The Blade-Wielding Legend
Chapter 233 - 164: New Year’s Eve

Chapter 233: Chapter 164: New Year’s Eve

"This grand event is no small matter!"

"At Hua Mountain, opening cellars, the God Drum King’s Grand Assembly, comparing the Divine Towers in the Lantern Festival..."

Manager Wan’s voice was a bit excited, his tone hoarse as he said, "Although I am from the Mystical Sect and have made a name for myself crafting drums and refining artifacts over my lifetime, I have ultimately been confined to Xianyang and haven’t roamed the four corners of the earth."

"When I was young, I also wanted to travel everywhere and make a name for our craftsmanship, but I’ve always depended on you and didn’t dare to leave..."

"Such a grand event of the Mystical Sect probably won’t come again in this lifetime. What I seek is not just the spot in the competition, but also to be willful for once and to fight for pride against others!"

Having said this, he bowed deeply with clasped hands.

"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for your hard work..."

"Manager Wan is right!"

"Exactly, if not for a steamed bun, at least for some pride!"

The people in the courtyard immediately burst into applause and cheered.

Seeing that the momentum was building and everyone was united, Manager Wan immediately began to assign tasks.

The competition for the Divine Tower was not that simple.

After the Divine Tower was constructed, it needed to be blessed and consecrated. For this task, Manager Wan specifically invited Qingyangzi, the temple priest from the City God Temple in Xianyang City to preside...

There were particular nuances to carrying the Divine Tower.

The Divine Tower, also known as "Playing with the Divine Tower" or "Playing with Master’s Frame," had to be steady as well as rhythmic. If they encountered the unrighteous or bullies who threw their weight around, they still had to carry the Divine Tower and collide with their doors, breaking through in order to urge them to reform.

Simply put, there might still be a need to use fists and kicks.

Additionally, there were the Huayin Old Theatrical Troupe and the Qin Han Drum Band from Xianyang, who needed to coordinate well with the team carrying the Divine Tower and rehearse for various scenarios.

There were responsibilities both inside and out.

Even Manager Wan, an experienced old hand of the pugilistic world, was so busy that he barely touched the ground, his throat smoking, not even managing to take a sip of water.

Fortunately, Li Yan’s tasks were relatively simple.

At the time, he was to use the Divine Drum to accompany them, intimidating all directions with the Cloud Thunder Divine Drum at every key moment.

He was already familiar with the ancient melodies of Qin and Han; after rehearsing a few times for good coordination, it was fine.

After the tasks were distributed, Li Yan did not stay much longer. He left and, taking Zhao Lvzi with him, headed to Pingkang Square.

Zhao Lvzi did not enter family homes, nor did he go to taverns, but he had already thought of a place to host on the road...

...

Outside the city, the ruins of the Great Ming Palace.

After a blizzard, the sky had cleared.

The ruined palaces covered in snow were mostly buried, except for two side-halls that still stood, shabby but able to provide some shelter from the wind and rain.

Now that night had fallen, the moon was bright and clear, its light shining across the vast expanse of snow as bright as day, making the patchy ancient relics appear even more desolate and time-worn.

Outside the door of the ruined palace, a bonfire blazed.

"Ha ha ha!"

After a swig of Xifeng liquor, Li Yan laughed heartily, "Brother Zhao, with the way you’re going about things, which girl would dare marry you?"

Zhao Lvzi was certainly an interesting character.

Having saved enough money, he had planned to get married this year and entrusted a matchmaker in Xianyang City to find a suitable wife.

But his requirements were indeed a bit peculiar.

Firstly, she would need to be able to endure hardship, willing to stay with him in the Mountain God Temple and tolerate that solitary, monotonous life...

Secondly, she would need some skills since he would take his wife with him on treasure-hunting expeditions in the future. Being too weak to truss a chicken, she might not last long in the wilderness...

As for money and the betrothal gifts, they were negotiable.

Li Yan joked, "Money is meant to be spent. No matter how much money you have, if the girl has nowhere to spend it, what use is it?"

"Indeed, some girls are willing to help out their families and would stay with you in the wilderness, but still having skills, that’s asking too much, isn’t it?"

Zhao Lvzi scratched his head, "That’s what the matchmaker said too."

"But that’s the rule of my family. The incense must continue, and the rules can’t be discarded. If I can’t uphold the rules, within three generations, our lineage will be lost."

"Our inherited skills can only be perfected in the mountains. Having seen the captivating world of the city, I’m afraid there aren’t many who would still endure the hardship..."

"That’s true."

Li Yan sighed, agreeing.

He had seen the techniques of those Hidden Treasure Men who secluded themselves in the mountains; Divine Skills, Dao cultivation, and even scholarship were secondary. The flavor of being one with the mountain and the wild was fundamental.

Moreover, as the Heavenly Dao turns, the environment in the mountains and fields changes too. These tiny changes are meticulously recorded by those in the Hidden Treasure lineage, and are also among the techniques they use to locate Heavenly Spirit Earth Treasures.

The mundane world confuses the heart, the splendid world dazzles the eyes.

It was because of the perseverance of people like Zhao Lvzi that some ancient and unique inheritances could be passed down to this day.

The two continued to drink and chat at leisure.

Li Yan trusted Zhao Lvzi extremely and did not hide certain things from him, "Brother Zhao, there’s something I need to warn you about. The court has come up with new weaponry, and the times may change."

"If you encounter them, you must avoid them..."

As he said this, he shared what he had seen.

"Gunpowder, the Li family?"

Zhao Lvzi scratched his head, "Hearing you mention this, I remember something related to the Li family."

"Over at Divine Wood Fortress in Yulin, a coal mine was suddenly taken over by the Li family a while ago. The nearby villagers were not allowed to leave their homes, and the surrounding mountains were guarded by garrison soldiers, prohibiting anyone from getting close."

Li Yan pondered, "In that case, keep your distance. The Li family is now in full swing in Shan State. We people of the pugilistic world are just trying to make a living; there’s no need to provoke them."

"Also, what are you doing over there? Could there be a Heavenly Spirit Earth Treasure?"

"Hmm, I discovered this."

Zhao Lvzi spoke as he took several items out of his chest.

They were black little objects, no larger than a thumb, oval-shaped with a shell in the middle and layers beside it.

Is this... a trilobite?!

Li Yan watched, his eyes wide and his mouth agape.

In his past life, he had seen trilobite fossils, but the one before him was entirely different, as if carbonized, and only the size of a coin, resembling a black gemstone.

Curious, he couldn’t help but pick one up.

In an instant, a stream of fortune was absorbed by the Daluo Dharma Body.

The quantity was small, yet it surprised him.

To absorb fortune from a Heavenly Spirit Earth Treasure, there were conditions.

Troubled Heavenly Spirit Earth Treasures wouldn’t work, because the fortune would scatter, degrading into mundane items.

Those that had already been collected, turning into refining materials, didn’t work either, because the fortune within would quickly settle and integrate with the material.

Only those Heavenly Spirit Earth Treasures still in gestation would do.

And yet, could fortune still be absorbed from this thing?

"What is this?"

Holding the trilobite fossil, Li Yan closely examined it and asked.

"This thing is called coal spirit."

Zhao Lvzi took a sip of wine, wiped his mouth, and said with a smile, "Such Heavenly Spirit Earth Treasures are not uncommon, often gestating in coal mines."

"Sometimes, they emerge from the ground, transforming and illuminating their behinds, just like fireflies, wandering on the mountains at night. They are incredibly sensitive, burrowing swiftly underground when a living person approaches."

"Moreover, when they scatter their fortune and meet their end, they explode. Some Hidden Treasure Men have been blown to death by them, so few common folks know about this."

"As long as you find this, there must be a large coal field nearby."

"This stuff is abundant and not worth much money, but when ground into powder, it can double the intensity of fire. The Taixuan Orthodox Sect’s Thunder Fire Pills are mixed with this material. When I occasionally find it, I sell it to the Taixuan Orthodox Sect."

"Some time ago, a deal came my way; someone was willing to pay a high price for me to locate this stuff, I only had to tell them the whereabouts."

"I had already discovered the area around Divine Wood Fort, so I sold the information to them, but it wasn’t long before these people came back, frustrated and angry, claiming that the place had already been taken by others. That’s when I knew the Li family had already staked out the land..."

After listening, Li Yan frowned slightly, "Don’t deal with those people anymore; their origins are unclear, and this thing could be related to new gunpowder formulas. If something goes wrong, you could be implicated."

"Mm."

Zhao Lvzi nodded, "Those people are indeed a bit strange. The next time they look for me, I’ll just say I didn’t find anything."

Li Yan nodded, his heart stirred, and smiled, "Brother Zhao, if you find any Heavenly Spirit Earth Treasures in the future, just tell me directly."

"I won’t shortchange you for the price, and it saves you the trouble of dealing with outsiders and having to guard against being cheated."

"Alright."

Zhao Lvzi agreed without hesitation, but then shook his head, "However, Brother Li, if you’re looking for treasures, the Guanzhong area is not easy work."

"It used to be near the Dragon Vein of Qinling, where Heavenly Spirit Earth Treasures were plentiful, but since the Qin and Han dynasties, a large number of Fang Xian Dao and Hidden Treasure Men have been active. Any trace of treasures would instantly be taken by others."

"Even today, finding some spirit wood is difficult."

"On the contrary, the lineage who plunders tombs, the ’soul scourers,’ has outgrown my ’mountain herders,’ producing many skilled individuals, after all, a lot of good things are buried in underground tombs, and after a long time, they become Heavenly Spirit Earth Treasures."

"But engaging in such activities is too risky. I often hear of a lineage that has just flourished, but in the blink of an eye, they all fall in the tombs, with no one coming out..."

"Brother Li, have you heard of the Magic Veins of Li Mountain?"

"Mm, I’ve dealt with them."

"Not only do they guard the mausoleum for Emperor Qin, but they also have a mission to oversee all the tombs in Guanzhong. As soon as they find the ’soul scourers’ robbing a tomb, they will take action, and the two sides often fight to the death..."

Like the last time, the two men enjoyed meat and wine by the bonfire under the stars, recounting those wondrous tales.

Zhao Lvzi shared the various experiences and legends of the Hidden Treasure Men.

Li Yan, not stingy with his words, talked about some of the sights and knowledge from his previous life, like the "coal spirit," which was actually an ancient fossil.

This was why he liked Zhao Lvzi.

The young man was taciturn and difficult to deal with when not familiar, but in truth, he was simple, sincere, and resembled those naturalists who spent years in the wilderness in his former life.

He pursued hidden treasures only to sustain a living, but more often, he was like a child full of curiosity, chasing after ancient mysteries in the mountains and fields.

Brother Zhao was, in essence, a true Dao Seeker.

Unknowingly, the bonfire died, and the sky gradually brightened.

"Brother Li, I’m leaving."

Zhao Lvzi stood up, cupped his fists, and prepared to leave.

Li Yan, feeling rushed, quickly said, "Why the hurry? This festive season, all alone on the mountain, why not come and spend the new year at my place?"

"No, thanks."

Zhao Lvzi grinned sheepishly, "Nearby there are many Mountain God Temples empty, with no one to worship during the new year."

"When my lineage of mountain herders flourished, we were the ones who conducted these activities. Now, with fewer and fewer people, if I don’t go, no one will..."

Saying this, he cupped his hands, "Brother Li, have a good New Year."

"Brother Zhao, have a good New Year."

Li Yan responded with a formal gesture as well, then watched as Zhao Lvzi shouldered his pack and strode away, his figure fading into the distance...

......

Time flowed like water, and before they knew it, New Year’s Eve had arrived.

The shops big and small on the streets had already closed, with few passersby. Nearly every household was bustling with activity, even the unruly scions from the city streets of Chang’an had to return home for a family dinner.

In the empty skies, the occasional sound of firecrackers echoed.

In front of the Ancestor Master Altar of the Western Mystical Sect, Wang Daoxuan was dressed in a brand new Daoist robe, reverently purifying the altar, arranging the offerings, and lighting incense for worship.

Besides that, Li Yan and Sha Lifei had also set up a shrine for their ancestors, with a little couplet that read, "Bow thrice at dawn and dusk, offer incense morning and evening."

According to tradition, one should rise early and pay homage at the ancestors’ graves, but since the three of them were strangers in Chang’an, they were excused from this outing.

After Li Yan pasted the couplets, he went to prepare the New Year’s Eve dinner.

As for Sha Lifei, he swept the courtyard and piled up some cypress in the yard.

As night fell and firecrackers burst, the cypress piles in each household were lit, and amidst the blazing flames, the three raised their cups in hearty toasts.

From the high sky looking down, in Chang’an, courtyards twinkled with firelight, illuminating this long night...