"What do you mean?"

Qin Fang asked with a frown.

’He went looking for the Treasure Fish... but he doesn’t know what a Treasure Fish is? Is this something that only appeared recently?’

"I also heard it from a fellow townsman... and the rumors are very... miraculous."

Monkey’s expression was also a bit odd as he used the word ’miraculous’.

Seeing Qin Fang’s confused gaze, he began to explain. "They say that about three or four months ago, someone caught a strange fish... It was about a foot and two inches long, its whole body covered in fine, densely packed golden scales the size of a fingernail. It glowed all over, like it was made of gold..."

"The fisherman who caught that fish is named Fang Zhou. He caught it in a dragnet. But he had some bad luck... Just as he was hauling in his net, a group of Water Pirates passed by. When they saw the fish glowing, they knew it was a treasure and tried to snatch it. Fang Zhou saw things were going south and immediately hid in the reeds near Stone Bay..."

"And then?" Qin Fang asked, his brow furrowed.

"Then, something miraculous happened..."

Monkey said with a peculiar expression, "The Water Pirates who couldn’t catch him didn’t give up. They cornered him for three days and three nights... After three days, Fang Zhou was finally trapped. But what happened next... he, all by himself, killed almost all of the forty-plus Water Pirates who went to surround him, including one who was a Mid-Mingjin Stage Martial Artist."

Qin Fang’s heart skipped a beat. "This Fang Zhou... he’s that strong?"

’Even a Mid-Mingjin Stage practitioner was killed?’

’And I’m only at the Early Mingjin Stage right now...’

"That’s the key part..."

Monkey swallowed hard. "Fang Zhou has a clean background. His parents are dead, and he was just an ordinary fisherman who had never even practiced martial arts... Before he was chased, he was so scrawny it looked like a gust of wind could blow him away... But three days later, he was covered in muscle, possessed immense strength, and was incredibly fast..."

Qin Fang’s eyes widened.

’A weakling three days ago.’

’Three days later... he can even kill a Mid-Mingjin Stage Martial Artist?’

"Just because... he ate that fish?"

Even Qin Fang couldn’t help but ask, a sense of dread in his voice.

"I don’t know... but that’s the speculation."

Monkey swallowed again. "This is the news that spread from the survivors among that group of Water Pirates. They suspect it was the fish that caused such a transformation in him... Otherwise, it’s inexplicable..."

"I heard that after the news reached Pingze City, all the fishermen near Pingze went crazy and started frantically fishing in the river... During this process, someone actually saw another miraculous fish... but it wasn’t the all-gold kind. This one was jade-like all over and emitted a faint white light. But unfortunately... that fish was incredibly strong. It tore through the fisherman’s net and escaped..."

"And that’s how the legend of the Treasure Fish began..."

After Monkey finished his story, Qin Fang looked stunned.

Then he suddenly noticed the timeline Monkey had mentioned...

’Three or four months ago?’

’Isn’t that right when I killed Wang Long?’

Afterward, I spent every day at home on pins and needles, worried that Wang Hu would find some clue and come after me.

But in the end, Wang Hu never came.

It was only later that I heard from my senior brother that Wang Hu had already come to Pingze City and had clashed with the Four Seas Gang many times...

’Could it be... because of this so-called ’Treasure Fish’?’

For a moment, Qin Fang’s expression flickered through a range of emotions. Finally, he looked at Monkey, who was also staring into space with a daydreaming look, and asked, "Have you ever heard of a Treasure Fish before this?"

Monkey snapped out of it and immediately shook his head. "Never heard of it."

’Never heard of it?’

Qin Fang’s brows knitted together tightly.

’Treasure Fish...’

"Did Wang Hu leave because of the Treasure Fish?"

he asked.

"That’s what they say."

Monkey nodded, then gritted his teeth. "These people in Pingze sure know how to keep a secret... Something that happened four months ago, and not a whisper of it reached the Fishermen’s side!"

’That’s a treasure that can turn a weakling into a Mingjin master in three days!’

’If I’d known earlier, I’d probably have gone out on the river to fish long ago!’

’...What if I’d gotten lucky?’

’That would’ve been a meteoric rise!’

"Aren’t they afraid of the Demons?"

Qin Fang asked.

"Master Qin, please don’t laugh... If I knew where in this river to find a Treasure Fish, I probably wouldn’t be afraid of any Demons either."

Monkey said with a serious expression.

Qin Fang fell silent.

’He’s right.’

’It’s not like the Demons just stand in one place waiting for you. Although some people have died because of them... if the reward is great enough, who would care about a little danger?’

’Could my luck really be that bad? Would I definitely run into one?’

Qin Fang frowned, lost in thought.

Monkey paused for a moment before asking, "Master Qin, what do we do now? Should we go after them? If we do, I can get a boat!"

His eyes were bright, and he seemed eager to try.

’...The Four Seas Gang and the Iron Tiger Gang set out at the same time, ignoring the danger of Demons on the River Surface. This means they must have very precise intelligence.’

’Otherwise, they wouldn’t have made such a big show of it.’

Qin Fang’s brow was furrowed, his eyes flickering.

Suddenly, he remembered something else...

’Before I left, a batch of medicinal herbs from Huichun Hall was stolen by people from the Four Seas Gang.’

’I wonder... if it’s related to this?’

’...And I don’t know how that incident was ultimately resolved either.’

’Did Huichun Hall go looking for trouble with the Four Seas Gang?’

’Or... was there something else going on?’

Qin Fang pondered for a long while, but in the end, he let out a soft breath and suppressed the thoughts in his heart.

"How would we chase them? They left two days ago. Do you even know which way they went?"

Qin Fang shook his head.

Only then did it dawn on Monkey. "Oh, right... I got carried away and forgot they set off two days ago..."

He looked a little embarrassed.

Qin Fang looked out the window, his eyes narrowed. "Besides, they might not be the only two groups that went..."

"Huh?"

A look of confusion appeared on Monkey’s face.

But Qin Fang said no more.

"All right, that’s enough. We’ll wait for him to come back."

Qin Fang said calmly.

Although he’d learned about this unexpected situation—that Wang Hu was not in Pingze—it didn’t mean he was safe.

On the contrary, it was even more dangerous...

If Wang Hu really did obtain a Treasure Fish and then learned of his whereabouts... then he would be in even greater danger. 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

Therefore, he had to wait here.

And then...

Finish him.

"What are your plans?"

Qin Fang turned to look at Monkey.

Monkey snapped back to reality and said with a quick smile, "I’m here to be your guide. The job’s not done, so how could I leave?"

Qin Fang nodded upon hearing this...

’That works.’

’I do need someone well-informed to help me gather intelligence.’

"Since we’ll be staying here... Master Qin, should we rent a courtyard? Staying at an inn isn’t very convenient, after all," Monkey asked, seeking Qin Fang’s opinion.

Qin Fang had actually been thinking the same thing. "A courtyard would be ideal, of course."

Even though he was waiting, he couldn’t slack off on his cultivation.

Training in an inn would be very troublesome.

"No problem. It’s getting a little late today. I’ll take care of it tomorrow," Monkey said, puffing out his chest.

Qin Fang nodded. Then, feeling a bit hungry, the two of them left the room, found the owner, and had the kitchen prepare a table full of dishes for them to eat.

At noon the next day, Monkey came to find Qin Fang. He had already found a courtyard.

It was in the market district, not far from the fish market. The courtyard walls were high, and after Qin Fang went in to take a look, he was very satisfied.

The rent wasn’t cheap: five taels a month, with a deposit of ten taels.

However, for Qin Fang, who had just come into a huge sum of over three hundred taels, this was naturally nothing.

And so, Qin Fang settled in and began his patient wait.

And then he discovered... the allure of the Treasure Fish was unexpectedly great.

The fish market on the Fishermen’s side was nearly empty, but the fishermen here in Pingze went to the river every single day...

’They really don’t give a damn about the Demons at all...’