Unsheathed

Around twenty people were standing at the door of the inn and cursing, and the young men had furious expressions while the women stood with their hands on their hips as they scolded someone in anger. The children around them appeared very carefree, with some of them cocking their heads and slurping on tanghulus and some of them secretly using their slingshots to shoot the curtain hanging on the doorway.

Chen Ping’an stood among them for a while, yet he was still unable to make heads or tails of the situation because the men and women were speaking the local dialect of Fox Town. However, Chen Ping’an immediately got an idea of the situation after he saw Pei Qian standing on the second floor and looking at him with a panicked expression.

Pei Qian had initially been squatting behind the railings of the second floor and picking her nose and picking at her ears. She wasn’t taking this seriously at all, and was even acting in an uncouth manner to disgust these people. In fact, the angrier the people outside the inn became, the happier and more amused Pei Qian would become.

Fortunately, the men and women from Fox Town ultimately didn’t dare to enter the inn. The lame young boy was extremely irritated by the commotion caused by these people, so he grumpily cleaned up the leftovers on the tables. The hunchbacked Third Grandpa was sitting in the distance and smoking, while Jiu Niang was sitting behind the counter and snacking on roasted seeds. Neither of them were worried about the commotion.

As for Zhong Kui, the impoverished scholar and the half-assed accountant of the inn, he had initially wanted to act as a peacemaker between the two parties. However, a man from Fox Town had forcefully shoved him away, sending him stumbling back into the inn. Zhong Kui had huffed and returned to Jiu Niang’s side, picking up a blank account book and pretending to work. Jiu Niang had rolled her eyes upon seeing this.

Chen Ping’an entered the inn with a stern expression, and Pei Qian was just about to sneak away and return to her room. However, Chen Ping’an immediately called her name and told her to come downstairs.

Pei Qian timidly walked downstairs, and before Chen Ping’an could even ask anything, she had already started to spill the beans. According to her explanation, she had gone to Fox Town because she had wanted to look for a pharmacy to buy some medicine for Chen Ping’an. However, the children in Fox Town had started to pick on her because she was a stranger and an outsider.

In the beginning, they had stolen her tanghulu which she had wanted to leave for Chen Ping’an. However, she had endured this because of the principles that she had learned from the books. She understood that harmony was the most important. However, those children had also enjoyed tailing her and badmouthing her, and they had done so in groups and even thrown stones at her. Pei Qian had ignored this again.

Afterward, she had bought a dragonfly kite, yet a jealous child had snatched it away and released it into the sky. With a whoosh, the kite had flown out of Fox Town and vanished without a trace. She had been extremely angry, so she had picked a fight with those children. There were five or six of them, yet they still hadn’t been able to beat her. In the end, those children had gone crying home, asking their parents and elders to head over to punish her.

However, Pei Qian wasn’t stupid, so she had hurriedly run away. In any case, that dragonfly kite had cost her twenty copper coins, yet it had disappeared just like that. She was incredibly sad, and she had searched for the kite outside Fox Town for almost half a day.

Pei Qian didn’t feel confident as she lied, and she continued to observe Chen Ping’an’s expression as she made up her story. She was prepared to suffer punishment at any moment, and would simply protect her head when that time came. After all, it didn’t matter too much if Chen Ping’an kicked her tummy or pinched her arms. She would recover quickly from such punishment.

However, Chen Ping’an quietly listened to Pei Qian finish her explanation before saying, “Now that you’ve finished lying, you can go on and tell me the truth. Of course, you can choose not to as well. If that’s the case, then you can stay in the inn in the future. You won’t starve to death here.”

Pei Qian didn’t say anything.

Chen Ping’an walked over to the counter, and Jiu Niang glanced at the skinny little girl standing by the staircase before smiling and saying in a soft voice, “Young Master Chen, what did you teach her to make her become such a chaotic little devil? She almost flipped an alley in Fox Town upside down. She lied to the children and stole their snacks first, and her fibs also frightened the children to no end.

“They all became convinced that she was a princess from the capital of the Great Quan Empire, and it was just that she was living an impoverished life among the common people for the moment. However, there would eventually come a day when she returned to the imperial palace.

“After becoming familiar with each other, she led those children around and played wildly all day long. She pretty much became the leader of the children. However, they turned on each other due to a kite, and they eventually got into a big fight that couldn’t be resolved. In the end, I think she was hit a few times by an adult who rushed over to the scene.

“Ordinary children will usually calm down and stop causing trouble after experiencing something like this, yet she was the opposite, and she even claimed that she was a distant relative of mine. Relying on this, she spent some money to hire a few goons from Fox Town, and she got them to beat up that man who had hit her at night.

“She became even more unruly afterward, and the alley that most of the other children were from suddenly became haunted by a ghost. To say nothing of the children, even the adults didn’t dare to extinguish their oil lamps at night. Young Master Chen, you’re also aware that Fox Town is genuinely haunted by ghosts now, so several guards stayed up the entire night to get to the bottom of the situation. Only then did they capture this little girl causing trouble.

“And guess what? The little girl somehow got them under control as well. I don’t know what she said, but the guards were extremely polite when they brought her back. And what would you know? She genuinely appeared like a princess when she walked inside the inn guarded by those officers in official garb.”

Chen Ping’an could feel a headache forming as he turned around to look at Pei Qian. However, he didn’t see her there, and he instead only saw her legs. She was most likely sitting on the stairs.

Jiu Niang covered her mouth and chuckled, “This is a minor matter that can be resolved with some spare change, and will at most cost ten taels of silver. Please don’t get involved in this matter and just leave it to me to deal with. You have such a good temper, Young Master, so those people will definitely take advantage of this and exaggerate the situation, turning a minor matter into the most tragic matter in the world.”

“Add it to my bill; I’ll pay it with the room fees,” Chen Ping’an said in slight helplessness.

The smile disappeared from Jiu Niang’s face, and she put on a serious expression as she replied, “Young Master Chen is the savior of the Yao Clan, so how can we leave such trivial matters to you to deal with? Just how ashamed would that make me feel?”

Chen Ping’an shook his head and insisted, “It’s not the same thing. These two matters aren’t related.”

Jiu Niang still wanted to say something, yet Chen Ping’an had already continued, “Then I’ll have to trouble you with resolving this situation today.”

Jiu Niang nodded and gracefully walked out from behind the counter. She then pushed the half-assed accountant aside with her elbow, retrieving some loose silver from the drawer. After doing this, she walked to the entrance of the inn to appease the angry men and women.

There were all kinds of people in Fox Town, a border town of the Great Quan Empire. Not everyone was necessarily powerful, but being weak didn’t mean they were stupid. Many people came and went, so what interesting things hadn’t they seen and heard before? The residents of the town were quite spirited people. Moreover, it was entirely possible that there were powerful elites and cultivators concealing their identities and living in the town. For example, people like Jiu Niang and Third Grandpa.

A huge battle had taken place inside and outside the inn before, and the exchanges between Wei Xian and the group of cultivators had been especially spectacular and eye-catching. That had encapsulated the magnificent aura of a battle between cultivators. Gazing over from Fox Town, the residents of the town had certainly enjoyed the lively atmosphere. Apart from this, however, they had naturally felt respect and reverence as well.

Afterward, another group of impressive-looking cavalry had taken a detour and traveled north, further causing all kinds of rumors to spread like wildfire. Some people said that the foxy Jiu Niang, who liked to seduce men, was actually a real fox spirit.

Of course, those people were mostly married women from Fox Town.

Other people held even gloomier beliefs, positing that the lack of peace in Fox Town these past few years was due to the presence of demons in the area. However, a True Dragon had passed by recently, and the conflict between the demonic aura and the dragon aura had ultimately led to that battle to eliminate the fiends and slay the demons at the inn.

Jiu Niang swayed her hips and walked to the entrance of the inn, causing the flames of fury outside to instantly subside.

Meanwhile, Zhong Kui smiled and asked, “Since when did such a powerful faction appear in the cultivation world of Parasol Leaf Continent? Moreover, this is a cultivation world faction equivalent to sect-level immortal forces in the mountains.”

Zhong Kui chuckled to himself, seemingly convinced that his assessment was very novel and interesting.

There was a fearless man who had blocked a small army by himself, a bloodthirsty and hunchbacked old man, a saber-wielding man who had treated General Xu Qingzhou as a sparring partner, and a breathtakingly beautiful woman who had suppressed Esteemed Immortal Xu Tong with her sword kinesis technique.

Most importantly, the auras and cultivation bases of all four people had been rising throughout the battle.

Of course, there was also the young boy who would manipulate swords even though he wasn’t a Qi refiner. He was somewhat handsome, and had also stolen his thunder in front of Jiu Niang. Otherwise, Zhong Kui would have definitely treated him like a brother and drank and chatted merrily with him.

Chen Ping’an hesitated for a moment before deciding to truthfully reveal, “We’re not from Parasol Leaf Continent.”

“Hmm? Then perhaps you’re from Southern Whirl Continent?” Zhong Kui asked.

Southern Whirl Continent was extremely renowned, and even those in Parasol Leaf Continent known for their haughty nature and their fondness of belittling other elites in the world acknowledged the strength of Southern Whirl Continent, the continent that was located closest to Stalactite Mountain. This was because the Pure Confucian Chen Clan was located there, and a man called Chen Chun’an who essentially carried the title of “Pure Confucian” by himself.

Zhong Kui had admired Southern Whirl Continent for a long time already, and it was only due to his status in the academy and the teachings of his esteemed master that he hadn’t embarked on a journey to that continent even after so many years.

Apart from the Pure Confucian Chen Clan, there were also a number of historically famous landmarks in Southern Whirl Continent. Zhong Kui wanted to visit all of them. Parasol Leaf Continent was far too boring, in terms of both the cultivators in the mountains and the commoners outside the mountains. Zhong Kui didn’t like to travel around Parasol Leaf Continent.

Chen Ping’an pointed toward the north.

Zhong Kui’s eyes lit up, and he asked, “Are you familiar with Mountain Cliff Academy’s Mr. Qi?”

Chen Ping’an almost choked, and was at a complete loss regarding how to respond.

Zhong Kui laughed loudly and remarked, “It’s most likely the case that you knew Mr. Qi but Mr. Qi didn’t know you. Haha, it’s okay, it’s okay, both of us are the same.”

As for Eastern Treasured Vial Continent, the closest neighbor to the north, Zhong Kui didn’t take a fancy to this continent. There was probably only a junior brother and a senior brother who were worth a mention—Mountain Cliff Academy’s Qi Jingchun with his profound knowledge, and the Great Li Empire’s Imperial Preceptor Cui Chan with his incredible Go skills.

However, Zhong Kui had heard that Mr. Qi had passed away following the destruction and collapse of Jewel Small World. Even Zhong Kui’s esteemed master felt great pity about this, privately telling Zhong Kui that Mr. Qi definitely wouldn’t have suffered such humiliation if he had lived in Parasol Leaf Continent. Even if worse came to worst, he wouldn’t have ended up alone with the entire world as his enemy.

“Let’s drink and chat?” Chen Ping’an suggested with a smile.

Chen Ping’an was willing to accompany Zhong Kui and drink a pot of wine because of the impoverished scholar’s mention of Mr. Qi.

Zhong Kui glanced at Jiu Niang commanding the situation at the door before saying in a low voice, “Drinking is okay, but you’ve got to stand up for me if Jiu Niang starts to complain.”

“Naturally,” Chen Ping’an replied with a nod.

Zhong Kui grabbed two pots of green plum wine, and using his position as the half-assed accountant of the inn, he instructed the lame young boy to bring them a few plates of small snacks

He then sat cross-legged on the bench, not appearing very serious or dignified.

“I heard that you’re from the Great Subduing Academy?” Chen Ping’an asked.

Zhong Kui didn’t take this seriously, and replied with a casual smile, “Isn’t that right? And I’m even a noble scholar. Impressive, huh?”

Chen Ping’an offered him a toast

A toast to the title of noble scholar.

Zhong Kui hurriedly raised a hand to stop him, yet Chen Ping’an had already downed his bowl of wine in a single gulp. The noble scholar from the Great Subduing Academy wandering around the cultivation world sighed and asked, “Is this worth a toast and an entire bowl of wine? You just want to drink, don’t you?”

Chen Ping’an was reminded of the virtuous scholar Zhou Ju, whom he had come across in Water Combing Nation. Zhou Ju was completely different from Noble Scholar Zhong Kui. Back in Senior Song’s Sword Water Villa, Zhou Ju had displayed his ability to determine someone’s life and death simply by reciting a poem. It was as if his words were divine law.

They were both scholars, yet scholars who had read different books would most likely possess different demeanors as well.

Zhong Kui suddenly remembered something, and he asked, “The man who was blocking the Qi refiners outside the inn that night was wearing a suit of Dew Armor. If I didn’t observe wrong, it was most likely West Mountain, an armor pellet that’s described as one of the eight ancestral Dew Armors in the ancient texts of the Militarian Sect. Is it a family heirloom of yours?”

Chen Ping’an’s heart jolted slightly, and he shook his head and replied, “No, I purchased it at Stalactite Mountain’s Ganoderma Inn.”

“How many grain rain coins did you spend?” Zhong Kui asked.

Chen Ping’an shook his head and revealed, “None, I only spent some lesser heat coins. It wasn’t expensive, and I planned to give it to someone else in the future.”

Zhong Kui smiled and said, “Ganoderma Inn was unable to correctly appraise this treasure, so they allowed you to snatch a huge bargain. However, this is only normal. A mighty figure has placed a restriction on West Mountain, so if I hadn’t coincidentally read that secret book that’s close to falling apart in the academy and become familiar with the history of Militarian armor pellets, then I wouldn’t have recognized this Dew Armor either.

“Even so, I still needed to carefully examine it for a long time before I could confirm my suspicions. I suggest that you keep it. It’s incredibly valuable, and it also has a rich history and many interesting stories. It will be a pity to give it to someone else.”

Chen Ping’an didn’t comment on whether he would keep it or give it away, and he simply asked in curiosity, “Eight ancestral Dew Armors?”

Zhong Kui grabbed a peanut and popped it into his mouth before replying, “The full name of Dew Armor is Divine Dewbearing Armor. Let me ask you this. Who is the divinity? And what dew are they bearing?”

Chen Ping’an shook his head in response.

Zhong Kui smiled and explained, “In addition to West Mountain, the seven other ancestral Dew Armors were named Buddhist Land, Flower Bud, Mountain Ghost, Water Immortal, Iridescent Light, Colorful Garment, and Cloud Sea. However, most of them were damaged or destroyed in battle. Few remain, and records only exist for two of the eight ancestral armors, Mountain Ghost and Colorful Garment.

“West Mountain might look severely damaged, but it’s actually in good condition compared to Mountain Ghost and Colorful Garment which have managed to remain in this world with much difficulty. If you come across someone who’s able to recognize this treasure and understand its value, then feel free to ask for as much money as you want. I guarantee that you’ll definitely make a killing.

“However, these suits of ancestral armor have ultimately lost their fundamental power, with only less than one-tenth of their defensive power remaining. This is a true shame. We’ve got to drink a bowl of wine in commiseration.”

Zhong Kui tilted his head and raised his wine bowl, downing its contents in a single gulp.

Chen Ping’an had no option but to drink a bowl of wine as well.

Zhong Kui voluntarily started to discuss the battle from a few days ago, saying, “Neither of the two princes are good people, so remember to be careful and take it easy if you decide to stay in the Great Quan Empire for the next while. The regions outside the mountain naturally have their own rules, and there’s no shortage of strong people outside the mountains either. For example, the third prince hit a brick wall and suffered huge losses when he came across you.”

Chen Ping’an nodded. “I beg to agree.”

Zhong Kui suddenly chuckled and said, “You were fighting to the death with the imperial guardian of the Great Quan Empire that night, yet you’re sitting here and agreeing with my every word right now. This is quite a strange feeling. What, you’ve suffered at the hands of the academy in your hometown, so you’re afraid of my title as a noble scholar?”

Chen Ping’an couldn’t help but chuckle in speechlessness.

“Before the fight broke out that day, you told the little duke that principles are principles no matter who speaks them. I think this is a very good viewpoint,” Zhong Kui continued. “Even though you were quite forceful and domineering, this was reasonable in the context of the situation. You didn’t put a foot wrong. In reality, however, you were still a little… unreasonable.”

Chen Ping’an drank a sip of wine and replied, “I was left with no other choice.”

Zhong Kui nodded and said, “Indeed, that’s just how the world is. If one is living in a manure pit, then one will believe that eating shit is the most natural thing in the world. In fact, they might become unhappy if someone offers them proper food.”

Chen Ping’an was stunned upon hearing this. Was this genuinely something that a noble Confucian scholar would say?

Zhong Kui sighed with emotion and continued, “However, even if the world decays into a manure pit, this shouldn’t be a reason for us to eat shit.”

Chen Ping’an was holding a chopstick full of food in one hand and his wine bowl in his other hand, and he couldn’t help but feel slightly awkward at this moment.

Zhong Kui noticed Chen Ping’an’s unease, so he hurriedly consoled, “We’re obviously not eating shit and drinking piss right now. It’s all delectable food and delicious wine. Don’t worry and keep eating.”

Chen Ping’an silently continued to eat and drink.

He wasn’t exactly able to keep up with Zhong Kui’s train of thought.

Chen Ping’an suddenly missed Little Baoping at this moment.

Standing at the entrance of the inn, Jiu Niang was able to resolve the problem in no time.

Right now, this inn was not only mystical but also sinister in the eyes of the commoners from Fox Town. Thus, they didn’t even have the courage to storm inside the inn to cause a commotion.

Chen Ping’an thanked Jiu Niang before walking over to the stairs. Pei Qian was still sitting there and drawing circles on the floor, and she obediently stood up and followed Chen Ping’an after he called her over. Her head was lowered and her eyes were downcast, and it looked as if she were aware of her wrongdoings.

However, Chen Ping’an didn’t even need to use his brain to know what the skinny little girl was thinking. She was definitely smiling in her mind, and he could already envision her air of arrogance when she swaggered into Fox Town again next time.

Chen Ping’an sat down after entering his room. Pei Qian didn’t dare to sit down, and she closed the door before standing on the opposite side of the table.

Chen Ping’an didn’t beat around the bush, and he directly said, “You can stay here in the future, I’ll give the inn enough money to raise you.”

Pei Qian suddenly looked up in anger, yet she immediately lowered her head again when she saw Chen Ping’an’s cold and calm expression. “I was wrong, I won’t dare to do this again. I’ll go to Fox Town and buy Little Mei a kite. I’ll buy her a big and colorful butterfly that costs forty copper coins. It looks much better than the dragonfly.

“Little Mei and the others have already wanted to play with this kite for a long time, but even eating a skewer of tanghulu is like celebrating New Year for them, so they naturally couldn’t afford the kite. It’s going to be their lucky day.”

“Where did you get the money from?” Chen Ping’an asked.

Pei Qian looked up and blinked a few times, replying, “I borrowed it from Jiu Niang. I didn’t borrow much, and I only took two taels of silver in total.”

“And how are you going to repay this?” Chen Ping’an asked.

“We’ll add this to your bill first, and I’ll do whatever you tell me to in the future and slowly repay it to you,” Pei Qian answered in a timid voice.

“You can stay here in the future, and you can do odd jobs in the inn to slowly repay this money to Jiu Niang,” Chen Ping’an said.

Pei Qian furrowed her brows as tears welled up in her eyes.

Chen Ping’an pointed at the door and instructed in a calm voice, “Get out.”

Pei Qian furiously wiped her eyes and shouted, “I know how it is! You’ve never liked me, but you’ve always liked that little bookworm called Cao Qinglang! You were always worried about him, and if you had the choice, you would have definitely abandoned me and chosen to bring Cao Qinglang with you instead!

“You wouldn’t treat him like this if he made a mistake, and you would only explain things to him in a calm manner. Not only that, but you would also tell him not to become like me! Chen Ping’an, you’re always trying to think of ways to get rid of me!”

Pei Qian ran out and angrily slammed the door shut behind her. She then returned to her own room.