Chapter 40: The Fish Gang
There are two explanations for the origin of the name Yunzhong City. The first explanation is that it is made up of one character from the names of the Cloud Sword Sect and Zhonghang Sect, thus the name Yunzhong City.
The second explanation is that Yunzhong City is located in the middle and lower reaches of the Yuntuo River, not too low, approaching the middle reaches. It is considered an intermediate stage, which is why it is called Yunzhong City.
Neither sect has explained this, leaving it to the speculation of the lower-level cultivators. It doesn't matter to the interests of the two sects anyway.
But regardless, it is a fact that Yunzhong City is close to the Yuntuo River. The distance between Yunzhong City and the Yuntuo River is only 800 li. However, at the site where the city was built, the distance is only 30 li. This is because frequent flooding caused the Soul Changing experts from both sects to forcefully redirect the Yuntuo River, deviating it from its original position. After over a thousand years of water erosion, the Yuntuo River is getting further away from Yunzhong City, and now it is already 800 li away.
The Yuntuo River is a huge river that runs through most of Yun State. It is said to be over a thousand li wide at its widest point, and even at its narrowest point, it is still fifty to sixty li wide. It is a vital transportation lifeline for Yun State, and the success of Yunzhong City is due to the Yuntuo River, which contributed half of its achievements.
The Yuntuo River used to have many water demons, and even the Demon King had the power of Soul Changing. They caused trouble and harmed cultivators on both sides of the river.
Later, the Zhonghang Sect, Cloud Sword Sect, and Five Elements Sect rose to power. They joined forces and defeated the Soul Changing level Demon King, as well as killed all the advanced demon beasts. Although there are still occasional demon beast sightings in the Yuntuo River, they are no longer a threat. Whenever a powerful demon beast appears, it is listed on the bounty board in Yunzhong City, and many people are willing to go hunting for them.
In this environment, the Yuntuo River fostered countless fishing enthusiasts. These fishing enthusiasts are incredibly crazy, some even spend months guarding the river for fish demons.
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"Taoist Friend Lin"
One day, Lin Jiang went to the East City Market, and some familiar vendors greeted him.
"What's going on? Why are so many people gathered here?"
Lin Jiang pointed to a stall on the other side and said, "That used to be Wen Xing's stall, but he has changed owners several times since then. It's quite common for people to switch professions or pass away. A stall with the same owner for more than three years is considered long-lasting."
"There's a new fishing enthusiast who caught a lot of demon fish. It is said that he even caught a Longwhisker fish. Wow, he made a big profit. A Longwhisker fish is worth at least three thousand spirit stones."
"Longwhisker fish, oh, that's really delicious!"
Lin Jiang nodded. In Yunzhong City, there was a high-end restaurant called Baiweilou that specialized in exquisite delicacies. They had a classic dish called Sanjianghuo, with Longwhisker fish as the main ingredient. This famous dish was worth thousands of spirit stones and considered a legend among ordinary cultivators.
"It's a delicious food, but we can't afford it."
"That's true."
Lin Jiang nodded. These high-end delicacies were not worth their high price. The spiritual power they contained was not as good as ordinary delicacies. It was just hype. However, the taste of dishes like Sanjianghuo was indeed very good.
However, for ordinary cultivators, spending thousands of spirit stones on a dish was crazy. These dishes were exclusively for cultivators at the Golden Core Period and above.
As he arrived at his stall, Lin Jiang smelled a strong fishy odor. The neighboring stalls were simply not enough, with some monstrous fish weighing several thousand or tens of thousands of jin (a unit of weight), even though he had rented three stalls.
Nevertheless, his business was booming. The taste of some of the monstrous fish was truly excellent, much better than ordinary monster beast meat.
"Big Shadiao and Small Shadiao, you won't have the pleasure anymore."
Lin Jiang said to Big Shadiao and Small Shadiao in his heart, "They haven't woken up yet. If they wake up, Lin Jiang will definitely change their taste."
After more than two hours, it seemed like the vendor next door had sold out of fish. The owner of the stall walked over with a apologetic look on his face and said, "Excuse me, taoist friend, I apologize for the trouble caused."
"Taoist friend Liu, please don't worry. It is inevitable. Independent cultivator Lin Yu greets you."
"So, it's Taoist Friend Lin. As an apology, please accept this small gift."
Liu Hui held two fish in his hands and handed them to Lin Jiang. Lin Jiang took a look and saw that they were ordinary first-level demon fish, similar to the Silver Arrow Fish he had previously raised.
"Please don't be polite, taoist friend. I cannot accept this gift."
"Taoist friend, we have rented this stall for one year. In the future..."
"It's alright. I won't be setting up the stall for long."
Lin Jiang shook his head and didn't want to say more. Liu Hui felt a bit awkward, but didn't insist.
Liu Hui wanted to give presents to more than just Lin Jiang. He gave presents to several nearby stalls, but only Lin Jiang didn't accept. Lin Jiang has always been independent, and everyone has gotten used to it. After all, there's only one person who sets up a stall for less than four hours every day, and that's Lin Jiang.
"Taoist Friend Lin, how much is your spiritual talisman?"
After a while, a voice came from the side, and Lin Jiang turned around. It was a pretty and elegant-looking female cultivator, who was also a neighboring vendor. She bore some resemblance to Liu Hui and Lin Jiang wondered if she was Liu Hui's sister or daughter.
"The first level premium spiritual talisman for attack costs ten spirit stones. The defensive ones cost twelve spirit stones, and there are nine auxiliary spiritual talismans for other purposes."
Lin Jiang spoke up, explaining that different spiritual talismans have different prices. Not all spiritual talismans have the same price, but overall, the ones for attack sell the best, and Lin Jiang makes the most of them.
"If I buy more defensive spiritual talismans, can you give me a discount?"
"If you buy five or more, I'll deduct one spirit stone."
"Can I exchange it for a demon fish?"
"No, you can't."
Lin Jiang rolled his eyes and wondered what he was thinking. He didn't really like eating fish, after all, he had been eating for decades at the Spiritual Peach Mountain Villa and got bored of it. In Yunzhong City, he had eaten a lot as well, and most of the demon fish in the market had become a bit tiresome for him.
"Alright, then I'll buy six defensive spiritual talismans."
"That will be sixty-six spirit stones."
Lin Jiang displayed all the defensive spiritual talismans. This stuff wasn't easy to sell, so he had some stock of it. He let her choose for herself.
After getting along for half a month, Lin Jiang gradually learned some things about the neighboring stall. The middle-aged man was named Liu Hui and the one who bought spiritual talismans from Lin Jiang was called Liu Yuan. He also had a daughter named Liu Siyu, who was extremely stunning. However, Liu Siyu rarely appeared, only occasionally once or twice, because every time she appeared, she would attract a lot of attention from people, and some even recklessly proposed to Liu Hui, so he usually didn't let his daughter show up.
It wasn't actually a good thing for a poor family to have a beautiful daughter, and the reasons for this need not be mentioned. Of course, Liu Hui also had some background. He was a member of the Trident Fish Gang outside the city, and everyone in his family was a member of this gang. His grandfather was even an Elder at the Building Foundation Period.
Lin Jiang also learned a lot about the things outside the city from their conversations. Yunzhong City and its surroundings were heavily dependent on the Yuntuo River for survival. However, due to the huge benefits, the river had been divided into many gangs. Each gang controlled a large section of the river and monopolized all the fishing within their territory.
However, they couldn't completely eliminate everyone. Ordinary people could still fish; how many fish they could catch depended on their ability. But fishing nets and fishing boats were strictly prohibited, and anyone caught doing so would be attacked by the fish gangs.
These fish gangs were actually under the control of two major sects, serving as their scapegoats. The fish gangs were hated by everyone, as the true profits were taken by the two major sects. Everyone knew this, but no one dared to speak up about it.
There were often fights between different fishing gangs. It was normal for them to fight over catches. It was rare for a year to pass without some deaths. Liu Hui's family belonged to the Trident Fish Gang, which was one of the strongest gangs outside the city. However, Liu Hui had lost seven or eight family members, including his two sons, in the gang fights.
"Cultivation is not easy."
Lin Jiang knew these things and could only sigh, cultivating immortality is truly not easy.
However, a plan slowly emerged in Lin Jiang's mind, a plan that would be enough to bring out the person who was secretly watching him.
