Chapter 118: The Drunken Immortal Elixir

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Sure enough, the moment the ruffians heard this, they exchanged glances.

The green-skinned man said, “All right. Our Security Association has its own teleportation array, though the price will be a little higher.”

He was blatantly inflating the price. In truth, the black-market teleportation arrays were somewhat cheaper than the official ones. Otherwise, who would be foolish enough to come here?

The man had noticed two things: first, Yu Mu was wealthy; second, Yu Mu’s circumstances were unusual. That was why he had suddenly decided to fleece him.

What he did not know was that this was precisely the outcome Yu Mu wanted. Yu Mu was desperate to leave this place, and the more money the other party demanded, the more seriously they would treat the matter.

Thus, without hesitation, Yu Mu said, “Fine. I’ll pay double.”

“Good brother, now that’s爽快! Come on—this way.”

With that, the group led Yu Mu out of the market. After making several twists and turns, they arrived at a courtyard.

Three men were seated inside, drinking tea and chatting. When they saw the group return ahead of schedule with two strangers, they were greatly surprised.

An elderly man, somewhat older than the others, asked, “Greenhide, why have you returned so early today? And who are these two?”

“President, these two wish to use our teleportation array...” Greenhide stepped forward and whispered a few words into the old man’s ear.

A smile appeared in the old man’s eyes. “Why, of course! Helping others is helping oneself, especially when someone is in urgent need. We people of the martial world value profit above all—bah! Ha ha, that was merely a slip of the tongue! I meant righteousness, the righteousness of the martial world. May I ask where you two friends wish to go?”

“Pearl City.”

“Are you making fun of our Security Association?” The old man’s expression darkened at once.

Yu Mu immediately realized that something was wrong and hurriedly said, “Sir, we truly do need to go to Pearl City. Is it inconvenient?”

The old man looked at them in confusion. “You don’t know? Pearl City is nearly ten thousand miles from here. Apart from the authorities, who else could afford to construct such a vast teleportation array?”

“Oh...” Only then did Yu Mu understand the crux of the matter. He quickly changed his wording. “I have only recently entered the martial world and was unaware of these matters. Please forgive my ignorance. Might you be willing to point us toward a way forward?”

As he spoke, he took out a magic crystal and placed it in the old man’s hand.

The old man accepted the crystal, and his smile instantly returned. “Certainly, certainly! You are too courteous, young brother. The farthest place I can send you is Wine Fort Town. From there, a teleportation array can take you to Wind Season City. After that, you can...”

As he spoke, he produced a map and pointed out a series of place-names, tracing the route that would eventually lead to Pearl City.

The two of them saw that the journey would require numerous transfers, but there was nothing they could do. At present, this was the only route that could reach their destination without passing through an official teleportation array.

In the end, the old man gave Yu Mu the map as well. Yu Mu was deeply grateful. The map’s importance to his current situation was self-evident.

Wine Fort Town was famous throughout the region for its excellent liquor. Most of its inhabitants had made brewing their livelihood for generations, relying on ancestral craftsmanship.

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Most importantly, every household possessed fine liquor that had been sealed away for many years. That was the true reason the town’s reputation had spread far and wide.

Although Wine Fort Town was called a town, it was actually comparable in size to a medium-sized city. It was merely that most of its buildings were old, making the entire town look somewhat dilapidated. For that reason, it had never been elevated to the status of a city.

According to the president of the Security Association, the town was jointly governed by all the brewing workshops. No outside power held influence there, which was why he had recommended it as their first stop.

Those brewing workshops had all been passed down for thousands upon thousands of years, and the depth of their foundations was beyond question. In the past, outside forces had repeatedly attempted to infiltrate the town, only to be defeated by its extraordinarily united people.

As time passed, no one dared to set their sights on the place again.

After so much rushing about, compounded by several days without food or drink, the two were already ravenous. An Shu was especially famished. Ever since her capture, she had consumed neither food nor water, relying entirely on spiritual energy to sustain herself.

Since there appeared to be no danger here, and they need not fear their enemies locating them immediately, the two decided to rest for a while. At the very least, they needed to fill their stomachs before continuing their great escape.

Following the ancient streets, they walked slowly onward. The rich fragrance of liquor permeated every street and alley. Yu Mu inhaled the mellow aroma along the way, intoxicated by it and secretly yearning for a taste.

An Shu, however, was entirely the opposite. Her brows remained tightly furrowed throughout the journey, and the fumes nearly overwhelmed her.

A distinctive aroma drifting from a roadside tavern caught Yu Mu’s attention.

“This is the one.”

Having made up his mind, Yu Mu stepped into the tavern called the Drunken Immortal Pavilion.

The furnishings inside were extremely simple, yet possessed an antique charm and distinctive character. It was not yet noon, so there were few drinkers inside.

When the two entered, the shopkeeper behind the counter did not even raise his eyelids. They had no choice but to find a table themselves and sit down.

After a long while, a server finally sauntered over and asked lazily, “How many jars of wine will you have?”

The two exchanged a glance. Everything about this tavern was strange. Not only were the shopkeeper and server far less solicitous than those they had encountered elsewhere, but even when taking an order, the server had asked about wine first.

Yu Mu said boldly, “Bring us two jars to start with...”

The moment he said this, several gazes finally turned toward them. Even the listless shopkeeper could not help lifting his head for a look.

The server’s attitude improved immediately, and even his form of address changed. “Very well, honored guests. What would you like to eat with your wine?”

“I eat only vegetables. What about you?” Yu Mu said, turning to An Shu.

An Shu was somewhat surprised. She had not expected this fat fellow to be a vegetarian.

“I am a vegetarian as well.”

“Very well. One table of vegetarian dishes and two jars of wine!”

The server’s voice rose several pitches at once.

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Before long, the server carried over two jars of wine and two coarse porcelain bowls, placing them on the table.

“We don’t need the bowls. We’ll drink straight from the jars.”

With that, Yu Mu knocked open one of the jars and raised it above his head. A thin stream of wine slowly poured down. Yu Mu opened his mouth beneath it and began gulping it down with relish.

“Uh... this...” An Shu had never seen anyone drink that way. Even the server beside them was left staring in stunned disbelief.

By now, Yu Mu had successfully drawn the attention of everyone in the tavern. In only a short while, not a drop remained in the jar.

Yu Mu let out a satisfied belch and said, “Excellent wine! Truly excellent wine! What a pleasure!”

As he spoke, he knocked open the second jar and said to the dumbfounded server, “Young man, bring me a few more jars.”

The server stared blankly at him. “You still want to drink? This wine has a powerful aftereffect. For an ordinary person, finishing several pots would already be considered an impressive capacity. You...”

Yu Mu smiled faintly. “It’s fine. If I can’t finish it, I’ll take it with me. Just bring as much as you can.”

Without wasting another word on the server, he tilted his head back and drank down another jar.

This time, he received more than mere stares. Cheers and applause rang throughout the tavern. Even the shopkeeper came forward personally to help carry the wine.

How could Yu Mu have known the customs of this place?

Here, cultivation, realm, background, and wealth were all meaningless. Only one’s capacity for liquor mattered! The more one could drink, the more respect one received.

This wine, known as Drunken Immortal Elixir, was the finest liquor Yu Mu had ever tasted. Not only was its flavor rich and mellow, but its potency was astonishing. Most importantly, it replenished spiritual energy extremely quickly, and it seemed to contain a genuine trace of immortal aura.

Although it was not as good as the wine bestowed by Qingtian, it was at least twice as effective as Drunken Immortal and Honey Wine. After two jars, the hunger and exhaustion that had plagued him for days were completely swept away, and his spiritual energy was replenished to the brim.

By the time the vegetarian dishes arrived, Yu Mu had already downed another two jars. The onlookers grew increasingly astonished. After four jars, Yu Mu showed not the slightest sign of drunkenness. Instead, he seemed to grow more spirited with every drink.

When the dishes arrived, Yu Mu finally stopped drinking like a beast and began eating and drinking together. Even so, his pace remained swift. By the time he had finished the food, another two jars had disappeared.

By then, the table was surrounded by people. Every person in the tavern—customers, the shopkeeper, the servers, and even those from the kitchen—had gathered around, watching Yu Mu with fascinated curiosity.

Being watched while eating was normally an embarrassing experience, especially for a young woman. If she had not been unbearably hungry, An Shu truly would not have been able to swallow a bite beneath so many eyes.

But at present, she could no longer afford to care.

Even so, what should have been a pleasant meal had been made extremely uncomfortable by the fellow beside her.

After eating and drinking his fill, Yu Mu was about to settle the bill and leave when the shopkeeper suddenly called out, “Honored guest, please wait.”