Chapter 1079: Half a Book in the Mortal World
The Old Scholar's visit to Fallen Mountain's Sunset Peak had been brief, coming and going in a hurry without explaining his reasons to Chen Ping'an, trusting that this last disciple would have already guessed them.
It was still because of that debate at the Pan River by the Sage of Supreme Sanctity, which touched upon the knowledge related to "Questioning Heaven." The Old Scholar was quite skilled in this area—whether it was debating with that old gentleman from the Imitation White Jade Capital, or passing down his teachings to Yu Xuan beyond the heavens, he had demonstrated his scholarly foundation. This was why he could request leave from the Ritual Sage, steal half an hour midway, and make this trip to Fallen Mountain.
In the end, the Old Scholar, who very much wanted to stay for a few more days, could only force a wry smile as he apologized to those children. Then he pulled Chen Ping'an aside and walked a short stretch of mountain path, speaking rapidly. The old man asked several crucial questions: "This time, when you go into seclusion to return to the Jade Purity Realm, do you have any confidence?"
Chen Ping'an had one good quality—an extremely good one—in that he would never deliberately tell reassuring white lies.
"I have some confidence. Master need not worry about this. At the very least, I have my own methods to fall back on."
"And that method of tempering the Night Wandering Sword? You didn't ask Bai Ye for advice?"
After all, it was part of the tip of one of the four immortal swords, "Tai Bai."
Back then, on the city wall, Chen Ping'an; in the Barren Wastes, Fei Ran; by Zou Zi's side, Liu Cai; and traveling through the Multicolored World, Zhao Yao—each had obtained one piece.
"I've never been too comfortable asking him about it. Deep down, I always tend to regard Mr. Bai as an unapproachable, distant figure."
"Then set this matter aside for now. You still need to ask—there's no harm in asking when you have the chance. Before Bai Ye returns to the Azure Underworld, make sure to shamelessly inquire about it. By the way, I barely managed to trick that old Yu into visiting Fallen Mountain. Did you manage to get this tightwad to lay an egg before he left?"
"Senior Yu gave and lent me a thousand Gold Essence Coins. A generous gesture."
"That's hardly enough—that's just the bare minimum. I mean, I mentioned that the Dao Ancestor once left behind quite a bit of purple qi here, first come first served. Bai Ye could take it, Heavenly Lord Xie Shi could take it—any Taoist had a chance. In the end, that old Yu intercepted such a huge chunk of Dao fortune. Didn't he show any gratitude?"
To be honest, this vast amount of Dao qi had been reserved by the Dao Ancestor for the Taoist Yu Xuan from the very beginning. It would have been difficult for anyone else to take it away.
But if the Old Scholar hadn't deliberately brought up the topic and given him an excuse, Yu Xuan, being the shrewd man he was, wouldn't have had the face to come to Bottle Gourd Continent to take it. After all, he still had to consider the attitude of the Confucian Temple. However, since the Literary Sage, who was temporarily acting as the spokesperson for the Confucian Temple, had said so, Yu Xuan was naturally happy to go along with it.
"Since Senior Yu didn't bring it up, I just pretended I didn't know anything."
"You child, your skin is too thin! Even if you had asked him for a few secret talisman manuals that are exclusive to Talisman Mountain, he would have been willing to give them!"
Forget it, forget it. He'd go to old Yu's place himself to ask. With one mountain and five sects, could there be fewer celebrations of all sizes?
"Master, if a Daoist temple in the Haoran World were to be simply named 'Daoist Temple' without any additional appellation, would that violate the Confucian Temple's ritual regulations?"
This was like naming a mountain "Green Mountain" instead of the more elegant "Jade Green"—it would invite far more criticism. In the Haoran World, where the principle of "rightful names" was paramount, the difficulty could be imagined.
First, one had to get past the Zhongtu Confucian Temple.
Borrowing money and repaying debts of gratitude were both difficult matters.
The Old Scholar stroked his beard and pondered for a moment before saying, "It's negotiable, at least. The Ritual Sage might be more lenient, but the Secondary Sage may not necessarily nod in agreement. As for the three deputy directors of the Confucian Temple, I estimate I'll have to have a small quarrel with them."
"Then let's forget it. There's no need to have Master stir up trouble at the Confucian Temple just to add luster to Senior Yu's reputation."
"That Mr. Zheng from White Emperor City has taken another step forward from his peak."
"Good news."
No wonder Liu Chicheng had started showing off again.
"Over in the Barren Wastes?"
"Nothing major for now. Just one thing, neither big nor small: the Confucian Temple recently established a think tank of over three hundred people, deliberately increasing the proportion of young people. This temporary office is located in that city at the Earth Vein Ferry Crossing. Every school of thought has a share, and they can send one person to participate. For anyone else to join, they would need to be exceptionally outstanding to serve as a military strategist. Originally, three levels were planned, but Yuan Pang said that was too many and more harmful than beneficial, so it was simplified to two layers of advisory staff—inner and outer. After all, 'upper' and 'lower' didn't sound quite right."
When they said "every school of thought," it was actually a general term. The number of scholarly lineages that were truly recognized and clearly defined as "schools" by the Confucian Temple was currently sixty-two.
Tracing back to their origins, each "school" had once been a painstaking exploration in ancient times, exhausting all intellect to consider the future direction of the world.
"Among them, that child Xu Bai has been quite outstanding. But there are three young people who are even more impressive than Xu Bai. One of them is very familiar to you—the new state preceptor of the Shao Yuan Dynasty, Lin Junbi."
Speaking of this, the Old Scholar sighed. Unfortunately, his last disciple had only entrusted the book to the Confucian Temple through the Night Traveling Lord Wei Bo.
Chen Ping'an asked, "Generally speaking, are the older ones more radical, wanting to win a few decisive victories early to expand and stabilize the initiative? Instead, the younger ones are relatively more cautious, seeking a step-by-step advancement method, aiming to make the battle only consist of the opening and middle game—or rather, to treat the middle game as the final phase? The principle from start to finish is to align with the word 'controllable,' not giving the Barren Wastes any chance to turn the tables or even any margin for accidents?"
The Old Scholar laughed heartily. "Hey, you guessed it!"
Chen Ping'an asked curiously, "Master, what about the other two? Besides Yuan Pang, the head of the Hengqu Academy, who is the other?"
The Old Scholar stroked his beard and smiled. "He's a disciple of the Eclectic School. He used a metaphor for this war."
Raising his hand and waving his sleeve, the Old Scholar smiled slightly. "Steamroll! Let our Haoran World, within sixty years, achieve the greatest military gains with the smallest losses, and steamroll half of the Barren Wastes."
Chen Ping'an was stunned for a moment, then couldn't help but praise, "Good strategy! Good spirit!"
One should know that during the middle and later stages of that war, under the covert coordination of the Confucian Temple, the top ten dynasties had begun to spare no expense, exhausting their treasuries to develop all sorts of war weapons capable of turning the tide in local disadvantages. For example, the Great Li Dynasty had partnered with the Mohist School to create Mountain Vessels and Sword Boats—but these were only a tiny fraction of what had actually appeared on the battlefield and been proven effective. Because the Barren Wastes army was stalled in central Bottle Gourd Continent and Zhou Mi had ascended to heaven, the demon race had retreated like a tidal wave back to the Barren Wastes, leaving a whole string of killing moves still hidden 'underwater' in the Haoran World. When the battlefield shifted to the Barren Wastes, the indigenous demons would have to pay with their lives to 'see' the power of these weapons.
The Old Scholar seemed to want to say something but stopped.
Truly, he was the most understanding of last disciples. Chen Ping'an smiled and said, "I've already sent word through Liu Xu to Xuan Shen, Cao Gun, and the others. Once Liu Xu reaches Quanjiao Mountain, all the sword cultivators can withdraw from that underground mine. After that, whether they're willing to enter the Confucian Temple as military strategists and offer advice is entirely up to them. I can only give suggestions as a friend, not force them."
Sending the young sword cultivators of the Summer Resort Palace lineage to Fuyao Continent, and then having those Haoran Sword Immortals who had once been to the Sword Qi Great Wall protect them—this carried a great deal of risk and responsibility for Chen Ping'an.
If any problems arose, the sects behind those young people might harbor resentment even if they said nothing, because Xuan Shen and the others were all top candidates for the future patriarch positions in their respective ancestral halls. They had talent, intelligence, and integrity—just like Cao Qinglang in Fallen Mountain.
The Old Scholar smiled and nodded. "Don't force them. Absolutely don't force them."
Old Scholar, why hasn't your last disciple come?! From now on, even at such a young age, is he just going to rest on his laurels and enjoy the benefits?
Those who dared to ask this face-to-face were naturally old friends close to the Old Scholar.
Literary Sage, will Mountain Lord Chen enter this city as a military strategist?
There were even more who asked this, mostly energetic young people. Not all of them were necessarily out of admiration; some just believed that in worldly matters, hearing is not as good as seeing.
The Old Scholar swore confidently, "Ping'an, if you're willing to visit the Earth Vein Ferry Crossing, I can talk to the Mohist Master. If he dares to shut you out, I'll block his door!"
Chen Ping'an felt a headache coming on just thinking about it, so he had to gloss over it with his master.
The Old Scholar looked at the sky and said, "I have to go."
Bai Ye asked through voice transmission, "Should I wait here for that unfamiliar daoist friend, or go find him over there?"
The Old Scholar asked with a smile, "You want to discuss sword techniques with Young Master Xiao Mo?"
Bai Ye said, "If we meet, the conversation will flow. If we don't click, a passing glance will do."
The Old Scholar hesitated for a moment, then said, "Since you want to return to the Mysterious Capital Temple, you should go quickly."
Bai Ye was indeed decisive. He immediately ascended to the sky dome with Jun Qian.
The Old Scholar stomped his foot in frustration. Jun Qian transmitted voice with a smile, "Master, regarding the immortal sword 'Tai Bai,' Bai Ye left a book on the table for Junior Brother to peruse at his leisure."
The Old Scholar asked, "How thick is the book?"
Jun Qian answered honestly, "Not thin, and not thick."
The Old Scholar glared. "Ping'an, what use is this senior brother to you? Just you wait!"
Jun Qian said helplessly, "Master, you really can't blame me. I advised him, but Bai Ye wouldn't listen. I couldn't exactly press a tiger-head hat on him and make him write more characters."
The Old Scholar softened his tone and said, "Jun Qian, try not to cause trouble over there. I won't be by your side, and the White Jade Capital is someone else's territory. Take it easy."
Jun Qian hummed in acknowledgment. At the entrance to the sky dome over Bottle Gourd Continent, Bai Ye adjusted his tiger-head hat and bowed toward the Pan River in Shaozhou to take his leave. Jun Qian did the same.
Today's meeting at the Sunset Peak Ancestral Hall was relatively simple. Besides determining the ownership of the mountain peaks, it was also about confirming identities. For example, Xie Gou was appointed as the second guest elder of Fallen Mountain; Xiao Mo as a nominal guest elder; and Kong Hou as the first official compiler of Fallen Mountain—promoted from an outer sect menial disciple to an inner sect registered disciple. In reality, whether outer or inner sect, it was all just a formality on Fallen Mountain.
On Fallen Mountain, there were either guest elders or direct disciples under the guest elders in the ancestral hall. So this white-haired boy's status as an inner sect disciple was still unique.
Moreover, starting today, because of his position as the official compiler, the white-haired boy could have a seat in the ancestral hall. The Hidden Officer Ancestor was truly meticulous and generous!
Next, Mountain Lord Chen Ping'an formally accepted Guo Zhujiu and Ning Ji as his direct disciples. As usual, the Discipline Elder Changming was responsible for sitting at the table, grinding ink, opening the brush, recording names, and entering them into the ancestral hall registry.
As for whether that Sword Boat would belong to the Upper Sect or the Lower Sect, it was simply a matter of making Patriarch Cui understand what it meant to be abandoned by all sides.
Not only his brother-like Chief Zhou, but even Old Immortal Jia, a lecturer at the Lower Sect Academy, refused to say a word of fairness.
In the end, this Sword Boat would go to the Upper Sect, but could be leased to the Lower Sect.
Matters were discussed one by one. Chen Lingjun appeared to be sitting upright and proper, but in reality, his eyes were glazed over.
Earlier, Yu Xuan had participated in the Northern Mountain Canonization Ceremony and immediately returned to his Heavenly Dao Field. Chen Ping'an's reminder had caught the old true man's attention.
At that time, Chen Lingjun had confirmed that Old Immortal Yu had truly returned to the river of stars before daring to complain. Earlier, he had served as the main host and sat for half a day without even getting a morning drink as a return gift. Old True Man hadn't handled this matter properly—it just wasn't right.
Then there was that Mr. Xin, who would nod and smile at him when they met on the road. It turned out he knew that dragon-slaying man named Chen!
That was Chen Qingliu from the first page of *Collection of Passersby*! The master of Zheng Juzhong from White Emperor City in Zhongtu!
Chen Lingjun shuddered just thinking about it. It was terrifying.
From now on, he had to stay far away from Mr. Xin, and also make his good brother Chen Zhuoliu stay away from Mr. Xin... Actually, forget it. How friends made friends was none of his business. They could continue being friends. At most, next time they met for a drink, he'd have to subtly probe that poor wretch. Your friend Mr. Xin is quite remarkable—he knows that legendary dragon-slayer.
A friend of a friend of a friend—did that count as his friend? No, that would be overreaching. Opportunism was not allowed!
Worried, Chen Lingjun turned his head and looked at the silly girl next to him. He stared until she frowned, almost turning to glare at him. Only then did he withdraw his gaze, crossed his arms over his chest, and sighed. Ah, little girl, how could she know of his lofty ambitions? There were so many unknown heroic deeds he didn't even bother to mention.
Where there is gathering, there is parting. Waiting for the next reunion.
Wu Yuan was a prefectural governor; Zhao Yao was a vice minister of justice—both were high-ranking officials.
Chen Ping'an pulled his two junior nephews aside for a chat.
He only mentioned one matter: the Great Li Dynasty would soon establish a special official position to handle certain "minor matters."
Pull up the radish and the mud comes with it, then fill in the hole.
For example, if a corruption case occurred in the officialdom of a certain county or prefecture, or if a certain celestial sect or clan violated rules and prohibitions, once discovered, the court would dig deep all the way. Every single one involved, whether they were related to the noble Xu family, the earthly immortals, or even cultivators of the Upper Five Realms—there was no upper limit. The Yu family of Empress Yu Mian, the family of Empress Dowager Nan Zan, the Divine Declaration Sect, the Jiang family of Yunlin—as long as they were on this "single line," they would all need to go to this institution under the Great Li Ministry of Justice to prove their innocence. Within the court, it would all be recorded in files. The official gazette of the Great Li court would be distributed to prefectural governors and generals of each province, forming a standing rule. If necessary, it could go down one more level to county magistrates and officials of equivalent rank, as well as various water and mountain deities.
Wu Yuan was silent, deep in thought. Zhao Yao smiled and asked, "Even if they're wiped out in one fell swoop, how do we calculate the severity of their faults? We can't just beat them all to death with one stick, can we?"
Chen Ping'an said, "You're the vice minister of justice. You'll determine the specific charges and accountability. You draft all the details. I'll only be responsible for helping you and the Ministry of Justice clean up the aftermath."
"During this process, all the 'officials protecting each other' and the 'network of favors' that are treated as normal—these should be the top priority for this institution you're leading. These are the people and matters you need to catch and monitor."
"The officials who enter this institution should be young and hold low ranks. This is what's called 'humble rank, great power.' At the same time, you should secretly set up an internal office that is not publicly announced, specifically tasked with monitoring the words and deeds of these young officials—their social interactions in the officialdom. You can give them one chance to make a mistake; you might even deliberately engineer it. Then you make a small punishment to serve as a warning. At that moment, you plainly tell them: this mistake is temporarily filed only under your office. No official from the Ministry of Justice or the Ministry of Personnel can access it—not even the ministers."
"So the selection of those 'minor matters' requires some finesse. The entry point could be mid-level officials. I suggest two types: one is the young and aggressive officials who had smooth careers but rose through clever scheming—no merit to offset their faults; the other is those who just retired to their hometowns with substantial fortunes—no 'let bygones be bygones.' The cases are naturally led by your Ministry of Justice, but at the start of the investigation, you can proactively contact the local governments. The goal is to have someone tip off the culprits, to seek the habitual mutual protection. Therefore, those secret agents of the Ministry of Justice will be busy from now on."
Zhao Yao nodded. "That's acceptable."
Wu Yuan said helplessly, "Then I'll be the one to bring this up, so that Vice Minister Zhao and the Ministry of Justice don't appear to be dissatisfied with their current power."
A mountain has its mountain aura; an institution has its own clarity or turbidity of official spirit.
Zhao Yao asked, "Anything else?"
Chen Ping'an said, "Something related to you, but not too much. The court will soon revise the Fish Scale Registers for both the mountains and the mortal world. This will be included in the next Capital Review. The household departments of the capital and the secondary capital will coordinate with the three mountain lords and the two marquises of the great rivers within the Great Li territory. Also, officials from the Ministry of Personnel and city god temples at all levels will regularly go to the Great Li capital for discussions. Under the premise that they don't violate their duties as city gods and don't overstep the rules of the underworld, they will exchange information with the household departments of the two capitals. If there are old accounts in the mortal world, investigate them; flip through the old almanacs all the way back. If the history is too distant—say, one or two hundred years—then don't implicate descendants with clean records. But for those so-called 'honest officials and celebrities' during their lifetimes, their hometowns should no longer continue to erect memorial arches. The local county annals' sections on 'local worthies and illustrious officials' may need to reverse praise and blame, altering the wording. Of course, if these still prominent clans and families don't change their ways, then your Ministry of Justice will have more work to do."
Wu Yuan asked, "Why not just post public announcements, down to the county level, so that the common people in the markets and villages can all know about this?"
Chen Ping'an was silent.
Zhao Yao shook his head at Wu Yuan.
Chen Ping'an stood up and smiled. "Then let's each get to our own work."
Li Baoping was returning to the Dasui Mountain Cliff Academy to organize her reading notes. Pei Qian said she wanted to go with Sister Baoping.
Li Huai planned to head to the Barren Wastes, because the Tender Taoist was busy with the excavation of the Great River and needed a new guardian. After all, the Tender Taoist had been "tricked" away to Tongye Continent by Chen Ping'an. Chen Ping'an was hesitant about who to send with Li Huai to replace the guardian from Barren Wastes Peach Pavilion. But Xiao Mo was still in the Azure Underworld; Jiang Shangzhen still needed to oversee the Lotus Root Blessing Land with Cui Dongshan; Xie Gou? Chen Ping'an had asked her about it. Xie Gou didn't mind, as long as she didn't casually kill a Barren Wastes great demon—that wouldn't violate her agreement with Lord Bai Ze. Xie Gou grinned and asked, "Aren't you afraid I might defect, Mountain Lord?" Chen Ping'an laughed and said, "When something already has a high probability, it doesn't mean unrequited love must turn into enmity." Xie Gou got excited at this, thumped her chest loudly, and declared that on this escort mission to the Barren Wastes, if Li Huai lost even a single strand of hair, she would bring her head to see him...
Chen Ping'an told Li Huai that his upcoming long journey might change its route. Originally planned to go through Northern Ju Luzhou, Baibai Continent, and Zhongtu Shenzhou... that travel route would become Tongye Continent, Southern Basuo Continent, and Fuyao Continent, making a big loop before finally heading to Zhongtu Shenzhou, then returning to Bottle Gourd Continent via Northern Ju Luzhou. Before going to Southern Basuo Continent, he would visit the New Rain Dragon Sect, and then possibly go to the old site of the Sword Qi Great Wall, then to the Barren Wastes Earth Vein Ferry Crossing and that region of a hundred thousand mountains—especially the hundred thousand mountains, which he had never been to.
Yu Lu and Xie Xie, these two former subjects of the old Lu Dynasty with difficult backgrounds, had left their homeland for many years. It seemed that because they had jointly established a kingdom in Tongye Continent, they had finally resolved their heart's knot and were going to revisit their old country together.
The old country was like an old friend, a guest coming from the south, with apricot blossoms and rain on their clothes.
When Chen Ping'an saw them off down the mountain, he revealed a secret of heaven: "The number one sword cultivator of Northern Ju Luzhou, Bai Shang, recently broke through to the Flight Ascension Realm. He once conspired with Tian Wan from Zhuyang Mountain's Zhuyu Peak to control and seize the millennium-long sword dao fortune of Bottle Gourd Continent. Tian Wan had another identity—she was Zou Zi's junior sister. Speaking of which, Bai Shang also had one. It was only recently that I overlapped two pieces of information and reached this conclusion. It turns out that Bai Shang's former identity was a member of the Lu family from Fortune Street in our Pearl Bead Cave Heaven. He was also one of the unregistered disciples of Mr. Three Mountains and Nine Marquises. His original name was Lu Yue, a sword cultivator. I suspect that in the old days, the suzerain state of the Great Li Song clan—the Lu Dynasty you belonged to—was actually founded by Lu Yue's 'second life' in person. By mastering certain secret techniques, he was able to be born with knowledge. For some unknown reason, he ended up in Northern Ju Luzhou, adopted the identity of Bai Shang, and focused solely on sword cultivation, seeking a method of ascension through unorthodox means."
This group of registered and unregistered disciples of Mr. Three Mountains and Nine Marquises was revealed to Chen Ping'an by Aunt Feng at the Capital City Fire Temple. As for Bai Shang's former identity as a "fellow townsman" Lu Yue, that was told to him by Li-Xisheng beyond the heavens.
Xie Xie sneered, "No wonder the Old Sword Immortal Bai established a sect but didn't expand his disciples. To this day, he only has Xu Xuan as his sole direct disciple. It seems he was worried his master would blame him for indiscriminately taking disciples."
Chen Ping'an teased, "Is this how you evaluate the Old Sword Immortal Bai, who might be your Lu Dynasty's founding emperor?"
Xie Xie's eyes were deep. "When the Lu Dynasty fell and the state line was severed, he didn't lend a hand either."
Back then, Bottle Gourd Continent was still a minor continent at the bottom of the Haoran World. The Great Li Song clan was far from being the dynasty that later became "one kingdom, one continent." If Bai Shang had been willing to draw his sword and come south, even if he couldn't help the Lu Dynasty's descendants swallow up the Great Li Dynasty with its Embroidery Tiger Cui Chan, it would have been easy to preserve the Lu Dynasty.
Chen Ping'an just smiled and shook his head, choosing not to argue with her and rub salt in her wounds.
In truth, Xie Xie understood the simple principle of "mountain immortals sever mortal ties; descendants have their own blessings." She was just bitter and needed to vent.
Yu Lu's expression was complex. He never uttered a word.
Chen Ping'an smiled slightly. "Bridges are bridges, roads are roads. One thing is one thing. If Bai Shang really is your ancestor, don't be too proud. The crying child gets the candy. Cry poor when you need to, complain when you need to. Besides, I'm not a mortal enemy of Bai Shang. It's just a 'well water and river water don't interfere' relationship. He has the skill to conspire with others to seize two continents' sword dao fortune. I stumbled into it or acted as I saw fit—either way, I disrupted half of his plans through my own efforts. Whether there's animosity or a duel of swords is all out in the open. In short, regarding this matter, you and Xie Xie are outsiders. Don't get involved."
Yu Lu nodded and smiled. "I was just waiting for you to say that."
Chen Ping'an patted Yu Lu on the shoulder. "You truly are someone who kept watch with me before and after. Smart as a fool."
Yu Lu laughed heartily. "Thank you very much."
Xie Xie rolled her eyes. "Pfft!"
Hearing the clicking sound beside her, Xie Xie glared. "Chen Ping'an, what's with that sarcastic tone?!"
Chen Ping'an put on a straight face. "I am Patriarch Cui's teacher. How are you speaking to your 'teacher's father'?"
The result was that Yu Lu elbowed him, and Xie Xie quickly walked down the mountain.
Chen Ping'an rubbed his shoulder and tilted his chin toward Xie Xie. "Hmm?"
Yu Lu looked confused. "Hmm?"
Chen Ping'an curled his lip and said mockingly, "Seven orifices open, six are open."
Yu Lu couldn't help but laugh. "You understand. You understand best."
The girl in the sable hat summoned an unknown ancient treasure ship, faster than a Glowing Cloud Vessel, taking Li Huai and his personal maid to the overseas regions.
She had official business. After all, she was now a second guest elder and couldn't shirk it. But she had to go and return quickly—what if Xiao Mo returned while she was away?
Xie Gou sat on the railing, the heavenly wind brushing her face. The girl adjusted her sable hat, her hair at her temples fluttering wildly.
Ten thousand years ago, her talent for cultivation was just too good. She had to find something to do, or she'd be too bored. After thinking it over, a sudden inspiration struck: she would find a dao companion!
The little fox Wei Taizhen stood by the railing, chatting with the young but worldly-wise Miss Xie about various scenic wonders.
In an instant, Xie Gou stood up, turned around, and suddenly smiled. "Why do you look so miserable?"
The old blind man hunched over, chuckling. "You should take a look at yourself first."
Xie Gou was momentarily speechless.
The old blind man said, "Bai Jing, you don't need to be a guardian. I appreciate the thought, but I'll personally take my disciple back."
Xie Gou said, "You can't dictate what I do."
The old blind man rubbed his chin. "Suit yourself."
He didn't have a bad impression of Bai Jing.
Noticing the commotion, Li Huai came out from the house. He hesitated for a long time before finally coming up with a form of address: "Master."
The old blind man frowned, tilting his head. "What?"
Li Huai rolled his eyes. "Got it. You only feel comfortable when I call you 'old blind man,' right?"
Only then did the old blind man nod. "Good disciple."
Xie Gou covered her face with her hand. What a pair of clowns.
Immortal Wei, who had always maintained his masterly dignity through random nonsense, finally felt proud for once in front of his disciple.
Deliberately not telling the reason, he took Lin Feijing all the way on foot to the foot of that Incense Fire Mountain. Taoist Wei cleared his throat, put on a solemn expression, pointed to the high mountain, and said in a deep voice, "Feijing, this place is called Incense Fire Mountain. From now on, we, master and disciple, will establish our Dao field here. You can consider it our own mountain."
Lin Feijing was greatly surprised. Regarding the ancestral hall meeting at Fallen Mountain...
But his master and he didn't even have a registered identity, let alone attend the meeting.
How had they suddenly "opened a peak"?
Taoist Wei smiled mysteriously. "I'm not the type to like bragging about my achievements. A hero doesn't boast of past glory, so you might not know this: on Fallen Mountain, before me, there were only two serious and temporary gatekeepers: Zheng Dafeng and Cao Qinglang. One was a senior who watched Mountain Lord Chen grow up; the other, besides being Mountain Lord Chen's proud student, is now a peak master of the Lower Sect in Tongye Continent. So you see, there are registered disciples every year—the good times are here to stay—but this gatekeeper position... I'm not bragging, but an ordinary person really can't handle it!"
Whether this was the honest truth of heaven and earth was debatable. But if it was Taoist Wei deliberately putting gold on his own face and lying, that wasn't exactly the case either.
Lin Feijing was shocked. "Fallen Mountain even has a Lower Sect?!"
His master and Old Immortal Jia really knew how to keep secrets. Not a word had leaked.
This was exactly the effect he wanted.
Taoist Wei lectured, "What's so surprising about that? When the day comes that Fallen Mountain is smoothly promoted to a legitimate ancestral court, you can be surprised then."
Lin Feijing was deeply impressed. He made a Taoist bow and said sincerely, "Indeed, it is my master who has mastered the cultivation of the heart. This disciple was too impulsive."
Taoist Wei waved his sleeve grandly. "Let's ascend the mountain."
Master and disciple began planning how to build the "Dao field."
After much deliberation, it came down to acting within their means. Whether the Dao field was grand or not depended entirely on whether the silver in their pockets agreed.
For example, the disciple Lin Feijing planned to take out all his savings to build his master a decent house, especially a study that should at least have a touch of immortal spirit.
Meanwhile, the master intended to build several rest pavilions along this mountain path for people to take shelter. Naming them wasn't his strength, so he kept it simple: Third-Mile Pavilion, Fifth-Mile Pavilion, Tenth-Mile Pavilion.
Catchy and easy to remember!
Liu Chicheng brought friends to visit the mountain, arriving a few days later than Chen Ping'an had expected. And this time, he was dressed very plainly.
It seemed that last time when he disembarked at Ox Horn Ferry and saw that most proud man in the world, it had scared our Pavilion Master Liu quite a bit.
On Fallen Mountain's Spring Abode ledger, there was still a surplus of nearly four thousand Grain Rain Coins. So converting the Gold Essence Coins into three thousand Grain Rain Coins to immediately repay the debt to White Emperor City was no problem. However, because Chen Ping'an had made a "profit without capital" deal with Han Qiaose, he wasn't in a hurry to pay it all off at once.
Liu Chicheng had taken off his pink daoist robe and changed into a scholar's attire. He brought his new friends, whom he'd met on the transcontinental ferry, to visit Fallen Mountain to see his old friend Chen Ping'an.
With money in his pocket, his heart was at ease.
Moreover, this bag of money was a gift from his senior brother. Liu Chicheng guessed that the immortal coins inside were not likely to be Grain Rain Coins, but probably those Minor Heat Coins with few inscriptions.
Liu Chicheng had low expectations for this trip to Fallen Mountain. Just being able to ascend the mountain was enough. He didn't dare hope for a drink.
To his surprise, Mountain Lord Chen, in a green long gown and cloth shoes, was indeed waiting for them early at the mountain gate.
The official compiler immediately got busy again. Excellent, excellent—finally a batch that wasn't Upper Five Realm. Oh, and there were even two Dragon Gate Realm cultivators! What a pleasant surprise!
The white-haired boy had no reason not to be happy. His smile was so sincere it almost confused the guests.
Was Fallen Mountain's hospitality really so down-to-earth and enthusiastic?! Was it because they were basking in the glory of Pavilion Master Liu?
Chen Ping'an smiled and explained, "Gu Can still has to be Liu Xianyang's best man. The Dragon Spring Sword Sect has a lot going on, so he couldn't wait for you, his uncle, and had to go back first."
Although Liu Chicheng was skeptical, he was in a good mood. Even if it was false, it was still a polite remark from his close friend Mountain Lord Chen. How many people could claim such an honor?
As they ascended the mountain, exchanging pleasantries, Mountain Lord Chen didn't neglect anyone. Besides answering every question, he occasionally changed the subject smoothly, like threading a needle, as if visiting homes one after another.
As a result, Liu Chicheng discovered that Chen Ping'an was even more familiar with those friends' sect gates, traditions, and ancestral founder deeds than he was.
Chen Ping'an personally led the group of guests to Zhu Lian's courtyard, where refreshments had been prepared.
They noticed a black-clad little girl standing at the entrance with a cloth bag slung diagonally across her body. Inside the courtyard, two tables had been pushed together with benches set up.
"She is our Fallen Mountain's guardian, the Right Protector Zhou Mili."
Chen Ping'an patted Little Mili's head and introduced with a smile. "As for the drinks on the table, they're from our own shop: Mute Lake wine."
Because there were guests, she hadn't brought her golden carrying pole or green bamboo staff. Little Mili had practiced several different ways to introduce herself, such as speaking gruffly and cupping her fists like a martial hero, but when the moment came, she still got stage fright. She just said softly, "Greetings to all the immortals."
Except for Liu Chicheng, who knew Zhou Mili's true identity, the other immortals from other continents hurriedly returned the greeting, afraid of losing face. They respectfully addressed the "little girl" as "Protector Zhou."
As for the drinks on the table—they had heard of them. How could they not have heard? This was the famous Mute Lake wine from the Sword Qi Great Wall!
Flattered, the group carefully picked up their cups, took a sip, savored it, and then thought it over. No need to say more—it was indeed worthy of its reputation!
Little Mili scratched her face. What a big scene. She was a bit shy, but with the Good Person Mountain Lord beside her, she was never afraid of anything.
When the group saw that the unassuming Protector Zhou naturally sat down, their hearts were shaken again.
As expected of Fallen Mountain's guardian—she could sit on the same bench as the Hidden Officer!
She must be at least Jade Purity Realm!
In the Haoran sects, a guardian was definitely not comparable to ordinary guest elders. Their status was indeed transcendent. But to be able to sit equally with the sect leader in such a public gathering?!
Little Mili gently tugged at the Good Person Mountain Lord's sleeve. Chen Ping'an smiled and shook his head, signaling she didn't need to.
These people weren't close acquaintances—only Liu Chicheng's friends. There was no need for Little Mili to entertain them so thoroughly.
Little Mili looked up, frowned with her two sparse eyebrows, and scratched her face. Was that okay?
Chen Ping'an smiled and had to nod. When it came to hosting, you're the highest official.
Only then did Little Mili grin and start distributing sunflower seeds to everyone.
Turning meaningless conversation into something interesting was probably also a form of cultivation.
Liu Chicheng sighed with emotion. Who could have imagined that the simple, silent boy from back then had become so worldly and sophisticated?
He had to admit that his own years of cultivation seemed to have been wasted on a dog's body.
Chen Ping'an didn't have that much free time to waste here. Fortunately, without Liu Chicheng asking, someone had already taken the initiative to ask if they could stroll around Fallen Mountain.
A green-clad little boy was peeking at the entrance. At first, he thought there were no old immortals from *Collection of Passersby* in the courtyard. But as he listened to the chatter inside, he was horrified to discover that the White Emperor City Pavilion Master Liu was actually there. Chen Lingjun immediately took off running. Liu Daochun was ranked quite high in that book. Logically, Pavilion Master Liu was only at Jade Purity Realm and shouldn't have such an honor. But the problem was that this person was the direct disciple of that legendary dragon-slayer. So a Jade Purity Realm had to be treated like an Immortal Realm!
Whenever anything had to do with Chen Qingliu—let alone a direct disciple—even his disciples or grand-disciples, Chen Lingjun would avoid them at first sight. Taking one more look would mean he didn't know how to live.
Liu Chicheng naturally saw that sneaky green-clad little boy. Although his behavior was strange, he didn't think much of it.
But if Pavilion Master Liu knew the truth—even just part of it, like that the green-clad little boy had once called his senior brother "nephew," and his senior brother hadn't said anything...
His dao heart would probably be shaken.
Liu Chicheng stayed behind alone and handed over the bag of money.
Chen Ping'an was actually waiting for this.
Because Xie Gou had mentioned this item earlier, saying she couldn't see through what was inside.
If even Xie Gou couldn't penetrate the camouflage technique, it was undoubtedly the work of Zheng Juzhong.
Entering the side room, Chen Ping'an opened the money bag in front of him. It wasn't the Gold Essence Coins he had expected, but ordinary copper coins used in the mortal world—the most common kind of money, with varying quality and materials.
They were copper coins from certain dynasties in Haoran history: those minted in the founding year of a dynasty, and those with the era name from the dynasty's final years—one at the beginning, one at the end, like beginning and end.
Liu Chicheng looked at the pile of rusty old copper coins. The once confident Pavilion Master was so embarrassed he wished he could dig a hole and crawl into it.
He instinctively began to clarify: "Mountain Lord Chen, my senior brother really did give them to me. I didn't even open them once. I thought they were valuable enough to give as a gift. It's the absolute truth! If I'm lying, I'll move the Glazed Pavilion out of White Emperor City!"
This was more sincere than any poisonous oath Liu Chicheng could make.
Chen Ping'an nodded. "They were definitely given to you by Mr. Zheng, who deliberately made you give them to me. There's no doubt about that."
Liu Chicheng breathed a sigh of relief and asked curiously, "What was my senior brother's intention in doing this?"
Chen Ping'an said, "Have you ever heard the old saying, 'Of all virtues, filial piety is first; of all vices, lust is foremost'?"
Liu Chicheng was even more confused. Of course he had heard it, but what did it have to do with his senior brother making him, his junior brother, give copper coins as a gift?
Chen Ping'an smiled. "First, 'first' and 'head.'"
Liu Chicheng was still completely baffled. "First head," "first move"?
What did that have to do with virtue, vice, filial piety, and lust?
Chen Ping'an twisted his wrist, took out his dry pipe, skillfully added some tobacco leaves that Zhu Lian had dried himself, and explained with a smile, "Matters have a beginning and an end. There's a 'first,' and then comes everything else. It's similar to the principle of Go. These copper coins from various dynasties' founding years account for half the share. Mr. Zheng is reminding me not to forget my roots. Money mouths are like wellheads—the meaning is that when you drink the water, don't forget who dug the well. Later achievements, high or low, half the credit should go to the unnoticed people and events of the past. And these coins from the end of dynasties are meant to warn me not to be complacent. When the game has finally gone from the middle game to the endgame, one careless mistake can lose everything. To have a good beginning and a good end, you must understand the simple principle of 'A journey of a hundred miles is ninety miles half traveled.' The remaining half of the coins are exactly for this."
Liu Chicheng nodded vigorously. His senior brother indeed had a deep meaning.
Chen Ping'an added, "There's also something about family matters that you probably wouldn't be interested in..."
Liu Chicheng didn't stand on ceremony with Chen Ping'an and immediately interrupted, "I'm interested! How could I not be?"
Chen Ping'an hesitated for a moment, then transmitted his voice: "The old temple master of the Eastern Sea Observation Temple once used a falling leaf to remind me that the old site of the 'well mouth' in the blessed land still exists and is connected to the Mirage City of the Great Spring Dynasty."
Liu Chicheng said nothing more. Indeed, it was something he wasn't interested in.
But Chen Ping'an had other thoughts.
Pei Qian had once said that back then, by that well, she had personally seen that old Taoist reach down from the sky and grab a great sun.
Pei Qian, Pei Qian. The charcoal-black girl of those days was a little money-grubber who named herself "Qian" (money).
Liu Chicheng wanted to make small talk, but when he saw Chen Ping'an squinting in thought, he had to patiently sit still.
Gathering herbs on the mountain, caught in a sudden storm, the stream's water level surged. That was when the Taoist Wu Di and that female ghost had said, "In my youth, I once learned the method of climbing mountains."
It was a breathing technique not recorded anywhere. It could be said to be simple or profound.
Confucianism teaches that "food and sex are human nature." People only need to exercise restraint. Daoism has the "heart-fastening method" to clear the mind and reduce desires; Buddhism also has the "knife-sleeping method" for keeping precepts. Both religions have many methods and precepts that ultimately focus on the word "mind." To govern the mind, one cannot bypass the seven emotions and six desires. And when it comes to desire, one cannot bypass male-female desire. The burning house of desires—how does one subdue this heart, these emotions, this desire? That is a major hurdle. Previously, when Chen Ping'an spoke to Yu Xuan, he only said half: that he had referred to Buddhist teachings but had hit a dead end. It was because Chen Ping'an had long discovered that, regarding male-female matters and the joys of the marriage bed, he seemed not driven by instinct. He existed in a mysterious state of "having emotions but few desires" or "desire arising from emotion." Simply put, as a man, Chen Ping'an was normal. The only abnormality, relative to common sense, was that the order was reversed. Then, when Chen Ping'an was alone guarding the Sword Qi Great Wall, since he had nothing to do anyway, he began to carefully trace back step by step. The answer he arrived at was that this breathing technique was the cause!
Chen Ping'an then guessed—just a guess—that it was highly possible that from that day onward, he should have left a certain gambling table because he had lost the qualification to continue betting, and in exchange, he gained a way to survive.
And at that moment, coincidentally, it may have been the turning point for everything that followed. As the hometown proverb says, "Bad things are not afraid of coming early; good things are not afraid of coming late."
Whether the heavens granted favor or not, the Dao of Heaven and the Heart of Heaven are both impartial. So gains come with losses, and losses come with gains. It all depends on seeing or not seeing, knowing or not knowing.
Earlier, at the Great Wood Temple of Autumn Qi Lake, if one combined the questions of the mountain god Huai Fu and the Qi refiner Sun Wanyan, one would have asked a very good question.
And Chen Ping'an's answer had been straightforward, without any hesitation. He clearly stated that whether one could ascend the mountain to practice the Dao, and the level of their achievement, had nothing to do with whether their human heart was good or evil.
The small town had once held a great examination. But the chief examiner and the chief grader were only one person: the old man in the back courtyard of the Yang Family Pharmacy.
The rules, details, and process of this great examination were all shrouded in mystery, unknown to outsiders.
In fact, Chen Ping'an's guess was correct. Yang Lao, the old man in the back courtyard of the pharmacy, had once privately mused that he hadn't expected the one with the toughest fate to defeat those with better fortunes.
Chen Ping'an snapped back to reality and smiled. "Please convey my congratulations to Sword Immortal Fu, Patriarch Fu."
Liu Chicheng nodded and smiled. "Sure. Fu Jin has always had a favorable impression of you. He's always regretted never visiting the Sword Qi Great Wall."
This was the absolute truth. That guy Fu Jin had always had his nose in the air. Apart from his senior brother, few had impressed him.
As for Fu Jin's opinion of him, his uncle, it only amounted to the status of an uncle. He was just like that little brat Gu Can—cut from the same cloth.
Liu Chicheng didn't hold any grudges about this. After all, they were his senior brother's direct disciples. If they weren't proud, he, as their uncle, would have been disappointed. Now it was all fine.
Behind closed doors, they might look at him with disdain, but that didn't matter. Out in the world, he was still their uncle.
A light rain began to fall, a fine drizzle. Chen Ping'an only saw Liu Chicheng to the entrance of the courtyard.
Liu Chicheng was going to find his friends, who would be returning with great satisfaction. Regardless, Chen Ping'an had given him plenty of face today.
Chen Ping'an smiled slightly. "The wind and rain are vast. Take care, my friend."
No matter how foolish Liu Chicheng was, he understood at this moment that this was not just a message for him.
So Liu Chicheng solemnly made a Taoist bow and said seriously, "Chen Ping'an, take care of yourself as well."
Chen Ping'an pressed on while the iron was hot. "Since we're friends who can call each other by name..."
Liu Chicheng laughed heartily. "Then let's not talk about money! It hurts the friendship!"
Reading without realizing spring is deepening.
A lonely but not desolate mansion in the mountains.
A young woman in her boudoir knows no sorrow, her green hairpin holding up a coiled conch-like bun.
The Discipline Elder of Fallen Mountain was like two different people—outside and at home.
Changming, the Discipline Elder, had a few books by her side. Although they also wrote about moonlit nights and romantic encounters of talented scholars and beautiful maidens, they were different from what Zheng Dafeng and Taoist Wei liked to read.
She squinted and smiled now, in a leisurely mood, watching a minor sect's Mirror Flower, Water Moon show. The food box on the table was open, each compartment neatly arranged with various specialty pastries and candied fruits.
She didn't like going out to talk with people, and it seemed no one liked to visit her either. That was fine; she enjoyed the peace and quiet. There was no need for cultivation anyway, so she could just pass the time however she liked.
Earlier, at the gathering on Sunset Peak Square, when the white-haired boy was painting his first scroll, even Shi Rou, the acting shopkeeper from Qilong Lane; the two disciples of Old Immortal Jia from the Thatched Cottage; Lin Feijing; and even Bai Deng and a few others had been notified. They all rushed to Sunset Peak, not a single one left out. They all seemed to be captured in the painting as a souvenir. At first, Changming didn't know her master's intention. But when she saw the grinning green-clad boy and the frowning pink-skirted girl beside him, and then her gaze wandered to a most inconspicuous person, Changming suddenly understood.
It was that middle-aged man who was neither a qi refiner nor a pure martial artist. He came from the Sword Qi Great Wall. When he first arrived at Fallen Mountain, he was still a youth, the same age as his fellow townsman Jiang Qu.
Now, his temples had already turned slightly white: Zhang Jiazhen.
Youth can no longer be young.
Every gathering that may lead to another reunion is just a comma. But don't forget, all gatherings are ultimately just commas.
If life on the road is a series of gatherings and farewells, then the more one cultivates the Dao, the more accomplished one becomes, the more partings and "never see agains" there will be.
For example, at that time, Zheng Dafeng had his hand on Zhao Shuxia's shoulder. In a sense, Zhu Lian, who was already seventy in real age, stood in the most peripheral position.
Dong Shuijing—in his youth, he had opened a wonton stall beside the incense-burning sacred path in the mountain. It might be hard to believe if you told anyone.
When he rarely came here to summon friends and cook himself, he would always choose the still of the night, close the door, and cook a bowl of wontons for himself.
This time, he invited a few familiar business partners—three men and two women, all young, at least in appearance. Those who were qi refiners were also considered young in the mountain communities.
Thirty years ago, including Dong Shuijing himself, none of them had the wealth they had today.
They had all seized the opportunities left by the Great Li Dynasty's powerful clans and top-tier mountain sects that had secretly migrated out of Bottle Gourd Continent back then. These few young people at the table, or the families behind them, had taken advantage of the gaps.
If the former wanted to come back and compete for territory with their "upstarts," it wouldn't be so easy.
A young man who looked like a noble scion made no effort to hide his contempt, sneering, "A good horse doesn't turn back to graze on old grass. They still have the nerve to return to Bottle Gourd Continent? Brother Dong, what does your Great Li side say? Don't just go soft for the sake of business, alright?"
Dong Shuijing said, "No one will be given a loophole. At least for now, that's the case."
A woman gently waved away the steam above her bowl. "I heard they've found footholds in various southern states, repeating the same old tricks—propping up puppets both on and off the mountain, trying to gain a foothold and bargain with the Great Li Song clan?"
A man sitting on the same bench with her was noisily chewing wontons, speaking indistinctly, "Run away when the road is blocked; come back when the profits are there. Nothing strange about it. Even if the Great Li Song clan lost half their territory, even if there's no new state preceptor yet, these bastards can't fight them. If I were the new Great Li state preceptor, the first thing I'd do after taking office is kick them all out of Bottle Gourd Continent."
Immediately, someone contradicted him. "Then you go be the Great Li state preceptor."
The man rolled his eyes. "Even Mountain Lord Chen doesn't want to be preceptor. Why the hell would I want it?"
"Brother Dong, another bowl—got any cilantro?"
"I don't want cilantro. I can't stand that smell. Dong Half-a-City, bring a bottle of old vinegar. Can't get comfortable without a few sips."
"When it comes down to it, it's because the Great Li state preceptor position is always empty. That's why the southern states—both on mountains and below—dare to jump around like this."
"By the way, I heard that the Iron Talisman River Water God Temple is packed with pilgrims praying for marriage matches. Brother Dong, is it really that effective? I heard it's like the Tongye Continent's Mai River Water God Temple, where pilgrims pray for children. Very effective! Two of my friends made a special trip to the Great Spring Dynasty for that!"
Dong Shuijing came back from the kitchen with another bowl, added cilantro, and also brought a bottle of vinegar, placing it on the table. "I haven't been there. Don't know if it's effective. Besides, Yang Hua, the former Iron Talisman River Water God, has been promoted to the Great River Marquises. The new water god's divine duty—who knows?"
Lin Shouyi, on the other hand, seemed like an outsider.
He was already at the Jade Purity Realm and had once served as the temple priest of the Qi River in the Great Li Dynasty.
In the state capital of Chuzhou, the streets were lined with shops, and the lights were as bright as day, known for its prosperity and beauty, second to none in half a continent.
This mountain had a mountain god's temple. Incense was flourishing. The incense clouds from thousands of households and hundreds of sacrifices rose up, expressing longing and admiration. Pilgrims from all directions bowed in reverence, all with reverence.
"Dong Shuijing, are you very familiar with Mountain Lord Chen? Can you introduce us? There's an older sister in my clan who's been waiting eagerly for Fallen Mountain to hold another Mirror Flower, Water Moon show."
"Brother Dong, Brother Dong! You know I never ask for favors, but I really have to ask you this time. You have to take me to Fallen Mountain—I'm on a mission! My senior sister has lost her mind. When she heard I was coming to the Great Li Dynasty and would pass through Chuzhou to see a friend, she insisted I go ask that young Hidden Officer for a calligraphy piece. She even brought that landscape travelogue that specifically writes about his youthful romantic exploits..."
When Dong Shuijing heard this, he said impatiently, "I suggest you don't go to Chen Ping'an with this matter."
Lin Shouyi smiled knowingly. Indeed, that would be asking for a beating.
The mountain breeze blew in gusts, a hundred pores felt cool; a bowl of wontons, the heart was warm.
A young man who had been drinking struck the bowl with his chopsticks and sang hoarsely, "Do you not see the hero in his time of decline, the mountains and rivers shattered like wind-torn catkins? In days past, the seats were filled with bold guests."
A woman lightly tapped the table in harmony, singing along, "Do you not see the hero in his time of defeat, the horse thin as a rake, selling his precious sword? Today, he is proud and triumphant."
"Do you not see the beauty too lazy to dress, her white hair like snow hating the bronze mirror, regretting she didn't marry the top scholar but became a merchant's wife."
"Do you not see the old general's iron armor ringing like a dragon's cry, unless in spring dreams he returns to the youthful crowd, willing to trade his merits for youth."
Zhong Qian couldn't stay over there and soon returned to Fallen Mountain. Once there, he went straight to the old cook's place for a midnight snack.
He brought back some drinking table talk.
That meeting at the Great Wood Temple of Autumn Qi Lake, hailed as the pinnacle of the mortal world, had attendees who all abided by the rules. None dared to leak any inside information.
But in addition to following the rules and not harming propriety, a few harmless stories had emerged, spreading widely and becoming instantly popular.
"Young hero, please draw your sword." "In mountain immortals' duels with immortal arts, the victor can later add a polite 'My apologies.'"
"Swordsman versus Sword Immortal—Cao the traitor lost with honor." "Someone woke up from a nap and became the person who values worldly courtesy the most."
Zhu Lian, Zheng Dafeng, Jiang Shangzhen.
These three old bachelors gathered for a chat, and Chen Ping'an wouldn't go in even if he reached the door.
Chen Lingjun was pondering when to visit the Lotus Root Blessing Land, so he felt he had to get along with Zhong Qian. He scurried over to toast "Zhong Number One."
Jiang Shangzhen and Zhong Qian, the number one martial arts master in the blessed land, were very simpatico. Especially two of Zhong Qian's heartfelt sayings really struck Chief Zhou's heart.
"A wound of the heart is hard to heal; a book addiction is incurable."
"What does it mean to endure life? It's when your bitter gallbladder breaks without you even knowing it."
After the snack, Zheng Dafeng lazily lay in the old cook's rattan chair. Zhu Lian and Jiang Shangzhen sat on bamboo chairs. Chen Lingjun carried a bench and sat between them.
Zhong Qian belched, patted his belly, and left. He was almost picking his teeth with a toothpick.
Zhu Lian patted the green-clad boy's head. "Little fool, you're waiting for her, and she's waiting for you too. You can both grow up."
Chen Lingjun neither grinned nor retorted. He just sat there silently.
Jiang Shangzhen broke the silence, changing the subject. "Why hasn't Xiao Mo arrived yet?"
Zhu Lian smiled. When he returned, he would have a question for him too.
"Xiao Mo, have you ever seen a prouder girl than her?"
Chen Ping'an returned to the first floor of the Bamboo Tower. In the dead of night, with a bright moon and sparse stars, he lay alone on the bamboo plank corridor, half asleep. Sleeping and waking in equal measure.
In an instant, the entire old Pearl Bead Cave Heaven—the mountains, the town, the mountain paths, and the roads—were covered with streaks of golden flames, flowing like water without ceasing.
Only one lane, Clay Bottle Lane, remained pitch black.
Liu Xianyang and Gu Can, who should have arrived at the Dragon Spring Sword Sect long ago, were actually in Chen Ping'an's ancestral home on Clay Bottle Lane. Liu Xianyang opened his eyes and cursed. Gu Can's expression was grim; he didn't dare speak.
Liu Xianyang roared through voice transmission, "Chen Ping'an!"
Chen Ping'an, who had been dreaming, suddenly woke up. He sat up, dazed, and heard Liu Xianyang again. "You're having another nightmare?"
When he was still a kiln worker apprentice, Chen Ping'an used to have nightmares without knowing it. Liu Xianyang couldn't shake him awake, so he'd just slap him.
Sweating profusely, Chen Ping'an took a deep breath, used the Earth Shrinking technique, and directly arrived at the entrance of the ancestral home on Clay Bottle Lane. He pushed open the door and asked, "Why are you still here?"
Liu Xianyang glared. "Gu Can felt something was wrong with you. I thought his instincts were correct, so I hid from you and came back. Tell me, what's going on?!"
Chen Ping'an closed the courtyard gate and smiled bitterly. "It's complicated. Roughly speaking, I've set up a maze for many versions of myself, and each one has to solve their own puzzle."
Earlier, when Yu Xuan asked Chen Ping'an if there was a sixth layer, Chen Ping-an had evaded the question and changed the subject. The real answer was that there was.
If not for this, during the trip to the Green Luan Kingdom, just dealing with small fries like Li Baozhen and Liu Suo wouldn't have required Chen Ping'an to bring the lotus flower humanoid.
Liu Xianyang shouted angrily, "What happens if you can't get out? Qi deviation?!"
Gu Can sat on that yellow mud wall, eating sunflower seeds, not getting involved.
But he was throwing the shells into the neighboring yard of Song Banchai.
Chen Ping'an didn't argue. He just said it wasn't that serious.
He went into the house, moved a bench to the door, and Liu Xianyang continued scolding him. Feeling it wasn't enough, he slapped Chen Ping'an on the head a few times.
Gu Can laughed. "Heh."
Chen Ping'an said helplessly, "Are you done yet? Annoying."
Liu Xianyang stood in silence.
Chen Ping'an smiled. "Sit down and continue scolding?"
Liu Xianyang was silent. Gu Can laughed and stoked the fire. "Patriarch Liu thinks you're only at the Nascent Soul Realm, so you're not worthy of sitting on equal footing. You have to stand so he can be superior to you."
Chen Ping'an signaled Gu Can with his eyes to stop stirring things up. He then came up with a clumsy excuse. "You're both at Jade Purity Realm now. I have to be anxious too."
Gu Can curled his lip. After finishing his sunflower seeds, he jumped down from the yellow mud wall, dusted off his hands, and walked over to sit on the bench.
Liu Xianyang pushed aside their two heads and sat in the middle of the bench, arms crossed over his chest. "Loud farts aren't smelly, silent farts are. Actually, you're more worrisome than the snot bug."
Chen Ping'an clasped his hands in his sleeves, sat upright, and smiled. "Right, right, right. Well said."
Gu Can held the back of his head with both hands, stretched out his legs, and laughed. "Well said—right, right, right."
Liu Xianyang kept a straight face but couldn't help laughing. He put his arms around both their necks.