Unsheathed

The three people on Chen Ping’an’s table talked quietly amongst themselves.

“Wei Qi, are the cultivators from Ape Call Mountain truly so arrogant and unreasonable? Why are they being insulted by everyone?” the young female asked in a quiet voice.

Wei Qi shook his head and replied with a smile, “They’re actually not too bad. After all, which sword cultivator’s immortal force doesn’t have a temper? However, Ape Call Mountain’s reputation is a bit worse than that of the Great Emblem Sword Sect in the north.”

“Will it be interesting to insult that martial artist, Gu You?” the old retainer asked in an indifferent voice. “As Qi refiners, only by insulting the great sword immortal and praising the martial artist can they appear bold and unique.”

“What about the cultivators who are criticizing Sword Immortal Ji Yue the most vigorously? Do they have bad blood with Ape Call Mountain?” the young woman asked in curiosity.

Wei Qi shook his head and chuckled, “If they truly have bad blood, they won’t express their feelings publicly after learning of Ji Yue’s death. Those who feel resentment and are willing to loudly voice their thoughts are never the same people as those who bear life-and-death grudges. Rather, these people are barely acquainted with the target of their insults, but their words are most able to poison the minds of the onlookers around them. This is the same everywhere: in the mortal streets and markets, in the imperial courts and scholarly circles, and in the mountains and the martial world. At the end of the day, this is nothing special after witnessing and hearing about these matters many times.”

Chen Ping’an glanced at Wei Qi and the young woman who wanted to speak, but couldn’t help but hesitate. He warned using his mind’s lake, “Cultivators have sharp hearing, so please be careful with your words, Young Master.”

Wei Qi smiled and nodded in response, actively raising his wine bowl at the young man in azure and replying with his mind’s lake, “That’s only reasonable. We’ll focus on drinking and stop discussing these contentious matters.”

Chen Ping’an was slightly surprised.

Wei Qi was actually a Qi refiner with a decent cultivation base?

Chen Ping’an genuinely hadn’t noticed this before.

In reality, Wei Qi was also feeling quite stunned at this moment. The young wanderer carrying a sword on his back looked like a fourth or fifth tier pure martial artist, but in fact, he was actually a Qi refiner as well.

In the large dining hall on the first level of the restaurant, several people who weren’t acquainted with each other quickly found a common interest, with all of them boisterously condemning Ji Yue and Ape Call Mountain. They raised their wine bowls high into the air to toast each other.

Chen Ping’an was even able to see the sincerity in their eyes, and the exuberant expressions on their faces as they drank weren’t a facade. This was the most interesting part.

Chen Ping’an didn’t have any complaints about these people. Living in this world, people should loudly voice their thoughts if they were displeased. Few things would genuinely be heinous, and these matters would quickly pass and be forgotten after being said. These lively occasions and bold condemnations were a good companion to go along with some wine.

There was someone else whom Chen Ping’an was keeping an eye on, a person who spoke in a flawless manner and didn’t voice such extreme opinions. This person sounded much more understanding and reasonable.

As people spoke, it was as if there were sages and deities wandering through the night, and it was also as if there were a myriad of ghosts wandering through the day.

Travelers retreated when they heard about great demons in the mountains and wilderness, avoiding commotion and trouble.

The water ghosts in the rivers were bewitching, swaying gracefully as they dragged their victims into the water.

The customers on the second floor of the restaurant were also chatting about matters pertaining to the mountains, but compared to the loud and argumentative nature on the first floor, these people were chatting in their own groups and didn’t purposely suppress their voices. Thus, Chen Ping’an heard some people talking about Qi Jinglong entering seclusion, and he also heard people speculating on which three sword immortals would challenge the Great Emblem Sword Sect. There were conversations about the battle between Huang Xi and Xiu Niang on Temper Mountain, and there were discussions about the rapid rise of the Refreshing Sect. Of course, there was also chatter about the young female sect leader who had claimed that she already had a Dao partner.

Chen Ping’an could hear people discussing business on the third floor, with their transactions large but their voices soft. These transactions could easily lead to profits or losses of several thousand snowflake coins.

The conversations on the fourth floor started to become unclear, with many immortal restriction techniques blocking the prying ears of eavesdroppers. Chen Ping’an naturally wouldn’t pry into people’s private matters without permission, so he simply listened to what he was able to hear.

He could vaguely hear people discussing the great trend of the Eastern Treasured Vial Continent, talking about the Northern Mountain and Wei Bo. Many more people were exchanging thoughts about the Pure White Continent and the Middle Earth Divine Continent. For example, there were speculations about whether Cao Ci, the young martial artist from the Great Duan Empire, had advanced to the Vajra Body Tier yet. And how old would he be when he advanced to the End Tier of martial arts?

As for the fifth floor at the top of the restaurant, there was only the occasional sound of wine cups and wine bowls lightly clinking against each other.

Chen Ping’an leisurely drank his one pot plus one bowl of Midnight Wine before standing up and walking over to the front counter to pay. He then left the restaurant by himself.

He didn’t forget to nod in acknowledgment to the three people at his table before leaving, and Wei Qi also smiled and raised his wine cup in acknowledgment.

Chen Ping’an walked along the stone arch bridge stretching endlessly through the middle of the large river.

An extravagant carriage suddenly charged into his vision, boldly trundling down the middle of the bridge. These were evidently members of a powerful and wealthy clan enjoying an outing, with an elder dressed in purple robes and a jade belt holding a ritual baton in his hand. There was also a deity in silver armor holding an iron spear, as well as a female deity in white surprisingly exuding two trails of light from her eyes as she looked around, with these trails lingering in the air for a long time.

These beings were the water immortals and water monsters recorded in the unofficial historical texts, and they resided in the dragon manor and were responsible for managing the calm wind and gentle rain of a region.

The entrance to the Dragon Palace Small World was located somewhere on the other end of the bridge, which was only twenty-five kilometers away.

As its name suggested, the Dragon Palace Small World was a legitimate ruin of a dragon palace.

According to the records on the stone steles, this region had indeed been home to primordial water immortals and coiling flood dragons in the past.

Compared to the Flood Dragon Trench, which was filled with various descendants of flood dragons, this dragon manor was like an immortal abode in the mountains, while the Flood Dragon Trench was like a force in the martial world.

Chen Ping’an saw the outline of a city wall, and when he drew near, he saw a plaque with the golden characters “Plenty River Summer Residence” hanging from the building atop the city wall.

Below this largest plaque were layers upon layers of other plaques, with these dozen or so plaques displaying the calligraphy works of some renowned individuals.

There were works of talismanic immortals, and the spirit light contained inside the talismanic cores of these plaques didn’t dissipate for hundreds upon thousands of years. There were also works of sword immortals, with their plaques holding an abundant amount of sword intent.

Most probably due to the high entrance fee of one lesser heat coin, the line at the city wall couldn’t come close to comparing to the bustling crowds at the other end of the stone arch bridge.

Small worlds like the Dragon Palace Small World, that had been managed for hundreds upon thousands of years by immortal sects, wouldn’t have any fated opportunities left over for the later generations, especially if they were outsiders. This was because even if a natural treasure were born in the small world, it would be reserved and watched over by the Water Dragon Sect straight away, with no one else allowed to touch it. Even if the Water Dragon Sect, a powerful local force, were unable to repel the coveting of some lofty passing immortals, there were still the lightning techniques of the Lofty Cloud Palace’s Yang Clan and the flying swords of Duckweed Sword Lake to deter these immortals.

Looking at the history of the Dragon Palace Small World, there had once been a huge commotion caused by the theft of a subjugation treasure. In the end, the three forces had worked together to retrieve the treasure, discovering that the thief was a completely unexpected, yet also entirely understandable, person.

The culprit was a renowned sword immortal, and this person had disguised themself as a steward of the Water Dragon Sect, remaining concealed in the small world for several dozen years. Even so, they had still failed to escape with the paramount water fortune treasure, and were forced to hand it back before they could even take a good look at it. The sword immortal was lucky to escape alive after being pursued by the old ancestors of the three sects, and after fleeing to the Pure White Continent, they became a guest elder of the divinely wealthy Liu Clan. Even until now, they still didn’t dare to return to the Northern Complete Reed Continent.

Chen Ping’an was just about to hand over a lesser heat coin when someone unexpectedly whispered in a quiet voice, “There’s no need to pay — you should save money whenever you can.”

Chen Ping’an was delighted as he turned around, but he didn’t call out this person’s name.

However, the joy in his eyes couldn’t be concealed.

It was surprisingly Li Liu, who should have been cultivating at Lion Peak.

When reuniting with Li Baoping and the others at the Great Sui Nation’s Mountain Cliff Academy back then, Li Huai had said that his big sister had become a cultivator at Lion Peak, carrying water and tea and running errands for the old immortals in the mountains every day. As for his parents, they had opened a shop in the market at the foot of the mountain, earning a lot of money and giving him confidence for being rich enough to get a wife in the future.

“What a coincidence,” Chen Ping’an chuckled. “I was planning to visit Lion Peak and look for you and your parents after I finished traveling around the Plenty River and wandering around Infant Mountain.”

Li Liu shook her head lightly and replied with a faint smile, “No, it’s not a coincidence. I especially came here to look for you.”

Chen Ping’an wanted to say something, but he couldn’t help but hesitate. In the end, he chose to swallow the words that had already reached the tip of his tongue.

Li Liu was clearly a successful cultivator, one who had already reached an incredibly high cultivation base.

However, this thought disappeared as quickly as it had arrived.

Li Liu retrieved a hornless dragon jade tablet that was olden-style in appearance, and the cultivator of the Water Dragon Sect who was responsible for guarding the city gate immediately bowed in respect at the unfamiliar young woman after taking a glance at it. Li Liu directly entered the city gate with Chen Ping’an, walking up a set of white jade stairs that stretched further than the eyes could see.

When Chen Ping’an looked back, he saw that the city gates had seemingly been placed under martial law, with no one else allowed to enter the Dragon Palace Small World.

Meanwhile, the group of people in front of them had already become as small as specks of sand as they continued to ascend the white jade stairs.

“Mr. Chen,” Li Liu called in a soft voice.

“Just call me by my name,” Chen Ping’an hurriedly said. “My temporary name is Chen Haoren.”

Li Liu’s glistening eyes curved into crescents as she smiled.

Chen Ping’an also felt like he was being a little too shameless, and he thought to himself whether he should choose another pseudonym instead. However, he eventually said, “Then just call me Mr. Chen.”

Li Liu nodded in response, and her first remark carried immense weight. “Mr. Chen, it’s best that you advance to the Vajra Body Tier as soon as possible. Otherwise, if you’re too late, unforeseen events will take place at the Golden Armor Continent.”

Chen Ping’an hesitated for a moment before replying, “I’ll try my best.”

Li Liu’s second remark directly caused Chen Ping’an’s Dao Heart to become unstable. “Zheng Dafeng sent a letter to Lion Peak before, so I paid a visit to Downtrodden Mountain. The Lotus Flower Blessed Land has been split into four now, with Downtrodden Mountain obtaining one part of it. That parasol leaf umbrella is the entrance, and Zhu Lian and the others are desperately trying to raise this blessed land, which they’ve temporarily named the Lotus Root Blessed Land, into a medium-grade blessed land. Otherwise, the blessed land will go to waste. As such, they need two thousand to three thousand grain rain coins.”

Chen Ping’an’s expression became stiff as he asked carefully, “Grain rain coins?”

Li Liu nodded and replied, “Grain rain coins.”

Chen Ping’an sighed in grief and lamented, “I can’t gather that many immortal coins even if I sell all of my belongings.”

Only at this point did Li Liu roughly explain Zhu Lian and the others’ plan to Chen Ping’an.

Chen Ping’an breathed a small sigh of relief.

Being able to borrow money was also a good ability.

Zhu Lian already had some regulations in place regarding whom to borrow from, how much to borrow, and how to repay these debts. Chen Ping’an didn’t have any objections after carefully listening to Li Liu’s explanation, and he felt comfortable that there wouldn’t be any oversights with Zhu Lian leading the matter and Wei Bo and Zheng Dafeng helping him come up with different strategies.

The key point was that the heavy burden of the debt of two thousand to three thousand grain rain coins would ultimately fall on his shoulders, that of the young mountain master. This was something he couldn’t escape from.

Of course, Chen Ping’an wouldn’t try to escape from this responsibility in the first place. He was already starting to think like an accountant, reconsidering the wealth he had accumulated during his current trip through the Northern Complete Reed Continent. He had gone from picking up trash to peddling goods as a wandering merchant, so if he sold everything that he possibly could, how many grain rain coins would that give him? Disregarding the grain rain coins that Downtrodden Mountain had already borrowed from the various different forces, could Chen Ping’an muster together enough grain rain coins to make up for the existing gap in required funding? The answer was a very simple no.

When Chen Ping’an returned to his senses, Li Liu changed the topic and revealed, “In the beginning, the Jewel Small World’s entrance was actually very similar to that of the Dragon Palace Small World.”

“I was never able to walk along it. The Jewel Small World had already fallen to the ground and taken root when I eventually left my hometown,” Chen Ping’an replied in disappointment.

“Care to sit down for a chat? In any case, there’s no one walking up the steps from behind us,” Li Liu suggested with a smile.

Chen Ping’an sat down on the steps without hesitation, grabbing his Sword Nurturing Gourd and drinking a sip of wine. He could only drink rice wine in the future.

“The jade tablet I possess means that the cultivators of the Water Dragon Sect won’t use immortal observation techniques to spy on us without permission,” Li Liu said.

Chen Ping’an still didn’t ask any questions.

In reality, he only had a very shallow impression of Li Liu. She was Li Huai’s older sister, and she was the person whom Lin Shouyi and Dong Shuijing both liked.

The two of them had never spoken much with each other before today.

Li Liu hesitated for a moment before saying, “Mr. Chen, I have an immortal rubbing of an enchanted picture scroll, and this is something that’s slightly related to you, but not very much. I initially didn’t plan to give it to you, worried that it would cause additional problems and delay your travels.”

Chen Ping’an felt slightly puzzled, and after thinking about it for a brief while, he replied, “That’s okay. Since I’ll learn about this sooner or later, it’s better that I learn about it now so I can start to make some plans.”

Li Liu retrieved an immortal treasure that looked like a calligraphy work from her sleeve, gently tapping it with her finger as it hovered in mid-air. There was a ripple as mist permeated into the surroundings.

A young woman who was sitting upright appeared on the calligraphy scroll.

She was going by the pseudonym Shi Qiu, and she was a cultivator in a small immortal force in the Eastern Treasured Vial Continent.

However, she actually hailed from the Northern Complete Reed Continent’s Ceremony Mountain, and she had worked as a maidservant on the intercontinental ship that had plummeted to the ground and been destroyed in the Eastern Treasured Vial Continent’s Luminous Vermilion Empire.

Li Liu gazed straight ahead, staying out of this matter.

She had experienced far too many joys and sorrows, separations and reunions in the world, so she seldom felt any emotions regarding these matters anymore.

The final scene of the enchanted picture scroll rubbing was the young woman, who was seeking death, picking up an embroidered pouch that she had carefully looked after for many years. Her face was scrunched up, and she was seemingly holding back tears as she squeezed out a smile and gently waved the embroidered pouch back and forth, saying in a soft and gentle voice, “Oi, that person, Qiu Shi liked you. Do you hear? Do you see? If you’re not aware, then that doesn’t matter. If you’re aware, then just being aware is good enough.”

Chen Ping’an quietly sat on the white jade steps, listening to every single word of her story.

She was Chun Shui, Qiu Shi’s older sister.

Chen Ping’an was able to recognize her straight away.

In the end, Chen Ping’an murmured, “Okay, I’m aware now.”

There was a long period of silence.

Li Liu retrieved the calligraphy work and placed it back inside her sleeve.

Chen Ping’an retied the Sword Nurturing Gourd to his waist, and there didn’t appear to be any grief or anger on his face.

Li Liu didn’t find this strange.

She simply said something that sounded very cold and unreasonable, commenting, “Things have already come to this, so her decision to expose the truth is meaningless beyond asking for death.”

Chen Ping’an nodded and concurred, “That’s normally the case.”

“Is there a ‘not normal’ case?” Li Liu asked.

Chen Ping’an didn’t offer an answer, and he turned around and said, “I plan to make haste and keep traveling, so I won’t stay here and look around the Dragon Palace Small World. In any case, it’s not like I can afford to purchase anything here. However, will doing this cause you any trouble?”

“There’s no need to worry, Mr. Chen,” Li Liu replied with a smile. “I don’t have any troubles in the Northern Complete Reed Continent. At the very least, I can protect myself without issue.”

Chen Ping’an said he planned to make haste and keep traveling, but he didn’t show any signs of standing up straight away.

He recalled the couplet that he wanted to hang up inside the bamboo building at Downtrodden Mountain in the future. The first couplet read: A meter-long sword amid the wind and rain outside the mountains, brandishing the sword and leaving the mountains when matters arise.

And thus, Chen Ping’an moved Sword Immortal from his back to his waist.

This was seemingly Chen Ping’an’s first time genuinely carrying a sword by his side.

He had already grown accustomed to carrying swords on his back.

“Mr. Chen, you’re not going to directly point your sword at Ceremony Mountain, then challenge the Great Li Empire, and finally challenge Heavenly Lord Xie Shi, are you?” Li Liu asked.

In reality, Li Liu wasn’t very fond of people who used swords, regardless of whether they were primordial deities or modern cultivators. She couldn’t stand the sight of them.

Chen Ping’an stood up and waved his Sword Nurturing Gourd around, chuckling, “No, I won’t. My abilities are lacking, so I’ll drink wine to cope.”

Li Liu nodded with a smile, remaining seated and not standing up to see him off. She simply watched the young man dressed in azure and carrying a sword by his waist slowly walking down the white jade stairs.

What to do when problems arise?

Grab one’s sword and walk down the mountains.

What if these worldly matters were greater than one’s ability? Nothing could be done, and the answers could only be temporarily kept in one’s mind, and the sword could only be temporarily sheathed in its scabbard.