Unsheathed

After Shen Lin left, Li Yuan immediately put on an obsequious smile and said, “Old Brother Fire Dragon, why didn’t you give me a heads up that you were coming to the Dragon Palace Small World? Are you treating me like an outsider because you’re looking down on my dire state?”

Spiritual Master Fire Dragon replied with a nod.

Mhm, I am indeed looking down on you, Water Official Li.

Li Yuan felt like there was no way to continue this conversation.

He was the mighty water official of the Plenty River, yet right now, he was filled with discomfort as he was seemingly imprisoned underwater.

They fell silent for a long time, traveling a great distance underwater with their figures as graceful as mist and smoke.

Spiritual Master Fire Dragon finally said, “The Water Dragon Sect has treated you quite well after establishing their sect, so why are you still acting so haughty and insisting on occupying the head chair in the ancestral hall? Why are you providing the sect leaders with a constant reminder that the ancestral hall is your territory, and that they’re only temporary occupants? Has water gotten into your brain? Since you dare to act in such an arrogant and domineering manner, are you truly regarding yourself as the ruler of the martial world?”

Li Yuan appeared listless as he replied, “One can always trump up a charge against someone else. I’ll admit to whatever you accuse me of, Old Spiritual Master.”

Spiritual Master Fire Dragon chuckled coldly and said, “No matter how deep the relationship is, it won’t be able to stand such flagrant abuse from you. The Dragon Palace Small World enjoys gentle winds and calm rain, with few major problems needing to be addressed. Does this have anything to do with you? Is this not thanks to Shen Lin’s effort and hard work? Why did you stand by idly when that sword immortal stole the water fortune paramount treasure of the small world back then? He was able to trick the busy Shen Lin and the Southern Fragrance Water Palace, but was he truly able to trick you, someone who’s idling around all the time?”

Li Yuan pursed his lips before quipping, “The Water Dragon Sect didn’t say anything either.”

Spiritual Master Fire Dragon was naturally aware of the many complicated relationships, with the matter not being a clear-cut case of good and evil. However, one could ultimately look at the approximate outcomes of all matters, with these outcomes often being the catalysts for more karmic matters in the future. This was like the ripples on a lake. Observing an entire lake would be very difficult, but could a person call themself a cultivator if they couldn’t even observe the rise and fall of the ripples?

“If it weren’t for my relationship with that person, do you think I would be willing to waste my breath on you?” the old spiritual master asked in a solemn voice.

Li Yuan heaved a sigh, no longer playing dumb as he said in a solemn and helpless voice, “I’ve observed the rise and fall of the Water Dragon Sect for many years, as well as the increase and decrease in their incense offerings. A lot of my hope has died, and I feel like everything is quite uninteresting now. Sun Jie, the current sect leader, is a decent person, but what difference will that make? It’s not like I haven’t thought about letting the Water Dragon Sect perform standard refinement on the middle shrine of the Plenty River. However, the two people whom I had high hopes for both failed to become the sect leader, with one of them essentially being killed by the Water Dragon Sect and me. The Water Dragon Sect is subject to my whims and has been repulsed by me year after year, but this is simply of their own doing.”

Spiritual Master Fire Dragon was seemingly expressing great pity for Li Yuan’s misfortune, yet he was also expressing deep annoyance at his lack of fight. He exclaimed, “Stubborn brat!”

Drawing the eyes of a dragon, even rocks nodding in approval, playing an instrument to a cow, and like chickens speaking with ducks — which saying in the mountains wasn’t filled with knowledge?[1]

At the end of the day, it was most difficult for deities and immortals to converse with each other.

“You should try to be a decent person,” Spiritual Master Fire Dragon thus said.

Li Yuan’s embarrassment turned into anger as he exclaimed, “Spiritual Master Fire Dragon, stop picking on me just because your Dao power is higher!”

Spiritual Master Fire Dragon placed a palm on the water official’s head and chuckled in response. “And what are you going to do if I pick on you?”

Li Yuan wanted to cry, but no tears were forthcoming. His expression was scrunched up as he conceded, “Then I’ll obey Old Spiritual Master and try to be a decent person.”

Spiritual Master Fire Dragon launched a gentle palm strike, sending Li Yuan crashing into a huge crater at the bottom of the lake. He chuckled and scolded, “Brat who remembers beatings and doesn’t remember kindness.”

Li Yuan lay at the bottom of the huge crater and played dead.

Spiritual Master Fire Dragon gracefully landed beside the crater and said with a serious expression, “Stop regarding yourself as a high and mighty deity.”

“What if I fall short on both sides? Won’t I feel even more upset at that time?” Li Yuan opened his eyes and asked.

Spiritual Master Fire Dragon shook his head and remarked, “How arrogant. Sure enough, you’re a difficult one to teach.”

Li Yuan wrapped his hands behind his head and said with a numb expression, “I’m nothing but a frog at the bottom of the well, unable to see the sky even when I raise my head.”

Spiritual Master Fire Dragon had already left quietly at some unknown time.

Li Yuan sighed in grief. He had suffered another palm strike for no reason at all.

————

Spiritual Master Fire Dragon slowly walked into the residence on Paddling Island.

Chen Ping’an was already awake, and he was standing in the courtyard and watching Zhang Shanfeng practice fist techniques.

He was just about to pay his respects when he saw Spiritual Master Fire Dragon, but the old spiritual master waved a hand and said, “There’s no need to tire yourself with this; having the thought is already enough. I’m able to at least perceive this. Let’s go inside and take a look at your third bonded item. If everything is okay, then it’s best to refine the bonded item as soon as possible. There’s no issue with thinking about more things when cultivating in the mountains, but this doesn’t imply that we must necessarily do things slowly. In any case, taking things slowly doesn’t mean literally taking each step at a slow and leisurely pace. Chen Ping’an, you need to carefully make a distinction between the two.”

Chen Ping’an silently committed this to memory.

Zhang Shanfeng stopped practicing fist techniques, walking inside the building with his master and Chen Ping’an.

Chen Ping’an carefully retrieved the shattered wooden deity statue fragments from his minimization treasure. This was a wooden deity statue that had been enshrined in a Daoist temple atop the mountains.

Spiritual Master Fire Dragon flicked his sleeve, causing an auric ripple to appear in the room. This ripple appeared like a table, and it was dark green and smooth like a mirror.

Chen Ping’an retrieved the thirty-six gray bricks from the floor of the Daoist temple.

There were also one hundred and twenty-two green glazed roof tiles.

Additionally, there was the large bundle of bamboo branches and the large pile of bamboo leaves he had harvested from that green bamboo plant.

“These are the treasures you’ve accumulated after visiting many small worlds and blessed lands?” Spiritual Master Fire Dragon asked.

Chen Ping’an shook his head and replied, “These were all from the one place.”

However, he was too embarrassed to say that he had essentially picked them up from the ground.

“Are you a bandit?” Spiritual Master Fire Dragon asked with a strange expression.

Chen Ping’an was just about to retrieve a few more treasures from the mountains, but he could only stop after hearing this.

There was still the effeminate round fan he had purchased from Daoist Master Sun, the pair of Dragon King Baskets, the ancient mirror that Huang Shi had gifted him, the Daoist abstinence plaque, the jade bracelet inscribed with a palindrome poem, and the tree gall pot.

Chen Ping’an had initially planned to show all of these treasures to the old spiritual master, letting him appraise their value.

Spiritual Master Fire Dragon glanced at the large pile of wood fragments again, not in any hurry to reveal its secrets. He pointed at the gray bricks and commented, “Their toughness is no inferior to the Dragon Slaying Platforms coveted by sword cultivators in the world, and this is because they’ve been nurtured by the true intent of Dao power for many years. The water fortune essence contained inside them is only a surface-level appearance, so one will truly be wasting divine treasures if they absorb the water fortune essence but abandon the bricks.”

Chen Ping’an glanced at Zhang Shanfeng, who was standing beside them.

Spiritual Master Fire Dragon smiled and said, “Why would you give them away? Leave them for yourself! The number thirty-six corresponds to the thirty-six heavenly generals, proof of affinity with karmic Dao opportunity. Being short even one brick will ruin the opportunity.”

The old spiritual master pointed at one of Chen Ping’an’s critical acupoints and said, “The human body is a small world, and the character ‘Gang’ is composed from ‘four’ and ‘proper,’ implying the center of the four directions.[2] The thirty-six heavenly generals symbolize the essence of yin and yang and represent the genuine earth element.[3] One intangible and one tangible, both are profound principles of the Daoist Sect.

“Didn’t you refine five-colored soil as one of your bonded items of the Five Elements? This is perfect, and you can perform standard refinement on the thirty-six gray bricks to act as the roots of that mountain in your heart. At the same time, you can also use them to nurture your thoughts as a cultivator, killing two birds with one stone. However, refining these bricks will exhaust a huge amount of spiritual energy. Indeed, crafting mountain roots is no easy task, so I’ll teach you a mantra afterward. Dragon veins are also separated into mountain veins and water veins, and your current refinement method isn’t very suitable for crafting mountain roots.”

Spiritual Master Fire Dragon picked up a green glazed roof tile and asked with a smile, “Do you know how many immortal coins this colored glaze roof tile will be worth if you sell it to the correct person?”

Chen Ping’an shook his head in response.

Spiritual Master Fire Dragon raised a hand and waved it around.

“Ten lesser heat coins?” Chen Ping’an guessed in an uncertain voice.

“Ten lesser heat coins? Is that worthy of me waving my hand around?” Spiritual Master Fire Dragon asked in amusement.

“Ten grain rain coins. Grain rain coins!” Zhang Shanfeng suggested quietly.

“And that’s only if I sell it to White Emperor City’s Colored Glaze Pagoda in the Middle Earth Divine Continent?” Chen Ping’an asked.

Spiritual Master Fire Dragon nodded in response. Speaking with clever people saved both time and effort. “To ordinary cultivators from immortal forces, one colored glaze roof tile will sell for at most one grain rain coin. To those who fail to recognize the value of this treasure, however, they’ll be unwilling to part with even a few lesser heat coins. This is especially the case since these colored glazed roof tiles only become remarkable after many of them are gathered together. Otherwise, a small number of them will be nothing more than a useless gimmick.”

Hearing this, Chen Ping’an was extremely grateful that he hadn’t sold his treasures for a bargain price. Otherwise, wouldn’t his Dao Heart become unstable again after learning this truth?

Spiritual Master Fire Dragon picked up a bamboo branch and chuckled, “This comes from the descendant of one of the ten ancestral bamboos in the Bamboo Sea Small World, and it can be regarded as a direct son or direct daughter. The quality of this bamboo is like stone, allowing it to be crafted and giving it strength and toughness. The bamboo is upright, and its nodes advance bravely, signifying a mind as open as a valley. Many of these descriptions pertaining to bamboo talk about virtue and moral integrity. What virtue do you think was represented by the bamboo plant that you came across? Why were you destined to coincidentally come across it?”

“I don’t know,” Chen Ping’an replied with a shake of his head.

“That’s correct,” Spiritual Master Fire Dragon said with a smile.

In reality, this was a sign of many affirmations following the many refutations after Chen Ping’an’s examination of his heart.

If cultivators only sought the stillness of their hearts when they examined their hearts and pursued truth, then apart from cultivators of the Daoist Sect, would the remaining cultivators from the Hundred Schools of Thought still need to cultivate? What would they be cultivating?

In reality, it wasn’t important which bamboo plant Chen Ping’an had come across, nor did it matter which virtue was embodied by the bamboo plant.

Truth be told, Chen Ping’an didn’t know why he was correct.

Standing beside them, Zhang Shanfeng felt like Chen Ping’an was correct because his master had said so.

Otherwise, it wouldn’t be very good if his master insisted on always making things difficult for Chen Ping’an.

“Shanfeng, you can continue to practice your fist technique in the courtyard,” Spiritual Master Fire Dragon suddenly said.

Zhang Shanfeng nodded in response, not asking any questions as he walked outside.

Spiritual Master Fire Dragon made a grabbing motion, causing the wood fragments on the table to either fly around or hover in the air, resulting in many light collisions between them. They swayed gently, eventually coming together to form a wooden deity statue of a middle-aged Daoist priest.

This was like a mountain god or a river god reconstructing their gold statue.

Spiritual Master Fire Dragon heaved a faint sigh as he looked at the so-called middle-aged Daoist priest.

He then pushed aside his remembrance, with his expression becoming serious as he asked in a solemn voice, “Chen Ping’an, where did you obtain this deity statue from?”

Chen Ping’an briefly recounted his experiences during that treasure-hunting trip.

He skipped over many matters pertaining to Daoist Master Sun in the ruins of the immortal abode.

However, Chen Ping’an underestimated Spiritual Master Fire Dragon’s knowledge and Dao power.

Spiritual Master Fire Dragon focused his gaze on the wooden deity statue and revealed slowly, “The Daoist second disciple was wearing a Daoist robe when he used an immortal sword to kill this person. One of this person’s direct disciples is called Song Maolu, with this disciple becoming even more impressive than his master. Song Maolu is a one-in-one-thousand-year prodigy in the Heavenly World, and he relied on his own power to bring together almost sixty percent of the Daoist forces outside White Jade Capital. Can you imagine what it will be like if someone in the Majestic World is able to rival half of the Confucian Sect?”

Chen Ping’an was unable to imagine this.

Spiritual Master Fire Dragon continued to reveal the secrets of the Heavenly World. After reaching such a lofty cultivation base — and especially with virtue accompanying him — casually uttering the names of sages was no longer a taboo.

Thus, the old spiritual master continued, “As for this deity statue, it’s not an ordinary statue that’s enshrined in the many large and small Daoist temples of the same branch. This deity statue is the most important statue of this Daoist priest, with the exception of his original deity statue. You can think of this as something akin to a cultivator’s yin soul after it leaves their body. Moreover, this deity statue is crafted and refined using wood from the ancestral peach tree planted in the Mystery Capital Temple.”

Spiritual Master Fire Dragon smiled and further revealed, “And the temple master of the Mystery Capital Temple — that is, the senior brother of the Daoist priest represented by this wooden deity statue — has always been one of the top ten cultivators in the Heavenly World. Over there, he’s known as Eternal Fifth. It can be said that this temple master is the pillar responsible for holding up the sword immortal branch of the Daoist Sect.”

After saying this, Spiritual Master Fire Dragon asked, “Can you confirm that there won’t be any hidden dangers?”

“Yes, I can!” Chen Ping’an replied with a nod.

“Good one. You’re going to make a killing,” Spiritual Master Fire Dragon said with a chuckle.

If an ordinary junior had dared to speak so boldly, Spiritual Master Fire Dragon would have genuinely persuaded them to think carefully before acting.

However, this junior was Chen Ping’an, so there was no need for such a warning.

In any case, since Daoist Master Sun — who had already ascended and returned to the Heavenly World’s Mystery Capital Temple — was willing to leave this item behind, this was already an act of acknowledgment and approval of Chen Ping’an.

Spiritual Master Fire Dragon paused for a moment and glanced at Chen Ping’an, appearing to finally understand something at this moment. He was able to vaguely guess Qi Jingchun’s good intentions. However, he wasn’t sure whether or not his guess was correct.

“Have you prepared the natural treasures necessary for ordinary refinement of earth element bonded items?” Spiritual Master Fire Dragon asked directly.

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

Spiritual Master Fire Dragon nodded and said, “Then that’s already enough. There’s no need to gild the lily.”

Chen Ping’an breathed a sigh of relief. After all, there was only a single chance this time, unlike when Cui Dongshan had prepared three portions of five-colored soil. He had initially planned to seek reliability and stability, only performing refinement of the bonded item when he had all three of opportune time, geographical advantage, and popular support. This was why he had still hesitated about refining the bonded item even after entering the Dragon Palace Small World.

1. These are all Chinese idioms. ☜

2. This refers to the character Gang (罡) being composed from four (四) and proper (正). In this context, the meaning center (正中) is used instead of just proper. ☜

3. This line and the previous line are both from the Daofa Huiyuan (道法会元), a compilation of Daoist texts published between the 13th and 14th centuries. ☜