Casting immortality in the furnace

Chapter 85 Happy Forest

"Kuaihuolin is owned by the Gongsun family of Gusu City. They have a wide business reach, from Yue to Chu, and then to the northern states of Qi and Lu, and even overseas island nations.

Chen Sheng walked ahead and chatted with Fan Zhou and the others about the situation in Happy Forest.

A lecherous smile crept across Peng Yue's face.

"Although our market town's Happy Forest is not large, it still has beauties from Chu and Qi, as well as foreign women from overseas island nations."

Fan Zhou was speechless. "No wonder it's called Happy Forest, it turns out it's a brothel."

"That's not it either," Luo Yu replied. "There are many other forms of entertainment inside, such as more refined activities like archery, singing and dancing, and gambling."

Fan Zhou remained silent; he had never been exposed to such refined things.

"Looks like I'll have to resort to something lowbrow."

"Haha, me too!" Peng Yue laughed.

The group chatted and laughed all the way, and soon arrived at the south side of the market.

As Langdang Mountain Market has developed to its current state, its basic layout has been established. The north side is mainly the sword-making industry, the east side is lined with shops, the west side is inhabited by villagers, and the south side is mostly inhabited by wandering cultivators from outside the area.

The Happy Forest is located south of the market and covers a very large area.

Before Fan Zhou and his group even got close, they could already see a tall grove of sycamore trees.

A road paved with bluestone leads deep into the forest, with stone lampstands standing on both sides, their flames illuminating the path.

Deep within the forest stand three tall buildings, their imposing eaves adorned with crouching dragons and beasts, appearing particularly menacing under the cover of night.

Luo Yu, looking smug, waved his sleeve with an air of arrogance:

"Let's go, let's have a blast tonight!"

"good!"

Chen Sheng took the lead and led Fan Zhou and the others into the Happy Forest.

After walking along the bluestone path and making several turns, the view suddenly opened up before them.

Before me stood a brightly lit two-story, U-shaped restaurant. Waiters in blue robes moved constantly between the tables, where all sorts of people drank and chatted, creating a lively and bustling atmosphere.

In the courtyard of the restaurant, more than ten women in palace attire danced in mid-air on a high platform. Their figures twirled like swallows and orioles, their snow-white thighs appearing and disappearing, while their melodious singing voices were clear and melodious.

Chen Sheng ignored all of this and led Fan Zhou and the others through the corridor toward the backyard.

"The area in front of Happy Forest is just a place for listening to music and drinking; the really interesting and fun things are in the back," Peng Yue explained.

"Is it in those tall buildings?" Fan Zhou asked.

"That's right." Peng Yue nodded. "There are three buildings behind it: Wusheng Building, Wensheng Building, and Yunsheng Building. Each building offers different types of entertainment."

Luo Yu then spoke up:

"Wusheng Tower is a place for martial arts entertainment, such as archery, wrestling, sword fighting, and animal fighting, while Wensheng Tower is a place for singing and dancing, chess, poetry and painting, and haiku (a type of Chinese opera)."

"I see." Fan Zhou thought for a moment, then asked curiously, "What about Yunsheng Tower? What kind of games and activities are there there?"

"Yunsheng Tower is full of gambling games, including fish gutting, size comparison, number guessing, and even illusion games. They're basically all about luck," Luo Yu said.

Chen Sheng turned around and said, "Talking about it is meaningless; the real fun comes from experiencing it for yourself."

"Wusheng Tower is just ahead, let's go there first."

Peng Yue also perked up, rubbing his hands together eagerly, and said:

"I'll go play wrestling first and see how much I've improved after breaking through to the seventh level."

Luo Yu raised an eyebrow and said, "Junior Brother Peng, how about we have a match?"

Peng Yue chuckled and patted him on the shoulder. "You're the star of the night. As a guest being treated, I wouldn't dare lay a hand on you. How about we go play horse-riding instead?"

Luo Yu replied indifferently, "Whatever."

Peng Yue then said to Fan Zhou, "Junior Brother Fan, why don't you give it a try? I see that your strength has improved a lot these past two days, so this is a good opportunity to test it out."

"Alright," Fan Zhou said with a hint of doubt, "But what if we strangle the horse to death?"

Peng Yue and Luo Yu both laughed. "Don't worry, this horse is absolutely indestructible!"

Fan Zhou could only enter Wusheng Tower with doubts.

The Wusheng Tower is spacious, with a fighting arena in the middle where two cultivators are wrestling shirtless.

One of them was a giant, eight feet tall, with an exceptionally strong physique and explosive muscles all over his body, while his opponent was a thin old man with snow-white hair and beard, who looked to be in his sixties or seventies.

Yet these two were locked in a fierce battle on the stage, their palms pressed together, their muscles taut, their eyes bloodshot, veins bulging on their faces, and cracks spreading across the stage beneath their feet—clearly, they had both exerted their utmost strength.

There were many seats set up around the area, and many people were raising their arms and cheering, creating a lively atmosphere.

Fan Zhou and the others stopped to watch, and Luo Yu mocked:

"This is a common trick: deliberately pitting two seemingly mismatched people against each other, and then letting the one who seems unlikely to win ultimately prevail."

"Not entirely," Peng Yue shook his head and said, "Sometimes we deliberately go against that idea and let the person who seems very strong win."

"That's the fun of gambling; the outcome seems predetermined, yet it's unpredictable," Chen Sheng laughed.

Fan Zhou observed carefully for a while, "That old man is no match for the big guy. If he wants to win, he can only release the essence that has been accumulated in his body for many years. But he is unwell, so he probably won't do that."

Chen Sheng was somewhat surprised, "Junior brother has a good eye; I didn't even realize he was ill."

Fan Zhou humbly said, "This old man also practices the Everlasting Spring Technique. I observed that his blood vessels are bluish, which I think is a symptom of liver qi stagnation mentioned in the technique."

Peng Yue laughed and said, "In that case, that big guy is bound to win."

As soon as he finished speaking, the gaunt old man on the stage suddenly roared like a tiger, his muscles swelled up as if inflated, his beard and hair turned gray again, and in a few breaths he transformed into a muscular man with explosive muscles, even more robust than the big guy.

"Go down!"

The old man's strength had greatly increased. He grabbed the big guy, lifted him over his head, and threw him off the stage. With a thud, the man was knocked unconscious.

This turn of events truly surprised everyone; no one expected that the old man would risk shortening his lifespan to win this contest.

Most of the spectators around the stadium were cursing angrily, while only a few were excited and cheering.

Fan Zhou said helplessly, "It seems the bookmaker still has the upper hand."

"That's what they mean by 'nine out of ten gamblers lose'."

Chen Sheng had little interest in gambling, and said to Peng Yue and Luo Yu:

"You guys want to wrestle with horses, right? I'll join you for a game too."

"That would be even better!"

Peng Yue looked pleased and led the group to another area.

A sand pit has been built here, with a dozen or so yellow oxen and black horses standing inside, their bodies chained together.

This yellow ox and black horse were plump and had a metallic sheen all over their bodies, clearly made of bronze and iron!

Fan Zhou was both amused and exasperated. "No wonder they said it was impossible to kill a horse by pulling it; it turns out it was an iron horse."

Peng Yue laughed and said, "These iron horses are much more expensive than real horses. Each one has the strength of a thousand catties, never tires, doesn't need to eat or drink, and can be repaired if it breaks. They are very useful."

"These iron horses can still move? What kind of magic is used?" Fan Zhou asked in surprise.

"It's not magic. These iron horses and bronze oxen are all made using the mechanical arts of the State of Lu. Once the mechanisms are activated, they can function like living things," Luo Yu explained.

He waved to the servant in blue, bought a plate of iron pellets, took out three from them, and flicked them into the mouths of the three iron horses.

Rolling around.

Fan Zhou first heard the sound of iron balls rolling, and then a series of gears suddenly came from inside the three iron horses, making a clicking and clattering sound.

"Hiss!"

Suddenly, the three jet-black iron horses raised their heads and neighed in unison, then took off running on the battlefield, each step making a thunderous sound and displaying astonishing momentum.

"Junior Brother Peng, who should go first?"

Luo Yu asked Peng Yue.

"I'll go first!"

Peng Yue laughed heartily, and in a flash, he rushed into the battlefield, grabbed the chain of one of the iron horses, and forcibly stopped it. The iron horse reared up, its hooves kicking wildly, but it could not take another step.