Confucian and Taoist scholar

Chapter 441 Dahang Chamber of Commerce
The aura emanating from the Yin soldiers dispersed the surrounding Yin energy, broadening the field of vision for everyone within the formation.

Manager Zhang and the others stared wide-eyed, clearly seeing the thousands of Yin soldiers rolling in with terrifying momentum.

Even though Lu Zheng was able to isolate the influence of the Yin soldiers' aura, these people were still terrified when they saw this scene, and fear arose from the bottom of their hearts.

The intense malevolent energy was blocked outside the formation and was slowly eroding it.

As the ghostly soldiers approached, they passed by from a distance of a hundred feet away, gradually disappearing into the distance with an imposing aura.

Seeing this, the members of the Chamber of Commerce breathed a slight sigh of relief, feeling as if they had just walked through the gates of hell.

However, they knew the danger was not over yet; the ghostly soldiers would still be roaming around and could arrive in this area at any time.

Manager Zhang wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and said to Lu Zheng, "Thank you, Immortal Master, we've escaped this time! Heaven help us, I hope those ghostly soldiers won't come again tonight!"

He understood that without Lu Zheng, they would likely not be able to escape these ghostly soldiers if they ran around aimlessly on the plains.

Even if they managed to escape the rampage of the ghostly soldiers, the blood-red aura emanating from this vast area was enough to drive them mad and cause them to go berserk.

Lu Zheng smiled and said, "I hope nothing happens tonight."

Outside the formation, a thick aura of bloodlust still lingered, and it seemed unlikely to dissipate anytime soon.

Lu Zheng ignored the malevolent energy. He figured that if there was malevolent energy in this place, the Yin soldiers who had just passed by should not set foot in this area again.

To be honest, Lu Zheng was quite curious as to why such malevolent energy would suddenly emerge from the ground, forming the imposing force of thousands of Yin soldiers.

He did want to explore the depths of the underground, but given his current situation, it would be quite easy to expose his identity if he were to do something outside Ghost State City.

Lu Zheng thought for a moment, then looked at Manager Zhang and said, "I've heard that your chamber of commerce seems to be quite famous. Could you elaborate?"

Seeing that the night was long and Steward Zhang had no desire to sleep, he said, "Our Great Merchant Guild has been established for hundreds of years. While it may not be the number one merchant guild in the world, it is certainly quite large. Its branches are spread across several major countries, and it has business dealings with various nations and some cultivation forces..."

“I, Zhang, am not very capable. I am just a minor manager of the Grand Merchant Guild in the Chu Kingdom. I have to handle all the trade personally to avoid any mistakes. After all, as you can see, this place is quite chaotic, unlike other places…”

In other prefectures or counties, Manager Zhang might not have followed the caravan around.

However, the situation in Guizhou is quite special, and the business here is not ordinary business; he has to personally lead the team every time.

Manager Zhang spoke eloquently, "Of course, I can still manage quite a few things. I'm mainly in charge of the business in Ghost Prefecture, as well as a certain area in Yunmengze..."

"Besides some ordinary businesses, we also deal with things like spiritual items and medicinal herbs."

"If you're looking to buy any good magical artifacts or rare treasures, I might not have them here, but higher-level branches should have them, and I can inquire about them for you..."

Manager Zhang could tell that Lu Zheng and his companion were highly skilled, and that the other party probably had no interest in the goods he was carrying.

However, above him are even higher-level branches, some of which even have shops that provide services specifically for monks.

Suddenly, Manager Zhang slapped his forehead and exclaimed, "Oh dear, look at my brain!"

Manager Zhang reached into his pocket and pulled out two small purple-gold plaques, which he handed to Lu Zheng.

Manager Zhang explained, "These are VIP badges from our Chamber of Commerce. With these badges, you two can enjoy VIP treatment and get discounts at any branch of our Chamber of Commerce."

Lu Zheng's performance was enough to warrant Manager Zhang taking out a plaque to express his gratitude.

However, this was not the highest-ranking VIP badge in the Grand Chamber of Commerce. It was just that Manager Zhang's status was limited, and the purple-gold badge was the best VIP badge he could give away.

Lu Zheng took the two small plaques and gave one to Qing Wan.

Qingwan picked up the small plaque and looked at it. It had a very special spiritual seal on it, and even indicated which branch of the Great Merchant Guild the plaque came from.

Lu Zheng then asked, "Since your Dahang Chamber of Commerce is so widespread, can I send items through your chamber?"

Manager Zhang nodded upon hearing this and said, "Our chamber of commerce does provide such services. After all, the chamber is located in so many places, and sometimes we even receive notifications from headquarters."

"However, I don't know where the Chamber of Commerce headquarters is, but I heard it's very far away, not within the territory of Great Chu."

Manager Zhang paused for a moment and asked, "If you want to send something, how far do you want it to be sent?"

Lu Zheng asked, "Can you do that from 100,000 miles away?"

Upon hearing this, Manager Zhang said, "Ten thousand miles... I can't do it here, you'll have to go to another branch. But I can have someone take your things to another branch to be sent... What do you want to send? If there are a lot of things, it might take some time."

"If it's just small items like letters, then it's faster. Some of our branches have fixed small teleportation arrays specifically for transmitting information and also for delivering letters to guests, but it costs a lot of spirit stones."

Lu Zheng smiled slightly and said, "Spirit stones are not a problem, it's just a simple letter."

Manager Zhang nodded and said, "Is that so? That's easy! But I need to finish this business with everyone. After we get back, I'll send someone to the Yunmengze branch... I can't guarantee when the letter will arrive, but I'll definitely guarantee the speed and there won't be any problems."

Lu Zhengdao said, "Okay, I only have this idea for now. I haven't written the letter yet. I'll discuss it with the manager in detail later when everything is ready."

“No problem,” Manager Zhang said with a smile. “Our merchant guild also has a shop in Ghost City, where there are places to stay. If you two don’t mind, you can stay there.” “Ghost City is different from other places. We humans are not well received. Those who run shops in the city are mostly local demons or ghosts, or have connections with officials. They are very difficult to deal with.”

Lu Zheng had heard Chi Mei mention this matter before.

The city of Ghost State has a clear hierarchy, with the highest-ranking deities and officials, followed by the city's own demons and ghosts. There are few locals in the city, and even outsiders who are cultivators are of relatively low status.

Of course, if you are strong enough, that's a different story.

Lu Zheng then said, "In that case, we'll shamelessly stay for a few days."

"Oh, what are you saying? It's our good fortune that the two immortal masters are staying with us." Manager Zhang said with a beaming smile.

He had encountered all sorts of people in his business dealings and knew which types of people to treat well.

Outside, another burst of noise came from afar.

The crowd looked in the direction of the sound and saw the vast army of ghost soldiers arriving again.

Fortunately, the ghostly army only passed by and did not set foot in their area.

Even so, it still terrified everyone watching, leaving them unable to calm down for a long time.

Many people feel that after experiencing tonight's ordeal, their lifespan may be shortened.

Lu Zheng looked in the direction the ghostly soldiers had gone and said in a low voice, "They probably won't come back."

This plain is vast enough; judging by the time, those ghostly soldiers should soon fall silent.

Lu Zheng stepped through the array barrier and came outside to check the surrounding blood demons.

He discovered that these malevolent energies were slowly sinking back into the earth.

With a thought, Lu Zheng began to absorb the surrounding malevolent energy, mainly to sense the great momentum and the intent of existence within these auras, rather than to refine these malevolent energies into his body.

When Manager Zhang saw Lu Zheng's actions, he couldn't help but blink, thinking he was hallucinating.

Lu Zheng seems like a very upright and righteous person, so how could he absorb all this evil energy?

Qingwan, who was standing next to her, noticed Zhang's expression and said quietly, "The balance of Yin and Yang is called the Dao. Of course, not everyone can absorb this energy. Ordinary righteous and evil cultivators cannot do it, as they are prone to going astray and becoming possessed by evil spirits."

"I see." Manager Zhang understood a little, although he still didn't quite grasp the reasoning, but it seemed very impressive.

Time passed slowly, and the members of the Chamber of Commerce felt as if each day was an eternity.

Fortunately, Lu Zheng and Qing Wan were there, and they were quite calm, which put their minds at ease.

The surrounding crimson aura dissolved into the earth, and the scene of blood-red light soaring into the sky in the distance slowly dissipated.

Lu Zheng used his Qi Observation Technique to look into the distance and said, "The Yin Soldiers have disappeared."

Upon hearing this, Manager Zhang and the others finally felt relieved.

Manager Zhang glanced at the sky, his expression somewhat excited. They had managed to get through the night without any loss of people or goods, which was beyond his expectations.

Seeing this, Steward Zhang directed everyone to reorganize the caravan. Before dawn, thousands of ghostly soldiers swept the surrounding area clean, so they could set off early.

Seeing that the caravan members were busy, Lu Zheng put away the formation.

In no time at all, the caravan sped off towards Ghost City.

At this moment, the Ghost State Plain was eerily quiet, with not a single ghost in sight.

The ghosts that had been wandering around earlier were either wiped out by the passing ghost soldiers, or they were hiding in some corner to avoid them.

Lu Zheng and Qing Wan sat in a carriage, following a caravan to Guizhou City.

By the time the group arrived outside Ghost State City, the sun had already risen in the sky.

The soft sunlight fell on everyone, making them feel inexplicably warm and dispelling their inner unease.

The caravan members were all beaming with joy as they discussed how they would get a good rest once they entered the city.

Running a business in a place like Guizhou, I hardly got a good night's sleep. Even an iron body couldn't withstand it.

The towering city gate slowly opened, and a group of fierce underworld officials stood beside it.

Manager Zhang quickly stepped forward, identified himself, and offered the money for entering the city.

One of the underworld messengers recognized Manager Zhang, scrutinized the caravan, and couldn't help but ask curiously, "There were ghost soldiers causing trouble last night, how come you're all still alright?"

(End of this chapter)