Chapter 1269: Water Star Gourd
"What are you doing?"
Zhang Ruochen's hands tightly gripped the gourd, glaring at the Wine Madman.
"Why are you so nervous? It's just a gourd. With my integrity and character, do you think I would snatch it from you? Young man, hurry up and take it out, let me take a look for you."
The Wine Madman's eyes were fixed on the gourd, looking extremely impatient.
"It's just a gourd, why are you in such a hurry?"
How could Zhang Ruochen hand it over? He lowered his head to examine the gourd, noticing that it was engraved with a passage of tiny ancient script.
The characters were quite archaic, completely different from modern writing, making them very difficult to decipher.
The Wine Madman craned his neck and said, "Can you read it? Better to give it to me, and I'll tell you what's engraved on it. Or, I'll give you a Thousand-Mark Sacred Artifact I dug out from the iceberg earlier in exchange. Although a gourd's value is far less than a Thousand-Mark Sacred Artifact, we're old acquaintances, so letting you gain a little advantage shouldn't be a problem."
"Do you think I don't recognize Seal Script?" Zhang Ruochen said.
The Wine Madman showed a hint of surprise and said, "At your age and with your experience, you actually know Seal Script? Not bad."
Seal Script was a minor category of script from the Middle Ages, only circulated among some small tribes in the Northern Domain. By now, very few cultivators could still recognize this script.
Zhang Ruochen identified the content of the text and sighed lightly, "The strokes of the characters do have some Sacred Dao charm, but it's just a poem, nothing of value."
Somewhat disappointed, Zhang Ruochen continued to examine the gourd in his hand and said, "However, the gourd is somewhat special, as if it's a treasure."
Zhang Ruochen mobilized his Saint Qi and injected it into the gourd.
"Rustle."
From the gourd surged a thick Water Spirit Saint Qi, turning into wisps of white mist that made the iceberg beneath their feet seem like a celestial mountain.
The vast, hazy mist formed a long bridge, connecting with the seawater.
The more Saint Qi he injected, the more Water Spirit Saint Qi surged out from the gourd—tenfold, a hundredfold. Before long, the Water Spirit Saint Qi condensed thicker and thicker, turning into raindrops.
Over dozens of miles of sea surface, a fine drizzle began to fall.
"Water Star Gourd, it really is the Water Star Gourd... There are too many treasures abandoned in the deep sea, even this legendary treasure has appeared." The Wine Madman said excitedly.
Zhang Ruochen also recognized it as the Water Star Gourd.
It was said that since ancient times, the Kunlun Realm had produced five divine trees, known as the Five Spiritual Roots.
Among them, the northern Plantain Divine Tree was called the Water Spiritual Root. On the Plantain Divine Tree grew a gourd vine known as the Water Star Vine.
Each gourd born from the Water Star Vine was as huge as a planet, with Water Attribute Saint Qi covering its surface. It rained all year round, accompanied by thunder and lightning.
A single vine seemed to grow over a dozen planets, hence the name Water Star Vine.
All the gourds from the Water Star Vine were plucked by great cultivators of the Middle Ages and refined into powerful treasures. However, almost all were destroyed during the great upheaval at the end of the Middle Ages, with only one or two surviving.
The Wine Madman's eyes turned green as he stared at the Water Star Gourd in Zhang Ruochen's hand, ecstatic. "It is said that one of the seven great ancient sects, the Star Lodging Sect's supreme treasure, the Earth Dharma Gourd, was refined from a Water Star Gourd. Inside the gourd, it forms its own world and contains residual Water Spirit Divine Qi from the Middle Ages. A treasure! Truly a rare supreme treasure!"
Seeing the Wine Madman's crazed gaze, Zhang Ruochen was somewhat worried he might try to snatch it.
Such a legendary treasure would tempt even a Great Saint, let alone the Wine Madman.
The Wine Madman showed his yellow teeth, grinning slyly, "How about we trade? I'll give you the Three-Leaf Nine-Life Flower in exchange. You won't lose out, right?"
Zhang Ruochen tried to stay calm and smiled, "With your status and your character, if I don't trade, would you resort to force?"
"Force?"
The Wine Madman grew somewhat indignant and said, "What do you take me for? A bandit? With my character and integrity, how could I do such a thing? If I really wanted to rob you, all the treasures on you would have been taken long ago. I'm genuinely negotiating with you. After all, we're drinking buddies—how could we fall out over a treasure?"
Zhang Ruochen thought about it and felt it made sense.
After all, who in the world didn't know that Zhang Ruochen possessed the Realm Son Seal, the Buddha Emperor Relic, the World Spirit of the Azure Dragon Ruins Realm, and so on? Each was an ultimate treasure.
The Wine Madman clearly knew his identity but had never tried to take them. Whether it was due to true integrity, considering Zhang Ruochen a drinking buddy, or some other reason, he didn't know.
Anyway, it seemed he really didn't intend to snatch the Water Star Gourd but was ready to trade with Zhang Ruochen.
The Wine Madman's behavior and personality were becoming stranger and harder to fathom.
He had once sworn never to kill again—had he also sworn not to rob others of their treasures?
If he truly had integrity, then why had he stolen all the wine from the Divine Dragon Half-Human clan's cellar, leaving not a single drop? Did that count as integrity?
Zhang Ruochen decided to test him further and said decisively, "No trade."
The Wine Madman was so anxious he felt like tearing his hair out and said earnestly, "What use is the Water Star Gourd to you? Keeping it with you is a complete waste."
"What use is it to you?" Zhang Ruochen asked.
The Wine Madman said, "Great use, enormous use. It is said that the legendary Six Saints Ascending Heaven Wine can only be brewed using the Water Spirit Saint Qi from the Water Star Gourd."
"You don't have the recipe for Six Saints Ascending Heaven Wine, so even if you had it, you couldn't brew it." Zhang Ruochen laughed.
The Wine Madman shook his head and said, "Even if I don't brew Six Saints Ascending Heaven Wine, using the Water Spirit Saint Qi from the Water Star Gourd to make other wines would double their potency and flavor. So, the Water Star Gourd can only realize its greatest value in my hands."
"That's true for you. For me, the Water Spirit Saint Qi in the Water Star Gourd can help me cultivate, and the gourd itself is a powerful battle tool. Besides, there might be other treasures inside." Zhang Ruochen said slowly.
The Wine Madman was struggling hard. He really wanted to snatch the Water Star Gourd, but he had once sworn to someone that he would never kill again, never take by force, and never do any evil deed.
Of course, wine was an exception.
For a drunkard, seeing fine wine but not being able to drink it was a fate worse than death.
Zhang Ruochen showed a thoughtful expression, looked up at the Wine Madman, and said, "How about you tell me your story? For instance, why did you swear never to kill again?"
The Wine Madman shot Zhang Ruochen a glare and said, "No."
"In the future, if you want to brew wine, I can provide you with Water Spirit Saint Qi from the Water Star Gourd." Zhang Ruochen said.
The Wine Madman was somewhat tempted, then grinned slyly, sat down with a plop, and said, "You said it."
"Of course, I said it."
The Wine Madman said, "Looking at it now, it's not that shameful. Telling you about it shouldn't be a problem. It's a long story, so I'll make it short. Actually, it was all forced by that Empress. I had no choice but to swear."
"And then?"
Zhang Ruochen was somewhat surprised that this involved Chi Yao.
The Wine Madman shrugged, spread his hands, and said, "That's it."
Truly a short version.
Zhang Ruochen pressed on, "Why did that Empress force you to swear?"
The Wine Madman showed an unhappy expression, clearly annoyed by Zhang Ruochen's many questions. But for the sake of the Water Spirit Saint Qi in the Water Star Gourd, he had to answer again, "Who told me to be captured by her? If I didn't swear, I'd die."
"How long ago was that?" Zhang Ruochen asked again.
"About six hundred years ago, I guess. Can't remember exactly." The Wine Madman said.
"Six hundred years ago..."
Zhang Ruochen muttered softly, then a sly glint appeared in his eyes, and he laughed, "As far as I know, six hundred years ago, Empress Chi Yao had not yet ascended the throne and was still a princess."
"Historical records show that at that time, Princess Chi Yao led an army to attack the Moon Worship Demon Sect, killed the Demon Emperor at Tonglu Plain, and crippled the Moon Worship Demon Sect. Eighty percent of the sect's experts died. Even after centuries of recovery, they haven't regained their strength."
"That was the final battle for the Chi Qing Central Empire to unify the world. After that, the major ancient sects and sects across the land dared not disobey and one after another proclaimed to the world that they would follow the orders of Princess Chi Yao and Emperor Qing."
"Could it be that you were really a member of the Demon Sect and were captured by her in that battle?"
The Wine Madman took a gulp of wine, waved his hand, and said, "Can't remember."
Zhang Ruochen knew the Wine Madman didn't want to talk much about those days, so he didn't press further. But he did confirm one thing: the Wine Madman might indeed have been a famous elder of the Demon Sect back then.
Zhang Ruochen pried open the gourd's lid, ready to check if the inside of the Water Star Gourd was as miraculous as legend said.
As soon as he opened the lid, Zhang Ruochen noticed that on the concave inner side of the lid, there were tiny black dots.
"Oh? What's this?"
Zhang Ruochen injected Saint Qi into the gourd lid. The lid grew larger and larger until it was as big as a millstone.
Those black dots also grew larger, eventually forming a passage of ancient script.
It was still Seal Script.
The Wine Madman craned his neck, staring at the text on the gourd lid, then let out a strange cry, followed by a mad laugh.
Zhang Ruochen was startled by him, frowned, and looked at the Seal Script, carefully identifying it. Moments later, he also burst into laughter. "The recipe for Six Saints Ascending Heaven Wine is indeed engraved on the Water Star Gourd."
The ancient script on the gourd lid was precisely the recipe for Six Saints Ascending Heaven Wine.
The Wine Madman grabbed Zhang Ruochen's arm, his eyes sparkling, and tremblingly said, "How about we join forces to brew the Ascending Heaven Wine? Then, the Six Saints Ascending Heaven Wine will be renamed the Two Saints Ascending Heaven Wine, and both of us will be recorded in human history."
...
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(End of Chapter)