Chapter 1114: Looking at the Sky from a Well, Becoming Young Again

Chapter 1114: Looking at the Sky from a Well, Becoming Young Again

A mountain god dressed in a black official robe, with a grand and imposing presence. Though he belonged to the category of illicit shrines and improper sacrifices, he still put on quite a show, sitting in an eight-person palanquin carried on the shoulders of ghostly officials. During the journey, he used a green jade lingzhi mushroom to gently lift the curtain, witnessed the flashing sword light in that direction, then slowly let the curtain fall. This mountain god lord's expression shifted between overcast and clear. As the intelligence from Lord of the Mountain Manor indicated, this child was indeed a mid-fifth realm sword cultivator without a doubt. The Zhang clan of Tiancao Commandery had truly found a treasure.

Beside him was a woman wearing a bamboo hat with a veil, her figure graceful, dressed in crimson robes and riding a peach blossom horse. Person and horse galloped side by side with that black-gold palanquin.

But unlike the talisman mounts of the young man and woman earlier, this peach blossom horse that could ride clouds and mists was a genuine, divine spirit steed.

Behind them was a group of guardians over two zhang tall, some covered in living snakes and vipers, others with strings of white skulls hanging around their necks. They looked neither like beings of the human world nor benevolent creatures, each with thick eyebrows and hair like awls, so bizarre that it made one's hair stand on end.

The mountain god gently reminded, "Fourth Miss, when we get to Pomo Peak, don't start fighting at the slightest disagreement, making things difficult for this subordinate. If by some misfortune I delay the Lord's important matters, even a hundred deaths wouldn't be enough to redeem me."

The woman's eyes sparkled, "A young sword immortal with boundless talent? How would I dare provoke him? Lord Li, rest assured. When we get there, I promise to keep my mouth shut."

The mountain god, whose true nature had been exposed, wore a face dark as water, but his words came out with a chuckle, and he cupped his hands and shook them a few times, "Then this subordinate thanks the Fourth Miss in advance."

This group halted several dozen zhang outside the cliff. In an instant, black clouds rolled in, like a carpet spread across the sky. The palanquin, horses, and ghostly officials all stood upon it, facing Pomo Peak from afar.

Through the thin gauze of her bamboo hat, the woman stared at that handsome young man from the Zhang clan. When she got a closer look at this young sword immortal, she found it even harder to look away.

If she could marry this young man, wouldn't she outshine her eldest and third sisters? The eldest sister—no need to mention her; she had married beneath her station, suffering in silence. As for the third sister, that was truly a good match. She was about to be engaged to the legitimate son of a great lake god in the Crimson Mountain Kingdom. They called it opening a marriage trial, but in truth, the son-in-law had long been decided. It was just that Father loved excitement, and the Hehuan Mountain treasury was short on funds ever since that big fight with the Zhang clan of Tiancao Commandery. Casualties were heavy, and they could barely pay the soldiers' wages. Father was quite wary of those several earth immortal cultivators who had gradually obtained official positions in various kingdoms, especially that Cheng Qian. Father was almost resorting to straw effigy curses. Recently, Hehuan Mountain had been busy constructing a great mountain-protecting formation, spending money like water. They were desperately short of funds. So he thought of using the marriage trial to collect betrothal gifts and congratulatory gifts to make up the difference. It was said that Father got the inspiration from a piece of news in some landscape gazette not long ago. And Mother was utterly obsessed with those marketplace romance stories—the kind with throwing embroidered balls, lantern riddles, and sweet nothings under the moon and flowers... they were all her favorites.

The palanquin swayed, and the stout mountain god lord lifted the curtain, bent down, and stepped out. His voice was loud. Without any nonsense, he cut straight to business. "This subordinate, Li Ting, serving as a mountain god under Hehuan Mountain's shrine, and concurrently as the Observer of Military Honors commanding the three thousand troops of Hehuan Mountain's various divisions, has been entrusted by the two Lords to deliver a few words to all of you."

The mountain god coughed a few times to clear his throat, turned slightly aside, raised his cupped hands high, and switched to a dignified tone and a deep voice. "Tiancao Commandery sword cultivator Zhang Yujiao, Golden Gate Sect Chuiging Peak Jin Lü. Guests are welcome to travel freely, even to wander into the town. It's all fine. But you two must stop at the foot of the mountain. Do not ascend it. Otherwise, it will be considered a provocation to the two manors of Hehuan Mountain. If that happens, this Lord will not remember the old friendship he had with Cheng Qian in the mortal world. Dare to set foot across the boundary by half a step, and there will be no mercy—kill without pardon, execute on the spot!"

Zhang Yujiao curled his lips, not hiding the sarcasm on his face.

"This Lord" this, "This Lord" that. So much official authority. Did he really think he was the local tyrant of this filthy place? Why not just call himself "the Lonely One" and end with "Thus it is decreed"?

The mountain god, who resembled a local wealthy squire, finished reciting this "imperial edict," then immediately put on a new expression, slightly obsequious, cupping his hands and smiling. "The Lords' decree cannot be disobeyed. I hope Sword Immortal Zhang and Miss Jin will take it to heart."

Leaving Zhang Yujiao aside, let's talk about that delicate, fair-skinned young girl. Though young in age, her seniority in the Golden Gate Sect was shockingly high, all because her master was that Cheng Qian, whom even the two Lords had to be wary of. Now, Cheng Qian was esteemed as the Nation-Protecting True Man of the Green Apricot Kingdom, a long-renowned land god immortal, proficient in the three methods of water, fire, and thunder. He wielded a green essence talisman, an heirloom of the sect's founding patriarch, obtained from an ancient immortal's legacy. He had refined it into a flowing gold fire bell, making it easy to exorcise evil and vanquish demons. He was versed in water methods, could breathe in rivers and lakes, and commanded several hundred Crimson Soldiers, all half-human, half-spirit experts. Especially with his thunder method—the might of heaven was vast and mighty, and no demon or evil could hide... He had cultivated for five hundred years, had many immortal traces, many friends on the mountain, and even more enemies. In short, he was a tough nut to crack.

Li Ting spoke with his mind, laughing, "Miss Jin, after your travels, when you return to the immortal manor, please convey this subordinate's greetings to your master."

The girl smiled and nodded, "I'll definitely pass it on for you, Observer Li."

Although this was the girl's first time venturing out for training, she wasn't lacking in basic social graces.

Hearing the young girl address him as "Observer" instead of "Mountain God," Li Ting's face immediately broke into a smile, and he found this female cultivator from the Golden Gate Sect even more agreeable.

With the message delivered, Li Ting was ready to return home. But seeing his own young lady staring fixedly at that Zhang Yujiao, Li Ting felt quite helpless in his heart. A young sword cultivator from the Zhang clan of Tiancao Commandery—no matter how powerful Hehuan Mountain was, you couldn't just kidnap him back to the mountain to be your husband. Besides, if by some stroke of luck you actually snatched Zhang Yujiao back to the mountain, what would you do with the face-mates you kept in front of the manor?

Li Ting had no choice but to make introductions, "This is our Hehuan Mountain's Fourth Miss. The two Lords dote on her the most. They'd pluck stars and moons from the sky for her if they could."

Currently, over at Hehuan Mountain, the eldest daughter was already married, the second son loved to travel far, and the one holding the public marriage trial this time was the third young lady of Hehuan Mountain.

The two Lords of Hehuan Mountain, Zhao and Yu, were a pair of mid-journey lovers. Before that, each had their own Dao partners on the mountain and offspring of the Dao seeds. So the only one who could truly be said to be born of both of them was precisely this crimson-clad woman wearing the bamboo hat. Otherwise, Hehuan Mountain wouldn't have given her that peach blossom horse as a mount. In a remote small kingdom that couldn't even produce a mid-fifth realm qi refiner, that horse would have long completed its cultivation and could easily occupy a mountain and become king.

Fortunately, that Fourth Miss didn't keep pestering Zhang Yujiao. She just straightened her slender waist, cast a sidelong glance at the girl beside him, snickered, then raised two slender fingers, lifted a corner of her bamboo hat veiling, intentionally or not thrusting out her chest, and smiled, "Young Master Zhang, my private name is Xiao Mei. Until we meet again."

Zhang Yujiao paid her no mind.

The single rider and single palanquin, with a large retinue of attendants, gradually moved away from Pomo Peak.

Jin Lü smiled charmingly, "Yujiao, what do we do next?"

Zhang Yujiao said, "Let's go to the town at the foot of the mountain and take a look. As for climbing the mountain, we'll decide after we've seen the situation there."

Jin Lü nodded. Judging by her posture, if Zhang Yujiao chose to climb the mountain, she would unhesitatingly follow him to storm the mountain gate.

White Mansion Lord, who had been silent the whole time, was filled with emotion. These registered immortal masters had courage and boldness that was completely different from wandering ghosts like them. Wherever they went, they had that fear-of-nothing demeanor. Take this young girl from Chuiging Peak, for example. She was born into a good life, had a good master, and when she went out for training, she either had a Crimson Soldier attendant bestowed by the sect or traveled with a young sword immortal from a prestigious immortal clan.

Zhang Yujiao looked toward the group of local "soil people" and asked, "May I ask, when does Hehuan Mountain's marriage trial for the daughter start? What is the specific time?"

The young man with a sword on his back crossed his arms over his chest.

White Mansion Lord pretended to be deaf and mute, afraid that saying one wrong word would result in being "executed again."

Only the headless female ghost holding the umbrella seemed not particularly afraid of that young sword immortal. She took a green, dripping willow leaf from her sleeve, and as the leaf spun, a crisp female voice sounded, "Reporting to the Sword Immortal, about two and a half shichen remain."

Zhang Yujiao nodded, then said to the girl beside him, "Then let's walk to Hehuan Mountain."

The girl, being on his side, was clearly agreeable to anything and just nodded.

Zhang Yujiao looked at the female ghost, "Miss, if you're willing, you can travel with us. The only condition is that you don't mind being misunderstood by Hehuan Mountain and getting the short end of the stick afterward."

She shifted the oilpaper umbrella onto her shoulder, turned sideways, and performed a traditional bow.

Zhang Yujiao and Jin Lü, along with that unique "Crimson Soldier Divine General" of the Golden Gate Sect, descended the mountain.

The umbrella-holding female ghost walked slowly, keeping a moderate distance from them.

On the summit of Pomo Peak, only the sword-wielding young man and White Mansion Lord were left, staring at each other with wide eyes.

"White Mansion Lord, aren't you going to move out?"

"No rush. There are still two shichen until the marriage ceremony. What about you? Why are you staying here?"

"Still enjoying the moon."

They fell into a long silence. Finally, Bai Mao was the first to speak. "That peddler and the gut-eater—they were both poor wretches. One was a mountain marsh wild cultivator who killed people for their goods, the other a spirit just formed. Even if they had a little wealth, like the snowflake coins I threw over earlier, they'd consume it immediately, using it all to boost their cultivation and replenish their qi, seeking immediate results. Extraneous possessions, if hoarded too much, only bring disaster. Without a mountain stronghold or a backer, it's easy to invite death. Dressing up for others—that's not worth it. Earlier, that young sword immortal cut them down one by one until they were gone. That peddler's demon core was even eaten by that Crimson Soldier of the Golden Gate Sect. Not a single scrap left. That oil cauldron was a quite sinister and bizarre valuable spirit artifact, but it was also smashed along with that carrying pole. All that's left on the ground are those paper money..."

The young man said, "Why all the nonsense? Share and share alike, half and half."

White Mansion Lord's heart settled. "Brother Chen is truly straightforward! It's settled!"

But this ghost who had self-appointed the title of "Mansion Lord" soon became suspicious deep down. This young man agreed so readily. Could he be a deep-seated mountain marsh wild cultivator? A ruthless character well-versed in back-stabbing? So Bai Mao put some distance between himself and the sword-wielding young man, and asked with a smile, "Young hero, so young and already with the strength of a martial qi refining realm. You must be from a wealthy or noble family. Otherwise, how could you have achieved such martial arts accomplishments? I imagine you're a scion of a powerful clan out traveling. Don't you have any bodyguard attendants?"

Qi refiners included wild cultivators and loose immortals, but among pure martial artists, almost every grandmaster had a background, a clear lineage. This was the consensus on the mountain.

Especially after that great battle that sank half a continent, in the south of Vase Bottle Continent, almost all the powerful clans that had suffered great losses became even more determined to cultivate family assassins and death warriors. They extensively searched for and selected children with good bones. From a young age, they had martial arts grandmasters, serving as family tutors, teach them boxing methods. They spared no expense. Three meals a day consisted of medicinal diets. They soaked in medicine vats every day, tempering their bones and sinews. Even if it meant accelerating growth like pulling up seedlings to help them grow, they would go from the third realm of body refining to the qi refining realm quickly, just to have them capable of standing on their own by the time they were twenty or thirty. Looking at this young man, if he wasn't a qi refiner using some kind of illusion to pretend to be a pure martial artist, then his age and realm matched.

Combined with the young man's "eloquent speech" earlier, Bai Mao felt that this guess was probably close to the truth.

As long as he wasn't a capricious mountain marsh wild cultivator, it was fine. Bai Mao had been an official in his lifetime.

"Calling me 'young hero'? I've only been down the mountain for a few days of training. I haven't accomplished many heroic deeds yet."

The straw-sandal-wearing young man said calmly, "Either just call me by my name, or call me Young Master Chen."

Bai Mao grumbled inwardly. Was this because the Hehuan Mountain Fourth Miss had called Zhang Yujiao "Young Master Zhang," and now you're jealous?

They walked together to the edge of the cliff. The ground was covered with paper money that had fallen from the disassembled peddler's load, along with various folded paper houses, carriages, and beauties. The gold and silver ingots differed from ordinary paper money sold at funeral supply shops in that the peddler had written the reign titles and years on them with cinnabar.

Different from the way some qi refiners selected certain copper coins as "magical treasures," choosing copper coins required finding reign titles from powerful, auspicious dynasties. It was said the more people who handled a copper coin, the more yang qi it accumulated. In contrast, the inscriptions on these paper money were often from the weakest reign titles of dynasties, usually cast during the rule of a doomed monarch. So their yin qi was heavy. They were mostly "hanging papers" that the peddler had picked up from graves, or when someone burned paper money at a grave, the peddler would use some kind of illusion, making it seem like the burning was complete, but in reality, the peddler had hijacked the offering mid-way.

The sword-wielding young man surnamed Chen and White Mansion Lord, who wore an official seal and military tally at his waist, each picked up their shares, keeping well out of each other's way.

Bai Mao deliberately chose those intricately folded paper carriages, pavilions, and maidservants. There were about a hundred snowflake coins' worth in total.

Then he saw the sword-wielding young man crouch on the ground, take a fire striker from his sleeve, and burn the entire pile of paper money he had just acquired.

White Mansion Lord was baffled and couldn't help asking, "Little brother, what are you doing?"

These paper money, if sold to knowledgeable wealthy families in the market, could fetch quite a bit of real gold and silver. Converted, they could definitely sell for several dozen snowflake coins.

The young man said, "An old saying goes, 'Wealth is like flowing water.' It comes and goes. Take this paper money. It was originally burned for the dead. When it reached the underworld back then, it was already short-weighted. Now that I'm burning it, the world below gets an extra sum that rightfully belonged to them."

White Mansion Lord was speechless for a moment. After a long silence, he finally blurted out, "You're quite kind-hearted."

The young man corrected him, "I call this 'skilled and bold, not afraid of walking the night road.' What's a little bit of windfall like this? Just a drop in the bucket."

He stood up and asked, "Going down the mountain together?"

Bai Mao nodded.

He always felt that this reckless greenhorn who popped out of nowhere, silly as he was, had truly good luck. He had actually managed to escape this calamity.

The young man suddenly said, "It seems I still owe you two snowflake coins."

Bai Mao shook his sleeve and smiled, "It's all counted in here."

But the young man glanced at White Mansion Lord's belt and said, "In your lifetime, you only held a minor official post. You never became a big official, did you?"

Bai Mao's smile turned bitter, but he didn't refute it.

They walked together toward that sedan chair, along with the four porters who had been standing stock-still the whole time.

The young man laughed. "They say, 'When comparing goods, the inferior should be thrown away; when comparing people, the inferior dies.' I never really understood that before, but today I realize the subtlety of those old sayings. Look at Sword Immortal Zhang of Tiancao Commandery, then look at that mountain god's eight-person palanquin, and finally look at you. I feel heartbroken just thinking about it. When they go out, they're loaded with wealth, decorated with gold and jade. But you, Brother Bai, are one of those who 'when he has ten coins in his pocket, he makes his clothes rustle.' And you call yourself a Mansion Lord? Why don't you just set up your mansion gate at the foot of Hehuan Mountain as its mountain gate?"

Bai Mao gave an awkward smile, raised a hand to form a mudra, and muttered a spell, turning the sedan chair and porters into several sheets of folded paper. Then he reached out and grabbed them, and the white papers fluttered into his sleeve.

This set of travel gear had been purchased years ago from that peddler, costing Lord Bai several snowflake coins.

As for this ignorant, reckless young man, his words were a bit harsh, but he was a good person at heart.

But the more Bai Mao thought about it, the angrier he got. His words were really hard to take! It was like he always knew how to hit where it hurt.

Where the hell did he come from? Did the major clans, besides teaching martial arts, also teach this kind of mouthplay?

The young man asked, "That umbrella-holding girl ahead—she looks like a well-bred, refined young lady, a beautiful woman. White Mansion Lord, do you know what her story is?"

Bai Mao glanced at the oilpaper umbrella and embroidered shoes ahead. Which eye of yours saw a headless female ghost as "beautiful"? Unless you only save your kind words for women?

White Mansion Lord still didn't know that the merit from burning the paper money earlier had actually been credited to him, Bai Mao.

Bai Mao hesitated for a moment, then selected a few non-offensive details. "I only know she goes by the surname Liu. But of course, she has no connection to the Liu imperial clan of Green Apricot Kingdom—not even a single copper coin's worth. It's said she died for a scholar lover, and was beheaded by an executioner in public. She wasn't even included in her family genealogy during her lifetime, so naturally she wasn't allowed into the ancestral tomb after death. A pitiful soul."

"That horse under the Fourth Miss's backside—is it a real horse?"

"Absolutely real. For a mountain spirit like that to be able to ride the wind, you can imagine how high its cultivation realm is. It might even be a great demon that has long completed its transformation and attained the Dao—could it be a Cavern Realm? Only a daughter of the two Lords Zhao and Yu of Hehuan Mountain could use it as a mount. The eldest daughter, the second son, and tonight's bride, the third young lady—none of them seem to have that privilege."

Recalling the earlier danger, Bai Mao asked, "Are you so poor you can't even afford an iron sword? You're just playing around with a sword hilt to pretend? What the hell is wrong with you?"

"Whether I have money or not, it's none of your business."

"Couldn't you just cut down a peach tree and make a peachwood sword?"

"Your worldly experience is shallow. I'm practicing 'showing weakness to the enemy.'"

"..."

After a long silence, Bai Mao lifted his chin toward the three figures in front. "Seriously, you're quite lucky. If you had run into them any earlier or later, the consequences would have been unthinkable. That peddler and the guy who eats human livers and intestines—they're no good. Their realms aren't low. When they work together, even in this area, they have a fearsome reputation."

"Didn't some kid still wet behind the ears just casually kill them?"

Bai Mao laughed in exasperation. "Sword immortal! That young master Zhang from Tiancao Commandery is a sword immortal—a cultivator genius, a prodigy among prodigies! Do you have any idea what a 'sword immortal' means? The world's qi refiners are only divided into two types: sword cultivators and qi refiners who are not sword cultivators!"

The straw-sandal young man said calmly, "I'm a sword cultivator myself. You think I don't know that? Are you stupid?"

Bai Mao almost had steam coming out of his ears.

The young man crossed his arms and asked, "Since the Zhang clan of Tiancao Commandery is so incredibly powerful, why don't they just wipe out Hehuan Mountain and return the world to a clear sky? That would be a great deed and merit."

Bai Mao sneered. "Since you're so experienced in the martial world, how can you ask such an idiotic question?"

The young man said, "'Not ashamed to ask one's inferiors.'"

Bai Mao rubbed his brow, wondering if he should just ditch this little bastard and walk with that umbrella-holding headless female ghost surnamed Liu.

The young man took an oilpaper packet from his sleeve, opened it to reveal fragrant braised meat—no old, established shop could make something like this. He held it out on his palm to White Mansion Lord beside him.

"I appreciate the kindness."

Bai Mao smiled and pushed his hand back. "But humans and ghosts are separate paths. For now, I can't eat this."

When he reached the Cavern Realm, becoming a mid-fifth realm Ghost King, he imagined he could regain the pleasure of eating and drinking.

But he had only heard.

Living as a human is a first. Isn't being a ghost also a first?

Walking at the very front of the mountain path, Zhang Yujiao and Jin Lü could actually clearly hear the conversation between the straw-sandal young man—the one at the very back—and that ghost. With her Fourth Realm cultivation, she couldn't manage that. But she had a mysterious talisman bestowed by her master. When she activated it, it was incredibly stealthy, allowing her to hear the faintest sounds within a one-li radius.

Zhang Yujiao communicated with his mind, "That young man of unknown origin is a martial artist. Either Third or Fourth Realm. For his age, that's quite impressive. And he's actually a half-baked formation master. Not the serious mountain type of formation master, but he knows a few odd gate-arrangement methods that don't require qi. Earlier on top of Pomo Peak, you might not have noticed, but there were a few broken branches on the ground, arranged in a very specific pattern. If you were to fight him one-on-one and weren't careful, if he managed to seize the initiative and got close enough to throw a punch, you could be in serious trouble."

Jin Lü was shocked. "Could this guy be one of those hidden experts who can maintain a youthful appearance?"

Zhang Yujiao shook his head. "Definitely not. There's no flow of qi in his body. He's undoubtedly a pure martial artist. From his demeanor and speech, he's probably from a background similar to mine."

Both were selected and trained by major clans.

Jin Lü smiled. "How could he compare to you?"

Zhang Yujiao said calmly, "I'm just saying our backgrounds are similar. I'm not talking about later encounters or realms of cultivation."

Jin Lü suddenly said angrily, "This Hehuan Mountain is truly brazen and lawless. Do they really think no one can deal with them? Just wait! One day, Master will lead troops to wipe them all out!"

Zhang Yujiao just smiled and let it go.

These registered cultivators who were born with too good a background always seemed so naive and childish.

Hehuan Mountain had managed to stand firm here for so many years because of its deep roots. Apart from the surface-level combat power they deliberately displayed, they had some hidden trump cards, as well as a tangled network of human relationships intertwined within the four neighboring kingdoms, including Green Apricot Kingdom. That was why they had managed to easily repel the attack of nearly thirty qi refiners from the Zhang clan of Tiancao Commandery last time. The Zhang clan hadn't even reached the town at the foot of Hehuan Mountain before their vitality was severely damaged. Over a six-hundred li landscape journey, two ambushes and one open battle—the Zhang clan had suffered considerable losses. Fortunately, besides two cultivators who died in battle, the rest were only wounded. But the damage to spirit artifacts was immense, especially the various offensive and defensive life-bound objects of a dozen or so cultivators, which were all damaged to varying degrees. Just counting the post-battle repairs and compensation for refining objects, the Zhang clan held a family ancestral hall meeting and made a rough calculation: a full seventy-two Grain Rain coins! It was proven that the Zhang clan of Tiancao Commandery had seriously underestimated Hehuan Mountain, which they had originally thought was just a rabble of stragglers and loose troops.

It was worth noting that among the qi refiners the Zhang clan had sent to participate in the encirclement of Hehuan Mountain, there were six mid-fifth realm qi refiners, including two seniors who were highly valued family tutors and guest elders. Both were golden core earth immortals. One was a long-renowned talisman true man with the supernatural power of "sprouting beans into soldiers." In those three engagements with Hehuan Mountain, that old immortal used up nearly three hundred talismans of different grades.

If the Tiancao Commandery Zhang clan hadn't had a Golden Body Realm martial artist overseeing the battlefield, they would have had difficulty even achieving a result that could barely be called a "safe retreat."

That Li Ting just now, nicknamed "Lord Li," had been a wealthy local squire and magnate in his lifetime. After death, somehow he became one of the mountain gods of Hehuan Mountain's two illicit shrines. Since he was a shrine spirit, he naturally had no official grades in the landscape bureaucracy.

If it were north of the Great River, a second-rate mountain god like Li Ting would never dare to occupy a mountain and establish a shrine. That would be asking for death. The Great Li Imperial Court once erected a stele at the summit of the continent's mountains—did they think that was a joke?

Back then, on the continent's map, how many illicit shrines in vassal small kingdoms were banned by the Great Li court? Not just a few dozen or few hundred, but over a thousand, perhaps even two or three thousand, depending on who you ask.

The problem was that south of the Great River, it was no longer under the jurisdiction of the Great Li court. All kinds of mountain spirits, water monsters, and all manner of demons and ghouls popped up in droves. They bypassed the areas of the Southern Cloud Dynasty, which had strong national power, and picked small kingdoms with few qi refiners and immortal mansions. Especially those shrine spirits whose temples and golden bodies had been destroyed by the Great Li iron cavalry in the past—they all re-emerged, each finding their own connections, building temples and reshaping statues in various prefectures and counties, making exchanges with local governments. The former earned incense offerings from the human world and patched up their golden bodies; the latter got real gold and silver from the former. Otherwise, they gathered in places like Hehuan Mountain, pledging allegiance to the two Lords.

Because Zhang Yujiao came from the Zhang clan of Tiancao Commandery, he knew more dark secrets than Jin Lü. For example, ghosts and spirits who had defected to Hehuan Mountain, through the secret operations and bridge-building of the two Mountain Lord Manors, became illicit shrine spirits in several kingdoms. As long as they paid enough immortal money, they could even obtain the official recognition of a kingdom's court. Of course, the grades of their landscape registries would be very low, only listed in the subsidiary registry of a kingdom's landscape bureaucracy, and certainly not recorded in the academy's archives. It was somewhat like the "white book" identity of a county yamen clerk, not occupying the court's authorized positions.

For instance, that ghost called White Mansion Lord was probably hoping to take advantage of attending the wedding banquet to pay a sum of money, latch onto Hehuan Mountain's coattails, and get transferred to a county town's City God or something similar.

So that Hehuan Mountain in front of them was jokingly called by Old Master Hong, in private, "The Ministry of Personnel and the Ministry of Rites of the mountains of several kingdoms."

Why hadn't Cheng Qian, as the national master of Green Apricot Kingdom, traveled with his very close friend, the Tiancao Commandery Zhang clan, last time?

Wasn't it because of those three seals? The Green Apricot Kingdom emperor had a handle that Hehuan Mountain held over him.

Jin Lu remembered something and asked curiously, "Yujiao, earlier you mentioned that Southern Cloud Dynasty wanted to smash the six stone steles within its borders, but then there was no follow-up. Why was that? Isn't it said that Cui Chan is already dead? And the Great Li Song clan retreated north of the Great River as agreed. Logically, the Great Li dynasty can no longer meddle in the internal affairs of the southern kingdoms. Wouldn't keeping those mountain-top steles just be an eyesore? The local courts and mountain immortal masters must all dislike having the steles remain. Is the Southern Cloud Dynasty afraid of incurring the Great Li Song clan's wrath? But now the Confucian Temple's rules are strict. However powerful the Great Li iron cavalry might be, they can't just march south again, can they?"

She had been cultivating in the mountains since childhood. First, she was young. Second, the Golden Gate Sect's rules were strict, forbidding direct disciples below the Fifth Realm from knowing too much about worldly affairs outside the mountain.

So she had only heard about that brutal battle where the barbarian demon race fought all the way to the Great River and the Great Li auxiliary capital. And that was only from the recent trip with a few senior brothers and sisters for training. She had picked up some stories here and there. But more importantly, this time, she had secretly slipped out of the capital and traveled with Zhang Yujiao. Through conversations with this young sword immortal, she had learned a lot about real mountain affairs, mountain-top affairs, even some heavenly matters. But because the Central Earth Confucian Temple had banned the landscape gazettes for many years, what she knew was just piecemeal information. Moreover, without her master's permission, she didn't dare to buy landscape gazettes privately at immortal ferry crossings or inns.

According to Zhang Yujiao, a few years ago, various southern kingdoms, including the Southern Cloud Dynasty, were restless and showing signs of wanting to destroy the steles. But they quickly calmed down—much thunder, little rain—and inexplicably there was no follow-up.

Zhang Yujiao had a dazed expression, took a deep breath, and said, "It's said that because one of Cui Chan's junior brothers, a sword cultivator, returned alive to the Haoran world not long ago."

Speaking the name of the Great Li National Master Cui Chan directly was not actually a sign of disrespect on the mountain, especially among younger cultivators. Rather, it was a somewhat peculiar form of reverence.

Jin Lu was puzzled. "Didn't Cui Chan betray the Confucian Sage's lineage long ago? How could he still have a junior brother?"

Zhang Yujiao smiled. "Who's to say it isn't so?"

Jin Lu was even more confused. "Besides, just a single sword cultivator, and he can intimidate half a continent? Could it be a great sword immortal like Wei Jin of the Wind and Snow Temple?"

Zhang Yujiao was silent for a moment. "In terms of realm and achievements, I'm not even fit to polish this man's shoes."

Jin Lu was stunned.

Zhang Yujiao smiled. "Of course, even if I were lucky enough to meet this man, I wouldn't polish his shoes."

Jin Lu wanted to ask more about this man, but Zhang Yujiao clearly didn't want to talk more about this sword cultivator, so the matter was dropped.

When they reached the foot of Pomo Peak, Zhang Yujiao said, "It's confirmed. That young man with the sword on his back isn't Third Realm, but a Fourth Realm martial artist."

Jin Lu clicked her tongue. "Young and promising. He can be considered a martial arts genius!"

No wonder he dared to walk alone in Hehuan Mountain territory. A martial artist of the Qi Refining Realm under twenty was very rare. If he could endure to the age of sixty and break into the Sixth Realm, he could command wind and rain in the martial world of a kingdom, becoming the honored guest of emperors and generals.

Pure martial artists weren't like qi refiners whose cultivation realm could skyrocket based on good talent. They most valued a steady, step-by-step climb in martial arts. The Golden Gate Sect even had a grandmaster tutor whom the master deeply respected. He was in the Golden Body Realm, and even he was said to have been stuck at the Fourth Realm bottleneck when he was twenty.

At the very back, White Mansion Lord was telling the young man some minor gossip.

"The Liu emperor of Green Apricot Kingdom, the current Son of Heaven, is what the mountain cultivators call a 'blank emperor.'"

Seeing that the young man had a question on his face but was too embarrassed to ask, Bai Mao smiled and explained, "A so-called 'blank emperor' means he has lost those crucial 'heirloom national seals' commonly known in the folk. If it were a change of dynasty, that would be one thing. But when the national mandate hasn't been broken and the imperial seals go missing, it's very troublesome. If they had been completely shattered, recarving a new set would have been easier. The problem is that these three seals, which are said to be 'lost among the people,' are made of gold, green jade, and sandalwood. Among the twelve imperial seals of the Green Apricot Kingdom emperor, the green jade seal is used to mandate tributary states and enfeoff foreign tribes. Since the Liu clan isn't a great power, that seal had always just been gathering dust. The sandalwood seal with a crouching dragon knob is also manageable; the emperor could substitute another seal. But the most troublesome is the gold seal with intertwined dragons, the 'Heir Apparent's Heavenly Mandate Seal,' which is specifically used to install the crown prince. So now, the soon-to-be-crowned crown prince of Green Apricot Kingdom is neither the eldest legitimate son, nor does the court have this seal. His claim to the throne is anything but legitimate. When have you ever heard of a heir apparent's capping ceremony requiring outsiders to come and observe as witnesses? Isn't that a joke?"

"However, there are rumors that the Liu emperor of Green Apricot Kingdom initially went around begging and pleading to make this ceremony sufficiently dignified. He pulled out all the stops, sending out all the high officials, from the Minister of Rites and Vice Minister down to the other five ministries and various nobles. They were sent to any mountain sect with even a little fame, as long as they were willing to come to the capital, money was provided! But then suddenly, all activity ceased. Several immortal mansions that had been putting on airs and refusing to come were left alone. Overnight, the officials who had been bowing and scraping to immortal masters outside were all summoned back to the capital. Only a bit of a breeze got out: it seemed the Liu emperor had already invited a major figure. As for exactly how major a figure, heaven only knows. Maybe he actually managed to invite a founding hall member of the Divine Oracle Sect or Zhengyang Mountain? I suspect it's just a feint, to give himself a way to save face. In the end, it'll probably still be a few friends invited by the head of the Tiancao Commandery Zhang clan, maybe three or five golden core earth immortals, to help prop up the scene. How else could he afford to invite an infant soul?"

The young man nodded in understanding. "I see. So, were these several seals of the Green Apricot Kingdom snatched by Hehuan Mountain?"

"You guessed it."

Bai Mao nodded, raised his hand, and shook his sleeve. "Don't you know that this place of ours has a rather resounding nickname?"

"How so?"

"Little Shujian Lake!"

"What the hell is that?"

"You haven't even heard of Shujian Lake?!"

"Just heard of it."

"..."

Bai Mao was choked up. He had to change his approach. "At least you must have heard of the True Realm Sect, right?"

The young man shook his head.

Bai Mao was skeptical. "Then what about Old Sect Leader Liu and the River-Cutting True Lord, Old Immortal Liu? You must have heard of them, right?"

Even if you hadn't heard of the True Realm Sect, which was a subsidiary of the Tongye Continent's Yu Gui Sect, these two famous mountain marsh wild cultivators—any qi refiner on Vase Bottle Continent should have heard of them.

But the young man asked a question that almost drove Bai Mao crazy. "Has that River-Cutting True Lord become the sect leader already?"

"So you do know that not just anyone can become the head of a sect?"

Bai Mao turned to look at the young man, who was holding a piece of braised meat in one hand and chewing slowly, and laughed in exasperation. Then he patiently explained, "They just both happen to have the surname Liu. They're not the same person. One is an immortal, an Immortal Realm! The first mountain marsh wild cultivator in the history of our Vase Bottle Continent to break into the Jade Pure Realm and Immortal Realm. That's a truly incomparable, heaven-reaching figure!"

"As for that River-Cutting True Lord, he's also an extremely powerful, accomplished immortal. I hear this old immortal's water methods are unparalleled, dominating the continent. Cheng Qian's water methods from Green Apricot Kingdom are already formidable enough, but if he were to face this River-Cutting True Lord? Hah! Not enough to make the grade. That's what Cheng Qian himself said. And this Liu, River-Cutting, is now the True Realm Sect's chief tutor. Jade Pure Realm. His Dao field is at that treasured site called Green Gorge Island. I hear he was even the overlord of Shujian Lake for a period in his early years."

"You think Shujian Lake was just any place? Before the True Realm Sect moved in, it was true lawlessness. People killed each other every day, and the dead were all qi refiners. Even ordinary mid-fifth realm immortals had to worry about dying suddenly when they went out. Hehuan Mountain is a small fry compared to Shujian Lake."

Having said this, Bai Mao was quite pleased with himself. Damn it, he himself had only recently learned, through a few snowflake coins, that above the earth immortals, there were the "Upper Five Realms."

He had originally thought that so-called land immortals were the ultimate limit of qi refinement cultivation.

The young man asked, "In this Shujian Lake, aside from Sect Leader Liu and River-Cutting True Lord, which other old immortals do you know?"

Bai Mao was momentarily speechless.

Indeed, it wasn't that he was well-informed. It was just that those two old immortals of Shujian Lake were too famous. Any qi refiner who had ever come down the mountain and passed through an immortal ferry crossing knew of them. But ask him to name any other accomplished experts with wild cultivator backgrounds, and it really stumped Lord Bai.

Bai Mao hesitated. "I actually do know one accomplished expert. He's the alliance leader of the Five Islands Sect. It's said he's a ghost immortal, surnamed Zeng. Young, with extraordinary talent and fortune. Even among the dense population of cultivators at Shujian Lake, he's considered a rare, heaven-gifted genius. When he was young, he could simultaneously cultivate several kinds of great path orthodox methods. You can imagine his future path achievements."

The young man smiled. "Five Islands Sect? That name is pretty lazy. They occupy five islands on Shujian Lake? What if they expand their territory later and get a few more islands? What then?"

Bai Mao glared. "Watch your words!"

That Five Islands Sect, able to raise a sect banner right under the True Realm Sect's nose, was not something insignificant ants like them could casually mock.

Besides, Bai Mao rather admired the Five Islands Sect. It was a mountain stronghold where ghosts gathered. He often thought about how wonderful it would be if he could cultivate there.

But between Hehuan Mountain and Shujian Lake, there were countless layers of mountains and rivers, and countless immortal mansions and city god temples of all levels along the way. How could a Fifth Realm ghost like him ever successfully reach the Five Islands Sect and have an audience with that Ghost Immortal Zeng?

Perhaps because she heard the words "Five Islands Sect," the umbrella-holding female ghost ahead deliberately slowed her pace until she was walking alongside them. Another willow leaf appeared above her shoulders. "Since I was traveling downwind, I happened to overhear your conversation. Were you just talking about Shujian Lake and that Immortal Master Zeng of the Five Islands Sect?"

Bai Mao laughed heartily. "Well, they're all remote figures we'll never come into contact with in a lifetime. I was just passing the time, showing off some of my landscape knowledge to Brother Chen."

She hesitated, then asked, "White Mansion Lord, do you also intend to try your luck at the Five Islands Sect?"

The sword-wielding young man was puzzled. "Also?"

She twirled her oilpaper umbrella and let out a faint sigh. "On this vast Vase Bottle Continent, it's rare to find a place where ghosts don't have to worry about surviving the day. How could my heart not yearn for it?"

The sword-wielding young man said, "They say 'a tree dies if moved, a man lives if moved.' Miss Liu, if you really have that intention, you should indeed go to the Five Islands Sect and try your luck. It's better than drifting around here, where one day you might be wiped out by a joint force of imperial troops and mountain immortals."

Bai Mao coughed. "Don't say such unlucky things."

She didn't seem to mind at all. "I'm already a ghost. What do I have to fear from bad luck?"

The young man raised his hand, pretending to perform a divination calculation, and nodded to himself. "Miss Liu, based on your surname, I've performed a hexagram. Going to the Five Islands Sect, you'll have great opportunities!"

The headless female ghost raised her hand, feigning a delicate laugh behind her hand. "Young Master Chen, I don't actually go by the surname Liu. That story about the surname Liu and dying for love—it's all hearsay that got blown out of proportion."

Bai Mao suppressed a laugh.

The young man silently withdrew his hand, continued eating his braised meat, and when he finished the last piece, he crumpled the oilpaper into a ball and put it back in his sleeve. He clapped his hands together, acting as if the previous awkwardness had blown away with the wind, and asked, "White Mansion Lord, Miss Liu... that kind of paper talisman mount earlier—it looked both flashy and practical. Where can I buy one? Is the daily cost high?"

Bai Mao said, "It's not an ordinary thing. Very expensive. They say this kind of private talisman boat is not even sold at some smaller, remote ferry crossings. Even at big immortal ferry crossings, you have to get lucky. It's the kind of good stuff that disappears as soon as it appears. Even if you have money, you might not be able to buy one. As for someone like us, it's best just to look."

The young man said, "I'm just asking how many immortal coins a talisman horse or talisman phoenix costs to ride a thousand li."

Bai Mao shook his head. "How would I know such confidential matters?"

The umbrella-holding female ghost laughed. "If you don't encounter strong headwinds and don't need to fly against the wind for long, traveling a thousand li by wind costs about ten snowflake coins."

Bai Mao clicked his tongue in astonishment. Holy shit, that's really spending money like water. Showing off like that is way too uneconomical. After a beat, he asked, "Why didn't you ask how much a single talisman paper costs?"

The young man sneered. "Are you stupid? How much money do I have in my pocket? Can I afford it?"

"Then why did you ask about the daily cost?"

"Is it against the law to hope to find a folded talisman mount on the roadside?"

Bai Mao endured it.

The female ghost asked, "Young Master Chen, may I ask you something? Are you a pure martial artist?"

The sword-wielding young man was shockingly frank. He nodded directly. "To be honest with you, I started practicing martial arts and boxing as a youth. Because my talent was decent and I had a wise teacher, I'm proficient in all eighteen martial arts. After my boxing skills were perfected, I got a bit lazy. So in recent years, my main focus has been on practicing superior swordsmanship. I'm figuring out how to create a few high-level sword moves on my own, to settle a score with a contemporary who is both a bitter rival and a friend. At the same time, I'm also studying thunder methods and formation techniques, but I've only achieved minor success in those. I haven't really entered the hall. Normally, I don't easily reveal these things to outsiders. Jumping into deep waters with shallow talk is a taboo in the martial world. Besides, I'm afraid of accidentally scaring people. But since White Mansion Lord seems kind, and Miss Liu seems good-hearted, it doesn't matter."

Bai Mao couldn't help teasing him. "How old are you now? Fourteen or fifteen? How did you get 'started martial arts as a youth'? Wouldn't 'started martial arts at a young age' be better?"

As for any mention of thunder methods, Lord Bai didn't even want to ask. He was used to it by now. This straw-sandal young man surnamed Chen liked to talk out of his ass.

The female ghost also chuckled and let it go. She didn't speak anymore.

She was just puzzled. If this young man was truly a Qi Refining Realm pure martial artist, why was his powerful yang energy so deeply concealed that even she and Bai Mao could barely detect it? Wasn't that something only a martial grandmaster of the Spirit Refining Three Realms could achieve?

She had once been fortunate enough, near the town at the foot of the mountain, to see a Golden Body Realm martial artist walking through the night. Even without deliberately unleashing his full fist intent and true qi, to a ghost like her, he was like a blazing sun rolling across the ground! She didn't dare to look directly at him. Consequently, the entire chaotic town tactfully gave him a wide berth. Everyone closed their doors, and no one dared to utter even half a harsh word. But when he entered a tavern and ordered a bowl of wine to drink, the old man's martial aura, which had been as dazzling as the scorching sun, vanished instantly, making him indistinguishable from an ordinary mortal in the marketplace.

The sword-wielding young man sneered. "Pedantic, stale old scholar. Just know how to nitpick words with me here. When you saw Sword Immortal Zhang of Tiancao Commandery earlier, why didn't I hear you say a single word?"

Bai Mao really couldn't take it anymore. He was furious. "Chen Ren! Even a clay Buddha has some temper. Stop saying such strange things to me. If you keep it up, don't think I won't turn against you!"

The young man said with a straight face, "You might not have been a good official, but you were a good person. Now you can only be considered a good ghost. Besides, we're brothers who hit it off at first sight. A few unpleasant words—why can't you take them? Official career cultivation is cultivation. Daily life cultivation is also cultivation. Eating, drinking, shitting, pissing—all are cultivation. For a cultivator, how important is a firm Dao heart? Right?"

If he had stopped there, Bai Mao might have actually taken it to heart. But then the guy continued with his heartfelt words. "I'm a pure martial artist, so naturally I don't need such cultivation. I'm always just tempering my fists and feet. So don't say any weird, twisting words to me, or it'll hurt our brotherly feelings. We martial artists, especially those who practice external boxing, have quick tempers."

The umbrella-holding female ghost seemed to cast a pitiful "glance" at Lord Bai, then gracefully quickened her pace, gliding forward without touching the ground, drifting away.

Seeing that Lord Bai had apparently been convinced by his reasoning, the young man nodded, said something like "the child can be taught," and then casually asked, "That Golden Gate Sect's sect leader—what kind of Dao method does he practice? Is he also a Jade Pure Realm?"

"Do you think the Jade Pure Realm is a roadside cabbage?"

Bai Mao looked utterly helpless, cautiously glancing at Jin Lü ahead, and lowered his voice. "But it's said that our True Master Cheng does indeed have the Dao foundation for Jade Pure. In the Hehuan Mountain region, they say this resourceful Daoist true man has already reached that mysterious realm of 'dividing the Dao, dispersing the physical body; the yang spirit sits in a small heaven and earth, transforming freely; the yin spirit travels thousands of li.' Among the countless extraordinary people and unusual beings in the surrounding kingdoms, only the Zhang clan ancestor of Tiancao Commandery and Lord Zhao of Hehuan Mountain can sit on equal footing with him. Especially his master's unique thunder method of the Five Elements Metal—mysterious and profound, its power unimaginable."

The young man sneered. "What's so mysterious about cultivating thunder methods in this world? Setting aside the Dragon-Tiger Mountain's secret Five Thunder Orthodox Method, it's nothing more than 'if there is a timely rain within the body, each of the five viscera condenses a cloud.' After that, it splits into three schools. The lower method just produces itchy eyes and eyes flashing like lightning, linking the three dantians, pulling the organs to rattle, and suddenly rumbling like thunder. The middle method is just the mutual agitation of yin and yang qi, like refining three hanging mirrors, using different Dao formulas to form thunder letters, used to reflect the sun and moon's light. Within the alchemy chamber or cave dwelling, celestial opportunities appear, like words on a wall, clearly seen. As for the superior method, it's not difficult to say: refine oneself into the great heaven and earth, with every cave dwelling a thunder pool, grasping the principles of yin-yang creation, holding the pivot of heaven and earth, summoning gods and officials, sending forth thunder..."

Bai Mao pretended to go along with it, turning to give the sword-wielding young man a thumbs up.

Too bad he wasn't a storyteller under a bridge or a street-side fortune-teller. Such a waste.

The umbrella-holding female ghost seemed lost in thought, but she restrained herself and didn't turn around.

Zhang Yujiao furrowed his brow slightly and communicated with his mind, "Jin Lü, does this man's explanation of the three types of thunder method have any basis on the mountain?"

"Complete nonsense? Grand and empty?"

Jin Lü laughed. "Only that part where he disparages it as the 'lower method' is vaguely related to orthodox thunder methods. It's true that qi refiners, when they reach a certain level, experience itchy eyes and then the organs making sounds like rain. But I've never heard of anything like refining mirrors or thunder letter words appearing on cave walls. Not even the thunder method lineage of our Golden Gate Sect's Chuiging Peak has such a thing..."

Bai Mao asked with a smile, "Young Master Chen, where did you learn such profound theories?"

The young man crossed his arms, walking briskly. "That's how it's written in the books."

Jin Lü, who was a li away from the young man, couldn't help laughing out loud.

She had originally planned to return to the Green Apricot Kingdom capital and ask that senior sister of hers, who was already in the Cavern Realm, about it. But now, forget it. She would just be laughed at.

There was actually no road to Hehuan Mountain. The old official roads and village paths had long been overgrown with weeds. Along the way, there were mostly withered trees, occasionally broken walls and ruined foundations—vague traces of what had once been villages. They encountered two groups of spirits and ghosts going to Hehuan Mountain to attend the marriage ceremony. Zhang Yujiao couldn't be bothered to even glance at them, and the other party tactfully made a detour on their own, only whispering among themselves from afar in the night. First, because that pair of young man and woman, who looked like golden boy and jade girl, were really eye-catching. More importantly, it was the burly man behind the young woman. He was like a brightly shining golden signboard announcing their identity. The Golden Gate Sect of Green Apricot Kingdom's True Master Cheng Qian, even within Hehuan Mountain territory, was still equivalent to a death-exempting gold medal. Of course, the prerequisite was that the registered immortal masters of the Golden Gate Sect didn't go too far here by arbitrarily killing those who had roots and connections with the two Mountain Lord Manors.

Bai Mao asked curiously, "Brother Chen, can you tell me honestly? What are you doing here?"

"Training in martial arts and swordsmanship while traveling the martial world. Also collecting some old copper coins on the side, to save up enough to make a copper coin sword for exorcising demons and slaying monsters. In the Green Apricot Kingdom capital, I heard there are many ghosts and spirits around here, so I wanted to come and temper myself. I have a wide range of skills, so I might as well put them to use. If I end up dying here, it'll only be because my skills weren't good enough. I won't blame anyone."

The young man raised his hand and pointed at his scabbard. "See that? The best scabbard in the world needs an upper-class dharma sword to match it."

"Although there's no actual dharma sword in the scabbard right now, the scabbard is full of abundant sword qi, just waiting to burst out. Once I actually draw the sword against an enemy, that sword light... tsk, terrifying!"

"Brother Bai, you're not an outsider, so I'll tell you the truth: I, Chen Ren, am going to open up a smooth and unimpeded path to heaven for the world's swordsmanship that anyone can walk."

Bai Mao had finally had enough of this brain-damaged little bastard. He took a snowflake coin from his sleeve. "Chen Ren, go find a doctor. Get yourself treated. Seriously, listen to Brother Bai's advice."

The straw-sandal young man said "oh," then really reached out and took the snowflake coin.

Bai Mao immediately regretted it. Who would have thought this guy would pretend not to understand his implied meaning and actually take it? So he grabbed the young man's fist in return, and they stalemated.

"Good deeds bring good rewards, Brother Bai. Let go. No need to ruin a hero's spirit over such a small amount of money."

"Brother Chen, you already saw my background clearly through the copper coins back on Pomo Peak. I'm really no good person or hero. Give me back the money, and I'll call you 'big brother' from now on."

Just then, not far from the town at the foot of the mountain, a group of cavalry suddenly appeared. There weren't many, only a dozen or so riders. They all wore swords, carried bows, and wore light armor. They traveled swiftly in silence, without even the sound of horses' footsteps.

But Zhang Yujiao showed a serious expression for the first time. He slowed his pace and used a life-bound object to channel qi into his eyes, granting him a temporary ability to observe qi.

Jin Lü hadn't paid much attention at first, but when she saw Zhang Yujiao so focused, she realized something was wrong. She immediately put her index and middle fingers together, silently recited a Dao formula, then wiped it across her eyes.

In an instant, she was startled to see the unusual nature of that cavalry troop.

The umbrella-holding female ghost walking behind them had already stopped early, slightly lowering her oilpaper umbrella to hide more of her form.

Because Bai Mao was also a ghost, he could see the strange phenomena that required living qi refiners to use various divine abilities and secret methods to observe.

At ancient battlefield sites, there were often certain kinds of armored spirits. Driven by some obsession, they roamed between heaven and earth. If they held weapons, there would be strange sights like "golden light flowing from the spear tip, heavenly fire blazing at the halberd's end," or, as described in some historical texts, "the halberd blade had a fiery light, seen from afar like a hanging candle."

But this kind of phenomenon wasn't something every ghost or spirit could have. It was extremely rare.

And precisely because it was rare, it was feared by both humans and ghosts alike.

The sword-wielding young man asked, "What's this?"

Bai Mao, who was already trembling in fear, quickly shook his head, raised his finger to his lips, and signaled for silence. For heaven's sake, don't make a sound and indulge in sharp-tongued bravado at this moment!

Seeing that the young man was about to speak again, Bai Mao quickly reached out and firmly grabbed the young man's arm. He could say whatever nonsense he wanted, but when getting close to this group of cavalry, he had to be extremely careful!

When the dozen or so riders quickly disappeared into the night ahead, their fiery lights stretching into a single line and gradually fading into the town at the foot of the mountain, Bai Mao dared to breathe again. He subconsciously wiped his brow, which had no sweat on it.

The young man asked, "Are they the direct elite cavalry under the Hehuan Mountain Lords?"

Bai Mao shook his head, his expression strange. "Don't even think about it. Hehuan Mountain doesn't have this kind of military discipline."

Bai Mao clearly knew the true identity of this scout cavalry, but he absolutely refused to mention it.

Same in life and death, one year's spring, summer, autumn, and winter—all spent with a horizontal halberd on horseback.

Bai Mao changed the subject, pretending to be relaxed. "We're about to enter the town. Remember to stay close to me. Don't wander off. If you take a wrong turn, you'll get into a ghost maze. What looks like a few steps away could actually be ten li, with miasma everywhere, dense white fog, twisting and turning, extremely dangerous."

They entered a town festively decorated with lanterns and banners. At the end of the main street, it connected to Hehuan Mountain's divine path. Beside the road was a building with a storied structure, next to which stood an ancient tree with lush foliage, covered in red paper.

It was a ghostly domain, gloomy and dark, with moonlight that felt cold.

Both sides of the street were lined with rows of bright red lanterns. Many shops were open, with shadows flickering, but almost no sound came from inside.

The umbrella-holding female ghost seemed very familiar with the town. She turned around, waved goodbye to Bai Mao and the young man, then walked into a small alley and vanished.

Bai Mao used his mind to tell the young man the general origins of the shops on both sides, why they should or shouldn't be messed with. But when they reached a certain place, where several scantily clad, seductive women were waving from a second-floor window, Lord Bai slowed down and asked the young man if he wanted to have some flower wine. He also said there was nothing to be afraid of here—the business was fair. They didn't eat people, only money. For just two snowflake coins, you could buy a jug of wine. As for how long a jug of wine lasted, that depended on your own skill. Then Lord Bai chuckled lewdly. It could be considered a way of "eating people," he supposed, otherwise it wouldn't be called "the hero's grave."

The young man just crossed his arms, looked straight ahead, and sneered. "Oh, Lord Bai perks up as soon as this topic comes up?"

Bai Mao had to drop it.

Inside the building at the end of the street, the first floor served alcohol. It was brightly lit, as bright as day, and packed with people preparing to climb the mountain to attend the marriage ceremony.

Bai Mao spent a snowflake coin to get a corner table in the tavern's main hall. He told Chen Ren to just sit there and not start any trouble. If anyone came looking for them, just mention his name. Then Bai Mao himself scurried off to deliver his congratulatory gift.

At the foot of the mountain, under the memorial archway, a table was set up covered in large red silk. An old man in steward's clothing was loudly calling out names, and an accountant was recording the gift list.

"Half a catty of 'Thunder Fire Burns Red Apricots,' a 'Water Vein Refines Green Pills' water vein. The Pipa Lady of Celestial Sound Cave presents one immortal thunder-apricot and one water pill!"

"'Feather robe often carries mist and sunset colors; straw hat and raincoat fishing in a dragon pool.' The Black Dragon Immortal Lord has arrived! One red envelope, eighteen snowflake coins."

The old man with the Dao name "Black Dragon Immortal Lord" glared. "Hmph?!"

The steward immediately grinned apologetically. "Made a mistake! It's eighty coins!"

The young accountant, who had already written "eighteen," looked up with a troubled expression. The old steward smacked him on the head. "Wipe it out and write it again, can't you?"

By the time that Immortal Lord of the Sea-Observing Realm had climbed the mountain and disappeared into the distance, the steward was still scolding the accountant. "All you're good for is eating fish belly meat, aren't you?"

"'On the ape's path lives a demon king, his fists and feet are unmatched in the world.' Tang Kun, Grandmaster Tang, comes tonight to offer congratulations! One box of gold, two cases of jewels!"

"'A withered skeleton turns over, becomes a mansion lord; in life, he was an honest official.' Xiezi Ridge, Qingbai Mansion, Bai Mao, Lord Bai. Fifty snowflake coins, and a few sticks of ancient ink..."

Bai Mao immediately bowed and scraped, rubbing his hands together, whispering, "Steward Yu, this set of ancient ink is imperially made. It's worth something."

The steward nodded and reminded the young accountant, "Add 'imperially made' for Lord Bai."

A personal talisman boat shaped like a grasshopper streaked through the air, touching down in an instant. A burly man stepped out, accompanied by two maidservants. One of the women formed a mudra and folded up the talisman boat. The burly man reached out with a palm the size of a winnowing fan, caught the boat, then roughly pushed aside the obstructive Bai Mao. As a Sixth Realm martial artist, he sent Bai Mao flying over two zhang away. He didn't bother with Hehuan Mountain's Steward Yu and simply led his two maidservants straight up the mountain without taking out any money. That would be like waiting for a rooster to lay an egg.

The old steward opened his mouth as if to say something, then thought better of it and let it go. This brute was said to never admire anyone in his life, except for that honest and upright Northern Peak Wei Mountain Lord!

Seeing the burly man with his two wives walking away into the distance, the steward turned his head and spat. "What a piece of shit. A continent's mountain lord, a lofty divine spirit—is that the kind of thing a piece of trash like you is qualified to admire?"

Bai Mao returned to the tavern and found that the sword-wielding young man had already disappeared. Smiling bitterly, he ordered a drink, then called the waiter to settle the bill, only to be told it had already been paid.

On the mountain's divine path, the two Dao couple lords, Zhao and Yu, actually appeared together, seemingly personally welcoming honored guests at the mountain gate.

Over at Pomo Peak, two young men alighted from the wind. One wore linen clothes and climbing clogs; the other wore a dark cyan python robe, but he was not of royal or noble status—the robe's form was simply the style of his family's dharma robe. It was because his surname was Fu, and he was from Old Dragon City. More importantly, he was a qi refiner eligible to participate in ancestral hall meetings. The linen-clad youth said with a smile, "Fu Qi, I'm sorry to drag you into this muddy water." The latter shook his head, completely unconcerned. He squinted into the distance. "Here they come."

A brilliant sword light, accompanied by a colorful, flowing firefly, arrived in an instant. It was a solemn-faced young man in a Daoist crown. He flicked his sleeve, condensing a cloud of radiant mist into the talisman patterns on his dharma robe. The young woman who had been flying on her sword landed gracefully, her long sword sliding into the sheath on her back.

The linen-clad youth smiled radiantly and proactively bowed. "Hehuan Mountain Yu Zhen, presents respects to True Master Cheng and Miss Caiqin."

Fu Qi cupped his fists and laughed. "Old Dragon City, Fu Qi, presents respects to National Master Cheng and Sword Immortal Zhang."

Zhang Caiqin smiled and nodded.

Cheng Qian asked, "What relation is Fu Nanhua to you?"

Fu Qi chuckled. "If we're talking generational rank according to the family tree, I can call him 'Little Uncle.' When I run into him outside, I can only address him as 'City Lord'—otherwise, Little Uncle definitely won't bother acknowledging me."

At the mountain gate, the two Dao couple lords simultaneously cupped their hands in greeting to an honored guest. Lord Zhao took the arm of that cultivator, laughing heartily. "Brother Qin Cui! Finally got you here!"

Lady Yu communicated with her mind. "Daoist Qin, has Immortal Master Tian not come along?"

As for the master of Qin Cui and Tian Hu—that person was absolutely beyond invitation.

In fact, even this Immortal Master Tian was hard to get. Sure enough, Qin Cui shook his head. "Senior Sister Tian is in closed-door cultivation recently."

A sword-wielding young man sat on a well curb in the town, his hands tucked into his sleeves.

He saw the flustered civil official in crane cloak hurrying over and asked with a laugh, "Lord Bai, isn't that you over there drinking? What are you wandering around for?"

Bai Mao breathed a sigh of relief, then pointed at the one who was truly wandering around, laughing in exasperation. "I told you not to wander around, not to wander around! What are you doing here?"

The young man jumped down from the well curb, his straw sandals landing softly on the ground. He laughed. "Sitting in a well, looking at the sky—taking a good look at the world I saw nearly thirty years ago."

Bai Mao was utterly confused. He always felt that this young wandering swordsman surnamed Chen was a bit mysterious, but he didn't dwell on it. He couldn't help complaining, "Do you really think this is an ordinary town? Let's go, let's go! I'm going up the mountain soon. I'll see you out of the town first. This place is a den of hidden dragons and crouching tigers, not a good place to stay long."

The sword-wielding young man laughed. "Hidden dragons and crouching tigers? Compared to my hometown town, it's nothing. Far inferior."

Bai Mao grabbed the young man by the arm, and without argument, started dragging him out of the alley, laughing. "Your hometown town? Could it be Lizhu Cave Heaven's Huaihuang County Town?"

Lord Bai might be ignorant, but he knew that place was no bigger than the palm of a hand, and it had produced many cultivation geniuses who could drown him with a single spit of their saliva. And every single one of them was younger than the last.

The young man was astonished. "Brother Bai, you guessed that? You're a deep one! You must be a divination master too, right?"

"'Too,' what? Did you divine that Miss Liu wasn't really surnamed Liu?"

"Heaven's calculation misses one. That's how it should be."

"Alright, alright, stop the bullshit. I'll see you out of the town, then I'll go up the mountain. We'll part ways here. After all, yin and yang are different paths, the dark and the bright are separate roads. Better if we don't meet again."

"Brother Bai, think about it. My surname is Chen. The famous one from Lizhu Cave Heaven, he's also surnamed Chen. Hmm? No need to guess, is there?"

Bai Mao was thoroughly amused. He kept a firm grip on the young man's arm, then gave him a light slap on the head. "You little rascal! You'll latch onto any connection! By your logic, my surname is Bai. Then what's my relationship with that legendary 'Most Proud Under Heaven'?"

"Lord Bai, a gentleman uses words, not hands!"

"I'll make sure you remember this lesson."

Bai Mao raised his hand to slap him again, but this time the young man blocked it. Bai Mao released his arm, took a yellow talisman he had treasured for years from his sleeve, and whispered, "As soon as you leave town, hurry up. Someone said they saw movement near Pomo Peak, and it was considerable. Among it was a flash of sword light. It's very likely that the female sword immortal from the Tiancao Commandery Zhang clan has arrived. Be careful. They say she has a bad temper and strikes ruthlessly. If it really is her, Hehuan Mountain will certainly not sit idly by. So you'd better take a detour. This barrier-breaking talisman is my parting gift. I'll say it again: you'd better not meet again with a... friend who is a ghost."

At the edge of town, the sword-wielding young man walked backward, laughing. "Brother Bai, to tell you the truth, I'm friends with that female sword immortal. And with that Qin Cui who just went up the mountain. If they saw me, they really should find a doctor for their knees. Believe it or not. I'm off now. I have a few small things to take care of. Anyway, when you get up the mountain, if anything happens, just shout. Tell Zhang Caiqin, or Qin Cui of Shujian Lake—just tell them you know someone named Chen, who wears straw sandals, carries a sword, loves to mooch drinks, and you met him by chance on the road, hit it off at first sight. And you agreed to have a drink together in the Green Apricot Kingdom capital around the middle of the year."

The civil official in crane cloak smiled and nodded.

There are many pleasures in life: returning home, drinking fine wine, seeing all flowers in bloom, playing chess under a pine tree's shade, waiting for the full moon at mid-autumn, listening to the wind like the tide, reading a book behind closed doors on a snowy night...

Tonight, he had to add one more: listening to a young man boast, saying he was Chen Ping'an of Lizhu Cave Heaven.