Chapter 546 Illusive Aroma Lane

“Please come with me.” The middle-aged man said to them with a smile, and they followed him to get into a carriage.

The carriage moved unhurriedly along the way. Xiao Chen sat inside the carriage, listening to the noise outside. He opened the window curtain and saw thousands of lanterns hanging on the streets. The pedestrians shuttled back and forth like shuttles. In the distance, the colorful lights reflected on the river banks, as bright as the Milky Way.

“I didn’t think there would be such a night in the Wastelands.” Xiao Chen put down the curtains and looked at Chu Qi sitting opposite. Chu Qi immediately took out the items that she had obtained from the carriage shop owner from her Divine Vessel.

It turned out to be two jade badges the size of a thumb. They were exquisitely made. On one side, there were three orchids. On the other side, there were three words that wrote “Illusive Aroma Lane.”

With a smile, Xiao Chen kept one of the jade badges in his pocket. He thought that Yang Qing was well-prepared. In other words, Black-horn City might not be like what he had seen now. Perhaps the invisible corners hidden in the shadows were the real Black-horn City.

The carriage finally stopped after about an hour. Xiao Chen opened the window curtain and saw that the street was much wider. Colorful lanterns hung high. It was more prosperous than the place before and seemed to be more dangerous, too.

“Two distinguished guests, we’ve arrived at Illusive Aroma Lane.”

“I’ll have to trouble you, bro.”

“You’re welcome, bro.”

Xiao Chen got off the carriage and looked up. There was a very large courtyard in front of him, like a palace. In the center of the courtyard, there was a seven-story pavilion. The pavilion was also vast, and a string of red lanterns hung on each eave, fluttering in the wind.

A plaque was erected in front of the gate outside the courtyard, with three words, “Illusory Aroma Lane,” written on it.

The Illusive Aroma Lane was a famous money-losing den in Black-horn City. It was a place where high officials and noble lords spent their money for pleasure. It was also a heaven for rich young masters to be willful. Even if ordinary people were to take a look outside, they would feel that it was extravagant.

At this moment, under the main entrance of the courtyard stood two rows of black-armor soldiers. Each of them held a long spear, but it seemed that they did not belong to the Illusive Aroma Lane.

At this moment, Xiao Chen felt a murderous aura, but it came from Chu Qi next to him.

“Relax.” Xiao Chen said in a low voice. He then glanced at the black-armored soldier and said placidly, “It seems that it’s a bit of bad timing that we’re here. Let’s go. We should slowly get close.”

The two slowly approached. When they were close to the carpet in front of the main gate, two soldiers at the outermost stopped them immediately and asked, “Who are you?”

Xiao Chen did not say much and immediately took out the jade badge from his chest pocket. At this moment, the charming voice of a woman came from inside the attic. “Officers, don’t be nervous. It’s a guest from my Lane.”

“Sister… Sister Zi!” The soldiers immediately took back their spears, bowed their heads, and said respectfully, as if there was a trace of fear in them.

A beautiful woman wearing a purple dress slowly walked out from within. That woman looked particularly charming. Her shoulders were exposed and her collarbones could be seen clearly. Her white chest bounced as she walked.

She held a purple pipe in her hand and breathed out a thin mist. With a charming smile on her face, she stared at Xiao Chen and walked toward him step by step, twisting her waist.

Ordinary people would be mesmerized by this exceedingly beautiful woman just by glancing at her. But Xiao Chen felt that this woman seemed to be unusual.

“Young man, why are you looking at me like this?”

The woman in purple exhaled a puff of smoke, with a faint smile on her face. She looked at Xiao Chen and said.

“I apologize.” Xiao Chen came to his senses and smiled gently. He handed over the jade badge in his hand. The woman picked up her slender fingers and took the jade plate in his hand. She smiled charmingly and said, “Follow me.”

The two of them followed the woman in purple into Illusive Aroma Lane. Xiao Chen walked behind and saw the woman slowly walking and twisting her slender waist. Even if it was just her back view, she looked even more enchanting than Su Lianyue. An ordinary man would fall for her with a single glance.

In the courtyard, there was also a different world. Looking from the outside, you could only see the iconic seven-story building, but inside, you could see many long corridors and bridges. Many places were covered with flowers and trees. The place between the flowers and trees was filled with colorful lanterns. Under the trees, there was a shallow pool for feeding koi.

The pool water was about one foot deep. The pool was paved with bluestones, which were the paths to the courtyard buildings in Illusive Aroma Lane. The layout was very interesting, and ordinary people could not see the mystery of it.

Along the way, the woman in purple only led the way. She did not speak much. From time to time, she would take a breath of the tobacco pipe and then gently exhaled the thin smoke. On the way, Xiao Chen saw many dancers dressed glamorously. When these dancers saw the woman in purple, they would bow their heads and greet her respectfully.

Xiao Chen also carefully observed the construction of the Illusive Aroma Lane. He nodded in his heart. Not to mention that there was none in the Human World, even in the Violet Realm, it was rare to see. The owner of this shop must be someone with a strong background.

Although there were many dancers and buildings in the Illusive Aroma Lane, people would never stay overnight. That was to say, this was not a brothel.

About 10 minutes later, Xiao Chen finally came to the front of the seven-story pavilion of the main building. The pavilion was quite big, and it was not an ordinary pavilion. When he arrived here, Xiao Chen could already hear the sound of the pipe instruments inside, as well as the sound of clapping and applauding.

Upon entering, one could see twelve beautiful dancers dancing in the center of the hall on the first floor. Musicians were on both sides of the hall. The second and third floors were filled with people. They were either the young masters of wealthy merchants or high officials and nobles.

On the fourth floor, the woman in purple led Xiao Chen and Chu Qi to a small house. She gently knocked on the door with her tobacco pipe. After a while, the door opened. Yang Qing and the others were sitting inside, as well as four young ladies who were persuading them to drink.

When the four women saw the woman in purple, they immediately greeted her respectfully and then went out in an orderly manner. In the room, Yang Qing and the others also stood up. Yang Qing smiled and said, “Brother Xiao, you’re here!”

“Mister Xiao, please come in.” The woman in purple said gently with an enchanting smile.

Xiao Chen stepped into the house and said nothing. The woman in purple at the door said, “Well, I’ll take my leave for now.”

“Heh heh! Thank you so much, Sister Zi!” Yang Qing said with a smile.

“You’re welcome.” The woman in purple smiled gently and closed the door.

Xiao Chen took a few steps inside. There was a light fragrance like that of orchid in the room. He saw only Yang Qing and 3 others, but another 3 were missing. He asked, “Aren’t the other three brothers here?”

Yang Qing stretched out his hand and said, “Brother Xiao, sit down first. The three of them have other things to do, so they didn’t come.”

“Okay.” Xiao Chen nodded and sat down on the chair. He asked again, “Who is the girl in purple just now?”

“Sister Zi is the owner of the Illusive Aroma Lane.”

“I see.” Xiao Chen did not ask more. They must have known each other before. With a flick of his sleeve, a sound-proof Barrier was set up in the room. He then asked, “Do you have any clues about Master Ren?”

Upon hearing this, Yang Qing frowned. He concentrated and said, “To tell you the truth, I didn’t find Master Ren after searching for more than a month, but I have a clue. Seven years ago, Master Ren once appeared in Black-horn City and then disappeared.”

“Do you mean that the last time he showed up in Black-horn City was seven years ago? That’s to say, he disappeared in Black-horn City, right?”

Yang Qing frowned and said, “Now, we can’t be sure if the last time he showed up was in Black-horn City, but we can be sure that we can start from here. Everyone who has seen him will be a clue. As long as these clues are connected together, it won’t be difficult to find him.”

“Oh?” Xiao Chen picked up the wine pot and filled the cup with wine. He said, “Brother Yang, tell me, where is the first clue?”

“Black-Wind Pass, Bluestone Hall.”

“Bluestone Hall?”

“The Bluestone Hall is a small hall in Black Horn and is located in a place called the Black-Wind Pass. The Black-horn City is very large, and members of the Black Horn are all over the area, so there are many such small halls in the city,” Yang Qing explained.

“Oh?” Xiao Chen drank the wine and slowly put the cup back on the table. His eyes became a little sharp. Finally, he smiled lightly and said, “It’s actually related to the Black Horn. It seems that things have become interesting.”

Yang Qing nodded and said, “That’s right, so I’ve been worried. Therefore, I asked Brother Xiao to come out and discuss in person whether we should investigate the Black Horn or not next.”

“Black Horn, huh…”

Xiao Chen narrowed his eyes and poured another glass of wine into his cup. He said, “We must find Ren Tianxing. Whether it’s a Black Horn or a White Horn, we must find him! Moreover…”

Speaking of this, Xiao Chen paused for a moment and looked at him, saying, “I think I’m not the only one who is looking for Ren Tianxing, right?”

Yang Qing’s expression froze. He nodded and said, “Indeed, someone else seems to be looking for this person, but I don’t know who.”

“Is that so…” Xiao Chen composed himself. He thought for a moment and said, “In that case, no matter who it is, we must find Ren Tianxing before these people. Tomorrow, we will go to Bluestone Hall.”

As soon as he finished speaking, a loud noise came from downstairs. The pipe music stopped immediately, followed by a woman’s scream. Xiao Chen frowned and said to his side, “Chu Qi, go and see what’s going on outside.”

“Yes, Lord.” Chu Qi said and was about to go to the door. Yang Qing stretched out his hand and said, “Wait! There’s no need to go. It’s King Shen.”

At this moment, an angry voice came from downstairs. “Whoever I want dares not to refuse me! Ask her to come out immediately, or there will be blood flowing like the river in Illusive Aroma Lane tonight! No one can leave!”

The voice sounded very domineering. It could be imagined that at this moment, not only the dancers downstairs were scared, but those high officials and dignitaries who came to consume tonight were all hiding in the corner and shivering.

Xiao Chen frowned and asked Yang Qing, “Who is this man?”

Yang Qing’s look had become very dignified at this time. He said, “King Shen, one of the four kings of the Death (Wastelands provinces), has millions of soldiers. In Black-horn City alone, he has more than 300,000 elite soldiers.”

“Oh?” Xiao Chen smiled thinly. “I knew it. We came at quite a bad timing, tonight.”