Chapter 128: A Fortune at the Waist (Part 2)
The conversation by the lake that day had gone like this. Tang Thirty-Six looked at the iron-like black hairs faintly visible on Xuan Yuan Po's right arm and asked, "Dog bear?"
Xuan Yuan Po glanced at him, sensing no malice, and said, "Bear."
Tang Thirty-Six let out an "Oh" and said, "So it really is a dog bear."
Xuan Yuan Po thought seriously about the difference between a dog bear and a bear, confirmed that he was being mocked, and said, "Tang Thirty-Two, you're not a good person."
Tang Thirty-Six's expression turned somewhat unpleasant. "I told you, don't call me Tang Thirty-Two."
Xuan Yuan Po was insistent. "Tang Thirty-Two, didn't you say yourself that you should be called by whatever rank you hold on the Azure Cloud List?"
"That was to motivate myself."
Tang Thirty-Six explained, while silently resolving to fight with everything he had in the Grand Examination, striving to break into the top ten when the Azure Cloud List was next updated.
Xuan Yuan Po said, "You don't like the name Tang Tang either."
Tang Thirty-Six replied, "It sounds too much like a girl's name."
Xuan Yuan Po's gaze fell on his chest. "For someone as sharp-tongued and caustic as you, if it weren't for how flat you are, you could easily be mistaken for a woman."
With that, he hoisted the half-broken tree trunk onto his shoulder and walked toward the kitchen, ignoring Tang Thirty-Six entirely.
This pointless conversation ended with the young demon's victory.
While they were talking, Chen Changsheng was walking swiftly through the snow not far away.
He moved quickly, with a cold wind trailing him. This was naturally not a stroll or a way to aid digestion—it was cultivation. Though it was somewhat inexplicable, he had apparently passed the marrow cleansing stage. True essence had begun to flow within him, but the problem with his meridians remained unsolved. Fortunately, he had long prepared for this. The progress of Luo Luo and Xuan Yuan Po proved that his ideas were correct.
The problem was that his true essence was far too scarce. Before the Grand Examination, he dared not risk igniting another snowfield. If he wanted to achieve something, he needed to think of other methods—like fully utilizing the strange transformations his body had undergone. He now possessed strength surpassing that of an ordinary demon, along with unimaginable speed and endurance.
In the end, he decided to place his hopes on movement techniques, so he resolved to continue studying the Yashi Steps.
The Yashi Steps were a closely guarded secret of the demon race. Having thoroughly read the Daoist canon, he understood them well enough to memorize the thousands of positions and even taught Luo Luo some simplified versions, stunning everyone at the Green Vine Banquet. But at that time, Guan Feibai's sword had no true essence attached. If he wanted to defeat those cultivators in the Grand Examination, relying solely on the simplified Yashi Steps would not be enough.
The snowfield was densely covered with his footprints. Before the wind and snow could bury them again, they formed various patterns—sometimes simple, sometimes complex. If the snow clouds in the sky dispersed and people looked up at the stars, they might find the connection between these patterns and the constellations.
Just then, the carriage from the Education Department arrived at the National Academy. Deacon Xin came to visit.
Chen Changsheng and Tang Thirty-Six were somewhat surprised.
The registration process for the Grand Examination had long been completed, all handled by Deacon Xin. The Education Department had even secretly sent them the registration materials of other candidates. By all logic, everything that needed to be done was done. The Grand Examination was about to begin—why was he still coming to the National Academy?
Wasn't he afraid of stirring up controversy?
Jin Yulu held his teapot, looked at the two young men, and shook his head, thinking they were indeed good kids who didn't understand such matters.
Deacon Xin explained his purpose. It turned out there was an omission in the registration materials, and he needed Chen Changsheng to bring out the roster and seal for another confirmation.
After handling this matter, Deacon Xin didn't leave immediately.
Chen Changsheng had Xuan Yuan Po bring him a cup of good tea as a token of gratitude.
Deacon Xin held the tea but didn't drink it. He walked out of the library, stood in the snow by the lake, gazed at the opposite shore, and suddenly said, "To reach the other shore, one truly needs supreme wisdom."
After his sigh, he placed the tea back in Xuan Yuan Po's hand, smiled at everyone, and left the National Academy in his carriage.
Chen Changsheng and the other two were confused, unsure what Deacon Xin meant by this.
"The other shore" was a Buddhist term. Buddhism had been in decline for ten thousand years and was rarely mentioned. Was Deacon Xin's remark a genuine reflection, or did it carry some deeper meaning?
"This guy—why has he suddenly become so fond of expressing melancholy thoughts?" Tang Thirty-Six said.
Jin Yulu could no longer hold back and scolded, "Idiots! Can't you see such an obvious leaked question?"
"Huh?"
Xuan Yuan Po opened his mouth wide, wondering where the question was.
Chen Changsheng and Tang Thirty-Six exchanged a glance, thinking that adults really were unreliable. Couldn't they have been more explicit about something so important?
The Grand Examination consisted of three parts: the written exam, the martial exam, and the duels. The Education Department's favoritism toward the National Academy was mostly directed at Chen Changsheng. Given his specific situation, the written exam was no concern, and the duels depended on strength—there were no set questions. So the question Deacon Xin had specially come to leak must be related to the martial exam.
"Crossing the lake?" Tang Thirty-Six walked to the lakeshore, stood on the half-shattered lake stone Xuan Yuan Po had broken, looked at the opposite shore several dozen zhang away, and said with some confusion, "That's very simple."
"It's quite hard for me to get across myself," Xuan Yuan Po turned to look at Chen Changsheng and said, "But throwing a stone to the other shore is very simple."
Chen Changsheng understood his meaning but didn't respond. After a moment of silence, he said, "I need to think about it."
The tree Xuan Yuan Po had broken was too thick to be easily split into firewood.
Jin Yulu, for once, took an interest. He lit the entire half-trunk on fire and hung a black deer that Luo Luo had sent from the Li Palace over it. Roasting a whole deer was all about boldness—fat dripped everywhere, and soon the National Academy was filled with the aroma of meat.
Xuan Yuan Po stood by the roasting deer, waiting for it to cook without blinking. Tang Thirty-Six held a knife in one hand and a plate in the other, his throat occasionally moving. Only Chen Changsheng was not by the bonfire. Even with the Grand Examination imminent, he didn't relax in the slightest, strictly adhering to his principles. How could he eat unhealthy food like roasted meat?
He was still moving swiftly through the snow by the lake, using his body's memory to turn the Yashi Steps into instinct. The question Deacon Xin had leaked wasn't difficult for him—he now had at least three ways to cross the lake. But doing so would expose his secrets, which would be disadvantageous in the final duels. So he was still thinking of other methods. After an unknown amount of time, the deer was roasted. Xuan Yuan Po called out to him from the opposite shore, waving his hand. Chen Changsheng waved back, indicating he really didn't want any, and then watched as Xuan Yuan Po began tearing the meat with his hands, Tang Thirty-Six cutting it with his knife, and Jin Yulu bringing out a jar of good wine but refusing to share it with the two young men.
Chen Changsheng shook his head, thinking, what's so great about wine and meat? Though... beef tongue was indeed quite tasty. Musing on such trivial matters, he climbed the large banyan tree, stood on a branch, and looked at the white roofs and black eaves of the capital after the snow had stopped. He rested his hand on his waist and was silent for a long time.
Beyond the capital, there should now be a vast snowfield stretching ten thousand li.
Inside his body, there was also a vast snowfield stretching ten thousand li.
Perhaps it was right beneath his palm.
Those snowfields were all starlight, ready to be transformed into countless true essence at any moment.
Though he dared not touch that starlight now, knowing it existed gave him great peace of mind. He was like a wealthy young master with countless riches, carrying only a few silver coins on him, yet unwilling to untie the bundle holding ten thousand silver notes—because that bundle also contained a demon. The moment you opened it, the demon would escape.
If it were an ordinary person in such a situation, they would likely have gone mad long ago. But he was calm.
Having something was better than having nothing.
With a fortune at his waist, even if he couldn't spend it, it was still something to be happy about.
Standing on the branch, looking at the capital in the snow, he felt very pleased.
But the sealing of the well at Beixin Bridge worried him a little.
Just then, a trail of white smoke suddenly cut through the distant snow clouds.
At the front of that white smoke was a crane, pure white all over.
With several clear cries, the crane flapped its snow-white wings and landed on the branch, making it dip slightly.
It had returned from the Southern Changsheng Sect, bringing a reply from Xu Yourong.
Chen Changsheng remembered that he had personally written a letter to Xu Yourong a long time ago. He was somewhat puzzled why she had taken so long to reply, and also curious about what she might say. Would it be "don't misunderstand," or "take care of yourself," or perhaps a banknote?
Well, he had to admit that last imagination was too malicious—she wouldn't do something like that.
He untied the letter from the crane, opened it, and began to read. Then he was silent for a long time.
In the letter, Xu Yourong mentioned the Green Vine Banquet and congratulated him. She mentioned the Grand Examination and wished him well. She also said that this year, due to some matters at Nanxi Zhai that needed handling, she wouldn't return to the capital for the Grand Examination. As for his request in the previous letter for a face-to-face meeting, she couldn't fulfill it.
Finally, she mentioned the crane, asking what he had done to make it so close to him. She said not to misunderstand—she was only curious about this matter and meant nothing else. She also said she had heard he intended to take the top rank in the Grand Examination, but she was not in a position to comment, so she advised him to take care of himself.
Good.
"Don't misunderstand" and "take care of yourself"—both phrases were there.
Chen Changsheng shook his head, crumpled the letter into a ball, and prepared to throw it into the ice crack Xuan Yuan Po had broken under the tree. But the crane stared at him intently, so he had to put the paper ball into his bosom.
Thinking about what Xu Yourong had asked in the letter, he felt grateful to the crane and affectionately stroked its neck.
Suddenly, an idea struck him. He said to the crane, "Can you stay in the capital for a few more days?"
Winter had just passed, and spring had not truly returned to the land. What stretched over the walls in the capital's streets and alleys were still plum branches, not peach blossoms. Only a few specks of tender green had sprouted among the branches—there were no full green leaves yet. Like the morning mist that often appeared, the world was still hazy with green when the Grand Examination began.
(The next chapter will be out before 10:30 if possible.)