estate had several floors, with a sloping tiled roof from which numerous lit lanterns hung.
Sargon moved a little closer and crouched behind the hedges.
[The name Spring Petal Estate is truly fitting here.]
Sargon looked at the flawless grounds, the women's songs, the sound of musical instruments, the intoxicating scent of perfumes, and the tall building surrounded by bonsai trees. Behind the building was a small pond with a floating island built on it.
A thin veil of mist covered the surface, not extending beyond its perimeter.
Sargon clearly sensed the presence of a mist structure there.
[That lake and the island in the middle… hmm, probably a hidden entrance to a basement.]
But he didn't give it much importance. He had other objectives for coming here.
[If the owner of such a place has managed to gather information, then Murim must also be aware of many things. I need to see how much they know and assess the people there. I might find a few spies. But first, I need to address this…]
At that moment, a child's voice called out to Sargon from behind: "Uncle, are you playing hide and seek with those ladies?"
A small, delicate hand tugged at the corner of Sargon's black coat, pointing to the martial artists in the estate's yard.
"Uncle, are you playing hide and seek with those ladies?"
Sargon turned, dropped his cane, and pretended to be blind.
"Ah, who's there? Please… I… I…"
The little girl, seeing the bandage around Sargon's eyes, sighed in relief. "Are you lost, Uncle? I thought you were one of those men who come here to look at the ladies for free. But you can't see anything at all. What are you doing here? I was going to call the ladies, but you don't seem like a bad person."
Sargon seemed a bit flustered. "Ah, young lady, I just wanted to find a place to have a drink. Some bad people took my money to show me the way. But they brought me here, beat me up, and stole a lot from me."
"Yeah, Uncle, Shao Shao knows. The ladies always say there are bad people out there. I have to stay here until I become strong like them one day."
"Hahaha, oh, yes! You're a strong girl. You might be small, but I'm sure you'll become very strong."
"Teeheehee, thank you, Uncle."
"By the way, Shao Shao, can you help this old man find a place to drink? I hid some of my money. If you help me, I'll give you a coin."
"Of course, Uncle! You can always count on Shao Shao." Shao Shao said, jumping up and down with joy.
She tried to lift the cane but found it too heavy to move. Reluctantly, she took Sargon's hand and guided him to the cane. Then she led Sargon towards the Spring Petal Estate.
Sargon kept tapping the ground with the end of his cane to find his way. He had reduced his detection range to 10 meters.
When they entered the estate, all eyes turned towards him.
[What strange clothes he has.]
[Don't only people from the capital wear those clothes?]
[Could he be an influential person from a big clan?]
[Shao Shao?! Why is she holding that man's hand?]
Many thoughts swirled in people's minds. Sargon chuckled inwardly and thought, "Good, is there anyone who is surprised or anxious upon seeing me?"
"Well, Uncle, this is an estate where you can drink. It has several floors where you can stay. The higher you go, the better the services you get." Shao Shao stopped, turned to Sargon, and said.
Sargon detected the presence of protective arrays.
[It seems it's not easy to move from this floor to the next. I'll need to check each floor.]
"Um, Shao Shao. I went through a lot to get here. Don't you think it's a waste to satisfy myself with just a simple drink? Take me to the second floor, and I'll give you another coin!"
"Okay, Uncle!! But I'll take my payment first."
"Hahaha, come here, good girl."
He patted the girl's head.
He checked the second floor in the same manner. When nothing happened, he went up another floor and gave Shao Shao another coin.
The third floor also had nothing. Although it had a beautiful view and lively music, and from up there, the view of the lake behind the estate, the fantasy trees, the wild forest, and the mountains was very pleasant.
Finally, they reached the fourth floor. There, it was no longer a large room. The fourth floor had several separate rooms. Each room was protected by a structure that prevented the transmission of sound and any other information.
[It must be here.]
"Little girl, I think this is it. Bring me a bottle of cold drink and some food. But please, no company in the room to disturb me."
He said this and handed four coins to the girl.
[There are two more floors above. One must belong to the master of the estate, and the other is likely a special residence. That group is probably in one of these rooms. So, I need to design a spying structure. I have to infiltrate each room without anyone noticing and then eavesdrop. But the condensed spiritual energy bead doesn't have much power left. I need an array that doesn't attract attention. Which array should I use?]
The room was surrounded by a spatial magic that made it appear as a large and spacious hall; in reality, the actual size of the room was the big, but it had been minimized as much as possible using magic.
Sargon sat at the head of the hall. When Shao Shao left, he struck his cane on the ground and expanded the detection array.
[Mana stone?]
Mana was something widely used in magic. Seeing such a valuable item in a brothel was a bit unusual. Sargon followed the energy flow and used rune magic to insert his spiritual aura into the mana stone.
[Now that I have access to the mana stone, I can expand the aura and find all the spaces related to the mana stone. If it weren't for the mana stone, I would have had to search each room with separate arrays, which would have been a nightmare. Although I'll have to consume the entire condensed spiritual energy bead, it's worth it if I can get good information from this man.]
Meanwhile, Mr. Tangor and his companions were sitting in a luxurious and exclusive room, surrounded by musicians and performers. They continuously drank and enjoyed the scent of incense. They admired the beautiful paintings hanging on the room's walls and felt satisfied that they had accepted Tangor's invitation.
[Tangor, you bastard, it seems your business, which you complained about so much, isn't doing too badly.]
[You snake! We're all struggling to make ends meet, and here you are, living in a royal palace!]
[Tangor, this guy really knows the market. Even in this recession, he's managed to build such a grand estate for himself.]
Conflicting thoughts swirled in their minds. However, they all agreed on one thing: Tangor was not a simple man. They hadn't expected such an estate, which could rival the best hotels and inns in the neighborhood, to exist quietly in this corner of the forest.
[So how come we haven't heard of the Spring Petal Estate?]
They were aware of the estate's existence but didn't know how it had progressed so much over time.
[So could he really know something?]
This thought crossed their minds. When they raised their glasses, none of them showed the worry and doubt they had about Tangor.
"Alright, Tangor, don't you think it's time to get down to business?"
Mr. Tangor stroked his mustache and nodded: "Right, right."
The attendees perked up their ears and waited for Mr. Tangor to reveal what he knew.
"Before I say anything, you should know that nothing from this room should leave."
Then he motioned for the girls to leave the room. The white smoke rising from the incense swirled around itself like a whirlwind and rose. That white smoke created a delicate veil between them, partially obscuring their faces.
"The city of Fei-Yun was considered a commercial hub, even protected by several immortals. However, that city was targeted by Morim. It was there that Morim declared its open war against the developed world."
"Well, we know that! Is there anyone who doesn't know that battle was the starting point of the Murim war series?"
Mr. Tangor laughed: "Hahaha… But the scale of that battle wasn't limited to Murim. That war went far beyond the mortal realm. It's said that the Heavenly Tribulation and the Heavenly Kings were also present there."
"Hahaha, of course, the Heavenly Kings would intervene! The blood of immortals was spilled in that city!"
Another member sneered: "You fool! Do the Heavenly Kings descend from heaven for a few weak immortals?!"
[He's right. Moreover, the Heavenly Tribulation also occurred. So something beyond the death of immortals caused this chaos.]
Mr. Tangor laughed: "haha... What caused the chaos in the laws of heaven was the resurrection of a zombie!"
"It seems someone who should have been dead came back to life." He looked at the confused faces of the attendees and continued.
One of the attendees broke the heavy atmosphere by slamming his glass on the table: "But what does this have to do with the Sword Sect?!"
"This is where it gets interesting. They found the daughter of the sect leader in that city. They say her clothes were torn, her body bruised; they had even cut out her tongue!!"
"She was pale and wandered among the ruins like a madwoman, searching for something. There was terror in her eyes. And a white fox accompanied her. Apparently, this was the work of an infiltrator in the city of Fei-Yun who followed the Reactionary Murim. No one knows why they took the girl, but they probably wanted to keep her as a hostage to ensure the Sword Sect wouldn't interfere in the battle."
"But a mistake happens, and the girl falls into the hands of one of the demons and ends up in that state. When the battle begins, she manages to escape and…" another said.
Mr. Tangor interrupted the man. "She didn't manage to escape. She was saved; by that same zombie!"
[A zombie saved the daughter of the Sword Sect leader?!]
"That's why I said it wasn't an ordinary zombie. Even if I didn't know this, the occurrence of the Heavenly Tribulation showed how special that zombie was!"
Everyone nodded in agreement. They were hearing this shocking news for the first time. They stared at each other in astonishment and fell silent for a while.
Sargon was amazed.
[The manager of a brothel is so well-informed about the outside world. That man's information network isn't simple. I shouldn't underestimate him.]
[Hmm, should I kill him and destroy this place? Or should I get close and use him? If he dies, and there's a powerful person behind this, they'll just replace him with another pawn. Cutting off the lizard's tail won't hurt it.]
He deactivated the array and poured himself a drink. He fell into deep thought. The situation was more complicated than he had imagined. More variables were at play in this game, and he couldn't predict the future.
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End of the first volume