Unsheathed

The dragon palace at the bottom of Verdant Bamboo Lake was brightly lit, making it difficult to determine whether it was day or night.

The crescent moon had already risen above the hanging willows beside the lake, painting a peaceful and tranquil picture.

The lights at Imperial Accompanying City had also been extinguished, with the lanterns being taken down and the residents closing their doors tightly and not daring to keep any lamps on, lest they attract unnecessary trouble.

The lake water parted, making way for a young sword immortal in white who was carrying a sword on his back. Standing beside him was the lake lord of Verdant Bamboo Lake who was feeling much more reassured right now.

As for the scenes inside the dragon palace, more than half of the cultivators had been executed after a long period of accusations and commotion. It wasn’t just half of them who had been killed as promised by the sword immortal beforehand.

However, the cultivators who were fortunate enough to survive didn’t feel like the esteemed sword immortal had a bad temper. They had managed to survive, after all, so should they not be content?

A translucent and exquisite porcelain bottle appeared in Chen Ping’an’s hand. Inside this bottle was gently swaying turquoise water, and not only was this bottle of water fortune essence rare and valuable, but it was also like a timely bout of rain for his body.

Chen Ping’an smiled faintly and asked, “Lake Lord, do you think your fortune is good or bad?”

Lake Lord Yin Hou, who had already lost his reddish-purple Dao robe, smiled and replied, “I won’t think about this at all. As the lake lord of Verdant Bamboo Lake, I’ll definitely protect and properly oversee this region in the future. I don’t dare to make any promises as large as the sea regarding matters further in the future, but I’ll dutifully carry out Sword Immortal’s orders and maintain one hundred years of good weather and good harvest in the jurisdiction of Verdant Bamboo Lake. There won’t be any natural disasters, and as instructed by Sword Immortal, I won’t interfere with any of the manmade disasters.”

“Promises as large as the sea? This is quite a good saying for water gods such as you,” Chen Ping’an commented.

He then smiled and continued, “Make sure you don’t forget the other matter either.”

Lake Lord Yin Hou bowed his head and cupped his fists, saying, “Rest assured, Sword Immortal, I’ll definitely keep this in mind. If I fail to accomplish this task, then Sword Immortal can hack me to death with a single sword strike when you return from your travels through Verdant Bamboo Lake in the future.”

The sword immortal in white flew away on his sword.

Not only did Lake Lord Yin Hou lose his reddish-purple dragon robe, but he even lost his dragon throne as well. He didn’t straighten his back for a long time, and he only breathed a long sigh of relief when he estimated that the young sword immortal had already traveled fifty or so kilometers away.

He unexpectedly felt like just surviving was already a huge source of joy.

The Great Dao was impermanent and unpredictable, and tonight’s events were a perfect example of this.

When punishing the cultivators in the great hall of his dragon palace just then, why had that sword immortal appeared like a city god justly giving out reward and punishment?

How very strange…

This was perhaps the eccentric nature of true sword immortals.

Two female cultivators rose through the water and appeared on the surface of the lake. However, Lake Lord Yin Hou no longer felt attracted when he saw that stunningly beautiful young woman, and he instead felt like just taking a single glance at her was burning his eyeballs. It was these cultivators from the Treasure Basin Immortal Realm who had caused this huge calamity!

Lake Lord Yin Hou humphed coldly before leaving through the lake water.

“That sword immortal is so greedy,” the young girl wearing a green dress grumbled. “After obtaining Old Ancestor Fan’s golden crown, he actually insisted on taking Aunt Master Yan’s golden crown as well! So be it if this were all, but he was even shameless enough to ask whether we had any lesser heat coins. Sure enough, I was right to not admire that sword immortal. Opportunistic sword immortals like him don’t possess the demeanor of true sword immortals at all!”

As it turned out, Yan Qing had already lost the golden crown on her head.

She held Little Cui’s hand and gazed into the distance, with her expression adrift as she smiled faintly and replied, “That’s right. Why should Little Cui look up to people like this?”

The young girl hugged Yan Qing’s arm, lightly swaying it back and forth as she asked in an innocent manner, “Aunt Master Yan, why aren’t we returning to the Treasure Basin Immortal Realm with the others? The world outside is so dangerous.”

Yan Qing suddenly smiled and suggested, “Little Cui, let’s not return to the Treasure Basin Immortal Realm first. How about we travel around the cultivation world instead?”

Little Cui thought about this for a moment before smiling widely and replying with a bright glow on her face, “Alright! I’ve always wanted to secretly drink some wine!”

————

After the cultivators scattered from the dragon palace at the bottom of Verdant Bamboo Lake…

The sword immortal in white flew into the city on his flying sword, yet he didn’t directly make his way to the ghost residence.

Rather, he placed his sword on his back before landing in a small and gloomy alley, bending down to pick up a lesser heat coin. Holding the immortal coin in one hand, he used the folding fan in his other hand to smack his forehead. There was a sullen expression on his face, and it was as if he felt utterly embarrassed as he murmured, “You’re going to pick up this kind of dirty money as well? You already obtained a bountiful yield in the dragon palace, so there’s no need to stoop this low, is there? Forget about it. Leaving the immortal coin here is a waste.

“I haven’t lived like a proper cultivator for all these years, and I haven’t done badly when it comes to earning money, cultivating, and practicing fist techniques. Who’s going to back down and relent? Killing a Nascent Tier cultivator might be exceedingly difficult, but have I ever lost against myself before? Alright, I concede that I have, and they were quite miserable losses as well. At the end of the day, however, does that not point to my own impressive abilities?”

Perhaps only Jiang Shangzhen or the Esteemed Mystery Department’s Yang Ningxing would be able to understand these murmurings of Chen Ping’an.

With his large white sleeves fluttering back and forth, Chen Ping’an leisurely made his way back to the ghost residence.

He would occasionally walk past some door gods that had nurtured a speck of spiritual light, yet these specks of light would instantly retreat and go into hiding when he walked past.

With a tap of his foot, Chen Ping’an leaped over the wall of the ghost residence and landed in the courtyard.

He immediately narrowed his eyes when he stood still.

Du Yu was given a huge fright, and his expression was as if he had seen a ghost during the day. He hurriedly spread a hand apart, revealing the Militarian armor pellet that was worth many suits of Divine Dewbearing Armors.

Even though his teeth were chattering, he still summoned his courage and explained everything in a single breath, saying, “Senior, a person who called himself Zhou Fei to begin with and then Jiang Shangzhen afterward claimed that he was a good friend of yours. He snatched away the little child and used an immortal technique to freeze me to the spot, not allowing me to move a single muscle. I wasn’t even able to challenge him and fight to the death. In the end, he also said that the orphan had cultivation aptitude, so he would bring him back to the Eastern Treasured Vial Continent, and that Senior doesn’t need to feel worried. Senior can feel at ease and continue to travel north.”

Chen Ping’an nodded and casually grabbed Sword Immortal, sending it flying with a single sweep of his arm and causing the sheathed sword to impale itself into a corridor pillar. He then sat down on the bamboo chair and retied his Sword Nurturing Gourd, waiting for Fifteenth to happily return inside before he lay down and replied slowly, “I understand. You can keep the Golden Crow Armor, and you don’t need to be polite with that person when he gives you something. In any case, he’s very rich and can’t spend his money fast enough.”

Du Yu was overjoyed, and he was unable to suppress his smile no matter how hard he tried. He could finally sit down on the small stool and feel at ease as he carefully examined the incredibly valuable Militarian armor pellet.

Chen Ping’an glanced at him and chuckled, “I won’t stay here for very long, so we’ll each go our own way after we leave the city together. However, let me say this first regarding your future life, death, fortune, and misfortune. I can only say that you won’t face certain death, and I’ve already told the lake lord of Verdant Bamboo Lake that I’ll still return south after my journey to the north. This can be viewed as a defensive talisman for you, but it can’t be regarded as a life-saving talisman.

“If my guess isn’t wrong, then there exists two instead of one powerful cultivator behind these schemes and events at Imperial Accompanying City. Fortunately, one of these cultivators very likely has a relationship with the Blissful Dream Nation and has already achieved their aim. As such, they… still have a reason to kill me, but they won’t feel a very strong urge to do so. Of course, the best-case scenario is that they don’t target me at all, and that I don’t die in the north. That way, your so-called defensive talisman will continue to be effective.

“I’m ultimately not your ancestor or your parent, so you can pray for your own fortune in the future. If you’re killed by someone in the future, I can say that the culprit will definitely be a cultivator who’s at least at the Nascent Tier. At that time, I’ll simply try my best to take revenge for you.”

There were some things that Chen Ping’an didn’t say.

For example, Jiang Shangzhen would never drag his feet and do things in halves.

Apart from meeting Du Yu in the ghost residence, there were perhaps some matters that Jiang Shangzhen had felt were beneath himself to explain to this outsider.

Jiang Shangzhen was an official immortal, but Chen Ping’an felt like he was an official immortal who acted even more vagrant than legitimate vagrant cultivators.

Chen Ping’an was well aware of just how difficult it could be to deal with vagrant cultivators, for example, Liu Laocheng from Bamboo Scroll Lake’s Palace Willow Island and Liu Zhimao from Bamboo Scroll Lake’s Cyan Gorge Island. Moreover, Jiang Shangzhen was… truly very wealthy.

In fact, Chen Ping’an didn’t dare to say for sure who owned more immortal treasures between Cui Dongshan and Jiang Shangzhen.

He could envision the two of them sitting on small stools and snacking on roasted seeds, not engaging in a fist fight and instead retrieving their immortal treasures and launching them at each other. Perhaps they could entertain themselves for an entire night like this?

And that’s why it was important to make more money.

Of course, there was also the little child who had mysteriously fallen into a so-called nest of money, so this could be regarded as a favor that Chen Ping’an owed Jiang Shangzhen as well. Moreover, this wasn’t a small favor.

This caused Chen Ping’an to feel slightly helpless.

Du Yu carefully contemplated things for a moment before slowly placing the Golden Crow Armor inside his sleeve. It was truly fucking heavy! He was all smiles as he said, “Senior, I’m not trying to praise myself or anything, but I feel much more courageous now after having experienced so many things with you!”

Chen Ping’an looked at Du Yu.

Du Yu chuckled and remarked, “I should piss off!”

He was scolding himself first so that the mighty senior didn’t need to do so.

Chen Ping’an opened his folding fan and lightly rocked it back and forth, saying with a dazzling smile, “Oh my, Brother Du Yu’s flattery skills have improved after coming across Jiang Shangzhen.”

Du Yu smiled and replied, “I don’t dare to accept such praise. Senior Jiang is Senior Chen’s good friend, so how can a junior among juniors like me possibly compare to him?”

Chen Ping’an closed his eyes and said with a faint smile, “You’re starting to speak repulsively again.”

Du Yu scratched his head.

Chen Ping’an tasked him with a strange matter the next day, asking him to visit the shops in Imperial Accompanying City to buy a spring couplet, a pair of door gods, a “spring” character, and a “fortune” character.

Du Yu felt very uneasy. He wasn’t afraid of someone throwing faeces at him after he left the ghost residence, but he was instead afraid of immortals from the pinnacle of the mountains — such as Old Ancestor Fan or City Lord Ye — choosing a weaker target like him to pick on. He was afraid that they would kill him in a single strike before running away.

The mighty senior hadn’t said anything regarding his trip to Verdant Bamboo Lake last night, so Du Yu hadn’t dared to ask any questions.

Du Yu was filled with fear and trepidation as he purchased the items that he had never before touched in his life, and not only did he pay for them, but he even gave the shopkeeper some extra pieces of loose silver.

Fucking hell, he was going to be kind and generous every single day from now on!

In fact, Du Yu would feel the need to proactively apologize if he accidentally scared some random child on the street.

After returning to the ghost residence with no incident and his body intact, Du Yu stood outside the door with a bag of goods on his back. He wiped away some sweat, thinking to himself that the cultivation world was truly dangerous and filled with perilous danger around every corner. Sure enough, he felt safer and more at ease around the mighty senior.

Right now, Du Yu felt like any random person on the street was a lofty cultivator concealing their strength.

Afterward, the mighty senior took the bag of items and didn’t ask for Du Yu’s help as he put up the door gods and the spring couplet by himself. After doing this, he also put up the “spring” character and the “fortune” character.

When Chen Ping’an finished sticking up the final “spring” character, he stepped back and looked up in dazed silence.

Du Yu involuntarily recalled the mighty senior’s remark about “a brief moment of intimacy” before, saying that this was a very good phrase that shouldn’t be sullied.

The two of them left the ghost residence.

The mighty senior paid a visit to the ruins of the fire god shrine, causing the commoners in the area to flee as if they had seen a ferocious beast.

Chen Ping’an squatted down in front of the ruins of the main hall, retrieving three sticks of incense and placing them in the ground. He then smiled faintly and said, “I can’t fulfil your wish and allow you to run away forever after closing your eyes. You still need to return to suffer together with me. The next time we meet, remember to treat me to some wine after you finish scolding me.”

Du Yu didn’t understand why the mighty senior was saying this. The deity of the fire god shrine was already as dead as could be, so could he possibly still come back to life? Even if the shrine were rebuilt, even if the local government crafted another clay statue for the fire god, and even if he weren’t erased from the genealogical records of the Silver Screen Nation’s imperial court, just how much sincere worshipping and incense offerings would he require from the residents of Imperial Accompanying City to repair his godly body?

The two of them left Imperial Accompanying City together.

After traveling over mountains and across rivers for a few days, the mighty senior who hadn’t worn his bamboo hat for many days retrieved his bamboo hat and hiking pole again. He was carrying a large and heavy bamboo case on his back, but he was still wearing a long and snow-white robe.

Chen Ping’an handed Du Yu two pieces of paper and said, “One is called the Yang Energy Illumination Talisman, and one is called the Barrier-Shattering Talisman. When traveling around the cultivation world in the future, it’s up to you whether you do good deeds or do bad deeds. However, if you come across some matters where you have the choice to interfere or not interfere — for example, if you have the chance to become a righteous and chivalrous wanderer, or if you have the opportunity to vanquish demons for the sake of the people — these are the only times when you’re allowed to use these two talismans.

“Otherwise, don’t be greedy and try to use these talismans for other purposes. You should treat them as two pieces of useless paper during other times. Can you do this? Think about it carefully before you choose to accept or decline this offer. If you accept, then remember to destroy these two pieces of paper after you finish reading over them. If you decline, then that doesn’t matter either, and you can feel free to leave.”

Du Yu didn’t hesitate at all as he accepted the two pieces of paper, replying, “Rest assured, Senior. Just like Senior said before, it’s up to me to decide my own life and fortune. After accepting these two pieces of paper today and mastering the immortal talismans that Senior has bestowed upon me, I’ll definitely render assistance if I have the energy to do so! Of course, this is unless I face a situation of certain death.”

Chen Ping’an smiled and patted Du Yu’s shoulder, saying, “That’s quite good.”

Du Yu unexpectedly felt tears of emotion welling up in his eyes.

He looked at the mighty senior slowly disappearing into the distance.

“Since Senior is a sword immortal, why don’t you fly away on your sword?” he suddenly asked.

Chen Ping’an simply adjusted his bamboo hat and waved his hand as he continued to walk forward.