Nine Transformations of the True Spirit

Yuzhou has five counties under its jurisdiction, among which Xin'an County is the most prosperous.

Among Xin'an counties, Xinyang County, which is attached to Guo, is the most prosperous, and people are accustomed to calling it the county town.

It takes two days to get from Leping County to the county town. On the way, it passes through Changning and Fuquan counties. The road is wide, the public security is good, and there is an endless stream of caravans coming and going.

Chen Yuan spent the night in Xiaoxing, galloping on horseback, and arrived at the county town in only a day and a half.

Wei Wuding gave him seven days, but he couldn't really wait until the seventh day.

The county town is much more prosperous than Leping County. Three-story buildings can be seen everywhere on the streets. Horse-drawn carriages and soft sedans are often seen on the streets. Many pedestrians wear satin and cotton-padded clothes with rosy complexions.

Chen Yuan led his horse and walked all the way to Chongxinfang in the west of the city.

This is the headquarters of the Fuhu Gang, and all four gates are guarded.

Chen Yuan came to the north gate and showed his waist badge. The guard immediately put on a smile.

After Chen Yuan broke through to Bone Refining, he changed his waist cards once. These guards were only in the Skin Refining realm, so they were naturally respectful to him.

After the guard showed the way, Chen Yuan found the entrance of Baibingtang and explained his purpose.

A member of the gang led the way and led Chen Yuan to a school field.

On the school grounds, Wei Wuding was leading thirty warriors to practice boxing and martial arts.

Seeing Chen Yuan's arrival, Wei Wuding signaled everyone to practice martial arts on their own, then took Chen Yuan to a side room and asked:

"Has the family settled down?"

Chen Yuan replied:

"It's already settled. My parents were worried and kept me at home for a few days. I came a little late. Please forgive me, deacon."

Wei Wuding smiled and said:

"My son has traveled thousands of miles and my mother is worried. This is human nature. I gave you seven days. Today is only the sixth day. You are not slow to come. But now that you have come to the county, you can't leave without reason. A real man is ambitious in all directions and works hard." Only by doing things can you have a good future.”

"Yes, Erniu will obey the deacon's instructions!"

Wei Wuding smiled and nodded, took out a jade bottle from his arms, handed it to Chen Yuan, and said:

"This is the marrow refining pill that the hall master rewarded you after I reported your merits. You can take it."

Chen Yuan said with great joy:

"Thank you, deacon, for the reward!"

He took the Marrow Refining Pill with both hands and wanted to uncork the bottle and take a look, then put his hand down, but still held the jade bottle tightly and kept glancing up.

Wei Wuding laughed and said:

"Open it and take a look, in case there is something wrong with the elixir, it won't be clear."

Chen Yuan smiled coquettishly, opened the jade bottle, poured the elixir into the palm of his hand, looked at the small and round elixir, smelled the rich fragrance of elixir in his nose, and looked at it eagerly.

The market price of the Marrow Refining Pill is more than one hundred taels of silver. As the name suggests, it can help warriors break through the Marrow Refining Realm and is extremely precious.

"Have you seen enough?"

Wei Wuding's ridicule woke up Chen Yuan.

He quickly put the elixir back into the jade bottle, put it in his arms, and smiled sheepishly.

But Wei Wuding didn't care. It was precisely because Chen Yuan was straightforward and easy to control that he valued Chen Yuan so much.

"You have great strength, and your physical body must be strong enough. I will give you seven days. After taking this elixir, you should have no problem breaking through the marrow refining. Then I can arrange errands for you."

Chen Yuan responded respectfully:

"yes."

Then, he called Yu Zhenchuan from the school grounds and asked him to take Chen Yuan to settle down first.

Looking at Chen Yuan's leaving figure, Wei Wuding said softly:

"Er Niu, don't let me down, otherwise..."

…

Yu Zhenchuan and Chen Yuan had known each other since they were in Zhuangzi, and they had personally watched him kill Jiang Feng. They also knew that Wei Wuding valued Chen Yuan and his attitude was extremely enthusiastic.

He led Chen Yuan through several alleys and came to the door of a small courtyard in the northeast corner of Chongxinfang and said:

"Junior Brother Chen, this is the residence arranged for you by Deacon Wei. I happen to live next door. We will be neighbors from now on. We will take care of each other..."

This small courtyard is similar to Chen Yuan's small courtyard in Leping County. It has a main room and a side room, but there is an extra toilet. There are weapon racks and a stone table in the courtyard, but there is no old locust tree. .

Chen Yuan put his luggage in the main room, and Yu Zhenchuan enthusiastically helped Chen Yuan clean it up.

Chen Yuan refused, but Yu Zhenchuan insisted on it, so he had no choice but to accept the offer.

After cleaning, Yu Zhenchuan accompanied Chen Yuan to get cotton-padded clothes, quilts, food boxes, buckets and other daily necessities. It was already dusk.

Yu Zhenchuan raised his head and glanced at the sunset on the horizon, and said:

"It's getting late. Junior Brother Chen came from Leping County. He must be hungry too. I invite you to Cuiyun Tower for a drink, so that you can catch the wind and wash away the dust."

Chen Yuan declined:

"Senior brother, I'm so busy working for me. How can I ask you to pay for it again? It's better for me to do it."

"Hey, I'm a landlord..."

"Senior brother, don't refuse. It's settled. I still have something to ask your senior brother for advice. Senior brother must give me this face."

Seeing Chen Yuan's firm attitude, Yu Zhenchuan smiled heartily and agreed:

"Okay, let me spend the money once, junior brother, and I'll pay for it next time!"

…

Chen Yuan locked the door and, under the guidance of Yu Zhenchuan, walked through the streets and alleys to a busy street in the south of the city.

There are many small two- and three-story buildings on the street, hung with colorful lanterns with signboards, lighting up the bluestone road below.

Pedestrians crowded around on the street, chatting and laughing.

Occasionally, a horse-drawn carriage and sedan chair passed by, and the coachman and sedan bearer raised their voices, begging the people in front of them to get out of the way. The tone was long and melodious, like singing a song.

Yu Zhenchuan introduced while walking:

"On this east street, there is no shortage of restaurants, brothels, gouran tile houses, and bank shops. No matter what you want to buy, this is the right place. Although the Cuiyun Building we went to today is not as good as the Huixian Building , but it is also one of the top three restaurants in the county. Its signature roasted mutton has no smell at all. I promise you will swallow it all..."

Yu Zhenchuan kept talking and led Chen Yuan to a three-story restaurant.

As soon as the two of them entered the door, the waiter hurriedly came up to greet them:

"Master Yu, you are here, please come upstairs!"

With the servant leading the way, Chen Yuan and Yu Zhenchuan walked up to the second floor and sat down in a box.

The boy nodded and bowed:

"Master Yu, what are you going to eat today? Is it the same as before, or is it something new?"

Yu Zhenchuan looked at Chen Yuan and said:

"Junior Brother Chen, look..."

Chen Yuan waved his hand and said:

"It's just arranged by Senior Brother Yu."

Yu Zhenchuan turned to look at the boy and ordered:

"Still the old rules, four meat and four vegetables, twenty white flour pancakes, but replace the roasted mutton with a large portion, add a pot of Cuiyun brew, let's go!"

"Okay, you two wait a moment!"

The boy walked out of the box, and after a while, he pushed the door in with a large tray.

He put down two pots of wine, two wine cups, a plate of dried fruits, a plate of broad beans, a plate of side dishes, and a plate of braised beef, and said with a smile:

"Master Yu, Master Chen, this is a snack given to you by our restaurant. You two can drink it first."

Yu Zhenchuan waved his hand, the waiter poured wine for the two of them, and then respectfully left.

Yu Zhenchuan raised his wine cup and said:

"Junior Brother Chen, try this Cuiyun Brewing. This is Cuiyun Tower's own brew. It is mellow and intoxicating. You can't drink this good stuff outside."

Chen Yuan didn't like drinking, but he didn't refuse Yu Zhenchuan's kindness. He picked up the wine cup, drank it all in one gulp, and praised:

“Good wine!”

"Haha, junior brother is really happy. Come on, come on, I'll give you a toast to congratulate junior brother on joining the main hall. You and I work under Deacon Wei, and we have to help each other in the future..."

The two exchanged cups, chatted and laughed, and the dishes were slowly served and placed on the table.

"Come, junior brother, try this roasted mutton. It's charred on the outside and tender on the inside. There's also this golden tripe soup and two-colored kidneys, which are also the signatures of Cuiyun Tower..."

Yu Zhenchuan kept saying hello and telling some anecdotes about the Fuhu Gang, very enthusiastically.

After eating for a while, Chen Yuan put down his chopsticks, played with the wine glass in his hand, and said with a smile:

"Senior brother, I first came to the county and I don't understand anything. I don't even know how the gang halls are divided. I would like to ask my senior brother to give me some advice, so as not to cause any trouble in the future and cause trouble to Deacon Wei."

Yu Zhenchuan drank most of the pot of Cuiyun brew, his cheeks were slightly red, and he was in a good mood after drinking and eating enough. He smiled and said:

"Then I will give my junior brother a good explanation. The gang is divided into three branches: Baibingtang, Shennongtang, and Law Enforcement Hall. Our Baibingtang is engaged in the iron business and has dealings with bandits, garrisons, trading houses, and powerful people. He has the best business and the strongest strength. The leader of the hall, Hou Yan, is a master at the pinnacle of strength. He is highly respected and has high seniority. Even Gang Leader Luo has to respect him. "

"Shennongtang is engaged in the business of medicinal materials and elixirs. The essence-nourishing elixir we received is made by Shennongtang. If you want to buy elixirs, I know a few senior brothers from Shennongtang who can help you connect."

"The Law Enforcement Hall has the smallest number of people, but the greatest power. If anyone in the gang violates the gang rules, they must be handed over to the Law Enforcement Hall for punishment. They must not offend. However, we obey the orders of Deacon Wei, and Deacon Wei is the disciple of Hall Master Hou, that is. The gang leader also praised him a lot. Even the people in the Law Enforcement Hall have to give away some face to Deacon Wei, but there is no need to worry too much..."

Yu Zhenchuan's eloquent talk gave Chen Yuan a clear understanding of the Fuhu Gang.

Baibing Hall and Shennong Hall each have one hall master and two deputy hall masters, all of whom are Gang Jin warriors; three deacons, who are Nei Jin warriors; and several stewards and escort leaders, all of whom are marrow refinement warriors.

The Law Enforcement Hall is a bit special. There are six internal strength deacons and thirty law enforcement disciples, all of whom are marrow refining warriors. There are fewer gang members in the skin refining realm.

After Yu Zhenchuan finished speaking, he finished his meal.

The two of them went downstairs to pay the bill. Chen Yuan took out the money, but the waiter said that Yu Zhenchuan had already paid the bill when he went to the toilet on the way.

Chen Yuan complained that Yu Zhenchuan was "unfaithful", but Yu Zhenchuan said that when Chen Yuan first came to the county, there was no reason for him to treat him, so Chen Yuan gave up.

When the two of them walked out of Cuiyun Tower, it was already dark and the moon was in the sky.

There were only a few pedestrians on the East Street, and most of the lanterns on the street were dimmed. There were only a few brothel entrances, which were still bustling with people.

Yu Zhenchuan wanted to take Chen Yuan to a brothel to have fun, but Chen Yuan had a previous life experience and was afraid of this matter. He was afraid of contracting the disease. After several refusals, Yu Zhenchuan had no choice but to give up.

Just as the two turned to leave, a shout came over:

"You dare to fight back? Break their legs for me!"

Chen Yuan turned around and saw two groups of people fighting with sticks in an alley.

There were more than a dozen people in one group, and only six people in the other group. However, the party with more people was obviously at a disadvantage, and nearly half of them were lying on the ground.

Chen Yuan didn't want to meddle in other people's business, so he quickened his pace and walked forward.

Yu Zhenchuan drank most of the pot of Cuiyun Brew and was slightly tipsy. He glanced at it lazily and didn't pay attention.

But the two groups also saw Chen Yuan and Yu Zhenchuan. One of the people in the larger group suddenly shouted:

"Senior Brother Yu, help! These bastards from the Sanjiang Gang are going to break our legs!"

Yu Zhenchuan let out a sigh, blinked, looked intently, and then shouted:

“Stop it! You bastard, how dare you hit someone from the Fuhu Gang!”