The Portal of Wonderland

It did not take long for the news of Shi Mu defeating his three challengers to spread.

It was common for the millennium disciples to challenge each other so it had not caused much of an uproar, but it did attract a lot of attention. After all, it was rare for a new millennium disciple to defeat one with more experience.

Shi Mu did not care too much about this. After returning to his residence, he immediately called out for Qi Feng and arranged the usage of the newly obtained spirit waterfalls.

Qi Feng saw and his worried heart finally relaxed. He put on a joyful smile and attended to the orders given.

Two days later, Shi Mu sat in front of the round table in the main house and looked at the map of the second floor of the Holy Land.

After studying it for a while, he closed his eyes and carefully remembered all the information he had about the treasures of the white azure ape ancestor in his mind.

After a while, he opened his eyes as his fingers continually swam on the map and carefully pinpointed it. His fingers finally stopped at the far right of the map which was also the easternmost side of the Xuanjie region.

It was a rather remote place. It was not within the detection area but a blank area instead.

Shi Mu looked at it for a while and he was suddenly suspicious.

According to the remarks on the map, it was somewhat different from any general blank area. It seemed to have been explored. Furthermore, there was a huge waterfall with a wide area which made it a great space for spiritual cultivation. However, it was unknown how long it had been vacant.

As the saying went, there must be something dark lurking beneath!

After pondering for a moment, Shi Mu put away the map for safekeeping before he turned into a stream of red light and flew toward the Xuanling Tower.

He arrived at the main street of the market.

According to rumors, people from all places flooded the market, and various news could be found here. Some people even specialized in selling news as a business.

Shi Mu had no connections on the second floor. When he arrived, he wanted to try his luck to see if he could glean some information on the waterfall.

It happened that he had in his possession some elixir he had accumulated. He intended to sell it to the fat manager so he went straight toward the Heavenly Pavilion.

Before entering the gate, Shi Mu heard a noise from inside.

He walked in and saw a big man in a green robe standing in the lobby of the Heavenly Pavilion. The man seemed to be arguing with the fat manager of the shop.

Shi Mu felt that this big man was somehow familiar, but was unable to recall who this person was. He did not alarm the both of them in the midst of their conversation but stood at the doors and eavesdropped instead.

“Treasurer, how dare you ask for the price of one hundred and twenty top-grade spirit stones for a Wuyuan Ginseng that was hard to tell if it’s male or female? If not for the fact that the medicine I looked for is sold out and your place is the only one left with such supplies, I wouldn’t even be here in the first place. Do you not see my sincerely wanting it and deliberately raising the price for your personal gain? This is outrageous!” the big man in green robe said with a raised voice.

“Elder Duan Muguang, please don’t misunderstand! To distinguish between the male and female Wuyuan ginseng, you must observe the color of its core. There is no other way. The price mentioned below is according to the opening of the market price. I absolutely didn’t dare to gain more than I should.” The fat manager explained as sweat dripped from the corner of his head and he rubbed his sleeves.

“If the Wuyuan ginseng is male, its potency is pure and excellent for refining Manly Strength Pills. You just want two hundred top-grade spirit stones. If it’s female, it contains three-point toxicity. It’s also necessary to spend time to configure the auxiliary materials to neutralize the toxicity so the value can be greatly reduced. This is for fifty top-grade spirit stones!”

“You’re absolutely right, but according to the market price, a hundred and twenty top-quality spirit stones is a fair price already.”

After hearing this, Shi Mu understood what was going on. The big man in the green robe wanted to purchase the Wuyuan Ginseng but the price was not within his range and the fat manager insisted to sell at this price, so they could not come to an agreement.

Shi Mu thought about it and interrupted their conversation.

“Manager, it’s been long since I last saw you,” Shi Mu greeted with a smile.

“Sect fellow Shi Mu…”

The fat manager was obviously caught off-guard and immediately greeted back.

“Eh? Shi Mu?!”

He immediately turned around and looked at the man behind him. It was none other than Duan Muguang. It was no surprise that this person seemed familiar.

“Do you know me?” Shi Mu asked.

“Haha! You’re the century-year-old disciple who had been promoted to a millennium disciple. Of course I know who you are! If it wasn’t for your performance back in the championship, I would have been bored to death watching the battles,” the big man in the green robe laughed.

“You over-praise me. You’re the one who set up the gambling pot back then right? You’re brother Duan Muguang?” Shi Mu asked.

“Exactly! I didn’t expect you to know me too.”

“You have quite a fame to your name! Actually on my way in, I overheard a mild dispute between you and the manager. I have a solution that might benefit the both of you. Would you like to hear it it?”

“Oh? Tell me about it,” Duan Muguang furrowed his brows.

The manager looked at Shi Mu with some doubt.

“Well, I have something I need your help with as well. Since you’re good at gambling, how about a gamble between us then?” Shi Mu’s eyes turned as he asked.

“A gamble? How?” Duan Muguang’s eyes sparkled with interest as soon as the word ‘gamble’ came to light.

“Since you suspect that this Wuyuan ginseng is of the female attribute, I’ll gamble that it is male. Then we’ll dissect the ginseng to see who’s right. If you’re right, you would only have to place in fifty top-grade spirit stones while I pay for the remaining amount. If I’m right, the Wuyuan ginseng will be sold to you for a hundred top-grade spirit stones. However, the difference is that the remaining twenty top-grade spirit stones would be covered by me if you answer my question. If you’re okay with my proposition, let’s place our bets.”

“Just one question? What will the question be then?” Duan Muguang could not believe his ears.

“Yes. Don’t worry brother, the question is only regarding the situation of a vacant waterfall in the spiritual land. If you know anything about it, you must tell me. If you don’t, you’ll help me inquire about it,” Shi Mu said.

“Who do you think I am? I am the most well-informed person, and no other millennium disciple could match me. Let’s bet then. Manager, you shall bear witness to this gamble,” Duan Muguang’s expression loosen.

The tubby manager looked at Shi Mu with hesitance but was shocked to see him with a confident smile.

“Alright, I’ll be the witness then.”

After the manager agreed, he led both men into the inner court.

After a while, the pudgy manager was seen holding an amethyst-covered square-shaped box, half a square foot in size.

Inside the square box was a purplish-black ginseng with its complete root and clear texture.

The fat manager slowly removed the box cover and immediately, there was a strange scent of medicine floating in the inner court.

Smelling this, Duan Muguang could not help but show a hint of happiness.

The fat manager took a thin white knife from his storage ring and began to carefully cut a small amount from the top of the ginseng. As he gently pulled it down, a hole emerged and revealed the inner core hidden inside.

As soon as the kernel was exposed, Duan Muguang immediately put his head together and frowned.

Shi Mu stood on the side with no expression on his face.

“It’s purple… it really is a male ginseng… Brother Shi Mu, you won this bet.” Duan Muguang said with slight unhappiness in his tone.

It did not matter if he won or lost because in the end, it was still a profitable trade for him. Even if he lost, he was equally happy.

“Alright then,” Shi Mu said.

“Tell me what problem are you facing, brother Shi Mu?” Duan Muguang asked.

“Oh well, it goes like this… I’ve taken a look at a spirit waterfall in ​​the blank area. There’s no strong monster in the area but it was left unoccupied. I want to claim it as my own but I’m worried about any unknown consequences. I was hoping you would help me get more information about this particular waterfall,” Shi Mu said with a smile.

“Spirit waterfall? Which one are you referring to?” Duan Muguang asked.

Shi Mu did not speak but immediately took out the map of the second floor and pointed the spot to him.

“Oh, I thought it was some prohibited area. It turned out to be just another secluded plan. I know only a little about this,” Duan Muguang looked at it and said disdainfully.

“So..? Is there anything wrong with this waterfall?”

“It’s a long story. It’s said that as early as a thousand years ago, there were disciples who explored the area of ​​the waterfall and tried to take possession of it. However, a powerful and intelligent monster lurked there, which was good at concealing itself. The disciple was unable to kill it completely. He was only able to drive it away for a short period of time. It has been entrenched in the vicinity and did not want to leave. Later, a disciple simply forced the area into his rule, but all the attendants sent there were quickly slaughtered. All their plantations had been stolen as well. Lawmakers of normal standing could not do much, so they had made the decision to leave it abandoned.”

“So, the potential risk of the Ling Waterfall is this particular monster? Do you happen to know the condition and whereabouts of the monsters now?”

“How did this monster look like and what rank of cultivation is it at, I am certainly unaware. Oh right, it was said that this monster was intentionally stationed in this waterfall due to its connection with some legendary treasure. There have been several powerful disciples who had joined forces to explore the area.”

When Shi Mu listened, his heart screamed but he remained calm on the outside.

“Oh, I wonder if those fellow disciples found the treasure…?”