Chapter 4242 — An Invitation
The Blossom Guardian · Page 1 of 2
"Nan Zhou? Well, it's a vast place in its own right, and it's also ringed by any number of lesser islands and sea regions—take our Zhenduan sea region here, or the Wei Arc sea region off to the side. All of them fall under Nan Zhou's sway. But if we're talking about what folks commonly call Nandao, that's a different matter altogether. That refers specifically to the main body of Nan Zhou—the territory of the spirit beast clan. And the ground under our feet right now? That's Nan Zhou." The man in blue was nothing if not patient, carefully laying it all out for Wei Zhao and his companion.
"Ah, so that's how it is..." Wei Zhao nodded. He had known only that Nandao belonged to the spirit beast clan, never dreaming there was such a thing as Nan Zhou. Now, at last, he had it straight.
"You two are going to be the death of me..." The man in blue took one look at Wei Zhao's expression and was struck speechless all over again. "You don't know a single blessed thing, do you? I've seen newcomers before, but never the likes of you two—not one shred of common sense between you..."
"The two of us hail from Beidao," Wei Zhao said with a laugh, glossing over it smoothly. "We've never been here before, nor heard anyone speak of such things, so..."
"Good heavens, you're from Beidao?" The man in blue was startled, then nodded slowly in sudden understanding. "That's so far away. Not many from Beidao make it out this way. Small wonder you've never heard any of this—and I did wonder. A local of Nan Zhou would know these things as a matter of course; there's no not knowing them."
"Ha, so I thank you for clearing it up for us. If you hadn't taken the trouble to explain all this, the two of us would still be stumbling about in a fog, unable to make head or tail of what goes on here." Wei Zhao smiled and cupped his hands in thanks.
"Heh, it's no trouble—I'm just standing here with nothing better to do than wag my tongue a bit. No need for thanks." The man in blue waved it off, then paused. "Wait—are you two looking to join a party?"
"Hm? Join a party?" Wei Zhao blinked, then caught himself—the man was recruiting people to go to the Rufeng Forest. He hesitated.
As things stood, he and Huang Xiaotao couldn't possibly get back to Wei Arc City for the next month; they'd have to linger here in Zhenduan City, and every inn in the place was packed to the rafters. They could hardly sleep out in the street. Seizing this rare chance to make a trip to the Rufeng Forest wasn't such a bad idea—who knew, they might even find the Wandu Golden Core Fruit.
But every scrap of information they had so far was hearsay, and they had made no preparations whatsoever in advance. And if the Rufeng Forest was as rich in rare treasures as all that, then by the principle that risk rises in proportion to reward, it went without saying that dangers lay thick upon the ground. To plunge in rashly would mean braving no small measure of risk.
Huang Xiaotao stood to one side watching Wei Zhao, waiting for him to decide. For her part, she need only follow Wei Zhao; there was no need to rack her brains over anything else.
"Oh, stop dithering—we're just two short!" the man in blue burst out, all impatience. "If I'm not mistaken, you're both Golden Core cultivators of some skill, aren't you? Of course you are. I've heard tell of the rules up Beidao way—they'd never let you take a long cross-island assignment like this without Golden Core strength!"
Though this man in blue was a cultivator of the mid Golden Core stage, Wei Zhao and Huang Xiaotao kept their aura tightly reined in. He had no convenient cheat of the sort Wei Zhao possessed, and could only judge by rough experience—he couldn't be entirely certain.
"That's right. We're both early Golden Core," Wei Zhao said with a nod. There was no point in hiding it.