Chapter 766: The Unchangeable Pages of the Past

Chapter 766: The Unchangeable Pages of the Past

The two walked upstream along the banks of the Dragon Whisker River.

As they passed the stone arch bridge, Liu Xianyang chuckled. "You know why I was dead set on following Master Ruan back then?"

Chen Ping'an nodded. "There used to be a covered bridge here. Every dusk, lots of people would come strolling over to cool off and chat. Second only to the old locust tree—that one had more old folks and kids, while this place had more young adults, which meant more girls."

Liu Xianyang rubbed his cheek, regretful. "Pity the little girls back then are all pretty old now. Every time I run into them on the road, the old maids are leading little maids, and they look at me with such lecherous eyes, like they want to eat me alive."

Chen Ping'an said, "Don't overthink it. They just suspect you're a cultivator from the mountains, not that you're handsome and ageless."

The fact that Liu Xianyang was a direct descendant of the Dragon Spring Sword Sect was not widely known among the mundane folk of his hometown. Plus, Master Ruan's ancestral hall had moved north of the capital, leaving Liu Xianyang alone to mind the blacksmith shop. Even the best-informed in the Northern Sacred Mountain region at most mistook him for a menial disciple of the Dragon Spring Sword Sect.

Liu Xianyang sighed emotionally. "If that's the case, then Yu Qianyue really is the one for me—a match made in heaven, destined to meet across a thousand miles."

Chen Ping'an smiled. "She changed her alias to Yu Qianyue? Must have put some thought into it."

Sheyue, Yu Qianyue. Chen Ping'an's mind stirred. The thought arose, and his spirit roamed a thousand miles away, like a spring breeze flipping through a book, frantically rifling through his thoughts.

Liu Xianyang nodded. "Your sister-in-law is a brilliant girl to begin with. She's seen all the young talents of two worlds, traveled mountains and rivers, and yet she picked me, Liu Xianyang, out of everyone, and then she stopped."

Chen Ping'an didn't respond. He stood on the stone arch bridge and stopped moving.

Liu Xianyang gazed at the clear water of the Dragon Whisker River, where aquatic plants swayed and small fish wagged their tails. Without any particular reason, Liu Xianyang felt a bit sad. He looked at this "Chen Ping'an" beside him, then at himself. Comparing people only made him feel inferior. In a certain travelogue that Liu Xianyang had nearly worn out from reading, there were descriptions of a deep mountain stream where a woman sat on a rock in the water combing her hair; traveling by moonlight, meeting a beautiful woman hobbling along; taking shelter from the rain in an ancient temple, a woman knocking on the door to ask for lodging with a guest. He didn't need to think, let alone flip through the pages—he knew it was Chen Ping'an's romantic fortune at work. The scholar could only hate that he wasn't the person in the book.

But then Liu Xianyang thought again—he had his own round-faced girl in the cotton-padded jacket. When he went back, he'd hang a scroll on the wall of his dwelling, with the two big characters for "contentment" written on it.

Suddenly, Chen Ping'an sat down on the bridge and began to meditate with his eyes closed.

Liu Xianyang crouched beside him. After a moment of silence, feeling a bit bored, he couldn't help asking, "What's up?"

Chen Ping'an rested his hands on the bridge surface, letting his legs dangle and sway gently. He opened his eyes and said, "I once had an agreement bound to a cycle of sixty years. I originally thought it would come many years early, but now it seems I can only wait patiently. In fact, I can't even guarantee that I'll be able to wait until it comes."

Liu Xianyang nodded. "Earlier, when I returned home from Southern Suopo Continent and found that the old sword blade was no longer hanging under the bridge, I mostly knew it had something to do with you."

To outsiders, both the old sword blade hanging under the bridge and Chen Ping'an beside him were just unremarkable things they took for granted.

Chen Ping'an said, "It should be that the Embroidery Tiger used some means to sever the connection between us. When I returned home and set foot on solid ground, I finally confirmed it. It felt like I had started dreaming again. There was an emptiness in my heart. Before, although I had faced many difficulties, there was always that vague, subconscious connection, like a severed lotus root still connected by threads. Even when I was alone on that half of the Sword Qi Great Wall, I once used a calculation to send a 'flying sword message' back here. That feeling… how should I put it? Like when I first traveled to Inverted Suspension Mountain, after the battle at the Dragon Trench, even if I had lost and died, I wouldn't have regretted it. No matter who it was, even Lu Chen of the third patriarch of the White Jade Capital, as long as I was willing to risk everything, I could drag them down with me. Looking back, this mindset was actually my greatest… backing. It wasn't about what she specifically did for me on the path of cultivation, but that her existence gave me peace of mind. Now… it's gone."

On the path of life, whether cultivators or ordinary people, everyone has some thought that serves as their "backing." For example, kind-hearted people firmly believe that good deeds are rewarded, using this to fight against all the hardships of the world.

Completely severing that thread of spiritual connection between Chen Ping'an and her.

This was one of the keys to Cui Chan's fourth dream after the three dreams in the Cavern of Creation.

Chen Ping'an had barely managed to confirm that the "dream" was real at Taiping Mountain, thanks to Jiang Shangzhen's words about cultivating the true self. But then, when he arrived home at Vase Bottle Continent, he inevitably grew confused again. As he traveled along the road—Sword Qi Great Wall, Cavern of Creation, Qu Mountain Ferry, Taiping Mountain, Cloud Cavern Blessed Land, Mirage City, Heavenly Watch Peak… the farther north he went, especially after boarding the intercontinental ship to the Southern Sacred Mountain region of Vase Bottle Continent, there was not a single trace of that spiritual connection.

Chen Ping'an only truly dispelled this worry when he reached the Great River Temple of Vase Bottle Continent.

Cultivating the sword, asking the sword of heaven, sword immortals ascending. Practicing martial arts, striking punches, standing at the peak with no one before me.

These were truths Chen Ping'an considered extremely solid and clear in his heart.

After "playing chess" with Cui Chan, it was only when Chen Ping'an spent a whole night flipping through books at the Qi Crossing Temple that he suddenly woke up to the fact that he was too afraid of the national teacher Cui Chan, who had set up the Inquisition Bureau in Letter Scroll Lake. So much so that even though Cui Chan had become his senior brother guarding the path, as long as Cui Chan was on the opposite side of the chessboard, Chen Ping'an always felt that he could only hope to lose less, never expecting not to lose, let alone win against the Embroidery Tiger, one of the Three Splendors of Haoran.

In that case, what was Chen Ping'an talking about with "no one before me"? So Cui Chan's so-called "darkness under the lamp" hadn't wronged Chen Ping'an. The key to solving the problem had long been pointed out, yet Chen Ping'an still failed to understand it for a long time.

Chen Ping'an said self-deprecatingly, "After I went from Inverted Suspension Mountain to the Cavern of Creation on Reed Flower Island, and then stepped onto Parasol Leaf Continent, up until I sat here now—without that connection, the closer I got to home, the more it felt this way. It really made me uncomfortable. It's like now, if I can't resist and jump into the water, look up, and find that the old sword blade is still hanging under the bridge."

Liu Xianyang leaned back, using his hands as a pillow and crossing his legs. He laughed. "You've always liked to overthink things, keeping it all bottled up without saying much. Coming back alive to Haoran, especially getting close to home, do you feel like maybe this Chen Ping'an never actually left his hometown? That everything was just a beautiful dream? Worried that the entire Li Zhu Cave Heaven is just a White Paper Blessed Land?"

Chen Ping'an tucked his hands into his sleeves and smiled. "When a beautiful dream comes true, who doesn't wake up and immediately try to go back to sleep, hoping to continue the previous dream? Back then, among the three of us, who could have imagined it would turn out like today?"

Liu Xianyang spoke from experience. "Damn right. Back in my ancestral home, every time I woke up in the middle of the night with a full bladder, after cursing and taking a piss, I'd rush back to bed, close my eyes, and try to sleep again. Sometimes it worked, but most times, I'd just have a different dream."

Chen Ping'an said, "Be careful someone might impersonate the Old Man Under the Moon and tie the wrong red threads. The reason I'm so wary of Bright Sun Mountain and Breeze City is that someone behind the scenes is skilled at this, making it impossible to guard against. Wei Jin of Snow Wind Temple, Li Tuanjing of Thunder Wind Garden, and even Liu Baqiao—someone is secretly controlling the flow of sword qi luck across the continent. Madam Cassia also warned me during the observation ceremony."

Liu Xianyang laughed. "Before I returned home, I already had someone help cut the red thread of fate between me and Wang Zhu. Otherwise, do you think I'd have the patience to wait for you to come back? I would have long since fought my way from outside Breeze City to inside, from the foot of Bright Sun Mountain to the summit. The only fear was letting that person slip away."

Chen Ping'an frowned slightly. "Then we might need to add Huang He of Thunder Wind Garden to the list."

Li Tuanjing of Thunder Wind Garden, the female founder of Bright Sun Mountain. Wei Jin of Snow Wind Temple, He Xiaoliang of Divine Proclamation Sect.

Liu Xianyang of Dragon Spring Sword Sect, Wang Zhu of Clay Vase Alley. Liu Baqiao of Thunder Wind Garden, the Bright Sun Mountain fairy Su Jia.

If Wei Jin hadn't met A Liang and gone to the Sword Qi Great Wall, if Liu Xianyang hadn't traveled far to study with the Chen clan of Pure Confucianism but just stayed on one continent, they might have been manipulated by the puppet master behind the scenes, just like Li Tuanjing. With Li Tuanjing's aptitude in the sword, placed on any of the eight continents of Haoran, he would undoubtedly have been a sword cultivator at the immortal realm. But on Vase Bottle Continent, Li Tuanjing had never been able to break through to the upper five realms. Among the ten young candidates, Bright Sun Mountain had a youthful sword immortal seedling who occupied a spot—Wu Tijing.

Sheyue of the Barbaric Wilds, who used the alias Yu Qianyue on Haoran. Pei Min of the Central Earth Divine Continent, who took the alias Pei Wenyue on Parasol Leaf Continent.

Li Tuanjing of Thunder Wind Garden had passed away through martial liberation over twenty years ago. Then Bright Sun Mountain gained a young sword immortal, Wu Tijing?

Li Tuanjing, Wu Tijing.

Was Bright Sun Mountain hinting at Huang He of Thunder Wind Garden, "I am half of Li Tuanjing"?

This hiding-in-the-shadows puppet master's way of doing things remained the same, truly disgusting.

With enemies like Ma Kuxuan of Apricot Flower Lane, where grievances and debts were clear, Chen Ping'an didn't have much of a burden. Whether it was deciding victory or defeat, or life or death, things would take their course. It was the same for him and for Ma Kuxuan—neat and clean.

Chen Ping'an had originally planned to wait a bit later before sending "Chief Zhou" down the mountain for a trip, such as after he left for Northern Ju Continent, so that Jiang Shangzhen could familiarize himself more with the situation.

But thinking of this "Wu Tijing" and his friend Liu Baqiao, Chen Ping'an immediately changed his mind. He took out the sword case and directly sent a flying sword message to the newly built sword room at the peak of Ji Se Mountain in Fallen Mountain, telling Jiang Shangzhen and Cui Dongshan to pay attention to this person's movements now, and never let that woman with a low-ranking seat in the ancestral hall slip away quietly. However, Fallen Mountain only needed to watch her for now, not act in haste.

Chen Ping'an had already examined the ancestral halls and clan registers of Bright Sun Mountain and Breeze City several times. Especially Bright Sun Mountain—the "Ox Hair," one of the seven sword-nurturing gourds of the old ancestors, the change in fairy Su Jia's register, the young sword immortal Wu Tijing's ascension in cultivation… there were quite a few clues. He had already circled the woman named Tian Wan in the ancestral hall register.

Combined with Gu Can's earlier information from Chai Bofu, plus the marriage alliance between the Xu clan of Breeze City and the Yuan clan of the Pillar of State, and the literary fortune scheme in the Fox Kingdom, it was highly possible that Tian Wan, who had a very low-ranking position in Bright Sun Mountain's ancestral hall and always acted humble and submissive, was the secret preacher of the Xu clan's matriarch in Breeze City.

A female cultivator at the very bottom of Bright Sun Mountain's ancestral hall—she didn't need to fight anyone. Just relying on a few red threads, she had thrown the situation across the continent into chaos, resulting in no sword immortals on Vase Bottle Continent for centuries.

Should one cultivate the heart on the mountain?

If Chen Ping'an and Liu Baqiao had simply gone to challenge Bright Sun Mountain's ancestral hall and the couple from Breeze City early on, that Tian Wan, who stirred up trouble, would probably have laughed her head off. Even if Chen Ping'an and the others came to their senses and fought again, Tian Wan would surely have disappeared without a trace. That would truly have been infuriating. Putting himself in her shoes, Chen Ping'an felt that before making up her mind to leave Vase Bottle Continent, that Tian Wan would most likely deliberately reveal her tracks to "remind" his Fallen Mountain and Liu Xianyang's blacksmith shop, and then conveniently drag Sheyue into it, making Liu Xianyang suspicious and paranoid.

Moreover, Chen Ping'an suspected that this sneaky Tian Wan and Han Yushu of the Ten Thousand Yao Sect on Parasol Leaf Continent were birds of a feather.

But it was just speculation, with no evidence.

The two got up and left the stone arch bridge, continuing their stroll upstream along the Dragon Whisker River.

Chen Ping'an kept his hands tucked in his sleeves. Suddenly, he leaped across the river, then leaped back to the opposite bank, doing it over and over again with delight. Liu Xianyang, with both hands behind his head, walked lazily along the riverside.

They arrived at the pitted blue stone cliff. Liu Xianyang found a familiar "seat" and sat down. Chen Ping'an sat beside him. Between them was another pothole—that had been the seat of Little Snotty back in the day.

The Dragon Prefecture region was renowned in the Great Li Dynasty for its flourishing water transport. Iron Talisman River, Chong Dan River, Embroidered Flower River, Jade Liquid River—the four rivers. The Iron Talisman River's water god was Yang Hua, Chong Dan River's was Li Jin, and Jade Liquid River's was Ye Qingzhu. One head-rank river god, three slightly lower-ranked river spirits. The four rivers' waters were vast, not limited to Dragon Prefecture, but the temples of all four water deities were built within Dragon Prefecture.

Liu Xianyang said, "As for this Dragon Whisker River, Ma Lanhua was promoted from river crone to river god. For so many years, she never built a temple or a golden statue. She used to complain bitterly about it. But after that great battle, with thousands of rivers north and south of central Vase Bottle Continent either destroyed or forced to change course, she started secretly gloating. She thought being a river god with a peaceful life wasn't bad at all."

True Pearl Mountain was where the "Pearl of the Dragon" once held by a true dragon was located, so the Dragon Whisker River was truly worthy of its name—"dragon whiskers." But there were two whiskers, one hidden and one visible. The hidden one was under the main street of the town. Above the whiskers were things like Crab Workshop, Iron Lock Well, and Old Locust Tree, stretching toward the former east gate.

Before Ma Lanhua of Apricot Flower Lane had her divine rank elevated, people like her—river gods and river crones—were similar to the local earth gods under various city gods, the corrupt lower-level officials in the mountain-and-water bureaucracy. On the court's golden jade registers, it was extremely difficult for them to raise their rank or the height of their statues. After all, the size of streams, rivers, and mountain peaks, as well as their waters and territories, were usually fixed. You couldn't just get extra land and water out of nowhere.

Every historically significant river course change, which often lasted a hundred or even several hundred years, would lead to the decline of a batch of mountain and water deities while simultaneously creating a batch of new rising gods. Moving the statues and temples of mountain and water deities was far more difficult than moving the ancestral hall of a mountain immortal sect. Once a river changed course, the riverbed dried up, and the lake water level dropped. The golden statues of the river gods and lake lords would also suffer a "drought," cracking in the sun. Incense offerings could only barely sustain them, but could not change the overall situation.

But after a great battle, countless mountain and water deities in the south of Vase Bottle Continent perished. After the war ended, the various vassal states of the Great Li Dynasty, civil and military martyrs, filled the vacancies for "city gods" and various mountain and water deities.

Chen Ping'an said, "This Granny Ma of Apricot Flower Lane, though she likes to curse, has a good heart and is very timid. Back in the town, she was the one who believed most in ghosts and gods. Back then, she had nothing to do with the Dragon Kiln. The one who truly had a grudge against me was Ma Kuxuan's parents, who were greedy and always ruthless. That's why Ma Kuxuan had them move to the True Martial Mountain area. In fact, that was a statement in itself—letting me try to come find him at True Martial Mountain if I had the guts."

Liu Xianyang said, "If it were someone else, Ma Kuxuan would definitely have taken Ma Lanhua with him. Even if Ma Kuxuan didn't take her, given how timid Ma Lanhua is, she wouldn't dare stay here. And I guess Old Man Yang has talked to her."

Chen Ping'an nodded.

Liu Xianyang suddenly said, "If I remember correctly, you've never been to the ancestral mountain of our Dragon Spring Sword Sect?"

Chen Ping'an was startled for a moment, then nodded. "I guess I really haven't."

Liu Xianyang hesitated for a moment, then asked, "Chen Ping'an, what day were you born?"

Chen Ping'an said, "The fifth of May."

Liu Xianyang hummed in acknowledgment. He threw a pebble into the deep pool. "On the fifth day of the fifth month, at midday, when the longest day of the world is reached, the time when yang energy is at its peak. The suburban sacrifice, great thanksgiving to heaven, with the sun as the main, matched with the moon."

"Whether it's Song He or Song Mu, here in this place, there's only Song Jixin from Clay Vase Alley, with the nickname Song Banchai. When I was in Southern Suopo Continent, I once consulted a scholar Xu about the origins of characters. He said that the character 'emperor' is actually related to bundled firewood and the polished bronze mirror used to take fire from the sun. In ancient times, the ritual was extremely high-ranking. The name Song Jixin was definitely not given by the supervisor Song Yuzhang; it was undoubtedly the work of the Great Li national teacher. However, the current vassal king Song Mu probably still doesn't know that he was originally an abandoned pawn. Through that covered bridge built under Song Yuzhang's supervision, filthy and vile, which boosted the Great Li's national fortune, the prince Song Mu, who was already a dead person in the clan register, was originally meant to be discarded after being used by the Great Li Song clan."

"Fifth day of the fifth month, carry firewood, sun mirror."

Having said this, Liu Xianyang turned to look at Chen Ping'an. "The three of us, plus this Dragon Prefecture water transport—we were all 'heavenly treasures' for Ruan Xiu's forging of the mirror to open the sky. Either souls, or luck, or bodies—whatever it was, it was all refined into one mirror. Do you think only you feel like you're dreaming? I feel the same way."

Chen Ping'an remained silent.

Liu Xianyang smiled. "But no matter the reason, Miss Xiu Xiu ultimately changed her mind. Poor Li Liu took the fall for us."

Because all of Li Liu's divinity had been "eaten" by Ruan Xiu.

Chen Ping'an said, "Tuoyue Mountain was one of the two ancient ascension platforms, but the old chief sword immortal, together with Dragon Lord and Guan Zhao, shattered the path. So Old Man Yang's ascension platform is the only path to the heavens."

Therefore, Zhou Mi's plan had actually been targeting this ascension platform on Vase Bottle Continent from the very beginning.

It would be best if he could conquer Haoran, but if the Barbaric Wilds lost, then Zhou Mi would find a chance to open the sky and leave, becoming a new god of the old heavenly court.

Wen Hai Zhou Mi, one of the highest.

Behind Zhou Mi, besides a small group of cultivators who were reincarnations of gods, he also brought with him a greater number of sword cultivators from Tuoyue Mountain.

That was why in the later stages of the war, the Barbaric Wilds' offensive appeared so chaotic, advancing on three fronts, as if they were smashing a pot to pieces.

The Grand Ancestor of Tuoyue Mountain gave up all his cultivation realms just to disrupt the flow of time and all the "standards of measurement" of the two worlds. That was, in a sense, a head-on collision of the "great heavenly timeliness" of the two worlds.

Liu Xianyang sighed. "It's a pity there's no old man smoking that dry tobacco in the Yang family shop anymore. Otherwise, you could have asked more clearly about many doubts."

Chen Ping'an shook his head. "Things have come to this, there's nothing more to ask."

Liu Xianyang said helplessly, "Let's not talk about the three of us—we're all from here. But what about Miss Sheyue? How did she get here? Don't pretend to be clueless. I said it earlier: 'Great thanksgiving to heaven, with the sun as the main, matched with the moon.' 'Matched with the moon'!"

Chen Ping'an said, "This is Cui Chan playing chess with Wen Hai Zhou Mi, and… asking the heart of Miss Xiu Xiu."

In fact, Chen Ping'an's guess was already extremely close to the truth.

When Qi Jingchun last appeared from the Great River Temple and joined forces with Cui Chan to scheme heavily against Zhou Mi, Qi Jingchun had said afterward that he could have served as the "door god"—his original plan was not to challenge Zhou Mi together with Cui Chan, but to lay out a plan for some extremely great contingency. Qi Jingchun's earliest choice was to stand at the entrance of the ascension platform, blocking anyone from opening the sky or ascending.

But Qi Jingchun ultimately chose to trust Cui Chan and abandoned this idea. Or, to be precise, Qi Jingchun approved of a certain statement Cui Chan had "casually mentioned" to Chen Ping'an on the city wall: "Is the world at peace? Yes. Then we can rest easy? I don't think so."

In the middle of all this, the Azure Boy Heavenly Lord, Old Man Yang, who held the ascension platform, the Water God Li Liu's choice, and the "predecessor" on the golden arch bridge—in Cui Chan's arrangement, they had all already made their respective choices long ago.

But these secrets, unless someone could reopen the sky, were destined to become a page of the old almanac that no one would turn, and couldn't even turn.

Master Qi had passed away. There was no more Embroidery Tiger in the world. And Old Man Yang had fulfilled Lu Chen's prophecy: "Sir, go to the Yellow Springs; Sir, do not blame the heavens."

After another ten thousand years, another struggle of water and fire. Li Liu lost again, and this time she completely lost all her divinity. Moreover, this battle of the Dao, which had been so silent, Li Liu had actually never even made a move. When Ruan Xiu found her, Li Liu said nothing, asked nothing. She simply looked at the green-clad woman who seemed to have stripped away all her humanity. Li Liu, who had chosen to strip away all her divinity, looked at Ruan Xiu with a hint of pity in her eyes.

Before this, they had had an unpleasant chat within the cliff-carved characters of "Heaven Opens Divine Beauty."

Li Liu, who "wasn't very good at being human," had truly become human. Ruan Xiu, who "did have a very good temper," had opened the sky and left.

Chen Ping'an's gaze was deep and dark, meeting the gloomy pool of water.

Liu Xianyang said, "You can't be the only one stealing the spotlight in the matter of challenging the two places. You go to Breeze City. As for the ancestral heirloom mole armor, although Breeze City was somewhat coercive in the transaction, in the end, I agreed to it verbally. I wouldn't think of taking it back. Just make the reasoning clear—you're good at reasoning, I'm not. Anyway, because of the Fox Kingdom affair, your grudge with the Xu clan is deep enough, so it's more fitting for you to go to Breeze City. I'll go to Bright Sun Mountain for a sword challenge."

Chen Ping'an smiled. "Let's go together then."

Liu Xianyang asked, "Alright. Roughly when? Let me know in advance. It's a long trip, so I need to negotiate with your sister-in-law beforehand."

Chen Ping'an said, "Hard to say for now, but I guarantee it won't be more than two years. Before that, I might take a trip to the Central Sacred Mountain region to take a look at Bright Sun Mountain's branch sect site there."

Liu Xianyang got annoyed just hearing this. He stood up and said hastily, "I need to get back. Don't want to keep your sister-in-law waiting."

Chen Ping'an stood up too. "Want me to come back to the shop with you? I can cook a meal for you two as an apology."

Liu Xianyang reached out, pressed his hand against Chen Ping'an's cheek, and shoved him hard. "Get lost! I haven't seen you in a few years, but you're starting to look more and more like one of those guys who says, 'My sister-in-law is really beautiful; we brothers should be good buddies forever.' I'll have to watch out for you from now on. Otherwise, just like today—I go out to buy some wine, come home, and my heart chills halfway. Sure enough, you're learning from that bastard fortune-telling Daoist who used to set up a stall, grinning as you read your sister-in-law's palm..."

Chen Ping'an tilted his head, his face dark.

Liu Xianyang burst out laughing. Suddenly, he pulled Chen Ping'an into a headlock and lowered his voice. "Don't worry. I've never told anyone about how you used to like eavesdropping by the wall of your ancestral home in Clay Vase Alley. Young man, you could bake a pancake on your backside in the dead of winter, with all that pent-up energy you didn't know where to spend—it's all understandable."

Chen Ping'an smiled a cold, fake smile. "Thanks for the reminder."

On the way back, Liu Xianyang performed a set of "turtle punches," looked around, threw a stone to stun a happy duck swimming in the water, sneaked into the river, came ashore, tucked the duck into his sleeve, and sprinted off. Dinner and a midnight snack were sorted.

Chen Ping'an couldn't bear to watch. He went into town and headed west to find Li Er for a drink.

When the woman saw Chen Ping'an visiting, she sighed deeply, saying only, "Why so late? Why so late?"

At the dinner table, the couple sat in the seats of honor. Han Chengjiang naturally sat beside Li Liu. The green-clad man who was visiting sat in Li Huai's seat.

Han Chengjiang suddenly sensed something was wrong.

Could it be that the mountain immortal Grove Temple Master and the half-city-rich Dong were not the real threats? Instead, this seemingly amiable mountain lord was the hidden smiling tiger, the formidable enemy?

But after the man stood up with a smile and toasted him with congratulations, Han Chengjiang immediately felt that he must be judging a gentleman's heart with a villain's measure.

At the table, Li Er's family didn't treat Chen Ping'an as an outsider, so they chatted casually.

Han Chengjiang wasn't a man who liked to overthink things. The key was that this Mountain Lord Chen only toasted him and didn't deliberately urge him to drink, which made Han Chengjiang feel relieved.

According to Liu Xianyang, a man from out of town accompanying his wife back to her maiden home had to make a round of toasts himself first, then the table would make a round with him. After two rounds, if he didn't end up under the table, he'd be accepted as the out-of-town son-in-law. If he couldn't manage that, then at future meals, either he shouldn't touch the wine, or he'd only be worthy of drinking "just one" with the kids in open-crotch pants.

The first time Li Liu left Li Zhu Cave Heaven to follow her parents to Lion Peak in Northern Ju Continent, Han Chengjiang had coincidentally been traveling with his bookboy along the same route. That was fate. In fact, in this incarnation, Han Chengjiang and "Li Liu," who had been reincarnated multiple times with innate knowledge, had long-standing enmity and affinity. Not just once, but twice—once in the Central Earth Divine Continent and once in Floating Mist Continent.

That was why, in this incarnation, Li Liu had become his Dao companion on the mountain, and why Han Chengjiang accompanied her back to her hometown. Once she left, once she returned, both times together—this was to resolve enmity and fulfill affinity. Originally, the two had agreed to part ways in Li Liu's hometown. Whether they would meet again would depend on whether Li Liu sought him out. But the woman, who had been looking at the son-in-law with disapproval all along, felt that breaking the marriage contract just a few days after the wedding was unreasonable. How could there be such a heartless woman in the world? Anyone could do it, but not her daughter. Even though the wedding was simple, held only in the small town at the foot of Lion Peak, with none of the Han family elders present, the woman had been laughed at by the neighbors for a long time. Some women had even deliberately taunted her, saying that this son-in-law named Han, who had married into the family, wasn't as good as that young man surnamed Chen who used to help out in the shop. Handsome, hardworking, polite, sharp-minded, and honest in business. If your Liu'er could marry him, you'd really have happiness in your old age...

But no matter how partial the woman was toward her son, no matter how much she wanted Li Liu's husband's family to help Li Huai, no matter how she had once thought of Chen Ping'an, there were some most basic principles that the woman always kept clear. For example, one must be honest. When getting along with neighbors, quarreling and scratching were one thing, but secretly harming others was another. As for her daughter getting married and then immediately backing out of the contract—that was even more unacceptable to the woman. Even if you were cultivating immortals on the mountain, you were still her daughter. The greatest truth on the mountain could never be greater than the truth that she was your mother, Li Liu.

Chen Ping'an drank quite a bit at this meal, only getting slightly tipsy. Han Chengjiang, however, was completely drunk. Li Liu's voice was gentle as she told him to stop drinking, but she couldn't stop him. Han Chengjiang stood there, swaying his big white bowl, saying he had to have one more with Mr. Chen—he was clearly very drunk. Li Er looked at his incompetent son-in-law and nodded with a smile instead. If you can't hold your liquor, at least have good drinking manners. Lose the fight but not the spirit—that was the old principle.

True Pearl Mountain wasn't far from Li Er's house.

Chen Ping'an walked to the foot of the mountain, slowly made his way to the modest summit, and climbed high to gaze into the night of the town. The lights of Fortune Street and Peach Leaf Lane stretched into a connected stretch, while elsewhere the lights were sparse, dotted here and there.

Chen Ping'an then took to the wind and traveled far, heading to the prefecture capital. There was no curfew. He submitted his documents, went into the city, and found Dong Shuijing. It wasn't easy to find—the place was a remote small residence deep inside the city. Dong Shuijing stood at the entrance, waiting for Chen Ping'an. Nowadays, Dong Shuijing had hired two earthly immortal cultivators with military backgrounds as his honored guests and de facto bodyguards. Over the years, among the various forces that had targeted his businesses, there had been some who used underhanded means, but Dong Shuijing didn't bat an eye as long as money could solve the problem. It was a pity that Jade Purity realm cultivators were hard to find; otherwise, with his current wealth, Dong Shuijing could easily afford to support such an exalted guest.

When someone came to visit and found Dong Shuijing, the two earthly immortal cultivators, who were former Great Li military cultivators, would always inform the head of the household, Dong Shuijing.

And for a qi refiner, if he was a former Great Li military cultivator, that was the greatest talisman of protection.

For Dong Shuijing to be able to hire them at a heavy cost as his personal guards—it wasn't just a matter of throwing money around. It was thanks to the bridging efforts of Cao Gengxin and Guan Yiran, plus a few "small deals" Dong Shuijing had with the Great Li military.

The former supervisor Cao Gengxin and prefecture governor Yuan Zhengding had long been friends of Dong Shuijing. The Great Li Iron Cavalry's garrison general in Letter Scroll Lake, Guan Yiran, had later transferred to the Ministry of Revenue in the capital. The Sun and Fan clans of Old Dragon City, and further north in Northern Ju Continent—all had business friends of Dong Shuijing. Mountain and below-mountain, temple and jianghu, he had them all. Dong Shuijing currently managed over a dozen businesses, none of them conspicuous, whether large or small.

Besides a few main streets in the capital, nearly two hundred residences and shops, and three immortal guest inns within Dragon Prefecture were all under the name of this half-city-rich Dong. Additionally, there were two immortal ferry crossings—one beside the Dragon Path, the other in the Southern Sacred Mountain region—both actually his, but Dong Shuijing's name appeared nowhere. One of Dong Shuijing's major principles in doing business was to help friends earn some money—both under the table and clean at the same time—as well as immortal money.

Entering the house, Dong Shuijing asked with a smile, "Want a bowl of wontons?"

Chen Ping'an nodded. "I've been craving them for years."

At the table, one bowl of wontons each. Chen Ping'an teased, "I heard that a Pillar of State and a Patrol Envoy of the Great Li are both vying for you to be their son-in-law?"

Dong Shuijing smiled. "If I agreed, I wouldn't be able to grow the business much."

Many times, a choice itself was equivalent to making enemies.

Dong Shuijing put down his chopsticks and said helplessly, "Rubbing salt in the wound—not very kind of you."

Chen Ping'an smiled and said nothing.

Dong Shuijing said, "The Great Li court will probably send someone to find you soon. I'm guessing it's likely to be Zhao Yao."

An old man's figure appeared in the courtyard.

Dong Shuijing turned and said with a smile, "Just state the matter directly. There are no outsiders here."

That earthly immortal guest said, "The prefecture capital's governor's mansion has just received a batch of distinguished guests. They didn't come through the Oxhorn Mountain ferry."

Dong Shuijing nodded.

Chen Ping'an finished his wontons, put down his chopsticks, stood up, and laughed. "Speak of the devil, and he appears. Dong Shuijing, you're something else."

Dong Shuijing said, "Since neither of us is full, I'll make you another bowl of wontons to sober up. No need to move."

Chen Ping'an thought for a moment, then decided not to leave the house. He sat back down.

When the two had finished their second bowl of wontons, there was a knock at the door.

Dong Shuijing smiled. "You two chat. I'll excuse myself to avoid suspicion. I won't meet the guests."

Chen Ping'an said, "Is this what you call avoiding suspicion?"

Dong Shuijing replied, "Actually, I'm just riding on your coattails, so that certain people will be sensible and stop eyeing the few ounces of silver I've earned through hard work. It's not much silver—won't choke anyone."

Chen Ping'an took over the conversation and teased, "But it's definitely hotter than a bowl of wontons. Don't worry. Regardless of personal friendship, or even business, I'll put in a good word for you, just for these two bowls of wontons tonight."

Dong Shuijing smiled and cupped his fists.

Chen Ping'an said with a grin, "Oh, by the way, I forgot to mention—I just came from Uncle Li's place."

Dong Shuijing sighed and left. If Chen Ping'an had said that earlier, he wouldn't have gotten a single wonton.

The residence was small, with no servants.

Dong Shuijing, the host, went to the study to avoid suspicion, leaving the house to the two groups of guests.

Chen Ping'an had to go open the door himself.

The Great Li's deputy capital Minister of Rites, the old Liu Qingfeng. This old man was widely recognized as the emperor's greatest ally in restraining the vassal king Song Mu.

This elderly scholar, whose hometown was the Green Luan Kingdom, was gaunt, skin and bones, but his eyes sparkled.

The Great Li capital's Ministry of Personnel's Assessor of Merits, Zhao Yao. His hometown was Li Zhu Cave Heaven.

Also, a Director of the Ministry of Rites' Sacrificial Purification Department in the Great Li capital, with very deep seniority, responsible for all the Imperial Sticky Pole Agents of the Great Li.

Chen Ping'an looked at the three, focusing on the elderly scholar who looked like a candle in the wind. He made a deep bow. "Greetings, Mr. Liu."

Liu Qingfeng smiled, slowly returned the bow, and said, "Greetings, Young Master Chen."

Each straightened up. Chen Ping'an laughed. "Luckily the alley is small, so oxcarts can't get in."

Liu Qingfeng responded with a knowing smile. "Luckily there was no 'Zheng Qian' blocking the way on the road, and no pond nearby."

Zhao Yao spoke through voice transmission: "At Ascension City, I saw Ning Yao once. She's doing well."

Chen Ping'an said bluntly, "Who are you? None of your damn business."

Zhao Yao felt like a mute who had swallowed bitter herbs, unable to speak. This Dao couple, separated by the ends of the earth, how could they both bully him like this?

Zhao Yao suddenly said, "I saw your daughter. She's very cute. Her features look more like her mother's."

Chen Ping'an said, "Oh, really?" He rolled up his sleeves. The next moment, the two figures outside the door in the alley instantly disappeared.

The old Director frowned. Liu Qingfeng smiled and said, "It's nothing. They're from the same scholarly lineage. The junior uncle is catching up with his junior nephew."

The old Director had to play dumb. Catching up never required rolling up sleeves and swinging arms, right? But since he couldn't stop them anyway, he might as well pretend it was a reunion of fellow sect members.

A moment later, Chen Ping'an returned alone from the alley, looking refreshed. He smiled and said that Director Zhao had taken his leave and gone to sleep first.

Within the prefecture capital, a green-clad scholar with a bruised and swollen face was hanging from a tree branch, truly sound asleep.

End of Chapter