Unsheathed

Qi Jinglong purchased some books from a store at the Spring Dew Garden’s Talisman Water Ferry Station, and after hesitating for a moment, he decided to say, “Miss Gu, even though saying this is slightly inappropriate, I still have to say that I truly don’t like you in that sense.”

Gu Mo faltered for a moment, after which she flared up in rage and exclaimed, “Is there something wrong with your brain, Liu Jinglong?!”

Qi Jinglong didn’t get angry, instead smiling in response. Sure enough, this was very effective!

Gu Mo felt a slight sense of panic. By the looks of it, there was genuinely something wrong with Liu Jinglong’s brain? The person standing in front of her wasn’t a fake Liu Jinglong, was he?

Qi Jinglong continued to stroll forward in a relaxed manner.

Gu Mo was afraid of him going crazy, so she slowed down slightly, not daring to walk side by side with him. She didn’t dare to look at him with a smile either.

Qi Jinglong turned around and chuckled, “There’s no need to be like this, Miss Gu. We’re still friends.”

Gu Mo almost couldn’t resist the urge to raise a foot and kick him in the back. After weighing up the gulf between their cultivation bases, however, she finally suppressed the nagging temptation. She turned around in anger and walked away.

Qi Jinglong sighed with emotion.

Compared to Chen Ping’an, he was seemingly still lacking when it came to these kinds of interactions.

However, he was probably heading in the right direction.

Sui Jingcheng visited the Spring Dew Garden’s Old Locust Street, taking a look around the relatively small Pi Fu Shop.

She had heard the senior sword immortal and Mr. Liu mention this shop during one of their casual conversations.

Rong Chang naturally accompanied her the entire time.

Sui Jingcheng was wearing a veiled hat and holding a hiking pole as she entered the Pi Fu Shop, and the shopkeeper was a warm and friendly person who was filled with energy. He roughly explained how good the Pi Fu shop was in just two or three sentences, not rambling on and making himself annoying.

“Senior Brother Rong, can I borrow some money from you?” Sui Jingcheng asked quietly.

Even though she had received the jade tablet from the ancestral hall, signifying her status as a direct disciple, she was still an unofficial disciple of Duckweed Sword Lake’s Sect Leader Li Cai. As such, there was no issue with her referring to Rong Chang as her senior brother.

Rong Chang smiled and replied using his mind’s voice, “Master left one hundred grain rain coins for you, so Junior Sister Sui can use them as she pleases. This isn’t borrowing. Your senior brother also has some savings, and there’s no need to repay him either.”

Duckweed Sword Lake and the Yang Clan of the Esteemed Mystery Department’s Lofty Cloud Palace could respectively collect twenty percent and thirty percent of the income of a Dragon Palace Small World. The remaining fifty percent naturally belonged to the local forces.

The Dragon Palace Small World was one of the thirty-six small worlds, and it was located at the deepest region of a large river. The scenery in this small world was bizarre and fantastical, and it was not only a well-renowned scenic attraction in the continent, but it was also a prime location for cultivators to practice their water element cultivation techniques. Because of this, there were a dozen or so earth immortals renting cultivation residences here on an ongoing basis, providing a huge amount of income for the small world. Duckweed Sword Lake only received twenty percent of the income, but this was already a very hefty sum of money to take home.

However, Sect Leader Li Cai didn’t take a single copper coin from this income.

The Dragon Palace Small World would calculate and split its income once every sixty years, and Duckweed Sword Lake would regard its share as income for the ancestral hall. This income would then be distributed to all of the cultivators in Duckweed Sword Lake except Li Cai, with the amount each cultivator received dependent on their cultivation base, talent, and merit.

This was Duckweed Sword Lake.

Rong Chang could guarantee that even if his master suffered a drop in cultivation, no longer being an Upper Five Tier sword cultivator, she would still remain as the sect leader of Duckweed Sword Lake. The sect leader could only be Li Cai.

In any case, Duckweed Sword Lake truly wasn’t short on money.

Moreover, Li Cai always promoted the notion of female disciples needing to be spoiled, lest they be too easily wooed away by some random men.

True to her principles, half of the one hundred grain rain coins were taken from Li Cai’s savings, with the remaining half being immortal coins set aside for Rong Chang’s junior sister by the ancestral hall.

Sui Jingcheng looked through all of the treasure shelves in the Pi Fu Shop and picked out a few intricate items. These couldn’t be regarded as spirit tools, so after haggling for a while, she managed to purchase them for just ten snowflake coins.

She then asked the shopkeeper whether there was a prized treasure in the shop. If there was, then it wouldn’t matter even if this treasure were slightly more expensive.

The young shopkeeper, who had come over from the Nightglow Grass Hall to help, was still as welcoming and enthusiastic as before, not treating Sui Jingcheng poorly simply because she had only purchased a few low-cost items. He briefly described a few expensive items that weren’t displayed in the shop, but he decided to completely skip over the dragon throne. He then talked in depth about two immortal-tool-grade golden crowns, saying that the big crown and the small crown could be sold individually.

The slightly larger crown cost eighteen grain rain coins, while the slightly smaller crown cost sixteen grain rain coins. There was a discount of one grain rain coin if they were purchased together, bringing the total to thirty-three grain rain coins.

“Can I have a look first?” Sui Jingcheng asked.

“Of course,” the young shopkeeper replied with a smile. “After you take a look, it’s okay if you find that it doesn’t suit your tastes and decide not to purchase it.”

He walked out from behind the counter and went to open a door.

Rong Chang glanced at the characters on the door, and he didn’t know whether to laugh or to cry.

There were several large characters reading: Reserved for its fated owner.

And there were some smaller characters reading: Reserved for the highest bidder.

Rong Chang was unable to mentally link the owner of this shop with that young man in azure at the Green Oriole Nation’s Dragon Head Ferry Station.

Sui Jingcheng immediately took a liking to the two golden crowns, not haggling this time as she asked Rong Chang to retrieve thirty-three grain rain coins.

The two golden crowns were handed over for thirty-three grain rain coins.

Sui Jingcheng walked out of the Pi Fu shop with a locust wood container exquisitely crafted by the Nightglow Grass Hall in her hands, with a spring in her step and her mood delightful as she walked down Old Locust Street.

The young shopkeeper had bowed his head and back again and again, seeing the two esteemed customers off to the entrance of the shop before watching them disappear into the distance.

He found this transaction slightly inconceivable.

Indeed, this temporary shopkeeper of the Pi Fu shop felt slightly guilty at this moment.

The pair of golden crowns was genuinely an immortal treasure from the mountains, but they truly weren’t worth the exorbitant price tag of thirty-three grain rain coins.

According to the private appraisal of the Nightglow Grass Hall, these two immortal treasures could indeed summon two golden goddesses to protect their owner, providing capabilities similar to those of Dao robes. At the same time, they also possessed a certain level of offensive capability. At the end of the day, however, they weren’t immortal tool Dao robes, meaning that they were only worth approximately twenty-five grain rain coins. This would be a fair price. Even after adding a small premium for people who were genuinely interested in these rare treasures — for example, female earth immortals who fancied the golden crowns — the absolute highest price should have only been twenty-eight grain rain coins or thereabouts.

After becoming an earth immortal, one’s requirements for immortal treasures would actually become very simple: the more extreme they were, the better.

This was also the main reason why the two golden crowns had failed to sell for such a long time. It wasn’t that no customers liked them, but rather that they were far too expensive and of no practical use.

However, that sword immortal shopkeeper had personally set the price for the golden crowns and the dragon throne, with his reasoning being: what if they came across rich fools?

The Nightglow Grass Hall had also been helpless against this, becoming resigned to the fact that these treasures would gather dust for one or two hundred years.

Yet, the golden crowns had actually sold so soon?

After leaving Old Locust Street, Rong Chang smiled faintly and said, “We paid too much for the two crowns.”

Sui Jingcheng felt slightly embarrassed.

However, she genuinely liked the pair of golden crowns very much.

“Senior Brother Rong, I definitely won’t buy anything else afterward,” Sui Jingcheng said in a quiet voice.

“I’m not blaming Junior Sister,” Rong Chang replied.

He then shook his head and continued with a smile, “Our master is even bolder when she buys things, and she once forced a seller to up the price on a beautiful Dao robe that she was very interested in, or else she wouldn’t purchase it. Master hadn’t revealed her identity at the time, and the seller had been scared to death, thinking that someone had come to his store to cause trouble. Afterward, he felt immense regret after learning that the potential buyer was our master, thumping his chest and stomping his feet as he thought that he should have raised the price at least two-fold.”

“I would have chosen to visit Duckweed Sword Lake first if I had known this earlier,” Sui Jingcheng sighed and said with sincere emotion.

Rong Chang breathed a sigh of relief.

Bloody hell, this comment from his junior sister would definitely please his master, and if Li Cai were present, she would definitely ask him if there was any immortal treasure that he wanted to buy.

After returning to the immortal ship and sitting down in one of their rooms, Rong Chang started to teach Sui Jingcheng a sword refinement mantra from Duckweed Sword Lake, one that would help her refine the two exquisite golden crowns.

These mantras could refine swords, so they could naturally refine all matters in the world.

After Rong Chang finished reciting the sword refinement mantra of several thousand characters in length, Sui Jingcheng closed her eyes for a moment before opening them again, saying with a smile, “I’ve memorized it.”

Rong Chang didn’t repeat the mantra again.

Even though the personality of his junior sister in the past and Sui Jingcheng now were completely different, making them appear like two entirely separate people, their talent in cultivation was still exactly the same. They wouldn’t disappoint anyone.

However, Sui Jingcheng still asked Rong Chang to repeat the mantra one more time, lest she make any mistakes.

Afterward, Gu Mo stood in the corridor and forcefully knocked on the door, causing a loud thumping sound.

Sui Jingcheng walked over to answer the door.

Gu Mo hurriedly exclaimed, “Sui Jingcheng, Sui Jingcheng, let me tell you a secret! Liu Jinglong might have been switched with someone else, and the person we’re seeing right now is potentially someone else!”

Sui Jingcheng looked toward Rong Chang with utter confusion.

Rong Chang felt slightly exasperated as he said to Gu Mo, “Stop speaking nonsense.”

Gu Mo plonked down on a chair, frowning deeply and mulling over these matters for a long time. A look of realization suddenly spread across her face, and she slammed a fist into the table and exclaimed, “Alright then, that shameless bastard was actually teasing me the entire time!”

Rong Chang stood up and left.

Gu Mo’s mental state had been unstable this entire trip, yet Rong Chang wasn’t able to say anything about it.

Thankfully, Gu Mo’s mental state had gradually returned to a state of tranquility pursued by the Daoist Sect during this trip to Dragon Head Ferry Station. This was a good outcome.

The two cultivators who were like scholars in azure had made a huge contribution to this.

Of course, Sui Jingcheng had played a part as well.

After Rong Chang closed the door, Gu Mo recounted the recent events to Sui Jingcheng.

Sui Jingcheng placed a hand on her forehead and didn’t want to say anything. Both of their cultivation bases were very high, yet both of them were equally as foolish.

What was going on with Mr. Liu? Had he gone stupid from reading too much? How come he hadn’t picked up any good skills after interacting with the senior sword immortal for so long?

Sure enough, the senior sword immortal’s remark was correct. Having a high cultivation base wouldn’t necessarily help one in other areas.

“What’s wrong?” Gu Mo asked in puzzlement. “Why don’t you explain this to me? Perhaps there’s some deeper meaning? I’m still a pure maiden, so I’m nowhere near as experienced as you when it comes to these matters.”

Sui Jingcheng flushed bright red as she retorted, “What nonsense are you spewing!”

“Forget about it,” Gu Mo sighed.

She then rested her arms and head on the table, turning her head to the side and gazing at the sea of clouds outside the window.

Sui Jingcheng placed the exquisite and adorable small golden crown on the table, also lying down like Gu Mo and gently resting her cheek on one arm. She extended her hand and lightly tapped the golden crown.

“I miss my master a little. What about you? Do you also miss that man?” Gu Mo asked in a soft voice.

“I missed him before you said this, but now I don’t miss him as much anymore. Say, isn’t this quite strange?” Sui Jingcheng murmured softly in response.

“How would I know?” Gu Mo replied.

The two of them fell silent.

A buoyant expression suddenly appeared on Gu Mo’s face, and she stood up and giddily moved her chair next to Sui Jingcheng, sitting down and whispering in her ear, “Let me tell you, Sui Jingcheng, there are numerous dual cultivation techniques, and these cultivation techniques aren’t indecent at all. Rather, this is a proper branch of the Daoist Sect. Otherwise, why do the Dao partners in the mountains become husband and wife, right? I know a bit about this, for example…”

Sui Jingcheng listened for a brief moment before pushing Gu Mo aside, exclaiming in embarrassment and anger, “Why are you so vulgar?!”

“I heard this from other people, okay?” Gu Mo replied with a huff.

Sui Jingcheng’s face was bright red as she quickly stood up and shooed Gu Mo out of her room.

She closed her door with a bang.

Gu Mo cleared her throat and copied Chen Ping’an’s voice and manner of speech, saying, “I’ve come to visit, Jingcheng. Open the door.”

“Gu Mo!” Sui Jingcheng exclaimed in anger.

Gu Mo continued to speak like Chen Ping’an as she said, “Why are you so ill-behaved now, Jingcheng? Call me senior.”

Sui Jingcheng looked around and grabbed the pole, opening the door and getting ready to hit Gu Mo.

Gu Mo had already hopped away, sticking her head out from the corner of the corridor and saying with a teasing smile, “Oh my, you appear so attractive right now. In fact, even a female like me is feeling a little tempted. I feel like that man was definitely unable to control his gaze when he was traveling with you. However, his cultivation base is high, while your cultivation base is low, so you were unable to notice this. Ah… I wonder if you suffered a great loss, or… if you made a huge gain.”

Sui Jingcheng was just about to chase after her in anger.

However, Gu Mo had already returned to her room, feeling refreshed and in a brilliant state of mind.

Sui Jingcheng closed the door, leaning her back against it and smiling beautifully. She then sat in front of the table and put on her golden crown, holding up a copper mirror at the same time.

After taking off the golden crown and putting away the copper mirror, Sui Jingcheng started to carefully read the second volume of the Upper Lofty Mystical Mystery.

Cultivators often forgot about the notion of day and night.

Qi refiners who had just embarked on the path of cultivation would commonly lose track of how fast or slow time flowed.

It was late at night when Sui Jingcheng put down the final volume of the Upper Lofty Mystical Mystery and looked outside the window.

The waning moon and parasol trees, sudden rain and banana leaves, wild geese and autumn wind, spring grass and clopping hooves, green plums and bamboo horses, heavy snowfall and a small boat, talented scholars and beautiful ladies, famous generals and treasured swords, beautiful women and copper mirrors…[1]

There were so many perfect matches made in heaven.

So, what about Sui Jingcheng and her senior sword immortal?

1. Green plums and bamboo horses refer to childhood sweethearts. This comes from Li Bai’s Poem, Ballad of Changgan, where a young boy is playing with a bamboo horse, and a young girl is playing with green plums. ☜