In the second month of this year, on the second day, the small nation of Yunyan, nestled in the heart of Tongye Continent, convened an unprecedented “Hall of Ancestral Masters” conference.

Even across the vast expanse of the continent, and throughout the recorded history of Tongye, the scale and grandeur of this gathering were unparalleled.

Yunyan was not a vassal state of any great dynasty. Situated within a basin, its territory was perhaps smaller than a single province of the Daquan Dynasty, earning it the moniker “land in the palm of one’s hand.”

Known for both its vinegar production and excellent ink, the nation lacked any established immortal sects, only possessing some insignificant Jianghu factions. Even the Yulin Ferry, a barely passable immortal dock outside the capital, was hastily constructed by the Yunyan Qin Dynasty solely for this conference. This desperate attempt to appear grand only highlighted the nation’s poverty in the eyes of true immortals, with a pervasive air of destitution permeating everything from the ferry to the capital.

Like an impoverished woman, having exhausted her purse, applying rouge and powder before a mirror, forcing a smile for visiting dignitaries.

In a mere month, three such conferences had already been held.

Under the cloak of night, a colossal ferry, a veritable behemoth, was docked at Yulin Ferry. The surrounding immortal vessels deliberately kept their distance.

A celestial figure, clad in a snow-white Daoist robe, sat alone on the ship’s railing, silently drinking, as if imbibing the melancholy of homesickness.

Cao Qinglang, having just finished reading inside, came to the deck for some fresh air. Seeing the Great Sword Immortal Mi, he greeted him softly, “Chief Mi.”

Startled, Mi Yu turned with a smile, producing another flask of wine from his sleeve. “A local specialty from the capital, called Yiyi wine, although it’s a bit bland. Drink if you will.”

In his early years, back in his hometown, immortal brews acquired through the Upside-down Mountain into the Great Wall of Sword Qi were notoriously expensive, costing several times that of the Haoran realm. Back then, Mi Yu was quite discerning when it came to alcohol.

However, after arriving in Haoran, Mi Yu could drink any wine, finding pleasure in both marketplace spirits and rustic country brews.

Cao Qinglang accepted the flask, nodding. “Records state that the Yiyi wine of this region is brewed from the seeds of Job’s Tears, affordable and of decent quality, with a subtle flavor, but not enough to satisfy the craving of a true drinker.”

Mi Yu chuckled, “As expected of Hidden Officer’s prized pupil, your knowledge is eclectic, you know everything.”

Cao Qinglang smiled subtly. “Just now, I gleaned this from a scholar’s notebook, knowledge still fresh from the oven.”

Yunyan had always been a land of scholars. Whether from noble families or wealthy households, parents would present their children with abridged overviews of important texts as soon as they could read. Thus, these young children, though tender in years, would develop a vague understanding of what constituted a “literary work” and a “good book.” With this foundation, their future studies would become more focused and efficient, achieving twice the results with half the effort.

Hence, Yunyan’s history was unremarkable in terms of renowned ministers, generals, or immortal masters, but it produced a considerable number of prominent scholars specializing in textual criticism and bibliography.

Mi Yu asked curiously, “Do you feel pressured being Hidden Officer’s student?”

Cao Qinglang responded, “I’m alright, but perhaps Pei Qian thinks about it a bit more.”

Within Yunyan’s capital, there wasn’t even a decent immortal inn. Consequently, the participating immortal masters were lodged in official residences arranged by the court, and even borrowed private residences of high-ranking officials and ministers. The Ministry of Rites and the Court of Diplomatic Reception had been working themselves to the bone to manage this, but they had barely managed to cope, avoiding any major blunders or chaotic incidents.

Although staying in a public residence under the Court of Diplomatic Reception, it was a world of its own, with hidden dimensions within. Liu Youzhou had selected a relatively pleasing “snail shell” from his collection of portable Daoist sanctums and placed it within the house. Upon entering, it transformed into a magnificent palace, filled with the sounds of birds and the fragrance of flowers.

Liu Youzhou never skimped on the necessities of life. He was both refined and adaptable, capable of enjoying delicacies from the mountains and seas, and also relishing humble eateries and roadside stalls.

Having arrived in Yunyan’s capital, Liu Youzhou had already accompanied Liu Suiyu to over a dozen grand restaurants and small eateries in less than half a month.

Inside the hall of the Daoist sanctum, Liu Suiyu lounged on a large armchair, stretching her legs and laughing, “It’s a pity that we didn’t get to see the Yao Emperor, nor did we catch a glimpse of that Huang Yiyun.”

An empress of the Daquan Dynasty, and the head of the Pushan Ye clan and a Boundary Martial artist were all renowned beauties of Tongye.

Beautiful women were always curious about the appearances of other attractive women, only finding satisfaction in seeing them up close, then muttering things like, “Passable,” “Not bad,” or “Nothing special…”

She looked outside the door, thinking Liu Youzhou was truly wealthy. In the courtyard, there was a wisteria tree, rumored to have been planted by Wei She himself, resembling a coiled dragon, transplanted here.

The problem was that just to maintain this wisteria tree, this Daoist sanctum, which was also usually unoccupied, required someone to specially care for the wisteria and other exotic flowers, plants, and divine birds.

That would entail a huge expenditure of immortal coin.

Actually, Liu Youzhou looked decent and possessed good character. If she didn’t lack interest in the concept of “old cow eating young grass”, she might have married him.

Besides Liu Suiyu, the most promising female Grandmaster of Aiai Continent to reach the Boundary Realm, there was another female martial artist, also at the ninth realm, but younger than Liu Suiyu. She had only recently arrived in Tongye Continent, serving as the spokesperson for the Yu clan from the Central Earth Continent, Yu Juanfu.

She had been injured in the Wildlands, quite severely, and her face was still deathly pale.

Liu Suiyu didn’t inquire about the details, only knowing that Yu Juanfu, along with Cao Ci and others, had engaged in a “group brawl” with a group of similarly young but skilled Wildlands youths, resulting in a pyrrhic victory.

Yu Juanfu said, “I heard that Ye Yunyun has already reached the first layer of Returning to Purity in the Boundary Realm.”

Liu Suiyu interlaced her fingers, raised them high, and stretched her chest, causing her knuckles to crack. She said with a grin, “She is also a Jade Purity Realm immortal, after all. We are pure martial artists, how can we compare? It’s not something we can envy.”

Yu Juanfu smiled. Indeed, if a Qi Refiner could also cultivate martial arts, they would have an advantage in terms of longevity.
Liu Youzhou never responded to these veiled “江湖 black talk” from women; otherwise, he would easily end up pleasing neither side. It was better to remain silent.

Liu Suiyu turned to look at Liu Youzhou, “Young Master Liu, thanks to you, many a fairy maiden has voluntarily requested to reside here, or they devise all sorts of reasons to visit. Take those neighbors for example, they’re either playing the zither or playing chess during the day, and swinging on the swings and giggling late at night. Tell me, what are they really after?”

Liu Youzhou smiled, “Aunt Liu, it’s a good thing that the fairy maidens are versatile in addition to cultivating the Dao. It’s like adding flowers to brocade.”

Yu Juanfu was about to return to her residence when Liu Suiyu suddenly said, “Sister Yu, did you know that our Young Master Liu here has someone special in his heart?”

Liu Youzhou blushed and quickly waved his hand. Seeing that it didn’t work, he clasped his hands together in a pleading gesture, begging Aunt Liu for mercy.

Yu Juanfu stood up and smiled, “It’s definitely not me.”

Liu Suiyu said, “It does have a bit to do with you.”

Yu Juanfu was curious, “How so?”

Could it be that this Liu Youzhou had taken a fancy to some woman from the Yu family?

Liu Youzhou coughed a few times and secretly made a hand gesture, hinting to Aunt Liu about a hush money fee, open for negotiation!

Liu Suiyu glanced at it, thinking that Young Master Liu was being stingy, like he was dismissing a beggar.

Seeing that things were not going well, Liu Youzhou quickly changed the hand gesture, directly doubling the price.

Only then did Liu Suiyu change her tone, “Actually, it’s not that relevant. It’s roundabout and not very interesting, so let’s not talk about it.”

Yu Juanfu thought for a moment and asked doubtfully, “Could it be Pei Qian?”

Liu Suiyu burst out laughing, “I didn’t say it, but the money still needs to be paid.”

Liu Youzhou sighed and slumped against the back of the chair like Aunt Liu, assuming a lifeless and hopeless appearance, like a dead pig not afraid of boiling water.

Yu Juanfu looked at Liu Youzhou with pity and suppressed a laugh, “What are you thinking? How could you like Pei Qian?”

Liu Youzhou was feeling guilty, so he pretended to be calm and said, “I don’t like her.”

Yu Juanfu smiled, “What’s the point of arguing with me? Look at your silly, cowardly appearance. It’s like you’ve engraved the words ‘I like her’ on your forehead.”

Because she and Liu Youzhou had known each other for a long time, she didn’t hold back when speaking.

Back in the ancient battlefield ruins of Jinjia Continent?

Liu Youzhou had personally witnessed her and Cao Ci sparring many times.

Nowadays, whether in the Vast World or the Wilderness World, the title of “strongest” in each realm of martial arts carried more weight, and of course, the martial fortune bestowed was also greater.

When she was still a young girl, Yu Juanfu had asked her own ancestor and senior Zhou Shenzhi a question that few people cared about.

Mount Upside Down has a large gate that connects the Vast World and the Sword Qi Great Wall, and the Sword Qi Great Wall is connected to the Wilderness World. Does that mean that the two worlds are connected by a single thread?

Just like the Northern Entire Reed Continent, which has an old Ji Canal running east-west with two estuaries, which at least geographically divides the Northern Entire Reed Continent in two, is it still not one Northern Entire Reed Continent?

Why have the two worlds always had their own “strongest martial artist” for thousands of years?

However, Senior Zhou and Yu Panshui were unable to provide a definitive answer at that time.

Because he doted on Yu Juanfu so much, Zhou Shenzhi, the great sword immortal who was once one of the ten in the Central Earth Continent, had even specifically consulted with a deputy leader of the Confucian Temple who had a good relationship with him, but was brushed off by that Confucianist with a Confucian argument involving “legitimacy,” and the other party had a playful expression that said earnestly, “I’m just talking nonsense. Whoever believes me is an idiot.”

Therefore, Zhou Shenzhi simply repeated that wording to Yu Juanfu, vaguely discussing some profound reasons of name not matching reality, and finally the old sword immortal had to add a sentence, listen to it as you will, it’s not to be taken as definite.

After that, Yu Panshui suddenly took the initiative to find Yu Juanfu, saying that he had a guess, which he had inquired about from a good friend on the mountain, but he couldn’t be sure if it was true.

The answer was only eight words: Diversion, interception, forced rent.

Although the old ancestor Yu Panshui did not say who that mountain friend was, Yu Juanfu guessed that it was probably that Embroidered Tiger, after all, only Cui Chan could make the old ancestor reveal that kind of complicated expression, which was a very contradictory mentality, like a sentence was engraved on his forehead, “How unlucky did I have to be to have the good fortune of knowing the Embroidered Tiger?”

This was another hidden reason why Yu Juanfu went to the Sword Qi Great Wall in the first place.

The old ancestor’s answer was still too vague.

After arriving at the Sword Qi Great Wall, Yu Juanfu once privately visited that thatched cottage, mustered up her courage, and asked the old sword immortal about the root of the matter.

The old sword immortal did not think that she was ignorant and presumptuous, but he did not give a definite answer either. He just smiled and said two sentences to the little girl.

“Before you, Cao Ci also asked the same question, and he got the answer by his own ability.”

“The same test, although your current realm is higher, and Cao Ci could do it in his early years, you absolutely can’t do it, then change to a simpler test, you only need to win against that Chen brat in martial arts sparring.”

So later, there were those two martial arts sparrings between Yu Juanfu and the Second Shopkeeper.

Then the Yan family shop had another seal, with three characters on the bottom, “Goose Crashes Wall.”

Yu Juanfu always felt that the guy was mocking and alluding to her.

Although on the Jinjia Continent battlefield, Pei Qian confidently assured that her master was definitely not the kind of person who liked to speak with veiled allusions!

Liu Suiyu stood up and teased, “Young Master Liu, Yu Juanfu and Pei Qian are very close, the kind of boudoir friends who tell each other everything. If you can convince Yu Juanfu to help you as a persuader, I think there’s a chance, at least things are moving in the right direction.”

Liu Youzhou was thin-skinned and had a helpless look on his face, only begging this Aunt Liu not to spread this matter. It was just a baseless thing, and if she embellished it like that, he would be unable to defend himself. This time, the Ancestral Hall meeting was mixed with all sorts of people, and many people had come from the Green Plume Sword Sect.

Yu Juanfu didn’t take it seriously, she believed that Liu Youzhou didn’t have the guts to do this either.

As soon as Liu Suiyu left, in order to ease the awkward atmosphere, Liu Youzhou boasted shamelessly, “Yu Juanfu, my painting skills have soared recently. To put it bluntly, I’m not far from the realm of divine transformation. Come on, let me show you a delightful work with unrestrained brushwork.”

In fact, Liu Youzhou was never a flamboyant person, but rather liked to be the green leaf that sets off the red flower, but only in painting did he have a mysterious confidence.
Yu Juanfu hesitated for a moment, recalling a certain secret matter, and said, “After seeing the painting, I have something to discuss with you.”

Liu Youzhou curiously asked, “What is it? Just speak directly. Let me be clear beforehand, I can’t help with anything except lending money.”

The young master of Aiai Continent, Liu Youzhou, was just that straightforward, that self-aware. Besides being rich and skilled in painting, I have no other merits.

Yu Juanfu said, “Gu Can asked me to pass on a message to you. He needs to do a transaction with you.”

Liu Youzhou was puzzled, “Gu Can? He shouldn’t be short of money.”

As the direct disciple of Mr. Zheng of Bai Di City, it would be a huge joke if Gu Can were short of money.

Yu Juanfu nodded and said, “He needs to purchase a few items from your Aiai Continent’s Liu family. He knows that if he personally comes to request them, he will definitely return empty-handed. He hopes you can help him with a connection.”

Liu Youzhou was speechless for a moment. Indeed, if any cultivator, regardless of who they are or what their identity and cultivation level is, said they were willing to spend a high price to purchase rare treasures from the Aiai Continent’s Liu family, no one would believe it. They would think he must be a fool.

Liu Youzhou considered for a moment, and nodded, “I’ll help with this. I can give it a try.”

Yu Juanfu smiled and asked, “You’re not going to make any requests?”

Liu Youzhou laughed and said, “Then this transaction would be meaningless.”

Since he wanted Gu Can to owe him a favor, it was better to be thorough and straightforward.

Yu Juanfu took out a piece of paper from her sleeve, “This is the list.”

Liu Youzhou took it and glanced at it. His scalp went numb, and he frowned, asking, “What is Gu Can planning to do? Is he planning to start anew and establish his own sect?”

Yu Juanfu said in a hushed voice, “Bai Di City will have two vassal sects simultaneously. Fu Jin and Gu Can will each lead one. Their Uncle-Master Liu Daochun will follow Fu Jin, and their Aunt-Master Han Qiaose will assist Gu Can. Besides that, the entire Bai Di City might be… emptied. Everyone will leave, choosing to follow either Fu Jin or Gu Can according to their own wishes. In this way, Bai Di City will become the main sect. As for Fu Jin and Gu Can, who is the sect master of the upper sect and who is the sect master of the lower sect, judging from Gu Can’s tone, it seems to be undecided for now. That’s why Gu Can, who doesn’t lack money, needs to purchase those broken blessed land secret realms from your Aiai Continent’s Liu family.”

Liu Youzhou’s thinking was rather peculiar. He asked a tricky question, “In that case, is Bai Di City going to be left with only Mr. Zheng?”

Yu Juanfu nodded, “It seems that’s the case.”

Actually, there were some secrets that Gu Can had openly told her, but Yu Juanfu couldn’t tell Liu Youzhou about them here.

For example, the Golden Emerald City in the wild lands would be allocated to his sect. As for the sect’s location, Gu Can had three choices: his hometown, Treasure Bottle Continent, Soaring Cloud Continent, or the wild lands.

Yu Juanfu said, “Gu Can said that if you agree to help, I can continue to pass on another message to you. He will specially establish a position of vice sect master, hoping you can take it up. Gu Can also promised that he can agree with you in advance that as long as you become the vice sect master, you can ignore everything or manage everything.”

Actually, Yu Juanfu felt that Gu Can might have misunderstood. Did he not understand Liu Youzhou’s temperament at all? Otherwise, how could he think that he would agree to such a request full of “mercantile air”?

To be honest, Yu Juanfu had seen many mountain cultivators and wealthy sons, but Liu Youzhou was unique in his “aloofness.”

To put it nicely, he was desireless and ambitionless. To put it bluntly, he had no lofty aspirations, and was just enjoying the blessings of wealth.

But no matter what, it was certain that Liu Youzhou was not a fool.

As expected, Liu Youzhou waved his hand with a smile.

Yu Juanfu looked strange and said, “Gu Can also has a gift to give you.”

She took out a wooden box from her storage space. It was a hundred-treasure inlay handicraft from the mortal world, dazzling and beautiful. The bottom was marked with “Zhou-made.”

Countless gold and silver jewelry, coral jade, crystal agate lapis lazuli tridacna, ivory amber… together inlaid with landscapes, figures, flowers, birds, beasts, pavilions, towers, palaces…

The wooden box was not big, but it was colorful and dazzling, difficult to describe.

Liu Youzhou smiled, took the hundred-treasure inlaid wooden box, and shook it gently. It should be empty inside, with no hidden mechanism. He tucked it under his arm, “Remember to help me pass on a message to Gu Can and thank him. Just say I like this wooden box very much.”

Yu Juanfu nodded, “I’ll send a flying sword letter to Gu Can later. He is currently in Treasure Bottle Continent.”

The two walked and talked, reaching the side hall where the painting table was. On the table and on the ground, there were more than a dozen calligraphy and painting vats filled with painting axes of different materials.

On the painting table, a painting was spread out. Liu Youzhou had painted a yellow-browed, golden-bellied bird hanging upside down on a trumpet creeper vine. Yu Juanfu glanced at it and found that the painting skills were terrible.

Liu Youzhou placed the wooden box aside and said with a smile, “The atmosphere in the painting world is not good these days. For the sake of making money, counterfeiting is rampant. Of course, some people have their own difficulties. In order to support their families, they have to follow the trend. I have to change this unhealthy trend. Let’s just say that I have seen countless murals over the years traveling around. Now that I am writing again, I dare to say that I am young, I already have the meaning of ‘transformation in old age’…”

If it was a shameless person who was boasting and bragging there, it would be fine, but the problem was that Yu Juanfu could be sure that Liu Youzhou was very serious and earnest about painting.

Yu Juanfu casually asked, “Since you have no talent, why do you still like painting?”

Liu Youzhou was stunned, “Why am I not talented? Thousands of years later, maybe I will be the founder of this painting style.”

Yu Juanfu said unhappily, “Give me the truth.”

Liu Youzhou smiled, “It’s the truth. But then again, there is indeed another idea, no matter how good or bad the painting is, it is nothing more than a fake thing.”

After Yu Juanfu left, Liu Youzhou rested his chin on one hand and stared blankly at the wooden box on the table.

Liu Youzhou had an extremely hidden “hobby.”

He had never mentioned it to anyone, not even to his parents.

In the depths of Liu Youzhou’s heart, there was a very special, but absolutely harmless, “desire to control.”

To be precise, to visualize it, it was a kind of configuration similar to Go. Pei means to assign and fill vacancies, and Zhi means to put and establish.
Because Liu Youzhou is the undisputed sole heir to the Liu family of Aizhou, and not a fool, he wouldn’t pretentiously return all his birthright gifts.

Thus, how to manage the inexhaustible wealth and possessions became Liu Youzhou’s sole “task,” one he naturally enjoyed.

He was known for his lavish spending habits and penchant for borrowing others’ treasures.

Liu Youzhou immensely savored the sense of accomplishment derived from “allocating” and “filling gaps”.

Liu Youzhou understood Gu Can’s meaning.

Gu Can’s sect was like an empty wooden box, a mere framework for now, awaiting the embellishment of countless treasures and talented individuals to fill its vacant positions.

If Liu Youzhou were willing to serve as the deputy sect leader, and given Gu Can’s promise that he could “manage everything as he pleased,” Liu Youzhou could indulge his desires and arrange things to his liking.

Within the Liu family, Liu Youzhou couldn’t achieve this, especially since his father had aspirations of reaching the fourteenth realm. Even if his father abdicated the family head position tomorrow, Liu Youzhou wouldn’t be a good successor. There were too many constraints, too many restrictions. A vast family required too much balancing of interests and navigating of interpersonal relationships, skills Liu Youzhou didn’t possess. His forte and passion lay in “embellishing perfection”.

Liu Youzhou sighed and patted the wooden box, “Gu Can.”

Though never met, they were kindred spirits.

A late-night snack stall by the roadside.

Yang Pu was engrossed in eating a casserole when he looked up and saw a square-faced, white-clad young man sitting across from him. The man expertly ordered two casseroles from the vendor in fluent Yunyan Kingdom official speech.

Yang Pu paid little attention, assuming the man was either from the capital or a Qi cultivator.

There were a couple of empty tables available, but the man had specifically chosen to share his. Yang Pu was too lazy to bother arguing. After all, he was a virtuous scholar from the academy, and the man wasn’t likely to flip the table and attack him.

However, if the man had learned of his identity through some mountain connection and was trying to curry favor, he had chosen the wrong person.

Back at Dafu Academy, Yang Pu had been labeled as a bookworm, an impractical scholar, and someone lacking worldly wisdom.

He disliked formal banquets with their endless toasting and socializing. He believed that tonight, in this very capital, countless people, from the mountains and below, were raising glasses and exchanging pleasantries.

Although Yang Pu knew that such social interactions were often necessary and useful, capable of fostering relationships, such as becoming acquainted with someone important and then claiming friendship, thereby creating opportunities to “make money.”

Ultimately, it was about catering to others’ preferences for mutual benefit. But Yang Pu knew he wasn’t suited for such activities, nor was he skilled at them.

The young man across from him puffed out his cheeks, blowing air forcefully while his eyes darted around, scrutinizing Yang Pu.

As Yang Pu finished his casserole, even drinking the last drop of soup from the bottom, and prepared to pay and leave, the young man spoke with a smile, “Brother Yang, leaving so soon? I even ordered an extra casserole for you. Don’t rush off, let’s chat over our meal.”

As he spoke, the young man pushed the casserole toward Yang Pu, his face filled with smiles and excessive politeness.

Yang Pu asked, puzzled, “You know me?”

The young man nodded vigorously. “Of course I know you, how could I not know Brother Yang! You and my teacher are kindred spirits at first sight, and you’ve even promised our Chief Zhou a drink.”

Yang Pu’s heart stirred, and he immediately said in a mental voice, “Are you a registered cultivator of the Qingping Sword Sect? Or a student of Master Chen?”

The young man looked utterly shocked, his voice trembling slightly. “Brother Yang, are you a fortune-teller? How did you guess all that?”

Yang Pu was momentarily speechless. Was this man being sarcastic? But seeing the sincerity on his face, it didn’t seem like he was joking. Uncertain, Yang Pu could only laugh and say, “Was it really that hard to guess?”

Previously, at the entrance of Mount Taiping, Yang Pu had met Chen Ping’an and Jiang Shangzhen.

The key phrase in the other man’s words was, of course, the secret code “Chief Zhou.”

Jiang Shangzhen, the old Sect Master of Jade Tablet Sect, was the chief consecrator of Fallen Mountain in Northern Precious Bottle Continent. This fact was not yet widely known in Tongye Continent.

As for Yang Pu’s acquaintance with Chen Ping’an and Jiang Shangzhen, he wasn’t the type to brag about who he knew, so only the three presidents and vice-presidents of Dafu Academy knew about it.

Since the man was Master Chen’s disciple, Yang Pu readily pulled over the casserole, picked up his chopsticks again, and slurped a large mouthful before asking indistinctly, “How should I address you?”

The young man smiled. “I’m my teacher’s favorite student, without a doubt. My surname is Cui, my name is Dongshan. Brother Yang can call me Dongshan, or even better, ‘Little Brother Cui’.”

This time, it was Yang Pu’s turn to be shocked. “Sect Master Cui?!”

During this temporary ancestral hall meeting, the Qingping Sword Sect was remarkably prominent and attracted attention, but Cui Dongshan hadn’t appeared in the capital.

He never expected to encounter this sect leader, whose identity, background, and cultivation level were shrouded in mystery, at a night market.

After all, how many sect leaders were there in the vast Tongye Continent? You could count them on one hand.

The “young man” patted his cheek with his chopsticks. “When traveling abroad, one must be discreet, so I used a bit of illusion magic to avoid being swarmed by flies, which is quite bothersome.”

Yang Pu said solemnly, “I wonder what Sect Master Cui wishes to instruct me in tonight?”

As for the crude analogy of being swarmed by flies… Yang Pu decided to pretend he hadn’t heard it.

Cui Dongshan let out a sigh in the manner of the Literary Sage lineage. “Instruct my ass, Brother Yang is my senior. I just came out for a stroll tonight, wandering around aimlessly, but coincidentally, I happened to see the majestic Brother Yang sitting here, so I figured I could treat you and then go back and brag to my teacher.”

Cui Dongshan asked, “Is Brother Yang skilled at compiling anthologies?”

Knowing the other man’s identity, Yang Pu relaxed and spoke more casually, joking, “As skilled as I am at dealing with people.”

Compiling an anthology was a massive undertaking, requiring the selection of the best source material.

It needed to be spearheaded by one or two chief editors, along with numerous compilers and an even greater number of proofreaders.

Speaking of the Yunyan Kingdom, the only “grand achievement” it could boast about in its history was having once used the entire nation’s resources to mobilize over three thousand officials, scholars, and copyists, and spend ten years compiling a monumental anthology that was renowned throughout the continent.
Cui Dongshan sighed regretfully, “In that case, never mind. I was originally thinking of bringing Brother Yang along to bolster my courage when I go meet someone.”

Yang Pu was utterly bewildered, but refrained from pressing the matter. He watched as Sect Master Cui rose, clasped his fist in farewell, and then gradually receded into the distance along the street. However, his walking posture… was utterly lacking in decorum. He skipped and hopped, bobbing his head, as if dodging and throwing punches.

Cui Dongshan headed straight out of the capital, neither riding the wind nor summoning a ferry. The white-robed youth merely swung his sleeves as he walked, gazing up at the jade disc in the sky. He flung his sleeves with gusto, chuckling, “Ah, pity the moon in heaven above, diligently keeping me company each and every night.”