Chapter 539: Meeting by Chance, Parting Silently

Chapter 539: Meeting by Chance, Parting Silently

The hour of Hai was also known by cultivators as the time of human stillness.

Particularly for Daoist qi practitioners, the hour of human stillness was a crucial time for cultivation, most suitable for calming the mind and concentrating the spirit, making it a first-class natural state of purity and quietude.

Since Chen Ping'an needed to catch the ferry that departed at the hour of Zi, he had to temporarily give up that peaceful state of mind. He withdrew his mind-kernel from the small world of his own body, no longer continuing to squat on the mountaintop watching the scene of sword qi attacking the gate. He rose and prepared to set off.

Unexpectedly, the teahouse manager had already come, holding a celadon tea jar in her hand, standing at a distance outside the waterside pavilion.

Chen Ping'an walked over quickly. This female cultivator of Caique Manor performed a bow, then handed over the tea jar with its attractive glaze, smiling: "Immortal Chen, this is this year's harvest of Small Mysterious Wall tea from our shop. A small gift, not worthy of your respect."

Chen Ping'an took the celadon tea jar and asked: "Does the teahouse still have Small Mysterious Wall? I intend to buy some."

The female cultivator shook her head apologetically: "There are only a few old tea trees on the back mountain of Caique Manor, and they are largely pre-ordered. Our teahouse's share is limited to begin with, and now there is not much left."

Chen Ping'an smiled: "Then I'll just take this jar of tea for free."

The female cultivator nodded and smiled without speaking.

Chen Ping'an asked: "Does Taohua Ferry have any landscape gazettes after autumn that I can buy? I missed quite a few since I started from Longtou Ferry in Green Oriole Kingdom."

The female cultivator said: "The teahouse has some. Immortal Chen doesn't need to pay. Keeping them in our teahouse would be pointless."

Chen Ping'an lifted the tea jar and said helplessly: "Had tea for free with Senior Wu, taking a jar of Small Mysterious Wall for free, and now asking for a few landscape gazettes for free—that's not quite right."

The female cultivator laughed: "Three times is the limit; just right."

Chen Ping'an said helplessly: "That makes sense."

Trivial favors were also real favors.

In his memory, Sun Jiashu of Old Dragon City had been the first to treat him well. Then there was the female shopkeeper of Green Cicada Shop who had hidden her identity, and now this female cultivator of the teahouse. They were all quite adept at this.

Just remember them.

On the journey of life, there were too many scenes to look left and right at. It didn't matter if you forgot along the way.

The female cultivator asked Chen Ping'an to wait a moment, then went to fetch three copies of the Immortal Gazette to give to the honored guest.

After leaving the teahouse, Chen Ping'an began to flip through the gazettes as he walked.

The reason for Wu Qun's attentive hospitality was simple.

Neighboring the Lotus Seed Kingdom, the commotion from his and Qi Jinglong's sword sacrifices had been too great.

The landscape gazettes of North Juju Continent, which seemed fearless, had an unwritten rule: when a sword immortal died at the Sword Qi Great Wall, the news would be swiftly transmitted back to North Juju Continent, and any person's sword sacrifice would never be recorded in the landscape gazettes.

Qi Jinglong had given a clear reason: because this was not something to be trifled with.

Every region had its own customs, each with its own reasoning.

At the waterside pavilion of the teahouse, the disciplinary patriarch Wu Qun sat in his original seat. But the person opposite had left, and the tea was gone. Wu Qun had no intention of drinking tea either; he just sat quietly, gazing at the lake under the moonlight, the water shimmering with ripples.

The female cultivator stood outside the steps of the waterside pavilion.

Wu Qun asked: "Hasn't any sect learned the inside story about the commotion at the Great Seal capital and written it in the landscape gazettes?"

The female cultivator shook her head: "It seems the Great Seal Lu Clan Emperor issued a strict decree forbidding any leakage of information. At that time, on the city wall of the capital and by the Jade Seal River, there were very few onlookers. With the Academy sage personally presiding, even earth immortal dared not spy on the battle, nor even use the divine ability of observing the mountains and rivers from afar."

Wu Qun smiled: "That sage does have a rather bad temper. But after his two interventions, the upper and lower parts of central North Juju Continent have indeed become much more stable."

The female cultivator asked curiously: "Patriarch Wu, why not simply give that Mr. Chen an upper-grade dharma robe?"

Wu Qun gestured for this junior of the sect to sit down. After she sat, Wu Qun smiled: "Give people what they like. For those who value rules and etiquette, we follow rules and observe propriety. For those who are greedy for wealth and lust, then we need to make different calculations."

The female cultivator cautiously said: "It was just a jar of Small Mysterious Wall. When that Immortal Chen accepted it, he was genuinely happy."

Wu Qun glanced at this clever junior who helped the mountain host and see off guests.

Being able to serve as the manager of a teahouse that entertained honored guests of immortals at Caique Manor certainly required a shrewd mind.

But being placed in this position meant that the path of cultivation was already hopeless, in a similar awkward position to the vast majority of ferry stewards in the world.

Wu Qun didn't want to say more.

Cultivators observe things and also ask their own hearts.

Discussing matters related to the fundamentals of cultivation with this junior of the sect would really sting their heart.

Anyway, her manner of dealing with people was practically flawless, and she never did anything superfluous. That was enough.

Wu Qun sighed.

He wondered if his manor's master had met that land dragon yet?

There were too many stories worth telling about this Liu Jinglong of Taihui Sword Sect, who was no innate sword embryo.

Only, many of those rumors and deeds were too far removed from a third-rate immortal force like Caique Manor in North Juju Continent. But because the manor master had traveled some mountainous paths with Liu Jinglong in her early years, and the manor master never concealed her admiration for this Mr. Liu—she was open and generous, asking everyone about matters of love between men and women, even consulting Wu Qun on the subject—the female cultivators of Caique Manor were all full of curiosity and longing for that Mr. Liu.

Generally speaking, women admired the bearing of sword immortals, and men yearned for fairies.

So Wu Qun was actually very curious about those immortal couples on the mountains—how they managed to stay together until their hair turned white. If disaster struck, could they truly live and die together?

Wu Qun didn't know, and he hoped he would never know such a thing in his life. Just cultivate in peace. Unfortunately, he knew his own aptitude well; he was just waiting to die.

Thinking of this, Wu Qun told the teahouse manager to fetch two jugs of wine.

The female cultivator was about to hide something.

Wu Qun laughed: "What's wrong with drinking wine in a teahouse? Besides, I am the disciplinary patriarch of Caique Manor. Who dares to control me?"

Only then did the female cultivator rise, her steps a bit lighter, and went to fetch the wine.

If even Patriarch Wu Qun was like this, then she, a Cavern Dwelling realm cultivator with no hope on the great path, could only guard this one-acre, three-fen plot of the teahouse year after year. How could she not secretly drown her sorrows in wine?

A streak of rainbow light descended from the sky, gracefully landing on the lake and skimming into the waterside pavilion. She was stunningly beautiful, sat opposite Wu Qun, and said gloomily: "Wine is good. Count me in."

Wu Qun smiled: "Not going well? That Mr. Liu, still a blockhead as the manor master says?"

The person opposite Wu Qun was Sun Qing, the young manor master of Caique Manor, a female earth immortal cultivator of great renown. By seniority, she was actually lower than Wu Qun.

Sun Qing shook her head: "Mr. Liu has changed a lot. This time we met, he spoke some straight-to-the-point words. I understand the reasoning, and Mr. Liu meant well for me, but my heart still feels a bit unhappy."

Wu Qun asked doubtfully: "What did he say?"

The young manor master waved her hand: "Don't talk about this. It's a bit embarrassing."

Wu Qun was speechless.

You went to block his path, and now you talk about female shyness?

But Wu Qun was genuinely puzzled. His manor master, though not an excessively shocking prodigy of heaven, was after all a Golden Core bottleneck that had lasted less than a hundred years, and one of the top ten fairies of North Juju Continent. To put it bluntly, if an upper fifth realm sword immortal took the initiative to propose becoming an immortal dao companion with his manor master, who had a promising great path ahead, no one would find it strange. But then again, if we were talking about such utilitarian calculations, to be fair, his manor master couldn't compare to Lu Sui of Water Classic Mountain. Not only had she and Liu Jinglong both made it into the top ten, but her beauty was even a cut above Sun Qing's.

Wu Qun asked quietly: "Completely given up hope on Mr. Liu?"

Sun Qing laughed loudly: "How is that possible? I like him even more!"

Wu Qun held his forehead, speechless.

How could Mr. Liu, who loved to reason the most, be so unreasonable?

The three drank together.

The female manager of the teahouse was still a bit restrained. But when three female cultivators of the same sect with vastly different seniority and status deliberately set aside their divine abilities, they would get drunk, and their faces would become as delicate as peach blossoms.

In the end, the three were just women.

When women start talking dirty, there are truly no taboos.

There was a unique charm to their silly and coy demeanor, especially moving.

—

A big one and a small one, flying north on the wind back to Taihui Sword Sect. Because Qi Jinglong had to take care of his newly accepted disciple Baishou, who wasn't of high cultivation, they didn't travel fast.

Then they happened to encounter Sun Qing, the master of Caique Manor, on the way.

Qi Jinglong was now quite confident. He simply applied what he had just learned, following the proper procedure, and spoke a few words with that Fairy Sun.

The extremely beautiful Sun Qing showed no abnormality from beginning to end.

But after she took her leave and her graceful figure disappeared, the boy Baishou shook his head and clicked his tongue: "Liu, such a beautiful fairy sister actually likes you. She must be blind. If I remember correctly, Manor Master Sun is one of the top ten fairies of our North Juju Continent. Liu, I'm not saying this to criticize you, but even if you didn't become dao companions, I think Sun Qing would still agree to you. Such a good deal, how could you bear to refuse?"

Qi Jinglong, somewhat relieved, continued flying north with the boy beside him and said with a smile: "Trying to reason with you, especially about matters of love between men and women, is like playing the lute to a cow."

Baishou said angrily: "Then why did you bother to take me as a disciple?! Why not let me go back to Ge Deer Mountain?"

Qi Jinglong slowly said: "Rather than having North Juju Continent gain another sword cultivator who kills for money, I prefer to see a young sword immortal who has truly attained the Dao."

Qi Jinglong continued: "Don't worry. After you enter Taihui Sword Sect and have your name recorded in the Patriarch Hall, any future times you go down the mountain, you don't need to call yourself a disciple of Taihui Sword Sect, let alone admit that you are my disciple. Within the rules, you only need to draw your sword. I and the sect will not deliberately restrain your nature. But you must be clear about what rules I and the sect have. I don't want you to tell me in the future, when I punish you, that you didn't understand any rules."

Baishou was sullen.

He didn't want to understand any of the rules of Taihui Sword Sect and Liu. They were bound to be dull, rigid, pedantic, and utterly boring.

What good was being a registered immortal master? What good was being a sword immortal?

Where was the pleasure in being an assassin of Ge Deer Mountain?

Even in the martial world, there was heroism and quick revenge. Ge Deer Mountain assassins didn't have to care about any of that. Take the silver, kill for someone, live or die by your own actions. That was true freedom.

Qi Jinglong was silent for a moment, then said softly: "Whether you listen or not, I will tell you this: as long as you keep the rules, no matter who you draw your sword against in the future, whether you lose or get beaten, come back to me and just tell me. I will go and reason with them, and I won't stop until the reasoning is clear."

Baishou crossed his arms: "Save it. A genius like me, once I practice swordsmanship, will I lose to others?! Fine, I can't beat sword immortals for now, but my peers? Let them come and show off in front of me. One casual swing of my sword, and they'll end up in eight pieces, a pitiful sight."

"Once you truly start practicing swordsmanship, you won't have much energy left to talk big."

Qi Jinglong smiled: "And if you don't need me to help reason things out, and you can make your sword the reasoning yourself, that's even better."

Although Baishou looked dismissive, the corner of his eye caught the profile of Liu.

There was still something unusual in the boy's heart.

It was like the harsh winter of his childhood, when a ragged child basked in a warm sun that was invisible and intangible.

But this feeling flashed by in an instant.

Baishou suddenly shouted: "If I memorize all the rules of the Taihui Sword Sect's Patriarch Hall, will you let me drink wine?"

Qi Jinglong shook his head: "No money."

Baishou said angrily: "If you have no money in your pocket, why don't you know how to borrow on credit from that Chen Good Guy?"

Qi Jinglong thought for a moment: "Afraid he'll pressure me to drink. Not worth it."

The money for the pot of wine earlier had been borrowed from Gu Mo of the Tai Gorge lineage.

Every time Qi Jinglong left the sect to travel and train, he really didn't bring any money or valuables.

He fed on clouds and dew, the essence of the sun and moon, and the spiritual qi of heaven and earth—these were the "five grains" of a cultivator.

As the world's most lethal sword cultivator, there was no need for dharma robes or any heavy attack treasures.

Back when he borrowed money from her, he had almost blurted out a sentence, but he held back in the end, or it would have been even more troublesome.

Qi Jinglong had originally planned to say that he would repay the money when he passed by Tai Xia Mountain in the future.

But in a flash, he understood that if he said such a thing, it would definitely make her misunderstand that he had ulterior motives, that he was trying to get close to her, Gu Mo. It was better not to say anything, just remember it in his heart.

Afterward, Qi Jinglong thought about it and felt that he could probably be considered to have learned by analogy. Once one opening was opened, all openings were opened.

Baishou asked: "Liu, in your Taihui Sword Sect, are there any girls who are particularly pretty? Hmm, pretty girls around my age?"

Qi Jinglong asked doubtfully: "What's wrong?"

Baishou sighed: "When they meet me, it's really pitiful. They're destined to be infatuated with a man who won't like them."

Qi Jinglong smiled: "Who taught you that kind of talk?"

Baishou said firmly: "That guy who calls himself Chen Good Guy!"

Qi Jinglong shook his head, but then he wasn't quite sure. That guy, in order to persuade people to drink, used every means possible. He really poured all his character into the wine jug; one gulp and it was all gone. So he asked: "Did he really tell you that?"

Baishou began to embellish the story.

Qi Jinglong smiled. It seemed not.

Baishou was a bit puzzled. How did Liu know it wasn't that guy who taught him?

Qi Jinglong looked into the distance: "Later, come with me to meet two gentlemen. Remember to talk less and listen more."

Baishou slapped his forehead.

Whenever he heard the word "gentleman," his head ached terribly.

Above a golden sea of clouds, two cultivators stood side by side.

One was a middle-aged man, tall and slender, wearing a Confucian scholar's robe of the Academy, with a jade token hanging at his waist.

One was an old cultivator, hunched, carrying a sword on his back.

The former was a sage of the Academy, and also the most famous one in North Juju Continent at present. His name was Zhou Mi, from the Rites and Music Academy in the Central Plains Divine Continent. It was rumored that the Grand Sacrificial Officer of the Academy had given this disciple the two characters "restrain anger."

It was this man who, after leaving the Academy, had still beaten two outspoken great cultivators until they had no power to fight back. He had roared, "Have you gotten through or not?" What could the two great cultivators do? They could only say they had gotten through. Then they got beaten again, and he threw out a line: "Bullshit, you've gotten through a fart."

But of course, Qi Jinglong knew that this sage of the Academy was truly learned. Not only was he a specialist in his field, but he was also proficient in Buddhist and Daoist knowledge. He had once been praised by someone as "meticulous scholarship, airtight; gentle and respectful, a pillar of talent." Actually, of those sixteen characters of commentary, if there had been only twelve, no one would have questioned them at all. But unfortunately, because of the four characters "gentle and respectful," this scholar of the Rites and Music Academy had become controversial. Think about it: a student of the Academy who was about to go to another continent to serve as a sage of the Academy would have his own master give him the two characters "restrain anger." How did that go with "gentle and respectful"?

But Zhou Mi himself was most proud of those four characters of commentary. The other twelve characters, he never admitted to.

The other old sword-carrying cultivator was named Dong Zhu. He was a sword cultivator who had fallen from the Jade Abyss realm. He was a great cultivator who had never established his own sect even when he had reached the Immortal realm. He always called himself a mountain-wild rogue cultivator. For over a hundred years, he had been severely injured and needed to recuperate on his own mountain. Otherwise, every time he went out, it was a torment. That was why he had never traveled to Hanging Mountain. There were rumors that Sword Immortal Dong Zhu was actually the dao-transmitter of the young wild cultivator Huang Xi. But neither of them ever said yes or no, letting the outside world guess wildly. Because Huang Xi was not a sword cultivator, most sects considered this matter to be nonsense.

During Qi Jinglong's battle with Huang Xi, this was also what he had thought.

But after the actual battle, Qi Jinglong wasn't so sure anymore.

Because Huang Xi was indeed a sword cultivator, and he had two natal flying swords.

The reason Huang Xi had been willing to reveal his identity as a sword cultivator at that time, rather than escaping directly, was naturally because his opponent was named Liu Jinglong.

In fact, over the years, Qi Jinglong had never mentioned a word of it to anyone.

Qi Jinglong brought the boy and landed before the two seniors.

Qi Jinglong bowed to both sides.

Dong Zhu didn't care. A young sword cultivator who had a chance to reach the top of the continent, and he chose to imitate scholar types. He really didn't like the sight of it.

If it weren't for the fact that Zhou Mi of the Academy had discovered Qi Jinglong's whereabouts and wanted to talk, Dong Zhu wouldn't bother saying a single word to this so-called land dragon.

If they really wanted to deal with each other, it would be after Qi Jinglong broke through to the Jade Abyss realm, and then Dong Zhu would go to Taihui Sword Sect to ask for a sword fight!

Baishou hated all these fussy formalities and messy exchanges of courtesy the most. The boy simply hid behind Qi Jinglong and played the mute. You don't know me, I don't know you. What's there to exchange pleasantries about?

Qi Jinglong didn't force the boy.

Everything could be discussed when they got to Taihui Sword Sect.

Zhou Mi, the sage of the Academy, at first glance was just an ordinary schoolteacher, with a refined appearance. Zhou Mi went straight to the point: "Now that both sword immortals of Taihui Sword Sect are not at the mountain to take charge, and you're about to break through, when the three of them come to ask for a sword fight, do you need me to stand by to keep order? Just in case someone uses this custom to deliberately suppress you and Taihui Sword Sect."

Qi Jinglong bowed again, then rose and smiled: "No need for Mountain Master Zhou to keep order. Three swords is three swords. Even if some senior sword immortal has ulterior motives, if I can't withstand it, I can't withstand it. I won't complain about heaven or blame others."

Zhou Mi turned his head and laughed: "Old Dong, what do you think?"

Dong Zhu bared his teeth: "Alright, count me in. Plus Li Cai of Floating Sword Lake, the last one is the most dangerous."

Dong Zhu said to the young man in blue: "Don't thank me. My sword fights won't be short of anything. When the time comes, don't cry for your daddy and mommy. I don't have any illegitimate children outside."

Qi Jinglong nodded and said: "I'll respectfully obey. Then I won't thank you, senior."

Zhou Mi smiled knowingly.

Dong Zhu rubbed his chin: "Kid, don't you think you're asking for a beating?"

Qi Jinglong smiled: "Please allow me to break through first, senior."

The boy, straining his ears, muttered behind Qi Jinglong: "Beat him, beat him, don't dawdle. Beat the daylights out of Liu so I can run away."

Zhou Mi laughed: "How did you end up taking a disciple like this?"

Qi Jinglong said: "His heart is not truly bad. The hardest to teach are the ones who need the most teaching."

Zhou Mi hummed: "That reasoning is not bad."

Baishou sighed.

Dong Zhu also found it utterly boring.

Actually, the old man and the boy might have a good chat if they got together.

Zhou Mi said: "Qi Jinglong, this time I came to see you was precisely about keeping order during your breakthrough. Since you don't need it, I'll save myself some effort."

Qi Jinglong hesitated for a moment, then asked: "Mountain Master Zhou, may I ask about the outcome of one matter?"

Zhou Mi smiled: "You also care about this? What, do you have some connection with those two?"

Qi Jinglong thought of the guy who had taken three punches from Gu You and smiled: "Some."

Zhou Mi said: "Let's talk as we walk. I'll also share some of my reading insights with you, and make Old Dong sick to his stomach. That will make this trip worthwhile."

Dong Zhu was helpless.

Zhou Mi had this terrible temper, but Dong Zhu just happened to like it. It was self-inflicted.

Dong Zhu didn't want to chat about reasoning and learning with these two bookworms.

He cast a sidelong glance at the boy.

The boy cast a sidelong glance back at him.

Dong Zhu glared: "Oh my, little brat, haven't you heard of the reputation of Great Sword Immortal Dong?"

The boy glared back: "So what if I have? I have a father and mother and ancestors. I'm not related to you."

Dong Zhu clicked his tongue: "Little bastard, you've got some nerve."

Baishou raised an eyebrow: "When I reach the upper fifth realm, you come and ask for a sword fight, then you'll see who has the nerve."

Dong Zhu smacked the boy on the head, sending him sprawling face-first on the ground. He laughed loudly: "Little brat, saying things like that is like a kid still in open-crotch pants pretending to be a ladies' man and talking about cuddling with beauties. Who taught you that? Your master, Liu Jinglong?"

Baishou stood up, but didn't shout about killing the old man. He wasn't an idiot. A real man knows when to bend and when to straighten.

Baishou snorted coldly: "That Liu, he's not my master. I only have one master in this life. But there's a guy I haven't really acknowledged as a drinking buddy yet, named Chen Good Guy! If you've got the guts, go find him. Picking on me, what kind of senior is that? One swing of his sword, and you'll be crying for your daddy and mommy, running away with your tail between your legs!"

Qi Jinglong turned his head and frowned: "Baishou!"

The boy immediately said feebly: "Fine, for now Chen Good Guy is not as good as the old senior."

—

On the ferry, Chen Ping'an had put away those landscape gazettes. He hadn't found the result he wanted. The latest gazette didn't mention a word about the commotion at the Great Seal capital.

The battle between the Martial Arts Saint Gu You and Jian Yue of Ape Cry Mountain—both were unknown, alive or dead.

Qi Jinglong had mentioned this matter earlier, saying that Gu You had always been cautious in his actions and absolutely would not have engaged in a purely impulsive dispute. He wouldn't have just gone to Jade Seal River to die, to wash Jian Yue's sword.

Chen Ping'an stood at the bow of the ferry, leaning on the railing. He had flipped through several landscape gazettes and hadn't come up empty-handed. For example, at noon ten days later, there would be a great battle at Sharpening Stone Mountain. The two parties who would determine life and death on this mountain were of great origin. One was the famous wild cultivator Huang Xi, the other was a female martial artist named Embroiderer. Both were among the young top ten of North Juju Continent, with adjacent rankings: fourth and fifth. Regarding the reason for this battle, two different landscape gazettes had different accounts. Some said that Huang Xi had returned to his old trade and encountered the female martial artist with the strange name in the martial world. Some said that the two had fought fiercely over an immortal treasure in a broken cave heaven, unable to decide the outcome, so they agreed to fight at Sharpening Stone Mountain.

This battle was highly anticipated and would certainly attract the attention of many upper fifth realm cultivators.

It was entirely imaginable that the mountain near Sharpening Stone Mountain, which had been bought by Qionglin Sect and where many immortal mansions had been built, was now overcrowded.

In the Void Hate Shop on the intercontinental ferry of Sackcloth Sect, Chen Ping'an had bought a spiritual tool for connecting to Sharpening Stone Mountain's mirror flowers and moon water. It was a ceramic brush washer with a blue glaze and glossy luster. But although it was called a purchase, he found out later that it could be billed to Pi Yun Mountain.

Regarding Vase Continent, the landscape gazettes actually had a few pieces of news, and the space devoted to them was not small.

From this, one could see that for Great Li's Song Clan cavalry, which was about to trample all the way from the far north to Old Dragon City in the south, cultivators from other continents had already undergone considerable changes in their perception of this smallest continent of Haoran Heaven, which had previously been looked down upon.

The true master of Great Li's iron cavalry, Martial Arts Saint Song Changjing.

After challenging Heavenly Lord Xie Shi, Wei Jin of Wind and Snow Temple had rushed to the Sword Qi Great Wall.

These two had indeed made great contributions.

Then there was Ma Kuxuan of True Martial Mountain. Within half a year, he had successively killed two powerful Golden Core sword cultivators of Zhu Ying Dynasty. He had already been hailed by the North Juju Continent gazettes as the number one among young cultivators of Vase Continent. Then this man single-handedly annihilated the Sea Tide Iron Cavalry, causing the family that had enmity with him to suffer extreme humiliation. A young female cultivator barely escaped death but instead became Ma Kuxuan's personal maidservant. In the eyes of the main writer of one landscape gazette, a uniquely favored existence like Ma Kuxuan should not have been born in that Vase Continent. He should have taken root in North Juju Continent like the female sect leader of Qingliang Sect, He Xiaoliang, and established a sect there—that would be the proper path. Since he was destined to be a dragon that could overturn rivers and seas, any place less than that would be truly wasteful.

The main writer also put out a statement that he was about to compile a list of the young top ten of Vase Continent and then compare it with the new top ten of their own North Juju Continent.

The articles in these immortal gazettes of North Juju Continent inevitably still showed a condescending attitude towards cultivators of Vase Continent.

But compared to earlier years, when they couldn't even be bothered to look or mention it, it was a world of difference.

In addition, there was the matter of the breakthrough of the Northern March God of Great Li, Wei Po. Within his jurisdiction, auspicious signs appeared everywhere, good omens kept coming. It was clearly a sign that he was about to become an upper fifth realm mountain god. From this, one could see that the national fortune of Great Li's Song Clan was flourishing and not to be underestimated. The gazette began to remind many businessmen of North Juju Continent that they could bet on the Great Li Dynasty early. If they arrived late, they might not get a piece of the pie. Regarding this matter, Sackcloth Sect was mentioned intentionally or unintentionally, with praise for Sect Leader Zhu Quan. Because according to rumor, Mu Yi Mountain in Skeleton Beach had apparently taken the lead, and the intercontinental ferry should have already established some connections with the Northern March God of Great Li.

Furthermore, the establishment of the True Mirror Sect, a branch sect of Jade Gui Sect of Tongye Continent, in Bookpaste Lake was also elaborated on in the gazette with no stint of ink.

When Chen Ping'an saw those words, he could almost clearly feel the gnashing of teeth of the writer.

There was no help for it.

The first sect leader of True Mirror Sect was Jiang Shangzhen, a man who, although his cultivation wasn't particularly high, was a troublemaker that North Juju Continent could do nothing about.

This man alone had ruined three of the early top ten fairies of North Juju Continent. There were even rumors that two other stunningly beautiful female cultivators of the sect had also had encounters with Jiang Shangzhen back then, but whether there were any heart-wrenching romantic entanglements, no clear evidence existed.

So at the end of the gazette, there was a fierce attack on the Great Li iron cavalry and the new Song Emperor, saying they were all eating shit, that they would let True Mirror Sect smoothly select a site and take root in the central waist area of Vase Continent. If Great Li's Song Clan was secretly colluding with Jiang Shangzhen, then they were not only eating shit but also drinking piss. Why would they plot a thousand-year enterprise with such a person? Why would they do business with a sinister man like Jiang Shangzhen? Wasn't that like asking a tiger for its skin? From this, one could see that the "Great Li Embroidered Tiger," who had betrayed his masters and ancestors, was not that brilliant either. Even if he had luckily stolen heaven's merit for himself and swallowed an entire continent, he could not hold the territory. It could only be a flash in the pan.

A landscape gazette, which could have been meticulously worded, well-reasoned, and beautifully phrased, had broken down when it came to True Mirror Sect and Jiang Shangzhen, cursing and scolding like a market woman who had read some books.

Chen Ping'an was actually very curious about the source of these landscape gazettes.

Back in Bookpaste Lake, he had only known some superficial things.

Earlier, it was in Lotus Flower Blessed Land, where there was a Pavilion of Admiration shrouded in clouds and mist, specializing in collecting inside information of the martial world.

Chen Ping'an returned to his cabin on the ferry, took out a booklet written by the ferry crew, a small collection that described scenic spots along the route.

After departing from Taohua Ferry, the first scenic spot was an immortal sect on the border of Water Sky Kingdom, named Cloud City. The founding patriarch, by a twist of fate, had traveled to Flowing Cloud Continent and obtained a half-refined sea of clouds from a broken cave heaven. At first, it was only ten li in radius. Later, he established his sect on the border of Water Sky Kingdom, which was relatively rich in water transportation. Through successive patriarchs' continuous refining and enhancement, absorbing water vapor essence and using cloud seal talismans to stabilize the sea of clouds, it had now expanded to over thirty li in radius.

The ferry would stop at Cloud City for six hours, hovering at the edge of the sea of clouds.

Before daybreak, the ferry slowly came to a stop.

Chen Ping'an stopped his three-in-one boxing stance, emerged from that mysterious state between waking and sleeping, and walked out of the cabin, carrying a bundle on his back.

Outside Cloud City, there was a market where wild cultivators gathered, trading mountain goods, all fellow stallholders.

Chen Ping'an took out from his inch object some immortal artifacts of not much value. They were leftovers that hadn't been left in the Ant Shop on Old Locust Street. Their quality wasn't good, but they were relatively rare and had a pleasing "face," suitable for selling to those who thought "what pleases the heart is priceless." This bundle peddling trip, he would be selling several types of talismans unrelated to the "Dan Shu Zhen Ji," mostly from the secret manual of the formation master among the first batch of Ge Deer Mountain assassins. Among them were three types: the Heavenly Department Thunder Command Talisman, the Great River Cross Flow Talisman, and the Gather Earth Talisman. They had some power in battle.

Before leaving, Qi Jinglong had also taught Chen Ping'an two heterodox barrier-breaking talismans, named "Bai Ze Path Guide Talisman" and "Sword Qi Bridge Crossing Talisman." They were both learned from ancient books by Qi Jinglong himself and did not involve sect secrets. The quality of the two talismans was not high, but outsiders wanting to buy the talismans and then secretly learn them was out of the question, because the drawing techniques were extremely complex, the strokes elaborate, and they were fundamentally different from the main principles of several current talisman schools. Only because Qi Jinglong had explained them carefully and repeatedly had Chen Ping'an been able to learn these two talismans.

So Chen Ping'an always felt it was a pity that Qi Jinglong didn't become a teacher in an academy.

When a martial artist draws talismans, they rely on a pure stream of true qi, but the talismans don't last long; they can only open mountains but not seal them. However, the advantage is that they don't consume the spiritual qi of a cultivator's qi palaces, and the act of drawing talismans itself is a relatively uncommon form of martial cultivation, able to temper that stream of true qi. But Chen Ping'an found that after breaking through to the third Qi Refining realm, drawing talismans became much smoother, but the benefits to his physical body had become extremely subtle. Chen Ping'an was unwilling to waste too much cinnabar and talisman paper, since a talisman that couldn't hold spiritual qi meant constantly losing immortal money.

Moreover, once a real fight broke out, his meager talisman skills were inadequate. They couldn't even be considered icing on the cake; they would instead delay opportunities.

But when cultivators draw talismans, they are born with the ability to seal mountains. The spiritual qi of the talisman core dissipates very slowly. However, the greater the power of a talisman, the easier it is to wear out the talisman core. It was said that the ancestor of exorcising demons and monsters, the Heavenly Master Mansion of Dragon Tiger Mountain, had a sealed place where a certain talisman needed to be reinforced by successive generations of Grand Heavenly Masters every sixty years. In history, there had been a great disturbance in the Heavenly Master Mansion. After the old Heavenly Master ascended, the selection of a new Heavenly Master was left unresolved, and it happened to be the critical period of overlaying talismans at the sixty-year mark. But if no new Heavenly Master appeared, the Heavenly Master Seal would never be handed over to anyone else, and the new talisman couldn't be completed. This caused a flaw in the extremely ancient talisman, and one of the great demons suppressed within for countless years took the opportunity to escape and vanished without a trace. For this reason, the Heavenly Master Mansion, for some unknown reason, had the new Heavenly Master's first task be to personally take the immortal sword and dharma seal, make a trip to White Emperor City, and have a falling out with the City Lord of White Emperor City.

All of Chen Ping'an's talismans for sale were drawn after the water mansions and mountain shrines had formed a landscape-dependent pattern. Otherwise, it would be cheating. Although the business of bundle peddling relied on the eyesight of both buyer and seller, similar to antique trading in the secular world, where there would be bargains and also mistakes, Chen Ping'an still preferred to uphold some martial ethics.

To uphold ethics, one had to spend money.

Because these talismans required Chen Ping'an to consume a considerable amount of the spiritual qi of the water mansion. There were gains and losses: he lost some of the accumulated resources of the small pond in the water mansion, but in return, he could attempt to gradually open up a fundamental vein for the operation of the water mansion's small world, forming a kind of hidden water vein similar to rivers and lakes. So the green-clad servant boys had no objections to this but fully supported Chen Ping'an's talisman drawing.

On the path of cultivation, how one views gain and loss is the act of questioning the Dao.

As for the balance between gain and loss, Chen Ping'an needed to explore and ponder through long-term talisman drawing. Fortunately, those green-clad servant boys would also remind him.

Chen Ping'an, wearing a black dharma robe and holding a green bamboo staff, walked out of the cabin and looked into the distance.

In the secular world, there were people dwelling deep in the white clouds. On the immortal mountains, sure enough, there was a city above the white clouds.

Outside the city, there was a bustling market town lit up with lights.

Cloud City was a place of serious cultivation, with tight security. Outsiders were rarely allowed in. Perhaps it was a case of "one side's water and soil nurtures one side's people." Like Caique Manor, within the jurisdiction of Water Sky Kingdom, Cloud City also refined dharma robes, called "Cloud Walk Robes." But in quantity and quality, they were far inferior to those of Caique Manor. Their reputation was not great, and business was mediocre. Most of their customers were lower fifth realm cultivators from small sects along the great river, especially mountain-wild rogue cultivators, who would weigh their purses and buy one.

Perhaps because the sect's sources of income were limited, the market where bundle peddlers gathered had come into being.

Not to mention fixed shops; even the mobile stalls had to pay a sum of immortal money to Cloud City.

The ferry hovered fifty zhang away from the sea of clouds, unable to get any closer.

If the bow accidentally bumped into the sea of clouds, or if it got too close due to drifting wind, causing the hull to touch the sea of clouds, even a slight friction would damage the foundation of Cloud City.

So those disembarking used cloud-riding, mist-riding, or riding spiritual birds and strange beasts, as they pleased.

For a pure martial artist below the Golden Body realm, this half-hundred-zhang distance was not easy.

Chen Ping'an took a deep breath, stepped back a few paces, then charged forward, leaped high, stepped on the bow railing, and used the momentum to fly through the air. He landed unsteadily, swayed a few times, then steadied himself.

On this ferry, which belonged to a vassal immortal sect of Dragon Palace Cave Heaven, the female steward with a womanly face said to her friend beside her, holding out her hand, grinning: "Pay up."

The two had placed a bet on whether the sword-carrying young man who boarded at Caique Manor's Taohua Ferry was a mountain sword cultivator or a martial world swordsman.

The ferry woman guessed he was a pure martial artist traveling with a sword on his back. The old Observing Ocean realm cultivator guessed he was a young sword cultivator hiding his depth.

The old cultivator shook his head: "What if he deliberately used a trick?"

This was being stubborn, obviously intending to default on the debt.

The woman sneered: "The young sword cultivators of our continent, those sword embryos—aren't they all at the Cavern Dwelling realm in cultivation, with the bearing of earth immortals, and the tone of upper fifth realm cultivators? Is there someone like this?"

The old cultivator said with a straight face: "The world is vast and wide. There's always someone willing to hide his talent, to restrain his sharpness, to train cautiously. That's not strange, is it?"

The female steward said angrily: "Stop shitting with your mouth! Give me the money! One Small Summer coin!"

The old cultivator sighed, took out an immortal coin, and slapped it heavily into the woman's hand. Then he rode the wind towards Cloud City. The old cultivator would disembark here because he needed to buy a good-looking Cloud Walk Robe for his direct disciple. After all, those women of Caique Manor did business with too black a heart. The goods were good, but the price was too high. The old cultivator had to settle for the second best.

He had already paid a deposit to the Cloud City robe workshop earlier, so the style and cloud seal talismanic patterns were custom-made. He could also add some heavenly materials and earthly treasures to have Cloud City enhance the robe's effects. After that, as a master, he had to toil and hustle under the mountain, earning hard-earned silver from all directions. He had diligently saved for decades, and only when his proud disciple was about to break into the Cavern Dwelling realm had he finally scraped together enough immortal money. Cultivation was truly not easy.

Especially when one had a small mountain sect, like a head of a household, dragging along a family; even basic necessities were a worry.

The female steward was about to be delighted when she suddenly noticed that the immortal coin in her palm was the wrong weight and its spiritual qi didn't match a Small Summer coin. She lowered her head to look and immediately jumped up, cursing.

It turned out to be only a Snow Flower coin.

But the old cultivator had already summoned all his strength, riding the wind swiftly past the market, heading straight for Cloud City.

After cursing, the female steward's mood improved a bit, and she laughed. She had managed to pluck a hair from this famous tightwad. Even if it was only a Snow Flower coin, it was still something.

She was a Golden Core cultivator. Since this was not an intercontinental ferry, a Golden Core steward was enough.

Moreover, the Golden Core cultivators of Dragon Palace Cave Heaven could be considered equivalent to Nascent Soul cultivators in terms of status.

Because behind her, besides her own sect, she also had connections with the Cloud Palace of the Great Source Dynasty and Floating Sword Lake.

For mountain cultivators, business relationships that could earn money, especially big money, were more reliable than the relationships between rulers and subjects or husbands and wives down the mountain.

And that old cultivator she had known for a long time—his future was not bright. At the Observing Ocean realm, he already looked so aged.

You know, back in the day, this man was not at all a tightwad; he was very dashing and romantic, with the spirit of a hero.

But over a hundred years of wasted time, it seemed everything had been ground away.

No longer young and handsome, no longer possessing the spirit of those days, he had become an old cultivator who spent his years going from door to door in the mansions of powerful secular families, seeking treasures and wealth in the martial landscape.

But she still liked him.

Whether she liked only the man of those years, or the old man of today as well, she herself couldn't tell.

Chen Ping'an entered the market, found an empty spot on a bustling street with many pedestrians, and opened his bundle. Inside, a large piece of blue cloth had been prepared.

Across from him and beside him were fellow practitioners. Some were hawking loudly, some were waiting for willing customers to bite, some were yawning listlessly.

Soon, a young man and woman in pure white dharma robes came over to collect money. It was one Snow Flower coin per day.

Chen Ping'an asked if staying for four or five hours would be half price.

The young male cultivator smiled and shook his head, saying one Snow Flower coin was the minimum.

Chen Ping'an didn't say anything more and handed over a Snow Flower coin. At Skeleton Beach, the southernmost tip of the continent, the dark tea sold by Yaoye River had similar rules.

Chen Ping'an asked a few more questions: if he wanted to rent or buy a shop in this market of Cloud City, what would the price be?

The young male cultivator told him one by one, amiably. Shops were divided into different grades, and there were price differences between renting and buying.

In the end, this out-of-town bundle peddler who had come from the ferry to try his luck just thanked him and didn't bring up the shop again. The young male cultivator's expression didn't change, and he even said a pleasant wish for good luck to this young mountain-wild rogue cultivator.

Chen Ping'an squatted down and began to lay out his wares. There was a single volume of hard yellow-bound "Goddess Painting" from Mural City; some inventory treasures including the "Summer Retreat Lady" of Skeleton Beach among several "great demons"; and a few gains from the underwater Dragon Palace of Cangyun Lake. In total, there were over twenty miscellaneous items, all far from the grade of dharma treasures. But there were more talismans, five types, arrayed like soldiers in neat rows on the spread blue cloth.

Chen Ping'an looked up. The young man and woman from Cloud City were walking side by side down the street, slowly moving away.

The young man seemed to be the overseer of this market, familiar with shop owners and many bundle peddlers, greeting them.

The young woman spoke little, mostly just looking at the man beside her.

Her eyes were whispering secrets.

Chen Ping'an clasped his hands in his sleeves, quietly watching this scene.

It was a beautiful sight.

The street visitors here, being all cultivators, were much more taciturn than ordinary mortals visiting a temple fair, walking into shops and encountering stalls. They had better patience too, almost always browsing through every bundle peddler's stall, but rarely opening their mouths to ask prices. They walked slowly, and only when they encountered an item they recognized at a glance would they squat down to examine it carefully. Some, after checking, felt they knew what it was and silently stood up and left. Others would try to bargain, usually offering half the asking price. Good-tempered stall owners would patiently explain the origin of the immortal artifact, how hard it was to come by, and how it had great history. Bad-tempered stall owners simply ignored them, attitude of "take it or leave it; I don't care to serve you blind paupers."

Chen Ping'an soon got his first customer. It was an old man leading a child by the hand. The old man squatted down, swept his eyes over the various items on the blue cloth, and finally his gaze settled on a row of ten yellow paper talismans.

The old man fixed his eyes on the five types of talismans.

The talisman paper was very ordinary. The quality of the cinnabar was not bad.

But the final quality of the talismans and the technique of drawing them.

Different talismans had different levels of quality.

The old man quickly formed a valuation in his mind. He would have to start bargaining.

He hadn't expected that tonight, taking his grandson out of the city for a walk, he would have such an unexpected gain.

The old man pointed to a row of thunder talismans and smiled: "Shopkeeper, for this thunder talisman, what is the price for a single one?"

Chen Ping'an smiled: "One thunder talisman, eleven Snow Flower coins. Buying all ten, one hundred Snow Flower coins. But at my stall, no bargaining."

The old man nodded and smiled: "The talisman is good, but the talisman paper material is a bit inferior, unable to bear the full power of this thunder talisman, so it's quite discounted. Also, the price is a bit high."

Chen Ping'an smiled and said nothing.

This person was at least half a connoisseur.

Then there was no need for him to say more.

The old man then asked about the prices of the earth and water talismans. They were roughly equivalent, with a difference of one or two Snow Flower coins per talisman.

The thunder talisman was the most expensive, after all, thunder magic was revered as the ancestor of all magic under heaven. Moreover, one of the foundations of the Heavenly Master Mansion of Dragon Tiger Mountain was the four characters "Authentic Lineage of Thunder Magic."

But according to Qi Jinglong, this Heavenly Department Thunder Command Talisman, if drawn on yellow seal talisman paper, could fetch a decent price. Otherwise, drawn on ordinary market yellow paper, its power was too mediocre, and even ordinary middle fifth realm cultivators might not consider it worth their attention.

That had been rebutted by Chen Ping'an's words: "If you, Qi Jinglong, think a talisman is not ordinary, do I still need to act as a bundle peddler to hawk it?"

Finally, the old man shifted his gaze and asked: "If my old eyes are not mistaken, these two are a different type of barrier-breaking talisman?"

Chen Ping'an nodded: "Taught by a master, a secret not transmitted. Unique in the world. I studied hard for years before I could successfully draw them, but I can only ensure a success rate of five or six out of ten. A lot of talisman paper is wasted. If I sold them cheap, I would be shaming that master senior."

The old man looked up at the young stall owner in a black robe with a sword on his back. After a moment's hesitation, he asked: "Shopkeeper, could you tell me the names of the two talismans?"

Chen Ping'an was greatly reassured.

This was a real connoisseur.

Chen Ping'an countered: "The names of talismans in the world often correspond to the true meaning of the talisman technique, and will itself leak heavenly secrets. May I ask, old sir, when two martial artists meet on a narrow path and fight to the death, do they announce the names of their boxing techniques?"

The old man smiled: "Of course not."

Chen Ping'an said: "If you buy a talisman, even if it's just one of each, I would be willing to leak these two heavenly secrets for you."

The old man suppressed a smile and shook his head: "Not to mention shops that deal in talisman trade, even a roving bundle peddler like you, if you truly want to sell good talismans, even leaking a hint of the talisman's true intention is normal. There's no need to be so secretive."

"Good goods don't worry about selling."

After saying this, Chen Ping'an smiled: "But based on your keen eye, old sir, I'll make a deal. If you buy just one talisman, I'll tell you the names of both."

The child squatting beside the old man widened his eyes.

Gosh, this guy had some thick skin.

The old man actually nodded: "Fine, I'll buy this talisman."

The old man pointed to the Sword Qi Bridge Crossing Talisman.

Chen Ping'an smiled and asked: "Aren't you going to ask the price first, old sir?"

The old man said: "In business, the first transaction of the day brings good luck. I see you've just opened your stall. I am your first customer. Even if it's just to get a good start, you should sell it cheaper. Don't you agree, shopkeeper?"

Chen Ping'an nodded: "Originally fifteen Snow Flower coins. For the sake of this good omen, I'll sell it for ten."

The Sword Qi Bridge Crossing Talisman, if its true intention could be converted into immortal money, would certainly be far more valuable than the Heavenly Department Thunder Command Talisman, the Great River Cross Flow Talisman, and the Gather Earth Talisman.

But on the mountain, immortal arts and heavy treasures were always priced much higher for offensive arts and treasures than for defensive ones. And barrier-breaking talismans were the entry-level talismans of the talisman lineage, so it was hard for sellers to raise prices. They relied on small profits and high volume. Usually, mountain-wild rogue cultivators needed offensive arts and treasures more, while registered immortal masters were more willing to pay for barrier-breaking talismans and the like, because the latter were more numerous and had higher consumption.

The old man took out a money pouch from his sleeve and produced ten Snow Flower coins, handing them over.

After Chen Ping'an received the money, he was about to casually pick up one of the bridge-crossing talismans, but the old man smiled, picked one himself, and put it into his sleeve.

What a fellow.

His eyes were truly sharp.

It was the most spiritually charged among the bridge-crossing talismans—the very last one Chen Ping'an had drawn.

Chen Ping'an cast a sidelong glance at other parts of the street, then informed the old man through his increasingly adept mind-lake ripples: "The talisman you bought, old sir, is called the Sword Qi Bridge Crossing Talisman. It contains sword intent, which is most rare. While breaking through mountain and water barriers, it also provides an intangible deterrent. As for these other barrier-breaking talismans, they are... 'Path Guide Talismans.'"

When Chen Ping'an mentioned the second type of talisman, he deliberately omitted the two characters "Bai Ze."

Because when Qi Jinglong had taught him this talisman, he had done the same. He never spoke the name "Bai Ze" aloud, saying one should show some respect. Qi Jinglong wrote the characters for "Bai Ze" by hand instead.

This was a very small matter.

Because mountain cultivators, it could be said that everyone knew that Bai Ze had long been subdued by Confucian sages and suppressed in one of the nine great Suppression Towers of Haoran Heaven. Even if one shouted "Bai Ze" ten thousand times a day, or even cursed and scolded, it wouldn't break any taboo. It was completely different from casually calling the name of a Confucian Great Sage.

But this was why Chen Ping'an could become friends with Qi Jinglong.

They shared the same understanding and adhered to the same rules in these "very small matters."

Chen Ping'an used his hand as a brush and wrote the five characters "Bai Ze Path Guide Talisman" in the air.

After the old man saw it, he nodded: "Shopkeeper, you are honest. You did not deceive me. So I intend to buy one more Path Guide Talisman."

Chen Ping'an said: "Originally fifteen Snow Flower coins. I'll count it as one transaction with you, old sir, still ten."

The old man unhesitatingly handed over another ten Snow Flower coins.

The child tugged at his grandfather's sleeve and whispered: "One barrier-breaking talisman for ten Snow Flower coins, that's really expensive."

The old man smiled: "Even though it's hard-earned money, Snow Flower coins are common, but good talismans are not easy to find. These two barrier-breaking talismans, even if kept as a collection, are a blessing."

Chen Ping'an said sincerely: "Old sir, you are wise."

Then he made a smooth pivot, without any stiffness: "So, why not buy these ten thunder talismans as well? Then these thunder talismans will have met their noble patron, and not suffer from meeting the wrong person, wasting their value."

No matter how well-bred the child was, he couldn't help but turn his head and roll his eyes.

The old man thought for a moment and smiled: "Then, including the barrier-breaking talismans, I'll buy another five of each of all five types of talismans. The two barrier-breaking talismans are good talismans, and I am indeed tempted. So at fifteen Snow Flower coins each, I won't bargain. That's one hundred and fifty Snow Flower coins. As for the rest, the thunder, water, and earth talismans, they are not the best. I am only willing to offer a total of one hundred and twenty."

Chen Ping'an frowned: "Averaged out, that's only eight Snow Flower coins per talisman?"

The old man said: "Shopkeeper, with two transactions in a row, I am buying twenty-seven talismans in one go. This is no small business. The whole street is watching. I am helping bring business to your stall. Isn't that the truth?"

Chen Ping'an said with perfect justification: "No, I reckon that the vast majority of guests on this street already think we're in cahoots. So as for bringing business, that's really not the case. It might even leave a bad impression and hinder my stall's future business. Old sir, be fair. Isn't that also the truth?"

The child felt his horizons had broadened.

The old man laughed heartily: "Fine, then I'll add ten more Snow Flower coins for the remaining three talismans."

Chen Ping'an said with emotion: "With such keen eyesight, you should have a truly grand style of doing business to match your vision and status."

The old man frowned and shook his head: "If you keep taking advantage of this honest old man, I won't buy a single talisman."

Chen Ping'an laughed: "Alright, alright. For the sake of a good start, and because you are generous, I, this humble bundle peddler, will reluctantly put on a fat face and be generous for once. Forget the extra ten Snow Flower coins. Twenty-five talismans, I'll only charge you two hundred and seventy Snow Flower coins!"

The child didn't think this guy was generous at all. He raised two small hands, moved his fingers slightly, and quickly did the mental calculation, worried that the guy was cheating people.

Fortunately, the price was right.

The child put his hands down but still thought it was too expensive. However, since his grandfather liked it and thought it was a good match, he didn't help haggle.

Otherwise, when he started bargaining, even he himself would be scared.

The old man took three Small Summer coins from his money pouch and, with an additional thirty Snow Flower coins, haggled with the young bundle peddler to buy the line-drawn "Goddess Painting" hardbound volume and the Small Mysterious Wall tea cake, intending to gift them to a friend.

The old man selected another five from each of the five rows of talismans.

Chen Ping'an let the old man take his pick.

But the old man's choices surprised Chen Ping'an. He asked through heart-lake ripples: "With such keen eyesight, old sir, why not choose the talismans with better quality? Why pick those with slightly lesser divine intent?"

The old man seemed very puzzled and smiled: "Shopkeeper, your business sense is quite unusual."

Chen Ping'an didn't say anything more.

He had said enough. No need to say more.

The world was full of strange and marvelous things, but people were the hardest to fathom.

Once the old man left, others came.

Chen Ping'an's stall became much livelier.

There was an endless stream of onlookers, but for the time being, no one was willing to actually pay.

The old man, whose name was unknown, took his grandson and continued strolling through the market, looking at shops, and disappeared from view.

Chen Ping'an squatted on the ground, his hands clasped in his sleeves. Inside his sleeves, he rubbed the Small Summer coin engraved on both sides with "Always Envy the Jade Carver in the World" and "Su Shi Wrote Poems as If Painting."

Small Summer coins in the world were interesting like this, with various inscriptions. Even within one continent, there were many types of Small Summer coin inscriptions.

But generally, they had a four-character inscription on one side. A coin with as many as seven ancient seal characters like this one was extremely rare.

Besides being delighted by the unexpected gain of three Small Summer coins, Chen Ping'an was also happy to have collected a Small Summer coin with a brand-new inscription.

Moreover, three Small Summer coins, when converted into Snow Flower coins, already had a premium, and the rare inscription added another small premium.

Originally, Chen Ping'an's estimate of the value of all the talismans he had sold was at half price.

For this bundle peddling trip to Cloud City.

Generally, in shops at immortal ferry ports, for talismans made of yellow paper with ordinary talisman cores, being able to sell one for a Snow Flower coin was already considered expensive.

Chen Ping'an had actually prepared for the worst-case scenario of asking too high a price and wasting the one Snow Flower coin cost.

He hadn't expected that the three Small Summer coins were fated to fall into his pocket; they couldn't be stopped even if they tried.

The first step is always the hardest.

With that wealthy and sharp-eyed old man as a start, he had a good omen.

Next, he sold two more thunder talismans.

The water and earth talismans, as well as the barrier-breaking talismans, attracted no buyers. Many customers, just hearing the price, almost cursed.

One rough-looking man bought an item from the old collection of Cangyun Lake's Dragon Palace for five Snow Flower coins. It had a heavy feminine air. The man was probably planning to give it to his beloved or use it as a visiting gift for some female cultivator. After hearing the price of five Snow Flower coins, the man cursed, "Dammit," but still paid up in the end.

Then he pointed to the Heavenly Department Thunder Command Talisman, which looked quite imposing, and asked the price.

Chen Ping'an said with a grin: "Two 'dammits,' plus two more Snow Flower coins."

The man grumbled: "Are you trying to gouge me?!"

Even someone with Chen Ping'an's thick skin didn't know how to respond for a moment.

The bystanders watching the show laughed heartily.

The man realized his words were inappropriate—cursing someone and cursing himself, it was a no-win situation. The man scratched his head. He was tempted, but his purse was thin. He really did need to buy an offensive thunder talisman to deal with a great demon occupying a mountain top. If he succeeded, he could plunder it thoroughly and make a sure profit. But if he failed, he would lose badly. Twelve Snow Flower coins was really hard for him to swallow. In the end, the man still couldn't bear to part with his money and left dejectedly.

Chen Ping'an didn't try to stop him.

After walking some distance, the man couldn't help turning back to look. Seeing the young man smile at him, the man felt even more frustrated and strode away, avoiding what he couldn't see, his heart wouldn't be troubled.

Chen Ping'an continued his business.

It was worry-free; the prices of the talismans and all the other items were fixed.

After earning three Small Summer coins, he, as a bundle peddler, was even more secure.

After all, less than an hour had passed, and there was still plenty of time before the ferry departed.

Chen Ping'an had originally planned to do business while also warming up his fist intent, plus cultivating by his heart lake, doing three things at once.

But for some reason, he simply enjoyed the leisure of the moment and temporarily stopped practicing his boxing.

He still multitasked, carefully observing the passing visitors while letting his thoughts wander thousands of miles, thinking about some people and some things.

Since he was currently at Cloud City, he thought of that book "Cloud City Lang Lang Shu."

To tell the truth.

The first bundle peddler Chen Ping'an encountered in his life could be considered that guy wearing a bamboo hat and carrying a bamboo knife. It was on Qi Dun Mountain, when Wei Po was still a local land god.

But this bundle peddler didn't take silver.

A Liang squatted on the ground, in front of him was the long wooden box named "Jiao Huang," hawking his wares, calling everyone over to pick treasures.

Zhu He and Zhu Lu, father and daughter, were also there at the time.

Lin Shouyi ran the fastest and was the first to choose that thunder magic secret manual he had fallen in love with at first sight.

Li Huai was as cunning as a fox. After picking his own item, he frantically urged Lin Shouyi and Li Baoping to choose that narrow saber "Xiang Fu." When Li Baoping took the saber, with lightning speed, Li Huai grabbed that colorful wooden puppet about the length of a palm. Zhu He helped Zhu Lu pick a book and a pill. At that time, Chen Ping'an didn't know exactly how significant that small pill named "Hero's Gall" was for a pure martial artist. Even after all the paths Chen Ping'an had traveled, he had never seen anything similar again. Even Lu Tai and Qi Jinglong had never heard of such a thing—a martial artist's Hero's Gall being refined into a tangible pill.

Chen Ping'an was the last to pick. There was nothing left in the wooden box except that pale golden lotus seed. No choice.

Chen Ping'an, no longer a boy, now hoped that one day he could be like A Liang, giving the good things in his hands to younger generations who could take them and receive them, not feeling the slightest regret but instead full of anticipation.

In the world, there are always some words and actions that will subtly influence and be passed down through generations.

Not a dharma, but better than a dharma.

—

After daybreak.

The old man who had spent lavishly took the child's hand and walked through the gate of Cloud City. The gate-guarding cultivators, upon seeing the old man, respectfully addressed him as Real Man Huan.

The old man smiled and nodded in acknowledgment.

Back in a grand mansion within the city—one of the few prime locations in Cloud City that would transfer title deeds to outsiders. This mansion was one of them.

Because the old man was named Huan Yun, a Daoist real man renowned in central North Juju Continent. In terms of combat power, among the myriad sword cultivators of North Juju Continent, Old Real Man Huan was not very effective. He could only be considered an ordinary Golden Core cultivator not skilled in battle. But he had high seniority, broad connections, and many disciples. He was a Dao-obtainer of a certain collateral branch of Central Plains talisman lineage, proficient in talismans far beyond his cultivation level. He had good relations with the Yang Clan of Cloud Palace and other Daoist collateral lineages, as well as many great immortal cultivators in the north. He liked to travel everywhere, and naturally, he purchased mansions in picturesque places. At Sharpening Stone Mountain, he had early on acquired a mansion with a wide view. At that time, the price was cheap. Now, its value had multiplied several times over. The old real man had a wide circle of friends. That mansion at Sharpening Stone Mountain was occupied all year round by others, while the old real man himself might not stay there even once in a decade or two.

The child was named Huan Zhu, a good seedling for cultivation. Even for the descendants of an earth immortal cultivator, not everyone could cultivate. None of Old Real Man Huan's children could cultivate. The large family had branched out for over a hundred years, and finally, there was one good seedling like this. So in recent years, when the old man traveled to various places, he liked to keep the child by his side.

Back in the study, the old man carefully took out a delicate small box made of fine wood from Spring Dew Garden, with cloud patterns and water blossoms swaying, very lively.

This box had great origins. It was called the "Cloud-Sealing Box," a "fairy mansion" used by talisman experts to store precious talismans.

He gently placed the twenty-seven talismans bought from the stall into the wooden box. The old real man was all smiles.

Huan Zhu, being clever from childhood, immediately knew that his grandfather hadn't been taken advantage of and had likely even gotten a bargain.

The old man sat on a chair, placed the child on his lap, and said earnestly: "All immortal sects on the mountains have a founding patriarch. Similarly, when a talisman master draws talismans, at the stage where they have entered the hall but not yet reached the realm of divine mastery, the first talismans they draw, when their technique and spirit seem most crude, are precisely the most precious and rare. So your grandfather deliberately chose the talismans with the worst quality to buy. At that time, the young bundle peddler was puzzled and took the initiative to remind me. He's a good young man. He has good talisman-drawing talent, and even better conduct in business."

The old man was in a great mood, sharing inside information with his grandson. He pointed to the now-closed wooden box: "As long as these talismans are properly preserved, there might be some mysterious opportunities. Of course, the possibility is very small. But in mountain cultivation, 'one in ten thousand' can be both the worst thing that leads to death and dao dissolution, and also a great blessing of immense fortune. Even setting aside that unexpected possibility, spending nearly three Small Summer coins on these talismans themselves is not too much of a loss."

Huan Yun suddenly smiled: "The city lord has arrived. Let's go welcome him."

Huan Yun put down his grandson, and they walked out of the study to the courtyard.

For immortal cultivators with close relationships visiting, of course, there was no need to knock; they only needed to release some qi and signal.

The city lord of Cloud City was named Shen Zhenze, a Golden Core cultivator like Huan Yun.

He wore a white dharma robe, had a graceful bearing, and looked like a middle-aged man. He clearly looked like an immortal.

After Huan Zhu paid his respects, Huan Yun's first words were very direct: "Someone at your market is selling talismans. Excellent quality. If you're late, you'll miss out. I recognize three of them: the Heavenly Department Thunder Command Talisman, the Great River Cross Flow Talisman, and the Gather Earth Talisman. Their origins are shallow; they're not from orthodox schools, so they're not particularly rare. But there are two barrier-breaking talismans. I, this old man, have never seen them in my life. The Path Guide Talisman and the Bridge Crossing Talisman—exquisite! The former is not only suitable for cultivators going up mountains and into water, breaking through barriers—if used cleverly, it can even open a path for yin entities to journey to the Yellow Springs. The latter contains a trace of pure sword intent. For the lower fifth realm cultivators of your Cloud City to use it to intimidate ordinary ghosts and spirits, it will be twice the result with half the effort."

Shen Zhenze was somewhat surprised.

If an ordinary earth immortal cultivator ranted about how good talismans were, he wouldn't dare to believe it entirely. But when this old Daoist real man opened his golden mouth, there was absolutely no need to doubt.

Huan Yun added: "Unfortunately, the talisman paper material is too poor, and the cinnabar used is also ordinary. Otherwise, a single talisman would not be sold for just a dozen Snow Flower coins."

Shen Zhenze asked doubtfully: "Real Man Huan, a barrier-breaking talisman for a dozen or so Snow Flower coins—isn't that considered cheap and good?"

Huan Yun laughed: "When I, Huan Yun, judge the quality of talismans, have I ever made a mistake? Hurry up. I guarantee Cloud City won't lose a few dozen Snow Flower coins."

Huan Yun described the appearance of the young bundle peddler and his stall.

Shen Zhenze nodded: "I'll go and come back."

Huan Yun suddenly reminded: "That bundle peddler is as sharp as a fox in business. I suggest you don't go buy them yourself, to avoid arousing covetousness in others and harming that minor cultivator. Although he deliberately took out the Small Mysterious Wall tea leaves, a specialty from your neighbor Caique Manor, as a makeshift protective charm when he set up his stall, wealth moves the heart. If someone truly develops greed for his belongings, this connection won't ward off disaster."

Shen Zhenze understood and rode the wind to send a trusted subordinate in the city center to purchase the talismans. Then he returned to the mansion.

The purpose of this visit was to discuss important matters with Old Real Man Huan Yun.

In a deep mountain range within a neighboring country west of Water Sky Kingdom, a landscape secret realm had appeared. A mountain woodcutter had stumbled upon it, only discovering the entrance to a cave dwelling. But he didn't dare explore it alone. After leaving the mountain, he treated it as an adventure and widely publicized it among his fellow villagers. Then a passing mountain-wild rogue cultivator heard about it, went to the local government office, carefully examined the local county records and geomantic maps, went to the deep mountain cave dwelling himself, couldn't break the immortal restrictions, then joined forces with two other cultivators. Unexpectedly, that yin-yang cultivator, after breaking through the restrictions in one night, triggered the cave dwelling's traps. Two died, one survived.

The matter became widely known.

After listening to Shen Zhenze's account, Huan Yun smiled: "The landscape restrictions could be broken fairly quickly by a fourth-realm yin-yang cultivator. That means the quality of this cave dwelling won't be high. What, you, a Golden Core earth immortal, are going to compete with those mountain-wild rogue cultivators over such a small opportunity?"

Shen Zhenze shook his head: "I only intend to send a few young disciples of Cloud City to gain some experience. I'll dispatch a Dragon Gate realm retainer to secretly escort them. As long as there's no life-threatening danger, they won't show themselves."

Huan Yun smiled slightly: "What if the opportunity turns out to be considerable? Will Cloud City snatch it?"

Shen Zhenze still shook his head: "Cloud City has suffered great hardship before. Real Man Huan, please don't taunt me."

A far-off relative is not as good as a close neighbor.

This applied both on and off the mountain.

But there were also many bad neighbors on the mountain. For example, Cloud City and Caique Manor, both in Water Sky Kingdom, were like this. Since the battle between the previous generation city lord and manor master went sour, although the two sects had not become mortal enemies, their cultivators had completely severed relations, with no more friendship whatsoever.

Originally, the two sects had been allies for centuries, with marriage ties. But a single unexpected opportunity shattered their relationship. The old city lord was initially acting as a protector for his junior, while the disciple was responsible for treasure hunting. But that broken cave heaven secret realm with no verifiable records contained a Daoist scripture pointing directly to Golden Core. Shen Zhenze's father and the previous manor master of Caique Manor couldn't resist what they considered a prize within easy reach. They fought fiercely, but unexpectedly, a well-concealed wild cultivator took advantage of their stalemate, severely wounded both Golden Cores, snatched the scripture, and made off.

The two Golden Core earth immortals of Cloud City and Caique Manor, misfortune from blessing, had their Dao foundations damaged. Neither managed to break into the Nascent Soul realm before they died with regret. From then on, the two families blamed each other and could no longer become an immortal dao couple. And the most interesting thing was that both Golden Cores, until their deaths, bore no great hatred towards that wild cultivator whose origins were never found. They both considered that invaluable scripture to be the destiny he deserved.

Before that, the two families had actually been rare in-law relations among mountain sects.

For generations, the emperors of Water Sky Kingdom had worried about this, many times trying to mediate and help the two great immortal forces reconcile. But neither Cloud City nor Caique Manor appreciated it.

Huan Yun smiled: "You want me to oversee things for you, just in case? What, do you have a direct disciple leaving the city for training?"

Shen Zhenze nodded: "And more than one. Both are at a bottleneck for breakthrough. They must take this trip."

Huan Yun said: "At this critical juncture, the Dust-Sealed Cave Dwelling reappears. It must be the opportunity for your two disciples. They cannot miss it. As their dao transmitter, if you are too involved and too close, it would be counterproductive."

Shen Zhenze sighed.

On the path of cultivation, there were not only good things like enjoying the scenery. Even the long-awaited opportunity for breakthrough could hide deadly dangers, difficult to guard against. And there were many experiences and rules bought with the lives of senior predecessors.

Huan Yun said: "Fine, I'll act as a long-absent protector."

Shen Zhenze stood up and bowed.

Huan Yun didn't avoid it.

The child Huan Zhu, being well-behaved and clever, had already run off quickly.

Even if it's only a protector for a single path of cultivation, a protector is still a protector.

Shen Zhenze, with good intentions, performed this great bow for a protector for his two direct disciples. It was only right and natural.

A trusted cultivator of Shen Zhenze rushed into the courtyard, took out from his sleeve the talismans that had not been sold even with a one-Snow-Flower-coin discount, and said: "City Lord, that person insisted on keeping the last thunder talisman and absolutely refused to sell."

Shen Zhenze turned to look at Huan Yun, wondering if there was some unknown significance. Huan Yun smiled: "That minor cultivator has a strange temper. Leaving one talisman unsold probably doesn't have any special meaning."

Shen Zhenze took out one of the Sword Qi Bridge Crossing Talismans, rubbed it lightly between two fingers—it was indeed good—but it was truly expensive. Finally, he put all the talismans into his sleeve and nodded with a smile: "I can give some to the disciples, and Cloud City can still keep two."

Huan Yun smiled: "I'll give you a casual piece of advice. It might be meaningless, but for the rest of the talismans, Cloud City should use them sparingly. Don't squander them. As for Cloud City spending more to buy another batch of talismans, forget it. The more you buy, the more you lose."

Shen Zhenze didn't bother to ponder the deeper meaning.

Today's visit to Real Man Huan had already yielded the desired result.

Huan Yun smiled and asked: "I followed the commotion of the sword sacrifice at Lotus Seed Kingdom. Any inside news?"

Shen Zhenze shook his head: "It happened suddenly and was gone in an instant. I imagine even Caique Manor, which is closer to the sword sacrifice site, can only confirm that one of them was Liu Jinglong. As for the other sword immortal, no clues. Neither Lotus Seed Kingdom, nor the two countries bordering Lotus Seed Kingdom to the north and south, nor our Water Sky Kingdom, have found any trace. But such great sword immortals are beyond the reach of Cloud City. Not like Caique Manor, which has that beautiful fairy who is an old acquaintance of Liu Jinglong."

Huan Yun teased: "That sounded a bit sour."

Shen Zhenze was honest: "That's Manor Master Sun Qing's own ability. Can't Cloud City be envious?"

Huan Yun stopped teasing this city lord of Cloud City.

Internal troubles and external threats—a few complaints in front of an old friend were only human.

The internal trouble was that Cloud City's Shen Zhenze couldn't compare to Sun Qing, who had excellent cultivation aptitude and stunning beauty. And Caique Manor was adept at generating wealth,