Unsheathed

The winter solstice was when the days were shortest and the shadows were longest, yet it was also the time when the yang energy of heaven and earth started to rise again.

The emperors and rulers of various empires and nations in the Eastern Treasured Vial Continent would all worship the mountains on this day, and even if they couldn’t attend personally, they would still send high-ranking officials of the Ministry of Rites to the mountain god temples to pay respects and offer incense.

In a similar manner to Dragon Spring Prefecture, the Plum Glaze Nation also had their own traditions and customs when it came to celebrating the winter solstice. Even the poorest of families would make dumplings, lamb soup, or glutinous rice according to their local traditions.

Chen Ping’an, Ma Duyi, and Zeng Ye snacked on glutinous rice balls that they had purchased from the markets as they embarked on their return journey from Banner State City which was located in the southernmost region of the Plum Glaze Nation.

Chen Ping’an stopped his horse at a border pass, telling Zeng Ye and Ma Duyi to cross first. He turned around and rode up a small hill by himself, and an old cultivator coincidentally walked to the peak slowly just as he arrived at the peak. Chen Ping’an dismounted his horse, and the old cultivator spoke using his non-fluent official dialect of the Eastern Treasured Vial Continent as he chuckled, “You might not recognize me, but I’m already very familiar with you.”

“Thank you for your hard work in watching over me this entire time,” Chen Ping’an said with a faint smile.

The elderly Nascent Tier cultivator ignored the sarcasm in Chen Ping’an’s reply. After all, it was normal for people to feel uncomfortable about being spied on.

The old cultivator smiled and said, “I was once a disciple of the Parasol Leaf Sect, so it was indeed hard work for me to endure silently this entire time.”

“Was?” Chen Ping’an asked.

The old cultivator kept his aura suppressed to the level of Golden Core Tier earth immortals, with a glow flowing across the surface of his skin and appearing like a sun and a moon circulating around the small world that was his body. He didn’t answer Chen Ping’an’s question, and he looked the young man up and down as if he were trying to discern something. What had he relied on to become… friends with that great sword immortal? Were they junior and senior brothers from the same sect or studying under the same master? This was difficult to say right now, and anything might be possible. In any case, there was no such thing as enjoying fortune with no strings attached in this world, especially not in the mountains. A single mistake, and one could lose everything.

The old cultivator stood atop the small hill and looked around. The mountains and rivers of the Plum Glaze Nation were truly dull and boring, and the thin spiritual energy in the nation was also far inferior to that of Bamboo Scroll Lake.

There were some secrets that the old cultivator didn’t tell Chen Ping’an. For example, he had traveled here using his yin soul, and his yang soul was elsewhere with the secret parasol leaf tablet which was used to monitor him. This way, he could hide his tracks and prevent those in Bamboo Scroll Lake from knowing about his current meeting with Chen Ping’an.

The reason he was willing to take such a big risk was naturally due to his careful considerations and planning. They were vagrant cultivators treated as esteemed guests by Palace Willow Island’s Unpolished Jade Tier Liu Laocheng, and the fact that they had been carefully picked and sent to Bamboo Scroll Lake signified that they were very capable and crafty. This old cultivator was naturally no exception.

When it came to cultivators serving other people, however, the cultivators would understandably base their decisions on how much they were getting paid.

The old cultivator felt like he was getting slightly less than he deserved.

Even though the powerful Naturalist cultivator had already concluded that the old cultivator had no chance of advancing to the Upper Five Tiers, he was still a Nascent Tier skilled in battle and with two hundred years left to live, after all. If he were willing to spend an exorbitant amount of money to extend his lifespan, even living for an additional three hundred years might be possible.

He had pondered for a long time after receiving this secret mission, and he had a nagging feeling that this was an intricate plan designed to kill someone using a borrowed knife. Their Upper Five Tier leader was being treated as that borrowed knife, and he was naturally being treated as one too, being a subordinate of the Upper Five Tier cultivator.

However, it was a shame that the Eastern Treasured Vial Continent wasn’t his home territory. He had no foundation here, and there was no one whom he could command. Otherwise, he could find another borrowed knife, someone who was quicker and more dimwitted. That way, he could perhaps seek wealth and opportunity from this dangerous assignment. He might genuinely be able to obtain immeasurable wealth. Of course, it was also possible that they would all suffer the same fate, with all of the borrowed knives being defeated and punished. As for the true mastermind who he couldn’t even guess the identity of, that person would remain free and unfettered.

“I want to suggest a transaction that we can both benefit from — are you in?” the old cultivator asked.

“Go ahead,” Chen Ping’an prompted with a nod.

The old cultivator smiled and said, “Before I go any further, I’ll need a promise from you first. You, Chen Ping’an, aren’t allowed to tell anyone else about this transaction between us for at least the next one hundred years.”

“Would you dare to believe me even if I agree?” Chen Ping’an asked.

The old cultivator nodded and replied, “I can’t trust you completely, but I’m planning to take a gamble. The fact that I’m standing here in front of you is already proof of this. When cultivating in the mountains, I can’t see through those who possess a higher cultivation base than me. However, it won’t be too difficult to see through someone after interacting with them for a long time and understanding their disposition. I’ve come across many people like you before, most of them when I was young. However, I discovered that the large majority of them died young, passing away as they were pursuing the Great Dao. That’s the reason for me only asking you to keep quiet for one hundred years.”

Chen Ping’an smiled and replied, “It’s almost New Year, so please say something more auspicious, Senior.”

The elderly Nascent Tier cultivator smiled faintly and said, “Would you not have become suspicious if I had made some polite small talk with you? And then how could I propose a transaction with you at that time?”

Chen Ping’an felt like this was a fair assessment.

After approximately fifteen minutes, Chen Ping’an rode down the hill, with his face as pale as a sheet and looking much worse than before. He swayed around on his saddle, looking like he might fall off at any moment. It was as if he had just experienced a life-and-death battle, causing his already frail body to become even weaker.

On the other side of the border pass, Zeng Ye and Ma Duyi were terrified upon seeing this, so much so that they didn’t even dare to breathe too loudly.

Just then, almost everyone near the border pass had seen the brilliant burst of sword light near the small hill where Chen Ping’an had disappeared off to.

Chen Ping’an shook a hand and replied, “I’m fine, everything has already been resolved. Let’s head off now, there won’t be any more troubles on the way back. Also, we’ll follow the same rules as before, and the two of you don’t need to accompany me back to Bamboo Scroll Lake.”

Over at the small hill, the Nascent Tier cultivator had already retracted their illusion technique, revealing their true appearance as an ordinary-looking middle-aged lady. A drop of blood slowly seeped out from her glabella, and she gently wiped it away with a finger. Even so, the slight trace of blood would be extremely eye-catching for any Middle Five Tier cultivator who caught sight of her.

Doing business with that young man was relatively easy and reassuring, with both sides working through the details and making sure everything was perfect after deciding to proceed with the transaction. The young man was able to perform fairly well.

The middle-aged woman looked up at the sky and bowed in respect, with her voice quivering in sincerity and apprehension as she said, “Li Fuqu was extremely crude just now, and I only dared to offend a virtuous person rather than a sinister person. Please forgive my disrespect.”

Heaven and earth remained silent.

The middle-aged woman couldn’t help but chuckle in speechlessness. She was most likely overthinking things.

The Eastern Treasured Vial Continent was embroiled in chaos right now, and there were far too many people and matters that the accompanying sage needed to keep an eye on.[1] There was Heavenly Lord Xie Shi from the Northern Complete Reed Continent, Song Changjing from the Great Li Empire, the emperor of the Luminous Vermilion Empire, and so on. As such, she and Chen Ping’an were right at the bottom of the pecking order.

Even though Liu Zhimao, who was now locked up in a water dungeon, had personally said that Chen Ping’an possessed the jade tablet of a sage inscribed with the characters “nourishing the noble spirit,” she was aware of some inside information regarding the accompanying sages who oversaw things in the skies above each continent. These sages wouldn’t shift their gazes and glance elsewhere as long as there wasn’t anything too extraordinary and chaotic. For example, the sage of the Parasol Leaf Continent definitely noticed the commotion when the old sect leader of Peace and Tranquility Mountain personally pursued the sword-carrying white ape — the commotion was far too big, after all.

In any case, caution was the key to longevity.

When it came to necessary etiquette, more was better than less, and some was better than none.

After leaving the Plum Glaze Nation and upon approaching Bamboo Scroll Lake, Chen Ping’an turned around to look at his two low-spirited companions when they arrived near a village in the region. He smiled and said in a hoarse voice, “Sorry for making the two of you worry. I was contemplating quite a lot of things while we traveled.”

Ma Duyi placed a hand over her heart and said, “You’ve finally returned to your senses, Mr. Chen. You were either in a daze or frowning the entire time, and how long has it been since you last drank some wine? The two of us were almost scared to death.”

Zeng Ye nodded earnestly in agreement.

Chen Ping’an comforted them in a soft voice, saying, “I encountered something that I wasn’t able to make heads or tails of in a short period of time. Sorry about that.”

Ma Duyi smiled and asked, “Have you understood it now?”

Chen Ping’an shook his head and replied, “I still don’t understand the crux of the matter. However, I’ve taken a step back and have roughly come up with a way to deal with the issue.”

“Are you genuinely okay now?” Ma Duyi asked with deep concern.

“Yes, I’m fine,” Chen Ping’an replied with a nod.

“Then have some wine to drink and prove it to us, Mr. Chen. Otherwise, we won’t feel at ease,” Ma Duyi said in a hesitant voice.

There was an awkward expression on Zeng Ye’s face.

Chen Ping’an naturally didn’t drink in front of them, and he chuckled, “Alright, the two of you can stop here. Remember not to disturb the residents living nearby, and make sure to cultivate earnestly and remind each other not to slack off. I’ll try my best to return before New Year, and I might even be able to return a little earlier.

“We can travel to the regions south of Bamboo Scroll Lake at that time, the regions that’s covered in miasma and brimming with mountain spirits and water spirits. I’ve heard that there are many sinister cultivators and demonic cultivators as well, so that region will definitely be much more dangerous than the Stone Brush Nation and the Plum Glaze Nation. The two of you should do your best not to hinder me too much.”

Ma Duyi responded with a cold humph.

Meanwhile, Zeng Ye hurriedly promised Mr. Chen that he would definitely cultivate in earnest.

Chen Ping’an rode away by himself.

Before leaving, he handed his golden demon-binding chain and several talismans to Ma Duyi, lest they come across any unexpected dangers while he was away. Of course, he warned her to carefully conceal the demon-binding chain and refrain from showing it to anyone else. Otherwise, they would definitely suffer disaster if the demon-binding chain were seen by a passing vagrant cultivator.

This pertained to life and death, so Ma Duyi didn’t dare to brush it off or joke around. Instead, she reassured Mr. Chen and told him that they definitely wouldn’t be so careless.

Chen Ping’an camped in a desolate mountain at night, and the yin energy in the area was so strong that he could almost guarantee that there was a malicious ghost hiding nearby. However, he surprisingly faced no issues at night, and this made him feel a little puzzled. It wasn’t suitable for Chen Ping’an to reveal his cultivation base right now, yet the malicious ghost was also very well hidden, most likely having tied itself to the fortunes of the mountain roots in this area. In the end, Chen Ping’an had no option but to give up.

He slowly rode away.

He was weighed down with worry.

1. Accompanying sages refer to sages who are also honored inside the Confucian temples alongside the Paramount Sage. ☜