With a smile, he explained, “I came to Tongye Continent directly from the Cave of Creation, without passing through the Central Earth Divine Continent. So, I’m actually unaware of the Water God’s flying sword communication to Gongdelin.”

The Water God stamped her foot again, “So vexing! Sooner or later, I’m going to get a blade across my neck. No wonder the Literary Sage rebukes me. It’s my own doing. But this blade is always hanging over my head. It’s a problem. I have to count the days, waiting slowly. I might as well send a letter back to the Literary Sage, let him curse me with a torrent of abuse, and then I can scurry back to Biyou Palace.”

Chen Ping’an helplessly said, “What would my teacher scold you for? As for whether Teacher can find a suitable water elixir, the letter will definitely give the Water God an answer, whether successful or not.”

The Water God looked at him with a mixture of guilt and suspicion.

Chen Ping’an smiled, “Don’t forget, I’m Teacher’s closed-door disciple. If Teacher really wants to scold you, I’ll help you reply with a letter.”

That’s fine. If the Grand Spring Imperial Observatory could receive a reply from Gongdelin soon, the Water God could add a few words to the reply.

According to both Jiang Shangzhen and Cui Dongshan, his teacher is currently in Gongdelin, having retreated from worldly affairs for many years.

She first felt relieved, then greatly annoyed, saying, “I was thinking, you Little Mister were the first to visit, then Mr. Zuo went to great lengths, and finally the Literary Sage himself came to Biyou Palace. How come none of you ate a late-night snack during your visits? Now look, the stir-fried eel noodles are gone! I can’t even treat you now. I already exhausted my supply of Water Blossom Wine, and I don’t even have half a pot left. Brewing it is troublesome. Wine brewed in three or five years, is that even considered wine? Without a hundred years of cellar aging, how can it be called fine vintage wine? How can I have the face to entertain Little Mister and the Literary Sage?”

Seeing the Little Mister’s dazed expression, the Water God felt even more guilty. Okay, it seems Biyou Palace will have a hard time coaxing the Literary Sage’s lineage to visit again.

Chen Ping’an quickly came back to his senses and smiled, “As long as it’s Water Blossom Wine, whether it’s a few years old or a few decades, I’m not particular. As for the eel noodles, I won’t insist. Water God, let’s sit down and chat.”

A pot of eel noodles with half a pot of chili peppers, who would dare to take a bite?

This is similar to the way cultivators drink at the table. A small bowl of red-hot eel noodles might be tolerable, but how could one eat a whole pot? Eat it, or not eat it? What would happen if you ate it but didn’t finish it? It was a wise choice to be polite to the end and not touch the chopsticks.

Senior Brother Zuo doesn’t like to drink. Chen Ping’an knew that. As for Senior Brother not being able to handle any spice, Teacher had also mentioned it in the wine shop.

Ah Liang had once played a prank, giving Zuo a bowl of “clear soup” at the dinner table, saying that since he didn’t drink wine, he could use soup as a substitute. It wouldn’t be magnanimous if he didn’t partake.

As a result, Zuo didn’t think much of it, raised the bowl, and drank it like wine, downing it in one gulp. It’s said that Senior Brother Zuo’s face turned red, he stood up and stamped his feet, almost rolling on the ground in pain.

So, Third Senior Brother Liu Shiliu chased Ah Liang down several streets.

Only Biyou Palace would dare to serve such a large pot of eel noodles and ask Zuo if he wanted a late-night snack.

Otherwise, it would be a real sword duel with Zuo.

They each took their seats. Chen Ping’an, once again passing through the Grand Spring Dynasty, had with him the River-Burying Water God Liu Rou, the Capital City Governor Yao Xianzhi, the Grand Spring’s Chief Offering Liu Zong, and the direct disciple Yao Lingzhi.

The knife-grinder Liu Zong suddenly understood. Good heavens, so he was the Literary Sage’s direct disciple, wouldn’t that make him the Little Sword Immortal Zuo’s junior brother?

Tongye Continent admired the Great Sword Immortal Zuo to the point of prostration.

Everything made sense now. Liu Zong was aware of the Literary Sage’s situation and the decline of the Literary Sage’s lineage within Confucianism. If Chen Ping’an was truly the Literary Sage’s closed-door disciple, the exiled Immortal Sword Prodigy, he had most likely received the Great Sword Immortal Zuo’s personal instruction in swordsmanship. Even in the Blessed Land, he still loved to spout principles, but he was also sophisticated and adaptable, able to unravel the chaos and find a way out. His style was so similar to that of the Great Li’s Embroidered Tiger. Coupled with Biyou Palace’s admiration for the Literary Sage’s teachings and the Water God’s intimacy with Chen Ping’an, it all made perfect sense.

Yao Xianzhi and Yao Lingzhi looked at each other in dismay.

The Literary Sage’s disciple? And a closed-door disciple at that?

Did that mean Chen Ping’an was the junior brother of the Embroidered Tiger Cui Chan and the Sword Immortal Zuo?

Yao Lingzhi couldn’t help but glance at the young man with the jade hairpin in his hair, dressed in a blue robe…