Standing at the bow of the boat, Duan Xiang's face was pale and thin, his temperament relaxed and scattered, not like a master of the rivers and lakes, but rather like a learned scholar. However, at this moment, his face showed deep fatigue, with lines of helplessness between his eyebrows and eyes that could not be concealed.

  "It's just old age." He sighed, his hands clasped together, and the flat-bottomed boat seemed to have been loaded with a thousand-pound boulder, suddenly sinking down, its speed slowing down immediately, and it sailed alongside Meng Qi's building ship.

  Meng Qi narrowed his eyes, assessing the strength of these seven great masters. Just from this one move, he could see that if he didn't go all out, he would likely be at a disadvantage, and there was still a significant gap in their cultivation levels: "Is Mr. Xian Yin joking with me? Is there anything you can't do in the world?"

  He learned from the previous "Shen Hou" method, deliberately lowering his voice, speaking in a hoarse tone, so that he wouldn't be afraid of being recognized by acquaintances, after all, "Shen Hou" also used a fake tone.

  Duan Xiang shook his head and sighed, "Human strength is sometimes exhausted, the world is vast, and there are countless things that cannot be helped. At least this fleeting beauty, white-haired beauties, are not something that human power can retrieve. 'Shen Hou' Mr., if I were not forced to, why would I want to deal with you 'Twelve Phase Gods'?"

  "Hmm, something that can make Mr. Xian Yin helpless? I'm a bit interested now." With a task at hand, Meng Qi naturally accepted it, but he also couldn't show too much eagerness, lest Duan Xiangfei became suspicious and all his previous efforts went to waste.

  Duan sighed: "The old man's late-born son is spoiled, only likes to call friends and companions, extravagant and dissipated. If it goes on like this, it's okay, the old man has a family business to let him squander. Who knows, disaster struck from the sky, half a year ago, my son disappeared in Tian Ding City, since then there is no news. This matter 'Shen Hou' Mr. should have heard of it, I hope Mr. accept the request, find that unfilial son, alive or dead."

  When he mentioned the last eight words, his face twitched slightly.

  Meng Qi listened and felt that something was off: "Mr. Xian Yin, with your martial arts skills and reputation in the Jianghu world, if you put out a message, how many heroes would be willing to help? If there is someone manipulating from behind the scenes, wouldn't they be beyond your control?"

  Duan Xiang fell silent for a moment, then let out a bitter laugh filled with the weight of years: "If it were that simple, why would I have gone to such great lengths to investigate your whereabouts?"

  He raised his right hand, revealing a palm with no fingers: "I spent half my life learning swordsmanship, but five years ago, I was defeated by someone who cut off the five fingers of my right hand. If this news gets out, it will only bring enemies and foes to our doorstep. So after my son went missing, I pretended to be angry with him for not following the right path, saying he brought it upon himself, and severed our father-son relationship. And using the excuse that I had long since retired, I refused all requests for help."

  "Of course, I have already set foot in this realm. If there really are enemies at the door, I can still do my best to die together with them."

  He said calmly, as if he was talking about someone else's business, and then smiled: "For that unfilial son, I have to take some risk to tell you this, sir. Alas, when people get old, they become indifferent to their reputation in the martial arts world and their own martial arts skills, and only wish for their children and grandchildren to be safe and sound."

  "Could someone have actually cut off Master's right hand five fingers?" Meng Qi asked in slight astonishment, if it were "Shen Hou" here, probably would also be a similar reaction. As one of the seven great masters under heaven, Duan Xiangfei's strength was absolutely at the top level, yet he was cut off his right hand five fingers, destroying years of hard work on his swordsmanship. Then what kind of terrifying opponent did he have?

  Duan Xiang's eyes narrowed slightly, and he had a bit of an air of dominating the world: "This old man didn't know that there would be such a master in this world, should have already opened the three great secret repositories, approaching the boundary between human and divine..."

  "Who is this Mr. Xianyin? How could such a figure remain unknown in the jianghu?" Meng Qi asked, puzzled.

  Duan Xiang shook his head: "This person is like suddenly popping out of a stone, with no reputation before the martial arts competition and disappearing after the competition. He is not one of the famous masters, it's really strange to the extreme. This is similar to your 'Twelve Gods', haha, I suspected at that time that he was the 'Chenlong' who ranked first among the 'Twelve Gods'."

  "I didn't know that..." Meng Qi's eyebrows slightly raised, with an unknown origin and no reputation, after doing something he disappeared without a trace. This description feels so familiar? Wait, isn't this me? A reincarnated person who completes tasks in cycles!

  Meng Qi thought about it more and more, feeling that there was such a possibility. For example, Gu Xiao Sang was clearly not in the same group as himself, having his own cycle space. It's just that later on, something unexpected happened, and to prevent accidents, he temporarily became a new person with the help of a mysterious object.

  Yes, five years ago, and then disappeared again, this reincarnated person must have already completed the task and left, no need to worry.

  Duan Xiangfei didn't ask who the person was that they had clashed with initially, and after explaining the reason, he said straightforwardly: "Mr. Shen Hou, I don't know what kind of reward you need to be willing to take on this task?"

  Meng Qi didn't know what the "Twelve Phase Gods" charged as their "fee standard", so he could only chuckle and say: "It depends on what Mr. Xian Yin is willing to give."

  "The most precious thing I have is a set of martial arts skills. If Mr. Shēn Hóu doesn't despise me, after the matter is settled, I am willing to copy out 'Guàn Lán Jué', 'Bái Jì Guò Xī Jiàn Fǎ' and many years of experience for Mr."

  "What profound understanding have you gained over the years? Does it include the secrets hidden within the human body?" Meng Qi had already learned from Duan Xiang's previous words that there were three major secrets in the human body, which was different from the cultivation method of the Open period. It seemed that people in this world had taken a different path, even if they chose to open their minds and choose the path of enlightenment, they might not be able to open up the secrets later on. Looking at other people's paths was also good, after all, one could learn from others' strengths, explore the essence, and use others' strengths to improve oneself.

  And they can all be exchanged for merits! This is an extra gain brought by the mainline task!

  Duan Xiang couldn't help but laugh wearily: "Of course, inside there will naturally be insights on how to open the 'Yuan Qi Secret Stash' and 'Jing Li Secret Stash', as for the 'Shen Li Secret Stash', this old man himself hasn't opened it yet, I'm afraid I won't be of much help."

  He knew that what "Shen Hou" this top-notch expert needed most urgently was to open up the secrets of the human body and the methods of cultivation, and he wasn't afraid that he wouldn't be tempted.

  "I didn't expect that Idle Hidden Sir has already opened two great secret stores, and is also a master among masters." Meng Qi said with insincere praise, trying to hear more news - he had seen Duan'er Zha's moves, which were like whirlwinds and thunderstorms, almost magical, and his own master was many times stronger than Duan'er Zha. As for so-called masters, he naturally couldn't muster up genuine admiration.

  Duan Xiang smiled and said, "No, no, among the three great secret treasures, the 'Spiritual Secret Treasure' is the most difficult to open. It involves the brow point ancestor aperture, mysterious and even more mysterious. Once opened, it's almost like a divine demon, able to kill without lifting a hand. Just like Cui Lao Tou Zi, even if he only opened one secret treasure, I, an old man, could at most match him."

  "Mr. Shen Hou, are you willing to accept this mission?"

  "Not any reward can move people's hearts." Meng Qi said with a pretentious tone, standing with his hands behind his back, his monk robes fluttering, also having a bit of an otherworldly air.

  Duan Xiang asked with narrowed eyes: "What can make you excited?"

  "To be honest, I'm already quite tempted, but there's still a bit of a gap. I have an unreasonable request." Meng Qi's monkey-headed mask remained smiling.

  Duan Xiang asked with a relaxed tone: "What are the requirements?"

  "Also, please ask Mr. Xianyin to collect some secret recipes, no need for too high-end ones, ordinary ones are fine, the more the better." Meng Qi thought that he would exchange them with the Lord of the Six Paths of Reincarnation, although they would definitely be pressed at a very low price at that time, but accumulating little by little, it should be worth at least several dozen or hundreds of good deeds.

  Of course, a martial art can only be exchanged once.

  Duan Xiang furrowed his brow, unable to understand the intention behind "Shen Hou"'s request. After a moment of contemplation, he opened his mouth and said, "This requirement isn't difficult, I'll agree to it."

  "That's settled." Under the nodding motion, Meng Qi's monkey-headed mask looked even more comical.

  Duan Xiang's eyes gleamed with a hint of surprise: "Mr. Shen Hou has agreed so readily, which is somewhat beyond my expectations. It seems we've saved ourselves a lot of unnecessary talk. Very well, once the matter is settled, I'll present you with another gift, one that holds sentimental value to me and possesses an air of mystery."

  "What is it?" Meng Qi asked curiously.

  Duan Xiang smiled and said: "You will know when the time comes."

  As he spoke, he tossed a package at Meng Qi: "This is someone who was in contact with the missing puppy."

  Then his flat-bottomed boat suddenly accelerated, went downstream, and disappeared into the vast river surface.

  Meng Qi caught the package and rubbed his chin in confusion. "The Twelve Spirit Gods" don't even accept a deposit for their tasks?

  This question, the already deceased "Shen Hou" naturally had no way of answering him.

  However, he also put down a huge stone in his heart. Just now when negotiating and increasing the requirements, he was actually nervous, if Duan Xiangfei felt that the requirements were too high and wanted to find another agent, then he would only cry and shout and jump off the building to sell it at a low price, after all, this is the main task.

  "Tian Ding City, I didn't think I'd actually have to go to Tian Ding City...I'll have to find Zhang Zongxian and his wife now..." Meng Qi thought to himself as he gazed out at the rolling river in the black night. They knew that "Shen Hou" had been killed, so he'd have to come up with a way to cover it up.

  He flipped through the materials given by Duan Xiang, took out the "Shen Hou" and the silver fragments from the many corpses on the deck, put them in his pocket, then found a ballast stone, tied the corpse of "Shen Hou" to it, and pushed it into the river.

  With a splash, the waves rolled over several times, and "Shen Hou" completely disappeared.

  After doing all this, Meng Qi hid his mask and token, put down the small boat on the other side, and went downstream.

  The river wind hits the bow, the small boat is severely turbulent, but Meng Qi, standing with his hands behind his back, feels very stylish. The only regret is that he still can't cross the river with a single reed.

  After a while, Meng Qi arrived at Tiandicheng, which was built on the riverbank and looked like a giant dragon.

  Because it was late at night, the Water Gate of Tiandefu City had already been closed, and Meng Qi directly disembarked at the dock outside the city.

  Before he had gone a few steps forward, Meng Qi's eyes lit up because Zhang Zongxian and Li Xinyu were talking to a red-clothed girl at the water gate.

  "Amitabha Buddha, fate brings us together and separates us. I, a poor monk, seem to have a connection with the two donors." Meng Qi shouted out a Buddhist chant from afar.

  Zhang Zongxian turned his head and said with a mixture of surprise, joy, and doubt: "Master Zhēndìng, you've also come to Tiān Dìng City?"

  Li Xinyu then leaned over and nibbled on the ear of that delicate and lovely red-clothed girl.

  "This humble monk has come specifically to catch up with the two donors, because that 'Shen Hou' did not die, but pretended to be dead and deceived us. Later, taking advantage of my unpreparedness, he escaped into the water and fled." Meng Qi said with his eyes open, "Therefore, this humble monk has come to remind the two donors to be more careful and not to spread this matter out, lest it provoke the 'Twelve Beasts' to even crazier revenge."

  "Thank you, Master Fa, for coming all the way to remind me." Zhang Zongxian was truly grateful, because he didn't think it was necessary to lie about this matter. He couldn't have imagined that the master in front of him would pretend to be "Shen Hou", hence his words.

  After biting her ear, the red-clothed girl looked at Meng Qi with great interest: "True Dharma Master, I am Cui Jinxiu. After receiving the news, I came to welcome Sister Xinyu and her husband. I just heard about your story and didn't expect you to be so young, yet able to defeat Shen Hou, one of the 'Twelve Beasts'. My hands are itching, please teach me a few moves."

  There was an old man with white hair beside her, lowering his eyebrows and eyes, as if counting the ants on the ground.