Unsheathed

Chapter 372 (1): Sword Immortal Sword

Chapter 372 (1): Sword Immortal Sword

It was the fifteenth day of the first month, the day of the Lantern Festival.

All of the households in Old Dragon City had hung up festive red lanterns, and the streets and alleys were packed with people. In accordance with the customs and traditions of the city, each of the five major clans crafted a long dragon of lanterns, which they paraded out on the streets. If one were to look down at Old Dragon City from the sea of clouds up above, they would see five fiery dragons roaming along set routes.

Chen Ping'an asked the four picture scroll martial artists to accompany Pei Qian out to see the lanterns, while the Zhao Clan yin soul followed them in secret in case of any mishaps.

Meanwhile, he and Zheng Dafeng remained in the shop, standing over at the counter. The two of them prepared a flagon of wine, two small porcelain wine cups, and a few dishes of snacks.

Zheng Dafeng was still behaving rather strangely, and prior to taking a sip of his wine, he pulled out a willow branch and placed it against the doors of Dust Medicinal Shop, then also set down a bowl and a pair of chopsticks outside the doorstep.

Chen Ping'an took a glance at his handiwork, then asked, "Is that an offering to the gods or to any wandering spirits that may be passing by?"

"It's a tradition passed down by the old man," Zheng Dafeng explained with a smile. "As for exactly why this tradition is observed, the old man never told us. As his disciples, we simply carried out his instructions without asking why. There are no wandering spirits or demonic entities in Old Dragon City.

“With so many Qi refiners in the city, the yang energy here is far too abundant. Even if some wandering spirits do somehow show up nearby, they wouldn't dare to approach our shop as long as Old Man Zhao is here. With the exception of those that have completely lost their minds, most spirits are far more polite and respectful of rules than us people."

Chen Ping'an nodded in response as he took a sip of wine. It was the same osmanthus wine that had been brought to the shop by the people from the Fan Clan.

All of a sudden, he declared, "I'm planning to go to Fan Junmao tomorrow to ask for her help in refining my first bonded item on the sea of clouds. If I'm successful, then I'll leave Old Dragon City and travel northward. The Scholarly Sage said that I can go anywhere from here onward without any qualms, but after thinking about it, there doesn't seem to be anything important that I need to do right now.

“Hence, I'll follow Senior Yang's instructions and refrain from returning to the Dragon Spring Prefecture for now. I'm planning to visit about three or four places on Eastern Treasured Vial Continent, which should take me over a year in total, and once I'm done, it'll be about time for me to return to Dragon Spring Prefecture."

Zheng Dafeng was leaning against the counter as he cast his gaze toward the alley outside the shop, and he casually asked, "Have you ever considered establishing your own sect in Dragon Spring Prefecture?"

Chen Ping'an shook his head in response.

"I can tell that establishing a sect is an extremely troublesome task just from seeing the lengths that Master Ruan had to go to. Besides, what right do I have to establish a sect of my own?"

Zheng Dafeng took a small sip of wine, and a blissful look appeared on his face. It was only a small sip of osmanthus wine, yet it seemed that he was deriving as much enjoyment out of this single sip as someone else would from drinking several large jars of fine wine.

A faint smile appeared on his face as he said, "If we can recover the mountains on the western side of Dragon Spring Prefecture one after another to own around a dozen connected mountains, then that would establish a spiritual energy foundation of a sufficient caliber to found an immortal sect.

“However, it won't be an easy task to get those powers to concede ownership of those mountains. The Great Li Empire was only willing to sell those mountains for such low prices in order to appease the immortal powers in the area. If it wasn't for your ties with Ruan Qiong, you wouldn't have even been able to purchase True Jewel Mountain, much less Downtrodden Mountain."

Chen Ping'an nodded earnestly in agreement.

Even though Jewel Small World wasn't renowned for its abundance of spiritual energy, for the average Golden Core or Nascent Tier cultivator, to be able to own Downtrodden Mountain and establish an abode there would be nothing short of a dream-come-true.

Despite what he had said about how troublesome it was to establish a sect, Chen Ping'an was very much hoping that he would be able to found a sect of his own someday. In fact, he had even already thought of the types of people and features that he wanted to have in his sect. Otherwise, he wouldn't have asked the old Heavenly Lord of Peace and Tranquility Mountain about how much it would cost to purchase a mountain-protection formation.

Zhong Kui had told Chen Ping'an the story of the old Heavenly Lord of Peace and Tranquility Mountain revealing his Golden Dao Manifestation to pursue the sword-carrying white ape while wielding his Radiant Moon Mirror and his three swords, and Chen Ping'an also aspired to reach those heights someday.

All of the sudden, the old man with the title of Foot-Long Spear appeared at the entrance of Dust Medicinal Shop, and he strode into the shop with a smile on his face as he declared, "From the looks of it, you're about to leave Old Dragon City soon, right, Chen Ping'an? Before you go, there's something I'd like to discuss with you."

Chen Ping'an rose to his feet, then set down his cup and chopsticks as he prompted with a smile, "Go ahead, Senior."

The old man gestured for Chen Ping'an to continue with his meal, then made his way over to the counter and picked up a few fried peanuts, tossing them into his own mouth.

After a brief silence, he said, "What I want to ask of you may be a little unreasonable, perhaps even slightly offensive, but when fate comes calling, its call must be answered. Otherwise, once we part ways here, we may never see each other again. There's no way that I can word this delicately, so I'm just going to be straightforward and say what's on my mind.

He then immediately realized that he had misspoken, and a sheepish smile appeared on his face.

Everyone was aware of the value and worth of an eighth-tier martial artist.

Even in the most powerful mortal empires on Eastern Treasured Vial Continent, a single eighth-tier martial artist would be a transcendent being that could decide the fate of an entire empire.

The old man was very curious about why Chen Ping'an would agree to something like this, but he decided not to ask in case Chen Ping'an changed his mind.

As the old man stood up to depart, Zheng Dafeng escorted him out of the shop, telling Chen Ping'an that he was going out to get some fresh air.

They made their way over to the old locust tree on the street outside the alley, and even though it was already nighttime, all of the lanterns in the city ensured that it was still as bright as day.

The old man and Zheng Dafeng stood under the tree together, and the former asked, "Why didn't Chen Ping'an ask me about my true identity and what compensation I'm willing to give him in exchange for Sui Youbian?"

"He's the type of person that would only ask those questions if Sui Youbian agreed to go with you," Zheng Dafeng replied.

A self-deprecating look appeared on the old man's face as he sighed, "You and I are still far too materialistic. Chen Ping'an is a far better person than us."

Zheng Dafeng looked out at the lively and bustling streets as he said in an indifferent manner, "Good people often end up getting the short end of the stick."

"That is indeed true," the old man sighed as a sober look appeared on his face.

After a brief silence, the old man asked, "What are your plans from here onward, Brother Dafeng?"

"I'm nothing but a cripple now, so I'm planning to return to my roots and go back to continue serving as a gatekeeper," Zheng Dafeng replied.

"How about you come to my sect? I can't promise too much, but I can guarantee that you won't be wanting for fine wine, delicious food, and beautiful women. You know how I am by now, I'll definitely come to you regularly just to chat, so you won't be bored, either," the old man invited.

"I don't want to owe you such a big favor, and I no longer have the heart to make such a long journey," Zheng Dafeng replied with a shake of his head.

"Don't be so pessimistic," the old man consoled as he patted Zheng Dafeng on the shoulder. "There are no insurmountable hurdles in life."

Zheng Dafeng couldn't help but roll his eyes upon hearing this.

"You're an Upper Five Tiers Qi refiner who's still shameless enough to be freeloading food and wine, yet you're telling me, a cripple, to be more optimistic? Do you not feel embarrassed."

"I thought I had hid my cultivation base very well, but you were still able to see through my identity as a glorious Upper Five Tiers immortal. Looks like I can hide my cultivation base all I want, but my aura of majesty will always expose me," the old man sighed.

Zheng Dafeng turned to the old man with an exasperated expression as he asked, "There must be countless people in your sect that are lining up to beat you up!"

"Not at all," the old man denied with a shake of his head. "During my younger days, I was very popular among my junior and senior sisters thanks to my good looks, and whenever any trouble came my way, all of them would clamber over each other to help me. As I grew older, I came to realize that it was not good to revel in the company of women all day, so I began focusing more on my cultivation, and I made rapid progress.

“Hence, the elders of my sect held me in very high regard and were very protective of me. Now that I'm an old man, I've already reached the pinnacle of the cultivation world, and no one can touch me anymore."

Zheng Dafeng patted the old man on the shoulder as he said, "You're very lucky not to have grown up in my hometown. Otherwise, you would've had some humility pummeled into you long ago."

The old man merely smiled in response, then murmured to himself, "If Sui Youbian really does agree to join my sect, then I have to think carefully about what I'm going to give her as a welcome present, and I also have to think about what I should give to Chen Ping'an for his willingness to let her go."

"Why don't you give Sui Youbian a celestial tool?" Zheng Dafeng jibed.

"I can't do that," the old man chuckled. "There's no way I would give her something so precious before she reaches at least the Unpolished Jade Tier. Even then, she'll have to agree to protect my sect for at least three hundred years. Otherwise, I wouldn't be able to bear parting with such a precious treasure."