Chapter 568: Fallen Mountain Ancestral Hall

Chapter 568: Fallen Mountain Ancestral Hall

Cui Dongshan looked dejected as he sat back on the small stool, reaching out both hands—one over his head, the other on his knee. "Qi Jingchun used this to protect the Way, but so what? Now the master is still at a low point, and between the high and low, there are countless unforeseen events. Du Mao is an example."

Speaking of this, Cui Dongshan recalled some existence and curled his lip. "Fine, Du Mao doesn't count. Qi Jingchun at least had some countermeasures. But going a bit lower—upper fifth realm cultivators below the Flying Ascension realm, Jade Pu, Immortal, or Nascent Soul sword cultivators—when the master fights them one-on-one, what then?"

Chen Ping'an turned around and smiled. "What nonsense is that? Every cultivator under heaven, on the path of climbing the mountain, has to deal with one-in-a-million chances and accidents. If you take reasoning to the extreme, it's never reasoning. Don't you understand? That stubborn temper of yours, refusing to admit defeat even when beaten, needs to change."

Cui Dongshan said, "What if I admit defeat in my heart but not with my mouth? Still no good?"

Chen Ping'an smiled without speaking.

Cui Dongshan composed himself and said, "Knowing this so early is not good."

Chen Ping'an said, "I know."

Cui Dongshan scratched his head with both hands, frustrated. "Since ancient times, human calculations can't match heaven's. That saying can scare the people at the mountain peaks to death. Only by using a mindless calculation against a mindful one can there be a chance of winning. Doesn't the master understand that winning against Lu Chen back then was largely due to luck? Now if Lu Chen sets his sights on the master again, sparing a bit of thought, willing to throw away face, and carefully lays a trap for the master, the master will lose without a doubt."

Cui Dongshan stopped his hand movements and emphasized, "Lose without a doubt!"

Chen Ping'an nodded. "Perhaps."

Cui Dongshan sighed, his expression complex.

Every clear understanding formed was like making an enemy of oneself.

It was almost like making an enemy of the entire world.

The weeds on the earth, far more than tall trees, could withstand the fierce winds breaking them.

Chen Ping'an sat back on the stool, smiling. "Don't worry about these things. A person can't scare themselves to death. I made it through all those years in Clay Bottle Alley; there's no reason I should get more timid as I go on. The fist can't be practiced in vain, and a person can't live in vain."

Cui Dongshan nodded. "It's good that the master thinks this way."

Chen Ping'an said slowly, "Take it step by step. There's no other way. Earlier on the ferry, you could still let me have twelve stones and still win easily. In ten years? What if I live another hundred years?"

Cui Dongshan murmured, "If the board is still the standard nineteen-by-nineteen lines, the student wouldn't dare say he could let the master have twelve stones in a few decades. But if the board were slightly larger..."

Chen Ping'an looked straight ahead and smiled. "Shut up!"

Cui Dongshan laughed. "The master is most impressive when being unreasonable."

He, the student, couldn't wait to see.

He was very eager.

Chen Ping'an said he was going out and didn't bother with Cui Dongshan anymore.

Cui Dongshan stayed behind in the ancestral house, squatting on the ground, staring at the two circles of different sizes—not studying their deep meaning, just out of pure boredom.

Among the myriad branches of knowledge in the world, there weren't many that could make Cui Dongshan think further into the subtleties.

Chen Ping'an went to his parents' graves, burned a lot of paper money, including some bought from the Dragon Palace Cave Heaven, then squatted there adding soil.

Cui Dongshan stood on tiptoe, lying on the wall, looking into the neighboring courtyard. The feng shui of this alley was truly good.

Song Jixin had become a Great Li prince, and Zhigui went without saying—the entire Old Dragon City was her courtyard, and the Fu family were her bodyguards and servants.

Cui Dongshan climbed up to the top of the wall, bounced a few times, shaking off dust.

Sword Immortal Cao Xi had already returned from Northern Jambudvipa to Southern Bashia Continent. That Xiongzhen Tower still needed someone to hold the fort, leaving only Cao Jun, who had some minor bumps on his cultivation path, to struggle along in the Great Li military.

Regarding the matter of the bride ghost, actually the master didn't lack an answer at present.

But he, Cui Dongshan, had deliberately made it complicated, wanting to confirm one thing: which school of thought the master currently leaned toward.

In the end, he had shot himself in the foot, and Cui Dongshan was now quite regretful.

Cui Dongshan stretched out his hands, spread his ten fingers, and shook his wrists.

If not for this episode, Cui Dongshan would have liked to discuss another "small matter" with the master—a matter that required a knowledge woven from countless fine threads.

Cui Dongshan certainly wouldn't teach everything; he would only select some "passages" beneficial to cultivation.

Shaping a porcelain person.

How could a pile of broken porcelain shards be pieced together into a real person? How were the three souls and seven spirits, the seven emotions and six desires, formed?

The root of this knowledge lay in weaving a net.

The biggest problem now was that the cost was too high, the knowledge too profound, the threshold too high. Even Cui Dongshan couldn't think of any way to crack it.

If it succeeded, the greatest external worry of the Haoran World—the large-scale invasion of the demon clan, and the mortal enemy that the Qingming World had to build the Jade Capital to oppose—would all be doomed to complete destruction.

In a sense, the appearance of humans was the earliest "porcelain people," just with different materials.

Cui Dongshan also hoped that one day, when the person he could wholeheartedly believe in was about to succeed, that person would tell him whether his choice was right or wrong. Not only that, but also explain clearly where the mistakes and correctness lay. Then he, Cui Dongshan, could act generously, unafraid of life or death.

Not like that old scholar back then, who only gave the result without saying why.

A Great Li military ferry slowly docked at Oxhorn Mountain Ferry. Accompanying it was a huge dragon boat that had been concealed by the illusions of two mountain lords, Wei Bo of the Northern Peak and Jin Qing of the Central Peak.

Liu Zhongrun, Lu Baixiang, and Wei Xian stepped off the dragon boat.

Martial artist Liu Xunmei and sword cultivator Cao Jun did not disembark. Having escorted the dragon boat this far, their mission was considered complete, and Liu Xunmei still needed to report to the Patrol Envoy Cao Ping.

Liu Xunmei asked softly, "Is that young man in green the mountain lord of Fallen Mountain, Chen Ping'an? Like your ancestor, also from that Clay Bottle Alley?"

Cao Jun sat on the railing and nodded. "He's a very interesting young man. In my eyes, even more interesting than Ma Kuxuan."

Liu Xunmei smiled. "Chen Ping'an is also a friend of my good friend Guan Yiran. At the end of last year on Chier Street, we talked about this Fallen Mountain mountain lord. Guan Yiran has been steady-tempered since childhood; he didn't say much, but I could tell he thinks highly of this person."

This was the first time Cao Jun had heard of this, but he wasn't surprised at all.

Liu Xunmei looked a bit nostalgic. "That Fu Yu from Yichi Alley is now the prefect of Baoxi Commandery. He's made something of himself. But I don't know Fu Yu very well. I only remember as a child, Fu Yu loved to hang around following us. Back then, we peers from Chier Street never liked to mix with the kids from Yichi Alley. The two groups didn't play well together. Every year, both sides would arrange fights, playing a few fierce snowball battles. We always won with fewer numbers. Fu Yu was in an awkward position, belonging to neither side, so every time it snowed, he simply didn't go out. That's all I remember about this vaguely recalled Prefect. But actually, both Yichi Alley and Chier Street had their own big and small cliques, very lively. After growing up, it became boring. When we meet occasionally, everyone just smiles."

Cao Jun laughed. "In a hundred or two hundred years, if I think of General Liu again, it will probably be about the same."

Liu Xunmei said helplessly, "You really don't know how to chat."

Cao Jun said, "If I knew how to chat, I'd have been promoted and made a fortune long ago."

Liu Xunmei shook his head. "If you didn't have solid military merits, and you were such a bad conversationalist, would I bother talking to you?"

Cao Jun laughed heartily. "And you know how to chat?"

Liu Xunmei leaned on the railing. "Whether I die in battle or on my sickbed, if you ever pass by Treasure Bottle Continent in the future, remember to come and pay respects at my grave."

Cao Jun looked into the distance. "Who says cultivators always live long? Between you and me, who will be visiting whose grave with wine—it's hard to say."

Liu Xunmei said wryly, "Can't you say something more cheerful?"

Cao Jun thought for a moment. "May General Liu soon be promoted to Patrol Envoy?"

Liu Xunmei nodded. "That's a good one!"

Liu Xunmei smiled. "Then I also wish Sword Immortal Cao an early entry into the upper fifth realm?"

Cao Jun rubbed his face vigorously with both hands. "That's tough."

Chen Ping'an only brought Pei Qian and Zhou Mili to "receive" them. He saw the eye-catching black-robed figure with long and short swords hanging at his waist, Cao Jun, but pretended not to notice.

Wei Xian nodded to Chen Ping'an, and Chen Ping'an returned the greeting with a smile.

Only when he saw Pei Qian did Wei Xian break into a rare smile.

This little black charcoal had grown quite fast.

Pei Qian hopped over to Wei Xian and circled him in a swagger. "Ooh, you're even blacker charcoal now."

Wei Xian said sternly, "Impertinent."

Pei Qian scowled. "What's with you! Putting on airs again, huh? Who are you trying to fool? You don't have a damned golden shoulder pole in your house."

Wei Xian said, "Now I am a Great Li Military Propaganda Officer, and I've been promoted to a high official."

Wei Xian, the founding emperor of Nanyuan Kingdom, was born in a rustic alley and rose through the ranks on the battlefield.

Pei Qian stuck out her thumb and pointed at Zhou Mili, who was carrying two mountain-climbing staves. "How big is that? Bigger than her?"

Wei Xian didn't know what Pei Qian was up to. "Is there a story?"

Pei Qian shouted, "Zhou Mili!"

The little girl in black stomped her foot and puffed out her chest. "Here!"

Pei Qian snorted. "Say it! What's your name!"

Zhou Mili frowned tightly, stood on tiptoe, and whispered in Pei Qian's ear, "You already called my name just now. Should I call myself the Dumb Lake Great Water Monster, or the Fallen Mountain Right Protector?"

Pei Qian sighed. This little melon was a bit dense, but everything else was fine.

Wei Xian smiled and reached out to ruffle the little black charcoal's head, but Pei Qian ducked and sidestepped smoothly, avoiding him. Pei Qian clicked her tongue. "Old Wei, you're getting old. With that stubble, how are you going to find a wife? Still single, right? Don't worry, don't be sad. Now our Fallen Mountain doesn't have many things, but the kind who can't find a wife—we have plenty. Neighbor Wei Bo, Old Cook Zhu, Zheng Dafeng at the foot of the mountain, Xiao Bai far from home, Old Song at the peak, Yuan Lai—all of them are pitiful."

Wei Xian laughed. "Don't you still not have a master's wife?"

Pei Qian twitched the corner of her mouth and gave three cold laughs.

Zhou Mili followed with three "heh heh heh"s.

Chen Ping'an, who had just finished exchanging pleasantries with Lu Baixiang and Liu Zhongrun, gave both little heads a knock with his knuckles.

Pei Qian was used to it. Zhou Mili, who had once stood in a big bamboo box while Chen Ping'an fed her knuckles, opened her mouth to bite Chen Ping'an, but he pressed down on her head. Just as Zhou Mili was about to unleash her power, she heard Pei Qian give a heavy cough and immediately stood perfectly still.

Liu Zhongrun had a sword talisman forged by the Dragon Spring Sword Sect and flew away on the wind.

That precious Water Hall, which had been refined by an Immortal, was still hidden on the dragon boat. Later, Lu Baixiang would ask Mountain Lord Wei Bo to use his divine powers to send it to Turtle Fish Back. Otherwise, the Water Hall was the size of a carriage, and she didn't have that legendary "within arm's reach" artifact on her. It wasn't that she couldn't move the Water Hall with magic, but it would be too conspicuous. With many eyes at the ferry, Liu Zhongrun was cautious and didn't want any complications.

As for that dragon boat named "Spilled Ink," it was already Fallen Mountain's property. Besides, the entire Oxhorn Mountain was jointly owned by Chen Ping'an and Wei Bo, so anchoring it here was only natural.

Lu Baixiang led the way, taking Chen Ping'an onto this behemoth. It was three stories high, which wasn't unusual, but it was extremely large—about half the size of the Hemp-Clad Sect's cross-continent ferry. It could carry over a thousand people, or full cargo loads, of course, differently. With such a tough ancient ferry, Fallen Mountain could do much more. Chen Ping'an couldn't help but lightly stamp his feet again and again, his face full of undisguised smiles.

Earlier, when Pei Qian and Zhou Mili heard that from today on, such a large immortal ferry was Fallen Mountain's own property, their eyes widened. Pei Qian pinched Zhou Mili's cheek and twisted hard. The little girl cried out in pain, and Pei Qian hummed in acknowledgment. It seemed it really wasn't a dream. Zhou Mili nodded vigorously, saying no, no. Pei Qian patted Zhou Mili's head and said, "Mili, you're really a little lucky star. Did that hurt?" Zhou Mili grinned and said, "Hurts like a hammer." Pei Qian covered her mouth and whispered, "How did you forget again? When we're out, don't casually let people know you're a big water monster. Scaring people—we'd be in the wrong." The little girl in black felt both worried and happy.

They toured the ferry deck by deck, occasionally pushing open doors that still smelled of wood after centuries submerged. Since the ferry's decorative items had long been cleared out and stored in the national treasury for war needs, the rooms now all had similar layouts and looked much the same. But Chen Ping'an didn't find it boring at all. Finally, they reached the top floor, standing in the largest room. Expectedly, this would be the "Heaven"-class room of the "Spilled Ink" ferry. Chen Ping'an suddenly put away his smile and walked to the observation deck with a wide view.

The crash of the Dajiao Mountain ferry in the Zhu Ying Dynasty—one move affected the whole situation.

All ferry owners were pawns. Some survived, some died. As for the Sword Vessel gentleman who struck down the ferry—why he did it, what grudges and debts drove him to such decisive action—it seemed unimportant.

Chen Ping'an was thinking about one question: now his cultivation was low and his foundation thin. Bringing this up again would be like throwing an egg against a rock, so he could endure for now.

But if Fallen Mountain were already a sect-level mountain gate, and he himself a Nascent Soul earth immortal or even Jade Pu realm cultivator, he could speak his mind about the grievances in his heart, about the plight of Spring Water and Autumn Fruit and the others. He could speak, but he would have to pay a huge price. For instance, completely burning bridges with the Great Li dynasty, making an enemy of Celestial Lord Xie Shi, the four from the painting dying one after another, Fallen Mountain battered by wind and rain, everyone on the mountain becoming rats crossing the street in Treasure Bottle Continent. Chen Lingjun would die if he went to Northern Jambudvipa. Chen Ruchu could no longer go to Dragon Spring Commandery. The Great Li death warriors at the shop on Riding Dragon Alley would turn from guards to assassins. Everyone on Fallen Mountain would be uncertain of life or death—die when said to die. If someone else left Fallen Mountain, then when it came to right and wrong, who would be at fault?

How should he, Chen Ping'an, choose?

If Chen Ping'an were now a genuine sword immortal, he could avoid many troubles.

Carry it all on one shoulder, cleave it all with one sword.

But becoming a sword immortal—how difficult it was, distant and with faint hope.

Beyond life and death, there were still countless calamities.

Chen Ping'an also learned from Little Bao Ping and Pei Qian, and Li Huai, reading those martial arts tales. He admired the heroes and chivalrous figures in the books who pressed forward fearlessly, resolutely, risking life and limb, sacrificing themselves for righteousness without hesitation.

This world not only needed such stories in books, but also many such people outside books. The deeds they did might differ in scale, but good and evil were clearly distinguished.

Only, compared to Pei Qian, who picked the exciting parts of heroes taking revenge and repeatedly read them, occasionally meeting martial arts predecessors with peerless skills, befriending the most interesting people in the jianghu, slaying the great villains... Pei Qian liked to skip large sections of tribulation and hardship. Chen Ping'an, on the other hand, often felt stuck when he read the beginnings. Those who were destined for all sorts of encounters and opportunities in the future often started with families destroyed and loneliness, bearing deep blood feuds. Then in the book, they suddenly grew up.

Chen Ping'an felt uncomfortable.

Those splendid jianghu stories might be captivating, making Li Huai and Pei Qian's eyes shine, but Chen Ping'an found it hard to empathize.

Probably because real life, after all, isn't those clear black-and-white words on paper.

Pei Qian asked from inside the room, "Master, what's wrong?"

Chen Ping'an shook his head. "Nothing, just thinking about some past events."

Lu Baixiang came to Chen Ping'an's side and smiled. "Congratulations."

Chen Ping'an said, "You need to hurry too."

Lu Baixiang's expression was somewhat melancholy. "I'm hesitating whether to find a chance to fight Zhu Lian."

Chen Ping'an laughed. "I think it's fine. After all, it doesn't cost money."

Lu Baixiang looked at Chen Ping'an. "Got beaten up a lot in Northern Jambudvipa?"

Chen Ping'an nodded. "Two tenth-realm martial artists took turns feeding me punches. Beat me half to death. Envious?"

Lu Baixiang smiled. "Hearing that makes me feel much better."

Chen Ping'an said, "Don't forget, this narrow blade 'Stopping Snow' is lent to you."

Lu Baixiang joked, "Didn't I help Fallen Mountain find two good seedlings? Not even worth a blade?"

Chen Ping'an didn't take the bait, only saying, "Yuanbao and Yuanlai—good names."

Lu Baixiang asked, "Met them?"

Chen Ping'an hummed. "When I met them, I praised their names right away. But that little girl looked at me with the same wary expression as Cen Yuanji did when she first saw me. I just don't get it. After all these years walking the jianghu, I end up being misunderstood only on my own Fallen Mountain."

Lu Baixiang laughed heartily. "Great mood!"

Pei Qian was circling around Wei Xian, two fingers together, constantly casting a "freeze" spell at him. Wei Xian leaned against the doorframe, ignoring her.

Chen Ping'an turned and asked, "Earlier, in your letter, you said Cen Yuanji fell while practicing boxing. What happened?"

Pei Qian seemed to be frozen on the spot, body rigid, forehead sweating, and could only signal to Zhou Mili.

Lying to her master was absolutely not allowed, but confessing to her master wasn't a good idea either.

Zhou Mili, worthy of being the trusted general she had promoted, immediately understood and said loudly, "In the pitch-dark night, you couldn't even see a ghost. Sister Cen accidentally fell."

Chen Ping'an said, "Oh."

Pei Qian put her hands behind her back and gave Zhou Mili two thumbs up.

Chen Ping'an said with emotion, "With this dragon boat, doing business with Hemp-Clad Sect and Spring Dew Garden, Fallen Mountain will have more confidence. Not only that, but there will be more room for maneuver."

Lu Baixiang said, "The dragon boat's decorations can be simple. Since you said it will mainly be used for transporting goods, what about the people needed to run the ferry?"

Chen Ping'an smiled. "When Zhu Lian gets back to Fallen Mountain, let him worry about that. If it's too much, Cui Dongshan has wide connections. Let him help Fallen Mountain spend money to hire people for the boat."

Lu Baixiang didn't pile on this time. "I'll also try to help find some people. But the most important thing is to choose a sufficiently capable ferry manager, otherwise it's easy to cause trouble."

Chen Ping'an said, "I have some ideas about this, but whether they work will have to wait until the ancestral hall is built."

The site for Fallen Mountain's ancestral hall had long been decided. With Wei Bo around, it was a simple matter.

After Chen Ping'an sent a flying sword message from Mount Muyi back to Fallen Mountain, Wei Bo had already started preparations. Since Fallen Mountain's ancestral hall didn't pursue grand scale, it wouldn't cost much manpower or resources. Over the years, the large-scale construction in the western mountains of Dragon Spring Commandery, along with the continuous groundbreaking in several commanderies, had accumulated a lot of experience. The most critical point was that Chen Ping'an proposed the ancestral hall didn't need a dedicated protective array. In his words, if Fallen Mountain could have its mountain-and-river grand formation broken and someone successfully climb the mountain to dismantle the ancestral hall, then whether the hall had an array or not was meaningless.

Chen Ping'an said, "I've been delaying you a lot."

Lu Baixiang smiled. "Consider it as sharpening the axe without delaying the woodcutting. My sect is just a vassal of Fallen Mountain. It's best if it succeeds; if not, it won't seriously hurt Fallen Mountain. I know the limits. But let me say the ugly words first: my methods aren't entirely clean; I can only guarantee they won't go too far."

Chen Ping'an said, "Try not to give me a chance to gossip."

Lu Baixiang laughed.

As mountain lord, after personally burning incense to offer sacrifices to heaven, earth, and the four directions, Fallen Mountain's ancestral hall began construction.

The ancestral hall was located on Fallen Mountain's secondary peak, Jise Peak. The main peak, which had the bamboo building, was in an awkward position because at the summit of Ji Ling Peak, there was a mountain god shrine properly granted by the Great Li court.

Besides, Chen Ping'an actually felt a special closeness to Jise Peak.

That day, in Zhu Lian's courtyard, Zheng Dafeng was playing Go with Wei Bo, while Cui Dongshan watched the game.

Chen Lingjun was nearby, telling them where to place their stones.

These two days, Chen Lingjun's waist was particularly stiff, because over the years he had wandered a lot in the western mountains and gotten to know many cultivators who had opened estates there. One of them, a Dragon Gate realm cultivator from Yellow Lake Mountain, had not been familiar with him before, and they even disliked each other because Yellow Lake Mountain had a lake with a huge python, and both Chen Lingjun and that black snake coveted it. Unexpectedly, around the turn of summer and autumn, the other side made friendly overtures. After a few drinks, that old Dragon Gate realm suddenly said he intended to sell Yellow Lake Mountain. At the table, he said Brother Chen had wide connections and many acquaintances, and was a guest at Lord Wei's Night Tour Banquet—could he help find a suitable buyer?

Chen Lingjun drank a big bowl of wine and slapped his chest in agreement. But after leaving Yellow Lake Mountain, his mood became heavy. He worried it might be a trap targeting Fallen Mountain. So he went to Chen Ping'an and told him about it. Then Cui Dongshan said, buy it. Take the cheap gain that comes your way. We have such a tall Cloud-Draped Mountain as our backing—what's to fear? Chen Ping'an told Chen Lingjun to work out the details. Price—immortal coins, gold essence copper coins—could be negotiated. If negotiations went badly, bring along our Lord Wei Mountain God for a chat.

Chen Lingjun's heart was thumping as he went dazedly to drink at Yellow Lake Mountain. After all, he was used to talking over drinks. In the end, he actually managed to cut the price down to just ten Grain Rain Coins.

At the time, Chen Lingjun was a bit stunned. I just threw out a random number to haggle back and forth, but the other side seemed to stand there dumbly and take the hit. What was going on?

Chen Lingjun went up the mountain in a daze, and came down even more dazed.

Chen Ping'an didn't say much either, so Fallen Mountain and Yellow Lake Mountain exchanged deeds and immortal coins, had them inspected and recorded by the Dragon Spring Prefecture Office as well as the Great Li Ministry of Rites and Ministry of Revenue, and finalized the deal very quickly.

Chen Ping'an privately asked Cui Dongshan, who laughed and said, "The old bastard finally did a good deed. Don't worry about it being a trap. Chen Lingjun finally did something decent for Fallen Mountain. After the ancestral hall is completed, on the merit and demerit ledger of the ancestral hall registry, we can give this little water snake a mark."

So now, Chen Lingjun walked with his nose in the air.

And Pei Qian, Chen Ruchu, and Zhou Mili all looked at him with new respect. Especially Pei Qian, who, along with Zhou Mili, didn't spare any flattery. If not for Cui Dongshan once pressing Chen Lingjun's head and saying, "Brother Chen, you've been walking a bit lofty lately," he might have restrained himself a bit, otherwise Chen Lingjun could have been even more cocky.

These days, Chen Ping'an was inventorying the family assets. Most needed to be cataloged into the ancestral hall treasury, and some were to be given as gifts from the mountain lord during the completion ceremony.

As for the matter of feeding Pei Qian punches, Chen Ping'an only did it once, and then there was no follow-up.

Even though he said it was fourth realm against fourth realm, in fact he still faced Pei Qian as fifth realm. But he still underestimated Pei Qian's movements. She hit him square in the face with one punch. Although as a Golden Body realm martial artist, he wouldn't be injured or bleed, Chen Ping'an's face as a master was completely lost. Before he could quietly raise his realm and use sixth realm to feed punches, Pei Qian refused to spar with her master anymore. She hung her head, listless, saying she had committed the mortal sin of great disrespect. The master might as well beat her to death—she absolutely wouldn't fight back. If she dared fight back, she would expel herself from the sect.

How could he teach boxing then?

The big one and the small one just walked barefoot to the second-floor corridor, leaning on the railing, watching the scenery together.

At the door of the bamboo building behind the master and disciple, two pairs of boots were neatly placed.

In the courtyard, Wei Bo, pinching a stone between two fingers, suddenly put it back into the bowl and laughed. "No more, no more. The ferry Zhu Lian is on has already entered the territory of Yellow Court Kingdom."

When Zheng Dafeng played chess, Pei Qian and the others usually kept far away from him. A person who took off his shoes and scratched his feet while eating sunflower seeds—better not get close.

Zheng Dafeng didn't mind Wei Bo's defaulting. One Snow Flower Coin per game was just small stakes for fun.

Cui Dongshan stood to one side, hands spread wide, letting Pei Qian and Zhou Mili hang on them like a swing.

Cui Dongshan smiled. "Go ahead, Lord Wei. Go pick him up. I'll take over the game. Brother Dafeng, what do you say?"

Zheng Dafeng glanced at the board. Wei Bo was already in a losing position. But since Cui Dongshan said so, Zheng Dafeng didn't immediately say yes or no. He looked a few more times before laughing. "What's the stake?"

Cui Dongshan smiled. "What stake? I'm not short of money."

Zheng Dafeng clicked his tongue. "Alright, then let's keep playing."

Pei Qian and Zhou Mili let go and landed.

Cui Dongshan sat in Wei Bo's seat, picked up a stone, and lightly placed it.

Zheng Dafeng glanced at Wei Bo behind Cui Dongshan, who smiled and said, "Watch a bit longer. Zhu Lian is on the ferry, spitting everywhere, busy scamming people for Fallen Mountain. Let's not spoil his fun."

Cui Dongshan placed stones like lightning.

Zheng Dafeng didn't believe it. Could he really turn the game around? He also placed stones quickly.

Even if the guy across from him was the author of the "Caiyun Manual," Zheng Dafeng didn't think he would lose.

In the end, of course, Zheng Dafeng followed Wei Bo's example and put his stone back in the bowl, chuckling. "No more, no more. I'll go with Wei Bo to pick up Brother Zhu. A day apart feels like three autumns. It's been so many days—I really miss him."

Cui Dongshan didn't care at all. He called over Chen Ruchu, who had been quietly sitting to the side eating sunflower seeds. "Come on, let's continue the game. I'll play for Brother Dafeng, and you take white. Otherwise, there's no suspense."

Chen Ruchu smiled and nodded.

She liked playing Go.

Otherwise, she wouldn't have been so absorbed watching Wei Bo and the others whenever she had free time.

Cui Dongshan didn't get up; he just swapped the positions of the bowls.

Cui Dongshan and Chen Ruchu continued the game.

Wei Bo and Zheng Dafeng walked out of the courtyard side by side.

Wei Bo smiled. "A bit embarrassing."

Zheng Dafeng nodded. "Yeah, a bit. Lucky Brother Zhu isn't here. If he kept playing, he'd probably still lose."

Before they got far,

Chen Lingjun shouted loudly, "What's going on? How did the silly girl win?"

Chen Ruchu said shyly, "Mr. Cui let me win on purpose."

Cui Dongshan looked innocent. "How could that be?"

Pei Qian stood behind Chen Ruchu, pressing heavily on her shoulders, and said in a deep voice, "Warm Tree! From today on, you are Fallen Mountain's Go number one! In the future, before Old Cook, Zheng Dafeng, Wei Bo, and the others play Go, they have to bow to you first to show respect!"

Lu Baixiang also had his own residence on Fallen Mountain.

The name of the residence, plaques, couplets, and such were still to be decided by Fallen Mountain, left for the owner to choose and arrange.

Chen Ruchu initially thought Zhu Lian's idea was very humane and agreed.

But Zhu Lian himself said, Fallen Mountain is short on money—let these heartless people pay for it themselves.

Wei Xian was relaxing at Lu Baixiang's place, drinking some wine. On the table were some appetizers, all prepared in advance by the little steward Chen Ruchu. Each house had different owners with different tastes, so different wines and dishes were provided.

Lu Baixiang's two direct disciples, the siblings Yuanbao and Yuanlai, sat nearby.

Yuanbao had a favorable impression of the stern Wei Xian, much better than her impression of Zhu Lian and Zheng Dafeng.

At the mountain gate.

Zhu Lian, who had been yanked directly from the ferry to the foot of Fallen Mountain by Wei Bo, was carrying a bundle and stooped like an old man. "This old frame of mine, travel-worn, windblown and sun-scorched, is really falling apart."

"Don't complain to us here. It won't do any good."

Zheng Dafeng laughed. "I've already had someone twist my ankle. These past days, Miss Cen has been watching the mountain gate. As for our Lord Wei Mountain God, he's at least a Jade Pu realm, but he still got chewed out bloody. Now we're just missing you."

Zhu Lian glanced at Wei Bo, then at Zheng Dafeng, and laughed. "If you two weren't trying to scare me, I might believe it. But as soon as you opened your mouths, you gave it away. Up the mountain, up, carefree."

Wei Bo reached out. "I win. One Snow Flower Coin."

Zheng Dafeng slapped Wei Bo's hand away. "You lost the chess game earlier. We're even."

Zhu Lian laughed heartily. "Just as I thought, a bluff reveals the truth."

Wei Bo smiled. "Don't believe him. He knew from the start. Otherwise, we'd lose another round."

Zheng Dafeng gave him a sidelong glance. "Do you have to say it?"

Zhu Lian wiped his mouth. "This long journey, lots of sights. Later, have Wei Bo bring two jars of good wine, and I'll tell you all about it slowly."

Zheng Dafeng immediately perked up. He remembered something and asked quietly, "How was it?"

Zhu Lian patted his bundle.

Zheng Dafeng nodded. "Brothers, we're truly first-class scholars. Live and learn till we're old."

Wei Bo rubbed his forehead.

Chen Ping'an stood alone on the second floor of the bamboo building, knowing Zhu Lian had arrived, but there was no need to go out of his way to greet him.

Cloud-Draped Mountain had received two letters from the Grand Seal Sword Sect earlier—one from Qi Jinglong and one from Baishou. Qi Jinglong's letter said that all one hundred Grain Rain Coins had been spent, buying a replica sword from Hate Sword Mountain and two sets of fine armor carefully forged by Sanlang Temple. The prices weren't cheap, but these three items were definitely good—too precious, so he would have the Hemp-Clad Sect cross-continent ferry deliver them to Oxhorn Mountain. The letter was concise, as was Qi Jinglong's style. At the end, it was a threat: if, after his three sword challenges succeeded, Xu Xingjiu of Cloud City came carrying a bamboo box to visit the mountain again, then Chen Ping'an had better weigh his options.

Baishou's letter was full of schadenfreude, saying that this Liu guy really opened people's eyes—though a sword challenge was imminent, he still ran off to Hate Sword Mountain and Sanlang Temple first, making the old men at the Grand Seal Sword Sect ancestral hall so worried they were about to pull out their beards. At Hate Sword Mountain, he ran into that Lady Lu from Shuijing Mountain—who knows what they talked about—but Lady Lu was so angry her eyes turned red, startling a whole crowd. At Sanlang Temple, another old flame popped up, apparently a woman with considerable status at Sanlang Temple. She followed them around from start to finish, with a look that could eat people. That Liu guy picked two treasures, settled the price, and ran off.

Chen Ping'an paced back and forth on the corridor, walking slowly.

Unexpectedly, before Zhu Lian arrived, Wei Bo came first.

He brought a confidential letter sent by flying sword, just received by Cloud-Draped Mountain. The writer was Fallen Mountain's guest elder, Zhou Fei.

After reading the letter, Chen Ping'an sighed. Was it that coincidental?

He went downstairs, took out a scroll, and tossed a gold essence copper coin into it.

Sui Youbian stepped out of the scroll.

Chen Ping'an asked, "What happened?"

Sui Youbian said indifferently, "Tried to kill someone but got killed instead. That's all. From now on, I'll continue cultivating at the True Mirror Sect on Book and Bamboo Slips Lake."

Even though Sui Youbian had been resurrected in the scroll, she still carried a thick murderous aura.

This showed that she had considerable grudges with someone at the Yuguizong on Tongye Continent. Whether it was fellow sect members or enemies made while training down the mountain was unclear.

Chen Ping'an didn't want to ask for details. He smiled. "Just in time. Fallen Mountain's ancestral hall is about to have its beam-raising ceremony, followed by formal portrait hanging and incense offering. Zhu Lian, Lu Baixiang, and Wei Xian are all on the mountain now."

Sui Youbian nodded and looked around. "So this is Fallen Mountain?"

Chen Ping'an said, "Feel free to look around on your own."

Sui Youbian said nothing, walked out of the house, and stood at the cliff's edge, gazing into the distance.

Chen Ping'an didn't follow. He sat on a small bamboo chair.

Zhu Lian and Zheng Dafeng, who had been walking on the path, came over and sat nearby.

Zheng Dafeng said with emotion, "Just realized what a nice view this is."

Chen Ping'an smiled. "You've worked hard."

Zhu Lian shook his head. "Far less than the young master."

Zheng Dafeng muttered, "You two have it easy. It's me who works hard."

After the beam-raising ceremony at Jise Peak's ancestral hall,

some guests had already arrived in Dragon Spring Commandery one after another.

An auspicious day was chosen. On that day, mountain lord Chen Ping'an led the hanging of portraits and offering of incense.

This formal establishment of Fallen Mountain's mountain gate was not made a big fuss. They did not invite many people they could have invited, such as the Fan and Sun families of Old Dragon City.

Some who were well-informed wanted very much to come but didn't dare to climb the mountain uninvited, like the two water gods of Yellow Court Kingdom.

And many friends were not suitable to appear in others' sight, so they had to keep their regrets to themselves.

Thus, those who came to witness the ceremony and offer congratulations were those who could get there conveniently: Northern Peak Mountain Lord Wei Bo, the vice-mountain lord of Cloud-Draped Mountain's Linlu Academy;

Dragon Spring Sword Sect Sect Leader Ruan Qiong, along with his two direct disciples—Golden Core cultivator Dong Gu and Dragon Gate realm sword cultivator Xu Xiaoqiao;

and Liu Zhongrun of Zhuichai Island on Turtle Fish Back.

These were the guests.

The rest were the people of this emerging mountain, Fallen Mountain.

In the ancestral hall hung three portraits.

An old scholar hung in the central position.

Qi Jingchun.

Cheng Cheng.

On the incense tablets below the three portraits, only names were written—no other text.

Mountain Lord Chen Ping'an.

Chief Disciple Pei Qian.

Student Cui Dongshan.

Student Cao Qinglang.

Zhu Lian, Lu Baixiang, Sui Youbian, Wei Xian.

Chen Lingjun, Chen Ruchu, Shi Rou.

Cen Yuanji, Yuanbao, Yuanlai.

Fallen Mountain Guardian, Zhou Mili.

Formal Protector, Zheng Dafeng.

Zhong Qiu.

"Jade Pu Realm Wild Cultivator" Zhou Fei.

Registered Protectors: Blind Daoist Jia Sheng, Zhao Denggao, Tian Jiuer.

From Northern Jambudvipa: Hemp-Clad Sect Nascent Soul Cultivator Du Wensi, Sect Ancestral Hall Direct Disciple Pang Lanxi.

The young mountain lord, closest to the three portraits, stood alone at the front.

No longer the thin lad in straw sandals with a face like charcoal.

Wearing a green shirt, a jade hairpin in his hair, tall and slender, holding incense in both hands, standing with his back to the crowd.