Chapter 1046: A Beautiful Dream Finally Comes True
Li Huai returned to his hometown, accompanied by the fox immortal woman named Wei Taizhen. She wore a gauze veil over her head, covering her face as they walked together toward the Yang family herbal store. Over the years, Li Huai had grown accustomed to traveling far and wide with Nen Daoren, joking and cursing freely, speaking as he pleased—a truly carefree existence. But now, with the sudden change to Immortal Master Wei as his travel companion, she insisted on calling him "gongzi" at every turn, giving Li Huai goosebumps and making him deeply uncomfortable. Every time he suggested she call him by his name and stop with the "gongzi," he would point out that he was just a poor kid who used to think a chicken leg on holidays was as good as New Year's. If the neighbors in his hometown heard her address him that way, they'd surely laugh at him. But every time Li Huai made this suggestion, she would bite her lip, not refuting anything, only lowering her eyelids and falling silent in a dejected manner, as if she were even more wronged than Li Huai himself. Seeing her like this, Li Huai's head would swell like a bucket. He was a man born to suffer—how could he possibly enjoy such pure good fortune, such romantic good fortune? I, Li Huai, am a proper scholar!
If that foul-mouthed Zheng Dafeng caught sight of this, what would happen? Miss Wei had a thin skin—if Zheng Dafeng's crude talk made her angry and humiliated, then no matter whose side he took, he'd be in the wrong.
Arriving at the all-too-familiar herbal store, Li Huai stepped quickly over the threshold and shouted, "Shi Lingshan!" He looked left and right, puzzled—oddly enough, he couldn't see Su Dian anywhere.
Shi Lingshan felt a complicated mix of emotions toward this Li Huai. There was no point in trying to cozy up or build a relationship; if there was business, speak of it. "Hu Feng from Erlang Lane, not long ago, sent two letters to the store. One was for me—he asked me to pass along a message to you. He's currently in the new South Cloud Xiao Hong dynasty over in the southern region, having teamed up with some friends to establish a mountain sect. He said if you have time, go over there, sit a while, catch up on old times. He has something to discuss with you face to face."
Li Huai was completely bewildered, feeling uneasy inside. "Owing me a favor? I don't know anything about that. Hu Feng hasn't gotten it wrong, has he?"
He had no real impression of Hu Feng, who was a few years older. He only vaguely remembered that Hu Feng often followed his grandfather, who ran a festive goods shop, as they went through the streets and alleys doing odd jobs like mending bowls, patching pots, and sharpening knives. Though they were from the same hometown, he couldn't recall even exchanging half a sentence with him. How had he racked up a vague debt of favor? Could this be some kind of twisted irony, speaking the opposite of what was meant, to demand repayment? But then he thought again—the Hu Feng in his memory seemed quite honest. It probably wasn't that bad.
Shi Lingshan said, "If you don't know, how should I know? I just pass along the message; nothing else concerns me. The letter addressed to you is on the table in the east wing room where you usually stay. Read it yourself."
Shi Lingshan remembered something and pulled out a key, placing it on the counter. "Also, all the odds and ends in the back courtyard's firewood shed—Old Master left them all to you. Su Sister and I didn't dare open the door to clean. When you have time, move them out. It's not good leaving them here forever. Better earlier than later; why not today? The store has a cart—it'll probably take two or three trips to move everything."
Li Huai's head ached. Move them? Move them where? His ancestral home was just that small. If his mother ever found out that his room was piled with "junk" moved from the Yang family store, she'd definitely curse him out, spewing all kinds of vile words. Concepts like "the dead are great" or "taboos for the revered"—his mother never paid much attention to those. Li Huai tried to negotiate with Shi Lingshan, suggesting they leave the things where they were for now. If Shi Lingshan thought they took up too much space in the back courtyard, he could pay an annual rent... Shi Lingshan looked at the earnest young man in the Confucian robe, sighed, and waved his hand, saying the rent was waived; no need to be so standoffish. Besides, the entire back courtyard belonged to the master. If Li Huai really didn't want to bother moving, they could talk about it later.
Li Huai thanked him repeatedly and was about to head to the back courtyard. He bent down and lifted the bamboo curtain. Shi Lingshan glanced at the timid fox spirit who seemed eager to follow Li Huai to the back courtyard, and said with a cold expression, "Front store, back workshop—idlers not allowed."
Ha, a fox spirit of dubious origin, daring to wander into the back courtyard? Who gave you the courage?!
Wei Taizhen's face paled. The soft-natured fox spirit quickly bowed, curtsied toward the counter, and offered a silent apology to that martial artist.
Whatever Li Huai might have thought, in Wei Taizhen's eyes, behind that young martial artist appeared the image of a deity offering protection, golden light dazzling, radiating great brightness, as if naturally capable of suppressing all ghosts and spirits.
The moment Wei Taizhen entered the store, she had sensed that imposing, overwhelming vision—a deity with a pure golden body slowly opened its eyes, looking down at the fox spirit from above. Wei Taizhen dared not meet its gaze.
Li Huai turned around and explained with a smile, "Shi Lingshan, I know the old rules of the store, of course. But Miss Wei is a dear friend of mine—there's no need to stick so rigidly to the conventions. Rest assured, I guarantee that Miss Wei won't rummage through anything when she follows me to the back courtyard."
Seeing Shi Lingshan noncommittal, Li Huai clasped his hands in salute and, grinning cheekily, pleaded for leniency. "Make an exception, just this once. Do me this favor."
Since Li Huai had put it that way, Shi Lingshan could only nod.
It wasn't that Shi Lingshan deliberately made things difficult for the fox spirit of unknown origin, or that he wanted to embarrass Li Huai. Rather, Shi Lingshan knew very well that the back courtyard of this herbal store was truly not a sightseeing spot anyone could just step into. Now that the old master was gone, Shi Lingshan wanted to do his best to uphold that tradition.
Li Huai explained via mind voice: "Miss Wei, don't be angry. Shi Lingshan is just like that—he values the rules passed down by the older generation above all else. It's about the matter, not the person."
Wei Taizhen nodded vigorously.
As for the abilities of a pure martial artist to gather sound into a thread, or the mind voice of Qi refiners, Li Huai had inexplicably learned them all without knowing how.
Occasionally, Li Huai would sigh, thinking that if he could become so enlightened in his studies, it would be wonderful. As for why this was the case, Li Huai was open-minded—there were too many things he didn't understand; why waste his brain on them?
The back courtyard of the herbal store had a central courtyard, and he imagined that during the rainy season, water from the four sides would converge there.
Opposite the main house, which was several steps higher than the ground, under the eaves, there was a long wooden bench.
At this moment, Wei Taizhen had a profound, almost mysterious intuition—or perhaps it was an illusion.
The moment she entered this place, her breathing became difficult. She felt herself to be extraordinarily small, as if she were inside a magnificent hall so tall it couldn't see the sky, so deep it couldn't see the bottom.
She even felt as though every breath she took here was a offense deserving of death.
If Li Huai were not present, a heavenly thunderbolt would strike the top of her head, and her soul would scatter to the winds.
Back then, when she came from Precious Mirror Mountain of Skeleton Shoal, after breaking through to the Golden Core Earth Immortal realm, she had followed the secret decree of her master to accompany Li Huai and a young girl named Pei Qian on their travels through North Jambudvipa. She remembered Pei Qian was a sixth-tier martial artist back then; never had she imagined that now she would become one of the few Stopping Realm grandmasters in the world.
And Li Huai, who had studied at the Sui Mountain Cliff Academy in Vase Bottle Continent, had actually become a worthy scholar of the Haoran Confucian academy.
Wei Taizhen secretly felt that Pei Qian's "leap" from the sixth realm to the Stopping Realm seemed a bit more understandable?
Although Li Huai was by no means lazy in his studies, he really wasn't any kind of scholarly genius. She remembered during their travels, Li Huai always forgot half of what he learned after memorizing one part. Back then, on their journey carrying books, not only Pei Qian but even Wei Taizhen herself had everything memorized by heart. Besides being diligent and willing to put in hard work, Wei Taizhen had once seriously searched for any merit in this gongzi's approach to study. After much thought and painstaking search, the answer was: Li Huai's reading had no strengths whatsoever!
Now, Wei Taizhen was actually a genuine Nascent Soul realm fox immortal.
The reason she had left Li Huai's side earlier was that her master, Li Liu, was worried that as Wei Taizhen approached the Golden Core bottleneck and couldn't go into secluded cultivation to break through, her Dao heart would become unstable, unable to control her fox spirit aura, making her a true enchantress who would only affect her brother Li Huai's study. So Li Liu had her stay obediently in Lion Peak's Daoist temple for cultivation, only to descend the mountain after breaking through to continue attending to Li Huai's needs—food, clothing, and daily life.
Last time when she entered the Golden Core realm, Li Liu had given Wei Taizhen two magical artifacts, allowing her to trade lives with Nascent Soul cultivators other than sword cultivators.
This time when she became a Nascent Soul, Li Liu gave Wei Taizhen another pair of offensive and defensive magical artifacts, allowing her to trade lives with Jade Pure realm cultivators.
But because she was naturally soft-natured and had never experienced sparring with mountain Qi refiners, she looked easily bullied—a Nascent Soul realm cultivator with the bearing of a fifth-tier wild cultivator.
Suddenly, someone lifted the bamboo curtain, and a man's voice interrupted Wei Taizhen's thoughts.
"This young lady, may I ask your name? Where do you live? Are you married?"
Wei Taizhen quickly turned around and saw a man with a shiny bald head, rubbing his hands and grinning with a shy expression. "I am Zheng Dafeng, Li Huai's... elder brother! Not yet married, only because I've always kept myself pure, with high standards; one delay after another, and it got postponed. I just look older; I'm actually not that old. To be honest, little Li Huai's knowledge—I taught him personally."
The man plopped down on the long bench, scooted over, and patted the bench. "Miss, here, don't be formal. Treat it like your own home. Sit, let's sit and talk."
Although her head was covered by a gauze veil, hiding her face, her figure was graceful and her eyes like water, with a spring-like timidity—Zheng Dafeng was certain that with such a manner, there was no need to see the face!
Seeing that the young lady was probably shy at the sudden sight of a handsome gentleman, Zheng Dafeng lifted the hem of his long gown, crossed his legs, and smiled. "I, Zheng, am also a scholar. All my life I have loved wandering in the mountains of books. Occasionally meeting a fine verse, my heart is already drunk—how much more so with a beauty like jade."
Look at this—my appearance, my eloquence—I've stunned that out-of-town girl instantly.
Li Huai had read Hu Feng's letter, heard the commotion outside, came to the doorway of the wing room, and undercut him with a laugh, "Why don't you say you raised me from a baby spooning out my meals and changing my diapers?"
To say that wouldn't be entirely wrong. When Li Huai was little, he had indeed been closest to Zheng Dafeng, who often carried Li Huai on his back between the western ancestral home and the Yang store.
Zheng Dafeng got anxious. "I'm not that old! I'm a young man just in his twenties..."
Wei Taizhen was at a loss.
Fortunately, the other party only had an oily tongue and didn't get handsy; otherwise, would she have to slap him?
Li Huai, hiding a smirk, made introductions. "Immortal Master Wei, this is Zheng Dafeng. I've called him Uncle Zheng since I was little. By seniority, he's my father's junior martial brother. They both used to work here as shop assistants. Later, Grandpa Yang got fed up with him loafing around and doing nothing all day—either playing chess by the roadside or wandering around the dragon kiln. Grandpa Yang was furious and kicked him out. Uncle Zheng also works part-time as a gatekeeper at the east end of town. He's a good person."
Zheng Dafeng's eyes lit up. "Miss Wei? The Wei of 'Wei compiled three'? An excellent surname! Besides, an ancient book already said, 'On that day, a great wind uprooted more than ten wei of large trees in the forest around the Ganquan Temple.' Fate! From this, you can see that Miss Wei and I truly have fate connecting us!"
Wei Taizhen was skeptical. Did such a book and such a sentence really exist?
Li Huai pointed toward the firewood shed. "Uncle Zheng, I just heard from Shi Lingshan that Grandpa Yang left me all the stuff in the shed. I don't have a place to put it. How about I give it to you? You can move it away?"
Zheng Dafeng had a rammed-earth house at the far east end of town.
His relationship with Shi Lingshan wasn't that close, but Li Huai had always regarded Zheng Dafeng as an elder of the family.
Zheng Dafeng said gravely, "This was the master's arrangement. You dare to give it, but I dare not accept it."
Li Huai said, "Then let it stay here for now."
Zheng Dafeng nodded with a smile. "That's best."
Li Huai asked, "Why are you here?"
Zheng Dafeng said, "A bunch of half-familiar scholars came to Luopo Mountain. I'm timid, so I let Immortal Master Xianwei handle the guests."
Li Huai was confused. "What?"
Zheng Dafeng didn't want to discuss it further and asked, "That Nen Daoren?"
Li Huai said, "He went to Tongye Continent. He said Chen Ping'an personally invited him to come out of retirement for a major undertaking that couldn't be done without him."
Zheng Dafeng said helplessly, "You actually believe that?"
Li Huai laughed. "Of course not. But with stuff like that, no one plans the bragging in advance. Why bother taking it seriously? Just listen and let it go."
Zheng Dafeng gave a thumbs up. "A broad heart can hold good fortune."
Li Huai asked, "Where's Su Dian?"
Zheng Dafeng said, "She went on a long journey. Thanks to your good fortune, she's gone to find a senior fellow apprentice. In official circles, having people in the court makes being an official easier. On the martial arts road, having a fellow disciple who's made a name for himself as a backer makes it simple to establish oneself in a foreign land."
Li Huai was puzzled. "Su Dian looking for a senior fellow apprentice—what does that have to do with me?"
Zheng Dafeng grinned and said, "Heaven speaks not, yet fate comes thus. What reason need be told?"
At the base of Luopo Mountain's mountain gate.
After the Daoist Xianwei got a clear look at the group of scholars, the second gatekeeper of Luopo Mountain started shaking in his boots.
Familiar! Too familiar! After all, though his Daoist identity was fake and he had never received any initiation, he had genuinely studied the sage books for many years.
How could he not be familiar? The local Confucian temples of each state, county, and prefecture—in the capital, there were many portraits, all seventy-two wise ones. In local districts, the temples were smaller with fewer portraits, mostly just the Ultimate Sage, Rite Sage, Second Sage, and Culture Sage, along with ten other portraits as per custom—the Ten Wise Ones of the Confucian temple.
Today, four scholars came together to the foot of the mountain, and Xianwei immediately recognized their identities.
The scholar in cotton robes with a gourd hanging from his waist.
Dao Lin, style name Ranjun, the foremost among the seventy-two Attendant Wise Ones in the Haoran Confucian temple. Legend said he was the first Confucian sage to have a destiny character.
That tall, handsome man in a tall hat, wearing an iron sword.
Zhou Guo, style name Duanzheng, was said to be the disciple who served the Ultimate Sage the longest, traveling the world with him, preventing ancient "Daoists" from speaking rudely.
Min Wen, style name Xiangji. A gentle exterior but firm interior, entered the Way through filial piety, was skilled in "literature."
Li Hou, style name Jujing. Eloquent and skillful in debate, proficient in governing states, adept at generating wealth, revered by later scholars as the patriarch of Ru merchants. The Ultimate Sage once praised him, saying, "One can discuss the Book of Odes with him." And Li Hou was widely recognized as the disciple who respected the Ultimate Sage the most—perhaps no one else matched. If the martial and brave Zhou Guo would say to the master, "Why must one read books to then learn?" Li Hou would say, "Our master's knowledge is unattainable, like the sky cannot be reached by climbing stairs."
Probably because Li Hou was most versed in commerce and trade, and among the Ultimate Sage's disciples, he was the most deeply involved in the world, the stories and praises recorded in later books were the most numerous. It was said he was the scholar who best combined what he learned with his words and actions.
These four scholars, as if walking out of the portraits in the Confucian temple, were all proud students of the Ultimate Sage, all among the Ten Wise Ones of the temple.
Ranjun was poor yet delighted in the Way; Jujing was rich yet loved propriety.
The way of culture and martiality has not fallen to the ground; it resides in people. Culture in Min Wen, martiality in Duanzheng.
Li Hou laughed. "We won't be mistaken for swindlers again, will we?"
It turned out that after arriving in Huaihuang County, they didn't go directly to Piyun Mountain or Luopo Mountain. Instead, on a whim, they went to the Great Li Capital to visit the Ren Yun Yi Yun Tower and then the Spring Mountain Academy, the predecessor of Cliff Academy.
Unexpectedly, at the entrance of a small alley, someone stopped them and finally said the road was blocked—please turn back.
The old Immortal Master named Liu Jia and his disciple Zhao Duanming muttered to each other, and the old Nascent Soul cultivator became furious. His disciple claimed to recognize every scholar he saw, all of them were Attendant Wise Ones from the Confucian temple portraits. Zhao Duanming swore he couldn't be wrong. At first, Liu Jia was more shocked and panicked. But after hearing more and more, the old Immortal Master got angry: were the swindlers in the capital really this brazen these days? If it were just one legendary Attendant Wise One, Liu Jia might have believed it. At most two, the old man would have been uncertain. But to say four came at once, and all of them among the highest-rank sages of the Ten Wise Ones in the Haoran temple... that was a bit much!
Do you take me, Liu Jia, for a three-year-old child, so easy to fool?!
The group of four, having been turned away, exchanged smiles. They didn't explain anything and simply turned to leave.
The old Immortal Master sighed and remarked, "Truly, the world has degenerated and the human heart is no longer what it used to be. Nowadays, scholars disgrace their education!"
The young disciple couldn't help saying, "Master, what if they weren't lying and they're real?"
The old Immortal Master stroked his beard, pondered for a moment, and cautiously asked back, "Could it be?"
In the end, the old man stopped agonizing over the truth. He laughed freely and said, "If they are indeed who they are, then that half-joking remark by Minister Cui back then has come true."
Since he had gotten his wish and truly witnessed those ancients from the books, those peak mountain cultivators who never easily showed themselves, then from now on, he, Liu Jia, no longer needed to be a gatekeeper here.
But before leaving the alley, he had to go and thank that Embroidered Tiger properly.
The old man looked back at the somewhat quiet and desolate alley. It was as if he saw a blue-robed old scholar with two temples white as snow, holding a handful of peanuts. Occasionally he would pick one up and toss it into his mouth, chewing slowly as he walked, lost in his own thoughts, thinking of state matters and world affairs. Walking alone on the road of the world with no one by his side, as if he never cared about cultivating himself or setting his family in order, yet could still govern the state and bring peace to all under heaven.
The Daoist Xianwei, on the other hand, had no doubts about their identities.
Since they dared to come to Luopo Mountain, their identities were confirmed.
Duanzheng was puzzled. "Is it him?"
The senior brother had already given the answer. The scholar in cotton robes made the first bow to the Daoist.
The other three scholars, solemn and respectful, also bowed to that Daoist.
After all, ten thousand years ago, if that person had not been the first to open the way, perhaps the world ten thousand years later would not be the human world it was now.
The gatekeeper Xianwei, with a wooden hairpin in his hair, dazedly returned a Daoist salute.
It wasn't until Chen Ping'an appeared beside him that Xianwei felt an immense relief. So they were bowing to the mountain master.
On the stone steps of Jise Peak, the green-clad lad was pulled by Chen Qingliu to sit here. They hadn't gone to the foot of the mountain to receive guests.
Xin Ji'an, who had recently returned to Luopo Mountain after traveling, sat to one side.
A white-haired child, the genealogy officer of Luopo Mountain, crouched in the distance, extremely excited. Today's page in the chronicle had enough weight!
Chen Lingjun felt that the guests at the foot of the mountain looked somewhat half-familiar and half-unfamiliar, as if he had seen them before but couldn't remember where.
Chen Lingjun nudged the good brother beside him with his elbow and asked in a low voice, "Your friends?"
Chen Qingliu smiled. "I can't claim that honor."
Chen Lingjun said, "My master personally went down the mountain to greet them. It doesn't seem right for me to sit here with you, does it?"
Chen Qingliu snorted. "You're not a scholar. What can you do there? Chat with them about classical texts?"
Chen Lingjun was displeased. "Aren't you always claiming to be a cultured man? Why don't you go join the fun? At least get your face familiar."
Chen Qingliu said with a grin, "I've long since passed the age when I needed to introduce myself to anyone."
Xin Ji'an nodded and laughed. "Since the first day Daoist friend Chen left his hometown blessed land, he secretly set a rule for himself: never attend any boring party where you have to introduce your name and surname. The only exception seems to have been when he met that Mohist master?"
Because Chen Lingjun was sitting next to him, Xin Ji'an didn't reveal the master's true identity—the Mohist chieftain.
Chen Qingliu nodded. "If I remember correctly, that was the only exception. Only because he had a saying that deeply resonated with me: 'If the source is turbid, the flow will not be clear; if one's actions lack trust, one's reputation will inevitably wane.'"
Chen Lingjun automatically ignored the boasting content and asked curiously, "Old Brother Turbid Flow, you were actually born in some blessed land? So you're not originally from North Jambudvipa?"
Chen Qingliu showed a hint of nostalgic expression and nodded. "Actually, I come from an ownerless blessed land in Liuxia Continent."
Xin Ji'an asked, "I forgot to ask, where is that Miss Xie now?"
Back then, when they traveled together to Daoxuan Mountain, she always acted as a maidservant, and her boxing was very heavy.
Chen Qingliu laughed. "When that matter was accomplished, we went our separate ways. She didn't get along with my disciples, so she went to the Buddhist Kingdom in the West. It's really been a long time without news of her."
Chen Lingjun grew even more curious and lowered his voice to ask, "Among your disciples, is there one surnamed Zheng, who likes to wear white clothes when he goes out, pretty tall, looks like he never lacks money?"
Chen Qingliu nodded. "He is my eldest disciple. He is indeed surnamed Zheng. He's doing pretty well over in the Central Middle Earth Continent. As for the others, they never amounted to much."
People like Han Qiaose and Liu Daochun—how dare they still call him master?
Chen Lingjun immediately felt relieved. So that meant calling that fellow "Nephew Zheng" back then wasn't disrespectful.
But he just couldn't figure out one thing: why had the Old Scholar and the Great White Goose chatted so well with that Nephew Zheng at the foot of the mountain back then? Just being polite?
Chen Qingliu snorted. "That brat surnamed Zheng is far too clever. Back then, I didn't dare teach him swordsmanship, for fear that teaching the apprentice might starve the master."
Chen Lingjun patted Chen Qingliu's arm and said, "We brothers are all family here, we know each other inside and out. Stop pulling that kind of nonsense outside of drinking parties."
If that white-haired child who puffed up his tail every day since becoming Luopo Mountain's genealogy officer, that Konghou, heard this, she'd laugh at him for finding friends who were unreliable in their work and inappropriate in their words. How embarrassing.
The white-haired child marveled. So this was what "knowing inside and out" meant?
Good heavens, Daoist friend Jing Qing, do you really know who that Mr. Xin, whose two calligraphy pieces you got and described as "the words are written well, the lyrics are decent, looks quite impressive," actually is?
Chen Lingjun had a flash of inspiration. To be safe, he blocked his mouth with his hand and asked, "Tell me the truth from the bottom of your heart: that Nephew Zheng, isn't he that... that who?"
Chen Qingliu chuckled. "That who is who? Because his surname is Zheng and he likes to wear white clothes, so he must be Zheng Juzhong of White Emperor City?"
Chen Lingjun burst out laughing, raised his hand, and gave Chen Qingliu a slap on the head. "It's a real shame we two brothers don't go earn money telling stories under the bridge."
Xiao Mo, wearing a yellow hat and blue shoes, appeared beside them with a girl in a sable hat. They casually sat down on the steps.
Earlier, at the Sword Worshiping Platform, Xie Gou had assured Xiao Mo that she definitely wouldn't cause trouble with those visitors. If they met, she'd be cordial.
Actually, Xie Gou had her own little scheme: since some play the red face and some the white face, that would be fitting.
But when Xiao Mo agreed without much hesitation, not even consulting with Chen Ping'an beforehand, Xie Gou's heart softened. She wasn't afraid of making it hard for host Chen Ping'an, but she couldn't bear to put Xiao Mo in a difficult position.
On the mountain path steps, they sat in a row. From left to right: the white-haired child holding a brush and a book; Xie Gou resting her cheek in her hand and yawning; Xiao Mo with his green bamboo staff lying across his knees; Chen Lingjun wondering why that silly girl Nuan Shu hadn't shown up yet; Chen Qingliu patting his knees lightly; Xin Ji'an in a leisurely posture. A moment later, Zhu Lian arrived with a girl in a pink skirt and sat beside Xin Ji'an.
Following Chen Ping'an's mind voice reminder, Wei Bo hurriedly rushed from his reading room on Piyun Mountain to Luopo Mountain.
If Chen Ping'an hadn't warned him, Wei Bo wouldn't have dared to believe it.
Mountain Lord Wei bowed to those scholars, his heart surging with emotion that long refused to calm down. In a daze, a beautiful dream had come true.
The cotton-robed scholar with the gourd at his waist smiled and said, "Holding a candle to travel by night in the darkness—there is indeed a reason for it. Mountain Lord Wei's divine title, Night Traveler, is well-deserved."
Wei Bo was slightly taken aback, fell silent for a moment, then immediately spoke in a low, resolute voice, "The great master is absolutely right. This minor deity shares that thought!"
Chen Ping'an was momentarily speechless. So all my earnest persuasion of you earlier, Mountain Lord Wei—you were just walking in your dreams?