"Instead, they’ll go to the Golden Bell Tower.

"By the same token, if you want to sell this sword, you can go to the Golden Bell Tower.

"They’ll definitely give you a satisfactory answer."

He paused for a moment before adding,

"If you want to satisfy that strange quirk of yours for being a guard, you can also have the Golden Bell Tower screen suitable employers for you."

Fang Shuwen’s interest was piqued. Chen Yan’s words had opened up a new line of thinking for him.

The Golden Bell Tower was a rather unique entity in the Jianghu.

As long as there was money to be made, they would do anything.

You could post commissions for assassinations, requests to purchase items, or even sell things yourself.

Their business model, presumably, was to take a commission.

They weren’t on one side or the other. They appeared neutral, but the lines were never that clear.

And yet, after all these years, they continued to thrive and had never been wiped out, which clearly showed they had their own way of survival.

’If I could get in touch with the Golden Bell Tower and have them provide me with clients, I could save myself the trouble of searching for jobs.’

’This is indeed a good idea.’

Fang Shuwen tapped his fingers on the table. He and Chen Yan continued to talk for quite a while.

They discussed the Golden Bell Tower and also Heaven-Reaching Pavilion.

Chen Yan was truly knowledgeable and worldly, privy to many of the Jianghu’s secrets. After a long talk with him, Fang Shuwen gained a more comprehensive understanding of the martial world.

The orthodox path in the Eastern Domain Martial World was led by the Seven Great Sects.

They were the leaders of the Jianghu. Their disciples were often paragons of chivalry, though there were occasional black sheep, such as Qing Yangzi of Taixu Dao or that good-for-nothing Shi Meng. On the whole, however, they were decent.

Besides them, there were the Three Immortals, Two Kings, and One City Madman. These were either leaders of regional powers or lone wolves who fought by themselves.

They weren’t ranked among the Seven Sects, but they often had the strength to contend with a major sect.

Their actions weren’t always honorable; some were morally ambiguous. But from the perspective of the Seven Great Sects, as long as they didn’t cross the line—for example, by harming the innocent or massacring common people—everything else could be treated as a private grudge, and the sects would turn a blind eye.

Then there were powers like Heaven-Reaching Pavilion, Jinghua Pavilion, and the Golden Bell Tower.

These forces were either neutral or had their own unique characteristics, such as Jinghua Pavilion.

They acted in secret, and their disciples often concealed their true identities when moving about the Jianghu.

They did things entirely based on their own whims. They seemed to have no particular ambitions or goals; if they wanted to do something, they would do it... even if they gained nothing in the end.

What was commendable was that Jinghua Pavilion housed some of the most skilled physicians in the entire Jianghu.

Many people who were gravely ill or seriously injured would try every means possible to find Jinghua Pavilion and beseech their physicians to come out and treat them.

Some succeeded, but many others were beyond saving by the time they could be found.

As for Heaven-Reaching Pavilion and the Golden Bell Tower, they were generally classified as neutral powers.

However, among these neutral powers, there was one extraordinary place known as the ’Unjust Death City’.

According to Chen Yan, the living should not enter Unjust Death City, for all who enter, die.

This place was incredibly mysterious. Heaven-Reaching Pavilion once had disciples infiltrate it to gather intelligence, but they never returned.

When they tried to find it again, even Unjust Death City itself had vanished.

They would occasionally find traces of Unjust Death City, but unfortunately, any attempt to investigate would end in failure, with all the disciples sent to investigate disappearing without a trace.

Over time, Heaven-Reaching Pavilion no longer dared to tread there lightly.

But these people didn’t meddle in the affairs of the Jianghu. It was as if they didn’t exist unless someone bothered them.

Thus, Heaven-Reaching Pavilion also classified them as a neutral power... but an extremely dangerous one!

Fang Shuwen even asked if he knew of Undying Island or Dragon Emperor Hall.

However, the well-informed Chen Yan was stumped by Fang Shuwen’s question. Not only did he know nothing, but he even asked Fang Shuwen where he had heard of them.

Fang Shuwen didn’t elaborate, simply changing the subject and moving on.

The Eastern Domain Martial World may be just one small corner of the world, but it held endless stories.

The two of them talked for the entire night. They started in the main hall and later moved to a guest room. Xu Shuxin was sleeping like the dead, while Fang Shuwen and Chen Yan were lost in their conversation.

They didn’t stop until the first light of dawn touched the eastern sky.

When they went downstairs in the morning, the burly man whose pressure points had been sealed the previous night was still there, having stood for the entire night. Fang Shuwen finally asked about him and, upon learning he was a mountain bandit who had killed indiscriminately, casually struck him dead and tossed the body outside.

After breakfast, Fang Shuwen intended to bid Chen Yan farewell, but Chen Yan, riding his small, gray-and-white donkey, started to follow them, matching their every step.

Fang Shuwen was a bit confused.

Chen Yan said listlessly,

"I just have a feeling that wherever you go, a story follows.

"And as the Young Master of Heaven-Reaching Pavilion, where there’s a story, there I’ll be..."

"...I’m telling you, someone with a trouble-magnet constitution like you had better not follow me. If entire families start getting massacred and people start dropping dead wherever we go, it’ll be all your fault."

Fang Shuwen eyed him warily, as if what was following them wasn’t a person, but a whole heap of trouble.

Chen Yan was speechless for a moment.

"I revealed so much information to you last night, and this is how you treat me today?

"They say whores are heartless and actors are faithless, but you change your tune faster than a girl in a brothel."

Fang Shuwen shook his head like a pellet drum.

"Just don’t follow me."

"Then just consider all the information from last night as something I sold to you. In that case, you can at least let me tag along to Yuqing Pavilion, right?"