Unsheathed

Sure enough, Chen Ping’an received a comprehensive package of information about the Dust Medicinal Shop before nightfall. Aside from its address, he was also informed that the shopkeeper was a man with the Zheng surname, and that the shop was one of the ancestral properties of the Fu Clan, one of the five major clans of Old Dragon City.

Shopkeeper Zheng had a northern Great Li accent, and on the surface, he appeared to be a crude and perverted man doing nothing but wasting his life away, but in reality, he had gone to the Fu Manor on two occasions, and the Fu Clan clearly held him in extremely high regard.

There was a very good chance that he was the martial arts instructor of Fan Gaoming, the grandson of the Fu Clan’s leader. As for his portrait, that would only be ready the next day.

Upon receiving this information, it immediately became apparent to Chen Ping’an that this Shopkeeper Zheng was none other than Gatekeeper Zheng Dafeng of the small town. As for the fact the Fan Clan held him in such high regard, this didn’t come as a surprise to Chen Ping’an at all.

No matter how incapable and improper he appeared, the fact that he had been assigned to a post where he regularly handled gold essence copper coins was a clear indication that there was more to him than met the eye. Otherwise, Old Man Yang wouldn’t have instructed Chen Ping’an to go to him to have his True Qi Eight Tael Talismans removed.

Aside from that, Sun Jiashu had also sent someone to bring Chen Ping’an detailed packages of information pertaining to the Mountain and Sea Turtle and Osmanthus Island so that he could make an informed decision on which one to take. The intercontinental journey was one that spanned millions of kilometers over a vast array of diverse and, at times, perilous terrains, so it was not a journey to be taken lightly.

The packages of information were accompanied by a handwritten letter from Sun Jiashu, which essentially said, “I know you’ve decided to take our Sun Clan’s Mountain and Sea Turtle, but I’m going to lay out the pros and cons of both the Mountain and Sea Turtle and Osmanthus Island for you, nevertheless.”

This seemed to be completely superfluous, but after reading the letter and briefly pondering the matter, Chen Ping’an immediately developed a sense of newfound admiration for the way that Sun Jiashu conducted his business. If he were a merchant looking to purchase products from Old Dragon City, he would definitely choose to collaborate with the more meticulous Sun Clan over others.

However, there was one thing that Chen Ping’an was mistaken about, which was that the Sun Clan was very stubborn and dogmatic in the way that it conducted its business. In particular, it placed extremely heavy emphasis on maintaining an immaculate reputation, and it only ever chose business partners for itself, so not just anyone could do business with the Sun Clan, regardless of how wealthy and powerful they were.

The Sun Clan had just as many strange rules as the Fu Clan did strange people.

Reach the fourth tier, find the medicinal shop, choose a suitable ship… These were the three main things on Chen Ping’an’s to-do list, and with all of them ticked off, he was able to enjoy dinner in peace. The seafood soup from lunch had been replaced with one that was cooked using freshwater delicacies, and it suited Chen Ping’an’s tastes far better.

He ate like the wind, and for the first time in quite some time, he ate until he was extremely full. After dinner, he went out for a stroll on the river bank. The sun was setting in the west, presenting a beautiful sight to behold. Chen Ping’an felt as if he were in a blessed land, and decided there and then that he had to come back someday, should the opportunity arise.

All of a sudden, Chen Ping’an was struck by the urge to fish, and he ran back to the Sun Clan’s ancestral residence to ask an elderly steward if they had any fishing rods. He also asked about the recent fishing conditions, whether there were any particularly large fish in the river, and whether berley had to be used.

The old steward was very familiar with all matters related to fishing, and he patiently answered all of Chen Ping’an’s questions. After that, he helped Chen Ping’an make the necessary preparations, and the two of them traveled to a good fishing spot together.

Upon learning that Chen Ping’an intended to fish until very late into the night, the steward offered to set up a waterside tent for him, but Chen Ping’an had never been one to indulge in such luxuries, so he refused. The old man didn’t force the issue, and he departed to leave Chen Ping’an on his own.

Chen Ping’an was in no hurry to begin fishing. Instead, he began to practice walking meditation back and forth by the river. After around two hours of walking meditation, he practiced standing meditation for two more hours, and only then did he begin fishing. He closed his eyes as he cast his line, and the sound of the bait plopping into the water rang out.

A light breeze blew over the rapeseed blossoms, causing their stalks to tremble and sway.

The water in the river slowly flowed into the distance, and small waves were visible on its surface, while invisible currents surged beneath the surface.

The fishing line was as thin as a strand of hair, and it was gently being tugged upon, occasionally being stretched taut before loosening again.

That entire night, Chen Ping’an remained completely still, allowing the smaller fish to nibble at his bait. No big fish took the bait, and before long, Chen Ping’an had already sat until daybreak.

Right at this moment, he cast his gaze toward the east, and the instant that he opened his eyes, he was greeted by a spectacular scene that he had never witnessed before.

To the naked eye, the light of the rising sun should’ve only been red in coloration, but Chen Ping’an was able to see a burst of golden Qi rising up in the east with the sun. These bursts of golden Qi resembled golden dragons slowly roaming across the horizon.

Chen Ping’an continued to stare at the rising sun and the golden Qi in the distance, and he wasn’t experiencing any discomfort despite how bright and glaring the light was.

Perhaps it was just a figment of his imagination, but Chen Ping’an felt his heart and soul shudder slightly at the sight of the descending golden Qi, and all of a sudden, a dozen golden dragons descended out of the sky before pouncing directly at him. They were giving off a menacing aura, as if they were determined to crush anyone who dared to gaze upon them.

The dragons were approaching extremely quickly, and Chen Ping’an let go of his fishing rod as he hurriedly rose to his feet. His fist intent surged forth on its own, spreading throughout his body and his acupoints.

In the face of this provocation, Chen Ping’an felt as if he were facing Cui Chan’s grandfather in the bamboo building of Downtrodden Mountain. In this moment, his fist intent stood above even the heavens and the earth, and he had to unleash this punch no matter what!

The dozen or so golden flood dragons had no substantial form, and they were flying directly at Chen Ping’an, who immediately adopted his Rain Evaporation Technique stance.

First, he planted his feet onto the bank of the river one after the other, doing so with such tremendous force that the power of his stomps penetrated over three meters deep into the ground. Not only was the ground trembling and rumbling beneath his feet, even the water near the bank of the river was churning, and waves were rising up and surging toward the opposite bank.

First and Fifteenth had both emerged from the Sword Nurturing Gourd, but they were merely resting lazily on the opening of the gourd as passive bystanders, seemingly not regarding the golden flood dragons descending from the heavens as enemies.

Chen Ping’an was completely immersed in his fist intent, so he was oblivious to the astonishing phenomenon that he was creating. The only thought in his mind was that now that he had reached the fourth tier, his punches should be even faster.

However, during the past night of fishing, he had spent the entire time adjusting to the new world that he was witnessing, as well as stabilizing all of his acupoints and his churning aura, so he never had the opportunity to throw a punch to see just how fast it was. Now that the perfect opportunity had arisen, he was determined to capture the moment!

“Get back!” Chen Ping’an roared as he threw a punch at the leading flood dragon in the sky. His fist intent filled his sleeves, causing them to billow and flap audibly, and a resounding boom rang out as the water in the river churned violently, while a large swathe of the rapeseed blossoms in the field on the other side of the river were blown over.

The ethereal golden flood dragon had no physical body, but it was still struck on the head by Chen Ping’an’s almighty fist intent, and was sent flying back over thirty meters in a dazed and disoriented state.

Immediately thereafter, a string of resounding booms rang out as all of the golden flood dragons were forced back up into the sky by Chen Ping’an’s Rain Evaporation Technique. There, they continued to circle around in the air, looking down at Chen Ping’an with befuddlement and indignation in their eyes.

In the end, they could only turn tail and fly back toward the distant horizon. Chen Ping’an faltered slightly upon seeing this, and in the blink of an eye, the golden Qi had faded, restoring the rising sun in the east to its normal state.

Chen Ping’an got out of his fist stance as a pleased smile appeared on his face.

Those punches had been thrown with tremendous power and speed, reflecting a substantial improvement from the third tier to the fourth. He felt as if he were no longer restricted by heaven and earth, and there was no sense of sloppiness anymore.

On the opening of the Sword Nurturing Gourd, First and Fifteenth “exchanged a glance” with each other, following which the latter quickly flew back into the gourd, seemingly too embarrassed to show itself any longer.

Meanwhile, the more short-tempered First was rooted to the spot for a moment, then sprang up into the air before piercing through Chen Ping’an’s body over and over again. It was unable to harm Chen Ping’an, but it still seemed determined to run through his body repeatedly in order to vent its fury.

While inside a swordsman’s acupoints, a bonded flying sword would always be insubstantial in form, and it would only attain a substantial form upon its emergence. This was a rule set in stone, so a flying sword nurtured in a swordsman’s acupoint would never be able to harm them.

At the moment, the relationship between Chen Ping’an and his two bonded flying swords wasn’t the customary master and servant relationship commonly seen between swordsmen and their bonded flying swords. Instead, it was more like the relationship between tenant and landlord.

Chen Ping’an was rather perplexed by First’s furious reaction, and he scratched his head as he asked, “What’s wrong? Are you embarrassed for me because my punches were too weak?”

Following its departure, the phenomenon of golden flood dragons from earlier traveled directly to the Sun Clan’s ancestral residence, and the four guest elders of the Sun Clan, consisting of three Golden Core Tier cultivators and one Nascent Tier cultivator, were forced to dispel it.

After that, they gathered together in a small library in the ancestral residence. This time, they were no longer arguing about whether Chen Ping’an was a Qi refiner or a martial artist, but they had found another topic of debate.

There were only two situations in which such a phenomenon would arise, the first of which was during a Qi refiner’s ascension to the Golden Core Tier. From there, they would no longer be restrained by heaven and earth, and the ensuing heaven and earth resonance would result in the formation of a Golden Core in their Pill Room, the caliber of which would be determined by the magnitude of the phenomenon triggered by the Qi refiner.

The other possible scenario in which such a phenomenon would arise would be during a martial artist’s ascension to the fourth tier or the seventh tier. The probability of the former arising was next to zero, while it was almost to be expected for martial artists who had reached the seventh tier.

Such a phenomenon was even rarer than that of the Clay Bodhisattva Crossing the River, and one could use it to refine their body and soul. Hence, it was an extremely rare and significant opportunity that had to be cherished.

It was clear from Chen Ping’an’s formidable sword intent that he was not a Qi refiner, so he could only be a pure martial artist. However, there was still much debate over whether he was a fourth tier or seventh tier martial artist. This time, three of the guest elders were convinced that he was a seventh tier martial artist.

Only then would it make sense for Sun Jiashu to invite him to the Sun Clan’s ancestral residence as an esteemed guest. Furthermore, there was no way that a fourth tier martial artist would be able to trigger such a spectacular phenomenon. Despite this, there was still one person who firmly believed that Chen Ping’an had only just reached the fourth tier.

All of a sudden, a wry smile appeared on the logger’s face as he said, “Let’s set aside this argument for now. Should we not be lamenting over the fact that he just inexplicably passed up a brilliant opportunity?”

The other three guest elders immediately fell silent upon hearing this.

Indeed, the young boy had just triggered an extremely profound bout of heaven and earth resonance.

This was something that the average pure martial artist could only dream of, yet he had chased it like a fool with his fists.

In the wake of this incident, all four guest elders were left feeling utterly perplexed. It was clear that this young boy was an exceptionally prodigious martial artist, so why hadn’t his master told him about such a phenomenon? It was common knowledge among martial artists that a breakthrough to the fourth tier or the seventh tier could trigger such a phenomenon, yet it appeared that the boy was completely oblivious to this.

Of course, none of them would’ve been able to imagine in a million years that the old man in the bamboo building who had taught Chen Ping’an his fist techniques had once reached the pinnacle of the 10th tier, so he didn’t consider something like this to be important at all. Instead, he regarded it completely insignificant, just as all things were outside of one’s fundamental fist techniques.

In his eyes, such a phenomenon was something to be avoided at all costs as it was no different from a shortcut. Hence, if he had seen what Chen Ping’an had done, he would’ve surely chortled with glee and praised Chen Ping’an for his “idiocy.”

At noon, Sun Jiashu returned to the ancestral residence, and prior to seeing Chen Ping’an, he was approached by one of the Sun Clan’s guest elders, who had jokingly remarked to him, “That guest of yours is truly a remarkable boy.”

Sun Jiashu curiously asked why that remark had been made, and the guest elder explained the situation to him, upon which he slapped a hand to his own forehead in exasperation. “How ‘remarkable,’ indeed!”

While they were having lunch together, Chen Ping’an noticed that Sun Jiashu was looking at him with a rather strange look in his eyes, much like how he had looked at Liu Baqiao back when they first met.

Chen Ping’an thought that this was because the phenomenon in the morning had caused trouble for the Sun Clan’s ancestral residence, and a concerned look appeared on his face as he asked, “What’s wrong? Did my punches from this morning alert the Fu Clan to my presence here?”

Sun Jiashu shook his head with a smile as he replied, “There are countless Qi refiners and martial artists in Old Dragon City, and strange occurrences take place here every day. On top of that, very few people dare to spy on our Sun Clan’s ancestral residence, so you can rest assured that you won’t be discovered here.”

A hesitant look then appeared on Sun Jiashu’s face, and he was internally debating whether he should reveal what had happened to Chen Ping’an. He wanted to tell him the truth, but he was also concerned that the truth would be too painful for him to bear.

After much internal conflict, Sun Jiashu ultimately decided on a policy of honesty, revealing to Chen Ping’an the exceptional opportunity that he had inadvertently passed up.

After hearing what Sun Jiashu had to say, Chen Ping’an took a sip of wine, then asked, “Will those golden flood dragons appear again if I go to look at the rising sun tomorrow?”

“What do you think?!” Sun Jiashu snapped in exasperation.

Chen Ping’an heaved a faint sigh, then gulped down a large mouthful of wine as he mused, “Being uneducated is truly a terrible curse.”

Sun Jiashu sat back in his chair as he jibed, “Are you planning to go night fishing again, then wait for the sunrise?”

“Can you read minds, Sun Jiashu?” Chen Ping’an exclaimed with a surprised expression.

Sun Jiashu hurriedly waved his hands in response. “I have no such ability, but I’ve heard that the founder of Commercialism really was able to read minds.”

After that, Chen Ping’an went to the river to fish once again, while Sun Jiashu walked along beside him, carrying a fish basket. On the way there, Chen Ping’an told him about why he had previously been searching for the Dust Medicinal Shop, and that he no longer needed to go there, now that he had made a breakthrough to the fourth tier, but he still wanted to visit the shop to meet an acquaintance.

Sun Jiashu naturally agreed to this request, telling him that he could go the next day, but some preparations had to be made prior to that. If he were to personally accompany Chen Ping’an, that would only attract attention and place him in even more danger, so he was going to assign a Golden Core Tier guest elder of the Sun Clan to accompany Chen Ping’an instead.

As the head of the Sun Clan, there was no end to the matters that Sun Jiashu had to attend to, so he naturally couldn’t just spend the day fishing with Chen Ping’an. The fish that the Sun Clan were catching were far bigger than the ones in this river.