Unsheathed

Chen Ping’an chose to stay in the shrine and practice standing meditation. He remained from late night all the way until sunrise the next morning.

Chen Ping’an opened his eyes.

The two halves of the broken jade hairpin were still on the ground. However, Chen Ping’an didn’t touch them from the beginning to the end.

Chen Ping’an stood up and leaped onto the wall before taking his leave from the shrine.

He left the two halves of the jade hairpin — an immortal tool that had lost its spiritual energy — on the ground just like that.

He made his way to Green Cottage Town.

He didn’t go to the Old Dragon Cave, a place not guarded by its owner anymore, to search for leftover treasures.

This was naturally because he didn’t trust the scholar.

Moreover, the Sea Turning Primordial Lord had already become the scholar’s servant, so where exactly had she been when the scholar had returned to the shrine by himself just then? What had she been doing? The answer was extremely evident.

Even if it wasn’t necessarily the truth.

Chen Ping’an would also make decisions and act according to the worst-case scenarios in his mind.

However, he suddenly changed his route and started to travel in another direction.

After a long time, the scholar surprisingly returned to the water goddess shrine and stood on the steps in front of the main hall, looking down at the two segments of the jade hairpin as he shook his head and lamented, “It’s a pity that you actually didn’t take them. Otherwise, it could have blown your minimization treasure into smithereens.”

He carefully picked up the broken jade hairpin and placed it inside his sleeve, not his minimization treasure, before genuinely leaving for good.

The scholar didn’t leave through the ground this time, and he instead traveled on the wind and boldly flew over the surface of the Black River, causing the turbulent river to split apart in the middle and not mend together for a long time.

The scholar’s large sleeves billowed loudly in the wind as he murmured, “Having too much free time will cause one to develop a mountain of useless thoughts. On the other hand, being too busy will cause one to lose one’s true self and become a mindless animal. In other words, it’s extremely difficult to enjoy both leisure and fine hobbies at the same time.”

Traveling south along the Black River, the scholar simply glanced in the direction of Treasure Mirror Mountain but didn’t make his way over.

This was his clan’s only ask of him for his trip to Malicious Ghost Valley.

He wasn’t allowed to travel near Treasure Mirror Mountain.

The scholar flicked his wrist, causing the demon-binding chain to appear in his hand. As it turned out, the other end was still tied to the Sea Turning Primordial Lord, and the burly woman was promptly dragged out from the Black River.

The scholar twisted his wrist and violently slammed her into the Black River again.

A towering wave measuring more than thirty meters in height shot into the air.

The scholar landed at the end of the Black River on the southern side and put away his demon-binding chain. The Sea Turning Primordial Lord swayed from side to side as she stood next to him.

The scholar started to walk south, and the Sea Turning Primordial Lord apprehensively walked behind him.

The scholar turned around and asked with a faint smile, “You have a heartless father, but you’ve fortunately come across a master like me, someone who best upholds the values of the cultivation world. So, have you brought the item over?”

The Sea Turning Primordial Lord hurriedly retrieved a small black porcelain curio from her sleeve and replied in a quivering voice, “As per your command, I visited the Old Dragon Cave and retrieved this pair of Luo fish that my father has carefully raised for eight hundred years. I also instructed my father’s trusted subordinate to immediately release the four dragon-locking walls if anyone sneaks into the Old Dragon Cave and triggers the warning mechanisms. Even if the uninvited guest manages to break free, the group of demons who have received the secret command will be guarding the trap and waiting to attack them. As such, that person will suffer severe wounds even if he’s not killed.”

The scholar accepted the small porcelain curio and lightly swung it back and forth. Looking down and examining it for a moment, he said with a faint smile, “This was the additional treasure that I wanted to obtain the most during this trip to Malicious Ghost Valley.”

He turned around and looked toward the Black River’s Old Dragon Cave, continuing, “As for that place, I’m most likely wasting my time and energy. You won’t go there, Brother Haoren, will you?”

The Sea Turning Primordial Lord involuntarily gulped when she heard this.

Were the cultivators from beyond Malicious Ghost Valley all this scheming and terrifying?

The scholar glanced at her and placed the porcelain curio inside his sleeve before saying, “Rest assured, not everyone is like me and Brother Haoren. However, I must say that you are indeed a bit too stupid. You can’t remain like this in the future, and you can’t simply age without growing any smarter. After becoming a river guardian, it’s ultimately up to you whether you can become a legitimate water goddess in the future. I don’t want to raise trash. Oh, that’s right. Apart from this pair of Luo fish, did you use your brains and take some other treasures as well?”

The Sea Turning Primordial Lord nodded in earnest and hurriedly retrieved a jade box that was as large as her palm, replying, “Yes, I did. My father said that this is an ancestor coin that the last emperor of an empire asked a mighty hidden immortal of the Lofty Moral Sect to meticulously forge.”

There was a sullen look on her face as she continued, “I was afraid of Master becoming impatient, so I tried to be as quick as possible. These were the only two treasures in my father’s secret room, so I retrieved the curio with the Luo fish and this jade box before hurriedly making my way back. I didn’t dare to go anywhere else to retrieve more treasures.”

The scholar accepted the jade box, clicking his tongue in wonder as he opened it. “This truly is a remarkable treasure. Cultivators of Commercialism all dream about obtaining something like this for their ideal bonded item.”

He smiled and continued, “Very well. From this moment onward, it’s without a doubt that you’ll become a formal river goddess of the Great Origin Empire in the future. Rest assured, there are many decrees already stamped with the imperial jade seal in my room, and I’ve accumulated a large pile of these over the years.”

The Sea Turning Primordial Lord could barely believe her ears. Hearing this delightful news after suffering a great calamity made it feel as if she were living in another world.

The scholar had already turned around and continued to walk forward, and he said with a loud laugh, “As long as I want to, what difficulty is there in letting you become a river goddess?”

The footsteps of the Sea Turning Primordial Lord became sprightly, and she felt a deep sense of gratitude toward the person walking in front of her.

There was a faint smile on the scholar’s face as he leisurely enjoyed the scenery.

He hadn’t promoted her from a river guardian to a river goddess simply because of a single ancestor coin.

It wasn’t that the value of the ancestor coin was low.

Rather, was the possession of his servant not rightfully the possession of him, her master, as well? Giving her a few words of praise after she offered up her possessions was already an extraordinary reward. If she dared to not voluntarily hand over her possessions, then he simply needed to beat her half dead. Lightning and rain were also blessings from the heaven, after all.

At the end of the day, he was giving face to the Great Round Moon Monastery by pushing things along. At the end of the day, that old turtle would very likely… enter the river and transform into a dragon under the nose of the Yang Clan.

With this good relationship as a foundation, many of his plans could progress in a natural and justified manner.

Upon thinking of this, however…

The scholar’s expression immediately became dark and cloudy.

Plans and schemes?

Who was he planning for? Himself?

He felt increasingly displeased as he recalled the look in Chen Haoren’s eyes before they parted ways at the water goddess shrine.

It wasn’t a look of pleasure at his misfortune, nor was it a look of pity.

It was a look that couldn’t be explained.

This caused the scholar to feel puzzled and furious!

This was because he shockingly started to see himself as pitiful!

He suddenly recalled the suspension bridge between the two mountain cliffs as well as the python demon and spider demon that were as insignificant as measly ants.

He was going to kill them!

This would be a farewell gift to Brother Haoren.

Right at this moment, however, he stopped in his tracks with his expression becoming twisted.

However, his face quickly relaxed and returned to normal.

“That’s enough. This isn’t child’s play, so don’t overstep the boundaries.”

As it turned out, the true Yang Ningxing had already regained control of the body. He smiled faintly and said, “Having obtained a bountiful yield and retreated safely after traveling tens of thousands of kilometers, what is there to not be satisfied about?”

The Sea Turning Primordial Lord also noticed the transformation of the person in front of her, and she stopped in her tracks with terror in her mind.

However, the scholar turned around with a warm and gentle expression, with his entire aura feeling completely different from before. He smiled faintly and said, “There’s no need to be afraid. Let me introduce myself first. I’m Yang Ningxing, and I come from the Lofty Cloud Palace of the Great Origin Empire’s Esteemed Mystery Department.”

The Sea Turning Primordial Lord was just about to subconsciously kneel and kowtow.

The scholar made a lifting gesture and prevented her from dropping to her knees.

He then said in a quiet voice, “We’re both walking on the path of cultivation now, so the two of us are already fellow cultivators. You shouldn’t become haughty in the future, but you shouldn’t become self-deprecating either.”

The Sea Turning Primordial Lord broke down in tears, and she sobbed, “This servant will remember Master’s words! I definitely won’t forget Master’s teachings!”

Yang Ningxing couldn’t help but smile in speechlessness. He shook his head and didn’t say anything else.

He continued to walk forward with the small turtle.

He took a glance at Treasure Mirror Mountain, curious about the state of affairs over there.

————

Over at Treasure Mirror Mountain…

Yang Chongxuan’s flesh was mangled and bloody, and there were few areas of his body that were left unscathed. He panted heavily, and he sat cross-legged on the bank of the deep stream with his fists on his knees. His eyes remained as solemn and composed as always.

Meanwhile, the detestable woman called Li Liu on the opposite bank had merely sacrificed the lion seal by her waist and a Dao saber.

As for Li Liu’s other immortal treasures that had been shattered by Yang Chongxuan, none of them had been anywhere near as valuable as the lion seal and the Dao saber. They were barely worth a mention.

The Rain Bringer Divine Maiden had already brought Jiang Qujiang to the rundown temple at the foot of the mountain.

Meanwhile, Li Liu had casually drawn a golden circle on the ground to imprison the old fox from West Mountain and his daughter, Wei Taizhen. They were unable to see or hear anything beyond the golden circle.

The small patch of land surrounded by the golden circle was the most undamaged area near the deep mountain stream.

Yang Chongxuan had naturally thought about shattering the golden circle with a single punch, but his attacks were successfully blocked by Li Liu every single time. Not only that, but he would also come out second best every time he tried to attack the golden circle. In the end, the golden circle essentially became a trap that was waiting for Yang Chongxuan to jump inside.

They fought on and off, stopping and resting in between each bout. Yang Chongxuan actively launched three assaults, attempting to attack furiously and achieve victory in a single go. However, he failed each time, and he also ended up increasingly disheveled with each subsequent attempt.

His opponent had also suffered heavy losses, losing many immortal treasures, but she remained calm and relaxed the entire time, clearly having much more energy to spare.

On the other hand, he was truly reaching the end of his limit.

“Detestable woman! Do you genuinely know the old ancestor of the Yang Clan?” Yang Chongxuan asked. “Did you purposely set up this fated opportunity at Treasure Mirror Mountain as well? Fucking hell… Just what in the world are you trying to achieve? Was there any need to scheme for so long?”

“Watch your tongue, or you’ll genuinely lose your life,” Li Liu replied indifferently.

Yang Chongxuan seemingly choked on his words, and he hesitated for a long time before surprisingly deciding against making any threatening remarks.

Li Liu looked like a fragile woman who would be blown over by a slight breeze, but her punches and kicks truly packed a lot of power. Her immortal treasures were even more ferocious, and still more fucking powerful than that was her endless amount of immortal techniques and mystical abilities!

“I’ll ask you one last time. Do you concede defeat or not?” Li Liu asked.

Yang Chongxuan raised his hands into the air and replied, “I concede.”

Only after hearing this did Li Liu walk over to the golden circle. She raised a palm and lightly slashed down, causing the glowing golden circle to instantly shatter and vanish.

Yang Chongxuan almost cursed out loud as he watched this.

The old fox and his daughter were trembling on the ground, with their teeth chattering violently as well.

Li Liu knocked the old fox unconscious with a single slap.

She then raised her hand slightly, causing Wei Taizhen to float up and reach the same height as her.

A burly young man sprinted over from the distance, yet Li Liu sent him flying backward with a sweep of her sleeve, not taking so much as a single glance at him.

She then extended two fingers and rapidly poked them forward, directly digging out Wei Taizhen’s golden eyeball. The young fox spirit struggled with all her might, with her arms and legs chaotically flailing in the air. She appeared as pitiful as could be, yet she was unable to make a single sound.

With a tap of her foot, Li Liu made her way to the peak of the mountain. A short moment later, the entire Treasure Mirror Mountain started to tremor violently.

Li Liu returned to the mountain stream with an ancient copper mirror in her hand, and she surprisingly tossed it to the man on the opposite bank with a casual throw. After he caught the mirror, Li Liu said, “Yang Ningzhen, the Yang Clan owes me another favor now. As for when the Esteemed Mystery Department and the Lofty Cloud Palace need to repay these favors, you’ll naturally become aware of this when the time comes in the future.”

Yang Chongxuan grinned and replied, “I simply want to know whether the Yang Clan is capable of repaying these two favors, and how many people need to die in the process?”

Li Liu thought about this for a brief moment before shaking her head and saying, “The Yang Clan is capable, and no one needs to die in the process.”

She then added, “Of course, this is assuming that the Yang Clan doesn’t seek death.”

“Understood!” Yang Chongxuan said with a nod.

After putting the ancient copper mirror away, Yang Chongxuan asked one last question, saying, “Beyond the favor that we owe you, can I seek you out for another fight once I become a ninth tier martial artist and a Nascent Tier earth immortal?”

Li Liu was expressionless as she replied, “I’m always ready as long as you still have the courage to challenge me at that time.”

Yang Chongxuan — or Yang Ningzhen, to be more precise — had his flesh and blood squirm around like a living creature as his bone-deep wounds started to knit together and heal.

He wasn’t just an ordinary Vajra Body Tier pure martial artist.

In fact, he also had a sliver of a chance to fight for the title of strongest Vajra Body Tier martial artist.

He stood up and strode away from Treasure Mirror Mountain, not taking a single glance back as he left.