Although the terrace was three stories high, the sounds from below were loud, and a Martial Artist with sharp senses could naturally hear everything clearly.
A gambler was thrown out. The reason was simple: he had lost until his eyes were red, insisting the other party was cheating and even trying to snatch the money back by force.
This sort of thing was commonplace, happening in the gambling house almost every few days.
Zou Feng, however, for some unknown reason, leaned against the railing with great interest, sizing up the degenerate gambler below.
"Heh, so it’s him again..." the Maid in Zou Feng’s arms murmured, also looking on with curiosity.
"You know him?"
The Maid shook her head. "I wouldn’t know a scoundrel like that. I just heard that this lowlife gambled away his own wife, but he still can’t control himself."
Zou Feng chuckled casually. "Actually, I’m the best at dealing with people who can’t control themselves..."
The Maid giggled. "Mmm, Zou Incense Master, you’re lying. You can’t even control your own hands... Ah!"
After some more playful banter, Zou Feng took his leave.
As the warehouse manager, he couldn’t stay out all night.
Wang Xingjian was well aware of this, so he didn’t try to make him stay.
Zou Feng hadn’t brought any subordinates with him this time.
He had no interest in putting on a show of extravagance. An Incense Master of the Black Flood Dragon Gang was just that, and he couldn’t let himself get a big head about it.
In this world, the truly formidable powers were the major Sect forces like the Celestial Essence Sword Sect.
Take the Heart Meeting Martial Arts Hall, for example. In terms of overall combat strength, it was already the strongest in all of Yuan Guang County Town and its surrounding areas.
But even so, it only dared to call itself a martial arts hall, not something like the "Heart Understanding Sect."
Besides, bringing subordinates along made many things inconvenient...
After walking out of the Guangfa Gambling House, the effects of the alcohol on Zou Feng vanished in an instant.
Chen Jingsheng had hosted the banquet, and the alcohol was naturally expensive Spirit Wine. Zou Feng, of course, wouldn’t pass up an opportunity to practice his Drunken Immortal Moon Gazing Step.
So the one who was truly, deeply drunk right now was probably Qian Kun.
Glancing at the street where the degenerate gambler had just left, Zou Feng quickened his pace and soon vanished into the night.
***
"Son of a bitch Guangfa Gambling House! This is the third time they’ve laid hands on me!"
"Fuckers! Just you wait... one day, when I have an epiphany, I’ll chop up every last one of you bastards and feed you to the dogs..."
"And that Zhao Yan who won my money! Sooner or later, I’ll kill your whole family!"
Han Tao, who had been thrown out of the Guangfa Gambling House, clutched his swollen, painful mouth as he staggered toward his home.
Since this guy had gambled away his wife, he had naturally sold off his ancestral home long ago.
So his current so-called home was just a dilapidated shack in the shantytown.
As a youth from a reasonably well-off family, Han Tao had indeed practiced a few moves.
But having been an idle loafer since childhood, he had naturally made no real achievements on the path of the Martial Dao.
But that didn’t stop him from fantasizing about how he would go on a killing spree after a sudden epiphany whenever he suffered a setback.
The road to the shantytown became particularly desolate at night, with almost no pedestrians.
But Han Tao was used to it. It wasn’t like he had anything worth robbing anyway.
"Huh!?"
Reaching an alleyway entrance, Han Tao suddenly smelled a strong stench of alcohol.
Then he saw a well-dressed man passed out drunk in the alley, completely unconscious.
Han Tao immediately stopped in his tracks, then glanced around repeatedly.
After confirming no one else was around, a greedy look appeared in Han Tao’s eyes, and he scurried over to the drunkard’s side.
He squatted down and immediately noticed a distinct bulge inside the cuff of the drunkard’s sleeve.
It was obviously something tucked into a sleeve pocket.
He felt it. It was a cloth pouch.
Judging by the feel of it, there had to be silver inside!
Han Tao yanked it out and scurried away without a second glance.
Scurrying back to his dilapidated shack, Han Tao lit an oil lamp and opened the cloth pouch, both nervous and excited.
There was quite a lot inside the pouch.
There were about two taels of silver, and some medicinal herbs wrapped in oil paper, their purpose unknown.
Finally, there was a book. Emblazoned on the cover were the three words: "Five Poison Palm"!
’An Evil Skill Secret Manual!?’
Han Tao’s gaze was fixed on the manual, his eyes gradually growing deep and resolute...
Outside the dilapidated shack, Zou Feng leaned silently against the window, almost unable to suppress a sinister cackle.
’It’s a success. Human Gu Number One is in position!’
Although Zou Feng had mainly been cultivating the three new Evil Skills he had acquired, he hadn’t forgotten that his greatest trump card was his Five Poison Skill, which he had mastered to the point of Refined Skill.
After all, this was a unique and ultimate skill he had created himself, using the Five Poison Palm as its foundation and fusing it with various Exotic Poisons and the Five Poison Pile Skill.
Lately, whenever he went out, he carried that small cloth pouch with him, ready at any moment to bestow upon his Human Gu a "fortuitous encounter" that could change their destiny.
He had randomly knocked out a tipsy passerby, carried him to the alley entrance, and let Han Tao plausibly "stumble upon the score."
Of course, as a degenerate gambler, Han Tao might very well sell these items and gamble away every last coin.
But the guy had just been beaten severely. He was filled with resentment and could easily be driven to desperate, malicious acts.
Suddenly obtaining a fortuitous encounter, and an Evil Skill at that—one that could be mastered quickly and even came with a prepared Detoxification Soup...
...Han Tao would most likely start practicing it immediately.
Besides, it didn’t matter even if he had miscalculated.
Han Tao was only Human Gu Number One. Soon there would be a Number Two, Number Three, Number Four...
In any case, the cost of the "fortuitous encounter pouch" was completely negligible to the current Zou Feng.
If it didn’t work out, so be it. But if it did, it would be a huge gain.
If his luck was amazing and he found a rare talent for Evil Skills, someone who could master the Five Poison Palm to the point of Integration and Mastery in a short time, it would be a massive windfall!
Next, after confirming that Han Tao had started searching for common poisonous creatures to begin his practice, Zou Feng departed the shantytown like a phantom.
Not long after, on the outskirts of the Black Flood Dragon Gang’s warehouse district.
The gang members stationed here had to patrol not only the interior but also couldn’t be careless about the situation outside the walls.
They usually patrolled in pairs, circling the perimeter walls several times.
On duty tonight were two of Ma Pingchuan’s subordinates.
One of them, named Wu Guangwei, used the excuse of taking a shit to actually go to the riverbank to nap and slack off.
This man was from the same village as Liu Chun and Xiong Datian.
Liu Chun held a deep grudge against him and would often talk about the dirty deeds this guy had done.
The kind of stuff that would make even Zou Feng’s blood pressure rise.
Just as Wu Guangwei was about to lie down against a rock by the river, he suddenly spotted a small wooden box floating toward him in the water.
’Did some cargo fall off a passing merchant ship?’
Wu Guangwei was overjoyed. All sleepiness vanished as he leaped up and dashed over in a flash.
The water near this part of the riverbank was very shallow, and Wu Guangwei easily dragged the small wooden box ashore.
After setting the box down and making sure no one was around, Wu Guangwei, full of anticipation, used the short blade at his side to pry it open.
Inside the box were several layers of oil paper for padding.
After quickly pulling them away, Wu Guangwei saw by the moonlight the exact same items that Han Tao had received earlier.
"Five Poison Palm?"
A moment of shock was followed by sheer ecstasy.
Ordinary gang members couldn’t just choose from the Black Flood Dragon Gang’s True Skills whenever they wanted; they had to perform significant meritorious deeds first.
And now, here was not just a secret manual, but also silver, and even the accompanying detoxification herbs.
’I’ve struck it rich!’