Unsheathed

Right now, it was as if the two people in Lady Bishu’s residence in Peeling Mountain had walked into a game of Go where victory and defeat were extremely difficult to determine.

There were three options, and the first was for Chen Ping’an and the scholar to fight to the death. Only one person would emerge victorious, and the loser would most likely suffer death.

The second option was for one party to relent. For example, Chen Ping’an could choose to shoulder the consequences of Lady Bishu’s death, or the scholar could play nice and not use Chen Ping’an as a scapegoat.

The third option was for both of them to take a step back, leaving this game of Go on Peeling Mountain. In other words, one would uphold the morality and justice of the cultivation world, while the other would make money in harmony. Afterward, they would both turn their blades toward the five remaining demons of the Six Sages.

“You’re not a demon? You’re a yin spirit of Malicious Ghost Valley who engulfs other yin spirits?” Chen Ping’an asked.

The scholar patted his sleeves and huffed, “I’m a living person, a living and breathing person! My pure yang righteous energy is as real as can be, and I was simply using an unorthodox technique to scare you when I subdued the demon just then. After all, how can one travel through the cultivation world without some techniques to conceal one’s identity?”

“Then should we form an alliance? Should we go and target that Dust Warding Primordial Lord?” Chen Ping’an asked.

There was a strange look in the feeble scholar’s eyes.

Chen Ping’an glanced at the skeleton of Lady Bishu on the ground and came to a sense of realization. It was his fault for not understanding the situation and exposing some clues.

Since Lady Bishu was already dead, how could her residence in Peeling Mountain not have any accumulated wealth? As such, did it make sense for them to leave empty-handed after entering this mountain of treasure? It was clear that Chen Ping’an wasn’t a cultivator accustomed to looting other people.

Chen Ping’an changed the topic and asked with a smile, “With how you’ve been plotting and scheming, it’s clear that you’re familiar with the secret treasure storage of this Moon Hall. How about we split the spoils fifty-fifty?”

The scholar shook his head and replied, “We should split the spoils thirty-seventy at Peeling Mountain, with you taking thirty and me taking seventy. You simply squatted on the wall and watched on, so giving you thirty percent of the spoils is already very generous. Regarding the other demons, we’ll determine how to split the spoils depending on our abilities and taking into account our contributions.”

Chen Ping’an shook his head and said, “Forty-sixty.”

The scholar was extremely hesitant, and after mulling over this for a while, he pointed at the skeleton on the ground and said with a reluctant expression, “Even though the skeleton of Lady Bishu isn’t the white jade skeleton of the other ghosts and yin entities, she’s absorbed the essence of the sun and the moon in Malicious Ghost Valley for almost a thousand years, so she’s already tempered her skeleton to a state superior to the golden branch and jade leaves of earth immortal cultivators. This is extremely precious, so we’ll split the remaining treasures thirty-seventy after I give this to you. I’m showing you enough sincerity, right?”

Chen Ping’an chuckled in ridicule and sniggered, “This item is like a hot potato, so accepting it will be equivalent to smearing mud on my crotch. I’ll be guilty even if I’m not. That being the case, shouldn’t this be even more reason for us to split the treasures forty-sixty?”

In addition, the most valuable part of a mountain spirit was naturally its demon core.

However, the scholar had most likely engulfed this when devouring Lady Bishu just them. In other words, he had already made a huge gain.

There was a look of realization on the scholar’s face as he patted his head and said in apology, “That was my bad. Alright, then let’s split the treasures forty-sixty, and we’ll just leave this skeleton here. Let’s go, I’ll bring you to loot the curious and secret treasures of Peeling Mountain. The entrance is under Lady Bishu’s mandarin duck bed. This toad didn’t possess a very high cultivation base, but thanks to her lover’s rewards and the generosity of the five other demons, she’s actually accumulated quite an impressive amount of treasures as well.”

The scholar walked into the residence first.

Chen Ping’an jumped off the wall after placing Sword Immortal back inside the scabbard on his back, and he walked toward the residence behind the scholar. However, he also flicked his sleeve and placed the skeleton of Lady Bishu inside his minimization treasure.

The scholar stopped and turned around, a look of astonishment on his face.

Chen Ping’an smiled faintly and explained, “Won’t it be a bad result if we accidentally let the spirits of Peeling Mountain see this? We’ll end up alerting our opponents, and that will cause significant issues for the grand plan to kill the five demons. That being the case, it’s better for me to retrieve Lady Bishu’s corpse first.”

“Then perhaps I should thank you?” the scholar chuckled in anger.

Chen Ping’an paid no heed to the scholar’s words. He observed his surroundings, and he saw many precious curios in the large and open room. However, the smell of makeup was too strong, and there was actually a debauched piece of erotic painting on the wall. The painting was extremely large, measuring at least three meters in height, but the men and women were fortunately only as large as peanuts.

There were depictions of emperors making love with their concubines, men indulging themselves in brothels, and even a couple in Daoist robes with the man possessing the demeanour of a transcendent being and the woman filled with a divine glow. It appeared as if the couple were practicing a dual cultivation method in bed. There were also many regular script characters packed closely together on the painting, providing notes for each illustrated scene. Perhaps these were so-called brilliant books, the type that Zhu Lian enjoyed reading?

The scholar kicked the huge mandarin duck bed, but he controlled his force in a gentle manner, causing the bed to remain silent as it slid more than a dozen meters across the room.

He squatted down after doing this, and he lowered his head and examined a round piece of metal essence that was embedded in the floor. This piece of metal essence was as large as a basin and as smooth as a mirror, and it appeared as if the scholar was trying to solve this mechanism.

The scholar glanced back, and he couldn’t help but feel angry. This young wanderer dressed in azure and wearing a bamboo hat was truly quite impressive. Like a thief who wasn’t willing to miss a single item, he not only took the six immortal paintings that possessed secrets about cultivation, but he even grabbed all of the bottles and containers on Lady Bishu’s makeup table. What in the world was this? Had he never seen money in his life?

However, the scholar quickly turned around and continued to observe the strange piece of metal essence that was unsullied like a treasure mirror. He furrowed his brows in a gloomy manner. The young wanderer knew that they were going to enter the treasure chamber of Moon Hall afterward, a place that was filled with genuine treasures, so why was he still looting all of these worthless items without restraint? Perhaps he had a minimization treasure? After all, pocket treasures couldn’t hold such a large number of items.

Chen Ping’an continued to rifle through the chests and cabinets as he asked, “You said that Lady Bishu was a seed from the Moon Palace just then — what does that mean?”

The scholar lightly ran one hand across the perimeter of the “round mirror,” forming seals with his other hand and performing non-stop calculations in his mind. “There exists the sun and the moon between heaven and earth, with the moon representing the essence of yin energy,” the scholar replied casually.

“It’s said that there was a Moon Palace in the primordial Heavenly Court, and its name was the Vast Cold Palace. There were osmanthus trees in the Moon Palace, and there was also a rabbit spirit and a toad. These beings are the old ancestors of the Moon Palace seeds, and the cool mists and gentle smoke, as well as the permeating immortal qi, allowed these seeds to eventually become spirits and deities. For example, Lady Bishu was a descendant of the toad from the Moon Palace. However, just like the myriad of descendants of flood dragons, these descendants also possess different levels, with the gulf between them potentially being huge. Peeling Mountain’s Lady Bishu was a relatively passable demon and Moon Palace seed.”

“You’re a very knowledgeable person,” Chen Ping’an praised.

Chen Ping’an didn’t walk over to the metal essence as the scholar examined the mechanism, and he maintained a distance of ten paces between them as he continued to look through the items in the room. He was wordlessly expressing his attitude toward the scholar.

A moment later, Chen Ping’an sat down on a rosewood chair.

Hearing Chen Ping’an’s praise, the scholar shook his head and remarked with emotion, “Life is limited, while knowledge is unlimited.”[1]

“To pursue that which is unlimited with that which is limited, such is a tiresome task indeed,” Chen Ping’an casually continued.[2]

The scholar turned around and glanced at Chen Ping’an.

Chen Ping’an crossed his legs and flicked his wrist, retrieving the jade bamboo folding fan that Cui Dongshan had gifted him and lightly rocking it back and forth.

The scholar had already turned back around, and he extended a finger and gently tapped the surface of the round and mirror-like metal essence, causing sections of it to slowly rise up.

In the end, the metal essence transformed into a structure that looked like a palace. It was as if pagodas were rising from the bright moon.

Chen Ping’an hurriedly returned his folding fan to his pocket treasure, and he didn’t have time to worry about taboos or whatnot anymore as he walked to the scholar’s side and focused his gaze on the metal essence that had been smooth and flawless a moment ago. When looking at it from a distance just then, it had appeared like a smooth mirror that had been tempered hundreds upon thousands of times. However, who knew that it was actually this mystical?

What astonished Chen Ping’an even more was the fact that he still felt like the metal essence had been too smooth and flawless just then, regardless of how he focused his gaze on it right now. However, the scholar frowned and extended his hand, pushing down the palace that had its gates tightly shut. The metal essence became flat and smooth again, and Chen Ping’an didn’t avert his gaze as he clicked his tongue in wonder. Such exquisite craftsmanship actually existed in the world?

Chen Ping’an had no time to worry about whether he was making himself appear suspicious or not as he said, “Rest assured, I won’t stoop so low as to launch a surprise attack on you.”

The scholar sat down cross-legged and said slowly, “There’s no doubt that this is an immortal treasure crafted by Mohist Mechanists, and it’s clearly quite old already. How about you keep this treasure, and we’ll go with a thirty-seventy split after we enter the treasure chamber?”

“Deal,” Chen Ping’an nodded and said without hesitation.

The scholar suddenly smiled, and his fingers became a blur as he tapped the surface of the smooth metal essence. A miniature palace instantly rose into the air once more. Moreover, the entrance of the palace opened slowly, causing the entire structure to become enveloped in flowing light that illuminated their faces.

The floorboards started to creak afterward, and the scholar reached down and retrieved the dazzling orb, making him look much like an immortal holding a bright moon as he rotated his wrist and rubbed his hands together. The palace reflected in the orb appeared like an immortal mystical realm that had retreated back into the earth.

A secret passage opened up in the floorboards, and it didn’t appear too dark as a soft yellow glow gently swayed back and forth. This was most likely similar to the immortal techniques that Mural City used to light up the city with lanterns.

The scholar handed the dazzling orb to Chen Ping’an and repeated, “We’ll split the treasures thirty-seventy. We’ve already agreed to this.”

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

The two of them paused slightly.

One person handed over the item, and the other person accepted the item, and they were both using a single hand as they did this.

The scholar smiled faintly, and his other sleeve that was resting beside him swayed slightly, causing some peculiar phenomenon to calm down.

Chen Ping’an’s hand, which was hidden inside his sleeve and holding the walnut bracelet, also loosened its grip.

The immortal treasure changed hands.

Chen Ping’an placed the dazzling orb inside his minimization treasure before following the scholar into the underground passageway.

The passageway that snaked down into the earth appeared slightly damp, and there was also concentrated yin energy and dark moss growing on the walls. This was as expected of a secret den created by a Moon Palace seed.

Chen Ping’an and the scholar eventually arrived at the stone cave located at the end of the passageway.

There were two skeletons sitting side-by-side, with one taller and one shorter, and one bulkier and one skinnier. They looked like Dao partners, and they were holding hands tightly. One could vaguely detect that they had left the world peacefully.

The man was wearing the royal crown of emperors and dressed in a yellow dragon robe, but the woman wasn’t wearing a phoenix crown and dressed in palatial garment. Instead, she was simply wearing an immortal robe that looked like a Dao robe but wasn’t actually a Dao robe.

Apart from the two skeletons, there were also three chests stacked together in the corner of the stone cave.

The scholar frowned and remained silent as he looked at the two skeletons.

“Is this some ruler who was defeated in the great battle that took place at Skeleton Shoal?” Chen Ping’an asked.

The scholar nodded and replied, “It’s extremely likely that this is the ruler of the Ridge Mountain Nation, someone who was a despondent and unfavored illegitimate prince in his youth. The Lofty Moral Sect was the biggest sect in the southern region of the Northern Complete Reed Continent at the time, and the successful cultivators in the mountain were all respectfully referred to as hidden immortals.

“Tracing the roots of the conflict between the two great empires, it becomes clear that the calamity was actually born from internal conflict in the Lofty Moral Sect. However, the immortal sects of later generations all treat this as a secret and don’t announce the truth to the outside world.

“The ruler of the Ridge Mountain Nation had ambitions of cultivation during his youth, and he had concealed his identity and visited the immortals in the mountains. Including him, the Lofty Moral Sect had recruited thirty direct disciples that year. There hadn’t been anything out of the ordinary in the beginning, and it had simply been a typical case of Green Mountain Peak’s ancestral hall recruiting disciples.

“However, the other immortal forces in the Northern Complete Reed Continent noticed something peculiar after just sixty years, with half of those disciples being prodigious cultivators who had the potential to become earth immortals. Meanwhile, the remaining half of the thirty disciples also had their own fortunes and fated opportunities that couldn’t be disregarded.

“As a result, future generations let their minds run wild as they thought about that recruitment ceremony, with one poem stating, ‘The sound of drums open the golden gate, thirty immortal prodigies ascending Green Mountain Peak.’[3] The ruler of Ridge Mountain Nation was one of these thirty immortals, and he could be regarded as extremely talented even among his fellow disciples.

“However, it was a shame that the royal family members who could ascend the throne of the Ridge Mountain Nation passed away one after another, forcing him to leave the mountains. He had already reached the Dragon Gate Tier at that time, but he still chose to sever his cultivation base and ascend the throne. The unofficial history books that are rife in the streets and alleys claimed that he had a close relationship with an immortal nun from the Lofty Moral Sect’s Phoenix Song Peak, but this was a claim that I didn’t believe before. Now, however, it seems like these history books were telling the truth.”

The scholar heaved a long sigh and turned his gaze away from the two skeletons. The dragon robe looked valuable, but it was only an ordinary mortal treasure. The dragon aura of the man had already been absorbed, or perhaps it had slowly dispersed with the passing of time. After all, the dragon aura would disperse following the collapse of a notion.

As for the female cultivator, the immortal robe of the Lofty Moral Sect that she was wearing wasn’t an immortal treasure either. Rather, it was an ordinary immortal robe that all disciples of the sect would receive from the ancestral hall. This mortal ruler and the female cultivator from Phoenix Song Peak were presumably nostalgic people who cherished the past.

The scholar walked over and opened the three chests. One chest was filled with thousands of dazzling snowflake coins, and another chest held an ancient stone stele which was inscribed with a dense array of seal script characters. As for the chest that was placed at the very bottom, there was only a single item inside, that being a small stone mortar that reached knee height. This was no different from the stone mortars that ordinary mortals used to pound glutinous rice.

The scholar’s expression changed slightly, but he quickly shook his head lightly, clearly skeptical about the suspicion in his mind.

Chen Ping’an smiled and asked, “This isn’t the stone mortar of the legends, right? The one that the rabbit spirit used to pound medicinal herbs on the Moon Palace?”

“Then how about we… make a bet?” the scholar suggested with a chuckle.

“What are we betting?” Chen Ping’an asked.

The scholar pointed at the stone mortar in the chest and replied, “We’ll count this item as seventy and the remaining items as thirty. However, I’ll let you choose first.”

Chen Ping’an didn’t hesitate at all, and he was just about to choose the thirty.

However, the scholar suddenly interrupted and said, “Don’t choose yet. I take that back.”

He launched a gentle palm strike, causing the stone mortar to instantly disintegrate into dust and reveal a white jade bowl. There was slight pity in his voice as he lamented, “Sure enough, this white jade bowl was the Dao attainment location of Lady Bishu. However, because she’s a Moon Palace seed, she decided to envelop this white jade bowl in a stone mortar presumably as a good omen.”

The scholar picked up the bowl and turned it around. There were eight tiny characters in regular script on the bottom, reading, “Lofty morals hidden immortals, offering wine to invite the moon.”

This was a ritual vessel from the ancestral hall of the Lofty Moral Sect.

It was only a measly spirit tool.

However, this white jade bowl naturally held great significance for Lady Bishu who had embarked on the path of cultivation and become a toad spirit.

“Are you going to choose that Dragon Gate Stele, or are you going to choose that chest of snowflake coins?” Chen Ping’an asked.

The scholar raised a brow.

Seal scripts were also categorized by age, and there were some ancient seal scripts that ordinary cultivators wouldn’t be able to read at all unless they hailed from powerful immortal sects with the relevant inheritances.

That being the case, how could this young outsider recognize the characters “Dragon Gate” which were written in ancient seal script on the stone stele?

The scholar chuckled to himself.

This underground cave was truly a good location to fight to the death.

1. An extract from Zhuangzi’s Nourishing the Lord of Life. Zhuangzi was an influential Chinese philosopher who lived around the 4th century BCE during the Warring States period. ☜

2. This is the second half of the extract. ☜

3. This is a line from the poem 放榜日作 by Wei Zhuang. ☜