Unsheathed

To the surprise of Zhu Lian and Zheng Dafeng, Chen Ping’an ended up walking out of the bamboo building completely unscathed.

Chen Ping’an then sat at a stone bench near the mountain cliff for an entire night, only returning to the first floor of the bamboo building to sleep when morning arrived.

Zhu Lian continued to visit the second floor to enjoy himself for the next two days, and just as they expected, Chen Ping’an indeed went to look for Zheng Dafeng. However, he wasn’t able to find him, so he hesitated for a short while before returning to the mountain peak.

Over at the sword chamber located at Ox Horn Mountain’s ferry station, messenger flying swords for Chen Ping’an started to gradually arrive one after another.

The first letter was a reply from Cyan Gorge Island’s Liu Zhimao, saying that the Spring Courtyard Mansion’s Hong Su was no longer working as an official in the residence. She had returned to the Vermilion Chord Residence to work as a doorkeeper, and Liu Laocheng’s only remark was that he would go with the flow of nature. Cyan Gorge Island only needed to guarantee that she wouldn’t suffer any hardships and calamities in her life.

In addition, construction work to rebuild the Hengbo Residence had already commenced, yet Zhang Ye had seemingly taken the wrong medicine and had surprisingly chosen to leave Cyan Gorge Island. He had only asked Liu Zhimao for a low-level guest elder jade tablet as well as a secret immortal scripture and one immortal treasure. Afterward, he ran off to the small and unknown force located on Descending Falcon Mountain, concealing his true identity and becoming a guest elder.

At the end of the letter, Liu Zhimao offered Chen Ping’an two choices. He had promised Chen Ping’an abundant gifts if he managed to make it through this difficult time safely, so Chen Ping’an could either wait for him to instruct his subordinates to deliver these abundant gifts to Dragon Spring Prefecture, or he could directly wipe off the debts that he owed Cyan Gorge Island for the two transactions that he had made with the secret chamber.

Chen Ping’an gave a very simple and concise reply using a messenger flying sword: The debts between us are clear.

As for the fate of White Fish Island’s Tian Hujun and the others, Chen Ping’an didn’t ask about them at all.

The second letter was from Bejeweled Hairpin Island’s Liu Chongrun. She revealed a secret to Chen Ping’an, saying that the old woman at the Golden Core Tier had only been forcefully holding on by a single breath. Her golden core had already decayed, and her heart had been tense for far too long.

When the dust settled in Bamboo Scroll Lake, with Bejeweled Hairpin Island surprisingly obtaining many benefits instead of suffering calamity, the tense heartstrings of the old woman had finally relaxed. However, the extreme emotion swings from anxiety to delight caused the old woman to finally exhaust the last of her life force, and she eventually passed away this year at the beginning of autumn.

Liu Chongrun was honest and frank in the letter, saying that the old woman had persuaded her not to squabble over the alchemical pills secretly stored in the Water Palace. Thus, she hoped to make a deal with Chen Ping’an. Bejeweled Hairpin Island wanted to copy the lofty Jade Tablet Sect and send some of its disciples to Dragon Spring Prefecture, a region located in the northernmost nation of the Great Li Empire. That way, they could distance themselves from trouble and cultivate in peace.

Chen Ping’an could lease or sell some land to Bejeweled Hairpin Island, and Liu Chongrun said that she would find a way to pay no matter how much he charged. She definitely wouldn’t pay him even one copper coin less.

Chen Ping’an’s reply was also very direct, and he said that he wouldn’t sell any of his mountains. However, he was willing to lease them to Liu Chongrun. Of course, he would have most likely left Dragon Spring Prefecture already by the time she arrived, even if she made her way over immediately after receiving this letter. As such, she could look for someone called Zhu Lian on Downtrodden Mountain to iron out the details.

Gu Can also sent Chen Ping’an a letter.

He roughly reported Zeng Ye and Ma Duyi’s current cultivation progress, and he also gave an overview of the estimated expenses required for the first Heavenly Worship Ceremony. He clearly detailed how many immortal coins were needed for each activity.

Chen Ping’an wrote a reply letter and said that he would instruct someone to deliver the first sum of immortal coins to Bamboo Scroll Lake, so the three of them could be at ease and continue with their journey. In addition to this, Chen Ping’an couldn’t help but give Gu Can many reminders about some trivial matters. After finishing the letter, even Chen Ping’an felt like he was rambling on when he read over it again. This was completely in line with his previous position as the bookkeeper of Cyan Gorge Island.

Chen Ping’an glanced at the bamboo bookcase in the corner of his room before heading off to Ox Horn Mountain to deliver the letters. Inside the bookcase was a charcoal basket that he had brought back from Bamboo Scroll Lake.

There was also a letter from Guan Yiran, and the young man who was a direct descendant of the paramount Guan Clan of the Great Li Empire jokingly said that he had asked “Half City Dong,” Dong Shuijing, of Dragon Spring Prefecture to bring some of his homemade wine when visiting.[1] This was rice wine that sold extremely well even in the faraway capital of the Great Li Empire. Apart from this, Dong Shuijing also needed to deliver some fine wine from Chen Ping’an. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be welcome to visit.

Chen Ping’an paid a visit to Cool Wind Mountain after receiving this letter, and he ate a large bowl of wontons at Dong Shuijing’s shop before discussing this matter with him. Chen Ping’an said everything that he needed to say according to his pre-prepared mental outline, regardless of whether it was pleasant or unpleasant to the ear. Dong Shuijing listened carefully, not letting slip a single word. When he heard something that he felt was critical, he would also repeatedly reconfirm things with Chen Ping’an.

This allowed Chen Ping’an to feel even more at ease, and he thought to himself whether he should also give a heads-up to those in Old Dragon City. It wouldn’t hurt to mention these matters to the Fan Clan and the Sun Clan, and it was ultimately up to Dong Shuijing’s ability whether he succeeded or not. After contemplating this for a moment, Chen Ping’an decided against it, thinking that these matters could be considered after Dong Shuijing met with Guan Yiran first. Delaying success for a short while wouldn’t hurt.

Chen Ping’an left Cool Wind Mountain and returned to Downtrodden Mountain, where he coincidentally saw Cen Yuanji walking along the mountain path and practicing walking meditation from a distance.

Chen Ping’an didn’t greet her, afraid that the young girl would overthink things even if he just waved and said hello.

Cen Yuanji was seemingly looking straight ahead, yet she unexpectedly caught sight of the young mountain master out of the corners of her eyes. She breathed a sigh of relief when Chen Ping’an purposely ascended the mountain using another path, yet doing so interrupted her vague fist intent and caused it to dissipate.

Chen Ping’an couldn’t help but stop in his tracks, turning to her and saying in a gentle voice, “Miss Cen, when practicing fist techniques and nurturing fist intent, it’s a big taboo to sever the thread manifested by your breath of True Qi…”

Cen Yuanji placed a hand behind her back, seemingly trying to conceal her shapely body as best as she could. However, she most likely felt like this action was far too obvious and might offend the young mountain master who couldn’t control his eyes, so she slowly turned to her side and pursed her lips, not saying anything and not looking at Chen Ping’an.

Chen Ping’an felt slightly helpless, and he could only turn around silently and continue to make his way up the mountain.

After arriving outside the bamboo building and listening to the commotion inside, he knew that Zhu Lian was most likely attacking with his full strength, fighting a difficult uphill battle and using his Far Roaming Tier combat power to challenge Cui Cheng’s Vajra Body Tier combat power.

Loud booms and rumbles would occasionally travel out from the bamboo building.

Chen Ping’an sat at the stone table, and he almost felt like snacking on roasted seeds as he listened to the commotion.

Evening arrived, and Pei Qian returned to Downtrodden Mountain with the two children who had officially named themselves Chen Lingjun and Chen Ruchu.

Shi Rou didn’t return with them, saying that she would stay in the small town to look after the pastry shop.

The little girl in pink sat down at the table with her head lowered, feeling slightly guilty.

Meanwhile, the little boy in azure boldly sat opposite to Chen Ping’an, smiling and asking, “How do you find my new name, Master? Isn’t it impressive? Isn’t it domineering?”

“It’s very good,” Chen Ping’an smiled and replied with a nod.

He then turned to the little girl in pink and added, “Your name is also very good.”

Only after hearing this did Chen Ruchu look up with a bashful smile.

The reason why she had chosen the name Chen Ruchu was because she hoped that her relationship with her master would remain this good forever and ever, just like things were from the beginning.[2]

However, Pei Qian was slightly unhappy about the two children going ahead and choosing their own names without Chen Ping’an’s input, so she grumbled, “Master, clans have their own rules and mountains have their own regulations, so I feel like the two of them are in dire need of some discipline. Forget about it, Chen Ruchu is quite airheaded, so her actions can be excused. As for Chen Lingjun… You might not know this, Master, but he was itching to inscribe his name on the tables, chairs, and everything in between when he arrived at the small town’s pastry shop.”

Chen Lingjun crossed his arms and retorted, “My name is so impressive and radiant, so if it weren’t for you stopping me, the pastry shop would have definitely enjoyed endless business and wealth after I inscribed my name onto every surface!”

Chen Ping’an chuckled in anger and huffed, “Don’t go around causing trouble for me.”

Chen Lingjun suddenly became slightly listless.

Chen Ping’an thought for a moment and asked, “Are you feeling this way because some mountain gods and river gods from the Yellow Court Nation will also participate in this night travel banquet?”

Chen Lingjun nodded in reply, spreading his arms apart as he lay down on the table.

Chen Ruchu wanted to say something, but she ultimately decided against it. In the end, she started to snack on roasted seeds with Pei Qian.

“I’ll give Wei Bo a heads up later. You can go to Cloud Drape Mountain and participate in the banquet with him,” Chen Ping’an said.

Chen Lingjun looked up, a dazed expression on his face as he asked, “Why are you wasting your goodwill with him just like this? It will only be a facade even if I pretend to be mighty and heroic at the banquet, and I’ll immediately be exposed once someone asks me to do something for them.”

Chen Ping’an smiled faintly and replied, “People in the mountains naturally have their own ingenious plans. You can enjoy the limelight without needing to worry about anything. Just drink wine and have fun.”

“You’re not trying to trick me?” Chen Lingjun asked in a slightly skeptical voice.

Chen Ping’an reached over and grabbed a handful of roasted seeds, replying, “You can refuse if you don’t believe me.”

Chen Lingjun immediately jumped up and ran behind Chen Lingjun, grinning widely as he asked, “Master, are your shoulders sore?”

“My shoulders aren’t sore, but my head does indeed hurt,” Chen Ping’an replied.

The little boy in azure huffed and retracted his hands. He felt a rare sense of embarrassment, so he made up some random excuse before leaving to muck around with the black python. He claimed that he was patrolling the new mountains for his master.

Pei Qian glanced at the disappearing figure of the little boy in azure and sighed, “He just won’t grow up.”

A smile tugged at the corners of Chen Ruchu’s lips, yet she immediately tensed up in fright when Pei Qian shot a glare in her direction.

Chen Ping’an smiled and asked, “Whose idea was it to take the surname Chen?”

Chen Ruchu pointed in the direction that Chen Lingjun had left and replied, “It was his idea.”

Chen Ping’an was slightly surprised.

Chen Ruchu smiled and asked, “Master, what were you initially planning to name us? Can you say?”

Pei Qian immediately interjected and said, “Easy done! Your name was Little Airhead, and his name was Big Idiot!”

Chen Ping’an flicked a roasted seed, accurately striking Pei Qian’s forehead.

While Pei Qian rubbed her forehead, Chen Ping’an smiled and replied slowly, “I initially planned to give him the name Jing Qing. Qing as in limpid, and Qing being a homonym of azure. He likes to dress in azure and also has a strong affinity with water, and water being limpid is admired and valued. I picked out a line from a poem to come up with this name: The summer rain passes, the air is refreshing and limpid.[3] I feel like this description is an auspicious omen, and it can also be somewhat regarded as refined in a literary sense.

“As for you, I initially planned to give you the name Nuan Shu. This comes from the line: The warm sunshine of spring subtly invites the trees and flowers to sprout, the lush green valleys also become gentle and cosy; Orioles dance among the trees in the morning, dew lightly moistening their golden outfit.[4] I feel like this paints an incredibly beautiful picture. Two names from two poems, and each name takes a character from the beginning and the end. This symbolizes a good beginning and a good end.”

Chen Ruchu was on the verge of tears.

It was as if she felt like Chen Ping’an’s name for her was better.

Chen Ping’an hurriedly consoled her, saying, “Of course, your current names are even better.”

Chen Ruchu stood up without saying a single word, curtsying and bidding farewell to Chen Ping’an before walking away. She was definitely going home to cry in secret.

Chen Ping’an raised a hand and invited her to stay, yet he was unexpectedly unable to keep the pure and innocent little girl from leaving.

Chen Ping’an shot a glare at the heartless Pei Qian who was still launching an all-out assault on the roasted seeds, and he exclaimed, “Are you not going to hurry up and follow her?!”

Pei Qian nodded in response and caught up with the little girl in pink who preferred her name to be Chen Nuanshu.

Chen Ping’an sighed softly.

If he had known earlier, he wouldn’t have shown off his pitiful literary skills and caused all this trouble.

Chen Ping’an clapped his hands and stood up, preparing to pay a visit to Cloud Drape Mountain. He was going to discuss Chen Lingjun’s matters with Wei Bo, and he naturally needed to show some sincerity since he was asking a favor of the mountain god. In addition, he also wanted to have a good stroll around Forest Deer Academy to see if he could “coincidentally” come across Gao Xuan.

However, a gentle breeze quickly brushed over Chen Ping’an’s face.

A person dressed in white robes was already standing beside Chen Ping’an.

The uninvited guest sat down on a stone chair and started to snack on the roasted seeds.

This could probably be regarded as those who were alike tending to band together, right?

“You need to refine that item, are busy with preparing the night travel banquet, yet still run over to my place every single day. You really are treating Downtrodden Mountain as your home, huh?” Chen Ping’an said in a joking manner.

Wei Bo waved a hand and replied, “It’s fine, this won’t delay anything. I’m not the same as you. You’re someone who will refuse to be idle if there’s something you can do, while I’m someone who will refuse to do anything if I can be idle.”

Before Chen Ping’an could say anything, Wei Bo said, “You can leave Chen Lingjun’s matter with me.”

“Thank you,” Chen Ping’an replied.

There was an amused smile on Wei Bo’s face.

“I’m just showing you some politeness and courtesy,” Chen Ping’an said with a smile.

“When are you leaving?” Wei Bo asked.

“I genuinely can’t delay things any longer; I’ll have to miss the night travel banquet,” Chen Ping’an replied in slight disappointment.

“That’s okay, I’ll host the banquet once every ten years,” Wei Bo said calmly.

Chen Ping’an raised a hand and exclaimed, “Please don’t! I won’t be able to withstand the criticisms! Not only does the imperial court of the Great Li Empire need to put in a lot of time and resources for this kind of banquet, but the mountain gods, river gods, and heroic spirits even need to open up their own coin pouches to prepare gifts. If news of your suggestion gets out, I definitely won’t be able to stay in Dragon Spring Prefecture in the future.”

Wei Bo shook his head and reassured, “This won’t have much to do with you.”

Chen Ping’an looked at Wei Bo.

Wei Bo nodded slightly.

Chen Ping’an didn’t say anything else.

This was because Wei Bo’s response signified that he could successfully refine that colored glaze golden body fragment within ten years.

Taking advantage of this opportunity, Wei Bo could potentially advance to the Upper Five Tiers. This potential would allow him to enjoy greater power and influence than the previous formal gods of the Great Li Empire’s Five Mountains, and at that time, all complaints and reservations about his deserved status would disappear from the mountains and the imperial court.

Formal gods of mountains ruling over their jurisdiction were similar to sages overseeing a small world — they would enjoy a boost of one cultivation tier.

If Wei Bo genuinely advanced to the Unpolished Jade Tier, the significance would be immense, and the consequences would be far-reaching and immeasurable!

Apart from that incredibly rare colored glaze golden body fragment, Chen Ping’an felt like it was also of critical importance whether Wei Bo could untie the knot in his heart or find something new to look forward to.

Wei Bo stood up and said, “Thank you, Chen Ping’an.”

Before Chen Ping’an could say anything, Wei Bo smiled and added, “I’m just showing you some politeness and courtesy.”

He disappeared in a flash after saying this.

Chen Ping’an looked up at the sky, where the day had already turned into night.

Escaping to the tranquil mountains often, the moon and stars naturally arrive with night.[5]

This encapsulated the divine and carefree aura of Wei Bo.

How truly enviable.

1. Half City Dong refers to the fact that Dong Shuijing owns many residences in the city. ☜

2. The Ruchu (如初) in Chen Ruchu’s name literally means just like before. ☜

3. This is a line from Four Sceneries, a poem by Emperor Xuanzong, the fifth emperor of the Ming dynasty. The Jing (景) in Jing Qing means scenery. The author has miquoted the poem though, replacing “summer” (暑) with “scenery” (景). ☜

4. This is a line from Liu Yong’s poem, 黄莺儿·园林晴昼春谁主. Liu Yong was a Chinese poet during the Northern Song Dynasty. Nuan (暖) corresponds to warm, and (树) corresponds to tree. ☜

5. This is a line from Fan Gan’s poem, 赠天台叶尊师. Fang Gan was a poet from the Tang dynasty. ☜