Unsheathed

Chapter 528 (1): The Eastern Treasured Vial Continent’s Present and Future

Sage Ruan Qiong, who had already disappeared for a long time, finally decided to return home. He went to the shop on the bank of the Dragon Whisker River to visit his disciple, Xu Xiaoqiao, first, after which he casually tossed two spirits out of his jurisdiction. These were spirits that had subordinated themselves to immortal forces located in the mountains to the west, yet failed to abide by the rules of this region. After doing this, Ruan Qiong returned home to the Dragon Spring Sword Sect located in Divine Elegance Mountain.

Second Senior Brother Dong Gu gathered the twelve disciples who had been recruited after himself and Xu Xiaoqiao, telling them to display their sword skills one by one. Ruan Qiong remained expressionless the entire time, not guiding his unofficial disciples or providing them with any feedback regarding their sword techniques. After watching their displays, he stood up from the bench and left to forge iron and craft swords. This caused the initially confident unofficial disciples to feel nervous and uneasy.

Their senior sister, who liked to wear green garb, didn’t appear at all.

Fourth Senior Brother Xie Ling was present, yet he sighed at the end and returned to his residence to continue cultivating.

Following Ruan Qiong’s return, a continuous stream of people started to visit the Dragon Spring Sword Sect, hoping to catch the attention of this sect-level immortal force and become its disciple.

There were youths accompanied by members of their powerful and noble clans, there were young boys and young girls who had come by themselves, and there were also many vagrant cultivators who hoped to become guest elders of immortal forces in the mountains.

There were people from all walks of life.

This caused Dong Gu, Ruan Qiong’s first disciple in name, to feel very annoyed.

Not only did Dong Gu need to act as somewhat of a temporary master for his twelve unofficial junior brothers and junior sisters who were yet to have their names recorded in the genealogical records of the ancestral hall, but he even needed to attend to all of the matters in the sect, no matter large or small. Moreover, the twelve unofficial disciples had already cultivated at the Dragon Spring Sword Sect for a decent amount of time, so they were now roughly aware of each other’s talent and cultivation aptitude. This caused their characters and personalities to slowly become clear.

There were some who believed their talent in sword cultivation was inferior to the others, so they focused their attention on building networks and relationships with other people instead, there some who cultivated sword techniques in earnest yet progressed slowly and failed to see any results, there were some who showed respect and modesty in the mountains yet liked to show off their statuses as disciples of the sword sect outside the mountains, and there were also innate sword talents who were far superior to others their age and progressed in leaps and bounds, already reaching a stage where they privately asked Dong Gu to teach them an additional high-level sword technique of the Wind Snow Temple.

As for the immortal forces that had constructed residences in the mountains to the west, many of them visited Divine Elegance Mountain, so Dong Gu naturally needed to entertain these guests as well. This was a very time-consuming and mentally taxing task. Senior Sister Ruan Xiu definitely wouldn’t deal with these matters, while Junior Sister Xu Xiaoqiao was a cold and aloof person who innately disliked hosting guests. Xie Ling was even less willing to smile in a perfunctory manner to entertain guests.

If it weren’t for the Dragon Spring Sword Sect not needing to focus time and effort on making money, Dong Gu almost wanted to go back on his word and actively ask Master Ruan Qiong to open a new peak for him, allowing him to justifiably cultivate in seclusion. Dong Gu had set a goal for himself, aiming to advance to the Nascent Tier within one hundred years. After all, Dong Gu was different from Xu Xiaoqiao, who had already been a sword cultivator of the Wind Snow Temple before joining the Dragon Spring Sword Sect. Even though Dong Gu was the opening disciple of the Dragon Spring Sword Sect according to the genealogical records in the ancestral hall, he wasn’t actually a sword cultivator, something that was very much in contradiction with the rules and regulations.

Ruan Qiong didn’t care about this, but Dong Gu felt extremely guilty and ashamed. As a result, Dong Gu came up with a very crude solution, deciding to make up for things with his cultivation base since he wasn’t a sword cultivator.

As for Junior Brother Xie Ling, he had already birthed a bonded flying sword, which he was nurturing right now. Not only that, but the old ancestor of the Xie Clan — the Northern Complete Reed Continent’s Heavenly Lord Xie Shi who had displayed his might and suppressed an entire continent by himself — had gifted his descendant from Peach Leaf Alley two extremely valuable treasures from the mountains.

One was a relic left behind by a sword immortal, and Heavenly Lord Xie Shi had told Xie Ling to refine this treasure, named Peach Leaf, into a bonded item. In fact, this treasure was a bonded flying sword left behind following the sword immortal’s passing. Even though it couldn’t be regarded as Xie Ling’s flying sword, one could imagine the might of a bonded flying sword left behind by a sword immortal after it was refined into Xie Ling’s bonded item.

There was also an extremely high-grade Sword Nurturing Gourd named Full Moon.

Dong Gu was well aware that Junior Brother Xie Ling didn’t hold him in high regard. This wasn’t to say that Xie Ling was arrogant and haughty because of his family background, and it was, in fact, the complete opposite. Xie Ling didn’t show any disrespect toward Dong Gu, nor did he express any disdain toward Dong Gu’s identity and background. Xie Ling never refused to help, and during critical stages of Dong Gu’s cultivation following his advance to the Golden Core Tier, Xie Ling would voluntarily teach his juniors sword techniques in Dong Gu’s stead. Long Eyebrows Xie Ling was flawless in his conduct.

However, Xie Ling’s aptitude and fated opportunities were far too good, so much so that he only held Ruan Xiu in high regard when it came to those in the mountains. As for those outside the mountains, he only had his eyes on Ma Kuxuan and a very small number of young cultivators.

After reaching Dong Gu and Xie Ling’s cultivation bases, they naturally didn’t need to rely on ingesting ordinary food to survive. Rather, they adhered to the recipes meticulously put together by the Hundred Schools of Thought’s School of Medicine to prepare their three daily meals. This was a habit that required a huge amount of immortal coins.

However, the Dragon Spring Sword Sect was influential and wealthy, but only had very few disciples. At the same time, Ruan Qiong was also the number one guest elder of the Great Li Empire, allowing him to collect a large amount of compensation from the imperial court each year. As for Dong Gu, he was a Golden Core Tier cultivator who had traveled to Bamboo Scroll Lake before, yet he hadn’t needed to do much at the time. Even so, he had received a good amount of compensation for his effort, eventually receiving a Peace and Safety Tablet issued by the Ministry of Justice afterward. And now, he was also listed as a sticky rod official of the Great Li Empire, allowing him to also receive a healthy amount of compensation from the imperial court.

On this day, Ruan Qiong left the blacksmith forge and personally cooked a few dishes, inviting only Dong Gu over.

Looking at the mortal dishes on the table, Dong Gu knew that Senior Sister Ruan Xiu would definitely come as well.

Sure enough, it wasn’t long before Ruan Xiu entered the room and scooped herself a bowl of rice, sitting down beside Ruan Qiong. Dong Gu naturally sat opposite Ruan Qiong, with his back facing the entrance.

“Eat slowly; no one will fight for food with you.”

Ruan Qiong naturally grabbed a piece of braised pork belly and placed it in his daughter’s bowl, after which he asked Dong Gu, “I heard that Prefectural Overseer Wu Yuan has been transferred away from our new province?”

Dong Gu immediately put down his chopsticks and replied in a respectful voice, “After the Dragon Spring Prefecture was promoted to Dragon Province, this disciple of the imperial preceptor didn’t receive an accompanying promotion and become the governor of Dragon Province. Rather, he was transferred to an area south of Lake View Academy, which was previously the territory of the Luminous Vermilion Empire. He’s continuing to serve as a prefectural overseer near the foot of the Great Li Empire’s newly chosen Central Mountain.”

Everyone guessed that the imperial preceptor had initially held high hopes for Wu Yuan, and it was because of this that he had been appointed as the county magistrate of the Dragon Spring County and been tasked with expanding and developing this region. Unexpectedly, however, he was severely marginalized by the Four Families and Ten Clans in the small town, facing many small troubles along the way.

Even though Wu Yuan was promoted to the position of prefectural overseer afterward, the imperial preceptor was already dissatisfied with his performance. Thus, Wu Yuan, who should at least be commended for his hard work even if he weren’t commended for his merit, was transferred to a region previously belonging to another empire. This looked like a straight transfer, yet it was actually a demotion.

After the Dragon Spring Prefecture was promoted to Dragon Province, its territory was expanded to now include the Azure Porcelain Prefecture, Treasure Stream Prefecture, Three River Prefecture, and Incense Fire Prefecture.

The small town was still a part of Locust Yellow County.

County Magistrate Yuan was promoted to the position of prefectural overseer of the Azure Porcelain Prefecture, while Kiln Supervision Official Cao remained in his original position. However, the Ministry of Rites quietly adjusted the official rank of the kiln supervision official, promoting it to a rank that was equivalent to prefectural overseers. Because of this change, both the young talents of the two pillar clans had essentially been promoted to higher ranks. It was just that one was promoted openly, while the other was promoted subtly.

The governor of Dragon Province had come from outside the imperial court of the Great Li Empire. He was called Wei Li, and he had come from a humble upbringing in the Yellow Court Nation, a vassal state of the Great Li Empire. He had only been a prefectural overseer, a measly fourth-rank official, in the Yellow Court Nation, yet he had immediately become a lofty provincial governor after arriving at the Great Li Empire, causing those in the imperial court to feel very surprised.

Rumors started to circulate around the capital, claiming that there were no complaints because this person had been hand-picked by the Ministry of Personnel’s head minister. An exception had been made to promote an official of a vassal state to a high-ranking official of the Great Li Empire, so was this an action that went against etiquette? However, the emperor hadn’t said anything, nor had the Ministry of Rites kicked up a fuss. That being the case, who dared to jump forward and complain? Was anyone foolish enough to treat Head Minister Guan as a pushover? After all, he was one of very few officials who had once managed to defeat Imperial Preceptor Cui in a debate.

Apart from the changes in the imperial court, the city gods of the province, prefecture, and county were also confirmed. The city gods of the prefectural city and the county city were both heroic spirits who had been recommended by two large neighboring provinces. Even though they had already existed in the official records of the Great Li Empire’s Ministry of Rites as candidates for positions of city gods of mountain and water deities, they definitely wouldn’t have received overly good positions under normal circumstances. Now, however, they were mysteriously appointed as city gods of regions inside Dragon Province, something that caused a lot of envy.

The first city god of Dragon Province enjoyed the highest deity rank, and after his identity was revealed, a fairly large commotion had taken place in the imperial Court of the Great Li Empire. Many high-ranking officials were laughing at the Pillar Yuan Clan and the Pillar Cao Clan.

This was because the provincial city god wasn’t either of the candidates recommended by the two pillar clans. Rather, they were a small mountain lord of Steamed Bun Mountain, a place located at the intersection of the Embroidered Flower River and the Rushing Tranquil River.

“Wu Yuan leaving the original territory of the Great Li Empire isn’t necessarily a bad thing,” Ruan Qiong said slowly.

Dong Gu wasn’t very familiar with the internal affairs of the Great Li Empire’s imperial court, so he didn’t dare to make any comment regarding this matter.

However, Dong Gu felt slightly disappointed about Wu Yuan’s departure because this young prefectural overseer was extremely good with people. Dong Gu greatly appreciated Wu Yuan’s method of interacting with the Dragon Spring Sword Sect.

Fortunately, the newly appointed prefectural overseer of the Treasure Stream Prefecture was Fu Yu, an official who had previously accompanied Wu Yuan to the county office of the small town. Fu Yu had started off as a scholarly secretary, and only after he left the shadows and came to the fore did many of his colleagues, who had already worked with him for numerous years, discover with astonishment that Prefectural Overseer Fu was actually a direct descendant of the Great Li Empire’s powerful Fu Clan. Indeed, the Fu Clan was one of the most powerful and influential clans outside the pillar clans.

Fu Yu had visited the Dragon Spring Sword Sect very soon after being promoted to the prefectural overseer of the Treasure Stream Prefecture, and Dong Gu had enjoyed a friendly conversation with him. This was a fairly good outcome.

“You don’t need to deal with the guests who visit our mountains in the future,” Ruan Qiong said. “You’ll be stuck with these matters forever if you don’t extract yourself from them, so how will you still have time to cultivate if that’s the case? The founding tenet of the Dragon Spring Sword Sect isn’t about building interpersonal relationships.”

Ruan Qiong glanced at Dong Gu, with the latter feeling slightly fearful at this moment. He was most likely misunderstanding his master’s words and thinking that his master was dissatisfied with him.

A rare smile appeared on Ruan Qiong’s face as he continued, “I didn’t take you as my disciple to have you manage these mundane and trivial affairs. Cultivation is separated into cultivation in the mountains and cultivation outside the mountains. You can be regarded as half a sticky rod official now, so each time you come across a small barrier in the mountains, there’s no need to waste your time here, and you can take the opportunity to train in the outside world instead. You can also take initiative and communicate with the Great Li Empire’s Ministry of Justice through ordinary letters.

“Things are chaotic in the Eastern Treasured Vial Continent right now, so you might even be able to recruit a few disciples and bring them back while you’re training in the outside world. Next time you travel outside the mountains, you can notify the Ministry of Justice beforehand and visit the region surrounding Ganzhou Mountain first. After all, it’s still important for you to build a good relationship with the Wind Snow Temple.”

Dong Gu nodded in understanding, feeling a huge sense of relief as he did so.

He was filled with gratitude toward his master.

Ruan Qiong had only spoken a few words, but he had both taken some pressure off his disciple and also given him valuable guidance. More importantly, he had indirectly allowed Gu Mo to receive acknowledgment and approval from the Wind Snow Temple’s cultivators.

Ruan Qiong suddenly raised his chopsticks and swatted away his daughter’s chopsticks, which were reaching toward the last piece of braised pork belly. “Leave some for Dong Gu,” he said.

Ruan Xiu had already refilled her rice bowl a good number of times.

Dong Gu didn’t dare to laugh.

“What do you think about the twelve unofficial disciples?” Ruan Qiong asked.

Dong Gu described the talents and characters of his twelve junior brothers and junior sisters, both good and bad.

Ruan Qiong looked at his daughter.

Ruan Xiu had just grabbed a chopstick-full of food, and she lightly shook it after seeing her father’s gaze, getting slightly less food.

Ruan Qiong glanced at the almost-empty dish and decided to directly push it to his daughter.

Ruan Xiu smiled and asked, “You’re not going to drink wine today, Dad?”

Ruan Qiong shook his head and suddenly said, “When you cultivate in seclusion at Dragonspine Mountain, remember not to clash with the cultivators of True Martial Mountain. Also, there’s no need to be surprised no matter what strange matters you come across. Your dad is aware of the situation.”

Ruan Xiu nodded in response.

Ruan Qiong asked about the current situation in the Great Li Empire.

In fact, the Dragon Spring Prefecture received the most detailed newspaper in the Eastern Treasured Vial Continent, one that was personally compiled and edited by the imperial court of the Great Li Empire. These newspapers were delivered to Cloud Drape Mountain and Divine Elegance Mountain at set periods.

“Truth be told, the person I most wanted to take as a disciple back then was actually Liu Xianyang,” Ruan Qiong said out of the blue.

Dong Gu had heard of this person before.

He was best friends with Clay Vase Alley’s Chen Ping’an.

Afterward, he had almost died at the hands of Sun Scorch Mountain’s mountain-moving ape.

Because of this, Liu Xianyang and Chen Ping’an bore a strong grudge against Sun Scorch Mountain and Light Breeze City’s Xu Clan.

The Xu Clan had sold their completed immortal residence to the imperial court of the Great Li Empire for a very low price, and part of the reason had been their apprehension of Chen Ping’an. Afterward, Light Breeze City’s Xu Clan had acted according to the great trend, wedding a direct descendant to an illegitimate son of the Pillar Yuan Clan. Not only that, but they even provided money and manpower as well, helping the descendant of the Yuan Clan gain command over a unit of heavy cavalry at the border region.

After all, no one had imagined that an orphaned little boy from an impoverished alley in the small town could walk step by step to where he was today.

Ruan Qiong and Dong Gu symbolically ate a few mouthfuls of food.

The master and disciple then started to stroll around.