Chapter 752: What a Coincidence

Chapter 752: What a Coincidence

On the night of the fifteenth, the moon shone like water, the night as bright as day. By the banks of Yellow Crane Rock, one of the eighteen scenic spots of Cloud Grotto Blessed Land, the scenery was exceptionally fine, and tonight it was especially moving. There was a viewing pavilion built on a stone cliff. Inside the pavilion, a young man in white robes, his buttocks stuck up, lay prostrate against the railing, looking down at the flowing water. The river surface was vast, the wind calm and the waves still.

Outside Yellow Crane Rock flowed a river called Immortal Grotto Stream, formed by the confluence of three rivers and eighteen streams, including Lotus Pond River and Ancient Ink Creek. After passing Gold Mountain Temple upriver from Yellow Crane Rock, the water's momentum suddenly became gentle and quiet, as if coming to pay respects to Yellow Crane Rock, like a woman marrying into a wealthy family from the countryside, she had no choice but to be virtuous and demure.

Once upon a time, an ancient sword immortal got dead drunk in this pavilion, and there was a story about him slaying a mosquito on the river.

The young man in white lowered his head and murmured, "All because the human heart is like flowing water, therefore they take the moon in the water as a boat."

Jiang Shangzhen took off his boots and sat down, leaning against a pavilion pillar, holding a wine cup filled with immortal brew called Moonlight Wine. The white porcelain cup held snow-white liquor. Jiang Shangzhen gently swirled the cup and laughed, "Dongshan, your words are truly immortal speech."

The young man in white was none other than Cui Dongshan. Having detected the unusual phenomenon of the sword sacrifice at Taiping Mountain, he immediately set out from the old Southern March capital, desperately crossing continents as an immortal. For someone to travel so frantically that he ended up bedraggled and depleted of spiritual energy just for the sake of traveling—that was indeed rarely seen throughout the entire Bright World.

And as the master of Cloud Grotto Blessed Land, Jiang Shangzhen was touring his own blessed land, yet he still employed an illusion technique. He wore a gleaming white jade Far-Traveling Crown, a blue gauze robe, and cloud-patterned shoes. This was a completely different style from when he had gone to that inn outside Fox Village on the border of Great Spring, dressed as a down-and-out poor scholar in tattered blue clothes.

Chen Ping'an had already been sleeping soundly for nearly ten days in a heavily restricted private residence of the Jiang clan on Cloud Summit Peak, sleeping so deeply that he had not yet woken. Cui Dongshan had sat alone on the doorstep of that room, keeping vigil for three days and three nights. Then Jiang Shangzhen couldn't bear to watch any longer, so he handed that white jade hairpin to Cui Dongshan. When Cui Dongshan saw those children from the Great Wall of Swords, he finally came back to life a little, gradually regaining his former demeanor. Around dusk today, Jiang Shangzhen suggested they go visit Yellow Crane Rock to drink and admire the moon. Cui Dongshan then brought a few children who were willing to go out for a walk, and they came here together to relax.

Jiang Shangzhen was extremely wealthy, and also had water in his brain, actually spending a fortune to have Yellow Crane Rock closed to visitors today. The Jiang clan members in charge of Yellow Crane Rock, after receiving that payment of Grain Rain coins, would join the clan's guest elders and close off one of the mountain-and-water paths from Jade Gui Sect to Yellow Crane Rock, and also stop all the exiled immortals who had come specially to appreciate the scenery at Yellow Crane Rock.

For the eighteen scenic spots of Cloud Grotto Blessed Land, at the edges of the mountain-and-water territories, the Jiang clan had spent a great deal of divine immortals' money to hire geomancers and Mohist mechanism masters to jointly create a set of interlinked earth-shrinking mountain-and-river formations, convenient for the exiled immortals to tour in sequence. For example, Yellow Crane Rock was the hub connecting Cloud Summit Peak and Old Lord Mountain. This meant that almost all of the registered immortal masters who came to tour would visit all eighteen scenic spots in one go. The eighteen scenic spots of Cloud Grotto were also notoriously money-eating dens—as long as you had money in your pocket, there was no worry about not having a place to spend it.

Jiang Shangzhen had previously given each of the four children a jade token of abstinence equivalent to a travel permit, allowing them to freely visit Old Lord Mountain. Moreover, holding the first-class abstinence token of the blessed land, the children could also pick up inkstones at Ink Creek Mountain, which had a special stone material used to craft one of the Bright World's ten famous immortal inkstones, the Water Dragon Inkstone. As long as upper-five-realm cultivators didn't use the divine ability of "holding the universe in one's sleeve," anything was allowed—carrying baskets and sacks up the mountain, or even using objects of space-compression and inch-measurement, were all permitted within bounds. Inkstone Mountain was enormous; the Jiang clan had mined it for thousands of years without any sign of depletion. Among the four children, the little girl Named Orchid Jade Tablet, upon hearing this, immediately became full of energy, but she was too embarrassed to ask Cui Dongshan or "Zhou Fei" to lend her any inch-measurement items. Instead, she told Yao Xiaoyan and Cheng Zhaolu to prepare their belongings and go to Inkstone Mountain to scrape the land clean, determined to return with a full load. As for Bai Xuan, forget it—she couldn't command him.

So after leaving Cloud Summit Peak and arriving at Yellow Crane Rock, Named Orchid Jade Tablet had no mind for sightseeing. She directly asked Zhou Fei where the formation gate to Old Lord Mountain was, and then rushed off in a whirlwind, dragging people along.

Cui Dongshan watched this with great emotion. This little girl who was always thinking about money would get along well with Fallen Mountain—no worry about her not adapting to the local conditions.

Jiang Shangzhen raised his cup to Cui Dongshan and smiled, "Ten thousand miles of mountains and rivers shattered, yet the bright moon remains round. I am fortunate to invite you to share this moon and drink this wine together."

Cui Dongshan sat back on the long bench, picked up the wine jug and a white porcelain cup, muttered, "I pour you a cup of wine, the sun and moon swim within your cup," then raised the cup high and laughed as he and Jiang Shangshan each drained a cup.

Cui Dongshan made a slurping sound, as if struck by lightning, rolling his eyes and trembling all over, whimpering and groaning. Jiang Shangzhen almost thought someone had poisoned the wine.

Cui Dongshan belched and said casually, "Wei Ying is too much like you. For the first few decades or a century, it's fine, good for your sect. With his temperament and methods, he can ensure Jade Gui Sect's prosperity. But the biggest problem here is that if Wei Ying ever wants to be himself in the future, his only option will be to kill Jiang Shangzhen."

Not only was this alarmist, but it also had the flavor of sowing discord between the two successive sect masters of Jade Gui Sect.

But Jiang Shangzhen understood what Cui Dongshan meant. Jade Gui Sect was ultimately Wei Ying's Jade Gui Sect now. Wei Ying was ambitious and far-sighted; he would never be content to be a second Jiang Shangzhen.

It was very likely that in the future, the founding principles, strategies, and methods of accumulating connections on the mountain would all be deliberately opposite to Jiang Shangzhen's. The imprints of the two successive masters, Jiang Shangzhen and Xun Yuan, would be erased one by one by Wei Ying, until Jade Gui Sect was nothing but Wei Ying's own Jade Gui Sect. Then, after another hundred-odd years, Jiang Shangzhen's position in Jade Gui Sect would become increasingly awkward, and the situation of the Jiang clan and Cloud Grotto Blessed Land would only grow more delicate day by day. Unless Jiang Shangzhen truly retired completely and stopped appearing in public. He couldn't be a supreme elder, and he certainly wouldn't go run a branch sect in Letter Creek Lake. With Jiang Shangzhen's temper, he definitely wouldn't hole up in Cloud Grotto Blessed Land. The only retreat would be to wander the world like a free cloud or wild crane. It wasn't that Wei Ying would be hostile to a Jiang Shangzhen whose military merits were unmatched in Parasol Leaf Continent; rather, it was like a new dynasty replacing the old. The people around him and the sect's situation would force Wei Ying to continuously marginalize Jiang Shangzhen. Actually, this entirely predictable situation was Jiang Shangzhen's own doing. He had abdicated too early and too quickly. He could have waited until Wei Ying reached the Flying Ascension realm. At that point, when Wei Ying succeeded as sect master, it would be only natural. Jiang Shangzhen would also have had time to cultivate a large group of trusted confidants, like those young Jade Gui Sect disciples who still worshipped Jiang Shangzhen as a god. By the time those young geniuses had all grown up, the Divine Inscription Peak ancestral hall would be almost entirely filled with his followers. For the next thousand years, Jiang Shangzhen would remain the de facto master of the sect, the man leading all the immortal masters of the continent.

Jiang Shangzhen laughed, "I was originally just a transitional sect master. Not even cultivators of other continents, let alone my own sect's registered disciples, would remember me for long."

Cui Dongshan looked up, smiling enigmatically, "Is Fellow Zhou someone who belittles himself? I never knew that before."

Jiang Shangzhen leaned back against the pillar, crossed his legs, and took a sip of the Moonlight Wine in his cup. "In the end, it's all because I'm lazy. What others seek but cannot obtain, I discard like worn-out shoes. If I did what's expected, I wouldn't be Jiang Shangzhen."

Cui Dongshan didn't want to discuss Jade Gui Sect affairs any further—after all, it was someone else's family matter. Looking at the deserted, empty Yellow Crane Rock, he complained, "Making such a big show, banning all visitors from Yellow Crane Rock—Cloud Summit Peak and Old Lord Mountain ferry must be full of complaints. What are you doing? Is this really necessary? If my teacher finds out, he'll definitely scold you for being a spendthrift."

Jiang Shangzhen laughed, "I'm honestly paying out of my own pocket as an exiled immortal tourist—not a single Snow Flower coin short for the Cloud Grotto Jiang clan. In fact, I'm paying double the market price. I haven't asked the clan for money in a long time. It's been sitting there accumulating, with annual dividends and interest rolling over in the accounts. Now it's no small sum. Of course, my money is mine, but the entire Jiang clan's money is still mine."

Cui Dongshan leaned back against the railing and poured himself another cup of Moonlight Wine. He sniffed it and clicked his tongue, "When it comes to making money, Brother Zhou can definitely rank among the top ten in the Bright World. Liu Jubao, Old Man Yu Xuan, Yu the Go Player... Brother Zhou, you're truly talented."

Jiang Shangzhen waved his hand, "Not as good as you... two."

Cui Dongshan also waved his hand, grinning mischievously, "That kind of talk ruins the mood. Let's drop it—it's annoying."

If only Teacher could wake up soon and see how Cloud Grotto Blessed Land makes money.

Yellow Crane Rock occupied a huge area. The cliffs were lined with white jade railings stretching for over ten miles, all smelted from real Snow Flower coins.

And the green bricks paving the ground were fired from "green taro mud" formed by the fusion of mountain roots and cloud roots. Besides this viewing pavilion occupying the best position, the Jiang clan had also invited experts to skillfully layer two kinds of magical techniques—"making a temple in a snail shell" and "the sun and moon are long in a pot's cave heaven"—to create nearly a hundred immortal residences, each covering dozens of acres. Thus, at Yellow Crane Rock, whether visitors or residents, each had their own peace without interfering with each other. Those "snail shell" immortal residences at Yellow Crane Rock were not for sale, only for rent, but the lease terms were negotiable. Renting for a few days or a few years had different prices. If someone wanted to rent directly from the Cloud Grotto Jiang clan for three to five hundred years, there were only two possibilities: either their money bag had enough Grain Rain coins, or they had sufficient goodwill with the Jiang clan.

Each immortal residence had its own unique features, exquisitely crafted to the extreme. So much so that the scale models of just seven of these residences were treasured collectibles of other immortal sects and royal clans, selling over a hundred pieces each year. The key was that the Jiang clan also operated "Flowers in a Mirror, Moon on Water" at Yellow Crane Rock. Countless female cultivators on the mountains would come specifically to the Yellow Crane Rock residences of Cloud Grotto Blessed Land, negotiate profit-sharing with Cloud Forest Jiang clan through the mirror-flower-water-moon service, and perhaps not only stay for free but also earn a large amount of divine immortals' money, which they would then use to buy the many ingenious trinkets of the eighteen scenic spots—rouge, powders, dharma robes, hairpins, scrolls, portraits of young sword immortals...

And as for the cup of Moonlight Wine in the hands of Jiang Shangzhen and Cui Dongshan, it truly absorbed some of the essence of the blessed land's bright moon. This slight depletion was fully compensated by the expensive wine price.

The wine cups were complimentary gifts from the blessed land. If cultivators finished their wine and found it troublesome, didn't treasure it, they could just toss them into the river outside Yellow Crane Rock.

But if they were willing to take them away, what did that mean? The cups weren't precious scholarly items. Those who could come to this blessed land to travel and drink Moonlight Wine certainly wouldn't regard the cups as too rare—they would only use them for everyday drinking, gathering friends, feasting and composing poetry. Whenever there was a bright moon night, moonlight would flow, and the white porcelain would reflect an image of the bright moon. The natural grain of the white porcelain resembled cloud patterns. After a thousand or hundred years, the Moonlight Wine of Yellow Crane Rock in Cloud Grotto Blessed Land became an elegant object known to every cultivator on the mountains and every noble clan below.

Doing business is essentially taking money from others' pockets. In the end, it's about working on the human heart. And Jiang Shangzhen's understanding of the human heart, especially women's hearts, and how to earn women's divine immortals' money, was unparalleled. And this was just the money-making method at Yellow Crane Rock. Every one of the eighteen scenic spots in the blessed land was a flowing stream of divine immortals' money. The Moonlight Wine at Yellow Crane Rock, the White Cloud Piles at Cloud Summit Peak for deep sleep—enjoying the scenery and cultivating at the same time—the White Reed Broom sweeping clouds into sleeves to take home...

And all of this was realized under Jiang Shangzhen's hand. When Jiang Shangzhen took over Cloud Grotto Blessed Land, although it was already a top-grade blessed land known for its flowing wealth, it was far from the spectacle of today. This young Jiang clan head, famed across the continent for his romantic freedom—to put it nicely, he had argued forcefully in the clan ancestral hall, moving people with emotion and reasoning. To put it harshly, he said, "Whoever dares say no in the Jiang ancestral hall, I'll kill you today and have you carried out horizontally." In the end, Jiang Shangzhen had borrowed a huge debt from Sect Master Xun Yuan and the then God of Wealth of Jade Gui Sect, Song Shengtang, to break through the bottleneck and elevate Cloud Grotto Blessed Land to a top-grade blessed land. Only then could the many plans that Jiang Shangzhen had long conceived be realized one by one. The so-called eighteen scenic spots of Cloud Grotto were actually eighteen forbidden areas of the blessed land, transcendent territories. For the numerous native cultivators, they were like celestial immortal realms. The creator of the eighteen scenic spots of Cloud Grotto Blessed Land had long served as the head of the Jiang clan's pattern room, surnamed Cao, known as "Pattern Cao." His ancestor was a down-and-out Mohist cultivator recruited by Jiang Shangzhen. Generations of descendants, none with high cultivation realms, passed the craft from father to son, eventually achieving mutual success with Cloud Grotto Blessed Land. The Cao family became a renowned architectural clan across the continent.

Cui Dongshan, who had not really wanted to drink anymore, suddenly changed his mind. Not only did he fill his cup, but he also shifted his butt and handed the cup to Jiang Shangzhen.

Jiang Shangzhen was somewhat surprised. He had to withdraw his legs and sit up, then offer his own cup. Unexpectedly, the young man in white lowered his cup slightly. Before Jiang Shangzhen could lower his cup accordingly, the cups lightly clinked. Cui Dongshan changed from holding the cup with one hand to holding it with both, said "I'll drink first as a sign of respect," and tipped his head back to drain it. Jiang Shangzhen nodded lightly, also holding the cup with both hands, and finished his wine. An honor—definitely an honor—no less than when the current Great Heavenly Master of Dragon Tiger Mountain had returned to Divine Inscription Peak.

When had Cui Dongshan, or half of "Embroidery Tiger" Cui Chan, ever deliberately lowered his posture like this to an outsider at a "drinking table"?

Jiang Shangzhen understood clearly. It wasn't because of how Jiang Shangzhen had turned the tide on Parasol Leaf Continent that he earned this toast from Cui Dongshan. To be honest, comparing merits? Speaking only of individuals, who in the Bright World could compare with Embroidery Tiger? The Great Heavenly Master of Dragon Tiger Mountain, Zheng Juzhong of White Emperor City, even the pure Confucian Chen Chunan, and even Bai Ye—none could compare with Cui Chan of Great Li.

So it was because of his own status as a patron of Fallen Mountain and his friendship with Chen Ping'an that made Cui Dongshan, the student of the young mountain master, drink this cup with Zhou Fei.

Cui Dongshan casually threw his porcelain cup into the river, turned to look at the moon's reflection in the water. The young man in white leaned on the railing again, raised the wine jug, and poured wine into the water, murmuring with a smile, "Not afraid of the deep water where old dragons coil, I summon a fairy to drink fine wine. The fairy thinks I'm too young, I think the fairy is too tall. Pour down thirty thousand bushels of snow, beg from my teacher for money to buy a mountain. Teacher blames me for being unambitious, I blame Teacher for being too toilsome..."

Jiang Shangzhen followed suit, throwing away his jug and cup, clapping in admiration, "Excellent poetry! I'll have someone carve it on Yellow Crane Rock. It should be passed down for a thousand years."

Cui Dongshan turned his head.

Jiang Shangzhen asked tentatively, "Too much flattery?"

Cui Dongshan retorted, "What do you think, Brother Zhou?"

Jiang Shangzhen laughed heartily, mistakenly treating Cloud Grotto Blessed Land as Fallen Mountain.

Cui Dongshan suddenly said, "That Han Jiangshu, Dai Yuan, and the like—back on their own peaks, they must be highly admired figures, right?"

Jiang Shangzhen nodded, "Of course. Han Jiangshu would have many men sincerely adoring her. Perhaps just a casual glance from her could make some young men toss and turn unable to sleep. Dai Yuan must also be an unmatched earth immortal ancestor in the eyes of many cultivators."

Cui Dongshan asked again, "The one who got drunk under the tree with his sword tied to it—Lu Fang—is he confirmed to have gone to the Azure Sea World?"

Jiang Shangzhen was a bit embarrassed, but nodded, "That guy was trapped by love and couldn't untie the knot in his heart."

Cui Dongshan said, "Your friend is not quite the same as Wei Jin of Wind Snow Temple, or Li Tuanjing of Thunder Wind Garden from earlier. He could learn from Wu Shuangjiang of Year-End Palace in the Azure Sea World."

Jiang Shangzhen said helplessly, "I mentioned this to him. He thought for a while, then said, 'How could I bear to?' It almost pissed me to death."

Cui Dongshan, who knew the inside story, was somewhat gleeful. Just as he was about to speak, Jiang Shangzhen quickly clasped his hands and begged for mercy, "Let's not mention old matters. It ruins the mood and gets annoying."

Cui Dongshan said, "Han Yushu's Ten Thousand Yao Sect—if it hadn't encountered my teacher, it might have risen to power. It even had a chance to become a second Jade Gui Sect, then wait for an opportunity, patiently waiting for Jade Gui Sect to make a mistake, like a mistake similar to that of Parasol Leaf Sect. Even if that crumbling Parasol Leaf Sect could recover its vitality, Ten Thousand Yao Sect could at least hold third and contend for second, right?"

Jiang Shangzhen hesitated.

Back then at Taiping Mountain when he met Chen Ping'an again, Jiang Shangzhen had been quite conflicted, speaking cautiously with reservations, as if unwilling to discuss the many delicate situations on Parasol Leaf Continent at that time. The reason was that Vase Bottle Continent and North Jujube Continent had a very deep and excellent relationship. Even the vast majority was completely legitimate. When it came to foreign continent forces infiltrating southward into Parasol Leaf Continent, the cultivators of these two continents were the most unsparing.

The sword cultivators of North Jujube Continent had deep ties to the Great Wall of Swords, and Chen Ping'an had served as the Hidden Officer for many years. Vase Bottle Continent was even Chen Ping'an's hometown.

And in that war, the mountains and rivers of these two continents had joined together into one continent, truly astonishing the senses and minds of two worlds. Now, coming south to Parasol Leaf Continent, they couldn't help but be proud of their achievements.

Cui Dongshan laughed, "Are you wondering why Cui Chan secretly protected Parasol Leaf Sect from being completely devoured like a starving tiger pouncing on its prey by internal and external forces of the continent?"

Jiang Shangzhen nodded, then shook his head, "If it's to foster a power in Vase Bottle Continent as a southbound hub and ferry to check native sects like Jade Gui Sect, I wouldn't be surprised at all. What really surprises me is that looking at you... looking at the State Preceptor's layout, he clearly hopes Parasol Leaf Sect has a chance within a thousand years to return to its peak and become the continent's destiny-hub second only to Jade Gui Sect."

A Parasol Leaf Continent—devastatingly tragic.

Xun Yuan of Jade Gui Sect, Flying Ascension realm. The ancestral hall of Jade Gui Sect, God of Wealth Song Shengtang, Jade Realm female cultivator Liu Huamao...

Parasol Leaf Sect Master, Great Sword Immortal Fu Lingqing. Taiping Mountain's old Heavenly Lord, Mountain Master Heavenly Lord Song Mao. Fu Ji Sect Master Ji Hai...

All were already ancients. As time passed, they became pages in an old almanac.

The most powerful and highest-realm cultivators of the upper five realms had all died in battle, and many followers had died generously with them.

And as for those earth immortals on Parasol Leaf Continent closest to the mountain peak, more than half had fled, hiding in the Fifth World to enjoy peace. Now, foreign continent cultivators were heavily infiltrating Parasol Leaf Continent. The key was that Parasol Leaf Continent simply had no strength, nor any reason, to act tough. The entire vast Parasol Leaf Continent was disgraced, reduced to a laughingstock of the entire Bright World. It was like an old man with a broken backbone, unable to straighten his back and speak to outsiders. Take Supporting Cloud Continent and Golden Armor Continent—even though their mountains and rivers had likewise sunk to the ground, from the mountains to the foothills, they had fought hard battles and deadly battles. Only then did their lands shatter. But because of that, with Parasol Leaf Continent as a foil, even the Central Earth Divine Continent did not think poorly of those two continents.

Only Parasol Leaf Continent was pitiable, hateful, laughable, and pathetic.

Cui Dongshan put his hands behind his head, "What's so hard to understand about this? The young people of Parasol Leaf Sect deserve this treatment. It's the same principle as why you willingly abdicated to Wei Ying because he is worthy of being Jade Gui Sect Master. Don't tell me you think that old turtle only cares about Vase Bottle Continent? To tell the truth, not to mention our ally North Jujube Continent, Cui Chan disdains even favoring the Great Li Dynasty because he's lazier than you. Hmm, that's an excellent way to put it. Cui Chan absolutely would not allow people like Han Yushu to live on in disgrace for a thousand years, fishing in troubled waters, stealing high positions. That would be too disgusting. Parasol Leaf Sect is worse off than Jade Gui Sect, much worse. They suffered the most, especially in people's hearts. Since they ate the biggest bitter, they will have the best memory. They understand better than you what true suffering and torment are. Anyway, they and the young people of Jade Gui Sect can both be considered the true hope of Parasol Leaf Continent."

Cui Dongshan turned his head. A sea of clouds had covered the moon. With an immortal technique, he used two fingers to gently part the sea of clouds, laughing, "This is called 'parting the clouds to see the bright moon.'"

Jiang Shangzhen said with a double entendre, "Brother Cui's move is truly immortal."

Cui Dongshan was unimpressed. He asked curiously, "What expression did my teacher have when he heard that the backing of the Yu Dynasty was the Hou family of Old Dragon City?"

Jiang Shangzhen smiled, "A half-smile, as if he had heard a not-so-funny joke."

Cui Dongshan squinted, crossed his legs, and swayed his shoulders, "How wonderful, how wonderful. Time to go home."

Jiang Shangzhen said, "Take me along."

Cui Dongshan patted his chest, "Before Brother Zhou Fei returns to the Flying Ascension realm, even if I have to roll on the ground and kowtow to my teacher, I'll ensure the Chief Patron position remains vacant, waiting for Brother Zhou to take his seat."

Jiang Shangzhen sighed, "Although I've never felt my life was just this bird-like, at least I was once Flying Ascension. It's not so easy to reach it again. Hard."

Cui Dongshan squinted, raising one sleeve and gently rotating it, "Like this? Hard? For another immortal, even for me, it would be hard, very hard, as hard as ascending to heaven. But for a Parasol Leaf Continent without Flying Ascension, and for the sure-to-be future Chief Patron of Fallen Mountain, I think it's manageable. Wait. There's no rush—haste is useless. But waiting is possible. Whether it's a hundred years or several hundred, I won't make guarantees."

Jiang Shangzhen laughed and cupped his hands, "I'll take your good words."

Jiang Shangzhen glanced at Cui Dongshan's sleeve, "That little girl Sun Chunwang is still in there going at it with you?"

Cui Dongshan nodded, "Good seedling. The Old Sword Immortal is truly magnanimous and generous!"

The sleeve Cui Dongshan had raised was what he called the "Stupid-Punishment Place." There was a little girl inside practicing swordsmanship.

Earlier, when he had taken the white jade hairpin from Jiang Shangzhen and seen that group of variously tempered sword immortal seedlings, Cui Dongshan hadn't been idle. He often chatted and reasoned with them, saying things like, "You're all not young anymore, and you're sword cultivators—you should be sensible."

Speak with refinement, act with dignity, be composed.

Small savings come from frugality. Don't you know?

Anyway, beat those who should be beat, scold those who should be scolded, praise those who should be praised. Otherwise, there's no order.

Bai Xuan, He Gu, He Xiangting, Yu Xiegui, Yu Qingzhang, Sun Chunwang.

These six young sword cultivators had all been taken into Cui Dongshan's sleeve universe. This ability of the upper five realms differed greatly. For instance, Chen Ping'an could only store objects, with no other wonders. But Cui Dongshan's sleeve universe could control the perceptions, consciousness, and divine sense of any cultivator who fell into his sleeve, allowing him to freely manipulate their sense of time. He could make them most truly understand the phrase "a day feels like a year." In a vast illusion, guarding a desolate place for a hundred years—how would that feel? Just imagine. Of course, Chen Ping'an's sleeve universe was one extreme, and Cui Dongshan's was the other. Even a Flying Ascension grand cultivator—perhaps except for Zheng Juzhong of White Emperor City—couldn't match the magnitude of Cui Dongshan's sleeve abilities.

Yu Xiegui, He Gu, He Xiangting—one by one, they nearly lost their minds. Cui Dongshan, with great discretion, threw them out of his sleeve. After that, every time they saw Cui Dongshan, it was like seeing a plague god.

Then came Yu Qingzhang, who couldn't hold out. After a few "years in the mountain," next was Bai Xuan, who was always acting old and looking down his nose. But that little bastard didn't give up because his cultivator's heart couldn't take it—he gave up because of his innate temperament. He found it too boring, so he begged Cui Dongshan to let him out. If not, at least let him come out to eat a meal, chat a bit, and then be thrown back in. Cui Dongshan deliberately ignored him. As a result, the little brat summoned his flying sword, ran all over, and the sword followed, poking here and crashing there, until his spiritual energy was exhausted. Then he collapsed on the ground, cursing Cui Dongshan for being no good, and saying, "When I see the Hidden Officer again, I'll make sure his damned student gets what's coming to him..." So Cui Dongshan, being very considerate, first threw Bai Xuan out of his sleeve, then suddenly grabbed him back. The child, knowing how to read the situation and adapt, started flattering Cui Dongshan. When he found that didn't seem to work, he shifted to praising the Hidden Officer, heaping compliments one after another. After Cui Dongshan had enjoyed enough, he released the little bastard from his sleeve, patted Bai Xuan's head, and smilingly reminded the child, who hadn't even dared to put his hands behind his back, "Be good from now on." Bai Xuan, with a face full of sincerity, shouted, "You bet!"

Whereupon Cui Dongshan looked surprised and said, "Such a loud voice—scared me to death. You're full of energy. You can practice swordsmanship some more." And so he threw Bai Xuan back in. And since he knew the child was most afraid of the pale-faced, bleeding-eyed female ghost, Cui Dongshan let Bai Xuan thoroughly tour dozens of sinister ghost mansions that Cui Dongshan had "conjured from his mind, created from his state of mind. Amid the many insects, fish, flowers, and birds, he carved out another world, constructing bizarre encounters."

By the time Bai Xuan finally saw daylight again, the child was clutching the sleeve of that deranged Uncle Cui, wailing heart-wrenchingly.

Finally, there was the unremarkable-looking little girl, Sun Chunwang. She actually immersed herself in cultivation within the sleeve's mountain and river, and she did so with great regularity. She was half-asleep, nurturing her flying sword. Then every day, she would get up on time and take a walk, muttering to herself, drawing invisible talismans with her fingers. Eventually, she would return to her seat on time and resume nurturing her flying sword. She seemed determined to outlast him, to keep this up until the end of time. She would never speak to Cui Dongshan to beg for mercy.

As for Cheng Zhaolu, Named Orchid Jade Tablet, and Yao Xiaoyan—one was a little cook who lit up at the mention of Master Cao, one was a little accountant, and one was a little scatterbrain. Cui Dongshan found them all quite agreeable, so he didn't bother them.

Recently, Cui Dongshan had taken it upon himself to move the Dragon-Slaying Platform out of the white jade hairpin, letting that group of children practice swordsmanship together. Occasionally, he would personally supervise.

Until today, Bai Xuan, Cheng Zhaolu, Named Orchid Jade Tablet, and Yao Xiaoyan—these four children—followed the moody, terrifying Cui Dongshan and that not-fat-but-called-Zhou-Fei guy away from the secret realm cave on Cloud Summit Peak to visit Yellow Crane Rock. As soon as they heard that they could freely pick up stones at the inkstone mountain on Old Lord Mountain, they scampered off excitedly to try their luck at finding treasures.

Jiang Shangzhen laughed, "At minimum, within a hundred years, nine earth-immortal sword cultivators. Our Fallen Mountain will scare people to death."

Cui Dongshan said mournfully, "Sword cultivator training eats money badly."

Jiang Shangzhen complained, "Talking about money? Brother Cui, are you insulting me?"

Cui Dongshan gave a thumbs up, "Brother Zhou Fei is also generous!"

Jiang Shangzhen suddenly said, "I heard that the Fifth World made an exception for a young Confucian scholar, allowing him to return to the Bright World. His name is Zhao Yao? Is he a fellow townsman of our mountain master?"

Cui Dongshan nodded, "Zhao Yao is very likely to be the future State Preceptor of Great Li. He'll be cultivated as a reserve prime minister for a few years, then eventually assist the next emperor. This was that old turtle's doing—has nothing to do with me, not even half a copper coin's worth."

Jiang Shangzhen nodded, "That makes sense now."

The current situation on Vase Bottle Continent was extremely complicated.

The Great Li Dynasty, which had once occupied an entire continent, had indeed allowed many old kingdoms and vassal states to be restored, as agreed by the Song emperor. However, the Great Li auxiliary capital built near the central Qi River was still temporarily retained, with Prince Song Mu stationed there to govern. Just how to properly settle this meritorious and renowned prince would probably give Emperor Song He a headache. Song Mu, or Song Jixin, had performed brilliantly in that war. He had unknowingly gathered a large group of cultivators around him. Besides the nearly Flying Ascension true dragon Zhi Gui, there was also Ma Kuxuan of True Martial Mountain. Additionally, Song Mu was especially close to the sword cultivators of North Jujube Continent. Moreover, the officials of the auxiliary capital's six ministries, having experienced the baptism of war, were in their prime, full of vitality, each more sharp-edged than the last. The key was that they were all extremely talented and pragmatic, definitely not armchair strategists.

So now there was an infuriating saying widely circulating on Parasol Leaf Continent: "If you pull out any mid-level official from the Great Li auxiliary capital government, he'd be more than qualified to serve as the head of a Six Ministry in a Parasol Leaf Continent dynasty."

And that Great Li Song Dynasty, which had once been a country that was an entire continent, encompassing all of Vase Bottle Continent, had ranked at the bottom among the Bright World's ten great dynasties. Now, having ceded a full half of its territory, it was unexpectedly rated as the second greatest dynasty by the Central Earth Divine Continent. And there was almost no objection from anyone on the mountains or below.

Cui Dongshan smiled, "If I remember correctly, due to the war, Cloud Grotto Blessed Land missed two rounds of the Rouge Chart. The Jiang clan has recently started reevaluating?"

Jiang Shangzhen nodded, "I can ignore all other Jiang clan affairs, but this one matter, I must personally oversee."

One of the eighteen scenic spots of Cloud Grotto Blessed Land was called Rouge Terrace, also known as Flower Goddess Mountain by Parasol Leaf Continent.

Atop the high terrace stood thirty-six fairy maidens year-round. Of course, they were all conjured by Jiang clan cultivators using mountain-and-water secret arts.

The Rouge Chart was divided into three volumes: Main Volume, Supplementary Volume, and Secondary Supplementary Volume, each with twelve positions, collectively known as the Thirty-Six Flower Goddesses. Only the most exceptionally beautiful women from the continent's mountain immortals and foothills dynasties could ascend the terrace.

Cui Dongshan laughed, "So Brother Zhou Fei is busy collecting money again. No wonder you splurged to reserve all of Yellow Crane Rock tonight. Small money—just a drizzle."

Jiang Shangzhen laughed heartily, "I'm just doing it for the excitement. Making money is very secondary."

Cui Dongshan casually asked, "Who's at the top of the list?"

Jiang Shangzhen grinned, "Originally it was Yao Jinzhi, the new emperor of the Great Spring Dynasty. But that emperor sent someone to deliver a sum of divine immortals' money to Cloud Grotto Blessed Land, so I had to reluctantly remove her name. As for Lady Huanxi, who went to cultivate at Heavenly Master Mansion, she recently sent a flying sword message to Divine Inscription Peak. I wouldn't dare act rashly."

Before the thirty-six Flower Goddess rouge portraits are truly finalized, the Cloud Grotto Jiang clan actually releases some hints in advance.

So those who make the list, whether in the main or supplementary volumes, or get promoted from a lower volume to a higher one, or even those like Emperor Yao Jinzhi of Great Spring who don't want to show their faces—as long as they pay money, it can be arranged. Beyond that, there are many registered immortal masters who admire a particular fairy. They can also send money to the Jiang clan. On Rouge Mountain, there are over a hundred flower baskets specially placed, each with the name of a candidate fairy pasted outside. Every exiled immortal who personally throws money into a basket, or sends money to Cloud Grotto Blessed Land, the amount of Small Summer coins in the basket will be apparent at a glance.

Legend has it that when old Sect Master Xun Yuan was alive, every time the Rouge Terrace selection came around, he would make a big show of personally seeking out Jiang Shangzhen. The fairies he admired and adored had to be on the list—no negotiation. After all, "Flowers in a Mirror, Moon on Water" was Xun Yuan's greatest passion. Back then, even though he was separated by a continent, watching the mirror-flower-water-moon of Vase Bottle Continent's fairies was a very blurry picture. Still, the old master would often wait like a fool and throw money without blinking.

No wonder Old Man Xun often pointed at Jiang Shangzhen's nose in the ancestral hall in front of everyone and cursed, "If you put half the effort you spend on making and spending money into cultivation, you'd have been in the Flying Ascension realm ages ago!"

The most extreme instance in history of the selection was when a female cultivator's flower basket piled up a small mountain of Small Summer coins converted into Grain Rain coins.

That woman was called Yellow Garment Yun by Parasol Leaf Continent cultivators. Her real name was Ye Yunyun, an exceptionally beautiful female martial artist. But in the end, she didn't make the list. It seemed that Ye Yunyun personally found Jiang Shangzhen. At that time, the Jiang clan head, who had just entered the Jade Realm not long ago, ended up with a bruised and swollen face, grimacing for days, and would curse at everyone, "Old Man Xun is no good—why does he have to cause trouble and make me take the blame?"

Cui Dongshan sighed, "The Great Spring Dynasty, the River God of Buried River, Yao Jinzhi. What a pity that Pei Qian is probably still on her way home. There's no way to let her be the first to know the news. This little junior brother of mine is going to be noted down by the senior sister again."

Back when they left Lotus Flower Blessed Land, it was Pei Qian who accompanied their teacher through the entire journey home.

Pei Qian's last flying sword message to Pi Cloud Mountain came from the Yu clan in the Central Earth. Pei Qian most likely chose the route through White Snow Continent and North Jujube Continent, so she would be later returning to Fallen Mountain. If she had instead gone directly to the easternmost immortal ferry of Central Earth Divine Continent and taken a whale-swallowing treasure ship from Old Dragon City, she could have gone directly to the Southern March territory of Vase Bottle Continent. By now, she should be near the Great Li auxiliary capital.

Jiang Shangzhen had an especially vivid memory of Pei Qian. Back then, on Fallen Mountain, he had experienced the ferocity of that charcoal-black little girl. In a great Dao confrontation, he had lost thoroughly and willingly accepted defeat.

Cui Dongshan turned his head to look at distant Old Lord Mountain, "Who could imagine that in the future, the only way for cultivators of this continent to see the old scenery of Taiping Mountain and Fu Ji Sect would be to travel to Cloud Grotto Blessed Land."

Jiang Shangzhen nodded and said softly, "Plant a flower carefully and it blooms; plant a willow casually and it gives shade. I never expected that I, Jiang Shangzhen, solely focused on making money, would also accomplish something neither big nor small."

On Old Lord Mountain, besides the vassal Inkstone Mountain, the most famous thing was actually a map of Parasol Leaf Continent's mountains and rivers. Cloud Grotto Blessed Land selected the most beautiful famous mountains, great rivers, and immortal residences from the continent. Visitors could immerse themselves in the scene, feeling as if they were actually there. And like a sage controlling a small world, any mid-five-realm cultivator could freely shrink the land and travel through the scenery. Of course, the various mountain-and-water restrictions wouldn't appear in the scroll. Some remote immortal clans that wanted to gain fame but whose foundations weren't sufficient to secure a spot in the scroll would proactively provide their own peak's immortal painting to the Jiang clan, asking them to create a "scale model" to place within, so that cultivators across the continent would know their name.

Both were silent.

Early spring, a bright moon hung in the sky.

The moon pale, the mountain cold, the water chill. The two sat facing each other, drinking with spring flowers in bloom.

Jiang Shangzhen spoke, "Chen Ping'an should wake up soon."

Cui Dongshan hummed in agreement, "No rush. We've waited so many years already. One or two days more or less doesn't matter."

Jiang Shangzhen gazed into the distance at the mountain-and-water gate of Yellow Crane Rock, laughed, "The little money-grubbers are back. Looks like they didn't have much luck."

Cui Dongshan glanced in that direction and said, "You try putting my teacher in charge?"

"He'd empty the entire Inkstone Mountain. If my teacher had nothing to do, he'd probably set up a thatched hut there to cultivate."

Jiang Shangzhen quickly waved his hand, "I wouldn't dare."

Those children returned to Yellow Crane Rock. Named Orchid Jade Tablet, the little accountant and money-grubber, couldn't get enough of touching the white jade railings. Seeing no outsiders around, she even stood on tiptoe and used her face as a cloth, rubbing it back and forth, muttering, "Money, money! All Snow Flower coins!"

Bai Xuan, hands behind his back, rolled his eyes.

The chubby boy Cheng Zhaolu had been given a resounding nickname by Cui Dongshan: "Invincible Little Divine Fist." Cui Dongshan also said that in the future, when he learned boxing from his teacher, Master Cao, and could enter the hall, he would give Cheng Zhaolu an even more imposing title.

Named Orchid Jade Tablet's inch-measurement item was currently filled with inkstones. Yao Xiaoyan and Cheng Zhaolu each carried a bundle. An inkstone mined from the "Prince's Mountain" of Old Lord Mountain—immortals couldn't easily judge its quality. Only a very experienced blessed land inkstone artisan could estimate its grade fairly accurately. As for those inkstones whose quality was obvious to the naked eye, they naturally wouldn't be scattered casually on the mountain. In fact, picking up inkstones on the mountain was originally just for traveling immortal masters to have some fun.

Inside the little girl's inch-measurement item, besides various sizes of stones and slabs whose material quality hadn't yet been determined by cutting, she also treasured several seals and many fans, all stolen from her sister. Named Orchid Jade Tablet didn't dare take too much—only less than half.

She planned to do business with Cui Dongshan. That guy seemed rich and liked to call himself Master Cao's most accomplished disciple. He seemed to respect his teacher, so he probably would be willing to spend money.

But she couldn't take everything out at once. She would say she only had one seal, obtained with great difficulty at a high price. After selling it at a high price, a few days later, she would say, "Oh, I accidentally found a folding fan," and sell it to him, claiming it was the treasure of the shop in her hometown. Finally, she would bring out everything and let him buy it all in one go. She wouldn't sell individually. At the end, she would give him a "family and friends" discount. If Cui Dongshan didn't agree, so be it—he didn't have to buy.

But Named Orchid Jade Tablet thought she shouldn't sell everything. She would keep one seal because she liked it.

The seal's inscription: "A thousand credits are not as good as eight hundred cash; sincerity is no match for treacherous waves." The seal face: "Making money is not easy; cultivating the Dao is very hard."

A group of mountain cultivators left a "snail shell" residence. There were seven or eight of them, men and women, all with youthful faces, wearing various dharma robes. They were clearly wealthy and noble individuals from the mountains. It wasn't that the view from the residence wasn't beautiful, but around the viewing pavilion at Yellow Crane Rock, it was so quiet—unprecedented in a hundred years.

Seeing those young immortals approaching from afar, Bai Xuan lightly leaped onto the railing, crossed his arms, and watched coldly.

Yao Xiaoyan was shy, so she hid behind Named Orchid Jade Tablet. Cheng Zhaolu was fairly carefree. He stood by the white jade railing, gazing at the river, the bright moon, and the night. The chubby boy thought that if Master Cao were here and they could all have a steaming hotpot, it would really do justice to this beautiful scenery.

A young woman wearing a dragon-lady Xiang skirt and a string of bright pearl bracelets widened her autumn-water eyes, looking at the two little girls. "Like carved jade and molded ice—so cute. Whose children are you?"

She walked quickly to Named Orchid Jade Tablet, bent down, and reached out to rub the little girl's head.

Named Orchid Jade Tablet turned her head away. The woman reached again, and the little girl turned again.

The woman withdrew her hand, her eyes narrowing into crescent moons. "Little girl, what's your name?"

Named Orchid Jade Tablet spoke in fluent Parasol Leaf Continent elegant language, "I don't know you well. That's enough."

The woman, upon hearing this, had dimples on her cheeks, making her look even more charming.

A young man with a first-class abstinence jade token at his waist exclaimed in surprise, "These little guys can't be Jiang clan disciples from Cloud Grotto Blessed Land, can they? They all have abstinence tokens."

The woman glanced at him, "You Qi, does your family have a monopoly on money?"

The young man named You Qi smiled.

This group of young talents from Parasol Leaf Continent had traveled together this time to kill demons and gain experience. Nowadays, on Parasol Leaf Continent's foothills, everything was in ruins waiting to be rebuilt. However, there were still many demonic cultivators lingering on Parasol Leaf Continent's land, either sneaking around in the wilds, waiting for an opportunity, or, unable to change their nature, roaming and causing trouble. But these demonic remnants were almost never earth immortals. Upper-five-realm great demons and Nascent Soul, Golden Core demons had either died in battle, followed the great army camps through the sea return entrance to flee back to the Wild Waste World, or couldn't escape in time and had been killed off by the surviving peak cultivators of Parasol Leaf Continent, together with the Purple and Yellow nobles of Dragon Tiger Mountain Heavenly Master Mansion.

Additionally, Parasol Leaf Continent was now being heavily infiltrated by cultivators from other continents. For instance, the Hou family of Old Dragon City, allied with the Yu Dynasty, and the sword immortal Xu Jun, guarding the Drive Mountain Ferry, was one of the representatives of the Liu clan's God of Wealth from White Snow Continent on Parasol Leaf Continent. These people, regardless of their purpose in coming to Parasol Leaf Continent, showed no hesitation in killing demons. So Parasol Leaf Continent was still quite stable now. Various clan patriarchs felt at ease letting their younger generations travel together in groups for experience.

At the pavilion, Cui Dongshan looked at those young people and couldn't help smiling. He turned to Jiang Shangzhen, "Take a look, will you? It's all because of the inaction of your Jade Gui Sect that these people's sect elders were able to seize the opportunity and rise like dragons. Not one of them remembers your old Sect Master Jiang's goodness."

Jiang Shangzhen laughed, "It's fine. Better than being scolded for occupying the latrine without shitting."

The great northern immortal sects—Golden Summit Temple, Heaven's Que Peak Green Tiger Palace, Small Dragon Falls—and several in the central and southern regions were now all considered sect candidates. On the surface of Parasol Leaf Continent, Jade Gui Sect dominated alone, and that situation wouldn't change for a thousand years. The infamous Parasol Leaf Sect had wisely sealed its mountain. Some other originally deeply rooted and powerful "sect-level" immortal clans had almost all suffered heavy losses, some even having their ancestral hall incense snuffed out. So the northern peak Golden Summit Temple, together with the central great immortal sect White Dragon Cave and the southern Pushen Cloud Grass Hall, had jointly advocated a grand mountain-and-water alliance of sixteen mountain sects plus their thirty-four vassals, promising to advance or retreat together. Currently, many disputes between native Parasol Leaf Continent cultivators and those outsiders from Vase Bottle Continent and North Jujube Continent would be mediated by two great cultivators who had vaguely become the "mountain sovereign and mountain chancellor" of the continent.

The owner of Pushen Cloud Grass Hall was a female pure martial artist, known as "Yellow Garment Yun," Ye Yunyun. But this Martial Forbidden Realm martial artist was obsessed with the martial path, indifferent to worldly affairs, to the point that Cloud Grass Hall had become mostly a cultivation place and she didn't care. During the war, she left her own peak alone, clearly prepared to die, heading for the Great Spring Dynasty. She never intended to return to Cloud Grass Hall. But for some reason, Mirage City had stood firm, becoming the biggest mystery on Parasol Leaf Continent's foothills. The demon army camps had besieged the Great Spring capital all along without attacking.

Because that grand alliance was held at Peach Leaf Ferry within the Great Spring Dynasty, it was called the "Peach Leaf Alliance."

Cui Dongshan clicked his tongue, "Poor Brother Zhou Fei."

Jiang Shangzhen sat cross-legged, hands in sleeves, "Who says otherwise? At least the fairy sisters on the Rouge Chart can comfort my heart."

The native cultivators of Parasol Leaf Continent had long been dissatisfied with the too soft posture of Jade Gui Sect's Divine Inscription Peak on many major matters. Moreover, Jade Gui Sect's branch sect was located at Vase Bottle Continent's Letter Creek Lake, with close ties to the Great Li Song clan. Wei Ying had even been promoted from branch sect master to upper sect master. So the native cultivators of Parasol Leaf Continent felt that both Jiang Shangzhen and Wei Ying were too self-interested and greedy, trying to have it both ways and ending up with neither. They had always been trading the interests of the entire Parasol Leaf Continent for the interests of a single Jade Gui Sect.

The simplest reasoning: Jiang Shangzhen had such a good relationship with the current Great Heavenly Master. If he had allied with Dragon Tiger Mountain Heavenly Master Mansion, acted tougher, jointly resisted the southward encroachment of Vase Bottle Continent and North Jujube Continent cultivators, strictly prohibited the landing of transcontinental ships for trade...

Would Parasol Leaf Continent today be so constrained by outsiders, with outsiders occupying key positions, and their own cultivators being looked down upon?

Cui Dongshan looked worried, "They might get into a conflict over there. Then Brother Zhou Fei will end up in a difficult position."

As if Cui Dongshan had casually smeared a handful of yellow mud on his face, Jiang Shangzhen looked helpless. What was all this? Forget about a bunch of visiting tourists. Even if they were Jiang clan disciples or Divine Inscription Peak direct disciples, they wouldn't dare provoke those sword immortal seedlings who were temporarily unregistered students of the mountain master. Jiang Shangzhen wouldn't hesitate to apply family discipline.

Fortunately, there was no conflict. The woman from Pushen Cloud Grass Hall took a great liking to the two little girls and waved goodbye to them.

Named Orchid Jade Tablet hesitated, then waved back as a courtesy.

But among the group of immortal masters, there was one child who looked up at Bai Xuan, who was sitting on the railing, and asked, "What are you looking at?"

Bai Xuan ignored him.

The child, walking forward but turning his head back, kept staring at Bai Xuan and said, "A few abstinence tokens. What's there to show off?"

Bai Xuan still didn't speak. He just picked up the token, shook his head, and gently breathed on it.

The child stopped, smiled, and said, "What's your name? Let's be friends."

Bai Xuan put down the token, yawned, and still ignored him.

The woman turned her head and said, "Linzi, don't cause trouble. Keep that temper in check. Have you forgotten the trouble you caused earlier in the Great Spring capital? Aren't you afraid of being punished by your master when you return to White Dragon Cave?"

The woman shifted her gaze to the young man named You Qi and complained, "And you! Aren't you going to keep Linzi in line?"

You Qi said helplessly, "Miss Ye, you can call him Linzi casually, but according to my family's lineage register, Linzi is my legitimate uncle."

The child nicknamed Linzi curled his lip. He stopped paying attention to the mute on the railing and looked at Named Orchid Jade Tablet and Yao Xiaoyan. He grinned, raised both hands, and made a pinching gesture at his face.

Bai Xuan jumped up from the railing and cracked his knuckles.

Named Orchid Jade Tablet quickly turned her head and said, "It's fine. Don't cause trouble. Master Cao isn't here."

The child sneered and strode away, but he didn't walk fast. He lagged behind the group, turned his head, and formed words silently—not even a mental voice, just mouthing the words: "Coward."

Bai Xuan stomped the railing and said angrily, "You're annoying me to death!"

Because Master Cao had told them not to casually reveal their identity as sword cultivators.

Unlike Cheng Zhaolu, that little follower of the Hidden Officer who pestered him every day to teach boxing.

Bai Xuan had secretly sworn that in this Bright World, he would learn from the Hidden Officer—never lose a single duel!

If he could use his flying sword, he would have already beaten that brat until he cried for his mother.

The chubby boy Cheng Zhaolu suddenly stepped forward, took off his bundle, placed it on the ground, and without a word, walked toward his agemate from White Dragon Cave who had such a high seniority.

Linzi, who loved to stir up trouble, turned sideways and looked at the seemingly simple chubby boy, hooking his finger in a "come here" gesture. "Come on. If you throw the first punch, don't blame me for being rough."

You Qi sensed something was wrong and quickly came to his uncle Linzi's side, half-jokingly saying, "Enough, enough. Uncle, you're a mid-five-realm cultivator. Why are you sparring with these children?"

Linzi glanced sideways at the two girls and smiled, "They're only in the Cavern Realm."

As You Qi spoke amiably to Linzi, he also sent a mental voice to the chubby boy: "Get back. Don't cause trouble. If your sect elders come, you'll be in for it too."

In the pavilion, Cui Dongshan held back a laugh and clicked his tongue in wonder, "White Dragon Cave cultivators are pretty cocky."

Jiang Shangzhen extended a finger and rubbed his temple, "Headache. The patriarch of White Dragon Cave seems to be only a Nascent Soul."

But White Dragon Cave cultivators now did have the right to walk sideways on Parasol Leaf Continent. It wasn't about their realm being high or low—it was about having the momentum.

Jiang Shangzhen asked, "Aren't you going to intervene?"

Cui Dongshan shook his head, "I'll handle the ending. These sword immortal seedlings need to know their own measure. Thinking too highly of themselves or too lowly is no good. In the future, at Fallen Mountain, except when they reach a higher realm and can go down the mountain for experience, they won't have many chances to fight like this. Even without this incident at Yellow Crane Rock today, I would have arranged for them to have a conflict with outsiders elsewhere in Cloud Grotto Blessed Land."

Since Cui Dongshan said that, Jiang Shangzhen continued to watch the show. If, because of this small matter, he ended up being noted in the mountain master's ledger and lost his Chief Patron seat, Jiang Shangzhen would beat the White Dragon Cave patriarch's shit out of him later.

Cui Dongshan focused his gaze and suddenly asked, "Have you ever wondered why I could open the mountain-and-water restrictions of the white jade hairpin?"

Jiang Shangzhen nodded, "Naturally, Chen Ping'an left clues. I guess only you can open it."

Cui Dongshan asked again, "And have you ever wondered if my teacher's sword sacrifice at Taiping Mountain on the continent was really just a sword immortal's romantic indulgence, or acting on impulse?"

Jiang Shangzhen smiled, "Lu Zhi, Qi Tingji, Liu Jinglong, Xie Songhua, Song Pin—all those sword immortals know that the Hidden Officer has returned to the Bright World."

Cui Dongshan turned his head, looking shocked, "Brother Zhou Fei's little brain is really quick!"

Jiang Shangzhen cupped his hands, "Too kind, too kind. 'If you're not one of the family, you don't enter the same door.'"

Over there.

Cheng Zhaolu took a deep breath. He silently recited a few boxing formulas in his mind: "Thousand trips of the post, ten thousand punches—one move emerges... what was it? Never mind, just throw it."

The chubby boy stomped hard on the ground, his boxing stance slithering like a snake. He kicked off again, leaping high, swinging his arm, his strength full, his power exploding like thunder. A downward chop struck like a whip.

The jade-faced young White Dragon Cave cultivator took the punch to the head, his head snapping sideways. He smashed face-first onto the green brick ground with a loud bang. Finally, his legs, which had been pointing skyward, fell limply to the ground.

After taking just one punch from the child, he immediately passed out.

Cheng Zhaolu lunged forward, his instep slightly arched, and pressed his foot against the man's forehead. With a sudden burst of force, he kicked the young man, sending him sliding backward more than ten zhang, slamming hard into the white jade railing.

Cheng Zhaolu continued to charge forward, his body suddenly tilting to dodge a magical artifact similar to a binding rope. He pressed two fingers lightly to the ground, flipped his body, and dodged another technique that tried to restrain his form. The chubby boy moved as nimbly as a civet cat through a forest, bent over and sprinting. He continued toward the young man, who was now lying on the ground, foaming at the mouth and twitching uncontrollably. He finally kicked You Qi in the head. The back of the man's skull struck the railing several times, rattling loudly.

The chubby boy only focused on this one person—very single-minded. He ignored everyone else. As for that kid called Linzi or whatever, fighting him was no fun, and it would also put him in the wrong. Master Cao had said that when you learn boxing, you must know the weight of your own fists. Cheng Zhaolu was truly afraid that one punch would cripple or kill that cocky kid.

This was the advantage of sword cultivators, especially sword immortal seedlings.

Among cultivators, sword cultivators and military cultivators best nourished the soul and benefited the physique. So a sword cultivator who didn't release his flying sword, or a military cultivator who didn't use techniques, would look very much like a pure martial artist.

Cui Dongshan was taken aback, "The chubby boy's got a temper. Even I misjudged him?"

Jiang Shangzhen nodded, "He really doesn't look like it normally."

Cui Dongshan said regretfully, "Among this group, there are still some who are willing to reason. Otherwise, today's effect would be even better. Bai Xuan and a few others could have gotten a chance to draw swords. What a pity."

The Pushen Cloud Grass Hall on Parasol Leaf Continent was similar to the Thunder God Temple on White Snow Continent—both were schools that could make a name for themselves on a continent. Ye Yunyun, along with Wu Shu, the "Martial Saint" who wielded a hanging bamboo sword and carried a wooden gun through the Jianghu, had both been rated as one of the ten great grandmasters in Parasol Leaf Continent's martial history. They were true martial arts titans. However, Wu Shu had no interest in establishing a school or passing on his legacy. He was even less interested in spreading his boxing style than Ye Yunyun. He hadn't taken a single formal disciple. Moreover, whenever Wu Shu made a move, it was incredibly heavy. One Martial Forbidden Realm martial artist from Parasol Leaf Continent had challenged him to a boxing match, received severe injuries, and died within ten years. Wu Shu only suffered minor injuries. During the war, Wu Shu happened to be away from home, traveling in Central Earth Divine Continent, intending to challenge Pei Cup. But his homeland fell too quickly, and Wu Shu couldn't make it back, so he had to go alone to South Bodhi Continent, killing many demons on the battlefield.

A handsome young man in a green robe with a white jade belt flashed into position beside the chubby boy, grabbing Cheng Zhaolu's shoulder. In somewhat clumsy Parasol Leaf Continent elegant language, he smiled, "That's enough. If you kick again, you'll really damage someone's Dao foundation."

Cheng Zhaolu withdrew his fist and silently retreated to Named Orchid Jade Tablet's side.

Bai Xuan squatted on the railing and smacked the chubby boy's head, laughing, "Little dog-leg, you've got half my style!"

Cheng Zhaolu grinned sheepishly and scratched his head. It was his first time throwing a punch since learning boxing, so he felt a bit embarrassed.

Jiang Shangzhen glanced at the young man's footwork, "That's interesting. It's Wu Shu's walking post. I guess he took an outside disciple. Very young Golden Body realm."

Cui Dongshan curled his lip, "And this counts as young? If he met my even younger senior sister, one punch and the boy would be bouncing on the ground three times!"

Jiang Shangzhen laughed, "If you're going to put it that way, Brother Cui, this conversation is over."

Cui Dongshan stood up, "This fight definitely won't continue. I'll go settle it. Brother Zhou Fei, stay and drink."

The child from White Dragon Cave, nicknamed Linzi, his face ashen, stood beside the handsome young man, staring at Cheng Zhaolu with gritted teeth, "State your name!"

Cheng Zhaolu thought for a moment, then answered formally, "I just got a Jianghu nickname—Invincible Little Divine Fist."

Linzi's eyes were red with rage, and he was about to summon a lifebound attack artifact, but the handsome young man reached out and pressed his shoulder, suppressing his mind and forcefully calming his spiritual energy. The young man smiled, "Linzi, there are heavens beyond heavens, and people beyond people. When you're out in the world, you can't be too willful."

The child said angrily, "Guo Bailu! You Qi is almost dead, and you're taking an outsider's side?"

The handsome young man was somewhat helpless. He sent a mental voice: "Have you forgotten? You Qi is a Dragon Gate realm cultivator. Even if he was careless and got punched, he shouldn't have been knocked unconscious with one punch by that child. Someone was using a fixation technique on You Qi."

A white-clad figure suddenly appeared on the railing, squatting there, grinning. "Hey there. I'm Invincible Little Divine Fist's friend. If you want to fight, yell, or kill, come at me."

Cui Dongshan appeared, squatting on the railing. Bai Xuan, who had been sitting there, quickly slid to the ground.

Guo Bailu faced the young man in white, cupping his hands, "Junior Guo Bailu greets the senior immortal master."

Cui Dongshan wiped his face with his sleeve, a bit troubled. With such a clever one on the other side, how could he pour oil on the fire? The two protectors in the snail-shell immortal residence were also really irresponsible, watching from afar without showing themselves. Then he had an idea. He waved at Guo Bailu, signaling him to go cool off somewhere. He looked at the child from White Dragon Cave and said, "Your master, the patriarch of White Dragon Cave, is a mighty mountain chancellor of the continent. You are You Qi's uncle, a Cavern Realm immortal at less than ten years old—a unique cultivation genius on the continent. Your seniority, status, and realm are all laid out. What are you afraid of? And you still have the nerve to call my Invincible Little Divine Fist a coward? How about I help you pick someone, and you two have a sparring match?"

Bai Xuan's eyes lit up. He reached out, slapped Cheng Zhaolu's big head, pushed him aside, and strode forward. "I'll go, I'll go."

The child from White Dragon Cave's expression shifted between shadow and light.

A young cultivator standing beside Miss Ye was about to speak.

Without turning his head, Cui Dongshan said, "Shut up. I can't afford to mess with the registered cultivators of Golden Summit Temple, the 'mountain sovereign.' I can only pick on the soft persimmon of White Dragon Cave."

At this moment, two old men finally couldn't hold back from the immortal residence at Yellow Crane Rock. They flew over together. One was the chief patron of Golden Summit Temple, an Nascent Soul realm. The other was a Far Journey realm martial artist from Pushen Cloud Grass Hall, one of Ye Yunyun's direct disciples.

With these two masters as protectors, plus the young people having a Golden Body realm martial artist like Guo Bailu and a Dragon Gate realm like You Qi, their training journey had been smooth sailing. They never expected to run into such a problem at Cloud Grotto Blessed Land. Word of this wouldn't sound good. And the reason the two protectors hadn't shown up earlier was their deeper concern: they worried that the four children might have connections with the Cloud Grotto Jiang clan or Jade Gui Sect's Divine Inscription Peak. This trip to Cloud Grotto Blessed Land was itself a gesture of goodwill—or rather, humility—toward the Jiang clan and Jade Gui Sect.

Not to mention Ye Yunyun of Pushen Cloud Grass Hall, the other two—Du Hanling, the head of Golden Summit Temple, and the patriarch of White Dragon Cave, both old Nascent Soul cultivators—had always been extremely careful in gauging the sentiment of Divine Inscription Peak. Especially Du Hanling, who had secretly visited Grand Sword Immortal Wei Ying before the Peach Leaf Alliance. However, Du Hanling hadn't mentioned this even to the patriarch of White Dragon Cave.

When they saw the snow-white, handsome young man, the Far Journey martial artist cupped his hands, and the Golden Summit Temple chief patron made a Daoist bow.

Cui Dongshan accepted the greetings, but his words still fanned the flames: "What? Relying on numbers to bully us? I have a teacher. When my teacher shows up, he'll punch one White Dragon Cave and kick one Golden Summit Temple. Are you afraid?"

The Far Journey martial artist cupped his hands again, "This immortal master is joking. It's just a minor misunderstanding, not worth mentioning. The children rarely travel down the mountain. They don't know the consequences."

Cui Dongshan sighed. Another one who was willing to reason. Annoying. He shifted his butt, slid off the railing, crouched, then slowly stood up, shaking out his two snow-white sleeves.

Bai Xuan glanced sideways at the White Dragon Cave child and mimicked the gesture, hooking his finger. But he didn't speak aloud—just mouthing the words: "One-on-one."

Cui Dongshan slapped Bai Xuan's head and scolded, "Idiot! If you fart out and kill this mid-five-realm little immortal from White Dragon Cave, how many Snow Flower coins can you afford to pay? You'd need Small Summer coins! Do you have money?"

Yao Xiaoyan whispered, "Sister Jade Tablet has money."

Named Orchid Jade Tablet nodded, "Is five Small Summer coins enough?"

Bai Xuan sneered, "When I fight one-on-one, I always sign a life-and-death contract. No need to pay for shit."

Cui Dongshan said to Named Orchid Jade Tablet, "Write that down. You'll need it when you get to Master Cao's hometown. I'm not lying to you."

Bai Xuan put his hands behind his back, acting old: "Your name is Linzi, right? 'A big forest has all kinds of birds' Linzi. Good. I won't bully you for having a higher realm or being older than me. Let's have a sparring match, one-on-one. If you kill me, no one on my side will avenge me. If I kill you, your White Dragon Cave or whatever can come find me. If I even frown, I'm your long-lost wild father..."

Cui Dongshan had already wrapped his arm around Bai Xuan's neck, but the child kept yelling, "Come on, hit me! Kill me! If you have the guts, fight me one-on-one! If I weren't held back by my brother, I'd kick your dog face. When you go home, your parents will ask where your son is... Damn you, watch your back when you walk alone..."

Bai Xuan turned sideways, one foot on the ground, the other raised and kicking wildly. Finally, he spat, as if launching a flying sword.

Cui Dongshan almost couldn't help but let this wild dog off the leash.

How could this little bastard be so infuriating?

Cui Dongshan felt that if he were one of those registered immortal masters, he would also want to kill this little bastard with his "golden tongue."

That group didn't continue the ruckus. They carried the still-unconscious You Qi away. The child from White Dragon Cave, who had been renamed "Linzi" and given a wild father, was dragged away by the young woman surnamed Ye.

At a Jiang clan private residence on Cloud Summit Peak, Chen Ping'an opened his eyes, then closed them. After a moment, he sat up. He found his shoes at the bedside, pointing toward the bed. Chen Ping'an was stunned for a moment, then smiled.

He put on his shoes. From the table, he picked up the Sword-Nurturing Gourd and the narrow saber Subjugation and hung them at his waist. He walked out of the room and found himself in a place of beautiful mountains and clear waters. It wasn't overly luxurious, but very quiet and elegant. The residence wasn't large, with bamboo in front and water behind. Across a murmuring stream was another grove of bamboo, a sea of green, lush and dripping. Bamboo shadows swayed, in harmony with the wind and moon. After appreciating the scenery, Chen Ping'an used the earth-shrinking technique, pushed open the mountain-and-water restrictions, and flew to the peak of Cloud Summit Peak. He asked a Jiang clan cultivator a few questions, then slowly descended the mountain, preparing to go to Yellow Crane Rock.

At Yellow Crane Rock, Cui Dongshan sat back on the railing. Bai Xuan, with Cui Dongshan's permission, lay prone on the railing, making swimming motions.

Cui Dongshan laughed, "Cheng Zhaolu, you had such guts?"

The chubby boy said gloomily, "I was the only one who learned boxing."

Meaning, since Master Cao wasn't around, he was the only one among them who could fight. He couldn't lose face for Master Cao.

Cui Dongshan sat on the railing, hands supporting him, legs swinging, looking lazy but saying the most hurtful words, "Chubby, unfortunately your flying sword's quality isn't high, and your cultivation talent is mediocre. Not to mention Chen Li and those 'elders' taken from their hometown, even compared to Bai Xuan and the others, you're at the bottom."

Among sword cultivators, there was a difference between being a "sword immortal seedling" and being an "sword immortal"—a world of difference. And among sword immortal seedlings themselves, there were further differences, equally vast. The sword immortal seedlings of the Great Wall of Swords could generally reach Golden Core steadily, with hopes of Nascent Soul. With better luck—like not dying young or on the battlefield—they could become upper-five-realm sword cultivators. In short, they all had hope of becoming Jade Realm sword cultivators.

This was different from the Bright World, where Golden Core and Nascent Soul sword cultivators could already be called "sword immortals."

In terms of sword cultivation, Parasol Leaf Continent was only slightly better than Vase Bottle Continent, about the same as White Snow Continent.

Cheng Zhaolu was dejected, head down. "When I was practicing boxing in private with Master Cao, he said that for cultivators in the world, and for us sword practitioners, talent really can be eaten as food. If you have good talent, your bowl is big with lots of rice. One bowl can be as good as two or three of others'. This is called 'the ancestor bestows food.' You have to accept it—you can't deny fate. But if your bowl is small and the rice is scarce, you won't starve to death. If you want to eat more and grow bigger, you have to cultivate more diligently than others and open a little kitchen for yourself. Master Cao also said, what if someone with good talent also works hard? Don't worry—there's a way."

Cui Dongshan grinned, "What way? Let's hear it."

Cheng Zhaolu looked up, shook his head, a bit happy. "It's a secret technique Master Cao taught me. I won't say. Unless there's someone more stupid than me, and they're my friend, I'll tell them. Bai Xuan, Jade Tablet, and the others are all smarter than me, so why would I bother to say it? Master Cao said, if a person's skills are small but the principles on their lips are too big, it will annoy people. So no rush—I'll keep it in reserve."

Cui Dongshan hummed, "No wonder my teacher taught you boxing alone."

Cheng Zhaolu shook his head vigorously and said with his mind voice, "That's not it either. The others weren't willing to learn. Master Cao couldn't force boxing on them. Master Cao's boxing is so exalted, so rare. But let me tell you quietly—don't spread it. Actually, Bai Xuan, He Gu, He Xiangting, and a few others all wanted to learn, but they couldn't save face. Master Cao probably knew, so he said it twice: 'Go back to your room and do more walking post and standing post.'"

"You remember all that?"

"Jade Tablet writes it down sentence by sentence. I'm afraid of missing boxing principles, so I often borrow her notes. Every page I read, I have to pay her. I don't have money, so Jade Tablet specially organized a small ledger for me."

"And you actually pay?"

"Of course! A man's word is worth a thousand gold."

Cui Dongshan slapped his forehead.

Named Orchid Jade Tablet, the little money-grubber—would she become Pei Qian's little sidekick in the future? And a very loyal one at that?

And Cheng Zhaolu, the chubby little cook—his teacher would definitely like him. Zhu Lian would probably like him too. Not to mention boxing—at least the old cook's culinary skills would have the best person to inherit them.

Teacher always liked children who could endure hardship. Even if a child couldn't endure hardship, Teacher didn't think it was wrong or bad.

Cui Dongshan suddenly stood up and turned around. He saw a blue-robed figure crossing a mountain-and-water gate on the opposite bank of the river below Yellow Crane Rock. Cui Dongshan stood on tiptoe, stretched his neck, waved vigorously, and shouted at the top of his lungs, "Teacher, teacher! Over here!"

The blue robe transformed into a rainbow, heading straight for the peak of Yellow Crane Rock, like a sword cutting through the river. The originally calm and waveless river surged and churned.

In an instant, the man landed on the white jade railing, his smile warm. He reached out and gently pressed down on the head of the young man in white.

The student was still a youth, but the teacher had grown taller, his figure more slender, so he had to bend slightly to speak to his student.

Neither said anything.

Jiang Shangzhen walked over slowly. Chen Ping'an jumped down from the railing, and Cui Dongshan immediately followed.

Bai Xuan chuckled. This big white goose, when it came to the Hidden Officer, was clearly more of a bootlicker than Cheng Zhaolu.

Bai Xuan suddenly sensed trouble. If Chen Ping'an found out what happened today, he would probably be no better off than Cheng Zhaolu. Bai Xuan crept away, trying to slip off. But Chen Ping'an reached out and gently pressed his head.

Chen Ping'an asked, "What happened?"

Named Orchid Jade Tablet and Yao Xiaoyan immediately felt they had someone to back them up. Even Yao Xiaoyan, who was usually soft-tempered, felt a long-delayed unhappiness.

Bai Xuan quickly reminded the chubby boy beside him, "One person, one deed. Cheng Zhaolu, show some martial spirit. I've done my best for you today. Huh?!"

Cheng Zhaolu shrank his neck, "Oh."

After hearing Named Orchid Jade Tablet's crisp report of the situation, Chen Ping'an glared at Cui Dongshan.

Cui Dongshan blinked, playing dumb.

Chen Ping'an said, "You did well. In the future, you should stick together. No matter who, don't let outsiders bully you. But don't forget the three rules I set before."

Named Orchid Jade Tablet coughed a few times to clear her throat, then began to recite loudly: "First, try not to fight fights you can't win, and don't curse people you can't out-cuss. We're young; losing doesn't mean losing face. The green hills remain, the waters flow forever. Keep careful accounts and practice swordsmanship well."

"Second, if you have the moral high ground and have to fight, fight seriously and well, but you must have restraint. Never lightly decide life and death. Third, if you can't win, don't be stubborn. Run away quickly. If you can't escape, lower your head and apologize first, then find Master Cao to settle the score."

"Outside the three rules, there's an addendum: In short, pretending to be a grandson before a fight is to become a grandfather after the fight!"

Bai Xuan, who usually liked to put his hands behind his back, was feeling guilty today, so he applauded for the first time, commending Named Orchid Jade Tablet.

Cui Dongshan quickly joined in, clapping silently—this was a unique technique from Fallen Mountain, an unpassed secret.

Just like Teacher!

Listen: this instruction, these words—plain, simple truths, interlocking, unassailable...

Chen Ping'an reached out and weighed Cheng Zhaolu's bundle, which was filled with inkstones of various sizes. He said, "A bit light. You could add another five or