Chen Ping’an returned to the inn, finding that not only was Pei Qian not asleep, but she was also playing with a talisman stuck to her forehead. The four members of the painting scroll were gathered in the same room, also awaiting the result from the Wenwu Temples.

Chen Ping’an found it strange. They had traveled from the central Tongye Continent to the southeastern Qingluan Kingdom of the Treasure Bottle Continent, experiencing so many life-and-death battles along the way. Logically, they shouldn’t be interested in the small county town’s Wenwu Temples. Even if there was a brief period of demonic winds and rains in this small place, it was destined not to cause any major waves. Chen Ping’an quickly realized the key point: it was highly likely that tonight was the first time his student Cui Dongshan was making a move. Wei Xian, Sui Youbian, and the others must be paying attention.

After sitting down, Zhu Lian had already handed him tea. Chen Ping’an frankly said, “Someone did tamper with the Wenwu Temples. Cui Dongshan will handle it properly and won’t delay tomorrow’s journey.”

Sui Youbian, with her straightforward nature, asked directly, “Is this Cui Dongshan really your student?”

Chen Ping’an stroked Pei Qian’s head, telling her to go to sleep first. However, Pei Qian said she couldn’t sleep, fearing ghosts, and that she tossed and turned in her sleep, often kicking off the covers. If the talisman on her forehead were to be rubbed off, wouldn’t malevolent spirits and demons have an opportunity to take advantage, and she wouldn’t be able to protect Sister Sui?

Because Chen Ping’an had mentioned some rules and taboos regarding talismans to Pei Qian, such as talismans being protective charms for traveling and deterring evil spirits, inspiring awe in minor mountain and water deities and ghosts. At the same time, they were also like bright lamps, easily attracting the extra covetousness and hostility of certain ferocious ghosts that weren’t afraid of the yang world’s gales.

Therefore, Chen Ping’an didn’t force Pei Qian to go to the next room to sleep immediately, and said to Sui Youbian, “Although Cui Dongshan initially attached himself to me shamelessly, he is indeed my student now. Along the way, you should have a general understanding of his temperament. He’s quite an arrogant person. As long as you don’t provoke him, Cui Dongshan isn’t likely to scheme against you proactively. Many rules of conduct for traveling the vastness of the world, such as what I told Pei Qian earlier about respecting the mountains but not the waters, and not waiting when there are many people at temples, were actually told to me by Cui Dongshan when we traveled together.”

In fact, Chen Ping’an didn’t put it too bluntly. In the eyes of the young-looking Great Li national preceptor, the four members of the painting scroll who came from Lotus Flower Paradise weren’t worth him putting in any crooked thoughts.

It was just that such blunt truth was too hurtful, so Chen Ping’an was too embarrassed to say it.

Just like on the day of their reunion, Cui Dongshan directly mentioned the immortal corpse of Du Mao, asking Chen Ping’an to generously donate the remains, but Cui Dongshan might not have valued it that much in his heart.

The reason why Cui Dongshan was willing to entangle himself with Chen Ping’an was probably that his true vision wasn’t even on Chen Ping’an himself, but always in the extremely distant shadows and behind the curtains: the deceased Mr. Qi, the old scholar who had lost his physical body and was confined to the world, aligned with the entire vastness of the world, Ah Liang who had ascended to the heavens and was wrestling with Dao Lao Er, and Lu Chen, the Daoist leader who was now in charge of the five cities and twelve towers of White Jade Capital.

The fact that Great Li was able to build that Sword Tower that imitated White Jade Capital already showed the presence of Yin Yang School and Mohist School. With True Martial Mountain and Wind and Snow Temple as the ancestral homes of strategists in the Treasure Bottle Continent, especially the former, which had long been deeply involved with Great Li, and the prosperous Old Dragon City at the southernmost end, Great Li Dynasty had actually gained the favor of many forces from outside the continent among the various schools of thought besides Confucianism, Buddhism, and Daoism, except for Legalism and Diplomats who had yet to show up.

This was the foundation for the Great Li Song family to annex half of the Treasure Bottle Continent.

The Great Li iron cavalry and Prince Song Changjing were ostensibly conquering the land, but how to defend the land was a greater test of the Great Li Dynasty’s methods and foundation.

Chen Ping’an had figured these things out after seeing sections of historical years and long rivers of time in Lotus Flower Paradise. He might still be some distance from the truth, but the general direction shouldn’t be wrong.

And the person who specifically planned and helped the Great Li Song family to “have everything ready” for this entire game of Great Li Dynasty heading south, involving so many complex forces, was the “white-robed youth” left in the Martial Temple.

Looking back now, Chen Ping’an’s travels in the Treasure Bottle Continent, from the northern Da Sui and the affiliated Huangting Kingdom, to the central Caiyi, Guyu, and Shushui Kingdoms, and then to the southernmost Old Dragon City, every step was actually within the chessboard of national preceptor Cui Chan. He had never left the game, but Cui Chan and Cui Dongshan, the old and young national preceptors whose souls were separated and wearing different skins, simply no longer bothered with him, Chen Ping’an.

Lu Baixiang asked with a smile, “Is this Mr. Cui a highly cultivated, back-to-basics cultivator?”

Chen Ping’an didn’t know how to answer, and could only say, “He was once a proper Confucian disciple. His hometown is in the Treasure Bottle Continent. Later, he went to the Central Earth Divine Continent to study. His cultivation realm used to be… relatively high, but he later fell in realm. I can’t tell what realm he is in now, and I haven’t asked him.”

Zhu Lian said with a smile, “I heard the young master say before that those great cultivators in the world have strong physiques, not inferior to pure martial artists in the Refining Spirit realm. I wonder what the boxing skills of this young-faced mountain immortal are like? If he has magical treasures, I wonder if he can break Wei Xian’s sweet dew armor.”

Chen Ping’an said with a smile, “Let’s get the ugly words out of the way first. I definitely won’t stop any of you who want to test Cui Dongshan, but you’ll be responsible for the consequences.”

Pei Qian said softly, “I wouldn’t dare compete with him for the position of first disciple. I’ll just call him Senior Brother in the future.”

Cui Dongshan pushed the door open and entered, angrily saying, “Little girl, why are you scolding people behind their backs?! Who’s your Senior Brother? You’re the Senior Brother! Speak properly!”

Cui Dongshan’s inexplicable questioning made Pei Qian’s face turn pale with fright.

Chen Ping’an asked, “What about the Martial Temple?”

Cui Dongshan poured himself a cup of tea, drank it all in one gulp, and said with a smile, “It’s already settled. I’ve met with both the Wenwu Temples and the mastermind behind the scenes. Both sides are easy to talk to. Your student, I, reasoned with them with facts and logic. If I hadn’t been in a hurry to come back and inform the teacher, maybe the gentlemen of the Wenwu Temples would have pulled up the land deity and brought out a few jars of aged wine buried deep underground to drink and chat with me until dawn.”

Chen Ping’an asked suspiciously, “Who was causing trouble?”

Cui Dongshan said with a smile, “It’s a local wealthy man who cherishes his life and wants to live another twenty or thirty years. It just so happened that his descendants were cultivating in a immortal sect in Qingluan Kingdom. Instead of learning the good things, they learned the bad things and picked up some crooked skills. They wanted to change their fate without authorization, harming the local luck as the price, turning it into personal life extension and improving the feng shui of their ancestral graves. Naturally, they had a dispute with the local Wenwu Temples. Cultivators who have learned immortal techniques, those young so-called chosen ones in small sects, naturally have bad tempers. They simply went all the way. That young cultivator almost wanted to seize the golden body as well. It is said that the lustful shrines and deities in the Qingluan and Qingshan Kingdoms are almost completely destroyed by the dynasties of various countries, the golden fragments are still in short supply, the Wenwu Temples will have problems with incense, the local monks shot, the eating is ugly, it is not enough to be held accountable to death by the wise men of the academy, if the young monks and backers operate properly, they can directly learn about this matter in the Qingluan Kingdom Yushufang, The news will not reach Guanhai Academy…”

Hearing this, Chen Ping’an was heavy-hearted and took a sip of medicinal wine.

Cui Dongshan’s expression was as usual, as if he hadn’t noticed the difference in his teacher at all, and continued with a smiling face, “Mountain and water deities, each has its own predestined relationship, and each has its own good and evil retribution, but it’s just a little earlier. When the Great Li Dynasty really annexed a continent in the future, the matter of banning lustful shrines will be a sure thing, and the methods will only be more ruthless. Now, north of Guanhai Academy in the middle, officials from the Ministry of Rites have joined forces with the Qintian Jian to specifically start ‘searching according to the map’. In the two years that you were not in Treasure Bottle Continent, just south of Huangting Kingdom and north of Caiyi Kingdom, on the dragon walking road below, more than 4,000 lustful shrines that did not comply with the rules and violated the etiquette were destroyed in 62 countries, big and small. This is still the case where almost every official in the Great Li Ministry of Rites is oily-faced, taking people softly, and has restrained a bit, otherwise the number will have to be doubled at least. Guanhai Academy is naturally happy to see the ban on lustful shrines, even if they are unwilling to deal with the Great Li Dynasty, they still sent dozens of gentlemen and sages led by the deputy mountain chief to help Great Li verify this matter and delineate boundaries for the Great Li Dynasty. Great Li is very considerate of Guanhai Academy in this matter.”

After talking about this in a long-winded manner, Cui Dongshan put down his teacup, looked around, and said with a smile, “What, go to bed early and get up early for good health. If you don’t know how to take care of yourselves, do you still want to delay my teacher’s rest?”

Pei Qian was the first to get up and run away. The expressions of the four in the painting scroll were different, but they didn’t say anything and left one after another.

Cui Dongshan was the last to get up and bid farewell to his teacher.

Chen Ping’an needed to bolt the door. He walked to the doorway with Cui Dongshan, one outside the threshold and one inside the threshold. Chen Ping’an asked, “If you secretly get involved in the Buddhist and Taoist debate in Qingluan Kingdom behind my back, you’d better tell me clearly in advance. At worst, I’ll bypass the capital and wait for you at the easternmost immortal ferry port, so that you and I won’t turn against each other, and you, Cui Dongshan, will betray your teacher and destroy your ancestors again.”

Cui Dongshan had an aggrieved expression like yellow mud on his crotch, “Teacher is magnanimous, like a clear breeze and bright moon. When the two of us traveled in Da Sui, I felt like I was bathed in the spring breeze at all times. How could I judge a gentleman with a villain’s heart?”

Cui Dongshan sadly said, “I understand, it must be that the four retainers are not on the road. Teacher has been with them for a long time, and inevitably got a bit of the atmosphere of the market. It doesn’t matter, your student will…”

Chen Ping’an closed the door and said rudely, “Get lost.”

Cui Dongshan, dressed in white and fluttering like an otherworldly immortal, spun away in circles in the corridor, it should be considered rolling sideways.

When passing by Pei Qian’s room next door, Cui Dongshan paused slightly, while spinning in place and kindly reminded, “Pei Qian, you and I have the friendship of the same sect, so I’ll tell you good news, as long as you don’t open the window, you definitely won’t see the hanging ghost with its tongue out, as long as you don’t stick your head out of the quilt, you won’t see the embroidered lady ghost in a bright red wedding dress, marrying the ghost king of the burial ground, lying on the bedside, as long as you don’t get thirsty in the middle of the night and get up to drink water, you definitely won’t see the water ghost with a pale face and a big belly of water plants after drowning… Oh right, some unjustly dead long-haired girls like to curl up and perch beside little girls’ feet, don’t be afraid, no matter how you look at it, it’s just a big ball of hair…”

Pei Qian hid in the quilt, shivering, and covered her ears tightly with both hands.

When he arrived at the room of the four in the painting scroll, Cui Dongshan, who was spinning non-stop, just smiled outside Lu Baixiang’s door and said, “I heard my teacher say that you have superb chess skills. I’ll learn how to play chess with you tomorrow.”

Lu Baixiang, who was studying chess scores by lamplight in the room, smiled and said, “If Mr. Cui is willing, why not play a game before resting?”

Cui Dongshan had gradually gone away, “Let’s forget about tonight. Learning chess requires choosing the right time and being in the right mood.”

Outside the small inn.

There were two golden body gods that ordinary mortals couldn’t see, one on the left and one on the right, one civil and one military, guarding the inn with stern faces like two door gods.