Unsheathed

“This is already the third time that I’ve had to come and see you, Liu Zhimao. I suggest you don’t make me come again,” Zhou Fenglu said in a displeased manner.

Liu Zhimao took a glance at him out of the corner of his eye, then said, “Us vagrant cultivators aren’t like you official immortals. We’re wild dogs accustomed to having to scrap for food, so we can’t serve as obedient pets.”

“You say that, yet you contacted Tan Yuanyi to pledge your allegiance to the Great Li Empire. Isn’t that the same as resigning yourself to serve as someone else’s lapdog?” Zhou Fenglu sneered.

Liu Zhimao remained completely unabashed as he replied, “Serving the Great Li Empire is the equivalent of becoming a free-roaming pet dog, which is countless times better than being cooped up with no freedom. Besides, I detest you high and mighty official immortals more than anyone else in this world.”

Zhou Fenglu’s expression darkened as he snapped, “Do you really think I don’t dare to kill you, Liu Zhimao? A Nascent Tier earth immortal may be a revered figure in a tiny place like your Eastern Treasured Vial Continent, but you would be nothing on our Parasol Leaf Continent!

“At least a handful of Nascent Tier earth immortals meet their demise on our Parasol Leaf Continent every century, so don’t take that tone with me and think that I wouldn’t dare to do anything about it!”

Liu Zhimao burst into laughter upon hearing this.

“Are you trying to scare me?”

“I’m not trying to scare you, all I’m saying is that my patient has its limits,” Zhou Fenglu replied with a shake of his head.

A derisive sneer appeared on Liu Zhimao’s face as he scoffed, “Are you not aware that wild dogs like us are constantly having to live in fear? All of us are either scared to death or become like me. Even if a ghost comes knocking on my door at midnight, I would ask them if they’ve come to propose a deal to me. Have you already become the leader of the Jade Tablet Sect’s lower sect and are capable of deciding my fate?

“Even if you had become sect leader, shouldn’t you be considering how you can best make use of a Nascent Tier vagrant cultivator like me? What if I suddenly come around someday and agree to serve as a guest elder for you? In that case, if you were to kill me now, then you would be missing out on a powerful subordinate.

“In contrast, how much immortal currency does it cost you to keep me locked up here in this formation? If you can’t even weigh up such simple options properly, then how are you going to run the lower sect?”

At the moment, all of Liu Zhimao’s acupoints were bound by the veins of the water dungeon. In particular, his vital acupoints in which his bonded items were being nurtured had been obstructed by the water veins of Palace Willow Island, but he remained completely unfazed as he yawned, “Do you really think an outsider like you simply gets to do whatever you want on our Eastern Treasured Vial Continent?

“Your lack of patience alone tells me that you’re not going to be able to occupy the position of sect leader for long. In fact, your reign may even be shorter than mine as the ruler of the cultivation world of Bamboo Scroll Lake. I don’t believe that the Jade Tablet Sect would be willing to grant such a lofty position to someone who only recently defected from the Parasol Leaf Sect.”

All of a sudden, the tables had turned, and Liu Zhimao began lecturing Zhou Fenglu as he continued, “Honestly, when it comes to mental fortitude, I genuinely don’t believe you official immortals can compare with us vagrant cultivators.

“It’s only thanks to the top-tier immortal techniques and resources of your sects that you were able to make it to where you are today. Give us those same resources, and if we all start from the Nascent Tier, I guarantee you that us vagrant cultivators would be able to leave you far behind in the same amount of time! If you don’t believe me, why don’t you give it a try?

“You’ve already defected from the Parasol Leaf Sect, so what do the rules of the ancestral hall matter to you? Why don’t you give me the immortal techniques of your Parasol Leaf Sect that would allow me to reach the Upper Five Tiers? You wouldn’t dare, would you?”

Liu Zhimao burst into raucous laughter in his cell, putting his composure on full display.

Zhou Fenglu shook his head as he said, “I hope you can still display the same attitude to me next time I come to see you as the leader of the lower sect.”

“If that happens, then I’ll definitely treat you with much more respect. For vagrant cultivators like us, honor means nothing. We would be the first ones to bow in the face of power,” Liu Zhimao chuckled.

Zhou Fenglu left the water dungeon in silence.

Liu Zhimao was truly an infuriating thorn in his side. He couldn’t make use of him, nor could he get rid of him. Zhou Fenglu had already made up his mind that as soon as he became leader of the lower sect, he would immediately have Liu Zhimao killed without wasting another word with him.

After Zhou Fenglu returned to his residence, the true master of Palace Willow Island, Liu Laocheng, made his way into the water dungeon.

All of the Jade Tablet Sect cultivators that he encountered along the way pretended not to have seen him, neither greeting him nor making any effort to stop him.

There were three foundational water veins in Bamboo Scroll Lake that were imbued with immense water fortune, but there were also many branch water veins that were scattered in a haphazard manner and had all been claimed by the many islands of Bamboo Scroll Lake.

Palace Willow Island was the sole owner of one of them, and that water vein served as the foundation of the formation in the water dungeon.

That was the key to how they had been able to imprison Liu Zhimao here so easily.

Cyan Gorge Island had also claimed the majority of another water vein, with the Hengbo Residence serving as the formation eye, but in the wake of the Hengbo Residence’s destruction, the water fortune within had seeped out to benefit the earth immortals of the subsidiary islands, such as Tian Hujun and Yu Gui.

The final foundational water vein of Bamboo Scroll Lake was split among Azure Mound Island, Heavenly Governess Island, and Millet Grain Island.

As soon as Liu Laocheng reached the bottom level of the water dungeon, he immediately conjured up an independent small world.

Liu Zhimao raised his head with slightly furrowed brows.

He didn’t have much fear of Zhou Fenglu, but he was very apprehensive of Liu Laocheng as vagrant cultivators always knew how to deal with other vagrant cultivators, while official immortals were often found lacking in this regard.

Liu Laocheng pulled out a picture scroll, then gently unfurled it, and a man with a wide smile on his face emerged from the scroll.

He strode over to the cell with his hands clasped behind his back, then bent down to look at Liu Zhimao through slightly narrowed eyes as he said, “I heard that you and Chen Ping’an have a complicated relationship where you’re both friends and enemies. Setting that aside, Liu Zhimao tells me that you both acknowledge one another as half a confidant, is that right?”

A puzzled look appeared on Liu Zhimao’s face, and instead of answering the question, he raised one of his own: “Are you Jiang Shangzhen of the Jade Tablet Sect?”

“Answer my question first, and after that, I’ll see if I want to answer your question. I asked my question first, so it should be answered before yours,” the man said with a smile.

Liu Zhimao took a glance at Liu Laocheng. Having already dealt with Zhou Fenglu thrice thus far, he had developed a rough idea of what Zhou Fenglu wanted and what he stood for, so he knew that he could stall as much as he pleased, and Zhou Fenglu wouldn’t dare to do anything to him. However, in the face of this man, who was very likely Jiang Shangzhen, Liu Zhimao was feeling rather uncertain, and he didn’t dare to run his mouth.

After some careful consideration, he nodded as he replied, “Chen Ping’an and I will never be friends. In fact, there may come a day when a showdown takes place between the two of us, whether that be when I reach the Upper Five Tiers or when he attains the powers to stand against me. However, at the moment, it’s not incorrect to say that we are both half a confidant to one another, and we’ve even shared a drink together on several occasions.”

The man clapped his hands together as he burst into laughter and said, “That’s all I needed to hear! From now on, you, Little Liu, me, and Old Man Liu over here, are all friends on the same boat!”

Liu Zhimao turned his gaze to Liu Laocheng again, but the latter remained completely expressionless, conveying no useful information to Liu Zhimao through his body language.

The man smiled as he confirmed, “You guessed right, I am Jiang Shangzhen, the leader of the Jade Tablet Sect’s lower sect.”

All of a sudden, his smile faded as he wiped a hand over his own face in self-pity and all but began weeping as he complained, “That shameless bastard, Zhou Fenglu, almost ruined everything for me! If Li Fuqu hadn’t salvaged the situation, I would’ve beaten Zhou Fenglu to death regardless of the consequences, then taken his head to apologize to my superiors!

“Whenever I think of this, I’m struck by the urge to go to Li Fuqu and kowtow to her in earnest! In fact, I’m even tempted to accept her as my godmother!”

Immediately thereafter, Jiang Shangzhen began pounding his own chest with a grief-stricken expression as he yelled, “I didn’t come to Bamboo Scroll Lake to deal with these trivial matters, my top priority was to catch up with Chen Ping’an! But what now?

“My plans have been completely ruined by Zhou Fenglu! All I did was arrange a banquet in the Parasol Leaf Sect, did he really need to screw me over like this? We’re both members of the same sect now, how could he do something so conniving and underhanded to me?”

Liu Zhimao was completely flabbergasted, while Liu Laocheng’s eyelids were also twitching slightly.

Clearly, he was already somewhat accustomed to Jiang Shangzhen’s deranged outbursts, so he was able to hold onto a bit more composure than the dumbstruck Liu Zhimao.

All of a sudden, Jiang Shangzhen fell silent for a moment, then said, “Liu Zhimao, let me ask you a question on Zhou Fenglu’s behalf: are you willing to serve as a guest elder of our Jade Tablet Sect’s lower sect?”

Liu Zhimao didn’t know how to respond.

Right at this moment, he caught a glimpse of Liu Laocheng giving him the slightest of nods.

He took a deep breath, then nodded as he replied, “I am.”

Only then did he notice that there was a vibrant, green willow leaf hovering right in front of his glabella.

Jiang Shangzhen snapped his fingers as a wide smile appeared over his face, and he said, “You’re a smart man, Liu Zhimao. From this moment forth, you will be the third-ranked guest elder of my lower sect, below only Liu Laocheng and Zhou Fenglu. However, I’m hoping that you’ll kill Zhou Fenglu for me once you reach the Upper Five Tiers.

“I don’t care how you do it, as long as you get it done. If you can do that, I can promise you right now that I’ll loan you that powerful treasure that Zhou Fenglu took from the Parasol Leaf Sect’s ancestral hall for a hundred years. As long as you prove yourself sufficiently useful thereafter, you can have it for another century after that. However, if you fail to kill Zhou Fenglu and are killed by him instead, then you’ll have no one to blame but yourself.”

“How will I reach the Upper Five Tiers?” Liu Zhimao asked.

Jiang Shangzhen raised a thumb, then pointed it at himself as he replied, “That’s where I come in. All I have is money. Once you become more familiar with me, you’ll definitely come to pity me. I have so much money that it cripples me with sorrow.

“Even the official immortals of the Upper Five Tiers from our Parasol Leaf Continent don’t know how frustrating it is to be as wealthy as me, let alone you impoverished vagrant cultivators of the Eastern Treasured Vial Continent!”

Liu Zhimao turned a bewildered gaze to Liu Laocheng once again. Was it really alright to work with someone like this? Was it not a safer option to work with Zhou Fenglu instead?

Liu Laocheng remained completely expressionless, and it was unclear whether this was a display of confidence or whether he was also internally regretting his decision.

————

Late spring.

On a peaceful night in Bamboo Scroll Lake, an elderly man was standing by the water as he swept a sleeve through the air, and over twenty bamboo slips shot out at once. All of the characters engraved onto the slips were glowing a radiant gold, and their radiance was comparable with that of the sun and the moon, much like the immortal scriptures left behind by the Confucian sages.

There were twenty-four bamboo slips in total, representing the twenty-four solar terms, and they fell into Bamboo Scroll Lake.

Only three people in the entirety of Bamboo Scroll Lake were able to detect what had just happened, namely Jiang Shangzhen, Liu Laocheng, and Zhou Fenglu.

The three of them sprang up into the air almost at the exact same moment to scour their surroundings, but weren’t able to see anything amiss.

The elderly man was right under their noses, but somehow, he was able to remain completely invisible to the three Upper Five Tiers cultivators.

At the same time, Liu Zhimao suddenly recalled something from his cell, seemingly for no reason.

Bamboo Scroll Lake was once an unremarkable place that was quite sparse in spiritual energy. That changed when a traveling Confucian sage from the Middle Earth Divine Continent arrived here and attained the Great Dao, resulting in resonance with heaven and earth, and from that point onward, Bamboo Scroll Lake became a blessed land that was abundant in spiritual energy.

The old man stood beside the lake with a smile as he said, “This place is always referred to as a filthy cesspool, yet there are some people who revere all of you as heroes with immortal legacies. What do you think of that?”

Bursts of righteous energy rose up from the depths, causing the surface of the lake to ripple incessantly.

The old man continued, “I’m not telling you to be grateful to that young man. Your gratitude is not something that he seeks. This is how us scholars do things, we do not treat everything like a transaction.

“Hence, all I ask is that you sacrifice yourselves for the greater good and die again in the future with me so that you don’t let down the salvation that has been passed down upon this place. Of course, that young man did say that he’s merely an accountant and not a scholar at the moment, so we can have a discussion on what to do next.”

————

A young man leading a horse behind him drew to a halt at an immortal ferry station in the central region of the Eastern Treasured Vial Continent.

It was early summer, and the young man had traveled to Bamboo Scroll Lake at seventeen years of age before spending the final night of the year on his own in that room at the entrance of Cyan Gorge Island.

He had spent that same night the following year in an inn in the Stone Brush Nation, chatting with Zeng Ye and Ma Duyi while huddled around a lit stove.

The year after that, he had spent the final night of the year on horseback while on his way to meet with Zeng Ye and Ma Duyi.

The year after that, he paid a visit to the mountains to the south of Bamboo Scroll Lake, and on the way back, he was finally able to enjoy a proper Spring Festival Eve meal with Gu Can, Zeng Ye, and Ma Duyi.

This year, in the present, Chen Ping’an led his horse onto the ship, then raised a hand to the jade hairpin in his hair. Before he knew it, he had already turned twenty years of age.

On the fifth day of the fifth month, Chen Ping’an was originally planning to order a bountiful feast from the immortal ship, but decided against it at the last minute and had his usual meal of dry rations washed down with wine.

He stood at the window, casting his gaze toward the clouds in the distance, and that was all he did to celebrate his own birthday, even skipping his coming of age ceremony in the process. After all, he was the only one left in his family, and with no seniors around, there was no need for him to observe such complex formalities.

Having just swallowed his final mouthful of dry rations and wine, Chen Ping’an suddenly felt as if Sword Immortal had increased in weight by a hundredfold on his back, causing him to lose his balance as he fell onto his back with Sword Immortal beneath him.

However, immediately thereafter, Sword Immortal seemed to have returned to normal, and Chen Ping’an was able to sit up without any trouble.

He was rather perplexed by this, and he was worried that he was missing something, so he sat down at the table and drew Sword Immortal from its scabbard before examining it for a very long time, but was unable to find anything amiss.

In the end, he merely chalked it down to Sword Immortal playing a prank on him. After all, it had often put on mischievous displays over the past half year. For example, there was one occasion where Chen Ping’an had ridden atop Sword Immortal into the clouds to watch the sunset, only for it to abandon him.

As a result, he was sent plummeting out of the sky from a great height, and he would’ve been sure to suffer severe injuries had he not been saved by First and Fifteenth. However, there was simply no way to reason with a pseudo-celestial tool, and after that, Chen Ping’an never soared up into the clouds for sightseeing purposes again.

All of a sudden, Sword Immortal sprang out of its scabbard with such force that it caused the entire immortal ship to sway slightly, then hovered in mid-air roughly a foot above the ground, as if it were inviting Chen Ping’an to step on.

“This isn’t a prank?” Chen Ping’an asked in a cautious manner.

Sword Immortal remained completely still.

Chen Ping’an hesitated momentarily, then negotiated, “If you abandon me halfway, then I may not be able to catch back up to the ship. In that case, you’ll have to compensate me for the fare.”

Sword Immortal immediately flew back into its scabbard upon hearing this.

Chen Ping’an immediately thought of the old man who had swindled him out of his twenty-four bamboo slips on that mountain summit, and he nodded to himself in approval as he mused, “Looks like I really have learned from my mistakes!”