Chapter 624: Sword Cultivator

Chapter 624: Sword Cultivator

On top of the city wall, Qi Shou couldn't help but turn his head to look. Chen Ping'an had taken out stacks upon stacks of yellow paper talismans, making it look like a new shop had just opened. But who would he sell these low-grade talismans to? Could it be to the beasts of the Wildlands?

There really were a lot of talismans. Identical talismans were piled together in stacks, forming over a dozen small mounds of varying heights. More than a thousand talismans, at the very least.

The talisman paper was of very ordinary material, certainly not valuable. On this side of the Sword Qi Great Wall, such things weren't sold. Clearly, these were junk that Chen Ping'an had brought from the Haoran Allheavens. They didn't even count as the entry-level Yellow Seal talisman paper used by Qi Refiners in the lower five realms. They were truly just the yellow paper talismans sold everywhere in the mundane markets. If you added a peachwood sword, it would be the standard equipment of those wandering charlatan Daoists who swindled people at the foot of the mountains.

When Chen Ping'an finished setting up his display and turned to look at Qi Shou, Qi Shou knew something was wrong.

Chen Ping'an's gaze was as sincere as a father looking at his own son. He smiled and said, "Brother Qi, don't miss this opportunity as you pass by. I, Chen the Good, a traveling peddler, am a completely different person from that Second Shopkeeper at the tavern. My little peddling business here, small as it may be, has roamed the martial world of Bottle Gourd Continent, Parasol Leaf Continent, and North Jambu Continent for many years. Especially when it comes to talismans, I'm famous for good quality at low prices. My reputation is excellent. I've received countless gold-lettered plaques from customers who bought my talismans, reaped great benefits, and were so grateful they insisted on thanking me, no matter how much I tried to stop them. Brother Qi, any interest? We fight side by side—not friends, but better than friends. I can give you a discount. If Brother Qi doesn't have any spirit money on him, no problem. I'll allow credit, no interest. I'm a very reasonable person."

Qi Shou pretended not to hear.

But he couldn't withstand Chen Ping'an's endless chatter. Chen Ping'an explained the subtleties of over a dozen types of his talismans one by one. He said that the Heavenly Department Thunder Command Talisman, though derived from a side branch of orthodox lightning techniques, possessed great killing power. He said that the Great River Cross Flow Talisman, when used on battlefields where blood pooled like lakes and rivers, was perfectly suited. And the Gather Dust Talisman could raise mountain ranges from flat ground, used to hinder the advance of the demon army—when the talisman was deployed, mountains rose, extremely mysterious.

Qi Shou was annoyed beyond measure and finally sneered, "Although I'm merely a small Nascent Soul sword cultivator, not as impressive as the Second Shopkeeper, a great Third Realm cultivator, I am still a sword cultivator. What use would I have for your talismans? Burning yellow paper at graves? The Sword Qi Great Wall has no such custom."

Chen Ping'an picked up a stack of talismans, his patience unwavering, his smile undiminished. He explained to "Brother Qi," "These are opportunities of the Great Dao that I exchanged for countless jars of immortal fine wine. A certain Great Sword Immortal, dead drunk, accidentally leaked heavenly secrets and privately taught me this 'Road Guide Talisman.' Road Guide—it guides the way. It can let the living pass through checkpoints, and on the battlefield, it can also send enemies down the Yellow Springs road. Brother Qi, aren't you tempted? The battle hasn't truly reached a fever pitch yet. Just slaughtering beasts with flying swords is somewhat lacking in flavor. It's like drinking at my tavern—no matter how good the wine, how unmatched on the Sword Qi Great Wall, you still need pickled vegetables and Yangchun noodles to go with it for the ultimate taste."

Chen Ping'an switched hands, picking up another large stack of talismans. "This talisman has an even greater origin. It's the Great Sword Immortal's own treasured ultimate technique—the 'Sword Qi Bridge-Crossing Talisman.' Brother Qi, your realm may not be high right now, but I believe you have good eyes. Take a look—how intricate the brushwork is! Each talisman, though seemingly small, is essentially a genuine talisman formation. I won't say more. Just think about how much immortal cinnabar was consumed to draw them! Brother Qi, how can you judge these talismans as worthless just because the paper isn't top-grade? Brother Qi, I never expected you to be such a superficial person who judges by appearances. I'm very disappointed. Even Li Zhen was killed by me on the battlefield. In a one-on-one duel, you and I fought back and forth, and in the end, you lost by just a hair. That means you are at least a genius who surpasses Li Zhen by a notch. At Tuoyue Mountain, it wouldn't be hard for you to become the senior disciple..."

Qi Shou roared angrily, "Chen Ping'an! Are you ever going to stop?! During battle, kindly focus on riding your sword and killing enemies! Even if you dare to be distracted and don't value your own life, don't drag others down with you!"

Chen Ping'an put down the two stacks of talismans, used the folded fan to tap his chest lightly, looked toward the southern battlefield, and smiled. "Since Brother Qi has no intention of buying for now, that's fine. In business, eyesight comes first. I'll just enjoy watching Brother Qi, this hero's beast-slaying. Over in the city, some people have slight criticisms of Brother Qi's methods of killing enemies, calling them too cruel. In my opinion, they're excellent. The little bit of aristocratic young master's airs Brother Qi has, the arrogance of a genius sword cultivator who looks down on everyone, the selfishness that can't tolerate peers stronger than himself—those are minor flaws. But once on the battlefield, Brother Qi transforms into a true hero. To be able to tolerate a Chen Ping'an within the city whom he wants to kill but cannot, and even to suppress some displeasure to join me in killing enemies and holding the line—such a sword cultivator as Qi Shou truly has the bearing of a first-rate sword immortal..."

Qi Shou took a deep breath. "So you mean that unless I buy your crappy talismans, you'll keep nagging forever?"

Chen Ping'an opened his fan, smiled, and said, "No more, no more. Brother Qi, just focus on your graceful sword strikes."

Qi Shou withdrew his gaze and continued to control his Flying Kite and Heartstring flying swords to slay monsters.

Compared to the first battle, the proportion of demon cultivators who had taken human form in the besieging army was noticeably higher this time. It was no longer just unenlightened beasts that the sword cultivators on the wall wouldn't even count as battle merits if they killed. In the opening battle of the first day, those monsters, which weren't even considered proper cultivators, were mostly driven forward. Their only use was to pile up their corpses into mountains, filling the deep valleys and chasms opened up by the sword immortals, and to soak the earth with their blood and flesh, affecting the heavenly and earthly advantages.

In fact, Qi Shou completely looked down on the talismans of the Five Elements types. Only the Road Guide Talisman and the Bridge-Crossing Talisman—especially the latter—did pique his interest slightly. Because there were indeed wisps of sword qi flowing on the talisman paper, which couldn't be faked. Within the talisman core, the sword intent was small but pure. When Chen Ping'an said a Great Sword Immortal had privately taught him, Qi Shou believed it to some extent.

But Qi Shou could hold his section of the battlefield without difficulty. He simply didn't want to do business with Chen Ping'an. No matter how eloquently the latter spoke, his reputation as the Second Shopkeeper for selling wine and running the gambling house was already completely ruined on the Sword Qi Great Wall. No other bookmaker had ever lost money like he did. In the entire history of the Sword Qi Great Wall, such a thing had never happened before. The more experienced gamblers cursed him the loudest. Didn't Chen Ping'an himself know that?

The sword cultivator who had replaced Xie Songhua and Liu Xianyang at their positions was an old Nascent Soul cultivator who had been silent since arriving at this section of the wall. He was Cheng Quan, who had fallen from the Upper Five Realms back to the Nascent Soul realm. He used to love quarreling with the sword immortal Zhao Gezhi for most of his life. They would sit at opposite ends of the city wall, one south and one north, and if they disagreed, they'd spit at each other. In the past, when facing off against Zhao Gezhi, the old Nascent Soul cultivator talked a lot. But away from Zhao Gezhi, alone and seemingly without an opponent, he remained silent the whole time.

In fact, south of the city, there was a private residence left behind by a sword immortal, obtained by Cheng Quan's grandmaster through battle merits and later registered under Cheng Quan's name. Because the entire lineage of Cheng Quan—family and sect—had died out except for him. It was a similar situation to the female sword immortal Zhou Cheng.

Cheng Quan's sword strikes were extremely crisp. His flying sword, "Water Mountain," wherever it passed, left behind peaks that looked like carved jade in the high sky, smashing demons into pulp. If a demon cultivator was lucky enough to survive or dodge, more peaks would be thrown. Once a peak was shattered by a demon cultivator of considerable realm using a magic treasure, it would turn into jade-green lake water. Upon hitting the ground, it would instantly freeze the battlefield. Then the demons would look up to see another mountain crashing down from above.

So compared to his two neighbors—Chen Ping'an unleashing all four flying swords, and Qi Shou slaughtering demons—Cheng Quan's battlefield was very clean and tidy.

What opened Chen Ping'an's eyes even more wasn't just that. It was that many relatively weak demon souls were easily and involuntarily drawn into the lake, eventually shattering together with the frozen water.

In fact, Cheng Quan also had a seemingly useless natal flying sword called "Rubbing Stele." Besides that, he had a major refined natal object whose name was unknown, but it had the subtlety of a bonsai—placing stones for mountains, placing water for rivers.

So in earlier years, Cheng Quan's Dao-teaching master was one of the sword immortals who led teams to hunt in the Wildlands. He would first minor-refine rivers and peaks, then bring them back to the Sword Qi Great Wall for his disciple Cheng Quan to medium-refine. The latter, after offering up the small mountains and fine waters from the bonsai, combined with the Rubbing Stele's divine ability of his natal flying sword, would create strange phenomena on the battlefield: rivers surging, mountains rising abruptly. Then, pulled by the Rubbing Stele's sword intent, the rivers would suddenly swell, and the mountains would grow taller.

That was why, during the battle after the Conflict of Thirteen, Cheng Quan was targeted by a great demon named Chongguang, who used a sneak attack to cause Cheng Quan to drop in realm. Because in one-on-one duels, a Jade Pure realm Cheng Quan might not be particularly eye-catching among sword immortals. But on the battlefield, sword immortals like him and the Jade Pure realm Wu Chengpei, who had a flying sword called "Sweet Rain," could cause massive casualties to the Wildlands' besieging army.

Chen Ping'an turned his head. Cheng Quan said indifferently, "Shut up. I don't have money for you to swindle."

Chen Ping'an smiled. "Yes, sir!"

Qi Shou found it somewhat funny and exasperating. Good heavens, why was Chen Ping'an so easy to talk to with Cheng Quan, even though he was also a Nascent Soul sword cultivator?

Not only that, Qi Shou noticed that Chen Ping'an, after being rebuffed, didn't hold a grudge. Instead, he tossed a jar of Qingshen Mountain wine—worth five Snowflake Coins—to the old man from a distance.

Cheng Quan removed the mud seal, sniffed it, and said disdainfully, "Too weak. This counts as wine? Only a woman like Zhao Gezhi would drink this."

Despite saying that, he still drank the wine.

Unexpectedly, Chen Ping'an then threw over another jar of the tavern's new strong liquor. Cheng Quan smelled it and nodded. "Now this counts as wine. No wonder your shop does good business. If you brought this tavern to the city wall, I'd buy from you too."

Chen Ping'an smiled. "No credit."

Cheng Quan glanced sideways at the young man. "Heard you got knocked flat by a little girl with one punch at the Ning Estate's gate?"

Chen Ping'an lightly tapped his palm with the fan. "Not to hide it from Senior Cheng, showing weakness to the enemy is my specialty. No matter who fights me, their chances of winning are high. For example, my Brother Qi here."

In the second battle, with the same four flying swords—First and Fifteen, Pine Needle, and Cough Thunder—Chen Ping'an handled things more and more easily, his flying swords extremely fast.

Speaking of controlling flying swords, indeed he was most adept at it. He wasn't constrained by various principles, so his mind was purer. Principles were good, but too many could also weigh a person down, and flying swords would naturally slow by a hair. A hair's breadth difference could mean the gap between clouds and mud.

Cheng Quan felt this kid's way of speaking was much more interesting than Zhao Gezhi's.

So the old Nascent Soul directly moved his position and sat next to Chen Ping'an. "I hear the Haoran Allheavens has many strange mountains and exotic waters that can cleanse one's ears and brighten one's eyes, worthy of viewing and lingering over?"

Chen Ping'an didn't even turn his head to reply. He gazed ahead and smiled. "It's just that. After seeing too much, especially when you have to trek through them, you'll get tired of it too. Everywhere you look, your view is blocked. It's hard to let the heart fly like a bird passing over Zhongnan. For Dao-seekers back in my homeland, after living long in the mountains, they get restless from stillness and roll around in the mortal world beyond the landscapes. Going down the mountain just to go up again isn't very meaningful either."

Cheng Quan somewhat regretted moving to sit here. This guy's talk had been spirited earlier, but now he was being evasive and boring. No fun at all.

Chen Ping'an pulled out a copy of the *Two Hundred Sword Immortals Seal Manual* from his bosom. Grinning, he turned to Cheng Quan. "Senior Cheng, take a look and see if there are any seals you're interested in. Business has been so good that almost all are sold out. But if Senior Cheng asks, I can not only carve new ones but also give a discount. Even if Senior Cheng doesn't think much of them himself, just reselling them could earn you enough for a jar or two of wine. Why not?"

Cheng Quan took the seal manual and casually flipped open a page. With a smirk, he said, "In business, when someone picks a seal, on the surface it's about catching the eye, but in reality, it's a sign of where their heart belongs. You let them pick, which lets you both earn money and read a person's heart. Second Shopkeeper, good business indeed."

"Reading the heart is about deliberation. Is knocking on the door better, or pushing it open? I think neither is good."

Then Chen Ping'an shook his fan, looking deeply wronged. "Senior Cheng, don't rely on your exquisite swordsmanship—which stands out even among many sword immortals—to talk nonsense and bully a junior. Although right now, Senior Cheng is drinking, reading, striking with his sword, and using sword qi to turn pages while killing demons as an accompaniment to wine—truly a romantic scholar-official's style."

Although Cheng Quan casually flipped through the seal manual, his sword strikes were in no way sloppy. And though Chen Ping'an had resumed his peddling act, his sword strikes were equally unimpeded.

Cheng Quan saw a seal's side inscription. He paused for a moment, about to deliberately turn the page, but his peripheral vision caught that shameless little bastard staring straight at him. Then the latter gave a knowing smile, as if to say: I understand. I see but won't tell. Senior Cheng needn't feel embarrassed. Cheng Quan thus didn't care anymore. He reached out and rubbed the characters, especially the last two—"fair lady"—which filled the old sword cultivator with deep emotion.

"Tattered hat, ragged clothes, humble donkey; blue mountains, green waters, old road; morning dew, evening clouds, starry river; lantern flame, flower basket, fair lady."

He, Cheng Quan, and that Zhao Gezhi had competed their whole lives. He never knew which one she truly liked. She only said she would like whoever first reached the Immortal realm.

At the time, Cheng Quan was of a higher realm and better aptitude, so he said she must like him.

Zhao Gezhi, on the other hand, always said she had good intentions back then, hoping to motivate his, Zhao Gezhi's, Dao heart.

Each had their own reasoning. They argued for countless years.

Once, on the Sword Qi Great Wall, there was a female sword immortal named Song Yuncai, of peerless elegance.

She, Cheng Quan, and Zhao Gezhi all came from the same humble alley. In the years when the three were all Upper Five Realm sword cultivators fighting side by side, that alley, which produced three sword immortals at once, became so famous that even far-off Inverted Suspension Mountain, the Rain Dragon Sect beyond it, and the Southern Bodhi Continent further away had heard of it.

Cheng Quan tossed the *Two Hundred Sword Immortals Seal Manual* back to Chen Ping'an and said offhandedly, "When you become a sword cultivator in the future, don't get too involved in the mortal world."

Chen Ping'an put away the seal manual. Today's two peddling attempts had failed, and he'd even given away two jars of immortal brew for free. But since Cheng Quan had mentioned sword cultivation, and three strikes were unlucky—it was a good omen. He smiled. "I'll take the senior's good wishes. I'll talk about it after I become a sword cultivator."

They both fell silent, each continuing to strike with their swords.

Qi Shou was a little envious of the Second Shopkeeper. He could chat with anyone.

An hour later.

Cheng Quan suddenly said, "In my opinion, setting aside your boxing arts and magic treasures, you have quick wit—that's your most valuable asset. If I asked you to carve that seal just now, keeping the side inscription the same but changing the seal text, what would you engrave? As I see it, with the *Two Hundred Sword Immortals Seal Manual* and all those fan inscriptions, so many miscellaneous texts, you could just copy and paste from books you've read. At most, you'd adapt them a bit. That doesn't count as real skill. A disciple of the Wen Sheng lineage, with a belly full of learning, shouldn't be limited to that."

This time, it was Cheng Quan's turn to be amazed. The Second Shopkeeper directly took out a blank seal block. "Senior Cheng, do me a favor and look after my section of the battlefield. Of course, the battle merits still count as mine, eh?"

With Cheng Quan helping to block enemies, it was very stable.

Chen Ping'an openly used the break in the action. He recalled his four flying swords, letting three of them slip into the Sword-Nurturing Gourd for a moment of rest. He used only the flying sword Fifteen as a carving knife. Not only did he change the seal text, but he also altered the side inscription of the seal.

He handed it to Cheng Quan. Cheng Quan clenched it in his palm, raised it to look, expressionless, and nodded. "Passable."

That new seal, which seemed to catch his eye but wasn't truly cherished, was tucked into Cheng Quan's sleeve.

Old friends are even more fair; generous and full of unusual integrity.

A youth's heart had a peak, suddenly stolen by clouds.

Seal text: Careless.

Chen Ping'an wasn't in a hurry to resume launching his swords. He let Cheng Quan continue clearing the battlefield. He muttered to himself, "When the heart holds great beauty, it doesn't fear being seen."

Chen Ping'an used that student Cui Dongshan's gift—the jade bamboo folding fan—to fan himself and help Senior Cheng as well. He chuckled, "A seal tailor-made for you, Senior. The material is excellent, and every stroke of the knife is heartfelt. The original price isn't high—one Guyu Coin. Plus, Senior Cheng is a sword immortal, so twenty percent off. And now you're helping me kill enemies, so fifty percent off! That's just five Xiaoshu Coins!"

Chen Ping'an lowered his voice and added, "If it were me, I'd skip the discount. One Guyu Coin, and that's that."

Cheng Quan ignored the young man. The old sword cultivator's expression was dazed. A smile slowly spread across his weathered face. He murmured, "She was the most beautiful woman on our Sword Qi Great Wall. Very pretty."

He then said to Chen Ping'an gravely, "Even more striking than your Ning Yao."

But the scholar's face changed faster than turning a page.

Chen Ping'an immediately cursed, "Bullshit! Go fuck your mother!"

Cheng Quan instead found this amusing. It was a familiar scene. He wasn't afraid of this at all. But having drunk the man's wine and taken his seal, it was hard to curse back. He smiled. "Why are you cursing people?"

Chen Ping'an asked, "If you suppressed your realm to the Third Realm, see if I'd still curse you?"

Cheng Quan smiled and warned, "Second Shopkeeper, if you keep this up, I won't be polite."

Qi Shou was helpless.

That pair, one old and one young, their quarrel sounded like a two-hundred-man brawl.

Fortunately, neither neglected their sword strikes to block the enemy.

That was to be expected. One was an old sword cultivator seasoned in battle; the other was a meticulous Second Shopkeeper.

The only thing Qi Shou hadn't anticipated was that they could really curse.

It seemed Chen Ping'an was gaining the upper hand, because some of his curses were in his hometown dialect or refined speech from other continents.

Cheng Quan couldn't understand, so he had to guess what the other was saying. Sometimes Chen Ping'an, with a pitying look, mixed praise and insults in other dialects, occasionally repeating them in the Sword Qi Great Wall's language. For Cheng Quan to counterattack, he had to guess the truth of the words. Thus, he was in a bit of a bind. His years of mutual sharpening with Zhao Gezhi in the art of quarreling were inevitably greatly reduced.

It was very lively.

When Fan Dache came to deliver wine to Chen Ping'an, his scalp tingled.

Fan Dache only came once and dared not come again. He had Dong Huafu, who had temporarily withdrawn from the battlefield to rest, deliver the wine. Dong Huafu loved this lively atmosphere. He sat to one side, ears perked up. He could nurture his sword while watching the show. He felt he was learning a lot of new knowledge. Moreover, Dong Huafu's talent for adding fuel to the fire and stoking the flames was a unique gift no one else could imitate.

After ten days, with no cease-fire in the confrontation, Cheng Quan and Chen Ping'an once again had a break.

In fact, Qi Shou was the one most tormented.

Chen Ping'an often brought him up: "My Brother Qi, this and that," "Thirty-something and already a Nascent Soul sword cultivator, Old Cheng, have some shame and stay away from Qi Shou." "Old Cheng, it's one thing that your realm isn't high, but I hear you only have two natal flying swords. Brother Qi has how many? And the key is, each of Brother Qi's flying swords is of an extremely high grade unseen in a thousand or ten thousand years. How can you, Old Cheng, compare?"

With Cheng Quan's temper, once provoked, he would curse not only Qi Shou but the entire Qi family for eighteen generations.

Cheng Quan laughed. "Brother Chen, after sparring with you, my quarrels with that sissy Zhao Gezhi are now on solid ground."

Chen Ping'an shook his fan, smiling. "Let me, your father, say something fair. I can curse both of you by myself."

Cheng Quan glared. "Give you an inch, and you take a mile? Want to go again?!"

Chen Ping'an seemed to fall silent but then used sound transmission to speak secretly with Cheng Quan.

Cheng Quan seemed to weigh the pros and cons, then finally nodded and said to Qi Shou, "You, that Qi brat with eyes on top of your head, Grandpa Cheng sees that you have unusual bone structure. How about I give you a fortune?"

Qi Shou played deaf and dumb.

Cheng Quan had two stacks of talismans appear in his hand and went over to Qi Shou's side.

After a moment, Cheng Quan returned to his original spot—not next to Chen Ping'an, but to the section of the wall where the female sword immortal Xie Songhua and the scholar Liu Xianyang had first stood.

Qi Shou picked out two talismans, one Road Guide and one Bridge-Crossing, and examined them closely. The two types were of a higher grade than he had imagined. Drawing them on such coarse paper was a waste. Qi Shou hesitated for a moment before finally communicating with Chen Ping'an via heart voice: "What exactly are you playing at?"

Cheng Quan had said that Qi Shou's natal flying sword, Jumping Pearl, had not yet been refined to the point of perfection. It had quantity but still lacked some power. Then he offered some predecessor's advice that Qi Shou had to seriously chew over—insights on sword control from both Cheng Quan and Zhao Gezhi. They might not completely suit Qi Shou's sword strikes, but for a Nascent Soul cultivator prone to falling into a motionless mountain-like state, even a shred of benefit to the Great Dao could not be ignored.

Additionally, Cheng Quan suggested that Qi Shou might as well do business with Chen Ping'an. He wouldn't lose out. If he did, he could demand compensation from Zhao Gezhi.

Chen Ping'an laughed. "Helping others is helping yourself."

Chen Ping'an added, "As for whether to give the Wildlands a little surprise, that's up to you. I never force a sale. It's all about mutual willingness—the earner is happy, the spender is glad."

Qi Shou fell into deep thought.

Cheng Quan's earlier plan was simple yet complicated.

Simple, because that Jumping Pearl flying sword, which had the potential to eventually become a divine weapon, could transform into hundreds or thousands of real flying swords with undiminished sword intent. Since quantity was sufficient, they could add something extra, like bestowing a new natal divine ability upon the flying sword.

Complicated, because this casually mentioned "adding something" involved an extremely intricate process. It required someone to supplement each flying sword with talismans. The flying swords had to be interlinked, with each Jumping Pearl forming a talisman formation, eventually turning all Jumping Pearl flying swords into a grand talisman formation.

Beyond that, Qi Shou had a hidden worry: He feared the effort might not be worth the gain, allowing Chen Ping'an to become too familiar with his natal flying sword, Jumping Pearl, during the process.

After all, this Jumping Pearl flying sword, even more than the inherited semi-divine weapon "High Candle," was the very foundation of Qi Shou's Great Dao.

Whether in life-or-death combat or battlefield slaughter, if Qi Shou could control a thousand genuine Jumping Pearl flying swords, what would it look like?

What would his opponents feel?

As Qi Shou himself had said, away from the city wall, he and Chen Ping'an were enemies.

Chen Ping'an suddenly said with a smile, "Have you ever thought that with the Qi family's deep background, once this idea occurs to you, and before your Jumping Pearl's grade peaks, you could learn this talisman divine ability from me? If you can follow the pattern, it's just spending money. But you'd gain a whole new way to fight. Which is worse—letting me become familiar with Jumping Pearl's unique divine ability, or Qi Shou gaining real combat power? Brother Qi, Brother Qi, weigh it for yourself."

Qi Shou looked down at the two stacks of talismans he hadn't yet returned. Frowning, he said, "After my breakthrough, I can now control nearly seven hundred Jumping Pearl flying swords. Can these yellow paper talismans really form a formation? And what's the price per talisman? If it ends up being a useless trick that the demon Upper Five Realm sword cultivators can easily break during a confrontation, what then? And most importantly, will you truly teach me everything, revealing every subtlety of the talisman formation? And even if you do, I'm a pure sword cultivator in the midst of successive battles. How can I learn talismans on my own? If you're just painting a pie that I can't eat even after spending money, what's the point?"

Chen Ping'an clicked his tongue. "Brother Qi, you're not being generous enough. Partnering with me in business never results in a loss—just more or less profit. I'm not saying this lightly; it's a fact you can see with your own eyes."

Finally, Chen Ping'an turned his head, closed his fan, and shook his head with a regretful expression. "Brother Qi, is treating me as a life-or-death enemy outside the battlefield worthy of the sword immortal Great Dao you consider within your grasp?"

Chen Ping'an used his fan to beckon, drawing the two stacks of talismans back to his side. He smiled. "Business aside, friendship remains. I'll give you a free sage's teaching, Brother Qi: 'The gentleman respects what is in himself and does not long for what is from Heaven; therefore he advances daily.'"

Cheng Quan transmitted his voice with a laugh. "So the deal is dead?"

Chen Ping'an said, "It's only human. If it were me, I wouldn't agree easily either."

Cheng Quan nodded. "The talisman formation is indeed a bit half-baked. It shows Qi Shou has some brains not to be swindled by you."

Chen Ping'an laughed. "You can't say that. This talisman method of mine was extremely hard to come by. Once it works, the power really isn't small..."

Cheng Quan was stunned. "Wait, you mean there's no guarantee whether it will work or not?!"

Chen Ping'an replied, "Did I say to you or Qi Shou that it would definitely work right away? Besides, drawing talismans relies most on talent, and practice makes perfect—that's only natural. What's the harm in wasting a few hundred talismans first? Qi Shou has plenty of money; why be afraid of such a small loss? If I were a little less conscientious, I'd directly bring out stacks of Yellow Seal paper. That would be enough to make even an immortal wince at the cost."

Cheng Quan laughed heartily. "Brother Chen, helping others while practicing your own talisman drawing, and making money too—three birds with one stone. A well-played game."

Chen Ping'an grinned. "Killing a pig and complaining it's too fat?"

Cheng Quan was highly amused.

But Chen Ping'an finally said, "Still, watching this greatest war under heaven, I truly look forward to Qi Shou's thousand swords flying at once. Even though I'm not a sword cultivator yet, just imagining that scene lifts my spirit."

"The gentleman respects what is in himself and does not long for what is from Heaven; therefore he advances daily."

This sage's teaching, this good principle, actually came from the works of Chen Ping'an's teacher.

Would it be better if one could admire what others have while simultaneously respecting what is in oneself even more?

In the future, he must discuss this small doubt, this trivial insight from reading, with his teacher.

Qi Shou asked, "How much for each yellow paper talisman?"

Chen Ping'an tucked the fan at his waist, stood up, hunched over, and scurried to Qi Shou's side, muttering, "Brother Qi, please help me kill enemies for a moment, and I'll explain in detail. I guarantee that the more talismans you buy, the bigger the discount! Our brotherly bond, where grudges and kindness are clearly separated, is priceless!"

Then, once beside Qi Shou, Chen Ping'an turned and shouted, "Old Brother Cheng! Give Brother Qi's section a hand. Show some senior style. In at most a short while, Brother Qi can return to the wall."

Chen Ping'an brought Qi Shou away from the wall. Together, they crouched on the horse path at the base of the wall. He gathered his voice to a thread and said softly, "Different talismans have different prices. Brother Qi isn't the type to haggle, so I'll give you a fair package deal. Half price: one thousand talismans, not one less, for just three Guyu Coins."

Qi Shou was about to get up and leave.

One thousand yellow papers in the Haoran Allheavens—how much would that cost? A few dozen silver taels at most.

Even if the cinnabar used for drawing talismans was indeed consumed in considerable quantity, given Chen Ping'an's stingy nature, if he could draw over a thousand talismans at once with immortal cinnabar, the grade couldn't be too high. At most, it would cost a few Xiaoshu Coins.

Chen Ping'an didn't stop him. He just said to himself, "My talisman formation is related to the Three Mountains and Nine Marquis. Of course, it's not a direct copy. To be honest, with my current realm, I don't have the ability to draw it exactly. But the foundation of the talisman formation is indeed of great origin and closely connected. Besides that, I will certainly use my lifetime's best talisman-drawing skill, holding nothing back, to save Brother Qi one talisman at a time. Of course, let me say in advance, since this is a long-lost talisman formation, not simple talisman drawing, there will be some waste. Brother Qi should be mentally prepared. And how to attach the talisman's meaning to the sword body is another remarkable unique art."

Qi Shou crouched back down.

In mountain cultivation, the hard part is the stepping stone. Ten thousand gold cannot buy one technique.

That was the rule.

Qi Shou squinted and smiled. "Did you plan all along to do this business with me, so you made all these talismans with a specific purpose? And could you even guess in advance that we'd be neighbors?"

"Look, Brother Qi is again measuring a sage's heart with a gentleman's measure. You're wronging me to death."

Chen Ping'an looked a bit embarrassed. He picked up a stack of talisman paper and fanned through the sheets with his finger. It turned out that except for the first and last few, the rest were blank. Chen Ping'an said helplessly, "Drawing talismans is one of the most meticulous tasks. Last time, when I fought Li Zhen to the point of a sky-darkening battle, I lost too many priceless talismans. I was severely injured, dropped three realms. Brother Qi, be fair—can you imagine how much that hurt? After that, I've been stretched thin. I had to practice boxing and repair my realm. These talisman papers haven't been drawn yet. So I forgot to mention earlier: the labor fee for drawing, plus the battle merits lost from not killing demons..."

Qi Shou sneered. "Cheng Quan kills demons for you. The battle merits aren't lost."

Chen Ping'an went, "Oh, then we'll just talk about the labor fee for the hard work of drawing. In our Haoran Allheavens, there's the custom of a 'moistening brush fee.' Brother Qi can give a token amount. Two or three Xiaoshu Coins—a drop in the bucket."

Qi Shou said, "The Sword Qi Great Wall has no such custom."

Chen Ping'an said, "Then three Guyu Coins really can't be discounted anymore."

Qi Shou said, "Are you intentionally fleecing me?"

"Brother Qi, I won't allow you to belittle yourself like that. But calling yourself an easy mark is fine."

After saying this, Chen Ping'an burst into rare hearty laughter and patted Qi Shou on the shoulder. "I'm reminded of an old friend who parted ways cleanly and would still think fondly of reunion. Brother Qi will surely be like him—extremely lucky and live to the end."

Qi Shou shrugged off Chen Ping'an's hand and frowned.

Chen Ping'an looked up, staring at Qi Shou, and smiled. "I was right about Brother Qi. No need to fight to the death on the battlefield."

Qi Shou asked, "What do you mean?"

Chen Ping'an laughed. "Guess."

Qi Shou smiled too. "Aren't you afraid I'm playing along? Don't forget, there are many Jumping Pearl flying swords. You still don't know exactly how many I have. Can you really keep an eye on every detail of my battlefield?"

Chen Ping'an nodded. "I have nothing better to do. And I'm very good at it."

Qi Shou remembered something.

From the clan's ancestor, he heard that all sword immortals on the Sword Qi Great Wall had recently received a strange order: at different stages, different sword immortals were to hold back their sword strikes.

This was definitely not something the Oldest Sword Immortal would willingly do.

If anyone wanted to defect, dare to betray—go ahead.

If they could hide deep enough, that counted as skill. But if they couldn't hide it well and the Oldest Sword Immortal saw through them, death was certain.

So it must have been an outsider's suggestion.

Besides that, many young sword cultivators had received a strange talisman from the Cloth Workshop that could conceal their form.

In the past, it wasn't that no one on the Sword Qi Great Wall could draw such talismans. It was that no sword cultivator thought it necessary.

Some might have wanted it, but they could only bury that thought, which seemed cowardly, deep in their hearts.

So still, an outsider had managed to convince the Oldest Sword Immortal to force the young sword cultivators to all carry this talisman.

Moreover, aside from the top ten and certain key sword immortals who couldn't move, many other sword immortals had begun silently rotating their defense positions.

Qi Shou asked, "Did you say something to the Oldest Sword Immortal?"

Chen Ping'an smiled. "Now, not only do the beasts of the Wildlands want me dead, but quite a few sword immortals who have to find a new path for themselves also want me dead."

Qi Shou's expression was strange. "Aren't you afraid of death? What are you after?"

Chen Ping'an tapped his own shoulder lightly with his fan. "When I want to die, you won't be able to foresee my moves. When I want to live, you'll be even more unable to."

Qi Shou simply sat down on the ground, leaning against the wall. He reached out. "Give me a jar of wine."

Chen Ping'an sat down beside him and tossed over a jar of Bamboo Sea Cave Heaven wine. He himself took off the Sword-Nurturing Gourd that still housed the four flying swords.

He had heard that the Sword-Nurturing Gourds soon to ripen and fall from the Spring Banners Studio on Inverted Suspension Mountain were of very high grade, but the price was too high, and they had long been unavailable on the market.

Qi Shou said to Cheng Quan, "Senior Cheng, wait a moment. Let me drink one more jar of wine."

Chen Ping'an immediately shouted, "All battle merits Brother Qi earns while drinking count as mine!"

Qi Shou was helpless. He had used his heart's ripple to transmit his words to Cheng Quan.

Qi Shou drank the wine and asked, "What about the old scores between us?"

Chen Ping'an smiled. "The Qi family's bullying in that year was all done openly. I can actually accept that. Strong force, hard fists, straightforwardness—that's another form of treating people sincerely. I may not like that principle, but I'll bear it. It's too simple, too worry-free. You can even have right and wrong cover each other, compensate each other, add and subtract. When the time comes that I can throw a punch or a sword strike, if the past remains unchanged, then it's simple: I'll return everything in full. Qi Shou, many real difficulties—not that I look down on you—are what really weigh on your heart in the Haoran Allheavens. It's much more troublesome. If you ever get a chance to go there and look around, remember to take it easy."

Qi Shou shook his head. "I'm not interested in the Haoran Allheavens. I'd rather travel deep into the Wildlands, like A Liang, and challenge the strongest."

Chen Ping'an smiled. "Drawing your sword and leaving your homeland, traveling thousands of miles without attachments—that's very sword immortal."

Chen Ping'an put away the Sword-Nurturing Gourd. "Time to work and earn money."

Qi Shou summoned six hundred and thirty-two Jumping Pearl flying swords, clustering them at the base of the wall. He himself prepared to return to the wall.

Chen Ping'an suddenly said in a low voice, "If all the key talismans were replaced with Yellow Seal or better paper, the talisman formation plus sword formation would be extraordinary. Brother Qi, if you unleashed your swords beyond the wall, the power would be greater than heaven!"

Qi Shou stopped and asked curiously, "How much would that cost?"

Chen Ping'an thought for a moment, looked north, and laughed. "I'm in a great mood. I'll only charge you the same spirit money."

Qi Shou had just turned around when he heard the man say, "Just five."

Qi Shou turned his head.

The man asked, "Brother Qi, a heart-to-heart talk between us. Is it not worth two Guyu Coins?"

Qi Shou shook his head with a stern face and said solemnly, "No."

The man sighed helplessly. "Brother Qi always underestimates himself like this. That's not good."

Qi Shou leaped back onto the wall. He thanked Senior Cheng Quan.

---

Inside the secret chamber of the Ning Estate.

Chen Ping'an opened his eyes.

He was surprised to find his body intact, without a scratch.

Bewildered, he walked out of the secret chamber in a daze and came to the martial arts field. All along the way, heaven and earth were silent.

There was no sign of Nurse Bai. He walked all the way to the Dragon-Slaying Cliff. It felt as if, vast as heaven and earth were, only he existed.

Chen Ping'an looked up. Someone split the sky like opening a curtain and came to the martial arts field.

Chen Ping'an's mind stirred. For some unknown reason, he felt an unbearable sensation. A certain Qi Mansion he had never deliberately opened surged turbulently. But this strange feeling vanished in an instant.

The one who came to the Ning Estate was the Oldest Sword Immortal—merely a projection of his soul.

Chen Ping'an cupped his fists. "Thank you, Oldest Sword Immortal, for the sword strike. And thank you again for concealing heaven and earth."

Chen Qingdu smiled. "The sword strike was real, but what concealment of heaven and earth are you talking about?"

Chen Ping'an was even more perplexed.

Chen Qingdu said, "In ten thousand years, there have been countless sword cultivators. It's rare to have a natal flying sword and not even know it."

Chen Qingdu laughed, looked around, and nodded. "Placed within it—a fine 'caged bird.'"

Chen Ping'an understood.

Great joy in his heart.

Chen Qingdu asked, "Detaining the opponent within the heavens and earth—is that not enough? What about the second natal flying sword?"

In an instant, between heaven and earth, aside from Chen Ping'an and Chen Qingdu, everything became flying swords—layer upon layer, dense, beyond counting.

In my heaven and earth, all are caged birds.

If I am not a sword cultivator, then who is?!