Anti-fraud manual for the cultivation world

In the evening, the setting sun casts its rays.

Zhang Yi pointed to the city in the distance: "Ahead lies Jiangzhou, the city of Bu Mu."

Li Gu had assumed that this uninhabited city, isolated from the Central Plains, would be a small, dilapidated place, but to his surprise, it turned out to be a massive city.

Two great rivers converge here, and a magnificent city was built around the delta where the two rivers meet. The city walls are high and thick, stretching for miles along the two rivers, and there are more than a dozen city gates.

The houses in the city are stacked up in layers, spreading out along the slope of the river, creating a staggered and layered effect.

At a glance, Li Gu could estimate that the population of this city was at least two hundred thousand.

The four walked slowly toward the city gate. When they were still a mile away from the city, they saw a huge wooden sign standing by the roadside. On it, painted in bright red, were a line of large, arrogant characters: "Those who release their divine sense outwards, die!"

Across the road stood another sign with blue, neat, and solid characters: "Fellow Daoists, please do not release your divine sense outside Jiangzhou City! To avoid causing unnecessary friction."

Meng Ting had already dismounted from Li Gu's back. Staring wide-eyed, she asked in utter bewilderment, "Why are there two road signs? And why are they written in different tones and colors?"

Li Gu said in a low voice, "Both the legitimate and illegitimate sides have erected a sign."

Meng Ting was utterly bewildered: "Why does it have to be like this? If one side has already made its decision, then there's no need for the other side to make one either, right?"

Li Gu smiled and shook his head: "Doesn't that mean the rules of this city are set by the other party, not by you?"

Meng Ting scratched her head, still unable to understand: "Then why not just take down their sign?"

Li Gu shrugged: "Because the two sides are evenly matched, neither dares to declare war rashly."

Meng Ting and Zheng Xiaodong couldn't help but sigh, "You're really amazing to be able to analyze so much from just two brands."

Li Gu pointed at Zhang Yi: "Senior Sister Zhang saw it long ago, she just doesn't show off like me."

The two signs were inanimate objects, but they served as a reminder to the four that the city before them was not a kind place, and that survival here would certainly not be easy.

But the four of them had nowhere else to go besides here.

Hua Qianfang's cultivation level is unknown, but it is certain that his divine sense can cover an area of ​​at least several dozen miles. If the four of them go to other cities, they might be caught by Hua Qianfang very soon. It seems that they can only barely make a living in a place like Jiangzhou.

Even if it's a den of dragons and tigers ahead, we still have to venture in.

The four of them walked to the city gate and saw several old soldiers, around sixty or seven years old, wearing tattered armor, guarding the gate opening and staring intently at everyone entering the city.

As the four passed by the old soldier, he glanced at their martial arts attire and asked, "Cultivators?"

Li Gu didn't intend to hide it and replied, "Yes!"

The veteran quickly replied, "Cultivators shouldn't take themselves too seriously; this is Jiangzhou City."

After saying that, he looked away.

Meng Ting stuck out her tongue: "Why are the people here like this? They scold you as soon as you walk in."

Li Gu said in a low voice, "He's right. We're only at the Qi Refining stage, so we shouldn't take ourselves too seriously. Let's keep a low profile."

The four entered the city and found it to be quite lively, with a constant flow of vehicles and people.

Remembering the letter Bai Yan had asked him to deliver, Li Gu decided to go find the yamen first.

The four walked through the narrow streets paved with bluestone slabs, with carriages passing by from time to time. Under the eaves of the houses along the roadside sat several cultivators dressed in black knight-errant robes, glancing at Zhang Yi and Meng Ting with ill intent.

Several constables dragged a corpse out of the alley and shouted in alarm, "The night watchman has been murdered yet again!"

A man dressed as a swordsman nearby laughed, "Daring to wander the streets in the middle of the night? Who else but him is going to die?"

Meng Ting stuck out her tongue: "Isn't a night watchman's job just to wander the streets in the middle of the night?"

Hearing someone criticize him, the man in the swordsman's robes turned around, glared at Meng Ting, and when he saw that she was an innocent and lovely young woman, his expression softened, but his tone was still sarcastic: "New here, huh? In Jiangzhou, never be a night watchman. You're too likely to run into things you shouldn't. You won't live more than three days before someone kills you to silence you."

Li Gula tugged at Meng Ting, not wanting to get entangled with that person, and prepared to continue walking forward.

But then a person dressed as a constable floated down from the rooftop next to them. He moved swiftly and in a flash, squatted down next to the night watchman's body, examined the cause of death, and searched for clues to solve the case.

Li Gu sensed that this constable was a cultivator, whose movement speed was not much slower than his own; he was at least at the Qi Refining stage.

He had read many cultivation novels before, and there were two kinds of "courts" in them. One kind was the mortal court, in which almost the entire court was ruled by mortals, and they were just background figures in the novels.

The second type is the immortal dynasty dominated by cultivators. Often, the founding emperor is a great cultivator or a powerful sect, and almost all the high-ranking officials in the court are cultivators.

Judging from the situation of this constable, this world should be the second type.

The four continued walking forward, getting closer and closer to the prefectural government office. Shouts and curses rang out from the street ahead, and a group of yamen runners came running from the front at great speed. The weakest of them looked to be at least at the Body Refinement stage, much stronger than their junior sister Meng Ting.

The constables shouted, "Official business of the imperial court, urgent arrest of criminals, those in front, get out of the way, get out of the way!"

Ordinary people on the street quickly made way for the four men, and the procession of yamen runners rushed past them, the gusts of wind they created causing their clothes to flutter.

But as soon as they reached the end of the street, they were blocked by a group of men dressed in black. The men were clearly deliberately blocking the officials; they were all laughing and joking, acting without any decorum. They held hands and blocked the entire street in front of them, saying in a sarcastic tone, "Brothers, where are you going? Don't be in such a hurry. Tell us first before you go."

The constables were furious: "Get out of the way, or we'll arrest you first!"

The group of men in black said, "We were just standing in the middle of the street, holding hands and standing in a row. Is that illegal? Can the officials be unreasonable? Help! The officials are bullying innocent people!"

His shout caused even more men in black to rush out of the alley, completely blocking the street. Even the rooftops nearby were crowded with men in black, clearly preventing the constables from using their light-footed skills to pass over them.

The constables seemed used to this kind of scene, and quickly calmed down, saying in a deep voice, "Golden Bamboo Gang, you deliberately blocked us so the prisoner could escape, right? How much money did you take from that man?"

"You can eat whatever you want, but you can't say whatever you want." The men in black chuckled. "We didn't take a single penny, and we weren't planning on covering anyone's escape. We were just taking a walk together. Even if there were a few more people taking a walk, it's not illegal."

Seeing this, Li Gu clicked his tongue twice in his mind: Interesting! So this is how things work between the legitimate and criminal worlds.