Stealthily cultivating in the chaotic world of demons and martial artists
Chapter 928 - 784: Magical Battle (Extra - , Requesting Monthly Votes)

Chapter 928: Chapter 784: Magical Battle (Extra Chapter, Requesting Monthly Votes)

The golden autumn brings coolness.

Near Bai Gan Village, acres of rice paddy fields shimmered with a golden hue.

Bountiful crops were everywhere, and the joy of harvest filled the air amongst the farmers.

Under the peach blossom tree, Fang Xi looked up at the peaches that had turned from green to a blush of white and red, silently calculating when he could enjoy the ripe fruit.

Although as a great cultivator in the late stages of Returning to Emptiness, thinking about eating peaches seemed quite idle.

But it didn’t matter.

As one who sought Long Life, Fang Xi had long grown accustomed to such.

He was in no hurry to stir up trouble and instead waited silently.

For instance, at this moment, in addition to waiting for the peaches to ripen, he had other harvests to look forward to.

"Gan Yu pays respects to Master!"

A young man walked through the door, his clothes washed to a near-white, with slightly hollow eyes, seeming to have not slept well for a long time.

"Ah, Yu..."

Fang Xi greeted, "If you had come a few days later, these peaches would have been perfectly ripe..."

Gan Yu looked up at the heavily fruiting peach tree, but only managed a wry smile as he bowed, pulling out three copies of the Taoism Scripture from his bosom, "Here, I return the books I borrowed from the Master the other day..."

In these days, Gan Yu had been studying almost desperately.

Not only did he read books borrowed from Fang Xi, he even went to large households nearby to help transcribe their books and took the chance to read other volumes of the Taoism Scripture.

Plus, there was farming to be done at home, and the recent harvest season made it a particularly busy time.

By the end of all these tasks, even though Gan Yu had been enlightened and consumed power-enhancing spiritual objects, he was still completely worn out.

In Fang Xi’s view, if Gan Yu were still the frail young man he used to be, he’d probably have worked himself to death by now!

But the current Gan Yu, although exhausted, had bright and lively eyes, and he had wisps of literary energy swirling above his head, nearly manifesting into something tangible.

With such a showing, it was highly likely that he would pass his upcoming examination.

"After you return, Yu, you’ll need to prepare for the autumn trial, right? Have you got your travel funds ready?" Fang Xi asked leisurely.

"Not yet... I am planning to borrow some from the clan."

Gan Yu replied honestly.

Having found a job transcribing texts, thanks to the good handwriting he had honed through rigorous practice post-transformation, he wasn’t able to charge for the books he borrowed.

Now, even after the harvest and paying taxes, there was scarcely anything left after ensuring enough food for his family.

Moreover, that old hen had been long gone... His home was nearly bare.

Fortunately, with the Strong Clan Tradition, when Gan Yu decided to take the Imperial Examination, it was natural for the clan to chip in and support him with some silver.

"Hmm... What is the meaning of ’Dao mixed with Primordial Energy’?"

Fang Xi took back the Taoism Scripture and suddenly asked.

"Primordial Energy before division is chaotic oneness, the beginning of all energy..."

Gan Yu answered without hesitation.

Fang Xi asked a few more questions about the Scripture, and Gan Yu answered each smoothly. Fang Xi nodded with satisfaction, "With such a foundation, you shouldn’t have trouble with the Exam for Adolescents, but high marks are not guaranteed without the right fate..."

Speaking of fate, Gan Yu thought of the Well Dragon King and a chill ran through his heart.

He was risking everything on this, and if the Well Dragon King came to know of it, he would surely sabotage Gan Yu’s chances!

The two were locked in an inescapable vendetta.

And the thought of those mad examinees in the Tribute Academy every year during the examination made Gan Yu shudder.

"Please teach me, Master!"

Gan Yu lifted his robe’s hem and bowed deeply.

Being invested in was not a disgrace; the disgrace was in not having any value to be invested in!

He was very clear about this.

"Although I don’t have any official title, I do understand a thing or two about the Imperial Examination. They say it’s easy to fight with the king of hell but tough to deal with his underlings... When you go to the county office to register, enter, and arrange your seating, you’ll need to take care of the various scribes; otherwise, one might even be assigned to a ’toilet seat’... Given the decline of the Gan family, I’m afraid there won’t be much money to gather."

Fang Xi reached into his sleeve, pulled out several pieces of Silver Light glistening coins, and placed them on the desk.

These coins with their outer circle and square hole were actually cast from alloyed silver and bore the carved characters ’Attract Wealth and Treasure’ on the face.

"You’ve attained the necessary knowledge, and it would be a pity if you don’t pass the examination. I will therefore support you with nine silver coins," Fang Xi said.

In this world, copper coins were most commonly in circulation, followed by a silver-based currency similar to copper coins, where one silver coin could exchange for a thousand copper coins.

Above the silver coin, there was the gold coin, with one gold coin worth a hundred silver coins!

The value of these nine silver coins was quite high, enough for a regular family’s expenses for several years.

Fang Xi didn’t give too much, though he could easily offer a fortune, as that wouldn’t be fitting for a teacher’s role.

"Thank you, Master."

Gan Yu didn’t say much, carefully put away the nine silver coins, and bowed, "For this immense favor, I shall repay with a thousandfold when I can!"

Internally, he was resolved to make good use of the money at the City God Temple or a Taoist Temple in the county town.

Compared to being assigned to a toilet seat, Gan Yu was confident about passing the examination.

But if he encountered the revenge-seeking Well Dragon King, all bets were off.

The silver coins would need to be used where they mattered most!

...

The following day.

Gan Yu, with a bundle sewn with dense stitches on her back, bid tearful farewell to her elderly mother and hurried to the county town.

Although Bai Gan Village was just a few dozen miles from the county city, the mountain road twisted and turned, and there was a river to cross, so she had to set out early.

Gan Yu had agreed with a peddler from the village to travel together, so they would have each other’s company along the way.

Half a day later, she parted ways with the peddler and arrived at a dock, where several black-awning boats were moored at the shore. The boatmaster was beckoning for business with a smile, "Is the scholar here to go to the county town? My boat, Old Li’s, is the steadiest of all, and it’s only one copper coin per trip, livestock extra..."

"Indeed."

Gan Yu took out a copper coin from her sleeve, boarded the boat, found a corner to settle down in, and held the bundle tight in her arms.

Whoo whiz!

A gentle breeze blew, causing ripples on the surface of the river.

Dark clouds began to appear in the sky, looking like rain was on its way.

"This rain comes without warning..."

The boatmaster put on a straw raincoat and donned a bamboo hat, then took up the bamboo pole.

The black-awning boat slowly drifted away from the riverbank, and wisps of raindrop hit the river, creating a misty and dreamlike scene.

For some unknown reason, Gan Yu’s heart suddenly began to race, filled with panic.

Splash!

She looked out over the lake, feeling as though a huge shadow had just swept by...

...

At the bottom of the river.

A pitch-black loach with a slender body, easily several zhang in length, appeared somewhat ethereal.

At this moment, it was staring ahead, actually speaking human words, "Zhang Youde, you would obstruct me?"

"Alas..."

In front of the Well Dragon King, it turned out to be Zhang Youde, the Earth God from Bai Gan Village.

The old man furrowed his brows, holding a peach wood staff, and shouted, "This old one knows of your grievances... The City God’s inspection is drawing near, and there’s a deadline to resolve the case. Both literary and martial judges are helpless, and they used you as a scapegoat simply to save face... Everyone knows you’ve been wronged, and that’s why they allowed you to assume your loach form, as long as you return to the well, your previous sins would be wiped clean!"

"It started with this old one, so I cannot ignore it!"

"I only beseech the Dragon King to show mercy and spare Gan Yu this once. Let’s wait until the imperial examination results are announced, what say you?"

"Wait?" The giant loach scoffed coldly, "It’s extremely difficult for us spirits to awaken our spiritual wisdom, and even harder to stay committed to the righteous path, to cultivate virtue through hardship in hopes of some good karma. Countless demons don’t abide by Taoist laws and are directly struck dead by heavenly thunder... I have devoted myself to cultivating for hundreds of years for this minor position of Well Dragon King, and have saved numerous drowning victims, yet today, because of this one person, all is lost... Unless this person dies, the hatred in my heart will not be quelled!"

These two opposing Yin Souls did not notice that on the riverbed’s muddy bottom, a Black Fish Puppet was quietly observing everything.

Underneath the Peach Blossom Tree, Fang Xi’s Divine Consciousness stirred, and he touched his chin, "Strictly speaking, this seems to be my fault..."

"It seems like the rain was triggered by my movement of Heaven and Earth Primordial Energy, which was then discovered and reported by this Earth God..."

"As a result, the City God, a muddleheaded official, used the poor Well Dragon King to boost his performance..."

"This entanglement of causes and effects truly links one to another; once caught in the net, it’s hard to escape..."

As Fang Xi was reflecting, two low-level gods had already started to fight.

The loach wielded the power of water elements, turning it into undercurrents, clearly at an advantage in the river.

On the other hand, Zhang Youde, as an Earth God, could only brace himself behind a yellowish shield of light, struggling to sustain it.

"Hmph!"

The Well Dragon King spat out a stream of black liquid.

It was a concentration of Heavy Water he had refined over a century.

When sprayed, it immediately turned into a huge black net, ensnaring Zhang Youde within it.

Seeing this, the Well Dragon King sneered and started to swim towards the black-awning boat.

If they overturned the boat and caused both destruction and death, more than just Gan Yu would die.

Zhang Youde, upon witnessing this, became extremely anxious.

If only Gan Yu died, it really wouldn’t matter much, but if many more died, he might just be reprimanded at the City God Temple.

Instantly, his hand shimmered, and a yellowish sphere appeared.

Within the sphere of yellowish light, clouds swirled and a landscape of a mountain village faintly appeared, which was none other than Bai Gan Village!

A flash of yellow light tore through the giant net of black water, opening a substantial gap.

Crash!

The yellowish sphere flew out, instantly becoming as heavy as a thousand catties, slamming into the Well Dragon King.

"The power of the Godhood Position..."

The Well Dragon King cried out in pain and let out a heart-wrenching howl, "You old fool... I’ll see how long you can protect that person!"

In pain, he no longer cared about Gan Yu and transformed into a black shadow, swiftly fleeing.

"Phew... Luckily he left, this place is not Bai Gan Village, divine power is hard to replenish here, if he had realized and continued, this old one would have been in a lot of trouble."

Zhang Youde immediately breathed a sigh of relief, quickly gathering up his yellowish sphere talisman, and only after he saw that the black-awning boat had reached the shore, did he turn into a yellow light and depart.

...

In the distance, in front of the Well Dragon King, a Black Fish darted out of the mud, wagging its tail.

"Courting death!"

The Well Dragon King, overcome with rage, lashed out with his tail.

Though now just a Yin Soul, killing mundane creatures hardly drained any of his Magic Power.

But the next moment, the Black Fish opened its mouth and spewed out a dark flag!

With talismans appearing on the flag, turning into chains, it instantly ensnared the Well Dragon King, swallowing him into the flag, vanishing without a trace...

For Fang Xi, a major figure on the Demon Path, casting spells and summoning a Yin Soul equivalent to a Qi Refining Cultivator was as easy as flipping his hand.