Once I enter the pass, great Confucian scholars will surely debate the classics for me.

"Zhou Qingfeng, this kid is really good at business. With Qiu Chengde as his backer, who in the entire Sword Tower would dare not give him some face? Even if they don't care about him, they still have to give Qiu Chengde face."

"Tsk, don't you know? The city lord himself said that this boy is a peerless genius!"

"Really? Does that mean the first family will have another third young lady?"

"Third Miss, is that the Third Miss who fell in love with a mortal?"

"Shh, are you out of your mind? Don't even mention this. That's taboo in the Sword Tower, the city lord's Achilles' heel. It's not something we're qualified to discuss. If you want to die, go die somewhere else and don't drag us down with you."

"Holy crap, never mind."

"Who is Zhou Qingfeng? You all seem to have heard of him. Am I just ignorant?"

Inside a teahouse, the patrons were buzzing with curiosity about Zhou Qingfeng, who had suddenly appeared out of nowhere. How had someone previously unknown become such a hot topic of conversation?

Zhou Qingfeng has become a topic of conversation among tea drinkers, and those who haven't heard of him are naturally very curious.

A storyteller in the teahouse asked, "Do you know who Zhou Qingfeng is?"

"He was originally a refugee who fled two hundred miles of famine and came to Sword Tower to sell himself into the city lord's mansion."

"On my first attempt at cultivation, it only took me two hours to reach the Turbidity Realm!"

The teahouse patrons immediately exclaimed in surprise: "Wow, is it really that amazing?!"

"That's outrageous. He's mastered the basics of cultivation so quickly. He must have been preparing for a long time beforehand."

"Yes, it would probably take an entire day for an ordinary person who hasn't cultivated to even look at the introductory manual!"

The storyteller shook his head and said, waving his paper fan: "No, no, no, he practiced and studied in just two hours. Such talent is rare even in the most corrupt world."

Upon hearing this, the tea drinkers fell silent. They had heard countless stories of prodigies, such as those who mastered the art in a day or overnight, but when it came to Zhou Qingfeng, it was measured in hours.

Cultivating by consuming impure substances is inherently dangerous.

When people first begin cultivating, most are afraid that they will be contaminated by the impure energy and unable to control it, thus turning into demons and monsters. Therefore, they delay their cultivation until they are sure they are confident.

He dared to spend two hours observing and practicing before entering the Turbid Food Realm.

This unwavering courage alone has already defeated most of the most outstanding talents.

"He's just a brute, yet he dares to call himself a peerless genius," someone retorted.

The storyteller chuckled, closed his fan, and pointed at the man, saying, "Then you're wrong again. Zhou Qingfeng ranked first in both the practical combat and talent tests during his second entrance examination for the manor!"

"On that day, everyone managed to snatch the sword tassels from the fifteen sword servants!"

"Only Zhou Qingfeng could seize the sword tassel using his cunning!"

"He fought against one of the fifteen sword attendants, Sword Dance."

"Who is Sword Dance? I'm afraid you know nothing about her."

"Let me tell you, on the surface she appears to be the city lord's personal sword attendant."

"In fact, she is the White Bone Witch who proved her Dao by killing two hundred years ago and is known as the number one killing queen of swordsmanship in ancient and modern times."

"Back then, she fought her way from Nanzhao City to Beidi City, a distance of 80,000 li, with rivers of blood flowing everywhere. It was a scene of bones exposed in the wilderness and no roosters crowing for thousands of miles."

"Her bone-controlling sword technique was unparalleled in the world, but I heard that she has reformed and no longer kills."

"And he, Zhou Qingfeng, is just a mere cultivator who has just embarked on the path of cultivation."

"He remained calm and composed in the face of danger, showing no fear when confronted by the Bone Witch."

"With unparalleled wisdom, he narrowly snatched the sword tassel from the Bone Witch and won first place!"

"Talent is a test, and I have the ability to crush all my opponents and win the championship again!"

"Such a prodigy, you dare to call him a brute?"

"Then the whole world would probably be full of stupid pigs who are even worse than brutes."

Upon hearing this, the man was speechless and lowered his head in silence.

"No, are you a shill hired by Zhou Qingfeng? You're praising him like this!"

"Zhou Qingfeng is nothing but a lackey, yet he dares to call himself a peerless genius!" Many tea drinkers hurled insults at him.

The storyteller sneered, "Ha, Zhou Qingfeng is such a prodigy, why bother praising him?"

"Just standing there, he already radiates light!"

"In the end, all of you are just envious, jealous, and hateful."

Have you ever heard of a single plan to kill three warriors?

"Forget it, this matter cannot be discussed. It involves secrets, and if I do, I will go to jail. All you need to know is that the Devouring Fiend cultivators Lu Nanping, Feng Manlou, and Yun Fan were all killed by Zhou Qingfeng's scheme!"

"Zhou Qingfeng has made a tremendous contribution and has been promoted by the city lord to the position of council member. He has risen to the top in one step, like a carp transforming into a dragon. From now on, when you see Zhou Qingfeng, you must respectfully address him as Commander-in-Chief!"

The people in the teahouse couldn't hold back any longer: "Who the hell are you? Have you no shame? Dare to reveal your name? You're definitely taking money for this nonsense about Zhou Qingfeng!"

The storyteller laughed loudly: "Hahaha, how foolish, how foolish! You mediocre little people, how could I, Zhou Zi'ou, boast about myself for a mere sum of money? You don't understand Commander Zhou, but it doesn't matter."

“Commander Zhou can’t see you, and even if he could, he wouldn’t care about the opinions of you ants.”

"Only I, Zhou Zi'ou, know just how amazing and brilliant Zhou Fushuai's talents and abilities truly are, hahahaha..."

The people in the teahouse turned green with anger and stood up, shouting, "You're crazy! Get him out of here!"

"Get lost, what kind of lousy storyteller are you!"

"Damn, this guy's surname is also Zhou. He's definitely a shill hired by Zhou Qingfeng. Get lost!"

Looking at the excited crowd of tea drinkers, Zhou Zi'ou smiled sarcastically, put his hands behind his back, and strode away from the teahouse: "So what if my surname is Zhou? I'm proud to share the same surname as Commander Zhou! I, Zhou Zi'ou, am honored!"

……

For several days in a row, Zhou Qingfeng prepared for body tempering until he was ready.

Only then did he invite Qiu Chengde to accompany him out of the city.

Zhou Qingfeng clasped his hands in a fist and asked, "Master, where should we go?"

Qiu Chengde put his hands behind his back and said, "You can choose. With your master protecting you, you don't need to worry about demons attacking you."

Zhou Qingfeng sensed the casualness in his master's words, a casualness that represented strength and confidence, which piqued Zhou Qingfeng's curiosity: "May I ask, Master, how high is your current cultivation level??"

Upon hearing this, Qiu Chengde chuckled softly: "If you're on the first floor, then I'm probably as high as the sixth floor. After all, people call me the number one lackey under Madam's tutelage. If my level is too low, wouldn't that be a disgrace to Madam?"

Zhou Qingfeng: "..." Damn, it's a sure thing, this escape from the city is definitely going to be a sure thing!

Having a master to protect you is like having an extra layer of insurance.

However, we still need to cast a divination to inquire about good or bad fortune, since the wilderness is extremely dangerous, with more demons and monsters than living people. When living people leave the city, they rely on their fists. If their fists are not strong enough, they will die.

Therefore, it is still necessary to seek good fortune and avoid misfortune, lest one's boat capsize in a ditch.

So, deep in his consciousness, Zhou Qingfeng summoned the mysterious scarlet divination sticks, silently shook them, chose a direction, and with a flick of his finger, four divination sticks flew out of the scarlet divination sticks, wobbling slightly.

"Neutral fortune, head east, it's neutral."

"Neutral fortune, head west, it's auspicious."

"Neutral fortune, head north, it's neutral."

"Auspicious sign: Head south, good fortune."

Zhou Qingfeng knew from the divination results that the presence of his master, Qiu Chengde, meant that not a single unlucky divination result appeared this time.

Follow the principle of choosing auspicious options when available and neutral options when available.

Zhou Qingfeng immediately clasped his hands and bowed, saying, "Master, let's head south and find a secluded place."