Unsheathed

Twenty days later, Chen Ping’an and the others walked past a lofty mountain that was as steep as the painted eyebrows of beautiful women. After entering this area, they surprisingly came across two groups of men and women on the small mountain path within just fifteen minutes.

One group had a dozen or so people radiating with auras of wealth and prosperity, most of them evidently family members of government officials. There were men, women, elderly people, and children, and they were being protected by several guards armed with long sabers.

The other group of people were clearly from the cultivation world. Four of the sixteen people were men in their fifties with calm breathing and silent movements, undoubtedly practicing top-notch martial arts techniques from the cultivation world of the Azure Phoenix Nation. The leader was an elder with an aquiline nose and an intense gaze, and walking beside him was a round-faced young girl. She didn’t have a remarkable appearance overall, but her eyes were especially lively and beautiful.

Both groups of people were climbing up the mountain, and Chen Ping’an actively walked over and asked about the local customs and traditions when coming across the first group of people that seemed to radiate prosperity. Only after hearing the explanations from these people did Chen Ping’an realize that Azure Waist Mountain, the mountain they were on, had a Daoist temple called Golden Osmanthus at the peak. There were immortals cultivating in this temple, yet it was often closed to the public for years on end.

During winter last year, the temple asked some woodsmen to deliver a piece of news to the outside world. They were going to take in nine disciples, and they wouldn’t take into account these disciples’ backgrounds as long as they were under sixteen and possessed the necessary fate. As a result, no fewer than three hundred people were now bringing young children from their clans and families to the Golden Osmanthus Temple to try their luck. An endless stream of people was funneling into Azure Waist Mountain.

Chen Ping’an was still thinking about True Martial and the short saber that his two friends had left in the chief military governor’s office, so he wasn’t too willing to become involved in this grand occasion. Zhang Shanfeng and Xu Yuanxia had traversed many mountains and crossed many rivers during the past two years, and they had also witnessed the Liberation Rite of Water and Land in the Azure Phoenix Nation and the Heavenly Worship Ceremony in the Fortune Mountain Nation. Thus, they weren’t especially interested in a Daoist temple opening its doors to recruit new disciples. As for whether the Daoist priests in the Golden Osmanthus Temple were genuine immortals or fraudsters, Chen Ping’an and the others couldn’t care less.

Generally speaking, Golden Core Tier earth immortals were already paramount beings in most ordinary nations in the Eastern Treasured Vial Continent. After all, casting one’s gaze across the entire Majestic World, one could scarcely see places like the Great Li Empire, where there were so many crouching tigers and hidden dragons.

After the armored cavalry of the Great Li Empire marched to the territories slightly north of Lake View Academy, the Great Li Empire’s Imperial Song Clan had essentially conquered half of the entire Eastern Treasured Vial Continent already. Apart from receiving official recognition from the Confucian academy, there was also an ever-growing chorus of calls for the Great Li Empire to be recognized as the tenth major empire in the Majestic World.

When they encountered the second group of people, the round-faced girl had looked curious and astonished the entire time. There was a young man in white robes carrying a bamboo bookcase on his back and wearing a vermilion wine gourd by his waist, a tanned little girl riding a yellow bull and equipped with a bamboo saber and a bamboo sword, a stunningly beautiful woman carrying a sword on her back, and… also a young Daoist priest and a big-bearded martial artist.

This was truly a very strange group of travel companions. Perhaps these people were the so-called vagrant cultivators that her grandfather had mentioned to her before?

Fortunately, the old man in black clearly wasn’t a simple person, but rather an experienced individual from the martial arts world who was still willing to adhere to some traditional rules. He quickly stopped the round-faced young girl’s brazen act of staring at Chen Ping’an and the others. Not only that, but he even nodded to Chen Ping’an in acknowledgment, most likely treating this as an apology for his granddaughter.

Chen Ping’an cupped his fists and smiled in reply.

When traveling through the cultivation world, there would be many chance encounters like this. The two parties should have brushed past each other and remained as strangers, yet the sudden arrival of a torrential downpour quickly brought them together again.

A rare onset of wild wind and heavy rain caused the small mountain paths to become extremely muddy and difficult to navigate. The frigid spring wind was already cold enough to cut to one’s core, and the roaring mountain wind was only worse as it howled past. The thundering rain was also incredibly cold, and Pei Qian was directly beaten into a daze by the pea-sized drops of rain. Her face was red and aching, and her lips quickly became pale and devoid of blood. Her entire body was shivering.

Moreover, this was after Pei Qian had already been practicing martial arts for a while. If this were before Pei Qian had started practicing martial arts, then it was very likely that a short amount of time in this wind and rain would leave her bedridden for a very long time and perhaps forever.

Chen Ping’an asked Zhu Lian to scout the surroundings first to see whether there was anywhere for them to shelter from the wind and rain. Like a nimble ape, the hunchbacked old man leaped and dashed through the trees and boulders. It wasn’t long before he returned, and he informed Chen Ping’an that there was a large and naturally formed rock cave not far ahead. Moreover, there was already a group of people resting there and seeking warmth from a campfire.

Chen Ping’an carried Pei Qian on his back and opened up the parasol leaf umbrella that he had brought out from the Lotus Flower Blessed Land. In addition to this, he also retrieved a straw raincoat and wrapped it around Pei Qian, doing his best to prevent her from being lashed by the violent mountain wind and rain.

Zhang Shanfeng could barely keep his eyes open as he walked beside Chen Ping’an, and he loudly warned him, “There’s something strange about this rain.”

Chen Ping’an nodded in agreement and took out a yellow paper talisman made from relatively ordinary materials. It was none other than a Yang Energy Illumination Talisman, the lowest-grade talisman from the Authentic Death-Avoiding Book. Chen Ping’an would use this talisman to clear the path whenever he came across rundown temples or unmarked burial grounds, because the Yang Energy Illumination Talisman could show him the concentration of yin energy in a certain area.

Chen Ping’an held the talisman between his index finger and middle finger and shook it slightly, causing it to immediately combust after he funneled his True Qi into it. Fortunately, the Yang Energy Illumination Talisman didn’t burn too quickly; in fact, it burned much more slowly than the time he had ventured into the city god temple of the Colorful Garment Nation by himself. However, Chen Ping’an didn’t extinguish the Yang Energy Illumination Talisman, maybe out of an abundance of caution, and he continued to walk forward with the talisman between his fingers, lest there be any other traps ahead of them.

He had offended a Golden Core Tier earth immortal during the conflict in the mountain pass, and he had potentially attracted the attention of the twenty or so vagrant cultivators as well. It was very possible that the vagrant cultivators were coveting his treasures. Thus, he most definitely couldn’t let his guard down.

In addition to this, Chen Ping’an also asked the yellow earth bull whether it was aware of any great demons acting as rulers of the mountains in this area. Even though the earth bull hadn’t assumed human form, it could indeed speak in human tongue. It bobbed its head and replied, “In the five hundred years that I’ve possessed intelligence, I’ve never heard of any mountain ghosts or spirits causing trouble in the Azure Phoenix Nation. Well, I don’t know about the last two hundred years, since I’ve been laying low at the mountain pass.

“However, I did come across a monk expounding Buddhist teachings in a temple a hundred fifty kilometers from here, around three hundred years ago. There was a very mystical scene of osmanthus flowers falling from the sky like rain, and it was rumored that the golden osmanthus flowers that had covered the entire ground of the temple were from the osmanthus trees located on this Azure Waist Mountain.”

Xu Yuanxia raised his hand to prevent his bamboo hat from being blown away, and he said with a loud laugh, “Zhang Shanfeng and I visited that Buddhist temple a long time ago. The temple is very famous, so we naturally had to visit it. However, apart from those written works on the walls, we didn’t notice anything too special. There were some ruins related to famous Buddhist stories, but all of them were marked as restricted areas and were closed off to the public.

“The two of us wandered around for half a day, and we did indeed come across a scene that I recorded in my travel journal. When evening arrived, we saw two little monks who were responsible for carrying the offering boxes around. Perhaps due to the lack of worshippers and outsiders, the two little monks stood on their tippy-toes and rummaged through the offering box.

“After a while, the little monk who caught a piece of loose silver first laughed loudly and was allowed to walk in front when they carried the offering box on their shoulders. Zhang Shanfeng and I thought it was pretty funny. As it turned out, the two little monks needed to carry the offering box up a very long set of stairs. Because of this, the person walking in front would suffer much less than the person walking behind.”

Chen Ping’an didn’t have a deep understanding of Buddhism, especially since Buddhism wasn’t popular in the Eastern Treasured Vial Continent. In fact, it could be said that Buddhism was the least popular in the Eastern Treasured Vial Continent out of the nine continents in the Majestic World. It was only in the Lotus Flower Blessed Land that Chen Ping’an had started to learn about Buddhism because he often visited the Heart Manifestation Temple that neighbored Champion Scholar Alley. Even so, he was slightly puzzled as he asked, “Isn’t it said that monks shouldn’t touch money with their hands?”

“How can there be any unalterable rules in the world?” Zhang Shanfeng replied with a chuckle.

“We didn’t waste our time in those temples, after all—your exchange there was filled with thought-provoking Chan comments,” Xu Yuanxia remarked in an amused voice.[1]

The yellow earth bull seldom spoke; it would only open its mouth to speak when asked questions by other people.

It fell silent at this moment, yet it clearly remembered that the ancient Buddhist temple had been constructed at the foot of a mountain.

The bull was already at the Sea Observation Tier at the time, and it observed the temple from the mountain forest because it didn’t dare to get too close to the human world, lest it frighten and disturb the mortal humans. It was even more afraid of drawing disgust and ire from immortal beings.

As a result, the earth bull only saw the young monk in snow-white kasaya from very far away.[2] The young monk was standing under some eaves with bells hanging from them, and he extended his hands and caused many golden osmanthus flowers to rain down from the sky and fall into his palms.

Chen Ping’an, Zhang Shanfeng, and Xu Yuanxia walked swiftly as they spoke, and Chen Ping’an placed the remaining half of the Yang Energy Illumination Talisman inside his sleeve. They arrived at the rock cave that Zhu Lian had found. It was a relatively large cave that appeared much like ancestral halls from small towns and villages. It was large enough to shelter thirty to forty people.

The Yang Energy Illumination Talisman had burned slowly the entire time, and the further they ventured from the small mountain path winding up the mountain, the more slowly the talisman burned. This downpour was filled with yin energy, and it was most probably caused by Qi refiners targeting the grand disciple recruiting ceremony of the Golden Osmanthus Temple.

The first group of people who had arrived in the stone cave were all women. There were seven or eight of them, and the oldest were graying old women, while the youngest looked thirteen or fourteen.

Because of the heavy downpour, the veiled hats that they had used to hide their appearances had become an inconvenience instead. Thus, these veiled hats were placed beside their feet along with their umbrellas and coir raincoats. They were now sitting around a fire to warm themselves up, and their eyes remained cold and aloof when they saw Chen Ping’an and the others. A few of them shuffled closer to the flames, and it was clear that they weren’t terribly enthusiastic about interacting with Chen Ping’an and the others.

Chen Ping’an couldn’t help but turn around and glance at Zhu Lian. However, the hunchbacked old man simply looked at him with an honest smile.

These women from the same force had most likely entered this cave during the early stages of the heavy downpour, and they had clearly collected dry branches very early on. The ravaging winds and torrential rain outside the rock cave were powerful enough to tear houses apart, yet Chen Ping’an and the others could only stare at the flickering flames but not walk over.

Even though Zhang Shanfeng’s cultivation base wasn’t high, he could still use some elementary mystical abilities to start a fire. This wasn’t difficult for Qi refiners. However, carelessly using mystical abilities when traveling outside was a huge taboo for cultivators.

Chen Ping’an helped Pei Qian erect a small tent, after which he opened his bamboo bookcase and took out a set of clean clothes for her. He asked Sui Youbian to help Pei Qian get changed.

When Pei Qian hopped out of the small tent in a lively manner, the group of people from the cultivation world had also backtracked and entered the rock cave in a disheveled manner, seeking shelter from the violent wind and rain.

In fact, the wind and rain were so violent that even gallant cultivators from the martial arts world had to lower their heads and bend their backs.

Chen Ping’an nodded in greeting when he saw the old man with an aquiline nose, and the latter also nodded in reply when he saw this.

Since Chen Ping’an was being so polite with these cultivators from the cultivation world, Zhu Lian and the others quietly shuffled aside to free up some space.

The round-faced young girl was drenched, and she was surrounded by a group of subordinates to block the view of other people. Her clothes were soaking wet, after all, and this caused them to hug her body and reveal her curves.

After they sat down, the round-faced young girl started to examine the group of women in the distance again. Her eyes lit up, and she asked, “You women aren’t from the Lofty Sky Nation’s Blusher Hall, are you?”

The round-faced young girl had only stolen a few glances at Chen Ping’an and his companions before, yet the old man with an aquiline nose had already warned her to stop. This time, however, the old man closed his eyes and rested his mind even though the round-faced young girl was speaking in such a disrespectful manner that was bordering on provocation. He turned a blind eye to this.

Sitting in the distance, a young woman with intense eyebrows turned around and scolded her in anger, “Insolence!”

The round-faced young girl was completely unafraid, and she smiled widely and countered, “May I ask, how am I being insolent?”

These women of varying ages had come from Blusher Hall, a top-notch cultivation force in the Lofty Sky Nation. The youngest girl looked thirteen or so, had a slender face, and was very beautiful. She widened her eyes and curiously looked at the young girl who was the same age as her yet dared to speak in such an impudent manner. Few people in the cultivation world of the Lofty Sky Nation dared to provoke Blusher Hall like this, so these people were most likely from a powerful force in the Azure Phoenix Nation or the Fortune Mountain Nation.

The young girl with a slender face instinctively extended a thumb and caressed the characters inscribed on an exquisite paper-cutting knife hanging by her waist. The yellowing bamboo sheath had a soft and pleasant luster, and the two characters “Miniature One” were inscribed in the bamboo.

The young woman who had scolded the round-faced young girl just then had a pair of sabers on her hips, and she placed her hands on their hilts, an ice-cold expression on her face as she replied in a solemn voice, “Then let’s spar and see who’s stronger?”[3]

Forearm sparring was a relatively refined way of sparring in the martial arts world, and it was very rare for blood to be drawn in this type of sparring. This was because the loser shedding blood would imply that the victorious party had won unfairly. In other words, it would be a less-than-impressive victory.

The round-faced young girl made a face at the young woman and accused, “You’re picking on a junior relying on your old age and your decades of extra experience? That doesn’t seem very heroic, does it?”

The young woman was infuriated upon hearing this. She was yet to reach thirty, so how could she possibly have decades of extra experience compared to the round-faced young girl?

A graying old woman with a graceful and poised aura turned to the young woman and said in a soft voice, “Why argue with a junior? If one is unable to cultivate one’s mind and control one’s temper, then one’s martial arts cultivation base will fail to reach lofty heights.”

The young woman clearly had immense respect for the old woman, so she immediately lowered her head and replied, “I’ll keep this in mind.”

Sitting in the distance, the round-faced young girl chuckled and remarked, “It seems like this old grandma has much better manners.”

This was clearly a backhanded compliment.

Looking on as an outsider, Chen Ping’an simply felt like the round-faced young girl was exceptionally skilled at using words to stab other peoples’ hearts.

The old woman paid no heed to the round-faced young girl’s disrespectful remarks. She turned her gaze to the old man with an aquiline nose and asked, “Are you Gang Leader Zhu, the previous leader of the Great Marsh Gang?”

The old man in black opened his eyes and replied with a smile, “It’s already been close to thirty years since I last traveled outside, yet someone actually remembers my title still?”

The old woman smiled faintly. “The cultivation world will still remember the mighty name of Gang Leader Zhu even if another thirty years pass.”

The expressions of the women from Blusher Hall changed slightly when they heard the old woman reveal the identity of her interlocutor.

Zhu Fengxian, the demonic gang leader of the Great Marsh Gang, had a fearsome reputation in the cultivation world. Thirty years ago, Zhu Fengxian liked to travel around the world in a bright red horse-drawn carriage. He had charged through the martial arts worlds of several nations and left nothing but bloodshed in his wake. Dozens if not hundreds of powerful cultivators had died at his hands.

Zhu Fengxian also had eight disciples, and they were known as the Eight Underworld Officials in the cultivation world. They possessed incredible might and a resounding reputation in the Azure Phoenix Nation. However, the Great Marsh Gang had suffered a huge disaster thirty years ago, and Zhu Fengxian had started to cultivate in seclusion while half of his eight disciples had been killed. Initially, the gang had more than five thousand people, but more than half of the members had eventually scattered and left. The Great Marsh Gang had once ruled over the cultivation world of the Azure Phoenix Nation, yet for the past thirty years, they had slowly disappeared from view and fallen completely silent.

Zhu Fengxian was just about to close his eyes and continue resting, yet the old woman who had appeared extremely poised and graceful the entire time suddenly added, “However, the present is different from the past. The cultivation world is far more powerful and complicated than thirty years ago, so it’s best that people remain polite and refrain from boasting when they travel outside their own territories. It would do you well to kowtow more and speak less.”

The round-faced young girl suddenly widened her eyes in shock, feeling like she had just heard the most hilarious joke in the whole wide world. She stared intently at the graying old woman, trying to figure out if she had lost her mind.

“If I remember correctly, Blusher Hall has always been a second-rate force in the Lofty Sky Nation ever since its founding two hundred years ago,” Zhu Fengxian remarked in an apathetic voice. “Blusher Hall has been suppressed the entire time. What, perhaps someone has appeared on top of you women sometime during the past thirty years?”

Chen Ping’an could feel a headache forming. They were simply sheltering from the rain, so how had they managed to come across some mysterious hostility between two forces from the cultivation world?

1. Chan (禅) refers to the school of meditation of Mahayana Buddhism that originated in China. It is more commonly known as Zen, the Japanese pronunciation of Chan. ☜

2. Kasaya are the robes of fully ordained Buddhist monks and nuns, named after a brown or saffron dye. In Sanskrit and Pali, these robes are also given the more general term civara, which references the robes without regard to color. ☜

3. The young woman is referring to a specific type of sparring here (搭手), and this type of sparring involves contact between the forearms similar to how sparring in tai chi would work. ☜