Unsheathed

At the head of the dragon boat stood Chen Ping’an and Pei Qian, the former in a Confucian robe with a sword on his back, while the latter was fully equipped with her bamboo sword and saber, hiking pole, bamboo bookcase, and conical hat.

Having too many belongings to carry around was both a blessing and a curse.

Liu Chongrun was standing on the top floor of the dragon boat, looking down at the first-level deck. The dragon boat required people to steer it, so she had negotiated a new deal with Downtrodden Mountain, teaching several of the ancestral hall’s direct disciples that she had brought with her to Ao Back Ridge how to pilot the boat.

This was not a sustainable plan over the long term, but it could allow the cultivators of Bejeweled Hairpin Island to integrate themselves more quickly into the Jewel Small World.

This was a decision that she had made after extensive thought and an entire night of strolling in her courtyard.

Over the course of that night, she had completely come to terms with her situation, and she realized that her own hesitance and internal conflict would only place all of the cultivators of Bejeweled Hairpin Island into an awkward situation. Hence, she may as well take a leaf out of Zhu Lian’s book and be a little more shameless.

Chen Ping’an was telling Pei Qian about what he had seen and heard on the Northern Complete Reed Continent. He told her that there was a cultivation prodigy there by the name of Lin Su, whom he had only heard of, but didn’t get to meet. He was ranked first among the top ten young cultivators of the Northern Complete Reed Continent, and it was said that anytime he chose to engage someone in battle, the battle was already won.

Pei Qian was unconvinced. She felt like it was a real shame for Lin Su that he didn’t get to meet her master, even though Chen Ping’an had spent so much time on the Northern Complete Reed Continent. In her mind, Lin Su had to have been absolutely agonizing over this missed opportunity. Then again, it was a privilege and an honor to meet her master, and not everyone was so fortunate.

Chen Ping’an naturally had no idea what was going on in that erratic little head of Pei Qian’s.

He was not unfamiliar with the top ten young cultivators of the Northern Complete Reed Continent. After all, one of his closest friends, Qi Jinglong, was on that very list.

Furthermore, he had met the disguised Yang Ningzhen on Treasure Mirror Mountain, and he had also had some less-than-pleasant history with Yang Ningxing, not to mention he had witnessed the battle of life and death between Huang Xi and Xiu Niang on Temper Mountain through an enchanted picture scroll as well.

“Back when I first took you out of the Lotus Flower Blessed Land, it wasn’t entirely your fault that I didn’t like you,” Chen Ping’an suddenly said. “I had my own reasons for disliking you back then, and I have to lay them out for you.”

Pei Qian grinned as she remarked, “I didn’t like myself back then, either.”

“Do you still remember how we first met?” Chen Ping’an asked.

“I do,” Pei Qian replied as a sheepish look appeared on her face. “When I last visited the capital of the Southern Garden Nation, I went to see the girl who always brought me food in the past. I sincerely thanked her and apologized, and I also told Cao Qinglang to help her clan out if they ever found themselves in any trouble. Of course, if her clan is in the wrong, then he doesn’t have to do anything. I’ve already made amends, so you can’t blame me anymore, Master!”

Chen Ping’an rested a hand down onto the top of Pei Qian’s head as he said, “You’ve only truly overcome a mental hurdle if you can speak candidly and objectively about it. You did some terrible things in the past, but you’ve since made amends, and I’m very happy to see that.

“However, some mistakes that you still haven’t completely gotten over can be reflected upon from time to time, just like how I frequently glance over my little bamboo slips to aid me in my self-reflection.”

Chen Ping’an cast his gaze into the distance. Now that winter had arrived, it looked as if it were about to snow.

“Daoists champion the natural order, but even they say that one who doesn’t cultivate their own Dao will never approach the Heavenly Dao,” he mused.

Pei Qian immediately put on a serious and earnest expression as she said, “Every single word that you speak is so wise and precious, Master. I almost want to get an engraving knife and a set of bamboo slips for myself so I can write down everything that you say!”

Chen Ping’an pinched Pei Qian’s ear between his fingers as he accused, “Even Cui Dongshan, Zhu Lian, and Chen Lingjun combined can’t compete with you when it comes to being an insincere suck-up!”

Pei Qian got up onto the tips of her toes as she howled in pain, while Liu Chongrun looked on from the top floor with a combination of amusement and exasperation in her eyes.

After releasing Pei Qian’s ear, Chen Ping’an leaned over the railing to rest.

Cui Dongshan always enjoyed speaking about Mountain Cliff Academy with him.

With the arrival of winter, Li Baoping had definitely donned that little red coat of hers. She had always been the strangest student at Mountain Cliff Academy, and there was really no worthy competition. What was strange about her in the past was that she was always ditching her classes, constantly asking questions, had a mountainous pile of pre-written transcriptions, and darted around everywhere like the wind.

According to what Chen Ping’an had heard, what was strange about her now was that she had become very quiet, no longer asking her usual questions. Instead, she spent all of her time reading.

She still liked to ditch her lessons to wander the streets and alleys of the Great Sui Nation’s capital, and the most renowned story about her was that one day, a certain teacher at the academy had to take sick leave, and he specifically called upon Li Baoping to teach his lessons in his stead.

Twenty days later, the old teacher returned, only to discover that he had lost much of his authority. The looks in the eyes of his students were rather hurtful to him, and it seemed that all of the respect that they previously held for him had now been diverted to Li Baoping.

At the time, Chen Ping’an had been a little concerned, but Cui Dongshan reassured him that Li Baoping hadn’t done anything out of the ordinary during her time as substitute teacher, nor had she broken any rules.

Lin Shouyi was a true diamond in the rough when it came to cultivation. With just a copy of the “Recite Atop Clouds Scripture,” he had been able to make rapid progress in his cultivation, and he also had the unreserved guidance of a capable mentor at the academy. However, the two of them hadn’t officially become master and disciple.

Apparently, Lin Shouyi had also forged quite a reputation for himself in the cultivation world and the officialdom of the Great Sui Nation. As it turned out, many of the sticky rod officials of the Ministry of Justice, who were responsible for finding cultivation talents for the Great Li Empire, had already personally contacted Lin Shouyi’s father. However, Lin Shouyi’s father denied that he even had such a son.

Over these past few years, Yu Lu had been constantly consolidating his Vajra Body Tier cultivation base.

In the past, he had progressed too quickly, so consolidation was required. Furthermore, he had had a change of heart, from the former prince of a fallen nation who was just going with the flow and living life one day at a time to someone who was beginning to develop new ambitions.

He enjoyed fishing, and he had a fish basket, but he always released his catches. Clearly, he enjoyed the process of fishing much more than the tangible rewards that it could bring.

Xie Xie had been staying in the residence left behind by Cui Dongshan, focusing wholeheartedly on her cultivation. With all of the Dragon Restricting Nails removed, she had also been making rapid progress, but she had hidden it very well by keeping to herself, and also thanks to some assistance from Deputy Mountain Master Mao Xiaodong.

Li Huai had caused a lot of trouble at the academy over the past few years with his two good friends, Liu Guan and Ma Lian, but it was often the case that Liu Guan would voluntarily take the blame, while Ma Lian helped to clean up the mess. Li Huai wanted to do his part as well, but whenever he did so, it would have the opposite of the intended effect, so Liu Guan and Ma Lian didn’t even dare to let him help anymore.

When it came to studies, Li Baoping was doing the best of the five.

In terms of cultivation, Xie Xie was leading the way.

Lin Shouyi was the one with the best all-round development, keeping up with both his cultivation and his studies.

Taking things easy and going with the flow had always been Yu Lu’s strong suit. At the moment, he was slowly nurturing his fist intent, making steady improvement as he slowly honed his Vajra Body Tier physical constitution.

As for Li Huai, Cui Dongshan had awarded him the title of the luckiest man alive. After obtaining that intelligent white deer, he had been constantly adding more pieces to his collection, but he was completely oblivious to just how lucky he was. It felt like everything that fell into his lap was an exceptional treasure.

One time, he went to visit Ma Lian, and the latter gave him an entire bamboo case full of “trash,” all of which was going to complete waste, gathering dust as if they were actual pieces of trash.

“Why are you not carrying around a wine gourd anymore, Master?” Pei Qian asked.

“Life is like a gourd of wine. Thinking about certain people and events feels just like drinking wine,” Chen Ping’an replied with a smile.

Pei Qian clearly wanted to say something, but was doing everything in her power to stop herself.

“Go on then,” Chen Ping’an prompted with a smile. “What is it that you want to say?”

“I think you just don’t want to spend the money on wine!” Pei Qian blurted out in a hurry. “I have money here for you, Master. I have copper coins, scrap silver, little gold ingots, a bunch of snowflake coins, and even a lesser heat coin! You can take it all, Master!”

Chen Ping’an turned to Pei Qian, who was holding up her little money pouch with an earnest look on her face, and he smiled as he patted her on the head and said, “Keep your money for yourself. It’s not like I actually don’t have money to spend.”

Pei Qian heaved a forlorn sigh, then reluctantly tucked the little money pouch given to her by Aunt Gui up her sleeve. From there, she stood at the railing of the ship, looking out at the giant marshmallow-like sea of clouds together.

By the time the two of them arrived at the capital of the Great Sui Nation, all of the streets and alleys were already inundated by a thick blanket of snow.

Pei Qian intentionally chose to walk on the paths where the snow hadn’t been cleared, leaving behind a trail of footprints as her feet crunched into the fallen snow.

The old gatekeeper at Mountain Cliff Academy immediately recognized Chen Ping’an, and he smiled as he asked, “Long time no see, Chen Ping’an. Where’ve you gone these past few years?”

Chen Ping’an extended a respectful salute, and Pei Qian hurriedly adjusted the little bamboo bookcase on her back before doing the same. Chen Ping’an then pulled out a passport before handing it to the old man, who glanced through it briefly before smiling as he exclaimed, “You certainly like to keep yourself busy!

“Last time, it was the Parasol Leaf Continent. This time, it’s the Northern Complete Reed Continent. Where are you going next time? The Middle Earth Divine Continent?”

“I don’t have the chance to settle somewhere to read and study, so I can only grow by traveling more,” Chen Ping’an replied with a smile.

The old man nodded in response, then turned to Pei Qian as he assessed, “This little girl seems to have grown a little fairer of skin and taller since last time. Is it because she’s been attending the school back in your hometown?”

A wide smile appeared on Pei Qian’s face as she nodded vigorously and replied, “You’re clearly very wise and an exceptional judge of character, old senior! Mountain Master Mao should instate you as a teacher of the academy! If he does, Mountain Cliff Academy will start producing noble and virtuous scholars by the dozen!”

The old man burst into laughter as he asked, “Did you learn that from Chen Ping’an?”

Pei Qian immediately fell silent, unsure of how to answer this difficult question.

Chen Ping’an smiled as he gave Pei Qian a knock to the head.

Pei Qian made a note to herself to speak to the old gatekeeper as little as possible the next time during her future visits to Mountain Cliff Academy.

After entering the academy, the two of them first went to a guest room. However, Chen Ping’an hadn’t brought many things with him, so there was nothing for him to leave in the room, while Pei Qian didn’t want to leave anything behind. She wanted to show her little bamboo bookcase to Mountain Cliff Academy, her hiking pole to Big Sister Baoping, and her bamboo sword and saber to Li Huai’s trio, so not a single thing could be left behind.

Chen Ping’an told Pei Qian to go to Li Baoping’s dormitory, while he paid a visit to Mao Xiaodong.

As soon as Mao Xiaodong caught sight of Chen Ping’an, he immediately smiled and remarked, “Looks like you’ve already reached the Vajra Body Tier.”

“I made my breakthrough on Lion Peak on the Northern Complete Reed Continent,” Chen Ping’an confirmed with a nod.

“Li Huai’s father must’ve put you through some really tough training, right?” Mao Xiaodong asked with a hint of schadenfreude in his voice.

“It wasn’t too bad,” Chen Ping’an replied with a wry smile.

The two of them sat down in the study, and Mao Xiaodong didn’t waste any time as he asked, “What books have you read over these past few years? I’m going to test you to make sure that you haven’t completely abandoned your studies for cultivation.”

Chen Ping’an pulled out a stack of books from his minimization treasure before setting them down on his lap, then rattled off a long list of book titles. Some of the books that he had brought with him were ones that Cui Dongshan had previously borrowed from Mountain Cliff Academy, and they had to be returned.

However, Downtrodden Mountain had already purchased two sets of the same books, one to be kept as part of a prized collection, while the other set was for Chen Ping’an to read through and annotate as he saw fit.

“Why are the books so varied and haphazard?” Mao Xiaodong asked with slightly furrowed brows.

“At times, I encountered mental hurdles that I was unable to overcome with strategies that had never failed in the past. As a result, I realized that it wasn’t because the principles I had learned were bad. Instead, I simply didn’t have a sufficient base of knowledge to help me overcome those hurdles,” Chen Ping’an explained.

Mao Xiaodong’s brows slowly unfurrowed as he praised, “Very good. In that case, there’s no need for me to test you.”

Chen Ping’an asked about how Li Baoping and the others had been doing over the past few years, and Mao Xiaodong provided a concise response that only focused on the important details. Chen Ping’an could tell that the deputy mountain master was overall quite pleased with the five children. However, he had also issued some minor gripes against them, much like a senior would complain about their juniors.

For example, Li Baoping had to change her personality. As she was now, she was far too quiet and withdrawn, and as a result, she wasn’t as adorable as she once was. Lin Shouyi’s cultivation was going too smoothly, and Mao Xiaodong was worried that he would abandon his studies altogether someday to focus solely on cultivation.

Yu Lu had a very good understanding of the sagely Confucian texts, but deep down, he wasn’t as fond of Legalist teachings as Mao Xiaodong was, but that wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. Xie Xie had never been all that dedicated to her studies, and that was not ideal. She was far too fixated on progressing in her cultivation, virtually constantly cultivating day and night without rest.

Even in the classroom, her mind was still on her cultivation, as if she wanted to make up for all of the lost time that she felt like she had wasted over these past few years. The problem was that her fixation on quick progress was bound to come with certain detrimental effects; her rapid progress now would likely turn into complete stagnation at some point down the line.

As for Li Huai, he was the one whom Mao Xiaodong was least concerned about, simply declaring that the boy was doing quite well.

Chen Ping’an rested his hands on the books on his lap as he said in a sincere and earnest manner, “Your way of educating others is very reminiscent of the Scholarly Sage, Mountain Master Mao.”

“Hardly,” Mao Xiaodong hurriedly denied. “I am nowhere near on the same level.”

Chen Ping’an smiled as he set the books down onto the desk, then stood up and prepared to depart.

Mao Xiaodong also rose to his feet, but he refused to accept the books as he said, “Take them with you. I’ll restock the academy’s scripture library out of my own pocket. These books will serve as my congratulatory gift for the establishment of the Downtrodden Mountain’s ancestral hall.”

Chen Ping’an didn’t refuse as he stowed the books back into his minimization treasure.

Following Chen Ping’an’s departure, Mao Xiaodong pressed down onto the corners of his own lips, trying not to smile too widely.

Even though it was winter, meeting with Chen Ping’an had felt like basking in a warm spring breeze.

Chen Ping’an made his way to Li Baoping’s dormitory, where she and Pei Qian were chatting excitedly with one another.

Li Baoping was no longer the “Little” Baoping of old. She was still wearing the same red jacket, which would’ve appeared rather tacky on just about anyone else, but it suited her perfectly.

She had grown tall and slender, with a pointed chin and a set of tranquil facial features. However, the smile on her face was still as familiar as ever, and her beautiful and expressive eyes were still capable of speaking, but seemed to have also gained the ability to hide certain things.

Li Baoping quickly strode over to Chen Ping’an upon catching sight of him, and it seemed like she didn’t quite know what to say.

A slightly forlorn smile appeared on Chen Ping’an’s face as he asked, “You’re not going to call me junior uncle anymore?”

How had the little girl with the round face and the large eyes become all grown-up all of a sudden?

A wide smile appeared on Li Baoping’s face as she yelled loudly, “Junior Uncle!”

She had finally reverted to the little girl of old.

“Don’t think too much about certain things, and certainly don’t worry about causing trouble for me. Just follow your heart and don’t worry about anything else,” Chen Ping’an reassured, and Li Baoping nodded with a vibrant smile.

Chen Ping’an then suggested that they go sit down together in the guest room, a proposal that had Pei Qian rather confused. Why did he want to go all the way back to the guest room when Big Sister Baoping’s dormitory was right there?

However, Li Baoping didn’t raise any objections.

She interlaced her fingers behind herself as she walked backward in front of Chen Ping’an and asked, “Do you know how many days it’s been since we last met, Junior Uncle?”

“It’s been quite a few years,” Chen Ping’an replied with a smile.

Pei Qian loudly reported an exact number.

This was one of her strong suits, in addition to memorizing book passages and directions.

Upon reaching the guest room, Pei Qian volunteered to go and fetch Li Huai. Chen Ping’an smiled and gave her the approval to go, but he told her to take Li Huai straight to Xie Xie’s residence, which was more spacious.

Pei Qian immediately departed like the wind.

“Do you have any wine on you, Junior Uncle?” Li Baoping asked in a quiet voice.

“You want to drink wine?” Chen Ping’an asked with a surprised expression.

“I drink a little in secret here and there,” Li Baoping admitted with a nod and a smile.

Chen Ping’an hesitated momentarily, then pulled out a flagon of rice wine brewed by Dong Shuijing before filling a pair of small bowls as he cautioned, “I’m not saying you can’t drink, but make sure you do it in moderation.”

Li Baoping picked up her bowl before taking a sip, then remarked, “It tastes like home.”

Chen Ping’an also began sipping on his wine as he told Li Baoping about his meeting with Li Xisheng in the Northern Complete Reed Continent’s Sweet Wormwood Nation.

After listening to his story, Li Baoping cupped her bowl with both hands as she nodded and said, “It’s a real pain exchanging letters with my big brother. If I write a letter to him, I have to send it home from the academy, where my grandfather would send it to an immortal power on the Northern Complete Reed Continent, and only then would the letter be sent to Cave Immortal Street.”