Unsheathed

Chen Ping’an and Pei Qian arrived at Wasp Tail Alley where they met up with Wei Xian and the others.

Chen Ping’an didn’t come across any item that he especially wanted to purchase in Wasp Tail Ferry Station. He had only purchased a sagely picture book for Pei Qian. The print quality of this picture book was extremely high, and each character was proper and filled with spirit.

Just when Chen Ping’an planned to leave the ferry station, a young man holding an empty wine pot wandered out from the alley. He was tall and burly, and there was a belt around his waist that looked a lot like a rusty chain.

Chen Ping’an’s eyes narrowed, yet his expression quickly returned to normal. He pretended not to see anything, deciding that it was a better choice to avoid potential trouble.

Unexpectedly, however, the burly young man briskly walked over upon catching sight of Chen Ping’an. He pointed at Chen Ping’an, as if he vaguely recognized him from somewhere. However, he couldn’t recall the name, so his expression immediately became a little flustered.

Interaction with this burly young man was inevitable, so Chen Ping’an could only smile and wave in greeting, using the official dialect of Eastern Treasured Vial Continent as he said, “We crossed paths with each other once at the entrance of the small town. I was inside the small town with the gatekeeper back then, while you were standing outside the town gate. Your memory is truly impressive to recognize me after so long.”

The burly young man nodded with a smile, appearing quite delighted as he replied, “Yes, that’s right, it’s you. Apart from the gatekeeper, you were the first local I came across. Who would have thought that we would meet again here? You’ve changed a lot since that time, so I didn’t dare to confirm my suspicions in the beginning. Also, you said that my memory is impressive, but I feel like your memory isn’t bad either. In fact, it’s even better than mine.”

The burly young man with a small stubble saw the two pots of well-water immortal wine in Chen Ping’an’s hands, so he continued with a smile, “You got the short end of the stick purchasing this well-water immortal wine. The most authentic well-water immortal wine is made using well water from the three oldest wells in this area. The asshole shopkeeper who sold you these two pots of wine dug a dozen or so new wells himself. In other words, the flavor of this immortal wine is not authentic. Let’s go, I’ll bring you over to buy some genuine well-water immortal wine. Otherwise, you would have wasted your trip to Wasp Tail Ferry Station.”

After taking a single step, however, the burly young man suddenly chuckled and said, “No, forget about it. The cultivation world is filled with dangers, so it’s better for the two of us to stay further away from each other.”

The burly young man gave Chen Ping’an the addresses of two wine shops and continued, “You can head over to these wine shops by yourself if you want to purchase some authentic well-water immortal wine. I’ll excuse myself and remove any suspicion that I’m offering unsolicited hospitality while harboring ill intent, lest the two of us have to guard against each other the entire time.”

He cupped his fists and farewelled Chen Ping’an, striding away to buy wine from someplace else.

He was a straightforward person.

Chen Ping’an sighed in his mind.

The iron chain that the burly young man was using as a belt was clearly the thick iron chain from Jewel Small World’s Iron Lock Well. Back then, before Jewel Small World shattered and collapsed, Chen Ping’an had heard other people mention that the huge fated opportunity at the Iron Lock Well had been obtained by someone.

Apart from the treasures belonging to the Five Elements, a myriad of other treasures had been concealed in the tiny Jewel Small World. Among these treasures, five or six of them had been extremely precious, including the iron chain, Song Jixin’s green gourd, the mandrill teapot, and a radiant evil-suppressing mirror.

Of these five or six treasures, the dragon-binding chain from the Iron Lock Well was the most valuable. After all, this chain was a demon-binding chain that had once bound the last True Dragon in the world. Thus, one could imagine just how incredible the quality of this chain was.

Right now, the burly young man had already refined the dragon-binding chain into his bonded item. Moreover, he was wearing it around in public just like that. Either he was extremely powerful and brave, or he had a very strong backer to deter any ill-intentioned individuals. Of course, it was also possible that both were true at the same time.

Back in the small town all those years ago, that was the first time Chen Ping’an had even interacted with people from the outside world.

There was Sun Scorch Mountain’s Mountain-Moving Ape, Dawn Cloud Mountain’s Cai Jinjian, Light Breeze City’s Xu Clan, and Old Dragon City’s Fu Nanhua.

Chen Ping’an had faced one perilous danger after another, and that period of time had been the most difficult in his life. He had felt utter helplessness back then, even more helpless than all those times afterward, including his conflict with the Nascent Tier flood dragon in the Flood Dragon Trench and having to face off against the Ascension Tier Du Mao in Old Dragon City.

However, just like those heartfelt words that Lu Baixiang had spoken in the small courtyard at that time, everything would change if one came across a flower amid an endless expanse of desolation. It would be a life-changing encounter.

Chen Ping’an encountered her, a girl whose smile made him feel like the richest person in the whole wide world.

How could he not like her? How could he bear to not cherish and think about her?

The last time he had drank wine with Fan Er on the rooftop of the medicine shop in Old Dragon City, Chen Ping’an had said, “The girl I like is the most beautiful girl in the world. And what’s even more beautiful is when she pretends she doesn’t know I’m looking at her; she just sits there with her face turned to the side and her eyelashes trembling slightly.”

Fan Er was dumbfounded by Chen Ping’an’s words, and he asked, “Chen Ping’an, just how bloody much do you like her?!”

Chen Ping’an was a bit drunk at the time, so he simply held his Sword Nurturing Gourd and chuckled like a fool.

————

While Chen Ping’an set off to look for some authentic well-water immortal wine, the burly young man decided that he was unwilling to run into the young boy who hailed from Jewel Small World again, lest he raise any suspicions. With this in mind, he purposely chose another wine shop to go to. An old man with a concealed aura silently appeared and walked over to the burly young man, informing him about some minor matter.

The burly young man chuckled in anger and remarked, “Are these people stupid? Are they truly willing to die for money? Go and deliver a message to the person in charge. Tell them to stop being so stupid unless they want to become an appetizer for other people.”

He initially wanted to say something else, and he wanted to seize this opportunity to address the terrible culture in Wasp Tail Ferry Station. However, upon thinking of the many challenges that vagrant cultivators and itinerant cultivators faced in life, he shook his head in helplessness and continued, “And we’ll leave it at that—there’s no need to explicitly warn them. Everything will be decided by their own fate and choices. One thing though: no one in Wasp Tail Ferry Station is allowed to provoke the young man I came across just now.

“In addition, you can borrow this chance to privately help Old Man Liu pay off his debts. Abide by the rules, and pay exactly how many lesser heat coins are owed. After you complete this task, find an opportunity to strike some fear into Old Man Liu and have him quit being such a pathetic gambling addict. In any case, he has enough wealth to live the rest of his life in comfort.”

“What if Skinny Liu can’t help himself and gambles again?” the old man asked in a careful voice.

“Then it’s his own fault. I can help him once, but I can’t help him forever,” the burly young man replied.

The old man wanted to say something, yet he couldn’t help but hesitate.

The burly young man shook his head and said, “Even though that imperial seal is genuine, ordinary Qi refiners would do well to avoid it altogether. Master has said before that one shouldn’t underestimate the remnant fortune of a destroyed empire. That imperial seal pertains to profound fortune and calamity, and the crown prince of Wenjing Nation’s Imperial Jiang Clan is still cultivating in the mountains, after all.

“As for the person who’s hellbent on collecting all seventeen imperial treasures of Wenjing Nation, he’s walking the path of aiding the imperial clan. However, this path is suitable for him but not for us. If a person can’t contain their greed and desires regarding this matter, then they’ll be of the same ilk as Old Man Liu. In fact, they might even be inferior. As Qi refiners, we’re already being unreasonable by cultivating to obtain longevity. If we further provoke the heavens, then we’ll truly be begging for a swift death.”

The old man nodded in understanding and left.

This elderly subordinate who was living a quiet and concealed life in Wasp Tail Ferry Station was none other than the Golden Core Tier cultivator who had immediately noticed Chen Ping’an’s impressive aura back then.

The burly young man sighed again and again, and only after purchasing a pot of wine and drinking the most authentic and rich well-water immortal wine did his mood finally improve a slight amount.

When he was still little, a powerful cultivator passing by the beach had taken a fancy to him, telling his clan that he possessed extremely good aptitude. The powerful cultivator asked to take him in as a disciple, and his parents happily nodded and agreed. This was because the elders in his clan had initially concluded that he was unsuitable for cultivation.

As a result, he was regarded as trash by those in the same generation as him, especially those who were relatively mature for their age. He was the laughing stock of the clan. Thankfully, he left at a young age and was brought to Wasp Tail Ferry Station by his elderly master. He moved into a rundown residence located at the tail end of Narrow Wasp Alley.

His cultivation base advanced in leaps and bounds, and he also managed to obtain a fair amount of fated opportunities. However, the burly young man had no intention of returning home in splendor and enjoying the euphoria of finally being able to stand up straight and hold his head up high. He didn’t want to return to that lofty clan with incredibly strict rules. Instead, he simply wanted to go back in secret to visit his parents and thank them for raising him. That would be enough for him.

However, there was also a big sister from the eldest branch of the clan whom he was also very thankful for. A drop of kindness should be repaid with a spring of goodwill—people in the mountains were very fond of uttering this phrase, yet few people genuinely meant what they said.

Thus, regardless of how much his master’s heart had ached, he had still insisted on giving away that little creature that he had inadvertently caught, offering it to his big sister as a congratulatory gift for her wedding. It was said that this had caused a huge stir in the clan, and many people found it completely inconceivable.

To not owe money and to keep a clear conscience…

The burly young man felt like this was quite good.

He started to drink wine.

The female shopkeeper of this wine shop was an ordinary-looking woman who was honest and hard-working. She continued the tradition of wine-making that was passed down by her ancestors, and she also watched over the old well where they drew water from. However, she wasn’t very good at business, and she somehow managed to keep her wine shop as a small business even though she should have raked in bucketloads of money every day.

After all these years, the burly young man had personally watched her grow from a gentle big sister into a young married woman. She sold wine year after year, and she would still flush red with embarrassment and irritation when she came across customers who spoke in a flirtatious manner.

However, the first signs of wrinkles had already started to appear near the corners of her eyes. When he saw this, the burly young man felt thankful that he had come across his master. Perhaps he would still look the same as right now when even the shopkeeper’s grandchildren became old geezers.

Even though Wasp Tail Ferry Station was an immortal ferry station, there were still a significant number of mortal residents who couldn’t escape the cycle of birth, aging, sickness, and death.

His master had always told him that these people who started graying at sixty and could rarely reach seventy were the foundation that supported the small handful of cultivators in the mountains.

Without them, so-called cultivation would be nothing more than a pagoda built on quicksand.

The burly young man didn’t think much about this. He was too lazy to ponder on these things. In any case, he liked to go with the flow when it came to cultivation—he wouldn’t actively harm others, yet he wouldn’t be merciful either if others sought to harm him. Because of this, his master always encouraged him to choose one of the emperors in the three neighboring nations to support. There was the Imperial Tang Clan of Azure Phoenix Nation, the Imperial Yan Clan of Lofty Sky Nation, and the Imperial He Clan of Fortune Mountain Nation.

After he chose one of the three nations to support, he could create an alias and enter the imperial court to temper his Dao Heart. That way, his experiences would be like a medicine that treated his internal demons, preventing the need for him to become desperate when he eventually advanced to the Nascent Tier someday.

However, the burly young man kept delaying his decision, not choosing any nation to support. After all, what was so interesting about interacting with rulers and officials all day every day?

The emperor of Azure Phoenix Nation was excessively extravagant, and he cared greatly about his face and liked to compare wealth with immortals from the mountains.

The emperor of Fortune Mountain Nation had strange interests, and his imperial harem included the astonishing beings known as the Five Seductresses. The atmosphere in the imperial court was absolutely filthy.

Meanwhile, the emperor of Lofty Sky Nation possessed wild ambitions and a strong desire to make his nation more prosperous. He was extremely ruthless, and even more calculating than disciples from the School of Commercialism.

In fact, it was said that the emperor of Lofty Sky Nation had personally authored Money, A Medicinal Herb, an incredibly popular book that contained the following line: “Money, sweet in taste and hot in nature; both a poison and a medicine, it can yield divine results; money can work miracles and make the world go around.” This line lay bare the fundamental thought of the School of Commercialism.[1]

The burly young man drank a pot of wine before paying his bill. He also filled his wine gourd with a few dozen liters of well-water immortal wine and tied it to his waist before striding away. In addition to this, he also asked for two small pots of fine wine, which he now held in his hand.

The shopkeeper didn’t find this strange at all. Everyone in Wasp Tail Ferry Station knew that this burly young man wasn’t a simple person, so it was only natural that no one dared to provoke him. After settling down in a residence near the tail end of Narrow Wasp Alley at a very young age, the burly young man never provoked other people either. It was rumored that he was looking after half of Narrow Wasp Alley and collecting rent on behalf of someone else.

In any case, those who could afford a residence in Narrow Wasp Alley were either wealthy cultivators or pretentious nobles and officials from the three nations. The remaining people who owned residences in Narrow Wasp Alley were all local forces. When it came to this latter group, they harbored a deep respect for the burly young man whom they had watched grow up.

1. Money, A Medicinal Herb (钱本草) is a legitimate essay written by Zhang Yue, a Chinese historian, military general, poet, and politician. The author has altered the original text slightly, but the meaning remains largely the same. ☜