The Golden Core cultivator suddenly chuckled, “So, young master, you’re a disciple of the Legalist School. No wonder.”

Chen Pingan was puzzled by this misunderstanding.

This Earth Immortal, who seemed very familiar with the customs and landscapes of the Azure Luan Kingdom, smiled slyly. “In that case, a little sparring is in order.”

The atmosphere within the mountain hollow instantly became tense, swords drawn and bows strung.

These untamed cultivators of the mountains and marshes were used to scenes of betrayal. For riches, men will die, and for food, birds will perish. Who wouldn’t want to earn an extra fifty Minor Heat coins? Clean money was always welcome, but dirty money? They’d certainly earned their share. Those rogue cultivators recruited by the imperial court or seeking a position under a registered Immortal family, the stepping stone they needed for protection, often involved some shady dealings. Perhaps helping the court assassinate generals and ministers of enemy nations, or resolving grudges and vendettas for registered Immortals who couldn’t get their hands dirty.

The Golden Core Earth Immortal leisurely surveyed his surroundings, seemingly assessing the battlefield.

Chen Pingan asked, “Do you know that if the earthen ox chooses to turn on its back, it will stir the earth veins, affecting tens of thousands of common folk?”

The Earth Immortal hesitated for a moment, then nodded honestly. “Having reached my current level, of course I am aware of this matter.”

This admission didn’t surprise the band of rogue cultivators.

Only the formation master, Lü Yangzhen, furrowed his brow slightly, but concealed it well.

Chen Pingan then asked, “Can you control the earthquake?”

The Earth Immortal didn’t give a direct answer, but smiled. “That’s not so simple. Either, as your friend suggested, you spend a fortune, laying down formations on a large scale to stabilize the earth veins and reduce the tremors. Or, a Qi cultivator needs a congenital spiritual treasure similar to the Luminous Pearl, and refine it as their natal treasure, to ‘subdue the mountains and tame the veins.'”

Seeing that Chen Pingan had no further questions, the Earth Immortal once again carefully sized him up. “We shall meet again.”

The Golden Core cultivator seemed to have given up the idea of “sparring.” He looked towards the leaders of the scattered rogue cultivators’ factions, such as the black-robed old man with the five-tailed black fox mount, and the formation master, Lü Yangzhen, communicating to each of them in whispers about the “location for dividing the spoils,” to pay the remaining reward besides the deposit before taking flight on the wind.

All the rogue cultivators followed the Earth Immortal’s departure, although in slightly different directions. Presumably, the Golden Core cultivator would be paying each of the four groups their Immortal coins at different times and locations, so as to avoid any of these wild cultivators feeling unfairly treated.

Zhang Shanfeng lightly punched Chen Pingan on the shoulder, teasingly saying, “Not bad, using Minor Heat coins as if they were snowflakes.”

Xu Yuanxia had already stood up, sheathing his blade, and using his fingers to comb through his beard, which was clotted with dried blood. “We’re safe for now. But I fear this Golden Core Earth Immortal is a local tyrant with ulterior motives. If things get too dicey, we shouldn’t wait for that Buddhist and Taoist debate in the Azure Luan Kingdom’s capital. It’s best if we leave early.”

Zhang Shanfeng hesitated. “The True Martial Sword that Chen Pingan lent me, and your short blade, are we just going to leave them at the Grand Commandant’s manor?”

Chen Pingan corrected, “Not lent.”

Although Xu Yuanxia felt a pang of regret, his expression remained resolute. “Such a large manor, it won’t grow legs and run away. We’ll have a chance to retrieve them later. But if the Grand Commandant’s manor is the mastermind behind this ambush, we’re just walking into a trap. The Azure Luan Kingdom’s Emperor Tang has always been unruly, and that Grand Commandant is the Tang Emperor’s trusted confidant. We’ll easily become targets of blame, and we won’t be able to explain ourselves. They’ll easily throw dirt on us, and we won’t be able to escape.”

Zhang Shanfeng used to be the kind of person who wouldn’t turn back until he hit a brick wall. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have abandoned Confucianism to pursue the Tao and become a Taoist priest on the mountain. This trip south from the Northern Ju Luzhou to the Precious Bottle Continent had been full of experiences, both setbacks and gains, and he had matured a great deal. After hearing Xu Yuanxia’s explanation, he no longer insisted on his own opinion.

Chen Pingan spent a long time carefully crafting a reasonable explanation that would not involve Zhang Shanfeng and Xu Yuanxia in his own complicated situation, while also reassuring them to confidently go to the Grand Commandant’s manor. “I had an opportunity at an academy in the Tongye Continent and obtained a jade token. It can be used to save my life in critical moments. Although the Azure Luan Kingdom is now full of mixed elements, we can’t let our guard down. But with that… jade token, equivalent to a scholar of the academy personally arriving, ordinary Golden Cores and Nascent Souls wouldn’t dare to deliver a killing blow. So, we can retrieve the True Martial Sword and that short blade without much of a problem.”

While honesty is important in dealing with people, putting them in danger because of it, facing the kind of calamity that Chen Pingan encountered with Du Mao, that’s not called sincerity, but rather being heartless and ignorant of the world.

Pei Qian and the four members of the painting had already approached.

They were all very curious about the identities of the young Taoist priest and the bearded ranger. It seemed they weren’t Chen Pingan’s fellow villagers, but rather friends he had met on his travels.

Wei Xian and the others could all see that the young Taoist priest was just a Qi cultivator with average strength, and the bearded swordsman was just a martial artist of the fifth realm with a decent foundation. That was all?

Pei Qian had been secretly observing the two of them. At this moment, she held her walking stick and had a bamboo knife and bamboo sword that Chen Pingan had personally made hanging from her waist. She stood next to Chen Pingan and smiled. “Hello, Taoist brother, hello, swordsman uncle! My name is Pei Qian, and I am my master’s first disciple!”

Xu Yuanxia laughed heartily, gaining a seniority for free.

Although Zhang Shanfeng’s shoulder had been pierced by a sword cultivator’s natal flying sword, and he looked pale even after applying the golden wound medicine, his lips curled into a smile when he saw the thin girl who claimed to be Chen Pingan’s eldest disciple. He greeted the little girl with a smile, “Hello, Pei Qian, how old are you?”

Pei Qian smiled. “Only seven years old, so I’m only this tall.”

Chen Pingan flicked her forehead.

Pei Qian, who wanted to save face at all costs, immediately made a face. “I’m actually eleven years old, in the fuzzy reckoning.”

Chen Pingan turned around, squatted down, and looked towards Xu Yuanxia. “How should we deal with such serious injuries?”

Xu Yuanxia and Zhang Shanfeng also squatted down. The bearded man stroked his beard and pondered, “Leaving aside that sneaky Golden Core Earth Immortal, just speaking of the group of rogue cultivators riding the black fox, their hearts are not upright. If we just leave the earthen ox alone, then it’s just a matter of dying sooner or later. What you said earlier was really right, no one’s money falls from the sky or is swept away by the wind. Let’s see this through to the end. Let it temporarily follow us in this form, and when the injuries have healed, find a place where it can hide its tracks, then we can separate. But this way, Chen Pingan, the burden on your shoulders will be heavier.”

Chen Pingan smiled. “How long has it been, and you’re already being so distant?”

Xu Yuanxia laughed. “Polite words don’t cost me any money.”
Pei Qian, nodding like a chick pecking at rice, deeply agreed. Courteous words and flattery truly cost nothing. This Uncle Big Beard was likely a kindred spirit.

Compared to Pei Qian, the four from the painting saw more and thought further.

Wei Xian and Sui Youbian had never seen Chen Ping’an ask for anyone else’s opinion, and naturally accept it as his own. It all happened so smoothly. Having been through so much fighting with them, Sui Youbian had even died multiple times. Chen Ping’an’s actions had unconsciously revealed an extremely strong, resolute, and opinionated side. Yet, at the same time, he gave the four of them enough respect. Even Wei Xian had to admit that his flattery, calling Chen Ping’an a “hegemonic overlord,” wasn’t far from the truth. If they were in the chaotic Lotus Root Fortune Land, Chen Ping’an might have been an opponent on the battlefield.

Chen Ping’an looked at the yellow earth ox, “Can you manifest in human form? If I remember correctly, reaching the Viewing Sea Realm or Leaping Dragon Realm should allow you to transform? I have a bottle of healing pills, and if you take them in human form, the effects will be better.”

Before leaving Old Dragon City, Madam Gui had someone bring over a treasure box made of sweet osmanthus wood. Inside were twelve bottles of pills, not extravagant, each bottle being the most cost-effective for each stage of the middle five realms.

Hearing Chen Ping’an’s question, the Dragon Gate Realm demon, whose Great Dao was damaged, shook its head.

Zhang Shanfeng explained, “Compared to ordinary mountain spirits and water monsters, it’s quite special, like a water-attributed flood dragon. The purer the element, the more difficult it is to transform into human form. It needs to reach the Golden Core Realm.”

Chen Ping’an understood, nodding, “It’s fine. When we go to the Grand Commandant’s Manor this time, we’ll try to avoid the major prefectural cities and choose mountain paths.”

Zhang Shanfeng laughed, “We’re familiar with that. We’ve wandered around Qingluan and Qingshan for the past two years.”

Chen Ping’an took out a pill suitable for Dragon Gate Realm cultivators. After a stick of incense’s time, the yellow earth ox could struggle to its feet. Although its body was still covered in crisscrossing wounds, it could walk without difficulty. After all, earth-attributed demons were known for their toughness and stamina. Moreover, this Dragon Gate Realm demon admitted that it had refined a celadon landscape vase as one of its natal treasures, capable of containing and accumulating spiritual Qi. Chen Ping’an understood and directly gave the entire bottle of spirit pills to the yellow earth ox, letting it store them in its celadon vase, slowly absorbing the medicinal Qi to heal.

The yellow earth ox, with its four hooves on the ground, had tears welling up in its eyes as it gazed at the young man in the snow-white robe, “Immortal Master is virtuous. How can I repay you?”

It said with shame and unease, “I have cultivated here for over two hundred years, only drawn to the local dragon vein. The two spiritual tools and magical treasures I obtained by chance have already been refined as natal treasures. I haven’t taken any other heavenly treasures. Immortal Master, you have not only saved my life but also helped me continue my path…”

Pei Qian sighed.

My fault.

How had she barely left Old Dragon City, and already become a money-losing burden again? At Honeycomb Ferry, she almost lost two Snowflake Coins. Now, in this mountain gully, she was losing them by the handful.

Chen Ping’an smiled, “It’s alright. If you truly have the heart, when your injuries heal and you form a Golden Core, able to travel far and wide in human form, you can come to my hometown in the future. It has beautiful mountains and rivers, abundant spiritual Qi. You’re welcome to visit…”

As Chen Ping’an said this, Xu Yuanxia said meaningfully, “Why wait until you form a Golden Core? Once your injuries heal, go directly to your hometown. Maybe you can form a Golden Core there, with a sage overseeing the Qi Luck. You won’t have to worry about triggering an earth tremor.”

The yellow earth ox looked bewildered, seemingly not understanding.

Chen Ping’an thoughtfully considered whether this was feasible. Xu Yuanxia laughed, “No rush. There’s still a long way to go on the mountain path. Let’s see if you are compatible first, then decide. If your personalities clash, it’s better to leave a good impression and meet again in the future. It’s better than spending time together and breeding discord, wasting a good karmic opportunity.”

Zhang Shanfeng agreed, “Feasible.”

Chen Ping’an had no objections.

The group slowly moved on, leaving the mountain gully, heading toward the Grand Commandant’s Manor, famous throughout Qingluan.

Chen Ping’an talked with Zhang Shanfeng and Xu Yuanxia about travels that could be shared.

The two also told Chen Ping’an about their adventures after separating at Green Bronze Square.

The Tang Imperial Family of Qingluan had a tradition of bestowing titles but not fiefs. Princes and Dukes all resided in the capital, owning their own mansions, but only having the right to reside, not ownership. Once they lost their titles, the Imperial Clan Court would reclaim them.

Qingluan had five Grand Commandant’s Manors. Besides the four bordering the country, there was one in the central region, with immense power, responsible for crucial national affairs such as water transport and salt and iron. Ordinarily, monarchs would avoid the “harm of powerful ministers holding power, the worry of separatist warlords.” Yet, in Qingluan’s centuries of history, the weather had been favorable, the country prosperous, and the ministers and generals had always been harmonious. It was a mystery that outsiders couldn’t understand. Did none of these high-ranking officials, far from the emperor’s reach, ever harbor ambitions? Were they all devoted, exerting themselves to the utmost for the Tang Emperor until death?

Regardless, Qingluan, located in the southeast of Treasure Bottle Continent, was like a paradise, a pure land. Especially after the war in the central region intensified, it triggered several waves of scholars moving south and officials abandoning the north. Qingluan, Qingshan, and Yunxiao absorbed tens of thousands of families moving south, with Qingluan receiving the most.
The current Grand Commandant Wei, the very Qingluan Kingdom noble who demanded the True Martial Sword and Short Sword from Zhang Shanfeng and Xu Yuanxia, after inheriting his position, ceased his wandering and leisurely pursuits in the wilderness. Instead, he secluded himself, yet his early deeds and rumors made him quite famous among the three Qingluan Kingdoms. He excelled in composing eulogies, cursive script, annotating Buddhist scriptures, and painting Buddhist images, especially the latter, which was said to be “unrivaled in his time,” with his works highly sought after by the court and public alike. This Grand Commandant Wei, still in his prime, enjoyed an excellent reputation among scholars and literary circles, praised for his exceptional bearing, refreshing and upright demeanor, and a presence as serene as the wind through the pines… Among the noble ladies and young women of the capital, he was even more highly regarded. Rumor had it that during his studies abroad, he and several close friends from prominent families went into the mountains to seek immortals. A woodcutter mistook him for a banished celestial being, prostrated himself in worship, and exclaimed, “A god!”

This time, the Qingluan Kingdom’s capital was hosting a grand Buddhist-Taoist debate, and Grand Commandant Wei would be going to the capital to oversee the city’s security, permitted to lead six thousand elite troops north to be stationed in the capital’s vital areas!

The Tang Emperor’s reliance and trust in this man were evident.

To the point that some unsubstantiated rumors on the Jianghu claimed that the monarch and his subject shared a forbidden affection. One must understand that during this Buddhist-Taoist debate, the monarchs of the Yunxiao Kingdom, Yan, and the Qingshan Kingdom, He, would both be coming to the Qingluan Kingdom’s capital. The fact that Grand Commandant Wei was leading troops north, and that the two foreign monarchs regarded this as commonplace and did not object, was an even stranger matter.

On this day, a robust young man came to visit the Grand Commandant’s manor, without alarming anyone on the outside.

Grand Commandant Wei Liang received the guest in his study. Wei Liang was only in his thirties, a handsome and elegant figure.

Despite his high position, Wei Liang was very casual with the young man, neither with a distant politeness nor with an affected enthusiasm. The robust young man was clearly an old acquaintance of the Grand Commandant, not sitting opposite Wei Liang but standing by the bookshelf, browsing.

Wei Liang smiled, “Jiang Yun, it seems the family favors you, entrusting this matter to you. This way, I can save some effort. With me in the open and you in the shadows, I believe this Buddhist-Taoist debate in late spring won’t have too much trouble.”

The robust young man was the one who lived at the end of the alley in Fengwei Ferry. Perhaps he had left the Immortal’s Ferry dock in his hometown, half a step into the mundane world, and cast a concealing spell on the iron chain “belt” he had refined into his natal artifact, lest it attract attention in towns and markets.

The young man named Jiang Yun casually flipped through a book, filled with numerous marginal notes, dense and overlapping, in both black and red ink, clearly indicating that Grand Commandant Wei Liang had read this book more than once.

Jiang Yun turned his head and said, “Old Wei, don’t be careless. Your Majesty has stirred up such a hornet’s nest; the situation is very complex now. Besides me, it seems that someone else from the family will be lurking in the shadows, and their cultivation will definitely not be low.”

Wei Liang smiled without speaking.

Jiang Yun was a little helpless, “A tiny Qingluan Kingdom dares to host a Buddhist-Taoist debate and deliberately create such a commotion. Does the Tang Emperor not understand the dangers of the Three Teachings’ conflict? Old Wei, don’t you understand? How did our Yunlin Jiang Clan migrate to Baoping Continent in the first place? On my way from Fengwei Ferry, I deliberately chose some lively places. To put it bluntly, the streets are full of Qi Refiners. The countryside is already like this, let alone your capital city. Are you really not afraid?”

Wei Liang placed a wooden box on the table, and when opened, a cold light filled the room. He took out a “Scholar’s Dagger” from the wooden box and smiled, “You have a certain sympathy for the wild cultivators because of your lineage. I won’t be like that. Before the end of spring, as long as they are unregistered cultivators with records, whether they committed crimes within the Qingluan Kingdom or elsewhere, I will cast a wide net several times. Whether they live or die, it will be done according to the rules. A single rat dropping can spoil a whole pot of porridge, let alone a nest of snakes and rats entering the country.”

A scholar’s writing knife, though a small object, was regarded as a “gentleman’s armament.”

Inside the wooden box in front of Wei Liang, nearly ten “ancestral Scholar’s Daggers” were neatly arranged, roughly divided into old writing knives and paper-cutting knives.

The former was also known as a scraping knife. In ancient times, when texts could only be recorded on bamboo slips, the small knife used to repair the slips was called a writing knife. It was initially made of bronze, then iron, and now of various precious materials, mostly for people to play with and collect, having lost its original function.

Wei Liang was currently holding two paper-cutting knives in his hands.

One was a bamboo-veneered paper-cutting knife, with “Made by Zhensong Hall” engraved on the scabbard.

The other was a white jade dragon-carved gilt “Gongguan Hundred Refinements” knife.

Jiang Yun put the book back, sighed, and looked complicated, “So you set up a scheme and killed so many wild cultivators in one fell swoop?”

“Those who do many unrighteous deeds will bring about their own downfall. It’s more difficult for me to deal with those registered Immortal Masters on the mountains. Not directly killing these wild cultivators is already burning incense at their graves. Of course, I also have some selfish motives for going to such lengths, but some of those opportunists have now become my manor’s informants, and they will play a significant role later. You see, the world operates with standards and measures; it’s as simple and clear as that.”

Throughout his words, Wei Liang never looked up, staring at the beautifully patterned “Gongguan” knife, then gently tapping it with the bamboo-carved knife, the sound crisp and clear, closing his eyes to listen, thoroughly enjoying himself.

Although Jiang Yun had a good personal relationship with Wei Liang, he was still somewhat annoyed, “Don’t you care whether the methods you use are righteous or evil?”

“Evil methods are still methods, after all.”

He opened his eyes, his expression calm and serene, changed the subject, and smiled, “Let’s not talk about these things that are destined to be a dialogue between a chicken and a duck. This time when I went out, I met a Legalist disciple from the same sect as me. Very interesting. His friend even left two items in my manor. If you’re interested, you can stay a few more days.”